An
Autobiography
by
Craig
Braquet
I
sat one evening chatting with my friend Gavin Hurley catching up on old
times. He's about 20 years younger than I am. He majored in computer
sciences in college, so we had a lot in common. As I was sharing pieces
of my life story, he commented on how many times I found myself
involved with the very pivotal events which were defining the era that
we were in. The free love 60's 70's and 80's. The AIDS crisis. The
dawning of the computer age. The "Star Wars" US missile defense system,
and the boom and bust of the dot com era.
I realized Gavin was right. Maybe there was something to be said here.
I hope you find that something too as you read. Please leave me
comments: Friend me on facebook: http://Facebook.com/WoofHound or email
me at: Craig AT CraigsHouse.Org (I'm sure you can figure out my email
from that - done this way so spammers can't vacuum up my email address
to spam me)
Foreword
If
you are offended by frank portrayal of a gay person's life and times,
you will probably be shocked by my writing, but If you've ever wondered
what one persons life might be like, growing up with an angry alcoholic
father, a dysfunctional family, realizing that you're gay, having your
first sexual experiences, finding your first love, and all the things
that make us human, read on.
I started writing late in the year 2000. So many troubling things were
happening in my life at that time that my partner told me that I should
write things down. He was afraid that I would forget about the tough
resolutions I'd made on one day when faced with the emotional issues of
the next. I agreed with him, and as the need to write grew, I found
that writing helped me move on. When I first started, I was sure I was
going to write about recent events, but when I began to put the first
words down, I somehow knew I had to start from the beginning; from my
earliest memories. As the words began to flow I felt such a feeling of
relief. I knew it might take years to get to the things that happened
during 2000, but once I began there was no turning back. The first 14
chapters became reality during 2000 and 2001. Life issues took
precedence for a few years, and it wasn't until 2003 that I started
writing again. This time I was amazed at how much of my life was
bursting to come out. I began looking to other sources to help me in my
writing. I'd never written dialogue before. I had no idea what voice,
or "writing style" was. Along the way I found Writing the Memoir –
from truth to art by Judith Barrington.
CHAPTER 1
WE COME INTO THIS WORLD NAKED AND CRYING, AND IT GOES DOWNHILL FROM
THERE
CHAPTER 2
TRAILER PARK TRASH
CHAPTER 3
NO SANTA, NO EASTER BUNNY, WHATEVER SHALL I PLAY WITH NOW?
CHAPTER 4
THE FAMILY SETTLES IN THE SOUTH
CHAPTER 5
AND I DATED A GIRL
CHAPTER 6
SUMMER FARM WORK, AND THE CHURCH
CHAPTER 7
SUICIDES, SEX SERVICES, AND STARTING COLLEGE
CHAPTER 8
COME OUT, COME OUT, WHEREVER YOU ARE
CHAPTER 9
FINANCIAL AID, AND ALLERGIES AS A DISABILITY
CHAPTER 10
WEAR JEANS IF YOU'RE GAY DAY, AND JEREMY'S GOING AWAY PARTY
CHAPTER 11
VISITING JEREMY AND MAKING A PARTNERSHIP
CHAPTER 12
ASK ME WHY I HATE DRUNK DRIVERS
CHAPTER 13
A TOWN TURNS OUT FOR A FUNERAL
CHAPTER 14
AND LIFE TRIES TO GO ON
CHAPTER 15
MARCIE'S STORY
