dear bananafishes: first-timer alert. i've tried to catch up since getting my internet service again, but only got through some of january and december and today's postings. so please forgive me if i tread familiar territory. i guess the only two things i'd like to mention with this initial sending are: 1) i don't know if anyone has mentioned this yet, but i know that salinger and hemingway met during the big one in france & had a short, rather cantankerous (i think) correspondence. i don't know if i can think of two people less likely to become pals. 2) though this was covered at least months ago, i'd like to share my favorite quote. it's from "raise high" and starts: "I have scars on my hands from touching certain people..." and ends with "I still have a lemon-yellow scar on the palm of my right hand." (that's not too long, vis a vis the copyright statutes, is it?) that was my diagnosis. from that point, i knew that i had banana fever. bad. anyway, i'll try not to stifle this list with badness from my end. happy suffering, fishes! rick