No one ever bothers to tell others how much they mean to them until they�re reminded of their own mortality or as a way of clearing their consciences when made uncomfortable by pity. And my motivation is no different, not really. I�ve certainly had enough recent examples to make it appear that I�m jumping on the bandwagon in telling people how incredible they are, but I can�t do it the easy way. Maybe it�s the debater in me, but somehow �you really mean a lot to me as a friend� just doesn�t have enough of a warrant to mean anything. As Ayn Rand said (someday I�ll find the actual quote, but seeing as how the book is 1200 pages long, it may take awhile) one cannot love without reason, without logic, without thinking. True love is given for the merits one has- it is NOT unconditional. If all of you could only see yourselves the way I see you, you would understand why you�re so important to me. You would never have an excuse to lose faith in yourself, you would never hesitate to act in accordance with your values because you would see how right you are. So this is my attempt to say �you matter�. If I succeed, you�ll see a picture of yourself as you truly are (to which I, from my amazingly unbiased perspective, can attest). If I fail, you�ll at least get a couple of compliments, and I hope the rest doesn�t offend you.

my pet squirrel/nan and tasha's wench/the math waif

nanu...(and the german sense of the word is quite appropriate)

the freakishly tall person (granted, she's not the most deserving of that title, but needed to keep the pattern going)

tasha: the only true debater likely to get play

lydia (as a debater her name is a part of team vocab, so she doesn't need another title)