Stripped

~ for me, at least, another level of nekkidness ~

Saturday morning. Early. Baby brother is sleeping. Dad is building a house. The woods are beckoning, longing to be revived by the foot-to-path, the mouth-to-mouth that I provide every Saturday. For hours. Exploring, building dams in the creeks. Catching crawdads. Lying on the bank as still as the owl, with hope as strong as time that a dragonfly (we called them snake doctors) would land on me. They were deep neon green and had black wings. They were everywhere. I dug for wild cucumbers that matured underground. Finding them, I washed them in the creek, sprinkled them with wild pepper seeds and ate. And ate. Running endlessly to find the end of the forest, to find that place where the sun was headed. Only to be shepherded back by a singular voice. A voice that carried through the leaves and over the rushing waters and found its way to me. "Dinner!" It sang.

But that morning, before the day’s adventures were unfolded like fresh linens, Mom was at the piano. The Baptist Hymnal presided over the ministrations of her nimble fingers. Even when she ventured to Dolly, Loretta, Don Williams and The Everly Brothers. Especially when she hiked further and found Jerry Lee, Charlie Rich, and Willie Nelson. I began my travels at her feet, pushing the pedals with my hands. I eventually found my way to the bench, where I watched. Listened. She could sing the angels to sleep as well as she could cause the devil to dance.

The progression continued as I was kidnapped by a desire that has never relinquished its hold on me. I stood beside her and learned to harmonize vocally, then with my fingers on the keys. Older still, I sat beside her again, and we played for others. Together. Sang for others. Together. Then, I sang for her. I played for her. Until time could be kept no longer, as if it ever could. Until now. I visit and hear the request. And I will play. Sometimes. Not as much, for somewhere the magic became something different. Became something that doesn’t exist when she is there. Repressed. Jaded. So much more than simply water under that bridge.

The music is still magic, though. She is still Mom. She still sings and plays. She still amazes me. I should tell her that more often. I should play for her more often. I should wake up Saturday morning and run through that forest until I find the words. Until that dragonfly lands. Until that forest ends, and I come out on the other side, beautifully broken. Until everyone can see where the son is headed. Keeping time again.
I should.

I have seen others post about Googlism. Of course, I decided to find out more about me, so here are some secret and not-so-secret facts about Jericho. Oh, I highlighted the ones you should pay closer attention to.

jericho is right
jericho is back
jericho is world’s oldest
jericho is war
jericho is everywhere this fall
jericho is a honey
jericho is going to have a farmers market
jericho is agriculture
jericho is that recorded in the bible
jericho is very rich in historical sites
jericho is not just a city to conquer… jericho is not merely the enemy… jericho is not simply an obstacle to overcome… jericho is not a racial issue
jericho is everyone’s jelly
jericho is the man
jericho is classified as hot and dry in summer (dry?!)
jericho is relatively free and so the system has become a haven for all sorts
jericho is sure going to make an impact in the world wrestling federation 
jericho is misguided and void of substance 
jericho is now cut off by an israeli trench
jericho is mentioned only seven times in the new testament
jericho is a java
jericho is the peak of defilement
jericho is thought to be the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world
jericho is a memory resident
jericho is actually extremely different from his ringside persona
jericho is charged with murdering gamey
jericho is a man haunted by a past he can’t remember
jericho is not the man to spare his five
jericho is a student production
jericho is perhaps one of the most interesting archaeological sites
jericho is a quiz game where you create the questions and the kids have a lot of fun
jericho is about 5′10" tops
jericho is one of the more experienced males on the mars police force
jericho is our paragon of virtue
jericho is a city in palestine on the west bank of the jordan river
jericho is good
jericho is your prototypical paleontologist
jericho is the best
jericho is situated on a mound overlooking the oasis
jericho is fond of saying
jericho is proof that a band reforming after decades isn’t necessarily treading water
jericho is afraid
jericho is one of the best in the business today
jericho is still a broken man 

This process is but a cog in a gear in the system that is me.

Water Dream

We melted into a pool
cotton, silk, cotton-poly blend, denim
falling all around
Like autumn leaves drifting to the watertop
barely rippling the surface.
Hesitate, hurry, heat, cool air, stop
don’t stop –
bronze the moment in memory
like baby’s shoes – reminder:
fruit of conception –
Like stones skipping, scouring smooth surface
with simple swells until the fall
down – can’t wait – drown –
drop fast
Stone to the bottom of the pool
And like a stone,
Can’t remember the details
once the ripples slowly move away,
fade into the rushes, blend
with man-made wake while
Waiting for winter to freeze me again.

