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You're my guy. My perpetual hug. My mountain spring of laughter. The steady bedrock, the beautiful heart of a generous and considerate lover who cares for others. I am unfathomably happy that we've been reunited after all this time, and even though we're not in the same place right now, we will be soon! I can't wait to build stuff, make music and art with you, exchange rapid-fire wordplay and scurry around town catching Pokémon. Let the neural-network generated text bring us to tears, laughing so our abs and neck muscles seize up. You're the one for me, and I don't need anyone to send me a SIGN because you already make them. You're better than good. You are THE GOODEST. Long-distance is hard, but your morning texts keep me going, you wordsmith, you. Looking forward to getting a bowl of that chili. — Your Spark, Your Pilot Flame

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Wonderful editors that lay out the Love/Bitch section. I'm sitting in New Zealand, reading a crinkly, month-old edition of The Coast that was definitely drenched at one point, that my family lovingly sends me from home. I begin to read as I usually do (check the photographer of the cover, and then read from back-to-front—goodies in the back, of course!) I arrive at the Love/Bitch section and do a quick scan: one love and five bitches. Hmm. That's a lot of bitching for a section that includes "love" in the title.

I check the date of the edition: week of January 9. Damn. At a time when Halifax is going through its post-holidaze recovery and many Scotians are actively struggling with depression, the one newspaper that hasn't totally fallen off the rails and still has decent content is really vibing with the shit. Yeah, it's funny. And yeah, it can make people feel better, sometimes. It's great to bitch it out and have others agree and validate it. But in a world where we're desperately needing some guiding light, and some seriously positive influence, do you think we could call back in some love, just a bit? There'd be an outrage if there'd been an interview that covered five hetero cis guys, one woman and no queens. I know there's more love in you, you can do it! — Love Is The Answer

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Hey Batman, was that you on the number 1 bus? I thought I caught your eye and I thought it was you but you turned away. It seemed like maybe you didn't want to see me. I've looked for you, but you seem to be strangely invisible online. I should have talked to you even though you turned away. I'm happily married and at the same time you'll always have a little part of my heart, even since that first day we both had our luggage torn open at YHZ airport security. I miss you. I would love to hear from you. Even just a little hello. — Girl In The Black Dress