The "Cast of Characters" (Reference sheet of initials/relationships)

My LDR took place in a network of people. The way in which people interacted could be rather provocatively described as "incestuous" (operating within a discrete "family" of people) or more appropriately described as a relatively closed circle. As I go along transcribing bits of tapes and written correspondence, it is clear that an outsider might become lost in all of the initials and who the players are. I'm typing this up to help anyone who decides to pay attention understand who is who.

This network of pen pals was drawn together based on two factors. The initial factor was that all of us, except T, were fans of the rock group KISS. Once we connected via classified ads in magazines that ran ads to help us locate other fans, we then connected via referrals from one another. T found me through both J and A.

S (female): 

Me, the writer of this blog. A graduate of a local state college with a degree in psychology who once worked at a halfway house for people who were either hospitalized or institutionalized for serious mental problems. I also lived abroad for 23 years and was a teacher for quite some type as well as have worked as a writer both of textbooks and magazine articles. I was born in Pennsylvania and grew up in poverty in a small rural town.

T (male):

The object of my long-distance affection and relationship. A graduate of a local state college with a degree in business and a minor in finance. He grew up in a middle class family in a small city close to Stanford University (California).

J (female):

T's first girlfriend who was a pen pal of mine for quite a few years before T was given my address and started to write to me. J worked a series of dead-end jobs and went to beautician's school for awhile. She and T were together for nine months in a long distance relationship. He ended their relationship. J lived in a blue collar suburb of Pennsylvania and met T via a pen pal of hers who was an in-person friend of T's.

A (female):

T's second girlfriend who was also a pen pal of mine, though for fewer years than J. A got a degree in journalism from a private college in Connecticut (where she has always lived). A was in a relationship with T for nine months. She ended that relationship.

D.H. (female):

A mutual pen pal of both J and S. She was younger by about five years than most of the members of our network of pen pals. She lived in Georgia and worked at a county courthouse.

H (female):

A mutual pen pal of J, A, and S. She lived in Alabama and visited S as well as J in person once.