Summerabbacat

Thank you @Andre Delport for sharing this experience with me. Such examples restore a smidgen of respect I have for our species as a whole, a respect which diminishes with each account I read of animal cruelty or neglect, each plundering of the environment for monetary gain and each poor justification of such behaviour, especially if the justification is for "religious or cultural reasons" i.e. complete bullshit.

@Rossco, @weinerdog is being very restrained and polite (he has far better manners than I). What he is really trying to convey is persevere with reading the story as it is well worth it, even though Stacy is and remains a c..t to the very end.

My favourite chapter in this story to date. You thought of many things which impressed me @Andre Delport, from the early morning appearance of the white rhino parents and calf to the "folding wooden slatted tables were surrounded by wood framed canvas directors chairs, each with a thick, loose seat cushion in traditionally patterned fabric and a throw over the back in the event of it being chilly. There was even a chair for Rascal ......" to the "Faux ivory handled cutlery and white crockery with an African pattern around the edge....". I was a little concerned what a game lodge was when you mentioned it in the last chapter @Andre Delport, thus looked it up on the 'net to find such lodges are generally not for loud fat wealthy human hunters keen on murdering wild unarmed animals, rather for humans wanting to observe wild animals in their natural environment. I was also very impressed with the accommodation and had not ever heard the term glamping. Again I have just consulted the 'net and it appears glamping is quite popular and would certainly appeal to someone like me who has never been camping in my life and has no desire to ever do so. The menu options seemed to be a little more "restrained" than usual, which I for one welcomed. I would think it in poor taste to be consuming the usual quantity of meat eaten by a group of this size when in such a location. I know they had a barbecue but I am telling myself it was a meatless barbecue, vegetable kebabs, veggie burgers, fresh pineapple (love it barbecued), tofu and for those so inclined tempeh (I had it for the first time recently and hated it, but I love tofu). A very beautiful addition to the Devlin-Majors portfolio indeed @chris191070. I would love seeing the big cats in particular in their natural habitat. I wonder in real life @Andre Delport if attempts are ever made to infiltrate game lodges by loud fat wealthy human hunters, and if such lodges have to protect the human occupants and more importantly the game from poachers. I hope if this ever happens the offending "hunter gets captured by the game" (to quote, out of context obviously, Smokey Robinson).

What a delightful, therapeutic and thought-provoking chapter, not just for Colin and Owain, but for we readers too. It seems both enjoyed the domesticity Owain's recurrent bout of ill health brought with it. If I had to hazard a guess I would say he has had something which has left him vulnerable to chronic-fatigue syndrome. Whatever has ailed him appears to be something which can flare up, which to his credit does not seem to have dissuaded Colin from continuing his relationship with Owain. Mhairi appeared to be a little prickly again this chapter. It seems she is very wary of disclosing too much, perhaps this is a habit gained from living with their overbearing parents and her overbearing ex-husband. I assume the drink before dinner was something akin to Aperol and they had an Aperol spritzer @Robert Hugill. I normally baulk at such drinks, but I had a couple of Aperol spritzers before Christmas lunch and they were very easy to drink and were a very pleasant accompaniment to the assortment of roasted vegetables and multiple berries I indulged in.

Steve is a calming influence on Diego, who like me, appears to be affected, whether negatively or positively, more quickly and significantly by the events or circumstances of life i.e. he stresses more easily than Steve. Steve is a very smart man too, he recognises the worst thing he could do is to argue with Diego or take him to task over his visit to Billy.

I am hoping he may just be a little cheeky @drsawzall rather than a "player". I thought his criticism of Drew for "outing" Charlie was uncalled for as he was unaware of their personal circumstances. Joey and Charlie seem to be coping relatively well with their parents death with the help of their friends. Joey wears his heart on his sleeve whereas Charlie seems to keep things to himself a little more, which is perhaps not as healthy.

It must be PFSSD (Post Festive Season Stress Disorder) @Ivor Slipper. I always find it very difficult to go back to work the day after New Year's Day even though it is my favourite season of summer in Australia, although this "summer" has mostly been fairly mild (it was only 25°C yesterday so I had my hoodie on all day). I think not another year of this working for a living. If only I could retire to a beachside paradise NOW instead of in the future.

