Very poetic, LJ. Mrs Elspode says that the two unexpected communications I have recently received from significant persons from my youth is just the Cosmos giving me a chance to work out some of the shit I still carry around inside me.

Mrs Elspode is a lot smarter than I am. Of course, there are rocks that are smarter than I am, but she's *really* smart.

yeah, well. I think we should all post in ONLY poetry for the rest of the day. whaddya think? get some culture and shit.

Eeeew, culture! :bolt:

Glad to have been there....pretty sure I could handle it better given a second chance......glad I don't have to prove it.
Mixed emotions.....a common malady, methinks.

Maybe she's on Step 9?

wolf--i think you're brilliant! :lol:

I just realized I've overlooked a couple of really good points from Mari. Sorry, Mari.

She didn't mention it, but a bit of 'Net scouring reveals a web page which shows a couple of pictures of a female child.

She did not mention this aspect of our relationship, but I would think it must be somewhere in her mind. It has been in mine for over 30 years, and I've often wondered how she felt about the event after the passage of time.

So.... Is your name Earl?

No, but what a *great* show!

well, i think it's a fucking shame
that no one wants to play my game
you're all a bunch of whining turds
if i met you i'd flip you the bird....s

Well, two emails have been exchanged. All is well, and no hint of any interest beyond being old friends who shared a pretty energetic and formative time of their young lives just trying to catch up and reminisce.

Update
 

Well, most of you probably don't care, but I thought I'd mention that Liz and I have exchanged a few emails over a couple of weeks, and so far no one seems to be poised on the edge of leaving their spouse or anything. I knew you'd all be relieved to know this. :rolleyes:

It has been interesting catching up. My assumption that the kid pic on the web was of one of hers was incorrect. It is her niece, child of her husband's sister. Interestingly, her husband's sister has been married to David Carradine since early this year, making Liz officially David Carradine's sister in law. I asked her what it was like going to family gatherings with Caine. :D Also on the cool side is the fact that Liz's husband is currently the sound design and recording engineer for the Kronos String Quartet.

Anyway, it looks like this is turning out to be a nice, serendipitous occurance for both of us as we catch up on 30 years of history.

My history all sounds so tawdry, now that I find myself repeating it back to someone who wasn't here to experience it in the first person...

Dear Elspode:

I have read your histories, both those written in the first person and those written in the third person, and I must say that tawdry is not how they come across to this reader. They are all uniformly eloquent and articulate. They are highly readable, emotionally engaging and filled with intelligent humor. This current serial essay is no different.

I do not find your situation, your history or your writing tawdry. I find it courageous. Not only for your confidence to bare yourself to the wide world, but also for your ability to face your own story so truthfully. I would dare to suggest that the sensation you are reading as tawdriness is actually your bare humanity showing through. It is based on an awareness, a sensitivity to the impact of your actions, your successes and your mistakes, your victories and your failures. Not just how things turned out, but more importantly, how they affected other people. And that is fundamentally a good thing. And you are fundamentally a good person.

Please don't give any more attention to those negative thoughts than you positively have to. The balance holds, but it is delicate. Do not contribute to the negative side when it is so clearly unwarranted.

Tawdry? Yeah, like John Steinbeck, Jack london, Robert Service, Papa, et al... :notworthy

Your history sounds real. Embrace it.

No woman does something that thinking without an agenda. With regards to relationships, both old and new, women have a depth that men just don't have. Now, I know people (especially juju) think i'm sexist..and that's true. But there's a reason.. either...
she wants you, els, or there are unresolved abortion issues (i HATE that word) or something i'm not smart enough to get.

run EVERY BIT of communication past mrs. els, both from and to. keep her very informed, ask her what she thinks. i know you know that's important...but i'm telling you again.