Summerabbacat

"His Dad was going to ring his Mum, which wouldn’t go well. But Toby had sent her an email, just to send her news and some photos. His Dad said he ought to be regular, so he was trying." Send her a bowel sample once a month as evidence of his being "regular". Place it in a sterile plastic bag, and then post it in a padded envelope. In Australia when one reaches the age of 50 every 2, or it might be every 3 years, one receives a bowel testing kit to return a sample to test for bowel cancer. You might think, gross, but it saved the life of one of my friends. She reported a positive sample and was advised to have a colonoscopy immediately and she had early stage bowel cancer. After treatment, cancer free. Deirdre surprised me, pleasantly so, that she listened to Brian for once and placed importance on the needs of her son. Her comment to Brian does suggest she is perhaps taking off her rose-coloured glasses and seeing Jasper for what he truly is. I assume he and his brother-in-law are dealing in cheap, fake "label name" goods, probably made in factories by exploited workers or children, thus encouraging this industry to continue. Purchaser's may or may not know they are being duped, or may not care. The world is full of scum like Jasper. Brian and Gordon seem to be enjoying a "Russ sandwich" on a more frequent basis now. After their nuptials perhaps they should "settle" on making this a semi-regular or even regular occurrence. I do think they should make an effort not to "hide" it from Toby all the time though. He is a smart boy, and his adoration of Mr Russ would I think have him understanding that their three-way relationship, although unconventional, works well for the three of them. Another more than satisfactory chapter. @Gary L, the master of the understatement. The quality of your various works wavers little @Robert Hugill, this story a fine demonstration of just that. Top of the class again.

Hopefully he will not get Lost In France, blinded by a Total Eclipse Of Heart, drown in Bette Davis Eyes or become a victim of the Voyeur.

Me too, except for classical, most rap and most heavy metal.

I think he might have listened to quite a few of those Triple J "favourites" albums. It was definitely very macho-rock centric list too, with very few songs by women. I suspect most of the songs were hits in the USA. And nothing by The Seekers who were popular in the 1960's, even had a few hits in the USA, but then I guess they were way too "folky".

The vigilanteism did disturb me, but then I thought of the horrible things humans do to cats and dogs and such violence against those people would not disturb me at all. Pete's worried about his singing voice. Perhaps he will have a voice now like Marianne Faithfull, Bonnie Tyler or Kim Carnes (whom I adore). He can add some of Marianne's classic post-heroin addiction material like this gem to the band's repertoire. I do like much of her material from the 1980's. I am not sure about Pete in the skirt though.

There were six songs I did not know @Mark Ponyboy Peters (and I hated them all), although I was familiar with all the artists bar one. Most of the songs were not my cup of tea and some were absolute shit. Apart from Tame Impala, Kylie, Goanna (a very pleasant surprise they were in there), Icehouse, Yothu Yindi, The Angels and AC/DC, I did not like any of the others much at all. At least the guy chose the right fucking AC/DC song, one sung by Bon and not the git who replaced him, unlike what he chose as INXS and the Divinyls best songs. Fuck off, they did way better songs than the dross he chose, as did Australian Crawl. And so many greats who were not included. Crowded House were included 🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮, but Split Enz weren't, WTF? (and anyone who said they could not be included because they were from NZ, well hello members of Crowded House were from NZ as well). And no Mental As Anything, Models, The Dugites, Skyhooks or Renee Geyer (criminal that the latter three were included). Too much pub rock for my liking. Cold Chisel and Jimmy Barnes? You've got to be fucking kidding me. Just as well I am not a self-opinionated SOB or I would have trashed the whole fucking lot. Given the guys "taste" in music, it is a miracle he selected a song by Kylie.

