Wilt

[WiltsAKGirl17]

Originally Posted by pitbulllady

Yeah, I had figured that he'd have been created around '73-'74, too. I can distinctly remember that decade, and by '76, the Afro hairstyle had pretty much gone out, finis, good-bye. That was very much an early-seventies style. '76 was the Disco Era(ugh), with the immaculate hair and leisure suits, although one aspect DOES point to Wilt-the patriotic Bicentenial fervor that peaked in that year, in which EVERYTHING was red, white and blue. Still, those socks had gone out with the early seventies, too, and they were another reason I'd had Wilt pegged as a "'73 model". One of the things, though, that pointed to that fateful game in GWH as being post-'76 is a Star Wars poster on the wall behind the basketball court, though from the screen cap, it isn't clear if it said "STAR Wars" or "STORE Wars", referencing that earlier Foster's episode. Oh, well...Craig has spoken, though, so '76 it is!

One of the reasons I started watching Foster's in the first place was out of curiosity to find out what had happened to Wilt's arm and eye, after seeing some fan art of him and realizing that his left arm was mostly missing, and his eye was, well..."wonky". I never doubted that SOMETHING traumatic had happened to him, due to the presence of suture scars and the surgical precision of the injuries, and his evasive response to Bloo's comment about "you must play basketball" in the pilot, which seemed to indicate that this was venturing into memory territory that Wilt would rather not tread. I never bought into the "he was imagined that way" theory, and I never really thought that his creator was responsible for that arm and eye. Initially, I figured that Wilt's injuries were the result of some unfortunate accident, perhaps not even connected with his creator at all, but as the series moved on, and it became more and more obvious that Wilt was struggling with more than just PHYSICAL scars, I had to wonder if his injuries hadn't resulted from deliberate violence against him, or a past that included abuse from someone, or if they'd been incurred as a result of something bad HE did. I'd always suspected that Wilt spent some time on his own before arriving at the safe haven of Foster's, and we all know that someone who is forced to cope with life-or-death survival on a daily basis will do whatever it takes to survive, and if that means involving oneself with bad and dangerous situations, so be it. I WAS right in that Wilt DID spend several years on his own, but this was after his arm and eye were injured, and the situation that resulted in those injuries was one of pure selfless heroism, not self-serving at all.

pitbulllady

I remember you mentioning that the Afro had gone out of style by the late 70?s. I don?t know much about the Disco era, except for the jokes my parents crack about it! When I heard ?76, though, I instantly thought of the Bicentennial. I never noticed the Star Wars poster in GWH, but I wasn?t paying attention to the background?I was too caught up in plot and characters! I see this the way you do?if Craig says it?s 1976, it?s 1976.

Aside from the fact that there was ABSOLUTELY NOTHING on TV at the time, Wilt was definitely one of the major reasons I started watching Foster?s. He was a very warm, friendly character, which, for reasons beyond my comprehension, caught my attention; however, I never really pondered too deeply into his arm and eye. Like I mentioned earlier, I just accepted it, although they did fascinate in some way. I had always attributed Wilt?s evasive of Bloo?s basketball comment in the pilot to Wilt not wanting to sound like he was bragging, not that he didn?t want to discuss a less-pleasant time period of his life. If I didn?t know anything about GWH, but had to guess where Wilt?s scars came from and why he has only one arm and eye, I?d definitely agree that they were the result of pure selflessness?I doubt that selfishness is in Wilt?s system, except for in ?Room with a Feud.?

Originally Posted by pitbulllady

Wilt's scars, both the ones on the stump of his arm and on his face, are very precise and "clean", not the sort of scars you'd get if you got roughed up by someone or someTHING. Only a surgical procedure will produce scars like that. Obviously, his badly broken arm would have required amputation and the stump would have been sutured/stapled closed, probably after padding the bone end with muscle from some other part of his body, which is standard procedure. It's done to prepare the stump for use of a prosthetic limb later, which in Wilt's case, would have been pretty tough to obtain.

