My fundie nightmare (totally worth the read)

[flyawaystray]

I want to share my fundie nightmare. I took a vacation with four other women and it was all sorts of crazy.

Quick background:

I had been FB friends with a group of women for a while, and one of the women, A, had a dad who owned a timeshare in Orlando, Florida. The goal of the trip was to go to some IHOP (International House of Prayer) conference, while I spent time in Tampa seeing my aunt, as I told A I was not interested in going to a conference, knowing IHOP is very cultish.

All of the women, myself included, have health issues. A started questioning mine because I, according to her, was able to do more on vacation than anyone else. All of the other women were complaining about how sick they were 24/7.

The whole week was filled with crazy, from L being convinced Obama had her on his TSA watch list which caused her box of Splenda to be confiscated, to me being told I had Satan inside me. I'm only going to post about the craziest bits, because it really is a long story and I don't want it to become to tl;dr.

On the sixth day of me being in Florida, I went to Tampa to see my aunt, cousin, and uncle. My uncle has had health problem after health problem. He was born with a heart defect, then had Lymphoma, then leukemia from chemo, and currently has to get transfusions and does some kind of oral medication in lieu of chemo, I believe. He has myelofibrosis currently.

That night, my cousin decided to take my aunt and I out to Hamburger Mary's, a restaurant with drag shows. I posted on FB about how fun the experience was, and that I had a good time.

My aunt and cousin drove two hours back to Orlando to drop me off. I had lost my phone in the taxi on the way to Tampa, as I took a taxi to the Greyhound terminal and took the bus there, since my aunt was working. So I gave A my aunt's cell number.

While at dinner with my family, my aunt got a call from A. I called A and she said that the room keys were changed because there was a problem with them. She wanted me to wait until 11:30 pm because the girls were at the IHOP conference. I decided to try to get a new key instead of waiting because it was only 9 pm and my aunt and cousin were nice enough to drive me all the way back. Well, A told the manager not to give me a key under any circumstances. I called her and told her to come back so I could get my stuff. She got back at 11 pm, gave me a working card key, and I packed up my belongings. The girls sat on the bed in my room and watched me pack. A was crying and was telling me that I could stay and whatever. I asked for some of my money back since I didn't stay the time that I was supposed to, and she said no because it was my choice to leave. I didn't give her the $25 for the internet like I should have (A bullied me into getting internet because she is obsessed with FB) I just got my stuff and left as quickly as possible.

I had to change my flight date and was forced to stay a few days longer. But at least my aunt let me stay with her after I left the timeshare.

And the crazy doesn't end there. Oh no. Once at home, A sent me a message via FB. It turns out A changed the keys because she didn't feel safe with her and the girls' stuff while they were at IHOP. They assumed that I had something to do with drag shows or that I was transgendered. Let's say I was trans, that doesn't give them a right to treat me the way they did regardless. I called her out on her LBGT-phobia.

Messages from A:

I guess you need to understand where we were coming from....the drag queen thing.... could easily be misinterpreted or interpreted in leading us to be confused as to who you are and what your true identity is...Leaves room for a lot of question...... Changing the keys out to protect ourselves from these suspicions wasn't over the top.... Just didn't feel safe with having you in the room without us there, given the circumstances regarding the drag queen event....you have to look at where we were coming from with this.... It's not completely fair to be unforgiving here given the confusion we were feeling about the possibility of you potentially being someone who you potentially aren't - and You weren't being kicked out of the unit....you could have stayed ... And you also could have been straight up with us about everything instead of leaving suspicion in our mind and any correlation with that to the drag queen event..... No judgement being passed here.... You are who you are, whatever or whoever that is, it just would have been nice for us to know the truth about such before gathering for this trip. I'm sorry there was a lack of honesty and openness on your part so that we wouldn't have felt so defensive about the possibility, in not feeling like we knew or understood your true identity. I think you are just as much at fault here as the rest of us. I still love you and care for you no matter who or what you are and I forgive you for not telling us in advance, to calm any concerns we had about the drag queen event. To then add the comment of you going to a drag queen event, was just concerning and made us think about your true identity.... Felt a little deceptive which could have been avoided had you been straight up with us from the start.

I did not kick you out of the hotel either. You were never kicked out. I would have preferred you to stay last night, actually.

