The Requa family has lived in the New York area over 300 years. Gabriel Requoi was born in Tremblade, France in 1678 and moved to New Rochelle where he had his only child, Claude, in 1700. When the family moved to Philipsburgh Manor where the Dutch immigrants had trouble pronouncing their French names, they changed their last name to Requa and their son's first name to Glode.

Glode had eight children including Glode in 1727.
Glode had nine children including Samuel in 1764.
Samuel had eleven children including Jacob in 1794.
Jacob had eleven children including Samuel in 1826.
Samuel had five children including Harry C. in 1861.
Harry C. had eight children including James Williams in 1897.
James Williams had two children including James Russell in 1916.
James Russell had five children including James Russell in 1945.

1945

I was born on February 9 in Fallon Nevada. My left leg was 3/4 inch short and had no fibula. Otherwise it was fine and has continued to be. Now it's about 6.5 inches short.

1946

We moved to Nyack, New York.

1947

My sister, Maria, was born on October 10 in Nyack.

1948

My best friend, Ina, started school. I missed her.

1949

I started kindergarten at Saint Ann's School.

1950

I graduated from Saint Ann's kindergarten - still have the diploma.

1951

My sister, Anita, was born on April 5 in Nyack. Soon after that, my mother had a nervous breakdown and was committed to a hospital.

1952

Doing badly at Saint Ann's School, I switched to Liberty Street public school.

1953

We moved to our summer house in South Salem, NY and I started 4th grade at Lewisboro School. It was my first experience with a school cafeteria. Lunch was 25 cents; milk was 3 cents.

1954

My mother returned and we moved to Long Island and I started 5th grade there.

1955

Finished 5th grade in Long Island and moved back to the South Salem house.

1956

Graduated from Lewisboro elementary school, started junior high.

1957

Started working as a mechanic at Lighthouse Motors, a boat and car dealership owned by friends of my father.

1958

My father and I drove to Florida in his Austin Healy 100-6 and went to various cities looking for a job.

1959

My father and I left home with Frances (whom he later married) and their daughter Melody and moved to Gainesville, Florida where he taught school and I continued 9th grade. In the fall I started 10th grade and spent Christmas in South Salem with my mother.

1960

At the end of Christmas vacation I stayed in South Salem with my mother so I could be closer to my girlfriend. Soon we broke up but I stayed there anyway. During summer vacation Mom took Anita and me on a six week car trip all around the country.

1961

Finished 11th grade at John Jay High school - the first time I enjoyed school and did well since the first grade.

1962

Graduated from John Jay High school.

1963

Finished freshman year at RPI. During the summer got a First Class Radiotelephone Operator's license and worked a transmitter watch at radio station WVIP in Mount Kisco, NY.

1964

Started 3 year Electronics Technology course at RCA Institutes. Heard Bob Dylan for the first time - haven't been the same since.

1965

Worked part time as Chief Engineer and as a DeeJay at radio station WBRW in Brewster, NY. Worked part time at WVOX in New Rochelle and still worked part time at WVIP.

1966

Graduated from RCA. Started working part time at Chas. H. Sells Surveying and Engineering, Inc. as a keypunch operator. Soon was hired full time as a computer programmer.

1967

Quit my mechanic and radio station jobs.

1968

Travelled to Florida to visit my sister and met Jeanie there. She moved to New York and we were married in October.

1969

Moved from Mahopac to a small cabin in South Salem.

1970

My son, James, was born on January 5 in Mount Kisco. We moved to Pleasantville (to be closer to my job and have more space) to a bigger house (that James calls the little house).

1971

I left my job at Sells where I had been promoted to department head and took a programming job at Information Displays, Inc. (IDI), a manufacturer of computer graphic displays.

1972

Spent 6 weeks in Los Alamos, New Mexico working for IDI at "the lab".

1973

Bought the old summer house in South Salem and moved in.

1974

My son, Dana, was born on March 20 in Mount Kisco.

1975

Dissatisfied with my marriage, I started attending a TA therapy group. Jeanie joined the same group.

1976

Switched to another TA group - thought I could do more without her in the room.

1977

I took the est training and started attending est seminars.

1978

Made a new agreement with Jeanie that permitted us to date.

1979

Left Jeanie and rented a room in a house in Ossining. Met my brother John for the first time ever. We stayed up all night amazing ourselves with how similar we were.

1980

Jeanie and I reached an agreement and got divorced.

1981

I left IDI where I had become Director of Programming. Jim and Chris, who had worked there with me, also left and we started a new company, EXEYE Software Tools, Inc.

1982

Moved to Haverstraw, NY to be closer to EXEYE. Met Elys who moved in with me. Got first IBM PC.

