MikeL

Very interesting comments, Mark. I'm surprised that you picked out the very same three young men I would have selected...all handsome but with very different personalities and outlooks on life. Lacey, by the way, doesn't like to be called cute, but everyone else knows he is, as is his boyfriend. We should all be saying a prayer (or holding whatever thoughts are appropriate for each of us) for Lacey today as he undergoes a liver transplant...prayers for him and his mother (the donor) for a full recovery and good health. Patrick does have amazing blue eyes, but they are only one of his great assets. Chase seems to agree with your assessment of him. I have to think back fifty years to remember the good looking classmates I had. The thing that strikes me most is how much things have changed in fifty years. More striking still is how little has changed.

Hurricane Robert? Good one, Dan. Better get busy, Prince. You've got a lot of good stories to read.

Ash, I think your letter to Chase Bank was exceptionally well done. It will probably make no difference to them. They are experts on a little phenomenon called "customer inertia". They calculated months ago how many (how few) customers would be sufficiently irate at the change in finance charge terms to cancel or discontinue using their Chase credit cards. That was part of the calculation of how much their profits would increase when they raised the rates. We all love you, Ash, but to a banking giant like Chase or Bank of America, you are a nobody. You may want to consider seeking a smaller bank that actually wants to provide good service at a fair price to its customers. Shop around. Check out Bankrate.com. Simmons First National Bank offers a Visa Platinum card at a 7.25% APR and no annual fee; excellent credit required. My best advice is to kick the credit card habit altogether. Pay cash, write checks, use a debit card...no hassles, no debt. Getting out of debt is a monumental challenge for many people, but it is worth the effort. Remember this little rule of thumb: For every purchase you make with a credit card, if you pay only the minimum payment each month, you roughly double the cost of everything you buy. That's right, that 9.99% or whatever your rate is computes to 100% in the long run if you carry over a balance on your credit card every month. One more thing. The idea of costing Chase money for keeping your credit card account open with no activity may actually be to Chase's benefit. Be sure to read all the fine print to see if they have a right to assess an "inactivity fee". Good luck!

Robert, It's hard to tell if the domain is really worth much to the musician. If he won't say, how do you know? The only place I could find him was a Myspace page. http://www.myspace.com/arnoldisnumerouno It has the name "RJW$" and it appears he performs shirtless. Don't know if there is a going price for domains published somewhere. If you could get some money out of him, you could just go for a Myspace or Facebook page for your content. I suppose he's not the type of guy who would give you the shirt off his back.

Blue is definitely Patricky's color.

Hooray! We know you can do it. Just call on anyone of us if you need a little more encouragement. Here's a thought. Ride your bike to Vegas.

Giving up smoking is the most important single thing you can do to ensure a long, healthy life. Exercise is great; everyone should do it on a regular basis, but giving up smoking comes first. I quit 40 years ago, after seven years as a regular smoker, and I'm glad I dd. All of my contemporaries who did not quit are now dead. Most of them passed away from lung cancer in their early- to mid-fifties. A few lucky ones had heart attacks and didn't have to live through the cancer thing. Now here's the hard lesson, Eric. You can't cut back on smoking and expect to accomplish anything. Reduced tobacco consumption leaves you addicted and does nothing to prolong your life. You have to quit cold turkey and do it NOW...the very instant you decide that you are going to quit. And after you've gone a week or a month without smoking, don't think you can have just one with no ill effects. You will be sick as a dog for 15 minutes; 15 minutes after that, you will be dying for another smoke. How would I know? Experience. I did all those things. Quitting now, while you really want to do it, is the only good time. Quitting totally is the only successful way. Think you will gain weight when you quit smoking? Hop on your bike and take a ride. Throw away your smokes, your lighter, your matches now. Stay away from people who smoke. Stay away from places which permit smoking. I wish you love and a long life.

Chase, I would say your taste in music has matured far beyond your years. Hope things work out for you the balance of this year and that you accomplish great things in your education next year. I wish you peace and love.

Lucky you didn't drown in the process. :snork:

Chapter 6 of Shifting Sands marks the beginning of Spence's new career and the end of Cray's relationship with Michael. And that is the best part of the chapter...that Cray has gotten over his disappointment and the way is clear for him to get on with his life.

Camilo is quite well known here. If you are half as wild as he, you will be very popular. Camilo is also a very good author. Should we expect you to post a story at GA?

A hearty welcome to GA, Skyler. Sorry I didn't say that in my earlier post; I was just laughing too hard at James Savik not knowing what JK meant. Chase, you have no reason to feel inferior, as you well know. You are a star at GA and you earned that all on your own.

Some interesting thoughts, Jon. I'm guessing you are wrong on most of them. That's just the way the goat sets things up before he takes a story in a completely different direction. There's one thing I really do agree with you on...I believe Trevor's mom, Rachel, is still alive. That may prove to be the mystery that Cliff promised in his announcement. Two chapters in, I have yet to find a cliffhanger. Wonder how long that will last?

My mother had an old maid, school teacher aunt who raised goats and drank only goats' milk. She lived to be almost 95. I have tasted some of her goats' milk; did not like it. I'm sure chocolate would be...how can I say this?...gut wrenching.

Cool? Cruel is more like it. I'm telling you, this goat is not to be trusted. Who ever heard of frogs' legs for Thanksgiving?

Hope you've had a great day too, Steve. I also hope to see more of you on GA and to read more of your work soon.

It's not too early. We've already started cooking for tomorrow's big family get-together. I hope everyone realizes how much they have to be thankful for. We are blessed with friends and family. I wish everyone a...

It appears Williams is a very exclusive college and not an easy one to gain admission. See article from Williams Alumni Review. Superior grades alone are far too little to assure a place in the freshman class. Extra curricular activities and the essay have to reveal an "intellectual spark". We know you have it, Camilo. Here's hoping Sean has to settle for Harvard.

Live TV is always risky. You never know what a "free spirit" performer will do. A more frequent problem is a perfectly refined news anchor mispronouncing a word so that the audience hears something that is not permitted on TV. Just a little spoonerism is all it takes. Big production numbers should always be prerecorded so that embarrassing events (falling on stage, engaging in controversial behavior, etc.) can be edited out. With multiple cameras running, there should always be a closeup of a musicians hands available to insert so that the sound track is not interrupted. I realize this doesn't respond to the question of censorship. If certain things are going to be censored anyway, TV producers could exercise a little caution and be in a position to not have to cancel an entire performance. If they want live, spontaneous programs, they have to take some chances. I just hope this incident doesn't damage Adam Lambert's career.

I think I get the gist of what you are saying. There's a lot of name calling at your school. You were fortunate not to be the target. How would you respond to Mr. A's question? "But what do you think someone who is gay would feel when they hear you say that. Don't you think they would feel intimidated?" Are you ready for that, Cammy?

Great picture, Camilo. Thanks for sharing. Keep smiling.

Urinals? Only in Vegas, I suppose. Chapter 5 of Shifting Sands is pretty neat. A lot is going on with Spence and Spike getting new jobs. Spike's sounds like quite a challenge and a great opportunity. I mean, who wants to be an accountant all his life? Thanks for another great chapter, Jack. Things are shaping up for living in the new economy.

Congratulations, Robert, on the successful return to work. There's nothing like getting things back to normal to make you feel normal. Hope you continue to improve.