Hellooooo

I'm super busy, but wanted to drop in and say hi to my faithful readers. TONS of news but it will have to be posted after my trip to Athens. More later.

"Normal people are so hostile"

That's a quote from Dexter, my favorite show and my ultimate hero. If you've never seen the show, he's a serial killer who only takes out bad guys. But mainly he's incredibly hot, and smart, and just all around fabulous. He often says fabulous things, like the title of my post. It fits today but I won't bore you with details.

Next, to the real world. Last weekend turned out to be a complete blast, only to be followed by this week which has also been amazing. I'm finished for the year! Yippee! All that is left to do is to finish the dissertation and I'm golden. Life is good.

I'm working right now on a chapter on theater and mimesis, focusing on Genet and Artaud in general and Les Bonnes in particular. It's added a whole new dimension to the dissertation, which feels much richer now. If only I could make all the chapters feel like they fit together. But they all seem almost independent of each other. Chapter one covers the traditional murder narrative, the expectations of readers and analyses of a few early stories. Chapter two discusses the Papin sisters, their crime, testimony and trial, looking at how this true crime refuses incorporation into any traditional murder narrative. Chapter three examines the killer and the female as other, beginning with Aristotle's designation of female as monstrous and working towards other types of alterity created by/confirmed in their crime. Chapter four discusses theater and its ability to incorporate this monstrous other into the self, thus being the sole medium able to tell the story of the Papin sisters in a way that captures the essence of the women and their crime. Anyway it's exciting to get back to writing and to leave teaching behind for a while.

Here are a few images from various productions of Les Bonnes. The first is from a Theatre des Halles in Avignon's 2006 production of the play:
I love this set, from Teatro Altrove in Genova, 2008:

And this amazingly beautiful stage set by Alain Ollivier from the Studio-Theatre de Vitry in 1991:

What I would give to be able to actually see this play! Is anyone putting it on anytime soon?

Okay, back to work...

Did somebody mention love?

You have no idea.

*****
FSK,
With the exception of my father, no one has ever stood
by me the way you do . That's really saying
something.
No matter what, I will always be grateful for your
unwavering support.

I love you sooooo much! - sugarlips

Living and building a life together, in real time is
all I've ever wanted. Both of us single or married to
one another is the way it has to be, whether we live
together or separately or even in the same town for
that matter.
As far as our being able to "make it" as a couple and
weather the trials and tribulations of life, I ain't
skeer'd. I'm afraid that we may never get the chance
to try for real.
I love you just the way you are
and don't want to change a thing about you. I can live
with your faults. I hope that you can live with mine.
That's where we will learn how to work things out
together as a team and a unified front. I promise,
that if and when you find yourself single, I'll be
there to help you pick up the pieces.
I think that you are beginning to see that our future
together rests on your shoulders. How and when you
choose to deal with it is entirely up to you and you
alone. The only person that I can change is me. I want
to be your man so badly.
You are always on my mind.
I still want to be your man. I love you in ways that I
don't even understand.

One day - Paul

My beautiful FSK,

I love you with all my heart! - P
Frenchie,

Plumb amazing, ain't it?

I love you! - the loin ranger

I love you and am very excited about tomorrow night.
Gotta run - builderlips

Very modern...breaking up via email.

I always have wanted you and I still do, big issues or
not.

Love - sadlips

Howdy,
I'm sorry that I was so rough on you yesterday
afternoon. All this stuff stacks up on me too.

I LOVE YOU. Our future together is important to me.
We'll figure it out so that it will be good for
EVERYONE.

I'll call when I get in from work this evening.

XXXOOO - sugarlips

Sweetest Frenchie -
I am so sorry that I hurt you so this past week.
Friday night was indeed very intimate and just the
type of night that I see us having most every night.
We have only hinted as to what potentially lies ahead
for us.
Knowing this, I confess that it really pushes me to
the brink of the abyss having to spend so much time
apart. That is really what causes me to lose touch
with my heart, listen to the naysayers while allowing
my imagination to take my mind into the dark recesses
of an alternate reality and say things that I don't
mean.
I daydream all the time about our future home together
(where ever that may be)puttering around the yard,
doing special little projects for you so that our home
is as wonderful and distinctive as our relationship.
I really want to build a home for you and the kids
with my own two hands as a testament to my immense
love for you. A home that would be our sanctuary not
only from the elements but also from the insanity that
seems to inhabit this old world at times. A safe
haven, a love nest and a soft place to land is what I
know it will be.
I will try to be more patient with the process in
which you find yourself just now starting. It will be
better on me in Athens all the way around. Goals to
shoot for and deadlines to meet and not being out in
the boonies should work wonders on my worried mind.
The hours that we passed together Friday night and
Saturday were so pleasurable, laid back and
comforting, that I could barely stand to drive away.

You are such a catch. So beautiful, smart and loving.
I want a life with you...day to day, you know, routine
stuff. No more road warrior, except when we go on
vacation. Now I know that none of this is going to
happen quickly or easily. I will try to stay focused
on the tasks at hand and try not to get too wound up
about the current situation as I am sure that you are
doing all that you can to make the necessary changes.

Kitten - I love you like I've never loved another
living soul. We've both got to be more cognizant of
the others perception of the current circumstances.
I'm all for creating a proposed timetable, actually
write some benchmark dates down, so that we know where
we should be at most any moment in the future.
I think that would go a good ways toward making me
feel better. Plus it'll give us something to look at
and talk about.
I am so about being the man in your life. I am still
somewhat unsure as to why you love me so much, but I
am very grateful that you do. I am going to stop
questioning it and just let myself be consumed by it.

My deepest Love always - reverand Tazzy sugarlips

hey doll -

I love you.