I have just read my comments again @Ivor Slipper and cannot see which names I have confused, unless I am losing the plot.

The only question Ryan should ask himself is this, is Terry a bully and as horrible as his brother Justin? If the answer is Terry is as horrible as Justin then why interfere with fate. If he tried to stop Terry, Justin, Carl and Rory from getting into the car they would not likely listen to him, and if by chance they are not killed it would just be something more they would likely use to bully him with. If they are killed in the car accident then so be it. The death of Justin, Carl and Rory may also release Brian from a cycle of bullying which he seemingly is not relishing like the other three. A release may result in a declaration to Ryan which will be mutually beneficial so everyone's a winner, except for Justin, Carl and Rory. Oh well, shit happens. An interesting start to this story @Ivor Slipper. I do like a story when bullies lose their advantage and suffer the consequences of their bullying, and death would certainly stop them in their tracks.

Who needs enemies if you have “friends” like Rory. I almost felt a smidgen of sympathy for her until “It’s over eighty thousand dollars!” I open my mouth to reply, and she lashes out. Leans forward and stabs a finger in my face. “Oh stop, Michael. Just stop. You don’t get it. You get money dropped into your account every damn month that you don’t lift a finger for. You have no idea what it’s like to have the sort of debt I have.” Trees often get uprooted in hurricanes and become dangerous missiles, crushing people in their cars or their homes. Oh look out Rory there is a tree about to drop on your car or crash through your roof at home! Oh well, shit happens bitch and your dead. At least you won’t have to whine about your student loans now, will you princess. It seems all my fellow readers have believed Rory’s disclosure to Calhoun. My initial thought was how do we know she is not lying again. She has lied before, so why not again. Has she come forth because she felt she had wronged Micco, or has she done so for her own advantage? Only Miss Libby knows and she it not telling (yet). It also seems all my fellow readers and up until now myself, have assumed Sam was murdered for the money or because of drugs. But what if neither of these scenarios was the motive for his murder. Perhaps there is an extreme homophobe amongst the likely suspects who delighted in killing Sam because he was gay, has attempted to frame Micco for the murder because he is gay, and believed Micco would be devastated because he was really in love with Sam. I have not given up on the idea Martina is the killer, could she be a member of the Florida chapter of Moms For Liberty and thus a rampant homophobe? Or was her deceased husband somehow involved in the rape and murder of Micco’s mother and sister and Martina blames Micco for this? Or another scenario which occurred to me very early on in the story but which I dismissed because I did not want it to be so, what if Burke was the killer and has tried to frame Micco because he believes Micco should have done something to protect his mother (whom I believe Burke may have been in love with) and sister, even though he was only a child at the time. @Libby Drew you have entertained, enraged (at times) and befuddled us all from the very beginning of this outstanding work. I don’t feel I am any closer to working out who the killer is and what his/her motive was. Whatever the motive, I agree with several others in that Sam may just have been collateral damage, the real purpose of the killer’s actions was to intimidate and institutionalise Micco.

I had a "well fuck me" moment when reading this chapter @Robert Hugill, getting my "Hugillite" characters mixed up for a brief moment. “What Mr Kahn was saying about strippers and that. Well, Nathan’s kid brother does a bit of stripping though Nathan pretends not.” Warren smiled, amused at the attitude." I got the Nathan of this story mixed up with the pious Nathan in No Going Back and for a moment had a great laugh at the expense of Nathan and his embarrassment, before I realised I was in the wrong story. Many of your chapters present an educational opportunity @Robert Hugill and this chapter was no exception. Knocking shop, a term for brothel I had never encountered before.

That scene reminds me a little of the shower scene in Can't Stop The Music. I wonder if Jacques Morali had any input into it as he worked with both the Village People and Eartha and was known for his appreciation of the male physique. Is Queen Som aka Queen Orange? If so, you are right she is beautiful.

