Re: Welcome back to the Lucy Mangan fansite

1

All I know is that wanker what took a run at This Is England can fuck off and all.


Posted by: Lord Castock | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 10:33 AM
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She may not like Seinfeld but she obviously likes The Four Yorkshiremen.


Posted by: DaveLMA | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 10:44 AM
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You might want to fix that Context link in the OP, since it has a stray quote at the end that kept it from going to the right post in the linked archive page. Fixed link.


Posted by: Dave W. | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 11:47 AM
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That does make more sense.


Posted by: Moby Hick | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 12:00 PM
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I actually enjoy Seinfeld quite a bit. Jerry does have a well-defined personality; his aura of relative normalcy barely hides his cravenness and greed.


Posted by: dalriata | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 12:23 PM
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Whoa! A teabag who talks a big game about hating American cultural produce and children? Somebody help me to my fainting couch.

On the other hand, anything would be preferable to E/mil/y N/uss/baum. We get it! You live in Brooklyn and use Twitter! Those don't make an aesthetic or an ethos!


Posted by: Flippanter | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 12:23 PM
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6.1: "teabag"?


Posted by: peep | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 12:27 PM
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A derogatory (somehow, perhaps by association with testicles) term for an Englishperson that I suspect Flippanter just made up.


Posted by: nosflow | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 12:28 PM
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9

First-person-shooter players repeatedly crouching on your corpse is the last remnant of British imperialism.


Posted by: dalriata | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 12:30 PM
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10

I doubt my originality, but I know that at least I was using it before Bart Simpson told a hesitant London chocolatier to "Can it, teabag, and make with the brown."


Posted by: Flippanter | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 12:32 PM
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Actually, 6.2 is a good start on a Seinfeld character. Say, a girlfriend for Jerry or boyfriend for Elaine.


Posted by: dalriata | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 12:33 PM
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Flippanter, himself, would make a good Seinfeld character.


Posted by: nosflow | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 12:33 PM
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George's Protestant half brother.


Posted by: nosflow | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 12:34 PM
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10: I thought maybe it was an old-fashioned term, that had become obsolete due to the various sexual and political meanings now associated with teabag.


Posted by: peep | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 12:34 PM
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13: How could that possibly be?

Less believable than Mr. Krabs' whale daughter.


Posted by: peep | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 12:36 PM
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She likes season 2 of Mr Robot, also likes (more dubiously) The Good Wife. She's funny, a good writer.

The best television synergies for this place that I can think of are Party Down or Archer.

Living in Seinfeld is a punishment I would not wish on even the departed trolls.


Posted by: lw | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 12:42 PM
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The cast of Archer--Mallory alone!--would visit great suffering upon the Seinfeld cast.


Posted by: Flippanter | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 12:51 PM
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I was never clear to what degree George was either Catholic or Jewish, but definitely not Protestant. But having a Protestant brother would follow sitcom logic rules and should be allowed. Frank decides to give his second son a different religion, to cover all the bases.


Posted by: dalriata | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 12:52 PM
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18: George Costanza may be the most Jewish character in the history of U.S. television. The apparent ambiguity about his religion is just there to confuse the Gentiles.


Posted by: peep | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 12:58 PM
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20

Long-lost half brother, I should have clarified. Raised by different parents, then they're reunited.


Posted by: nosflow | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 1:01 PM
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20: Is this going to be like that movie with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito playing twins?


Posted by: peep | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 1:03 PM
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I thought it was pretty clear George was some kind of Orthodox Christian. Wikipedia agrees with me. I assume not making him nominally Jewish was done as to prevent antisemitism.


Posted by: Moby Hick | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 1:20 PM
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I guess Wikipedia says that he converted to Latvian Orthodox during the course of the series.


Posted by: Moby Hick | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 1:22 PM
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I think Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David were worried that the show was too Jewy. Or maybe the network executives said something about it.

So they have this character, based on Larry David who is Jewish, played by Jason Alexander, who is Jewish, and who is mostly doing a Woody Allen impression. And the character's parents are played by two Jewish actors doing Catskills-era impressions of Jewish parents.

