Absolute Chaos Discussion Boards
Fic Talk => General Discussion => Topic started by: mare on February 13, 2025, 09:06:03 AM
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I'm excited for the Millennium residency, but I hope the rumored remastered Millennium album release is also happening so that the whole fanbase will have something to enjoy. I've seen a lot of fans from other countries saying they don't want to travel to the US right now, even if they could afford it, which is completely understandable . I wish our country wasn't such an embarrassing trainwreck right now.
Yes, Leighanne is absolutely entitled to share her opinions, but I'm glad she backed off from doing so, whether by choice or because Brian and/or BSB's publicity team told her to knock it off. Either way, she showed her true colors, and I will never see her the same way again.
I agree with you about American Idol. I'm sure Brian will promote it, as any parent would, and fans will vote for Baylee because of that. I haven't decided yet if I'm going to watch it or not. I used to be really into American Idol but haven't followed it in years. I might tune in to the audition episodes out of curiosity, but I'm not sure if it will suck me back in or not. And I have mixed feelings about Baylee, so I wouldn't necessarily vote for him just because of Brian. It'll be interesting to see how far he gets.
Oh, I remember hearing about Severance now. One of my coworkers was talking about it. Sounds like an interesting premise.
I did not know the actor who plays Whitaker on The Pitt (assuming that's who you're talking about) was Australian either. He does a good American accent!
Wow, I'm surprised they decided to fix your car for that much! In your situation, I would have been hoping for them to total it, too.
I enjoyed my snow day, but I bet most districts are regretting calling it so early because we didn't even get half of what was forecasted LOL. We got maybe 2 inches, just enough to cover the ground. I went out and shoveled my driveway because I was home, but I didn't really need to. We're supposed to get more snow over the weekend, though, so I knew it would just get deeper and freeze over if I didn't clear this round first. I'm glad it wasn't more because I hate shoveling LOL. I have a fairly long driveway that is part gravel, so it's a pain in the ass.
I don't know about you, but I've seen fewer MAGA comments on posts lately. Prior to the inauguration, any post by our local news was full of ignorant comments by the MAGAt idiots of central Illinois. Nowadays, the majority of comments are anti-Trump. It could be that the liberals have just gotten more vocal, but it also seems like a lot of the people who were pro-Trump have gotten quiet... as if they might actually be embarrassed or starting to regret their vote. I hope that's the case.
I haven't watched The Masked Singer since the season after Nick was on, but that would be cool if Kieran or one of the other Culkin brothers was on it! I wish we'd get another BSB on there. AJ's voice may be too recognizable, and Brian would never do it for various reasons, but it would be a great opportunity for Howie or Kevin to shine!
Oh, I didn't see the album release part. Just the remastered or more added on? I don't blame anyone for not wanting to travel here at the moment. We're not exactly the most welcoming place to be. I am so embarrassed by what's happening here. There's this whole section of TikTok which is called WorldTok and it's basically just every other country besides us. They spend a good portion of their posts talking about how awful we are. I don't blame them.
It should be interesting to see how far Baylee makes it. I'm curious to see if he throws his father's name out there every chance he gets or if he tries to legitimately make it on his own. Because besides the judges (possibly) or unless you are a BSB fan, no one will know who Brian Littrell is. So, he could exist comfortably just being Baylee Littrell without anyone knowing. It takes a lot of auditioning before you actually get in front of the real judges, so we'll see what happens. I have no doubt he'll make it to at least the final round of auditions. Just like the Masked Singer, you'll just have to let me know because I stopped watching that show when Jennifer Hudon got voted off. That was the final straw for me. lol
I thought AJ was already on the Masked Singer? Or was it one of those things we thought he was but then it wasn't him? I could swear he was, unless I'm thinking about the Dancing with the Stars thing. The other dreadful show that Nick chose to compete on. I didn't watch last night's episode, but I read the recap and based on all the hints, I highly doubt it's either Culkin brother. Not sure why Ken said Kieran's name. I'm pretty sure he'd rather poke his eyes out with a spork than go on that show and the descriptions didn't match his brother either and definitely not the voice too. Ah well, that would have been nice to see Mack out there. But at least now I don't have to watch. :D
So, another car update! I had gotten the estimate first and then a notice saying my car was ready. When my sister called to see where she should go pick up the car, they said there was a mistake, and they hadn't worked on it at all. They emailed me and asked me to scan a picture of my title yesterday so perhaps that means they will declare it a total loss. I have yet to officially hear anything from them and I'd rather poke MY eyes out with a spork than actually call, so now I wait. It will be nice if they do give me what they estimated the damages at. I'll keep you both posted.
I was wondering if you didn't get as much as you thought because my friend, niece whatever she is lol... Julia lives in Macomb, and it seemed like they had school. She posted that the roads were slippery so be careful out there, but she didn't mention a snow day. She teaches fourth grade as well. Those are the best snow days. Where you don't have to actually shovel a ton to get yourself out. Sorry about your long driveway. That sucks! Ours isn't that bad but still, I don't envy my sister when she has to shovel. Both our neighbors are so incredibly kind that they usually take turns snow plowing the sidewalk in front of our house and the driveway. They look out for us. It's nice.
I have noticed the absence of MAGA posts too but I also have snoozed a good portion of my MAGA FB friends. What I did notice is that some of the people who tend to respond to my posts, like that David guy, just haven't been. I'd like to think the smarter ones are starting to slowly see what everyone else on the planet does. That's the only hope I have. Today is one of those days where I woke up mad and decided to make a no news limited FB day.
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Severance sounds interesting and like the type of thing I'd enjoy. I'll have to give it a go as I've got Apple TV free for another month.
I'm also surprised they decided to fix your car Mare, especially as you were hoping to just get the insurance money.
Steph, I think you'd really enjoy Severance. You should totally check it out while you have the free trial. Slow Horses is also a great show on there.
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They haven't announced anything about an album release, but it's been rumored. There was a Millennium double vinyl album with the new Millennium cover photo they took listed on Amazon that leaked a couple days before they announced the residency. It's not on Amazon anymore and didn't have any details about what exactly was on it, but it looked legit. That could well be the other "big surprise" they announce on the Today show tomorrow. I hope it is! The rumor was that one disc would contain a remastered version of the Millennium album and the other disc would contain new recordings or previously unreleased tracks. We'll see! So far, the rumors have been pretty spot-on, so kudos to the BSB CIA for finding stuff out.
Yes, I'm sure Baylee made it to the final round of auditions that get televised and will probably make it through to the Hollywood round, too. Beyond that, who knows? He does have talent, but so do a lot of other aspiring musicians. I'll be curious to see how much name-dropping he does and how much he tries to stand on his own. American Idol airs on ABC now, the same network that cancelled BSB's Christmas stuff a couple years ago, so it will be interesting to see how much they play up the Backstreet Boy's kid angle and involve Brian. I agree with you about Jennifer Hudson, btw; she was one of the best that season and got voted off way too early! Joke's on them because look what a successful career she launched in spite of them. Other than Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood, the most successful artists to come from Idol did not actually win.
AJ was on DWTS, not The Masked Singer. I enjoyed the first few seasons of Masked Singer, but I stopped watching once they started putting YouTubers and people I'd never heard of on there. It was more fun when it was actual celebrities.
So there's still hope for your car to be totaled! That is frustrating that they mixed up your car with someone else's and gave you the wrong info though.
Yeah, it was the best kind of snow day! We got a little more snow last night, enough to cover the driveway and sidewalks again after I'd shoveled, but just another inch or so. Macomb is about an hour and a half west of where I live; I'm not sure how much snow they got, but it was probably similar to what we did. I'm glad you have good neighbors who plow for you. That's so nice!
I've unfollowed all my vocal MAGA friends too, so I'm not sure if they've toned it down or not. I haven't seen your buddy David chime in as much on your recent posts. Progress!
Looking forward to The Pitt tonight and a three-day weekend!
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That's so nice that you have neighbours who will shovel the snow off your path and drive. I doubt anyone would do that here lol, but we don't really get snow so that's one good thing. They get some snow up in the north of England and Scotland but down in the south we usually miss out.
I watched the first episode of Severance and really enjoyed it, so I'll be watching more of that later to see where it goes. Imagine that, leaving part of your brain at the door when you leave the office (I already do switch off the moment I finish work lol)
I hope you have good news about the car Mare, what a mix up, but hopefully one that works out in your favour.
I don't watch whatever it is that Baylee is on as it's not on TV here and I don't watch those kind of shows anymore. But I hope he does it on his own merit and not by name dropping his famous dad. I don't know what his music is like as I've not listened, but I hope if he gets voted through it's for his own talent.
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So, BSB just kind of randomly released a brand-new song last night and from what I can tell, no one knew about it at all! That's kind of awesome of them to be able to keep that under wraps and for the fans for once, to be able to truly be surprised and delighted without people grumbling and complaining before it's released. It was a nice thing to wake up to this morning. I like it. Very BSB. A little on the cheesy side, but a ballad which is a nice change from when they initially do a first single. And you were right about the album. Coming out in July. I bought a record player earlier this year because I bought the complete Succession score, which is still on backorder from November! It was a lot of money, but I did it as a birthday present for myself. It was supposed to come in time for my birthday, but now it's coming in March. Anyway, now that I have a record player, I'll most likely buy the bigger version of the album.
Between that and Kieran confirmed to show at the BAFTAS on Sunday, it'll be a good weekend. Keep your fingers crossed for Kieran. This is a HUGE award. The British equivalent of the Oscars. Supposedly most of the time the people who win here, go on to win at the Oscars. Last year it was match for match but the two years prior it wasn't. All the years before then, it was.
Still no news about the car. :shrug:
My neighbors are awesome. Both of them have been living here for most of their lives and have older children. I think I already mentioned, one of them is a retired detective and also is the chief of the volunteer fire department. He always looks out for us. My other neighbor is just a good guy, and I think because we are both single women living here, he finds it's his duty to try to be our fixer upper. Randomly I'll be sitting on the back porch, and I'll see him on a ladder working on his roof and then he'll turn around and inspect ours. lol I have to say, I've always been pretty lucky when it comes to neighbors.
I don't watch any of those vocal competition shows anymore. There are too many of them and they all annoy me. Especially the voice which is solely designed to feed into the egos of the judges and has so little to do with the contestants. I don't think a single one of those people went on to even be slightly famous. At least there have been some famous names that can be associated with getting their start on Idol.
The news has been rough the last few days. I think I'm going to write to my congress people. A lot of my friends have been doing that, and some have gotten replies back. Generic ones, but at least their voices are being heard. You do have a great governor, Julie. Ours isn't too bad, but there are too many elected officials who are more worried about getting reelected then the end of democracy. They are going after Medicaid and the SNAP benefits program next. That's the department who helps the poor buy food and pay for rent, Steph. He wants to cut back on it which means a ton of people will lose their benefits.
We live in a hellscape.
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I wish I could leave part of my brain at work and not think about it at all when I went home! I've gotten a lot better with my work-life balance since Covid; I leave at a reasonable time most days, rarely take work home, and turned off my work email notifications on my phone so that I'm not tempted to check it after hours, which has helped, but it's still not easy.
I love the new BSB song! I wasn't sure if it was actually going to be a new song or an old Millennium reject; I'm thrilled that it's new! They sound so good! I pre-ordered the two-disc CD for my collection, and I'm debating on whether or not to order one of the vinyl versions or not. Target has a cool-looking record, but it's only the one disc version, and I already have Millennium on vinyl. I have a little portable record player I got for Christmas a few years ago and a few vinyl albums, but I can count on one hand the number of times I've actually listened to them. I like the sound and vibe of records but not the impracticality of having to turn them over so often compared to just putting a playlist or even a CD on repeat. I am sad that I no longer have a car with a CD player. I have plenty of playlists, but sometimes it was fun to just pop in an album that I hadn't hear in awhile and listen to it that way. That's cool that you have the full Succession score on vinyl (or will when it finally comes).
It's sure been a good start to the weekend! The SNL concert tonight was way better than what I was expecting it to be! I watched all three and a half hours of it, which I did not think I would do. Also enjoyed watching the Boys' appearance on the Today show this morning. I'm glad they got Kevin to come out of hibernation! He even posted on Instagram finally. I was starting to get a little concerned about him when he didn't even post anything about the Superbowl, but maybe he's just taken a step back from social media. And Rochelle was there with AJ tonight! I love to see her still supporting him and the Boys.
Fingers crossed for Kieran to win the BAFTA!
