methodwriter85

Matthew Bomer as Lou? (I thought Ian Somerhalder, but it was decided that Ian fit Jack better. LOL.)

Perfect. Daisy liked the Disneyland idea, too. Imagine a 20-year old JJ strolling along Disneyland holding his 10-year old cousin Courtney's hand, having fun on rides and the like. Too cute for words, right? It'd be smart for him to pull an Evan Lysacek and cultivate a "sweetheart image" instead of JW's bitchy diva one. I really wish I could find the video where he tours a cookie factory.

Exactly. Tim was making a joke like it was only some Delaware trend, yet as that picture would suggest, guys in California were doing it as well. Maybe not at the particular frat house that he worked for, but it was definitely happening. There's way too much photographic evidence left behind to act like the trend never happened. And Tim, you may be a coach to water polo players, and you may have been an advisor, but how often were you going off to parties with these guys, or hanging out with them in a casual setting? It would have been inappropriate, right? And the fact that you mentioned that they would have been derided for doing the look suggests that these guys were aware of the look, and decided that it was a dumb trend like Blue did. Here's the thing. I'm 26 years old. I have a lot of friends that are 18, 19-years old. They pick up on some trends that I don't pick up on, because I'm older and walking around in neon sneakers and skinny jeans just doesn't work for me. I wouldn't presume to know what all the current trends are for people in their high school/early college years, because despite the fact that I'm around these kids a lot, I'm not one of them. Just like the fact that you may have been around a lot of 18-year olds in 2004, you yourself were 27, and your perception of teenaged trends would be colored by the fact that you weren't 18 years old anymore. I'm talking about trends that hit 18 year olds, when I was 18 years old. If we were talking about 1995 trends that were popular with college freshmen, we'd definitely consult you Tim, but we're talking about 2004 trends that were popular with college freshmen instead. Mainly because we have characters that will be college freshmen in 2004. Next up Tim is going to tell me that little kids in the mid-1990's never played with Pogs, and didn't watch Boy Meets World.;-) (I actually made a pog with a magazine photo of the cast of Boy Meets World. A friend had a pog maker.) Then I'll tell Tim that seven-year olds in 1983-1984 didn't know anybody who had a Cabbage Patch doll or My Little Pony...etc etc....

JJ is going to be a helluva lot better looking that Macaulay Culkin, that's for sure. Although I do see him sampling the NYC party scene.

I'm sure if he's alive by his mid-20's, he'll grow up into a pretty cool person. Especially if he goes off and moves to a different city from his siblings, and sets up a social circle where people have never even heard of his brothers. I actually think that'd be good for him...I picture Will and JJ having weekly skype sessions to stay in touch.

An article I read about him said he graduated from UCSB in 2006, so that'd only put him a year behind you. (You were the class of 2005, right? We just missed being in college at the same time.) That would make sense. Dude looks like suuuucccchhhh the stereotypical 2000's frat boy in that photo. He'd only need a hemp anklet or choker to complete the look.

Your circle, I'm assuming, also consisted of people that weren't in high school and college and were in more of a professional environment circa 2003-2004. You were in your late 20's during the mid-2000's, not 18, and past the frat party stage in your life. And did you not read Blue, who is from California as well, asserting that this trend was in, to the point that he had to send someone home because they refused to put their collar down? I must be imagining this trend happened, because "popped collar" only gets 367,000 hits on Google Images. And this picture of David Geffen's UCSB alum boy toy boyfriend Jeremy Lingvall MUST be photoshopped: Your social circle might not have done it, but clearly given the amount of embarrassing photos left behind, it was a big national trend during Will and JJ's late high school/early college years.

Yeah. The resurgence was, as Blue put it, starting around 2003 and lasting through the mid-2000's. A lot of guys were doing it- some girls as well. This is pretty funny, and spot-on for the times. The only thing missing is a Puka shell necklace or a hemp choker. The Livestrong bracelet and the many knockoffs. You STILL see those around occasionally. What do you think of the boho chic look, Mark? Do you think Claire would embrace it, or cringe in horror at her daughter dressing in peasant skirts?

