
01. Introduction
I was born on the Yakima Indian Reservation in Washington State and my early childhood was spent treading water in a cesspool of racism and

1951- Grandview to Toppenish
As I had said in the introduction, I was born on the Yakima Indian Reservation in Washington State. In 1953 I was Donnie, a little kid

1957-1958 1st Grade
When I was in first grade, we lived on Marietta street in Spokane and I attended Cooper Elementary. I remember loving my teacher at Cooper

1958-1959- Third Grade
Somehow, by third grade, I was attending Grant Elementary in Spokane. Darlene remembers a street named “Milton” but I don’t remember it at all. If

1959- Palouse
There were times when I would live in Palouse. I think Roger and Darlene also spent time there. I don’t remember if either of them

1961- 4th Grade- Last time I wore a dress
By 4th Grade, the Country Kitchen must have failed and we were living on Broadway in Spokane and I was attending Bryant Elementary School. Roger

1962- Abilene
I don’t know how long it was after my mom met him, that George moved to Texas. I don’t remember him being around all that

1964- Darlene Marries Chuck
I’m not sure if Darlene was even eighteen yet when she met Chuck Tasker. There was a lot of Navy and Marine men in San

1964- My Beatle Haircut
1963-1964- My Beatle Haircut I like to tell my thirteen year old nephews and nieces about getting kicked out of school when I was 13.

1964-The Luv Please
The year 1964 was an incredible year for music. In 1963, I had become a Beach Boys fan based on 1962’s hit “Surfin Safari” and

1965 or 1966- Steve Castle
As I have said multiple times in these stories, my life was extremely chaotic. We were constantly being shuffled from here to there without much

1965- In Foster Care
Mom and George had moved to Georgia because George had gotten a better job there and again, our needs, as children, were most likely never

1966 Living with Darlene & Chuck in Seattle
Either before going to Toppenish High or after going to Toppenish High, but definitely November 30th, 1966, as evidenced by an old letter from the

1967- Juvenile Hall
The first time I went to Juvenile Hall in San Diego, I must have been 16 or 17. I think it was after I had

1967- Sweet 16 and The Summer of Love
1967- Sweet Sixteen, The Summer of Love and Psychedelics I love the San Francisco Bay Area. I came here for the first time when I

1968 Seattle with Mary Jo
I was about 17 and I think that 1968 might have been the year that Marnie drove me and four other people from San Diego,

1969- College Ave, Newport Pop & Psychedelic Experience
When I first lived at 3727 College Avenue in San Diego, it was with mom and George. I was taking adult school classes at Hoover

1969- Leslie & Market Street, San Francisco
When I was about eighteen, I moved up to San Francisco to live with Leslie in the downstairs flat at 3043 Market in San Francisco.

1969- Pot bust- Getting Arrested
San Diego’s downtown was pretty seedy in 1967-1968. There was a little plaza on Broadway, the main thoroughfare of downtown San Diego, Behind this plaza

1969- Rape
It was about 1969 when Ramona and I attended a “Love-in” in San Diego’s Balboa Park. “Love-ins” was just another name for “Be-ins” and were

1970- 1980? Mom & George in Hunters
I found this black and white picture that shows a trailer set up which I think must have been the trailer that Mom and George

1970-1971 1. Back to Market-Then 24th with Jim
I don’t think we were really in the Castro Street flat for very long. At some point, Leslie moved back to the Market Street building

1970-1971 14th Street with My First “Lover,” Jim
Jim Archiquette and I lived on 14th Street in San Francisco twice. After leaving the flat on 24th street which was more like a commune

1970-1971 Cockettes and The Angels of Light
While living with Jim Archiquette on 14th Street in San Francisco, we were still hippies and like a lot of former male hippies, had now

1970’s Gay Disco Seventies
This is not an exhaustive list of gay bars in San Francisco in the 70’s. You can find that information elsewhere. There were just too

1970’s- Promiscuity- Bathhouses & Sex Clubs of the 70’s in SF
During the period of living on Shotwell, Jim and I were getting along pretty well but we were young gay men and it was the

1973 “You have to be hurt to understand!”
While I was in Washington, mom and George had moved to Upland California and my mom had remembered the program for Psychiatric Technicians and apparently