Thanks again for all you did yesterday. I'm
nursemaiding sis back to health. Talked to momn for a
minute and dad is on his way over and I've left john a
message.

There you have it. I'll call you before i come back
to town.

XXXOOO sugarlips

I understand completely and agree wholeheartedly...

XXXOOO sugarmuscles

I'll be about 9:30 at
least before I make it to your door. Keep your
tootsies warm for me - sugarwonderin' XXXOOO


I'm so glad that you get my off-beat sense of humor.

Why on earth would you think such terrible thoughts?
Our love shall never end...it's as big as the East is
from the West. The fuckin' $$$ thing has got us both
by the snarflees and that makes it hard to concentrate
on the bigger more beautiful picture.
We need to keep our eyes on the prize, my lovely girl.
Being apart after having been together for so many
consecutive days makes life no easier for either one
of us.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Howdy there, Miss Bleary -
Nice sentiment and sounds so easy.
I like it and I like to be there with you when you
wake up a little bleary.

Hello there gorgeous person in my life,


Yes, I do and many times over.
Love always - sugarlips

Dear Julie FSK,
I wanted to say how much I love you and care so deeply
for you. The desire that resides in my heart for you
is everlasting, genuine and sincere. I'm smiling now
as i write to you of my love and committment to our
relationship and I am waiting patiently on the clock
till the appropriate time to give you a wake up call.
I am at a sudden loss of words that might capture the
true intensity of my feelings for you. Think back to
last night, as we huddled and cuddled in the little
dark booth at the Famous Pub. Remember the warm,
enveloping feelings that wrapped your heart, mind and
soul as we talked? If you know a word that sums up
those feelings, then that would be the word I would
use to describe the indescribable heart-set.
I am looking forward to our lunch date today. I hope
that you are. Be thinking of where you would like to
dine.

Until then - sugarlips

I love you more than you've ever been loved before.
Deeply, passionately like no other - XXOO p

> Still love me?

You've gotta be kidding?!?! Ashley and Jessica came
by and Jessica asked if we had a good time last night.
My reply was "Honey, I love that girl more and more
every time I see her!" Dewayne chimed in and said,
"Yeah, his girlfriend is pretty cool."
So yeah, I still LOOOOVVE you, Frenchie!

World class emailin', dear. This one is gonna get you
a phone call.

till then XXXXXXxxxxxxxOOOOOOOooooooo

hey you,

have I told you that I really do love you? well, just
in case you're wonderin'...I DO!

I reckon I'm gonna hang here at chewdog's for the
evening, bad tire and all. You can hang with us if
you like. Low key, get my head together sorta evening
and then head towards the Atl tomorrow afternoon after
getting yet another new tire for the go-cart. I may
ease down to Home Depot in Dawsonville to get the
material for your electrical project.
Call, write or send a message in a bottle - love - rev

Good morning Frenchie, sweetheart, sex kitten,
signifigant other in my future -

I made it to Baldwin and suffered no ill effect.
The drive was not bad - as there was hardly any
traffic. I do some of my best thinking in the car and
this was a good morning for it.

I mostly occupied my mind with thoughts of you....
about how the best thing that has ever happened to
me(meeting you)and how the worst thing that's ever
happened (the rest of my life other than you and those
things that involve you)are goin' on at the same exact
time. It's hard to figure. I'm still sortin' it out
in my head. The duality of it all, I mean. But more
importantly, I think, is that we have indeed found one
another. We spoke earlier of just how short of a time
that its' actually been since we met. I do feel as if
I've known you for much longer than it has been. The
connection is strong and real. I am constantly amazed
at the fact that you love and care for me as I think
you do. I will be forever grateful for the seemingly
random chain of events that caused our two very
different worlds to collide.
I am eager to see how, and confident that our
relationship will grow deeper and stronger.
The Pull is undeniable. The way you support me in all
facets of our budding romance is, in reality, is quite
humbling.....the fact that you see something in me
even while I'm embroiled with all these other negative
and emotionally draining situations is beyond me. I'm
not questioning it, I just don't see how you do it. I
love you for it.

I love you more every day.

Know this: I would have lost my mind along time ago
if not for you - and for that I am eternally grateful.
You know those sweet, gentle, loving, sexy things that
I whisper in your ear....are true, everyone. You have
my heart completely.

Hello Frenchie, sweet heart, sex kitten, godess of my
little universe -
Oh how I love you so. This day has been long and hard.

Did you get the text messages that I sent your way the
other night? If not, then the problem must be on my
end.

My legs are sore from all the sweaty acrobatics.

Methinks I'll just go to bed, for tomorrow is a brand
new day with all sorts of possibilities.

I do love you so -reverand taz


*********

But you rock!

It's called karma, baby

I've heard the most DELICIOUS scoop, but I hesitate to go into too much detail because I've been sworn to secrecy. Um, yeah, right...

Basically karma has come around to bite Ugh in her gawky, flat ass. Pardon me for sounding so vicious, but as my faithful readers know, I went though an amazing amount of shit last year thanks to two very nasty people. Today the tables are turned, and I feel fabulously vindicated. I SO knew this would happen, and it feels wonderful.

Perhaps these same faithful readers will remember that when Paul and I hooked up four years ago, it was because his wife and he had "drifted apart" and she didn't support him and his music. She was cruel to him and he was aching for a woman he could really love. I was there for him to cry on my shoulder and I soon became that woman. When he took up with Ugh, I was the cruel woman he was suffering a relationship with, and she was the understanding shoulder who soon became the beloved one. He told her terrible things about me, and led her to believe that he was trying to break it off with me and I just "couldn't let go."