1983

Moved both EXEYE and ourselves to Fort Montgomery, NY where Chris bought a building.

1984

Started converting all EXEYE programming work from FORTRAN to C.

1985

IDI went out of business. EXEYE worked with Design Futures to buy IDRAW, the drafting system we had developed at IDI. Elys moved out. We dated each other and others. We never were very monogamous, actually.

1986

I took the est Six Day Course.

1987

We finished converting IDRAW from the Varian 620 to the IBM PC.

1988

My son, James, graduated from high school.

1989

Decided to join the swinging lifestyle after getting tired of dating women who want me to stop dating other women.

1990

Went to the Lifestyles Convention in Las Vegas. Went to Phoenix Naturist Resort, my first nudist experience.

1991

Got to know some swingers and started going to monthly parties.

1992

My son, Dana, graduated from high school. I Met Vivian, started dating her, moved in with her in a couple months.

1993

Had a head-on car collision in a snow storm on February 16. Broke right femur. Was in the hospital four weeks, then home with Vivian who took care of me. In July we drove to Luthersville, Georgia and visited my father. In November I sold my interest in EXEYE and we moved to Luthersville and rented a small house from my father.

1994

Vivian and I were married on January 1, my second marriage and her third. I started working alone doing computer programming and support work as TerraGraphics.

1995

In January we went to New Orleans, LA for our first anniversary (and one year late honeymoon). In February we went to New York to visit our families. While we were there, my mother died - completely unexpectedly. We all miss her. In August Vivian bought a used book store named Book Stop and Swap. In October, we bought a house on Caldwell Farm Road - a 1400sf ranch on 10 acres. It's about 12 miles from Luthersville. The folks that sold it to us left about a dozen chickens and 5 turkeys.

1996

I opened TerraGraphics Computer Shop in part of Vivian's book store. Vivian got to know more about chickens and was really enjoying them. I started travelling to NY to do work there. I started this website in the free space that my ISP gave me.

1997

We built a big, fancy chicken coop for our 50 or so chickens. Now we call this place Happy Farm.

1998

Internet domains went from $50 a year down to $35 and I couldn't resist - bought requa.net and moved this website to it. We closed the book store and computer store. We bought my father's house from him. He thought he would die in a few weeks but he was wrong. I'm so glad.

1999

Paved our driveway. Built a new porch off our kitchen. Helped my sister, Maria, buy a house (to rent). As she sends me money, I send it in toward the mortgage on my house and in two years we will have both houses paid off.

2000

Fixed a few Y2K bugs. We went to Tampa to the "Partners in Paradise" swinger's convention. Started digging a basement under my house. Digging an hour a day, it will be done in two years. Design Futures abandoned IDRAW.

2001

Started the new year at Carl & Elaine's wonderful party. Happy birthday, Carl. Finished paying our mortgage. No more banks! The house is ours!

2002

Started the new year at Carl & Elaine's wonderful party - oops same as last year. Well, it was. Now it's 40 years since I graduated from John Jay High School and we had a big reunion in September.

2003

Bought a house in Maine. Vivian will live there and I will live in Georgia, New York, and Maine. She wants to be in cool weather near her daughter and I want to be in warm weather near my father (GA), able to take care of my customers (NY), and with Vivian (ME).

2004

New Year's day was our tenth anniversary. Vivian rented a motel room with a hot tub and we spent a day and night just enjoying each other. It was so nice. In March my son, James, and his sweetie, Jaja, had a son, James Roman. My dad's wife, Stella, died and we had a small graveside funeral. James and Jaja got married. Cindy told me she was the one I was looking for. We started dating and were soon living together. We moved into the small house behind Dad's house. Vivian and I went through some pretty bad stuff and ended the year getting separated - getting along again but now legally separated. We found a trailer (mobile home) in NY for her.

2005

Bought the trailer and worked at getting rid of the mold that made it impossible to live there. Cindy and I do just about everything together when I'm in GA but I'm in NY half the time. Vivian's health is not too good. Cindy and I went to Maine and brought Vivian back to the trailer. My dad got married on Christmas eve - his fifth time.

2006

Cindy and I got married on June 23. Now I have four more children and a bunch of new grandchildren. Now we travel together and work together. Vivian went to Maine for the summer again and decided to stay there. Cindy and I moved into the trailer and visited her for Christmas.

2007

Mostly we are in NY now travelling to GA once a month but we skipped a few. Dad is in FL with his new wife, Lucile. They decided to give up the GA house and just stay in FL.

2008

James and Jaja, had their second son, Jazz Monroe. I'm a grandfather for the second time (or the 14th depending on how you count). We sold the house in Maine and Vivian moved to New York.