hi, yorkieman! you said:

the conversations would have been two-sided had I asserted myself.

well, i could take that a couple of ways...it could be a form of low self-esteem, or it could be that you know yourself, and the others involved, by recognizing that you're not being heard and won't get anywhere by furthering the conversation.

i guess only you would know the answer to that by what your "inner voice" was saying at the time?

gl! there's alot of GOOD information on the web regarding recognizing, and dealing with, low self-esteem.

good to see you again,

kd