Jimmy

Jimmy, age 5
Salem, Oregon (1977)

This is a photo of me (on the right) and my brother, Charlie - proudly displaying the treasures from an Easter egg hunt in the back yard. Our parents had just divorced, which I remember as a painful time, but clearly we were enjoying an annual childhood ritual here.

 "Dressed up in my Easter Sunday best."

As a toddler, I had a mop of curly hair and long eyelashes, and people often would mistake me for a girl. Perhaps that's why, as a youngster, I felt free to embrace interests that were considered "girlie":

Wonder Woman, Ms. Pac-Man, soap operas.

It wasn't until I was 13 years old, desperately trying to blend in with my peers, that I started to feel ashamed of being different. Salem was a close-minded place where few dared to challenge the mainstream. I kept most of my quirks hidden and didn't come out of the closet until the age of 27.

Jimmy's first, famous-person same sex crushes:

Sean Astin ("The Goonies") & Ricky Schroeder ("Silver Spoons")
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Click here - "Born This Way: Real Stories of Growing Up Gay" book
Click here - "My First Gay Crush Blog"

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