*** Answering a msg posted in area 12_STEPS (12_STEPS).
(Moved over here as it isn't really step specific...)
Hi Joan,
Thursday July 25 1996 16:23, Joan Rea wrote to Pat Winstanley:
 JR> Hi Pat, glad yu wrote this note, now I can reach you.  I'm
 JR> reading a book about Wigan and got a real charge about
 JR> 'knowing' a Wigian.
It's fun, isn't it! I get the same buzz when watching CNN and spot a news 
report about the home town of any of my transatlantic friends. The daft thing 
is, I could be seeing one of you on my screen over here, and never know it! 
:-)
An old aunty of mine (who I never met) lived in Calgary... home of the 
stampede. Just that little fact makes me feel closer to you... different 
city/town I know, but same state (do you call them states in Canada)?
What is the book about? Wigan used to be a big mining and mining-engineering 
town, with some of the infamous cotton mills too, but these days all the 
mines are shut, the heavy industry has closed, and light/service industries 
have taken their place. There was also a big battle hereabout in the civil 
war (cavaliers and roundheads) and it's an old Roman town too, I think.
 JR> Such small things perk me right up today
 JR> and it's sure a long way from all the stress I was under in
 JR> trying to end the VietNam war from a barstool.
You mean they didn't listen to you? ;^) It's one of the things I'm having to 
fight very hard against now, getting too involved in petty politics. I'm 
gradually learning to shut up and listen to other people's views, instead of 
trying to ram mine down their throats. Recently I took over as moderator of a 
UK backboned echo devoted to sounding off about things... it's... erm... 
interesting... a bit like duck herding! :-))
Do we ever stop trying to control everything around us?
 JR> It's a real
 JR> treat to see you continually contributing.  You hav strong
 JR> opinions and instigate action on the net and discussion
 JR> among those who meet f2f at local meetings. Thanks  JR
Well I try to contribute when I can, but not being a member of any 12-step 
program as such, I often feel that despite my program knowledge I might be 
passing on duff ideas, or upsetting people with my rather more unorthodox 
views. However, it is good to know that my comments and ideas can be useful 
in some way, and thank you for telling me.
Pat
peewee@cix.compulink.co.uk
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