From October 1980 to May 1981, a rare pneumonia, pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PCP), was confirmed among 5 homosexual young men in Los Angeles, California. Symptoms also included a long period of fever, cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection and candidal muscosal infection. CDC reported these cases in June 5, 1981, and the Newsweek also made a passing mention about this new disease.

Meanwhile, in New York, at least eight cases were identified with aggressive Kaposi’s Sarcoma (KS). These cases were also young, homosexually active men.

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Being a left-handed person is a life at odd. My memories are full of frustrations and confusions which continue till today. Science may provide some theories about the origin of handedness but won’t help my daily life.

A lefty kid brings shame to the family. In my hometown, and in China generally, struggling chopsticks clumsily with your left hand is a sign of low family education. Parents believe that it is their negligence that kids become lefties. Thus they feel responsible to correct this mistake, often forcibly. One trick my grandma used was to let me use chopsticks to pick up beans in a bowl with my right hand. It was fun at the beginning but quickly went miserable after I couldn’t pick most of beans. Picking up beans is OK, but no-food-with-your-left-hand is definitely a punishment. Left hand being slashed to red during the dinner is a common experience most switchers have suffered.

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