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Dr. Balis:
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Hello, Anna. How are you? How was your week?
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Ms. Green:
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Good, good. How was yours?
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Dr. Balis:
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As usual.
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Ms. Green:
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Never giving anything away, eh?
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Dr. Balis:
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So what's up?
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Ms. Green:
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Oh, working a lot. I went on that damn roller-blading extravaganza that SII instigates every Friday afternoon. You should go some time just to get a taste of what it's like.
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Dr. Balis:
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Roller-blading is just not my thing.
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Ms. Green:
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It's not mine either, but it's a good way to show off your butt.
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Dr. Balis:
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Hmm?
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Ms. Green:
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I'm just trying to get your goat, Doctor Balis. But I was wearing those bike shorts--the closest thing to having a naked ass and not getting arrested. Martin really liked it.
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Dr. Balis:
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So how is it going with you and Martin?
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Ms. Green:
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Oh, same as before--no real changes. Well...
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Dr. Balis:
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Yes?
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Ms. Green:
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Well, remember the big rain storm a few days ago?
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Dr. Balis:
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Yes. I thought it was unusual for August.
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Ms. Green:
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It virtually never happens. But it wiped out Kathy.
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Dr. Balis:
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Wiped out? I don't understand.
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Ms. Green:
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Oh, she lives on the top floor of this quiet little Victorian. The place used to be gorgeous--lots of carvings and contrasting colors--a real gem.
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Dr. Balis:
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Sounds nice.
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Ms. Green:
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It was. But it's owned by this little old lady who lived there for god knows how long--she moved in after she got married, raised her family there, and never considered moving. I think she is very sentimental about the place. Her husband died there over ten years ago, but she still keeps his office and his clothes in the closet just as he left them. It's really sad--I think they were very much in love. But in any case, Mrs. Borderstein is an awful landlord.
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Dr. Balis:
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Is she being unpleasant to Kathy?
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Ms. Green:
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Oh, no. Not at all. Kathy and her are pals. They have tea together and Kathy sort off watches over her--keeps her out of trouble, so to speak.
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Dr. Balis:
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That's very nice of Kathy.
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Ms. Green:
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Yeah. I have a feeling that you don't think much of her, but she is really a very nice person.
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Dr. Balis:
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So what's the problem with Kathy's place?
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Ms. Green:
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When Mr. Borderstein was still alive, he got the brilliant idea of taking the two extra bedrooms they had upstairs and turning them into a small apartment. Their children had moved out and they didn't need the extra room, just the extra cash.
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Dr. Balis:
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And Kathy was renting that little apartment?
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Ms. Green:
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As I said, it's real nice--vaulted ceilings sixteen feet high, a bath with iron lion's feet. It's very sunny. But Mrs. Borderstein hasn't done any work on the house since her husband died. Last winter, the roof started to leak--right onto Kathy's bed. Mrs. Borderstein said that she couldn't get it fixed during the rainy season and that Kathy would have to wait until the summer time.
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Dr. Balis:
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That's ridiculous. She didn't even fix the leak?
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Ms. Green:
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Kathy lived with rotating buckets for two month. Mrs. Borderstein would even come into her place during the day to check if they needed to be emptied out. But the summer came and she never bothered to do anything about the roof--it wasn't a problem anymore so she just forgot about it. Kathy tried to get her to do something, but it was always, "I'm just too tired today to call the contractor." Or, "I'm running just a bit short of cash this week."
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Dr. Balis:
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Hmm.
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Ms. Green:
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Finally, after this last storm, Kathy told her that she would have to fix the place or she'd move out. Mrs. Borderstein cried and told Kathy that she always thought of her as her own daughter and so on. But she never did call to get the roof fixed. And Kathy's bed is totally ruined--she had to work all day that day and by the time she got home, the mattress was completely soaked and so were the blankets, the bedspread, the sheets, the works. We helped drag Kathy's mattress two stories down to try to dry it in the sun in the backyard. But I think it is ruined--it smells bad and...well, Kathy has moved in with Martin.
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Dr. Balis:
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What?
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Ms. Green:
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He has an extra bedroom which he used for his office. But he is doing most of his work at SII and doesn't really need that extra space, at least for now. So he had the space, and Kathy needed a place in a hurry. So it just made sense.
