Nowadays, I love books that bring beauty into my life... unless I'm in a dark mood, and then (don't mock me) I *will* be forced to check out a Stephen King from the library...

Ahem... anyway...

My favorite adult-lady books are: Rebecca (duMaurier) and Anne Morrow Lindbergh's Gift from the Sea... which is gorgeous beyond belief. A newer book I like a LOT is Jane Mendelsohn's I was Amelia Earhart, but be warned if tempted to read it: Infidelity-RED-alert.

When I'm regressing and NOT reading Nancy Drew or Harry Potter, I like Burnett's Secret Garden and my old-faithful tear-jerker, White's Charlotte's Web...

Dang, I love books. Just feel gooshy thinking about them all...

(Do guys feel gooshy? I didn't think so. Unless SJ is involved, eh 2long? <img src="/ubbt/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />)

> *will* be forced to check out a Stephen King from the library...

Dragon Eyes.

Great read.

>Just feel gooshy thinking about them all...

Depends. Helps the gooshy feeling.

ROTFLMAO.

Would die and go to heaven if anyone could find me a copy of Anthony's Battle Circle series. It's out of print now.

By the way, I forgot to post the link to the pictures from HoFS' birthday party. The pictures are here:

HoFS Birthday

I'm notably absent 'cause I was taking the pics, so here's a couple of me and HoFS from Cerri's party. You can look at the rest of the party pics too, if you want. They're just not of people you'd know, prolly.

Golde

Tevye

Mushy stuff 1
Mushy stuff 2
Mushy stuff 3
Had to clean it up somehow!

Thanks for sharing those pics J, they are really nice pics of all of you.

(you too lil bro!)

NB, we are twins separated at birth <img src="/ubbt/images/graemlins/eek.gif" alt="" /> Love,love DuMaurier especially Rebecca , the Secret Garden was my favorite children's book as well as the EB White books. <img src="/ubbt/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

In my 20's I was into WWll spy novels and loved to read Ken Follett. My favorite of his was The Key to Rebecca which used text from the DuMaurier's Rebecca as secret code.

CUTE, CUTE, CUTE, CUTE, CUTE.....

And GC isn't bad to look at either........

(hehe)

lovely photos J!

My divorce attorney did the work she did on my behalf almost for free. When my former wife had me served, I paid my lawyer a small retainer, and that was the last money I paid her, aside from reimbursing her for court costs once.

While my divorce was not hugely time-consuming, there is no way my retainer covered her time. She probably spent 5-10 times the billable hours that amount was intended to cover.

We never had a conversation to verify this, but I assume she decided early on to take my retainer and never bill me. I never received a statement from her.

FYI, my attorney was a BS. She tried to piece things back together with her H after the A, they had a child, and shortly afterward, she caught him at it again and went ahead with a divorce immediately. Which may explain why she was generous with her time on my behalf, though I don't know for sure because we never spoke about it.

During the holidays I sent her a card thanking her for all she's done for me. We exchanged emails once after that--this would be about three months ago--to verify that the one last thing we had to do was all set, and that was it.

I don't feel like I've thanked her enough. And I like her.

Any suggestions?

I'm not trying to put the moves on her. I just want to acknowledge her generosity and let her know that I'm grateful. But I'm not sure how to go about it. We haven't even spoken on the phone since I'd say November '05.

GC

Like her as in "like" her?

No one ever minds being thanked. No one cares how long it takes to thank them. It's one of the nicest things you can do for a person.

I know. I've helped a student out a great deal and she sent me a very sweet, very thankful e-mail and I was very, very pleased and very, very touched.

A card would be nice Gray.

I'm with Jen, a thank you is always such a nice thing to do and I can't imagine it ever being something which doesn't light up the recipients day.

GC, what about a card and a nice plant for her office?

A thought has occured to me regarding the books we all read as young children...

Our interests didn't change too much from childhood favorite books up to present time...and some of us even went into related fields, hobbies, etc.

If what I am thinking is true... I am, and have always been interested in being alone.

All my heroins were alone, nuns, witches who lived in the woods...even my heros from the books I read (philosophers, healers).

I think I may have chosen this for myself (maybe before birth even) and that is why I have always been attracted to reading about those types of people.

Sad, yet illuminating at the same time.

Weaver,
I'll have to think about what you said about what we read, but on the surface (for me) it isn't that way.

Do these people you read about have other atributes that you seek to emulate? Could that be it?

SS

(philosophers, healers).

Yes, this is what I mean - is it that you want to be a philosopher, or a healer?

You are/would be a good healer - I can tell from your posts to others here. You care.

SS

Yes SS, they are all incredibly good and filled with love/light...

...I hope this is it more than the alone part. I didn't even think of that, but I did think of the almost mystical type of hero's/heroin's they seem to all be.

Thank you, because I don't want to be alone, at least not consciously.

I think it is deeper than the alone part. We all work out these things in our selves, and come to know who we are. I think when you finally know all about who you are, you will like what you see.

I really think you will. It is often said that beauty is skin deep, but you have it on the inside. It has been so wonderful to see you learn, grow, and change. Isn't it wonderful how God can take the pain, and use it for our good.

I don't think you need to worry all that much. Only just enough to look at your self from time to time so you can get an accurate picture of where you are, and where you need to go.

You are better than you sometimes think.

SS

Yes! Behind every grievance is a miracle, if only one would look.

I have an exercise I practice now (when I can think of it), when I am irritated or in conflict with someone (at work this happens usually)...

I ask that the grievance be set down and the miracle behind it shown...and I ask the same thing for the other person involved as well (all silently of course)

I can't say I have seen any miracles yet, but it does calm me down enough that I no longer feel stress or anger. (maybe that is the miracle in these cases)

I don't know why I just rattled that off to you SS...perhaps you do the same thing, well you probably always knew about that little trick. <img src="/ubbt/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I do something similar.

Not always right at first ;-)

Coming to MB helped me develop that too. I used to just get mad and hold the feelings in until I blew up.

It's nice to know we really can change.

Does P notice the differences in you?

SS

You know it's hard to say with her. She and I are relatively alone (she has family on her dad's side though) and lived pretty much alone together until her Dad sued me for custody (at age 8) and until I met Dan (but he traveled so much and Paige and I, not he and I shared a bedroom when he lived with us, so as far as Paige was concerned even then, it was just the two of us pretty much).

We are so bonded and close, and have always gotten along really well anyway...so I just don't know.

She does seem like she is getting very protective of me though (maybe because she doesn't want to go through anymore of the pain we have so far)...so that if she even senses sadness in me she will ask me about it.

She has barely seen anger in me, I am not a yeller and have always adored her, so she wouldn't notice any changes in this area.

She did ask me if DW was a liar. This was all she wanted to know about him when I mentioned she would at some point be meeting him.

We are so bonded and close, and have always gotten along really well anyway...so I just don't know.
So cool !!



She does seem like she is getting very protective of me though (maybe because she doesn't want to go through anymore of the pain we have so far)...so that if she even senses sadness in me she will ask me about it.

This is worth sooooooo much. It means she trusts you, or she couldn't talk to you like she does. It also means she is sensitive and not self centered.


She did ask me if DW was a liar. This was all she wanted to know about him when I mentioned she would at some point be meeting him.

This part is sad. <img src="/ubbt/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif" alt="" />
But......... at least she gets it enough to ask.

Did it startle you when she asked you?

SS