9.11

[Carlos Hazday]

Mark, are you writing Ethan as a gay character or a straight one? 

 

Damn, couldn't keep a straight face !

[Kitt]

LOL!!!  Do you really think Mark is going to tell us that???  We will just have to bide our time and keep reading Carlos!

[Carlos Hazday]

Kitt, I keep hoping one of us will catch him at a weak moment at some point! 

[Sammy Blue]

You want John to fall in love with Marie?

 

LOL, I think Marie already had her share of incest for a couple books (if only in name).

[methodwriter85]

You want John to fall in love with Marie?

 

    Well, Ethan and Marie, but then again, we haven't even met the kid yet. LOL.

 

   I wonder if he'll be some rigid, color-inside-the-lines type like Wade times 10 because of his boading school upbringing, or some rebellious type.

 

   I gotta admit, I really wish I could've gone to boarding school. It just seems so cool- you make a group of really close friends, and have a caring house mother, and lots of whacky adventures. Or you can get that one avant-garde teacher who bucks against the norm and really inspires you to make a difference. Or your private school could be built on a mysterious piece of land, leading to lots of mysterious adventures.

[B1ue]

Or, you know, this.

[PrivateTim]

      I gotta admit, I really wish I could've gone to boarding school. It just seems so cool- you make a group of really close friends, and have a caring house mother, and lots of whacky adventures. Or you can get that one avant-garde teacher who bucks against the norm and really inspires you to make a difference. Or your private school could be built on a mysterious piece of land, leading to lots of mysterious adventures.

 

Not to mention all the fab gay sex at all boy boarding schools......

Edited October 18, 2013 by PrivateTim

[B1ue]

Mark, are you writing Ethan as a gay character or a straight one? 

 

Damn, couldn't keep a straight face !

Odds of Ethan being straight: Not High.

Odds of Ethan being straight AND unwilling to participate in gay sex anyways: Zero.

Odds on Ethan being Gay and as experienced as Will: Well, he did go to boarding school. Presumably an all-male one. So, fairly good.

Odds of Ethan not being hit on by Will regardless of above: Depends entirely on Wade's willingness to cock-block his younger brother. Beau and Maryellen won't let Wade be their gruff older brother, but I can see him trying to protect his virtue from Will, regardless of the actual status on said virtue.

[Carlos Hazday]

Not fair! That clip from DPS always makes me tear up.... Somebody pass the tissues, please......

[rjo]

At this point only Mark knows the truth. Growing up with his mother and then being shipped to boarding school seems to tell us something. At this point we don't know what that is. Is Ethan gay? After all these years with JJ we just found out he was bi. If Wade likes him would he want to move Ethan out to CA to be near Wade. None of these things are known. My guess is the reason he was sent to boarding school will answer some things. I would think that boarding school could be a great experience or a very bad one. I think it could be a very lonely thing, but that's just me. Does Ethan know who his father was? Did the senator ever visit him? Does Ethan know about the other family? I guess we must wait to see.

[mmike1969]

The problem with Ethan being gay or bi is that it would be the predictable answer. This is CAP. We can't have predictable here.

 

So I will call it now: Pre-op trans male to female.

Edited October 18, 2013 by mmike1969

[methodwriter85]

Odds of Ethan being straight: Not High.

Odds of Ethan being straight AND unwilling to participate in gay sex anyways: Zero.

Odds on Ethan being Gay and as experienced as Will: Well, he did go to boarding school. Presumably an all-male one. So, fairly good.

Odds of Ethan not being hit on by Will regardless of above: Depends entirely on Wade's willingness to cock-block his younger brother. Beau and Maryellen won't let Wade be their gruff older brother, but I can see him trying to protect his virtue from Will, regardless of the actual status on said virtue.

 

You're forgetting that he's not a Hayes, though. From what we've seen of the Danfields, the gay gene isn't that strong- just Wade, his uncle(was he actually a Danfield or was that Amanda's brother?, and straight cousins that will mess around with a guy.

 

But I agree with the second one. As for the third, well, we didn't make jokes about Sallies boys for nothing.

 

As for the 4th, it depends on what Ethan looks like- he's probably good-looking, but he might be a 15-year old that actually looks 15, as opposed to a 15-year old that looks 18. Remember that Will generally leans towards guys that are college-aged, or at least look college aged.

