Rutabaga

Finally got to this one. Very poignant and sweet. We could all use a guardian angel. R

From personal experience I can say that being bi can be very lonely and frustrating, because you are always viewed as somewhat tainted by others closer to one of the ends of the spectrum. I never really thought about the possibilities when two bi people got together. From the evidence so far I'm not really convinced of the bi-ness of either Logan or Seth. At best they seem like maybe 70-30 or 80-20 on the preference scale. But then again they're pretty young. I didn't even begin to get a handle on my situation until I was a college freshman. Anyway, an interesting journey. R

I'm late to this party. Enjoyed the story a lot. Seth reminds me of me, kind of shy but inclined to get right to the point when something is going on (as he did in the living room). I'd bet serious money that Seth is a firstborn (if he has siblings). R

Or in this case, Terrytown wasn't built . . . In all events, I've gained a whole new appreciation of the aphrodisiac qualities of old mills and/or mill ponds. R

A cautionary tale for naked campers. I'm trying unsuccessfully to figure out how the first two chapters relate to the second two chapters. R

I would say that this story takes the first-person viewpoint much deeper than I see a lot of authors doing. We really do get to share in Rory's inner thoughts, and a seemingly endless cavalcade of hanky-twisting, angst-ridden internal worries and debates. Occasionally I would feel like reaching through the computer screen and slapping him so he would snap out of it. But the point I'm making is that this was what I would call "true" first-person POV. There are a lot of other stories with first-person narrators that still maintain enormous distance between the reader and the narrator. The narrator describes what happens (he did this, I did that, he said this, I said that, thunder rumbled outside, etc.) but we don't actually have a peek into the inmost thoughts of the narrator. It's basically a third-person story cast as first-person. It's not necessarily wrong; I think it's a question of comfort level for the writer. R

Looks like tea cozies or hot pads fashioned into shorts. R

I decided to re-read this story. Many details were forgotten, but I remembered the last chapter hitting the reader like a ton of bricks. T

Now, on to more serious matters: I have only now gotten a chance to read this latest piece. I prefer not to read threads about stories I have not yet read, because even without actual spoilers there can be comments that will affect my response to the story. So at least in my case that is the explanation for why I haven't piped up previously. I remember posting a comment about "Pillow Talk" to the general effect of "I wonder if someone is going to take this ball and run with it." Little did I know! I couldn't help thinking about all the things that could go wrong at every step of this story. It was very cool that they didn't. I also hope that Kale continues to make progress in not being so hung up about his surgery scar. It seems like his friends are working steadily in this direction. I would like to see him move from "Damn! I have to have this scar" to "Damn! I get to have this scar." He should be viewing it as a symbol of his good fortune to be living in these modern times where medical science could help him. 100 years ago he would just have died. Anyway, this was a very intense story in its way and yet it managed deftly to avoid all the opportunities for heavy-handedness and cliché. Well done. R

Are you kidding? People will complain about anything and everything. :) R

That's Eminem. R

A heaving of homophobes. R

Looks like the forum is up and running again. Intriguing new Terrytown entry. I guess we're to be left wondering whether the person at the beginning of the story is one of the two in the remainder of the story. Seems pretty likely I guess. I really loved the descriptions of the scenery -- very evocative. R

An onomatopoeia of orangutangs? R

And chapter 2 seems to be moving things right along. R

This story has popped up again as a Dude Pick from the Past. It's a cool story that I remember liking when it first came out. But I'm still wondering who "T.C." was. R

When one of the texts made reference to "dick grippers" I was convinced the mystery texter would turn out to be a certain character known for being a wise ass and a prankster. Imagine my surprise. The bracelet was a master stroke. R

Let's just hope we don't lose a chapter due to server migration . . . R

I've sent your questions along to my friend Pascal in France who begged to respond tomorrow since it's 2:00 AM there now. R

They may have fallen through the cracks during the server move. R

Imagine what kind of conversation may be going on between Kale and Chase . . .. R

Hmmm . . . . I wonder if anyone is going to take this ball and run with it? R

I think it was very much more the custom for an omnipotent narrator to speak directly to the readers in the 19th century. I can't point to prose/novel examples off the top of my head, but I immediately think of Lord Byron in Don Juan frequently engaging in humorous asides and observations for the reader. I simply believe that this style of writing has fallen out of fashion. It might be fun to resurrect it on occasion. R

I've noticed the current server has been kind of balky from time to time. R

I was surprised to see that this short story, which is currently one of Dude's Picks from the Past, has not had a thread started for it. I don't run into this kind of thought-provoking Rod Serling/Ray Bradbury kind of story that often, and it was a nice change of pace. The story poses interesting questions about life in a technologically advanced future version of our society. Worth a read. R