~jericho~

Economy of Love

The swinging in the playground
twenty years ago
Stopped dead in the rust
of feeble, old dreams.
We grew upward from strollers to bikes,
leaving each to fall like leaves,
And time still hikes
its way through a mangled world.
We dined at the wedding feast
on gilded plates now broken
from the move you made
Away.
Love depreciates.

~jericho~

A smile like the sunrise
Peering over Calibogue sound
Rouses him from other dreams where,
In arms as free as his
Longing, he rests peacefully,
And she wonders what he will do
when it rains.
Thoughts of darkness toss him
like a hammock in a hurricane,
but he recalls the fire within.
He knows he finds inspiration in the rainfall,
and he knows how to swim.
Swallowed by her light, though
He takes a breath
As deep as canyons
Just in case.

Lime agreed to be interviewed, and she is next. Hers is a very enjoyable blog, full of weird news (Wednesdays’ fare), wonderfully written posts on the history and local color of Trinidad (complete with some great photos), many answers to many tags and the like, and marvelous glimpses of the mind and heart of Lime.

My guess is that you have been in the House of Lime before. If you have taken the time to read her posts, the comments of those who have visited her site, or her own thoughtful comments on others’ sites, then you get the feeling that she is well-liked by most if not all. You also get a sense of why. She writes well, with an honest forthrightness that is refreshing. She is unapologetic in her revelations of who she is, what is important to her, and how grateful she is that you have visited. Oh, and she will cause laughter, too.

For me, Lime exists in that realm of commenters all bloggers desire to count as regular visitors. Her comments are thoughtful, inspiring, humorous, touching - substantive is as good a word as any. Rarely, if ever, is a Lime comment a simple pleasantry except for when that is the most appropriate response. At least, that is my opinion. So, Lime, I have some questions for you.

1. You acknowledge that you are a wife and mother. Your kids are marvelously accounted for in many ways at the House of Lime, but not Mr. Lime. Oh, sure, a few comments here and there suggest that he exists. However, very few stories reveal his role. Now, this may be for any one of many valid reasons - he may have requested such or other personal reasons may dictate such, for example. I could even try to peer deeper and reference this post, where you plead the fifth when asked if you are in love with someone. My question is less invasive, however.

How knowledgable is Mr. Lime about your blogging activities and is he supportive, indifferent, or unsupportive of the House of Lime project?

2. In this post, you tell the story of your first Thanksgiving in Trinidad and reveal that Thanksgiving as "the most special one" you have ever celebrated.

What could you do to make this year’s Thanksgiving the most special one for someone you care dearly about but are reluctant to work that hard on the relationship. (your children excluded, of course)

3. Several posts reveal you to be a person of faith. For instance, here you state that you are thankful for the freedom to worship; and here you "pray that whatever life brings, may we all be made sweeter."

What is the biggest obstacle that exists between you and your faith?

4. You love to read, and I admire you so much for your desire to spread the joy of reading through your support and work for Reading is Fundamental. You wrote about the first book that had a real impact on you and reveal that you are "drawn to biographies."

I am writing a biography of you. What are the greatest tragedy, the greatest joy, and the greatest lesson we will reveal in this sure-to-have-an-impact biography?

5. You speak of the Muse of Blogging. You and other regular readers (I sometimes guess at who is "regular") often serve as a veritable Muse Board for me. Today, however, the Board has dictated that you will be my muse. As you begin your work, you come to me with answers to the following:

What is something you wish your blog to have/inspire/be but it just isn’t there (yet?)? Is there something I can do to make your blogging experience even better? What do you like most and least about my blog?

Ok, Lime, thanks for your patience and for your willingness to take part.

The rules of the Interview Game are:

If you want to participate, leave a comment below saying, “interview me.”

I will respond by asking you five questions - each person’s will be different.

You will update your journal/blog with the answers to the questions.

You will include this explanation and an offer to interview others.

When others ask to be interviewed, you will ask them 5 questions.

Lil Bit, Rayna, and Learn are next up.

I interviewed Southern Sweetheart first, and you can read her response here.

