Excellent post, and you covered a lot of territory. I care about you and am glad to be in touch, but sometimes when I say such things to my friends (unfortunately, not very often) I feel I just come off sounding like a total sap. And for all that I am a married man and certainly don't doubt that my friends are, in fact, friends, sometimes I need a bit more reassurance of my worth than I'm getting. In any event, this post means a lot. Note: If Louie and I wind up needing to put the house on the market, I will probably be calling you for support and hints toward coping strategies -- and this is not something I'd be doing except that, in addition to your being a person who lost her house and declared bankruptcy, you are also a *friend* who lost her house and declared bankruptcy. It makes a difference, as far as how much I would want that kind of conversation, and how warm and reassuring it might or might not get. But I'm starting to babble. (And I do get the feeling that your current living situation, with all its lacks, still beats the hell out of sleeping on a friend's couch or under a bridge!!)

Nate