All Comments on 'What a Fool Believes'

LOL no such thing as viruses. That was cute of Mr. Pummel. meh That out of the way, what a great story. I'd be curious what the story of the ex-wife turned out to be as well but maybe that is another great one waiting to be fleshed out.

5. Looking forward to your next story.

Holy Moley! I was about to note a few structural problems I thought I saw in the story and then I saw the comments! There really are people out there too abysmally stupid to wander around unaccompanied. Okay, where was I. This is not my very favorite Randi story, but her worst one is better than most of the drivel one sees.

Maybe viruses make you "fanaticized."

Can't live with them, can't live without them. Even if they ridiculously over complicate your life. What's a guy to do, except sit back and go with the crazy train.

There we go with another mushy ending, ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,but it's always good to have one!

Good story.

Misty moments shared by the two of us❤️❤️

Love our daughters and we understand every pain.

Thank you!

SW

Heartwarming. Can’t even type properly because I’m bawling. Pacing is a bit staggered but not as awful as I’ve seen in several other tales. I would’ve liked to see the relationship between the dad and his daughters more than just the traumatic recovery, and I badly wanted to see Jacinta’s POV. This last bit’s not really serious, but I gotta say, I ain’t never seen a middle aged white dude use Snapchat, Randi! Loved this, keep it up. 4 Stars.

Well written and a great story as usual highly recommended read.

I really enjoyed this story.

Thank you so much for sharing

Good story. I think the girls overreacted to his trying to protect his daughter and ganged up in him a bit. Also, I would have liked to see some payback on Charles and maybe a final reaction from his ex, but still a good story.

Enjoyed the story. It was interesting with all the family interactions. I need to get busy and read some more of your stories.

Thanks for your writing.

Top marks!

Loved it.

Frank

"Dax, you must go out and find some avocados. I haven't picked them up for a couple of days, so there should be many."?

Avocados do not ripen until AFTER they have been picked, and even then it takes several days!

3 stars. It was a really really good story, overall, and close to 4 stars - but I absolutely hated the part near the ending, when nobody (except for Campbell) even considered his point of view and made him out to be the bad guy. Yes they apologized later but he had to "eat crow" and they didn't feel like they had to go beyond "hey sorry". Oh, and neither daughter apologized for off the bat assuming he was the one who caused the divorce.

1 star off is a permanent one because my big pet peeve (and Rand, for all her greatness as a writer, suffers from it as much as most LE/SOE writers) about carping how every woman is soooooo beautiful. Like you know, women who aren't super beautiful don't deserve to be characters, or positive experiences. And makes the male characters sound SUPER DUPER shallow when they are used to evoke the whole "so beautiful" thinking.

@inka2222:

The first part of your comment is how you feel. Valid. The second part says Randi is guilty of writing about "super beautiful" women. Well, yes, I am. I am guilty of not writing about ordinary people doing ordinary things, because that would be boring AF to me. I am an ordinary person doing ordinary things, and I wouldn't want to read a story about me. I want to read stories about extraordinary people. or if they are about ordinary people, they need to be caught up in extraordinary events. That's what I write: stories I would like to read. If that's not your bag, sorry, that's what I write.

Hi Randi

One of your good stories for the first two thirds of it. But as it progressed, it seemed to melt somewhat in the sun especially after Talley reveals that she is bi. She then seems surprised when he does not have the reaction SHE expected. He has a normal reaction for a father who suddenly realizes that the line of communication is not as good as he thought it was. And then he suddenly becomes sort of the bad guy, even fore Peach. It's almost as if everything that is not so good in the life of the numerous females of the story is suddenly his fault. They sort of gang up on him, each one from her side.

I would have liked to have a short epilogue on Dax first wife and her Charles.

By the way, I also love the In-&-Out burger referred to in the story!!!

5*

BJ

I like the way you write the charaters and the background are imo well shown but i'm a bit frustrated that the guy end up subersient for only one mistake. True it was a bit harsh and not tactfull but a set of circumstencies made his attitude understandable at least if not forgivable. Then the women attitudes are harsh and ruthless; he's ketp in the dark when he has benn a dedicated father with an open mind(as his action shown during his divorce) and the same day its reaveled the Campbell character attitude is... i don't like her te be honest.

As a father i would be fearfull; she seems to me a man hating woman i mean she beleive she has a spiritual dick and can supersede the concern of a father and even has the gal to threaten him. And after our courageous modern man crawl and a lame excuse from just one of them we have a doubtfull happy ever. Nethertheless i like the sensibility of your writting, you have a very nice way to depict romance.

zerozeroZEROZERO. you had me till you lost me. You just had to push your homo agenda, did you?

@Annie: "homo agenda."

