Forty-Two

That's just cruel! Why would you hurt me so? Kay, Merlin is a bit dweeby but he's just so cute and honest and innocent.... And Arthur is frickin' hot no matter what anyone says, blond and cocky and oh so lickable....

Lol, OMG. I can't believe there is a thread with this many responses about something as small as pillows, Two, BTW, one for me and one for my SO, but the cat thinks they're both hers, lol.

Often it is "Unwritten" by Natasha Bedingfield. I am unwritten, can't read my mind, I'm undefined I'm just beginning, the pen's in my hand, ending unplanned Staring at the blank page before you Open up the dirty window Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find Reaching for something in the distance So close you can almost taste it Release your inhibitions Feel the rain on your skin No one else can feel it for you Only you can let it in No one else, no one else Can speak the words on your lips Drench yourself in words unspoken Live your life with arms wide open Today is where your book begins The rest is still unwritten Oh, oh, oh I break tradition, sometimes my tries, are outside the lines We've been conditioned to not make mistakes, but I can't live that way Staring at the blank page before you Open up the dirty window Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find Reaching for something in the distance So close you can almost taste it Release your inhibitions Feel the rain on your skin No one else can feel it for you Only you can let it in No one else, no one else Can speak the words on your lips Drench yourself in words unspoken Live your life with arms wide open Today is where your book begins Feel the rain on your skin No one else can feel it for you Only you can let it in No one else, no one else Can speak the words on your lips Drench yourself in words unspoken Live your life with arms wide open Today is where your book begins The rest is still unwritten Staring at the blank page before you Open up the dirty window Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find Reaching for something in the distance So close you can almost taste it Release your inhibitions Feel the rain on your skin No one else can feel it for you Only you can let it in No one else, no one else Can speak the words on your lips Drench yourself in words unspoken Live your life with arms wide open Today is where your book begins Feel the rain on your skin No one else can feel it for you Only you can let it in No one else, no one else Can speak the words on your lips Drench yourself in words unspoken Live your life with arms wide open Today is where your book begins The rest is still unwritten The rest is still unwritten The rest is still unwritten Oh, yeah, yeah

There is so much slashability between Merlin and Arthur... yum. And in the second season Arthur takes his shirt off a lot - woo! You can tell I love the show for it's plot and writing, lol. Anthony Stewart Head is great in his role though, as are most of the cast.

Amelia - sorry if it seemed my comments were a jab at you, they weren't intended that way. I would have said what I said regardless of whether you had made your post first or not. You're right that no one is perfect, myself included

I love that the ending is open ended. It would be awful if you could prove it one way or another, because then you wouldn't get the kind of awesome reflections that are going on here.

"A friend is a friend, a pal is a pal, but a buddy is someone you sleep with in bed." I'm not so eloquent when I've been on here typing for 5 hours... maybe I should go to bed now.

For the gym, definitely get Rammstein. It doesn't matter if you don't speak German. I hate running, but when I listened to Reise Reise at the gym, I nearly puked at the end of my workout because the beats were so fast and energetic I just couldn't stop pushing myself further and faster. Good luck!

You will definitely find yourself here more often than you ever thought possible... welcome and good luck!

"Why are women fans so alienated from their own bodies that they can write erotic fantasies only in relation to a non-female body? She surmises that perhaps men

I had a conversation of this type with .Soup. in the thread Are There Any Lesbian Stories On GA? At some point I definitely thought that women only read guy-on-guy because it was sexy in the same way girl-on-girl is for guys. I now think there's a lot more to it than that. The pertinent bit that relate to this thread are pasted below: The article pointed out some interesting bits, such as that when women watch guy-on-guy they're not consuming sex in the same way that guys are when watching girl-on-girl. Straight guys like girl-on-girl because there is no male figure to have their sexuality threatened by. Women always watch and compare themselves to the girl in guy-on-girl and end up feeling badly about themselves, so they feel more satisfaction when watching guy-on-guy because there is no one for them to be distracted by.

I only ever glance at the titles while waiting in line at the grocery store... I can't be bothered to waste my reading time on bad fiction claiming to be reality based on celebrities I don't care about. But society craves it and creates a market for it, so make of that what you will. Is the general populous shallow media whores? Or will people just read anything to escape reality? Or does everybody who reads it say, "I know I shouldn't but I just can't help myself..." and is that even a justifiable excuse?

It depends on what I'm looking for. Honestly if I want a dependably good story that has plot and then a little sexy romance thrown in but still situated around good plot, I'm likely going to read a book by a published author, not scour the internet. But, it's a lot easier to find certain stories on the internet (and freer too!). In general I want something other than the sex, but if I'm looking for sex, anything else just get skipped over or ignored.

