Flying out of Islip airport on Long Island is a magical experience….you get this amazing view of Long Island, (yes, Northport was visible!), and you see how much of an island this really is. And the north shore and south shore don’t seem all that far apart. Fire Island looks particularly inviting flying over it at such a low altitude. The flight to Baltimore is quite quick….less than an hour. I’m flying to Baltimore airport because my friend Tammy, who’s picking me up, lives closer to there than to the DC airports. And the 2 cities are pretty close together. After meeting Tammy at the airport, we’re off for a day of fun exploring Washington DC, where I haven’t been to since I was 9 years old. Driving around the city seems very “West Wing” to me, with the Capitol and Washington Monument looming on the horizon. I saw all of the famous monuments and stuff on my previously mentioned age 9 visit, so this time we’re off to see the “gay neighborhood”, Dupont Circle. What a great time, and what a nice neighborhood. The book-signing, at Lambda Rising Bookstore, goes wonderfully. A great crowd, and they sell out of the book, over 50 copies sold! I’m fortunate that the Washington DC Blade has published an interview with me in this week’s issue, along with info about the book-signing, which I’m sure helped with the turn-out. It’s a blast to meet some long-time readers of the strip in person, like Shane, and Barry, (who is a very talented artist, and gives me a beautiful watercolor painting as a gift!). And my first college newspaper editor Larry is there, too, and it’s such a thrill to see him again. I have to mention Bob, too, who bought a bunch of copies of the book and really made the evening! I find out later that the Kyle’s B&B book is at #3 on Lambda Rising’s bestseller list….and it will be #1 next week! I’m sad I can’t stay longer, but I have to fly out the next morning to be back for my next book-signing at the Long Island Gay & Lesbian Film Festival.