 

Finally...maybe there is no answer. Maybe Mark's speaking to that generation of guys who refuse to place labels on themselves, which Cross-Currents author Adam Phillips has talked about often.

 

 

So I will call it now: Pre-op trans male to female.

 

      That would actually be pretty cool. Ethan could go all Bradley/Chelsea Manning on us. THEN John could fall for her, leading to Jack's parents going postal.

 

     My high school had a drag queen who was voted Homecoming Queen, though that was before my time. During my time, we had a drag queen named Pedro/Patrice, but he/she wasn't a very attractive draq queen. It was pretty hilarious- people ragged him not because he was a drag queen, but because he wasn't a pretty one. LOL.

 

      But in any event, going with the usual CAP M.O., Ethan will probably be a hot jock (or a hot quiet nerd type ala Alistair), and he'll fall for Will at first sight because Will is our Gary Stu and everyone must be into him.

Edited October 18, 2013 by methodwriter85

[B1ue]

As for the 4th, it depends on what Ethan looks like- he's probably good-looking, but he might be a 15-year old that actually looks 15, as opposed to a 15-year old that looks 18. Remember that Will generally leans towards guys that are college-aged, or at least look college aged.

 

Finally...maybe there is no answer. Maybe Mark's speaking to that generation of guys who refuse to place labels on themselves, which Cross-Currents author Adam Phillips has talked about often.

 

That would actually be pretty cool. Ethan could go all Bradley/Chelsea Manning on us. THEN John could fall for her, leading to Jack's parents going postal.

 

But in any event, going with the usual CAP M.O., Ethan will probably be a hot jock (or a hot quiet nerd type ala Alistair), and he'll fall for Will at first sight because Will is our Gary Stu and everyone must be into him.

 Taking these selected points in order:

 

1. Will certainly goes after guys his own age. The problem seems more often they're not into him, for whatever reason. Please see exhibits: Drew, Ryan, Alastair, Shane, that other kid from the skating competition, Jason, John, Zach, and Cam. And, hell, JJ. Will just isn't that discriminating.

 

2. I certainly hope not. I cannot stand people like that. Pansexual also bothers me, since the term seems to exist to allow people to be biphobic and bisexual at the same time. But, whatever.

 

3. That could be interesting.

 

4. What is the difference between a Mary Sue and a protagonist? Answer: I don't like the protagonist.

[methodwriter85]

 Taking these selected points in order:

 

1. Will certainly goes after guys his own age. The problem seems more often they're not into him, for whatever reason. Please see exhibits: Drew, Ryan, Alastair, Shane, that other kid from the skating competition, Jason, John, Zach, and Cam. And, hell, JJ. Will just isn't that discriminating.

 

2. I certainly hope not. I cannot stand people like that. Pansexual also bothers me, since the term seems to exist to allow people to be biphobic and bisexual at the same time. But, whatever.

 

1. Okay, true. Although I'm not sure what you mean with JJ- Will's joking with the flirting stuff. There was the masturbation scene, but it wasn't a "come on"- just Will showing JJ how it works. The two wouldn't actually have sex. There's actually this really great theory that when you get two kids who are not related and have them spend a lot of time together before the age of 6, like siblings, they'll become desensitized sexually to each other. It's called the Westermarck Effect. Interesting enough, when you think about how Brad had a crush on Ace and they fooled around with each other, they also weren't raised as brothers until Brad was pretty close to turning 6. As opposed to Will and JJ, who have been raised as brothers as brothers since Will came along when JJ was 9 months old.

 

2. That's an interesting interpretation of the term pan-sexual. I kind of felt like that was what Mark was showing with Gathan- Gathan was one of those guys who just did not factor gender in his attractions to people and didn't try and put a label on it. I'd suggest that you read Cross-Currents by Adam Phillips...I think it's a really interesting look at how sometimes labels are irrelevant.

[PrivateTim]

At some point logic has to kick in. If the Lord High Arbour has gone through the trouble to create a character like Ethan it stands to reason that Ethan has a role to play in the story that no one else could fulfill, not Beau, not Wade, no one else. The next step in the logic is that there are not many main players in the story who are straight.

