Well, she's 100...I'd hope she would be wise by now.

have you ever walked a mile in her shoes? might not like how tight the moccasins fit if ya did...

He is nearly 18 years old, when does he become responsible for himself? I can't do it all for him forever.

Any situation is What You make of it,

Whisp, you raise a very good question, and I'm not sure I can give a very good answer....

But -- I know. I don't actually know how I know -- it's just there.

I know, because it's different from anything else I experienced during the times when I thought I knew before. And that's really lame, because all I'm really saying is this is this, and that was that, and maybe I'm extrapolating from an inherently untenable position to begin with, but -- I just know. She and I have a long history, so it's not like we just met, and that's a big part of it.

I agree with you about the marriage thing -- I was married, and I never felt quite right about it. I think I knew it was a mistake going in, but I blinded myself to a lot of things because I mistakenly believed it would turn out to be "for the best" in the end.

But now -- this time -- it's a lot of things -- the way I feel when she's with me, the way I feel when I think about her, the way I feel when the IM box pops up and it's her. A lot of it is weird, little stuff. I'll be in the car and drive by an interesting building or sign, and my first thought is wondering what she would think of that. I see things in stores that remind me of her, or that make me wonder if she would like one of those.

It's the sense that I can't really imagine what life would be like without her, and the hope that I will never have to find out.

It's taking the time to look up some little piece of information she said she needed three days ago, and making sure I write it down so I can pass it along when I talk to her.

It's talking about "the move" to come, all the stuff that will need to be addressed, and how much work it will be, and not even caring about any of that because the end result will be so totally worth whatever it took to get there.

It's being able to talk about things I've never told anyone before, and knowing she'll understand it.

I know, I'm all over the place here. The epidemic of rambling.

But that's really what makes this whole question so difficult -- there is no one answer -- there probably is no 1000 answers. It just keeps going. Everybody is different, and every situation is different.

For me, I can honestly say I believe I know. I trust my judgment (and hers, too) that much. And, sure, there is always going to be a subjective element -- I feel this way because I want to feel this way, because I like feeling this way, and feelings can be wrong, and blah blah blah, but -- right now -- I'm convinced. For all the reasons above and a few hundred more.

I know that's not a very good answer. But it's the best I can do!

OK let me ask this. How many here have thought they were in love? Or feel they have really been in love? And if you have What were you feeling at that time?

But how do you know what it is when it comes?

Ouch!

Well No Arguement There Except I Take A Pessimistic Stand Point. Just Kinda The Way Lif Played Out For Me.

Problem is, people like bad things happening to other people. Makes them feel better that it didn't happen to them. And you know you can't look away from a train wreck. News is a hole that's filled with pain and despair, not to mention idiots giving opinions about news, instead of just reporting it.

Yeah The Truth Incarnante.People Are Like Lighters, You Buy A Beautiful Zippo And It's Gone, But You Have Your Crappy Bic For Life.

Positive doesn't sell though. You get about 8 disaster stories to every happy story.