So of course, he's an Orthodox Christian.


Posted by: peep | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 1:40 PM
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25

And then the U.S. bombs Serbia, but not Israel.


Posted by: Moby Hick | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 1:43 PM
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I think he was only Orthodox during that one episode, to woo a girlfriend; otherwise there's clues that the Costanzas are Italian and presumably Catholic. I agree that he mostly reads as Jewish, but found it weird how they weren't explicit about it the way they are with Jerry.


Posted by: dalriata | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 1:44 PM
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WikiSein cites a decent quantity of clues that the Costanza character has an Italian father and a Jewish mother.


Posted by: Minivet | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 1:44 PM
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26 and 27 are almost certainly right, but I hate to lose my theory of how Seinfeld explains U.S. foreign policy in the 90s.


Posted by: Moby Hick | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 1:48 PM
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So when they hit the Chinese embassy while bombing Serbia, that's like...that episode with the woman whose name sounds Chinese but she's not herself Chinese?


Posted by: dalriata | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 1:51 PM
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29: I think it was related to the time they spent an entire episode waiting to get seated in a Chinese restaurant.


Posted by: AcademicLurker | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 1:59 PM
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I've watched every Seinfeld episode more than once and always figured the mom was Jewish. They never talk about church or temple either, that I can recall. She did get really upset when he became Latvian Orthdox.


Posted by: Cryptic ned | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 2:10 PM
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I guess I can claim this is the thread to talk about interesting writing in. I enjoyed the ride although I thought the insight was mediocre.

https://medium.com/welcome-to-the-scream-room/bad-moon-rising-8cd348df50e9#.fy5nr8bb5


Posted by: roger the cabin boy | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 3:41 PM
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From the link in 32:

[Hillary Clinton] is an iron-jawed, slick-fisted cagefighter gorged on the corpse of the young radical she once was

Mmmmm. . . me-corpse...


Posted by: foolishmortal | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 4:12 PM
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34

When was Young Clinton a radical in anything but Republican campaign ads?


Posted by: Moby Hick | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 4:27 PM
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Good points


Posted by: Roger the cabin boy | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 6:32 PM
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She was more radical curious:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hillary_Rodham_senior_thesis


Posted by: Criminally Bulgur | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 7:11 PM
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36: Radical until graduation?


Posted by: Thorn | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 7:15 PM
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I had this conversation earlier today upon cursorily reading the linked article but conversations about things being overrated are just conversations about feeling left out. I'm hardly immune to it myself (Mad Men indeed) but it's always 50/50 whether it's something you adore that gets called overrated, and then the sad trombone plays. Like Seinfeld is actually funny and redolent of its time and I don't give a shit if someone named Lucy Mangan has an opinion about it.


Posted by: | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 8:23 PM
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Signing your comments is overrated I guess.


Posted by: Mister Smearcase | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 8:24 PM
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Italian father and a Jewish mother.

I had mentally filed his father as Jewish but that is dumb given the name. I guess it's because I know the actor's Jewish.

I don't know, I keep not reading this article because it starts by calling Friends overrated and all I can think is: my god, how bold to take such a radical position.


Posted by: Mister Smearcase | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 8:33 PM
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Secretly, this post is an exercise in nostalgia regarding Lucy Mangan. I don't give a shit about assessing Seinfeld one way or the other.


Posted by: nosflow | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 8:34 PM
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When you're older you'll have the experience of young people rearticulating your own opinions, often after skipping a generation. The OP is an example.


Posted by: idp | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 8:35 PM
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43

The only thing I associate with Mangan is that stuff she wrote has come up before in the archives.


Posted by: fake accent | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 8:49 PM
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44

Me too, really. Double secretly, it's self-directed nostalgia, the boringest and most offensive, and possibly only, kind.


Posted by: nosflow | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 8:54 PM
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45

Definitely only. What would other-directed nostalgia even look like?


Posted by: teofilo | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 9:15 PM
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46

Nostalgia for teofilo's virginity?


Posted by: R Tigre | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 9:27 PM
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47

See? Nihilism, all of it.


