Will Hawkins

"Oh what a tangled web we mortals weave. . ." The quotation states that the tangled web is one mortals weave. . . I wonder if the weaver here is actually a mortal or is she, in reality, a personification of a she-devil. It is a reward to the reader that she gets frustrated in her schemes eventually. Or, Mark, if it is true that fictional characters are merely a chip off the persona of the author? If so, then I am a little concerned about you -- or maybe by writing about such evil persons you actually purify your own soul, getting the evil out before it manifests itself in your life.

A slightly different version of the adage quoted above, this version attributed to Benjamin Franklin, is: The man who defends himself in court has a fool for a lawyer and a jackass for a client. This adage may have direct application to a current political situation as well.

"Kiss the gunner's daughter", thanks to an author name Mark, I know the meaning of that nautical phrase. Speaking of which -- is our favorite sea Captain still stick up in the Gulf of Finland -- I think his crew is going to get mighty cold there, even though the Captain has an iron stove to keep his cabin warm?

I am so standing between of the two different forms of advice you mentioned receiving from readers in your response to napaguy. These characters are your creation and you are in charge of their reactions and dialog. You do an excellent job of slipping into one character mode then the other. Just keep on writing and let your critics go fuck themselves It is your story and you are the author -- go for it!

Recent midwifery practices have modified the fetal cord cutting procedures, both increasing the health of the newborn and decreasing the problems with both mother and child. Nowadays, many midwives (pediatricians) suggest a few moments wait (up to three minutes) after birth before the separation of mother and child to allow a last surge of mother's blood into the baby and, in addition, crushing the fetal cord instead of cutting it as the crushing (old time midwives used to bite it in two!) causes a localized swelling at the separated ends, decreasing any chance of postpartum blood loss. In some primitive human births, the umbilical cord is not cut at all, the mother even nursing the baby until the cord dries and separates of its own volition. Of course such a procedure is practical only if the mother and child are kept together until it occurs (normally within a few days.). It is interesting to me that these returns to more primitive methods of birth result in somewhat reduced fetal deaths from disease as opposed to the extremely sterile conditions imposed on the modern birth process. Maybe Mother Nature is wiser than are we!

I will add my vote to Napaguy's. He summarized my exact feelings about your writing ability, Mark. but you know that I have been a fan of your's ever since I started reading on GA. Your command of the idiosyncrasies of the English language makes the writing a pleasure to read for this old schoolteacher. Oh, you could add an occasional comma here and there and pronouns sometimes give you trouble, but, as a rule, your command of grammar is outstanding, to say nothing about your characterization and pace. Best wishes to you for good health, Mister Will

Miles, PMS makes you giggle! Shame on you. It is as important a marker along the road of life for females as is puberty for boys. The effects are quite different, but just as important to the female teenager.

Paul Fernandez sounds like such a cool dude. Let's hope he doesn't go down in a submarine sinking like two others in your stories, Mark-

As usual. Mark, you show a creative mind as an author. The trip to Rome opens up a plethora of new possibilities in story line and a new character being added just doubles the opportunities for creativity. Many of the comments you see about your stories are a number of years old, but occasionally a recent one shows that the CAP story line is still attracting readers, some new, but many reading again and again. Repeating readers mean to me that the work is a true classic. Yes, there are a few slow spots, but those are necessary for contrast with the continuing sense of history with which you imbue your work. As an old school teacher, I am most impressed with the perfection you show in grammar, some of that may be the responsibility of your editor, but I am sure most of it comes from your own command of the language. Congratulations and best wishes healthwise from a (mostly) silent reader. Mister Will.

A memory flashback such as you describe here, Mark, would indeed prompt a fugue (is that the correct psychological term'), placing Brad into a temporary retreat from reality. I am endlessly amazed, Mark, at the skill you show in your writing -- you create atmosphere endlessly, but I am sure NOT effortlessly. Fine authoring.

I believe that the Mission is behaving in the best possible way toward the support of children. They need love and guidance, not hitting about the head and shoulders with a Bible. There are so many errors, both in history and in psychology in that book, young people especially do not need it forced into them. And as far as 'organized religion' is concerned -- the less said about that the better. It is a device to firm up the degradation of a class of people -- a way to get money out of those least able to afford the cost. The Evangelicals may be the worst, but Catholics and Protestants are well up there as well.

