Hmm... I F-IN LOVE the feedback here... A few good angles to consider.
I'm looking at it this way: I haven't put a whole lot of thought into it after posting the planned "Sorry to hear you're going through a sh!tstorm W. The rest of the $ will be in your account in the morning. (Adding a quick explanation of the accounting issue that caused the delay) Take care of yourself." reply...
I do like the "Knowing you'll get it all figured out" part that Starsky added too...
I think I may go ahead and use this as a litmus test for myself... As I FEEL like I'll be able to fire off that "nickel tip" message and have it leave my mind once I close out the browser... If that's the case, then I'll feel more validated in my "gut instinct" in these types of situations...
If, on the other hand, I find myself checking that email in hopes of a response, or thinking about how she'll perceive the message tomorrow morning, I'll know that I'm not quite ready for the "nickel tip" treatment and simply go back to brushing off the bait in the future.
I'm extremely skeptical that this is a way for her to bait me into an OR talk... But my mind-reading skills are exactly as good as everyone else's are (read: They S*ck)...
Hell, if this IS bait, and I nibble and spit it out... I'll count that as one of the major victories of this war I'm in... probably one of the biggest 180s I could EVER demonstrate (not trying to fix EVERY problem in her life)
And if I take the bait and get into an OR talk... Well I'll need LITERAL 2x4s... to the back of the head... Until I'm spitting picking up my teeth off the ground like they've been there before...
I'm confident in this: I WON'T be baited into any sort of R talk while OM is in the picture...
I picture that conversation going something like this:
W: Leading question: (You're not fighting for me... Why haven't you called, What are your plans for the future)
Me: So, quick question... Are you still talking to OM?
W: Yes
Me: Sorry, but as I said before, until OM is out of the picture, there is no us. Feel free to reach out when you decide you truly want to work on our R, but I'm going to live my life and continue finding happiness on my own.
I'll ponder this for a little bit more before throwing the brakes on this line of though.
