I had the great pleasure of being in the company of both Candida and Lauren; one as a friend, the other as a fixation of a long desire.
Candida moved from Manhattan out to the small town on Long Island I lived in. I learned of this through sheer serendipity, but upon my reaching out to her via email, she was incredibly warm and gracious. We went on little friend dates several times. I even cooked her dinner once at my house. Our relationship became rather close and we not only confided in each other about our mutual interest (sex) but also jelled on various other interests. After moving to Seattle, we remained pen pals. It tears my heart out that the fates felled her. She was incredibly vivacious and, to repeat, warm.
Lauren performed at Show World in New York in the early 90s, by which time I was already smitten. It was a MAJOR event in my life up until that time to conceivably be graced by her presence. And graced I was as she and I had private time in one of those peep show booths. She had a very winning worldliness to her -- the kind of gal you'd love to have all to yourself for romance and deep friendship. Though it pains me terribly to hear of her loss, I am glad we are joined by someone who can echo the impressions I had of her during my fleeting visit.
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