fairy island

i felt like

little red riding hood

on an easter egg hunt

with red bull soda

bottles of beer

and live deer

along my path

instead of bunnies

colored eggs

and scary wolves

there was even

haagen daus double

chocolate ice cream

set along the boardwalk

for anyone staying

in this gay ghost town

as summer residents

emptied their fridges

and left goodies

for us stragglers

after the last hurrah

of the halloween hoedown

gay men do

know how to party

i have this 'flashback'

to a gay club in canada

decades earlier

the fervor is still the same

with a huge disco ball orbiting

overhead leaving little

mirror square reflections

on the village people

a pair of vikings

the wicked witch and

her king accomplice

at the sip n 'twirl

on the infamous

fire island this

last weekend

there was also

a frankenstein and his

6 foot something

transgendered bride

whose hair was

marg simpson tall

but with a silver

lightening bolt thru it

and he had to arch

and swoon backward

to get his big hair doo

thru the door and

into the room

the bartender was

a pregnant nun

who wud scream

'photo opp!'

and strike a pose

every time there was

a flash from a camera

there was also a priest

a leather clad cop and

a couple of hard core

s+m partners

with an assortment of

whips chains and collars

and some bare chested devils

and one straight girl angel

and boys dressed scantily

some with colorful wigs

others nearly naked

it was definitely a nite

of festivities

today is a new day

as i walk along

the boardwalk that seems

almost rolled up

postings are all taken down

after this final weekend

there is no money in my pocket

cuz there is nothing to buy

the liquor the hardware

and the grocery store

have all closed up

putting inventory in boxes

as the last of us

still shopped for provisions

almost double in price

here on what i have dubbed

'fairy island'

i walk down

the wooden path

i feel welcome here

all the gay men are friendly

yet i feel like an oddity

this is their sanctuary

yet i am not ostracized

like they have been

for centuries

yet to the seasonal worker

i am this female commodity

as they try to suss out

if i am on the swim team

or not

i walk past

jungle like bamboo reeds

and giant grass that

looks like mutant wheat

but much taller

like a triffid

but furry on top

reaching up to the sky

and bending in the wind

like it is feather

dusting the air

and there are

weeping willows

with branches swaying

like horse tails

and huge holly trees

and naturally

the pines

the sassafrass

crepe myrtle crooked maple

and sour cherry trees

are finally turning gold and crimson

with the fall season upon us

despite men in bikinis

the weekend prior

i stop at turtle pond

and try to spot one

on the lime green algae surface

i havent seen them for days

and i wonder

where do the turtles go

when it gets cold

i head to cherry grove

and walk thru the woods

following the pink paint

on the trees

its appropriately dubbed

'the meat rack'

where gay boys

do the naughty

in the bushes

but you can detour

by the ocean

if you dont fancy

an encounter

but my gender

makes me feel secure

how rare is that

the grove feels more quaint

with a cottagy feel and

apparently more lesbians

many homes have names

like

and

'xanadu' and 'gretel'

but no hansel

and there is even

the home

of 'tweedle dum'

but what of

tweedle dee

i think

and odd lawn ornaments

like mermaids and doll heads

and curious signs

like 'bottoms up'

and

'wrong address

nobody here

by that name'

okay then

flags fly high

lots of proud american

a canadian british

a happy face and

the proudest of all

the rainbow

waving in the wind like

the queen mother

i zig zag

thru all of cherry grove

run into a few year rounders

and a couple vagrants like me

with some strange agenda

but mostly the trades

fixing changing replenishing

then i run into a cop on a bike

and we chit chat like

old acquaintances

probly both lonely

in our own way

and both knowing

that neither one

of us is gay

and we are

a minority here

yet that is ok

i find a

different route back

thru the meat rack

and head to the pines

which is etched into the trees

like bread crumbs home

i never get tired of

the deer and the fawn

just like i always enjoyed

the otters and seals

on my beach on

the sunshine coast

which seems

so long ago

i pet them

and take pictures

of  these beautiful creatures

that perpetually remind me

of my mom who

passed away this summer

and i talk to them

and sometimes feed them

apples or carrots

i am told the males

are neutered but

the females go on a

little rendezvous when the

tide is low enough

to escape the island

for a liason

praps i should follow suit

back in the beautiful pines

which seems more gentrified

with old beach homes

amongst more lavish

and less cottage

i find evidence of

the halloween hedonism

'amsterdam poppers'

in a bottle along the pathway

but oddly 'made in canada'

which is also reminiscent

of the 'flashback' days

that stuff is lethal

'if swallowed

induce in vomitting'

wow yum

here sunsets are spectacular

and i vowed to

see them every nite

they are too good

to be missed

not only is it panoramic

but you can easily walk

from one side of the island

to the other

and it is a whole new

postcard view

i always say

gay men pick the best

spots on the planet

this started out a retreat

a place of refuge

a place to be themselves

without being judged

or condemned

and they turned it into

their own paradise

and they share

and maintain the magic

with kindness acceptance

hospitality and a

sense of unity

as well as playfulness

i am honored to be here

and am blessed by

the magic of this

enchanted island

as i find inspiration

and a place of refuge

for me too

kat kosiancic october 31, 2007