SISTERS BY HEART

I celebrated my 60th birthday in 1989 by quitting my day job to write full time. I wanted to write about the gay relationship Kay and I shared.

Although I knew writing about my same sex relationship was a risky business, I set aside my concerns about "what will people think?"

I pushed ahead despite my worries and SISTERS BY HEART was so well-received it's now in its second printing! Who knew?

To support my writing habit without a steady income, I knew I had to do something besides write to bring in some money....Social Security was still five years away.

Kay and I decided to open an antique business which we called The Unique Yankee. Although it was far from a gold mine, it provided enough income to cover the cost of my health insurance.
Our favorite selling venues were at weekend outdoor antique shows and flea markets. These events were viable sales opportunities from spring through fall. On Sunday mornings we'd get out of bed at 3 a.m. to be on the road by 4. We'd pack our van the night before and in the morning all we'd have to do was get out of the house and on the road - sometimes our hair was a blizzard of wayward tufts.

We loved selling but were always taken aback by women customers who would spend as much as half an hour handling and falling in love with a certain antique piece. Just at the point we though we'd made a sale she would announce, "I'll have to ask my husband!" Without fail when she returned her husband would take one look at the item she prized so highly and say, "What do you want that for?" and kill the sale. Some women still live in the dark ages.

Same-sex partnerships are just that - partnerships. We are two independent individuals who love one another but neither of us is under the thumb of the other.