Since I've already been in chat a few times, I've decided it's time to stop lurking and actually post, especially since there are comments I've wanted to add but didn't feel right doing so without making a formal introduction.
(stands up) Hello, my name is Ian, and I'm an atheist. (smiles and waves awkwardly at the chorus of "Hi, Ian." from the crowd)
Though as you can see from my profile, I prefer to call myself a naturalist. Not only would I rather be defined by what I do believe than by what I don't, but it's also because not all atheists adhere to naturalist philosophy. 'Course, there are those who misinterpret it to mean an interest in biology, or worse, think that I said "naturist", but hey, what are you gonna do?
I often refer to my ascent to naturalism as an "antipiphany", for it was a gradual process rather than a sudden flash of inspiration. I was raised liberal Catholic, pardon the apparent oxymoron. However, I began to doubt the Christian worldview pretty early, and by my teens was a practicing Wiccan, partly due to a fascination with my Celtic ancestry and partly out of a desire to perform magic. See, I was a rocker geek in school full of preppies, in a town in which my family could barely afford to live, so I guess it was only natural to respond to my apparent powerlessness in such a way. But as time went on, I noticed that my spells worked with the same infrequency that my prayers had been answered when I was still a Christian, and over the course of my 20s began to shed all of my supernatural beliefs...until at long last when I was clinging to quasi-panentheistic notions of "forces" did I finally accept the natural universe is all that we have evidence for, so it's probably all there is.
More about me: I'm 38 years old, and I live in South Jersey, just across the river from Philadelphia. I'm a musician as well as an amateur luthier; I went to school for guitarbuilding, though I currently lack the means of building from scratch and so just customize existing instruments, and thus earn my living as a factory grunt since I only lasted half a semester in college. I'm a huge fan of Bad Religion and the reimagined Battlestar Galactica. Also, I'm into dolls...yes, those kind of dolls. My apologies if you're creeped out by the concept, but much like my naturalism, I'm pretty open about it. In fact, the Doll Forum is my digital home, so to speak ("nomen mihi non" is the Latin translation of my TDF username), but alas, religion and politics are verboten topics there. So while I can't promise that I'll be particularly active here, I'll at least throw in my two cents in discussions that pique my interest from time to time.
(stands up) Hello, my name is Ian, and I'm an atheist. (smiles and waves awkwardly at the chorus of "Hi, Ian." from the crowd)
Though as you can see from my profile, I prefer to call myself a naturalist. Not only would I rather be defined by what I do believe than by what I don't, but it's also because not all atheists adhere to naturalist philosophy. 'Course, there are those who misinterpret it to mean an interest in biology, or worse, think that I said "naturist", but hey, what are you gonna do?
I often refer to my ascent to naturalism as an "antipiphany", for it was a gradual process rather than a sudden flash of inspiration. I was raised liberal Catholic, pardon the apparent oxymoron. However, I began to doubt the Christian worldview pretty early, and by my teens was a practicing Wiccan, partly due to a fascination with my Celtic ancestry and partly out of a desire to perform magic. See, I was a rocker geek in school full of preppies, in a town in which my family could barely afford to live, so I guess it was only natural to respond to my apparent powerlessness in such a way. But as time went on, I noticed that my spells worked with the same infrequency that my prayers had been answered when I was still a Christian, and over the course of my 20s began to shed all of my supernatural beliefs...until at long last when I was clinging to quasi-panentheistic notions of "forces" did I finally accept the natural universe is all that we have evidence for, so it's probably all there is.
More about me: I'm 38 years old, and I live in South Jersey, just across the river from Philadelphia. I'm a musician as well as an amateur luthier; I went to school for guitarbuilding, though I currently lack the means of building from scratch and so just customize existing instruments, and thus earn my living as a factory grunt since I only lasted half a semester in college. I'm a huge fan of Bad Religion and the reimagined Battlestar Galactica. Also, I'm into dolls...yes, those kind of dolls. My apologies if you're creeped out by the concept, but much like my naturalism, I'm pretty open about it. In fact, the Doll Forum is my digital home, so to speak ("nomen mihi non" is the Latin translation of my TDF username), but alas, religion and politics are verboten topics there. So while I can't promise that I'll be particularly active here, I'll at least throw in my two cents in discussions that pique my interest from time to time.
![[Image: mybannerglitter06eee094.gif]](https://images.weserv.nl/?url=i118.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fo112%2Fpussinboots_photos%2FBikes%2Fmybannerglitter06eee094.gif)
![[Image: SigBarSping_zpscd7e35e1.png]](https://images.weserv.nl/?url=i169.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fu224%2FUchiha_Kina%2FTags%2FSigBarSping_zpscd7e35e1.png)
I suppose there are indeed much creepier dolls to be of interest to an adult male... 
