Oh My Goff

I have been woefully neglectful of this little outlet. It is not that I have nothing to say, and certainly not the inability of the current political skirmishes and cronyism to inspire, but I have been distracted.

Last August, I discovered that a girl I knew in High School some 26 years ago in Tehran, was living just a few miles from me. At the end of our Senior year, we dated a few times, and hit it off quite well. She went of to University in Strasbourg, then Paris. I ended up at a community college in Spokane, and later WSU. Though we wrote letters for two years, the distance was too much. We, or at least I, despaired that I would ever see her again, and in the grind of daily life, I quit writing.

Today, a coach ticket to Paris is available for $500 or so. Back in '79, before deregulation was effective, a coach ticket to Paris was closer to $4000, or $10000 in today's dollars. I didn't have the money. I was too proud to ask her for money. And we both had conservative parents, though she in particular.

But back to the story at hand. I hope some will find it entertaining. below is the story, as I shared it with my High School classmates, who tipped me off that she was nearby.

Hello everyone.

I thought I would share a little tale with you, a story some few of
you already know.

Over the week or three between graduation and leaving Iran, I visited a friend
a few times. Four times, to be exact.

She went to university in Strasbourg. I went to Spokane, worked,
and started Community College. We wrote letters, and sometimes spoke
on the phone. For two years. After the first year, she moved to
Paris. She invited me to visit. I had no money. I was sad.

My dad, still in Tehran, arranged for me to visit him, planning on
late summer of 1979 before school resumed. I schemed with her to
detour through Paris on my return to the States. Then there was this
little revolution thing, and those plans were shelved. Permanently.
After a time, I stopped writing, and she stopped writing, and I
assumed she had found a boyfriend. That was May 1980.

A little later, I got involved with somebody. Years go by. Many
years. I get married. I get married again. I get single twice. Life
goes on. When I had a quiet moment, I would wonder what became of
her.

Now and then I would run into or discover someone from CHS. Small
world. 70+ people in the class, and you keep running into them among
a few hundred million. In February of this year, Bob J**** and
Sherry E**** invite me to join a group on Yahoo. I do, and it is
quiet, two or three messages a month from February to July.

Suddenly the list traffic explodes. Almost five hundred messages in
August. Wow. One of the messages mentions her, and gives a phone
number. It is a local Seattle metro area code. That got my attention.

No way, couldn't be.

So I call the number. Voicemail. Female voice. Could be her. I
leave a stumbling message explaining who I was, and who I thought I
might have found. It was Thursday. I waited. I waited until Tuesday
the next week, and I couldn't stand it any more. I called again.

A guy answered. Flustered and irritated, he explained nobody named
**** lived there. Oh well, the number was from the summer of
2000. Someone else has it now.

But I was curious. If she was here, maybe there were some electronic
footprints. So I Googled. And I got a hit. Somebody named ****
passed their law boards last summer.

So I peeked in county records online. Somebody named ****
got married in 1994. Well, that is good, but sad.

Oh wait, here is **** getting her name changed in 2002. Not
married? Well, that is good, but sad.

And there is an address on the document. Hmmm….

So I send a greeting card to that address. Local mail normally takes
two days. If she has moved, figure another three days to forward. I
put the card in the mail on Sunday. I might get a call by Friday.
Saturday, the card came back. No forwarding address. Sigh.

Five days pass. Then it occurs to me, I did not do the obvious. I did
not look up her new name in the phone book.

Bingo!!

I called Thursday evening. A gentleman answered. I started to explain
who I was, and who I was seeking. He didn't care. "I'll take a
number, she'll call you."

So I start giving him my phone number. After the first six digits, he
is ready to hang up. I catch him, give him the last four, and he is
in shock. Ten numbers in your phone number? I deduce he is not a
local.

Monday, still no call back. Does she not remember? Does she not care?
I need an explicit answer. I call again, around 7:PM. Voicemail this
time. Again, I explain who I am, and who I seek.

At 10:PM, I go to bed.

At 10:30, I get a call.

It is her. Over the next few days, the next few weeks, we
spend hours on the phone. I am trying to retain a rational
perspective. It has been a few years, and we have both lived and
changed a lot. I try to consider myself a new friend who came with a
good introduction, and try not to over romanticize the situation.
We arrange to meet on the coming Saturday.

The guy who took the message? Her father. We had met, twenty-six
years ago. He wrote down my name as Gary. He didn't remember me.
Probably just as well...

Ahh, yes. Saturday. Well, a funny thing happened on Friday.
She called, and said Saturday was not possible.

So we met Friday night.

We arranged to meet at her office. We arranged to meet at 6:PM, which
would give me time to get off work, deal with the dog, and make it to
Bellevue.

As fate would have it, that morning I was meeting the alarm installer
at my house, and he was late, and slow. I think they compete with the
cable guys for worst possible service. It was after 2:PM when he was
done. I knew if I went back to work at this point, I would be there
until 6, or later. I find it hard to walk away from an unfinished
task. Plus, I was anxious, and nervous. What would greet my eyes when
I re-met ****?

