Streak

[methodwriter85]

 

Their romance seems to be playing out as an old-fashioned courtship, minus the chaperones. JJ would be the perfect virgin bride, if only he were bride material.

 

   I like that Mark is allowing JJ to have a relatively sweet, chaste courtship, as opposed to the narrators we've seen before him. Let JJ just enjoy his innocence and youth before getting into the wild, passionate stuff.

 

    I mean, given that CAP is gay erotica, I get why we haven't seen such relatively chaste characters before this, and why "waiting" is like waiting until the second date if at all, but I like that the multiple narrators allows for Mark to also have an old-fashioned kind of courtship, and at the same time also show two guys playing with handcuffs.

 

   I also liked the suggestion that JJ's holding back from getting too riled up, because on some level, he knows that being too forward with Alex is going to turn him off and he knows slow is the best way to go with this. It's a contrast for Will, who when his libido went off, just went full-hog.

Edited September 25, 2014 by methodwriter85

[Bucket1]

I wondered about that, but having never owned a pair of handcuffs I didn't want to ask a silly question. I'm glad we can now dismiss the whole panic scene as Mark's way of having fun creating unrealistic drama.

 

CAP and associated forums are both entertaining and educational - I've learnt more about handcuffs than I ever have before 

[Kitt]

.

 

 if "Will is just a teen" then he doesn't get input on the adults lives because he doesn't have the life experience to make those kinds of judgments. 

 

 

I told myself I was not going to allow you to draw me into a personalized argument like we have had in the past, but I can't not comment on this one. 

 

Being a little older than the average reader in this forum, I have many friends who are on second marriages, some after divorces and some after losing partners to untimely deaths.  The combining of families is always difficult. The parents who assumed their teens were not mature enough to have input on the blending of the families are the ones who had the major difficulties. Those that allowed the teens to "have input in the adults lives" as you put it are the ones who settled into happy combined families. As I have said before - there are very few black and white issues in life. Every single individual on the planet needs to be dealt with INDIVIDUALLY, and that means they can be incredibly mature about some things and totally childish about others, and their chronological age has very little to do with it.

[PrivateTim]

Being a little older than the average reader in this forum, I have many friends who are on second marriages, some after divorces and some after losing partners to untimely deaths.  The combining of families is always difficult. The parents who assumed their teens were not mature enough to have input on the blending of the families are the ones who had the major difficulties. Those that allowed the teens to "have input in the adults lives" as you put it are the ones who settled into happy combined families. As I have said before - there are very few black and white issues in life. Every single individual on the planet needs to be dealt with INDIVIDUALLY, and that means they can be incredibly mature about some things and totally childish about others, and their chronological age has very little to do with it.

 

My son is a senior in college this year so I do know a bit about teens and parenting. On a professional level I am sometimes in the middle of family disputes, splits, custody issues and the blending of families. While parts of life are not black and white, the world I live in is and has to be. There can be no ambiguity in the law otherwise chaos ensues.

 

Listening to a teen and getting their input is different from having your 14 year old telling you how to live your life. You listen and weigh the experience or lack thereof in what they have to say. I don't know any good parent who let's their teen do exactly what they want. I know parents who do, but they are not the good ones and the children usually do not turn out well. Can I cite Justin Bieber as exhibit #1? There was a teen who needed more parental guidance and he didn't get. Will he live to see 30 or will he manage to stay out of prison? Only time will tell.

 

You give teens increments of responsibility and see how they perform and then add or subtract as need be. You hope by the time they head off to college that they have developed enough common sense to survive and thrive.

 

I don't know a single parent who wouldn't have turned the screws after Will's naked dance in a gay night club at the age of 13 to reel him back in. I remember when Arena in Los Angeles was an all ages club and you'd see 13 year boys and girls in there and I wondered then (when I was 18) what kind of parents these kids had that let them mix with adults in that setting. Several underage date rape cases later Arena had to change its policies to stay open as it turns out 13 year olds were not always the best judges of character.