[B1ue]

1. Okay, true. Although I'm not sure what you mean with JJ- Will's joking with the flirting stuff. There was the masturbation scene, but it wasn't a "come on"- just Will showing JJ how it works. The two wouldn't actually have sex. There's actually this really great theory that when you get two kids who are not related and have them spend a lot of time together before the age of 6, like siblings, they'll become desensitized sexually to each other. It's called the Westermarck Effect. Interesting enough, when you think about how Brad had a crush on Ace and they fooled around with each other, they also weren't raised as brothers until Brad was pretty close to turning 6. As opposed to Will and JJ, who have been raised as brothers as brothers since Will came along when JJ was 9 months old.

 

2. That's an interesting interpretation of the term pan-sexual. I kind of felt like that was what Mark was showing with Gathan- Gathan was one of those guys who just did not factor gender in his attractions to people and didn't try and put a label on it. I'd suggest that you read Cross-Currents by Adam Phillips...I think it's a really interesting look at how sometimes labels are irrelevant.

1. Do you honestly believe Will would turn JJ down if he said, "You know what? Yes, I do want to fool around. These other boys don't know what the hell they're doing."?

 

2. It's a personal gripe. I roll my eyes when someone self-identifies as pansexual, and says that they're attracted to someone regardless of gender. I really want to ask what the difference is between that and bisexual, whom are attracted to people regardless of their gender. When I'm feeling charitable, I put it down to a misunderstanding of what bisexuality actually is, or someone confusing associations with a label with the label itself.

 

Not that this is an isolated thing. How many people have used the term straight-acting gay? I know exactly what you'd mean if you used it, but it's really weird. A straight-acting gay guy should really be someone that is gay but has sex exclusively with women. Sexual attraction has sweet-damn all to do with ones gender-role compliance, except in instances where people ceased to give a damn about the scales other people judge their masculinity or femininity because they're homosexual  or bisexual and so eff it. But we, as a group, let it be a defining characteristic even as we deny the parallel exists.

 

I read Cross-Currents. Most of it, anyways. I had a really difficult time getting through the first few chapters, because the main character kept coming across as a potential stalker, and never seemed to learn from his initial narcissistic mistakes. Although the rest of the cast did manage to get through to him in the end, I didn't really believe he actually changed. Just, stopped making those particular assumptions.

[methodwriter85]

 

1. Do you honestly believe Will would turn JJ down if he said, "You know what? Yes, I do want to fool around. These other boys don't know what the hell they're doing."?

 

Alright, I see your point. 

 

 

2. It's a personal gripe. I roll my eyes when someone self-identifies as pansexual, and says that they're attracted to someone regardless of gender. I really want to ask what the difference is between that and bisexual, whom are attracted to people regardless of their gender. When I'm feeling charitable, I put it down to a misunderstanding of what bisexuality actually is, or someone confusing associations with a label with the label itself.

 

 So I did a little googling, and apparently the difference between a bisexual and a pansexual is that a bisexual is attracted to the two accepted genders. A pansexual, however, is attracted to the two genders, as well as people who fall outside of the gender binary, like genderqueers, intersexed people, and transexuals. Interesting.

 

I have this bisexual friend, and I remember him saying once that he's attracted to the masculine qualities of a man, as well as the feminine qualities of a woman. So maybe the bisexual is attracted to the gender binary, while the pansexual feels its irrelevant.

 

 

I read Cross-Currents. Most of it, anyways. I had a really difficult time getting through the first few chapters, because the main character kept coming across as a potential stalker, and never seemed to learn from his initial narcissistic mistakes. Although the rest of the cast did manage to get through to him in the end, I didn't really believe he actually changed. Just, stopped making those particular assumptions.

 

    That's a really interesting reaction there. Most people I've known who've read the story said the story was a lovely picture of devoted friendship. How did the main character come off like a stalker to you?

Edited October 18, 2013 by methodwriter85

[PrivateTim]

 

 

So I did a little googling, and apparently the difference between a bisexual and a pansexual is that a bisexual is attracted to the two accepted genders. A pansexual, however, is attracted to the two genders, as well as people who fall outside of the gender binary, like genderqueers, intersexed people, and transexuals. Interesting.

 

Don't you have a bull shit filter??

[Carlos Hazday]

Y'all are over thinking this. Marc created Ethan to provide further opportunities for random blow jobs!

 

B1..... Straight acting has always been problematic for me. How straight acting can you be with a cock down your throat or up your ass.