I am only human. Not perfect. If you can't forgive my false suspicions, I understand. I still hope and pray the best for you, always.

And that ladies and gents, is my story.

[laura oz]

Maybe it's the major pms I'm having, but OMG, my blood is boiling for you. What asshats. That was so unfair and unkind to treat you that way. The next time you want to hang with anyone from IHOP, just call me cause I worship at the GOOD one every chance I get. My congregation is greasy and sticky, but we're welcoming :D

[salex]

Tell them that you had a revelation from God that you couldn't be in the same room as the IHOP people, since you know they are currently involved in a cultish sex and murder scandal, and you realized you couldn't trust them......

Do they somehow think that people who see drag shows are theives? The whole thing is a WTF, but then again, I am leery of IHOP>

[MysteryHaggis]

So.,, trans/cross dressers/drag queens iz thiefz? :?

Err... That's a new one on me. The crazystupid, it burns.

[flyawaystray]

A good IHOP? I'm up for that, actually. I'm very open. I stayed far, far away from the Orlando conference. According to their site, they provide 24/7 prayer. WTF.

If my aunt hadn't been there for me, I would have been SCREWED. I am not from Florida. I don't know Florida. I would have been 100 percent on my own otherwise.

I don't know....I can't reason with their crazy. They sat me down and said Satan is inside of everyone, including you (meaning me).

Now, I'm ok with religion. I grew up Protestant Christian so conferences aren't foreign. But what these women did...they are NOT true Christians. And these weren't 19-20 year olds. Two of them were in their 30's, with the oldest being 40 or so, and I was 27.

[AnywhereButHere]

No judgement - suuure. Because, you know, transgendered people steal things (sarcasm)... Nice to know she was basically spying on you and making snap judgements on you using internet that she demanded you get. You should tell her that the only person who misrepresented herself in this situation was her since she said she was your friend, and obviously, real friends don't treat each other like she treated you. Sorry - rambling. I'm angry for you, and I don't even know you!

[flyawaystray]

It's funny how I just came here to lurk initially, and now I'm posting my own story!

Yes, I was hurt by the entire situation. I had to pay to have my flight changed, I had a boyfriend who was missing me and didn't know what was going on, I would have been up a creek without a paddle if it weren't for my aunt, AND she spent 4 hours driving. Two hours for me to go up to Orlando, and the other two driving back to Tampa.

It worked out though because I got to spend more time with my cousin and aunt. And I'm grateful that they had my back. My cousin was close to calling the police.

I've blocked the four girls and I am not longer friends with them. I ended things rather quickly after coming home.

[mg78]

te]

. No judgement being passed here....

In case you had any doubt, they was no judgement :lol:

I think this have been the craziest story ever... I am sorry you had to go through that experience.

Edited to fix quote

[Shaz]

That is some major crazy. I am from near an IHOP center. My sister was friends with one of the accused murders and a friend of mine had her mother and step-father become IHOP missionaries and disown her. Stay far far away from those people.

[OnceModestTwiceShy]

Oh my god. Oh my GOD. OH MY GOD. I just can't even. I'm sitting here sputtering at the screen. I'm so angry for you. What a bunch of sanctimonious, hypocritical, ignorant bitches.

[Dysfundamental]

Jeezus Louisus, that's horrific. What terrible people.

Gotta stick with the pancakes! That's the only good IHOP.

[latraviata]

I want to share my fundie nightmare. I took a vacation with four other women and it was all sorts of crazy.

Quick background:

I had been FB friends with a group of women for a while, and one of the women, A, had a dad who owned a timeshare in Orlando, Florida. The goal of the trip was to go to some IHOP (International House of Prayer) conference, while I spent time in Tampa seeing my aunt, as I told A I was not interested in going to a conference, knowing IHOP is very cultish.

All of the women, myself included, have health issues. A started questioning mine because I, according to her, was able to do more on vacation than anyone else. All of the other women were complaining about how sick they were 24/7.

The whole week was filled with crazy, from L being convinced Obama had her on his TSA watch list which caused her box of Splenda to be confiscated, to me being told I had Satan inside me. I'm only going to post about the craziest bits, because it really is a long story and I don't want it to become to tl;dr.

