C James

That is downright spooky! It is missing, and I was just now looking for it! The person below me will tell me where to find my remote.

:king: :king: :king: Happy Birthday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :king: :king: :king:

I've often been told that "homosexuality is an abomination, because the Bible says so." My first response to that is that no one has any business forcing their religion on anyone else A man by the name of Bin Laden is a prime example of those who think otherwise, as he, like some extremist Christians, want the USA to follow his version of religion. Furthermore, I usually remind the person citing the "biblical homosexuality" issue that the word "homosexuality" cannot be in the bible, for there was no actual word for it in any of the classical languages in biblical times, and certainly not in Hebrew, Aramaic, or ancient Greek. (the original languages of the books of the Bible). The standard translations are slightly different: (American Standard Version, 1901) "And if a man lie with mankind, as with womankind, both of them have committed abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them." (English Standard Version): "If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them." (King James Version): "If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them." Can the above passagges be interpreted as referring to homosexuality? Yes. They could also be interpreted as referring to sleeping (platonicly) in the same bed, and in the English translations it could also be interpreted as lieing: a Man should not Lie to another man the same way he would lie to a woman". Are my interpretations likly? No. However, just like the homosexuality issue, they are interpretations, and one of the tenets of most fundamentalist faiths is that they take the bible literally, they do not interpret it. It is often quite amusing to maneuver a fundamentalist into saying that they are interpreting, and then reminding them of their own prohibitions on doing so. I am also fond of quoting a different passage from Leviticus: Leviticus 11:9-12 (King James Version) These shall ye eat of all that are in the waters: whatsoever hath fins and scales in the waters, in the seas, and in the rivers, them shall ye eat. And all that have not fins and scales in the seas, and in the rivers, of all that move in the waters, and of any living thing which is in the waters, they shall be an abomination unto you: They shall be even an abomination unto you; ye shall not eat of their flesh, but ye shall have their carcases in abomination. Whatsoever hath no fins nor scales in the waters, that shall be an abomination unto you. Yes, shellfish. I love pointing this out whenever a homophobe fundamentalist quotes Leviticus. I think I can also make a fairly good case that the "whostsoever has fins and scales" passage is a directive to eat anything that does. This would include poisonous fish. Also, the control surfaces and anechoic tiles of a modern nuclear sub fit the "fins and scales" definition quite well. Slavery? The sermons in the 1850's and before in support of slavery are quite interesting reading. Leviticus 25:45

Well, you could get a Goat avatar. It's a growing movement, I tell ya! I must be the forum Goat, because trolls, unlike me, do post.

I'm not fond of fairy tales myself, which is why I went with the "folk tales" part for my entry. For example, the Viking sagas, Norse Mythology, Greek mythology, all (and much more) are fair game. It's all in the rules which are posted here The person below me is also planning a folk tales entry for the fairy tales anthology.

Uhoh! Hmmm, this reminds me of something in my "1000th post" thread. Let's see, it was only a short while ago that you had your 1000th post, and you are already at 1393! So, i don't think there is any danger of that happening! Hmmm! I certainly didn't think this would ever happen!! Ummm, OK, maybe I should admit (yes, this will probably shock a lot of people) that even though I'm well known as a shy and quiet lurker, I do post occasionally...

Can't wait to see what you come up with!!! I am working on mine too, but I'm going with the "folk tales" category. The person below me is also doing a "folk tales" based story for the Fairy Tales anthology.

Ouch! Poor Jacob, in more ways than one! I loved the Nurse, and I definitly DON'T like Richard! Slime... GREAT chapter! And an eeevil cliffhanger!!

The thought occurs to me that we don't know if David really did kill the old lady: He might have been lying (he certainly had motive, to try and talk his way out of that hole). If Oliver did kill his mother, I sure couldn't blame him. I just hope the father gets offed, too.

Oh yes, a few times. US-Thailand via Korea, US-Australia (over 20 hours after US internal flights were counted). Many other times I've traveled and had the air time plus time at airports while changing planes add up to well over 20 hours even if the flight time didn't. The person below me has had the combined travel time of being in the air plus time on the ground changing planes add up to over 48 hours (a very looong day).

I enjoyed them: It was a way for me to see different places, and get paid for doing so. Heh, I'd be happy if I could actually have a 2-day weekend some weeks! The person below me has their weekends mid-week, like I do.

Hi Bob! It may be a while. I had a huge financial setback (understatement alert!) last year, so I can't really afford much of anything at the moment. Hopefully in a year I can do something.

I am very happy for you!!! The person below me likes taking business trips.