So I didn't go back to work. I went to Bellevue, and arrived a little
after 4:PM. Just a little early. So I stopped at Half Price Books,
and checked for anything on Farsi. Nothing. But I found a Berlitz
Turkish phrasebook, which could be fun, as I am working with some
Turks these days.

Still over an hour before 6:PM. I decide to do a drive-by, and find
her office. I drive. I find. Still over an hour until 6:PM. I drive
away, and approach from a different direction.

I find her office. Still over an hour until 6:PM. So I park, and
study Turkish. It is finally 5:50, I can wait no more. I call up to
her office. And get voice mail. Interesting. So I wait.

After about five minutes, a car pulls up behind me, and stops just
before it obstruct my car. And they wait. After ten seconds, I'm
starting to wonder what is up, and about that time, the car pulls in
next to me.

It is ****. I do not know if you recall her. Twenty-seven
years ago, she was about 5'4" and 110lbs soaking wet. She tells me
that held true, until about 9 years ago. She now clocks in at
slightly more. But back in the day, I was 175lbs, and now I'm closer
to 210lbs. A lot closer. Life happens.

But the eyes were the same.

We got out of our respective cars, both pretty much speechless.

We embrace. For a long time.

We pull away, and look to each others faces. **** had mentioned she
recently had an accident. At a 7-11 or similar, she stumbled over one
of those concrete car stoppers, and struck her face against the
concrete. Abrasions, contusions. I didn't really notice that.

The eyes were the same.

We go to eat at a little vegetarian Indian restaurant nearby. It
takes us over 30 minutes to quit talking, and open the menus. We
explain to the waiter that it has been 26 years since we saw each
other. He seems flattered we chose his restaurant. Good food, by the
way. Spicy and yummy.

From there, we went to see her office. Modest, as one might expect
from a beginning independent lawyer, especially one specializing in
immigration law. Most immigrants come with small purses.

It is getting quite late at this point. The reason she moved us to
Friday, was she could not get a sitter for her daughter on
Saturday. So I am thinking she needs to pick her up tonight. Not
wanting to cause problems, I excuse myself, and after a parting
embrace, head for home.

And can hardly concentrate as I drive home.

And call her back, when I get home.

And then she tells me, she had planned to pick up her daughter in the
morning...

So we talk for another few hours. It is 30 miles by road from my
place to hers. The phone is long distance. Fortunately, I have a good
cell plan, with long distance included. 5000 minutes/month. Going
fast.

Anyway, that was four months ago. We are still dating, sharing our
pasts, and exploring what the future may hold.

Later, I may share some of life's little ironies. (For example, at
the reunion, I was talking to her on the phone, when I mentioned
that Norman was walking by. She said to tell Norman, "Hello." So I
handed him the phone. When they were through greeting, Norman
returned the phone without so much as a raised eyebrow. Cool as a
cucumber, or limited powers of observation?)

We will keep you posted.

Cheers,
Mike

And as a closing comment for today's chapter, we will be wed this Friday. Ain't life strange?

Wow.
No video recording.
No audio recording.
No transcript.
No oath or promise to be truthful.
Just a handler to nudge you if you don't stay on message.

No credibility.

Bush agreed under pressure from victims' families and the commission to answer questions from all panel members, but only on condition he have Cheney at his side and they meet in private, with no recording of the session. They were not under oath.

What in the world was that pea brained mythologist snorting before he met with Sharon?

In what way is recognizing "realities on the ground" going to:
a) increase peace in the Mideast
b) increase US prestige and respect abroad
c) increase US security at home and/or abroad
d) support the "war on terrorism"?

Bush also defended his decision to support Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's unilateral disengagement plan, claiming Israel's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip was a major concession to the Palestinians.

"The whole world should have said, 'Thank you Ariel,' " Bush said. Instead, he said, "there was kind of silence, wasn't there."

Bush's move on Israel drew angry responses throughout the Arab world, including from moderate U.S. allies Jordan and Egypt.

Not a wonder that Rove wants Cheney close at hand when MPG testifies to the 9/11 Commission.

I mean, we are going to have Mr. Undisclosed Location, and the MPG in the same place at the same time, simply to keep their stories synchronized. Somebody(s) want to be sure ol' Dancing Wit does not stray off into the tall grass when confronted with an unrehearsed question.

And it seems absolutely necessary... forgetting what the Team Position was, MPG admitted he had decided, and informed Colin Powell, the last to know, of his decision to invade... informed Colin in January. But according to Condo Rice and other loyal lickers, the Team Position was the decision was made in March.

This information comes indirectly, from Bob Woodward via CNN.

Woodward said Bush made up his mind that war would be necessary in early January 2003 and then began telling his top advisers.

Both national security adviser Condoleezza Rice and White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card have said that the final decision to launch military action did not come until March, after Powell went to the U.N. Security Council in early February to make the administration's case for military action.

