In? do you know how often I say things like " my Buffy friends" or "on my boards .." .

In my case, several times a day.

Sean, I've broken my big toe and gone to the doctor with it, and all he did was tape it to the next two toes to immobilize it. Otherwise, all there is is ice, elevation and cursing. When I did it, the toe turned purple and then the purple worked its way up my foot in kind of a wide purple stripe. It was kind of entertaining.

Later, I spent eight years in karate and became pretty blase about broken toes.

In? do you know how often I say things like " my Buffy friends" or "on my boards .." .

Oh dog. Me too. "We were discussing today, in my online community..blah, blah." My mundane friends appreciate y'all in a big way. They learn things they never would otherwise.

I've broken a toe and done the ice/sit with my leg elevated on a wall/taped it to the next two toes and everything turned out alright Sean. Except of course for the searing pain and the queasiness it caused.

I hope yours heals quickly.

Sean--a friend says the simplest way to be sure a bone is broken is to touch a humming tuning fork to it.

I'm not saying you should, because the positive result is supposed to be that it hurts like a mofo. But if you do, I will note your sacrifice for science, since we can't find anyone who's actually tried it yet.

All that notwithstanding there's probably not much for you to do with it other than rest and try and keep the swelling down.

Sean--a friend says the simplest way to be sure a bone is broken is to touch a humming tuning fork to it.

Much like the simplest way to see if a 9-volt battery is dead is to touch the terminals to your tongue....

I broke a toe once (but it was not the big one). I could hardly walk at all. Then I taped it to the toe next to it. After that, it hurt like hell to walk on it when I wore one particular pair of shoes, but when I wore a pair of jogging shoes it didn't hurt at all.

So, um... what is my point? Toes are weird. And, try the taping....

In? do you know how often I say things like " my Buffy friends" or "on my boards .." .

IME, it really helped cut down on the confused blinking and puzzled faces to go and marry one of my Buffy board people -- marriage, I suppose, is such a spectacularly normal thing to do that it de-weirded the entire community in my non-Buffy people's eyes.

Though, hmmmm. Hec and I are only a sample of one. Is Nora around to report on the McWaringle experience?

IME, it really helped cut down on the confused blinking and puzzled faces to go and marry one of my Buffy board people -- marriage, I suppose, is such a spectacularly normal thing to do that it de-weirded the entire community in my non-Buffy people's eyes.

Us Buffistas obviously need to all marry each other.

But the way I have in mind probably wouldn't make others think we're any less weird.

Well, I did say "one."

Though it can be a problem, narrowing it down to just the one. We're very pretty.

I still haven't e-mailed the girl I'm supposed to marry. Perhaps I can start out by saying, "Sorry, I've been too busy watching Life on Mars to say anything until now."

We're very pretty.

We are at that.

My North Beach friends just think I'm deeply geeky. My mother has met many of you, but she wouldn't care how I met people, just that I get along with them. I don't think my grandmother grasps the concept, but she's barely mastered email.