{"id":127,"date":"2026-05-20T18:07:48","date_gmt":"2026-05-20T18:07:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127"},"modified":"2026-05-20T18:07:48","modified_gmt":"2026-05-20T18:07:48","slug":"brandy-a-fine-girl-in-couples-therapy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127","title":{"rendered":"Brandy (a Fine Girl) in Couples Therapy"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<blockquote>\n<div>\n<p><em>The sailor said, \u201cBrandy, you\u2019re a fine girl\u201d (You\u2019re a fine girl)<\/em><br \/><em>What a good wife you would be (Such a fine girl)<\/em><br \/><em>But my life, my love, and my lady is the sea\u2014Looking Glass.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=121\">Place-Names from a Newly Donny-fied World<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>He is late.<\/p>\n<p>Technically, the sea has made him late\u2014again. The sea is \u201ceternal\u201d and \u201cvast\u201d and \u201canswerable to no clock,\u201d which is exactly the kind of language you use when you don\u2019t respect a 3 <em>P.M.<\/em> standing appointment.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>I am sitting on a tasteful beige sofa in Dr. Feldman\u2019s office. There is a tabletop fountain burbling in the corner, which is a little on the nose. The intake form asked me to describe \u201cthe nature of the conflict.\u201d I wrote: \u201cCompeting mistress, aquatic.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Dr. Feldman clears her throat. \u201cBrandy, do we think he\u2019ll be joining us today?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I glance at the empty chair beside me. \u201cHe\u2019s very busy,\u201d I reply. \u201cHis life, his love, and his lady is the sea.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Dr. Feldman blinks. \u201cCan you say that again?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe repeats it like it\u2019s his mantra,\u201d I explain. \u201c \u2018My life, my love, and my lady is the sea.\u2019 \u201d I try not to do the voice, but it slips out\u2014husky, horizon-facing, nautical.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd how does that make you feel?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLike I\u2019ve been emotionally outsourced to the brine,\u201d I mutter.<\/p>\n<p>To be clear, I have been supportive. When he brings me gifts from far away\u2014a ship in a cheap plastic bottle, a commemorative spoon from Se\u00f1or Frog\u2019s, an \u201cI <em>\u2764\ufe0f<\/em> Guam\u201d bumper sticker\u2014I receive them with grace. I even wear the braided silver chain \u201cfrom the north of Spain.\u201d It itches.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<p>Dr. Feldman folds her hands. \u201cHas he expressed a willingness to prioritize the relationship?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe once told me I was \u2018a fine girl,\u2019 \u201d I say. \u201cHe believes I would make a \u2018good wife.\u2019\u00a0\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=118\">Realistic High-School-Yearbook Inscriptions<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd then he pledges fealty to a large, damp expanse.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There is a pause. The fountain burbles.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBrandy,\u201d Dr. Feldman says, carefully, \u201cwhen he says that the sea is his lady, what do you hear?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI hear that I\u2019m in a throuple with the Deep.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I have tried to engage with the sea directly on the matter. I stood on the dock one night and shouted into her raging glory: \u201cWhat are your intentions?\u201d A wave took my shoe.<\/p>\n<p>The receptionist knocks softly, then enters, and hands Dr. Feldman a note.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAh,\u201d she says to me. \u201cHe called.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My heart lifts\u2014the traitor. \u201cIs he coming?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe said he\u2019s running late.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOf course he is.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe added that he cannot stay long.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOf course he can\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAlso,\u201d she squints, \u201cthat his life, his love, and his lady is the sea.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I close my eyes. Somewhere, a buoy clangs. \u201cDid he at least ask how I am?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe asked if we validate parking.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Look\u2014I do my best to understand that the harbor is his home. I have gazed into his eyes when he tells those endless sailor stories and I have felt the ocean rise and fall in them. I have felt it rise and fall in me, too, which is inconvenient when you are trying to balance a tray of whiskey.<\/p>\n<p>But here is what I would like entered into the record: I am not a port. I am not a picturesque backdrop for his monologue. I am a woman and a waitress who lays whiskey down with surgical precision. I have survived Fleet Week.<\/p>\n<p>Dr. Feldman leans forward. \u201cWhat would you say to him if he were here?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019d say,\u201d I begin, \u201cthat if your lady is the sea, you should at least have the decency to stop telling other women they\u2019d make good wives. I\u2019d say that I am not asking him to drain the ocean. I am asking him to show up.