Percy

We used to do ham or a brunch at a fancy hotel at Easter. I remember being fascinated by the ice sculpture - the only place I ever saw them. Nice to hear the day worked out for you.

Good story. Glad Sebastian found the motivation to turn his life around and earn that car.

Heartwarming! I could actually imagine this as a real episode on a sitcom. Humor, adventure and a message behind the story. :-)

Congrats, Thorn!

Congratulations K.C. Well deserved!

I remember waiting for this story to be posted in its entirety before starting it (just like I'm waiting for Pour Me Another now.) It's a well crafted story with characters of depth. I like stories where the characters grow. You could see Gibby go from being a kid in chapter one to a young man of character at the end. This story had a lot going on in it and K.C. brought all the elements together well. If you glance at the reviews, you might get the sense it's a dark tale. It's not at all but it is a story with some intense scenes.

T

Whenever I'm in a triathlon and see some 70 year old on the course, I think "I want that to be me when I'm that age." I bet there are a lot of younger people thinking that about you. Show them the love you have for the sport, the joy you take from working with your horse. Show them that doesn't diminish with age.

I always look for Dolores' contribution when the anthology comes out. She's brilliant at setting the tone of a story while using a sparse number of words. Everyone check out the her recent prompt response for more of the same talent!

Vivid. Thanks for sharing, KC.

You have such a great perspective on life, Joann. Thanks for sharing with us.

Fun story and a good, quick build-up to the action in the dome. I would stick with Miah's point of view for now. I would rather learn about the other two characters via his experience of them, and learn a little more about him as well, rather than getting inside someone else.

Very original. Loved the use of mythological gods to interact with today's real world issues.

Some good stories in this group. Thanks to all the contributors!

Glad you posted this. I have an intolerance to tomatoes that has gotten worse with age so I am always on the hunt for tomato-free alternatives to common dishes. This one looks good.

I enjoyed the way you wove the Mississippi River in with the character, River, and with the story. Great use of the anthology theme. An original story, well told. Glad you contributed this.

Dolores, I always look forward to your anthology contributions. Really skillful setting of tone here. Good detail. I was reading and thinking "something's not right here" but on the surface everything seemed normal. Then that end! Thanks for a great read. Well done.

Interesting to read the aftermath of a relationship. Good job showing the different ways people deal with the change and the ups and downs that come with it. I liked it.

Knowingly encountering a trans person is new territory for a lot of people. Even those poised to be accepting and who find it cool don’t know what to say. You might try dropping a hint as to how they should respond. Develop an “elevator pitch” about your identity and how you feel about it. A lot of times, they’ll cue off your lead. For example: Them: I don’t think I’ve ever met a girl named ‘Aaron’ before. You: Oh, I’m not a girl. I know when you’re looking at me that might sound strange, but I really am a guy. Specifically I’m trans (or genderqueer or however you want them to identify you.) I hear a lot from people that I look too pretty to think about being male but I always hope once they get to know me they see that I make a pretty cute guy too. It sounds like a lot to get out, but that’s okay. In their heads, they’re still grappling with your first sentence of “I’m not a girl.” So while they process that, keep feeding them information in an easygoing, conversational way – acknowledge this is new/strange territory for them, give them the right language to work with, deflect their most obvious question/objection and replace it with what they should be thinking about you. Sometimes this worked for me and sometimes it didn’t, but at least I was the one framing the discussion. Also, welcome to GA. It's a good place to be.

Made this tonight and it was awesome! Filling enough for a meal and I went light on the cream and sour cream. We're putting this into our regular soup rotation. Thanks for posting.

I need a recipe for a good, vegetatrian roast with nuts. I've reviewed a few of these and made one this weekend that was only so-so. I could play around with adjusting the recipe, but if someone has a nut roast they think is a winner, send it my way. I'm planning the menu for a party in February and I need to get this sorted before then. Thanks in advance.

You write well about your life; your blogs here are always so interesting. It's not just the perspective you share about the challenges of battling lymphoma, it's your perspective on the whole of your life. Your mentioning the soundtracks from The Breakfast Club and St. Elmo's Fire brought back a lot of memories! Thanks for sharing.

Nothing too odd this year, but last year my father got us a gigantic tic-tac-toe game. It's about two foot square with a wooden game board and heavy metal x's and o's. It's the sort of random thing an interior designer would use to stage a home in a photo shoot. He gave my brothers the same thing so now when you go to any of our houses, you'll see a huge tic-tac-toe game. This is the sort of thing my brothers and I bond over - strange gifts from Dad.

Thanks for posting this. It clarified much about the law in theory and practice in India. Best wishes for continued progress in civil rights and change for the better.

Music is part of our lives. As you expressed here, a certain type of music, a musician, takes up a place in our lives that is personal but it also connects us with others. Music is a shared experience, a social fabric. You'll be able to enjoy Ray Price and the memories his music holds forever. I am sure with a little digging you could find his influences in later generations of musicians.