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Andrew was a self-described baby drag queen when he was little, putting on makeup and heels and performing for his parents. So when he told his mom at age 10 he was gay, her reaction was, “I know.  Do you still wanna go to the mall?”

But just because Andrew was out didn’t mean adolescence was a walk in the park. A self-described awkward kid, he struggled with ADHD and anxiety. At age 8 he was sexually abused at a theater camp and, in his teens, started acting out by abusing substances. His parents admitted him into a “troubled teen” facility in Utah which was further traumatizing.

Originally recorded in 2019, this episode also features a “follow-up” interview recorded just one month ago that finds Andrew in a much more secure place now. Currently, he’s proud to work at Nacy Warner Associates, a social justice consulting and advocacy non-profit in Albany, New York. 

Andrew is also a gifted musician. This episode features one of his songs, The Man I Am. You can learn more about his music at www.iamsynes.com.

Learn more about the recent Monkeypox outbreak via the CDC website.

Thanks to our post-production sponsor, the new SPACES app, powered by Hornet! Learn more about it HERE. 

This episode was edited by Bayley Boecker and mixed by Ryan Weadon. Rebecca M. Davis is the season 4 voice of Fruitbowl. Dave Quantic is the creator and host of Fruitbowl.

Submit your own story for inclusion in a future episode! Describe a sexy hook up or something you’ve learned about sex via SPACES, email or record a story via your phone’s voice memo app and email it to dave@fruitbowlpodcast.com. 

Fruitbowl is produced independently without corporate media infrastructure or full time staff. Every interview is recorded in-person, on location in each interviewee’s home and production expenses including travel, accommodations, equipment rental are paid for out of pocket by Dave Quantic, FRUITBOWL’s creator. 

The only consistent financial support (currently $291/mo.) comes from Fruitbowl’s Patreon community. Thanks to our new patrons, Robbie H. and Rob T. A minimum $5 monthly donation allows patrons early access to episodes, behind the scenes updates and Salad Tosser tier patrons ($10/mo.) receive access to exclusive video content that is not available to the general public. Learn more about how to become a patron at: https://www.patreon.com/fruitbowlpodcast

Larger donations and underwriting/advertising fees are 100% tax deductible through a partnership with Northwest Film Forum’s fiscal sponsorship program.  FRUITBOWL RECEIVES NO DIRECT FUNDING FROM NWFF, only the use of their non-profit status to receive tax deductible donations. For more information check out: https://www.fruitbowlpodcast.com/donate

Tell your friends about Fruitbowl, rate us on your podcast platform or write a review on Apple Podcast. Every little bit helps. And, of course you can also follow us, for now, on twitter at Fruitbowlpod and Instagram and Tik Tok at fruitbowlpodcast.

Find out more about Rebecca M. Davis at https://www.instagram.com/stayuplateshow/

Fruitbowl’s fruit artwork was created by Patrick Stephenson of Bearpad! https://bearpad.storenvy.com/