In the 1980’s we had two friends, Harold & Dale. Harold was in his early 30’s while Dale was in his 50’s both were total HOOTS & so much fun!!! The lovers had been together for 10+years and had just moved to Tampa. We were invited to their home for Thanksgiving. The apt was one of those overly packed with expensive antiques. Dale asked Mark to get down the big glass serving dish with a lid from the top of the china cabinet. When we opened the lid there was the biggest bag of pot we had ever seen! Dale screamed, “FABULOUS!!  I thought I had lost that bag 6 months ago!” Needless to say there were no leftovers that night.

A few weeks later Dale invited us over for his famous spaghetti and meatballs. We arrived right on time. Harold & Dale were sitting at the table laughing. Dale said, “I thought it was oregano! We sampled and sampled the sauce until it was all gone. Sorry Guys we ate everything.” How can you be mad about that? We all laughed. The next year they moved back up north. We stopped to see them in Chicago. They had us laughing right away like old times. Dale looked sick and Harold looked tired. A couple months later Harold wrote us that Dale died of AIDS and he was sick in the hospital with it too. That was the last we heard from them. The Christmas card was returned that year. Living the Gay Life in the 80’s.

In 1980, we moved to Tampa. Mark was working as a bartender/server at The University Restaurant next to University Square Mall. There was a very fun group of young hot Gay guys that all worked there and hung out together. Like us were attending USF!  Names like Dakota Mike, Big Jim, Stevie Wonder, The Dancing Queens (PR of course) Tony & Carlos, Dead Sister Waneta, Crazy Keith, Big T Joanne and Need a Man Brenda. Our group leader of the pack was Rodney. Cute, hunky & full of life Rodney knew how to get the party started. Together we all would go to quarter night at the El Goya, to the St Pete causeway & beaches and had our own afterhours parties.

 Several years later we all got a call from Rodney. It was his 30th birthday and he wanted to show the world he still had it all! It was a must event. The party was at the Firehouse Pub on Busch & Florida Ave. Rodney danced the night away on the bar top looking great as we all filled his daisy dukes shorts with money. Three months later Rodney was dead from AIDS. By the end of 1984 Dakota Mike, Big Jim, Stevie Wonder, The Dancing Queens (PR of course) Tony & Carlos, Dead Sister Waneta had all died of AIDS too. Only Crazy Keith, Big T Joanne, Mark & Carrie are alive today. I often wonder how my life would have been different if they were all were still alive today. Then we smile just thinking of them all dancing the night away at the big The El Goya in the sky. Gay Life in 1984