[Boomer]

Here's Part II or whatever the heck this is.

I was really pounding the keys on that post I wrote last night I guess I'm still mad this morning. And I guess I thought of something else while I was sleeping.

Another Linda, please don't beat yourself up. I have a very good friend who is one of the nicest, sweetest, kindest people in the whole world. And this happened to her, only it was someone she had known forever, not a friend, but someone she has to see on a regular basis.

This mess lost her several hundred dollars and she tried to deal with it politely, off and on, for two years. Circumstances are such that there is not a whole lot that she can do. It is one of those "choose your battles" things.

My friend and I have talked a little about this, off and on. (Sometimes I am like Lucy from Peanuts" and I feel like I can't help but end up in that little booth with the sign that says "Advice 5 Cents." That's all my advice is worth, on a good day.)

Anyway, over lunch one day, we came to the conclusion that this woman who did the scamming was not really intending to scam but was having some sort of money problem, like a bill due or someone in need, and so the upfront money for the fabric just got away from her. That does not make it right, of course. But that's what probably happened in this case. This woman who kept the money was not really a business woman but someone who made stuff for people for money -- if that makes sense.

So anyway, they still see each other and nod politely, but my friend's stuff will never "materialize" she knows. They both know.

Your situation is different from my friend's I know. But I know how she felt. She would use the word "stupid" just like you did in your post here at the beginning of the thread. Well, please Another Linda, just stop it. Something tells me that you are every bit as nice as my very good friend and neither of you is stupid at all. Sometimes not-nice things just happen.

I will be tuning in to see how you are doing. I hope this turns out well for you. And if it does not, don't feel bad if you just decide to write it off to the cost of education. That's what my friend finally did. I wish you the best.

Boomer