Quitting Smoking
I'm Coming Out
After the battles quieted, there was still the smoke
by John Francis Leonard
I’ve fought many a personal battle in the past fourteen or...
Aging with HIV: Carrying the Banner
Carrying the Banner
Aging with HIV is no joke, but the past anchors my future
by John Francis Leonard
Forty-eight. I’m turning forty-eight-years-old and it gives me...
Protecting My Sexual Health & My Heart’s Desires
Acceptable Risk
Turning the tables to protect my sexual health and my heart's desires
by John Francis Leonard
The last thing I wanted to do this month...
Contracting HIV: My Story
I'll Always Have Paris
Coming to terms with one's own seroconversion
by John Francis Leonard
I’d been so careful for so long. Safe sex was being marketed...
Undetectable=Untransmittable: Now What?
Well, it’s finally here. I, and many of us, have been waiting for it with bated breath. Another study, this one much more conclusive,...
Fighting HIV Isolation (One Belly Rub at a Time)
In From the Cold
How a stray cat changed the game
by John Francis Leonard
I love animals. In particular, I love dogs. Cats, however, not so...
Reaching Out When You’re Newly Diagnosed
A Friend in Need
Reaching out when you're newly diagnosed
by John Francis Leonard
As I’ve discussed before, I’ve left a full-time and stressful career behind me...
Dating Apps, Disclosure & HIV
Oops, I Forgot One Little Thing
My New Normal
by John Francis Leonard
So, I’ve taken that leap and faced the inevitable. In this modern age, an...
Hooked
When I packed my belongings and escaped Los Angeles for my hometown, I needed a break. A break from an unhealthy and dysfunctional life....
If You Stand for Nothing
One of the luxuries of the full-time career I left behind some years ago was dental coverage. Luckily, until recently anyway, I’d never even...