 

Age is never a strict determinant, but experience comes with age which is why we have set laws on ages at which you can engage in various behaviors.

 

Among the many people I don't know is any 35 year old who thinks he was actually smarter and more mature when he was 15 than he is now. Go figure.

[Timothy M.]

   I like that Mark is allowing JJ to have a relatively sweet, chaste courtship, as opposed to the narrators we've seen before him. Let JJ just enjoy his innocence and youth before getting into the wild, passionate stuff.

 

 

I agree completely. And in any case with the things JJ has been through, throwing himself into a physical relationship wouldn't be credible - or healthy. Let Alex place him on a pedestal and court him gently, let them keep an outwards appearance of nothing more than friends, so as not to raise any suspicion in the bigoted little minds of the skating association, and let JJ win a few competions before someone brings out the bad stuff and breaks his heart.

Although, I suspect JJ is quite capable of telling all of them to fuck off and mind their own business.

[Daddydavek]

 On a professional level I am sometimes in the middle of family disputes, splits, custody issues and the blending of families. While parts of life are not black and white, the world I live in is and has to be. There can be no ambiguity in the law otherwise chaos ensues.

 

 

 

I can't imagine anyone who is even a bit familiar with the legal system in the US making the above statement.  If there were no ambiguity in the law, there would be no need for the court system and it's various levels to handle appeals.  

Edited September 26, 2014 by Daddydavek

[Headstall]

I do not understand the idea of blaming children for suspect parenting. It is also my experience that siblings often get involved in each others lives, mostly because they care. Sometimes it is ignored and sometimes it is accepted but my kids, for example, always knew it was meant well. I am not naive enough to not know that their siblings sometimes had more influence than I did. In a family, when some members fall down on the job others often pick up the slack. Family dynamics are tricky and no two families are exactly the same because they are filled with individuals, and individuals don't fit into boxes.

 

I have met many "adults" in my life who show less smarts and maturity than all four of my kids although I am admittedly biased. The point is that age isn't an indication of wisdom, instinct, or even experience. And bad parenting doesn't just create problem or "bad" children...it can be blamed for a myriad of objectionable behaviors in adults, some big ones being not treating people with respect and not being accepting of differences and considering yourself superior to others...something that gay men and women can certainly relate to. Cheers all...Gary

Edited September 27, 2014 by Headstall

[PrivateTim]

I can't imagine anyone who is even a bit familiar with the legal system in the US making the above statement.  If there were no ambiguity in the law, there would be no need for the court system and it's various levels to handle appeals.  

 

State and local laws are very unambiguous. The reason for criminal courts is people break the laws. Appeals are never about ambiguity in the law, but are usually over procedure.

 

Speed signs don't say "Speed Limit 45 ish", they say "Speed Limit 45". Signs outside bars don't say "No one under 21 unless you are really, really mature for your age and we all know people over 21 who are totally irresponsible, so just come on in", they say "No one under 21, we card to age 30".

 

If laws are ambiguous, they are impossible to enforce. There have been badly written laws, but in most cases, ambiguity was not the goal.

 

The same is true in contracts. The SAG-AFTRA Basic Agreement (contract) is 725 pages long because no one wanted ambiguity. Does it still happen? Of course, but not as much as if it had been a 3 page agreement.

 

I have met many "adults" in my life who show less smarts and maturity than all four of my kids although I am admittedly biased. The point is that age isn't an indication of wisdom, instinct, or even experience. And bad parenting doesn't just create problem or "bad" children...it can be blamed for a myriad of objectionable behaviors in adults, some big ones being not treating people with respect and not being accepting of differences and considering yourself superior to others...something that gay men and women can certainly relate to. Cheers all...Gary

 

Life is not lived by the exceptions, but the rule. There is a reason teens are not allowed to do certain things until they attain a certain age. Are there kids who could handle the responsibility earlier, sure, are there others who should be delayed in certain privileges, of course, but that is not the basis on which you write laws and create policies.