There also were many kids back in Wilt's old 'hood wearing Afros, such as the two older kids that show up and challenge Wilt and Jordan to a game. One has a sweatband around his head, though. Believe me, I KNOW these kids, having lived and taught school in similar environments, and they are VERY fashion-conscious and aware of trends/fads, and if something is yesterday's news, they're the first ones to know and not have anything to do with it. If it's out of style, it's most definitely isn't cool, not to them.

pitbulllady

Even with what little medical knowledge I have, I never really doubted that Wilt?s scars were from a medical procedure. I figured that his arm would have been amputated?after the trauma he went through, I?d be quite surprised otherwise. I can imagine that giving Wilt a prosthetic limb would be a bit of a challenge?the first thing that comes to my mind is proportions, with cost/method of payment coming in at a close second.

[pitbulllady]

Originally Posted by WiltsAKGirl17

I remember you mentioning that the Afro had gone out of style by the late 70?s. I don?t know much about the Disco era, except for the jokes my parents crack about it! When I heard ?76, though, I instantly thought of the Bicentennial. I never noticed the Star Wars poster in GWH, but I wasn?t paying attention to the background?I was too caught up in plot and characters! I see this the way you do?if Craig says it?s 1976, it?s 1976.

Aside from the fact that there was ABSOLUTELY NOTHING on TV at the time, Wilt was definitely one of the major reasons I started watching Foster?s. He was a very warm, friendly character, which, for reasons beyond my comprehension, caught my attention; however, I never really pondered too deeply into his arm and eye. Like I mentioned earlier, I just accepted it, although they did fascinate in some way. I had always attributed Wilt?s evasive of Bloo?s basketball comment in the pilot to Wilt not wanting to sound like he was bragging, not that he didn?t want to discuss a less-pleasant time period of his life. If I didn?t know anything about GWH, but had to guess where Wilt?s scars came from and why he has only one arm and eye, I?d definitely agree that they were the result of pure selflessness?I doubt that selfishness is in Wilt?s system, except for in ?Room with a Feud.?



Even with what little medical knowledge I have, I never really doubted that Wilt?s scars were from a medical procedure. I figured that his arm would have been amputated?after the trauma he went through, I?d be quite surprised otherwise. I can imagine that giving Wilt a prosthetic limb would be a bit of a challenge?the first thing that comes to my mind is proportions, with cost/method of payment coming in at a close second.

No kidding! Given how long Wilt's arms are, can you imagine the logistics, especially back then, of designing and building a functional prosthetic arm? And like you said, the cost would have been staggering, definitely NOT within the budget of a homeless individual. Now, though, with the amazing breakthroughs in technology in designing prosthetic bionic limbs that can even "feel" and move like the real thing, the possibility of Wilt eventually having a new arm-IF he wants one-is a whole lot better. I'm sure that no matter what the cost, Jordan would be more than willing and able to cover it, so that matter is taken care of now, too. Still, Wilt has adapted so well to no longer having that arm, that it would probably be just as big an adjustment, and probably as physically painful, for him to learn to use a prosthesis as it was for him to learn to cope with no longer having a left arm in the first place.

A lot of folks, though, have assumed that Wilt's badly fractured arm just "fell off" all by itself, and we actually had someone claim that it just disappeared "by magic" right after it got broken-just "POOF", and it was all gone, the scars already in place, and Wilt never felt a thing, lol! That theory was largely based, I think, on the supposition that Wilt's body, and indeed that of all the IF's, weren't really flesh-and-bone, but that they were more like the "Toons" of Who Framed Roger Rabbit. I don't think that it's ever been the intentions of the show's creators and makers for us to think that all of the characters are anything BUT living, biological beings that can be hurt or killed by ordinary means. Just that mention on the first DVD of Wilt breaking his toe and having to have his foot x-rayed and put in a cast for six weeks is proof that he DOES indeed have bones that can be broken. Like you said, anyone with even a little medical knowledge would recognize that Wilt's scars were made by surgical procedures, not random injuries or "magic".

pitbulllady

[WiltsAKGirl17]

Originally Posted by pitbulllady

No kidding! Given how long Wilt's arms are, can you imagine the logistics, especially back then, of designing and building a functional prosthetic arm? And like you said, the cost would have been staggering, definitely NOT within the budget of a homeless individual. Now, though, with the amazing breakthroughs in technology in designing prosthetic bionic limbs that can even "feel" and move like the real thing, the possibility of Wilt eventually having a new arm-IF he wants one-is a whole lot better. I'm sure that no matter what the cost, Jordan would be more than willing and able to cover it, so that matter is taken care of now, too. Still, Wilt has adapted so well to no longer having that arm, that it would probably be just as big an adjustment, and probably as physically painful, for him to learn to use a prosthesis as it was for him to learn to cope with no longer having a left arm in the first place.

