C James

Me?!?!?? How could I possibly be to blame for any of this? Rknapp (Robbie) has admitted to being in the area, had a very similar boat, and was also in New Jersey! I think he sank Ares... I don't think that, under Florida law, committing a misdemenor while armed has any legal penalty enhancement. The statue los specific, it's felonies that get enhanced. Under Florida law, breaking and entering with intent to commit a crime is burglary, a class 3 felony. Planting a GPS on bridget's boat is a misdemeanor, and so is letting himself inside it, so by breaking and entering (or trespassing, same difference) with intent to do something illegal, Henry was committing a fairly minor felony. Carrying a gun would have made it a major one with a mandatory 3 year minimum prison sentence. As for the tire caper... who owns the tire that's now on George's car? Henry, who is basically tracking his own property. (that would make an interesting legal case! I think Henry would lose though) So, Gonzalez pointed out the theft issue of the original tire. Gonzalez is trying to turn a blind eye to Henry's law-breaking, but it's bothering his conscience. And I forgot to mention the title of the next chapter! It's "One Heart".

Thanks for posting this! Yep, the Seychelles is a drug smuggling nexus, and those organizations often have contacts with each other. That's how Sanchez was able to pull off the attack on Atlantis with the pirates. :chris:

Hrmmm!!!! But... well, uncertainty? Hrmmm... I'd say there is usually certainty; for example, when Trevor had his little pirate problem off the Seychelles, it was certain he'd either die, or not. Or... that uncertainty angle is very intriguing... couldn't it be said that any mystery is, by its nature, uncertain until the mystery is revealed? Therefor, yep, there is indeed uncertainty in Circumnavigation. :o Wildone!!! No one can deny that LiS 26 was, truly, the Mother of all Cliffhangers! And let us not forget the great lemonade cliffhanger, forever unresolved... (the characters have lemonade at the end of the chapter, by we are forever kept hanging as to precisely what kind...) And let it always be remembered, and never forgotten, that Shadowgod received the very first GA King of Cliffhangers award, bestowed unanimously by a select and impartial anonymous GA committee. I am sure that Shadowgod would be the first to say that he deserved the award. :king: I have been unfairly accused!! :ph34r:

Hrmmm... there was, come to think of it, a fly buzzing around me when I read that... Huh? :huh: Benji, you know I never use cliffhangers!! Don't I say it often enough? :ph34r: :worship: Thank you!!! Hrmm, on an entirely unrelated topic, it will soon be time to update my sig file....

The boat is in a boatshed. A boatshed is basically a covered dock. It's a building. In the building, is the boat. The boat is a separate property. He'd need to enter it. That's a trespass at least, and entering a conveyance (such as a boat) for illegal intent is burglary. His illegal intent? to plant the GPS tracker. It's not legal for a private citizen to do that to another private citizen. Cops can do it without a warrant (like they did to Dirk) but only if the vehicle is publicly accessible. They can't go into a garage, or even a gated property, to do it without a warrant. Private citizens are under far greater restrictions. This is why Gonzalez requested to not know, though Henry felt the need to tell him, given the developments. Henry would be breaking the law in that building at least two ways: invasion of privacy statues, breaking and entering, and criminal damage (if he did even the tiniest bit of damage) by planting a tracker on that boat. That's a crime. Doing it inside a building makes it felony burglary, and doing so while armed makes it a very major felony. At least, that's my read on Florida law as it stood in 2006... An I'll fess up; that was said by Henry, and not in the narration, precisely because I was not absolutely 100% positive. Henry, after all, might not be sure either, and thought he was playing it safe.

Bridget... she's been under a lot of stress lately. Maybe that's why she's a bit cranky at times? ROFL!! Great point on the questions on forms.... yeah, some are real eye-rollers. Some are there to just create an extra legal charge against violators, but some... well, I guess they keep us safe from criminals who cannot lie. On the concealed carry permit issue; Yep, Henry has one. But, per Florida law, that does not make it okay to carry while committing a felony. Carrying a weapon while committing almost any felony (only things like anti-trust violations are exempt) adds on a major charge, and a minimum extra 10 years in prison. Was Henry committing a felony or a misdemeanor? Trespass is normally a misdemeanor. But, entering a building (and that boat shed he wanted to get into could certainly be called one) is a third-degree fellony. All he's actually guilty of is trespass, but, he intended to enter the shed, which would be felony burglary (it doesn't matter that he didn't intend to take anything) and armed with a gun, he'd be looking at a minimum three year stretch in prison. Here's another quote; That's why Henry didn't take his gun. It also triggered Gonzalez's stress over breaking laws... Gonzalez is supposed to enforce laws, not be a party-after-the-fact to breaking them. He self-justifies by the fact he's after a killer and a dirty cop, but he hates it. CJ

