Writes Shimizu: "I lived off Lombard Street in a private terrace apartment overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge for free. I had free rent because I was the caretaker for the owner of he building, who lived upstairs. She was about 80 years old. It was a very ideal situation, except for the fact that my neighbor was a handsome French man who had loud sex most nights. Our rooms were separated by a thin door, like the kind of door used for a pantry or broom closet. Unable to sustain a long-distance relationship, I took a job as a telefundraiser for the San Francisco Philharmonic Baroque Orchestra to get away from the apartment and possibly met someone outside of my social circle. The office was only a few blocks away, so I would often take long walks round Polk Street."

"Every night, I returned to the beautiful apartment alone. The apartment, unfortunately, had a terrible mosquito problem. They lived in the planter boxes outside. I realized much too late that they were getting in through a large gap under my front boor. I realized this after several nights."