WELL! Guess what?? An old friend of mine in Athens and I were gabbing the other night and she told me "Oh! News! Guess who Paul's gotten involved with now?" My chin hit the floor. I'm not about to say who it is, cause Ugh is gonna have to find out the same way I did, but I couldn't stop myself from simply writing and saying HA! What goes around comes around.

Ain't life grand?

Hi Karyn!

Thanks for checking my blog. Daily. Not much to see, I'm afraid, cause I'm too busy to write. But come back again, ya hear?

Oh why the hell not...

Did I mention that Ugh is seven friggin' feet tall? Here is her nice message to me. I've had to reply here on my blog because she blocked me from replying directly to her. Kind of goes along with everything else I've learned about her.


What's interesting is how entirely clueless you are about me, Paul, my son and our life.

VERY interesting, considering I thought I was his girlfriend until three weeks ago.

Paul made all of these decisions on his own, Julie and he decided against you. I have been friends with Paul since long before you two broke up. I know all about your relationship. He has shared those things with me from the begining, before we fell in love.

Beginning has two n's.

Um, no one is "on his own" when he's living with you, "sharing" things with you, and co-depending on you for sex and pot. And his deciding "against me" was news to me Monday night. See, he kind of forgot to tell me that part. He only said "I just don't know how we can make this work." And I asked him outright three weeks ago if he was in love and he told me "I'm not in love with ANYONE right now. I am sleeping with someone."

Our relationship has evolved over time.

Yes, ours did, too. Over the span of 25 years, in fact.

Has it occured to you that perhaps he was lying to you to minimize the affect it may have had on you?

Occurred has two r's. Affect is a verb, effect is the noun. And yes, that did occur to me, which is why I asked him repeatedly if he was just doing this as a way to ease me out of the picture quietly. He always insisted the only reason we had to remain separated until my divorce was final was for his own "survival". He swore up and down there was no one else. He said repeatedly that we would begin again as soon as I was single. Please refer to the September 12 email from Paul for details.

Let's be honest, your behavior is strange, eratic and highly unstable. Perhaps he was AFRAID of what you might do if you really knew he was in love with someone else. (And rightly so, it seems.)

Let's be honest, you weaseled your way into a relationship that was already "going through a rough patch" (Paul's words, from August of this year) and helped him by "being there" while he struggled. How honest shall we be? You and he talked about me without my knowledge. He and I talked about his wife without her knowledge. He left her and ran to me. He left me and ran to you. Hmmmm, what's next?

And he's not in love with you, no matter what he says under duress. Sorry but it's painfully obvious why he's "with" you.

And erratic has two r's.

According to you he is still lying to you about being in love with someone else and you are STILL making unwanted advances, not only to him but his friends as well.

I have no idea what this sentence means. But yes, he did say flat out that he was not in love with you. Love was never mentioned, only "sleeping with". Sorry, you need to take that issue up with him. He knows what he said to me. I know what he said to me. For once here, you're the odd man out. It's kind of funny - you have no idea what he said to me over the summer and into the fall, do you?

I have not responded to you in the past because I am ill suited for such games.

In fact, you're ill-suited for a lot of things.

I am only responding to you now to tell you to stop contacting me. If you have issue with this, it is with Paul alone.

Yes, it is. And I tried to contact him Monday night...remember? I couldn't talk to him for all the shrieking you did in the background. Made it kind of hard for me to talk to Paul "alone". Him never being alone anymore and all...

As for the substance abuse BS.....uh.....what? You know absolutely ZERO about my recreational time, or his! That's how you want to get him back?! Telling everyone he is drinking himself to death?! That is just plain wierd, Julie!

Oh dear. Where to even begin with this...I know Paul so much better than you do. He drinks. He drinks a lot. He has a serious drinking problem. I was genuinely concerned about him after several people in Athens reported to me that he is back on the party wagon, with you holding the reins. Since he's shut me out, I can't approach him about it. I went to his best friend, and asked him in confidence if he could watch out for Paul, because I was very worried about him. Early in our relationship (yes, he and I had a "confiding" stage, too, just like y'all did) he told me some things about his history with drugs that scared me for life. I know what he is capable of when he's under a lot of stress. It sounded like the stress of deciding to isolate himself from me for an entire summer drove him not only to you, but to new abuses. I wanted someone to be looking out for his well-being. I'll be glad to forward the email I sent Keith to anyone who wants to read it. There is not a trace of malice in it.

And I have no need to "get him back" - his having to be with you is enough payback for ten men.

And it's spelled weird, not wierd.

He is a fine man with a great heart, why would you try to do something like that to him? Especially if you claim to love him like you do.

Yes, he was a fine man with a great heart in my eyes, too. Until three weeks ago, that is. And I loved him. And I planned to be with him. And I thought he was my one true love. Until three weeks ago. You can't know the degree of hurt I've felt since I found out what he was capable of. I wait for the day that you know that feeling as well.

This ends today. I don't want to hear from you again. I don't want anymore fake profiles trying to dig up information. I want you to stop contacting my friends. I want you to forget all about me. That is providing you truly don't give a shit about me. If that is the case..so be it...I would love it that way.

Again, I'm not following this sentence. Whatever.

Paul is a grown man, a man who I happen to truly love.

Whom I happen to truly love.

Been there, done that. You know nothing about what love for or with Paul feels like. I can show you in one greeting card more love than you will ever experience. Just ask him the meaning of one phrase: "As far as the east is from the west." See if he can tell you what that means. Then see if he can tell you that he feels that for you.

I am tired of seeing him wade through this crap with you.

