I love you Joy!!! You are stuck with me as a friend.

Damn, wish I could help, but... well, I kinda like you for your politics, your drama and most especially your drinking. Sorry. Try Hackbarth or something. Good luck!

RG

I was thinking of "something," but the electricity bill is already too high.

Hermits don't have blogs.

Try prayer before anything involving toasters, electricity, gin, or any of the usual suspects. It's been known to work.

I tried, but it sounded like the line was busy. I'll try again once tonight. He has to be Home at some point, right? And, yes: confession this week. And if I can't get the connection going via the Roman Catholic line, I'll go back to the Methodists for a while, or try the Anglicans. It most certainly cannot get worse than this. (I mean, it could, but . . . you know.)

I don't have a toaster. (And, just to set your mind at ease, the allusion above was to a plug-in vibrator; I'm not suicidal--and if I were I'd still be too contrary to give in to a thing like that. I wouldn't let It win.)

No gin. Not when I'm like this. I might go to bed early, though. How early is too early? I was thinking I would let myself go to bed around 8:00, if I'm still this miserable. (And, yes: Ambien is permitted. Not more than 125% of my normal dose, though. And then I can read, or do my counting-myself-to-sleep routine, or whatever . . .)

Usually, I try to read when I'm like this, but I can't even seem to do that. Perhaps there's something around here that I've read 25 million times that will comfort me and bore me vaguely at the same time. Magazines like Women's Day used to be really good for nights like this.

Look at it this way: it's like not owning stocks right now. Being emotionally broke is like being financially broke: the expectations are low. Anything I accomplish tonight is a victory.

I never thought suicidal. But one in four detectives do see something fishy with toaster-in-tubs accidents. Especially with a 4-ga extention cord and a nickel in the fuse box.

You have been in my prayers for years now. The connection is fine whether you use AT&T, Sprint, or Skype. Charges just vary. It's all taking place in you any way. And I always feel that everything I do is a victory--even waking up.

Wow, you have a plug-in? and yet you're miserable? Fuck, is there any hope for the rest of us???

RG

Orgasms aren't everything . . . they're just way ahead of most other things.

Thank you, Darrell. It's nice to know that there's someone else out there who cares.

I'm not sure why life is so difficult, and certainly there are those who have tangible reasons for finding it so difficult to negotiate the path of life.

Others of us are simply Not Talented at the Life Thing. And we ought to count our blessings. And then pray. And then go to bed.