hmmm, well this is a belated welcome, scb! I missed your intro before...that's fer sher!

so Welcome to JPiC!!!
re the whole dad issue? well my dad is a crazy ole guy who fell asleep smoking in bed once when he was fighting with my mom, and almost burned us all to a crisp. Needless to say, my mama kicked him out...all I remembered of him was getting a whipping whenever he passed through, so I guess sometimes it's better to be without. My mom never paid any attention to us when we were young. six of us and she was too busy making a living....but the good thing is that there is time....time to grow up...time to bond...time to make sure we fix things. We have a much better relationship now and actually hug each other and mean it! Which is a big step for us! So don't give up hope...sometimes parents are so busy doing what they do and dealing with their own pain that they don't realize that they are causing you more hurt.
Ms. Nomad