Former Member

Why do I get the feeling that none of the Hamiltons will be a match, but Matty will be the ‘one in five million chance’? ;–)

You Loved the chapter properly (even before you posted your Comment). It’s also possible to React to the story itself on the Story’s page. You can also Comment on the story (as opposed to the individual chapters) there too. ;–)

But considering the author’s (and my) locations in California, it would be PST. ;–)

But it’s Sunday! ;–)

And I think this is the most pages of Comments I’ve ever seen for a chapter! So many people were invested in what happened to Richie, Jeremy and all the others. Congratulations, @Geron Kees! ;–)

Maybe Tory Torino, but the car had absolutely no personality (and it had an automatic). 626, Civic, and xA didn’t lend themselves to fun shortened names. Neither did Mazda, Honda, or Scion. ;–)

I forgot to mention it earlier, but I used to own a Scion. It was the car I had to sell to keep paying rent on my apartment (which I was eventually evicted from). It was a good little car, made by Toyota, that was intended to attract younger consumers than the Toyota brand itself even though they were sold in the very same Toyota dealerships. I had the less popular xA. (The xB and the tC were the most popular models.) They had quirky, very Japanese designs – most were built by Toyota’s Daihatsu subsidiary. The xA and xB models were small, but tall. The meant there was a lot of room inside and they were very easy to get inside of. And you didn’t have to struggle to climb back out of them like you do with a Civic! Toyota starved the brand by not updating them frequently enough. But when they did get around to introducing new versions, they made the mistake of making them bigger and more generic. When that didn’t work, Toyota started throwing in oddball models like the iQ, FR-S, iA, and iM. When Toyota finally killed the brand, the last three medals were rebranded as Toyotas (FR-S became the 86). The nicest thing about Scion was that the prices were fixed and you never had to negotiate with the dealer (just like Saturn, but better, more modern designs).

I hadn’t thought about it, but you’re right!

If I say I’m enjoying this story because of the ethical issues it raises, it’ll give people the wrong impression. If I mention that I can identify with Troy being homeless (although he’s living in his van), it’ll make people think that’s all it's about. If I say that I’d never be like Grant moving from wonderful California to icy Vermont, they’ll focus on their dislike of my state. But If I don’t say any of those things, they’ll get the impression that they’ll be meeting characters named Ash and Ember! ;–)

I used to talk to my cars too! Mostly, I’d be apologizing when I’d occasionally grind the gears. I never named them either… ;–)

Grant crossed several lines there. First, he’s continuing to read Troy’s Journal, then he looked up Brian’s name and Facebook page, and finally he sent a message to Brian asking him to contact Troy. I think Troy has plenty of reason to get angry about the violations. Sure, Grant has helped him out, but is that an equal tradeoff? Troy won’t like knowing Grant has manipulated him. He will feel that his self-respect has been compromised. Will Greg pull the rug out from under Troy before the van is repaired? (Is this one of the other soap operas on that Canadian network?) ;–)

Colton is another very messed up closet case.

Since you love anti-heroes so much, won’t your next book be Heartless Harley? We could go back in time to see the previous generation and how everyone’s parents interacted in high school before they paired up and got married. A time when things were starting to decline, but hadn’t reached the depths that we see in WAR. With the Vietnam War and Woodstock in the background. I’d imagine the Civil Rights protests were heard about, but didn’t really affect Denora… The epilogue would tell us what happens next year…

Out of the rolling ocean, the crowd, came a drop gently to me, Whispering I love you, before long I die, I have traveled a long way, merely to look on you to touch you, For I could not die till I once looked on you, For I feared I might afterward lose you. Now we have met, we have looked, we are safe, Return in peace to the ocean my love, I too am part of that ocean, my love, we are not so much separated, Behold the great rondure, the cohesive all, how perfect! But as for me, for you, the irresistible sea is to separate us, As for an hour carrying us diverse, yet cannot carry us diverse forever; Be not impatient—a little space—know you I salute the air, the ocean and the land, Every day at sundown for your dear sake my love. Walt Whitman

