In my first chat with Sue, Bill commented:
The kind of conversation you had with Sue doesn't seem very informative
to either person involved. Your immediate thought about ending the
session was probably the correct one.
This challenged me to have a second chat. I am attaching the dialogue.
For reasons unknown, Sue suddenly left. The conversation was better
than the last one. The part of the conversation where she talked about
her friends trusting her seemed to strike some paydirt.
I tried to mix more normal conversation with MOL conversation. It felt
more natural.
See what you think.
···
From: David Goldstein
Subject: Follow-up of a MOL chat
Date: 1/15/98
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ICQ Chat Save file
Started on Thu Jan 15 19:22:09 1998
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<David> Hello.
<Sue> hi david
<David> Are you feeling OK?
<Sue> yes, except my hand hurts
<Sue> the doctor told me tonstretch it out as much as i can and that feel like someone twisting a knife in the palm
<David> Doesn't sound too good.
<Sue> no, but he's a good doctor and i trust him. besides, i remember what it was like when he did the other hand
<David> Do you have better sensation in your hand now?
<Sue> not yet, but the operation was just the day before yesterday, too soon
<David> Are we in some kind of chat room?
<Sue> only mine
<David> How does that work?
<Sue> if someone requests a chat with you, it opens your chat room
<Sue> everyone has one
<David> How was it that those people were able to join our chat the last time without asking permission?
<David> I don't think I had mine, but you must have had yours. I guess one is enough.
<Sue> we had our chat set to auto accept.
<David> Do you remember our last chat, any after reactions?
<Sue> yeah. you find it under events in your preferences. uncheck the box. no did you get to know me better?
<David> A little. I was wondering if you were irritated or annoyed toward the end?
<David>
<Sue> no, i don't remember, but think i had a kid get, i had to use the restroon, and my coffee cup was empty. i think you were annoyed at being interrupted
<David> Yes that is true.
<Sue> when you're in a chat, you have to keep an open mind -- in life too, the way i'm in control is that i won't talk sex and anyone who doesn't respect that gets bumped off
<David> Do you find that a lot of people want to talk sex?
<Sue> not yet, but then i've only been on a week
<David> Are you really a truck driver?
<Sue> i was drove a thirteen speed white, a nine speed mack and a twin stick pete
<David>
<David> Did you do it by yourself, or with another person?
<Sue> not alone. first with my husband then with a friend i was helping he needed to catch up on his bills or lose the truck
<David> Do you want to go back to driving a truck?
<Sue> I'd love to, but most of it is over the road and i'm not leaving my kids with anyone
<David> So what will you do?
<Sue> computer programming after i finish this course and get a bit more on it
<David> How far along are you in the program?
<Sue> only module 5, but then i stopped studying in early november. with the hollidays, i couldn't study
<David> Do you find it easy or hard so far to learn?
<David> Still there?
<Sue> not really, but math always came easy to me, it's memorizing anything (like theorems for geometry) that is hard
<David> I am sure you will find a way around this problem.
<Sue> yeah by studying at home it's all open-dook, and the final exam is proctored, but still open-book
<David> Does the image of a computer programmer fit you?
<Sue> i don't think i fit any preconceived images
<David> I saw a TV program yesterday where the person who produced Titanic was on. He went from being a truck driver to being a film producer.
<Sue> look at cledis maggard, he went from being a travelling insurance salesman to a country music star
<David> What do your kids think of their mom being a computer programmer?
<Sue> they like the idea because they know it pays more than minimum wage and we can live better
<David> Do you like being a mom?
<Sue> yes
<Sue> housekeeper, no, cook, yes and dr mom, yes
<David> Do you follow any philosophy when it comes to being a mom?
<Sue> not that i know of, if my children push me beyond endurance, thet get spanked, but i have more patience than anyone else i have ever known
<David> this last statement is an example of a comment on what we have been talking about.
<David> Would you like to change the topic to the one of patience?
<Sue> if you want, i can talk on any subject
<David> Or, this last statement is another example of a comment about yourself.
<David> What is it like to be able to talk on any subject?
<Sue> don't know, i just do it naturally, though sometimes i have to think
<David> Are you very wide read or just a lot of experience with a lot of stuff?
<Sue> both
<Sue> i haven't read many autobiographies or biographies, as they bore me, but yes, very widely read
<Sue> and street-smarts, too
<David> Sounds like you have a very positive image of yourself.
<Sue> no i tell my friends i'm short, fat, and ugly, but they just won't believe me
<David> That's funny.
<Sue> true
<David>
<David> How do they see you?
<Sue> never asked, but they trust me above anyone else they know and they always tell me when i look nice
<David> What is it like to have friends who have this opinion of you?
<Sue> nice. it's not the same as having a boyfriend or husband, but i feel it's justified
<Sue> i've earned their trust
<David> How?
<Sue> the way i handle a minor crisis, getting to know me, the way i handle their kids and mine
<Sue> other things, too
<David> Would it bother you if one of your friends stopped trusting you?
<Sue> yes, but the reason and the truth would come out eventually and that's where my patience kicks in
<David> Sounds like a good combination.
<Sue> i'm pretty easy to get along with
<David> Would your husband and boyfriends agree with this?
<Sue> not my husband, but then he'd probably only say that to make me think i was doing something wrong and he'd wait for a reaction
<David>
<David> U, meaning what about you?
<David> You want to know about my situation?
<David> Still there?
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