Next, I interviewed Christina, and you can read her response here.

Next was keda, and you can find her response here.

Then, I interviewed Phain, and her response is here.

CowGirl’s responses should be up soon.

Lime’s interview will be up as soon as I can complete it.

Phain, the lovely princess of perseverance, says that I can ask her anything. While at times she may be a "scaredy cat," she amazes as well. She is a mother, a lover, a worker, a dreamer, a thinker. Begrudgingly at times, she is a wife, and she is patient. Many things bring her happiness: her children, cinnamon, piano music, passion, and salvation to name some of them. She can paint pictures with words. She can tease. She cares. Sometimes too much its seems. She is guilty, but she is preparing for the trial. She has many things to say. Her case is strong. Still, she worries. She shouldn’t, though. See if you agree.

I read here… one of the "good" things about you is that you are "cute" maybe even pretty. Among the "bad" things are your vanity, your desire for a tattoo, and your contemplating of a threesome. Finally, among the "dark" things are your hypocrisy, fear, silence, lust, uncertainty, lack of focus, and feelings of insignificance.

1. Many critics say that religion does nothing but make one feel guilty. I do not believe that guilt, in and of itself, is a bad thing. I also do not believe that the purpose of religion is to nurture guilt. I do see a wealth of guilt in your writing, though. I also see rays of glorious freedom and love and caring and salvation-pending. You are pretty, I am sure. Nothing vain about stating the obvious. Tattoos and sexual desires may be labeled however you wish. Hypocrisy, however, causes you to label things one way for others and another way for yourself. With so much turmoil, a lack of focus and a fair amount of uncertainty are understandable. When the person you share your life with lives as if you do not exist, then feelings of insignificance can be explained. Then we have fear, lust, silence….

You can turn onto a different road today. A better road. Yet, you are scared. Scared that others will only see a lustful act by a selfish woman, perhaps? If not this, then what is the single largest fear that keeps you silent?

I read here… "Fear is my biggest obstacle. Fear of the unknown - which covers just about every single aspect of my existence right now. Fear of what others will say and what I will say to others in explanation. Fear of what to tell the children, the girl will crumble, the boy won’t know what’s going on. Fear of the responsibility that will fall on my shoulders. Fear of breaking commitments that were supposed to be forever. Fear of bringing pain and anguish to those around me. Fear of being alone." … and I read here… "After dating for almost four years and living together for two, I asked him to marry me. He said yes. Damn. It wasn’t long after we married that our intimate life dried up….But I didn’t call on my faith when I married my husband, who is an agnostic. At the time I didn’t think it would matter, but in very short order, it became all the difference in the world. I am quite active in the church I attend, Husband says I do too much, I say I can never do enough. We disagree often over this. I have cut out a lot of the things I participate in, in an effort to make the peace at home. It hasn’t worked so far. I feel like a hypocrite quite a lot of the time. I am working on that."

2. So, you have lots of fears that may answer number one. However, perhaps you also feel responsible. Of course, you feel responsibility toward the children and all that entails, but you "started this," so to speak. Right? You asked him. Granted, you didn’t know that he would become the person he has become. You didn’t know that his aridness would sap the moist, lush and fruitful lifewater from you. Still… you feel responsible. You also feel responsible for your failure to apply your faith to your choice. Something so important to you, yet you let it go. You should not be unequally yoked. You can bring him to the water time and time again. Unless, of course, he refuses to go. Unequal. Yoked.

You may have let go of faith many times over the past years. Salvation makes you happy, but do you still fear that the object of your faith has or will let go of you?

I read here… "I’m not trying to trivialize love. On the contrary, I think it’s so big and enormous that I just can’t wrap my mind around it."

3. Lack of focus. Feelings of insignificance. Lost. Vacant. Adulterer. All of these are included on your vision of yourself. Have you ever in your life given and/or received the love you desire?

I read here… "But this past weekend, the list was all checked off with the exception of the weeds. It was time. I do not mind pulling weeds. No one else ever bothers to do it, no one else ever wants to do it. I know once I get out there on my hands and knees that I will be left alone for as long as I wish, hours even. Actually, come to think of it, I love pulling weeds. … I started thinking about how there are weeds in my life that I would like to pull. Weeds that suffocate. Weeds that ignore. Weeds that do not care. More weeds than flowers it seems like. But have you ever noticed when pulling weeds that if you grab an entire handful and give a good tug, they all snap off about a half an inch from the surface. Then you’re screwed and you have to pinch them out of the dirt. But if you carefully but firmly grab them one at a time and pull slowly, they come up (usually) root and all. …Because you know, otherwise, they’ll just grow right back. He always comes back."