You're lucky to have such nice neighbors! I used to have a next door neighbor that would occasionally mow my front yard in the spring when the grass started growing like crazy, but I think the real reason he did it is because he let his two dogs shit in my yard all winter and thought he would take care of it before I noticed. But I definitely did notice and always had to watch my step when mowing it myself, so I wouldn't mow over dog shit. Thankfully, he and the dogs moved. I'd rather mow my own lawn than listen to him calling for his dogs all the time because he apparently didn't believe in leashes or fences. I knew both dogs first and middle names because of how often I heard him hollering them outside my bedroom window. 🙄
Yes, I can't name a single famous singer to come out of The Voice either. I don't watch any of those shows anymore either. Idol became less entertaining when Simon left and it stopped showing the bad auditions. Maybe they decided it was too mean-spirited, or maybe they just started getting too many fake bad auditions from people who just wanted to be on TV, but I thought they were funny in the first few seasons.
Pritzker is the best governor Illinois has had in my lifetime. I could see him making a run for president in the future, but, selfishly, I hope he just stays our governor! I didn't even realize until last year that we don't have term limits for governors; we've never had a governor last more than two terms without getting voted out or removed from office and sent to prison, so I never knew that was even a possibility! The Trumpers absolutely hate him, which makes it even better. Many of the houses with Trump signs in the yard also have "Pritzker sucks" signs because he kept businesses closed during the worst of Covid and mandated masks. Oh, the horror!
I genuinely feel sorry for people who rely on government benefits and did not vote for Trump. I have a much harder time having sympathy for the people who did vote for him. I hope the hardship causes them to rethink their choices and choose differently in the next election.
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Right? I wish I could leave a part of me behind too. Maybe sever myself from the news? That would be fantastic! I'm glad you are not bringing your work home. I know it's hard. Especially being a teacher, but for your sanity it's best to keep both your lives separate.
I'll most likely get the vinyl. I'm not even sure if I have a CD player anymore. I used to use my alarm clock. It had a CD player on top where you could wake up to that, but it was so old I finally had to get rid of it. I wish those never went away. I miss how easy it used to be to burn a CD on the computer. Everything has just gotten so complicated now that it no longer exists. It's nice seeing BSB have their moment in the spotlight again. I'm not going to pre-order this one though. I'll wait until it comes out. I'm still holding out a very false hope that I'll get to Broadway so I'm saving money for that.
I was thinking the concert was tonight instead of last night. When I went on Twitter, I saw everyone talking about it. I put it on just as Bonnie started to sing. I couldn't see myself sitting through a concert that long, but it seems like those people only did one song each and it was a popular one, so maybe it wouldn't be too bad. Maybe I'll stream it in the background at some point. I watched the BSB portion at least. I love how everyone knows the words to IWITW.
Kevin really had nothing to post about when it came to the Super Bowl. From what I heard, they were losing from the start and never gained momentum. I truly believe he was probably there. He looks good with his really long hair. And Howie is the Paul Rudd of the group. The man never ages. Good to know Rochelle was there. Maybe that means they are working through their issues. I have to say it's nice being just a regular fan now instead of all in. Meaning I stopped really following what's going on outside of the music. Unless something majorly big happens, I only know what people tell me.
Ugh that's annoying about the dogs! Do you not have a fence diving your properties? We have privacy fences on both sides.
I don't know why there or no term limits for Governers and Mayors. Everyone should have a term limit. Even if they're great. I do understand why you'd want him to stick around though. Especially with your past experiences. We really need some strong ass candidates running four years from now. No one over 60 either!
I used to love the horrible auditions too until I found out how manipulative they were to those poor people. Especially the first few years. By the time they got to the judges they had passed about five other stages, so I can see why they all felt so confident going in. They kept getting through to the next round. Then you had the people who were fully aware they were awful but knew the worse they were the more of a chance they'd get on TV.
I feel the same way you do about those poor people losing their benefits. It is hard feeling sorry for the idiots who voted for him. It's really terrible that I wish only the worst for them all. Like let everyone who voted for that man have to deal with smallpox and polio and having friends and relatives 'accidentally' deported and their business shuttered and losing their jobs. They truly deserve it!
I'm so tired of being angry all the time. lol it's exhausting.
I don't think there's going to be a way to watch these BAFTA awards, which bums me out. They are showing the red carpet on YouTube but the actual awards ceremony is on BBC1, which we don't have. It's also weird being on London time because everything gets started at 9 and the awards, I think are around 2 or 3 my time. These are the kinds of problems i'd prefer to the end of democracy.
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Right? I would love to live in a bubble where I only hear and think about things that make me happy LOL. I guess that would be like living in The Matrix, but that doesn't sound so bad right now.
I used to have one of those clock radios with a CD player, but the CD part eventually stopped working. I still have an old stereo with a 5-disc CD player that I've had for probably over 20 years, and it still works great! That's all I've got though. The last couple times I tried to buy a smaller CD player to use at school, they only lasted a year or two before they stopped working. They just don't make 'em like they used to LOL. I hate that PCs don't even come with CD drives anymore. I bought a portable drive that I can plug in to my computer that will play, rip, and burn CDs. I haven't really used it, but it's nice to have just in case.
I hope you can make it to see Kieran on Broadway! Is your main concern money, accessibility, or both?
Yes, most of the artists at the SNL concert just did one or two songs. The ones that did multiple songs were usually paying tribute to another artist or band that played on SNL but has since passed away. They were all well-known songs, which made it more fun to watch artists I typically don't care about.
Yeah, the Chiefs did not have a good game, but I'm surprised Kevin didn't post anything even before the game, especially if he was actually there. Howie is definitely the Paul Rudd of the group. Comparing the new Millennium cover photo to the old, Howie and Nick look better now than they did then. The others just look older, but they've all aged pretty well. Watching Paul McCartney perform on the SNL special last night, I was thinking, I hope we'll still be able to watch the Boys performing in another 30 years. As for Rochelle, I don't know if she and AJ will ever get back together, but it's nice to see that they're still friends and probably great co-parents, for their girls' sake. I follow her on Instagram, and she still shares BSB stuff and occasionally likes or comments on the other guys' posts, so I know she still supports them. We can only speculate about what went on behind the scenes, but neither of them seem bitter about it.
I have a fence in the back yard but not the front, so the neighbor's dogs would come shit in my front yard. If I came across dog shit when I was mowing, I would passively aggressively pick it up with a plastic bag and leave the turds - sans bag - in the neighbor's driveway. I think he took the hint because he would sometimes apologize for the dogs when he saw me outside, but he didn't seem to care enough to invest in a leash or a runner to keep them in his own yard.
Yes, I agree about term limits and age limits, too! If there's a minimum age limit, there should also be a maximum. Elected officials shouldn't be dying of old age while in office!
Yes, that's true about American Idol auditions. I didn't realize that at the time, either, that everyone who made it in front of the judges on TV had already auditioned in front of other people and been put through. It made for entertaining TV, but it was definitely manipulative.
I didn't read all your tweets yesterday, but it seems Kieran won the BAFTA? Congrats to him!
On the fanfic front, I was happy this weekend because my work in progress, TWWBW, surpassed my previous story, MBK, in hits on AO3, making it my most-viewed work there. I also got a couple of comments and a kudo, which is always nice! How is your writing going?
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The Accessibility and transportation are the two main factors. This time money doesn't really play a part, although if I did go, I'd be spending a lot and it's always been hard for me to justify spending a huge sum of money on something other than essentials. I definitely need help. It's a trip I can't make alone and my sister, although willing to go with me is unwilling to pay, which means I'd have to pay for her and my way plus boarding the animals. It would be more than what I paid for a 10-day cruise. Anyway, there's a lot of issues, but I'm still tempted to buy two tickets and then think about it later. I have a feeling if he wins the Oscar, those ticket prices are going to go up. They already did from the last time I checked. We'll see. Would it mentally affect me more to have the tickets and STILL not be able to go? Or not get the tickets and then have them be really expensive? I guess these are okay problems to have. Better than what they used to be for me, which was should I buy groceries or medicine? lol
And yes, he did win the BAFTA. Sorry, I was posting a ton about him yesterday. He was supposed to go but didn't show up because his wife has a really bad case of Covid. So, there was a lot of going back and forth about where he was and why he suddenly was a no show. Plus, there's also been an increased number of hateful tweets about him solely because he's sweeping the awards season. Much the same way people were hating on Brian. Although with Kieran, he's very much like Keanu Reeves. Everyone tends to love him, except now, people are getting annoyed he's winning, especially the fans of the other people he's up against. Namely Jeremy, so there's just a lot of hateful oh he can't act, he's just playing himself yada yada yada garbage happening. It does feel very Nick verses Brian fans coded although in this case neither is a MAGA lol
He is hands down, the favorite to now win the Oscar and completely sweep awards season. He's won 35 awards for playing Benji. The most of anyone in this entire awards season with only two major awards left. The SAG and of course the Oscar. Impressive. Okay, I'll stop talking about Kieran now.
Writing is going well. I just finished and posted another chapter. I usually do take at least one day out of the week where I don't write anything. I find that works best for me. Also, I stopped pressuring myself to feel the need to post every week. If I do, I do. Congrats on surpassing your other stories in hits and getting new comments and kudos! I pay attention to the hits the most as well. The first story is getting close to the 6,000 mark. I don't think this one will hit that, but we'll see.
The Pitt has been renewed, I'm not sure if you saw that or not! And it's also getting a lot of critical acclaim for its accuracy. I would love it to be in the talk for the Emmys!
I watched the first half of the SNL special yesterday. I knew I wouldn't get through the entire thing live. So, we watched on a delay and fast forwarded through the commercials and some of the skits. I have a feeling the boys will be growing old together. By now, it seems like it's a lifetime commitment. I agree about Nick aging gracefully. I think that's what happiness will do for you. He just seems happy now. Without really following what's going on in his life, I can tell he's happy.
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I love the new BSB song, it's very 'them'. So good to see them on TV too and that Kevin has come out of hibernation at last. He seems more of a private person compared to Nick and AJ though, who like to post all the time on social media. I have a feeling the boys will still be around in another 30 years as they clearly love what they do and love each other. I agree, they have aged well especially Nick and Howie.
Glad to hear Kieran won the BAFTA. And I hope you get to go and see the show, even if you have to pay for your sister too. I can't believe it'll cost more than the cruise, that is a lot. But if you want to go that much, then it's definitely worth it. I'm trying to convince Tim we need to go and see BSB in Vegas, but it's not working yet lol.
Julie, I'm glad the man with the dogs moved house, that must've been so annoying. I can't stand when people let their dogs crap on the pavement and people's gardens, it's disgusting :(
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I hope you get to see BSB in Vegas, Steph! Maybe try to lure him in with all the other things Vegas has. Convince him that BSB is only a small part of why it's so great to go there. I mean there has to be other things there that are worth the trip. I know for me, I hate gambling so casinos are a waste of time, but I love food, and I know they have some of the best buffets on the planet, although that might not be the most compelling argument for an overseas visit. lol Anyway, I really hope it's in the cards for you! I have a feeling they're going to end up adding on more dates as well, especially if these sell out faster than they expect them to. I'm sure you are going, Julie. It's nice it's happening in the summer at least.
The tickets aren't that bad at the moment. It's everything else that would be too much. The ones I would need are not front and center because God forbid you make those handicap assessable. So, the prices are around... okay I take that back. I haven't looked at prices for a few weeks. The tickets already went up on the same seats I looked at before. Before they were $160. Today they are $319! So just two tickets alone we'd be talking over $600 before taxes. I bet they'll go up again if he wins the Oscar. Anyway, on top of that I'd have to pay for the animals to be boarded which would most likely cost close to $1,000 and the prices of a hotel room for two nights in NY. It's a lot, especially if on top of that, we have a President here that at any time can cut my disability payments. That's in the back of my mind as well. Anyway, I'm going to keep my fingers crossed that something would work out. The planets will align or will crash into earth. Either way, I still want Kieran to win the Oscar! lol
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Mare, I hope you get to go see Kieran's play! It would be expensive, but if you can afford to pay for both you and your sister, it would be worth it if you really want to go that badly. I know it can be hard to justify dropping so much money on fun trips, especially in these times. Don't ask how much money I spent on BSB tickets yesterday - enough to flag my credit card's fraud alert. 🤦♀️ LOL But I rarely miss that money once it's gone, and I never regret going to see my boys. Just do it!!
