I think she probably did grow out of it, Rinslinger. ;-) Look, she was only about maybe 10 or 11 years old, and she naturally believed what her parents told her. Who doesn't at that age? The thing is, she didn't believe it quite deep down enough to give me all her toys. She was hedging her bets. A of people do that when it comes to their supposed "beliefs".

You know why people talk? They like to hear themselves, and they like to have an audience, but most of all they just like to hear themselves. ;-) I know for a fact that this is true. That's why I do it, that's why Chongo does it, and that's why everybody here does it too. Their joy in hearing themselves talk considerably surpasses their real dedication to their expressed beliefs most of the time, in my opinion. I wait to be proven wrong.

If they couldn't vent their thoughts and feelings that way, they'd explode eventually.

She told me about the end of the world thing because it made her feel important and good to let someone else know about it. It was a hot piece of news, and she wanted to pass it on.

I was a born sceptic at that age, and a total disbeliever in anything religious OR spiritual, so I had a bit of fun with her...

Her name was Jeannie Tomkins. God knows where she is now.