After extensive research, I included a gay character purely to upset you. I found out exactly what sort of character you didn't like, and just went for it. Byee, Randi.

I loved the story, omg girls kissed....so? Their characters were good strong independent women.....so?

Cracking story.

strange Tarawa was picked for the resort. one of the shortest BLOODEST the 2nd division Marines fought in the Pacific campaign. strange because even 80 years after the battle there is still unexploded ammunition buried under the coral and sand.

however another GREAT story With such a loving ending. Truly AWESOME

4. Enjoyable but the character of Campbell was just terrible. Not because she was a lesbian but because she came off as incredibly caustic bordering on toxic. She sounded like a terrible person, while she had an excuse for the cheating less so for being so downright confrontational and rude to the MC. And the sad thing was despite her coming off so unlikable she seemed to be the only one seeing his side of things, his family hiding things from him and acting like he was so wrong to have some concerns. Felt like this story could have very easily went into a heartbreak direction with the family complete disintegrating. But despite my complaints still a great story, glad there was no reconciliation with the ex despite usually liking reconciliations.

I guess I've read too many cheating slut stories. When I get to the second page, see there is four more, all the characters are set, and I start thinking "Crap, what's going to go wrong now?" Just a little gun-shy after all the horrible endings. 5 stars for a great story.

Tessa was a delusional bitch. Gave up everything: husband, daughters, love, security, financial well being, growing old together for what? Lust and thrill of adultery? No remorse. Zilch. Less a character and more a plot device.

Beautiful story, I don't mind BTB or recon PROVIDED it's appropriate. This one hit all the right notes and kudos to the author for not reconciling Dax with the hideous Tessa but instead giving him someone who deserved him. Tessa got exactly what she deserved; nothing but loneliness and all the time in the world to regret her own stupidity after Prince Charming got bored with her and sent her on her way to leave the way clear for his next, no doubt much younger conquest. 5 stars all the way

I've always been a loving, open minded father but when my daughter wanted to come out as gay, she couldn't bring herself to tell me but had her mother break it to me. I guess that there are some things that women are just more comfortable discussing with other women. My girl seems to have figured that I would react in the same way Dax does in this story. Fact of the matter is I'd already figured it out for myself!

Good story. Feel Dax should have been cut more slack though. He is a Dad and he had been cheated on. Also don’t really care how a kick-boxer Campbell is, she ain’t gonna be able to take a bloke, that crap is for the movies.

Dad is towards the end too conciliatory and apart from the daughter comment to J feel the girls over reacted.

You protect and look out for the ones you love.

Well done. This is a good well planned and well written story, as is usual for your writing.

It is sad to see this story deteriorate into another tale of portraying men as bumbling idiots being manipulated and controlled by those who profess to love him.

He was the one who was deceived by the three women in his life. He was the mushroom, kept in the dark and fed horseshit. He was the one who actually did nothing wrong or deceptive. He spoke the truth. Yet he was the one 4 women turned on like he was yesterdays newspaper. The daughters have no excuse for their mistreatment of him. Neither did the girlfriend.

As he said had he ever given them any reason to believe he was homophobic?

Was he racist? Again he had never said or done anything that could cause them to believe that. And I would have thought that his having a Hispanic girlfriend should dispel any of those misconceptions. With the way he had wanted to meet and talk face to face with his girls, he had shown by example how to properly introduce some news that may have uncertain far reaching consequences.

The daughters black gay girlfriend started out deliberately being an aggressive potty mouthed bitch to someone who she knew would always be very important to her girlfriend. And therefore by extension, important to her. That hardly indicates that she loved his daughter. She couldn't even keep a civil tongue to someone she had never met previously.

His girlfriend spits the dummy coz he spoke the truth to her. They weren't her daughters, they were his. No matter how important she felt she may become to them within the couple of years that she had known them, she was not there during there formative years. She had no real parenting bond with them.

And as all of this happens they are taking the moral high ground, despite the fact that they knew they had deliberately deceived him. Yet he is the one made out to be the arsehole. He is the one that has to initiate the apologies and the reconciliations.

IMO he would be better off without any of them, now they have all shown themselves to be merely fair weather friends. What they are saying is I'll be your friend/loving daughter/girlfriend only when what you do, say or feel is what I want you to do, say or feel. Even if your wrong reactions are based on misinformation coz I don't deem you worthy of being told the truth, you still have to perform to my expectations.

The only thing to nitpick was about the situation with his daughter and gf even if he meant well. But also, Jacinta and his daughter never put themselves in his shoes from what I read, so they should've been alil more sensitive to his feelings too, maybe not to the degree of 100% but maybe close to 50%. Different perspective/feelings from being him and daughter regarding the ex wife cheating on him. Overall, a pleasant story..

