Lisa

Thanks, Carlos, for a great feature on poetry. I've only read a handful of poems here, and I think the reason is because I always need to really concentrate on the poem to figure out what it's about. Maybe I'm like @Carlos Hazday and just avoid the poems altogether. Which I know is a shame. I have read some of @Mikiesboy's poems, which I actually understood and thought were beautiful. I totally agree with Carlos when he said @AC Benus is the one who brought poetry to the forefront of GA. Like Carlos, when I first joined GA, poetry wasn't big on here like it is now. I credit AC for that. He really got the ball rolling by writing poems and giving everyone poetry challenges. He knows so much about poetry, it's scary. And so very impressive! I've never read @Parker Owens's poems, but @Valkyrie is always telling me how good they are. Maybe I'll give poetry another go.

Heya, Roe. I got a notification that chapter 1 was updated. What did you do? Do I need to re-read it?

Cool. I'll try it tomorrow, err, later. Thanks, Ron!

I assumed your first name started with an A since everyone was referring to you as A. My real first name does too; I just don't use the A because everyone thinks it spells Alyssa or Elyssa, or variations of those. It's just Lisa with an A in front. Duh.

Wow, ok, now that I dried my eyes, I can comment. This was a great story, Ivric. I think the best part was the fact Brandon told Maria how he felt about Jay. Their marriage was based on being open and honest with one another, and that's wonderful. I loved the ending, but I was so confused when Jay kept looking at the 'three' of them, and then the 'three' of them got down on one knee. I was thinking, "The three of them? Who else is there?" Then I realized he was including the Maria doll. Again, wonderful story, Ivric.

What a great story, A! (You don't mind if I hop on the bandwagon and call you A too, do you? Normally, I'd shorten your name to B.) I did shed some tears reading the proposal scene. That was so beautifully done.

I have never heard of Christmas Crackers until I read about them in your story, Tim. I loved the little things Hari put in his friends' crackers -- especially the banana-flavored condoms! The poem was very sweet, and I would have been embarrassed that Hawk read it out loud. It was a great way of getting them together, though! Great story, Tim!

I can use that even with the CCleaner program?

You know, I have IObit Uninstaller that was preinstalled on the computer (I think!), but I never knew what it was for! I thought it was for uninstalling programs. So I guess I won't need the CCleaner, then. Hey, Dyno! I have Norton, so my Windows Defender is turned off, and just last week I installed Malwarebytes. So far, so good, but if it happens again, I'll definitely take your advice and make up another account. Thank you!

Thank you, everyone! Thanks, Cia! I wound up trying a free trial of CCleaner, and so far, so good!

I am so in love with this guy.

Thanks, Cia!! I'll try those links now!

I can usually get the computer out of the sleep mode pretty quickly. With this, my cursor's also gone. And my screensaver is just the Windows bubbles. I did check to make sure I have all the updates. Can you check specifically for driver updates? Or are they included in the general Window updates?

MERRY CHRISTMAS, EVERYONE!! Hey, am I allowed to ask a question about my computer? My question has nothing to do with GA. I know there are quite a few computer gurus out there ( @Ron , @A.J. , @Myr...), and I thought maybe someone could tell me why my laptop screen (Win10, pc) goes black every 10 minutes or so. It's so annoying, and most of the time I have to restart the computer. Thanks in advance!

@Caz Pedroso -- boy that Steve Grand is hot! I've never heard of him before. Now I'm going to check out all his other stuff. My favorite Xmas music (yes, I LOVE Christmas music even though I don't celebrate Christmas -- Like Barbra S.) is: ANYTHING by TSO -- they are fantastic, Little Drummer Boy, Do You Hear What I Hear, Last Christmas, but only by Wham!, and the one by David Bowie and Bing Crosby. I've only heard that one once. I'm sure once I post this I'll think of a hundred more!

Thanks, Renee! Merry Xmas!