Bedbugs are no fun. The Berkeley Men’s Shelter has/had a big problem with them in one section. They are incredibly difficult to eradicate once they’ve shown up. Heat or cold are the best ways to get rid of them. Getting mattress covers that seal off the mattresses are essential. You want to eliminate hiding places like seams and trimming. They also hide in crevices and bed frames. They can live for months without feeding and they produce hundreds of eggs. The shelter did have pest control in to try to kill them off, but they are extremely resistant to insecticides. After pest control had left, we used a steamer to try to get rid of any bedbugs or eggs in the bunk frames and along the walls. We mopped the floors too. The bay I stayed in the second time I was there managed to remain bedbug free. The other two bays were not as fortunate because the guys who stayed in them were not as relentless in cleaning. The shelter was also going to buy a chest-style freezer. Incoming residents were going to be required to place their belongings in the freezer overnight to prevent new bedbug from being introduced. They had already implemented a program of requiring new residents to launder all their clothing the evening when they arrived. They lent you a weird quilted pair of pants that had no zipper or buttons in its fly (I remember getting a glimpse of penis and pubes from a guy who wasn’t paying attention to what he was flashing!). And you were required to shower as well. Good night, sleep tight, don’t let the bedbugs bite! ;–)

I’ve known a few guys like the Coat Check Guy! He added a much needed spark of humor to the story when Damian & Cody were feeling upset. I think he could make a fun facilitator in a series, kind of a Gay Mr Roarke? ;–) Eventually, I get around to starting on Endings… ;–)

Now I’m all caught up and I have to wait with everyone else! ;–)

Crooked FBI agents? Mafia bosses? Jealous brothers? Werewolves? Sex zombies? Who (or what) is going to disturb the fragile calm that Grant & Troy have achieved?

I also noted the mention of Gavin. My impression was that Grant is straight, but I suppose he could be bisexual. Grant was disturbed by the fact that his erection was visible as he entered the hospital, not so much by who caused it. ;–)

Mr Burgess demonstrated (silently) what I was trying to describe in my comments for the last chapter. Mr Burgess was surprised and pleased that Troy was clean and dressed in laundered clothes. Troy noticed his reaction, but neither of them vocalized what they each observed. ;–) Mr Burgess also noticed that Troy was more relaxed and cheerful. ;–)

I don’t know what a Greco-Roman language is, but English certainly isn’t one of them! English is a Germanic language. The Romance language family, just like Germanic, Greek, Celtic, Slavic, and others are all Indo-European languages. Greco-Roman means of or related to the ancient Greeks and Romans. It’s also a style of wrestling. It has nothing to do with language families.

Having been homeless myself, I think Troy made a huge mistake in not maintaining his hygiene properly. It may have seemed like a pointless expense, but the reactions of others probably made it more difficult for him to get jobs. Even in a smaller town, there must be a place like a gym where Troy could have paid to have access to a shower (was he bathing in a river during warmer weather?). Trips to the laundromat may have seemed to be a cost he could limit, but this also probably meant he lost jobs – and his clothes are probably wearing out faster as well. People are more likely to treat you better if you look and smell fresh and clean. I know Troy was too ashamed to seek assistance, but surely there was some help out there somewhere…

The journal might legally belong to Grant, but morally, it’s still Troy's – and it would still be Troy’s if John had been the diarist. It’s kind of like the people who search for the original owner (or their family) when they find something like a lost wedding ring or military medal. Legal ownership is not necessarily the same as moral right. Some people still do the right thing, even when it’s just a nice thing – like the guy who managed to capture a picture of a man proposing to his girlfriend on a lookout in Yosemite from another ridge and posted it online to try to get the picture to the couple (successfully, by the way).

I noticed that Troy pondered whether Grant might be Gay or not only to dismiss the train of thought. ;–) On the one hand, having Troy fix something inside the house might be too much for Troy to handle emotionally (causing him to reject the work), on the other hand, additional outdoor work would expose Troy to the possibility of people who used to be his neighbors seeing him. What kind of kitchen chairs are they? Would it be realistic to commission Troy to make a replacement for the missing chair? Of course, that could also trigger him because of the happy memories associated with the accident that broke it. I’m glad I’m only reading the story and not having to figure out how to maneuver your two characters into a realistic, but pleasing direction! ;–) And here I thought you might have gotten a new nickname! ;–)

Ooo! Jurassic Park! I forgot about dinosaurs! ;–)