Posted by: teofilo | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 9:27 PM
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48

Or is that self directed, because we can only be nostalgic for our separate understandings of teofilo's virginity, not the existence of the virginity itself? Maybe some philosophers can get on this and similarly important issues.


Posted by: R Tigre | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 9:28 PM
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49

Now you get it.


Posted by: teofilo | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 9:29 PM
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50

If only we knew some philosophers.


Posted by: teofilo | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 9:29 PM
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51

I am nostalgic for that time that Teo broke up with his first girlfriend and said something very very seriously along the lines of, "Reflecting, seriously, on this occasion, I must admit that I enjoyed having regular intercourse on a regular basis with a person to whom I was attracted. I enjoyed it more than I expected to, and I shall miss it." Maybe I'm misremembering the specifics, but that was the gist.


Posted by: heebie-geebie | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 9:33 PM
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52

I'm nostalgic for a time when I wondered what it was like to be a bat, but not to be me as a bat.


Posted by: fake accent | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 9:33 PM
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51: Ha! I may still be overly earnest, but I'm nowhere near as earnest as I was then.


Posted by: teofilo | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 9:36 PM
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54

Which is not to say that I don't still agree with the sentiment... laydeez.


Posted by: teofilo | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 9:37 PM
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I'm nostalgic for the time that crazy meth addict knocked on teo's door and teo gave us the blow-by-blow.


Posted by: Barry Freed | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 9:41 PM
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56

Personally, my understanding of teo's virginity was bitter and mean spirited. I'm much more nostalgic for heebie's understanding of teo's virginity.


Posted by: foolishmortal | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 9:48 PM
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55: Ha! (Again.) FB keeps changing their privacy settings in ways that affect whether I can find her profile or not, but I just checked now and she seems to be doing okay and has posted several recent videos. I think one thing that didn't really come through in my comments at the time is that I do really care about her and regret that I wasn't able to help her in any real way with the serious problems she was obviously trying to with. People coming from backgrounds like hers have so many challenges to deal with, and a lot of them don't make it.


Posted by: teofilo | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 9:52 PM
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Someone rang the doorbell to my apartment yesterday, then knocked on the window when I didn't open the door immediately, then, clearly drunk, started asking questios about whether there were rooms to rent, then left once she found out the range of rents. Maybe she thought it was more like a boarding house, not separate apartments.


Posted by: fake accent | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 10:00 PM
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59

I am actually seriously tempted, now that I can see her profile again, to message her to apologize for my behavior before (which she may or may not remember). Thoughts on whether this is a good idea? I'm honestly not sure and keep going back and forth.


Posted by: teofilo | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 10:41 PM
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59 Definitely not a good idea.


Posted by: Barry Freed | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 10:45 PM
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That's been my general inclination overall, yeah.


Posted by: teofilo | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 10:47 PM
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62

But I remain unsure.


Posted by: teofilo | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 10:50 PM
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63

That's how I'd vote anyway.


Posted by: Barry Freed | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 10:51 PM
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64

Did you watch the convention?


Posted by: Barry Freed | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 10:51 PM
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65

No. I don't even have a TV.


Posted by: teofilo | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 10:53 PM
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I watched some of the 2004 convention from Alaska (the Pribilofs, so pretty far west). It was pretty strange having the speeches so early.


Posted by: CharleyCarp | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 10:54 PM
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I know, right?


Posted by: teofilo | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 10:55 PM
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When I visited St. Lawrence Island people were even more upset about the time zone thing. South of Russia!


Posted by: teofilo | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 10:56 PM
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Even Little Diomede isn't that far west.


Posted by: teofilo | Link to this comment | 07-26-16 10:57 PM
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59: No. If she does remember, your Facebook-stalking is another invasion into what should be safe for her. If she doesn't, reminding her of that also seems upsetting. (But I'm reading my own stuff onto this for sure.)


Posted by: Thorn | Link to this comment | 07-27-16 3:37 AM
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57: People coming from backgrounds like hers have so many challenges to deal with, and a lot of them don't make it.

