Cole Parker

You have every right to think it might be over, Des, from the way that chapter ends. You're also absolutely right that it's the nature of the beast, the serialized story beast, that makes you wonder. With a book, you'd see a bunch of pages waiting to be read and the question would never arise. On the net, how would you know? I've said it before, but it bears repeating: I'm a great advocate of the use of the pharse, THE END when a story is finished. Just so everyone knows. Without that, any story I write won't have finished. I wish everyone were that polite. C

Hilarious! C

I love this statement. And I agree with it. With everything I write, before I start, I do this same thing. I challenge myself in some way. It might seem trivial to a reader, and hopefully it won't even be noticed, but I pick out something I don't know if I can do, then challenge myself to accomplish it in what I'm about to write. If it's a long sotry, it can be several challenges. A short story might have only a single challenge. But there's always something. So far, I haven't failed; I've met every challenge I've put before myself. (Maybe I need to make them harder, although, before doing them successfully, they seem plenty hard!) This challenge adds a peripheral aspect for me, something to shoot for besides just making the story interesting and all the other things we have to concentrate on while writing. It adds a degree of work and fun that wouldn't be there without it. So far, I haven't challenged myselt to eliminatie the word 'said,' but that may be next. C

Jeff, I'm sure, just sure, that it should be: This one time, at band camp. . . . Her execution of that phrase, with the pause after 'time,' was perfect. Damn that was a funny movie. Thanks for reminding me! C

Only you, Trab, would find serendipity in a bum knee. C

Uh, Trab, why does this sound like you have some experience in these matters? <g><g><g> C

Jason:I remember you having serious doubts before your angsty meeting with Mark, thinking you were making a mistake and hoping you weren't. I think it's safe to say what ensued was probably what you were thinking was going to ensue. You said something about having promised yourself you'd never get involved with a straight guy again. So you went into this with your eyes open. I'm really sorry it didn't work out better for you. At least the evening had a humanitarian purpose, the Education of Mark.And you must excuse Trab's and my curiousity. In our superannuated condition, curiousity is about all that's left.At least we're past the point of being foreskinphobic.C

Man, I hadn't thought of that, but what an interesting possibility. And even if it isn't true, I think we've got the beginnings of a great story going here.C

Trab, you're right: not filling us in on the what's and why's of the hospital visit was bad, indeed, even shameful. But it doesn't hold a candle to him setting us up for his visit with Mark, and then comletely abandoning the subject, leaving us all hanging with our mouths open and drool hanging from our lips in suspenseful anticipation.People complain I write cliffhanger chapters. I don't write about that in real life, however. I leave that to Jason.C

AJ, the problem here isn't you. It's the driver that insists someone with a history of navigation-challenged ineptitude do the navigation. If you don't want your toast to be burned, don't hand the bread to an arsonist. C

Yeah, I agree. I could understand this one. C

I think the moral of this story is, breeding and the continuation of this species is precluded.Intelligence will out.But what a delightful story!C

I just knew you'd have the purrrrrrfect comeback! C

Are you suggesting Des is an easy lay? C

Aha. Persistence pays off again. Wear them down, I says, says I. C

You quite obviously meant: With experience from both reading and writing, the order of words becomes easier to discern, even though it is sometimes obvious only after it has been posted. indeed! C

Thought so!C

Clever! C

I'm going to jump in here and make a comlete ass of myself. Usually, I have a good feel for these things, and in this case I seem to have none at all. But that won't stop me! As I say, here's where I make an ass of myself. I think, the way they are used, 'If only I had known' and 'If I had only known' mean exactly the same thing and are interchangeable. I also believe they're idiomatic. If you look for a literal meaning of 'If only I had known,' it means if you and only you had known something; it excludes all other people from that knowledge. Yet, that isn't the way it's used or what it means. The 'only' in that usage is for emphasis, and so the usase is idiomatic, meaning the phrase has developed meaning over time that is different from the literal meaning of the words in the phrase. That makes perfect sense to me, but might be entirely wrong. Of the two usages, 'If only I had known' and 'If I had only known', either, by itself, sounds correct, and I'd have a difficult time saying I preferred one over the other. I think, if you held my feet to the fire, I'd use the first rather than the second because you're not spliting the verbs that way with the problematic 'only.' I'm sure this doesn't help anyone at all, but I don't always have such a great vehicle to show my ignorance. C

Is 'wiles' a misspelling of 'willy'? An intentional one? I mean, that's pretty clever, putting that idea in our minds with an aliteration.But you needn't let your insecurities all hang out like that. Giggling could come from a number of reasons, and is does you a disservice to assume it stems from the sight of your dangly bits and their provocation of amusement. Giggling might be from the sight of a youth baying at the moon, or perhaps the off key manner of the baying. It might be from whatever soundtrack you have oozing out the window around you. Although, from your previous blog entries, you might be more offended with people finding your taste in music risible than seeing your masculinity exposed to their glances.Anyway, please keep writing. People only laugh at that when you intend them to.C

Hey, let me deploy my diversions in peace, man! And I wasn't the one to hijack it, anyway. I think Colin did. Whether he did or not, I'm blaming it on him. C

Step six: Get up, go to the door, and explain to the cops why you were standing naked in front of the window shouting at the moon while the revelers below were looking up and giggling at you.C

Tangled tongues tormenting Trab, tortured while trying to Talk with tenderness

I just finished the Foley-Mashburn series by Brew Maxwell on Crvboy. Everyone else has probably read it as it began in 2002, but I just read it now, finished it tonight in fact. It's all about relationships, love, and leaning about being gay in a supporting environment. It's incredibly long, and very well done. If you haven't read it, you should look at it. It starts with the story 'Tim.' I also liked the Colby Series by Tim Mead a lot. It's also at Crvboy. C

I agree, Trab. I read it some time ago. It grabs you and won't let go. C