4. I loved this post. It inspired me. Still does. No garden reaches its full potential unless it is tended. Unless someone tills the soil, plants the seeds, pulls the weeds, prunes and harvests. Often, we discover that we are residing within a staked-out plot. There are signs of long ago garden activity. Seems that you can still identify the vague outline of rows. The hollow stalks of dried vegetables, flowers. Weeding is needed, but… so is tilling. The ground has sat too long, untended.

As you weed your garden, have you considered tilling the soil? What will you plant?

5. I love your writing. I feel a kinship with you that stems from so many similarities that it staggers me at times. I am eager to see you in full bloom, smiling, fearless.

You want a tattoo. I am getting one in two weeks. If we traveled together with the goal of getting matching or complimenting tattoos, what would we get, you and I?

Thanks for being brave. Thanks for this dose of fearlessness.
Now, the Rules for the Interview Game:

If you want to participate, leave a comment below saying, “interview me.”
I will respond by asking you five questions - each person’s will be different.
You will update your journal/blog with the answers to the questions.
You will include this explanation and an offer to interview others.
When others ask to be interviewed, you will ask them 5 questions.

~ Lime is next! ~~ is next! ~

Cowgirl is the next one in the hot seat. From reading her posts, I deduce that she enjoys the hot seat. Sometimes. George and Sam and the hot neighbor may put her in the hot seat at times, so to speak, but now it’s my turn. CowGirl is not different than the other interviewees in the way that she provides me with options. Her stories are filled with juicy material, ripe for the analyst’s blade. She is a mother, a wife, a lover, an employee, a fixer of computers, a drinker. She is pretty and sexy and funny, and she has a way with words. She is also a free spirit, stuck. So, CowGirl, answer me this:

You say: I am not happy with a lot of things in my life, including myself.

1. What is the one thing you have control over that you can change in order to bring more happiness into your life? If you have control over it, then what are you waiting for?

You say: I need to be happy. I’m disappearing. I have no idea where the real CowGirl has gone. I’m sick of being myself everywhere but at home.

2. It is terrible to feel that you cannot be yourself. The other side to that, all too often, is that when we find ourselves in that position, we should realize that we probably never were ourselves in the first place. For instance, we may have pretended to be a little different than we really were in order to win that certain person. That is a bad idea that should never be followed. Another thing that happens is that we discover that we have changed and that we cannot be our "new" selves. Too bad the other person didn’t come along for the ride, because odds are that they have changed to. Diagnosis: what we have here is a failure to communicate. What is the difference between "the real CowGirl" and the one that lives in your home?

You say: I think he’s clueing in that we have problems …. [and] I’m testing him too…

3. You say these things in regards to your feeling that your husband is finally pulling away in a sense. You also speak of "testing him" by telling him that you love him when you don’t - just to see what his response is. We all are apt to do things a certain way depending on our perceived outcome analysis. A person who is not filled with fear of the hearer’s response may be more willing to speak openly, honestly. A person who is fearful of what their honesty may create, well… that person feels as though lying equals survival. Neither of these may apply in your case. I don’t know. If neither do, then it’s an interesting game to play, especially considering that George seems to provide a certain level of happiness. So, CowGirl, what are you most scared of?

You say that you were very good in math studies, that you wish you had pursued accounting, and that you desire to return to school one day.

4. If you could return to school full-time today, with no financial pressures for four semesters, what degree would you pursue? What is your dream job? (no stay-at-home-mom, wife of a rich man, or lottery winner, please)

You and I share many similarities, from certain experiences to our upbringing to our restlessness and dissatisfaction in relationships… lots. I have enjoyed "getting to know you." You make me laugh. I also am touched by some of the things you are going through. I know you have your hands full, but I wonder…

5. I am visiting your hometown. I will be there from noon on Friday until noon on Sunday. You have all of that time free - no hubby, no kids, no work. You agree to pick me up at the airport. We are not allowed to get drunk, nor are we allowed to have a physical relationship on this get-together. However, you are my hostess for the weekend and must spend this time with me. What would we do?

