BLOBBY'S BLOG

Love and Pride

Yesterday we went to Pride. Just the after-event, not the parade. I'm not a parade kind of guy - participating or watching.

Yes, you can decry that my lack of involvement is what brings 'the movement' down, but it's Cleveland. There aren't that many in the parade (yes, I know - because people "like me" don't participate) and no one comes out to watch it - to cheer or to taunt us.

To be fair - the gathering downtown isn't much to write home about either, but we go. Or usually go. It turned out to be a nice day and not too hot, though I still might have gotten too much sun. I did not slather any SPF anything on me.

It is now mostly vendors anyway: State Farm Insurance. Time-Warner Cable. Petco. We get it: you're gay friendly or at the very least want our alleged disposable income. Because if we don't have babies or families we have tons of money to just throw around - right?

And don't get me started on the competing music sections - situated an entire 50 feet apart - playing different music with their speakers pointed at each other. Who the fuck organized this?

One was the 'beer garden' where there was no dancing. The other was the dancing area - where no beer was sold - or allowed to be in the area. Fucked up, I tell you (not that I was drinking - I had had enough the night before, and the night before that). And both camps volume was ear-bleeding. (I know, I sound like an old man - but anyone I ran into said the exact same thing.).

But g-d love the lesbians. Only they would have someone standing in front of a bank of PAs signing the words to the blaring disco. Trust me - any deaf person could have heard this music - that's how loud it is. ...and how does one sign "oooh yeah.....oooh yeah....oooh yeah", you know that standard almost backing/filler "vocal" that has been a pre-requisite on 84% of all dance tracks since 1988?

I know - I sound like I'm complaining, because I kind of am. I don't care about dykes on bikes or the drag queens that much on whether they do or don't represent us by overshadowing 'the normal gays'. I don't put much worry into some who say they bring the movement down and we're not taken seriously as a community.

How can you when, if the paper carries anything at all about the event, it's buried on page 8 of the metro section and it barely even hits the evening news cast anymore. No one is paying attention much anymore.

The best part of the day/event was just sitting and watching the folks come and go. Everyone in their garb and me remembering my shirt that I used to wear at the Columbus Pride event that said So Many Gerbils, So Little Time (thanks Garkawe!). It always got a few raised eyebrows and a number of pointed fingers at me.

Oh - and they had a youth tent, which was cool. And it was PACKED. ...and get this, I would estimate that 80% of it was kids of colour. Are they more comfortable with attending such an event? The demographics of that area intrigued me to no end.

I will say, my favourite were how many lesbians were eating penis shaped pride lollipops. I guess they didn't make vagina shaped ones.

I'm glad we went, but it was just enough participation for us. We got out, donated some cash, got some sun, saw some friends. What's not to like?


Song by: King