LIKE it (jaybee186)

Very nice story. Nitpic to prove i read everything; you fantasize, not fanaticize, and the daughter having his back at initial betrayal was torrie not talitha. rk

Just reread this. It still stands up.

Randi always gives us her very best! CINCO ESTRELLAS!

I do believe that I would of packed up my RV, hitched up the Wagoner and went for a drive, a long, long, long drive.

Great story, but I would have seen more of the end result of the ex. This is your story and you have the final say

Found another hidden gem!! Pay the anonymous assholes no mind. Randi is still among the best, of not THE best at her craft. I'm only sorry we're limited to just 5*. Each and every character is done flawlessly.

I have to add something, here. Skankenstine has to be THE best nickname on this entire sight! Great wording, Randi.

Great story Randi, as usual. I have to agree with MasterKote on the women not even considering things from his perspective. I'm not surprised, and not critical either because most of the writers on this site are men and thus, are more inclined to see situations from a man's perspective. Randi, you give us a excellent view from the other side. Great job, again.

One small plot error, it was Torrie who discovered her mom's idioticy,, page 5. Still 5+ stars.

detroitdave

applesauce!

Ah man great story even for the second read! DerMtMan

Great up to the point where everyone is down on him for trying to protect his daughter. Didn’t like that, you protect the ones you love. Would have liked to have heard more about the Ex and Chuckie Boy

Ignorance is different from bias or hatred. You can be ignorant and not be racist, or prejudice, or hateful. More compassion, let hatred. I wish the women in his life treated him better. They showed zero respect and barged into his life, but he responds with concern and question asked in private, and is vilified for it. I love most of your stories, but feel this one misses the mark for equality and fairness to the male MC.

@blackrandl1958 - I completely agree with your **intent** (writing about extraordinary people OR at least ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances is part of what makes good storytelling). Where I fully disagree is with the shallow, offensive assumption that somehow being physically beautiful makes a person (a woman or for that matter a man) "not ordinary". No, it just makes them lucky. It's like making every story be about a trust fund baby. Yes, it makes them unusually lucky, without making them AS A CHARACTER/PERSON in any way shape or form extraordinary. They just lucked out on genetic/monetary inheritance. Why aren't all your characters trust fun kids? (and I'm excluding rare valid use case where trust fund is actually legit part of a storyline and not just a way to make a character "better"/"less ordinary").

LOL @ "gay agenda" comment. I'm as anti-woke-garbage as only an immigrant from a socialist hell-hole can be, but I honestly don't really detect any "gay agenda" in this work. Yes the character was gay. No it wasn't pushed like it makes them a best person around (hell, she was a cheater), and the fact that she was gay was actually pertinent to the plot/character development/interactions, not just a "have to have gay character to get an Oscar" tokenism.

Oh, and regarding comments about how the women treated him. I found it highly ironic (and somewhat interesting, considering that empathy towards men generally isn't high on MOST writers on LW list, whether male or female), that the woman most empathetic towards main character wasn't his daughter, wasn't the woman who claimed to love him, but a nearly total stranger who was an abrasive near-teenage brat with no particular reason to like him OR emphasize with him. It painter Campbell in a much better light, but in contrast, the daughter and the Jacinta in MUCH worse light. Not sure if Randi intended either of those two effects, but that's what the result was.

This was a great story until the last couple pages. All the girls were keeping these secrets from him and then they got bent out of shape when he reacted in a clumsy way, including Jacinta. She should have given him the apology. Left a sour taste in my mouth.

Fun, sexy, intriguing, exciting, happy, and best - happy ending. Could end here or give us their continued lives...

“They were in Tarawa with us the night I proposed to Jacinta, three years later.” It took them another THREE years to make it legal? That was a head scratch in an otherwise thoroughly entertaining story.

.

And one more nit…..I know this was all about Dax, and secondarily his relationship with the daughters. But it really felt a bit … unfinished? ….. that readers never really learned what made Tessa tick…..why her relationship with “Chucky” failed so quickly (no surprise) …. What the relationship with the daughters ended up being …. And how much remorse she finally had resultant from her very stupid move with “Chucky”.

.

5 *****

[10.10.23]

Fun und Romantique!

11/10!!!!!

`Good story, but I felt the father was unfairly blamed for 'everything.' I still gave it five stars. Randi, you're the Great One.

Totally agree with the anon below, who wastes all that time when they could have been married years earlier, it's not like old age diseases, perimenopause, accidents etc., give you all the time in the world.