It was our crap. It was between him and me. You had no reason and no right to see him "wade through" anything. You have no right now to be tired of anything. It had nothing to do with you. You should not have been in the picture at all. You are not a part of Paul's and my relationship, our "crap", or our decisions. It was between Paul and me. You should not have ever been involved. You are the third wheel that caused the cart to crash.

Take the hint, please. Refrain from further contact. If you think that these e-mails are creating some sort of rift between Paul and I you are sadly mistaken. It is only causing problems for you.

Between Paul and ME, not between Paul and I.

There's a hint in here somewhere? All I'm seeing is a misplaced sense of having been affronted. You know nothing about what Paul told me over the course of the entire spring and summer. He lied about your existence. He swore he had not even kissed anyone (I specifically asked him.) He told me "NO! I'm not in love with anyone right now!" The day I confronted him about sleeping with someone else, and he finally admitted it, we spoke later in the day. He said the following things to me: "I am shocked to hear you are finally divorced. I don't even know what to say. I never thought I'd hear those words coming out of your mouth. If you turn your phone off, how will I be able to call you? It was great to see you this morning. Julie, I think about you EVERY DAY, even now. I just don't know what's gonna happen to us; it may be too late, you know." All these things, he said to me, three weeks ago. So don't get all high and mighty about our "crap". He gave as good as he got.

You have absolutely no clue what he's been telling me. Someone seems to have been playing both sides of the fence. For some reason, he felt like he had to keep me hanging on. Perhaps he didn't want to really give me up?

Look, Paul is all about convenience, all about ease and lack of effort. The day I found out about the sleeping with someone else, I asked him, "Why did you feel it was necessary to fuck someone else? I would have come up here and fucked you every night if you'd just asked me." Do you know what his reply was? "Not every night." You are convenience, you are every night. Don't delude yourself that you are more important than you are.

You are treading on dangerous ground. I will get law enforcement involved if you become any more threatening. Thank you.

You're welcome.

You are seriously not very smart. I have never threatened anyone. I have done nothing that law enforcement would be the least bit interested in. Can you say the same?

You need to get off your high horse and realize that you are already history. Nothing you say will change what he and I had together. I know he is out of my life forever. I realize that. It's too late for us. But your overblown sense of self-importance is just annoying, plain and simple. You're way out of line. Paul's and my relationship was much bigger than you can even imagine. You should have butted out long ago, and let him solve it with me alone. I have no pity for you. You deserve everything you are going to get from him. He did it to his wife, he did it to me, you're next.

Now, I'm done.

Instant Karma

The more I think about this situation, the sicker I get. Can you believe ANYONE could love someone as much as Paul said he loved me and then treat me like a piece of dirt?

So I'm not thinking about it any more. I had planned to come on here today and address one by one the issues the Jolly Green Giant brought out in her nice email to me, but I decided, why the fuck bother? He has "chosen" her; good riddance to bad rubbish, or whatever the saying is. A friend of mine posted a comment yesterday on my last entry, saying "Wipe the dirt off your boots and haul the trash to the curb." I am doing just that. Another friend said "Just picture him sitting in her living room, listening to her shrieking voice with the snot-nosed toddler crying in the background...he's already paying for what he did." Even the brief maternal replacement she represents now, the free pot, and the what's-gotta-be-boring-as-shit sex (after what he and I had) are not gonna make up for the hell he's just entered. I can find solace in that.

So instead, today I am starting over. I have a new phone, with no memories of his voice, his text messages, or the pain he caused me attached to it. I threw away all the birthday cards, Valentine's Day cards, just-because-I-love-you cards, anything he wrote and gave me...I mean "Frenchie"...cause that person doesn't exist anymore. I actually went to the top of Stone Mountain this afternoon and threw the silver locket he gave me for our first Christmas together - three years ago this December - which had a picture of him inside and has been my prized piece of jewelry for these past years, off the mountain. That was hard, but felt really good. I'm working on clearing out all the photos we ever took together as well as the million emails he sent me over the years, too. That might take longer, but I'll get there.

Today I told my therapist "I woke up for the first time in weeks without that knife-in-the-heart feeling. I think Paul has moved 1/4 of an inch further to the back of my brain." It feels good.

Today I also realized the real reason I hesitated getting a divorce, which was a kind of ton of bricks moment. You see, I spent the day with my twelve-year-old son, who's been home from school sick all week. We were riding in the car and suddenly I looked in the rear-view mirror at him and it hit me: "You saved him, Julie." It's true...the reason I didn't get divorced before now is that I KNEW Paul was bad news for my children. Actually accepting that thought into my psyche was incredibly freeing. But I did it. I allowed myself to really look at how he was with them, and it was huge.

Every time Paul was with my children he paid them the most minimum of lip service, then brushed them off. That is, when he wasn't getting drunk and yelling at Nicholas. He showed no interest in them as individuals whatsoever, but made token attempts at being their mentor by talking about what he would do with them one day...the eternal "one day"...build them a treehouse, teach Nick about music, show him "how to be a man" (holy fuck, that's a good one...I know more about how to be a man than Paul does), teach Rosie how to play the harmonica. I sometimes think he honestly believed he was capable of these things, but I always knew once he "had" me, it would all blow away, like the hot air that it was in reality. He wanted in - in my house, in my life, in my bed, in my warmth - but with none of the responsibilities that come with an honest, mature relationship. His way of operating - telling others "You go fix what's wrong, then come back. I might take you back and I might not," or "You hurt me. I was innocent in everything that I did. I won't talk to you about it, I just don't ever want to see you again" would never fly with me and my children. He's sad, truthfully, because he has no idea how to live or how to love another person. Just look at what he did to his daughter. But that's a whole 'nother story.

