Carlos Hazday

It shall, my friend. A break to catch our breath and we'll be together again.

LMAO - Their parenting methods were derived from how a BFF and my brothers raised their children. Things are quite different these days from how I was raised, and I keep trying to show them giving the kids lots of leeway to fail or succeed on their own. Hope the new year brings health and happiness.

Thanks, Chris. Look at the banner on my profile page. I already changed it to the next story.

Thanks, Gary.

Sunday, 9 May 2027 Barcelona “I want you to come with us, Ceej.” Jefferson clung to his father’s leg while Roosevelt tugged on his coat and nodded in agreement. “I can’t, guys.” He squatted and placed a hand on a shoulder each. “I have to go to work. And you three”—he glanced at Liebe standing next to Owen and winked at her—“are going to have so much fun with your cousins.” “Grandma’s not going to be happy with me. She’ll be upset when I tell her I don’t want to go to mass wi

LOL - They wanted to sample wines from different Med countries! I'm saving the Israeli and Greek ones for when CJ charters the boat to cruise the Santorini and the Agean. FYI - The next story and a couple of others coming up all have them drinking rose.

No matter what action, turns, and twists I may come up with, it always comes back to family. And in this case one that gets along. Now you made me think of some that have issues. Have you watched the Netflix documentary? I haven't.

She's a little quieter, but she can keep up. I liked writing the dialogue with the stew since I rarely get to do 'girl talk.' And yes, she ends up in Malibu with a long commute, but I suspect she'll ride a motorcycle to work.

I miss Harley too! I'm trying to rotate through the entire Squad in the summer of 2022 stories, and I haven't decided which one to plug him into. I have two options. So far, Ritch was featured in Key West, Brad and Lincoln were in Everhope, and Carson's all over Newport. CJ and Owen are obviously in wvery one. That's six out of 12 and I have six stories in which they could appear. Plus, I'd like the football players from New Year's Day, Dr. Mookjai and his wife, and Tony and Colt from New York to make appearances too. Let's see how much I can cram in.

Mateus was big when I was in high school! I never knew about how popular it was until I went looking for an European rose. I have the guys drink a lot of rose during the summer and I'm running out of good reasonably priced ones. Can't have them drinking 500.00 bottles all the time. LOL I'm honestly not sure what I'll share next. AS I mentioned, I've been struggling to write lately, mostly because there are a lot of ideas floating around in my head. It's why I decided to outline a bunch of books. One story revolves around Owen's parents visiting Washington in the summer of 2022. Wrote the 1st chapter, but I've been stuck on the second one. It's the one where they all hit the National Zoo and have an Aussie reporter tag along. As for the Cuban mini-trip, it happens in August 2022, and I have a prologue written, but that's it. I have been listening to a lot of old Cuban music lately trying to pick what I want for the soundtrack. At some point I'd love to write the November 2027 Vegas party. Lots of life-changing events in that one, and it would feature the entire Squad for the first time in ages. We'll see.

Great premise. I like alternate history tales.

Meant to comment on this line and forgot about it. I haven't been to the National Zoo in a couple of decades, so I've been doing some research for a visit I have planned in July 2022. Did you know although the government funds most of the zoo's operations, capital improvements are underwritten by supporters. Their species survival program was rewarded early this year when a cheetah bor 5 cubs and another one gave birth to two a few months later. At least one of the cubs was named by a donor. It's a common practice so having a kangaroo named Brett could happen.

Same to you. Owen was easily folded into the family, and I suspect Lucy is now as much a member of the gang. I wanted to differentiate her reaction when dealing with the family finances, and hopefully I showed some of it shocking her, but she takes it in stride. Having known them all for so long probably helps. I think this is the end of Ritch the Romeo for sure.

The good thing about writing short stories instead of long novels is the ability to cover lots of events. January sill bring another CJ story, and February something different. Not sure about what follows since I've been struggling with how to structure the next story I'd like to share. Hopefully I'll get something written.

Thanks, Dave. Among a few other things, the proposal was a primary reason for this story. Hell, I even saved it for the end of the story! Assuming Ritch gets two-weeks leave for the wedding, I think they need to honeymoon in Europe so they don;t lose an entire day when he returns to Italy. I'm thinking Croatia's Dalmatian Coast might be a good choice.

I think I previously mentioned this in a previous chapter's comments. Next story we return to 2022 and travel to Newport, Rhode Island for a wedding. You may want to re-read at least the ending of Everhope; Newport picks up right after it.

LMAO That might be an interesting shirt to wear. Particularly to a strip bar!

I think this chapter qualifies as a romance. LOL

And a happy Christmas to you too. One more chapter to go, then a break. Don't get drunk New Year's Eve, I'll be posting the first chapter of the next story on the January 1.

Looking forward to the new year and I hope it's a good one for all of us. One problem with your comment; we're not done with this story yet. There's a short epilogue I would have posted today too, but GA only allows one chapter a day. Come back tomorrow morning for the conclusion.

step away from the computer screen, Mike. Addictions can be dangerous. LOL We're not done with the trip.

You're welcome, and thanks for reading and reacting. Any scene you liked best?

Saturday, 8 May 2027 Balearic Sea “Twenty-nine, thirty, thirty-one…” Lucy nodded and raised her mug but did not stop counting when Kitt stood beside her, carafe in hand. Pink and lavender streaked the eastern sky as the sun returned to the sky. Once showered and wearing clean clothes, the two couples reconvened on the forward deck, after a detour through the galley to get coffee. Kitt offering refills was welcomed. “Thirty-two, thirty-three, thirty-four…” The cadence was

Yeah, we're not discussing story lengths anymore. LOL For the record, new and blue is not tied into borrowed and old. I may have borrowed ideas and there's a very old character but no nuptials are included in the story.

Afterward, CJ and Ozzie regretted taking the kids to the performance. The twins in particular would for weeks use anything they could get their hands on to strike surfaces throughout Everhope. The constant drumming made the fathers consider boarding school in Switzerland.