1973- Valley Vocational, Pacific State, Doctors Hosp
My first psychiatric aid job was at Pacific State Hospital on a developmentally disabled childrens ward. Pacific State Hospital was a pretty big place with

1974-1. Rainbow Cattle Company
I lived in a ten dollar a week room in what was essentially a hotel above the gay Rainbow Cattle Company at the corner of

1974-2. 1441 Larkin Street With David
When I got out of the hospital, after having been admitted for hepatitis, I think I went home to Larkin Street. I don’t think there

1975 or 1976- Letter from Mom in Hunters
All these years later, as I am writing these “stories” of my life, it is hard to remember exact dates and sequences. I came across

1975- Ennui
One of my most favorite gifts of all time was when my mom gave me a Royal typewriter for my birthday when I was about

1975- First Trip to Europe
While I was having my affair with Albert Trevino, he told me about a trip he had taken to Europe. He had a lot of

1975- May on Sanchez 40 Days Before Europe
When I was growing up, there were no cell phones or texting. Some people actually stayed in touch by writing letters. One aspect of letter

1975- Sanchez to Guerrero
I got back to San Francisco from Europe with just a dollar in my pocket which was not even enough to take the Airporter bus

1976- My Second Lover, Stanley Dunne
I met Stanley at gay night at the roller skating rink in San Mateo, a few miles south of San Francisco. I was going

1976- Paul McCartney and Wings
In 1976, Paul McCartney and Wings performed at the Cow Palace in San Francisco. I brought my super-8 film camera to the concert. Security guards

1976-1330 Bush Street #9J
By this time, I had a little money coming in as I was back at Saint Francis, working as a Licensed Psychiatric Technician.and I had

1977- 1667 Haight Street
After I had a fairly amicable break up with Stanley, I moved to 1667 Haight Street in what is called the “upper Haight.” I bought

1977- Trip to San Diego with Mary Jo
After I broke up with Stanley and moved to 1667 Haight Street, I bought my first brand new car. Mom and George had helped me

1977-1980- Tumultuous Relationship with John Perry
John was from South Carolina. He called me about a week after I gave him my card and invited me over. We hit it off

1978- 525 Haight Street
My place in the upper Haight had become too cramped and I wanted a little more space. I started looking around at apartments and found

1979- September- Dad is Murdered
I was working the evening shift on “4-East,” which was the locked adult inpatient psychiatric unit at Saint Francis Hospital back then. I was a

1980- Winter- First Trip to New York
I had been involved with John Perry for a year or two when he told me that he was going to take a trip to

1980- Word, Sound and Power
In 1980 I was still working at Saint Francis Hospital 4-East, a locked adult psychiatric unit in San Francisco. One of the nurses I worked

1980’s- AIDS- Death and Dying
I think that many of us that lived in San Francisco during the eighties will remember that decade as the decade of AIDS and seeing

1981- Milton- Falling in Love
Two of my best friends around this time was a couple, both named Michael, with whom I had worked. I had known them both before

1982-1993 465 Waller Street
Milton and I lived together breifly at 525 Haight but wanted a bigger place now that there were two of us and we started looking

1982-1994 Computers to MacNursing
In 1982, computers disguised as game machines were just starting to become a consumer product. Atari was popular for it’s games like Donkey Kong and

1984- 33rd Birthday
Milton and I had been together for a couple of years by this time, living on Waller Street. He is cooking something at the beginning

1985- Graduation from Nursing School
When I had been living in San Francisco in my late teens, I remember being destitute and walking around San Francisco with only 25 cents

1985- Miltons Mother Visits Waller Street
Milton always seemed to have a bit of a conflicted relationship with his mother. She had abandoned him and his brothers when Milton was 8

1985- Trip to Hawaii (Oahu)
I know it was in 1985 that I went to Hawaii for the first, and so far, my only trip to Hawaii. Milton was supposed

1988- Midnight Caller
Midnight Caller was a t.v. drama that aired from 1988-1991, starring Gay Cole as Jack Killian, that took place in San Francisco. Gary Cole’s character

1989- Earthquake!
I was working as a Registered Nurse at Western Psychiatric Center within Saint Francisco Memorial Hospital in San Francisco the evening of October 17, 1989.