Te Japanese Internment was another of the black marks against the American Nation in history. I love and admire my country, but I also recognize that its citizens are not saints. We have, at times, behaved badly in history. I was old enough during this time to realize some, but only some of what was going on. In December of 1941, I was nine years old, my father was serving in the Air Force and my mother and I had moved to Florida to wait out the war. My primary interest at that time was, of course, school -- and following the progress of the war, both the war in the Pacific Theater and in Europe, but I was still very much a child and did not realize the pattern of evil discrimination that had been officially practiced by my government since the early years of the Twentieth Century, prohibiting the Japanese we had imported to labor in the fields from seeking citizenship. At this time, the discrimination is even worse, our government actually attempts to prevent foreigners, not only Orientals, but citizens of American countries as well, from entering into this country with laws and walls. We are still practicing the same evils that have marred our history. The thirteen alternating red and white stripes on our flag should be a constant reminder that we ALL came from someplace else.

As a man who was born in Ohio, many, many years ago, I can second the ass-hole-iness that the author suggests in this chapter. Even the weather alternates between mugginess and freezing cold. If it were possible, I should like a refund on my birth.

Tonto, still creating a ruckus with her bones from beyond the grave -- what a wonderful way to bring her back into the story!

As a reader, my emotions have run the gamut on this chapter, Mark. I don't know any author who could have handled this situation any better. Of course the Senator was not a good person and certainly an example of a poor father, but I can feel a tiny bt of remorse for his actions creeping through. I have a great deal of admiration for an author who can step into the shoes of his characters so beautifully.

Hell hath no fury like a gay man scorned!!!

Oh, really. . . Counseling for Wade? Does the winner ever need counseling? Perhaps the Senator could use some, either counseling or incarceration. If I remember my political history Impeachment failed by one vote. Perhaps that one vote was the Senator's!!!!

Wow -- That will outshine the Lewinsky thing -- at least as far as Senator Asshole is concerned!!!

Uh oh, indeed. It has taken only a few minutes of Wade meeting with his sperm donor to raise the hackles on the back of my neck. I have a bad feeling about his relation to father.

My dear Doctor Arbour, congratulations on your academic achievement, and for your recent postings implying some recovery from your poor health. You were one of the first authors I read on GA and thereby the root cause of my addiction. Reading your stories is such a boon, a real relaxation for an old man like me (87) and a relief from the angst of teen agers 'coming out' of the closet with destructive consequences by homophobic parents. Not all parents are so violently against their children's life-style and it is rewarding to read sometimes about more accepting ones. I hope that you continue to feel better and will be able to devote some of your recovered energy to getting our favorite sea captain out of the clutches of the mad Czar. As far as the 'low libido' from which you have been suffering -- detailed descriptions of sexual liaisons are nice, but not an absolute requirement for a good story, , , Hell, at my advanced age, I find my eye skipping some of those paragraphs anyway. Just don't leave us freezing our asses off in the backwaters of the Baltic Sea!!!! MisterWill

It seems that the turkey is not the only one to get fucked this Thursday. As a reader, I need a scorecard! And just think, it all started with a bunch of native Americans poking holes in the ground over a buried fish!

Well, so the wife of the homophobic Senator is a lush, eh! I guess that there are deep, dark, secrets in every family. I would agree that Carullo is a good guy, and it is always a great thing to have a Mafia enforcer on your team, but just don't piss him off!!!

I would be only slightly surprised if Wades father reacted in a different manner from expected if his son came out. Sometimes a parent will be negative until the explosion strikes home, then turn out to be the staunchest supporter. At the very least, his coming out would be interesting (even in the sense of the Chinese curse!)

I have been re-reading the news stories about Matthew Shepard's death looking for one fact that they all seem to skip over. Agreed, Matthew was viciously attacked and burned, then tied to a farmer's fence, but the fact that most of the stories skip over: was he conscious when he was abandoned to the weather or had he lapsed into his terminal coma by that time? I realize he died in the event, but I am unable to determine about his state of awareness when he was first abandoned at the farmer's fence. Did the Coroner ever make that determination and record it in his report?

Blame it on my age. I guess, but I am having difficulty keeping Brad and Brian straight in my head, the ''br' in the names adds to the confusion. I know it is too late to change the names now, but I just thought I would toss that into your head, Mark, as something to think about when you are creating characterizations for other stories.