ReaderPaul

Glad Raj finally saw through Juanito. Now he can look for a REAL someone. Juanito is going to have some very powerful people ticked off at him, starting with Mr. P. And it is NOT wise to try to pull the proverbial wool over they eyes of Edward, either. Edward might be fooled, for a very short time, but not for long. Edward and Romel need to make SURE Juanito is attending his classes. I'm sure they can figure out how to do that. The story behind that might appear in the third part of CWB, bur first Justin and Jared need answers. @Wombat Bill -- you are doing a wonderful job of keeping us wondering. I look forward to seeing the analyzing as done by @Summerabbacat, @chris191070, @NimirRaj, and @CaJu, plus anyone else with thoughts they are willing to share. @Wombat Bill please consider making the fourth CWB a more serious toned one, featuring on the wildfires. While many serious items are covered in these first two CWB, you did say some time back that any writing about the fires would be more serious.

@CaJu -- I think you are right. I'm wondering if Julia's name could be Roberta Julia or Julia Roberta, or if there is a female cousin of Brenden's who had the last name of Haynes. Here in the United States we have Internet search agencies which, for a fee of $9.95 to $19.99, will tell you all sorts of personal information about a person, providing you know their first and last name, or middle and last name, AND have their postal mailing address and/or physical home address, if the post office is a PO Box. For higher fees, you can learn almost everything about them except their fingerprints and DNA. For the two lower prices, you can find out their date of birth, previous addresses, aliases used, often which schools they attended, and what jobs they have had. I don't know if Australia has anything like that or not. SOMETHING is going on. We just do not know all the details -- yet. (Of course, Justin and Jessica might find that Julia feels there is NEVER an appropriate time to talk about it.) I am sure @Wombat Bill will tell us more very soon.

True, the bladder is made to retain fluid, not absorb it. However, the urethra can be damaged by catheters, and thus alcohol could cause a serious (though probably sterile) burning sensation in the part of the urethra from the bladder and through the penis. Very good chapter, @Wombat Bill. I also have to agree with the analyses of @Summerabbacat, @NimirRaj, and @chris191070

I have seen lots of stories on The Weather Channel and some of the major news networks about bursting pipes in Texas. In some cases the pipes are cracking as the expanding water freezes in the pipes, then when the water melts the water pressure bursts the pipes completely. Sometimes pipes to homes burst because they are not buried deep enough in Texas when this very unusual cold happens and the temperatures stay down two or three days in a row. Hope none of your pipes burst, @Story Reader.

Thanks for the link to "Max and Charles." I loved reading it and loved the chapter just above. I can see why Craig said that this was a once only thing involving Justin's bladder. I don't have enough medical knowledge to judge how safe that is. But the alcohol, it seems to me, might seriously "burn" the bladder and the urethra from the inside. I shudder to think of how the burning sensation would be if there are any nicks or weak spots in the bladder or urethral lining. Over the last 20 years I've had 8 kidney stones, and the first three were the worst -- all on the same night and the first two were jagged and scratched my urethra lining badly. I peed blood (painfully) for four days! The third that night was small, and by then I knew what had happened. I shudder to think what Justin's urethra would be like after a catheter had been inserted twice. Friends who have had catheters and then they are removed are NOT amused, and all mentioned how sore the penis is after one is removed. But it was still a very good chapter. Thanks for the mention of Daniel and Rani. Please have Daniel show up once in a while, even if just to wave "Bye" once in a while.

Obvious-- someone with some power thinks they can push people around to get the results they want. They will have lots of trouble pushing Dundee around, with the leadership that is in place.

The struggle for rights continues. It is good to hear what has gone on before; and at least in the US, there is still more to do. Good Chapter, @Wombat Bill. Mostly very self-explanatory. I hope we learn about the get-together with Max and Charles at some time in the future. The teaser for the next chapter is most intriguing! Sounds like Brett and Edward have some traits in common! It dies sound like Romel and Jeremy should use caution when Edward and Brett are in the same room. Wombat Bill, you are good at balancing humor and info and serious stuff together in the same chapter.

I sense trouble ahead for Juanito when Edward and Romel learn more. Great Chapter, @Wombat Bill The confusion about what BF means has triggered one of my pet gripes. Abbreviations need to be more clearly explained. Sometimes store receipts are so abbreviated that one has trouble figuring out what product has been scanned, just as the confusion above about what BF meant on the ticket. BTW (By The Way) It was great to see Brett and Jeremy again.

I mostly agree with @NimirRaj but wish to add one thing -- the old saying "A stiff dick has no conscience." Though Justin was not attracted to Prudence, his body was attracted to Trent's body. I think Justin did not know who was more powerful, Prudence or Cynthia, and that is why he was not certain of what to do. I was glad to see Cynthia "rein in" Prudence. Hopefully, in a chapter or so we will hear what the committee does to Prudence. I still do not trust Prudence; even reading about her in this chapter gives me the hunch that she will bide her time to attempt to wreak havoc on Justin and Craig for thwarting her willfulness. Justin needs to immediately tell Craig what happened so that anything anyone else tells Craig will be blunted by having heard from Justin first. "All of us sometimes are confronted with situations in life where we have to do the best we can do, even though we do not have all the information we need to make the best decision." (Quoting a cousin.)

