I'm here. Sleeping better than can be expected, but that's still less than necessary for decent mental function.
And no, though the title may indicate otherwise, this post isn't some cheesy e-mail message about why grandmothers are great. So please read on before rolling your eyes at me... well, at your screen.
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I once saw an educational program on one of those educational channels (you know, Discovery or TLC or the like) that presented one possible explanation for the female of the human species going through menopause. The theory came from an evolutionary approach. Since menopause is unique to humans and doesn't occur in other mammals, scientists were curious about its purpose.
This is what they came up with. Menopause makes grandmas. Apparently, females could propogate their own genes more effectively by stopping procreation of their own and assisting their own offspring in rearing a third generation. In otherwords, menopause builds a new group of childcare providers and helpers for the breeding generation.
And this breeder is damn grateful. Thank God for grandmas.
