It's really quite simple - I didn't 'do' relationships - was always too terrified of the hurt, having seen my parents split up when I was 15 and recently seen my Mum's 2nd marriage break up - both with loads of hurt.

I got involved in a relationship in the autumn of 1996 - my first 'proper' relationship - it just happened - it was lovely. Quite a change from living alone for the last 17 years! Sadly, he left me for someone else in November 1996 :(

I was hurt badly by it - just as I feared for all those years! At the time I swore that I would never get involved with anyone that deeply again and would carry on as I had done before.

This didn't last long! On New Year's Day 1997 I met Mark, after many hours of chat on IRC. We hit it off straight away and have been an item since February 1997. Since then we have hardly spent a night apart. We now live together and Mark has a job locally giving him much less stress compared to his old job - much better for his Diabetes. He has since lost this job because of his Diabetes - unfair I know - but that seems to be how it goes :(

In September 1998 Mark started part-time work in the local paper shop as their replacement Saturday girl. This has now progressed to being pretty much a relief manger at two shops for now, with more to come. He still works part-time. This, combined with the relatively stress-free job, is much better for his Diabetes and he is enjoying the work.

From June 1999 he was promoted to branch manager and now has his own branch of a newsagent chain. Despite having to get up at 0400 on some days, not every day fortunately, he is very happy. The variety in hours and the fact that this is now a full-time job haven't changed his enjoyment of the work.

We have now launched our own on-line safe-sex shop called Eros Shop and our own Internet business called having been badly let down by a business partner in the early part of 1998. Our leased line has finally been installed and we went live in July 1999.

In 2000 he left the newsagent job and now works full-time as sys-admin for our Internet business.

Here's a picture of us together taken in the summer of 1997

We went to see my Mum over Easter weekend in 1997 at her request/invite, even though I had only come out to her a few weeks before that! She was fabby, is very happy about us and is begging us to go back again soon.

We both tested HIV negative in mid-March and have been monogamous since the end of January 1997. In the last week of June 1997 we both tested HIV negative again - giving the required three month clear period - though the latest tests at our local GU clinic claim to be able to detect the HIV virus four weeks after infection.

We're off to see my Mum again in mid-September 1997 for her 63rd birthday. Her sister, who lives in Canada will be there too.

Well, we're just back from a fabby weekend with my Mum and her sister. I must say that they behaved like a pair of naughty schoolgirls! Late on Saturday night when we'd all had far too much to drink we heard a loud thud. I rushed off to investigate and found that my aunt had fallen out of bed and that they were both having fits of hysterics!

Our next trip to my Mum's was at Christmas 1997 and, needless to say, it was a scream again!

The family visits have continued regularly. We also visit Mark's parents frequently and I now seem to have been taken on board as family.