methodwriter85

Chapter 75 -The conclusion of the Omega drama, ending with Brad's talk with Mike. "Millenium" by Robbie Williams I LOVED this song when I was 13 years old. God. Still do. Great song. I like to think "Millenium" does a good job of summing up the Omega business intrigue. -When Darius admits to Brad part of him wanted Ella to be pregnant so they could wind up happily ever after. "Wouldn't It Be Nice?" by the Beach Boys http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-E4FRtrD9aQ -When Brad and Robbie make love in a rather interesting way. "I Melt With You" by Modern English -When Robbie promises to never hurt Brad again, and Brad jokes that he better not. "The Promise" by When In Rome http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZA309BEp2UY Napoleon Dynamite for the win! Alright, so that's it for the year 2000 and our Crampton/Schluter/Hayes gang. See you guys in 2001 or so!

I gotta agree with you on that, Mark. How does a dad act logical in a situation where his kids are being threatened? I don't have kids, but from what I understand, it's basically like allowing your heart to leave your body and walk around outside. This is the baby he held in his arms in September of 1986, giving him that ridiculously gentry name, and likely promising in his head that no harm would come to that child for as long as he was still breathing. I can't really blame him for doing what he could to keep his child safe, especially considering that this was post-Adam Walsh, post-Meghan's Law. There was a heightened fear of child kidnappings during the '80's and the '90's, when Brad's kids were children.

I think with JP, the fact that they were threatening his grandson, who he's loved and has seen grow up over the past 13 years, pretty much trumps the bastard half-brother he knew for five.

It won't. The 2000's was an incredibly eventful decade. And we still need coming-of-age stories for JJ and Will.

So just in case we were wondering if Brian was redeemable, Mark adds in that line about Brian wanting to have sex with a 12-year old. So on top of everything, Brian's also a pedophile. Nice. No wonder he needed to go.

Chapter 73 -When Brad watches Will surf, and then realizes Carson is stalking him. "Pulp Fiction Theme" -When Brad goes into full-on gay mafia mode. The Sopranos. God. I don't think you couldn't have been a teenage boy in 2000 and NOT have heard of this show. I'm sure Darius and Will watch every episode faithfully. JJ...I think he's more of a Dawson's Creek/Felicity/Roswell fan. -When Stefan and Brad talk about the various machinations and events in their lives, including the fall of the Nasdaq. "Right Here, Right Now" by Fatboy Slim Chapter 74 -When Brad's team watches with glee as Omega's stock falls. "Bud's Scam" from Wall Street -When the gang cheers as Alexandra Carmichael is arrested. "Bittersweet Symphony" by the Verve -When "Andy" meets Dino, and gets the 'effings to end all 'effings. Literally. "Smack My Bitch Up" by Prodigy http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1KQXCqIXNM&feature=fvsr

Congrats Mark and everyone else who won!

In all honestly, the kinky sex made a great gimmick, but it's the characters and the relationships as they deal with the unfolding of American history that keeps me coming back.

Tim, this is the Academy Awards where American Beauty won Best Picture and Kevin Spacey won best Actor. Since Robbie turned down funding American Beauty in favor of movies that flopped, it's not a fun deal for him. The kids have gotten to that age where they start hiding stuff from their parents. I like how Brad and Claire are perplexed by their teenaged children, as parents should be. It's just kinda cool- they were the kids at one point, and now they're the parents of the teenagers. It's like seeing Winona Ryder playing Spock's mother.

Chapter 72 -When Brad gives his interview to the reporter, and tries to rally his troops. "Break My Stride" by Matthew Wilder -When Brad and Claire talk about just not understanding kids today. "Surrender" by Cheap Trick -When Brad and Robbie have fun with electrodes. "Electricity" by OMD http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZB1J57LGQfY -When Brad talks with Elizabeth Danfield, who agree to help bring Triton down. "Yoo Hoo" by Imperial Teen

All kidding aside, JJ is in 8th grade. How many of us DON'T cringe when we think about what we acted like in middle school? Guys as mature as Will are pretty rare...that's why they stood out so much. As for JJ's beef with Gathan....remember...he's a figure skater. Not so big on hockey players. Matt is the exception because he's essentially a stepbrother.

It would actually be interesting to see how Brad would deal with the death of a child. We already saw him lose a sibling, so why not see him deal with the loss of a child? Or maybe a spouse.... *ducks and runs from Adam Phillips*

It is annoying Cody can act like a totally selfish prick, yet he never suffers any consequences for it, and everyone falls over themselves to assure him that he's more than just an inflated sex toy but a true friend. My issue with Cody is that he's been featured in three stories at this point and there's been little to no character growth. It would be fine for a teritary character like Jackie the Hollywood agent, but he's often featured as a secondary character, sometimes with a very heavy focus, and because of this I'm feeling character fatigue. The whole "loveable hot circuit boi" deal was cute when Cody was 25. It's not so cute at 30 when he should have gained some maturity. The character had potential, but at this point I'd rather see him either go away entirely or be used very sparingly. The Kevin thing has a bit of potential, but I'm frankly just not that interested. Anyway, chapter 71. I love that JJ is a total bitch. Kinda reminds me of 14-year old Jeremy here. If I decided I didn't like someone, I was a total ass to a person. I didn't even realize I was bitchy. I actually had one sister sit me down to watch "As Good As It Gets" to explain to me that I could be as much of an jerk as Jack Nicholson's character was. Shocking, I know, because you all know me as such a nice guy who's as sweet as pie. But I could, in fact, act like a total jerk without even realizing it when I was younger. So, yeah...we figured out the real reason why JJ isn't popular. He's a stuck-up bitch, and it figures Jeanine can't see it and uses the b.s. "he's short" excuse.

