My First Trip to Fire Island

STORY: 1980—I started going to Fire Island in the summer of 1980. My first time, I was invited by friends who’d rented a house on the...

Jul 17, 20183 min read

Thankful for Chosen Family

STORY: Thanksgiving used to be a time when I would go home and see family. This tradition ended 6 years ago when I moved across the...

Jun 9, 20182 min read

Fire Island Weekends

STORY: In all my years at the Pines, my housemates were always fellow worker bees who toiled hard for our time at the beach. Our delight...

Jun 8, 20181 min read

Project Runway: Water Island Edition

STORY: Circa 1997: While Cherry Grove and The Pines were the centers of gay life on Fire Island, another small enclave of gay culture...

Jun 7, 20181 min read

Fire Island Virgin

STORY: 1979/1980—My first visit to Fire Island was over Halloween weekend in 1979, long after the resort’s summer season had ended. The...

May 9, 20184 min read

Summer in the Pines 1981

STORY: 1981 – In this photo, I’m with my housemates and my weekend date from Boston (John Shade, with our arms around each other) on the...

Mar 12, 20181 min read

We Are Family

STORY: 1979-2017: My first relationship with another man began when I met Jim at the YMCA in 1979. I was 26, about to leave a job I...

Mar 11, 20184 min read