AFriendlyFace

Interesting! I hadn't heard of this at all (of course I don't read or watch the news), but I know exactly where that cometary is and I've frequently been to Kingwood and Humble. Of course I disapprove of their behaviour, but I wonder how I would feel if I were the corpse. Just out of curiosity how would you feel, Tim? I suspect I would lean toward rolling my eyes (not an easy task with eyes that have rotted over 80 years ago), and forgiving them.

Wow, that's awesome, dude! Thanks

You know, I think that's a very likely scenario myself! Instinct is almost certain to die a miserable death while The Scar and Dimitri live happily ever after! Why, I'd be stunned if it didn't turn out this way! Kevin

I hear they're even starting to come out with gay hairdressers nowadays! So here's a couple of questions regarding the sex aspect. Do you think of Brandon and Chase as having sex? Do you think of Helen and Barbra as having sex? The reason I ask is that because CJ frequently makes mention of Brandon and Chase's sex life, or otherwise eludes to it, even if he doesn't describe it graphically. On the other hand I can't remember any explicit references to Helen and Barbra's sex life, despite the fact that I'm assuming it exists. Has this impacted your perception of the characters and their relationship, especially their sex lives? One of the reasons that I really like sex scenes in a story is because it drives home the point that they are having sex, I being to think of them as a sexual, more complete couple, and even if at other points their sex life is merely eluded to and not explicitly described I still have something to visualize. I do like at least a few good sex scenes between serious couples in a story simply for this reason; to me it's an important part of character development with regards to the relationship. Of course the next best thing is to mention that they were in fact (or are about to be) having sex. At least then it's explicitly said and brought to mind that, yes, this is a romantic couple and they're doing all the 'romantic couple' things. It's thus more tangible than not mentioning it at all, but it's a little bit less 'real' than if it had been described. I'm not saying a story 'needs' sex to be a good romantic story. For example many romantic stories are primarily about the couples 'getting together' in the literal, we're-now-dating sense of the phrase. Of course these stories are okay without sex because the point of the story is for them to be shown 'falling in love' and overcoming obstacles to be together versus being in love and conducting their relationship on a day-to-day basis. LTMP works fine without sex because the story isn't about Brandon and Chase's relationship: that's just a side story. However, I do have a very strong preference for serious romantic stories about couples during their relationship to include at least a few sex scenes. It may sound 'pervy', but to be a good romantic story about a couple I would similarly expect to see a few scenes of the characters comforting each other, sharing joy, making compromises, arguing in a healthy way, etc. For such a story, to me, completely omitting sex scenes would be the equivalent of the writer simply glossing over an argument or bonding moment with narration instead of allowing the characters to flesh it out in dialogue and/or inside their heads. As I said, LTMP works well with this style of approach to romance because romance is not it's primary focus. We similarly haven't seen a huge number arguments, compromises, or 'relationship work'. In this case that's fine and the tech details are probably more relevant to the story because they're more in line with the story's focus. I'm working on a story which has some medical/technical aspects, but I don't feel bad about minimizing the amount of details so long as the story is realistic and believable. These details are simply a plot device and not at all the point of the story, so glossing over them to some extent feels acceptable. Anyway, I guess what I'm getting at with all of this is that the type of story should probably dictate the type of scenes expounded on within the story (go figure ). Take care and have an awesome day all! Kevin

Well it sounds like you might indeed benefit from the RSS feeds then!

That's certainly true of me, I can't imagine getting sexual with my friends, even the really really cute ones. On the other hand I have got one complicated sort of person in my life, but we didn't start as friends so I don't count him. HAHA, it's probably just weird but becoming friends with someone I've been sexual with is a much more comfortable notion than becoming sexual with someone I'm friends with. Of course in the case of the first scenario I imagine if the person didn't progress to boyfriend and did progress to good friend that we would likely stop being sexual at some point. As I've always said, I just can't wrap my head around 'friendcest.' When it comes to actual relationships I prefer to take it more slowly as well. Especially if the person is someone I know and care about in his own right. If instead it's just someone that I'm meeting for the explicit purpose of dating then I'm more open to the idea of things developing quickly, but when it comes to people I was friends with first I'm unwilling to be sexual for the sake of being sexual, and only 'slow and serious' about potential relationships.

Who else is still in the running besides the two Davids?

Happy Birthday, Patrick!! I hope the beginning of your 19th year surprises you and turns out to be absolutely delightful! Either way may this year bring you all the peace, joy, love, and happiness which you so definitely deserve! All the best, Kevin

Well that does bear promise for my dream of raising gay kids then ...on the other hand I'm not sure who my daughter will be emulating if she turns out to be a lesbian Anyway, we're definitely in agreement that parenting is the key aspect of a child's development.

