LittleBuddhaTW

This chapter was quite a surprise ... I kind of figured that Cameron's dad was sort of out of the picture for the time being since Cameron was taken in by Mr. Harris ... the accident and everything was a twist I wasn't expecting, and I really have no idea how this is going to play out. If he survives, will he "see the light" and want to start over in his relationship with his son? Would there then be a battle with Mr. Harris for custody? I could see this going in a million different directions ... well, actually, not that many directions, but you get the idea. Anyway, great chapter, Vance! *BIG Hugz & kisses* Buddha

It is hot in Taiwan right now ... although that is what you come to expect from a subtropical island. But I still don't have to like it, and I don't. And the humidity is so high that you feel like you're practically drowning if you go outside. I could handle it when I lived in Florida, because they have this wonderful thing called "central air-conditioning" in the United States. They have it here, but only in the nice, new office buildings. Most apartments only have the window unit kind, and they're expensive to use. I have one in the living room and one in my bedroom. Because my living room is so big, it doesn't get very cool, so I just tend to hide out in my bedroom with the air-conditioning turned on high during the summer months. And the start of summer also means that I'll be taking 2-3 showers per day now. And speaking of showers, the showerhead in my bathroom broke (yes, "Made in Taiwan" still means crappy), so I had to brave that devil's den of a supermarket again to buy a new one, and managed to install it. Yes, this particular gay boy can do simple household maintenance ... and I even have my own tool box! *gasp* In story news, I finally finished writing Chapter 16. It took me forever, but now it's out of my hands and into the much more capable hands of Kitty who will undoubtedly do her magic again and make it actually readable. I just sent Chapter 14 to Myr, so it will probably be up by Saturday morning or so. I've also started working on Chapter 17, and hopefully it won't take me as long to finish as Chapter 16. And amidst all of this, I'm still progressing with the move. The deadline for registering for the Ph.D. entrance exam has passed, and since I didn't sign up, that means there's absolutely no turning back now. I sent two more boxes of books home last week, and pitched some more stuff. The next box will be mostly clothes and knick-knacks, so it should be a lot cheaper to send. On Monday, I need to take Simba back to the vet to get his vaccinnation booster shot, and then later on this month I'll take all three of them to get their official check-up, rabies shots, and microchips. That should be fun ... or not.

Tell him how you feel ... you may never get another chance, and you would probably end up regretting it for the rest of your life ... Buddha

Kitty has finished doing her magic on Chapter 14, so it should be posted sometime this weekend.

That's what the story is about? Just Ryan and Connor's relationship?

[Deleted cuz I'm a dumb blond ... lol]

It's kind of hard to know how to react/reply to some of the posts in this thread, where people have shared some of the traumatic experiences they have been through. One the one hand, it makes me sad that anyone had to live through that kind of thing. But on the other hand, I'm glad that the story has been able to allow people to face what happened to them, and that there is a means to vent and share those thoughts and feelings (that being this forum), as well as being able to interact with others who have been through similar experiences. It seems that everyone has had slightly different reactions to the aftermath of being raped. I think where Connor's experience diverges from many of them is that when he woke up in that hospital, he was surrounded by people who cared about him, and who already knew what had happened. If he could have denied it or lied about it, he might have done that. He did feel ashamed of what had happened (as he said many times), he did believe that Ryan would be disgusted at him and would never want to touch him again, etc. But they all immediately began to reinforce that that wasn't the case, he didn't do anything wrong, he wasn't "dirty," etc. He wasn't allowed to bury the experience and hide away from it. The issue of medication is a difficult one, but I think his doctor's made the right decision in getting him started on anti-depressants and anti-anxiety medicine right away, which would help alleviate the psychological turmoil that he would be certain to go through until he got into therapy. So, basically, the people around him did everything "right" to try to get him on the road to recovery immediately. But again, everyone's reactions are different, not only because everyone's mind processes things in a different way, but also other factors, and Connor ended up in an ideal place right after the rape ... with people who knew how to take care of him. Unfortunately, most rape victims don't have that. With that said, the healing process does take time, and some may say that you can never be completely healed from an experience like that. We'll just have to wait and see how Connor deals with it in the future, how willing he is to accept counseling, and whether or not he has any other symptoms of PTSD. I'd say that he was pretty lucky to wind up in the home of a doctor who knew how to handle it (for now).

