Part 6

I remember those days as being, for the most part, oh so quiet, except for the wailing of the two female cats in heat: Shalom and Miss Kitty. "Wrow, Wrow, Wrow" echoed throughout the house, as the winds blew through the open door...wind chimes ringing as an alarm to its arrival. It reminded me daily that serenity is the handmaiden of sorrow; in their case it was the sorrow of not having some cat cock to quench nature's demands.

Ironic because in my own way I was being tormented for similar reasons; though theirs was to last only as long as the season would allow if they were unlucky enough to not receive their just desires; desires that were being matched by the males fighting in the alleys. As if the fighting was a result for their cries of passion fueling the combatants whom all wanted the chance to satisfy the desires of those whom cried for them; the siren wails of females such as our own, spurred them to battle until there desires too were met.

Amazingly, mine was not to be cured so easily; I was to lament my loss, in both physical and spiritual terms; my feelings were to haunt me until I could forget them long enough to fill my life with another spirit that was to occupy my time. I sat, walked, read, and hoped for a intervention because until I could not move past what haunted me, I was to be a drift, rudderless without direction, all alone without direction; hoping for a sign.

Lucky for me my god does listen to my cries; lucky for me my friends do too...

Jorge's favorite band "Rush" was coming to the Shoreline amphitheater; located 35 miles south of San Francisco it was a popular place to see shows. This opportunity to see a concert was something that I really needed; seeing that I already knew of their music--and liked it--I was excited at the opportunity to get out of San Francisco, party with friends and most of all forget the past and the emptiness I had created.

Having Dave along was rare treat too. Dave Immamoto was a strong willed and hard living man from LA. He was a man who could really push my buttons; and because of this and his past relationship with his former love and my friend Anya always put him close to my heart as well...
Anya was a fiery Irish lass from Galway and they were as tempestuous a couple I was to ever meet. I envied the passion they lived; one night they got into it down at Civic Centre and Dave implored me to keep her away from him cuz she was going to slug him and he did not want to have to defend himself.

So "San Francisco", man...so wrong in so many ways but oh so RIGHT!!

I swear I have not had a relationship in 14 years back here in DC anything close to the ones I experienced in SF; people here in my hometown are too damn COWARDLY to live as passionately...to damn political, for PASSION!

Anyway...

Having Dave along was great because like me he was cool with "Rush" but not a convert like Jorge . Neither of us had seen the show; virgin's to the experience we both were in for a musical baptism.
So Sunday 5:30 pm May 31, we gathered out front of the house on 18Th st. and Sanchez, which sat at the foot of the hill that Sanchez st. rose upon. Which sat his VW microbus in a great hiding space he seemingly always found.
"Upward", I thought; it was to be a good climb, an appropriate beginning for this unforgettable night.

The march was steep but manageable for me because over the nearly three years I lived there I had climbed nearly every hill in that damn city. It was a needed climb because I had some nervous vibes that I could not shake throughout the day; usually I got them when I was about to leave the city. Sort of like the ones you may get when knowing you have to leave a comfortable sofa or room to go out for any reason...just the change of place from "known"to "unknown" I guess.
Moreover, the city for gay men (I know it was for me) is always such a secure environment; here I had learned to walk the streets confidently, looking life right in the eyes. Here I had discovered the courage to finally love "me".
I knew this trip would be good because of that feeling of "comfort" that made SF so great; I needed to rediscover life outside my cocoon; I needed to see what awaited me and it was to start tonight.


When we arrived at the VW, Dave and I stood together and briefly discussed the upcoming show; Dave and I arrogantly chuckled about being "two former punk rockers" gong to the suburbs to "rock" with Rush. "Let's go guys" said Jorge who had been busy arranging his belongings inside the bus; "it is going to be too-cool" said Jorge in his accentuated Chilean-German dialect. I meekly returned the smile, trying to feel good about the trip; I jumped in as Dave took the passenger seat in the front.
The trip south, was as mellow as the "Greatful Dead's" "Truckin" which grooved from his stereo as we headed down highway 101. And appropriately, the farther we drove, the memory of the places and people we had left behind faded too...
Happily the only time I engaged the guys in front was on maybe two occasions when they touched upon world affairs; it being an election year and especially after the riots it seemed the conditions of events brought themselves into daily conversation...even on a day such as this.
Well, we arrived comfortably at 6:15-30 or so with the lot filling but not so much so that it would make parking and subsequent tailgating a chore. After paying the fare, Jorge made a left, then a right, drove a bit and then drifted maybe 11 rows down where we could sit alone at the edge of the other cars... in a half filled lot.

We looked at each other knowing we had arrived and began to chat about how fortunate the trip was and also the lot not being overwhelmed with people. Then Jorge started searching inside his bag for some pregame "tailgating", which even Dave partook. His choice was usually for a cold beverage or two but even today he passed the medicinal herb too. "15 minutes to showtime" said Jorge as he checked his watch; then he passed out tickets and "hits" to Dave and myself.

"Great", I thought as I opened the door to the back of the bus, FINALLY getting siked for the show. We all gathered out front and memorized the location of the van, and also watched the movement of people towards the amphitheater. Sensing it's time, we begin to follow, knowing that the time to gather had arrived.

"This is gonna be too-cool" he said with the biggest smile on his face as if he knew what was to happen inside. This time I smiled in earnest adding: 'great, I need it'. The gates moved fast, we enter faster as the instruments in the distance begin to purr and humm...