Okay, so maybe I haven't moved on so much. But I'm realizing that before this summer, I instinctively knew something wasn't right with Paul and his approach to the world. That is why I stayed married, as some kind of protection for my kids, I think. But what happened is that he played me, perfectly, since he knows how to manipulate even the smartest of us. By enforcing our separation over the summer, he made me miss him, want him, regret my actions and see myself as the bad guy and him as the victim. He put me in the position of the guilty party, and I bought it hook, line and sinker. So I think the last few weeks of agony for me have been a result of looking at him through those warped lenses, the ones I wore all summer, rather than through the truthful lenses that I had worn prior to our separation, in which he was bad news for my kids.

Don't get me wrong - I seriously wanted a real, deep, honest relationship between the two of us. I loved that man more than I've ever loved anyone before. But I think way down deep inside I knew that he was nothing but trouble for me and for my family dynamics. Had it just been the two of us, it might have worked, but never with my children involved. Since I have to be a mom AND a lover, it could never work. He doesn't know how to share, and no matter what he says about me and the kids being a "package deal", the kids would have been forced into second place. Paul always has to be number one.

So I guess in the end I'm starting to see the whole situation a little more realistically. Maybe that's the first step of healing.

"I love you in ways that I don't even understand"

Here's how I started out my summer I sent this email to Paul after weeks of thinking about why I had been delaying getting divorced. It was written right after he read me the riot act, saying he could not see me until I was single because it hurt him too much. This is from June:

--- "Julia E. House"
wrote:

> Dearest Paul,
>
> It was getting hard to say all I needed to say via
> text message, so I'm going
> to write you a real letter. Well, as close to real
> as it gets these days.
>
> I talked to some friends last night who made me
> realize that I've been selfish.
> I didn't mean to hurt anyone or do anyone wrong, but
> I think probably everyone
> has suffered because of my delay. I know that the
> kids know something is wrong
> between their mom and dad, and prolonging the
> inevitable is not saving them any
> hurt. I know that for you and them to grow close
> they need to know the truth
> and how we all fit together. I know that for you and
> me to grow close we have
> to be in a real relationship, where we plan
> EVERYTHING together. We have to be
> able to depend on each other and consult each other
> when stuff is happening. We
> have to be able to embrace and kiss anywhere at any
> time, and to spend quality
> time together, and a lot of it.
>
> The truth is that I am afraid. I know that you know
> that, but I guess I just
> realized the degree to which I am afraid as I talked
> to my friends and told
> them the whole story. One said "You might have to
> give up some expectations.
> You can't make everything exactly the way you want
> it to be." Another said "My
> parents stayed together for the kids and all we
> wanted was for them to end it."
> And another said "Your kids DO want you to be happy.
> They want to know the
> truth, too."
>
> None of this is earth-shattering, or even anything
> new. But I guess what's new
> is that I feel like whatever happens between us, I
> have to let it happen. If
> things work out, fine. If they don't I have to find
> that out, too. I guess I
> have been afraid that once we go full force with
> this thing, we will find out
> that we can't live together, or that the love isn't
> strong enough to weather
> whatever is ahead in the coming years. But my friend
> Kenzie said "My mom is
> always analyzing stuff too much. I wish she'd just
> let things happen and then
> just let them be." I do the same thing, but when
> that's the stuff you're made
> of it's hard to say "I don't want to be made like
> that anymore." I am still me,
> but I have to somehow let things go - expectations,
> the way I think everything
> should be, my imaginary live for my kids, etc. It's
> what you've said before, I
> know I know. But sometimes you have to learn things
> for yourself. It has to
> come from inside me, or it's just someone else's
> idea.
>
> Sorry, I'm rambling, but I miss you and need to tell
> you these things. When we
> fight, I feel like I couldn't possibly hate anyone
> more than I hate you. I want
> to kill you. When we don't fight, I love you. When
> we are really close and in
> love, I feel like I've never felt with anyone ever
> before. I feel like I'm
> walking on air, living a dream, in a magical place.
> What's more, when I feel
> what it's like without you in my life at all, I
> can't imagine it. It is beyond
> horrible.
>
> Last night I couldn't sleep, as usual. I imagined
> being in your arms, and it
> was like I was home. Even just imagining it, I could
> feel the warmth of your
> strong arms, smell your shirt, hear you breathing,
> feel you caress my hair the
> way you do. I can't live without that, Paul. I am
> doing all I can to get there.
>
> This is not the time to try to explain what the last
> months have been like. I
> wanted something different from you, but I was
> unreasonable in that desire. I
> will explain it one day, for now I just want to tell
> you that I have been
> through a very bad time, and I am coming out of it.
> I need you and I will be
> good for you.
>
> I love you deeply,
> Julie

Wednesday, June 20, 2007 2:37 AM -0400
From:
Gateway "Paul E. Scales" Add to Contacts

