methodwriter85

I've already dedicated these, but if we're talking the 80's, these are some great Man In Motion tunes for Brad and Robbie: "Karma Chameleon" by Culture Club "Tenderness" by General Public And of course, this fucking amazing tune: God, I wish I could re-live the 1980's, don't you? Anyway, the 80's revival is going on in 2003 Cap-world, so I'm looking to do a lot of retro throwbacks.

This song's kicking around my head right now...it would have been absolutely perfect for Robbie and Brad during Millennium: Did anyone catch the Lifetime biopic on her? I was actually surprised at how good it was. Anyway, the trailer that ran for it used this song, which was perfect. Of course, in retrospect- it's ironic that Robbie was so worried and terrified about aging, as he died at age 38. By some definitions he didn't even hit middle age.That was some nice dramatic irony on Mark's part.

Hmm, duly corrected. I guess it would have to be Bushwick or somewhere in Queens. (Isn't that the next hot borough after Brooklyn?) Anyway, it's 2003. Candy colored polos with popped collars should be coming in at this point. I started doing it in 2004, but I'm always late on stuff so I'm sure it started in 2003. The look remained popular until 2007-2008. God, I LOVED that look. I miss doing it. It will probably come back in circa 2023, but by then I'll be pushing forty and it would look ridiculous on me as a 38-year old as opposed to how cute it looked when I was 18. That look is just SCREAMING John Hobart. I can just see him walking around in a light pink polo shirt, layered over a dark pink polo shirt, both collars popped.

No, it did. Sergio mentioned the hipster look, and Marie likes wearing boho clothing. Boho is getting pretty big circa 2003, but the hipster look was still kind of fringe...it doesn't really explode until about 2007 or thereabouts. Apparently a book called The Hipster Handbook was released in 2003 and it was tied into Williamsburg. The phase itself was from the 1940's, but it's morphing into the way we think about it happened around 1999-2003, at least according to Wikipedia. It was accurate and forward-thinking for Sergio to know the term in 2001-2002. It's kind of a shame that no one seems to be thinking about buying up properties in Brooklyn. I mean, TriBeCa is nice, but they already bought at a high price point because it was already a hot neighborhood in 2001. I mean, I'm sure they're still making a killing on it, but imagine the profit margins on getting properties in Willamsburg or Fort Greene or even Bushwick circa 2002-2003.

Well, there's only one way to check. Private Tim, does looking at this guy make your eye twitch?

So we're now in 2003 in CAP-World...what are your favorite 2003 tunes? Here are some of mine: 1.) "Ignition" by R. Kelly 2.) "Milkshake" by Kelis This is going to be SO perfect for CAP. 3.) "Seven Nation Army" by The White Stripes It's a shame that Zach's championship season took place in 2002, the year before this song came out. Oh, well. It's interesting how this became a sports anthem. 4.) "Are You Gonna Be My Girl?" by Jet 5.) "Intuition" by Jewel I think this was great satire, but it was so good at mimicking what it was parodying that people didn't really realize it actually was satire. It works on its own as a pop tune. 6.) "Right Thurr" by Chingy 7.) "Get Low" by Lil' Jon & The Eastside Boyz ft. The Ying-Yang Twins This song hung around for A LONG time. I cannot tell you how many times I've heard this at college parties, as late as 2009-2010. I'm hoping we can see Zach at some college parties where I can use it. 8.) "Hey, Ya" by OutKast Who didn't love this song? 9.) "I Believe In A Thing Called Life" by The Darkness 10.) "Stacey's Mom" by Fountains of Wayne I LOVED Fast Times at Ridgemont High, and I was a self-professed "80's historian" back when I was a teenager, so you can imagine how much I loved this tune and the accompanying video. 11.) "Move Your Feet" by Junior Senior 12. "Satisfaction" by Benny Benassi God, I wish I was doing clubs when this was out. I bet it was a blast to dance around to in a big, sweaty club. 13. "Transatlanticism" by Death Cab for Cutie 14.) "Swing Swing" by All American Rejects Tyson Ritter. Man, the drugs aged him HORRIBLY. He was so cute in 2003. He looked like a skinny Tom Welling. I remember he appeared on One Life to Live back in like 2009, and I got contact high watching him. Anyway, this is another one I can't wait to use, Great teen angst tune. 15.) "Numb" by Linkin Park 16.) "We Used to Be Friends" by The Dandy Warhols 17.) "Where is the Love?" by Black Eyed Peas I really, really can't wait to use this one as well. 2003 was definitely one of my favorite years for music. I was in 10th/11th grade then, so it was kind of the highwater mark for high school for me.