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The fountain gurgles, chastened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd if he can\u2019t?\u201d Dr. Feldman asks, gently.<\/p>\n<p>I stand. I remove the locket that bears his name, drop it into a wastebasket, and walk out. As I leave the office, I notice that the tide is coming in.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=116\">If People Talked About Other Technologies the Way They Talk About A.I.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Let her.\u00a0\u2666<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Brian Braiker riffs on the classic-rock song \u201cBrandy (You\u2019re a Fine Girl)\u201d by Looking Glass.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":126,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-127","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Brandy (a Fine Girl) in Couples Therapy - City Relocation News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Brandy (a Fine Girl) in Couples Therapy - City Relocation News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Brian Braiker riffs on the classic-rock song \u201cBrandy (You\u2019re a Fine Girl)\u201d by Looking Glass.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"City Relocation News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-05-20T18:07:48+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/?p=127#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/?p=127\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/3e7ce0c0c60d21e12a5ac61fb2b786d4\"},\"headline\":\"Brandy (a Fine Girl) in Couples Therapy\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-20T18:07:48+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/?p=127\"},\"wordCount\":725,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/?p=127#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/8bf08ea47f5a5839de60076992c5e603.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Interesting\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/?p=127#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/?p=127\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/?p=127\",\"name\":\"Brandy (a Fine Girl) in Couples Therapy - City Relocation News\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/?p=127#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/?p=127#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/8bf08ea47f5a5839de60076992c5e603.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-20T18:07:48+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/3e7ce0c0c60d21e12a5ac61fb2b786d4\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/?p=127#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/?p=127\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/?p=127#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/8bf08ea47f5a5839de60076992c5e603.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/8bf08ea47f5a5839de60076992c5e603.webp\",\"width\":1280,\"height\":720},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/?p=127#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Brandy (a Fine Girl) in Couples Therapy\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"City Relocation News\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/3e7ce0c0c60d21e12a5ac61fb2b786d4\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cityrelocationnews.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Brandy (a Fine Girl) in Couples Therapy - City Relocation News","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Brandy (a Fine Girl) in Couples Therapy - City Relocation News","og_description":"Brian Braiker riffs on the classic-rock song \u201cBrandy (You\u2019re a Fine Girl)\u201d by Looking Glass.","og_url":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127","og_site_name":"City Relocation News","article_published_time":"2026-05-20T18:07:48+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/3e7ce0c0c60d21e12a5ac61fb2b786d4"},"headline":"Brandy (a Fine Girl) in Couples Therapy","datePublished":"2026-05-20T18:07:48+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127"},"wordCount":725,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/8bf08ea47f5a5839de60076992c5e603.webp","articleSection":["Interesting"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127","url":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127","name":"Brandy (a Fine Girl) in Couples Therapy - City Relocation News","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/8bf08ea47f5a5839de60076992c5e603.webp","datePublished":"2026-05-20T18:07:48+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/3e7ce0c0c60d21e12a5ac61fb2b786d4"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/8bf08ea47f5a5839de60076992c5e603.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/8bf08ea47f5a5839de60076992c5e603.webp","width":1280,"height":720},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?p=127#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Brandy (a Fine Girl) in Couples Therapy"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/","name":"City Relocation News","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/3e7ce0c0c60d21e12a5ac61fb2b786d4","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com"],"url":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=127"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/126"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=127"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=127"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cityrelocationnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=127"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}