tabitha and chuck




This entry concerns the people who inspired the characters Tabitha and Chuck in The Diary of a Teenage Girl: an Account in Words and Pictures.

The picture above shows T— and Ch— (not actual names) in the early 80s, several years after the (of course, fictional) events described in the book took place. Here, Tabitha is healthy and 40 pounds heavier, just released from a long-term rehab program for intravenous drug users. And Chuck looks happy and handsome and is nearly a foot taller than back in the day.

I didn't see Chuck ever again, at least I haven't. I did see Tabitha many years after this, panhandling on Market Street.

As time passes, things change again... I found this nearly-current picture of Tabitha a couple years ago, published in an informational pamphlet about a hotel transformed into permanent residences for (formerly) homeless clients, many of them elderly or disabled.



I feel like calling her, but I have nothing to say, nothing that words could express.

Posted: Monday - October 09, 2006 at 06:07 PM          

©