Hey, someone brought something interesting up. Billy died at 15 years old. JJ's almost 15. If you did kill off JJ at the same age that Billy was when he died..I wonder if it would make Brad think of Billy.

Right. I'm just saying I don't really see Claire cringing at John popping his collar. And it'd be a familiar trend to her. How do you think Claire will react to the boho Siena Miller trend? I'm thinking Marie would probably get into it. That's another big look for the mid-2000's. I can't see Claire rocking the boho chic look, but I could see Marie doing it. There's a mild version of the look that A LOT of girls dressed in, which basically just consisted of a peasant skirt worn with a tank top: A lot of girls starting around 2003 rocked the above look. Mark, was it funny for you when you started seeing trends from your youth coming back in- like puka shell necklaces, popped collars, and feathered hair on guys? It'd be funny for Brad to comment on the resurgence of puka shell necklaces sometime. Mainly because of the line in Be Rad, where Brad chuckled about how a couple of years ago, he would have been wearing Puka shell necklaces and was glad that ridiculous trend was over. That's one thing I really loved about Be Rad- the constant references to clothing trends and the like.

Day 15, Feburary 10th I continued working on Box 5. One interesting find was a pamplet on what soldiers should do if they find a Boche gun, aka a German machine gun. I suppose that must have been quite a boon for Allied soldiers, as the pamplet seemed to suggest that finding a German machine gun was something desirable. I wonder if that means that they were state-of-the-art at the time. Someone from a local newspaper came in today to take pictures of the clothing and items from a 1960's Girl Scout collection. They were doing it because of the 100th anniversary of the Girls Scouts is coming out this year. It was great to see the different uses that people can have for the archives.

I thought there was just something really cool about popping your collar. It made me want to hold my head up higher, made me throw back my shoulders and slouch less...I LOVED the look. Actually, I think Claire would encourage it- remember, she was the epitome of 1980's prep, and the popped collar was definitely part of the look. Around 2002-2003, 1980's styles came back in, including ruffled mini-skirts for girls and popped collars for guys and girls, as well as feathered hair. (But only really on guys.) I think the O.C. had a MAJOR influence on fashion- it brought back surfer/prep styles to the mainstream after things had been tending more towards an urban look. Suddenly guys were wearing polos again like Seth Cohen. And pastels came back in a big way during 2003-2006. I remember when some guys wore these t-shirts that said, "Real Men Wear Pink". That was around 2004 or so. I have a pink polo somewhere. Mark, if you want a really good premier on how teenagers dressed during the 2002-2005 era, I'd watch the Social Network. They nailed that era.

I'm not saying at all that Brad and Robbie completely ignored JJ. I'm saying that Brad and Robbie used their limited time to each focus on one child- Brad focused on Will, Robbie focused on Darius, and they left the primary raising of JJ to Jeanine. It worked fine as they were growing up, but this is the end result- there just isn't that tight of a bond between them. JJ learned to depend on Jeanine, and eventually Tiffany, but not really depend on Brad and Robbie for much because he had his two big maternal figures. And because JJ, diva bitchiness aside, is well-behaved because he pretty much can't do anything except practice and school, Brad and Robbie didn't see any reason to pry into what was going on with JJ because they just assumed he was fine. Tiffany's the only one who got it. And like I said, it might not necessarily be a bad thing- it would just mean that when/if JJ gets a turn at narrating, it wouldn't make sense to write the kind of father/son scenes that Mark has written in the past for JP/Brad and Will/Brad. That kind of stuff would have to be with Jeanine, Tiffany, or Matt. Not everyone has a tight parental bond with their Dad, and it'd be okay for JJ not to have one with Brad or Robbie. I thought that breakdown was just a buildup of so many things. Aside from Tiffany and Jeanine being gone, Darius is away at college so he doesn't have his big protective older brother around anymore. Darius kinda seemed like the glue between the Schluter brothers, best evidenced by the road trip scene to Bakersfield in PMS, and now he's not around. Will's been struck hard by the pubescent drive for sex and fun, and is off into this world that JJ can't really follow into, and can't relate to. And he doesn't really go to either Brad or Robbie for advice. I think he likely disengaged himself from Brad and Robbie during the events of Millenium, and didn't really re-engage himself again. And the one thing he has- the only thing he has- was just the source of a major embarrassment. It just boiled all over- the pain of seeing the one parent he's close to turn into a zombie, feeling left behind by his brothers, not really feeling like he had anyone to talk to, and humilating himself at what was supposed to have been a showcase of how awesome a skater he is...it was just too much. JJ will turn fifteen in a little under ten weeks...