I really do wonder how Mark is going to handle having these characters exist in the mid-2010's, because he can't seem to stand beards or excessive tattoos, and young guys who are both clean-shaven and without any visible tattoos seem to be becoming a rare unicorn. And it's not just the alternative people who are like that- frat boys are getting like that now, too. Then again, Mark also ignored grunge when we were in 1995, and he also completely ignored the circa 1998-2001 skater boy aesthetic even though I think Will would have had A LOT of friends who rocked that look. I do think it's going to be hard for Mark to ignore the hipster look, because they're based in San Francisco, and these characters often mix with the creative class.

Well, his body is pretty damn nice as well. I liked him because he's good-looking, but not really in a pretty-boy way, more like a boy next door way, and he seems like he has an honest, trustworthy face, which I feel like Tony has to have in order for him to be such a two-faced, manipulative lying ass.

Alright, I guess this is where I should admit that I didn't watch the movie because I was so distressed by the trailer and Jonas's conversion into a hunky looking 25-year old. I mean, I've loved that book ever since I ran across it in the library in 3rd grade. I guess I can give the movie a chance. Who knows? Maybe Jem will turn out to be a good movie? Well, probably not. I do get why all these Gen Xers around Tim's age are losing their shit over the trailer, given the reaction I had to The Giver trailer, although this REALLY looks like it's just a name-only adaption. I basically get a "Josie and the Pussycats" vibe, but one taking itself seriously, instead of the campy fun that movie was. Luckily I'm not too attached to the material here, but whatever. Anyway, Ryan Guzman is pretty cute: I'd say he'd be a good Tony, but Mark has been extremely picky on the Tony thing that I've given up hope of ever finding a Tony. LOL. Not that it really matters now since Tony seems to have ridden off into the sunset. However, if a really cute Latino/Italian/Mediterranean-looking guy in his mid/late 20's shows up, I'm recommending Ryan. LOL.

I enjoyed getting to know Adam Becker's family. I like that Phillip is written as being pretty overbearing about trying to get Adam to be more like him, which explains why Adam is very into creating his own world at Tulane, and why he doesn't want his sister to go there. I also liked the bit about how insanely hard it was to get into the Ivy Leagues circa 2006. Welcome to the height of the Millennial Baby Boomlet.

Asa Butterfield (the apparently new Spiderman) as Alisdair? God, I hope the character makes a comeback. I'm with Tim in hoping he comes back into the story at some point. I'm not sure I want him to marry Will, though. Asa Butterfield would have made SUCH a good Jonah in The Giver. Not that I'm not bitter about how they cast a hunky 25-year old for that part and then apparently turned it into the Hunger Games, or anything.

This annoying tune is stuck in my head right now: "Shower" by Becky G

Vice President Joe Biden's son, Beau Biden, has died at the age of 46. Beau Biden Passes Away at the Age of 46 It's weird. I'm pretty shocked by it, although not shocked. His health had seemed sketchy for the past couple of years, but I didn't think it was like life-threatening because he was still so active. I have a very vivid memory of watching the 2008 Democratic National Convention on the t.v. with the Delaware Young Democrats Club at Kildare's Pub in Newark, DE, and just the beaming amount of pride we all felt as Democrats and Delawareans when we saw Beau Biden give his speech about his father. I still remember the typo they had, where they captioned him as "Bo Biden" instead of "Beau", and our club president basically clutching her peals while they fixed it. I honestly thought that Beau was going to continue his father's legacy, and the Biden family was going to become its own little mini-political dynasty. He for damn sure was going to be governor of Delaware in 2016. It's such a friggin' shame. Beau really seemed like he was poised for big political greatness.He had the chops and the know-how. And to be honest, I was excited at the thought that maybe, just maybe, Beau could've become president someday and we'd have our first First State president. I can't imagine what it would be like to have outlived two of your own four children. My condolences to the Biden family. It does go to show you though- cancer doesn't really care who you are or what your father is. If it wants you, it'll take you. America seems SO divided these days- along class, along race, along political lines- that this is kind of a little reminder that there are some things that are universal and bond us all. Man though ,what a waste. Forty-six is too damn young to go out.

