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Thomas Lindblad

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  1. Thomas Lindblad
    It was a long journey. Two hours in southern direction over the empty Interstate 95, passing Brunswick with the rival Bowdoin College, past Portland, the only city of reasonable size in Maine. At the border with New Hampshire on to a calm provincial road in northwestern direction. By that time, Åke was only halfway. The forests of New England glittered with bright autumn colours, a spectacle witnessed by the driver and a handful of passengers. Åke looked out of the window and took time for
  2. Thomas Lindblad
    Åke was excited when embarking on his long journey. His father brought him by car to Gothenburg. Subsequently, there were brief stops at Oslo and the airfield Keflavik on Iceland before touching down at New York. He only got a bit worried when he had a hard time figuring out the announcements by the stewardess during the final leg from JFK to Portland, Maine. If he was to endure a whole academic year in the States, he must be able to understand what people were staying, he rightly concluded. He
  3. Thomas Lindblad
    Paris never fails to enchant young people. ‘Perfect destination for a holiday together,’ Matthijs had put it when he proposed they meet again in the summer. Åke was enthusiast, although it meant asking for leave at work and spending his first salary on an air ticket. But it was their only chance to get together before his departure to Maine. Besides, he had never flown before and this would be a good practice for crossing the Atlantic in September. For Matthijs, it was different. He only needed
  4. Thomas Lindblad
    I could not resist the temptation of divulging for a moment into Swedish folklore with its unique traditions of celebrating graduation from high school. It is still clebrated in that way.
  5. Thomas Lindblad
    Thanks for this very good point. You put it better than I had formulated it in my own thoughts.
  6. Thomas Lindblad
    Readers have commented about references to specific chess games as being less relevant for non-chess players. My logic is that you cannot write about boys or young men who are fanatic about chess without offering a minimum of substance of the game they are so fond of. Otherwise it would be like writing about a a fan of rock star without adding someting about the music of that musician. Please don't worry about the chess details. The main point is that Åke, his two countrymen and Matthijs love chess almost to the point of obsession.
  7. Thomas Lindblad
    This was a very special day and Åke showered at length. In his mood he sensed the familiar combination of a light nervousness and firm confidence in a good outcome. Would Ulf Andersson feel the same when facing a game with a player from the world top? Nothing of the kind was at stake for Åke today. For him, it was the conclusion of twelve years of schooling. He put on a new, pearly white shirt. His dark blue suit had at the time been purchased to allow for growth. The length was now all ri
  8. Thomas Lindblad
    Åke was fond of camping. He was therefore happy with the accommodation he got in the home of the Tiggelaar family at Leiden. He had the attic all to himself in the narrow eighteen-century house on the bank of a canal. Under the wooden joists of the sloping ceiling, there was room for a single bed, a bedside table and a hassock. The wooden floor was covered by soft rugs. Lying in bed with the light of his reading lamp directed at his pocket chess board, he imagined he was in a tent, without the i
  9. Thomas Lindblad
    Åke came from Västerås. His father, Ragnar Raxell, had settled down there together with his young wife Blanche Bergman. They knew each other from the hamlet Gasslanda in the province Småland in southeast Sweden. Her health was fragile and after Åke’s birth she was advised against a second pregnancy. She passed away when Åke was only five years old. He had only hazy memories of her. An unmarried aunt helped Ragnar to care for Åke but after a couple of years. he remarried with Ingegerd Törnqv
  10. Thomas Lindblad
    Three Swedish boys got off the local bus at the square in the center of the tiny Dutch village Wijk aan Zee. It was Sunday morning and chilly, scarcely above zero, but not a lot of snow like where they came from. Their faces were pale after a train journey of twenty-four hours. Leaving their hometown Västerås in Central Sweden on Saturday morning, changing to the night train at Copenhagen, and starting the next day with breakfast at the central station of Amsterdam. ‘What a despicably small
  11. Thomas Lindblad
    This is a story about a young man from Sweden who loves chess and looks for like-minded friends. The story is set in several countries at a very interesting time in chess history, the early 1970s. It is not a story about the game of chess as such but it contains references to actual players and famous games.
  12. Thomas Lindblad
    Beautiful interaction between Gavin and Jason, Gavin and Matthew, Matthew and Rory. Indeed, very much cozy family life but not as it's usually conceived. Rory's father's despicable reaction is, regrettably, not so far off from what some people of my generation have experienced. The outing by The Gang with the hilarious names is probably well-meant but not very respectful of Rory's privacy. Curious to see if Matthew will be integrated into The Gang or Rory will get closer to Matthew at the expense of The Gang. In short, a very stimulating story. I always read a chapter as soon as appears on the website.
  13. Thomas Lindblad
    It was still early in the day, but already pleasantly warm. Alarik had his morning coffee on his balcony. Wolf stood opposite the canal in his tight boxer briefs. A little while and Wolf would be spooning yoghurt from a bowl in his living room. At the usual hour, he would appear in the front door downstairs. Today it was exactly one year since Alarik had spotted him for the first time. A lot had happened during the past year. In the autumn there had been the silent remote contact with Wolf,
  14. Thomas Lindblad