Steph, I'm gonna give you the same advice: If you can afford to go to Vegas, you should do it! I realize it's way more expensive for you to travel from the UK, but with all the plane crashes we've had here in the month since Trump took office, maybe prices will go down. 🙃 Have you ever been to the US or Vegas before? Vegas is a lot of fun! There's plenty to do, even if you're not into gambling (I'm not). You and Tim could definitely make a whole vacation of it. I'm going the weekend of July 26-27 with Rose, Dee, and my friend Laureen. I'm so glad it's happening over the summer because I have much more flexibility that way. Worth the 120-degree heat!
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Mare you should definitely try to do it if you can.
Julie, I have been to Vegas when I was 21 so it's probably changed a lot since then lol. I've also been to Disney World Orlando back when my kids were young. I'm trying to sell it to Tim as he also likes BSB. He likes hot weather too and I know it will be very hot there (I hate hot weather) I'm going to have to price it all up and see. I know if money were no object I would book it right now.
Oh, and I'm now just starting series two of Severance and loving it.
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Just priced up flights in July and it would be more than £2000 for the flights alone :(
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Yikes! That's expensive, Steph! I wish everything wasn't so expensive. Maybe the prices will go down since planes keep crashing every five seconds here. With that being said, planes keep crashing every five seconds here so maybe it's best if you didn't fly here.
I'm glad you're getting to go see them with your crew, Julie. I feel you with the credit card fraud. I got the same alert after I had booked my cruise. Prior to that, the most I ever put on my card was my easy pass renewal. lol Well and then my mom but thankfully because of the Go Fund Me I was able to make a payment within the month before interest. Are you doing a meet and greet and all that other fun stuff?
Turns out they added an additional two weeks onto the run of the play, so now it ends in the middle of June. I guess I wouldn't be second guessing so much if my sister didn't make it so obvious that this would be a chore for her. Like she'd rather do anything else in the world than this. I could use the fact that she totaled my car as part of my argument, but still nothing feels worse than knowing someone doesn't want to do something willingly. This is when I wish I had a crew. I have always lacked or just been right outside of a crew for all my fandoms. Ironically my sister would probably be more likely to agree to Vegas than Broadway. Of course, not if I really really wanted to do that more. lol
I mentioned the extension to her and her mood didn't really change. When the shows start and I see what people are saying and the excitement, maybe I can get her more motivated to want to go. By then the prices will be off the wall high most likely, but I guess even though the downside to handicap seats are they aren't the best, at least they are also the ones to stay open even if everything else sells out, they won't sell them to non-disabled people. Someone posted prices for the really good front row seats and it's almost $800! I mean the cast is a can't miss cast, but that's a lot. Still close enough for Kieran and Bob Odenkirk to spit on me? A girl can dream.
Seems like the other big opening that week is George Clooney's play. It opens two days after Kieran's and runs three days before Kieran's ends.
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I hope you can get her motivated to go Mare. Would be a shame for you to miss it.
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Thanks, Steph! Keep your fingers crossed for me. Even though that's a long time to keep your fingers crossed. They'll probably start to ache lol
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LOL yes it is a long time to keep them crossed.
My mum has finally got her appointment this week to get her brain scan results to see whether she has dementia. I do think she has it as she is not the same as she was a year ago. She repeats herself and seems to have problems with short term memory at times. But even though I think I know she has it, actually hearing it will be hard to take. So that's why I think life is too short for not doing the things you love if you can afford to do them.
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Steph, I hope it all goes well for your mom and that it's not dementia. I'll be thinking about you and your family today. Please let us know how it goes and if you need to talk, I'm always here for you!
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Thanks Mare, her appointment is on Thursday and I am dreading it. I'm usually an optimistic person who doesn't really let stuff get me down, but I think this is going to bother me as I'm close to my mum and it's a horrible disease. But then I also have to think she is 73 and not young anymore, so these kind of things do happen the older you get and I should be grateful to still have her when other people don't have their mums anymore.
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Dementia is awful. I'm so sorry this is happening to your mom, Steph. Let's stay hopeful and in the event it is true, there are drugs and therapies that can maybe help make the disease progress at a slower rate. Are you going to the appointment with her? It's good you have Tim, your kids and your sister to help you through it. Does she live alone?
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My sister and stepdad are going with her to the appointment. She lives not far from me with my stepdad, but he's probably got dementia too and is hard work, my mum is his carer so that doesn't help matters as she's always running around after him. I usually go out with my mum on the weekend so that gives her a break from him. You probably see my FB pictures of me out and about with my mum, she likes long walks and a cake at the end of it lol.
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I'm sure it doesn't help that your stepdad is suffering from dementia as well. I'm glad your sister is getting to go along so this way you'll have someone who is there that can accurately relay the information that the doctor may say. I enjoy your lovely posts about your walks. It always looks so beautiful there.
I finally got word about my car. It was deemed a total loss. Now the next step is signing paperwork and handing in my license plates which I had no idea I had to do if I'm not getting another car. My sister isn't the most responsible person on the planet, and it makes me a little anxious that she has them and I don't. She almost didn't bring them home because she thought since I didn't need them, she could just throw them away and now at the back of my mind, I'm worried she did that. Granted, I worry about that stuff. Anyway, at least the silver lining is they are giving me the amount I mentioned above which is way more than the actual value of my car but because it had such low mileage and is a rare model I am making out on the deal.
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That's great news about your car Mare, I bet you are so relieved and happy that it's going the way you wanted. I hope you get your payout soon.
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My mum has been diagnosed with early stage Alzheimers :( She's been prescribed some drugs which should help improve her memory and also slow the disease down but as we all know, there is no cure for this. The doctor also said she's had a series of mini strokes which she wasn't aware of. That probably contributed to it :(
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Aww I'm so sorry to hear that, Steph. Hopefully because it's in an early stage the drugs will really help slow things down. Sending you hugs.
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Thanks Mare :)
I've seen that Five are back together and doing a tour 25 years after they split! I used to love them but not sure I'd go and see them, I'll have to check how much tickets are and if my sister will come with me as she was into them too.
Have a lovely weekend everyone. I've got a concert to look forward to on Sunday (another kpop one lol)
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I don't know if I can even name a song from Five, but good for them! It seems like now that BSB is firmly in the spotlight again, these boybands are coming out of the woodwork wanting to reunite.
I'm glad you're getting to go to another concert! It'll be a nice distraction from everything else going on for you!
This Sunday is the Oscars! So once again, I'm asking the both of you to pray to whatever god you choose that Kieran walks away with the trophy to cap off what has been a wild run for this movie! Ever since it came out January of last year, I feel like I've been campaigning hard for this boy to get an Oscar and seeing him actually be nominated and to be here, feels crazy. I am a nervous wreck. Meanwhile he's probably not in the least. I know all the attention and praise is getting to him. He's in therapy now which we know because he overshares lol I just hope it doesn't freak him out and he ends up running for the hills after his play.
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Popping in! Hi!
Random thoughts. I'll stay on Twitter till Nick goes. I wish he'd switch to BlueSky or actually use Threads beyond scheduled posts but till he does that's where I'm staying. Meh.
Millennium 2.0 has me hyped, it's the fact they're recreating everything beat for beat that gives me joy. They're having fun with it and I love that for them. Being in Vegas the residency was all over the news and a lot of locals are talking about it too. I hope you can make it Steph! There's a lot to do here, I promise lol.
As for "Hey" I love it. Now I get why Brian was disappointed they couldn't use it for DNA. They'd promised we'd hear it someday so it's cool we finally get it now.
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Hi Rose, nice to see you stop in. I know it's hard staying on Twitter. I feel like I'm stuck there as well until everyone kind of migrates over to somewhere else. I don't really get Bluesky. I tend to go onto Threads more, but even then, there's not that big of a following there yet.
I'm happy for you that you get to go to all those shows. I'm looking forward to the album and I'm happy they have resurfaced to see so much love from everyone. Didn't realize "Hey" was supposed to be on DNA. It was good. Very typical BSB.
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Catching up! Steph, I'm so sorry to hear about your mom. I'm sure that is scary for you and your sister and for her. Like Mare said, hopefully now that she officially has a diagnosis and can start treatment, the drugs will help to slow down the progression. I hope your concert this weekend will help to take your mind off it. Have fun!
Mare, I'm glad you're getting a good payout for your car! At least you won't have to worry about the hassle of selling it now. Fingers crossed for Kieran tomorrow night! Seems like his odds of winning are really good, but you never know.
Hey Rose! I'm with you on Twitter. I can't bring myself to quit it until the Boys and the majority of people I follow and interact with there have relocated. I'm fine with BlueSky, and Threads has grown on me now that it has a following feed, but I still don't get on either of them very often.
I love Hey and think it would have fit perfectly on DNA. It could have easily replaced Nobody Else, Is It Just Me, or Just Like You Like It if they wanted to stick with 12 tracks. I wish Millennium 2.0 included more songs we haven't heard, even if they're old.
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Hi Rose, nice to see you stop in. I know it's hard staying on Twitter. I feel like I'm stuck there as well until everyone kind of migrates over to somewhere else. I don't really get Bluesky. I tend to go onto Threads more, but even then, there's not that big of a following there yet.
I'm happy for you that you get to go to all those shows. I'm looking forward to the album and I'm happy they have resurfaced to see so much love from everyone. Didn't realize "Hey" was supposed to be on DNA. It was good. Very typical BSB.
I hadn't in awhile and thought I would. 😊
Yeah I had the chance in 2018 to attend a live stream that announced the DNA tour and Brian talked about it. How it was his favorite song from DNA and it didn't make the album.
Thats why I want Nick to move so bad. I know when he does the fandom will but the trick is getting him to lol. It's annoying cause Elon is total trash.
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Academy Award winning actor Kieran Culkin!
That's all I got! :'( ;D
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Congrats to Kieran! Did he sweep all the major awards?
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He most certainly did! He took all the major critic circle awards - London, New York, LA and international as well as Critics Choice, Golden Globes, Bafta, SAG and the Oscar. He has won a total of 39 which you know bugs me. I really need someone to give him just one more random award to bring it up to 40. :D
Hopefully he'll keep the momentum up on Broadway. His play starts on the 10th. I can only imagine how tired he is. I'm tired just being his fan. lol
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That's so awesome! Where does one even display all those awards?? I didn't realize there were so many different ones until you started posting about them all this awards season.
It sounds like a lot to keep up with, but what an exciting time to be his fan! I'm sure he is tired too, but hopefully the excitement is carrying him through. Have you made any decisions about going to see his play with your sister?
I had an "interesting" afternoon. My less than 2-year-old Hyundai Kona with less than 25k miles on it started acting up last week, struggling to accelerate and then lurching, clunking, rattling, and shaking when coming to a stop or accelerating out of a stop. It only did it at low speeds, though; once I got it up above 40 mph or so, it seemed to drive fine. I called the dealership on Friday and made an appointment for this afternoon to take it in and have them look at it, since it's still under warranty. The dealership is a 30-minute drive from where I live and about a 50-minute drive from where I work, so I left right after school let out to drive there. I made it about halfway, got onto the interstate, drove about 10 miles and realized I was having trouble staying at or around the speed limit. I was flooring the pedal and only going like 65 mph... and the speed kept dropping. I eventually ended up driving on the shoulder of the road with my hazard lights flashing, going like 30 mph, just trying to get as far as I could before the car stalled completely. The engine never officially died to the point that it wouldn't start, but I eventually pulled over and parked on the side of the road because I couldn't get it to accelerate at all anymore. This whole time, the check engine light never came on, and neither did any other kind of warning. So anyway, I had to call a tow truck to come and tow it to the dealership. They didn't have a loaner for me at first, so their courtesy shuttle driver took me to try renting a car, but apparently there were no rental cars available in the whole town. I even had him take me to the airport, thinking one of the four rental companies there would have something, and they all said they were out. So he called the dealership back to see if they could do anything else for me, and they ended up loaning me a gently used car off the sales lot to drive until they got one of their loaners back. So at least I have some transportation for the time being, but it was very stressful! I'll be curious to see what the hell is wrong with my car and how long it takes to get fixed. I don't think I will be buying another Hyundai. All my cars prior to this one have been Chevys, and they've all been super reliable. Other than dead batteries, I've never had a car break down and strand me like this before. 😕
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Oh god Julie, that sounds awful especially for a new car. I'm glad you eventually got there and got a loan car. Taking about cars, Tim had a letter come the other day about a recall for his Kia Rio, warning about engine catching fire issues. Bit late for that, his car engine did catch fire last summer while he was in it! Luckily someone flagged him down and he got out before the whole thing went up in flames and the windscreen imploded, or that would've been a really nasty injury for him. He said he'd never buy a Kia again and bought a Ford when the insurance paid out. At least they seem reliable.