I've never really been an album guy, but these were my favorite tunes the year I was 20/21 (2006-2007): "Where'd You Go?" by Fort Minor "When You Were Young" by The Killers "Phantom Limb" by The Shins "Open Your Eyes" by Snow Patrol "Stolen" by Dashboard Confessional "It Ends Tonight" by All American Rejects "Objects of My Affection" by Peter, Bjorn, and John And by the same guys... "Young Folks" by Peter, Bjorn, and John Yep, those are my favorite tunes from circa 2006-2007.

I'm just got off my third shift as a concessions guy at a large movie theater. I can't stand it. I don't feel like I'm particularly good at this and I'm just not feeling it. I also don't really fit in as a guy who's 29 among a bunch of teenagers. Should I just up and quit? Or should I just see it through to the end of the probation period, and then quit? I do really need the money but I really don't know if they'll keep me. I'm thinking about asking the managers for advice so they know I'm trying. Luckily if they do decide not to keep me at the probation mark I don't need to mark this on my future job applications but eh. This is just not fun. The training has been almost non-existent...you were pretty much just thrown out there, and the first two days were okay, but today just flat-out sucked. The main idea was to work this job to pay the bills, and hopefully get some money set aside to take some computer classes. But man, I do not know if I can make it. Part of me wants to gut it out, do my hardest, and seek out feedback to see how I can be better, but the other part wants to get out now.

Hey guys, this movie's currently on my radar right now...it's called Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, and it won the Grand Prize at Sundance Film Festival. I'm always on the lookout for a good new indie film, and this is looking good. It's the story of a guy in his senior year of high school, who is forced by his parents to befriend a classmate that has cancer. Here's the trailer: I'm digging it. It's a well-done trailer- letting you know just enough to know what kind of movie this is, but also leaving out enough so that you're intrigued about seeing it. I also like that this doesn't seem to be a romance at all- don't get me wrong, I loved The Fault in Our Stars, but a straight guy and a straight girl CAN be friends, after all. And I like that it seems to be going with a sardonic indie humor to it. In any event, Olivia Cooke is great on Bates Motel and I'm looking forward to seeing her in this.

People born in the late 1970's/early 1980's (say about 1977 to 1983) are often seen as being somewhat of an "in-between" generation- not quite Gen Xers, not quite Millennials, although they're often lumped in between the two generations. I remember Scott telling me once that he kind of feel like an "in-betweener" when it came to the generation that Adam represented( the Xers) and the one I represent (the Millennials.) Anyway, here's this article that talks about the influence of technology/social media/etc that created this schism: Why Early 80's Babies Are Different From Other Millennials Oregon Trail. I'm going to admit I vaguely remember hearing about it, but the computer game I was excited about was Where In the World in Carmen SanDiego? It's interesting to think that Adam's co-horts really did exist as kind of that bridge between an analog and digital world. Here's another article that argues that those born in the late 1970's/early 1980's are their own microgeneration, displaying characteristics that overlap between Gen Xers and Millennials, and coins this group Xennials. Reasonable People Disagree About the Post-Gen X/Pre-Millennial Generation It's interesting to think that this "micro-group" existed at just the right time to have gotten into the work world for a few years before the start of the Great Recession, and were able to recover better than the people who graduated college just a few years later. Also the idea that this group largely spent their coming-of-age in a Pre-Colombine/Pre-9/11 Era, whereas for me, Colombine hit in middle school and 9/11 hit during the opening weeks of high school, so those were two big fears I was forced to grow up with, as opposed to my oldest sister, who was born in 1977. Anyway...I'm curious for people born in the late 70's/early 80's...do you consider yourself a Gen Xer? A Millennial? Or something else entirely?

Can we be honest? It's not going to be a big deal unless someone on the level of Aaron Rodgers comes out.

I'm guessing. I remember your comments about how the rich white founding families wrote off Los Angeles proper as a loss fifty years ago. LOL. There is gentrification happening, so I guess it's working? The Gentrification of Skid Row Skid Row, according to the article, is rather resistant to any real gentrification attempts. Anyway, to move this to happier stuff.... Disneyland is Celebrating 60th Anniversary Disneyland just always seemed so quaint next to Disney World. I don't think I know anybody from the East Coast who actually went to Disneyland over Disney World. Back when Daisy and I were plotting JJ's career, we always thought it would have been hilarious for him to have a puff video piece of him taking one of his nieces or nephews (or Little Cousin Courtney) to Disneyland. I would pay to see Disneyland JJ smile for the cameras, and then scream at a kid for spitting on his designer shoes as soon as the cameras were off. I'm assuming both Private Tim and Blue likely spent a lot of time there as children. I mean, I probably would, too. I had to make do with Dorney Park/Hersey Park/Six Flags Over Texas, though.

Yeah, that was kind of the point of the article more than anything- the big money isn't in single-family subdivisions, duplexes, or 3-story apartment buildings. The big money are in skyscapers, and it's a time when less people are demanding to live in big single -family homes with a lawn, and there's renewed interest in urban lifestyles. (I was about the date- it's actually from 2007. I wonder how the author reacted to the housing crash, and if that impacted the move towards skyscapers in Los Angeles.) This blog argues that a better model for Los Angeles to follow would be Tokyo: On The Manhattanization of Los Angeles (February 2015) I mean, is there this concern in Los Angeles that all the single-family homes will get bulldozed over to make skyscrapers? That doesn't really make a lot of sense, as this article argues. It does seem like it's inevitable that Los Angeles has to build up if they want to keep growing at the high rate they've always grown out. There's nowhere left to expand the suburbs, are there?

I nominate R.C. as Baby Robert's nickname. It would be such a family thing to do. Anyway, it'll be interesting to see how the Iraq War affects the family. It's nice that they set up a contracting plant in Claremont.

I like how it's evolved, too. I think Will is the only person that seems to truly get and understand JJ. JJ needs that, badly. Alex is a sweet boyfriend but they are FAR from a 'warts and all' relationship, and someone like JJ really could use that. I can't see Will going back to Harvard Westlake just be near Zach. That's Darius's m.o.- it's not Will's. Will's going into senior year, he really likes Menlo and the friends he's made there over what it was like at HW, and I think he likes that he'll graduate with Marie in the class of '04. The question here though is whether or not JJ joins Will at Menlo, or he stays and Boston and goes to prep school there, because like I said, there's no way his family is going to let him get away with homeschooling when he's a senior and no longer needs to be focused on figure skating. They'll want him to have a diploma from an esteemed high school. They might let him get away with putting off college, but they'd definitely insist that he finishes high school with a reputable school. I also think that if JJ and Alex stay together, he'd probably insist on JJ taking education more seriously. I mean, I suggested that JJ should have gotten an GED when he turned 16 but Blue and then Mark pretty much shut me down on that, so there has to be some schooling in the future for JJ. His breeding and environment pretty much mandates it. As for the Iraq War...I really want to see how Claremont reacts to it, what with their new defense plants and all that tech stuff they're doing there.

The idea of the Manhattanization of San Francisco goes back to the 1970's and 1980's, when people were worried about the big cement highrises like the Transamerica, and that it would turn SF into a mini-version of Manhattan, away from its heritage of Mediterrean-style buildings on hills. There are places in SF where super-tall skyscapers can go up....they're currently building Transbay Tower, which will be over a 1,000 feet tall, and according to this article, there's a new wave of Manhattanization coming. Anyway, on the other side of the state...do you guys see some kind of move towards L.A. trying to be more like Manhattan, as this article suggests? Why The Rush to Manhattanization? (Los Angeles Times, February 2015) It's funny. Philadelphia also wants to create a Times Square for their city, too.

This is like the softer, celebrity-friendly version of the look: Honestly though, it's kind of hard to differentiate between this look and hipsters. I do think some guys can pull it off, like MLB prospect/Triple A-Leaguer Daniel Norris: It's funny, without the beard, I think he looks like a loveable college slacker: I guess it is more of an East Coast thing. TetRefine has bitched about how much he hates this look. LOL.

