LittleBuddhaTW

I'm left-handed anyway, so very convenient ... The person below me thinks that my editor needs to be more supportive of my crush on Caipirhina and assist me in wooing him ...

Me me me! *raises hand anxiously* The person below me thinks that Caipirhina needs to PM Buddha and ask for his MSN so they can start chatting, and thus allow Buddha to fantasize about something other than Ben's bum ...

I think this is very important, and is one of the things that I'm trying to get across with the story as a whole. I think we're all looking forward to what you have to say on this, Kitty! *Hugz* Buddha

I voted for Kyle, simply because I'm hoping that Kyle will like what he sees, and want to get in on a little "Cameron-Cole-Kyle" sandwich ... BUT, I think Mr. Harris and Cameron's mom are also very plausible. So, I'd say either one of those three would be most likely. Definitely a good cliffhanger!

It's never too late to join the discussion, and I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far! *Hugz* Buddha

I'll be excited about the World Cup Finals if you want me to be ... The person below me is trying to think of a way to get Caipirinha to exchange MSN info with him, and then hopefully woo him ...

Your cat is sooo cute, Vancey! I'm sorry to hear about your blood-pressure issue, but at least you've caught it early, which means that you can get things under control before it becomes a problem. I wish I'd gotten myself onto a better eating regimen before I woke up one morning and realized I needed to lost about 25 lbs! Believe me, it sucks to go from being the skinniest kid in your class for your whole life, to having a beer gut without ever drinking beer! *sigh* *Hugz* VPB (Vance's Personal Buddha)

*BEGIN* THAN THAN THAN THAN THAN ... it's a comparison!!! But you know I love you, Vancey-pants! ***now back to your regular scheduled program, which is hopefully returning back to the topic of either Ben's or Luigi's bums*** *END*

I think we still need replies from Joey (JSmith), and, of course, we're waiting on Kitty's more in-depth reply ... of course, there are also the hordes of lurkers out there ... C'mon guys, let's make this the longest chapter thread yet (of course, it has to be on topic ... no just posting nonsense! ) And, if y'all do that, I promise Ch. 23 will be really good ... hehe *Hugz* Buddha

EleCivil is already hosted at another website (AwesomeDude.com), and while I can't speak for GA, I don't believe the "management" believes in "poaching" authors from other sites, unless the author him/herself approaches the Gay Authors Committee with a request to be hosted.

I agree that VTicarus' comments are quite profound, and in quite a few ways, are one of the things that I have not only noticed in the posting of each chapter, but have, in a way, been "pushing" for ... it's very interesting to see how people react so differently to the same event. It is more telling about the reader than it is the story! As for the kicking Maggie in the "vag" comment ... I think there are many of us (myself included) who have thought of doing even nastier and cruder things to people. But, like Connor, we know the difference between a thought that springs out of anger, and actually acting out on it. It was just a thought, one that probably no one else would ever know about, except that we, as readers, are privy to his innermost thoughts ... something that just popped into his mind in a moment of anger and frustration. Not to mention, he's still a sixteen-year-old, angsty, moody teenager. Give the poor kid a break. Obviously, when it comes to Maggie (and "mothers" in general) there are still some issues for Connor to resolve. I think one of the big things in this chapter (I know, everyone seems to be focusing in Connor and Ben! lol) is to show that while Connor has indeed made a lot of progress, he's still got a ways to go. Will he get over some of these unresolve issues by the end of the story? Anyway, that's just my take on it, as a reader, not the author. *Hugz* Buddha

I think this is one of the best chapters of "Cameron" in a while. The interaction between Cameron and Cole was really, really sweet. Even though the early narrative didn't give too much detail about Cameron's "debauched" lifestyle, it is very clear that Cole has had a very good influence on Cameron. Perhaps, in the future, in a revised and RE-edited version, more description could be given to really *how* bad Cameron was, moreso than what is already given. It would create a much stronger contrast between Cameron "before" and "after." I was also really touched by Cameron's going to do the yardwork for his father. Is he doing the right thing, in his own small way, by trying to salvage some kind of relationship with his father, or is it time to let go of certain attachments? As for the cliffhanger, it just make me that much more anxious to read the next chapter. The line about Mr. Harris forgetting the Bible makes it seem like it's most likely to be Mr. Harris, but that could also be a trap for us gullible readers, so my guess is that it could be anyone! Way to go, Vancer!

