@One Eyed Mind,
Putting aside whether we qualify here as friends, acquaintances or strangers, why not ask our advice? By requesting it, Boomer is not required to follow it, and if only 5% of what she receives is helpful, it's certainly worth what is essentially a minimal expenditure of effort and time.
In addition I'm fairly sure it is helpful for her to collect, develop and organize her thoughts by posting here. I know it would be for me.
Finally, this thread provides her with the opportunity to discuss the situation with people she knows are sympathetic to her concerns, and in some cases, people who have experienced very similar issues. This is a good feeling for almost anyone who is facing a problem.
It should be obvious to anyone who has been reading the posts in this thread that Boomer totally owns her situation and the decisions she is making. She acknowledges points she believes are helpful or which she may not have considered on her own and then she incorporates them into her decision making process. There is not a single example of her blindly following someone's advice. This is really a remarkable example of how giving and taking advice should work and it's rewarding to be part of it.
I have a feeling you have come with a canned solution for a problem that not only doesn't, in this case, exist, it doesn't even appear to exist. At its core, it’s good advice but you should save it for someone who needs it.
And here's a piece of advice for you, even though you neither asked for it nor profess to need it: No one has all the answers. Everyone, including you, can benefit from considering the different perspectives other people have on any given situation and, as importantly, the advice of people who have faced the same or similar challenges. If you only listen to yourself you'll never get the full story.
