Misty Water-Colored Man-ories

Hard to believe it's been four years since the release of my little memoir. To mark the occasion, I thought it would be fun to put faces on some of the book's male principals. Three of the them were already known by most gay men -- Thomas Roberts, Mike Henson and Ricky Martin -- but many readers have inquired about the other men who led me to where I am today. So without further ado, meet the men of "Wasn't Tomorrow Wonderful?" ...

Derek (aka Derwood): My first love and first heartbreak. Derek is happily married in Phoenix these days, working as a funeral director. 

Fred (aka the Asian hiding in the shower). I could only find this "adult" photo of Derek's former coworker at the Ritz-Carlton, on whom I walked in having sex with Derwood in our bedroom. Fred died just before the publication of my book. (UPDATE: Heart attack.) 

David (aka Derek's Fort Lauderdale/St. Thomas fling): This is a current photo of the twink Derek claims was visiting him in the Caribbean for "health" reasons at the exact time I was supposed to be there. (Chaos ensued.) 

Brian (aka the final straw): Brian was the last guy Derwood "took up with" while dating me, which led to my moving to Los Angeles on Cinco de Mayo 1990. I had run into Derek and Brian -- who was a beautiful surfer boy type (pictured here as a grown man) -- at the gay club Preston's on East Thomas Road in Phoenix and nearly lost my mind. I left, which was followed by some attempted spying and stalking outside Derek's apartment in the middle of the night and a stern talking to from the Tempe Police Department -- and my eventual exit from Arizona. Brian died of AIDS-related complications way after the fact.

Sean (aka the body-builder model): I still adore Sean, but he took the least kindly to being written about in my book. I will just say that I hear he's alive and well in Los Angeles today and that makes me very happy.

Rafael (aka the boyfriend I chose the cat over): My starter Latin lover moved back to Colombia when we broke up in 1998 and other than a brief stint in Miami, has remained there (close to family) ever since. We've stayed in touch over the years, with Facebook making it even more regular. 

Reunited at Elmo, circa 2010

Michael (aka Bernard): Longtime readers will remember him as my boyfriend of 12 years. (This might be the first photo of us together, circa 2002.) People were sometimes sad when they heard we'd split, but I've always subscribed to the idea that a relationship doesn't have to last forever to have been worthwhile. I'll always be grateful for our time together.

Bonus man: Damian (aka Luis). We hadn't met yet when the book was written. But he would be the star of any sequel I wrote. xo

If you wanna do more than look, you’ll have to read THE BOOK.

2023 UPDATE:

Came across these while cleaning out an old footlocker -- a fresh reminder of how my college boyfriend was able to string me along for nearly a decade. (I re-forgive myself for being so lovesick!) As my childhood best friend put it, "He'd have totally had an OnlyFans if it had been around then." Indeed.

Playing Doctor: Hotel reunion in WeHo, Halloween 1991