Yeah, but when have we ever really see Brad display those instincts for JJ? It's only ever really been for Will, and maybe Darius. I'm not saying Brad doesn't care about JJ, but I am saying that Brad only really felt that parental instinct when Will was born, and it was only really Jeanine that had it for JJ when he was born. As Darius put it, having one parent getting taken to one of the kids worked out well, but the end result is that JJ really isn't all that bonded to either Brad or Robbie. It's not necessarily a bad thing- it would just mean that if we get around to JJ's point of view, the kind of father-son scenes that we saw with JP/Brad in Be Rad or Brad/Will now just wouldn't really work for Brad/JJ. It would feel fake, because I don't think JJ would see Brad as some kind of mentor to look up to. Those kinds of scenes would have to be with Tiffany or Jeanine, or Matt. That's where JJ fits into the Paternity theme- his biological dad pretends that he doesn't exist, while his adoptive dads care about him, but they're better bonded to his brothers. He had some pretty good maternal figures in Jeanine and Tiffany, but not some much on the paternal side.

Alright. Hey, are popped collars in yet in 2000? I know they became popular in the Philly metro area circa 2003-2004, which means they're likely back in on the California coast already. I'm assuming Hollister is already in as well. I kinda see John Hobart as rocking the two-polo popped collar. Mark, "popped collar" refers to this early/mid-2000's trend of guys and girls who would take their polo shirts and flip up the edges of their collar so it would stand up, like this: I gotta admit, I LOVED popping my collar. I could never get the damn collar to stay up, though. Apparently I should have used hair spray. Every now and then, I like to pop my collar in an ironic ode to the way I used to dress when I was 18-21.

Hey, that was a really good chapter. I really liked how you built up to JJ's breakdown in the chapter- it felt pretty realistic and true-to-life. This kid lost the only parent that he's really bonded to- I'm sure Brad and Robbie care about the guy, but they don't have that kind of parental bond to him that Wade described. I don't think either of them would take a bullet for JJ like Brad would for Will, or Robbie would for Darius and Matt. The only one who JJ had that kind of bond with was Jeanine, going all the way back here: Parenting one of the kids instead of all three worked well, but now you see the unintended consequence- Jeanine's out of commission, and JJ's not close enough to either Brad or Robbie to go to them, so he feels alone. That felt really organic and something that's been building for a very long time. Now the question is...now that it's been acknowledged, are they going going to be okay with that or would Robbie and Brad pretty much try to build a better bond with JJ?

And this is where playing favorites with your kids can really, really screw them over.

Chapter 17 -When everyone is getting amped up for the game. "All About Beats" by Junior Blanks -When JJ and the hockey players put on a show at half-time. "The Distance" by Cake -When Klip does the cantilever. -When JJ messes up the move, and Tiffany clues Will and Ryan in on just how much JJ hides behind the perfect smile. -When Will watches JJ break down about their mother. "Outside" by Staind and Fred Durst -When Will calls his dad on being a totally neglectful parent towards JJ.

