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RICHARD ALLEN

@dickmeadows

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Cancer Fighter 💪 | Disney Nerd | Artist: illustrator, writer, actor. LA|Seattle|San Francisco|D.C. Former Adviser to U.S. Congress

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3, 679,200 minutes. How do you measure, measure seven years?

February 1st. 9:25pm Pacific Standard Time

Gone, never forgotten.

This was the time we ended up in an Alice in Wonderland themed bar in The Valley during the day on some random Sunday afternoon. Dickie was the best adventure buddy.

Raise your Secret Shots™️ to Richard! Cheers queers.

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Happy Birthday Richard! Always one to ensure you were properly celebrated on your big day, I will always be sure to mark this red letter day by reflecting on how special you were and what a profound impact you had on me. Although the future has taken you away you’ll always be part of me. @dickmeadows
And Happy Belated @_melmax 💙

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There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t feel you with me 💙 I’ll always share my fav photo of us…love you forever Richard 🕊️ happy birthday 🫶🏼🕯️ “My soul is there beside you, let this candle guide you”

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February 1st, 9:25pm Pacific Standard Time, I can’t believe six years went by so fast…

3,153,600 minutes. How do you measure six years?

Miss you buddy. For forever.

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Happy Birthday Saint Dickulas!

If Richard was around today I’d imagine there would be toasts of Woodford Reserve paired with all the pickle snacks that have become all the rage and visits with a mouse and excitable yet thoughtful conversation and reminding ourselves of inside jokes like “I’d like my device back, please” and selfless selfies with cupcakes and silly little adventures and lots of eye rolling and that million dollar grin and bedazzled buttons and princely crowns.

I think about Richard every day, but today I pause in deep reflection about how lucky I am that we found each other and affected each other’s lives in important and significant ways. How much he fiercely loved me and fiercely loved others. I will always pause on his birthday because August 23rd meant the world to him and remains important to those of us that love and miss him so dearly.

Here’s to Richard. My friend, your friend, our friend.

The weather might not have cooperated and this might not be Manhattan Beach, but here I am. 💙

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February 1st 9pm Pacific Standard Time. I can’t believe five years went by so fast…

My roommate, my LA bestie, my sexless boyfriend, my Disney buddy… for forever.

Five years ago tonight @infinityspiral and I sat by Richard’s bedside as he slipped away. I think about that night often, especially on notable days like today, sometimes pondering what that last poignantly funny thing he wasn’t strong enough say just before his body finally released him.

I recall memories all the time. Happy days we spent exploring LA, some wild thing he said to make me laugh, quiet nights by the fire in the Grand Californian, some of the arguments that seem so silly now, secret shots on my tab at that bar out in Reseda, a quick rush of grief from a song that plays and leaves me in a puddle of tears. All reminders of the rich and wild times we shared that deeply affected me and changed my life forever. I cherish those memories of the short time Richard was part of my life, and I am grateful our paths crossed when he forced his way into the life after I was intimidated and wary of the pretty gay sleeping in the living room.

I wrote the night he left that he loved me more than I may ever love myself, and I will forever appreciate the opportunity to know that special feeling. Here’s to you Dickie.

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Happy Birthday Richard!

Marking your birthday was always super important to you, and you may not be here to make sure my camera caught you making a wish and blowing out your Blue Bayou birthday candle or let us get you a cupcake at a delightful little bakery on Highland, but I am celebrating you nonetheless. Cheers to you, my dear, sweet, departed friend. I love you and miss you and think about you each and every day, and and just a little bit more today. Bon anniversaire! Alles Gute zum Geburtstag! ¡Feliz cumpleaños! Buon compleanno! Grattis på födelsedagen! Gefeliciteerd met je verjaardag!💙🥳🥂🎂🎉🎁

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February 1st, 9pm, pacific standard time… I can’t believe four years went by so fast…

My LA bestie, my sexless boyfriend, my Disney buddy… for forever.

I wrote out a memory of Richard recently, a non-specific memory from early in our companionship, a scenario that happened more than twice. Recalling his delivery, his story telling, and his dramatics makes me smile and laugh. Enjoy.

The morning sun was bright in eyes and warm on my skin on this early July morning in Los Angeles. I stumbled out of my building looking for my car. My phone buzzed. Another text from Richard. “I’ll be there in 10.” I text back.
I hop in the car and make my way down Alvarado Blvd toward Echo Park. He is waiting on the corner at the bottom of the super steep hill his house is perched upon. He sighs as he climbs in the passenger seat, and I say nothing, just wait for the story to begin.
“I’ll tell you once I have coffee in my hand.”
I turn the car toward our usual coffee shop. Iced coffee is always the first priority on these early park-bound mornings. As he sucks on the straw, he holds a finger to my inquiring gaze. “Music first.”
As I pull the car out of the parking lot and aim it toward The 5 for the habitual drive south to the happiest place on earth, Richard, wearing the darkest sunglasses he owns that best hide the shames of the night before, prepares to perform a number from Dear Evan Hansen. Just as the music crescendos, the song and dance show slowly sputter out as we discover every LA driver is going the same direction we’re headed.
“Fine,” he says, and he lowers the volume on the stereo. This curt statement is the beginning of another wild Richard story of Weho boys, loud music, too much alcohol, and plenty of shame from the night before he dragged his body into my car for another long, magical day at Disneyland.

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Two years ago tonight @dickmeadows, my best friend, my roommate, my non-romantic companion, my Disney buddy... got off this wild ride we call life. Richard was a humble soul with a colorful and eccentric way of life. He was hilarious and caring, friendly and obtuse... his laugh would echo and his eyes would shine. His road was never easy but he navigated life with a gentle ease, never letting the roughest of times ever darken his path. He was loved and adored by many and I was lucky enough to share the last few years of his life so closely. The greatest honor I’ve ever had was being able to walk beside him to the end of his life. I miss him every day, and am grateful I had someone for a time that believed in me more than I may ever believe in myself. Cheers darling.

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Top Nine. Thoughtful posts about @dickmeadows and lamenting @disneyland being closed. Those are y’all’s favorite posts I’ve shared over this wild year. As we move into the new year, I hope we collectively rediscover empathy, grace, and gratitude. I know that’s what I’ll be working on. Let’s find our way to a better place to exist. And remember, even in 2021 we need to wear a mask, stay at distance, stay home when you can, forgo gathering, and get vaccinated. I love y’all. Let’s go.

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Here is a humble, and hopefully respectful, ofrenda honoring my dearly departed best friend Richard. May he feel welcome in his long journey over the bridge on this Dia De Los Muertos.

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Happy Birthday @dickmeadows. You’d be 39 today, and as birthdays were always important to you, I’ve arranged to celebrate you as best we can in the crazy world of pandemic social distance you never had the joy of experiencing. It might not be drinks at Carthay with bedazzled birthday buttons from the server or waterside dining in New Orleans Square or selfies in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle, but it’s still special. Cheers to you, m’dear. 🥂 Happy Birthday.

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