ColumbusGuy

I had to think about Finn's section a bit--I really thought about doing it as Benny, but that night was Finn's, so it had to be him...but he's hard to capture. Lee may be in for a wild ride if they work out. Mikey has another surprise coming up in the next chapter, and I hope he'll like that one as much as the cake, but chocolate is pretty hard to beat in his eyes. The tent is like the one we had when I was a kid, and we had some nice trips using it, but I was never a fan of fishing, so that made it less exciting. Also, the boys of our family friends were a year or two older than me, and were almost, but not quite bullies. I didn't like them at all. Mikey's experiences in the tent will beat mine six ways from Sunday! Your Danish saved this chapter, min ven...never doubt that! Not to mention our little discussion on school dances way back, which led me to look into Les Lanciers.

I hope you mean Linda and Bobby curl up together--I'm sure Benny will be doing something like that with Cal. I have tried to make each couple different, so I'm glad it's working out so well. I love all of them, and want everybody to find what they are seeking in life...even our straight couple. My only worry will be what I should include of Linda's Prom Night...I know how it's supposed to work, but never took the Driver's Test! He hasn't gotten any screen time, and very little mention of late, but the one big Mystery Figure is Jerry Beckel...remember him? Jay's big brother who is in San Francisco doing service in the Coast Guard? The one with a couple gay and bisexual magazines packed in the attic? He'll be visiting in a month or so...what do y'all think he should do?

Wasn't that a surprise? Does that phrase constitute 'rough sex talk' for the guys? I tried to keep the boys in touch with their times rather than put modern 'spin' on them, so I'm glad it's working. From what I remember I wasn't too comfortable with swearing as a kid or teen...I think one of the first times I said 's--t', it was while watching a movie on tv with my mom, and I actually asked for permission! Crikey, was that insane? Of course, I got better at it, if not so frequent as a lot of other kids. You should have seen me writing Chapter 3, or the night Mikey stays over at Jay's the first time--those were my first attempts at presenting a gay sex scene! Can't find a stupid 'blush' emoticon. Maybe this works: 😳

Hey look--my online translator knows something other than Danish! Veel dank mijn vriend. What can I say--you pegged me right as an incurable romantic...hope I never find a cure. I try to find the good in everyone, which may have something to do with it--except perhaps for Timmy Zane and Kevin's parents. Gotta have a villain around somewhere, right? I keep debating on whether Timmy has a back-story, but it's a bit late now...damn it, just had a thought on that...crap! Jay and Mikey's night isn't over--we'll hear more about that next time.

Thanks, Wes. If I keep this up, I may need to increase my insulin dosage!

POV: Linda, Finn, Jay “Du begår en fejl, Lene,” Rosalie said with a sigh. I hated it when my parents said things like that because it was implying my judgments were faulty—but what irked me the most was that they were often correct. No kid likes to admit his parents might be right about something, even when it’s obvious, yet in this instance I was convinced my decision about the upcoming Senior Prom was the best one. “I just don’t think I should waste a lot of mo

I have to wonder, does sarcasm turn to cynicism with age and experience? I was often accused of revelling in sarcasm when I was a teen and collegian, but I don't know anymore; have I lost my edge, my mind, or am I simply demoralized? I had to laugh (at the appropriate points of course) in your ode, and the one on Fatih wrapped my mirth in a warm cocoon of contentment and tranquility. I needed both of these today, after seeing the folly of the world in the past weeks.

I rated this 'Angry' for one very simple reason--Anna the Bitch. I didn't like her from the start, and seeing the joy she had in destroying both her brother and Adam's love had me burning. I want to beat her senseless, but I have to wonder now if the baby is even Adam's.... for Patrick, who's the innocent bystander in all this. I am hoping against hope that Ian and Adam can work this out because of their special bond, but both have been badly hurt in the past, and this will just make things harder to resolve. I know Patrick will do his best to break down any defenses thrown up by the two men, so I'm cheering for him.