Wow!! So, at least David is alive. Frank shouldn't be in too much danger from David, even if David has snapped, because David is so weak. Unless, of course, the reason for David's words is that he sees his father in the process of slamming the door shut. I'm not sure how I feel about David now, due to him killing the old lady. I can understand why he did it, but it bothers me. However, who killed Mary? I'm guessing it had to be Brian or Oliver. I don't think it was Oliver, and if it was Brian, why? Wow, what a whodunit!

I thought all authors were evil? Isn't it some sort of prerequisite? WARNING! Spoiler Alert! Turning him over to the police would be... problematic. Perhaps I'd best explain a bit for the benefit of those here who aren't familiar with small towns. The Father of Eric and Steve is a Police Officer; in a small town, take a wild guess whose side he would likely be on if someone tried accusing his kid of anything? :nuke: Lets put it this way: Marching into the police station in a small Arizona redneck town, accusing the Deputy Sheriff's kid of a felony, and then announcing that you are gay is probably not the wisest choice of action <cough>. :2hands: When will chapter 2 be out? Hmmm. The original schedule was for Thursdays, so a week from today, but I posted Ch 1 a bit early. Tuesday I think. I promised weekly postings, so I'd best go with Tuesday.

My memory is playing tricks on me again: I was sure it was several years ago. But, maybe that was just in Goat years. I was surprised how much I'd forgotten when I started trying to talk about it. I couldn't recall Garret's name, for example, nor remember what exactly it was that Dan wore around his neck or its significance. I remembered it, but not the details. I do remember far more of the story than I normal would after a few months. I am very much looking foward to re-reading it. I do remember that I was very upset by the last chapter, simply because the story ended. (that's my normal reaction when a story I love ends). It was great. I have to admit that it was a good place to end it, though. (I'd not have agreed with that at the time!). Well, now I'm thinking I might not even be able to wait until my next day off to re-read FCL!

How strange that your doctor would advise you eschew your natural diet. I love vegimite! I also love peanut butter and pepperoni sandwiches, and hot mustard instead of butter on my morning toast. One of my favorite foods is cocktail olives diced up in ice cream, with a touch of tabasco sauce. I can't think of anything that I like that is weird, though. (except the Vegimite) I've never had one of your notorious pie floaters. The person below me likes one of the foods I mentioned.

I thought he was very realistic, but I also felt that the charm really shone through; you showed it, you didn't just say it. It's been a few years since I've read FCL, but I have a re-read planned for my next day off and am looking forward to it very much. (I'm also going to read "new Brother", which I haven't yet.) For example, I'm awful with names so I've forgotten many of the character's names, but I remember the characters personalities. I'm mentioning this because they were clear enough to make that Strong an impression on me. I can't recall how many years it has been, but I think the story was almost complete when i started, then I came back from a vacation and found the last chapter or two.

Hi Red_A! ACK! That makes me look like I'm talkative! I'm not, really. I can show you hundreds and hundreds of my posts where I say, quite clearly, how quiet and shy I am (and thus never post). Maybe I should go back to claiming that my post counter is malfunctioning?

I don't know... Graeme, what did you have for dinner? :ranger: I was thinking of procrastinating, but I haven't gotten around to it yet. The person below me has finally stoped procrastinating about something.

I see your point, but I have a slightly different take. To me, Nick is in a sort of long-distance relationship with his boyfriend: He gets to see him five times a year, which is as much as some real-world LD relationships manage. If Nick does meet someone, that someone might have an interesting time of it when the jealous Boyfriend shows up for a visit.

I'm here when I should be writing the chapter I have open in another window! My excuse is that I'm just waiting for the Muse to strike. The person below me wonders what Echidnas eat for Dinner?

I've never skied in NZ, but I did visit the three volcanoes a few times. I also climbed three miles of the Franz Josef Glacier. That was weird; seeing palms next to a glacier. On the way back down I passed a tourist tour group, and one of the tourists had dropped their camera down a crevasse. The guide told them not to worry, because the glacier was a slow-mowing river of ice and the camera would be taken "downstream" to the foot of the Glacier, where the melt would free it from the ice. The tourist was delighted, until the guide added "In about a thousand years". :wacko: I love the way you are using real locations in "falls creek". It gave it a very real feeling. I loved the characters too; very well done. The one instructor (the one who was always sleeping around and got beaten up) was especially good for a minor character. I loved him!! Was he by any chance "real"??

Very well done, DS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Very provoking. Great imagery. It also draws in the reader by leaving very much unanswered.