20 Comments

So nice that you’re back, Amy! I haven’t heard it in a while, but I’m often told I remind someone of someone (cousin, best friend, etc.). These days you’d think they’d have access to a photo to prove it.

And congratulations to Railey Jane Savage on writing a book. Woohoo!!! I agree, the confidence of mediocre white men is something we could all use more of!

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WOOHOO INDEED! ThanksThanks, Micheila

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Grandpa Drake swore I ignored his calls to me someplace around Elmira, Candor, but it wasn’t ME he was hailing! So someone in the Southern Tier in the 1980s could fool my own family member!! 🤗

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... but there is only one YOU, Doris.

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I hope so! Just as we know there can be only our one & only Amy! 🥰💋🤗

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I’ve become a big fan of consumables. It began with my then-upper 80s mother-in-law. Now my daughter gives us H&D pears and we are happy. (As long as we are home for the 15 minutes that they are just ripe). And I do like the idea of gift cards so that someone’s budget can accommodate books! Favorite perfume! The right chocolates!

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So glad you're back...I thought your absence was a glitch in my email or something. (BTW the folks at Substack were very nice & tried to help) I found my doppelganger when going through old family photos - gasp! It's my maternal grandfather!

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Haha Rebecca -- love your doppelgänger story. Yikes!

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I just spent an hour or more on Bored Panda with doppelgängers and then things car mechanics find under the hood of cars, and then more and more. A very entertaining afternoon!

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Happy to help, Joan!

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I, too, know Joe Newberry - I live in Raleigh, NC. He is a prince. He's the semi-official Mayor of the annual IBMA Bluegrass Convention here every year. I first saw Joe perform at a house concert over 20 years ago, and he keeps getting better, which I thought was impossible. He took a deep breath and left his day job (Department of Cultural Affairs for the state; he was liaison to our state Symphony) to become a full-time musician, and we're all grateful! He is a brilliant musician and songwriter, deeply kind, and immensely funny. He continues to make our world a better place!

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Joe's kindness really leave a mark! He will definitely show up in a future newsletter. Thank you so much for telling me a little more about him.

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Yes, Amy, I have definitely missed you! Welcome back! Your doppelgänger story was hilarious and I loved all the pictures.

When I was young, a friend and I at day camp were constantly mistaken for one another, and the resemblance was closer than we’d noticed. When I lived in Wisconsin, there was another woman by the same name in my city! We didn’t resemble each other, but we both were about the same age, had short dark hair, similar jobs, and boys around the same age (luckily at different schools)! Unfortunately, we both had the same doctor and I mistakenly was given her treatment protocol once. The error was discovered when I returned for the follow-up several months later, not fun! We arranged to meet before I moved away; she was very gracious about all the mix-ups. Turns out she’d been mistaken for me, too!

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What an experience! -- I don't know if you clicked on the link I provided but there are many many stories of people meeting their doppelgängers in real life and ... it really is fascinating.

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Okay. I've always had a problem remembering who succeeded whom, and I usually can't remember which is which, though I've read them both plenty in my time. And I could never tell them apart, or even guess any more which was Pauline and which was Esther. So: Is the photo in the last doppelganger you posted Ann Landers or Abigail van Buren?

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They were identical twins with the same career, so it didn’t matter if they WERE döppelgängers IRL

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True enough, though the topic was döppelgängers of Amy's. Certainly if one was, the other could also have been; I just couldn't remember which was her predecessor columnist.

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Chicago Trib: Ann Landers aka Esther “Eppie” Lederer

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Welcome back, Amy! Seeing you in my 'in box' always makes me smile. Loved the doppelganger story - some of them literally took my breath away!

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Hi Jamie -- I'm so happy that seeing an email from me brings on a good reaction. That makes ME smile!

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