Last night at a fondue dinner with Jane and Alan, I was greeted with this startling commendation, "My blogfather." A woman of some confidence and smile recognized me as someone with a web page that preceeded her own, and she wanted to honor me with her handshake and a thanks. It was heartwarming. I had just spilled a full glass of wine towards Alan's lap, so I was feeling a bit beside myself, working to reconcile my generous speedy spirit with a propensity to interrupt social flow with accidents. Her enthusiasm was infectious and I felt immediately better. To boot, she dropped a bill on the table towards another bit of wine to replace that I'd spilled - a kind donation I didn't turn away though good grace might have dictated otherwise.

Tish runs FatShadow.com; it looks like a warm place to visit. I read there today about our exchange that she would have enjoyed a hug, a feeling of family or familiarity. Certainly the "blogfather" appelation was intimate-seeming, I felt a not unwelcome warmth crawling up my shirt as she saluted my scrawny self for some kind of seniority. Whew! It was an honor she gave me. And so I would have given her a hug if I had been more present, not recovering from a spill, or shocked to be treated so nicely by a stranger cum friend.