Ok, CowGirl! Hope that wasn’t too bad. Now, here are the rules:

If you want to participate, leave a comment below saying, “interview me.”
~You did~
I will respond by asking you five questions - each person’s will be different.
~I did~
You will update your journal/blog with the answers to the questions.
~Your turn~
You will include this explanation and an offer to interview others.
~Your turn~
When others ask to be interviewed, you will ask them 5 questions.
~Cool?~ ~ Thanks for the opportunity to interview you! ~

keda gets interviewed! This is good because I am a new visitor to her site and because most of you are unfamiliar with her, as well. At least, few of you (including myself) are commenting, showing her the love. This interview is welcomed for other reasons, too: she expresses herself well; she is intelligent, interesting, and beautiful; she has incredibly pretty twin girls; she has stories to tell. Thanks for your willingness, keda.

YOU SAY: i’m going to go to work re-educating myself. recently i got back into campaigning and letter writing and shouting at the telly and reading the news and donating to charity… i’m on the net more. but all this appears to be rather "un feminine" net-wise so as a counter measure (and as i still can’t bring myself to do recipies) i’ll also try to dig out some of my hideously embarrasing old "poems". i will of course find it easy to talk about child rearing…so thats my manifesto. to myself. to bridge the gap. and to try to get this knackered old ticker working again.

1. I have enjoyed my numerous visits this week to your site. In fact, I want to visit you in Istanbul, as crazy as that may sound. Many interesting things and questions occur to me as I contemplate “you” as I know you. I understand that the past 12 years or so have been busy and full of changes for you. I know that you have stunningly adorable and precocious twin girls. I know that you are eco-conscious, pragmatic, and humorous – at times fondly self-deprecatingly. I know you are an holistic massage therapist. What I want to know: What is your dream job, (no stay-at-home mum, no win-the-lottery answer!) and what is your plan to get it?

YOU SAY: so who should we believe, all of us who are left? what kind of god do we want to teach our children about? what kind of world would we like to live in? …having children myself who are half english and half turkish i want to teach them honestly about all beliefs (religious and political- but we all know i’ll never get time or the knowledge for that! i will however do my best) and let them make their own way to a faith or not. because in the long run, if they choose to have faith in a God/Allah/Yhvh of any name i would hope that was based on real belief and a desire to really do good, and not just fear of the bogey man or their neighbours.
…despite all this idiocy that is happening around us every day, i for one would still be rooting for benevolence. for a god of charity and love. for there being one god who we can all have our differing feelings about and relationships with, who cares for all the worlds children irrespective of race, position wealth, mental prowess and who would advocate his followers to have compassion and tolerence towards all his creatures. the strange thing to me is that anyone feels any different. but thats partly why i put in the clause about mental prowess. i really must be complete idiot to think many other people would agree no?as usual i do actually think the majority of the world have idealistic dreams hidden deep inside them somewhere but a mixture of selfishness and lack of patience seems to lead to intolerence. mix in a bit of ignorance and we have people threatening death and damnation all over the place.
i can do this…..i can voice my opinions and thoughts and invite debate, and i can raise my children to do the same. i can do my best to raise them to be compassionate, loving, confident, eager to learn and open minded. and most importantly i can raise them to know without a shadow of a doubt that they are loved. be it by a God/Allah/Yhvh or the Universal Energy…or me, or you.

2. I love the openness of your blog, the sincerity with which you express your opinions, the pragmatism in your expression. In the section above, you express a desire to teach your children about all beliefs so that they can be well-armed to make their own decisions as they mature. Desiring for them to base their beliefs on true belief and not on fear of any societal retribution or bogey-man attack is beautifully and simply stated. You root for benevolence, however, “for a god of charity and love…who cares for all the world’s children irrespective [of any of their differences]… Considering that children hang the coats of their beliefs initially on the rack of their parents, do you believe that you can or should teach your children that such a god exists, a god that is benevolent and loving and caring?

YOU SAY: there are no easy answers. but films and books and conversations which challenge our own beliefs and make us question our motives are crucial to all of us if we are to find the truth and to trust ourselves and our personal visions. learning is a lifelong process and whenever i feel i am being challenged and informed i feel good…watching movies and reading books can be beautiful escapism, but they can also make you think. and thinking is goooood………just so long as we are never foolish enough to think we know it all!