Happy 20th Birthday, EleCivil and keep up the great writing work! We're all eagerly anticipating the next installment of "Laika"! *Hugz* Buddha

Thanks, guys ... thats's really sweet of you! I'm back safe and sound now ... just trying to get my WiFi connection sorted out ... hopefully by Saturday morning ... the password my parents' friend gave isn't working, so hopefully he can figured it out! *sigh* *Hugz* Budda

Just wanted to let everyone know that I'm back in the States, safe and sound. My wireless connection isn't working yet, but my parents' friend is coming by on Saturday morning to check it out, and hopefully it'll be ok by then. In the meantime, I'm using my parents' computer. I just would rather use mine, because it has all of the Chinese software and stuff I need for my "work," as well as the WS_FTP software I use for updates and all of my files and stuff. Anyway, hopeufully it will be resolved tomorrow. That cats are quite scared being the their new environment, but they have such a huge space to run around in now, lots of toys to play with, and lots of new things to explore. Once they get over their initial fear, I think they'll like it a lot ... at least until I have to move again! hehe Shadow managed to escape his cage somewhere between Nagoya (Japan) and San Francisco, and one of the baggage handlers found him running around in the luggage comparment in San Fran ... fortunately he caught him. Shadow and Simba both need baths as soon as they got home, because they both had "accidents" (heck, they were locked up in a cage for 25 hours). Surprisingly, Kitty was just fine. But they're all very scared right now, and it will take them some time. Anyway, hopefully the computer thing will be taken care of tomorrow. But since the guy (a retired FBI agent) doesn't speak Chinese, I hope I can translate all of the computer terminology correctly for him, and that he can actually take care of it. He gave me a password that I had to enter when it turned, but the password didn't work ... said something about it needing to be a certain number of characters, so I'm not really sure about that ... *sigh* So, I guess it's a good thing that I posted Ch. 22 early, eh? Ch. 23 is already written and off to Kitty, and my computer issues should be solved by posting time next weekend (I hope). If not, I'll just download the FTP software to my parents' computer and do it from here. Anywho, I'm beat ... the jet lag has really hit hard, and I've got soooo much stuff to do now that I'm back, like buying a whole new warddrobe, getting a cell phone, opening a bank account, and buying my NEW CAR! WOO-HOO!!! Anywho, not sure when I'll be back on MSN, but you can PM me or whatever. If things with the WiFi end up being complicated, I'll just download MSN Messenger on this computer and the other software I need, but I'd really much rather use my own computer, and have my own Internet connection, so I don't have to share with my mother. Over and out! *Hugz* Buddha ... back in the good 'ol USA

Buddha is in San Francisco now, paying out the a** to get online at the airport ... but I have a loooong lay-over. Anyway, I'm enjoying all the comments so far, and should have more to say once I get "home" and have a couple days to sleep off this horrid jet lag that I'm already feeling! Ooooh ... and Shadow (my black cat) escaped from his cage on the plane and was wandering all around the cargohold between Nagoya, Japan and San Francisco!!!! Fortunately, one of the grounds crewman caught him. NAUGHTY, NAUGHTY CAT! grrr.... *Hugz* Buddha

Chapter 22 is posted! http://littlebuddhatw.gayauthors.org/SOOTB/SOOTB22.html Many, many thanks to Kitty for doing another wonderful job editing! Enjoy! And don't be shy about posting your thoughts/comments! *Hugz* Buddha

I would have probably laughed a lot harder than the rest of them, and then spent the afternoon at the BBQ flirting with Kyle and trying to get in his pants ... the odds are that I would have been successful, too, straight or not. *Hugz* Buddha