Being the feline lover I am @raven1 I love her purrfect delivery of the lyrics in Where Is My Man, I Love Men and Cha Cha Heels. And the video for I Love Men looks like it was filmed on a gay porn set, although the men are mostly clothed unfortunately. I was of course also very fond of her as the final Catwoman in Batman, although I have to say Julie Newmar will always be Catwoman for me, statuesque, beautiful, haughty and sleek like a cat. She is 90 years of age now and still looks fit and healthy.

I was very pleased to see Harry and The Major (Grandad Ox, LOL) introduced to each other and a friendship formed. Let us hope it is a friendship which can be strengthened and sustained as I feel it would be beneficial for both. I was also very pleased to see Liam, in his wheelchair no less, included in all the musical numbers performed by the Choir Boys. This sends a very powerful message of acceptance and inclusion of disabled people, even if his being wheelchair-bound is not permanent. I had a wonderful image of Miss Daisy Chain performing Eartha Kitt's Santa Baby with a saucy combination of Eartha, Shirley Bassey and any number of drag queens I have seen perform in my lifetime in "gay" Sydney. She could have just performed it ala Eartha Kitt, who although not a cock-in-a-frock, was adored by gay men of yesteryear for her camp rendition of many a song. It appears the "cast" have a real penchant for the movie Grease. I recall its release in 1978 as a teenager and enjoyed the film immensely, although I preferred the soundtrack to Saturday Night Fever (the movie for it was not particularly good though I thought). As I have matured (no not aged, matured) my fondness for Grease the movie has only increased (alas it has not for Saturday Night Fever the movie). I also loved both the movie (a guilty pleasure) and soundtrack for the atrocious Can't Stop The Music (hugely popular here in Australia) and the soundtrack only for the atrocious Xanadu (not even the presence of Olivia could save the movie, it was a shocker). My only "disappointment" in this chapter @Mancunian is with all that young talent you were unable to find anyone to sing my two favourite Christmas songs (not carols), 100 Degrees by Kylie and Dannii (love it, love it, love it and Dannii's 'Disco Christmas' T-shirt is fabulous) and Last Christmas by Wham (so sad watching the video and knowing George died on Christmas day 7 years ago). Perhaps if they have another Christmas show to raise funds for The New Boot they could consider inclusion of these two gems (and I would love to hear Miss Daisy Chain performing any one or more of Eartha's ultra-camp disco classics from the 1980's Where Is My Man, I Love Men and Cha Cha Heels). All in all a thoroughly enjoyable chapter, although like a number of others have commented, Harry's fear of the imminent departure of Charlie and Michael needs to be addressed. I cannot see any reason why Michael should consider moving out yet, Charlie perhaps, but who knows, Harry may even welcome Brad into his home given Brad's connection to his deceased son.

Hudson's sole mistake was underestimating Jackie. Like me, Hudson has assessed Jackie as being not terribly smart. It seems Jackie is not as stupid as Hudson (and I) believed. As much as I dislike Jackie, I hope Hudson has not broken his neck and does not plan to eliminate him. I don't believe he will, but I am wondering what he is going to do with him as Jackie will not remain silent, regardless of what Hudson threatens him with, particularly if he believes Hudson's investigations are likely to jeopardise Watkins, for whom he feels an obligation, misguided as this may be. What I want to know is how Jackie discovered Hudson is Otis' boyfriend. He has either deduced this based on Otis' physical description of Hudson, particularly the tattoos, or he has followed Otis home from the restaurant. I think the latter is more likely. Hudson is either going to have concoct a story to cover his arse with Jackie or disclose the truth to Otis. A pivotal chapter I would say @Laura S. Fox. Jackie's discovery was inevitable; Hudson is going to have to convince Jackie of an "alternative truth" to protect his undercover mission and his burgeoning relationship with Otis. Whatever the outcome of this event with Jackie, I do not believe Hudson wants to end his relationship with Otis.

I had not thought of that @Cane23 until you pointed it out. I have to now add arrogant to my description of Andre in this scenario.