 

Age is not an automatic indication of wisdom, maturity or life experience, but I don't know a single 35 year old who says, "man, I made SUCH better decisions when I was 14 than I do now." I've never met a person in their 50's, 60's and 70's who doesn't marvel at how little they actually knew when they were 27, let alone 17.

 

There is also a huge difference between a bad kid and a good kid making bad decisions. Will was a good kid who made a bad decision in taking illegal drugs on a school trip. That Will was pissed off because he took the blame for the alcohol and Brad & Rob were not interested in hearing his side was ironic and an indication of his lack of maturity. When you are misbehaving in many ways and get caught on one of them, you don't get to feel righteous indignation because you were busted on the wrong misbehavior. Could Brad & Rob have handled that better? Sure, but Will could have too, had he been the mature and 'wise for his years' teen he is presented as. Had he handled it differently, Brad & Rob might have reacted differently, but Will's behavior confirmed in their minds the correctness of the direction they were taking.

[Bucket1]

All credit to Mark but I'm still surprised how much impact Wally's very disappointing comments had on me (cursing at the screen doesn't fix anything  ).

 

The sad thing is that we have all seen parents like that.

[Bucket1]

In the review comments Mark said

 

Great observations. It is sad that Zach and his mother have largely severed their tight bond. It is a little scary to think that Zach could do that to someone who was no longer useful to him, but in this case, he had good reasons.

 

We have seen Zach be quite calculating (no more assistant coach) but the severing of ties with his mother was a two way thing. I don't think he did it because she was no longer useful, I think he saw it as a betrayal. And it still upset him

 

Our connection, the one that had been so strong for most of my life, had been severed.  I wasn’t sure that we’d ever be able to be as close as we once were, and it upset me that I really wasn’t all that bothered by it.

 

He felt the loss even if there was a numbness about the actual severing. Human beings are such complicated creatures.

[mmike1969]

I love a good conspiracy.

 

So is this David Parnel in any way related to Brian Parnel?

 

1) I doubt it since Brian himself said he was an only child and his dead mother had conceived the spawn of satan himself by a scion of Claremont. If there was any living relatives, they would of went after the $$$ via blackmail.

 

2) But if what was the case, why did Will tense up when Zach mentioned the Parnel name?

 

3) This is CAP: everyone's name has a purpose. Or at least dragged out for three stories. Don't believe me? Go back and read from the Beginning of the Saga and pick a name. They are all in at least three stories.

 

4) One thing bothers me to this day: Did Jim Crampton and his family EVER knew about the Brian/JP connection? Not part of the conspiracy but just an unanswered question.

[impunity]

I'm going to admit it: I need a refresher on Brian Parnell. Anyone care to help me out?

[methodwriter85]

Brian Parnell, born 1973, died 2000. He was JP's half-brother, who was conceived by Bill Hendrickson (JP's biological father), and turned up in If It Fits, which was set in 1995. He was a dead-ringer for JP, and that's when they realized he was JP's brother. Took part in a crazy plot against the family during the story Millennium, which was set in late 1999 - early 2000. He crossed a line, and the family ordered a hit out on him. Brian was killed during sex by their hit men, I believe somewhere around March 2000 while he was hiding out somewhere in Washington, P.A.

Edited September 30, 2014 by methodwriter85

[mmike1969]

Let's clear this up right now. Brian was not murdered.

 

It was a hunting accident. He was hunting this HUGE spider in the hotel room and the pistol he was cleaning accidentally went off in his head.

 

Twice.

Edited September 30, 2014 by mmike1969

[Timothy M.]

I love a good conspiracy.

 

So is this David Parnel in any way related to Brian Parnel?

 

1) I doubt it since Brian himself said he was an only child and his dead mother had conceived the spawn of satan himself by a scion of Claremont.