The more you chat and post the more you will get to know people and feel a part of the dynamic, then the less shy you should feel! I really wouldn't worry much about stuff like run-on sentences. As long as people get your meaning, I doubt they'll be put off much by stuff like that. I run on all the time and no-one's yelled at me for it yet And so what if someone has already said what you're thinking? Isn't it still worth it to say "I agree"? I say that all the time when I'm the 50th person posting and everything has already been said. It still adds to the conversation to see how many people that way. I have to admit, I accidentally went into the chat once and ran away never to be seen again. It can be intimidating. Keep at it! The more you chat/post the better you will feel! Never type something and then delete it! Be a big mouth like me!

"Dogs do not understand the concept of love" does not conflict with the following statements, "Dogs do grieve the loss of a companion," "I am not contesting that dogs make bonds with humans," "When I say dogs do not need a lot of the mollycoddling they are given, I certainly don't mean they don't need attention or affection." "Dogs do not understand the concept of love" means just that - dogs are incapable of comprehending the concept of love. They can not describe or contemplate it in any way and do not think about it in abstract terms. They can not contemplate their current relationships and make observations about them the way we do. Dogs feel emotion. They feel strong affection that people like to call love. Even if you could measure the emotions that they feel and make a definite proclamation that dogs feel love, it still does not mean that they understand how much that love means to a human. The dog cannot comprehend that it is making your life happier simply because it shows love for you. Along the same lines, "mollycoddling" is not the same thing as "affection". Dogs need affection. They do not need mollycoddling. Your stories prove that your dog has a memory, not that he spent 5 years missing his old house or 6-7 years grieving. I'm not saying dogs completely forget their people or places, only that they don't carry the burden the way we do. I'm sure Jasper felt very strong emotions when he left and then again when he was reminded of the familiar place, but in the interim once he was used to his new home, I am certain he did not think the type of things a human would think such as, "Gee, I miss Scotland. I like this house, but the other house had better rooms. My route for my walk here is better at the start but the old one was better at the end," and such. It's when people ascribe those type of thoughts to the dog that I get frustrated. Again, I am not contesting that dogs can be compassionate and caring. They just don't comprehend the emotions on the same level as us, they don't find the emotions nearly as meaningful as we do, they live much more "in the moment" than we do, and it is frustrating when people treat their dogs like children or make ridiculous accommodations for their dogs under the belief that the dog is reacting to a situation with the same level of emotion and understanding as a person would.

LOL! Awesome. I have a friend who wanted to name her dog Candy after Canada but we wouldn't let her because it sounded too much like a stripper name

The dishwasher is the only reason I ever eat any food that doesn't come in a pre-packaged frozen box. I would kill to keep it Expensive indeed! I so need more money. Can't afford to do ANYTHING right now, but one day I will shock and amaze (and frighten) everyone with my super-awesome crazy-random house

LOL, awesome! Slash makes me so happy

I am so lazy. I see mess and I think, "But I'd have to walk all the way over there to clean it up!" so I ignore it. I do keep the gross stuff down to a minimum, clean the cat box every day and put all the dishes in the dishwasher, etc. BUT when I start to clean, I can't stop until everything is sparkling PERFECT. It takes hours and hours. This is probably why I avoid starting at all costs. If someone pops over I usually think, "I wish that stuff was picked up but oh well" and it only takes half an hour or less to make it look ready for a dinner party. Dear God, we need pictures! This sounds awesome! I WANT A THRONE! I often find myself so bored with the average household decorations/architecture. I stare at baseboards and think, "Man, baseboards are so boring! They're all the same! What can I replace them with that will actually look interesting?"

