Jessica, yes, there definitely can be love after divorce. (Have you checked out the book "Ask Me About My Divorce"? So many great stories in it.) Also, I completely agree about how important it is for my daughters to be at a school where they learn about sameness and difference along with geometry and spelling. I'm so glad your daughter is having that experience, too!

jenx67, the diversity is a blessing, and it's a surprisingly significant part of my life here. I also worry, though, that describing these aspects of my life might come off as bragging—like my days are just overflowing with interesting food and friends. I can assure you that there's also plenty of what you would expect in a small Midwestern town—chicken drumsticks and Miller Lite and regular, kind people—and I highly value and enjoy their place in the mix of my life, too. :)

Zoe, I'm so glad the one person I know who lives in Thailand responded! As someone who has lived in the states and in Thailand, do you think the draw to complexity in food reflects other attitudes and aspects of life, or am I completely making things up? (Btw, I sure wish I could taste something made by "your local!" Thai flavors are a close second, for me, to Indian.)