3. Another thing I really enjoy about your site is your desire to bring some artistic relevance to others. You talk of the cinema and of the wonderful films which have meaning to you. Your exposing these to me challenges me. What is the one challenge you need to face but fear the most?

YOU SAY: if we love and respect life then we have a duty to respect the living and their wishes and their health. every action has a consequence, and if we do not think about the consequences of our actions we are to blame, whatever our views. but we can only ever really know the consequences of our own individual actions. we should not dare to force our sensibilities on another when we can have no idea of their individual circumstances.
if we cant act to help the living, the impoverished, the abused, the frightened the sad. if we cant accept peoples rights to control their own bodies and futures so long as that doesn’t involve hurting any other living person then we should be working on ourselves. and finding a way that we can help.

4. You express yourself well. I thought much about this post (above). I pondered many questions to ask. I decided upon this simple question: What is the one aspect of your emotional or mental self that needs work? (to the extent you are willing to share)

YOU SAY: i have wiped out most of my younger school years from my memory banks, not on purpose but somehow i remember virtually no one. i can recall a few names, but would be extremely hard put to put a face to any of them. i didn’t like those years much. i loved learning. i loved reading, and discussing, but i wasn’t really a swot either so i couldn’t just hide behind the books. i also loved clothes and music, but we had no money, a pretty fucked up family life and we lived in a rural village, going to the rough comprehensive school in the nearest town on the bus. hicksville uk. in many ways it was a beautiful place to grow up…[but] I never fit in… so i blanked out much of those years as i grew up, moved away and reinvented myself, or at least found out i wasn’t a complete freak, and went on with that in a new environment.

5. I do not believe you are a complete freak, just a partial freak, like most of us! Wait. Unless we factor in the four-day hold on bowel activity. Wow! Now, that was funny – although I am sure you didn’t think so at times. We share much in common, despite the geographic differences. If I desired to be your best friend and wanted to “fit in” with your environment, your life, your children, your re-invented self, what should I do?

If you want to participate, leave a comment below saying, “interview me.”

~You did~

I will respond by asking you five questions - each person’s will be different.

~I did~

You will update your journal/blog with the answers to the questions.

~Your turn~

You will include this explanation and an offer to interview others.

~Your turn~

When others ask to be interviewed, you will ask them 5 questions.

~Cool?~

Thanks for letting me interview you!

First of all, interviews for keda and CowGirl should be up in just a bit. I have enjoyed composing the questions for each interview. The interviews for SS and Christina are below, and you should check their sites for their responses.

While I know I have options in developing my questions, I decided to use this "Interview Game" as a bridge. As almost all of us in this corner of the blogosphere know, the 24-36 hour span from late-late Wednesday to early Friday is awash with traffic to and from the particpants in HNT. I always have strived to be sincere in my HNT comments and to say something at least a tad bit substantive. I am amazed at how many decent blogs are out here, and I am grateful to HNT for exposing, so to speak, them to me. I am not sure if everything that I am about to say is 100% true, but here goes. I went to Rayna’s site because of HNT. I saw a post about an interview. I mentioned my willingness to be interviewed. She asked. I answered and posted the interview. People visited my site, many initially because of HNT. (Some of you have continued to come back, and that is unbelievable to me. I very much appreciate that.) Some brave bloggers expressed to me their willingness to be interviewed. The wheel turns. Bridge construction begins.

Back to where I started… Taking my cue from Rayna, I want the interviews to reveal a sense of the subject. This requires some serious archive-diving. I feel as if I have been reading Sweetheart’s and Christina’s blogs since they published their first posts. I do not profess to be an excellent interviewer, but I do want to have knowledge of my subject. I think (hope?) I am succeeding. I look forward to completing the interviews over the next day or two. I am (a geek) excited to know that I will be learning more about some of you.

Now more on the bridge…. HNT has been incredibly fun, and I plan to continue to publish, at least weekly, a post in the HNT spirit. I also will continue to visit all of you HNTers and comment on your latest. I, however, cannot promise that my HNT-Spirit post will always arrive on Thursday. My comments will, but my post may be early or late. I hope you will still visit, though. I am excited that, at least for a few, there is now a bridge to things more substantive than T & A. Of course, if you know me, you know that T & A is often substance enough.