Thanks!! Good points! We don't see everything they do or think, so you're right, we didn't see Joel directly connect the dots on the trade shows. It's only now though that he makes mention of it. And yep, Lisa and Joel investigations is getting rolling! Let's just hope they don't talk about it in the guesthouse. Bridget has the perfect image to deflect drug-running suspicions; high society older lady, etc.. doesn't fit the profile. So, it might take a little while to connect a few dots, but that boatyard setup is mighty suspicious. Speaking of that boatyard... ROBS marine... hrmmm... RKanpp? However, look at the bright side... the garlic crusher is safe! Will there be a happy reunion with Trevor in its future? Trevor and Shane's bait and switch trick almost worked, and did buy them some time. However, it won't win them any friends amongst the reporters they did fool. This isn't the first chapter Trevor wasn't in... there was one other, right after he had his little pirate problem, where we focused on Florida happenings (Lisa and Joel's engagement). Trevor and Shane will be back in the next chapter. Cliffhanger??? But but but.. I never uses cliffhangers!! :blink: Bridget has betrayed Lisa in a very cruel way; using her vulnerability to manipulate her, to try to kill her best friend. Bridget is, well, not very nice at times... I have a hunch Joel may not enjoy it. Ironic, really... If they stay in Rhys Lagoon, they are safe. However, they plan to return to Carnervon, for Trevor's health. Thanks for defending me against cliffhanger accusations!

Tangled Webs is up.

Thank you, Canuk!! :2thumbs: :2thumbs: :2thumbs:

Chapter 82: Tangled Webs Joel’s emotions warred. The suspicion that gnawed at the back of his mind would not let go, even though he’d given himself time to let the issue work itself out. It hadn’t, and he knew he couldn’t ignore it any longer. Joel snuggled up to Lisa on their beach towel, stroking her hair, and said, “Lisa, something’s been bugging me. It’s about Trev, and what you said about motive. It’s just kind of a hunch, but it sorta fits.” Lisa smiled, hugging Joel to her, letting

Just a quick note; the title of the next chapter is "Tangled Webs". It will, internet connection permitting, appear Monday night.

Ah, but "Night of the Mob" was Shane's doing, not mine! It was written in his style (the grammatical constructs are stylistically different) and he even used the Aussie spellings. He also, I cannot help but note, put his name in a larger font than the title. So, therefor, this can't be said to be my doing. I am innocent in the great kangaroo caper.

As I recall, you spotted that right away, when it first posted. All I can say is... you were right, midweek trade shows or conventions in that business, ain't happening. We now know he was off to see Jim, for whatever reasons, on at least many of those occasions. Another factor that might be relevant; we know that Bridget tipped off the feds on Rachel, as part of a ploy to get Ares back. Now Benji... would poor, innocent me ever mess with anyone's head like that? 0:) 0:) He also told Gonzalez that Dirk wasn't gay, and the narration there said he was truthful. BTW, one more helpful bit I can add; If Rachel died in 1997, she would be still dead in 1998, and in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, almost certainly 2004, 2005, 2006, and in 2007, there are heavy odds she'd still be dead. This helpful earthshaking revelation brought to you by your friendly neighborhood goat.

