Daisy139

I dare say there are more attractive guys in figure skating....but one of those two is actually no stranger to multisomes....

Loved it (and now that I'm caught up both in the CAP and Bridgemont series....I can finally go study for my comprehensive exams....woohoo...). Anyway, I think Lark actually has a good chance of keeping his name - if it turns out he was seriously threatened and had to hide. And I have a feeling that's where we're headed.

I'm in a discipline where everyone is either a heterosexual/bisexual female or a gay male. Fantastic combination. Well, I guess dating at work/in school can go terribly wrong, so I won't complain Anyway, I like those numbers. I'm convinced that there are a lot more LGBTs out there than we think. And I agree- bisexuals are often classified as one or the other (and it's much easier for us to classify ourselves as straight than anything else...). 10-14% sounds a lot more realistic to me.

Oh yes, Dumbo was one of the first that made me cry. Life is Beautiful made me bawl.

Oh, that Sterling Knight kid comes extremely close to my vision of JJ (note to self: get rich, buy television, stay informed on who the famous people are...). I see him with just slightly lighter hair (but this one is close enough) and a slightly longer face (which is what I imagine for all Cramptons). But this is quite close. I also like your Lark although I used to picture Lark a lot shorter and somewhat less athletic, and with a slightly squarish face. In other words, not nearly as handsome. But he has something Lark-y about him

I'm sorry, did we ever find out what Kevin majors in? If it's vaguely related to what Cody does (and Cody apparently does his job quite efficiently?), that might be a common point of interest in which both have very profound things to contribute to a conversation. I didn't get the impression Cody was a bookworm-type intellectual either, but I do feel he's quite intelligent, knowledgeable, and educated (just not from a post-secondary institution) and that the people he interacts with should be well aware of that. Brad and Robbie certainly are. So I think the two actually go quite well together. And Kevin doesn't strike me as the high and mighty intellectual either. More like someone who is intelligent but lives in the real world.

I second the Jeremy Bloom plot. Wouldn't that be nice Two sidenotes on getting credentials for the Olympics - Tiffany won't be judging in Salt lake City if she doesn't already have a history as a judge. It takes a long time to become a judge at international competitions, and extremely long to become one at Worlds or Olympics. If she isn't already judging at Worlds and other major competitions, she won't get into SLC. Re: JJ going there anyway - he could be a volunteer. They pick volunteers per sport, and sometimes people with skating experience get priority. And if Stefan Schluter gives the OC a nice phone call and promises sponsoring, JJ is practically hired I would say. However, he would only have access to the rink that way, not the Olympic village (but there would be ample opportunity to run into other athletes that would be close to the skating rinks - hockey players, speed skaters, and whatever else would have been in proximity).

Unfortunately I can't afford to be picky. If they *fit* me, I'll buy them, regardless of whether they make me look good.

Happy Birthday, Jeremy!

My dad is Polish/German and my mum is half German/half Hungarian (seriously, which Hungarian in their right mind would have immigrated to Germany in 1943? Just wondering...but the answer is, my grandma...that's where I must have gotten my crazy from). I've been living in Iowa for a good 7 years now and people keep telling me they're "German"... it's funny how people here have such a strong sense of ancestry and back in Europe we didn't really care.... I don't consider myself German or half this, quarter that, but just European. Turning into a somewhat weird version of an Iowan (I absolutely hate corn...).

I would think JJ will realize this really really soon. He's been skating now for a good year or so? So he should have a pretty good idea about how fast he can theoretically progress (e.g. you can't learn a triple in a year or two, esp. not all the required triples) and how fast you can legally test for skating ranks. Since he'll have to wait till '06, he might even get more frustrated / disappointed with his progress if puberty hits him pretty bad (=rapid growth spurt / body proportions changing) and he has to re-learn some of his techniques. Anyway, his progress will surely be very interesting! Thanks for another wonderful chapter, Mark And I agree with those that have said that the relationships of the 3 kids and their parents/role models will be very interesting to see. I think all 3 kids are interesting in their own way. I don't think I'm capable of very profound feedback right now.... my mind is on a boring nonsense paper I have to write. Sorry Also... George Granger is on my cell phone and just waiting for me to continue reading, so I must away

That tongue would indeed be very dead and still on the plate. I've never tried it but my mum once prepared it for our dog and I just about gagged. I think it was from a cow.... :wacko: I"ll stick to legs, wings, and chests of dead animals

I will eat liver if I get a lot of money (I'm a grad student, so "a lot of money" starts at $50). Other types of internal organs, as well as tongue, will be more expensive.

Scratching the penis, did I hear that right? And I really wonder where all those men are hiding that are willing to talk during sex.

Mr. Daisy insists we watch it and he knows I don't do Scary very well. I'll probably be hiding out under the blankets for an hour.

