It's been a busy week of self-help and sit-downs for Jennifer Aniston. On Tuesday night, she stepped out to support pal Laura Day, an author and so-called "intuitive healer" (hey, no eye-rolling) whose last book, "Welcome to Your Crisis: How to Use the Power of Crisis to Create the Life You Want," likely resonated deeply with the ex-Mrs. Brad Pitt.

"I'm learning to use my intuition," the actress told "Entertainment Tonight" at the shindig. "I think we all have it, it's just tuning in to it."

Chances are good that Jen's budding powers of perception were cranked to 11 on Sunday afternoon, when her former mother-in-law dropped by her Malibu pad.

Paparazzi were on hand when Jane Pitt, in town from Missouri, turned up for a two-hour tête-à-tête with Aniston, whom she has reportedly remained in contact with since her split from Brad in January 2005 (Jen, you'll remember, has had a rocky relationship with her own mom for several years).

Celebrity Babylon says Brad's bodyguards accompanied Jane over to Jennifer's place, with the actress' own security staff then hustling her inside.

"Enough time has passed since the split with Brad for Jane to visit Jen," a source tells OK! magazine. "They have always been close, and that doesn't just disappear."

The chummy sentiment is echoed by Brad's brother Doug, who declares to People, "Jennifer is a friend of Brad's. Why wouldn't she be a friend of ours?"

There's no word on whether Aniston and Mrs. Pitt acknowledged the Angelina Jolie-shaped elephant in the room during their visit (expect the tabloids to explore that angle next week), although the lately ubiquitous mom of Maddox, 5, Pax, 3, Zahara, 2, and Shiloh, 1, was supposedly less than thrilled when she learned of the Father's Day rendezvous.

''She immediately grabbed her cell phone, called Brad and read him the riot act," a mole maintains to the Chicago Sun-Times. "She was mad as hell, screaming, 'What the hell was she thinking -- did she do this just to embarrass me?'"

A snitch chimes in to the New York Post that Angelina "really does not like Jennifer, even though Jen has not ever done anything to her and couldn't care less about her. She doesn't like that Brad's mom is still close with Jen and is threatened by that."

Anyhoo, when not catching up with onetime relatives and supposedly pushing Angie's buttons, Aniston continues to enjoy the rippled, easy-on-the-eyes company of model Paul Sculfor, who was photographed sans shirt at her Hollywood Hills digs on Friday.

Still, her apparent coziness with the comely Brit hasn't quieted the rumor mill.

E! Online's Marc Malkin notes that Jen engaged in an extended conversation with a newly separated Bradley Cooper at the Laura Day soiree (you'll recall he co-starred with her ex-boyfriend Vince Vaughn in "Wedding Crashers").

Later, the two joined fellow guests Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher for some chow at the Tower Bar at the Sunset Tower Hotel, reports People.

OK!, meanwhile, is convinced Jen is consulting with a high-end, high-cost matchmaking service to find her an appropriate partner.

Aniston, for her part, is remaining firmly focused on the positive. When "Extra" cornered her on Tuesday night and asked how she's doing, she enthused, "I'm better every day, babe."

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