Dodger

Thanks, Parker. I believe that Don genuinely wants this to proceed if only to save his own reputation. He's a control freak and will want Robbie in the family where he can be better guided through life. According to Don, Robbie isn't really gay, how could he be after having a girlfriend? He's just been temporarily led astray by that manipulating Nathan boy.

I refer you to the above answers on Sue, but I hope you hang on Dahawk because situations can change.

Thanks, @redwood Alex is a fun character to write if a little disturbing at times although I admit that he hasn't always been very nice. I don't know what Sue's problem is but you're probably right with most of those. Thanks again for your comment and for following the story.

You gotta be kidding me; I can't even guess my own one!

A Newfie is a derogatory term for someone who originates from Newfoundland. Not that there's anything wrong with people who come from Newfoundland. I've heard it's a nice place but it's kind of cold, wet, and windswept. If Sue was a province she would probably be Newfoundland. Don is a toxic danger, I agree. He's caused a lot of unnecessary problems for Robbie, the family and himself when it could have been so different.

Looks like Sue hasn't got herself much of a fan club going here but I can understand why. She has promised much but delivered little, while allowing her bigoted husband off the hook and the freedom to do even more damage. It's no wonder that Robbie feels a little hard done by sometimes. His little victories keep him going and of course, Don and Sue have the ever-resourceful Nathan to contend with!

Thanks, Tim. Somehow I don't see that happening but at least Robbie is able to see Sue a little better now. It's taken him six months but he's more or less figured out who he can trust or rely on for help. It's a pity that his most loyal defender is also the youngest member of the family but Sue should pay more attention to what her kids are telling her and stop trying to please a man who admits is in the wrong. It's a silly thing to say to a fifteen-year-old but Robbie needs to be a little patient at the moment and not do anything silly!

Thank you for your comment @Mike00 It is a shame that the two friends have drifted apart, even if predictable. Robbie should perhaps, make more of an effort to keep in contact. I think that many will share your sentiments about Sue, she hasn't lived up to her early promise. Thanks for reading and by the way, I love Scotland too.

On Thursday I reached a personal landmark, it was my one-hundred-and-eighty-second day in Canada or exactly half a year. Although it felt like much longer. During those six months, my life had changed completely and it was difficult now to imagine myself back in England. Despite my recent problems I wasn’t sure if I would have wanted to return either, although admittedly, this had a lot to do with Nathan. I would have lived at the South Pole, or the Kalahari Desert, if it meant that I could be w

Perhaps you should have included a box for' none of the above' because I honestly don't plan on doing any of these things. Last year though, I went to a Halloween party and even dressed up but it's never really interested me that much. Maybe I'll watch a couple of scary movies.

Thanks @RadioOfLove for your support and taking the time to comment.

'Pleasantly surprised' probably not the right words to use but it's definitely a good thing overall.

Hey Sam. I haven't read anything of yours before so this was a pleasant surprise. I enjoyed it and will definitely continue reading although I'm generally a little behind the rest of the regulars here and I don't get a great deal of time. I like Kay but he's a little naive. That's not a terrible thing though but he's having a tough time finding his place in the world. It'll be interesting to find out more about his liberal-minded parents. They would definitely be able to help him more than any anti-depressant. Thanks for posting this story. I usually try to comment on every chapter that I read but they're all positive.

Poor Brandon. I liked Sam up until now but he really should have a little more respect for his friend's more private issues. Billy certainly won't appreciate him misleading Brandon like that, even if he does think of it as only a bit of harmless fun. Get back on your bike, Brandon and keep going! Oh and probably best if he opens up a bit more to Marie and lets her know that she's wasting her time getting all romantic. I like her; she would make a good friend but the longer he leaves it, the less likely it will be that they will remain friends. Nice chapter as always.

Harry's out of the picture now that William and Kate have children. Their firstborn, George is now third in line to the throne and his daughter Charlotte, is fourth, pushing hapless Harry back two places into fifth. It's just like the Wacky Races really but with a bit more to play for.

Hmmmm. This pot is boiling quite nicely.

I know Steve. I wasn't expecting everyone to agree with me. This is exactly what I wanted; a feverish debate and I was a little disappointed by how tame it was up until you joined the fray. You make some good points though and I like the way you managed to squeeze the Quebecois into the argument. The poll that I quoted was from 2015 and was correct but I wasn't aware of any polls from last year. I don't know how accurate these polls are after Brexit etc. but 53% would still be enough to put her out of a job over here. I agree that we should teach more Canadian history in our schools and as far as I know, there has never been an episode where the monarch had overridden any legislation in Canada, but they have never had to because Canada like Australia has always towed the line. Let's face it Canadians shouldn't be paying anything at all to a foreign monarch and $50 million dollars a year can be put to better use. Don't be fooled, the Royal family are fabulously wealthy; they can easily support themselves without Canadian dollars but they're not in the habit of giving anything up voluntarily. I have a big problem having an unelected head of state and especially one that isn't even Canadian. Canada is old enough now to look after itself. It doesn't need the UK to hold its hand anymore but I think sometimes that's how it looks. It's a little embarrassing because the British don't really see themselves as having much of a connection with Canada anymore, so it's totally one-sided. Anyway, I guess the blog worked.

Yeah, I know. I don't mind all the pomp and ceremony so much but they do take themselves a little too seriously for my liking. Military officers included. He probably thought that he looked quite dashing with a sword and of course, there is a definite connection with the military but it makes them look dated and out of touch with reality and that's something that they can't afford to do. Thanks for participating.

Thanks, Tim, for taking the time to consider and comment, it was well worth the wait.