Awesome post!! I can comment on a couple of aspects. The chandlery does indeed carry a fairly large inventory, typical for that ki9nd of a buisness, as seen in chapter 5, "The Chandlery", when Lisa, Joel, and Trevor do the inventory, as a surprise help for Dirk. (and in the process, Trev ends up discovering the divorce papers) Dirk had no employees, except for Trevor sometimes helping out. Dirk's family has never been mentioned. Trevor has mentioned that he might have grandparents in Australia, which is part of why he wants to find his family there. Trevor also mentioned thinking of Dirk being totally alone at this Thanksgiving, and he mentioned that Thanksgiving dinners when he was little were his mom, dad, and him, then later, Joel's family invited him and Dirk to join them. You are correct that Dirk leveled with Frank Tittle, and Jim as well. The narrative indicates it, so it has to be. We can therefor assume that Jim and Frank (and thus Henry) know the entire story, to the limits of Dirk's knowledge. Hrmmm! Interesting! When one becomes a fugitive from justice, the clock stops on the statute of limitations, not just for that crime, but any crime. That's established law. We did not see all of Frank Tittle's discussions with Jim and Dirk, but this is a fact of law, so I can comment. Jim and Dirk are fugitives at the moment, which means the clock stopped on everything. As things stand now, the statute of limitations won't be expiring for Dirk on Dec 17th. Frank would certainly know this. Chapter 82 will shed a bit of light here. I can't get into all the details, but the leap... It's honestly not much of a leap; Trevor, who is just a hair under 6 feet tall, would have a reach of just under three feet. If you look at the stern pic, comapred to the height of the guy in it, you can see that the bottom of the transom is in the neighborhood of four and a half feet over the water. Even if five, that makes Trevor's 'leap' less than two feet, which is very easy. Trevor could have seen the plaque; hanging by one hand, pointing and tapping at it with the other. I did indeed screw up port and starboard in my post. But, is that so strange? How many goats do you know who can keep them straight all the time? Me? Dignity? Ahh, but think of it... here's one ending that wraps it all up neatly; Trevor ends up getting a neck-level trim :battleaxe: , and his head is sent to Sanchez eastbound. That completes the circumnavigation. Bridget gets Lisa and Joel sent to prison, wrapping up their storyline. Dirk and Jim end up losing their cases, and Sanchez takes care of the one remaining loose end, Shane. See? All wrapped up, nice and neat. The above may or may not be the actual ending, but the actual ending does bring it all together and take care of it all. The final chapter, plus the epilogue, were written months ago (I write out of sequence). Generally, I like to have the ending written before I start posting a story.

OOPS! I got my port and starboard mixed up in the post. And zinging me is fun, heck, even I do it. But, turnabout is fair play, as they say. I'm off to scheme.

Ah, but he did have one; the one night stand back in Italy. But, he's sure been dry for a long time. The rest of the story? Oh, there's definitely a few little challenges ahead. ;-)

Don't worry, the only time I ever do "Dream sequences" I try to make it fairly clear that's what they are (like Trevor's nightmares). The only exception was Trevor's "First arrival" in Australia, where he was greeted by the singing kangaroos, and even there, I showed him realizing it was a dream when he woke up. Long story short, this chapter wasn't a dream, it happened.

Thanks!!

Thanks!!!! I hope you're having a better day today, too. Thanks! I think Trevor would have exploded, had something like this not occurred. Thanks! Those kind of scenes make me a bit nervous; I don't write them very often, and they are generally very hard to write, for me anyway. Well, that is a worry; due to Trevor's hair now being dyed brown, Shane fits Trevor's description better than Trevor does. Fowler and Blake know each other well; they've been friends since school, at least according to Martin Blake (the scene where he met Trevor). Thanks! I tried hard on this chapter, to get the mood and reactions right. I wonder if Trevor will be able to stop walking into solid objects now? I can comment on the tech side; if the theory (Kookaburra being a 55) is correct, the glass would be identical. The Lagoon 57 was pretty much identical to the 55, except for the bows and accompanying changes, such as reducing the size of the foresail slightly to avoid handling changes. The lagoon 57's had the same sloping forward windows as the 55s. After a run of about 16 57s, they changed again, calling it the 570, which is significantly different; it has the vertical forward windows. They did that to increase the salon size a bit, and also to reduce heating from the sun, but it has a downside; a 570 would never have survived taking heavy seas head on like Atlantis had to in the southern ocean. Like many design compromises, this one has good effects and bad ones. My personal opinion is that I prefer the 57 to the 570, because I don't like design compromises that reduce seaworthiness. *************** Thanks everyone! I've been hoping this chapter would come across okay.