1991- Aug 10th- Mom Passes Away
Milton and I were still living on Waller Street in The City when my mom called and told me that she had been diagnosed with

1991- Black Males in Oils
My mom enjoyed painting canvases from time to time when I was growing up. Once in a while I would try to paint a picture. Sometime

1993- Move to Vallejo & Our First Home
By 1993, Milton and I had lived together on Waller Street for 12 years. We loved it there but had talked about buying a home

1994- After MacNursing™- Nursing Desk Software™
I had developed MacNursing between 1985 and 1994. I supported it at Saint Francis over a period of approximately ten years. I had sold a copy

1995-1. Road Trip to Washington
I don’t remember much about the circumstances, but in the Spring of 1995, Milton and I drove up to Washington State. Over the years we

1995-2. Surprise Trip to Vegas
I think Milton was turning 40 in 1995 or maybe I just wanted to do something different, but for his birthday that year, I planned

1995-3. Grandmother Rogers & Aunts Visit Darlene’s
My father’s mother was in her nineties at the time she came to Washington State from Arkansas with two of my father’s sisters. I flew

1995-4. Amber
Milton and I had talked about getting a dog at various times in our relationship. Milton was not particularly enthusiastic when I told him in

1998- Camping at Russian River
Milton and I went on our first little camping trip in 1998. I had built a bed in the back of our Ranger and bought

1999- From Letter to George
This is just the text of a letter I wrote to George: “I saw Darlene, Roger, Nola, Donna Jean and nieces/nephews in Seattle back a

2000 -Thoughts about Progressive Christians
I do not consider myself a “religious” person but I am interested in religion and it’s impact on people and societies. Like many people reading

2000- Resignation from John George
After working at Saint Francis Hospital as a Licensed Psychiatric Technician from 1974 to 1985, and then a Registered Nurse from 1985 until 1994, I

2001- 9/11 & Yosemite
In September of 2001, Milton and had decided to take a quick road trip over to Yosemite. The Bay Area is in such close proximity

2001- April- Trip to Cancun
I was always a little apprehensive about visiting Mexico. Cancun was good for a first time visit though. It is very American in many ways

2001- Peace and Justice
I had always been somewhat politically active. By the time I was in third grade, I knew that I was not like other boys that

2002- April-Puerto Vallarta & Blue Bay Getaway
Some of you may be trying to decide between the two cities of Puerto Vallarta and Cancun. Now that I have been to both, I

2002- Nov 12th- My Stepfather, George McHenry Passes Away
My Mother had met George when I was in the fourth grade, when we were living in Spokane. My aunt, Billie, introduced her to George

2003- Trip to D.C. and N.Y.
In April, 2003, we planned a trip to Washington D.C. and New York City. We stayed in a suburb of Washington, in Baltimore, and rode

2004- Feb- Road Trip to Baha Mexico
We live in the San Francisco Bay Area and although the winters here are relatively mild, Milton and I try to go south for a

2004- Walling Family Reunion in Spokane
Gail, Nola and i had been emailing each other for a while and had thought about having a “Walling” family reunion of descendants of the

2005- Darlene Visit for Pride Celebration
I always encourage family and friends to visit the Bay Area at the end of June for Gay Pride. In 2005, Darlene came with several

2005- Trip to Orlando
When I was younger, I would sometimes have bouts of depression. As I got older, I realized that there was a pattern to my depression.

2005-1. Europe- London
9/5/05- Well we made it to the airport. We had set out that morning for the San Francisco airport and had got all the way

2005-2. Europe- Paris
9-8-05 – Day 3 We asked for a 9am wake-up call at the Montana hotel in London, but we were up before that. We finished

2005-3. Europe- Venice
Venice 9-11-05 Day 6 The next morning we were still traveling along on the train to Venice. The old Arab man was getting off at

2005-4. Europe- Florence
9-13-05- Day 7 (continued) There are frequent trains that go between Venice and Florence and I assumed it would be no problem getting a

2005-5. Europe- Rome
9-15-05- Day 9 (continued) The train to Rome was supposed to leave at 12:25. We stood in the train station trying to figure out what

2005-6. Europe- Athens
9-19-05 Day 14 Milton got up first and showered and finsihed packing while Sylvan took a shower. We had a wake up call but we