*positive thoughts are being sent your way*

Dogs do grieve the loss of a companion, that is for sure. I am not saying that dogs have no emotions whatsoever. They just are not as deep as people want to believe. Dogs do not experience or comprehend the loss of another dog or a person on the scale that we do. The dog is upset because his routine has been changed and a member of his pack is gone; being very social pack animals this is hard for them to adjust to. But it's not love or grief in the same way as a human would feel it. The dog cannot comprehend that his companion has been run over too early in his life or been put down because of liver failure and is not sad over the loss of a life, only over his own loss of comfort, familiarity, and safety. A self aware animal in the terms I have used when speaking with animal behaviour psychologists is one that can recognize itself as a living, thinking being. The mirror test is a good one - if the animal can recognize itself in a mirror and knows that the reflection (or a picture) is a representation of itself, then it is self aware. Only dolphins and apes are self aware in these terms. This corresponds to the animal being able to anticipate its future self. A dog cannot think, "In two years from now I hope I get walks every day and I hope all my owners and pack mates are still alive to play with me." A dog can only think as far as, "I like having my owners and pack mates here with me now," or "I am unhappy because my owners and pack mates are not here right now." The eye contact thing could very easily be true, I don't know, I'd have to research it, but everything you've said doesn't make me wrong. It doesn't matter how strong the bond created is, the dog still does not comprehend love on the scale that we do. The dog considers its owner its pack leader and responds to him/her and is loyal to him/her in the same way. The dog certainly enjoys the joy it gets from its owner's affection, but it does not think, "I love Billy so much because Billy is so good to me. I am so lucky I have Billy instead of a mean owner who beats me and puts me outside. If Billy died I could have a new nice owner, but I would always miss Billy and he will leave a hole in my heart." The dog is happy while Billy is nice to him. The dog is sad if it is alone because it has grown accustomed to Billy's company. If Billy dies the dog will grieve when his person is missing because his routine and symbols of safety have been disrupted, but once the dog is used to Billy's replacement, it will never sit and think back on Billy and mourn the loss of Billy. It is the same with your example with the goats. The dog has either been trained that hunting goats is bad, has no reason to hunt goats because it gets fed regularly, and/or has come to see the goats as part of its pack so it protects them and may find enjoyment from their company. The dog does not refrain from killing the goats because it loves them. I am not contesting that dogs make bonds with humans. My point is that many people treat their dogs as if they have the full range of depth of human emotions, which they don't, and it is frustrating that many dogs are not trained properly or are accommodated in really ridiculous and annoying ways because of it . I have made eye contact with an orangutan and let her put lipstick on my lips. There is no way that dogs are the only species to ever make eye contact with humans. It may be more frequent or meaningful with dogs, but certainly isn't exempt from the rest of the animal kingdom. I have no problem putting a dog down down if the dog has a poor quality of life or is guaranteed to hurt someone, but I think its really sad that there aren't enough facilities available, funding for them, or education centers to rehabilitate these dogs and to train PEOPLE how to raise a dog properly in the first place. I'd say it's almost always the owner's fault for allowing the dog to get mean or be in a position/emotional state to hurt someone or another animal. Dude, your puppy is adorable! I also believe dogs are more stressful to raise than cats. They need a lot more supervision and training. When I say dogs do not need a lot of the mollycoddling they are given, I certainly don't mean they don't need attention or affection. Of course they do. They are social pack animals and it is obvious that they are happier when playing or when with people, dogs, or other animals they are friends with. Of course they form relationships - your dog can have a different attitude to every person or other dog in its life, and it's obvious when a dog doesn't like someone or another animal (they keep their distance, hold back their ears, tuck in their tail, etc). Of course they have distinct personalities, just like cats and horses and pigs and any other intelligent animal. They certainly show empathy to a greater degree than animals like cats, and I know that my cat only runs up to me and sleeps in my lap because she likes the heat, not because she likes spending time with me. BUT, I still believe that a lot of people have wishful thinking for their explanations of dogs behaviours and anthropomorphize their dogs way too much. Just because Rover can pick up on Rex's pain because of the body language and whining Rex gives and just because Rover will lie down and help Rex lick his wounds doesn't mean Rover thinks, "Oh no, you're leg is injured and you are bleeding, that's bad because you won't be able to walk and well run for the next few days and I feel so sorry for you because if I were hurt I wouldn't like limping and would be very upset if I got an infection," the way a person would. Rover thinks, "I can tell you are in pain. You are sad. I will be sad with you." It's a different level of understanding. A dog will be happy when you praise it because it senses your happy emotions and enjoys your comforting touch. It does not become happy when you praise it due to feeling as though it is being a better dog than it was, nor does it gain a sense of self pride for being a good pet, which is what most people think when they baby talk, "Oh Rover, you're such a good boy, you love being a good boy for Momma, don't you?"

Lol, I'm pretty sure in most cases you could say its synonymous with storytelling, if that helps thaw your brain freeze a little I decided to expand upon my Scrabble vocabulary once, saw how many two letter words exist that seem to mean nothing, reneged my idea, and closed my brain down for the day

Thanks Neph - you should always tell me when I'm being ridiculous! I felt this way for a long time and I don't know if it will ever fully go away. But the main thing I have found out is that if someone doesn't know something about me that I wish they did, I'm the only one who can fix the situation by telling them how I truly feel. I'm much more secure now knowing that the things people don't know about me are the ones I choose to keep to myself. Being more open because you know your employer can't trace you is a really good point. I post very little controversial stuff on Facebook and never post things like drunken pictures because I would hate for someone I don't know well to look me up and think I'm that shallow, and I would hate even more to miss out on a good job opportunity or get fired because some random online rant or pic. Honestly, it would never occur to me to doctor my pics before I post them. If I want to look good, I make sure I look good before taking the pic. I am way too lazy to photoshop out all my flaws just to post pics online. Lol, I dislike country music but I love the lyrics I agree. Can I get in on the Nephy pile up? Totally do it. I was wondering about whether that was you too because there IS a certain similarity between your avatar and your profile pic. Maybe its the confidence

Wildone, that was so touching. And you emphasized your point really well at the end.