methodwriter85

My whole family is bitching at me right now because I'm applying to this school called Millersville Univeristy, which is, at an hour and a half away, 'too far' for me to go, and 'isn't a good school'. They keep bitching at me to apply to a closer school in the area, and look at closer area schools, which I have! They are either too good for me to get into, or they don't have my program. Then they bitch about me about how I need to take educational courses if I'm going to be a community college professor- which isn't even true, because I've asked professors time and time again. They tell me I should apply to my undergad school, like there's a chance in hell I'm going to get in with a 2.64 GPA. They don't seem to understand that I don't have a whole hell lot of options. Ugh, ugh, and ugh.

I felt like Matt is like a combination of Brad and Robbie- Brad's head for business and fun, snarky attitude, and Robbie's Teddy bear quality. It's been interesting reading about a Hayes who grew up with a Silver spoon in his mouth- he carries none of the self-loathing that the Hayes carry around, and it's largely because he wasn't around for them to infect their toxic ways on. I feel almost like we're seeing what Jeff would have been like if he had good parents.

Author Adam Phillips is reading this story, and I thought I'd bump this thread up in case he wants to offer his thoughts. I do agree with him how the story just sucks you in that first chapter.

Bloodlines is great. Matt Carrswold is Mark's best creation since Brad. (Sorry, Marcel.)

I used to do cross-country. I was never that good, but it was a great experience. As for Mr. Phillips- hey, would you ever consider lacrosse? I bet you would be good at it. And lax players are sooooo sexy.

Chapter 11 -When the gang discusses Steven's dilemma about fighting for a war he doesn't believe in for the love of a guy. "Billy Don't Be A Hero" by Paper Lace http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FS2nW6w-sZQ&feature=related

I'm bumping this up in case Adam Phillips wants to talk about what he thinks of the story. My view? Marcel is a nice guy, but really boring and un-memorable.

I'm from the suburban state of Delaware, and it wasn't that big of a deal here, either. And my high school days were looooonnnggg ago- all the way back in the ancient days of 2005. *looks at Mark and Adam and winks* If I had been dating, I would have brought a boyfriend to the prom. *sigh* Oh, well.

Mark, Enric is our real-life Benjamin Whist. He takes things literally.

That's going to be one interesting conversation when Brad tells him- "Hey JJ, you know Grandpa JP? Well, you're really his nephew. Your great-uncle Jim is actually your father. Your grand-aunt Maman was really your grandmother.Your Aunt Claire is really your cousin. And I'm both your uncle and your adopted second cousin." Poor little JJ's mind will explode.LOL. I wonder if this means that JJ will want a GM and a Chrysler.

I guess you're right, Mark, but I don't like Aaron all that much right now. I can't believe Steven is going to give up graduating from high school for this guy. Ugh. One thing I've noticed though- forget the Hayes- you killed off more of the Schluters. Both of Tonto's kids die, plus Bitty. Although the fact that they tend to be fruitful balances it out- Stefan notwithstanding. (I kinda wonder why he and Greg never adopted kids- they seem like they would have liked being parents, but I'm guessing the 1970s weren't condusive to gay adoption.) Brad and his son Will aren't actually Schluters biologically, but they still carry the family name. His nephews-raised-as-sons Darius and JJ actually are bio Schluters. Did Nick have kids? I feel like that's never been answered. And then there are the Cramptons- Jim had two kids, a boy and then a girl named Vanessa, right? Not to mention his 50-something bastard grown child as well as 13-year old JJ. Does JJ have nephews and nieces that are older than he is? Lol.

Aaron is such an douche. Steven could do so much better than this zealot. I'm praying he finds a real true love in the two years before he dies- 'cause Aaron ain't it. I'm definitely no longer rooting for them as a couple- between this, and Aaron's inability to say the l word, I really can't stand the guy. Unfortunately, most of us are extremely dumb about the guys we fall for when we're 16. Too bad Steven won't live to see his twenties, when he could've been smarter and fell for a guy who was actually right for him.

He means another, as-of-yet unwritten story set after the Box, most likely during Y2K.

I don't think 40 is old age- it's middle age. Average life expectancies in the US fall around 80, so 40 hits the middle perfectly. Although, you know, I have heard that the gay community tends to see anyone over 30 as old. I guess I'd modify and say that Brad at 37 is approaching middle-age, but still has a few years to go. Though I suspect Brad will have an early mid-life crisis because he settled down so young, his oldest son is graduating from high school, and he's going to lose a considerable amount of money. We'll for sure if/when Brad gets a nose ring and buys a new sports car.

Hmm, middle age is generally thought to start about between 35 to 40, so I'd say Brad is in the very early stage of middle-age. He's definitely past his young adult stage, in any event.

Mike, there's a line in CAP where JP talks about how the oldest of the Hayes brothers was a nice guy who went to high school with Steven and died in the war before he did. As for soap conventions, I like that Mark stays fairly consistent with ages. I loved that we've seen these characters grow up and change, like Brad going from a 5-year old in 1968 to the high school senior in 1980 to middle-aged dad of three in 1999 who's getting ready to see his oldest off to college. I'm excited that we'll get to see the same process, to a point, with the new generation. Like Will and JJ- we get introduced to them as babies circa 1986, they're currently around 13 in the story, and we'll eventually see them enter their mid-20s when the story is brought to 2010.

I doubt Aaron is alive. Mark has never brought someone back from the dead- deaths are pretty permanent in CAP-Verse. It's kinda hard reading this story because you know these two boys will be dead within two, three years.

I came close to joining the Intravarsity Christian club at my school- there were some damned cute guys there. It's been a fantasy of mine to have sex with an innocent Christian guy...

I've never heard of this Adam Phelps guy, either. But it seems like he writes some keen stories.

Speaking of good porn...chapter 21 of Cross-Currents. Andy bottoming for the first time with a straight boy. Never fails with me- the line about Andy lifting his legs to give his teammate access makes my toes curl.

Let's Go Phillies!

Chapter 10 -December the 7th, 1941 "God Bless America" by Kate Smith http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCavKL2zdjM

I always thought Be Rad showed a marked improvement in your writing, and I think its because you put so much of yourself and your life into the story. You knew the world- 1980 suburban NorCal teenage life- and you did a great job of recreating that world for us. I especially liked how you lifted the exchange from On the Mark where the mid-westerner guy makes fun of Mark saying a car is 'bad', and turned it into an exchange where Robbie doesn't understand Brad's use of bad.

Tiger, it was stated that in CAP that Aaron dies in the war before Steven does. They can join in 1943, and I'm guessing Aaron dies pretty much that year. Steven survives until close to the end of the war, because Stefan was born on some vague, never-enumerated date in 1945, so he couldn't have died earlier than the second half of 1944. As for the 1999 stuff, Stefan feels like Cassandra, warning about the impending tech meltdown. Come spring 2000, Brad is going to be so burned on this...

I tried tequila once on Halloween 2005, and I never needed to try it again. It's great to see how the CAP family gets to travel all around to these exotic locales.