Mare, congrats to Kieran for winning all those awards. Hopefully he'll get one more to make it even numbers lol.
Hi Rose, I'll keep doing the lottery to afford those plane tickets lol.
I went to the kpop concert on the weekend and it did help take my mind off my mum at the time. But Monday it really hit me that she's actually got Alzheimers and I was just so upset. I don't usually cry, but I just couldn't help it. My mum seems to have deteriorated in just the last couple of weeks. She's confused and very repetitive and it's awful to see her like that when she's always been so confident and happy. The medication is making her really unwell so far, but hopefully once her body gets used to it she will start to feel better and it will help her memory (at least that's what her doctor says it will do).
Sorry to talk so depressing when there's all this happy BSB and Kieran stuff going on.
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Julie, that sucks about your car. Cars are the worst! I'm Glad you managed to get it over to the side and that it didn't just stall while you were driving on the highway! It sounds like it might be an electric issue. The way they make these cars, if a wire loosens on the inside everything comes apart. Although that also sounds like either the alternator or even worse the transmission. How it could be the transmission is beyond me if your car is so new it's still under warranty. That's what my car did when the transmission blew though. Either way, I'm glad it is under warranty, and it won't end up costing you anything. That is stressful! The last thing you'd want to deal with going to or coming home from a long day of work!
And Steph, oh my goodness. Tim's car caught on fire? Jeez Louise! I had a Ford and it lasted me for a very long time but that's also the car that the transmission ended up blowing. lol
I'm so sorry your mom's condition has been accelerating and she's having a hard time dealing with the new medications. Like you said, hopefully when she builds up a tolerance it won't be quite so bad, and the full effects will be noticeable. I'm glad you got a chance to have some fun this weekend going to your concert!
It's okay for the depressing news. Always feel free to share. Here it's a bucket of crazy and sadness too. Now that Kieran's award season is over, I'm not sure what I'm going to do. He has been a great distraction from what's going on here. Hopefully he'll be one of those guys that always comes out the stage door to sign and talk to the fans, so I'll still have content, but honestly, I'm not entirely sure he's going to be doing that. He will most certainly need an entire room in his house to hold all those awards! And hey, if he gets nominated and wins a Tony that would bring the total up to 40, but that's some big expectations considering all the huge names on Broadway this spring.
Speaking of Broadway, I still don't know what to do about that. The one good thing that I forgot about, is the extra money from my car I'll have. I'm not buying a new car so maybe it wouldn't make me feel so bad if I spent a little of that money on a NYC trip for two. Still thinking about it. March is almost all sold out, but if I did it, it wouldn't be until the end of the run in June most likely.
Now that I'm moving on from Jeese Eisenberg, who I've grown quite fond of, and into Bob Odenkirk and Bill Burr territory, encountering some of those fans has been quite interesting. The Bob fans in particular. Anytime I'm posting info I have on Bob, one of his fans always comes on my page and asks me a ton of questions about him and what he's up to and up until now I have thought nothing of it. But a fellow Kieran fan told me to go to her page. So, I go to her page and in her bio it literally says - please don't follow me if you are a Succession fan. I hate Kieran Culkin! lmao because now we are dealing with all the people who are angry that Kieran beat Bob at the Emmy Awards! It will never end. I thought I was finally going to be done with the jealous fans now that the Jeremy Strong Oscar competition is over, but no. A whole new bunch of jealous stans await.
The funniest part about that whole thing, is how genuinely uncompetitive and sincere, Kieran is. It's like throwing stones at a puppy. He's got a snarky sense of humor but he's just this tiny, sweet little guy. I mean he spent part of his Oscar speech praising Jeremy lol
I have really wanted to write a real person fic about him like no one's business, but the thing is, none of these people who love him, like real person fiction. The way I am dying to write one about him and his brother, especially after Mack's interview saying he cried when his brother won. I can't even! But for now, I'll just keep the story in my head.
How's the writing going for you?
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That's so awesome! Where does one even display all those awards?? I didn't realize there were so many different ones until you started posting about them all this awards season.
It sounds like a lot to keep up with, but what an exciting time to be his fan! I'm sure he is tired too, but hopefully the excitement is carrying him through. Have you made any decisions about going to see his play with your sister?
I had an "interesting" afternoon. My less than 2-year-old Hyundai Kona with less than 25k miles on it started acting up last week, struggling to accelerate and then lurching, clunking, rattling, and shaking when coming to a stop or accelerating out of a stop. It only did it at low speeds, though; once I got it up above 40 mph or so, it seemed to drive fine. I called the dealership on Friday and made an appointment for this afternoon to take it in and have them look at it, since it's still under warranty. The dealership is a 30-minute drive from where I live and about a 50-minute drive from where I work, so I left right after school let out to drive there. I made it about halfway, got onto the interstate, drove about 10 miles and realized I was having trouble staying at or around the speed limit. I was flooring the pedal and only going like 65 mph... and the speed kept dropping. I eventually ended up driving on the shoulder of the road with my hazard lights flashing, going like 30 mph, just trying to get as far as I could before the car stalled completely. The engine never officially died to the point that it wouldn't start, but I eventually pulled over and parked on the side of the road because I couldn't get it to accelerate at all anymore. This whole time, the check engine light never came on, and neither did any other kind of warning. So anyway, I had to call a tow truck to come and tow it to the dealership. They didn't have a loaner for me at first, so their courtesy shuttle driver took me to try renting a car, but apparently there were no rental cars available in the whole town. I even had him take me to the airport, thinking one of the four rental companies there would have something, and they all said they were out. So he called the dealership back to see if they could do anything else for me, and they ended up loaning me a gently used car off the sales lot to drive until they got one of their loaners back. So at least I have some transportation for the time being, but it was very stressful! I'll be curious to see what the hell is wrong with my car and how long it takes to get fixed. I don't think I will be buying another Hyundai. All my cars prior to this one have been Chevys, and they've all been super reliable. Other than dead batteries, I've never had a car break down and strand me like this before. 😕
Holy crap. Glad you're okay but thats ridiculously stressful.
Steoh, I'm so sorry about your mom. I know first hand how rough that is.
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Mare, you called it - it was the transmission! The dealership called this morning and said they'll have to replace it. It's covered by my warranty, so I won't have to pay for it, which is good, but they said the parts they need are on backorder, so it may take awhile. But they said I can just drive the loaner until then, so I guess that's okay. It is pretty awful that the transmission went out on a 2-year-old car, though. Of course, now that I've been researching it, Hyundais have a lot of bad reviews about this type of thing. I guess that's why they're reasonably-priced - they're not made to last. I don't plan on keeping this one past its warranty, and then I'll probably go back to a Chevy or Ford.
Steph - I got a similar recall for my Hyundai last year (some part related to oil, if I remember correctly), and that was the warning, that cars were randomly catching on fire! That's crazy that it happened to Tim! How scary! I'm glad he was okay. Nothing happened to mine, thankfully, and I did get that part replaced over a year ago, so I don't think it had anything to do with this.
That must be awful to watch your mom decline. My great-grandmother had Alzheimer's, and it was hard on my family. I always worried my grandfather (her son) would inherit it, but he thankfully did not. It's an awful disease. I really hope the medication will help her once she adjusts to it.
Mare, you should absolutely use the money you got from your car to spend on a NYC trip! That's so weird that there are rabid Bob Odenkirk fans who hate Kieran just because he beat Bob. I like Bob Odenkirk too, but that's not a reason to hate someone, unless you're like 13 years old. Admittedly, I still harbor some resentment toward Santana and Rob Thomas for their annoying "Smooth" song beating BSB at the Grammy's LOL.
You should write the Culkin RPF if you really want to! Someone else may want to read it. There's an audience for everything!
My writing is going slow. I'm still on the same chapter I have literally been writing for all of 2025 so far. It's like 23 pages long and 11k words. 🤦♀️ It's close to being finished, but I've felt like I'm close for at least two weeks and still haven't finished it, even with writing a little every day. Hopefully I'll finish it this weekend.
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Julie I'm so glad they found the issue with your car and it's being fixed under warranty. That must be a relief. I would probably get rid of it too when the warranty runs out and go for something that's built to last longer.
Mare, you should definitely use the insurance money to treat yourself to a trip to New York to see the show. It's always nice to have something to look forward to :)
My grandmother had Alzheimers too, or some kind of dementia but because they lived quite far away I didn't see her that often to see what the disease was really like. I was reading that if you're on long term anti-depressants you're more likely to get it and she had been taking diazepam since the 60s! I think my mum has also been on anti-depressants for some time too to help with the side effects of the breast cancer drug she's been on for the past five years. So I'm never taking anti-depressants (I've never needed any medication for anything so far luckily). No one else in my family has had it, so I'm hoping me and my sister and brother don't get it. Tim has a higher risk of getting it because one of the drugs he takes for his heart called Entresto is linked to increased chance of getting it, so I hope he doesn't get it either. Best to make the most of life now while we're young enough :)
I need to catch up on reading Julie, I've fallen behind and haven't done much reading of anything for a couple of weeks.
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I can't believe your transmission went out on a two year old car! That's insane! It's a good thing it's under warranty because that's the most expensive thing to fix on a car. When mine gave out, the mechanic told me it was probably going to be cheaper to just get a new car then fix the old one. It's good that you can continue to use their loaner, hopefully for free!
Even though looking back Carlos Santana's album was amazing, it was still awful to watch the boys lose and lose and lose at the Grammys. Yes, it's the same as that. I guess that's the only place to be petty when it comes to celebrities and these guys aren't over the fact that Bob got snubbed every single year he played Saul including during Breaking Bad. It was just bad timing that the last year he was eligible was the same year Kieran kept beating him out. Now they are in the same thing together so maybe they will soften up a bit, unless they end up being up against each other at the Tonys lmao
Wow! That's a long chapter, but I bet when you finally get around to posting it, your readers will be happy about it.
Alzheimer's is the only thing that does not run in my family. At least that I'm aware of, but I've known quite a lot of people who have had to deal with it and it's terrible. It's kind of surprising it's linked to anti-depressants. My mother was on those all her life and my sister as well. My father too. I'm the only one not on any kind of drug for mental illness...yet. Although I do steal a Xanax from my sister from time to time. I know it's probably scary to think there's a chance you or someone else in your family might get it, but for now, no use worrying about stuff like that. You are correct, it's best to make the most of your life now. During lent, even though I don't really celebrate it, I always use it as a time to work on something. This time out, I'm going to try to reconnect with people I haven't spoken to in a while. I always will think about someone randomly and then go about my day and forget all about them, but this time, I'm going to reach out to some of those people via text (no phone! I'm not that committed lol) to let them know I'm thinking about them.
Maybe I will book that trip. I have to get my money first. We shall see.
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I'm not a fan of using the phone either lol, I prefer texting too.
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I am wary of anyone who likes to use the phone. lol
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My sister will happily talk on the phone all day lol, she's the opposite of me
Have the car insurance paid out yet Mare? I hope you aren't waiting too long
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Nope, still waiting. I needed to get my Driver's license renewed on my birthday which I hadn't done yet when my sister got into the accident. There was really no rush because I don't drive anymore, but since the car was totaled, I need to get the title notarized, which means I need a current Driver's License, so I had to renew it. It hasn't come in the mail yet. When it does, I can get the Title signed by a Notary and then I have to turn in my car's plates. That's when they'll give me the money. Nothing is ever easy. lol
I have been looking into this NYC trip. So far, I found a hotel on the same block as the theater, and it is supposedly only a ten-minute walk to get to the venue. The cheapest handicap assessable room is $400 a night and that was a deal if I booked within a certain amount of time so since I don't really know any details or when to go, I couldn't book it. It's most likely cheaper during the week then the weekend, but I'm guessing for two nights it'll be at least $1,500. Just for the hotel. The tickets are selling out but as of now, it seems good for May or those last dates in June still for about $300 a ticket. That might go up, who knows? Then there's the cost of the plane if I go alone, or gas if my sister goes with me and the housing of the two animals. So still a lot of variables in the air for a 90-minute play. lol
If I can manage to find someone maybe one of my friend's who's willing to go to the show with me and meet me in NY, that would alleviate some of the cost. We could at least split the hotel and maybe they'd pay for their own ticket and most importantly I'd have help. I started a thread on reddit asking anyone if they've ever done NYC solo in a wheelchair before and some said there were a lot of wheelchair accessible buses and cabs etc... but they were also mostly able bodied and used the chair only when necessary. I need help getting into and out of vehicles which is why I need a place so close to the venue. The few who used the wheelchair all the time said they needed help because the ground was so uneven it was hard to wheel themselves which is exactly what I was thinking.