So far, Juanito has done NOTHING to convince me he is being truthful to Andy. His behavior has not convinced me that Raj knows and agrees with what he said to Mr. P, either. Juanito is coming across as slippery and devious. @Summerabbacat and @NimirRaj have done good analysis of Juanito based on the information we have available thus far. The emotional relationship developing between Mrs. P and Mr. P is fascinating. But Thomas and Andy need to be very careful when dealing with both Juanito AND Mr. P. Mr. P was not pleased at what he perceives as a lack of discretion by Andy. He also does not know what Juanito has been saying. We in the reading audience don't yet know how much Desmond has heard in the discussions between Jared and Mr. P, and what he will do with what he knows. Justin and Jared need to explore their relationship more, to see if it is familial or not. So will Julia talk to Jessica about what Justin asked regarding Brenden? It wouldn't surprise me if Edward has twinges in his intuition already concerning Juanito. Edward is very observant, and seems to put seemingly unrelated bits of information together in such a way that suddenly, 2 + 1 + 3 + 5 + 2 = 13 seems that it should have been obvious all along. By the way, in the comments on the last chapter, you said we would find out what Desmond has heard. Maybe in the next chapter?

Talk about added layers of complexity! I predict we may find out how much Desmond heard in the future. Many buildings have spots where sound travels well between certain locations. It seems likely that Desmond might well have heard most of the conversation of Jared and Mr. P without intending to do so. However, if he did hear any of it, he was probably "hooked" and deliberately eavesdropped further. I agree with @Paqman and @Summerabbacat -- Jared has revealed more than he should. Also, Thomas should not drag Andy into the situation any more than Andy already is into things. If the increasing spiderweb of events keeps tangling, Thomas and Jared will somehow have to get with Daniel, Brett, Jeremy, and Edward for advice on the situation. Since Daniel has been in complex relationship issues before, and so has Edward, their perspective might be insightful. And I would bet some pretty interesting stuff has been confided to Jeremy and/or Brett while the very personal attention is being given to normally private body areas. Some situations might have relevant parallels. Are we REALLY sure Mrs. P stayed with Lucy? Or is Mr. P being ostentatiously obvious about being at the house so he and Mrs. P can spy things out? I also suspect trouble brewing between Thomas and Jared again regarding Mr. P's monopoly of Jared's time. Thomas is too impatient for his own good. I look forward to finding out what Jared found on his birth certificate, if anything. I also look forward to any thoughts @NimirRaj has, as well as hearing from you, @Wombat Bill

I was surprised Mrs. P spent the night with Mr. P. I was also surprised Thomas and Jared got back together so quickly. I still want to see more of Daniel, Rani, and Brett. Great chapter, @Wombat Bill.

Possibly your best chapter yet, @Wombat Bill. I have to mostly agree with @Summerabbacat in one his comments, especially that the emoji rating system is very inadequate for the chapter. It deserves, in my opinion, a Love, a Wow, AND a Like -- all at the same time, but you will have to settle for a "Love" emoji from me. I respectfully disagree with @Summerabbacat one one thing -- this is not quite the place to end this book. You should consider concluding it soon, and then go into Third Course. The Fourth Course or Fifth Course could deal with the time of the wildfires. Personally, I don't think Jared will be in any hurry to get back in bed with Thomas. Too much activity with Thomas could impair his ability to "get it up" for Mrs. P by giving him mixed feelings. @NimirRaj had good analysis of Raj and Tristan. Raj and Juanito? I am going to have to wait and see on that one.

With regard to Gran baking -- do Craig and Justin serve pies, cakes, or cookies (I know in the UK they are called biscuits; not sure what they are called in Australia) at any of the parties they cater? That is what I was thinking about Gran baking, or possibly some fancy bread items they have not served previously, as a test. Perhaps Daniel might want to surprise his significant other by waxing. @Wombat Bill, I don't think @Summerabbacat needs to worry. You have had dramatic moments before, and handled them well. So far you have done well at suspense, humor, hint of mystery, dramatic events, and the necessary day-to-day items as well. The wildfires of 2019-2020 would provide a different angle of drama, as interruptions to business, evacuations, makeshift accommodations, worry about friends who are or were visiting relatives, cell phone tower disruptions, sometimes electrical interruptions, and Craig having to do emergency medical work all take place. Covid -- now that is another proverbial kettle of fish. You could always use the science fiction explanation that an alternate universe was created when Wuhan, China, was hit by a flaming asteroid, and things around for twenty miles was demolished and fried with fires resulting. The resulting earthquakes change things in China greatly. (I know, I know, that is reaching a bit.) @chris191070 -- Maybe Gran knows how to come up with a butterscotch or white chocolate penis!!