A lot of folks, though, have assumed that Wilt's badly fractured arm just "fell off" all by itself, and we actually had someone claim that it just disappeared "by magic" right after it got broken-just "POOF", and it was all gone, the scars already in place, and Wilt never felt a thing, lol! That theory was largely based, I think, on the supposition that Wilt's body, and indeed that of all the IF's, weren't really flesh-and-bone, but that they were more like the "Toons" of Who Framed Roger Rabbit. I don't think that it's ever been the intentions of the show's creators and makers for us to think that all of the characters are anything BUT living, biological beings that can be hurt or killed by ordinary means. Just that mention on the first DVD of Wilt breaking his toe and having to have his foot x-rayed and put in a cast for six weeks is proof that he DOES indeed have bones that can be broken. Like you said, anyone with even a little medical knowledge would recognize that Wilt's scars were made by surgical procedures, not random injuries or "magic".

pitbulllady

I once tried to figure out how long Wilt?s arms were, using my own arms as a basis for a proportion. I ended up with five and a half feet, based on my blind assumption that Wilt is ten feet, and the fact that I?m five feet five with thirty inch arms (shoulder to fingertips, and that?s a pretty rough estimate). So I imagine that building a prosthetic arm of that length in the late seventies, pushing early eighties, would have been a logistic NIGHTMARE. Even today, it may be a bit of a challenge. The cost to BUILD said prosthetic would be insanely high, and that cost (in order for some sort of profit to be made) would have to be equally or more insane as it gets pushed onto Wilt; as clever and resourceful as he is, I don?t think that he could come up with the money to pull this off. Considering medical advances today, I think that if Wilt wanted a prosthetic?wanted being the key word?Jordan could cover most of, if not all, the bill. Although as long as it took to get used to having only one arm, he would be frustrated with getting used to having two arms again. There?s also the possibility that he may in some small way fear ?regaining? (quote-unquote) his left arm again. (I don?t know if this idea has much merit?I watched Con Air last night, and it had a lot of stuff about some convicts actually fearing their release date and readjusting to society; that may have affected my thoughts.)

Like I said, I have little medical knowledge; however, I do know this: in order for Wilt?s arm to just ?fall off,? you?d have to sever through skin, muscles, tendons, BONE, veins, arteries and a ton of other stuff (my medical terminology prowess is staggering, isn?t it? ) to get it to ?fall off.? And I?m willing to bet dollars to doughnuts that it didn?t just POOF! disappear and that he never felt a thing-- just BREAKING his arm the way it was would cause an ungodly amount of pain! I really don?t buy into the idea that IFs? bodies aren?t flesh and blood-- as I recall from ?Beat with a Schtick,? Ed got pretty banged up by the New Guy. It?s kinda hard to get that banged up when you?re not flesh and blood! Sadly, I haven?t had access to the DVDs, so I?ll have to take your word on the X-rays and what not. (I?m so deprived. I need an iTunes account so I can get episodes there instead of catching what I can on TV.) So bearing all this info in mind, I stand by the theory lined out here-- Wilt is a flesh and blood being who was in a pretty bad accident. No magic, no randomness, just an accident.

