GaryKelly

I'm not sure if it was Christopher Atkins first...then River Phoenix. But, hey, I'm too old to remember. And now? You wanna volunteer?

In my mid 20s I had a 12 yo friend who, one day, said 'shit!' When I commented he said, "hey, it's just a word". He was right, of course. And BTW Razor, I admire your spirit...just don't get TOO carried away.

I luvya, Razor.

Yes, glomph, it's all a matter of perspective.

The Melbournian sage strikes again! But in direct reply to the topic: physical appearance is completely irrelevant... I visited Townsville some time ago and drove to the top of Castle Hill, which overlooks the city and harbor. Castle Hill is just a meter or two below mountain level. Hehe. So, yeah, I guess that's relevant.

Ah! It's 'something' but is it a ghost? My old umbrella refused to collapse any more, so I left it on the verandah, opened. My dog Kelly barked at it. I rest my case. :pickaxe:

Even if you are from Melbourne, you're Australian, which is why you make so much sense.

I'd like to thank Nick for throwing a leg over his stallion and riding to the rescue of this particular damsel in distress. And for calling me 'dude'. Hehe. I haven't been called 'dude' in ages. I'd send him a jar of home-made jam (jelly) and oatmeal chewy cookies but he's waaaaaaaaaaaaaay over there in the northern hem. Nick says he likes to serve the Lord. Pardon my hair-splitting but I prefer to call it serving the cause, which is the cause of tolerance and understanding. He's quite the smartie pants for a 16 yo. And NO, that's not being patronising. He included me in his list of friends, which I deem an honor (for an old bloke). And that leads me to the so called generation gap. Gap is cool. I like gaps. Gaps make the landscape more interesting. But Nick is a believer in bridges from what I gather from his blog, and I like bridges too. Bridges are Yeah? Put gaps and bridges together and whadda ya git? Go figure. Meanwhile, Ls and Gs, it's time to post another chapter of Horace Fink and the intrepid Dickson Bottoms. http://www.gayauthors.org/eficiton/viewstory.php?sid=349

As a school kid, I was terrified of other people and kept to myself. The quintessential nerd. At about 12 or 13, I discovered the joy of self-effacement and how it made others laugh. Woohoo! A weapon! "Are you gay?" "I'm working on it-don't rush me." I learned to laugh at myself and to use humor as a means of getting others to laugh 'with' me, as opposed to 'at' me. Instead of losing respect, I gained respect. And that, dear Breth, included self-respect.

You raise an interesting point, Menzo. What is the definition of a moron? :king: Or did I miss something?

All the world is a stage... true, but theater seats hold a helluva lot more people. When a person decides to take center stage, they become a target - a target for what? That's the risk every performer takes. Sounds a tad masochistic. I wonder why performers (from politicians to jugglers to authors) take that risk. On the one hand, sensitivity is a prerequisite for creativity. On the other, insensitivity is an antidote for bruised ego. Is it possible to be both thick and thin skinned?

I use the old 'piss off' technique. When a negative thought tries to invade my conscious I tell it to piss off. I've practiced this technique for quite a while and it's now an automatic response. The negative thought disappears in a millisecond. "Be gone you demon!"

I have to admit that Zoloft (Sertraline) produced prolific dreams, most of which were anxiety dreams... not finding my way out of buildings, working in offices where nobody knew me or why I was there, or being on air with NO RECORDS to play and having to ad lib like buggery. I told my doc about it and he suggested halving the dose, which is an improvement. I wanna get back to dreaming about large schlongs...and eventually get off the pills. However, after a heart attack 4 years ago, I'm stuck with various blood thinning and cholesterol gizmos. Bleh.

Absolutely nothing...but that happens to be my area of expertise.

What a nice, friendly and helpful bunch of peeps you are.