Owain and Colin have settled into a comfortable, easy going, mutually beneficial relationship which is a joy to witness. Given the drama of their family relationships, particularly Colin's which are current, their relationship with each other must be like the most relaxing massage, a tonic for the nerves. They learn more about each other whenever they get together and seem to relish their time together even if they are doing nothing exciting. A truly adult and rewarding relationship. An outstanding chapter @Robert Hugill with Colin's outfit finally revealed. The very short shorts surprised me; it appears he is relatively comfortable with his physique from the waist down, it is above the waist that he is uncomfortable with.

@Paladin I believe you must be doing something right as your writing in this chapter has provoked some very strong reactions from my fellow readers. Although I do not share the concerns of @Cane23 (and this is no disrespect to you @Cane23 as I understand why you have these concerns), I had concerns of my own with an earlier event. Perhaps I am showing my age and am unfairly judging Andre, but I thought his comments about Chris' bedlinen were rude and insulting (although I probably would have at least had similar thoughts at his age). He is NOT living with Chris and is therefore still a non-paying guest in Chris' home. He could have at least waited until he has moved in with Chris to disparage his bedlinen and even then could have been a little more diplomatic in his comments. I thought his comments presented him as an "entitled shallow millenial princess". And now it is my turn to be a self-opinionated overbearing old queen in response and state to Andre "Sheridan used to make excellent quality bedlinen and towels when they were manufactured in Australia. Unfortunately, they are now predominantly if not exclusively manufactured in India and the quality has deteriorated significantly, however, their prices, even at outlet stores, are still significantly higher than many other brands. In short honey, they are overpriced crap". It will be interesting to see if Chris/Andre and Michael/Jamie become close friends now it has been revealed there exists a prior connection between Chris and Michael. Their relationships seem to have a similar dynamic, a quieter more mature partner (Chris and Michael) and a more gregarious younger partner (Andre and Jamie).

Lachlan is so not the stereotype tradie bloke as evidenced by his discussion with Chris: “Yeah, we’re just ordinary people and we don’t all fit into a perceived stereotype.” I had another mouthful of my beer and felt comfortable to ask. “Lachlan, another question. You have parties that you invite your team to. I’ve been to a couple and seen them with their girlfriends or wives. How many brought their boyfriends?” Another pause. “Well there was . . . no he didn’t, and . . . You’re right Chris. I don’t remember any of the gay guys bringing a boyfriend.” “I’m sure you stressed to the team that their girlfriends and wives were welcome. Did you include boyfriends?” The answer was immediate. “No Chris I didn’t and you’re right, I should have.” Lachlan's response to Chris was refreshing and sincere. He appears to like Chris too, even going so far as to ask when he and Andre would be "shacking up" together. This bodes well for the future when disagreements arise between Andre and Chris as I believe Lachlan will not automatically side with Andre. Andre is quite immature in comparison to Chris, primarily due to their respective life experiences to date, so I believe disagreements are inevitable, although Chris does seem very easy going. I have but one question for you @Paladin, does Lachlan display the obligatory builder's crack when he is on a job?

It has to be said Chris and Andre have shown inordinate patience in getting to knowing each other over a period of 12 months before moving their friendship beyond friendship. They seemingly have quite different life experiences to date; Chris lives alone and is financially independent whereas Andre still lives at home with his parents (hopefully he is at least contributing towards household expenses if not board/rent too) and has seemingly had to do little to fend for himself. I grew up on the Mid North Coast of NSW (Taree) in the 1970's and went on the obligatory school excursion (at the time) to Old Sydney Town. As an adult I moved to Sydney almost 40 years ago and have been to Gosford once to have lunch with a friend from Cardiff. Apart from this, I have never been to the Central Coast, although have been through the various towns on the XPT train service. I have heard of Erina Fair and have of course seen the Deepwater Plaza at Woy Woy from the train. I have worked with various people over the years who commuted from the Central Coast each day to Sydney, but being an inner city creature who does not drive (I have never owned a car), I have never ventured to the Central Coast on any other occasion. Perhaps I should rectify this omission. This story is off to a good start @Paladin.