This is another one of those important times in your life, kinda like when you started college, and now you're beginning a new phase in life. It's easy to get stressed out about all the stuff that you've gotta get done (I'm going through the same thing now -- packing, organizing, preparing for the oral defense of my thesis, etc.), but you'll make it, and I'm sure you'll do it with a smile on your face and do an AWESOME job! Anyway, I'll miss your excellent analysis of SOOTB while you're gone, but look forward to lots of posts from you when you get back, and there should be a few more chapters for you to read. Take care and go get 'em, tiger! hehe (I've always wanted to say that!) :2hands: *Hugz* Buddha

I think everone here feels the same way about you too, Vance. You're not only a really great author (you're listed as one of my favorites in my profile!), but you're also a really nice, sweet (and HOT!) guy. I think GA is very lucky to have you here, and it's always a lot of fun to talk to you in the chat. I'm really enjoying reading "Cameron," and every Saturday morning (Friday night your time), I'm always eagerly awaiting the latest chapter. *Hugz* Buddha

I'll have to respectfully disagree with you, Kevin. In "Shane," the principal's home was the "safe place" for Shane to go if he needed to, and in "Tyler," Conner's house was Tyler's "safe place." Both of these places had responsibile, caring adults that could not only provide a physical place to go, but also a sense of security and the help/assistance that only such an adult can provide. Cameron would not get that going to Cole's house, because although Cole may be able to give him friendship, love, or affection, there is no adult there who is capable of "rescuing" him if need be. Obviously, Kyle's house has adults, but Cameron can't be himself there yet (whereas Tyler and Shane could at their respective "safe places"). It's not just a physical place to go to, but an emotional sense of security as well, knowing there is somewhere to go if things were to get too bad, and that they would be accepted there by people who had the ability to help them (although it took both Tyler and Shane a while to figure that out).

I haven't been able to get any writing done over the past few days, because I've been working on a rush translation job for a company. It only pays US$130, but that'll at least pay for about two boxes to be shipped back home. I'm almost finished, and once I'm done, I need to try to get a little further ahead in the chapters for SOOTB. Chapter 16 is taking forever to finish, and I don't know why, because I know exactly how I want it to go, but I can't seem to sit at the computer and type more than a few lines here and a few lines there. It's quite annoying, actually. I was really moved by the comments left by Luc and Kitty in the thread on Connor's rape experience on the discussion forum. When I started out writing, I just wanted to write an interesting, entertaining story. I never realized that it would end up being something that would actually move people emotionally and cause such a reaction, nor did I really expect it to be such a "dark" story ... but I'm pleased with the result so far, and I would rather write stories that have a message, and not just the typical online gay fiction. I hope the second half of the story will garner as much interest as the first half. I was notified yesterday that my oral exam for my M.A. will be on Friday afternoon, May 19th. So, in less than three weeks, I'll finally be finished! WOO-HOO! The exam itself shouldn't be too difficult, although I wouldn't mind having a bit of interesting debate with the exam committee. My own graduate advisor will probably give me the most trouble because she likes to argue. One of the other professors got her B.A. through Ph.D. at University of California, Berkeley. She's a really brilliant scholar, and one of the leaders of the gay rights movement in Taiwan (and the only one of the three committee members who speaks English). As for moving stuff, I shipped off one more box yesterday, making a total of seven shipped so far. Hopefully I'll only have a few more boxes worth of stuff to send. Once that's done, I need to see how much of my furniture I can sell and then see about what to do with the rest of it ... and, of course, get as much writing done as possible. I always do my best writing in the morning when I wake up, but lately I've been spending that time in the live chat ... so I think I'm gonna stay away from the chatroom for a while until I've gotten caught up on my writing. I don't know how busy I'll be once I get back to the States, so I want to finish up SOOTB before I go back, and hopefully have the first few chapters of my next serial, tentatively titled "My Elusive Drug," before then as well. I also need to get some more work done on my Summer Anthology entry. Anyone who wants to chat with me can add my AIM: LittleBuddhaTW (how original, huh? hehe) Anyway, I guess that's it for today ... about two more paragraphs left to translate on this stupid project and then I'll be done ...

