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Ms. Green:
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Hello Doctor. You have to excuse me. I think I'm getting sick.
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Dr. Balis:
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Hello Anna. You do look a bit pale. Do you think it's flu?
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Ms. Green:
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No, I got a flu shot this year. I think it's just a cold. With the recent rainy weather it's not that surprising. Actually a lot of people in my department are either sick or about to come down with something. And all just in time for Thanksgiving. It will be a lovely holiday--the whole family will get together to exchange germs.
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Dr. Balis:
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Are you going to see your parents for Thanksgiving?
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Ms. Green:
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Well aren't you? You really should Doctor. There are a few days a year that we all should spend time with our family and Thanksgiving is one of them.
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Dr. Balis:
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Actually I am flying to New York to see my parents and sister over the long weekend.
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Ms. Green:
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Good for you. I'll try not to sneeze in your direction, although you'll probably catch something on the plane anyway.
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Dr. Balis:
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I appreciate your efforts Anna.
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Ms. Green:
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You know it's just amazing the kind of cost cutting measures the airplanes take. I heard that it would only cost fifty cents more per passenger to fully vent the airplane instead of recycling the air during the flight. I'd be willing to pay an extra fifty cents on my ticket to get fresh air on the plane. I always get sick when I fly and I think it's because the airlines are trying to save a few bucks.
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Dr. Balis:
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It's a good point.
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Ms. Green:
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Yeah.
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Dr. Balis:
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So how was your week? Last time you left me wondering about something wonderful that was happening to you. Do you want to talk about it today?
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Ms. Green:
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Why Doctor? Do you want to know if you should feel jealous? You know you have nothing to worry about--my heart still belongs to you.
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Dr. Balis:
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From the note in your voice it sounds like the rest of you doesn't.
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Ms. Green:
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You mean like my fingers and toes and...well you might have something to worry about Doctor.
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Dr. Balis:
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So what's his name?
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Ms. Green:
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John. John Riley.
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Dr. Balis:
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Is he from SII?
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Ms. Green:
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Of course. I told you that we prefer incest to outside relationships. In fact I might have talked to you about him.
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Dr. Balis:
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I'm embarrassed to say that I don't think I remember who he is.
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Ms. Green:
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That's okay Doctor. It was only a small reference. He's also a programmer. We even worked on a couple of projects together.
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Dr. Balis:
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Is he the guy who got hurt during the baseball game?
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Ms. Green:
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Very good Doctor. I'm very impressed. I should remember that you have a long memory and nothing gets by you. You know with skills like that you might be better employed as a spy, a CIA operative or something, instead of being a therapist. A Johnny Mnemonic kind of guy.
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Dr. Balis:
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Thank you, I think.
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Ms. Green:
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Oh, it was definitely meant as a compliment Doctor. I'm just amazed that you could remember a name that I mentioned in passing several months ago.
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Dr. Balis:
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John Riley. Do you want to talk about him?
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Ms. Green:
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Sure. I want to ignite the passions of jealousy in your soul Doctor.
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Dr. Balis:
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Hmm.
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Ms. Green:
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That's okay. I'll settle for curiosity for now. Let's see. John is also one of the regulars in our department. I think he's been with the company for about eight years. He started there right after he dropped out of college. Some of the smartest people I know dropped out, so don't judge him by that.
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Dr. Balis:
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I wasn't going to.
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Ms. Green:
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So he is very smart and a good programmer. Probably better than me. At least in some areas. He is a bit...how should I put it? Clumsy? Uncoordinated? Accident prone? It's just that he is constantly thinking and usually not about where he is going. He managed to knock over the entire coffee station on our floor. Luckily no one got hurt. I think that absent-minded genius is a good way of thinking about John.
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Dr. Balis:
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That sounds like a very kind description.
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Ms. Green:
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Yeah. Most people just call them clods. But we've been friends now for about two and a half years--as long as I worked for SII. He is a really good guy even though he is not very good in social situations.
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Dr. Balis:
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Socially challenged?
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Ms. Green:
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Very funny Doctor. But that's a good label for John. I should mention it to him. He would like it. So as I was saying, we were friends for quite some time. In fact he was one of the people who were trying to warn me about Bill when we first got involved.
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Dr. Balis:
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John was the guy who you said had a crush on you for a long time so you couldn't take his warnings seriously.
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Ms. Green:
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That's right. I wished I listened to him though. It would figure that if the guy likes you, he would have your best interests in mind. John was just trying to protect me.
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Dr. Balis:
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Hmm.
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Ms. Green:
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He was. Bill was bad for me. He hurt me and I'm still trying to recover from our relationship. But back to John. We all went out to see Vertigo. It's been restored and it's playing in the City. In fact you should go see it Doctor. It's a very good movie and who knows when it would be showing on the big screen next.
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Dr. Balis:
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I do like that movie and I've already gone to see the restored version.
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Ms. Green:
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Wow Doctor. I didn't know you have a social life.
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Dr. Balis:
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I saw it alone.