/

It's strange and disturbing that a mother, or any parent, can be cast aside so easily, and they were adults when she cheated, not easily twisted children with limited perspectives. So while I get that they love their dad etc., I just don't buy it that they'd kick her to the curb so easily ... and it was equally disturbing to hear one of the girls say that Jacinta was 'more of a mum than her real one was', after only knowing her for a couple of years no less.

/

It just didn't reflect well on all concerned.

The only excuse would have been if the mum really was a terrible mum, but we never got to know her faults, aside from being a cheater, and if she had been a terrible mum then that would also reflect badly on the dad for being with her and not doing anything about it.

/

It's one ungrateful selfish and ignorant child that when an adult they forget the 9 months of pregnancy, the pain of childbirth and the years of sleepless nights etc., as if none of that mattered.

Randi you did good 5 star. I think it was justified to cut the mom off because she not only cheated but blew up a family. the only critique I have is the whole situation at the end they all should have realized the main character was just concerned about his daughter they all flew off the handle. You could have saved about a half a page on that. I mean the daughters gf is moody as crap and doesn’t respect anyone but that’s not really a criticism more of an evaluation of her flaws tbh I think that’s her defense mechanism because of those two prickly girls from her past and she’s sweet in secret

For the most of it I liked this story. HOWEVER, the last part was terrible. The girls ganged up on him. Let's look at his perspective:

1) his long-time wife cheated and abandoned him.

2) his girls were not only aware of it, but they subsequently supported him, so they should have understood his concern.

3) all the girls have been conversing behind his back and keeping a big secret, including his GF. No one gave him the specific details about the GF's cheating.

4) Talley's new GF, overreacted and jumped all over him when he was surprised about the news she had a GF. Not the best impression to give a father.

5) he ONLY expressed some concern, as a father should, about Tally's GF who had some cheating history. He did not accuse the GF.

6) his own GF jumped all over him when he expressed this concern. Then when he slips up and says something wrong in the heat of an argument, she abandons him.

7) again, the girls talk behind his back rather than to him. Not very living of his daughters.

The story did a huge disservice to Dax and the girls should have been apologizing to him! If not for that last chapter, I would have given the story a 5.

Liked the story but as others have said the last two pages need to be deleted (dreadful) and go straight on to the wedding. The daughter keeping secrets from him does not match the rest of early stuff and the only think she would do that is because she is embarrassed by it.

I’m not educated enough in the fine art of writing like so many in LW. I missed something that should have set the stage in my mind for my perceived change of character in them. Kind of agree with the last two comments. To the uninitiated, like myself, the conflicting character actions created a conundrum I could not get my head around. As always your writing is superb and you are still probably the best dialogue writer in LW. Go Newcastle United lHoway the Lads” in todays match!!! ⚽️

Second read.

Still a great story.

.

Still five stars.

The situation that happened towards the end is the sort of thing that can happen in families, particularly in one like this where interpersonal relationships are settling down. Blackrandi presents it very realistically - like real life in fact. Five bright shiners.

Fantastic story!!!! 5 stars!!!

Just an odd sci-fi reference, the "other point of view gun" would indeed be effective on male or female subjects as both groups are blind,self centered, self absorbed idiots n matter what they may think f themselves.

Absolutely great!

Great story. My only thouht was what if they were all lower middle class, not all upper class? It was a entertaining read and I like happy endings.

Outstanding story!

I liked it.

A bit too romantic for a guy reader, but not much.

The plot and the drama, however, were first class.

Very well done.

Top ratings from me.

Spectacular piece of writing. I thought it ended a bit too quickly for me but it didn’t hurt the story one bit, it’s just that I am more of a payoff person and love a good well constructed ending but I know others aren’t like that. I now have many stories to read by one of my new favorite authors so that’s a great bonus right there. Thanks for putting all your time and effort into making this story so wonderful with incredible characters that interacted so well.

Great bit of writing, I don't understand why Campbell got let off so easy, i am sure she Linda and Dee Dee would get along well in any part of February. Other than that picayune issue great story and could lead to so many others i kinda want to hear the exes pain because i am petty that way and you created some fun people here so anything to carry on the story.

How sentimentally nostalgic to spark up an old flame from a crash and burnt marraige to a hometown first love. Nice story with mutual exclusivity and non incest. What a fool believes to be real, the Wiseman has a problem, corrected by his loving girls. (Lucky?)

the title is kind of a blanket over the whole story . yet after the breakup of his marriage he gets up ,changes his life and goes on to better things . life is not always easy and how we act after major changes makes the difference between being happy and being miserable .

Always liked your work, I think you're a gem, but you won a lifelong fan with something you said in regards to comments...

"Harry goes out, regardless."

That one line is perfection in writing, and is worth 5 points alone... if a rating means anything to you. I will still read this and give honest feedback, but I started your story with a smile. Maybe a smirk. Whatever.