On the sixth day of me being in Florida, I went to Tampa to see my aunt, cousin, and uncle. My uncle has had health problem after health problem. He was born with a heart defect, then had Lymphoma, then leukemia from chemo, and currently has to get transfusions and does some kind of oral medication in lieu of chemo, I believe. He has myelofibrosis currently.

That night, my cousin decided to take my aunt and I out to Hamburger Mary's, a restaurant with drag shows. I posted on FB about how fun the experience was, and that I had a good time.

My aunt and cousin drove two hours back to Orlando to drop me off. I had lost my phone in the taxi on the way to Tampa, as I took a taxi to the Greyhound terminal and took the bus there, since my aunt was working. So I gave A my aunt's cell number.

While at dinner with my family, my aunt got a call from A. I called A and she said that the room keys were changed because there was a problem with them. She wanted me to wait until 11:30 pm because the girls were at the IHOP conference. I decided to try to get a new key instead of waiting because it was only 9 pm and my aunt and cousin were nice enough to drive me all the way back. Well, A told the manager not to give me a key under any circumstances. I called her and told her to come back so I could get my stuff. She got back at 11 pm, gave me a working card key, and I packed up my belongings. The girls sat on the bed in my room and watched me pack. A was crying and was telling me that I could stay and whatever. I asked for some of my money back since I didn't stay the time that I was supposed to, and she said no because it was my choice to leave. I didn't give her the $25 for the internet like I should have (A bullied me into getting internet because she is obsessed with FB) I just got my stuff and left as quickly as possible.

I had to change my flight date and was forced to stay a few days longer. But at least my aunt let me stay with her after I left the timeshare.

And the crazy doesn't end there. Oh no. Once at home, A sent me a message via FB. It turns out A changed the keys because she didn't feel safe with her and the girls' stuff while they were at IHOP. They assumed that I had something to do with drag shows or that I was transgendered. Let's say I was trans, that doesn't give them a right to treat me the way they did regardless. I called her out on her LBGT-phobia.

Messages from A:

I guess you need to understand where we were coming from....the drag queen thing.... could easily be misinterpreted or interpreted in leading us to be confused as to who you are and what your true identity is...Leaves room for a lot of question...... Changing the keys out to protect ourselves from these suspicions wasn't over the top.... Just didn't feel safe with having you in the room without us there, given the circumstances regarding the drag queen event....you have to look at where we were coming from with this.... It's not completely fair to be unforgiving here given the confusion we were feeling about the possibility of you potentially being someone who you potentially aren't - and You weren't being kicked out of the unit....you could have stayed ... And you also could have been straight up with us about everything instead of leaving suspicion in our mind and any correlation with that to the drag queen event..... No judgement being passed here.... You are who you are, whatever or whoever that is, it just would have been nice for us to know the truth about such before gathering for this trip. I'm sorry there was a lack of honesty and openness on your part so that we wouldn't have felt so defensive about the possibility, in not feeling like we knew or understood your true identity. I think you are just as much at fault here as the rest of us. I still love you and care for you no matter who or what you are and I forgive you for not telling us in advance, to calm any concerns we had about the drag queen event. To then add the comment of you going to a drag queen event, was just concerning and made us think about your true identity.... Felt a little deceptive which could have been avoided had you been straight up with us from the start.

I did not kick you out of the hotel either. You were never kicked out. I would have preferred you to stay last night, actually.

I am only human. Not perfect. If you can't forgive my false suspicions, I understand. I still hope and pray the best for you, always.

And that ladies and gents, is my story.

Christ ahorse! You most certainly don't need people like that in your life! It is like a sieve, the best remains! Move on, life is too short, trust me!

[Arete]

These are your ex-friends now.....right? I'm going to use a tag from NurseNell and say they simply exemplify "And they will know we are Christians by our love....." :whistle:

[Ex 2x2]

So what the heck is it that they thought you should've revealed to them? I'm confused what their problem was...that they read on your facebook that you ate at hamburger mary's? Crazy. Sorry this happened to you! Sounds like it's good that they are out of your life!

[ADoyle90815]

It's a good thing you blocked them and cut off the friendship with those crazies. As for me, the only IHOP I would attend is the one for pancakes.

