I think she meant to say hi Faith, not hi Weaver <img src="/ubbt/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />, so I'll say it for her. Hi Faith!

Hi Gray,

I have things to say to you, but they say never tell someone something he already knows so I won't say it (not this morning anyway). It has to do with your comment about wanting some chitlens someday.

Oh heck I'll say it anyway...

Don't wait too long! Dating should be like realizing any other dream...you start with the desire, visualize it in detail and as often as you can, pursue it with passion.

If you truly want children, then start looking for a wife. Treat it like a job. That's what my boyfriend did, and he went through quite a few before he met me. What he wants is a wife, so he set about to find one.

We were alike in that way, GB and me, as I drew up what I wanted in a partner and then set out to find one who had the qualities I was looking for.

I decided to take my mom's advice from years ago and choose the one I wanted, not wait for someone to choose me. When I did that, wait for someone to choose me, I always ended up with nothing like what I would have chosen had I done the choosing.

Make sense?

OOooooooops! Yes, I did mean Hi Faith! *sigh* My brain is mush.

Hey Gray, have you done some serious work around having kids? Really visualized it, done a little prayer and fasting while meditating on it, that kind of thing? (Fasting is good for you. Hmmm. You're kinda fasting right now, with the mouth all wonked up.)

I'd like to know what Mrs. Graycloud-and-all-the-kids looks like to you. What are -you- doing in that picture? How much of the time? How much are you out supporting the family versus right there changing diapers? How much is Mrs. Graycloud doing those things? How many miniGrays are there running around?

Oh, and I've seen you with a baby. I liked what I saw. I think a few of 'em would be a very good thing for you.

Oh. And I stole this from thndernlitnng's thread.

From Still Seeking:


You never tell us anything, SS. <img src="/ubbt/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> Congratulations!

FAR:

Someone who had such a profound impact on people's lives through the simple but wondrous things they did in life will always live on in our memories.

I just realized that my dad passed away a year ago. I think about him from time 2 time. I think about things he did that speak about his character, stuff he did that still makes me giggle a bit. Those memories are as fresh as if I was witnessing them firsthand again. This might sound odd, but because of that, I find I don't really miss him. But then, he lived a full life and it may have been his time. FAR's friend had so much living 2 do.

Shul: First 2uestion: How do you feel about what's happening?

best 2 all.

-ol' 2long

>I think a few of 'em would be a very good thing for you.


I've got a loaner or two I could send to you to practice on.

You have to send them back when they're being good tho.

Thanks J,
I never let everyone know when I should. Forgot to send my brother a wedding invitation to # 3 son. Brother had to call me and ask if he was invited or if he should stay away to save on the food budget.

Sorry FAR.
I suspect SHE is happier now. Feel more sorry for those who knew her, and especially the children. The good ones are always missed.

I think all of you would be missed.

SS

It's a good thing your brother knows you well enough to call, SS. In some families, that'd be a shooting offense.

Not me.

They hit me right between the eyes.

Smarts too.

Probably should have broken your typing fingers so we'd have peace.

Humor is good, even when it's bad.

SS

I hope not to wear you guys out. I am still in shock over my discovery, but the pain is subsiding a lot. I feel better, but a lot of thoughts are going through my mind. Hardly a moment goes by that I am not aware of the travesty, while not particularly focused on it. Several times an hour I DO focus on it. There is a lot to work through.

Many more memories are coming back, now. When I last saw her - at the beach watching the cold waves, I held her and wondered - "should I put my current serious GF on hold, and explore the possibilities with this woman??" It is the only experience like that I have had. I was eventually betrayed by that GF. But it got complicated - we were married for almost 15 years, have three wonderful children - you all know.

I do not know God's plan. I believe I am in it now to help her mom heal. (did I already say that?)

Many here have had deaths of family or friends - I feel compassion for all of you that I have read about.

Thank you for your thoughts and compassion. I appreciate you all. You are really the only people I can talk to about this right now, what with the abduction and all.

Did I mention I do not like beer?

Got any Seagrams and coke?

Ever had Churros from Pollo Loco? I love those things.

2Long - nice thoughts about your dad. Grandma died just over a year ago. I love my memories of and with her. She was SO, SO COOL. I do not feel bad about her dying. She visited me last friday night, in a dream. I think she wants me to go visit my grandfather who has alzheimers. 93 and going strong. With no knowledge of who most peoples identity.

I am reading Ann of Green Gables to DS7 and DD5 at bedtime. A fun book for them.

far

well, congrats grandpa! btw "large headed baby" I had one of those <shudder>

Hugs FAR

I had 3 of em!

FAR, Anne of Green Gables is one of my favorite books ever. I read it over and over and over when I was a kid. What a wonderful one (and all its sequels, of course!) to read to your kids. I bet that if you read the whole series to them, you'll still be reading next year at this time. Golly, now I want to go read it again myself!

And then there is your friend's death. You didn't mention what's happened to the children? Are they with their grandmother now, or some other relative? How have their lives progressed in the last four years? That's another area where, maybe, you might be of help.

