Daddydavek

So "the car" is a problem and Will caused it? I think Brad and Gathan should thank Will. They can honestly tell Zach's parents it wasn't them and blame it all on Will. I have a feeling Will could not care less if they are upset about it. The trip to Hawaii sounds better and better. I hope the surf is up! Thanks for the great chapter! AND HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

My advice is for her to donate the bag to a charity drive and say nothing about it to her mother-in-law. If asked she should say it really wasn't her style so she donated it to charity. As for as re-gifting, I come from a large family. My sibs and I decided years ago to no longer exchange gifts and just provide gifts for the young ones under age 18. A few years ago someone suggested a re-gifting exchange where we picked a gift we did not use and pass it on. It has gone on for some time and is sort of looked forward to now. A couple of the items have been passed around to almost all of us.

Now that we have JJ all figured out I'm looking forward to the next installment as I'm curious what is coming next and I'm hoping for an early Thanksgiving present!

OK now we know that Lord Arbour has undying respect for his British resource and all around fount of wisdom, Westie! And yes, anyone who can espouse salient facts as logically and convincingly as Westie is a treasure!

Happy Birthday Addy! I hope your day is wonderful!

Mikeal after making a fool of himself, figures out what he wants and went for it. Good for him and wasn't it nice that his feelings were reciprocated all along? Good job!

Innuendos? It looked pretty obvious to me with the crotch grab!

Very nice chapter and I loved how it ended. Two sibs both deciding to make-up! Great job!

Our beagle sleeps under the covers with us.....

"The only way we can improve our circumstances is to acknowledge and maybe even embrace all of our shortcomings instead of being delusional and just repeating to ourselves that things would okay, we're all perfect, and everything will all be fine." I don't think having a positive attitude means you can't be a realist and take steps to avoid known hazards. Neither does it mean you should be delusional and just wish things to be ok. Being positive means you take active steps to effectuate a positive outcome in all your actions and reactions. Cynics are usually too sure of bad results no matter the probabilities and usually fail to take any proactive measures as they assume they will fail or fate will intervene and ruin things anyway. The message I am trying to convey that while we live in a less than perfect world that has always had what seems to be insurmountable problems, humanity has so far managed to carry on and in some ways overcome. Look at the medical advances in the last 60 years, especially vaccines and even treatment for AIDS which was death sentence for so many years!

I like happy endings too. Thanks for the reviews and liking my story.

Dean is still figuring himself out. Thanks for the review!

I hope you enjoy the story!

Kyle has it right and I am glad to see you reinforce that.

Being cynical and expecting the worst may be a coping mechanism but I can't recommend it. Idealism, hope and a sense of progressive optimism may have disappointments, but being positive is a much better place to live than being negative in my experience. It is sad when our idealism is shaken by a horrific event but the ability to pick ourselves up and move on can be inspirational. I am a realist, but I also retain my optimism because cynicism can too easily be a self-fulfilling prophecy. People with lowered expectations expect less and usually achieve less. Cynics are also quick to point out that others are sitting back and waiting for someone to do something instead of doing something themselves.

Somehow I think the end of the Odyssey is but a few chapters away and there will be much left to wonder about until the next book in the saga is revealed. But then that is just my thought and (Lord) Arbour may have a different agenda altogether.

I think you are too hard on a whole generation. I think you are right in that 9/11 did not have quite the impact as December 7 or November 22, but an impact was surely made and perhaps in ways not yet evident.

Not bitter, just doggedly realistic.

???? What socks?

I suspect that since the vast majority of males don't use condoms, that the results are less than representative from the ones that do.

For the current generation 9/11 was when in a sense they lost their innocence. For my father's generation December 7, 1941 was when their world changed. For my generation November 22, 1963 was the shock that changed our world. I was in highschool and it was the first period after lunch and the subject was English when my generation's world was changed. Suddenly the intercom speaker over which all school announcements was made came on playing our local CBS radio affiliate KMOX and then we heard Walter Conkrite announce that the President had been shot. The radio and TV coverage was continuous for the next four days on all broadcast networks. A lot happened in the 1960's but nothing was as momentous as this.

A very satisfying chapter. The description of the hall of mirrors was fine as was the painting but it doesn't do it justice. Took the family there in May 1995 and have great memories of Versailles. George's repartee is always interesting and while he doesn't suffer fools gladly, he is able to dish with the best of them. I wonder if that comes naturally to our author in conversation or if it is something he has to work hard at in his writing? Two thumbs up!

Happy Birthday!

Zach's concerns about Gathan being the successor trustee seem quite reasonable. What I'm interested in is what Brad paints. He has one he did in memory of his brother and I think we can expect one for his lover....

Great job. Zach has more than convinced Will to give him a chance and raised his concerns about Gathan. Gathan somewhat validated those concerns and the conversation alerted Brad, Steff and Grand. The interlude with John at the start of the chapter was sweet and sad with the intrusive thoughts afterwards. The replenishing of Brad 's studio was a very nice touch and that he immediately set a canvas and mixing paint was all the thanks Will could want. Two thumbs up!