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After my discussion with Sandi, I hesitated bringing up gay issues with anyone else. As Jasmine and I started going out to more gay functions, I began noticing certain faces I saw at work at fundraisers or parties. If I came out to more than just the people at the cookout, I wouldn’t be totally out in the cold. Without much ado, the picture of Jasmine and I taken during a trip to Asheville during the long King Holiday weekend went up on my desk. The photos gathered a few raised eyebrows and, as you can guess, there were no more invitations for lunch dates from Sandi.
Putting my relationship with Jasmine on public display at work was just evidence she and I was becoming a serious item. Within the first two months of our relationship, I had a key to her place, my own section of the closet, and she enabled my shower gel addiction by keeping all my favorite scents.