Counting the Days is David Gitman’s personal timeline of the days since May 21, 2026, and the time remaining until the scheduled November 4, 2026 contempt-of-court bench trial in Wake County, North Carolina. The site provides the entered temporary custody order and the later motion for contempt in case 24CV009376-910. The motion states allegations and requests for relief; it is not a court finding.
Plain-language context and the source PDFs for case 24CV009376-910. Document summaries distinguish an entered court order from allegations in a filed motion.
An entered Wake County District Court order establishing joint legal custody, an alternating-week schedule, holiday provisions, information sharing, and other temporary custody terms.
Read the custody order summaryA filing by David Gitman alleging violations of the temporary custody order and requesting contempt findings, attorney’s fees, and other relief. The allegations have not been presented here as court findings.
Read the contempt motion summaryFor the hard days. Read them again.
I know how painfully difficult it is for you not to hear from Shira. I can only say it from my own personal experience how painful it is. My heart hurts for you! I can tell you I learned through my pain that a relationship with a teenage child is extremely complex especially if parents separate and the custody arrangement is not amicable. Shira needs time and maturity to fully process and understand the situation. Time and patience is what you need the most and sadly is the hardest part of it all. Your love for Shira will get you there just do your best by keeping that thought. I have no doubt she loves you. Give it time. I love you with all my heart!— SG
You still are, she’s just going through something— ERP
A lot of scary stuff happened. It’s not your fault. You were sick. She has a lot of anxiety and she deals with it by avoiding things. Once you can get therapy going, you can get to the bottom of it.— ERP
Shira will also mature over time and be able to look at things with more nuance— ERP
And I think maybe she has to grow past needing to assert her independence and agency. And one day she won’t be as dependent on aligning herself with one parent for a sense of safety. There are a lot of factors.— ERP
Aw. I think this is a good testament to your love and a helpful tool. Especially if you can periodically capture your desire to speak with her and maybe privately tuck positive notes for her. So one day you can share maybe, so she can see not how this all hurt you, she’s a child and doesn’t need to know. All kids hurt their parents. But it may help her to someday see that you never stop thinking of her or loving her. I agree with your commenters that the only way thru is to abstain from them. The best love right now is to give them what they want, which is time. The more you hold back, the less time they will need. This looks like a powerful tool for coping with the powerlessness of it all.— AF
Malicious fracturing of attachment— CV