Rigby Taylor

The jacaranda tree’s miserly shade had moved on, leaving the three men behind. Sweat dripped from eyebrows and trickled down furrowed cheeks, necks and chests. ‘Jeeze it’s hot! My mouth’s as dry as a nun’s tit.’ ‘It seems no one gives a stuff about us in this place, Charlie. I’ll never get used to it. Why couldn’t I have had a lethal heart attack instead of a bloody stroke? ‘We all feel like that, Mal. We’re in a velvet prison. I always vowed they’d never get me into one—but I was we

Three old men in a Nursing Home grumble about their lot.

Very wise and very true. I hoped her emphasis on the 'fun' acpect would imply that it doesn't include 'deviant' behaviour. I tend to 'lecture' a bit and worry that it will be off-putting and spoil the atmosphere of a scene if someone starts start to preach. You see I refuse to believe that libertine behaviour is 'fun' for anyone. It may be exciting, thrilling, arousing.... but not 'fun'. Fun, to me, is innocent mutually pleasurable activity that does no harm.

Very interesting that you've re-read this chapter. I do that sometimes and usually discover that on the first reading I was too involved with 'what happened' to take notice of the substance. I think this chapter, or at least Fee's concise explanation of a 'complete' person's attitude to sex and sexuality is one of the most important sentences in the book. Thanks for reading and commenting.

Thank you, Sef for your brilliant analysis. Even more thanks for your 4th sentence.

Yeah... well, I get sick of gays so often being the perverts. And being a strictly vanilla man myself.... A.S.Semble -- assemble - bringing together components... the link... yeah -- pretty useless as a fun name. Should have been Derek Symulayte D. Symulayte - dissimulate -- concealing/disguising... Hope? you think that will help those two young innocents? 😀They'd better have more than hope to assist them in their noble pursuit!

Thanks for this, I'm always pleased if my 'humour' is appreciated; I worry that I'm too serious. You'd be a good match for Fee, equally logical and rational. I think many people cant help expecting trouble when things seem to be going well. It is probably a survival instinct, but premonitions of doom and gloom do tend to spoil the atmosphere. I'm too often guilty of that I fear.

The mere thought of all that inter-cranial communication is mind boggling. I hope there's a cut-off switch so he can relax and lower the shields. I'd not be happy to see into the minds of most people I know -- eww! An interesting concept, I look forward to- seeing where you go with this.

An interesting and timely warning about the dangers of 'unnatural' interference in the health and appearance of the human body, coupled with a realistic and intriguing male-only world in a very plausible space ship. Telepathy only increases the pleasure. I hope next time they dump the jump suits and enjoy flesh on flesh. I have never understood the problem people have with sexual activity between consenting family members -- they are far more common that is commonly thought. The only problem arises with heterosexual liaisons that lead to progeny. I look forward to seeing where this is going.

I love your writing style - short snappy sentences, exactly the right amount of information and description to carry the plot on seamlessly, and a happy ending. Very nice indeed. thanks.

You're a true romantic, Sef. Yes, Sebastian would probably push back, which is why Reggie wisely decided to 'tell' him he was remaining as a bodyguard, not 'ask' him. People on the verge of a mental breakdown - as Sebastian is, frequently make disastrous decisions and worsen their situation. in that irrational state it is often impossible to work together with someone. Occasionally a lover/true friend needs to be "his brother's keeper".

You are right, it's probably an increase in reporting and therefore awareness. As for European colonisers, they have never respected anything apart from their own advancement. If humans survive then I imagine future generations will look back in abject horror at the centuries of vile cruelty and dispossession in which the entire globe became a charnel house for the victims of European avarice, arrogance and total absence of empathy for every thing. Thanks for the link to the pdf. I suspect that violence against women is not 'traditional' in any society living naturally. It all started to go wrong 10,000 years ago when humans began farming and living unnaturally in permanent settlements, and the way individuals and families lived drifted ever further from the natural way we evolved. We're now no different from caged animals pacing up and down, masturbating endlessly, eating poorly, exercising wrongly, behaving erratically, showing signs of mental disturbance, performing mindless tasks that provide no relief from the need to feel in control of oneself.... and so on and on and on... Ah, it's too late to correct anything. We've let the 1%, who love it the way it is, take total control of the planet and our lives, and they are never going to loosen their grip, so we might as well make the best of what we have while it lasts. I can try to make my hens share their food, but it is against their nature, just as the way humans behave is their nature and we are living with the result -- it was inevitable, and can never be changed.

