Belated....but happy birthdays to Stephanie, Amy, and Annabel! I hope you all had wonderful days.

Much ~ma to Susan and her mother, as well as the PMM family. Cancer can fuck off and die.

edited for sense-making.

oh dear lord. How old is this person? 15ish? Certainly too young to be getting married! jesus

He's older than I am. The terminology is mine. I just boiled it down for posting's sake. I think the sentiment comes more from some of the people he works with-good ol' boy lawyers. (Nothing against lawyers, or even southern ones, but there seems to be something about the ones from these parts that means they expect to have a Carrie Underwood look-alike on their arms)

Dear Daisy's Friend,

You should not get married until you stop asking other people whether you should propose and you get new friends. Also, if you do propose, I kind of hope she turns you down because you're not cute enough.

Hello! Electricity! Gulf Stream! Reinventing the postal system. Founding Father. sooo much more.

Freethinker (advanced even for his time and his compatriots). Partier. Shrewd diplomat. Member of the Hellfire Club.

And just for kicks, he invented swimfins. And bifocals.

Oddly, I've got a Ben Franklin quote right at my elbow, on the copywright page of one of Rosemary Wells's Bunny Planet books. From a letter he wrote to one of his nephews in 1771:

It is the first duty of a flagging spirit to seek renewal in the latitudes of whimsy. I, for one, dream on beyond the five planets to a world without wickedness; verdant, mild, and populated by amiable lapins.

He should be on any sane person's Dinner With Anyone From History short list; it'd definitely be one of those dinners where nobody wanted to stop talking and listening long enough to actually eat and all the food got cold and congealed, but you wouldn't even notice being hungry because the conversation had been so fantastic. Though all the beer probably wouldn't hurt either.

And, in other news, I send Sean armloads of tacklehugs. I think of you almost every time I look at Matilda now; I see her head of wispy hair and remember you and S. visiting and your story of how you loved your little sister and how terribly you resented the hair that finally grew because it took away her extra-lovable "baby head," and I love you all over again.

It kills me, because this is not the him I know.

I just made my first dentist appointment in 7 years. Meep. I'm scared. Don't wanna go.

ow! How many times do I have to smush my fingers in the hole punch before I learn not to hold it that way?

Jess, the first time I went back to the dentist after more than 10 years, I had no cavities! There is hope!

for those stressing, whether it's work, dentist appointment, or trying to come up with a Natter title. I offer this: [link]

Very much work safe. I think sound, even at low level, helps a lot.