Thursday, October 06, 2005 -- 4:11 PM

A

Take a deep breath and hold it in. When your hear your oxygen deprived blood pounding through your head, then you'll know what it's like just before you throw down a winning hand. The air you take in after that never tasted quite as good, or meant quite as much. Some people don't like that much. Some think you get a better rush out of heli-skiing or mountain climbing. I wouldn't know about any of that. I'm a pretty simple guy.

B
My mouth was dry as I knocked on your front door. "Hello." and I went in. I looked at the pictures on your wall. Some were of you when you were a little girl. You went into the living room and sat down and I didn't really know what to say, so I didn't say anything. You weren't looking at me anyways and the way you folded your arms didn't make any of this very easy. "Okay," I started. Then you looked at me and that made it even harder. "You don't need to say anything," you said. You said you wouldn't know how it would be even if I did say something. Nothing changes, does it, you said. No, I admitted. I'm a pretty simple guy.