Davey's doing it right ... way to stand up to that idiot Dr. Darnell, Davey!!!! Excellent chapter, Dan. As most people know, sequels usually aren't as good as the original, but as DOR and DIR have shown, the whole saga just keeps getting better. It's fascinating to imagine all of the different ways things could have turned out, and how things could turn out in the future ... and that small, seemingly inconsequential events can wind up being of national and even international importance. Can't wait to read Chapter 11 ... although since Dan has threatened to shoot me (twice) with a tranquilizer gun, I may be unconscious when it's posted ... *sigh* Buddha

I might enjoy myself too much after the tranquilizer wore off, though ... especially if I was wearing a nice, crisp, clean baseball uniform ...

My fourteen years of martial arts training might have something to say about that ... But I'm glad you like the story anyway ... the cliffhangers might not be fun for everyone else, but they sure are fun for me ... and probably Kitty, too, because she has advance chapters! lol

Thank you for sharing that, Luc. It means a lot.

As president of Lugh's fan club, I'll take up the challenge ... It should be "personal view," NOT "personnel view" ~ Buddha-pest

I think everyone knows my favorite is Elton John ... As for a favorite song of his, I don't know ... there's so many good ones ... "Burning Buildings" from the "Breaking Hearts" album (1984) immediately comes to mind, though.

That was horrible! But if it's more you want, don't worry, cause I have an inside source that tells me that Kitty is already working on Chapter 14 ... hehe Buddha

My current laptop was bought in Taiwan ... and has the Chinese version of Windows installed. So at the very least, it'll give me a nice reminder of Taiwan when I'm back home (even though Windows pisses me off). I'll probably pick up an iPod, too, since they're cheaper here than in the States. I'll have to check into cell phones and find one that'll work in the States. The cell phones here are great, and they're a generation ahead of the ones you can find in the West. As for you hunting me down and making me suffer ... you can do that to me anytime you want! lol

Thanks for the suggestions! Although the above suggestion is plausible, I've always been one to insist on playing by the rules, even if it means I'd end up losing the money in the end. She hasn't been mean or dishonest to me yet, and I've been a good tenant, so there really isn't a reason for me to just skip out and unilaterally take the security deposit out of the last month's rent (the security deposit is two months' rent anyway, so doing that, I wouldn't even get the whole amount). Also, foreigners have a bad enough reputation in Taiwan as it is, and I don't want to add to that. So, I want to give her plenty of notice, and as a "carrot," I will tell her that I plan on giving her the new air-conditioner that I bought when I first moved in (only the living room had one, so I bought another one for my room). I can't take it with me anyway, and if I make it sound like a gift or gesture of goodwill, that might make her more reluctant to stiff me on the deposit if she'd planned on doing that. I will also definitely set up a clear time for inspection and return of the deposit, but not so soon, since it's still two months away, but I might bring it up by saying we can discuss details of the inspection and deposit later, like maybe in June. My last landlady (who was literally a crazy woman) gave me back my deposit with no problem, so I'm hoping this one will do it as well.

