My friend Bob just turned eighty. He’s lived in Amsterdam for fifty-four years and I’ve known him for just under eight. Our conversations jump from his first boyfriend to today’s Albert Heijn bonus box, from clandestine sex on Christopher St. in the sixties to some boy blowing up his Grindr as we speak. I’ve spent countless hours combing through Bob’s heaving bookshelves and their contents; the books, letters, and photos blending his personal history with that of the city, his stories bouncing between past love and future opportunity, his character remaining youthful as his body continues to age.
credits
Thank you to Bob Newmark for the time we’ve spent together.