When I read this, I had a suddenly icy feeling that SWS had appeared again. SWS is an acronym I created, and use a lot. It means "Stupid Writer's Syndrome", and is my shorthand for when I make a stupid mistake. The fact I felt the need to create an acronym for it might give a clue as to how often I make said mistakes. What Marty did is what I should have done; look at the picture. Until I did so, I had a feeling I'd screwed up, bigtime. Okay, what would be helpful here (and should have been in the chapter) is a stern-on picture of a Lagoon 57 (or a 55, as they are identical when seen from astern). Here's one, with a person in it for scale, Trevor, with a simple eggbeater kick (which we've seen him do before) could easily get high enough out of the water so that water level would be his stomach. That gives him a reach above the water of over four feet, easy. As we see in the pic, that would more than suffice to reach the bottom edge of the wing, so he could do it easily. This is indeed an awkward way to get aboard, but very possible, and the sort of thing athletic guys do a lot of, just for the challenge. (kind of like getting out of a backyard pool by grabbing onto a low diving board and hauling yourself up. Makes little sense when there are easier ways, but guys do it for the heck of it. One problem I ran into early on; this area is often different from boat to boat. Some have railings made of wood there, some have wire railings, some hang equipment bins there, some have a liferaft bin there, etc. here's a pic of a slightly different layout. Also, many (like Atlantis, Ares, and Kookaburra) carry a zodiac or other skiff, and usually do so hung from davits between the sterns, further complicating that area. So, Trevor could have kicked upward and lunged, easily grabbing a handhold on the lower edge of the wing (the transom) and then scrambling up, and hanging from the deck edge (a forearm on deck) he'd be at about eye level with the plaque area. And yep, if the Zodiac is in place (it likly is, as they haven't used it in the lagoon yet) he'd have the Zodiac behind him. He'd still fit fine, but it's something he'd be aware of, and I should have mentioned the zodiac. All this is awkward, and he could have seen it almost as well by looking over from the starboard aft stairs. I think it works as is, but I do regret not looking at a pic first and describing it a bit better, because as it is, it is confusing. I'll see what I can come up with, maybe an added sentance or two, to clarify it. I'm glad you brought this up. Plus, I can't say what, exactly, but it showed me a detail change I need to make in a coming chapter, something I spotted in one of the pics I saw while looking for these. CJ

Ultimate Designs is up. I hope this one comes across okay. I always worry whether I've left too many clues, or not enough. CJ

Surely there are evil lies and deceit; from those who accuse me of cliffhangers. Shameful, really. Huh? Now, when have I ever been sneaky? : I love this!!! Yep, that's a big part of it; I respect the readers too much to subject them to the horrors of cliffhangers. :ranger: And indeed, I am a paragon of integrity when it comes to my utter and total avoidance of cliffhangers. Yes indeed, it is shameful that some authors would stoop so low as to post threads about themselves to validate their beliefs about themselves by posting threads about their writing techniques. Well said! What insecure people such authors must be! Shameful, really. And btw, your food metaphors made me hungry! I'm off to raid the fridge... I do indeed avoid heights... they make me nervous. Thanks! The new chapter is up, and the forum thread will be appearing in a minute. I love leaving clues. My aim is to give enough info for people to figure out the plot, or the resolution to a current minor difficulty. For example, there were many references to sundials, the mechanics of telling time and location via the sun, mentions of the perils of the southern ocean, etc, before Trevor had his minor navigational inconvenience at the hands of the pirates. As for his feeling a little down after departing Atlantis due to the pirates, the clues to how he'd return were scattered about; his open water swimming, his freediving experiences, and simple physics and physiology. I never use cliffhangers, though. Coathangers... hrmmm!

Chapter 81: Ultimate Designs Kookaburra basked in the hot sun, bobbing gently in a light breeze that did little to ease the heat. Trevor and Shane lay side by side on the salon’s deck, working on the book. The deck was hard but cool, so with the aid of cushions for their elbows, it was the most comfortable place to work. Shane had the laptop in front of him, along with many pages of written notes. Trevor leaned in close, looking at the screen, their bare shoulders touching, as Shane finishe

Neither, yet. I haven't had time to work on it, due to other stuff (like a car repair) taking priority. I'll be getting back to it this week. So far, I've tried all advice above, including remounting the CPU (another delay, getting some arctic silver to redo the mounting paste). I just have to put the thing back together again and try it. CJ

I had an idea for a new thread... a place for speculation and analysis of my most well-known trait: the fact that I never use cliffhangers. So, anyone have any theories, speculation, or analysis on how and why I keep my stories completely and absolutely cliffhanger-free? :ranger: