centexhairysub

Hmmm... a cucumber, I guess the more things change the more they stay the same... I really enjoyed the latest chapter of Odyssey. I wonder who the vegetable was in that they called for Dr. Jackson, was it a member of the crew??? The past murder charge seems like something that would have to be dealt with at some point no matter what, I have to wonder how that will be handled. I still can't say that I am all that excited about Calvert being the one to sail with Granger; but now if someone has to die on the way out or back to England, Calvert can perish and it will be just that much more tragic... I still have to wonder who it will be that will replace Bertie. I can't see it being one of the Wilcox clan, but I do think it will be someone that Granger has a history with, I thought of Iggy right away... Well, can't wait for the next chapter, keep up the great work, Mark...

Well, the newest chapter was revealing in a few ways; I truly did enjoy every moment of it. I like when Granger interacts with Admiral Lord Howe, he is one of the more interesting auxillary figures in the stories. I do like how Granger is able to touch upon so many aspects of what we know as history and be a part of it so seemlessly. I do hope that Arthur gets to stay in London, I wonder if Holmquist will have to be given over to him as a permenant aide of some kind or another... LOL... I for one was not that happy with Calvert being the First Lt. I always found Calvert sort of the most boring of all of George's previous involvments for some reason or another; he was just the one that I never warmed up to or found that interesting. I don't think that Caroline will have that much to say one way or the other about this; her actions and George's acceptance of them make that almost an impossiblity. I really can't see Wilcox as the one being appointed Governor of the Moluccas as at that time it would have been a very lucrative placement. I am not sure that he has done anything to recommend himself to His Majestys Governement enough to enjoy the privilige of such a placement. Have we ever established exactly which island that Bertie is Governor of? In general, the British never did get control of much of the Moluccas Islands, the Dutch managed to keep control of most of the area until their Independence in the late 1940's. Being appointed Governor was a prestiges placement and while many Admirals and Generals saw such rewards, it was usually after some type of great contribution, something none of the Wilcox's seem to have accomplished.

Great choice... I was missing the recommendation as well, hate to have to use my own memory about this....

Well, Will is certainly enjoying himself both inflight and in Norway. I was not suprised at all that Will did not really suffer any consequences for his actions on booking the flight. Honestly why should he? Micheal has never been anything but an ass to him and Jeff had earned his ire for his behaviour toward him; maybe neither really deserved the flight from hell but so what... Isn't Jeff really Stef assistant so wouldn't you think he would have checked the itinerary before hand somewhat, if nothing else just to make sure the flight wasn't screwed up in some way. I do have to say that Jeff has made up to Will rather nicely though. I do imagine that Will can arrange a better flight home for at least Jeff. Plus, I would honestly be suprised that any guard would have lasted with a family like this that one of the charges absolutely hated him and fought with him all the time, so why is Micheal still around period??? I do wonder what the deal is with Pat, I do hope we find out even if he isn't coming back... I have a friend that graduated from Harvard School back in the early 80's before the merger with the Westlake School for Girls; both of this children have subsequently graduated from Harvard Westlake just a couple of years after the time CAP is in now. According to him back in his day the school was more strict about missing classes or time for non school related activites but there were exceptions, especially for students that excelled academically. He says by the time that his kids were attending the school there was even more leeway depending on the situation. His daughter did some modeling and the school was willing to work with her as long as she maintained her GPA and didn't abuse the situation. He said his son wasn't quite the student his sister was and was not allowed the same leeway. I think from what he says that by the 2000's as long as you kept up academically and otherwise, you were given some leeway on missing a certain amount of time throught out the school year. I hope we alternate chaptes somewhat, I really want to see how Wade and his family are doing... I still believe there will be some battle royals there....

Just loved everything about the latest chapter of Odyssey, I so enjoy these visits to the past. The Bridgemont series really has become my favorite online series, yes even more than CAP; but just by a hair. I loved how Granger is able to navigate the currents and reefs that seem to lurk below the surface in politics, family, society, and even at sea. Granger is a remarkable creation from a remarkable mind. I was certainly glad to see an update of the story while you were on vacation; I do realize this story because of your efforts at authenticity is much more time consuming to write than your other stories so for you to complete and post a chapter while on vacation, well just bravo... I wonder if we havn't just meet our new 1st Lt. At 25 years old, he would be senior enough I would think to become the 1st Lt aboard Granger's ship... I know he would fit in with Granger well but have to wonder about the rest of the crew... I do think that Arthur will be making the trip whether he wants to or not. I would think that the ship would sale in the next chapter or two at the latest. Hope you are having a great vacation....

Well, it was great to see that Will found a therapist to talk to and maybe help him understand some issues; it just came a little late... I do think that the flight from hell for Jeff and Micheal may come back to bite him. I have a feeling that Stef will fix the flights home, he read Will like a book. Great chapter and hope you are enjoying your vacation, Mark... Keep recharging those batteries...

Every great or infamous champion started as an amateur at some point, I didn't say the take down was gonna be in the next year. Someone like Mary Ellen is capable of doing anything and those kind of people are always dangerous...

Loved it... Perfect choice for that moment....

Well, Beau does have a girlfriend and she is African American, like mother like son??? I really enjoyed the new chapter, glad it was in the pipeline. I have to say that the way Wade relates to Beau is great. I do understand why he can't do the same to any of the rest of his family but glad he has someone in the family he can honestly feel that way about. I have known people like Beau that seem to be able to just stay above the fray and always seem to be able to get along with everyone, they always just seem happy; ugh... I hate them so much... LOL... I think it is great that people can do this, but I never mastered the ability. I could so easily see Mary Ellen being the one to bring Elizabeth down in the end, they are so much like each other and only one can be Mistress of Evil... Mark, I hope you are enjoying your vacation and recharging those batteries... You know North America has so many lovely vacation places: Victoria British Columbia, Key West, the Outer Banks, but you picked Phoenix; I really have to worry about you....

OMG, I will not even go into the images pouring through my mind right now... Mark, you really deserve some time to recharge your batteries and spend some time with your family... Enjoy your time and we will be waiting when you return...

Well, I can see Granger going to Spithead and giving the crews his personal word that the Royal pardon is real and that they can rely on it. Spencer will be the one that really has to control the captains and officers but you would have to think that Granger backed up by the Royal pardon would be more influential with the actual seamen. We know that this mutiny ends peacefully while the latter one at Nore, where Wilcox is, ends with bloodshed and some hangings. I sure do hope that Wilcox ends up blooded in that one; although Granger really should be gone before that one even really starts. While I agree that having Llewellyn along might brighten the story, the odds of Granger running into him with so many ships at Spithead is a little remote. I am more interested in who the new 1st Lt is going to be, I vote for someone new although I can think of several blast from the past that would be interesting as well....

Well, I swear sugar pie, I just saw all of this coming.... I so agree that Mary Ellen is like the evil Kathryn from Cruel Intentions, everyone is fooled except those that know her best. I thought that the dynamic between Wade and JP was great and I loved the give and take. It is nice to see someone that really is on the same wave length as JP. Plus, Matt was just perfect in how he helped Wade focus on what was really important. I do think the plan that Wade and JP came up with, will pay dividends in the end. I am a little perturbed at Father Tim, I know you want those that are out front to be some kind of saint but sadly and rarely do those that make a real difference in the world fall into that category. You have to take the bad with the good and just suck it up sometimes... I thought that Wade handled his mother and sister perfectly. You could tell that they were both completely thrown off balance by his behaviour. They both seemed to believe that he would be so overcome with guilt that he would just easily fall into their clutches. I can't wait to see how they regroup and how Wade contends with their next attack. I was really glad to see how excited Beau was in seeing Wade. I think even though they are far apart in distance, they still really care about each other. You can tell that neither Beau nor the Senator really has any idea of what all Elizabeth and Mary Ellen have been up to. I sort of see Wade as a General Anthony McAuliffe being surrounded by Elizabeth and Mary Ellen and just saying "Nuts!"....

Good choice but the song that kept running through my head the whole time I was reading this chapter was "Crash and Burn" by Savage Garden... I am not sure why that popped into my head but it was like it was playing in stereo the whole time I was reading...

I just loved the latest chapter of this story... I swear when Granger and Holmquist were interrupted and it turned out to be Arthur; I just knew how it was going to turn out... Maybe Holmquist can be assigned to assist Arthur on the whole trip, I could even see him staying there with Arthur in the Far East... Sometimes when you find the right person that enjoys the right thing, you just don't want to let them go. I do agree with ricky that Granger will probably be sent to inform the seamen that the bill has passed and been signed and the mutiny can end. It will need a deft touch and we all know Granger has that and some to spare. I doubt we have the Welsh midshipman back, especially as a 1st Lt, which is what Granger really needs. While Robey has many good qualities, a trip like this will need someone with a little more experience. You have to wonder if it wll be a blast from the past, or someone new to the story. I really enjoyed the touches about Granger's presentation to the House of Lords. From what I have read, they seemed to be very accurate. It is those touches that make Mark's stories a cut above the rest. I just can't wait for the voyage to begin...

Granger our hero has sailed the ocean blue Granger our hero serves the King so true Caroline stays home and protects George's back Caroline makes sure that her behaviour now has tact Cavendish has to stay even when he wants to go Cavendish knows that he has but to stay or go Mark must bring forth a new post Mark knows the time is near to post

Well, I think the biggest issue wasn't that Hot Jeff was a little rude to Will, it was the blow to Will's ego. Will was obviously doing a little light flirting and Hot Jeff shot him down with extreme prejudice. Few things in life are as delicate as the male ego, and it is ever so much more fragile during the teen years. Will's reaction was more about the blow to the ego then Jeff being rude, at least I think it was... Can we start just calling him, Jeff??? And are we ever going to get to the real reason that he has an issue with Matt???

Never understood how a gay man can really be considered a vegetarian..... LOL.....

Very interesting.................

Well, the new chapter of Paternity is up and damn, is it good... I loved how Will and Stef bonded and then Will and Ryan bonded even better. I don't think that Will is ever going to be in love with Ryan but like he says in the chapter he loves him, if you don't understand the difference, I can't explain it. Will really comes face to face with some of the things he did and learns a little bit about responsibility. I do think there is something else behind the behaviour of the school, but we might find that out latter. Mark, this was just a great feel good chapter....

Well, the new chapter is up and what a great one. I just love how Mark is developing this story. The way he is mixing the events of the day into the reality of the story is just great. I really like how the Earl called it, Granger will be seen as a sage since we all know that in the end the government does exactly what he said and was printed in the paper. It will make it look like he was more closely alligned with the King than the Lords of the Admiralty were in this instance. The way George handled the situation with Freddie and Davina was well done as well, I guess we can't really kill Davina off now, can we???? I still want to know the issue between Cavendish and Davina. I wonder if Freddie will still have to go off or will they both get to stay in London??? Well, it seems we lost the Welsh midshipman to another ship and Cavendish all but stated he wasn't going to go to keep an eye on the situation at home; so have to wonder who the 1st Lt is going to end up being. I can't see Robey being senior enough to hold onto the position but we will see. I guess really since Granger has played his part in setting the end position of the mutiny at Spithead, he could really go ahead and sail since he has a full crew, at least as soon as he gets all the officers and provisions loaded. I still wonder who his final passenger list will include; will Sir Arthur and Sir Phillip be the passengers or someone else???? I just can't wait...

No, I had to help a niece through this in 2001 and I can promise you even in Texas if you have the money and position, you don't go through a picket line... This is why I don't think that the next narrator will be any of the younger generation. Even Gathan, who is the oldest of the three previously mentioned is really too young to fully understand the implications of what happened that horrible day. I really believe because of the magnitude of what happened, the main narrator will be one of the older generations; either JP, Stef, Claire, Brad or Robbie... I have always advocated that no one in the familes sphere had to be killed or hurt in the events of that day but I do think that Mark A. will have someone perish. I also don't think it will be a peripheral figure like Carullo, or some of the others previously suggested; I think, but hope I am wrong, that it will be a central figure. I also don't think it will be one of the kids that perish, the exception might be JJ, this would explain how someone so brilliant at skating never made the Olympics, Worlds, etc... Mark has never been shy about killing off a major person to further the storyline, remember how 1968 ended, I am still pissed off about that. I think we may see glimpses of how the events affected Gathan, Zack, JJ, Will, Darius, etc... but I think the central theme will be handled by someone older and with more perspective. I knew so many younger family members and friends that were even into their 20's that really couldn't comprehend what the events where that occured for a long time afterward. It just didn't seem real but even after the shock wore off and you realized it was, so many of the younger generation just didn't really understand the totality of what occured. Many of them had viseral reactions that shaped their behaviour and continues to do so for some; but the impact and the full effect didn't sink in for them for years to come. I don't think Claire would have to lose one of her children to be the one that most of the others turned to in a time of need. Claire is already the one that the others listen to in a crisis or fight, even Brad. When you see drama at the family gathering and someone has to step in and keep it on an even keel, most often that is Claire. To some extent JP, Stef, and Isidore are all getting up in years and while there wisdom and knowledge is needed, I think most would turn to someone like Claire that would be able to take on all of the necessary burdens of tragedy without the issues of age and health being called into play like it would with JP, Stef, or Isidore. And no, I don't think that any of them are too old to deal with the issues, but they would all have a harder time of it than someone of Claire's generation. Because of the events that will take place in the next story, I don't think you need a narrator that is having problems with their relationship/work/family/etc; the events that unfold will be all the drama that the next story will need....

I wouldn't think that Raine was pregnate but even if she was, I don't see her having the baby... At that age and with the support they would have, I would think an abortion would be much more likely. In the first place, the daddy is gay; I just can't see her parents being that happy that she was having a gay boy/man's baby and basically becoming a single mom at 14. Yes, I know it happens, but rarely in that social setting. That might be just a little to much drama even for a Mark Arbour storyline. I can see Wade being upset that his sister was beaten but I don't think he would feel guilty at all; he better than most would realize that his mother was the primarly person responsible and would deal with that accordingly. I also agree with methodwriter that Beau in what little we saw him, never gave off the gay/bi vibe at all. He didn't seem to have an issue with Wade being gay but there was nothing to indicate that he leaned that way at all; plus, I am sorry, not everyone can be gay. I know I am going to get into trouble with this, I did last time but I really would like to see Claire as a narrator. She now has Ella, who is seeing Darius; a son, John, who has a girlfriend but seems to sleep with his openly gay cousin quite often; a daughter that we don't really know much about but maybe we can have our first really out lesbian born into the family; and lastly because the next story is really going to be sad and traumatic and who handles that better than a mother, no matter who is hurt or injured. Claire has in some ways always been the strongest of JP's children and in the next story we are going to need all that strength to survive.

Well, was never a Dre fan but the Linkin Park song was inspired....

Yea, a new chapter is up and what can I say, I just love Wade... I really enjoyed all the give and take of this chapter between Wade and Matt and then Wade and David. I have never had therapy, yeah yeah, I know, I should be seeing one now; that being said, I can't say how accurate the give and take between David and Wade is but it comes across as really believable. I really do believe that Wade and Matt are destined to be together in some capacity for the rest of their lives. I can really see them bringing a third person into their relationship and having a true polyamourus relationship or just keeping themselves fully committed and having people on the sides, I think that adding a third person would be really interesting... I see this dominating FBI agent that is assigned to a case they become involved in... LOL.... I know Wade and his sister really aren't close but damn, you don't hit a man's sister and get away with it....

A penny, hell, at least half a crown...