[pitbulllady]

Originally Posted by WiltsAKGirl17

I once tried to figure out how long Wilt?s arms were, using my own arms as a basis for a proportion. I ended up with five and a half feet, based on my blind assumption that Wilt is ten feet, and the fact that I?m five feet five with thirty inch arms (shoulder to fingertips, and that?s a pretty rough estimate). So I imagine that building a prosthetic arm of that length in the late seventies, pushing early eighties, would have been a logistic NIGHTMARE. Even today, it may be a bit of a challenge. The cost to BUILD said prosthetic would be insanely high, and that cost (in order for some sort of profit to be made) would have to be equally or more insane as it gets pushed onto Wilt; as clever and resourceful as he is, I don?t think that he could come up with the money to pull this off. Considering medical advances today, I think that if Wilt wanted a prosthetic?wanted being the key word?Jordan could cover most of, if not all, the bill. Although as long as it took to get used to having only one arm, he would be frustrated with getting used to having two arms again. There?s also the possibility that he may in some small way fear ?regaining? (quote-unquote) his left arm again. (I don?t know if this idea has much merit?I watched Con Air last night, and it had a lot of stuff about some convicts actually fearing their release date and readjusting to society; that may have affected my thoughts.)

Like I said, I have little medical knowledge; however, I do know this: in order for Wilt?s arm to just ?fall off,? you?d have to sever through skin, muscles, tendons, BONE, veins, arteries and a ton of other stuff (my medical terminology prowess is staggering, isn?t it? ) to get it to ?fall off.? And I?m willing to bet dollars to doughnuts that it didn?t just POOF! disappear and that he never felt a thing-- just BREAKING his arm the way it was would cause an ungodly amount of pain! I really don?t buy into the idea that IFs? bodies aren?t flesh and blood-- as I recall from ?Beat with a Schtick,? Ed got pretty banged up by the New Guy. It?s kinda hard to get that banged up when you?re not flesh and blood! Sadly, I haven?t had access to the DVDs, so I?ll have to take your word on the X-rays and what not. (I?m so deprived. I need an iTunes account so I can get episodes there instead of catching what I can on TV.) So bearing all this info in mind, I stand by the theory lined out here-- Wilt is a flesh and blood being who was in a pretty bad accident. No magic, no randomness, just an accident.

In that scene in GWH when Larry falls on Wilt's arm, you can actually HEAR the sound of bones crunching, which is really pretty serious stuff for an animated "kids' show" when you think about it. You can SEE that expression of pure agony and shock on his face, so there's no doubt that he felt excruciating pain. I've seen wild animals that had a limb "just fall off" after some injury that left that limb deprived of adequate blood supply, and it leaves a very ragged and uneven stump, usually with a piece of dead bone sticking out-NOT a pretty sight. In contrast, Wilt's remnant left arm has been neatly removed, padded(that's why the end is wider than the corresponding part of his right arm), and sutured-clearly the work of a skilled surgeon. No magic involved, other than the magic of modern(for that time period, anyway)medicine, and maybe the compassion of a medical staff who were caring for a patient that they KNEW would never be able to pay for the surgery and treatment.

Wilt might indeed have some fear of re-adjusting to having a left arm again, even if it is a prosthesis, especially if there was a long period of time between his arm being crushed and him actually receiving medical treatment, since that arm would have really been in bad shape, to the point where Wilt's life would have been in grave danger(no pun intended). Having another "arm" there, even one that was not real, might not just be difficult to learn to use, but could reopen some memories that he'd probably rather not deal with again. Crush injuries, especially to limbs, usually result in "compartment syndrome", massive swelling of the connective tissues, which cuts off blood supply and causes cells to rupture and release toxins. If you've got a strong(and I mean STRONG)stomach, Google-Image search "Necrotizing Fasciitis", and you'll see what I mean. That's what happens when severe crush injuries aren't treated promptly. Put that in the context of the Deep South's climate, especially if this was in the summer, and it's easy to understand why having no arm at all would be preferable to anything that reminded Wilt of that. "Magic"? Don't think so!

pitbulllady

[WiltsAKGirl17]

Originally Posted by pitbulllady

In that scene in GWH when Larry falls on Wilt's arm, you can actually HEAR the sound of bones crunching, which is really pretty serious stuff for an animated "kids' show" when you think about it. You can SEE that expression of pure agony and shock on his face, so there's no doubt that he felt excruciating pain. I've seen wild animals that had a limb "just fall off" after some injury that left that limb deprived of adequate blood supply, and it leaves a very ragged and uneven stump, usually with a piece of dead bone sticking out-NOT a pretty sight. In contrast, Wilt's remnant left arm has been neatly removed, padded(that's why the end is wider than the corresponding part of his right arm), and sutured-clearly the work of a skilled surgeon. No magic involved, other than the magic of modern(for that time period, anyway)medicine, and maybe the compassion of a medical staff who were caring for a patient that they KNEW would never be able to pay for the surgery and treatment.

