D
By RADLEY BALKO
BISBEE, ARIZ. —
During a session of afternoon cocktails around the patio
table in the brightly painted backyard of notorious standup comedian Doug Stanhope, Melissa Reaves begins to
strum an acoustic guitar. She fiddles a bit, settles into
a bluesy groove, then starts to sing. In a throaty wail,
she belts out lyrics that, it turns out, she’s making up on
the spot. It’s a bit of party trick, writing songs as she’s
performing them. And so she sings about this reporter,
in town to write about her; about her partner, Jennifer
Garland, who is sitting next to her; and about the gay
marriage debate that’s broken out in this quirky little town
of 5,500 people about 10 miles from the Mexican border.
PHOTOGRAPHS BY RADLEY BALKO
Jennifer
Garland (left)
and Melissa
Reaves will
be the first
couple in
Arizona to
enter into a
civil union
should
Bisbee pass
a resolution
this month.