So much to ponder, with unlimited speculation. Are the two attacks linked? Are the perpetrators of both attacks the same individuals or are they thugs who are members of the same gang? I think there has to be a link between the two, it is too much of a coincidence that both attacks would occur simultaneously without some kind of common denominator, and in both cases, the lowest common denominators. I am confident you have something dastardly in mind for the perpetrators @Lee Wilson, so there is no need for me to suggest the perpetrators be "pleasured" with dildos made from cement, or rubber or silicon dildos "lubricated" with box jellyfish or funnel web spider venom, or sounding rods which have been soaked in Roundup, battery acid and bleach. It was not all doom and gloom though, with just the mere mention of Pat Benatar and Joan Jett, bringing great joy. Pat Benatar is my favourite "rock chick" of all time, even more than Joan. I can still recall 16 year old gay boy me, going to a high school dance in drag in early 1980. We slept overnight in the school hall and this girl in my class had this cassette by this new American singer named Pat Benatar and I thought she was "fierce" (Pat, not this girl). I bought her first three albums on vinyl and played them frequently. She even did a decent cover of Wuthering Heights by the incomparable Kate Bush. I still listen to Pat, although the albums are on CD now rather than vinyl. Perhaps you could take a lesson from Pat @Lee Wilson on how to rid this story of the homophobes who perpetrated these crimes against Pete and Anthony. It is hard to believe that such a powerful voice could come out of such a tiny woman.

Like many have commented, I thought you presented the con of the conners, and the aftermath of their effective con, very convincingly @Lee Wilson (or perhaps that is the biggest con of all, LOL). In all seriousness, it was very pleasing to see The Swarm help not only themselves, but the other bands who had been ripped off by the shysters too. I kept thinking, I wonder if this ever happened to The Ramones or Blondie. And the names of the shysters were very amusing. Pete and Anthony's sex life has taken off like wildfire now. Moaning and groaning at 4.30am in orgasmic ecstasy. The perfect "excuse" to post Donna (as if I ever need an excuse). I daresay you won't like this one though @Lee Wilson. It is a @Summerabbacat "anthem".

Well done, I thought this type of music would not appeal to you at all.

Men At Work came along after Little River Band and Air Supply had made it big, and perhaps to some extent they had made it more "palatable" for American radio stations to play new Aussie bands like Men At Work and then INXS as they were by then bankable. As for AC/DC, have they had any hit singles in the USA, or have they primarily been an album seller @weinerdog?

All Out Of Love @weinerdog.

In deference to the chapter title @Lee Wilson, this song is much more @Summerabbacat's "cup of tea", with words and music by the fabulous Chic and vocals by Miss Ross herself, looking absolutely stunning on the cover of her most successful album ever, a Chic written blockbuster.

You will observe from my comment on the next chapter it did. Your characters certainly keep us on our toes @Lee Wilson. One chapter a saint, the next chapter a c#$t or vice versa.

I feel like a complete bastard for having judged RB so harshly after his behaviour in chapter 2, but that feeling won't last for long as I still think what he did was quite despicable. I was surprised by how many of the setlist I know @Lee Wilson, and even more surprised at how many of them I genuinely like (I know 17 of them and genuinely like 9 of them, including More Than A Feeling by Boston, which is so not my usual "cup of tea"). I thought the "odd one out", one of the songs I genuinely like, in fact, I really, really like is Crazy Little Thing Called Love by Queen. If Pete is able to perform that song with even 1/10th the amount of pizazz that Freddie exhibited then he must be a damn good singer and as "gay as a daffodil" (LOL). The shyster record company plot is brilliant, and I imagine a very common occurrence, although I suspect such behaviour is not exclusive to small independent record companies.

The American market could not "cope" with Skyhooks, they were way too "weird", just like David Bowie and Gary Glitter who never achieved the same level of success in the USA as they did in the UK, Europe and Australia. Your writing is never formulaic. It may have consistent themes and locations, but there is enough diversity in the characters and their motivations and reactions, to keep your readers entertained. You must stick to your plans for Traditions, otherwise you will end up writing something which lacks authenticity and will lack your personal "stamp". Think of ABBA or The B-52's, they had an instantly recognisable sound that was uniquely their own.

