First mate's log:

July 16, 1973

It's my first-month wedding anniversary with Mary Ann. I'm liking married life so far. And, yeah, I like working in the Pizza Parlor. I thought I'd be eating all day, being around food, but you get used to it. (It's not just pizza, but that's the main dish.) Sometimes it gets kinda busy but then it'll slow down and me and Mary Ann just clean and talk. We never seem to run out of things to say.

I do miss the Skipper sometimes. I mean, he comes in almost every day for a couple of slices, but it's not the same as living with him. But at least we still live on the same island. And, yeah, I like being able to go home to Mary Ann, and not just because she never hits me with her hat.

I see the Brady kids about as much as I used to, since they've always loved coming here. They told me they're auditioning for another variety show tomorrow, singing as a group again of course. They're not doing it for the prize money, just fame. OK, no one will see them except people on the local islands, but it's still exciting. I wished them luck of course.

Carol Brady's diary:

July 17, 1973

The kids auditioned for another variety show today. They are out of school, and I do want to encourage their hobbies. However, there was an unexpected development that I have mixed feelings about.

They did pass the audition, and I am happy about that. But there was an agent waiting for them and she wants to talk to Greg at her office, alone. I'm worried about that for a few reasons. For one, it seems strange that she wouldn't want all the kids there. Yes, Greg is the oldest and in some ways the leader, but Marcia is only a year younger and in some ways more mature.

And Greg is still a minor, since his eighteenth birthday is still months away. So I hope he won't sign any contracts, for himself or his siblings, before Mike and I can look them over.

Also, like I said, music is fine as a hobby. (I enjoy it myself now and then, although less than visual art, like sculpture.) But an agent implies that they would seriously pursue this as a career, and they're all too young for that, even Greg. Maybe it'll just be local, at least for now.

The other thing, well, Greg admitted that the agent is an attractive woman of about twenty-five. Not that I think she's going to try to seduce him, but he definitely can be manipulated by a pretty girl, as we saw with his girlfriend Jennifer.

None of these are reasons enough to stop him from having an initial meeting with her. I'll see how it goes, and for all I know, one or both of them will decide against a deal.

July 18, 1973

Mary Ann and I had the Professor and Ginger over for dinner last night. It was the first time with us being married couples. Mary Ann's food was delicious, as always. And we talked about the old days a lot.

But it definitely feels like we've all grown up, even the Professor. And they told us that they're going to adopt! Mary Ann seemed less surprised than I was, so maybe she and Ginger have talked about this before. I wondered if Ginger or the Professor can't have kids, but it felt too personal to ask.

They did say that they're both unable to stay home with a baby or preschooler. And they like the idea of giving a home to an older kid, since most people want to adopt babies. They'll both cut back on work a little bit to look after him.

Yeah, they want to adopt a boy. Nothing against girls, but they'd rather have a son. They'd like him to be between six and twelve years old, but they don't care what hair or eye color he has.

Back on the mainland, adoption can take months or even years. But there's just one small orphanage on Blenford. (It's sad to think about there being any orphans, but I'm glad they have a home. There are no orphans at all on our smaller island.) So the process doesn't take as long.

When the Howells adopted their nephew and renamed him Thurston Howell IV, that was different, because he's a relative. And, yeah, they adopted me when I was actually an adult. And my parents were alive, which they still are. But anyway, it wasn't like it was a formal process. They just decided they were going to treat me like their son, until I didn't want that anymore. And of course, there were so few of us around then, so it wasn't as big a deal as it would be in a bigger community.

Anyway, I wished them luck of course. Speaking of luck, the Bradys not only passed their audition but met an agent! I don't know if this will go anywhere, but it's still pretty exciting.

I wonder what the Professor and Ginger's son will be like. Mary Ann and I agree we want kids, but we're not in any hurry. And, yeah, I still like playing uncle to the Bradys. (Who were adopted by their step-parents, now that I think of it.)

July 19, 1973

Greg met with the agent, Tami Cutler, and it actually was worse than I feared in some ways. She talked Greg into going solo, as "Johnny Bravo"! She and her assistant already had an image planned for him, with a bullfighter's suit! I don't pretend to understand modern pop music, but that part makes the least sense to me.

As for going solo, I can't believe he would just abandon his brothers and sisters, especially after the talk I gave them all when Peter's voice was changing and they considered leaving him out of a recording session. All of the kids have shared this dream, and I don't see why he can't just stick to performing locally, and on Blenford, with them.

And now he's talking about not going to college next year! Mike and I each hope he'll choose our alma mater, but it'd be fine if he went to Blenford Community College for a year or two, like his friend Hank Carter is. It'd be nice to have Greg close to home, although I would understand if he went out in the world. But not as a rock singer!

And it'd be different if he wanted to seriously pursue a music career after college. Even if he manages to be successful now, pop music is very, well, subject to the whims of popularity. Look at the Mosquitoes, has-beens before they were twenty-five.

Mike and I could of course object, since Greg is still a minor, but Ms. Cutler could come back in a few months when he turns eighteen, even if he'll still be in high school. Mike says he might go over to the studio in the next couple days if things don't improve soon. He might not be able to make Ms. Cutler change her mind, but he can at least explain our perspective, and maybe find some merit in hers.

July 20, 1973

The Brady kids are all mad at Greg. The agent just wants to manage Greg, as a soloist. They feel like he betrayed them and, yes, Peter called him Benedict Arnold, even though Peter played Benedict once and should've been more sympathetic.

I can understand how they feel, but if he makes it, maybe he'll let them be his back-up band or something. And he won't necessarily make it, but I'm wishing him luck, even if I wasn't going to tell his brothers and sisters that.

Ginger and the Professor won't have these kinds of problems with their adopted son. He'll be an only child. Mary Ann would like a big family in some ways, since she was an only child and that was unusual in Horner's Corners, but she also wants to keep running the Pizza Parlor. I had a brother and a sister, but I'm fine with any size family. Just not yet, since I'm still getting used to being a husband.

July 21, 1973

Well, Greg is not going to be Johnny Bravo, or any other singer for Tami Cutler. She made him sign a contract, even though he's a minor. We probably could've challenged it in court, but he ended up just ripping it up and walking out. They played back a recording of one of his songs and it didn't even sound like him, because the sound had been modified so much. He realized that they just wanted to make him fit a prepacked image and they didn't care about him as a performer, or an individual.

I'm glad he had enough sense not to get swept away in the glitz and glamour. And, yes, he is going to start thinking about where he wants to go to college next year.

Being a parent doesn't get any easier as they get older. And I just found out that the Hinkleys are going to adopt! It'll be a little boy from the Blenford Orphanage, although they just started the paperwork and haven't picked out a specific child. I don't know why they're not having a biological child, but I'm sure they'll love him just as much. I love my sons just as much as my daughters, and I don't think of Greg, Peter, and Bobby as "just steps."