Subject: Re: hi
To:
Regular User Julia E. House

Dear Frenchie,

Having read and re-read the email below, I'll share,
as close as I can get, to how I feel about us right
now.
I cannot stand the fighting, yelling, name calling and
intense negative vibe that we have exchanged recently.
Please accept my sincerest apology for my part of our
most recent confrontation.
"I know that for you and me to grow close we have
to be in a real relationship, where we plan EVERYTHING
together. We have to be able to depend on each other
and consult each other when stuff is happening. We
have to be able to embrace and kiss anywhere at any
time, and to spend quality time together, and a lot of
it."
Living and building a life together, in real time is
all I've ever wanted. Both of us single or married to
one another is the way it has to be, whether we live
together or separately or even in the same town for
that matter. I just can't continue to pretend that Its
All Good, when I know that it is not, not at least in
my heart.
As far as our being able to "make it" as a couple and
weather the trials and tribulations of life, I ain't
skeer'd. I'm afraid that we may never get the chance
to try for real.
If you have been this way for too long to change, I
can respect that. I understand some of your fears and
others I can't grasp at all. You do over-analyze and
have expectations that only you can want and
understand. I can't help you to realize any of your
dreams (or mine) while you are entangled in the
current circumstances. I love you just the way you are
and don't want to change a thing about you. I can live
with your faults. I hope that you can live with mine.
That's where we will learn how to work things out
together as a team and a unified front. I promise,
that if and when you find yourself single, I'll be
there to help you pick up the pieces. The waiting is
and will be hard to deal with for now, but I think
that it will be far easier and less painful/stressful
than the cycle in which we now
find ourselves. No more, please.
I think that you are beginning to see that our future
together rests on your shoulders. How and when you
choose to deal with it is entirely up to you and you
alone. The only person that I can change is me. I want
to be your man so badly that it tears me up inside
knowing that I can't be. Just so long as it is you and
I navigating the unchartered waters of life and not
having to depend on anyone but each other to make
good, sound decisions that affect our loved ones, I
have no doubt that it will be more than OK. No more
pretending. No more living in two worlds and acting
like this is a normal, healthy relationship cuz we
both know that it is not. That's where most of our
friction originates. I want us to be real and
legitimate. Yes, I need you and want you too, but not
like it is now. You are always on my mind. Sometimes
good, sometimes bad, but always there none the less.
Obviously, I had rather go our separate ways as to
keep marching down this same road.
I don't know how to help you. I am reluctant to make
suggestions as a big-ass nuclear fubar'd mess usually
follows. You said it best when you said "sometimes you
have to learn things for yourself. It has to come from
inside me, or it's just someone else's idea." Could
not agree more. There is nothing wrong with having
goals and expectations in one's life as long as they
are real, attainable and flexible enough to withstand
the obstacles and curve balls that this life
inevitably sends our way. Again, as you said, these
are things that should be discussed and acted upon
when we are in a real relationship. Part of the growth
process to which you refered.
This last year and a half has been murder on me
emotionally, and I know that it isn't any easier on
you. I agree with you.
I still want to be your man. I love you in ways that I
don't even understand.

One day - Paul

**
That's the man I loved. That's the man I waited all summer for. That's someone I knew.

Here's how it ended. I knew something was wrong, but he continued to assure me that our separation was purely because he could not bear being around me if he couldn't have me for real, single, legal, legit. But I knew; in my heart, I knew. Notice that I ask him outright if there's someone else. This is from September:

--- "Julia E. House"
wrote:

> Okay, dude. You say you don't understand why I "keep
> communicating" with you
> when you've "told me" not to. I am here to say that
> I guess the reason is that
> I don't understand how you can keep away from me for
> this long. Given the
> passion of our relationship for two and a half
> years, it scares me shitless
> that you can turn it all off. Then I start thinking
> that the only thing that
> could explain it is that you are no longer in love
> with me and are involved
> with another woman. You see where my mind goes, and
> it's not pretty for you or
> for me.
>
> It made sense, even though it was impossibly hard,
> to have no contact up until
> I filed for divorce, because for all you knew I was
> gonna be a flake and not do
> anything at all. You had every right to protect
> yourself and give me a kick in
> the ass at the same time into taking action.Well,
> now I have. The papers are
> happily ensconced at the Dekalb County Courthouse,
> waiting their turn in line.
> I will be divorced before three more weeks are out.
> But I have gone as long as
> I can possibly go wondering what our future holds.
> The fact that you can
> pretend that someone named Julie was never in your
> life is more than I can
> stand. It scares me more than you know. I need
> something from you, Paul,
> whether you understand it or not, whether you can
> see even a tiny bit where I'm
> coming from or not. I'll explain it one day if you
> want to hear, but for now
> I'm just going to ask you.
>
> Tell me that you are still in love with me. Tell me
> that you are not involved
> with another woman. Tell me that you hurt being
> apart from me for so long. Tell
> me that you need me in your life. Tell me ANYTHING
> so that I know you are still
> my man, otherwise I can't make it till the end of
> September. I have used up all
> my reserves to get this far. The combined stress of
> not knowing where my life
> is going now (you know how that feels, right?) and
> not knowing if you stil want
> me to be your woman is too much for me. I need this
> from you, Paul. Just tell
> me where it stands.
>
> I agree we should not see each other until I'm
> single. I won't push that. I
> understand why we can't be together till that time,
> but I need to know from you
> that we are going to try to be together then, and
> that you are not using this
> time as a way to gradually and quietly break up with
> me. Please give me the
> peace that I need to get through this. I was there
> when you went through the
> fear and uncertainty of your divorce. Just give me
> this.
>
> xo
> French
>
>
Wednesday, September 12, 2007 6:12 PM -0400
From:
Gateway "Paul E. Scales" Add to Contacts

Subject: Re: Where we are
To:
Regular User Julia E. House

Okay dudette. For my own sanity and general well being
the only way I can deal with you while you are still
married is not to deal with you at all. The fact that
you didn't get all gung ho about about getting serious
about the whole divorce process till now hurt me to
the core. I know that you were/are scared to death and
worried about your kids and yourself, and that is
responsible. I'm hurt that you didn't/don't have the
faith in me as provider for a new family. Some of the
things that you've said to me in anger hurt me so
badly that I've yet to get over a few of them. The New
Years debacle is still ringing in my ears.
Anyway, I want to start entirely from scratch with you
just as soon as you are single. No bullshit, no games
and certainly no more drama. For me, this separation
is a matter of survival.
That's it in a nut shell. My POV, if you will. It is
what it is and nothing can be done about it at this
point in time. I'm waiting for the day when we can see
one another on a level playing field. Give me a call
when that day arrives.