I use the A+ all the time on my phone, but I never noticed there were other types of options also. I'm going to try them all out! Thanks, Myr! Happy Holidays!

Great chapter, Roe! Jackson had an awesome night so far! Too bad Carter passed out, though.

Awesome chapter, Roe! Through your words, I could feel the tension and all the energy around that vodka bottle. Now I gotta re-read the next chapter!

Another body? From a fire or from CO poisoning? I, too, am surprised no one took Jake's computer to see what he had on it. But then again, if it was an accident, why would they, right? And what was on the paper Twyla found? Was it stuck there on purpose? I can't wait to find out!

That's so beautiful, Tim. We will always miss Ricky and what he brought to GA: his friendship, his stories, his knowledge, and his love. They will all live on in our memories of him. Wherever Ricky is, he knows we are thinking of him, today and always.

Hehe, *rubs hands together in glee and clicking on the latest story to comment*. Bring it on, Tim!!

I was so happy to hear that B&B are starting to connect again. I know Brett will be there for Billy no matter what, and hopefully Billy won't try to push him away again, because I think he's really going to need Brett's support now. David's reaction to Billy's piercing was indeed priceless. It would have been the first thing I would have asked also! I read another story where two of the characters got nip piercings, and the characters admitted it hurt more than anything they had ever had. I would have just looked at it and said "Ouch!". I will say, though, Paula's reaction to Billy's diagnosis and the subsequent mother/son talk really had me tearing up. I really hope their relationship takes a turn for the better. And no matter how old you are, male or female, when something happens like this, we all want our moms. I know Billy's reaction at George's gravesite was just out of anger, frustration, and fear; he doesn't hate his father. His father's just a convenient target now because he can't defend himself.

Omg, you really had me over that one, Jeff! Brett's speech to Billy made me sad. He loves Billy and just wants him back. The old Billy, not this empty shell of a boy. I really enjoyed how much Brett and Dustin have matured! They really grew up so much that they can carry on a civilized conversation without wanting to kill each other! It's so nice to see them getting along. And when Brett asked Billy why he never told him that Dustin was so nice, I almost fell out of my chair! Billy was ALWAYS trying to convince Brett that Dustin was a good guy. And when they were in the diner, I couldn't believe what a dick Billy was being! Brett was so right; Billy was being a royal d-bag to both of them. Isn't that the old Billy trying to get through? The old Billy would yell at anyone over stupid shit. And the tats...I don't think Billy should just go in there and get any tat just to spite his mother. I think getting a tat should be something you really think about, not do it on impulse. I thought the title of the next chapter had to do with Billy being diagnosed with diabetes, maybe because something goes wrong with the tattoo, Idk...But now I'm just thinking it could be because of his dad's tattoo (which I don't remember, but someone else brought it up ). I'm going to have to go back and re-read the part of the book you mentioned, Jeff, because I don't remember it now.

What a great chapter, Mr. Squirrel! I have to say, Dustin really grew up in the past year. The therapy really seemed to be working. I hope he's sticking with it. One thing I don't understand is why the HELL would he move in with his SISTER????? Isn't she one of the people who beat him up and belittled him? Didn't she watch while her b/f Max (that was his name, right?) the dealer beat the shit out of him? And he goes to LIVE with her???? Did I miss something? Did he have another sister, a nice one I don't remember? I was also concerned reading about Billy's weight loss and extreme thirst. I didn't think of diabetes, though, I though he might have been anemic, but I'm assuming I have those symptoms wrong. Yes, he definitely needs medical attention. I agree with Dustin, Billy, and everyone else who says Billy should tell Brett about his Jackass of a father (no pun intended) because Brett will be extremely hurt that Billy never said anything. That being said, I also see Billy's point because Mr. Jackass threatened him. He's a big man on campus, and personally, I'd be afraid of him too! But then again, we learned that Dustin has dirty little (or big) secrets on half the town. So maybe he DID sleep with Jack! Maybe these secrets can be used for blackmail to help Billy tell Brett what's going on.