Apparently bisexuals aren't going to hell? Coolbeans. Also, what about murderers? Just wondering.

Yeah, the kindergarten stuff never ends. In the two departments I've been in, I've met so many cliques like that. I used to be a teaching asistant, and this other TA thought we were in competition or something, so one day when one of my best students ran into her in the hall looking for me, she took him into her office and started teaching him completely incorrect stuff so he would do poorly on his test (he had this documented on a worksheet she wrote on and unfortunately I was too stupid to bring it up to the department chair). There have been so many instances when (usually the same cliques of people) lied about me to the faculty to get me fired from my job or somehow damage my reputation with the profs, but luckily the faculty realized I was just being picked on. After 2 1/2 yrs I was ready to drop out of grad school after the third time a bunch of fellow grad students lied to the faculty about me and I almost got fired form my job until the responsible faculty realized they were lied to. Oh, btw, I failed my MA comps at first attempt because they gave me incomplete preparation material (in our department you get the materials from fellow grad students, passed down and improved with each generation). They only gave me about 50% of the materials and claimed they were complete, so I went into the oral exam completely under-prepared.... afterwards my committee chair resolved the issue and told me there was a lot of material I obviously hadn't received. Now I just ignore everyone in my department and don't go to any of the beginning/end of semester picknicks and whatever social functions. So yeah... be aware of who your friends are and that sometimes it's better to not be too close with anyone you're studying with... I can't wait till next year when I start my dissertation and can leave my department pretty much behind

Oh, I hate the in-class texters. I used to be a teaching assistant and teach 4-8 hours a week....in about every class there was at least one person who would text during class. And my class wasn't lecture-style but like "here's what we're going to do, now do it" style. Some wouldn't even stop when I walked right in front of them and stared them down. I guess I look too harmless to scare anyone.

I very much agree with wanting to mate with the best available....to a certain degree this may just be programmed into us. I also noticed form my own experience that I tend to have a crush on someone who seems perfect to me and then project everything into that person I would want from the perfect partner / relationship. It's so easy and fantasizing about that perfect relationship (when you're single and not happy about it) is like a feel-good movie you can play and direct in your head at any time with that supposedly perfect person starring in the lead.... Very interesting question.

I'll have to disagree about the pussy sport - it would be one if they were actually crying, but 99% of the crying is just acted to get the referee's attention and an advantage for your team. But it may not be as tempting to watch as water polo. I think I've just developed a new interest.....

I read stories on my cell phone almost every day I am at work. My boss knows I'm practically glued to my cell phone and doesn't mind at all. I guess she would if she knew what I'm reading....

German: Fischers Fritze fischte frische Fische. Frische Fische fischte Fischers Fritze. Blaukraut bleibt Blaukraut und Braitkleid bleibt Brautkleid. Zwischen zwei Zwetschgenzweigen zwitscherten zwei Schwalben. Der Potsdamer Postkutscher putzt den Potsdamer Postkutschkasten.

I'm a native speaker of German so I'll try to help... typically when the word for valley shows up in a place name, it's spelled with a th (older spelling - most places are older than modern orthography). I could see something like Dreithal maybe (without a plural ending, which would be -er, but that would sound more like a person's last name). Dreithalen might be possible, but it would obscure the meaning somewhat (you might actually want that, but if you don't, I would go with the first version). Hope that helps!

Cell phone only, and I use it as a wireless modem (5GB per month, works fine for me). Phone and internet all in one device (and in one gigantic bill...).

In a way I'm still figuring out what exactly my sexual orientation is (although I'm about to settle for a simple bisexual, just because I'm tired of looking for a label). I'm more attracted to men than to women, but I would lie if I said women don't interest me in *that* way. A couple years ago, when I started to realize that what I feel for some women is most likely sexual attraction, I would start reading f/f fiction and really enjoyed it. (and btw, I've also always been intrigued by m/m, for reasons that would be too complicated to explain here I guess). After years of mulling it over and trying to determine if I'm bisexual or bi-curious or whatever else, I started another round of internet research and wanted to find a place where I could hang out with people who don't just take "straight" as the default setting, where I could be more open about my sexual dis-orientation. I found a forum and started reading there, but one of the first things I got to hear - froma lesbian - was how bisexuals don't exist and they're all closeted straight and gay people, or people who are confused. I am confused, but not in that sense. So, I kept looking....found GA.... got hooked on reading again... and here I am. I mostly just feel comfortable in an environment like this, where it's ok not to be straight or even not to know exactly where you stand. I've only "come out" as bi/confused to one person... even though I've had bi and gay friends. But I guess that alone is not enough to trust someone enough to talk about such personal things. On the internet that's much easier.