[Kitt]

 So I did a little googling, and apparently the difference between a bisexual and a pansexual is that a bisexual is attracted to the two accepted genders. A pansexual, however, is attracted to the two genders, as well as people who fall outside of the gender binary, like genderqueers, intersexed people, and transexuals. Interesting.

 

OK - stupid straight woman questions here.

 

 I get that some people just have issues with being male but thinking and feeling female or vice versa, and some eventually go on to correct what they deem a mistake medically and surgically, but other than the unfortunate ones with the genetic screw ups, aren't male and female about the only choices you actually have? Gender-queers and transsexuals still end up being one or the other. There may be a grey area there during a transsexuals journey, but maybe we should leave that bit for a different discussion.

 How straight acting can you be with a cock down your throat or up your ass.

I know a lot of women ( straight and bi ) who would love to explain this to you Carlos.

 

I know "straight acting" applies primarily to the male gay community, i mean a lesbian acting "straight" never seems to attract attention, even after coming out. Why then does some gay guy catch shit for "acting straight"?

[Carlos Hazday]

Yeah Kitt, I was referring to the usual gay male disclosure that they are straight acting and seek the same in their mates. Women are excluded from that generalization. LOL

 

i've often gotten the "I can't believe you're gay" comment which always makes me laugh. Having discussed this before weigh a couple of lesbian friends, we wondered why lipstick lesbians did not get the same type f comment. I'm guessing society's gender images are so ingrained that even GLBTQ individuals have internalized them.

[Daddydavek]

At some point logic has to kick in. If the Lord High Arbour has gone through the trouble to create a character like Ethan it stands to reason that Ethan has a role to play in the story that no one else could fulfill, not Beau, not Wade, no one else. The next step in the logic is that there are not many main players in the story who are straight.

 

Yeah, but it's a gay story.   While Will was a very early bloomer and big for his age, Ethan may be just the opposite.   He may not favor the Danfields at all and take after his mother's side of the family.  I see many ways that Mark can go with this.   It is fun to speculate and throw out ideas.  My idea is that Wade will be on the west coast and perhaps the young half-brother is a lost soul that needs someone and wants a change of scenery.   Not so far fetched....

[davewri]

Proof again what a great writer can do with just the mention of a new character.  We have not yet met Ethan and the speculation is all over the map..  I will assume that Mark has some really good ideas and we can only wait and watch.

[methodwriter85]

     Well, I did a little research on Webb, and it's only a high school boarding school, so I fanwanked that Ethan was dropped off at St. Catherine's Military School for Boys, which is K-8, before going to nearby Webb. It doesn't seem like there are a lot of boarding schools that board elementary school students. Thinking about it, a Catholic military school would actually make a lot of sense- the Senator would probably like the order and the discipline of one, and with Ethan and his mother being Cuban, they're likely Catholic as well. Ethan being from a military boarding school background would likely given him a really different kind of bearing. So maybe Ethan will be a cute Cuban guy with a military air going on...nice.

 

    Now that I think of it...we haven't seen much in terms of military guys being hot sex symbols, have we? I can't even remember if Matt or Wade have fooled around with one. Will hasn't. Yet. (I think this needs to be rectified, Mark. ) That's actually kind of weird- isn't the hot military guy right up there with the masculine college jock in terms of gay male fantasies?

Edited October 21, 2013 by methodwriter85

[Carlos Hazday]

Hey MW.... Ethan's mother was around until he was 7 and he probably livd with her until she was deported. A Cuban diplomat in the US would most likely be based out of NYC, since the US and Cuba do not have diplomatic relations she was attached to the UN Mission or there's a small chance she could be part of the tiny Cuban Interest Section attached to the Swiss Embassy in DC.

 

Fletcher is a fine Cuban last name! LOL..... Just like mine. At the beginning of the 20th Century, Cuba was considered the second best country to emigrate to in the Americas. I never got t ask my grandparents why they ended up there since I was just a kid when I saw them last, but there's quite a lot of us running around that resemble our European heritage. 

 

Will finally has a character his own age who's a fellow slut! If Ethan is half Cuban, AND the son of the randy Senator, he's definitely hot, horny and hung (like a horse.) Just a given with my people. Us Cubans are all blessed and oversexed. LMFAO

Edited October 21, 2013 by Carlos H