Thanks for all the feedback so far. As usual, I really enjoyed reading Kevin's (AFriendlyFace) analysis especially. You're such a thorough reader, Kevin! hehe Sorry about the "cliffie" (Kitty's terminology) ... well, actually I'm not ... it'll make everyone want to read the next chapter that much more ... *evil laugh* But I'm hoping the wait will be worth it. Anyway, keep the comments coming! *Hugz* Buddha-pest (Lugh's nickname for me ... I think it has a double meaning! lol)

I posted Chapter 13 of SOOTB on Saturday morning. I'm still working (slowly) on Chapter 16, but I at least have the whole thing mapped out, as well as most of the rest of the chapters, unless something comes to me in the middle of the night and I decide to make some kind of major change. I'm estimating that it will end up being about 23-24 chapters, plus an epilogue. I've also started working on a new short story that I will probably submit for the Summer Anthology. I've only written the first page so far, but that always seems to be the hardest. After that, I'm not sure what I'll do ... I'm still thinking about it. Writing has been very rewarding so far, and I really enjoy the interaction with the readers, but I'm very nervous that I won't be able to top SOOTB. The whole story just sort of popped into my head very naturally, and I don't want my next story to seem forced. So we'll have to wait and see, I suppose. I've already gotten quite a bit accomplished this weekend. I sorted through most of my clothes and did a huge load of laundry, have two bags full of junk to pitch, and another box ready to ship home on Monday. I also managed to drag myself to the supermarket today, which is always a dreaded chore, since Taiwanese supermarkets are a nightmare, especially on Sundays. For some reason, Taiwanese think that going to the supermarket is a family "event," so it's the husband, wife, and darling children (note sarcasm at the use of "darling"), and the parents let their kids run around the store like it's a playground, running into people, screaming, and generally causing mayhem. And, of course, being the most crowded day of the week, the store clerks choose that time to re-stock the shelves, so the aisles are always full of boxes, crates, etc. Haven't they ever heard of doing re-stocking before/after opening hours? But it's like that every friggin' time I go there. It's a zoo. Tonight when I go to give next month's rent to my landlady, I'm going to tell her that I'm planning on moving, so just a tad bit over two months' notice. I'll be paying extra close attention to her reaction to see if I can tell whether or not she'll give me back my security deposit. I'm quite good at reading people if I can see their eyes and facial expressions, but she's a tough nut to crack. She puts on a very cheery and friendly facade, but like so many other people I've met here, it just seems fake. I really need that money back, though (nearly US$1,000), so if she decided to be a b**** and not return it (and there's nothing I can really do about it -- foreigners have almost no legal rights, protection, or means of legal recourse in Taiwan) then I'm screwed. *sigh* UDDATE: I just told my landlady that I would be moving at the beginning of July, and she seemed to take it fine (although a bit surprised). She asked what part of the US I'd be moving to, what kind of job I was planning on, etc., etc. I also told her that I would give her the second air-conditioner I bought after I moved in, and she seemed very pleased with that (although she of course did the obligatory "three time refusal" before accepting). I also told her that we would discuss "details such as the deposit" sometime in June so she at least has that in her mind and knows that I expect that deposit back. So now I just have to wait and see ... doesn't seem like there will be a problem so far.

Chapter 13 is up ... http://members.gayauthors.org/littlebuddhatw/SOOTB13.html As usual, many thanks to Kitty for doing a fabulous job editing! I look forward to seeing what everyone thinks ...

Hmmm ... "karma" is a very UN-Christian concept ... isn't that sacrilege to be talking about believing in that, Nicko? And besides ... I LOVE the idea of karma, because it always tends to play hardball ... and since I love it, you might want to scratch that one from your vocab, lest you end up being like me, God forbid ...

I don't like Kyle's dad, either ... and I'm surprised Cameron has taken to him so easily ... but then again, I suppose he really doesn't have much of a choice. One thing I like about this story, that is really different from both "Shane" and "Tyler," is that both Cameron and Cole come from pretty bad homes ... Cameron because his parents don't care about him, and Cole because for all intents and purposes, his mother is pretty much gone. So it's not like Cameron could go running to Cole's house for safety, and vice versa. So far, there's no "safe place," so to speak.