It was clear to me that it wouldn't matter what I did - they would never truly appreciate me or learn what I had to offer. They were far beyond fickle - they were insensible, like kittens,predatory little things, distracted by the first bit of string or shiny bauble that rolled across the floor, and nothing I could ever say or do could possibly make any kind of dent in their willful ignorance.

I often find myself in situations where it seems to me like everyone else has read the instruction book

Life teaches us that human thought almost never walks hand in hand with logic, and it is usually counterproductive to raise the point.

As I've said, freedom is really an illusion. Anytime we think we have a real choice, it just means we haven't seen the shotgun aimed at our navel.

been there done that, bought the t-shirt" Chapter 2

What to wear? I could think of no guidelines on what we were wearing this season to a party forced on you to celebrate an unwanted engagement that might turn into a violent confrontation with a vengeful maniac. Clearly brown shoes were out, but beyond that nothing really seemed de rigueur.

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