Dave Casler
PO Box 98
Ridgway, Colorado 81432
Young Adult Novels by Dave Casler...
I've been told by publisher after publisher that there's no market for Young Adult novels. I think they're wrong! So I'm putting my novels on-line for you. Forget the publisher! Read to your heart's content--it's free! And, I'd like to hear from you, too! Contact Page.
You're reading About Phillip. Be sure to check out About Dan here.
Phillip is a computer nerd who suddenly discovers a liking for track. Everything would be fine except for his father.
About Series Home
About the About Series
Index to All Chapters
Here are all the chapters, disguised as asterisks. Hover your mouse over an asterisk to see the title of the chapter. Click on the asterisk to go straight to that chapter.
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(About Phillip Home) (Last) (Next)
The Awkward Subject
"How about a special family dinner, then. I’ll bake a cake."
Phillip thought. "Ok. Can Grant come?"
"Of course, honey. But I also wanted to talk about…"
Wolfgang chose that moment to bound into the room, apparently in search of water. Before Margo could finish, Phillip was on his knees hugging the dog and tempting it with a cookie.
"Honey! You know chocolate isn’t good for dogs!"
"It’s only a little. Besides, I’ve done it before and he doesn’t throw up."
Margo closed her eyes and appeared to be counting to ten. Suddenly Phillip was back in his chair, wolfing down another cookie.
"I did want to talk about one other thing, honey."
"Just a sec, mom, I wanna get some milk." Phillip jumped off his chair, noisily grabbed a plastic cup, poured his milk, slammed the refrigerator door, and slid back into his seat. "So what else?" he asked, impatiently. He looked at his watch. If his mom hurried up he could catch his bus.
Margo opened her eyes—maybe she was up to twenty?—and spoke. "Sweetie, now that you’ll be sixteen, you can start dating…"
"Aw, c’mon mom, I don’t know any girls. Richard was the big girl-chaser…" Margo looked affronted. "…no, really! It’s all he could talk about. Anyway, if I see any girls anywhere I’ll date them, ok? But I don’t know any right now."
"Don’t you work with Melanie from next door?"
"She’s not a…" Phillip sat back. "Oh, yeah, I guess she is. Well, she’s not a member of the church. Can I date her?" He was puzzled. "What would I do on a date, anyway? I see her at work and at school, too. Why see her again on a date?"
"Well, there’s Ginny and Carey and Laura who all just turned sixteen. You’ve seen them at church, haven’t you?"
"Mom, they’re ugly! All they do is giggle and jabber at each other."
"Phillip! That’s not a nice thing to say."
"Oh, all right. But don’t rush me into that like Dad’s rushing me into driving, ok?"
"Of course, sweetie," she said. She only had to count to five this time. "But if you can drive it makes it easier to go on dates, you know."
"Ha! Any girl who dates me has to understand the environmental implications of the single family car. We can take the bus. Speaking of the bus, if I leave now I can still make my bus," he said cheerfully.
Phillip pushed his plate back and brushed the crumbs off his chin. He straightened his glasses and stood up. "No need to drive me to work."
She looked up, defeated. "I love you, Phillip."
He was already in the hallway when he spoke. "Love you too, mom!"