an atheist walks into a church....

i went to church yesterday...or, more specifically, i went to a church. there wasn't a sermon or anything like that. alli (my brother's wife, or sister-in-law... for the record, i don't like the whole sister-in-law or any in-law term. it feels cold and vacant), is in a church choir and they were having their holiday show. so i decided to get out of the apartment and check it out. and i needed it. i was getting cabin fever. i hadn't been outside since friday.

it was a good time. my family was there. her (awesome) family was there. then we went back to phil (my bro) and alli's place and had pizza and munched on desserts and the whole thing was a win-win. but that's not the part of the day i want to write about at the moment. it's more about me actually stepping foot in a church.

it happens. i'd venture to say my average is about twice a year. there's usually a wedding or a baptism or a choir show to go check out that gets me to go there. when i enter churches, i feel like the ultimate visitor. i'm never gonna feel quite at home there. and it's nothing against churches. they got their vibe and i got mine. that's the thing.... just cuz i don't feel at home in a church doesn't mean i hate churches.

i'm not of the religion hating atheist variety. whatever you're into, that's cool. from what i can tell yesterday, this here religion thing tends to make some people happy. there's singing and laughing and smiling. sure, they preached a bit yesterday... but just a bit. and why not? it's their house, their rules. i acknowledge that the moment i walk through the doors.

as long as whatever it is you're into, a religion, a philosophy, or whatever.... doesn't make you go off the deep end. as long as you're not killing in the name of whatever you wanna fill in the blank with, as long as whatever you're believing doesn't make you a douchebag, then you're cool by me. and any atheist who disagrees with me is probably of the douchey variety and wouldn't be able to step foot in a church and actually sorta enjoy the mirth that the atmosphere presents for everyone around him (or her... there's female douchebag atheists too).