Where he’s been is no secret. Read anything from his Underground stories. Read the Late Night Typing. You will get a glimpse of a past that isn’t very pretty.

I know other people like him. People who have been alcoholics or drug addicts. But they are people who let their past determine their present and future. People who use the rocks life threw at them as a crutch. People who blame everything that happened to them on anyone but themselves and refuse to pick themselves up off the ground and move forward.

Not Turtle. He moved on. He overcame. He stopped everything he was doing and cut ties with the people he was doing it with, even though that meant losing good friends and cutting himself off from the only career he ever knew. He moved away, got clean and stayed that way. He went back to school and got a degree. Became a productive member of society. A career. A home. A life.

But he didn’t just forget his past. He learned from it. And he took all those lessons he learned and put them to good use. He counseled kids that were like him; young punks killing themselves with drugs and alcohol. He literally opened his door to them. There would be people crashing at his house at all hours on any day. His door was really always open. And they would come and seek the advice of someone who had been there and someone who was willing to listen to them or counsel them or just sit with them while they went through a bad time.

People respond to him. The way he talks, his mannerisms, the way he is so bluntly honest about everything, never sugar coating, but always speaking in way that makes you feel comfortable and secure, even when he’s telling you that you fucked up bad.

This is what he does. He helps people. He never hesitates to stop what he is doing to give advice to someone who asks, to help someone who puts out his hand, to take the time to listen to someone who is struggling to be heard. He puts himself out there day after day and sometimes the situations get ugly and he knows this will happen but it doesn’t stop him from giving of himself whenever its asked.

This is The Turtle. The most unselfish person I have ever known. A huge heart and an amazing soul. He will give you his last penny, the shirt off his back and all those other proverbial things. And he will never ask for anything in return. If you are his friend, he will stand up for you no matter what. He will always have your back. If a hail of bullets came your way, he would step in front of them so you could live. He will make you laugh when all you feel like is crying. He will make you smile when you think the world is ending. He will take your hand and lead you down roads you thought were closed off to you. He is incredibly honest and straightfoward. He is a guy who knows what he wants and will persevere until he gets it. Never gives up. Ever. Maybe in his past life he gave up, but this is not that life. This is the turtle that evolved from what he used to be and learned that you never, ever give up because there are always bigger and better things ahead. You just have to get there. Not only does he know how to get there, he’s willing to take anyone along who wants to come.

That’s the turtle.

Plus, he has great legs! -M

turtle explains Michele to herself. Slowly.

This question is easy. For some who don't know, Michele was panicky person who would easily fly off the handle at everything and everything. She would cry a lot about the smallest things.

Fuck if I knew why.

Like cry anytime a coin would drop. I'm not saying that's a bad thing, but it happened always. Panicked and crying. About what? Dude. You need to calm down.

So what's her best attribute?

Her mind.

She has this ability to take things from people and incorporate them into her life. Trivial things seemed not to matter so much anymore to her. She learned to breathe when things seemed to go so wrong in her life. She learned that if you only take things one step at a time, things would get done. But, if you overwhelmed yourself, there would be nothing but a set of tears on a table. Nothing. Her mind learned to walk her thru these things. And if any of you don't know, FTTW was a big project we took on.

She has the ability, even thru the tears, to keep going. Something that she learned. It was amazing to watch this. No matter how bad or good it gets, there can always be a flipside to it and no matter what, you have to keep going. She got that. Finally. But she got it. You have to keep going. Her ability to adapt was killed by a lot of things in her past, but now it was back. And it was back hard. Her mind was on fire again. Something changed. And she could fucking handle it. And she fucking did. And she fucking did well. That is Michele.

Michele can take any situation and make it better or worse depending on the situation. She can adapt and mold things. She will take her kids anywhere, do anything for them and keep up a steady pace of work, being a mom, and staying sane.

She can do that.

People ask us why the site keeps changing. Why more writers? Why the new format? (which isn't done yet, just wait....) Why the new shirts? That's cause there is a girl in Long Island who has thought this out. Step by step. She has learned that you can get what you want by only looking at the next step and placing your foot on it before you look at the next one.

This is a girl who has a mind on fire again.

Look at all you guys. A lot of you writers and artists have told us that you want in on FTTW because it inspired you. Made you want to actually become part of something bigger. That wasn't me. That was Michele's mind working. She adapted. She became whole again.

Wanna know why I call her the bird?

Because she rose from the ashes like a phoenix on fire.

The new Michele was reborn and she kept flying.

You can't stop a phoenix with an idea.

If you do, all you will get is burned and left in the dust.

Plus she has great tits! - T

So that's what we came up with. The best attributes of your SO. Sure, there are many, but really, since we were in that kinda mode tonight, we wanted to think about the best part of the person you love was. Be it yourself, your dogs, your mailman, we don't care.

What is it?