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Affinity, March 2000, p. 6 I remember... It was my 33rd birthday, and Doug's 34th birthday. We went up to Point Reyes National Seashore, for a picnic and some sight seeing. The weather was cool and windy in January 1991, but it was warm where the sun shone down. Out on Drakes beach, we pulled a rum cake out of the trunk of my car. We lit 35 candles, sang happy birthday to each other, and felt like a couple of school kids. I was one of the best birthdays I ever celebrated. Doug and I worked very closely together on the Affirmation San Francisco Chapter Gayzette of which he was editor (1990-1992). He made major use of his computer skills while working on this newsletter. Doug had the gift of taking something ordinary and making it beautiful. I remember him gold leafing a plaster of Paris molding to his sitting room ceiling light fixture (19th & Castro), or faux marbling a fireplace or a plain pine dresser top. Doug was a great cook, teaching me (for better and for worse) the wonders of garlic and sour cream as seasonings. I remember one Christmas at Ron and Craig's home when he brought a rum cake, with some cake in it. Doug handled the "industrial" part of Affirmation Thanksgiving dinners. The ham and turkey were always cooked to perfection. Doug was a gifted tailor. I still have my Bill Blass red sparkling dress with silver velvet--the year I did opera drag. I told my Affirmation friends that I'd never do drag. Doug, a former Miss Gay texas, is responsible for bringing Imelda out of the closet in 1990. Each time I prepare Imelda for an Affirmation or Gamofite gathering, I can hear his voice giving me makeup directions. Doug hosted several San Francisco Affirmation Halloween parties. Doug was known as Connie in "high drag" and as Tasha in "trashy drag." Doug loved Country Western music, and was a very gifted dancer, in or out of drag: two stepping, waltzing, or line dancing. Doug was a gifted artist. His mother showed me an example of a painting he did as a teenager that looked like it was done by a professional fine artist. Doug helped to refine my own taste in art. Doug was a gifted photographer, particularly of flowers. On one of Doug's emergency trips to the hospital, I rushed into emergency, where the doctors asked me if I was his lover. I replied, "No, we're sisters." The doctor was too shocked to reply. But Doug, in spite of his coughing and wheezing started laughing and turned to mi with the compliment, "You bitch!" I am grateful for the 5 years of friendship that I had with Doug, which has provided me a lifetime of memories. See also: "Our Living Quilt," Affinity, March 2000, p. 6. Please add your own tribute by sending an email to
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