 

But the mother could have had any number of brothers or cousins with the same name and David could be the dumb offspring of any of those. It will be interesting to find out if this Parnell is just a jerk on principle or he carries a grudge against JP's family. The latter could hint at the conspiracy you want.    

[Bucket1]

 

   I also liked the suggestion that JJ's holding back from getting too riled up, because on some level, he knows that being too forward with Alex is going to turn him off and he knows slow is the best way to go with this. It's a contrast for Will, who when his libido went off, just went full-hog.

 

For the inexperienced chaste guy of the CAP world, JJ seems to be more intuitive about his (potential) lover's needs than the others. He seems to truly understand what Alex wants out of the relationship. The others, especially Will, seem to jump into bed and then respond.

 

I am having difficulty imagining them actually having sex, more along the lines of the two of them on a picnic blanket in a flower filled meadow sipping champaign and feeding each other strawberries

Edited September 30, 2014 by Bucket1

[impunity]

Brian Parnell, born 1973, died 2000. He was JP's half-brother, who was conceived by Bill Hendrickson (JP's biological father), and turned up in If It Fits, which was set in 1995. He was a dead-ringer for JP, and that's when they realized he was JP's brother. Took part in a crazy plot against the family during the story Millennium, which was set in late 1999 - early 2000. He crossed a line, and the family ordered a hit out on him. Brian was killed during sex by their hit men, I believe somewhere around March 2000 while he was hiding out somewhere in Washington, P.A.

Thanks, hon.

I knew he was one of the guys the family had had removed, so to speak, but I couldn't remember which one.

I am having difficulty imagining them actually having sex, more along the lines of the two of them on a picnic blanket in a flower filled meadow sipping champaign and feeding each other strawberries

Exactly! If JJ were a girl, he'd be a blushing virgin in white on his wedding day.

Edited September 30, 2014 by impunity

[Kitt]

So is this David Parnel in any way related to Brian Parnel?

 

1) I doubt it since Brian himself said he was an only child and his dead mother had conceived the spawn of satan himself by a scion of Claremont.

 

 

Brian Parnell, born 1973, died 2000. He was JP's half-brother, who was conceived by Bill Hendrickson (JP's biological father), and turned up in If It Fits, which was set in 1995.

 

At the time of his demise, Brian Parnell was 27. That makes him just a tad young to be a father to this particular Parnell,as he would have been about 12 or 13 at the time of this one's birth. But as others have said, we have no idea how many cousins could have youngsters now, any number of whom while having no real claim to the fame and fortune of either the Crampton or Hendrickson families may still resent the removal of the only link they might have had to the potential riches.

[mmike1969]

If JJ were a girl, he'd be a blushing virgin in white on his wedding day.

Yeah, no he would not be. But he can wear white if he wanted to.

[methodwriter85]

Yeah, no he would not be. But he can wear white if he wanted to.

 

 

I don't know, girl figure skaters are even more repressed than the male ones are. In either case, they're not really allowed to act like they know what pre-marital sex is. On the other hand, being short wouldn't have been an hindrance to getting sex if JJ were a girl.

 

It doesn't really seem like anybody's been allowed to keep their virginity past the age of about 12 or 13, at least with this generation. (Marie MIGHT have kept it up to about 15- but I'm not sure that Abercrombie Shirt Guy was her first time.)  I think the only reason JJ hasn't gone past making out with people is because of his trauma from his abuse...the fact that he's almost 17 and still considered a virgin makes him really outlie the current teen CAP standards Mark's set for CAP. 

 

By the CAP standards Mark's set, neither Riley or Maddie would be virgins in September 2014, as they'd be 14. I would seriously love to see a 26-year old Will have the sex talk with a 12-year old Maddie in 2012. LOL. Courtney at the age of 19 in 2014 would probably long have made Ace want to rip his hair out. It'd be fucking hilarious if former womanizer Ace was gifted with a daughter that was something like Karen Owen.