Then there's also the getting from the airport to the hotel problem. We'll see.
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That does sound like a lot of hassle you'd have to deal with just to go. It's a shame things aren't easier and cheaper.
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I agree! I did get my driver's license in the mail yesterday, so at least there's that. lol
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I'm glad you got your license, Mare! One step closer to getting your money for the car. I also love to see that you've been looking more into the logistics of the NYC trip. It does sound expensive, but I justify spending money on experiences like that by reminding myself that I won't miss that money once it's gone, while I might regret not going when I could. Of course, if going means you wouldn't be able to afford groceries or pay bills, that's different.
As far as transportation goes, NYC does have accessible taxis. I just found this site with information on how to find them: https://www.nyc.gov/site/tlc/passengers/find-an-accessible-ride.page "Wheelchair accessible" suggests they have a ramp, so you shouldn't need to transfer between your chair and the car. Even if you don't need one to get from your hotel to the theater and back, it's an option for the airport. I know you can request accessible rides from Uber/Lyft, too, but I'm not sure how widely available they are or how long you'd have to wait for one. I'm glad you asked for advice from wheelchair-users who have done it before because reading about it and actually experiencing it are two different things.
Some good news from me: My car is fixed! I get to pick it up tomorrow. It didn't take nearly as long as I thought it might when I found out one of the parts they needed to fix the transmission was on backorder. I thought I'd be driving the ugly loaner they gave me for weeks, but it's only been a little over a week.
And, finally, for you, Mare: I know you don't really listen to music when you write, but one of the YouTube channels I follow for ambient writing music posted a Succession video! https://youtu.be/t0p2DJFwGg8?si=k074IFS6MQ1TnMv3 I listened to it while I was writing yesterday; I can see why you like the music from the show so much.
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I will definitely miss that money when it's gone. It not as dire as it has been in the past. I am not choosing between groceries, medicine or Broadway, but now that I am no longer working, and my sole income is a disability check once a month that under Trump's regime at any second could just go away, there is that question I have to ask myself. Was it worth it?
It's actually terrifying not knowing what's going to happen next, now that Musk has entered the whole SS and Medicare are entitlements and can be cut phase of this takeover is upon us. All that being said, I am still looking into it and every day as my 11:11 wish, I ask that it all work out because I do feel like it's a once in a lifetime thing for me. He's also been coming out every night to sign at the stage door. Except for the very first night and the matinee performance. He's the only one that's been out regularly, but it's also only been a week. lol I guess we'll see if a true pattern surfaces.
Thank you for the Taxi info. A person in the reddit thread posted it as well. It's good to know they exist. I'm sure in a place like NYC it's a lot more common than here or smaller places. I think the hotel I'm looking at also has a free courtesy shuttle back and forth from all the major airports, but no idea if it's wheelchair accessible.
That's so great about your car! I'm glad they got it fixed as fast as they did! It's good you didn't have to alter your schedule or anything during this entire time. They at least came through with the loaner and fixed it fast enough. Still can't believe it was the transmission!
The Succession music is lovely. In fact, I ordered the Succession box set on vinyl way back in November as a birthday present to myself because it was supposed to arrive the week of my birthday, but it was backordered to March and was supposed to arrive Thursday, which it did not. I just got a notice that it's out for delivery today! So, yay! Finally! It's a 6 record box set of all four seasons. The entire orchestral arrangements are incredible but so are the more subtle piano arrangements and those strings.
I am off to edit my latest chapter before posting it. How has your writing been going? My readers have been a little whiny lately about wanting a happy ending. It's all too sad. :plugears:
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Julie I'm glad your car has been fixed quicker than you thought.
Mare, I agree that you should do the once in a lifetime stuff while you can. Who knows what will happen in the future, so make the most of the present :) You may even get to see him at the stage door. That would make me want to do something more if I thought there was a chance of meeting the person.
Tim had his scan results from his latest heart appointment and his condition has got a lot worse, instead of moderately impaired his heart is now severely impaired so that's not good. We now have to wait and see what else can be done for him. Maybe increase his medication or try something new. But eventually he will end up on the transplant list he's been told, just don't know when (hopefully not anytime soon). So we've booked a holiday to Spain for June as it's not too far to go and something to look forward to.
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Ugh! I'm so sorry to hear about Tim's heart. I had no idea it was that bad. Going to Spain sounds lovely. are you going to the same place you did the last time? I'm sorry you guys are going through such a rough patch health wise.
I think my sister might be warming up to the idea. The hotel is pet friendly so if worse comes to worse we can bring Pugsley with us. He's the one that's the real problem because of his insulin shots. Chloe we could just have someone watch. You are right though, Steph. I think it'll be something I'll really regret if I don't do. Especially since he's been so incredibly friendly outside for signings.
I finally got my Succession box set so I'm making an exception to my not listening to music rule when I write and have it on in the background. If I get too distracted i'll have to stop it.
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I'm glad your sister is warming up to the idea and that the hotel is pet friendly. At least you can take Pugsley and know that he'll be fine, unlike when you went on the cruise. Fingers crossed your sister warms up a bit more and you actually book it :)
And thanks, hopefully Tim won't end up on ther transplant list just yet or ever. We're going to a different part of Spain this time, hopefully it'll be nice there, it looks nice from what I've seen on Trip Advisor.
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Yes, we'll keep our fingers crossed about the show. They just extended it for another two weeks so now it's going until the end of June. I feel like the longer it stays around the better my chances lol
Are you guys going to be cruising there?
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That's good it's been extended, more time to work on your sister lol
We aren't doing a cruise this year, although I wish we were as I loved the cruise last year. We're flying as it's only a two hour flight and we can fly from our local airport (as long as everything is OK with Tim's health)
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I just bought my tickets to go see Glengarry Glen Ross! :bananapower: :dance: :broccoli: :tigger:
We decided to do a one day trip this way we don't have to worry about Pugsley and we can ask one of our neighbors to check in on Chloe. It'll be a long day and tiring, but hey, if that's what I need to do to see Kieran, that's what I'm doing. This way it'll be a lot cheaper too because I don't have to worry about hotel or boarding the animals or plane tickets if I was going alone. We're going to rent a minivan or something a bit bigger so I can stretch my legs out and it'll be easier to get the chair in and out of the car. 8 hours there and back.
Going on June 6th. YAY!!!
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Steph, I'm sorry to hear about Tim's latest test results. That is scary to think about him possibly needing a heart transplant down the road. Hopefully meds will help to delay that, giving you two time to travel. Spain sounds lovely! It's nice to have a trip to look forward to with everything else you've had going on lately.
Speaking of which, I'm so excited for you, Mare! Eight hours there and back in one day is a lot, but if it relieves the stress of having to find an accessible hotel and transportation and pay for a petsitter, it'll be worth it. I'm glad your sister agreed to it! And hopefully Kieran will still be coming out the stage door in June. It would be so cool if you got to meet him!
I'm so glad to have my car back and running smoothly again! As far as writing goes, it's going slowly. I finally split my neverending chapter in two, but I haven't posted the first part or finished the second part yet. It's been a busy month, and I'm spread thin, so I'm just trying to keep my streak going and make it to spring break. Still three more weeks to go!
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Thanks! It was her idea, so I was on board with it. I think she just got sick of me talking about it all the time. lol Whatever works! I am hopeful that he'll still continue to go out and talk to the crowds after the shows and that there's no understudy for this performance. I am pretty sure my sister will murder me of he's not there.
I'm glad your car is running smoothly. Is this when the talent show happens? Are you still in charge of that? Hopefully those three weeks speed by for you! March went by really fast, which is great because I have always hated March the most out of all the months. Glad to hear you finally finished your chapter. I'm sure your readers will be happy when you post it!
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OMG, that would be terrible if it was the understudy instead of Kieran! Fingers crossed that doesn't happen!
Yes, the talent show is next week! That always occupies my time this time of the year, but it's my favorite part of the school year, so I don't mind. It gives me something to look forward to in March, which is otherwise one of my least favorite months, too. Two more weeks until spring break (after this week)!
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Yay Mare, I'm so happy for you. I hope he comes out after the show, and I also hope it's not an understudy as that would be awful. But I'm glad your sister is doing this and you don't have to worry about the animals this way, or accessible hotels etc.
Julie, good to hear your car is back and working as it should now and that it's nearly spring break and you can relax after a busy school month.
I've got a couple of days annual leave to take before April so am off tomorrow and Monday, so that'll be nice. I've got no plans, just see what the weather is doing and decide then lol.
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I know that's just me being ultra paranoid. That would be the absolute worst possible outcome, but it's good knowing he has had bronchitis for the last week and has still made every performance including stage doors, so hopefully that means something. lol
Enjoy your time off, Steph! hopefully you'll get some nice going for a walk weather. I know how much you enjoy that.
Have fun with the talent show! And yay only two weeks from break! Does that mean it's also two weeks until Easter? I'm having the hardest time with dates this year.
Yesterday one of my readers referred to my chapters as episodes and I loved that! She said, I didn't have time to read last week so I get to read two episodes back to back! I want the chapters to feel like they are watching an episode so that felt really good!
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That's good that your reader thought of the chapters as episodes. I think with really long chapters they are like an episode of a TV show if you're really into it and enjoying the story.
I finished watching Severance last night, I wonder if that's it or will there be another series? It was unusual and weird but I enjoyed it lol.
I enjoyed my couple of days off work too. Went out for afternoon tea with my daughter, my mum and sister and that was nice and the cakes were delicious. So then I had to go for a long walk to try and work them off lol.
Have fun at the talent show Julie, nearly Easter break too :)
We've got a wedding to go to that week, so I'm not looking forward to the drive as the roads will be clogged up and it'll probably take all day to get there.
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There will definitely be a season three of Severance. I felt like it could have ended there, even though it would have been an open ending. The show is weird enough that I am sure there is going to be a lot of unanswered questions anyway. lol
I'm glad you enjoyed your little break. The pictures you posted of the afternoon tea looked delicious. I have always wanted to do that, even though I'm not a fan of tea. The whole idea is so cute to me.
Hopefully the traffic won't be that bad. I thought Easter was a week earlier than it is. I was surprised it's the third Sunday of the month.
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I don't like tea either (or coffee), but I like sandwiches and cake lol. I had a can of Sprite instead :)
Yes I feel like Severance could have ended there as well, but I'm so glad there will be a series 3 which I'm sure will be just as weird.
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I enjoy coffee but only cold. People think I'm crazy because I make a pot of coffee, let it sit all day long and then drink it cold the next day. lol
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My trip to NYC has been finalized.
My sister was dreading the drive and the whole parking situation and the whole there and back thing within 24 hours. So, instead, we're heading into the city via amtrack which will take us into Penn Station at around 3 in the afternoon. I booked a hotel right down the street from the theater for the night, (The OYO because, why not?) I mean if I'm spending money, I might as well spend money. We head back the next morning at 10 am which will get us back here by 6.
On the train, I can sit in my wheelchair the entire time, so I don't have to worry about having to get into a seat and the hotel room is ADA which is another plus. Now the only thing left for me to do is buy a bracelet making kit and figure out how the hell to make one. lol
I know you guys are used to traveling to the boys or to see people you want, but this is pretty unlike me. Although I guess driving all the way down to Nashville from Bethlehem by myself for Brian's golf thing was pretty adventurous of me too, but I was a lot younger then.
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Wow that's amazing news Mare! I'm so glad you've booked it and why not spend money on the little luxuries in life if you have it :) The train is easier than the stress of long distance driving, and staying over makes it feel like you're getting a little holiday. Have you got someone to look after Chloe and Pugsley? You must be so excited :)
I'm used to driving a few hours to see the boys as they never come anywhere near where I live, but it has to be done unless I want to miss out (which I don't lol). I've even considered travelling further for my concerts and maybe one day I will.
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We have a neighbor that's willing to come over after she gets off work to let Chloe out and hopefully give Puglsey his insulin shot. Chloe is used to going to the bathroom inside on a pee pee pad so her coming by once shouldn't be a problem. It's really Pugsley that is the main concern because he gets two shots of insulin a day. We will give him one before we leave and then hopefully, he'll let Katherine give him one at night and then he'll miss the morning shot but we'll give him his nighttime one. Even if Katherine can't give him his shot and he goes twice without he should be okay. If he misses two days that's when the problems start.
My drive to see the boys was 16 hours. I had to stay overnight in a hotel there and back. Besides that, I had been pretty lucky living as close to NYC as I used to. It was only a 90 minute trek there on a bus. And they used to come to places in PA that were also doable. They even performed that one time on New Year's Eve right up the street from me. I had planned on going to see them a few years ago in Saratoga Springs which would've been about three hours away. Julie was going to go to that one with me, but that was when I was in transition with walking and hadn't gotten accessible seats and there was no way I could do it.