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Ms. Green:
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It figures--you keep turning me down and I'm a very good date.
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Dr. Balis:
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I'm sure you are. So John went to see Vertigo with you?
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Ms. Green:
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John and a bunch of other people. But John managed to maneuver to sit next to me during the movie. It was very sweet. He reached out and held my hand. I could tell that he was very nervous and it took a lot of courage on his part. After the movie, he offered to walk me home. He held my hand all the way. I don't know why I never really noticed it before, but John is kind of cute. He is tall and thin. He has a very nice hair even though there are definite signs of balding on the top. And he has very beautiful eyes--like soft chocolate with twinkles. We talked about the movie. Apparently John is a San Francisco buff. He told me about different San Francisco locations that the movie was shot at. You know some things haven't changed at all? They still look the way they did in the fifties when the movie was made. John offered to give me a Vertigo tour of San Francisco.
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Dr. Balis:
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Did you go?
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Ms. Green:
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Yeah. John and I spent Saturday together walking around town. We went to the Palace of the Legion of Honor, and to the Palace of Fine Arts, and to the base of the Golden Gate Bridge, we even got to Mission Dolores.
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Dr. Balis:
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Sounds like a full day.
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Ms. Green:
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We had a great time Doctor. I wish that I'd done it before.
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Dr. Balis:
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You mean spend the day with John?
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Ms. Green:
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We've been friends for a long time but I feel like I never really knew him.
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Dr. Balis:
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That happens sometimes. Are you more than friends now?
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Ms. Green:
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We are not sleeping together if that's what you're asking.
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Dr. Balis:
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I wasn't. I wanted to know if you were romantically involved with John now.
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Ms. Green:
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Let's just say that we are more than just friends now. We don't want to rush things. So far we've only kissed three times. We both had bad experiences in the past and want to take things slow.
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Dr. Balis:
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That seems like good approach.
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Ms. Green:
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I think so. And it's not like I'm not interested in making love to John. Or he to me. We talked about physical attraction and how it's not the same as being in love with someone. I think that if we wait awhile, we would have a better foundation for a good relationship. Not to mention that anticipation is half the fun. Don't you think Doctor?
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Dr. Balis:
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I'm glad you are working on establishing a broad base for your relationship with John.
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Ms. Green:
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Yes. It makes me happy thinking about him. I really look forward going to work now. And even seeing Bill and Ethel doesn't bother me as much now--there is no way their relationship is going to last. All they do when they are together is eat face. John and I talk. We are trying to learn about each other.
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Dr. Balis:
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That's definitely good.
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Ms. Green:
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Remember what I told you about past boyfriends last time?
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Dr. Balis:
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You talked about how it was fundamentally impossible to remain friends with someone after your relationship had turned sexual.
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Ms. Green:
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That's right. And I still think that it's basically true--when you sleep with someone you can kiss friendship goodbye. But somehow with John I think it might be different.
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Dr. Balis:
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Why?
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Ms. Green:
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It's not all about sex with him. He really wants to spend time with me. I think that if I was in a bad accident and paralyzed from the neck down, John would still want to be with me. So I think it just might be possible that we could remain friends even after we consummate our relationship.
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Dr. Balis:
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I see.
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Ms. Green:
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And for now I just want to wait anyway and to limit our physical contact to oral activities. And I mean kissing Doctor. I saw the way you looked at me just now.
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Dr. Balis:
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What?
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Ms. Green:
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Bill once told me that I have a very sensuous mouth and that every man who looks at me thinks of the same thing. And I saw the way you looked at my mouth Doctor.
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Dr. Balis:
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Anna our time is up. Next week is Thanksgiving and I will be out of town from Wednesday to Sunday night. Would you like to reschedule our session for Wednesday morning or would you like to just skip one week and meet on Thursday two weeks from today?
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Ms. Green:
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I'm driving up to Davis to see my parents on Wednesday. I'd like to beat traffic and leave kind of early. I don't know, I guess I'll skip a week. Is that okay?
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Dr. Balis:
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That's fine.
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Ms. Green:
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It'll be weird not seeing you for so long Doctor.
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Dr. Balis:
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I think you'll be fine. And you can always call me if something comes up.
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Ms. Green:
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That's true. Well have a happy Thanksgiving. Say hi to your parents and sister.
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Dr. Balis:
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Thank you very much. And I hope you'll have a good Thanksgiving too Anna. I'll see you in two weeks. That's the fifth of December at 5 o'clock. Goodbye.
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Ms. Green:
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Now I'm all nervous about this. Maybe I can come in just for a little bit on Wednesday morning?
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Dr. Balis:
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You'll be fine Anna. Really. Go home. Have fun with John.
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Ms. Green:
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Yeah. I'm seeing him tonight. Okay than, goodbye Doctor. I'll call you if...
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Dr. Balis:
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No problem. I'll be happy to hear from you. Goodbye Anna.
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Ms. Green:
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Goodbye Doctor.
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###
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Doctor Balis' Notes on this Session
Transcripts of Anna Green's Communications