I've never seen the show, only been following along and checking out clips on youtube, as such I didn't realize just how talented David Cook is! Of course his rendition of "Billie Jean" blew me out of the water, but I had no idea his other performances were so good. There's no question that I like his style and song selection better than Archuleta. Archuleta is very good, but there's no doubt which one I'd be listening to if they each came on a different radio station in the car. Of course I'm more of a rocker myself, as I said Archuleta is very talented to go with the very cute

People always use the "you can kill with other weapons" argument, and it's true, but the fact is guns are designed to kill and kill quickly. How many people can you kill with a baseball bat in 30 seconds? How many with a gun? How close do you have to get with the baseball bat? How close with the gun? It's perfectly true that if "Tom" is determined to kill "Billy" he'll find a way and a weapon to suit his purpose. If on the other hand "Tom" is determined to go a rampage at his high school, well a hunting rifle isn't going to do as much damage as a semi-automatic, a knife isn't going to do as much damage as a hunting rifle, a stick isn't going to do as much damage as a knife, and a Winnie the Poo doll isn't going to do as much damage as a stick. That's all I'm saying about the 'different weapon' argument. Also, for the record, I may prefer to be killed with a gun than a baseball bat, but that's assuming I'm going to die. I'd much rather be attacked with the baseball bat, because I would have the opportunity to fight back, run away, or get beaten long enough for someone to come and help me. If I'm summarily shot execution style I don't have any of those options. No, I didn't say that at all The only thing I said is that the games were a part of the equation. I made no argument at all about completely banning or removing them. I also said that they were the smaller part of the equation behind good parenting, and also behind personal responsibility in my opinion. Of course we'd still have crimes and violence, I never tried to argue that we wouldn't. My only point is that some kids are affected by violence in video games. I didn't say most, many, or even 'a significant number', but some are. It's irrelevant that in most of these cases the major problem is still with the parents or the individual themselves, neither am I arguing that these kids would otherwise have grown up perfectly well-adjusted had they not played the video games. The only thing I said is that to some extent some kids are affected. If I'm 15 and always playing games that enhance my aim and reflexes, and I later use this skillful aim and quick reflexes (rather for 'good' or 'evil') it's an indisputable fact the video game played a role in my proficiency. It's irrelevant that I could have developed these skills in any number of other ways, or that perhaps I just did something terrific with my skills. I in no way meant to imply a value judgment or pretend that effects were paramount or exclusive on behaviour. I simply said they have some effect, and I really don't see why it's necessary to even debate that statement. Virtually nothing to me is in 'black and white' it all comes in 'shades of gray'. You would never hear me saying that video games cause violence. Nor would you hear me saying that any other one thing causes violence. In my opinion human behaviour is far to complicated to be attributed to one cause or motivation in most instances. I'm not saying in the greater scheme of things video games are bad for society or kids in general. Who knows, maybe overall they're good for society and kids. I dunno. All I'm saying is they have an effect and sometimes that effect is bad. Will big deal, everything is like that. In most cases it's a good idea for people to take their blood pressure medication, but sometimes it kills them. Seatbelts and airbags usually save lives, but occasionally they kill instead. I'm certainly not arguing that people should quit taking their meds or avoid safety precautions when driving. Neither am I arguing that video games should be launched into outer space. Take care all (I hope this statement makes people feel cared about and as such conduct life in a sensible, safe manner. However, I also concede that a statistically small portion of the population may under some circumstances instead feel a rebellious streak which leads them to risky behaviour just to spite me. In any case my signature probably won't have a significant impact on very many people, but I will say that I think it might have a marginal effect - either good or bad - on some.) -Kevin

Well, I like both, but I actually ended up opting for sex. ...But that could just be because I want to see Chase naked I guess the real question then is whether or not the person whose vote made it 69 really felt that way (presumably about the tech stuff since you and I seem to be the two sex voters and you voted first and I voted most recently) OR if instead he/she actually had such a big preference for the sex scenes that he/she did the math, saw the statement his/her vote could make, and elected to go that way to make an even bigger statement!

Well, I just bumped the old thread for purposes of comparison, I too was struck by Eric's surprisingly low numbers! However, in my case while I had originally voted for Eric in the other poll my new vote would tentatively go to Chase. I was kinda torn between them all along, and he's just grown on me alot. It's really a toss up though. I notice we have less that half the number of votes in this poll that we do in the original! I wonder if perhaps people are waiting until the very end to cast their vote this time. That way if Brandon decides to rip the transmitter out of The Scar's hand and take over the world himself, or if Eric ends up selling everyone out to Dimitri and Mario to avoid his own murder, no one will feel foolish for having voted for them Hmm, well he certainly foiled the assassination attempt and as such served his ultimate purpose and duty their security man, but it looks like he hasn't foiled all of The Scar's plans! Could Gunter perhaps win a poll as 'favourite martyr'? Take care all and have a great day! Kevin

