Former Member

Didn’t their parents teach them any useful living skills? Strike that. Rudolph wouldn’t know how to do any of that either! All teenagers should be taught how to cook basic foods, simple things so they don’t starve or waste all their money on fast food. All teenagers should be taught how to wash their own clothes – you can’t just go buy new clothes whenever your old clothes get dirty (besides, you need to wash clothes before you wear them the first time anyway!). All teenagers should be taught how to balance a checkbook and create (and keep to) a budget. But I know that Kyle and Kaleb are typical of many young people these days. In some cases, it’s because their parents hire someone to do those chores for them. In other cases, it’s because their parents feel compelled to do everything for their children. And in some cases, it’s because their parents never learned how to do those things themselves.

Support your favorite charity, but make sure they support you in return (avoid red kettles).

To me, a definite non-expert, it sounds like it’s partway between Chicago and the Dakotas (eg the movie Fargo) just as it is geographically. The accents of most of the Western US (and Canada) can be traced in the migration patterns mostly from the US Northeast and Ontario (as opposed to the US South and Quebec). But there are parts of California which show more evidence of the Southern Drawl (related to the migration from the 1930s Dust Bowl drought and possibly military service that brings in many Southerners).

I'll bet it comes out when Robbie’s tired too. My best friend’s Wisconsin accent is more apparent when he’s tired. Compared with the standard California accent (no, not that fake Valley Girl slang that many people seem to think we speak), there aren’t that many differences (a very nasal ‘pahp’ instead of pop is a prominent example), but you can hear them if you pay attention. ;-)

I read everything on Ron’s site a long time ago. My memory is so bad sometimes, it’s like reading the story for the first time! Usually, being forgetful and getting characters and situations mixed up is a bad thing… ;-)

Such an extreme contrast: Gene drinking to dull the pain of his loveless marriage to Tina; Joey with the fulfilling life with school and Nicky! Gene still remembers his one kiss with Joey all these years later and used it as a crutch when he last had sex with Tina. Joey, on the other hand, has a large scrapbook filled with his memories of Allen that he shared with Nicky. One is trapped in his past, the other is moving forward towards the future with his son! ;-)

I think it’s more likely that future generations won’t know how to drive – just like they can’t spell! Too much assistance means they never learn the basic skills. Already, most people can only drive a car with an automatic transmission. Even into the ‘70s, many European cars didn’t even have that option! Why drive the ‘Ultimate Driving Machine™’ if it’s not equipped with a stick? ;-) Wesley uses @Wesley8890 and ‘Wesley Lewis’, but we know that’s his belovéd brother’s name. I didn’t mean he set up multiple GA Accounts. I know (theoretically) how someone might do that, but don’t think it’s worth the effort for the very minor gains you might get. Besides, I never date more than one person at the time (even when I was younger and in more demand), I get too confused trying to remember details of the one person I’m trying to get to know – I’d be just as confused and even more likely to make mistakes with two or more accounts! ;-)

Happy Birthday, Adi!

Named after you and you still couldn’t remember? (You should use my excuse and claim to be reading too many stories at the same time! Too many to keep straight separate!) ;-)

I’m guessing that means either Angiomyolipoma or Acute Myeloid Leukemia. No one is ever diagnosed with “Aston Martin Lagonda’ (although I do question the need to own a Lagonda!), ‘Anti-Money Laundering’, ‘Advanced Mobile Location’, or any of the other suggestions listed on Wikipedia’s disambiguation page. Whichever it is, I hope you become one of the miracle cures they write up in medical journals! ;-)

If Carlie didn’t already have a career he is so good at, I’d say he should be working with Special Needs children! We need people who can make those sorts of connections! I’m sure I read that there are more cases of Autism than there were in the past – more than can be accounted for just by better screening and greater awareness of the spectrum. ;-)

I was amused to read a Comment by @Peter from Perth and then a Reply from @MacGreg to “Skittles” which in turn was Replied to from @Peter from Perth again! You can change your name, but remnants of your old identity remain behind. Odd, but understandable Forum software behavior. ;-)

Happy Birthday! Avoid fleas, don’t sleep with any dogs! ;-)

All vampires might not be Gay, but almost all the vampires in this story are Gay! ;-) I think it would be interesting if George discovered that there was something in the venom* that made it much more likely that vampires would be attracted to someone of the same gender! Logically, since vampires cannot reproduce sexually and since they have the potential to live extremely long lives, there is no reason to couple in opposite-sex pairs. Besides, as Devon mentioned, humans are in no danger of immediate extinction. ;-) * What’s-his-name’s natural immunity would prevent the venom’s tendency from taking effect. ;-)

Well, Ms Birthday Girl! I believe you’ve mentioned Stuart more prominently than you would a character that will just disappear! I’m certain Stuart will cause at least some disruption and chaos in the coming chapters! ;-)

The first time you hold a baby, you think you’re going to do something that will hurt them, that you’ll drop them or something! It’s terrifying! They seem so delicate and unbelievably fragile! ;-)

Just don’t start chasing after curvaceous female swimsuit models now! We love you just the way you are! Alice Cooper mascara and all! ;-)

The VUN is going to need to come up with a plan to deal with all these new Vampires from around the world. They’ll need to set up some sort of system to implant the disks every month on an ongoing basis. They might need to set up new VUN branches… ;-) And thank you for giving Stan the acknowledgement that he so richly deserves! ;-)

Just finished rereading Carl Hiaasen's 'Nature Girl.' It's a hilarious tale about a woman by the name of Honey Santana. Honey goes off her meds and sets out on a quest for revenge. She goes after the telemarketer who called during the dinner hour.