As ever - scales

***
Wow. There's a change. No more "Frenchie." No more "Paul". Cold and distant, but nevertheless it sounds like he's there, right? Still waiting, right? Upset about the past but looking to a future together, right?

Wrong. He was living with Ugh. He was "talking to her" about me and about our relationship. She knew all about me; I knew nothing about her. He is a lying, cheating dog, yes, but I can also smell her influence in his words. There is nothing more lowdown than sidling yourself into someone else's floundering relationship, and that's what she did.

I am not in the wrong here. I did what I was supposed to do. I got a divorce. We were going to be together. Even though it had been a long hard road, the end was in sight. Or so he said, and so I hoped. Yet while he was writing that email, the fucking bastard was living with Ugh and "falling in love" with her (according to her) or "just friends" (according to him). Either way, he's a complete lying bastard. He hurt me more deeply than anything has ever hurt. I won't stop writing about it until I'm healed, which could be a long goddamned time.

I get so angry when I read and re-read these emails that I start to shake. Sandwiched in between the two of them is my summer, a summer from hell, a summer spent waiting, marking off days on a calendar, not eating, losing my shit, barely holding on till he came back to me. He told me he'd be there. He told me we'd pick up the pieces together. He lied. He lied. He lied.

All I've heard out of his mouth since July is how much I hurt him. He has never acknowledged how much he hurt me. Our relationship was very difficult and often explosive, but is was also full of possibilities, passion and genuine love. We could have had such a beautiful life, had he really been the person he pretended to be in the June email, - the person I loved. That person is not even real, or at least, not any more. He died three weeks ago.

Paul has never admitted any wrongdoing. His response to my finding out about dating the bitch since spring? "You can't cheat on a married woman." He has morphed into a cold, heartless bastard. I guess he always was one, according to people I'm now talking to, who say things like "Why the hell were you with him to begin with? He's a user. He's an egomaniac. He cares nothing for anyone but himself." Well, he goddamn had me fooled.

I am not sorry for being bitter. I have a right to this anger. What I am sorry about is that he will not apologize. He will not admit having done anything the least bit wrong. All I hear from him now is "You need to get our of my life. I'm done with you. I wouldn't come back to you if you were the last woman on earth. You stepped over the line now."

STEPPED OVER THE LINE???? Is he kidding me?

I'm sick inside. I guess that's fairly obvious. I can't shake it. I am scared.

For Paul

This is a blog entry from back over the spring, when P still loved me. I took it down when I began to realize things were not what they should be. He, however, had put it on his Myspace page, so it's not lost forever. When he transferred it there, he removed a key term, 'my boyfriend Paul', and replaced it with 'my friend Paul.' I guess I knew then that something was very wrong, and that he and I would probably not make it, even though it's taken me this long to let that truth into my heart.

I'm reposting it as a tribute to what we had together, to how much we loved each other, and even now, after all that's happened and the incredible hurt I'm in right now, to him, because I still do and always will love him.

Letting go is hard, and three years is a long time to be attached at the soul to someone - and we were - but this is my way of doing it. Messy, ugly, needy, but honest. I am learning to see truth and right now, truth sucks.

This is cut and pasted from Paul's page, so the first comment is his. The later comments that are mixed in were placed by real live people, but it looks funny cause it's all been taken out and put back in.

***

The following is an excerpt from a blog known as "ciaomanhattanbaby" and is one of the kindest blurbs ever written about me:

My friend Paul and I were watching YouTube videos last night. I am trying to convince him that Taylor Hicks is more than someone who just "won a fucking singing contest." It's a hard row to hoe. In watching music clips we strayed from Taylor to Jimmy Hall to a bunch of old videos I had bookmarked from Ash's board, like Son House, Koko Taylor and Big Mama Thornton, and others I was less familiar with, like an incredible clip of Hound Dog Taylor and Little Walter. In watching those videos it suddenly struck me how many talented and one-of-a-kind musicians go their entire lives without being recognized as such. Paul is one of these musicians.

Lemme tell you a little about him and perhaps get his 15 minutes started. First off, you gotta understand, Paul is a madman. Absolutely insane. Here's my favorite picture of him, taken when he was maybe in high school. This photo captures who he is more than any words could do:


Little has changed in the 25 years or so since that picture was taken. Paul treats life as a giant adventure, and his weapon of choice is music, specifically a Yamaha keyboard and Hohner Special 20 harmonicas. He is bad ass, all the way around. But here's the deal: this man is seriously talented. He sings, plays harp, keyboards and guitar, he mixes and produces music AND he was the founder and first owner of the Fabulous Forty Watt Club in Athens, Georgia.

But do you know him? Of course not. His music is only available to a small group of people who are both in the right place and the right mindset, and who are able to seek out unknown talent. Paul has played with some of the greats - Jack Hall, Chicago Joe Jones, Cindy Wilson, June Carter Cash - but most of you probably won't have a chance to see him perform his special brand of throw-down raw stinky sweaty blues, and that's a shame.

So my question is this: how much mind-blowing talent will we never know about? How many artists, musicians and writers out there will never be able to touch the masses? Taylor's whole "I wanna have my voice heard" schtick is not far from the truth, because for every Dylan there is a Nick Drake, for every Jack White there is a Dexter Romweber, and in this case, for every Jimmy Hall there is a Paul Scales.

How amazing would it be if we could give them all a chance.

