About Lou...

When I Was Just A Kid...

I was born in the San Francisco Bay Area and was adopted within 3 days. My "new" parents noticed there was something wrong with my vision almost immediately, but the eye doctors said they could not do anything until I was old enough to recognize the alphabet. So, after an intense period of learning with flash cards, I had my first eye exam -- and first pair of glasses -- when I was just 18 months old. This was great for me! I never wanted to take them off, even when going to bed... because I could finally see my dreams!

When I was 3, my dad decided that we needed to buy a brand new home. We packed up everything and moved to the Seal Beach/Long Beach area in Southern California where we rented a home until we could find that "special" place. But, as the only child of two only children living in a new town with no friends or other children, my parents thought I needed a companion which came in the form of a white German Shepherd puppy! This turned out to be the constant in my childhood and We had 13 wonderful years growing up together.

It took a little more than a year, but our dream home was found and built in the nearby city of Los Alamitos / Rossmoor. We joined St. Hedwig's Catholic Church and School.

All seemed well to me until the second grade, when my father moved out to be with his other 2 wives (as we found out later). This put my mother into a tail-spin and she wound up hooked on Valium and unable to take care of me or her senile mother who was living with us. So, at a very young age, I found myself responsible for taking care of 2 adult-"children" -- feeding them, bathing them, etc. -- with no help from neighbors or the church... All sorta closed their eyes and ignored the elephant in front of them.

My Wonder Years

It might sound like I had a horrible childhood, but it really wasn't so bad. I had a great extended family consisting of all my friends (kids and adults) at Brunswick Rossmoor Bowl: Patti, Margie, Chris, Lehla, Carol, Mary Ann, Tom, Don(Division Manager), Chuck, Andy, Ed, Don (Head Mechanic), Supat, Mike, Robin and Robbie (twins), Rob, Carla, to name just a few.

My love for math and problem solving can be directly tied to a challenge Ed, my bowling coach and a mechanic at the bowl, gave me when I was just 12 years old:
How can you get 8 strikes in a single game of bowling, knocking down at least 1 pin in every fframe, and still get a score less than 100?
( Click here for the Answer.)

I became a mechanic, working on the Brunswick A2 pinsetters and Gold Crown Automatic Scorers. Actually, this isn't exactly true... I could not see well enough to be a mechanic... I was a "pinchaser." Give me enough duct tape, close hangers and rubber bands and I could fix anything! Put a tool in my hand and it became a lethal weapon as it eventually became airborne out of frustration.

I also had several "escape routes" to get away when I felt things got tough for me... I loved Disneyland and was able to go just about anytime I wanted. I especially remember the original Flying Saucers, Astro-Jets and Matterhorn (which I rode 21 times in a row one day!). To this day, I still know Disneyland Park Like the back of my hand...

I also remember going to the Pike and Rainbow Pierand Pacific Ocean Park (POP), both "old-style" amusement parks on the beach. I also loved listening to the surf at Seal Beach... I rarely went into the water and almost always went by myself.

How did I get around to all these Places? For the most pArt, I used public transit, which meant riding the RTD (Rapid Transit District) buses (which were anything but rapid). ALthough this was very inefficient and time-consuming, it got me where I wanted to go and helped to occupy (waste) time.

While riding the buses, I often heard stories about the " Red Cars " of Southern California, how they went every where -- from Los Angeles to Seal Beach to Santa Ana -- in the first half of the 20th century... Then, in the 1950's, Goodyear convinced planners to give up the tracks in favor of buses and cars. It would be a long time before the area thought true "public transit" again.

Even before SOuthern California began dismantling their public transit in the 50's, the San Francisco Bay Area began planning (1940's) and eventually agreed to tax themselves (1950's) to build a regional transportation system. I can still remember visiting San Francisco in the late 60's when it's streets were completely torn up during the construction of BART. I knew then that I would one day return and make San Francisco my home.

I really did not date as a teenager. I spent most of my time working at the Bowling center in many positions, eventually as an Assistant Manager. I admired many "adults" but I especially remember John Church. He was just a few years older than me, but he was already in management... And, he was "good with the ladies." I remember going to breakfast with him and some buddies late one night after work talking about there not being a lightning bolt when I turned 18 and wondered if I would feel it when I turned 21. "It will hit one day... Or, maybe it already did!" It is funny... You don't know when it hits. It is something that you notice when looking back on your life... Aha! That was it!" But, you will not notice it when it actually hits..."

Waiting for Lightning...

In 1977, I got a job as Assistant Manager at Pomona Bowl. Here, I met a nice girl and we decided to get married. It felt like it was going to be the right thing for me to do. She had a 3 year old son who was very afraid of lightning. I remember we had a rare electrical storm and I was down on the floor playing with him trying to distract him from the loud claps of thunder. All the while I was thinking, "Is this the lightning that is going to strike and make all this right?" Shortly thereafter, she asked for a divorce... one day before our first anniversary.