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Dr. Balis:
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I see. And how do you feel about this?
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Ms. Green:
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You mean about Martin sharing a place with Kathy?
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Dr. Balis:
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Well?
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Ms. Green:
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I don't think it's anything I should really be upset about. Kathy is a friend and she just needed some help. Martin was nice to her. And this is not a long term solution anyway. I think when Kathy moved out like that, Mrs. Borderstein got really scared. I bet she'll get the contractors on that roof in no time. And in the meantime, it might be kind of fun.
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Dr. Balis:
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Hmm.
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Ms. Green:
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I don't think it's a big deal. Don't worry so, Doctor. I trust Martin and Kathy alone together.
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Dr. Balis:
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Have you been thinking more about...
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Ms. Green:
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The three-way relationship between Kathy, Martin, and I?
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Dr. Balis:
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Did you?
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Ms. Green:
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I've thought about it a lot. Martin and I went out together the other night. We saw "Three Tall Women"--a play by Edward Albee.
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Dr. Balis:
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How was that?
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Ms. Green:
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Interesting. Depressing. It was about a woman confronting herself at three different ages--twenty-six, fifty-two, and ninety-two. The twenty-six year old was horrified to find out just how much she changed over the years. She couldn't believe that these older women were her in the future. And even the fifty-two year old woman was far from thrilled at seeing what she became over the next forty years.
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Dr. Balis:
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An interesting premise.
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Ms. Green:
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Yeah, interesting. But it made me think about me.
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Dr. Balis:
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In what way?
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Ms. Green:
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I want to like who I'll become in the future. I want to be able to admire me and feel like I've accomplished something with my life. I want to know that I didn't make too many mistakes along the way.
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Dr. Balis:
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Are you worried?
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Ms. Green:
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Maybe worried is too strong a term, Doctor. But I was thinking about it. What kind of person will I be after a three-way relationship with Martin and Kathy? Is that something I would be proud of? Would I tell my children about it? When I look at my mother, I know that she is a good woman. And while I never wanted to be like her--I always strove to be more like my father than my mother--I know that she's lived a good life. I'm proud of her--I'm never ashamed of introducing her to my friends.
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Dr. Balis:
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Do you believe that a three-way relationship could make your children feel ashamed of you?
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Ms. Green:
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Well, I'd have problems if my parents told me that earlier they'd had a three-way relationship or something. Not as many problems now, but when I was a teenager, I would have been horrified to find something like that out about my parents.
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Dr. Balis:
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So you're leaning against this relationship?
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Ms. Green:
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I still don't know. That's in the future. Right now, we seem to all be very happy. I don't know if I want to start pushing, Doctor.
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Dr. Balis:
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Do you believe that all ready you're in this kind of relationship with Kathy and Martin?
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Ms. Green:
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No. But I do believe that it would be very easy to arrange. I think Martin and Kathy are waiting for me to decide one way or the other.
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Dr. Balis:
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Have they been asking about it or pushing you into this?
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Ms. Green:
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Not exactly. I still have all the power in this relationship. And I know that Martin will only do what I want him to do. But there's definitely tension.
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Dr. Balis:
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I think you need to make a decision, Anna.
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Ms. Green:
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I know. It's just that I didn't really know that before. But now that Kathy lives with Martin...at least I have my own place.
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Dr. Balis:
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Do you spend much time there?
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Ms. Green:
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No. But at least I have it. I feel like I could get away from it all if I needed to--it makes it less scary.
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Dr. Balis:
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What are you scared of, Anna?
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Ms. Green:
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Just ending up in place that I don't really want to be...nothing, really. I'm just talking too much, Doctor. I think we better call it a day, okay? I've been working long hours and I think it's beginning to take its toll on my ability to reason clearly. Don't take what I said today too seriously, Doctor. I'm just tired, I think.
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Dr. Balis:
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I disagree with you, Anna. I think you're thinking just fine. You've raised a lot of interesting points today. You should not dismiss them as being irrelevant just because you're tired.
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Ms. Green:
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I've got to go and get some sleep, Doctor. I'll see you next week.
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Dr. Balis:
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Okay. Take care of yourself, Anna.
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Ms. Green:
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Good night, Doctor.
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###
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Doctor Balis' Notes on this Session
Transcripts of Anna Green's Communications