Posted by Julie at 2:27 PM

Labels: Athens, Paul, pop music

4 comments:

cherie said... Amen. I've always thought that the best music is not the stuff you hear on the radio. Is it because the teenyboppers are the ones who buy the cds and determine what's popular? May 5, 2007 5:11 AM

Peanut said... Damn! Paul has played with some legends, including June Carter Cash! Man, I bet he has some great stories...I'd love to chat with him someday. Maybe one day we'll all be able to hang out at Fatt Matt's or something? May 5, 2007 3:32 PM

Paul Scales said... Such kind words from such kind folks. My playing piano on "Will the Circle Be Unbroken" with Mrs. Cash at the Midtown Music Festival was a total random thing. Mrs. Cash was the anchor talent on the gig, so naturally, she closed out the show. As fate would have it, the abreviated version of the Cindy Wilson Band (Cindy Wilson - vocals, Steve Baskin - guitar, and myself on piano)were the last to perform just prior to the closing segment of the show featuring Mrs. Cash. Mrs. Cash launched into the gospel classic and there I sat at my piano...what else could a poor boy do but play as the tune morphed into a giant sing-a-long. A once in a lifetime circumstance, no doubt, and trully an honor and a privilege. Julie is right, there is an unbelievable amount of talent just under the radar of public recognition, so it makes sense to support local music as much as possible as that is where the ball starts to roll. May 6, 2007 7:10 AM

Peanut said... Paul! Good to see you here! What a great story! No matter how it happened, you went with the flow, and ended up sharing the stage with a legend. That's awesome! It's a shame how great talent like yourself, and the others that Julie has mentioned, go unnoticed. Why does the music business (and its consumers)have such a narrow view on what is "mainstream?" I've always been into the blues, and it seems that this genre of music gets the shaft more than any other. I am a big fan of Jonny Lang, and have been since he released his major label debut when he was like 17. He's young, hip, nice-looking. Got all the makings of a star...or so one would think. But he is only known to those who enjoy the blues. He gets no airplay around here, and word-of-mouth is probably how he gets new fans. Supporting local music is right! I have seen many of my friends do what they love, and that's play music, for little or no money. They live and breathe music. Someone needs to give them a chance!

***

I remember the night I refer to up there, watching the videos together. We were holed up in the Quality Inn, as usual, watching videos and porn on my laptop, probably naked and smoking cigarettes, too. It was a really special night, and I remember thinking "Who else on earth would I sit here with and watch old blues videos on YouTube, discuss and critique them, take breaks to play his harp for me and kiss me, and who would actually enjoy spending the whole night doing it but Paul?" It was a fun, close, wonderful night, and so ordinary. That's what I miss the most.

So that's how it was once. It's all changed now. Now I'm a girl who was betrayed, lied to, and who spent the last four nights in the psych ward at Emory. I'm somewhat better now and next week will go into what's known as 'intensive outpatient therapy' for the next five weeks. That's all I really know.

Don't ever think you know someone, cause you don't.

Death and rebirth

My greatest fear came true, and I survived it. Well, so far. My summer of waiting, anticipating, working hard to get to the end, looking forward to the time when I'd be reunited with my love, mentally and emotionally planning our future...all that is over. I arrived at my destination - I AM DIVORCED - and saw a vast nothing. There was no man at the end. There was no passionate reunion. There was no kiss and planning our future. There was a wall with a stranger standing behind it, looking at me with cold shielded eyes. I'm shocked, astounded and very, very hurt.

All I want is to listen to Jimmy Cliff, Ahmad Jamal and the Modern Jazz Quartet. How odd is that? All other music makes me kind of feel sick.

I am going to California (with an aching...in my heart, for real) next week. Years ago when I had a huge breakup that bruised my heart, I went to Frisco to see an old boyfriend. We went out walking in the sunny cold air, took a ride across the Golden Gate Bridge on his BSA, and sat on the beach somewhere up there on that coast. I cried and cried. He made love to me, which in truth only complicated the situation. But all in all it was a rejuvenating, cleansing trip. California represents that to me: clarity, freedom, life.

This time I am going to visit my dear, dear, dear friends, Leslie and Bob. They are the most California people I know. Leslie has a psychic, earth mother spirit that not only heals you, but makes you feel like you're the most beautiful creature on the planet. Plus she only wears green and orange, which makes me love her even more. Bob is just Bob. He's funny and kind. They have a beautiful garden and sweet cuddly cats and dogs. And I've been told, now a fish. So that feels so good.

I am also going to see my dear, dear, dear friends Bug, Sandy and Daba. These are my Taylor Hicks friends who, along with me, are the only sane Taylor Hicks fans on the planet. But that's not why I love them. They are the kind of people that you meet and you just say to yourself "We're gonna be close friends forever." They are so excited about my trip that it makes me cry a little.

Speaking of friends, this whole bullshit fucking ridiculous experience has shown me lots of things about life and love and how I put myself out there in the world and how I treat those I love, which is not good, let me admit that first. But mainly it's shown me that I have the most kind, giving and supportive friends in the world.

I guess the moral of this story is multiple: Never trust that things will turn out the way you want and expect them to. When your heart tells you something isn't right, it isn't. Love, no matter how strong-and I'm talking STRONG- can and does die. The universe changes every day...embrace that and let it go. You can't control anything. Ask yourself "What do I want" and go with that, cause it's all you got.

I am very angry, but I'm letting it pass through me. I'm also going to walk up Stone Mountain today - the steep side. When I am very sad, I cry and beat the shit out of my mattress and it fades. Somewhat. But weirdly enough, I still love this man. A lot. More than a lot. How do you deal with that? I guess love is what it's all about, whether it "works out" or not.

The truth is that I will survive. But sometimes I just don't want to. If I could live in this photograph forever, I would. This is the best it gets, and thank God I lived there, even for a short while.