Wilt might indeed have some fear of re-adjusting to having a left arm again, even if it is a prosthesis, especially if there was a long period of time between his arm being crushed and him actually receiving medical treatment, since that arm would have really been in bad shape, to the point where Wilt's life would have been in grave danger(no pun intended). Having another "arm" there, even one that was not real, might not just be difficult to learn to use, but could reopen some memories that he'd probably rather not deal with again. Crush injuries, especially to limbs, usually result in "compartment syndrome", massive swelling of the connective tissues, which cuts off blood supply and causes cells to rupture and release toxins. If you've got a strong(and I mean STRONG)stomach, Google-Image search "Necrotizing Fasciitis", and you'll see what I mean. That's what happens when severe crush injuries aren't treated promptly. Put that in the context of the Deep South's climate, especially if this was in the summer, and it's easy to understand why having no arm at all would be preferable to anything that reminded Wilt of that. "Magic"? Don't think so!

pitbulllady

I don?t remember that scene, but I have an extremely active imagination, so (sadly) I can imagine the sound of bones crunching and the look on Wilt?s face-- no doubt something, to quote Cry the Beloved Country author Alan Paton, ?not done lightly? in the world of children?s TV. In my reflection on pondering Wilt?s left arm, I?ve always figured it was attended to by a very skilled surgeon. Medicine is a wonderful thing, isn?t it?

However, I doubt that it?s nothing compared to the emotional healing Wilt went through. Ninety-nine-point-nine times out of one hundred, medial professionals-- doctors, nurses, orderlies, you name it!--are kind, wonderful people (I know my childhood doctor and favorite doctor to boot, a man named Dr. Palekadetti from India, is no exception) with limitless amounts of compassion-- something Wilt definitely would have needed at that point in his life. On top of losing Jordan and the only real home he?s ever know, Wilt lost his eye and his arm-- there?s going to be some emotional turmoil there, and he?ll no doubt need a great deal of help to cope with it all.

One of the predominant images I have of Wilt after receiving a prosthetic, is struggling to readjust his routines. Something like putting one a jacket with one arm would be challenging with only one arm, but Wilt is resourceful and adapted. Readjusting to just being able to put his arm through the sleeve would be frustrating. The re-opening of unpleasant memories brought on by the prosthetic would no doubt put an immense amount of stress and pressure on Wilt.

I DID Google-Image search Necrotizing Fasciitis-- in the words of my Consumer Ed/Home Ec teacher (who?s from Arkansas), oh my mercy. Trying to say this as nicely as possible without making anyone sick to their stomach, I imagine that Wilt being fitted with a prosthetic would bring back memories of his mangled arm and the resulting pain, illness (possibly a complication from a resulting infection?) and misery. I?d always assumed that Wilt was created in the summer-- when Jordan would have more time to play outside and not be stuck in a classroom all day-- and that the game with Foul Larry was during the summer as well. The heat would no doubt encourage the proliferation of bacteria and infection, causing a VERY miserable time for Wilt. (I do wonder-- how much time would have to have passed between his arm being crushed and him getting medical attention before the injury become extremely serious, potentially fatal?)

So I guess this means that we?re ruling magic out completely?

[antgirl1]

Originally Posted by WiltsAKGirl17

I’d always assumed that Wilt was created in the summer-- when Jordan would have more time to play outside and not be stuck in a classroom all day-- and that the game with Foul Larry was during the summer as well.

Do you mean summer (Yes, the summer where "people drink lemonade" Lol ) of the second year of Wilt's life? Wilt did say he and Jordan were undefeated champions for a whole year.