Jesus fucking Christ. This is the woman from your "how'd that happen?" taking-advantage-of-a-fucked-up-person story and you're in all seriousness trying to play Captain Racial Justice after the fact? That's pretty fucked up and sick, man.


Posted by: Lord Castock | Link to this comment | 07-27-16 4:06 AM
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Why do people think Lucy Mangan has vanished?


Posted by: NW | Link to this comment | 07-27-16 4:09 AM
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73

59. No.


Posted by: DaveLMA | Link to this comment | 07-27-16 4:52 AM
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74

I don't think she's vanished. But she no longer seems to have her own column. She just pops up as an opinion writer in various contexts. Which is fine. Is she a good colleague?


Posted by: chris y | Link to this comment | 07-27-16 4:59 AM
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What 73 said.


Posted by: chris y | Link to this comment | 07-27-16 5:00 AM
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74: don't know. Never met her. I get to worship her from afar, like everyone else. I don't think she actually comes into the office much


Posted by: NW | Link to this comment | 07-27-16 5:36 AM
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59: From your point of view or her's, it's obviously a terrible mistake. However, I think we would enjoy hearing about it and there are more of us than two people. If you're a utilitarian, you must.


Posted by: Moby Hick | Link to this comment | 07-27-16 5:43 AM
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I am slightly startled that, in the context link, her father actually turned up. This sort of thing used to happen a lot more in the early days of blogging, or so the nineteen-year-olds assure me in email.


Posted by: ajay | Link to this comment | 07-27-16 5:49 AM
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65: Not sure if that was a cord-cutting joke, but if you are interested in watching it the video game streaming service Twitch has a stream for the convention. Downside is that they also have a stream chat.


Posted by: dalriata | Link to this comment | 07-27-16 6:25 AM
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I was about to comment on the large grocery cart post from 2005. Giant now has tiny carts and they are the best.


Posted by: lemmy caution | Link to this comment | 07-27-16 6:28 AM
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Pushing a tiny grocery cart makes you feel like a giant.


Posted by: Moby Hick | Link to this comment | 07-27-16 6:46 AM
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82

Somebody fixed it. Thank you.


Posted by: Moby Hick | Link to this comment | 07-27-16 10:38 AM
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83

Strong consensus for no. Thanks, everyone! And to 71, yes, that was very inappropriate for me to say and I apologize for it.


Posted by: teofilo | Link to this comment | 07-27-16 10:43 AM
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84

You're welcome.


Posted by: Moby Hick | Link to this comment | 07-27-16 10:54 AM
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85

(I really don't want to keep talking about this, but in case 83 comes across as overly flip: Both Castock's and Thorn's responses have prompted some unpleasant but long-needed soul-searching for me, and I am taking that very seriously.)


Posted by: teofilo | Link to this comment | 07-27-16 7:34 PM
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85: Honestly the comments about race would've been no big thing if they weren't in the context of FB-stalking and considering hooking up again with this person -- which I know you likely know what the dynamics of that would quite possibly wind up being, it was just upsetting to see that played off as concern for the challenges of her people, so that's what made me react the way I did.

Temptation is a constant and of course the temptation to exploit someone exists for a reason, and not everyone resists it. I'm glad that you at least try to think it through and I hope that leads to an outcome you can look in the mirror and be proud of. I want that for you.


Posted by: Lord Castock | Link to this comment | 07-27-16 8:56 PM
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Thanks, and I appreciate that.


Posted by: teofilo | Link to this comment | 07-27-16 8:59 PM
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88

I'm actually 'watching' Friends atm. As in, the tv's on mute and I'm in the same room. Kid D truly loves Friends, has watched the box set all the way through three times I think, and will happily watch any episode she comes across on Comedy Central.

I did love Battlestar Galactica, but that was mostly because of Jamie Bamber (not the fat suit/married to boring Dee series obviously). I'll watch all sorts of crap if there's someone pervworthy in it. To illustrate this, Kid D has now reappeared and put on The Musketeers.


Posted by: asilon | Link to this comment | 07-28-16 12:37 PM
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