thats some gnarly looking hair.

welcome back ya mangy biker bum. come shredding... that photo is hilarious.
jb

Who is that? And where is Les?

(Welcome home buddy!!!)

We used to be related?

yeah, I think you guys passed the line 3 time zones ago.

"even thinking, it turns out, affects the way genes work. How fast a man's beard grows, for instance, is partly a function of how he thinks about sex (because thinking about sex produces a testosterone surge)."

p. 413, A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson.

Mother Anne Lee, who started the Shaker movement, was formerly a Quaker, and she did incorporate some of her Quaker background into Shaker practices: simplicity, financial responsibility, work ethic, belief in the perfectibility of humankind... among them. She and her followers believed her to be the second incarnation of Christ. Shakers were a celibate sect, and expanded their membership through adult conversions and the rearing of orphans, who were given a choice of joining the Shakers, or going out into the world when they became of legal age. They were an exclusively American movement, mainly located in New England and New York. Their worship included many lively songs--and dances-- of praise to God. The Quakers originated in England in the mid 17th century. They rebelled against the rigid hierarchy and government control prevalent in the Anglican church, and began meeting in homes or buildings without steeples, waiting upon God silently to make His presence felt and inwardly heard. Any person could be called by God to rise and preach upon any occasion of worship. They were much persecuted in England before finding refuge in the American colonies. They were, and are, very family oriented, far from being celibate, and would not agree that Anne Lee is the second incarnation of Christ. They also have historically not withdrawn from the world but have been very active in the cause of social justice for the poor and oppressed, education, humanitarian relief, and the humane treatment of prisoners in penal institutions.

While Shakers have nearly died out, Quakerism, though limited in numbers by comparison to mainline and evangelical Protestants, is alive and growing, both in the USA and in Africa and South America and other nations overseas. Many have today adopted the custom of having a person designated as primarily a pastor, and most are neither white English speaking nor North American, since the greatest growth in the past generation has been outside of England and the USA.

i'm back in town friday after noon lest go deep

Ha... wow, that's awesome, you brothers all look so alike when the face is covered.