Ha! There are pretty much only two subjects in life that I feel like I can really discuss with authority. One, is the career I chose from a very early age: filmmaking. The other: cutting off ties with toxic people. So, please forgive me if I indulge a little too much here in unnecessary details. I have an older brother who was a total dick growing up. We all know the type, verbally and physically abusive. I actually have a few older brothers like this but one of them, when I was really young, I realized: that guy's a monster. So, sometime around grade school I just avoided him and talked to him as little as possible. We had a single mom and were strapped for cash do its not like this behavior led to any Cosby Show style family discussions. When he moved out I decided to never talk to him again. Then I moved out for college and I kept my promise. Over the years I would hear other family members complain about him. He went to business school (surprise right) and was a jerk to everyone and I would always say--yeah, the guy's a monster. I knew that when I was eight years old. So, fast forward, I haven't seen or spoken to my brother since around 1993. But that's not the interesting part to me. You see, I don't regret my decision at all. I'm actually really glad for it, but there were side effects that you need to consider. Once I learned that I was so capable of cutting people off, I did it more frequently and with more and more ease. I also have very limited compassion for the girlfriends I've had who keep putting up with their shitty dad or mom or sibling. And it's also led to a very unpopular opinion that I have that people don't change. Outside the US my friends agree with this opinion, but in the States we believe we can give up drinking or stop jogging or move to a different state or start worshipping a new wooden stump or something and boom! New person! Everywhere else this is seen as a naive crock of shit. But I wonder sometimes if giving up on other people because they won't change, doesn't eventually become a self fulfilling prophecy. : \