Chapter 71 -When the family gathers to watch JJ skate, and JJ totally beasts it. "Sandstrom" by Darude http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ejm6jn9AFA0&feature=related -When Brad gets exasperated at all the teenage b.s. going on between the kids, mainly centered around JJ and Gathan. "The Real Slim Shady" by Eminem -When Brad overhears Ella losing her virginity to Darius. "I Wanna Be With You" by Mandy Moore Mandy Moore is my favorite guilty pleasure from that time. God, I love this cheesy-ass song. -When Darius comes to them, and freaks out about the condom breaking. "10 Days Late" by Third Eye Blind http://listen.grooveshark.com/#/search/song?q=10%20days%20late%20third%20eye%20blind

MD isn't that conservative of a state. I still don't think it'll pass, but it's worth a shot.

Chapter 70 -When Elliot gets ousted as chairman of the board, and Brad takes over. "You Only Get What You Give" by the New Radicals -When Brad and Robbie have some fun with Aaron Eckhart at the after-party. "Who Let The Dogs Out?" by The Baha Men

You pay for shipping and handling. It doesn't make sense to pay a tax.

Chapter 69 -When Brad realizes that Elliot is out to get the company. "Sabotage" by Beastie Boys http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7GvY6O9J4w -When Brad and Robbie talk after some twink tries to seduce Robbie. Then they affirm their love for one another. "I Try" by Macy Gray http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qsTk2xp0nvY

Hey, I was curious about something. People from Southern California- was "sick" as a slang word to mean something "cool" used as early as 2000? I know sick was at least used as slang on TV's Laguna Beach, which was filmed in 2003-2004. Could a SoCal guy have said something was "sick" as in cool as early as 2000? What were some other popular slang terms from around the start of the '00s? I hear "clutch" a lot. *looks expectantly at Tommy and Timmy*

Alright, so I pinpointed the error in chapter 9 of Man In Motion: https://www.gayauthors.org/story/Mark%20Arbour/maninmotion/9 Pretty simple fix, whenever you feel like getting around to it. Basically just change the line so that Nick is already married with one son by June 1985, and that there's another on the way.

I don't know. I kinda want Zach to be someone who's actually a future NFLer. Since they're in a generation where coming out isn't as major of a drama, I was thinking it'd be interesting to explore someone who HAS to stay in the closet because they're in a world that's behind in terms of acceptance of homosexuality. There isn't really going to be any kind of coming-out drama to mine with Will, so maybe if we had instead an aspiring professional football player instead to represent that? Added points if Zach winds up with the Arizona Cardinals and Kurt "I Point To God" Warner. As for Will, this is how I picture Will and his general look: Laidback jeans, t-shirt and hoodie kind of guy. Probably wearing Converse. Also some DC gear as well... I like the thought of him dressing like this, precisely because I know it would drive Claire mad. LOL. He'll definitely have pierced ears as well...maybe even gauges? I could see Brad and the older guys in the story cringing when gauges start coming in.

The idea was based around a professor who enjoys sleeping with teenagers and students. The title fit for that concept, but wow, the story has really expanded from that.

I can see Will as a guy who hangs out with emo kids and even shops at Hot Topic, but I don't see him fully embracing the scene. I can see Will as a guy who pretty much can hang out with anyone. Zach's a football player...I've NEVER met a football jock who did the emo boy thing.

If Will hangs out with emo kids, he CAN french-kiss his friends...even openly at parties in front of squeeing girls. Emo boys were really open about kissing other guys at parties in front of people. It certainly grabbed attention, especially from the girls who thought it was hot. Emo boys should start showing up around 2002. I know Hot Topic should already be open at this point. I'd say emo boys and hipsters are the defining personality "archtypes" of the 2000's, like the yuppie for the '80's and the alternative slacker for the '90s. As for JJ being a dick to Gathan- this is my take. JJ is a very sweet and loving kid- IF he likes you. If JJ likes you, he LOVES you. He thinks the world of a person he likes and want to follow them around like a puppy. However, if he doesn't like you....he hates you. He'll totally ice you out and talk ad nauseum to whoever happens to be around about how much he can't stand you. There's no real middle ground with JJ...and if he doesn't like you, it takes a long time for him to get over that, if ever. It's a good explaination as to why a guy who seems so friendly is so unpopular at school. He can't read people well enough to know when it's in his best interest to fake liking someone to maintain a decent social status. I was exactly like this when I was JJ's age. Got puppy-dog eyes for people I liked; and totally an ass to people I didn't like. I'd say Mark based that on me, but of course Mark didn't know me at 14. LOL.

Chapter 68 -When Brad visits Elizabeth Danfield in rehab. "Sunny Came Home" by Shawn Colvin -When Brad talks to Will, who's getting over his teen angst over being dumped. "Dammit" by Blink 182 I imagine Will listened to a lot of Blink 182. Those guys were so good with teen angst. -When the brothers tease Darius over falling in love. "There She Goes" by The La's http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WyYEBDpQjjk&feature=related I probably should have used the '00 version by Sixpence None the Richer, but this is a better version. And JJ and Will would know the La's version because of the Parent Trap. -When Brad and Robbie have fun making some home DVD's. "The Stroke" by Billy Squier "The Stroke". What a great early 80's rock song.