Venison, fictional love, flattery, arms and legs

[davewitley]

Tabouli wrote:
> Um, the "venison" in the title of my last port was an atavistic 
remnant of Harry's doe daemon.  

...and have you read Pullman?
> 
> Ahaaaa!  (Tabouli scents one of her pet topics).  OK, everyone, 
come clean, come clean.  We've all been enthusing about movie stars 
and fictional characters in HP... where do mysterious characters you 
correspond with by letter or email fit into the picture?  Do people 
consider their fellow HPFGU listmembers (at least, those they haven't 
met) to be fictional characters or real people?  I seem to remember 
we have at least one internet marriage veteran on-list.  Do you 
people think you could fall in love with someone without meeting them 
or even knowing what they looked like?  (I did, with tragic results, 
though that was snail mail only).

I think, on careful reflection, that the answer to this is 'yes' but 
the main problem (for me) is self-deceit and wishful thinking.  If 
falling in love is to take its full course, then I think I would 
eventually want a physical meeting (not saying that for some people 
it couldn't stay virtual *and* be all they ever wanted) and all that 
entails.  To me commitment is a fundamental part of the whole deal 
(which is why all this is hypothetical) and so you have to get to 
grips with the other person's dirty laundry, at every level (stop 
sniggering at the back, there!).  It is easy, in cyberspace, to take 
the good bits of somebody else and fill the gaps with your own 
wishful thinking - indeed I would say it's overwhelmingly probable I 
have done that a bit with all of you, and that we do it with each 
other.  Of course this is a problem IRL too as anybody who has said 
or heard the words 'you're not the person I thought I married/knew' 
will attest.

Oh, and I consider you all to be real people, armpits and all.

> When those of you who did meet fellow listmembers after knowing 
them online only, how did they compare to their list personas??

I Will tell you Tuesday, if South West Trains lets me near London 
tomorrow evening.
> 
> (hey, maybe I should re-invent myself as Smouldering Semi-Sino Sex-
Goddess Supporter of Sinister Snake-Men!)
> 
> > > David Re-invents Himself as Straggling Smouldering Semi-
> >>Scandinavian Sex God"...
> >
> >Re-invents?  What do you mean, reinvents?
> 
> Tabouli detects a hint of hurt manly vanity, and scrabbles hastily 
in her Outrageous Flattery drawer (which is the one she rests her 
feet in while typing) for something to convince David of his pre-
existing, albeit non-Straggling, Smouldering Semi-Scandinavian Sex-
God status...
> 
> Cindy:
> > If Neil is Mr. January, then David (wearing a cloud of pink 
chiffon,  
> a strand of pearls and glittery pink make-up) is Mr. February and 
> everyone's favorite Valentine.
> 
> ...but reads on and discovers that Cindy has already reassured him.

Er, could we just remove Tabouli's outrageous boot-marks from the 
chiffon first, please.
> 
> Amy Z:
> >  I find shaven legs odd and shaven 
> armpits positively creepy--a minority view, I recognize, at least 
> in the US.

Tabouli 
>   Same [non-judgemental approach] with women and their legs and 
armpits.  Despite being aware of and mostly agreeing with feminist 
ideology on the body hair front, (snip)

Me: (entering this debate against my better judgement)

I thought Amy was talking about *men* - if so, is it really true that 
most men in the US shave their legs and armpits, or at least, most 
woment think they should?

Mr February