Have you noticed how difficult it is just to get along in the world? If you're no good at all in your job, people treat you badly and eventually you will be unemployed. And if you're a little better than competent, everyone expects miracles from you, every single time. Like most of life, it's a no-win situation. And if you dare to mention it, no matter how creatively you phrase your complaints, you are shunned as a whiner.

Nothing else loves me, or ever will. Not even - especially - me. I know what I am and that is not a thing to love.

Rectory always sounded to me like a place where you would find a proctologist.

Another dream. Another long-distance call on my phantom party line. No wonder i had steadfastly refused to have dreams for most of my life. So stupid; such pointless, obvious symbols. Totally uncontrollable anxiety soup, hateful, blatant nonsense.

…a cheerful black shadow reared up behind him as he spoke, thundering a happy challenge to my Dark Passenger, which slid forward and bellowed back.

...being torn apart by far too many loyalties that could not possibly live together in the same brain.

Nothing in life is fair. Fair is a dirty word and I'll thank you not to use that language around me.