frosenblum

I also read this story back when it first came out. It's one of my favorites that I reread every so often. The premise is hokey, yet @Carlos Hazday , even early in his writing career, treats it with such care that he brings it off brilliantly.

Hilarious!

Yeah. Tauruses can be calm and centered and good negotiators -- as long as you don't piss us off.

No wonder I relate to Liebe so well, being a Taurus myself.

Short and sweet. Perfect end to a delightful story. Wouldn't it be cheaper for CJ to give throw out the bad word jar and just give the kids allowances? Have a great break, Carlos. Put aside writing for a while; I bet which story to write next will be clear if you put the problem aside for a week. I with you and yours jolly joyous holidays and a happy healthy new year. (I beat down my inner copy editor to let me leave out the commas.) Hugs and kisses.

That's the twins, of course. (And they probably switched dates, too.) Liebe would never ever lie to her dad's.😁😹

Like this? L: "Grandma, I don't want to go to church." G: "I don't care. You're going. Now be a good little girl and put on the dress. L: "Grandma, CJ told me not to take any shit from you. Uncle Spencer, help!" 😎

In the song "Poor Jud is Dead", Curly tries to talk Jud into killing himself. In this recent Broadway production, it was sung in almost complete darkness. Curly and Jud were sitting on tall chairs, almost side by side but facing each other, singing/speaking into handheld mics. Their faces were so close they were almost touching, almost kissing, except the mics were in the way. The lyrics were quite menacing. However, Curly voice was so seductive and their bodies and faces so close, that the sexual tension was also very high. I think you would have enjoyed it, @Refugium.

The national tour of the recent Broadway production of Oklahoma came through San Francisco a few months ago.

Great chapter. The tone of the chapter matched Lucy's calmer temperament -- good job, Carlos! Thanks for the shout out about Alaska.

Oops, I lost track of the multiple time lines you're juggling. The wedding will summer of 2028 not 2023. 😵

Oh, good, a reading assignment to tide us over winter break.

And even more folks for you to bring back when you write about Ritch & Lucy's summer-of-2023 wedding. All of Ritch's crew of friends from the Academy. It'll be great to see in what ways they've matured since graduation.

Liebe & the twins would jump on stage with the Blues and start dancing.

Something new and blue. Wow, Avatar fan-fic.

What a surprisingly sweet chapter. We got to see another side of Lucy. And a surprisingly sophisticated verbal putdown from Ritch -- before an actual putdown, which surprisingly didn't faze Lucy. It's a delight how at ease CJ and Owen are with the complete spectrum of gay expressions -- and that macho military dude Ritch also takes it all in stride. What a great family in so many ways. I'm looking forward to the grand finale, with trumpets, cymbals and fireworks next Friday.

I was thinking Brett would talk them into giving him the fine pot so he could "invest" it in Monaco.

It's interesting that Ritch has given up on trying to curb his cussing and that it doesn't bother CJ or Owen, who cuss way less around their kids than Ritch does. I'm surprised that Liebe at least hasn't started cussing as well.

Will and Zack's relationship is on the DL. The best public spaces for Will to end things with Zack would be Escorial. At a Sunday dinner??

I've had a busy few days; it's Monday and I hadn't even realized I'd missed reading the new chapter on Friday. What a great chapter it is! I agree with others about about mixing past-present-future tidbits, especially as they show up naturally from conversations folks are having. Another masterful touch was how you broke telling us the deets about The Annex plans in installments during the course of the day -- it's more realistic the real estate agent data dump mode that some authors use. Your way is more realistic, especially given the relaxed nature of this vacation, no rush to get it all said in one conversation. I turn 80 on May 9 next year. God willing and the creek don't rise, I'll be celebrating my 84th birthday two days after Owen's 35th. Is it too early for me to start a GoFundMe campaign for my 85th Birthday cruise? 😇

How did the dinner parties go that CJ and Owen were planning years ago, when they returned from Mexico? The ones mixing together people like the Obamas with the football players, etc. You've got so many stories you're planning, you not get to write about them -- perhaps you could give us a summary of how they went, along with a few highlights. 😁

I just reread this chapter and at one point I got teary with happiness remembering Ritchie when we first met him and how devastated he was when his mom (Cj's mom) and stepdad died and how wonderful and happy a man he grew up to be. Bravo, Carlos, for writing characters so well that we readers relate to them so closely.

It'll be great to see CJ & Harley on another road trip, closest friends getting to spend time together -- rare for them with their busy lives.

Oh, good. My first thought when you dangled Harley's name in front of us was "I hope Carlos will be writing a story about the Vegas concert trip." Thank you.

I'm looking forward to that Christmas story next year -- and for the story in which Liebe and the twins meet Santino. 😁