It is sooo friggin' HOT here today ... UGH! Anyway, I'm leaving in less than two days, so this will be my last blog entry until I get back to the States. I knew Taiwan wouldn't let me go without a fight, and today was like the Battle Royale. So, I went to school to pick up my last installment of scholarship money ... I get to the cashier's office, and they didn't have any cash!!! Hello?!?! Grrr ... fortunately, I bitched at them long enough and told them I wasn't leaving until they gave me my money, so they went and found some, thank Buddha. Then, I went to complete the rest of the steps to "officially" graduate, which meant running around to a few more offices to get my form stamped, and then finally to the Office of Graduate Studies, where they gave me my diploma (Chinese and English copies) and transcripts. So, now I OFFICIALLY have my M.A. degree, and they even spelled my English name correctly on my diploma! WOO-HOO! :graduated: After that, I went to the bank to close out my account and get my money exchanged. I managed to get most of my deposit back from my landlady last night, which was no easy task. Even though I'd told her days in advance that I needed my deposit back on Tuesday night, she didn't have the money ... and then acted surprised that I wanted my deposit back! Again ... HELLO?!?!?! Why would I not be wanting nearly US$1,000 of MY money back?!?! But, she finally wrote out a check (which is weird in and of itself, because Taiwanese usually only deal in cash), and only deducted about US$180 worth for utilities and the first week's rent for July -- which she had originally said she wasn't going to charge me for, but I was so tired and annoyed that I didn't feel like squabbling about it. So, I go to the bank today to take care of all my "money stuff," and since I was already at the school, I went to the branch that is right across the street from my university. BTW, my landlady and I bank with the same bank, ChinaTrust, so I didn't think getting her check cashed there would be a problem. Well ... I was wrong. First, let me say, that Taiwan is NOT a third world country, especially when it comes to finance and technology. However, you can only cash a check at the same branch of a bank where the account is located ... even though it's the SAME FRIGGIN' BANK!!! Once again ... HELLO?!?! So, I had to go all the way to the branch where my landlady's account was, because I obviously couldn't wait three days for the check (from the same bank) to "clear." Anyway, I was there for almost two hours to close out my account and exchange my money for American dollars (combination of cash and an international money order). It was a royal pain in the ass, and I was NOT a happy Buddha. The only good news is that the exchange rate was better than I'd expected, so I ended up with a little more money than I'd originally planned on having. After that, I had to walk (in the excruciating heat) to the branch of the post office where I'd opened my account with them (yes, the post office in Taiwan has its own bank, and since I worked for the government, I had to have a separate account with them). Fortunately, closing out my account with them was painless. I still have several hundred dollars worth of money in NTD (New Taiwanese Dollars) which I'm keeping on hand for "unexpected expenses" (Buddha only knows what Taiwan will try throwing at me before it lets me leave!), but I can exchange that little bit when I get to the airport ... unless, as places in Taiwan are prone to do, the money exchange counter is closed for no apparent reason. *sigh* But, all that aside, almost everything is done now. I still have a little more packing to do, and tomorrow I have to drop by work for a little while to help them out with something (they paid me extra for doing that, in advance), and my last task will to be to shut off my phone and DSL line. Before I do that, however, I will try to post Ch. 22 of SOOTB, providing that I can get Ch. 23 finished today. So, barring any unforeseen problems, it should hopefully be posted on Wednesday night (US Eastern time). I'll be leaving on Friday morning (Thursday night US time), and arriving late Friday night (US time) back on the East Coast. So, I'll be out of touch for a few days. If anything happens (at this point, who knows?!), I'll get in touch with Kitty and she can let everyone know if there's a delay, or a freak typhoon, or whatever. Anywho, that's it ... I'll check back in once I'm safe and sound back in the good ol' US of A! to everyone ... and extra big hugs to Kitty, Vancey, Benny, and Birdie! :businesssmiley:

Happy 15th Birthday, Robbee!!! *Hugz* Buddha

Have a little chat with Kyle, and make Sylvia think you actually turned her little brother gay and that you're now together ... that could be fun, especially if you can arrange some French kissing and groping to go on in front of her (only part of the act, of course! ), or arrange for her to walk in on you and Kyle in bed together. I could most definitely have a lot of fun with that one ... but, fortunately, I never get embarrassed. *Hugz* Buddha

Not particularly, but I love the fact that you're a fellow fan of Ben's bum ... The person below me wonders if Caipirinha has a nice bum, too ...

*dusts off bronze Buddha statue* Dang, I've gotta start throwing that thing more often ... works like a charm! And good luck, Camy!

I forget which chapter it was in ... maybe five or six ... but "Laika" was the name of the Russian dog who went up in space, and one of the band members said that Brandon kinda looked like him ... I think that's it ... Anyway, now that Alex is out of the picture, I can only hope for something to happen between Brandon and the preacher's son ... I never get tired of stories that involve corrupting preachers' kids ...

Did I read that right? Maggie and one of the twins? I don't give spoilers ... but, in this case, I can safely say that Maggie will NOT be hooking up with either one of the twins ..........