Jeez, I wish I could write a story of Wilt's past, beginning with before his creation...I mean, I already had tons of stuff in mind, and if my mind was a movie theater we'd all see what's in the works of me without me actually having to get it out through pictures and words/stories and stuff...if I wasn't so lazy and the fact that the version I HAD was keel-hauled after Dad reformatted the computer...

[WiltsAKGirl17]

Originally Posted by antgirl1

Do you mean summer (Yes, the summer where "people drink lemonade" Lol ) of the second year of Wilt's life? Wilt did say he and Jordan were undefeated champions for a whole year.

Jeez, I wish I could write a story of Wilt's past, beginning with before his creation...I mean, I already had tons of stuff in mind, and if my mind was a movie theater we'd all see what's in the works of me without me actually having to get it out through pictures and words/stories and stuff...if I wasn't so lazy and the fact that the version I HAD was keel-hauled after Dad reformatted the computer...

Yes, I was referring to that second, possibly third?, summer.

Terrible about your story getting wiped out. I know what that feels like.

[pitbulllady]

Originally Posted by antgirl1

Do you mean summer (Yes, the summer where "people drink lemonade" Lol ) of the second year of Wilt's life? Wilt did say he and Jordan were undefeated champions for a whole year.

Jeez, I wish I could write a story of Wilt's past, beginning with before his creation...I mean, I already had tons of stuff in mind, and if my mind was a movie theater we'd all see what's in the works of me without me actually having to get it out through pictures and words/stories and stuff...if I wasn't so lazy and the fact that the version I HAD was keel-hauled after Dad reformatted the computer...

We can now safely assume that Wilt and Jordan were together for two years. We know now, as per Craig's statement, that Wilt was created in 1976, which would make him 32 now, more or less(depending on what month his "birthday" falls within), and that the game between him and Larry, in which he lost his arm, eye and creator, was 30 years ago, although one does have to take into consideration the uniqueness of "Foster's Time", lol. This means that Wilt and his creator had two years together before that game-a year just to get Jordan to the point where he was capable of taking on other teams, and a year to stay on top.

We have a joke here in South Carolina about the seasons down in Charleston: there are four of 'em, like most other parts of the country, but they're Almost-Summer, Summer, STILL Summer and Shrimp Season. Summers here are horrifically HOT, and muggy, with lots of biting, blood-sucking bugs and flies( and WiltsAKGirl, I hear Alaska has its fair share of "skeeters", too). I've seen minor cuts on animals, that left untreated in our summer climate, became infected to the point that the animal's life was in grave danger within just a couple of days. I've seen wounds on animals become infested with maggots within a few days, and these weren't even serious injuries to start with, just surface cuts or abrasions, nothing like crushed limbs. It doesn't take long in this climate for infection to set in, and that WITH a good blood supply, something that is almost invariably compromised with a crush injury. It would only be a matter of hours before such an injury became life-threatening, if left untreated initially. What blood flow does remain will just carry toxins from dying cells to the rest of the body, causing septicemia, so tough nor not, Wilt would not have had very long before he HAD to either seek medical help, or some Good Samaritan found him and got help for him, with or without his consent. Come to think of it, Wilt's survival from that point on probably has depended on a LOT of "Good Samaritans", besides just Madame Foster. That might also explain another reason why HE is so willing to help others-for him, it's a way to repay that dept.

pitbulllady

[WiltsAKGirl17]

Originally Posted by pitbulllady

We can now safely assume that Wilt and Jordan were together for two years. We know now, as per Craig's statement, that Wilt was created in 1976, which would make him 32 now, more or less(depending on what month his "birthday" falls within), and that the game between him and Larry, in which he lost his arm, eye and creator, was 30 years ago, although one does have to take into consideration the uniqueness of "Foster's Time", lol. This means that Wilt and his creator had two years together before that game-a year just to get Jordan to the point where he was capable of taking on other teams, and a year to stay on top.