With a name like Fee Lyne, trust depends on your appreciation of cats. I've always preferred them to dogs because they're faithful but independent and pragmatically sensible about it. Dogs, with their cringing, servile dependence, make me feel guilty of not treating them well enough. As for fiancées, I think my characters reflect the fact that more than half of all marriages end in acrimonious divorce, and wife-bashing is on the increase. Both men and women should approach permanent relationships with more care. Surely interpersonal relationships are as important as mathematics and geography, so why don't we teach them honestly? Education is not the sole answer, but it would help.

It was my first novel and I hadn't started playing with names -- apart from Scumble [a way of applying paint] and Glaze [ varnish]. You have an inventive streak. 😄

Actually, there's a 'd' in Farzdbuk that makes it sound the way an Australian -- says fast buck. I am guilty of spelling it incorrectly in my response to Wesley. But Farts buck is eminently suitable. Yes indeed -- Guapo [handsome in Spanish] had better be very careful.

Ha ha... I love it when readers enjoy my names. But I think you're the only reader who has cottoned on to Rex Trovert. Your analysis of the problems preventing the healthy sexual development of young people is remarkably complete and to the point. Especially valid is your observation that: - "(the)sexual drive hits without any learned mechanisms or outlets to understand, control, or harness one's own sexuality." Thanks for commenting.

Yes. Interpersonal relations have suffered. In the evenings families retreat to their personal computers/games/headphones... In public eyes are buried in tiny screens, ears are plugged with pop and podcasts. It is so good that you engage with the kids of other families -- I bet you even make them think sometimes... be prepared, you'll have their parents complaining when their kids start question things.😀

One result of blanket laws purporting to protect children from abuse, is that friendships between adults and youths are now rare – no sane adult male will be alone with any male or female under the age of 17. I got my driver’s license at 15, could leave school if I wished, and do as I pleased… I was not a child. I considered the local rigidly Presbyterian Senior Sergeant of Police who used to give me duck eggs, to be a friend. Also a star-gazing mechanic in my father’s Garage. No one thought it queer or a sign of pederasty. The mechanic reckoned that most people have many acquaintances, but the man who has one true friend is the luckiest. That truth has stuck in my head and has certainly been the case for me. My impudent behaviour was a test of other people’s acceptance of my difference; not a test of their suitability for friendship. For that, my criteria are similar to yours – consistency and trust. Surely, it is possible for an engaging, intelligent, and lively person to also be interested in others as well as consistent and trustworthy, and not any more demanding of petting and attention than a solitary grump? Thank you so much for liking Dancing Bare -- it proves you are a noble, generous, tolerant and intelligent person.

Thanks so much for commenting. Many males tend to use physical means of getting to 'know' and cement relations with other men. This complements verbal exchanges. Shared physical tasks, mildly aggressive behaviour at the beach, while playing sport, in the shower, arm wrestling... -- horsing around it is called, but it can be quite violent and a test of the other male's reactions and character, but seldom, if ever, considered sexual by either. A student has few physical options when seeking friendship with adults -- especially teachers. Team sports are too public -- such activity needs to be private if 'truth' is the desired result. Don't we all present different aspects of ourselves to others? Honest with those we trust, and a façade for those we don't? His 'test of acceptance' is [shock horror] my own, that I have used multiple times in my life and found extremely interesting, useful, and never with unpleasant consequences. 'Dancing Bare' is a sort of written equivalent.

Yes... we should always be cautious. We must always ask questions. What do you mean by the right thing? How do you know what the right thing is? Where did you get that information from? What does 'great' mean when referring to a country? Great for whom?.... "Question everything" is a reasonable motto.

Exactly. Poetically and Justly.

I'm glad you like Sebastian -- he does sort of grow on people. but surely, as the number of humans will exceed nine thousand million by 2030 [or some such date], impotency will assist in controlling the plague of homo sapiens that is destroying the biosphere?

Australia is a deeply racist country -- especially regarding indigenous people. It is shameful, but governments know that playing the racist card will win them votes, so they make sure they keep them poor and vulnerable. 😡

You'd prefer him to be called Bill Smith?

Indigenous Australians frequently refer to themselves as Black.