CAP TIMELINE 1903: Tonto is born. April 1925: Jim Crampton is born. May 27, 1925: Steven Schluter is born. 1936: Billy Schluter is born. June 20, 1936: J.P. Crampton is born, the result of an affair between Marie Crampton and Bill Hendrickson. December 17,1944: Steven Schluter dies in World War II. July 14, 1945: Stefan Schluter, the son of Steven Schluter, is born. November 12, 1945: Jeff Hayes is born. 1962-1963 School Year: J.P. Crampton begins teaching at Northwestern University. October 4, 1962: Brad Schluter is born. He is the adoptive son of Billy Schluter, and the biological son of Kevin Carmicheal. December 1962: Andre, JP's partner, is killed in action in Vietnam. March 6, 1963: Ace is born to Isidore, having been fathered by J.P.'s lover Andre. March 1963: Robbie Hayes is born, the youngest of three children. He is the son of Frank and Brenda Hayes. April 10, 1963: Billy Schulter dies at sea on USS Thresher October 27, 1964: Clare and Billy Crampton are born. Clare is JP's biological daughter, and Billy is Jeff Hayes's biological son. 1968: J.P. Crampton begins teaching at Stanford. July 13, 1968: Jeff Hayes dies of an heroin overdose. March 8, 1969: Marcel is born. He is the biological son of Jeff Hayes, but is raised in France. April 24, 1980: Matt Carrswold is born. He is the biological son of Robbie Hayes, but is adopted by the Carrswolds and grows up in Shaker Heights, Ohio. May 15, 1980: Wade Danfield is born. He becomes Matt Carrswold's boyfriend after meeting him on the hockey team at Stanford during the 1998-1999 school year. October 19, 1980: Billy dies in a car accident on the night of a party at Escorial. January 19, 1982: Darius Schluter is born. He is the son of Bitty Schluter and a random Iranian man, but is raised by Brad, Robbie, and Jeanine. He has one biological half-brother, JJ, and one adopted brother, Will Schluter. July 25, 1982: Gathan Hayes is born. He was raised in Claremont, Ohio by his uncle and aunt, Wally and Clara Hayes. February 1983: Kristin Hendrickson is born. August 26, 1983: Ella Hayes, daughter of Richard Crampton, is born. June 12, 1985: Zach Hayes is born. 1985: J.P.'s lover Roger, and one-time lover Sam, both die of AIDS that year. December 7, 1985: Jeremy Schluter, aka J.J., is born. He is the biological son of Jim Crampton and Bitty Schluter, and has been raised in Malibu, CA with Brad, Robbie, and Jeanine. February 19, 1986: Marie Crampton, aka Maman, dies of natural causes. April 18, 1986: Marie Hobart, daughter of Jack and Clare Hobart, is born. September 14, 1986: Will Schluter, son of Brad and Jeanine, is born. July 21, 1987: John Hobart, son of Jack and Clare Hobart, is born. Between 1991 to 1995: Tonto Schluter dies an old woman, warm in her bed surrounded by grandchildren and great-grandchildren. A death we should all hope to have. March 28, 1995: Greg, Stefan's long-time companion, dies of a heart attack. September 4, 1995: Ace's daughter, Courtney, is born. August 7, 1998: Robbie Hayes reunites with his long-lost son, Matt Carrswold. September 13, 2000: Madison Graves, daughter of Jeanine Graves and Cody Warren, is born. September 14, 2000: Riley van den Boss Danfield, son of Wade Danfield and Tiffany van den Boss is born. September 11, 2001: Robbie Hayes, as well as Jeanine and her partner Hank, die in the Towers for 9/11. Senator Danfield dies at the Pentagon. March 24, 2003: Robert Edward van den Boss Carrswold is born. *** We retroactively gave Robbie a birthdate. It's always been March, 1963, but we never actually saw Robbie celebrate a birthday. To pick a day, I went through the stories from Be Rad to Millennium that covered March, and tried to find a day in March that was never covered. Mark picked March 24th. I feel tempted to edit out Gathan and Ella. Kristin can stay. LOL.