I still can't believe how much they are charging for those meet and greets. It's ridiculous but what's even more ridiculous is that people are still going to go ahead and pay for them. Why wouldn't they charge that much, they have seen time and time again how much their fans are willing to dish out. It's annoying considering that they are also well aware that most of their fans are already paying to travel to see them in the first place.
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Easter is super late this year! That's why my spring break is so late, too. One more day... The last few weeks have been an absolute shitshow! The talent show last week was a success, though, so at least there's that.
Steph, I'm glad you enjoyed your days off! You are the first Brit I've heard of who doesn't like tea! LOL I don't like it either! I only drink it once in a while to soothe a sore throat when I'm sick. I'm definitely more of a coffee or cocoa person. I like both hot and iced coffee. I typically drink it hot at home except for in the summer, but I almost always order an iced coffee/latte from coffee shops.
Mare, I'm glad you got things figured out for your trip! Taking the train and staying overnight sounds much less stressful than driving there and back in a day. That's good that you have someone who can come over to check on Chloe and Puglsey and give Pugsley his shot.
I've always had to drive at least 2.5 hours to see the Boys, except the one time during the Unbreakable tour when they actually came to Bloomington, where I went to college, which is only about half an hour away from where I live now. That felt like seeing them in my own backyard! But usually I have to drive to Chicago, St. Louis, or some other city. I've seen them in lots of different states at this point LOL. Not New York yet, unfortunately. I was excited about that Saratoga Springs show we were going to do, but then it got rescheduled twice because of Covid, Rose got her new job and couldn't take a week off to go with me, and then with your transition and needing more accessibility, it just wouldn't have worked out. Someday we'll make it happen!
The VIP prices for this residency are absolutely ridiculous!! Rose, Dee, Laureen, and I all agreed that there is no way we're doing that. It's not worth it to me. The first time I did VIP was on the Unbreakable tour, when it was like $250 for a solo pic with the guys, an autographed item (that you brought and they actually signed right there in front of you), a pre-signed photo, soundcheck, and a Q&A. THAT seemed really expensive to me at the time, having just moved out on my own, but it was worth it. Now they don't even do the soundcheck and Q&A anymore, which was honestly my favorite part! They're offering substantially less for four times the cost. I wish the collective fandom would put their foot down and refuse to buy VIP because that would send a message, but I know it'll never happen. The same few people who manage to go to everything will pay that price, and the BSB team will think, "Hey, the fans are willing to pay this much, so let's charge even more next time!" I'm done with that until the prices drop below $500 again.
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Wow I can't believe the prices they charge and you don't even get much for it! I wouldn't pay VIP, or a ridiculous price for a ticket. I'd pay up to £150 for a ticket and that's my limit I think and I think that's a lot.
Enjoy your Spring break Julie :)
Mare, I'm glad your neighbour will check on them and hopefully give Pugsley his medication.
We've got a wedding to go to next week, it's about a 5+ hour drive but we have to go as it's Tim's younger sister getting married. Can't say I'm looking forward to the travelling as it's Easter holidays and the roads will be chaos.
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I'm so glad to hear your talent show went well and by the time you read this you'll be on your break! Take the time to relax.
I hope your trip isn't too bad, Steph and that all the traffic will be going in the opposite direction you're traveling lol
I don't think people are going to boycott those ridiculous prices. I saw on my for you twitter page a bunch of people complaining about how BSB fans are so ungrateful because I guess a lot of them were complaining about prices and they were all saying well I'm still doing it. It's my money yada yada yada.
Isn't just like everything nowadays? You pay ten times more but get ten times less of everything. Those girls seemed to think the boys were unaware of how much it costs, but they are very well aware. They might not be the ones setting the prices, but they are the ones okaying them. Maybe back in the day, when most of their fan base were teenagers, they might not have been as willing to charge what they are, but now they know their fans are as old as they are with the means to pay for those kinds of things. It could be worse. We could all be Taylor Swift fans. Now talk about over charging for everything. That girl is some business woman!
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Thanks! Between birthday festivities, errands, spring cleaning, and getting ready to go to my sister's place in Michigan for Easter weekend, spring break has been busy so far. I could use another week to just lie on the couch and catch up on shows! But in another six weeks or so, it'll be summer vacation, so I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Steph, I hope you have a good trip for Tim's sister's wedding and that traffic isn't too crazy!
Yes, the VIP thing absolutely fits with the economic trend of everything else. The difference is that there's no economic reason to jack up prices that much. It doesn't cost them any more to do a meet and greet. They're taking advantage of high demand and choosing to offer low supply by limiting it to 50 VIPs per show. And while I don't think the Boys necessarily set the price, I'm sure they do have a say in it and have to give final approval. A lot of people are also complaining about them doing these AFTER the show instead of before like they've always done. My thought is that this was Nick's idea because it will give him more time to be home with his kids and go to Odin's baseball games before the shows. His kids will be in bed by the time the show's over anyway, so he probably doesn't mind working later. They probably limited it to 50 per show so that it will be quick, which also makes sense. The price is the only thing I have a problem with. I drew the line when it hit $500 for the first Vegas residency, so I definitely wouldn't pay double that. For me, it's not about whether I can afford to or not; it's the principal of the matter. It might be different if I'd never met them before, but I don't view this as a "once in a lifetime" opportunity anymore. But people are obviously willing to pay that much because it sounds like all of the July dates sold out. I saw someone on Reddit complaining that she was going to cancel her hotel reservation and sell her tickets to the show because she couldn't get VIP... as if that was her only reason to go to Vegas. Crazy! You'd think people would care more about the two-hour concert than a ten-second interaction with the band.
But you're right; it could always be worse! I paid more for my tickets than I've ever paid for a BSB concert before, but it's still nothing compared to what I've seen tickets for Taylor Swift, Lady Gaga, etc. go for. That's if you can even get a ticket! I'm glad BSB aren't THAT popular anymore.
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Have fun at your sister's house! We don't have very much planned for Easter here. Just the two of us probably ordering Italian food on Saturday since nothing will be opened on Sunday
Steph, your wedding pictures were beautiful. Looks like you guys had good weather. I hope the traffic wasn't too bad getting there and back.
It is weird what people's priorities are, but I guess if someone has never met the boys or had any kind of encounter with them before, it might make sense to make that more important than the actual concert if they've been to several of them or something. I wouldn't even call it a real encounter though with what little time you get anymore. We were really spoiled back in the day. I never could afford the sound checks or meet and greets but those two charity events I went to, the boys were basically right there the entire time, ready to interact on a dime. Times really have changed.
It's funny but there's even been a noticeable change for Broadway stage doors. When I went to see Kevin in Chicago, there was a very small crowd gathered by the stage door afterwards. No security or barricades up or anything. We were able to make physical contact and take pictures etc...
Now, there's barricades and security that kind of usher the actors down the row of people, not allowing them to stop and talk for too long. I'm not sure if it's like that for all the shows but for GGR and Dorian Gray it seems like that. The crowds are crazy as well. The security also barrels down on what can be signed. There's been more than one video of a fan trying to give Kieran something other than a playbill to sign where security pushes it away only for Kieran to grab it back and say, this is merchandise from the store, or I'm signing it anyway if it's something from home.
I am being very ambitious with my next chapter of my story. When I was almost done with my chapter, I wasn't really liking the direction, but because I was almost done, I didn't delete it and just started another one. I'm almost done with that one and now I don't know which direction I want to take the story towards its end. So, I think I'm going to post both of them and see what the feedback is. Maybe the last few chapters will be a choose your own ending. I don't know why I do this to myself. lol
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Hope you both had a good Easter. Mine was good and not so good (eldest grown up child issues but hopefully he's sorting himself out now). The wedding was really good with perfect weather so they were able to have the ceremony outdoors. The location was lovely too. The traffic wasn't so good though lol, but we were prepared for delays.
I couldn't justify spending that amount on VIP either when you don't get much for it. And of course they are well aware of how much the fans are paying, but they know fans will pay it and they are happy to take it. If there is a demand for it then of course they will charge it. I've never done that kind of thing though. The closest I got was the Unbreakable tour when I was front row and AJ shook his water over me and Nick touched hands as he walked past lol.
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I saw that Baylee was eliminated on American Idol. I'm kind of glad. I was sure he was going to get really far because of his father being constantly there breathing down everyone's necks. I don't know if that's true or not but seems likely. lol
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I've not watched it, did he get very far or eliminated quite early? I don't watch things like that, I got bored of them after a few years lol
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I'm not sure either. I just know he was eliminated. I have no idea how far he actually got. I don't watch any of the talent competition shows. They drive me nuts. lol
I did watch part one of the Carter's documentary. I wasn't sure if I wanted to watch it or not, but I decided to. How sad. Jane and Bob were the worst.
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I haven’t been logged in on here in forever… (I plan on making a new introduction thread soon)
I’ve been waiting for someone to mention the carter’s documentary. I’m surprised that I haven’t heard more talk about it.
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okay, finally at a keyboard where I can really type. I was surprised by the Baylee on American Idol thing because that seems like such an ancient show and I figured that he would implement more current methods for making himself known.
As for The Carter's documentary. It's been the only one out that I felt really deserved a watch through by me... (I know ID did that Fallen Idol's one that AJ was in the trailer for... but the presentation for it just rubbed me the wrong way. So I didn't bother watching.)
I was really surprised by how much home footage was used in the first part of The Carter's I know that Nick has gone on record saying that they were always filming but it really seems that it was like modern day family vlogger levels, or at least the clips had that same vibe to me. I wasn't surprised by anything in the doc but it did make me just as emotional as I knew it would anyway.
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I didn't realise there was a Carter documentary. I'll have to try and find it online and watch it.
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I've only watched part one. I haven't gotten to part two yet. The one thing I found interesting was all the home footage of all of them constantly naked. Running around with no clothes on in the backyard and all five of them in the tub together. That whole episode just broke my heart. It's so sad that the only reason Angel has walked away as the most mentally healthy of them all is because she was the most neglected. Really puts things in perspective. I've been putting off watching part two because I know it's going to be really disturbing with Aaron going completely bonkers.
As far as Baylee on American Idol, it was interesting he chose to go that route. I just wish he'd stop using his father to try to get somewhere. I think that's his biggest hindrance, honestly. I don't watch it like I've mentioned in here previously, but I'm kind of glad he was eliminated. I really was afraid the BSB fans were going to be voting him the whole time. I'm glad that wasn't the case.
In other news, Kieran did not get a Tony nomination. Which I kind of thought was going to happen, but even still I'm sad about it. :-[
Lyndsey, just in case you haven't been reading the threads, I have moved into obsessing about Kieran Culkin as if i'm a fifteen-year schoolgirl. :crazy: lol
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Yeah I knew about the Kieran Culkin obsession Mare (It's actually one of the ways that I found out about that movie 'A Real Pain'... which I still need to go back and finish my watch through of. lol)
Yeah... the home movie clips of the kids in the first part of The Carter's were definitely a choice. Nick and Angel are such private people about certain things that I'm honestly amazed about what made the final cut. I was surprised that for most of the clips it seemed like it was Bob behind the camera given the angles of the filming. Nick's book made him seem like such a hands off and disconnected father... outside of the abusive 'discipline'(that clip of toddler Leslie getting smacked gave me chills; and then to hear Jane laughing and making snide comments after the fact was just...ew. no other words. Totally turned my stomach) . I always assumed that filming and stuff would have been Jane's department.
I was also shocked that the camera quality of the clips were so high given the time the filmed but I guess the documentary team probably could have gone in and done some remastering.
One thing that's always bugged me about the Carter's story is the whole owning the Garden Villa Home for the Elderly (aka the nursing home) thing (I've been figuring out how to navigate Public Records...) It's just such a weird timeline when you start digging into everything I'll probably end up writing a major blog post about it or something. They really did just bet on Nick really bringing in all the money though... because, Backstreet got signed to Jive in February 1994 and Jane and Bob bought the Ruskin house (this is the house that Nick takes Bravo on a tour of in 1998; which is also the same year that he bought said house from his parents) in October 1994 as well as not renew the home for the elderly that August. I know that Nick has said that he was the one supporting his family time and time again over the years but it's another thing entirely to be digging through records and really seeing everything completely laid out, ya know.
For those, not knowing where to watch it's streaming on Paramount Plus; but I also know that its floating around online if you know where to look.