Yea - I have enjoyed it myself. I did not know there were sequels. My DD13 is a voracious reader (finished Rebel Beauty - Libba Bray) in approximately 24 hours. As in - had it finished 24 hours after we purchased it. I love that. She will enjoy the Anne of Green Gables series. I will look it up. The younger ones are liking this one.

The kids have gone to live with one of their father's brothers. He is married to a woman that could not have kids, and my friend's mom thinks it the best place for them. She feels that the woman will love them more because of her issue. I now live 1500 miles from that area, and will not likely get any exposure to them - but life takes strange turns sometimes, so I can not say it won't happen.

My kids call eachother big head sometimes. It is true. My head is tiny (I adjust headphones to the smallest setting) XW has a huge head, and all three of the kids got the huge head. Had to cut all three of 'em out.

Anybody getting any good meteor activity from the Perseids? Stinking full moon.....

Speaking of memories and legacies, I came across this poem 2day:

"I read of a man who stood to speak at the funeral of a friend.
He referred to the dates on his tombstone from the beginning to the end.

He noted first came his date of birth and spoke the following date with tears,
But said what mattered most of all was the dash between those years.

For that dash represents all that time that he spent alive on Earth . . .
And now only those who loved him know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not how much we own: the cars . . . the house . . . the cash .
What matters is how we live and love and how we spend our dash.

So think about this long and hard . . . are there things you would like to change?
For you never know how much time is left that can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough to consider what's true and real,
And always try to understand the way other people feel.

And be less quick to anger, and show appreciation more,
And love the people in our lives like we've never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect, and more often wear a smile . . .
Remembering that this special dash may last only a little while.

Author: Unknown"

start looking for a wife. Treat it like a job

Weaver, that's not a bad description of my approach. Though you might be surprised... primarily the job has 'til now consisted of getting personal stuff handled. Establishing myself in a stable and manageable cold war with the past. Building up resistance to loneliness and despair. Getting friendships where they oughta be. Learning not to count on other people for anything. Making sure the people in my life know they can count on me. Getting physically healthy. Getting my spiritual life on a trajectory that makes sense. Getting to where if some chick rejects me I don't care.

As for the future Mrs. Cloud... I'm not getting seriously involved with someone unless she makes my socks roll up and down. I create plenty of occasions for that to happen.

J, I don't do that stuff... meditating, or imagining the people I hope to have in my life. I don't doubt it's worthwhile. Possibly I'll try. But children are not a prerequisite for me.

I'm swamped by narcotics and may regret hitting the "continue" button, but what the heck.

GC

‘Humor is good, even when it's bad.”

You think that’s bad? Good thing we aren’t around a real campfire. About an hour with my humor and you’d run off screaming into the night.


“Probably should have broken your typing fingers so we'd have peace.”

Speaking of which, a funny thing happened on the way to the forum...

Yesterday evening I was putting the finishing touches on a rock wall I’m building out back. It’s a roughly four foot high semicircular wall using 500 – 1000 lb basalt boulders. It will enclose a fire pit. I use a hand truck to move the rocks up and down a dirt ramp I will remove when done. Sort of like how they built the pyramids.

Anyway, I veer from the point. I dropped a 300-pounder or so on my hand. Squished my thumb. No broken bones, but it hurts, and it certainly looks like it feels.

A visit to the doctor, many pain pills and a sleepless night later I presented my invited paper at an international conference a couple of hours ago.

My hand is all bandaged up and rigid. But I needed to use this hand to wave the laser pointer around.

So I took some duct tape out of the truck and taped the laser pointer to the back of my hand.

Worked like a charm. I cruised right through it.

But the audience was rather of open mouthed.

Because of the way my hand is bandaged the middle finger is extended. Seems whenever I raised my hand to point the laser at a screen it looked to the audience like I was giveing them the light show version of...ah...perhaps you get the picture.

Several in the audience told me it was the best presentation of the session, though.

And two people said it was the funniest.

That last Vicodin a half hour before stepping out to the podium might have helped some in this regard – I don’t remember, actually.

Peace,

PS: One-hand typing is hard.

May I just say...

I am a proud member of the Aph fan club.

Aph, dear, you won't remember how hard one handed typing is...so type away...cos I'm LMAO right now and I NEEDED to LMAO.

I'm going home buttless.

Well it's high time you learned how 2 pronounce it, then! <img src="/ubbt/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

"Aphelion: n : apoapsis in solar orbit; the point in the orbit of a planet or comet that is at the greatest distance from the sun [ant: perihelion]"

as opposed 2

"Perihelion: n : periapsis in solar orbit; the point in the orbit of a planet or comet where it is nearest to the sun [ant: aphelion]"

or, for short: "Appy"

I will note, though, that dictionary.com shows the pronunciation of aphelion wrong - the way all ya'all pronounce it, like with an "f". But since the suffix for both words is "helion" as in "helios" - the sun - it ain't right 2 pronounce it that way.

It just ain't write!


<img src="/ubbt/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />-ol' 2long

And then there is Parhelion (n): a bright colored spot on a parhelic circle, often seen in pairs and caused by ice crystals in the atmosphere diffracting light. Also called sundogs.

Dante mentions sundogs in Paradiso. So they must have been around a while, huh.

Good night moon.