Woodward said he agrees with Card that the decision to go to war was not absolutely final until it became irrevocable as the March 19 invasion approached. But he told King that the source for his assertion that the actual decision was made earlier was the president himself.

Woodward said Bush told him that when he met in the Oval Office with Powell on January 13, 2003, it was "not a meeting to have a discussion. This was a meeting to tell Colin Powell that a decision had been made and that the president wanted his support."

Appears the Bushholes are softening us up... Party line now includes possible extended extended (no typo) tours, and possible increases in troop strength.

Anyone remember Eric Shinseki? General Eric Shinseki? Ex-Army Chief of Staff General Eric Shinseki? He took point a little over a year ago, arguing that troops in theatre were not sufficient... and is now retired. He accurately assessed the situation, but was more honest than his CiC, and paid the price. Gone and Forgotten.

Some suspected that the cost of holding Iraq, in blood and coin, was being intentionally obscured. After $140 billion in special funding for Iraq, perhaps it is true? Then and now?

Much like the Medicare Prescription Benefits of 2003? Where the "real" numbers were withheld from Congress, suppressed by intimidation... who wants to be jobless in a Bush economy. How many events to establish a pattern?

Addendum: In trying to fit a posting transparently into what the Man is paying for, some bits fall on the floor. Omitted today, the gang mentality applied to loyalty in the MPG administration. It matters not what loyal roles you played in days gone by. Step out of line today, and you will be savaged.

It is telling that Rummy and Whiff-no-wits played attack dog on Shinseki. Eric was once Rummy's golden boy, developing the Stryker brigade concept, supporting the Army evolution to a faster, more mobile, and still lethal force. But when he stepped too far ahead, he was slain.

A more malleable Chief has now been installed. Certainly, he is better attuned to his responsibilities to his CiC.

I was pleased to see that Thomas White, relieved of his explicit obligation to the Clown in Chief, hold to his guns in the face of the smear dogs.

Which brings to mind that fawning putz, John Snow. I did not agree with everything his predecessor Paul O'Neill had to say, but at least Paul had a defensible position. Snow, apparently overcome by r@ctal fumes associated with hyper-brown nosing, has not yet noticed that his spine has been removed. Nothing else would explain his ability to turn 180 degrees without moving his feet. Deficits are good, the bigger the better. Off-shore jobs, the more the merrier. Good for the economy, ya know.

And to reinforce my pragmatic position, I will point out that John Kerry is in a frantic race to the bottom with Mad Prince George (MPG). In response to OPEC's decision to follow through on their planning to reduce production, John Kerry chose to accost MPG for being soft on the Saudis.

Wrong Answer.

It was, and is, appropriate to accost MPG, but the issue here is an "energy policy" that does nothing to encourage conservation, and only encourages consumption.

Sad, really. When you expect the Dem's to take and hold the high ground, use reason and fact to establish and defend their position, and they start whoring with partial truths just like the Bushholes... OK, in addition to being pragmatic, I may suffer the romantic idealist. Incompatible?

Poor Richard Clarke. From Out of the Loop to deep in the soup... Mad Prince George has released the dogs in an effort to discredit his testimony and book... declassify Senate testimony to prove his 2002 loyal Bush-speak is inconsistent with his candor when he is independent. Surprise?

Certainly not surprised that Clarke fulfilled his political role as Loyal Administration Representative, for as long as he was so employed. And not surprised that the Bushwads retaliate (see prior post).

I am puzzled. OK, I am not really puzzled, I am cynical. Why is it easier to find Saddam in a spider hole than a rat in the White House?

I understand why we have not located bin Laden. If he is in the tribal areas, that is a big piece of desert out there, and you can not see very far with all the mountains in the way. Add the fact that we are not terribly popular in those hills, and you have a very frustrating task before you.

I understand why it took nine months to locate Saddam. That was also a big piece of desert, though in places, you can see pretty far. He had some friends, and could by some silence. But in the end, he got snitched out.

What I can not understand is how someone in the Bush White House can commit a felony, outing Valerie Plame, and after eight months the culprit is still unidentified. There is no desert. There are no real mountains. Is it as hard to find the rat in the White House as to find Saddam in a spider hole? Is John Ashcroft still busy cloaking statues? And the rest of the DoJ?

I am certainly pleased that the Bush administration has raised the moral foundations of the White House.

Oh, wait, did he mean razed?

Chronology:
20 March 03 - Mad Prince George launches Daddy's War II.
14 July 03 - Robert Novak outs Valerie Plame, citing a GWB administration source.
14 Dec 03 - Saddam discovered in a spider hole, nine months after start of hostilities.
Ever? - White House discovers (or reveals) the felon who contacted Robert Novak, among others. As of 26 March 04, we are at eight months and counting...

Acting on a persistent itch, the notion that I might write something of consequence, I find myself confronted with this blank little box.

Feed me.

In good time, my voracious monster. For now, let us complete the task of inception. Then, to collect our thoughts, and release them in concert. Despite the distractions of daily life.