Howdy, Nick

Long ago, in a galaxy far, far away, I was hot enough to actually remove my shirt on stage.

Just kidding. Actually, long ago, in a time far, far away, I did a production of Martin Sherman's Bent that pretty much changed my life. And required me to remove my shirt on stage. It awakened me, politically, to LGBT issues, and marked a turning point in my acting career from "little funny guy next door" roles to actual dramatic roles.

During that production, I worked with some really great people, some of whom I'd never, ever met before. One of those people was Nick.

I only mention this because I'm going to see Nick for the first time since, I think, 1995 or '96, when I visited him in California, where he moved not long after we did Bent. Nick decided that acting wasn't for him and moved onto other things. I've only had sporadic contact with him in the ten years since, though I've always wanted to stay in closer touch. He's such a nice guy -- and smart too -- that he's generally the kind of person I like to surround myself with.

Nick's recently grown weary of the Bay Area, so he's decided to check out New York, and he's crashing at my place. The exciting part is it's nice to have a friend in town who's going to force me to do things that I wouldn't do on my own, like go out to bars and generally indulge myself in the scene. I'm feeling adventurous.

If you don't hear from me, it's because I've turned into a bar slut.

Stop laughing, you.