Written Inflections

I have several dear friends who I see only about once a year - if that. My favorite memories of my college life are with these dear 5 people. (You know who you are). I try my best to contact each of them, but it's never on a regular basis. Getting an e-mail from one is always such a great surprise.

The other day, I got one I'm still trying to figure out.

One of my friends wrote these lines in her e-mail: "You look beautiful!" "Girl, what happened to you?" "I've asked the others what happened, and they didn't know." "I've seen you twice in about 3 years and, like, you totally changed." "I want to know what happened." "I care about you."

WHAT!?

Now, the first comment is a no brainer (and she was referring to some pictures of mine). Thanks for the compliment. But the rest . . . well, let's just say I can't decide if I should be flattered or offended. The question, "What happened to you?" minus vocal inflections, can be taken so many different ways. I can't decide if it's the total-nerd-turned-total-babe at the high school reunion "What happened to you?" or the you-look-like-you've-just-been-hit-by-a-train "What happened to you?" And it's really the last bit, "I care about you" that really throws it off. Is the writer worried about me? What is that supposed to mean anyway?

Today, I'm just wishing more people knew how to write inflectively because it would certainly lessen my confusion.