Tusind undskyldninger min ven! I don't know how I missed your review! I was also trying to capture some of how Kevin was in his daily life--he'd skip around from topic to topic, so it could be hard to follow him at times, and he could be distracted by events around him...if it happened you just tried to put him back on track, since he wasn't doing it to be rude. I think from his poetry too, it frustrated him because there really was a bright and observant guy in there. I think one of the most touching moments he let out was when he first kissed me--with his problems dealing with people, he was really reluctant...but he thought it was worth the effort since he knew it would make me happy...and other signs of affection became a lot more common for him, when we were alone. I wish he'd had the time to become the man he so wanted to be...damn his parents for what they did to him. The anniversary is gonna be fun...at least I hope Mikey will enjoy it.

Like any thinking person, I just don't get it.... In school, I said the Pledge of Allegiance every day and stood for our Anthem when it would be played...but that was a different world; people would say naive, I would say, no--we knew bad things were out there in the world, but the way to defeat them was by standing together, believing there was a way for us to come together to solve problems as a whole. Somewhere that vision--and it was more than patriotism--was lost in favor of falling for the lie that Self is more important than Belonging. From earliest times, successful societies have known that you accomplish things as a group, while keeping your individual identity close to your breast as you joined others in building society--be it a Pyramid or a Constitution. Sure, society has problems--none has ever been perfect--but even the founders of the Civil Rights movement had the vision of uniting all of us into one proud people...Martin Luther King must be turning over in his grave at the actions of those who claim to be proponents of Equality today--their 'equality' comes at the cost of tearing down everyone else to the lowest common denominator rather than raising everyone to the level where the Dream can become real. 'I have a Dream...' has turned into: 'I don't have a plan, but I'm going to trash everything others believe because I'm angry.' The Russians must be laughing their asses off because they lost the Cold War on the field of battle, but are gloating--and perhaps abetting--those who are dismantling our unity one step at a time. It won't take terrorist threats from outside to end our country, we're more than capable of doing it ourselves. On the winds of Time today, the Song of Truth is blown away in the Whirlwind of Lies....

What Geron said! I want the Golden Ticket for a sequel, my friend. Maybe I should check out the word prompts more often....

I just finished the list called up by Tim's suggestion, and I forgot to mention Cia's Carthera stories which I have to finish. Also had read and loved WolfM's. Unfortunately, I saw more than a few with very interesting descriptions that were by authors I've not read--but nearly every single one is In Process for at least four years, or On Hold. Sorry, I'm not gonna strain my eyes on stories which are abandoned, however good they might be. That left some I will read, and reminded me of some I'd begun but got lost in my 'Following' list--sorry Cia! I love yours, I just got distracted some years back and then forgot to go back and finish.

I think I've read some stories by four, wolfwriter was the first, I think. I'll see who comes up--I'll recognize other names when i see them. Maybe Fantasyboy, Rob Colton...My memory sucks when I demand info because it sorts through decades of crap I've got up there that won't go away, so useful stuff gets lost. I mean, who needs to know the name of Theodore Cleaver's Aunt Martha?

I've discovered some of the readers Tim says number around thirty, and can't help but wonder who I've missed.... I had been fairly sure the 'werewolf' part was well-covered, then you started publishing this--boy was I wrong! Week after week you had me hanging on the edge of my seat for the next part--I envy those who come along now because they won't have that agony of agonies...but I'm still hanging on my seat waiting and imploring this Headstall guy to give us a sequel which is so badly desired. Wonder when he'll give in to the hue and cry? Okay, maybe it's complete and a sequel isn't necessary--but ye Gods how I want one!

I've always liked dragons in any form. In 10th grade, my art teacher asked me to paint one on the classroom window--which I did. I'd read the Pern books a few years earlier, and was fascinated, so I got inspired by them and did a green one on the glass. A later project was part of a mural on the history of Rock n' Roll. When I graduated two years later, that dragon was still there, if faded some. So I'm in line for my darvil, thank you.

I'm so sorry Geron, what with being so sick, I forgot that this was posted at GA. I'd already read it, so it didn't hit me until Ivor mentioned it yesterday! All the Damsko stories are wonderfully creative, but his one did things in my head and heart which I can't find words for--both worlds employ their own magic, and I'd love to live in either one, especially if I could have a darvil as a friend. To paraphrase Violet: "I want a darvil--I want a darvil right now!"

