OpEd: That was so much fun!

It was the summer of 1999, and the YMLA Indians had just clinched the second spot representing Los Angeles in the Gay World Series to be held in Kansas City, Missouri. The WeHo-based team would join the Valley-based Stray Cats for the two spots representing Los Angeles.

Shawn Bourget, may he rest in peace, had assembled an incredible squad. The freshman YMLA Indians team played with heart all season, splitting their two games in the regular season and handing the defending World Champs, the Stray Cats, their only loss.

Teams from across the country circled the field. In the end, it came down to two: the LA-based Stray Cats and the gritty YMLA Indians, who came from behind to win every round of the elimination tournament. The Gay World Series would put the WeHo-based YMLA Indians against the defending champs, the LA-based Stray Cats. The Indians took the lead, then the Stray Cats took it back. The game went back and forth until the bottom of the seventh, with the Indians leading 5-4. Three outs stood between the Indians and the championship, but the Stray Cats would not yield. Two runs in the bottom of the seventh sealed the victory for the Stray Cats, crowning them champs again.

It was the greatest time ever. For an adrenaline junkie like me, we didn’t lose — it was so much fun.

My campaign for City Council began just a few days after my mom passed away in June. The world felt empty after years of caretaking. My dog Beanie was also in her last three weeks of life. I needed to fill the empty space and fight for a city that feels like it’s dying too.

I was able to rent a space for the campaign. A big room with white walls, bright lights, two-foot letters, and big signs helped me process and experience the world again. I’m mostly blind; my one eye that detects light wears a -11.50 lens to see shapes and movement. The space allowed me to expand and digest the world. All my senses woke up. This election was not about my inability or disability, because I could see what I was fighting for and speak from the heart. This election made me whole again. I could feel, see, and touch the Larry who once had two eyes and all his abilities. It was a blessing.

After the election, my part-time helper Brian said, “I wish we could do this over again, even knowing the result.” This superstar kid worked by my side. He helped me design all our mailers, he served as the treasurer, built the website, and mastered the PDI (political data). We had such a great time. We did it on our own, and thank you to Gian and Victoria and Yogi our volunteers, and Brandon who created the greatest campaign video ever…and all those who helped along the way. It was so much fun standing up for issues, the truth, and the city we love.  There was love  all around us.

The campaign season had started on a negative note. Long before I was a candidate, a phone call from a guest at a George Nickle event at Micky’s set the tone. The guest was disappointed in Councilmember Lauren Meister. He had come to listen, but Meister approached him to say, “Only vote for George,” and to toss out his other vote. The resident thought it was so unethical for a councilmember to do that and called me. I wrote to Lauren, “Hi Lauren, got this message. You might want to let your henchmen do the dirty work. This resident thought it was beneath you.” She clapped back with a nasty-toned, “I’m only voting for one person.” And that was the beginning of a divisive campaign — before I was even in the race.

At National Night Out, a neighbor in the Tri-West area was speaking to George Nickle. The neighbor asked about the other candidates. This gentleman told me Nickle had nothing nice to say about anybody. The person asked, “George, how do you intend to work with anybody if that is how you feel towards the other candidates?” I called George to discuss it after. He didn’t reply. I made many requests for coffee, but he never answered. At the end of the Kol Ami forum, I went over to him to shake his hand while he was talking to a constituent. I held his hand and said, “George, can we have coffee?” and then added, “You can’t say no in front of the resident.” He said yes. I texted that night at 6 p.m., but he didn’t reply. I texted again the next morning, and still no reply. Not a word. Nickle was the crybaby of the election.

There were crazy times. Dillon Hosier, President of ICAN—Israeli Civic Action Network, which is really just a desk on Sweetzer Avenue—got the fool-of-the-season award. He was removed from the WEHO PAC, and then his Jewish forum was canceled. He was so angry, he filed FPPC violations against us for doing a poll, for writing a story about his only inviting five of ten candidates, and more.  Hosier, then emailed Brandon to ask for his help to undermine my campaign.   Dillon has a ‘napoleon complex’ in guy terms.  There were lots of jabs and punches, and they wanted my blood.  But, I had the time of my life, every single day, it was so much fun!

And then there was the underbelly of the campaign. Stephanie Harker called to get a buy-in: if I’m elected, would I vote to overthrow Vice Mayor Chelsea Byers’ line of succession to the mayorship?  Harker was not making that call without Meister’s and Nickle’s approval. The attempt to overthrow the West Hollywood government line of succession—just like Trump—happened right here in West Hollywood! It included a sitting council member.

The Chamber of Commerce took six weeks to pluck UNITE HERE’s 2022 candidate after Duran had to acknowledge sleeping with two of the candidates.   The day after the endorsements, a bunch of business leaders came to my office to share, “The Chamber no longer reflects our values.” Me, little old me, beat both the Chamber of Commerce candidates, with Heilman, Meister, Duran endorsements on my own!  “Imagine if the Chamber of Commerce had actually supported a small business owner,” said one elected official.

But for me, maybe the most fun was letting my imagination run away with me. Feeling the love from more than 4,000 voters. I dreamed of being the steward in 2026 over the term limits transition—when Meister and Heilman term out. I founded the term limits initiative. My goal was to finish the job and oversee a healthy rotation in our local government free from special interests. That dream is dead.

I imagined working to ensure an idea that I founded ten years ago, AB1620—the right for a senior or disabled resident to move to a first-floor unit with reasonable accommodation. Newsome signed that bill into law last year, but the work to implement the plan and finish the job is still in my ballywick of thought.

I wanted to create this open and accessible environment to invite business from every trade show in the world to set up shop, explore the globe to bring those LGBTQ businesses back home to WeHo. I wanted to make sure that my employees and all the workers in WeHo don’t have to worry about their safety. I wanted to break the lock, the clique, and let every council member speak their hearts and minds—not their ‘backers.’

And one thought brought me to tears over and over. There I was at the swearing-in. And before raising my hand, I stopped the proceeding and called up Brandon. I could feel the wounds of our struggles: “Hey bud, here’s where we part ways.” The purpose of my campaign was to be on my own, away from this publication, and turn the page in my life.

The next chapter awaits—but these were the best of times. Thank you, West Hollywood. Thank you for making this senior, partially sighted guy feel whole and alive. It was so much fun. Thank you all.