I think that thought may have struck Graham too in this chapter @CincyKris. The irony would be just too delicious. Vince the hairy bear, Graham the smooth diva and Freddie the young twink. The family which provides someone to suit all tastes, or at least potentially many tastes. I was wondering if the drama might be the result of interference or action by the insufferable Venetia too. She certainly irked Graham and tests Vince patience. I had a vision of a scene where she is attempting to foist yet another suitable "wife" onto Vince, where he shouts in response "For fuck's sake Venetia, I am like my brother Graham, I like cock".

I had some sympathy for RB in the first chapter @Lee Wilson, wondering if he might have Asperger's syndrome or be painfully shy for some hitherto unknown reason. Well, sympathy no more; he is a fucking little turd. Pete is certainly better off without him and frankly without Cathy too. She had no problem with Pete "sacrificing" himself by blowing RB to protect her from her parents, but as soon as she found Pete might actually be enjoying it, she had a "moral dilemma" aka jealousy. And her insistence that Pete be kicked out of the band because of what he did to protect her, whilst admittedly protecting himself, warrants a big "FUCK YOU HO". Pete will be much better off with Anthony, who proved himself a far superior cocksucker to Cathy anyway. You have certainly created some vile characters in your time @Lee Wilson (Kathy Nelson, Abel Kraft and Stephanie Yost to name but a few), but RB is up there with them. Odious little pipsqueak who needs a taste of his own medicine.

I agree with @Gary L, as I invariably do when visiting the Hugillverse, this story is unfolding slowly, like a beautiful butterfly or a spring blossom. You have a real talent @Robert Hugill for presenting these 'slice of life' stories set in smaller locales in the UK, making them universally appealing whilst remaining quintessentially English. In fact, it almost makes me yearn for a visit to Blighty one day, although it would have to be during an English summer. Again Google was consulted to determine the meaning of a word and/or phrase. Proles, never have I heard or seen that word before, it sounds like something Vicky Pollard might say and it gave me a good cackle. I understood well though Vince's dilemma. And, then, the fag end of the cheese. I thought at first it may have been referring to goats cheese rolled in ash (bloody delicious), but no it is something quite different, and not necessarily appetising. Graham's suggestion to "de-daddify" Philpott Towers and add some personal touches was warmly welcomed by Vince, illustrating the improvement in their relationship as mentioned by @Gary L. Like he, I am enjoying the view of the brothers becoming closer too. I just wonder after this chapter if Vince might strongly encourage, maybe even give a little nudge to Graham and/or Matt to "broaden" their friendship. Matt's shyness in this chapter again left me feeling all warm and "gooey". He is a great addition to your literary characters @Robert Hugill.

I have to confess to a sense of pride both bands did so well in the USA too @Mark Ponyboy Peters, although I did not really like either of them at the time they were popular, with a few exceptions (I always liked LRB's Emma and Air Supply's Love & Other Bruises). I recognise they both had a broader appeal, which is why they charted very well on both the American Adult Contemporary Charts and the Pop charts. Neither band was strongly identifiable as Australian, unlike the megafabulous Skyhooks or Sherbet, which made them more easily accepted in other markets. I really liked early INXS too (Shabooh Shoobah and The Swing are outstanding), but once they made it big in the USA they seemed to "lose" their immediately recognisable earlier sound, which was a hybrid of beach/pub rock with a little R&B thrown in too (Black & White ,The One Thing and the magnificent The Original Sin). Not a spoiler alert as I guess Aaron's parents indifference was a form of abandonment. It did not strike me at the time, but he was a little like Justin in that his partner/lover/boyfriend really "grounded" him, a "security blanket" which made him feel worthwhile. Please do not be conscious of my comment regarding the "similarity" between this work and Traditions as it may be to the detriment of Traditions. My comments, which were partly in jest, highlighted how moving both stories are, and the similarity is only that one particular aspect of the plot. It really did "worry" me at first though that I could not remember the other story, and when I finally remembered it was Traditions I had a good laugh, at my own expense.