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Thanks, I don't have Paramount so I'll try and find it online and watch over the weekend.
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That's interesting. To be honest, I haven't put all that much thought into it. I think both Aaron and Nick were probably making more than enough money to support the family and as far as the elder care home, anything can be labeled that as long as you have the proper license from the government. My mother was in an elderly care facility, but it was just literally someone's house. I just think certain requirements need to be met in order to be called that and then those government checks go directly to the owners who are responsible for allocating the funds to their residents. I have a feeling Jane and Bob probably stole from those people too, if I was a betting woman. I had no idea Nick bought their old compound. I read his book so long ago I don't remember a thing about it.
I bet they did remaster some of the video footage. As far as Bob not being around, it might have been that way for Nick. I think he lived a little bit of a different life from them because of the age gap. I still haven't watched part two. lol
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Hi everyone! I see I have some catching up to do! I'm so happy it's Friday; it's been a week. I stupidly stayed up until 1 a.m. Monday night working on a new layout for my site's 25th anniversary on Tuesday and have been trying to play catch-up with sleep ever since. My nocturnal self is ready for summer! Hope everyone else is doing okay. Sorry Kieran did not get the Tony nomination, Mare. Steph, hope you had fun at your concert the other night! Lindsey, it's nice to have someone else chime in on these threads!
Regarding Baylee on American Idol: He made the top 20 but got eliminated when they narrowed it down to the top 14. In all honesty, he probably should have been cut a week or two earlier than he was. He doesn't have a bad voice and is a decent songwriter (he did a couple of his original songs early on), but when it got down to the best of the best, his vocal ability was noticeably not as good as the others. The episode before he was eliminated, he sang one of Brian's solo songs (Gone Without Goodbye), which was really touching but also showed how much he pales in comparison to Brian in his prime. Their voices are totally different, and Baylee didn't sound anywhere near as good as Brian singing that song. It wasn't a good fit for his voice at all. I thought he might make it further in the competition solely based on votes from BSB fans, but it wasn't enough - and I'm not sure how many BSB fans actually watched or voted for him. I don't think Brian and Leighanne were breathing down anyone's necks, trying to get him further. They showed up to support him, as most contestants' families did, but they were mostly just shown watching in the audience like everyone else.
It'll be interesting to see if Baylee's exposure from Idol has any effect on his music career. I wonder if he made any new fans who weren't already familiar with him from his BSB connection. I was happy to find out that he's enrolled in college and pursuing a degree in sports administration . Smart of him to have a backup plan in case his entertainment career doesn't work out. It would be nice to see him move off his parents' property someday and make a life for himself.
As for the Carters: I watched the documentary and thought it was well done but also heartbreaking. I was also surprised at how much home movie footage they had! I wonder who's been holding onto all that - I'm guessing Bob had it all, since Nick and Angel seem to have severed all ties with Jane. It was interesting to see the stepmom Ginger interviewed and hear her perspective on everything, since we've never really heard from her before. Like Mare said, I also noticed how often the kids were naked and running wild. Their household looked very chaotic, much like it was portrayed on the reality show House of Carters. Everything we've learned about their family dynamic since explains so much of the way the siblings behaved on that show. It's a miracle that Nick and Angel turned out as well as they did - and we all know Nick went through a lot to get to the good place he's in now. I'm sure Angel did, too, out of the spotlight. It is sad that the reason she grew up the most normal is because she was neglected and spent more time with her friends' families. Likewise, Nick had his BSB family to set a better example than his blood family did. Thank God for that. I love that Nick and Angel have gotten close again; it's always nice to see their families together for holidays and her coming to his shows like she did with Stagecoach. I was actually at his solo show where they filmed the scenes with him and Angel together. I think that was the only show he sang "Hurts to Love You" on the second leg of the tour, and it was clear that he only did it because Angel was in the audience that night, but we didn't know at the time that they were also filming it for a documentary. It would have been nice to have heard more from him, but I think it's also nice that he let it be Angel's project. I really hope he does a documentary of his own after his lawsuits are settled - or at least a nice, long interview.
I've always wondered about the retirement home Jane and Bob ran, too. Considering that neither of them seemed like great people even back then, I wonder how well the residents were cared for. It wouldn't surprise me to find that they were stealing from old people as you suggested, Mare. It definitely seems like an odd choice to go from running a bar in New York to a nursing home in Florida. The timeline you mentioned, Lindsey, is also interesting. They really were banking on Nick/BSB to succeed. The Ruskin house is different from the compound they had in the Keys. I wonder who owns that now. As far as I know, Nick no longer has any property in Florida, but I could be wrong.
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Nick sold the Ruskin house in June 2001. Which tracks because the Carter’s bought the Marathon compound in July of 2000. I don’t think Nick currently owns any property in Florida given that Jane still lives in the state.
Surprisingly its doesn’t take much to be allowed to operate an assisted living home in Florida. All you need currently is to be 21 plus, have a HS diploma/GED, pass a level 2 background check and competency exam, and take a 26 hour state mandated course; there’s no telling if it was even simpler or not in 1987 when Jane and Bob officially filed the business.
I plan on going through the Tampa Bay Newspaper archives soon and seeing if anything crops up. The assisted living that is currently operating out of the same space where Garden Villa was has capacity for 15 ( and I don’t really think the building has been upgraded that much) - but I haven’t been able to track down anything about Garden Villa itself outside of barebones tax info of course- I’m hopeful that the newspaper archives will turn something up though.
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Congrats on your site turning 25! That's amazing! You should do something special with the very first story you posted on there. You know, how movies rerelease on their 25th anniversaries. Reboot your very first story lol
Yeah, I'm sure Bob and Jane didn't do a great job taking care of seniors considering how they did with their own children.
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Nick sold the Ruskin house in June 2001. Which tracks because the Carter’s bought the Marathon compound in July of 2000. I don’t think Nick currently owns any property in Florida given that Jane still lives in the state.
Surprisingly its doesn’t take much to be allowed to operate an assisted living home in Florida. All you need currently is to be 21 plus, have a HS diploma/GED, pass a level 2 background check and competency exam, and take a 26 hour state mandated course; there’s no telling if it was even simpler or not in 1987 when Jane and Bob officially filed the business.
I plan on going through the Tampa Bay Newspaper archives soon and seeing if anything crops up. The assisted living that is currently operating out of the same space where Garden Villa was has capacity for 15 ( and I don’t really think the building has been upgraded that much) - but I haven’t been able to track down anything about Garden Villa itself outside of barebones tax info of course- I’m hopeful that the newspaper archives will turn something up though.
Great detective work! You'll have to let us know if you find anything interesting.
Congrats on your site turning 25! That's amazing! You should do something special with the very first story you posted on there. You know, how movies rerelease on their 25th anniversaries. Reboot your very first story lol
Thanks! That's actually what I was going to do for April Fools Day this year. I was going to rewrite part of my first fic, "Heartache," set 25 years later. Brian would be 50 years old and married to Leighanne, but I was going to keep his love interest, Alexa, 18 like she was in the original story to make it creepy and uncomfortable LOL. I had some jokes planned with her name being Alexa, as in Amazon Alexa. I made two different attempts at writing it, one that was too serious and not funny enough and one that was darkly comedic but too unhinged even by my warped standards. In the end, I ran out of time to make either of them work, so I ended up just writing a post about how I was rewriting my "novels" from 25 years ago and then linked them to more recent stories I've written with similar elements. Here it is if you're interested: https://dreamers-sanctuary.com/2025-04-01/
Has anyone here ever rewritten one of your really old fics? If so, what was that experience like? If not, would you ever consider it? Which one(s)?
I've never fully rewritten an old fic many years later. I've thought about it with some of the really old stuff I wrote when I was in high school. I had some decent ideas back then, but I didn't have the writing skills to execute them as well as I could now. But instead of rewriting them, I've found myself recycling elements of those old storylines to use in new stories, usually with some kind of twist. For example, my first story "Heartache" was about Brian's heart condition worsening, leading to him needing a heart transplant. While waiting for a new heart, he meets and falls in love with a nursing assistant named Alexa. When Alexa's twin sister dies after a car accident, Brian gets her heart. It was super cheesy and unrealistic LOL. But I've always found the concept of organ transplantatio n interesting, so I've used that element in several other stories since. My AU "Secrets of the Heart" starts with Brian needing a heart transplant; he gets one in the first half of the story and spends the second half being haunted by increasingly detailed visions of his donor's violent death, which eventually drive him mad. In "A Heart That Isn't Mine," I reused the idea of a seemingly dying Backstreet Boy (Nick this time) falling for a nurse in the hospital, except she turns out to be a total psychopath who has been keeping him sick so she can hold him hostage there. Because I've written those stories, I don't have any real interest in actually rewriting "Heartache" or its sequels.
The only one of my old stories that I could potentially see myself attempting to rewrite someday is "Beside the Ocean" because I really like the premise. After a suicide attempt, a depressed Nick meets and falls in love with a girl named Olivia, who is secretly dying from brain cancer, and she teaches him to embrace life. I always loved the dichotomy of these two characters, one who is physically healthy but wants to die and the other who is terminally ill but wants to live. But as a 16-year-old, I didn't have the life experience, emotional maturity, or writing prowess needed to write them in a complex, nuanced, realistic way. I could do a better job of it now. Maybe someday, if and when I feel like writing another tragic Nick romance and have no other ideas.
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Congrats! On the 25 year anniversary of the sanctuary Julie! Your medical fics helped me a lot when my grandmother was going through chemo back in 2017 because I was able to somewhat understand the medical terms and processes that the doctors were throwing around. It's the main reason why I get so mad at the modern viewpoint of fanfiction right now; because all of the unique and detailed fanfiction that has come out from everyone, in the BSB fandom specifically, has truly taught me a lot in ways that I don't really realize until after the fact. There has been so many instances where I'll be like, 'Oh, I have a vague idea of what that is...' and then I'll have to tell my family that I learned it from a BSB fanfic. lol
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LMAO oh my! Yeah, I can see why the April Fool's joke might not have worked out.
I have never rewritten a fic, but ever since I have changed my writing fandom, I have used similar ideas. For instance, in one of my fics I dedicated a chapter to the oldest brother taking the youngest brother camping and to teach him how to fly fish and I called the chapter "The Importance of Fly Fishing." In that same fic, which was very much laid out in the same way as "Why I'd Do It All Again" was, there's a chapter where Roman stays up late putting together all of his 2 month old godson's Christmas presents and is so loud that some of his family comes in to help. I think I may have even stolen some of my one liners from "Four Santas too Many"
My most egregious borrowing is from "It Stays With You." I took the nameless villain in that one, gave him an entire back story and made him the big bad in my story "Catch Me If You Can." I even put Kevin and Howie in that one as detectives.
Kind of what You alluded to in your post, Lindsey, I noticed with the Succession fic fandom at least, they were greatly lacking stories with intricate plots. Medical dramas or action/adventure and suspense. Most of them were primarily shipping the characters making them spies sometimes or assassins but always focusing less on that and more on the relationship and sex between the two. Not that I read any of them, but that's what I gathered from the comments I was getting. "I've never read anything like this before!" Type comments. I wish I had your gift of writing medical dramas, Julie because I think they'd love something like that. I mean I had a sub plot dealing with a medical emergency which culminated into the one I'm writing now about his recovery, but it's not nearly as in depth as your stuff was.
As far as really going ahead and redoing something old, I don't think I could do it. I briefly and I mean very briefly thought about popping back out of obscurity to write a little short BSB story focusing on Nick around the time of his birthday, because I used to write a one shot every year for him, but I just sat here twiddling my thumbs. I had no idea where to even start. He's just so far away from me I couldn't channel him, and he was my best chance to get back into the BSB writing thing. I'm just not there. I haven't even listened to that country song yet. I think I only listened to the other country song they did once. It makes me sad. lol
I'm too new in the Succession fanfic to rewrite something there.
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Congrats! On the 25 year anniversary of the sanctuary Julie! Your medical fics helped me a lot when my grandmother was going through chemo back in 2017 because I was able to somewhat understand the medical terms and processes that the doctors were throwing around. It's the main reason why I get so mad at the modern viewpoint of fanfiction right now; because all of the unique and detailed fanfiction that has come out from everyone, in the BSB fandom specifically, has truly taught me a lot in ways that I don't really realize until after the fact. There has been so many instances where I'll be like, 'Oh, I have a vague idea of what that is...' and then I'll have to tell my family that I learned it from a BSB fanfic. lol
Thank you! I'm sorry your grandmother went through that but am glad to hear that my fics helped you make sense of it in some way. I lost both of my maternal grandparents to cancer in the last decade, and writing helped me through that period in my life, too. I've also learned a lot from reading and writing fic!