It seems as though the participants were not all regular readers of genre fiction. As someone who has never read any of the books normally shelved in the Romance section, I would almost certainly be predisposed to make exactly those assumptions that the study participants did about science fiction stories! I’m not sure their methodology can accurately lead to the conclusions they came to.

I love her work! My best friend recommended one of her books to me. It’s so sad she’s no longer with us to create new stories. One problem I have with the overall field is the wild imbalance of gender – many stories seem to have been written in a world devoid of women. Others seem to lack ethnic diversity – as if the Nazis managed to conquer all of space! And there is a definite tendency towards heterocentrism – look at how many decades passed before Star Trek had its first explicitly Gay couple in it, but Star Wars fans have to acknowledge that their franchise still hasn’t managed that feat yet! I know there are science fiction and fantasy writers who are women, People of Color, LBGTQ, and various combinations too. Andre Norton was a favorite of mine when I was in my twenties, although I thought she was a man due to her intentionally masculine nom de plume. Ursula LeGuin was also a favorite in my twenties. I’ve mentioned Samuel R Delany elsewhere. There are others I can't recall off the top of my head. Many of the first science fiction/fantasy books I read were pretty sexist. I now have problems with the Robert Heinlein books I read – he’s much too much of a Libertarian for me! My very religious parents were happy to supply me with CS Lewis books, but as an Agnostic I have issues with the blatant religious content in his work (although I was much less aware of that when I was reading the books). Nearly all of the books were nearly or completely filled with white characters which made it difficult for this Person of Color to identify with some of them.

I helped serve Thanksgiving dinner on Wednesday to clients at the agency where I was getting psychological therapy! I hadn’t been there in 5 months. It was fun seeing many of the people there! ;-)

Belated Birthday Greetings! (At least you don’t have to share your birthday with Thanksgiving, but I’m guessing you’ve probably gotten too many ‘combined’ birthday/Christmas gifts!) I hope your day was full of fun and happiness! ;-)

As we enter the Holiday Season, it’s a good time to think about doing something for others. Many people write a check to their favorite charity – and while that’s not a bad thing, getting out and actually doing something makes you feel even better! Volunteering your time can be more valuable than you think! You might have skills that can assist others. Many groups give bicycles to children in need around this time of year. Someone has to assemble them. But not everyone has the skills to wield a wrench or pump air into a tire. There are groups that go out to repair, remodel (for accessibility), and repaint homes of the elderly and disabled. There are groups that go to schools or playgrounds to upgrade the facilities. Many groups assemble food baskets for those in need. Considering the name of this site, you might also think about what needy LGBTQs could use. While there are many among us who are living very comfortably, others are struggling to survive. A particularly high percentage of Transpeople are living far below the poverty level, with an extremely high unemployment rate. Women, People of Color, and young people are particularly vulnerable groups in our community. In many areas, there are no services available – or the services available are not LGBTQ-friendly (even in very Progressive regions). Giving blood is also something that is useful around this time of year because not only is there more need (due to accidents), but many of the usual donors are away on vacation. But blood banks could use your help all year round. (Unfortunately, the US FDA still bans donations from some Gay men.) Many people want to volunteer to serve holiday meals in homeless shelters and rescue missions. But most of these groups feed the needy every day of the year. Volunteering on a different day is more useful to those groups. Many homeless shelters would be thrilled to have groups come in to serve a meal once a month. They’d be even happier if they could get a different group come in every day of the month (or even some of those days). When I stayed in one county-run shelter, the sheriffs delivered “County Trays” that were left-overs from the nearby jail – the prisoners assembled the trays. County Trays were served twice a day, every day except for the once or twice a month when groups came in to serve a Saturday or Sunday lunch. A different shelter in a different city and county, run by a non-profit, had been able to arrange to have groups bring in dinner almost every night – only one or two nights a month didn’t have a group come in (they never served lunch at that shelter). One of the ‘groups’ that came in was a mother and her very young children. She’d cook up a huge pot of soup and serve it with salad. One group always brought in pizza, and one always brought in fried chicken, both were purchased. And yet another group was a bunch of teenaged boys – I found out they planned the meals, prepared them, and served them to us (that explained one menu). ;-) Assembling hygiene kits for homeless people is popular too. But think about all the things you have to have every day just to live your life. All those sample-sized supplies don’t last very long. One new pair of socks will wear out long before the next year when new hygiene kits are distributed. Sometimes it’s useful to ask someone who works with the homeless to find out what the actual needs are. You might be surprised at what they’d really like to have donated! If you are a landlord, consider renting to tenants who have a more difficult time finding housing because of their histories. If you need to reduce the risk, consider working with a group that prescreens their clients. Some groups even maintain contact with their clients to ensure they are following the rules and paying their rent on time. I realize that not everyone has the time, energy, or ability to do things for others, but everyone has the ability to be grateful for what they have and for the kindnesses shown to them by others. Thank the people who you don’t usually notice. Be considerate to the Sales Associate who will still be dealing with the slow lines long after you’ve left the store. Spread smiles when everyone else is frustrated and angry! ;-)