2005-7. Knee Surgery & Tongue Biopsy
In 2005, as almost always in my life, I was going out dancing. At this time, I was going to The White Horse in Berkeley


2006- Palm Springs White Party
“White” pertains to what people wear… like a black tie party would be black… Milton and I had not been to a “circuit party” before

2006- Trip to Seattle
My cousins, Gail, Nola, and Don in the Spokane area, are all in the same age group as Darlene, Roger and I. We spend much

2006-July 8th Solano Peace and Justice Coalition BBQ
Solano Peace and Justice Coalition had come into existence after the Bush Administration started warmongering after the horrific events of September 11th, 2001. Initially, for

2007- Feb- Carnival Destiny- Our First Cruise
I think that RSVP Vacations and Atlantis had been around for a while but we had never looked into their cruises but for some reason,

2007- Tre and Casey Visit
Over the years, Donna and I continued to have an ongoing relationship and frequent phone calls and get togethers. David had lived with me a

2008- Aug 15-18 Spokane Visit
I am going to fly out of Sacramento. Although it is a little further to drive, they have a nonstop to Spokane. All I could

2009- Carnival Valor Cruise with Family
After Milton and I returned from our first cruise on the Carnival Destiny, we were excited to tell others about our experiences. One of the

2009- Honored by Vallejo Gay Network
A few years back we were at something called the “Unity Fair” in Vallejo and were asked to pose for some pictures. We didn’t really

2010- BBQ at Our House
It is not often that Milton and I “entertain” but in the summer of 2010, we decided to invite my brother, David, and his wife,

2010- Feb. R.C. Mariner of the Seas Mexican Riviera Cruise
This is video of our first day on the Mariner of the Seas, February 21st, 2010. We were out to sea for the first day

2010- June 24- Badlands
June is “Pride” month in the San Francisco Bay Area or “Gay Pride” to be more exact. This was probably the weekend before the parade

2010- Trip to Seattle
Intermittently, I have flown up to the Seattle area for the weekend, where my sister, Donna, and my brother, Roger, live. Darlene will come over

2010-1. Europe- Amsterdam
We arrived in Amsterdam. This sign is close to the Van Gough museum which we enjoyed. Museums can be exhausting though! We made it to

2010-2. Europe- Paris
Video of our visit to Paris in 2010. After a few days in Amsterdam, we took the high speed train to Paris. They had

2010-3. Europe- Barcelona & Sitges
In Barcelona, we bought a Barcelona Card for unlimited rides on the metro system which we only used once to ride from the airport

2010-4. Europe- Madrid
After arriving in Madrid by high speed train, we took the subway to where our hotel was located. We were pretty tired from traveling from

2011-1. Feb. My Fabulous 60th Birthday Weekend
Milton took me to The City for my 60th birthday. We stayed at the Hotel Intercontinental. On Saturday night we went to the Chinese New

2011-2. April- L.A., Palm Springs & “The White Party”
We had been to The White Party in 2005 and decided it was time to check it out again. Northern California had been having a

2011-4. Old Man Dancing
Dancing has always been important to me. I know that is a pretty broad word, though. There are so many different types of dancing. One

2011-5. May- Misty and Alex Visit
I had bought a new Prius in 2010. I had my old Nissan for over ten years. It had a lot of miles on it

2011-6. August- Darlene and Sean’s Visit
My sister, Darlene, and her grandson, Sean, visited the San Francisco Bay Area. They arrived from Yakima, WA on 8/9/11 and stayed a week with

2011-7. Alex 16-18 & Pics
In 1974, when I had just started working at Saint Francis Hospital in San Francisco, my younger brother, David, came to live with me. He

2012- March- Carnival Splendor Mexican Riviera with Family
After our cruise with Donna and her family and David and his family on The Valor, we all wanted to do it again. We looked

2012-Donna Visits for Thanksgiving
In 2012, Donna, Teddy, Courtney and Christina came down from Washington State and stayed with my brother David, over in Rodeo. It was a great

2013- Allure of the Seas
This was our first time on Royal Caribbean’s “Allure of the Seas.” It was an impressive ship but during the entire week, we did not

2013- Wedding- Milton and I Got Married!
Milton and I met around 1982-1983. We had been together for 32 years when we got married. When we were still attending First Christian Church

2014- First Gay Cruise
When we had gone on our first cruise on the Carnival Destiny in 2007, it was only because we didn’t think we could afford a

2014- September Road Trip to San Diego
I was planning to retire in a few months and had been interested in getting a 5th Wheel and truck at some point to travel

2015- Lazy Bear Weekend Guerneville
This was the second Lazy Bear we attended in Guerneville, CA in 2015. It is a beautiful setting in the redwoods, along the Russian River.

