I think there can be a fine line between a doormat and a rock. Each sitch is much the same yet different. I don't write so well to portray reality and while many have advised me of their doormat opinion I prefer to think of myself as the rock. Maybe I just still have my head stuck in the sand but there has truly been changes in my H that feel positive and real. We haven't wrote the final chapter on our M yet! One of the first ever books I read resulted from seeing the Oprah show and a couple that was interviewed, the W wrote a book, Back From Betrayal. I read that long before I found DB.
lodo, your XW is a classic case of needing WOA to keep her ego properly fed. As long as she is talking she is convincing herself of her great self, and trying to convince everyone else as well. I have a sister like that, no one else can hardly get a word out when she is in the room. She doesn't notice. We still love her, but ya gotta love family.
Good luck deciding on your jobs and severance and new opportunities! Maybe you should put your guiding experience together with your biking enthusiasm and start a guided bike tour busines!
Live your life while you are still living. Riding the trail less traveled.