@Robert Hugill perhaps you should send Val's mother off to Bournemouth with Deirdre and Jasper. They may be joined by Nathan, Miles and Colin's mother for a night of piety and delusional thinking hosted by a visiting female neanderthal from the US coven of neanderthal women known as Moms For Liberty. I doubt Marina would be welcome by the aforesaid harridans; she would be considered a liberal undesirable for even entertaining her second son may also be gay, just like his brother, Gabriel. Thank goodness for women like Marina who are capable of thinking for themselves, that don't have to rely upon fairy tales published in books written thousands of years ago when humans thought the world was flat. Gordon has a wonderful and at times biting sense of humour as evidenced by “And she has such a balanced view of sexual matters?”. Both Brian and Toby have landed on their feet with having Gordon as husband and step-father respectively. Although they may appear a little "eccentric" at times, Evie and Drew are just what they need in in-laws and step-grandparents too.

Excellent suggestion @raven1. Perhaps you should mention it to Kevin for him to determine if Spencer has the financial capacity to undertake such an enterprise at this point in time.

I am finding virtually all of your works, with this one in particular, inviting a musical reminiscence @Mancunian. When Charlie met Brad for the first time and both were somewhat tongue-tied and awkward with each other I immediately thought of Shy Boy by Bananarama (my favourite UK group of all time and together with Kate Bush, my favourite UK act of all time). I just adore, Sara, Keren and Kate. Speaking of Bananarama, I note that Last Christmas by Wham! has finally made it to number 1 on the UK Official Charts this year (it has charted many times before, but never reached number 1). I loved Wham! and George's solo albums were magnificent (Faith is my all-time favourite album by a male soloist).

A most enjoyable chapter again @Mancunian. Joe's enthusiasm for project 'Restoration Mini Cooper S' will no doubt look good on Charlie's resume, but more importantly it will bring both he and Harry great joy. I hope once it is completed Harry decides not to sell the car or donates it as a raffle prize for 'The New Boot' fundraiser in acknowledgment of his son, Michael. I was very pleased that Missy was invited to the surprise party and that she was popular with one and all. Her life with Harry was likely somewhat "barren" before his heart attack. Although it is not good that this happened to him, much good has come of his hospital stay. He has been given a new lease of life and Missy lots of attention. The surprise party was a success. The choice of Stevie Wonder's Happy Birthday a good one, but it reminded me of another song with the same title released at roughly the same time by the Scottish new wave/post punk band, Altered Images. I immediately Googled it and found a video clip for it and their other big hit, I Could Be Happy. They were hugely popular in the UK, South Africa and Sweden and my homeland of Australia. I thought they were wonderful, part of an avalanche of outstanding pop music by singers/bands from the UK in the early 80's, most of whom were enormously successful in Australia too (Bananarama, ABC, The Human League, Yazoo, Kim Wilde, Tubeway Army/Gary Numan, Ultravox, Visage, Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet, Culture Club, Wham, The Cure, The Pretenders and Simple Minds). Happy New Year (by the way a great song by ABBA from the album Super Trouper) to you @Mancunian and @raven1. My Christmas and New Year have been amongst the best ever, solely because Kiki and Zelda, two of my four cats, are still with me. Zelda was diagnosed with terminal cancer in early August and given only 4-6 weeks to live and Kiki has had a number of health issues in the last few months, mostly related to the fact she is almost 17 years of age.

Colin is adorably awkward and bashful. Perhaps it was the mention of them going clubbing later, but I had a sudden image of Colin and Owain being joined by Jimmy Somerville and the latter planting a big kiss on Colin in full view of the public and daring anyone to make a negative comment (Bronski Beat's Smalltown Boy was on a loop in my head at the same time). I think Owain's joie de vivre will encourage and support Colin becoming more comfortable in his own skin (he may even build the confidence to tell Miles to go fuck himself). Italian is my favourite cuisine. Similarly to Indian (which I also enjoy), it offers plenty of vegetarian options and heavily features two of my very favourite foods, tomatoes and garlic. Yum yum yum. I loved Colin's "occupational hazard" when assessing the quality of the shower in their hotel room. I have no handyman skills at all (I can barely change a light bulb), but am able to recognise shoddy workmanship. As previously stated I am looking forward to Colin's outfit being revealed. Perhaps his outfit will accentuate his "plumber's crack" so as to delight Owain. Another entertaining chapter @Robert Hugill.