2015- Liberals vs Conservatives
I am proud of being a progressive liberal Democrat. I am proud of the accomplishments of progressive liberal Democrats. The list of accomplishments is long:


2015- Second Gay Cruise
This is about part 2 of our 2015 vacation. Milton was turning 60 in 2015 and wanted to visit Disney World in Orlando again. We

2015-“Badlands” and Gay Bar Etiquette
This is still my favorite dance bar in San Francisco. The music IS reliable with vocals rather than that techno crap that drones

2015-September 8. Political History
Lynn, the girlfriend of my grand-nephew, Alex, was taking a political science class and asked to interview me about my politics and what led to

2016- April- Not Going Along to Get Along
My mere existence is political. I just can’t “go along to get along.” My sibling witnessed my Mother being raped by a distant relative of

2016- April- Palm Springs RV Adventure
The Dream I have been dreaming of owning a trailer, 5th Wheel or RV for at least 25 years. Milton and I had looked at

2016- Do Not Speak for Gay Males!
Link to Pride article to which I am responding: http://www.pride.com/lgbt/2016/4/22/5-reasons-lgbt-people-should-stop-saying-we-were-born-way I recently came across this article from “Pride” on line recently. The female author, Cassie Sheets, speaking

2016- Lazy Bear Weekend
This is the original edit of our visit to Lazy Bear Weekend in 2015. This year we went to the Johnson’s Beach party. This was

2016- Letter to a Third Party Voter
For the life of me, it is incomprehensible to me why anyone would gamble with third party votes? I do think it is one of

2016- May- Why I Decided to Vote for Hillary in the California Primary
In 1960, I was nine years old and not paying much attention to politics. I knew my Mother was a Republican and didn’t like John

2016- Trump Dystopia
Welcome to 2026. The ninth year of the Donald Trump “presidency.” What happened to Ted Cruz? He is now in Donald’s cabinet as the head

2016-September: Mediterranean Cruise on Norwegian Spirit
The Norwegian Spirit was the oldest and smallest cruise ship we had ever been on. It carries just slightly less that 2,000 passengers. We chose

2017 Atlantis Events Allure of the Seas cruise
We had been on about 11 cruises. Three were gay cruises. Two were with RSVP Vacations and most recently, we sailed with Atlantis Events on

2017- Lazy Bear
This was the third “Lazy Bear” weekend that we have attended in Guerveville, California, a small resort town on the Russian River. In the 1970’s,

2017- Southwest Road Trip
Milton and I flew to Albuquerque, where we visited with old friends. I had known Cynthia since the late 70’s. When I meant her, she


2018- Atlantis Events’ Royal Caribbean Harmony of the Seas 2018 Cruise
This was about our 10th cruise, our fourth gay cruise and our second gay cruise with Atlantis Events. We had been on the the Allure

2018- Homelessness is Not Just a Housing Problem
Hardly a day goes by that there isn’t an article in the Chronicle about the homeless “mentally ill.” As one that worked in adult, inpatient

2018- July Road Trip through Texas & Louisiana
This is a FB album of our road trip in the summer of 2018. <!–FBGallery2 10216990435297515 –><!–/FBGallery2–> “We flew into Dallas and were hit with

2018- New Orleans
New Orleans had been on my “bucket list” for years. Flights from the San Francisco Bay Area had always seemed high when I had checked

2018-Lazy Bear
This was our fourth “Lazy Bear” weekend in Guerneville. We have first visited in 2007 for a “drag bingo” night but then did not return

2019-1 San Diego Black Film Festival
Anybody that knows me, knows that I have always had a love for film making and, for the last 37 years, a love for my

2019-2 Total Knee Replacement
I started having problems with my right knee in the 70’s. I think it started after an incident on the adult psychiatric unit where I

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