 

 

I wrote these scenes with JJ and chuckled at how much self-control he had to exert. Part of him wants to completely maul Alex, while he has to also keep himself restrained.

 

 

Well, given that JJ's training at an elite level, he probably does have a lot of self-control. He can't just do anything he wants to do, whether it's drugs, promiscuity, or eating a bowl of ice cream. That's where JJ is very different from Will, where Will pretty much does whatever he wants to do because he can and because he doesn't think about what people think.

 

Although the other thing is...JJ's much pickier than Will would ever be. That's another thing that would keep him from racking up the kind of numbers Will has. Included in someone's hotness level for JJ isn't just the physical, like it would be for Will. There's also their pedigree. For example, JJ would have NEVER hit on and had sex with a taxicab driver like Will did, no matter how hot they were.

 

That's why, even though JJ's libido is heating up and he does indeed having the slutty genes running through him, he's still able to maintain self-control here with Alex. Alex is like the top prize here because of who he is, more so than because he's hot. JJ's not going to risk losing his chance at the prize.

 

I am having difficulty imagining them actually having sex, more along the lines of the two of them on a picnic blanket in a flower filled meadow sipping champaign and feeding each other strawberries

 

 

 

 This is being written by Mark Arbour. I really wouldn't expect something THAT chaste. I don't foresee orgies or stripping in Euro clubs any time soon, but I can't see Mark bothering with the story of JJ's sexual awakening with Alex if that's all that was going to happen. I asked if he'd consider having a supporting character or two that reflected the whole "Abstinence pledge" deal that was going on during this decade and he pretty much said no way in hell. LOL.

 

I remember in high school, we were visited by a group that tried to convince us to be abstinent. I think pretty much the only people that actually did it were the Mormons. I wonder if we'll meet any Mormons in CAP. The Mormons really seemed to expand in the national consciousness during the 2000's, probably because of their aggressive proselytizing.

Edited September 30, 2014 by methodwriter85

[Daddydavek]

 

 

 This is being written by Mark Arbour. I really wouldn't expect something THAT chaste. I don't foresee orgies or stripping in Euro clubs any time soon, but I can't see Mark bothering with the story of JJ's sexual awakening with Alex if that's all that was going to happen. I asked if he'd consider having a supporting character or two that reflected the whole "Abstinence pledge" deal that was going on during this decade and he pretty much said no way in hell. LOL.

 

I remember in high school, we were visited by a group that tried to convince us to be abstinence. I think pretty much the only people that actually did it were the Mormons. (I wonder if we'll meet any Mormons in CAP. The Mormons really seemed to expand in the national consciousness during the 2000's, probably because of their aggressive proselytizing.)

 

I think the above quote about Mr. Arbour is spot on! 

[PrivateTim]

By the CAP standards Mark's set, neither Riley or Maddie would be virgins in September 2014, as they'd be 14. I would seriously love to see a 26-year old Will have the sex talk with a 12-year old Maddie in 2012.

 

More to the point, how will Will react when Maddie's 17 year old boy friend takes her to a wild LA nightclub and 13 year old Maddie is doing a naked pole dance?

[Timothy M.]

I am having difficulty imagining them actually having sex, more along the lines of the two of them on a picnic blanket in a flower filled meadow sipping champaign and feeding each other strawberries

 

For some reason this image has become stuck in my head, which is beginning to annoy me.

[Bucket1]

For some reason this image has become stuck in my head, which is beginning to annoy me.

 

Ooops sorry 

 

I have no doubt that Mark's imagination will take care of that for you. Just because I see them eating strawberries and then the screen fades to the sunset doesn't mean that Mark is bound by the same limitations. He will fix it. And I will be appropriated shocked 

[methodwriter85]

I'm not sure Mark's taking Alex and JJ to an X-rating, but I'm sure they'll be at least a solid PG-13, which can still be pretty hot indeed.

Edited October 1, 2014 by methodwriter85