kudos Mike. Go to the mattress. If it is truly what the girls want, then give it everything you've got. Even if you do not prevail, your girls will be forever grateful. I am of the opinion (strongly) that emotional health is as or even more important than physical health.


>Hanging on my every word, are you? Maybe there's hope for us yet! LOL
>
>Yes, I did describe it accurately. Oh well. Some lucky guy will be Mr. Next for you and I won't be the only guy here who will feel a twinge of envy. I have a feeling there will be a Ms. Next for me as well. Be thankful for what you've got, right? Nod your head....
>
>Sometimes a good friend is worth at least as much as a good lover.
>
>The plan for the girls to move here on a "trial" basis after the end of the school year is in limbo and now contentious. This was something the girls and I have been pushing for for some time and Tricia finally agreed. Now she is trying to renege, not exactly a surprise. The usual barrage of threats and accusations. This time we will go to war if that's what it takes. I hate emotional drama but sometimes there is no other route.
>
>Emily, who I love beyond anything on this earth -- officially I am obligated to say it's a tie with Allie -- has been the linchpin. She and her mom have been in increasingly dire straits the past few weeks. Many demands that she be allowed to live with me, shouting matches between the two of them, tearful phone calls to me at all hours. I know what you're thinking but this is beyond hormones. Emily has her head screwed on straight and has a near perfect life other than her wacky mom. And she is at her breaking point. Without saying it in such words, she is pleading with me to rescue her. I have been looking for a peaceful resolution but after our phone conversation last night I know it's going to be a battle. At one point she asked if I was going to ask for sole custody or joint custody. "Joint," I said. "Your mom does love you." "Why would I ever want to see her again?" she said.
>
>You never think any of this is going to happen when your child is born and you're there beaming. I still beam every time I see or even think about Allie or Emily but it sure does get complicated.
>
>
>Damn. But I made her a promise. If she isn't worth fighting for, what is?
>
>>You described it all below perfectly Mike :o) I would prefer to be a dreamer rather than a realist, but alas, it is not in my nature... :o(
>>
>>Your last comment below has definitely got me wondering about your summer plans. I hope you are (were) successful!
>>
>>
>>>LOL
>>>
>>>I never get tired of flirting with Tracy. I think she's great. (It must be her brains or her passion, one or the other). I know equally that I am not her type. Her husband was a Green Beret. Do I strike you as the Green Beret type? I am a dreamer, she is a realist. Our views on many things are so far apart we would be sitcom material as a couple. Except sitcoms don't tend to work so well in real life. She's fun to talk to and read and that's as far as it's ever going to go. No worries.
>>>
>>>One thing Tracy and I agree on is the importance of being a good parent. IMO we are both doing pretty well there in less than ideal circumstances. Things are coming to a head here. Maybe I will say more as events unfold.
>>>
>>>
>>>>You are one smooth operator.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>>Have I mentioned my second home near Banff? (batting eyes)
>>>>>
>>>>>LOL
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>>Now to find myself a Canadian to marry so I can move up there when I retire... :o) I think it is time that Canada bought the U.S. southern states... :o)
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>SNIP
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>Canadian prescirption drugs are subsidized by Canadian gov't. The first day USA allows import of them, Canada will prohibit export. They are not willing to subsidize whole America, are they?
>>>>>>>>>There is another side in this issue. Pharmaceuticals are still an industry that has manufacturing on US soil. Forcing them out could be considered as a worthy goal in some quarters, but fortunately current administration opposes it.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>You are wrong, Ed. The Canadian government does not subsidize drug costs for people.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>What the Canadian government did do, as I understood it, was to set a "cap" on drug price increases in return for giving drug companies extra time for each of their patents.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>I also understand that most of the drugs sold in Canada are actually imported and that Canadian manufacturing is largely limited to generic equivalents.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>I also seriously doubt that there's anything 'governmental' that is holding the pharmaceutical firms from manufacturing in China. I more suspect big worries about intellectual property rights are the main cause. Why would the current Administration oppose their moving manufacturing to China when many other (formerly) "vital industries" have done so for some time now?
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>Here is a small piece from the Q&A of OHIP. How is this not subsidising drug costs for people? Ok, it's not technically the "Canadian Government", but government is government after all.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>What happens if I need prescription drugs?
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>You may receive your prescription drugs at a small cost to you if you are eligible for the Ontario Drug Benefit (ODB) Program.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>How much do I pay?
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>You may be asked to pay up to $2 per prescription if you are:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>a single senior with an annual net income of less than $16,018
>>>>>>>a senior couple with a combined annual net income of less than $24,175
>>>>>>>receiving general welfare benefits or family benefits
>>>>>>>receiving home care professional services
>>>>>>>a resident of a nursing home, home for the aged, home for special care
>>>>>>>a Trillium Drug Program beneficiary
>>>>>>>You will be asked to pay the first $100 in prescription drug costs each
>>>>>>>and then up to $6.11 for each prescription after that if you are:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>a single senior with an annual net income of more than $16,018
>>>>>>>a senior couple with a combined annual net income of more than $24,175
>>>>>>>If you are aged 65 or more, you only need your Health Card to show your
>>>>>>>eligibility for Ontario Drug Benefits when you go for prescription drugs.
>>>>>>>