Reviewing this poll and the major impact Eric has had on the storyline, I'm surprised to see what a resounding loss he suffered in terms of being a fan favourite. As it stands now we have 20 votes that are as follows: Brandon [ 7 ] Chase [ 6 ] Eric [ 2 ] Jon [ 1 ] Helen (manager) [ 3 ] Lump (former lead singer) [ 1 ] People who haven't voted please feel free to, or better yet go and vote in the other poll. I'm curious to see if this pattern will hold until the end of the story! So far, based on the other poll, it seems to be! Would anyone change their vote if they could? Interestingly enough I think I might. It turns out I was one who originally voted for Eric, and while I still really like him, I think I might lean a little bit more toward Chase now. Might not though, kinda a toss up, it's just I have a tough time resisting hot blonds for this long

Well, we all know who the accident was for now, and we also know what's going on with Lump, but what about Carlisle parents? Will they ever figure into the story as characters in their own right? If so, how?

LOL, famous last words! Looks like we readers guessed incorrectly (though only slightly 8-7) about Vlad's survival.

This seems like an excellent assessment to me.

I'd have more or less agreed with that statement if it had simply been "The game has little to do with the boy's actions". However, I think it's very clear that while the father is indeed the root of the problem, and should indeed be the target for a solution, the game is still involved. That's like the argument that people give regarding firearms, "guns don't kill people, people kill people." I certainly agree that the people are culpable, but again the fact remains that without the guns those people wouldn't have been shot. Drunk driving accidents do have to do with cars. Yes, they have to do with irresponsible, reckless idiots, but cars are still involved. The key here is "potentially dangerous item" + "stupid/careless/mean/crazy/psycho" = bad results Yes, we've still definitely got a big problem with just the 2nd part of the equation, but I'm all for keeping the first part of the equation out of their hands. That's an unfair, overly critical statement IMO. Believe me, I wouldn't have enjoyed seeing them act like that either, and I'd be annoyed and disappointed if I found out my son was behaving in that fashion. However, if you're talking strictly about an economic and resource drain on society then almost all teens (and younger, as well as most of the very old) are a 'drain on society'. Yeah, they're acting dumb and not exercising good judgment, but nearly all individuals have done something like that in their lifetime (especially in their teens), to say that they should just be removed society strikes me as a bit too far since no one would then be allowed to 'grow up'. For all we know in 10-20 years those boys might be doctors, scientists, politicians, lawyers, etc.

My answer would be a combination of these two. Email is a notoriously bad way to communicate with me (or simply communicate information to me) so subscriptions would be pointless. Several MORE chapters would likely be out before I got around to checking and reading the email about the first one On the other hand I check the forums frequently, so an announcement in the author forums is unlikely to slip by me.

When is the final night?

Thanks you guys, those comments really made me feel better.

Awwww I cried

LOL, well good for you, Jamie! Just play safe, okay Personally, I don't think I've ever 'regretted' it. It's probably because I've always stayed true to my 'sexual ethics' (only safe sex and no cheating), because I'm sure I'd regret it immensely if that weren't the case. I think the most important thing is to make good decisions about what you want and what is important to you and then uphold that. I hope things work out well with this guy! (rather that's an eventual relationship, or just lots more fun ) I think that's up to you to define. Do you consider your activity sex? That's sort of like a definition that my friend uses, 'anything which might reasonably result in orgasm'. What I personally define as sex varies. I always consider anal 'sex', but everything else is up for grabs. FYI, I think what you're referring to is properly (or improperly perhaps) called the Princeton F***

Chardonnay is my favourite wine. My personal all around favourites in terms of price (not too expensive), convenience (easy to find), and taste (delicious!) would have to be Kendall-Jackson and Woodbridge. They're both very good, reasonably priced, and as I said EASY to find at most any restaurant or store that sells wine. Chateau Ste. Michelle also makes a delicious chardonnay. Surprisingly the Barefoot brand is also drinkable, it's not all that great and certainly something I wouldn't want to 'treat' myself with, but if someone is having some I don't mind having a glass. A word of warning though, drink it while it's cold! The longer it sits out the less palatable it becomes. Another good, economical option is Jacob's Creek. I've always been partial to this one because it's so delicate. It's hard to actively dislike it even if you're not a big fan. Those are some of my favourites as well! Indeed mudslides and margaritas have been two of my favourites for as long as I've been drinking. I would have to add Cosmos and pomegranate martinis to the list as well though. I'd love to have a screaming orgasm...sounds delightful.

I've done the less than 3 hour thing before myself. I'm kinda weird about sex, I'm comfortable doing it with people I haven't known very long, or people I'm dating. Anything in between is awkward for me, so really I'd have to know the person LESS than a day or two if I were going to have 'casual' sex with them otherwise the only sex I'd be having would be within a relationship, which would probably take a week or so minimum to establish, so yeah I'm unlikely to have sex with people I've known between 1-7 days. Once I've entered the 'friend zone' with someone I'm just not going to mess around with them unless we decide to give an actual relationship a try.