I feel like fanfiction has become more mainstream and accepted in the modern age, at least in part because of the success stories of authors like Stephenie Meyer, E.L. James, and Anna Todd - all fanfic writers whose books were traditionally published, became bestsellers, and later made into movies. But, maybe because of those well-known examples, people tend to assume fanfic is all just shipping and porn with or without a plot. They don't realize how much of it is genfic in all different genres. They also assume that because it's written by amateurs, the quality is automatically lower than traditionally published fiction, but that's not always true.
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LMAO oh my! Yeah, I can see why the April Fool's joke might not have worked out.
I have never rewritten a fic, but ever since I have changed my writing fandom, I have used similar ideas. For instance, in one of my fics I dedicated a chapter to the oldest brother taking the youngest brother camping and to teach him how to fly fish and I called the chapter "The Importance of Fly Fishing." In that same fic, which was very much laid out in the same way as "Why I'd Do It All Again" was, there's a chapter where Roman stays up late putting together all of his 2 month old godson's Christmas presents and is so loud that some of his family comes in to help. I think I may have even stolen some of my one liners from "Four Santas too Many"
My most egregious borrowing is from "It Stays With You." I took the nameless villain in that one, gave him an entire back story and made him the big bad in my story "Catch Me If You Can." I even put Kevin and Howie in that one as detectives.
Kind of what You alluded to in your post, Lindsey, I noticed with the Succession fic fandom at least, they were greatly lacking stories with intricate plots. Medical dramas or action/adventure and suspense. Most of them were primarily shipping the characters making them spies sometimes or assassins but always focusing less on that and more on the relationship and sex between the two. Not that I read any of them, but that's what I gathered from the comments I was getting. "I've never read anything like this before!" Type comments. I wish I had your gift of writing medical dramas, Julie because I think they'd love something like that. I mean I had a sub plot dealing with a medical emergency which culminated into the one I'm writing now about his recovery, but it's not nearly as in depth as your stuff was.
As far as really going ahead and redoing something old, I don't think I could do it. I briefly and I mean very briefly thought about popping back out of obscurity to write a little short BSB story focusing on Nick around the time of his birthday, because I used to write a one shot every year for him, but I just sat here twiddling my thumbs. I had no idea where to even start. He's just so far away from me I couldn't channel him, and he was my best chance to get back into the BSB writing thing. I'm just not there. I haven't even listened to that country song yet. I think I only listened to the other country song they did once. It makes me sad. lol
I'm too new in the Succession fanfic to rewrite something there.
Honestly, switching fandoms sounds like a great opportunity to reuse some old storylines without it seeming stale. Putting completely different characters in a similar situation would make it feel fresh again. I don't think there's anything wrong with reusing ideas or characters; I think it's cool that you were able to do that!
AO3 is definitely dominated by shipping. In some ways, that sucks for those of us who prefer genfic or romance as a subplot rather than the main plot, but it's also good for us because it makes our stories stand out more in a sea of smut LOL. I'm glad you were able to introduce the Succession fandom to a different type of fic. Thanks for the compliment, but I'm sure you could write a medical fic if you wanted to. It just takes research, which I'd be happy to help with if you ever went that route. I never mind looking up medical stuff; I obviously find it interesting.
Aww, I wish you had written a short story for Nick's birthday. I enjoyed your annual birthday fics. Maybe someday you'll find your way back to him and BSB. It would be cool if you could come up with another Succession/BSB crossover idea to incorporate both. I've noticed that crossovers tend to do well in the BSB fandom on AO3, probably because their stats are boosted by the other fandom(s), but most of the popular ones involve other real musicians. People still like pairing the Boys with Eminem for some reason! LOL
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Thanks for the offer! I did quite a bit of research on brain injuries while writing this story and it was kind of fun. It's more the making it not overly cliche bit I felt I struggled with. Maybe if I ever decide to write a medical type of drama, I'll definitely be coming to you with questions and asking for advice.
I was hoping that I would get some of my old readers to check out that BSB crossover story but none of them did. I think it depends on what crosses over. Like you said, it seems real person like to cross over with real person and characters with characters. Even though the one I crossed over was an AU for both. One of my goals which is what eventually happened in the BSB fandom, is getting my readers to follow me from one story to the next regardless of who it features. There are so many different fandoms and categories on AO3 that you can have an entirely different set of readers from one story to the next which has happened to me from my very first fic to the duology I'm writing now. The next story I am planning on working on is from the same universe as the first fic I wrote. I say universe because it's basically new character development for the Roys. They aren't bad people lol but the shipping element that drew my readers to this current story will be missing in the new one.
I have been lucky to find steady readers for every story I've posted so far as well as commenters, which I know from going on reddit and seeing some things they post there, is a rarity unless it's a super huge fandom, which both Succession and BSB aren't. So, it's probably a lot to hope they'll follow me to this next one. We shall see. At least I do feel like I have a new story in me. For a little while, I was thinking this was going to be the last one.
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I've watched the first episode of The Carters so far, I'll have to watch the other one tonight if I can. It is heartbreaking how those poor kids were treated by their parents. I knew they had it tough, but seeing all the old videos of them as kids, they just looked like they were neglected. They saw Nick as the cash machine and then put the brothers against each other and were stealing off them both. That's just awful :(
Julie congrats on your site turning 25, you definitely should feel proud of that :)
Talking of fanfics being turned into movies, I could easily see both Julie and Mare's being turned into movies and I'd happily pay to see them in the cinema too. You've both got amazing stories.
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Thanks, Steph! :-*
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Thanks for the offer! I did quite a bit of research on brain injuries while writing this story and it was kind of fun. It's more the making it not overly cliche bit I felt I struggled with. Maybe if I ever decide to write a medical type of drama, I'll definitely be coming to you with questions and asking for advice.
I was hoping that I would get some of my old readers to check out that BSB crossover story but none of them did. I think it depends on what crosses over. Like you said, it seems real person like to cross over with real person and characters with characters. Even though the one I crossed over was an AU for both. One of my goals which is what eventually happened in the BSB fandom, is getting my readers to follow me from one story to the next regardless of who it features. There are so many different fandoms and categories on AO3 that you can have an entirely different set of readers from one story to the next which has happened to me from my very first fic to the duology I'm writing now. The next story I am planning on working on is from the same universe as the first fic I wrote. I say universe because it's basically new character development for the Roys. They aren't bad people lol but the shipping element that drew my readers to this current story will be missing in the new one.
I have been lucky to find steady readers for every story I've posted so far as well as commenters, which I know from going on reddit and seeing some things they post there, is a rarity unless it's a super huge fandom, which both Succession and BSB aren't. So, it's probably a lot to hope they'll follow me to this next one. We shall see. At least I do feel like I have a new story in me. For a little while, I was thinking this was going to be the last one.
Anytime!
Crossovers are tricky because, for me anyway, I usually have to be a fan of both or at least knowledgeable about both fandoms to want to read a crossover fic. Not every reader is that way, though; there are some people who are fine with reading fandom-blind. But they do seem to perform well in the BSB fandom, so they definitely have their audience.
I think the size and structure of AO3 makes it harder to develop a loyal following of readers than it was here. The BSB fandom is small enough that I recognize the usernames of the regulars who are active and update a lot, but it would be easy to get lost in a bigger fandom. While readers and writers can and do interact in the comments, that's really the only social element of AO3, whereas we also had the discussion board to build a sense of community and get to know each other better here. Once I reached that point of having friends within the BSB fanfic community, I naturally became more interested in following their work over the years, and vice versa. But at least readers can still subscribe to authors whose work they like on AO3 and be notified when they post new stories, which will hopefully prompt them to check out more of your work in the future.
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I've watched the first episode of The Carters so far, I'll have to watch the other one tonight if I can. It is heartbreaking how those poor kids were treated by their parents. I knew they had it tough, but seeing all the old videos of them as kids, they just looked like they were neglected. They saw Nick as the cash machine and then put the brothers against each other and were stealing off them both. That's just awful :(
Julie congrats on your site turning 25, you definitely should feel proud of that :)
Talking of fanfics being turned into movies, I could easily see both Julie and Mare's being turned into movies and I'd happily pay to see them in the cinema too. You've both got amazing stories.
It really is heartbreaking! I used to feel like I exaggerated my portrayal of Jane, in particular, in older stories like Broken, where I made her an antagonist. But after seeing the awful way she talked about Nick and Lauren on Facebook, how she posted photos of Aaron's bathroom after he died, and now this documentary, I know I didn't exaggerate one bit. If anything, she's worse than I wrote her. I know not everyone is fortunate enough to grow up in a stable family with good parents, but seeing this makes me appreciate mine even more. It's nice to see Nick and Angel trying so hard to break the cycle and do better for their own kids.
Thanks for the compliments! ☺️ Back at ya - Save a Prayer would make an amazing movie! I wish Nick would make another boyband movie; he could recruit NKOTB to be in that one and bring Bot Fly Jordan to life! LOL
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It really is heartbreaking! I used to feel like I exaggerated my portrayal of Jane, in particular, in older stories like Broken, where I made her an antagonist. But after seeing the awful way she talked about Nick and Lauren on Facebook, how she posted photos of Aaron's bathroom after he died, and now this documentary, I know I didn't exaggerate one bit. If anything, she's worse than I wrote her. I know not everyone is fortunate enough to grow up in a stable family with good parents, but seeing this makes me appreciate mine even more. It's nice to see Nick and Angel trying so hard to break the cycle and do better for their own kids.
Thanks for the compliments! ☺️ Back at ya - Save a Prayer would make an amazing movie! I wish Nick would make another boyband movie; he could recruit NKOTB to be in that one and bring Bot Fly Jordan to life! LOL
Yeah... I'm always one to give people the benefit of the doubt. But the day that she released the Aaron death photos was the absolute final straw for me. I know grief and shock are a thing... but like there's no coming back from that... those photos are shoved in everyone's faces for now and forever more. It makes me so sad for Nick and Angel's kids when thinking about it... because like half the time I can't even bring myself to type in Aaron's name to listen his older music anymore; those kids are going to be faced with that someday... I've just now slowly started again listening to his older albums again; but I'm always real quick searching and glancing at thumbnails because youtube shorts and clickbait youtubers love to use the photos for shock value... i've tried hitting the ignore button and reporting; but it still makes me sick because I feel like they're everywhere and they shouldn't and didn't have to be, ya'know. Jane could have kept things quiet behind the scenes (gone to the cops with her conspiracy theories.) ... instead, she pulled another one of her stunts and now everyone (globally) gets to be damaged and mentally scarred by it... (ugh. It makes me so mad.)
On a happier note, I also wish Nick would make another movie. I remember really enjoying Dead 7 when it premiered on Syfy.
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Oh yes, another of Nick's movies would be great! Dead 7 was so bad but I liked it lol
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It really is heartbreaking! I used to feel like I exaggerated my portrayal of Jane, in particular, in older stories like Broken, where I made her an antagonist. But after seeing the awful way she talked about Nick and Lauren on Facebook, how she posted photos of Aaron's bathroom after he died, and now this documentary, I know I didn't exaggerate one bit. If anything, she's worse than I wrote her. I know not everyone is fortunate enough to grow up in a stable family with good parents, but seeing this makes me appreciate mine even more. It's nice to see Nick and Angel trying so hard to break the cycle and do better for their own kids.
Thanks for the compliments! ☺️ Back at ya - Save a Prayer would make an amazing movie! I wish Nick would make another boyband movie; he could recruit NKOTB to be in that one and bring Bot Fly Jordan to life! LOL
Nick and Bot Fly Jordan would make a great movie lol
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Who could forget those bot flies! lol
I liked the Hollow more than Dead 7. See, this is where I would probably skip a movie unless it was bearable to watch. lol But I'd be happy for you guys!
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Who could forget those bot flies! lol
I liked the Hollow more than Dead 7. See, this is where I would probably skip a movie unless it was bearable to watch. lol But I'd be happy for you guys!
I liked The Hollow too, I've got the DVD. Dead 7 was quite terrible lol, but fun.
I really love that song What Hurts The Most, I'd never heard of it before and it's completely stuck in my head and been on repeat. It really suits their voices I think.
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It was nice to see they were number one on the country billboard charts. It would be kind of funny if this is the song that finally gets them a Grammy. lol
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It’s taking a couple listens… but the song is slowly growing on me :) at first I thought it was too much all at once; and it felt a little weird to hear because my mind is so used to the rascal flatts version.