Riverbend TDG and Battenor Ecological Society bought a full-page ad in the Riverbend Times asking the three levels of government to work together for the cleanup of the old creosote plant. And about 20 joint letters were sent out to politicians and senior bureaucrats with the names of both of our organizations.

After eight years, our TDG has made its first foray into real-world politics.

In drafting the ad and letters, Pamela said Jane was easy to work with. How odd!

Shortly after the ad, the director of the Women's Shelter called me: "Thelma, there's a letter here addressed to you."

I came and opened the envelope. Inside was one page with a hastily scrawled "Stop the TDG!"

The director said she gets a few letters a month like that. Anyone with even a moderate public profile is a target for cowardly small minds.

The Women's Shelter Board learned I had some bookkeeping skills. And for that, I was elected as treasurer at its next AGM. The society already had a bookkeeper, and my function was to oversee her work. I also oversaw the executive director's expenditures, approving of her spending decisions. I had signing authority with two other board members. It was an ego boost to have three-quarters of million dollars pass on my signature. And helping distressed people through a difficult time had an altruistic reward. One wonders at what happened to such women when there was no shelter.

My board work exposed me to a lot of abuse other women were experience. That was certainly not my experience in life. Not one of my lovers ever took a violent turn on me. But when I was close to them only for a few hours and sex was a fairly immediate reward, they could easily hide whatever dark side they could have had.

Stacey was elected to the executive committee for Northwest Riverbend TDG. She often had me doing some extra work for this group. These tasks were a good reason for the two of us to get together.

I was surprised that Holger Peters asked me to be a guest speaker at public TDG meetings. While I enjoyed the spotlight as a cheerleader and on the nightclub dance floor, public speaking was a new experience for me. But I got better with more TDG presentations. If it kept calling me to the podium, I was willing.

When I wasn't busy with my business, volunteer work, and positive social interactions, I was spending time on my accounting studies. I really liked my new life-even without a special man.