At what point does a person call it quits? For me, I lost count after yet another longed-for relationship failed to live, or worse, failed to ignite. Self-preservation should allow us a finite number then say, 'That's it...' And yet, even if we take a break, Hope seems to surge right back the next time you meet someone who ticks all your boxes on your shopping list. For me, it occurred ten years ago on the 1st of September. That was the day Kevin took his own life with no sign as we'd parted three days before. I knew there'd never be another like him, and for some reason the urge to try again seemed to be gone. For all the rough edges, we 'fit'...and I was--and still am--more than content with our shared memories. Oh, I remember my Duchess tangling with a skunk more than once out in the country--Holy Cow is there any worse scent? As it turns out, there was: wet dog which still, despite scrubbing, reeked of polecat! Your pussy must be mighty formidable, G-Man, if it can tangle with such a varmint!

Congratulations my dear friend--thank you for letting me know! It's wonderful to see your talent so recognized at last!

These are great evocations of the changing seasons...but you pen them in the midst of a physical torment brought on by the gods, and my not getting a flu shot yet. I may be seeing daylight at the end of the tunnel...I hope. For those who may have read 1066 And All That...not quite 'obit surfeiti palfreyorum'. I think that's close. You make my knees ache with these too--or it could be dread of the impending arrival of the Frost Giants.

I got a little distracted with researching the piece, then started adding to it...and Nature decided to toss me a curve-ball. Wednesday night I wasn't feeling great, and it hit full force Thursday--maybe flu, maybe a virus...anyway I spent two days in the bathroom lmost hourly not sure which end was going to be active--sadly and horribly--it was both at once half the time. I'm just getting on the edge of being better, now trying to catch up on sleep and getting some energy back. I don't know if it was the gaseous aspects or what, but I have recurring hiccups which kept me awake for two days.

Hold that thought when you receive a new piece from me later tonight...not JM, sorry to burst your bubble. It's got a thorny issue already which you'll need to fix, but you're good at untangling my incoherencies.

No worries, I knew you'd catch up to me in time...I'd send disturbing vibes your way if I didn't think that. I think I've missed some notifications with this new system, so I put things down to a glitch, so we're good! Cookin' with gas!

No message? Perhaps not, but these gave me a sense of human nature's flexibility in times of trauma. In the immediacy of disaster, we all band together, but then old habits reassert themselves, and only in the best hearts does Charity still burn as bright...the rest go back to petty bickering and divisive rhetoric. 'We did our part', they say to assuage their consciences, forgetting that the tragedy lives on for those directly touched by it...then if it should happen to them, they are the first to complain of the slowness of response. They expect charity to be a continuous thing, and yet gave only token returns when asked by others. Charity, like Christmas, should live all the year long, as one reformed Victorian learned.... And then, there are people who face each day knowing that it will bring trials both inner and outer, and face them and the new day just the same, cognizant of their faults and frailties, but not letting that stand as a roadblock to doing what they can to make this new day just a little better. Strength of spirit, a resolve to carry on...it is those people who know what living is, because they pay the price for it each day from what might seem a finite account, but it gives the greatest interest rate on a future where anything can happen. my dearest friend...

I think it's nice that Ian is taking the lead here--fulfilling his job as a teacher in every way: showing encouragement and concern as well as the practicalities. Adam would be the natural leader, you'd think with his job, but in this area he's as much a neophyte as any pupil Ian has had...at least he doesn't regret going to this school.... I agree with Wesley...take your time--your chapters are worth the wait.

I must say, the first thing I read by Geron, I thought I'd be done fairly quickly as I don't look at word count first...but you know what? I loved getting the whole story at one go...no pesky waiting for it to be written (like me) or even wind up unfinished, as has happened with some stories I've found online. Geron has this wonderful style which draws me in, and I don't want to leave even when I'm done...but he also will give a little pause to change a scene or something, and those make great spots to go have a snack, feed the kids or pet...or in my case...take a whizz!