incorrect_response nr "maybe you should take a test to make sure," he said to her. "i will. it's probably pretty unlikely though," she responded. he half-shrugged. 250824 ... epitome of incomprehensibility I'm always afraid - okay, often afraid - of saying the wrong thing, but this is partly selfish. If I focus less on myself and more on the other person and the situation at hand, the fear recedes even if it doesn't disappear. And when I'm annoyed by other people not giving me the "right" answer, or sidestepping my questions, sometimes I realize I'm being too picky. (But about the dialogue above: I don't know the whole story, but it seems callous to *shrug* if the person you're talking to is dealing with something potentially significant. Saying, "I don't know," is one thing, but shrugging... Maybe I'm reading too much into body language. But I hope things are OK.) 250826 ... ovenbird I also hope everything is okay, nr. And as for recurring_theme -- there are so many unoriginal things that bite so deep. Hard things don't need to be novel to be hard, it seems. I hope you get the answers you need! 250826 ... nr thank you both, i'm okay. e_o_i it's interesting how you explain focusing more on the other person and topic at hand rather than yourself in responses. this is something i think maybe this person isn't adept at, and admittedly it's hard not to take it personally from them. 250827 what's it to you? who go blather from