Queer in Suburbia

I have been thinking about writing my autobiography for some time, but since my work is "feast or famine" I may have the time to actually make this a reality. I had thought about the title "Barbie in Suburbia," but I know Mattel will give me trouble with that. Dolls were a part of my life as long as I can remember. My earliest memory of a doll was the train conductor that was dressed in pin stripe denim bib overalls and matching cap on the dresser in my first bedroom. Not sure why parents in the 50's would have bought dolls for their son: gender roles were very well defined in that era. When I got older, and was trying to fit into a straight world, I justified my interest in dolls being my desire for playmates, since I was alone most of the time in a world with older adults. My half brother didn't come on the scene until I was 8 years old.

Many of the spheres I traveled in were matriarchal. My maternal grandmother lived with us in our big farm house. My aunt and her 3 kids were there often, and lived in an apartment over our garage/stable the entire year that I was in kindergarten. Men were gone most of the time earning the salaries and providing for the families. My Summers were even more matriarchal, but that is a story for another time.