I ran into a friend I haven’t seen in a while at a restaurant the other night. Later we wound up at her place for a glass of wine get together. She has that aura about her. The gay mens are magnetically pulled in her direction. Some women collect shoes, she collects gays. Her grandfather is from a little town in Arkansas that was very close to where my father grew up. So we immediately acknowledged the fact that we're cousins. In the hallway of her home is a large collection of framed black and white photographs showcasing the vaudeville act, “Lum & Abner”, (remember them?) of which her grandfather was, “Lum”. Photos with Clark Gable at Hollywood clubs, things like that.
Her home is filled with wonderful art kitsch and mid-century lamps and furniture collected back when nobody wanted it. The most striking piece in her home is her portrait. “I was working at this factory in New York and a tiny French woman was next to me and we started talking. Afterwards I followed her home to an apartment that was under the subway. Later she showed up with this portrait on top of a taxi. I’ve gotten her so much work since then.”