I took the opportunity to move back to the San Francisco Bay Area. Well, that is not exactly true... I ran back to the Bay Area. I left everything and was there in 3 days after the "big announcement."

I did take the opportunity to examine my life in an attempt to figure out why I was so unhappy. I realized that the signs had been there all my life... I was attracted to men. But, what about the church, God... Hell! What about hell? I came to the following conclusion:

Twelve years of Catholic school taught me there is a Supreme Power of some kind, but I have come to believe that It certainly is not the vengeful God as portrayed in the bible and hammered into me by the nuns. In my belief system, the Power (i.e., goddess, god, spirit, cosmic-energy, ???)that started it All (i.e., the universe with a Big Bang) the all-powerful creator of everything, would not give a hoot if I, a mere amoeba on a tiny gnat of a world of a puny solar system of a mediocre galaxy, masturbated or had sex with another amoeba of the same sex. I do believe the Power of the Universe does care how we take care of the gifts that are given to us. I believe we should protect what the universe has given us, to use it wisely... After all, it has taken the Universe a long time to show us these wonders. And, the best way to take care of what the Universe has provided is to treat it as we like to be treated... With love and care, and maybe a little slapping around from time to time.

Bang! Boom! Crack! There it was... The lightning bolt finally struck!

About 18 months after moving back to the Bay Area, I settled down with Leon... We spent 10 wonderful years together traveling around the world. I went back to school ( Foothill College and San Jose State University) and learned a lot about computers and programming, mostly on IBM PCs.

In the mid-1980's, I learned that I had HIV/AIDS and I was told that I probably had no more than 3 years to live. Three years later, with time obviously running out very quickly, I decided I should be on my own and be as independent as possible for as long as I could. I moved to San Francisco and found a job as an Office Manager at a Law Book Store. Larry, the owner, introduced me to a Macintosh computer... I became very proficient on it almost instantly and helped set up a network of Macs in the office. I have not used a PC since...

Although I did not get sick, the man I had rented a room from in San Francisco, Dan, did become sick from his HIV. We became very close and had 5 very happy years together before he died. Thanks to my good friend, Dale, I had Dan's ashes sent into space on Celestis 1, the Founders Flight. (Other passengers included Timothy Leary and Gene Roddenberry.) Click here for the complete passenger manifest, including Dan's bio.

Around the time that Dan started getting really sick, I had a major progression in my sight loss. It really wasn't unexpected -- after all, I had been wearing glasses since I was 18 months old and had been told as a teenager that I would probably be blind by the time I was 30. So, by making it to 40, I thought I had beaten it and was home free!! It really was not a surprise that it happened, it was just a surprise when it happened.

Why did I lose my sight? "Blame" (not really) the biological grandparents that I never knew (because I was adopted)... I had been diagnosed with retinitis pigmntosa which apparently skips every other generation.

I learned how to deal with my blindness after Dan's death. The Lighthouse for the Blind became my new extended family as I learned how to regain my independence, self confidence and computer skills. Although I did have to teach them that not all blind people used PCs... I convinced their technology center to purchase a Mac and I taught them how to use CloseView, inLARGE (screen magnification programs for the Mac) and outSPOKEN (a screen reader for the Mac). How did I learn them? I taught myself using audio tapes which were very clumsy and difficult to follow... but I was determined!

I apparently did a very good job, because I got a call from Berkeley Access, the company that wrote the above programs, and they asked me to come work with them to do technical support and training. Berkeley Access was purchased by ALVA B.V. of Holland a few months after I started, and they eventuallypromoted me to Macintosh Product Manager. For 7 years, I enjoyed working closely with the programers and marketing people at several companies including Apple, Adobe and WGBH in Boston. (I even got the opportunity to sit down and work side by side with Ray Charles!) But I especially loved talking to people about coping with sight loss and maintaining independence. And, one of my goals (that I hope I accomplished) was rewriting the manuals and audio tapes so that the products were easier to learn.

Today...

I have been a member of the Golden Gate Guards, a leather-Levi social club in San Francisco, since 1989. We do so much work for the comminity, and we have fun, too. I have held the office of President (2 years), Vice President (2 years), Recording Secretary (countless years), Treasurer (I think 3 years) and, since 2000, I have been the web master. I am currently an Emeritus member, meaning I am "retired." Actually, I consider this an "extended Leave of Absence" as I plan on returning to Active membership after taking some time off to enjoy the man in my life, Victor.

I met Victor in late 2003. From that first meeting, it felt like I had known Victor all my life. (Actually, I felt -- and still do -- like we have been together for multiple lifetimes.)

