tom_robbins raze i have here two of his books. one i've read. and one i haven't. there's "skinny legs and all". that's really richard's book. or it was, until mr. klein talked him into letting me borrow it when he hijacked mrs. broad's grade twelve english class for one glorious week after she broke her leg skiing in michigan. i never got around to giving it back. then there's "still_life_with_woodpecker". i bought that one myself. in the days of mixed_drinks and eight_ball, emily was always asking me, "how do you make love stay?" if i'd read the book back then instead of sitting on it for another decade, i would have known what she was talking about. i might have committed a few sentences to memory and said this: "love is the ultimate outlaw. it just won't adhere to any rules. the most any of us can do is to sign on as its accomplice. instead of vowing to honour and obey, maybe we should swear to aid and abet. that would mean that security is out of the question. the words 'make' and 'stay' become inappropriate. my love for you has no strings attached. i_love_you for free." but i thought the question was hers alone. and i had no satisfying answers to give. all i could say was that i didn't know how to keep what i couldn't find, though i thought i felt it when her scarred skin brushed up against mine. 241106 what's it to you? who go blather from