[debrand]

That is super crazy and I'm sorry that happened to you. I'd love to go to a drag show. So, they thought you were a possible drag queen? They were afraid you would steal from them but weren't afraid for you to sleep in the same room as them. At least they think that they drag queens are only thieves and not rapists. :roll: I'd say that they were pretty illogical but I guess that is an understatement.

[NotALoserLikeYou]

I have a good friend (and her husband and kids) involved in IHOP and shes the nicest, least judgemental person ever. Her best friend and roommate is gay. So they aren't all crazy.

But that's horrible what happened to you. That's really bizarre for them to assume you must be transgendered. And that that would imply you're a criminal. To invite you and then have the keys changed and you denied entry....what rudeness and paranoia! So sorry.

[clarinetpower]

I own the soundtrack to "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert." I might just be an axe murdererand not even know it!!!

[Emme]

holy fucknuggets girl. That is insane! Agreed, totally worth the read. I'm sorry this happened to you!

[JesusFightClub]

How fucking weird.

I guess they thought the OP was in drag and really a bloke. And were worried that their dresses and pants and bras would be tried on in their absence, rather than that she would steal them?

OP, I am glad these nutters are no longer your mates. Who in the 21st century thinks attending a drag show makes you, personally, a drag queen?

[runrgrl65]

What? ...WHAT?? Truth IS stranger than fiction. I really just can't wrap my brain around how anyone can come to the conclusion that you are dishonest and a thief because you had dinner and attended a drag show...and also say "no judgement?" I"m glad you had someone there to help you!

[OnceModestTwiceShy]

How fucking weird.

I guess they thought the OP was in drag and really a bloke. And were worried that their dresses and pants and bras would be tried on in their absence, rather than that she would steal them?

OP, I am glad these nutters are no longer your mates. Who in the 21st century thinks attending a drag show makes you, personally, a drag queen?

That's what I was thinking too. :lol: Idiots. :roll: :snooty:

I seriously had to read the story a few times over to make sure that I had understood correctly and hadn't missed something, because WOW, it is just absurd.

[MrsYoungie]

Wait - what? IHOP is a cult? I thought it was a fast food restaurant like a Denny's or something. Can somebody fill me in? We don't have them up here and when I tried to Google it I got so many hits that I didn't know where to start.

Also to OP - so sorry you had to spend time with such small minded nit wits. I guess that's why we shouldn't spend holidays with people we don't know really really well.

[MamaJunebug]

What is it with people who use ellipses....instead of semicolons or commas .... even periods .... I just don't know....but it seems that the weirder the folk....the more ellipses....

OK, enough of that!!! I have nothing but sympathy for OP and my curiosity is re-piqued about the ellipses. I first noticed that way back in the newsgroup days: the real nutcases on any subject - not just religion and religious life - seem to think that their stream of consciousness deserves uninterrupted flow, symbolized by the ellipses.

No one best try to interrupt them or question one of their many (?) points. Guessing that the main point is that these people are such legends in their own minds that they truly think others will hang on their every word and float along their sentences of wisdom.

Egads.

OP, I have a friend who lives a few blocks from a HOP installation, though "I" is not part of the name. It's definitely asociated with Evil IHOP. The church bought an old public buildng nearby and lodges their "seminarians" there, in an otherwise stable family neighborhood.

It's cause for much concern, with essentially a transient home inserted without proper zoning amongst children, elderly and others -- just because the thing is associated with a "church." Infuriating. I thus applaud you on surviving these yayhoos and giving them a well deserved b-slap!

To Mrs. Youngie: the IHOP of which we're talking is INternational House Of Prayer. Google/bing it and have a barf bucket nearby

[Pearl]

I agree - how weird it is that they would be more afraid that you would steal from them rather than molest them in their sleep. Although, maybe they had decided who would stand watch when during the night.

Personally, I think it was a passive aggressive way to get you to leave - they made it so uncomfortable for you that you would "choose" to leave so they can say "Oh, we didn't mean you to leave."

Let's list the sins that those Christian ladies committed: gossiping, lying (because I believe they full on intended to get you to not stay), passing judgment on someone's soul, pride, being cruel. And yet, they are holier than you because they did not go and watch a drag show. I guess that makes sense. :icon-rolleyes:

ETA: I just noticed I'm a speshul snowflake (damn right). I suppose I have lost my handsex virginity...dang it and I was saving that for a special occasion.