Tony's feelings of guilt and/or regret from having left Aaron behind in his small hometown to "conquer the world" had me momentarily concerned for my own "sanity". I thought to myself that, knowing this story was published some time ago on several other sites, someone has plagiarised it. I wracked my brain for several minutes as I knew I had read another story only very recently with a very similar plotline i.e. teenage male loves another but leaves town, only to return later to discover the one he "left behind" has not fared so well. I finally realised, you have "plagiarised" yourself @Mark Ponyboy Peters, Tony aka Kieran, Aaron aka Charlie. There is enough difference in their history to make them very different characters, but the sense of dejavu was a little scary when I could not immediately recall the other story I had read (dementia?). Tony's experiences of having lived with the Monolith before finding happiness living with Luke, Matt, Guy, Tim and Aaron, were not pleasant by any stretch of the imagination, but he seemed to generally bear it well. If I remember correctly, Aaron's parents were largely absent from his life or indifferent in their care for him, contrary to the Monolith's overbearing presence in Tony's life. I mean no disrespect to Aaron, but I always sensed his emotional or mental state was a little fragile, perhaps due to this indifference on his parents part. I think Aaron's shutting Tony out was his way of coping with a situation which overwhelmed him, it was his way of dealing with the grief of losing the one thing in life he truly cherished, which made him feel good about himself. Some may think him self-pitying, and perhaps there was an element of that involved, but I sense Tony's departure may have harmed Aaron far more than what any of the others realised. A wonderful chapter @Mark Ponyboy Peters, apart from the arrival of those damned tears AGAIN. As is often the case with well written stories I like, a song popped into my head as I read this chapter, possibly because of my reference to the "dreaded" Air Supply in my comments on the previous chapter. I loathed this song when it was a substantial hit in 1980, just as I loathed virtually all their songs. That loathing has changed over the years, to the point where now I am rather fond of it and of them (sappy bitch that I have become).

I know bugger all about golf, but doesn't it have clubs, irons and woods as well? I have to confess I did not "get" the golf reference porn title @Lee Wilson, but as soon as you explained it, it was apparent. At first I thought to myself, have I seen that one before, thinking it may have been a "real" porn video like These Bases Are Loaded, Big Guns, Powertool, The Pizza Boy He Delivers, Manrammer (and that's just a sample of my collection). Given your comment above Lee "Yes, one of my tamer exits for a homophobe. Otherwise, a close family" I am assuming Bart's dad was the homophobe in question and may have left because young Bart was showing some "sissy" tendencies. If this is the case, what a fucking arsehole.

Give Me The Night was a big hit single, but he was more successful with albums than singles, as he was in Australia too. A very handsome man when he was at his peak too and still quite so. The Molly Hatchet song surprised me. It wasn't too bad. Did you see the comment of Georgia Girl 61 underneath? Joan Jett is an attractive woman as well as being very talented. I am not a fan of hard rock generally, but I also love Heart because of those Wilson sisters. Did you by chance adopt your nom de plume in deference to them or to Cindy and Ricky from The B-52's? I am not fond of Lita Ford at all, particularly after reading of her anti-lesbian remarks about Joan and Cherie Currie.

I thought of this song as soon as I wrote the word reminiscing. I did not care for them as a teenager as I thought they were too "polished" and "American-sounding". As I have aged I have come to like many of their songs, especially Emma, Cool Change and It's A Long Way There. I also did not like Air Supply for much the same reason(s), but do now.

You have definitely mentioned it before on GA @Mark Ponyboy Peters. If I recall correctly either in response to comments on After We Danced or The Rip. I remember you remarking on the unusual pronunciation of Lake Cathie to @Paladin, which I confirmed having spent my life from ages 5 to 13 living not far south in Taree.

That's them @Robert Hugill. They dry quickly and need a bare minimum of ironing.