What bull shit! No strings attached? Can someone please explain to me how you have any form of relationship with anyone and not have strings attached? Is this what society boils down to? Meaningless, attachment-less, empty acquaintances?

The STBX has been harassing me lately about 'just looking'. I need to somehow commit, but not commit to trying to see how he has changed, but I don't have to do anything. WTF? Seriously? Its like standing next to a rotary blade to see how it works and sticking your hand in it! How can you commit to something and not really commit? Obviously (well to me), if I agree to see how he has changed, that implies that I am interested in what is happening or has happened in his life? Frankly I am not, at all. So please, correct me if I am wrong, but I smell a rat trap...it reeks of manipulation.
It's too late. I know people keep saying 'it's never to late', but I sincerely beg to differ. There are just some situations and relationships that cannot be remedied. I don't want to have any from of relationship with him apart from being civil when attending to matters of our daughter. Why can he not understand that I am done. That I have a right to be done. That regardless of what he and society generally believe to be right or wrong about divorce etc, I don't have to agree or follow the norm. I have sorted my decision with God. And just because I believe different than he does, does not neccesarily make either of us wrong or right.
It took me years to get his foot out the door, fuck I had to get a new door! How stupid does he think I am? With him it's not "strings attached' more like a noose...

My friend and I have been taking things slow. It works. Sort off. But once again, it feels like a rather pointless exercise. Due to all the uncertainty there will be no attaching. It's just too high risk. What is THAT? How do you try a new relationship but you are so paralyzed by fear that you just cause more damage? Is the mature option not rather backing off then? Why am I the only person on this godforsaken planet that still believes in all or nothing? You cannot be HALF my friend and if being a whole friend is high maintenance or demanding, then obviously you do not have the energy to remotely come close to fulfilling a single one of my needs. I have wasted enough time on people not willing to love. (Note all the aggression...not really a good week.)

I have grown so fond of my friends in Alanon. I would walk through fire for them. How do you survive a war and not have strings attach? How do you share so many common joys and pains and not be attached? You can't.

There are strings attached to everyone that crosses your path. We are all somehow entwined even if it just through our need to survive. There is always strings attached, whether we like it or not.

It is difficult for people who have not dealt with an Alcoholic to really understand what the family goes through. I mean hell, even us unfortunates who has had to deal with it don't always understand.

I am settled in my new place. Settled at this point means I have a table, curtains and a bed. I am happy. My daughter is doing so well at school and with the first term at an end I wonder what happened to the time. We have some huge fights every now and then and I struggle to remember she's only six. I completely lose it when she says she'd rather stay with her father. The thing is, there she is allowed whatever she likes. At my house we have rules... So I'm not even stating the obvious. I know this too shall pass and I have to guard against resentment, but I have to work hard at being more calm about it. My anger is ruining our relationship. I am angry at her for still liking him and as insane as that sounds it's the truth. And I need to deal with it. Regardless of what he has done, he is her father. That is on my list of "things I cannot change" for obvious reasons.

Work has been incredible. I have worked really hard since I started my new job. Beginning of April I will have been there one year. I got promoted 2 weeks ago which really only means I have more work. Work makes me happy. I am good at it. I understand it. I can manage it. I can submerge myself in it for 12 hours every day and not deal with the things I really want and miss in my life. Every so often I come up for air, and there is reality, unchanged. I am lonely. I almost never see my daughter during the week. I feel guilty because I don't want my life to change.

I dislike the fact that I am lonely. But after more than 5 years in a give, give, give relationship I am emotionally deprived. I want to have someone, but I have nothing to give. I have both my sisters close, the crazy younger one actually turned 30 last week - only by the Grace of God. This helps, but I want someone special. One thing that I have learned is that I have an exceptional capacity to love. If I did not, I would never have stuck it out in my marriage as long as I have. I still love my STBX, but it's the kind of love you have for someone close who is dying. It's not the love that kept me believing, hoping and helping for so long. That left. Long ago.

The thing is I met someone. And he is nice. He leaves me be with the insane hours I work. He does not expect any sort of emotional commitment. He's just there. Now, things are getting a little complicated, because I don't want it to go anywhere, but our relationship makes me feel. I have not felt a single emotion in half a decade. I have been angry for half a decade! I have accepted my alcoholic STBX will not change. I have accepted that my earthly belongings are gone. I have accepted that I am powerless - that took bloody long. But I have not felt. I have not cared. And I do. And he does. Take it slow, stop, think. Don't over complicate things. God, what are these people saying! I have absolutely no idea what a normal functioning relationship should be like. And I am in no place to go through how it shouldn't be. So I am seriously considering running. But I don't want to lose my friend. I realize that most of what I have learned from Alanon will now have to be applied constantly. First thing is, that I cannot allow what happened in my past to dictate my future. I need to keep being honest with my friend about my inability to trust and some of the other things I still struggle with. He does not understand alcoholism. He does not understand Alanon and why I insist on still going to my weekly meetings now that the alcoholic is gone. He doesn't mind it, he just doesn't understand it.

I have been looking forward to 'normal' for as long as I can remember, but I have come to the conclusion it's not all it's cracked up to be. Just listen to this definition:

NORMAL -Conforming to a standard; usual, typical, or expected.

My life is nowhere near normal. Not in my head anyway.

Putting myself "out there" is scary, but I read this this morning:

Courage is Fear that said it's prayers.

I cannot hide from getting hurt, I will never be normal, but I find being happy comes a little bit easier and for now, that 'feels' normal enough.

So guess what? No, seriously, guess.
Yup, spot on, the fucktard is drinking again. So, I've been suspicious for a while, but I really thought it was just the devil whispering in my ear and the past holding me back. Turns out I was right. I sooooo hate being right.
I made a deal with God years ago that if He kept me in the loop I would do what He asked, no questions. I'm sort of regretting it now. Perhaps it would be better if I didn't know. Ignorance is bliss. I would give anything to be an idiot. Well, so what next God?