This will be an interesting story.

Justin has some of the most interesting ideas. I look forward to seeing how this goes. I also look forward to Brett and Jeremy having a great success with their new business. @Wombat Bill -- well done! What could come eventually -- something like Virginia Price showing up at one of Cynthia's events? Mr. P being daring enough to show up at one of the gay events? Daniel getting his pubes waxed? Gran enlisted to bake some stuff for the guys when one of their suppliers has a fire? The Australian wildfires being worked into some stories, even indirectly when you get that far in time timeline? Brett being an accidental hero and saving the lives of Rani and Sandra? Edward as part of the entertainment at some of the gay events, telling drag queen stories? (By the way, if you wish to use any of these ideas in any of your stories, you are free to do so.) I can hardly wait to see @Summerabbacat respond to this chapter.

I remember, here in the United States, quietly following the Australian mail-in survey on marriage equality. Let us hope that eventually all of the world's countries will grant equality, though some will lag way behind. I look forward to seeing how Justin and Jaren are related. But I suspect that revelation may not show up for a few chapters. No matter. Whenever @Wombat Bill reveals this it will be well-written and worth whatever wait.

Oh, I would have loved to hear the rest of Justin's explanation! I hope Brenden gets a LONG sentence. Way to go, @Wombat Bill! Well done.

I also loved algebra, vector analysis, and related subjects. Hated differential equation and numerical analysis. As for your favorites, 22 and 57 -- 22 = 2 x 11. Both 2 and 11 are prime numbers. 57 = 3 x 19, and 3 and 19 are both prime numbers. So you are "primed" and ready, even if you had not thought of those aspects of your favorite numbers!

Hmmm. Child "we -- I never had." Did Mrs. P. find herself pregnant with Desmond's baby after they had stopped being lovers, and have an abortion? It would not surprise me if Alice already knows about Craig and Justin doing nearly nude catering. "Sometimes women have a way of finding things out that borders on a combination of detective and supernatural." (Quoting a friend.) Jessica seems to be rising to the challenge of not being with Brenden. Good for her!

Might I suggest a couple prompt for another chapter in this? This is starting out very well. "Andrew liked to read stories about dragons." "Matt was looking back over notes from past writers conferences, and saw that Jaxon had written a short story about a dragon who liked ocean fish. Jaxon was also signed up for the upcoming conference -- which made the third time he would attend Matt's conference."

I am not surprised at Juanito acting the way he did. I do wonder about the motives of Mr. P. Something does not seem right. The hints for the next chapter indicate multiple fascinating happenings. Looking very much forward to that chapter, @Wombat Bill. I like the detailed analysis that @Summerabbacat gave above. The amazing verbal gyrations done by politicians who claim to be following the relatively simple words of Jesus at times astound me. Politics often makes me wonder about people.

@Wombat Bill, I have a similar feeling to what @Summerabbacat expressed concerning Juanito. Perhaps time will tell, but Juanito seems focused on sex instead of serious studies. I hope I am wrong, but I predict we will learn more in future chapters. Edward and Romel explained in a very sensitive way about Justin, Justin's mother, and Craig needing to stay away from the apology dinner. I just hope that the rest can be a sensitive and exercise discretion as Romel and Edward have done.

At least Justin and his mother are taking the matter very seriously. But I would not trust the media to have given up.

"Age of Consent" laws are all over the place, in many countries. Wikipedia and other references have tables of consent laws in various places. In some cases, even with US states the laws can vary. For example, the age of consent might be 16 in a particular state -- but it could be legal to have sex at an earlier age if the people are married to each other. Some have "age difference" laws, which say that if the age difference of an underage person having sex with an older person over the age of [legal] consent is more than X number of years the sex is illegal. In the US state of Nebraska, some years ago, a guy got his 12-year-old girlfriend pregnant (he was 21 -- and the girl was dating the guy with her mother's consent! What kind of mother lets a 12 year old date a 21 year old?) The local prosecuting attorney had the guy thrown in jail for statutory rape (having sex with someone under the age of consent -- which in Nebraska was age 16 -- and when he bailed out, the guy, his pregnant girlfriend (who was now 13) and the girl's mother went to neighboring Kansas -- which at that time, the age of consent for girls was 12 -- and they got legally married, then went back to Nebraska. The prosecuting attorney had him thrown in jail again, saying something like: "Yes, it is a legal marriage. But Nebraska law does not make an exception for someone under age sixteen having sex with someone 18 or over merely because they are legally married!" To get the man out of jail, he and the girl had to agree to move out of state and stay out. The point of "age of consent" laws is to say that someone under the age of X CANNOT give consent to have sex with someone over age Y. That does not mean they are always reasonable.. @Summerabbacat -- You are correct in saying institutions and schools often "sweep things under the rug" to make the institution or school look better-- or at least not look as bad as they might be. @Wombat Bill, this is going to have a lot of effects on the lives of some in your story. I look forward to seeing how these changes are handled.