Hello, just stumbled across this and no idea how it all works. I'm Eric. Helloooooooo . . .
If anyone would be so kind as to PM me and fill me in on this, I'd appreciate it. Recently retired (I know, too early, but it couldn't be helped) and working on a book. Not looking for help writing it per se. I wrote for a living, just a different style. What I've really gotten out of this site is that I got to know one female friend very well. We talked while she was at work, here and there, over dinner, and sometimes, for hours into the night, or more correctly, into the wee morning hours. The thing is, THERE WAS NO SEXUAL DISCUSSION EVER INVOLVED. I was in no way into her lifestyle, and she wasn't into mine, but she had a good head on her shoulders. She also had some good personal stories about growing up, losses she'd experienced, hard time in HS and the stuff we all go through, but for whatever reason, we "clicked" in those areas and just really hit it off.
Of course, I know I can be an ass from time to time. Part of who I am, and I do try to keep it under control. But in my past professional life, I dealt with a LOT of people who had legal issues that generally stemmed from something they were doing in the way they interacted with others. It generally fell to me to spend hours interviewing, or just conversing with people, and then spotting a pattern. Once a pattern was spotted, the "client" would become angry, deny it, and we'd then go over my notes and see if I was perhaps mistaken in my analysis.
So, my discussion while watching the sun set, having a beer and a good cigar, suddenly brought out another story from my friend. Without even realizing it, I slipped into my analysis mode and said "Wait, I think I see a pattern here" which I only meant as a way to help this person feel better about the problem, and maybe even eliminate it in the future.
Didn't work that way, though. She sent me a huge email, setting out all sorts of details, most of them incorrectly, and made a great many illogical conclusions but all of this is part of the process, it it's working correctly.
She then said she would not read any response to her email, unfriended me, told me she revoked any permission she had given to use any of her stories as a basis for my fiction (which can't be done--thus the term "fiction.") and the whole works.
I get it. Women are that way. But generally, they calm down and don't use nasty tactics to prevent other women from chatting with me in chat rooms, so why the animosity?
Or is this just way too much for a "Have a beer and talk" type of forum? If so, that's cool. I really am a laid back kind of guy--just seen a lot and learned a lot over an unusual career, and thought it could help some people here. Post a response, PM me, any which way you're more comfortable, but wow would I ever appreciate some help here. I'm really lost, guys! Just not sure what the hell I did. Of course, there is a tendency for lawyers to pick up rather "quirky" clients, which is why they are "clients" and not just average people on the street in the first place, so yes, fist guess off the top is that this friend was unusually touchy on the subject and just flipped out in a completely unreasonable manner. That's most likely, but second most likely ls what my wife says (and the two wives before her) that I just "can't ever seem to take the lawyer hat off." It could of course be a combination of those two things as well.
Maybe this is all a whole new subject for a book, too. Once you become a lawyer, your life changes, and you can never expect to engage with others in a "normal" way, ever again. Of course, maybe also certain personality types are drawn to become lawyers--people from parents, relatives, teachers, professors, and even police officers when I got out of my only parking ticket ever, told me I was going to be the most annoyingly aggressive lawyer the world had ever seen when I grew up. So maybe I cannot "take the lawyer hat off" because it's who I am?
Can y'all tell I'm lost here?
Eric
Rookie Scribe