Thanks for the comment William. Yes, I'm running the gauntlet here although I doubt if my discontent would rattle the well-defended Royals that much. I have actually already been locked in the Tower for real. I was working at The Tower of London a few years ago while living in London, and of course, we could only work at night when it was closed to the public. It was interesting and creepy as you would expect but that's another story.

Thank you, JP. I'm always glad to make someone's day, but they're not really THAT big!

Thank you, AC, for your in-depth response. The figures that I've used have been well researched but it's only my personal belief that most Canadians don't know the powers of the Governor-General. Perhaps this is should be altered to 'don't care' about the Governor-General although I'm pretty sure that most people here wouldn't know who Julie Payette is. It would be interesting to do a survey if I had the time. Maybe Harry is better equipped than his brother but as interesting as this is, I think that I should keep away from this topic. Thanks for reading and commenting.

This may be a tad controversial and put me firmly on the radar of MI6 but I want to talk about the Royal Family. You know, the ones that live on the other side of the Atlantic but rule Canada. Now I’ve been accused in the past of being a bit of a queen, but I’ve never been much of a royalist and I cannot see any benefit in continuing with a British Monarch as the head of state in Canada. I won’t be fooled, I know for a fact that there’s no such thing as Kings, Queens, Princes, and Princesses. It’s all made up; they belong in Walt Disney films and fairy-tales, but they’re not real. Let’s face it, they’re just ordinary people who have been lucky enough to land a cushy number. They weren’t chosen by God as some goofballs would have you believe, they haven’t got blue blood, and they didn’t pull any swords from stones or slay any dragons either. They got to the throne by mercilessly torturing and killing anyone who dared to oppose them, including members of their own family—especially members of their own family. The present Queen Elizabeth II is a descendant of Henry VIII (1st Cousin 14 times removed), who relatively speaking, must surely be assured a place in the rogue’s gallery of the worlds most blood-thirsty despots. There are many other unsavoury characters in her bloodline; too many for it to be coincidental, but rather than apologise on behalf of her sadistic ancestors, she positively basks in their memory, proudly displaying portraits of these well-documented monsters as if they were Mother Teresa. If you add up the number of murders directly attributed to this family and the resulting wealth that they have accumulated, they may just be the most successful crime family of all time but surely in the modern world, their days are now numbered. In the UK, their popularity has been steadily decreasing since the Diana debacle and it’s no surprise—given their list of previous—that many Brits believe that there was some sort of foul play involved in her death. Well, that’s a surprise, who would have thought? I believe that it’s unconstitutional to have an unelected foreign head of state in Canada, and I’m not alone. According to the latest Forum Poll conducted in 2015, 73% of Canadians would prefer to have an elected Canadian as their head of state. Unsurprisingly, on a provincial level, Quebec has the highest percentage of anti-monarchists with over 90% in favour of replacing the Queen. Those figures, if correct, do not bode well for William and Kate but they only have themselves to blame. They seem completely out of touch with the ordinary people and in particular the youth who will ultimately be the ones who decide on their future. It doesn’t help when you get married dressed like the Duke of Wellington at the Battle of Waterloo. I mean really, what groom carries a sword on their hip these days? It was another bonding opportunity wasted by a family still struggling to adjust to the twentieth century, let alone this one and they wonder why young people around the world find it difficult to relate to them. It was back to the drawing board but they know that the public love a Royal baby so the heir to the throne and his good lady have been at it like rabbits and knocking out sprogs quicker than a Catholic whore house. However, as formidable a weapon as this is in the hands of the press, poor William, bald already, just doesn’t look as if he has the spunk for this type of fight! Seriously though, most Canadians I believe, are misinformed about the role of the monarchy in their country. They know that the Queen’s on the money—in more ways than one—but they also believe that she has no real power in Canada. Wrong! Everyone knows that the Governor-General is chosen by the Prime Minister, but that’s more of a gentleman’s agreement than a constitutional rule of law. Officially the Queen chooses that appointment to carry out her ceremonial duties as head of state and that’s the key, she is the head of state. They may also be unaware that they are contributing to the British Royal Family from their taxes. Canadians pay $1.57 per person per year to support the Queen or just over $50 million per annum. It’s not a lot when you look at it like that, but it is when you consider that the British only pay $1.32 per person per year and they get to keep the crown jewels. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not attacking the UK or the British people in any way. My mother was English, I started school there, and spent most of my childhood and some of my adult life in London. I have dual nationality and I still haven’t shaken my English accent. I’m proud of my heritage but I’m not proud of the Royal Family, who in my opinion have done precious little to distinguish themselves or justify their enormous wealth and privilege in this world. I believe that the British monarchy has no future in Canada and that they should be replaced with a Canadian, democratically elected head of state, similar to the system that they have in France. This change should come about when the reign of the present Queen Elizabeth II comes to an end. In other words, when she’s brown bread. I will finish with a quote from Paul Heinbecker. A prominent Canadian diplomat and policy advisor, taken from an article in ‘The Globe and Mail’. “We should change the Oath of Citizenship to require new Canadians to swear allegiance not ‘to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada, Her Heirs and Successors…’ but just to Canada, and to the Canadian Constitution and rule of law.” Is this too much to ask? What do you think? I’m not just looking for Canadian responses here but from all over the world. The USA, UK, Australia, France, and Scandinavia (I know that you also have Kings and Queens, it’s just that nobody knows who they are).

I liked the dance too and I'm impressed with Toby. What can I say about Carlos and Daniel that hasn't been said already in the comments above.

I wonder what Carlos did in the army that he thought would disgust Daniel. Interesting chapter.