    Slav intrat

    Thomas Lindblad commented on Robert Hugill's story chapter in Slav intrat

    Tremendous chapter with the shyness of both of them. So much like real life. Very curious to see what will happen as Rory joins Matthew, his father and uncle on holiday.
  15. Thomas Lindblad
    Nice comments from all of you!
  16. Thomas Lindblad
    The second morning in the holiday home. It was almost unbelievably quiet all around. Alarik and his company were overlooking the calm water reflecting the rays of the sun. Nothing but thick forests on the shores of the lake. They were having their morning coffee on the terrace and did not wish to disturb the peace by doing too much talking. The holiday home of the Liljensparre family was a rectangular building of dark wood at right angles to the water. The windows on the front side at the t
  17. Thomas Lindblad
    It was Alarik’s birthday and he had made plans. No obliged boring gathering with drinks at the office but a good dinner in select company. He turned forty-four this first Thursday in June. He took the day off and went for a long walk, eventually receiving congratulations at home. Obviously from his mother, but also, unexpectedly, from Torsten who informed him that the issue of the ownership of the Swedish holiday home had ‘more or less’ been settled. If he wished, he could make use of the holida
  18. Thomas Lindblad
    That's exactly what often happens at Matthew's age, you switch with ease between straight and gay sex. In the long run, the choice usually becomes clearer. The interaction between father and son under these, admittedly extraordinary circumstances is exciting. I'm eagerly waiting for the next chapter.
  19. Thomas Lindblad
    I am glad Alarik's possession of one-third of a charming Swedish holiday home elicited so many nice reflections among readers.
  20. Thomas Lindblad
    Alarik was born and raised in the Netherlands but over time he developed an increasing interest in his Swedish roots. From early on, he had had a far better contact with his maternal grandparents in Stockholm than with the family of his father in Deventer in the eastern part of the Netherlands. His interest in Sweden was only reinforced when his father passed away and his mother repatriated to Sweden. Despite bureaucratic hassles, he succeeded in changing his surname from Van der Starre into Has
  21. Thomas Lindblad
    'Not quite relationships, not quite friendships either': I could not have formulated my own intention better and more succinctly myself. Thanks! Alarik is definitely no twink-chasing spring chicken, but maybe he can do more than he thinks himself.
  22. Thomas Lindblad
    Halfway through May, the sun broke through although Spring this year appeared to offer more of a foretaste of autumn. On Tuesday afternoon Alarik asked Justin to join him for drinks after work. Justin had appeared in shorts already in the office and was now sitting with his legs wide apart on Alarik’s balcony. He stretched his pale, hairless legs as far as possible ahead of him and put his feet on the edge of a flowerpot. ‘Really awful for you with such a sad event,’ Justin said. ‘By the w
  23. Thomas Lindblad
    Lovely chapter. Very curious about how things will work out between Matthew and Rory. How will they react to the 'new' Gavin? Very good points about the extent and limitations of contact and confidentiality between a teenage boy and his father in a single-parent family.
  24. Thomas Lindblad
    Thanks for your comments. Very much to the point with respect to Alarik's mumblings and our conscious self. What went through Alarik's mind when seeing Wolf/Alex coming around the corner? Not much. In an earlier chapter, Alarik already considered the possiblity of bumping into hem and expected nothing at all to happen. Now the situation is different because of Justin's intervention.
  25. Thomas Lindblad
    His grandfather spoke slowly with a clear intonation. ‘I’m at the extreme end of my life. Just a little longer…’ Alarik imagined his grandfather at the very edge of a high cliff with a wild sea below. Yesterday, on Good Friday, they had celebrated the ninety-fourth birthday of Alarik Hasthven senior with only the immediate family present. Some time ago, he had again fallen down, fortunately without breaking anything. Because of an imbalance disorder, he preferred to sit in a wheelchair. ‘Only t
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