It's not a fake story, though. JJ actually is an orphan being raised by his uncle, and I think he'd try to leave it at that. More scrutiny would hit when he gets to the Olympic-level(hello '06 story), but for now, I think being tight-lipped and discreet about who his family is would work fine. He wouldn't want to open himself up to people saying that he got X award because his rich daddy bribed the judges, or have people approach him trying to get money out of him. And like I said, I think not skating under the Schluter name would be a nice way of JJ to distinguish himself away from his family, and not be under his brother's scandals. He wouldn't be the first person to use a stage name professionally. And you gotta admit, Jeremy James is one hell of a stage name. It's not even a fake name, either. We'll come to the middle on this...JJ won't necessarily renounce his parentage and drive a wedge between himself and his family to maintain the image, but he won't exactly flaunt the Schluter name, either. Deal? And Tim, you STILL haven't come up with a better alternative for the Disneyland idea. Come on, I would bet you know something that'd be an even better way to show off how wholesome and family-friendly JJ is than taking his 10-year old cousin to Disneyland. It's going to be hilarious, either way, to see what Daisy talked about- the increasing control they put on the figure skaters by the mid-2000's to get them to look and act as pristine as possible. How someone from a gay pothead family will manage to pull off the wholesome image is going to be interesting.

Day 13, February 7th Today I finally finished sorting out Box 10. Finally. 111 items in that box and done. Day 14, February 8th I started on Box 5. There are a lot of manuals.

It's not actually a remake, though. It's a different story, with Gwen Stacey instead of Mary Jane Watson. And Andrew Garfield is a fine actor- I can see him as Peter Parker and really pulling that role off. I do generally agree about remakes, though.

I mean, I guess as long as JJ maintains the squeaky clean image for himself, it's fine, but I still think he'd be skating as Jeremy James. If people connect the dots, he might not scream away from it, but I don't think he'd go around flaunting the name. Especially considering that, if people get especially interested in him, they'd dig in and find out that JJ's really a Crampton, and I can't see "crack whore incest baby" being very acceptable to the USFSA. Plus, aside from the whole bribe thing that Daisy mentioned, going without the Schluter name is JJ's way of asserting his own independence, being apart from his brother. The figure skating world is his own thing, and it would make sense that he'd want a sense of himself away from his family, after being in his brothers' shadows for so long. Although it sure would be interesting to see how the USFSA deals with having a billionaire family that doesn't exactly play by their image rules. I don't think it'd be entirely smooth. It'd be interesting to see how JJ's need to look squeaky-clean and wholesome would play against the very nature of the very non-conventional Cramptons/Schluters. So what did you think of the Cali videos, Mark? Pretty interesting stuff, no?

Not good luck, good look. It's been getting said a lot on Jersey Shore, it's short for "good looking out." Say like your friend does something good for you, you say "good look, bro" as a way of thanking him. It seems to have morphed into being anything good. My Jersey friends were saying it; I liked the use of it. So like if something's bad, you can go, "Dude, not a good look." Or something.

That's why JJ is skating as Jeremy James, not as JJ Schluter. Duh. It's a plausible half-truth that helps his image remain squeaky clean. Because he wouldn't really be lying if he called himself an orphan, because his biological mother is dead and his biological father abandoned him. In steps "Uncle Brad", no mentions of Robbie, and he's golden. He'd have an easier time flying under the radar because Brad and Robbie don't really interact with him as much as they do/did with Will and Darius. So do you like the Disney idea, or is there something better that would show how wholesome and clean-cut JJ is? Presumably he'd take Courtney, as she's a cute 10-year old from a nuclear branch of his family. Knots Berry Farm seems like another good place.

This is apparently very accurate: I really wish Moon Unit Zappa could do an updated Valley Girl. It'd be hilarious. When did "totes" become such a popular California saying? It seems like it would have sprung out of "brah" fratty culture. And yet another Coachella reference. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlVGZA41WLI I don't know how accurate this is, but I thought their dead-pan bitchery was hilarious. "He's not good enough to get into the NFL. Let's hook up with him" and "All the people that work in the cafeteria are definitely legal." Man. If that's insight into what the mindset is like at USC, I'm seriously thinking Zach Hayes will fit in just fine there. It sounds like Duke but without the old money.