Victor has a strong religious background and is pursuing a Masters of Divinity degree at a local seminary. Surprisingly, our beliefs are very similar, although he is more "brick and mortar" based while I am more "cosmic."

AFter a year long courtship, we tied the knot in January 2006. It was a fantastic service with more than 175 people from all over the country attending. Our deepest thanks to all those who help make it the most wonderful day! ANd, So much work by so many terrific people! ANd, of course, there were all those gifts, too... A DVD of the service is in the works and will be sent to everyone.

Actually, a very small portion of Dan's ashes were sent into space... The rest of him remained with me and his good friend (sister) Carol. Dan told me he wanted his ashes mixed with his best friend, his/our dog Diddley, when the time came. I felt the time was right after the wedding. So, Victor and I, Carol and her husband, Pete, brought the ashes of both Dan and Diddley to Lands End in San Francisco. We just walked and talked and wound up in the most bveautiful spot with the Pacific Ocean to the left, the Golden Gate Bridge on the right and all the bushes and beaches behind. ( Click here to see the video I took of their new home.) Thanks, Dan and Diddley, for all the memories!

Public transit is still important to me. I especially love getting around in San Francisco. Many people bitch about MUNI, but no other transit system in the world operates so many different vehicles: buses (diesel and gas and electric), articulated buses (diesel and gas and electric), modern light rail vehicles above and below ground, old and historic street cars from all over the world, and, of course, our world famous cable cars. Most of our transportation in the city is electric. And, San Francisco's electricity comes from its Hetch Hetchy Reservoir. How "green" is that? (Please note that this is a serious, not rhetorical, question!)

BART is still expanding today (San Francisco AIrport extension is now open but the Warm Springs and Oakland AIrport extensions will take another 10 years), but it is still unable to enter the South Bay and North Bay... Maybe some day...

To pick up the slack, various other transportation agencies provide bus, train and ferry services. Translink is trying to simplify the confusion of all the different tickets and passes required to transfer from one system to another. A single smart card can be used (tagged) when boarding, and the fare is automatically deducted, passes purchased and transfers And discounts applied. It will be a few years before it is completely operational, but I am very pleased to have been a Phase 1 participant/tester since 2002.

I still love computers and technology... Especially when it helps me "see!" ALthough I am still very pro-Apple, my feelings towards them is tarnished for reasons I will not go into here... Suffice it to say that I feel they are two-timing, lieing, cheating, S.O.B.'s. However, their products are still better than those of the alternatives.

I refer to my cell phone (Nokia 6682 ) as my "Tricoder" because it is so much more than just a phone! It is a terrific camera and video recorder (yes, I do use these features!), plays music, allows me to edit all of these media. I can send and receive email, text messages, pictures and video and surf the web. And, it is blue tooth so I can share all this with other phones and computers. (either Macs or those others). But, most importantly, with the TALKS software installed, the phone talks to me!!

As you might tell from the "Tricorder" reference above, I am -- and always have been -- a big science fiction fan. As a kid, I loved Lost in SPace, Star Trek and The Time Tunnel. In the 70's and 80's, I became hooked on Battlestar Galactica with Loren Green, Doctor Who, Blake's 7, Red Dwarf and Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. In the late 80's, the new Star Trek franchise began which lasted nearly 20 years and 4 series, and, in my humble opinion, far out shined the original series. In the 90's, besides Star Trek, I really got into Babylon 5 and Farscape. Today, I love the (new) Doctor Who, the (new) Battlestar Galactica, anything Stargate, Eureka and Dresdon Files.

Other television favorites include: The Daily Show and Corbert Report, The View, Mornings on 2, and, now that we have "the Dish," almost anything on BBC America and the Game Show Network.

My new "rush" comes from white water rafting. I have been several times on the South Fork of the American River and, in 2006, Victor and I went on a 5 day expedition on the Yampa River. I have even tried my hand at both sea and river kayaking. (I think I prefer the river because it is more of a rush.)

"But you are blind!" you say... "So what?" I say. In the raft, I become the lead paddler and the others have to follow me. I love to paddle and can really get into it. And, I completely trust the guides at Environmental Travelling Companions (ETC) who believe in taking people who think they cannot do "extreme" sports on an "extreme" adventure. This is an extraordinary organization that deserves your support.

I still love amusement parks -- especially roller coasters! Paramount's Great AMerica is very close and they have some great coasters -- Top Gun and Invertigo. (Unfortunately, my most favorite ride, Stealth, the worlds first flying roller coaster, has been moved to another park.) Six Flags Magic Mountain has to be my most favorite park with many terrific coasters, especially Goliath! Of course, Disneyland Resort (Southern California) and Disney World (Florida) are still enchanted places to visit.

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This page was last updated on July 30, 2008.