We have a joke here in South Carolina about the seasons down in Charleston: there are four of 'em, like most other parts of the country, but they're Almost-Summer, Summer, STILL Summer and Shrimp Season. Summers here are horrifically HOT, and muggy, with lots of biting, blood-sucking bugs and flies( and WiltsAKGirl, I hear Alaska has its fair share of "skeeters", too). I've seen minor cuts on animals, that left untreated in our summer climate, became infected to the point that the animal's life was in grave danger within just a couple of days. I've seen wounds on animals become infested with maggots within a few days, and these weren't even serious injuries to start with, just surface cuts or abrasions, nothing like crushed limbs. It doesn't take long in this climate for infection to set in, and that WITH a good blood supply, something that is almost invariably compromised with a crush injury. It would only be a matter of hours before such an injury became life-threatening, if left untreated initially. What blood flow does remain will just carry toxins from dying cells to the rest of the body, causing septicemia, so tough nor not, Wilt would not have had very long before he HAD to either seek medical help, or some Good Samaritan found him and got help for him, with or without his consent. Come to think of it, Wilt's survival from that point on probably has depended on a LOT of "Good Samaritans", besides just Madame Foster. That might also explain another reason why HE is so willing to help others-for him, it's a way to repay that dept.

pitbulllady

Yes, two years sounds like a very reasonable estimate of how long Wilt and Jordan were together. I?m going to try to re-peg Wilt?s age and suggest that he was created sometime in early summer, probably June or July, making him (at this very moment) 31. The subject of, to use your words, pbl, ?Foster?s Time? is certainly a unique conundrum-- like Mac still being eight after fours years and five, going on six, seasons? One way to look at it is that the seasons we?ve seen so far represent a chunk of ?real world time?-- say six months. Ah, but I go on! A year to improve Jordan?s game definitely sounds about right-- Jordan would already have the basic skills, but he?d need to fine-tune them, enter Wilt into the equation.

Sounds like the seasons in Charleston are similar to seasons in Bush Alaska-- Almost Winter (fall), Winter, Still Winter (spring) and Something Vaguely Resembling Summer. (summers up here don?t get too hot, unless you?re inland in places like Fairbanks. And yes, pbl, we do have mosquitoes up here-- they?re not as big as people claim, but there are TONS of them and they?re persistent. Add no-see-ums to the mix and it?s not very fun up here in the summer.) Based on your descriptions, sounds like South Carolina summers are brutal on injuries that break the skin! As I understand it, heat speeds up biological functions-- including those of and the proliferation of the bacteria/viruses (I believe it?s bacteria) that cause infections, so it?s understandable and almost to-be-expected. Somehow, I get the feeling that getting medical attention wouldn?t be very high on Wilt?s priority list following his accident-- his top concern would have been Jordan?s safety. Sadly, I can almost picture him sitting in an alley cradling his arm not wanting to go to the hospital because he KNEW he looked like a train wreck and not wanting to draw attention to himself. Tough as he his, Wilt also seems like he can be extremely stubborn and conscious of how others react to him-- look at the way he handled Bloo and Mac?s reaction to him in the pilot.

I think that a great deal of Wilt?s survival was aided by Good Samaritans. I?ve no doubt that Wilt had a warm, wonderful, caring team of nurses and doctors who took care of him after his accident; I also agree that this may be why he?s so willing to unquestionably help others-- he feels like he?ll never see them again, so it?s his way of thanking them for keeping him alive when he probably felt like he wasn?t going to make it.

[jekylljuice]

Originally Posted by WiltsAKGirl17

The subject of, to use your words, pbl, ?Foster?s Time? is certainly a unique conundrum-- like Mac still being eight after fours years and five, going on six, seasons? One way to look at it is that the seasons we?ve seen so far represent a chunk of ?real world time?-- say six months.

We did actually discuss the subject of "Foster's Time" and its implications in this thread here: http://www.fosters-home.com/forum/showthread.php?t=2618.

Basically, it doesn't strike me as being particularly troublesome or remarkable, since I see this as a pretty common technique within animated shows. Characters may be allocated back-stories such as Wilt's, but for all intents and purposes they're more-or-less frozen in the current physical age they were when the series began. I suppose this is more of an issue with Mac, who'd be on the brink of his teens by now if this were indeed the real world, than it is with the imaginary friends.