Pride, has always been an elusive thing for me. Something that the "good" gays went to, and something that I always managed to miss out on. I've been in the Portland area for going on 3 years, and only managed to make it to one and a half prides. The first one, I was new in town, had no idea when pride was, and it just happened to fall while I was working. Boo! The second one, I was actually in the parade, with the bank, but I planned poorly. I dressed for the cold weather that we had in the morning, not thinking about the fact that the parade route is about a mile, and the temperature was probably going to go up. So, although I was part of it, I ended up going home, crashing, and missing out on the majority of the afternoon/evening events.
Needless to say, when I found out in January/February, that there were going to be some changes, I remained skeptical. I knew that the previous incarnation of Pride was not as all inclusive as it should have been. And, with the idea of a whole new committee, I didn't expect a lot...especially, as time went on and I found out that the starting budget for pride was $0...
The next few months, became a frenzy of fundraising. Between the GoFundMe campaign, the Guest Bartenders, and the seemingly hundreds of other fundraisers, for a while, it seemed like that was all that Portland was about. And, it made me feel good to know that the community was coming together, to put together a Pride event that the city hasn't seen (at least since I've lived here.) Over the course of four months, leading up to Pride, a whopping $40,000 was raised.
Instead of the one day Pride, that was the extent of things the previous two years, this year, was 10 days worth of Pride events. (Eleven if you count the kickoff party in mid May.) I can't even remember all the events, without looking them up. There was bowling one night, a Wizard of Oz viewing and costume party, Drag Bingo, a Kickball Tournament, The Requiem to the Disco, Blackstones and Styxx shuttled people back and forth for an event called Styxx and Stones. This all led up to the Parade on Saturday, and then the Pride Finale Tea Dance on Peaks Island on Sunday.
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| "Porn 'Stache" |
I have never in my life been so amazed by what people can do when they all work together. I didn't attend a lot of the events, due to scheduling, and the occasional lack of interest. But, the ones that I did attend, were amazing. We started out with Requiem to the Disco. Basically, a night of Disco and drinking at Grace Restaurant. I'd never been to Grace before, so had no idea what to expect of a former Church, turned Restaurant, much less a former church that was being overrun with the gay community. Shaunna Rai and
Miss E,on attended, along with a porn 'stached me. And, for the first time, since I moved here, I felt like I really was a part of the community. I wasn't just Shaunna's boyfriend. I wasn't just Dan's boyfriend. I was an actual person on my own. People were coming to talk to me. Granted, most of it was to tell me how ridiculous the moustache was, and/or that they didn't recognize me with it. But, this was a huge thing for me.
The ride home from the Disco was almost as much of an event as the Disco itself was. A local singer had asked for a ride home, and I agreed to it. She had performed, and blew everyone away, as she usually does. I have to admit, one straight woman, two drag queens and me, makes for interesting conversation...unfortunately, most of the anecdotes from that night, have gone from my mind, because I put off writing this. But, we have some pictures of E,on, that prove that something was HILARIOUS, while we were waiting in the drive thru at Burger King.
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Madam Sheena and
Miss Jo Ann |
Next up, was the day of the parade. Shaunna was putting her face on at 7am, to be ready to go to the Blackstones Annual Pride Breakfast. Given that this was the 40th year for pride, and the theme of the Parade, and Blackstones's float was Ruby, Shaunna got to do her Best Dorothy look. The routine of putting on the face, is nearly always the same. The dressing is the biggest difference. And, once the Dorothy outfit went on, I didn't know quite what to think. It was Shaunna, but it was Dorothy. And, to be quite frank, outside of tear-away outfits, I haven't seen Shaunna wear that much clothing in the entire time that I've known her.
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Mr. New England Leather
and Dorothy |
Starting off the day with a mimosa or two, was nice. I had a little bit of a buzz going before the parade started. Chad and his man met up with us at Blackstones, before the float left, so I spent the morning with them. Then stopped to get Starbucks for Dorothy before the parade started. The Starbucks line was crazy long...longer than it was last year at the same time. Then, it was a race to get to Shaunna and back to my spot before the parade actually started. I managed it, and got some pictures with Shaunna and Mr New England Leather 2014. As usual, I forgot to get any pictures of myself with them...But, I had a parade to get back to...
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| Taffy Pulls |
The Dykes on Bikes led the parade, as they have for many years, with the exception of last year, followed by numerous corporate supporters, churches, political candidates, and floats. All followed up by a 900 foot Rainbow Pride flag, which pretty much made Congress Street, and the rest of the streets on the parade route look like it was being over-run by a stream of gay lava...Needless to say, it was really cool. It then became a race to figure out how to get Shaunna back to the car, to get her home, to change, to get her back to Blackstones for Happy Hour. At that point, the parade still hadn't finished, and roads were blocked off, so trying to drive down, wasn't going to work. So, we walked. Drove home, Dorothy changed into Shaunna.
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Mat with the Frannie
Peabody Center |
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| Shaunna as Dorothy |
I grabbed a Loopy cosmo, then went to the park, to see what was going on there, and to see if I could get a peek at Mimi Imfurst. I managed the first, ran into every other drag queen that was there at the same time, and then left to get another drink. I never did run into Mimi, but I'm willing to bet that this will not be the only chance that I get to meet her. I normally don't do Shaunna's Happy Hours, until about the last hour or so, just because it's a little weird for me, occasionally seeing other people flirting with her. But, I figured, "hey, it's Pride, I don't want to be stuck at home, passed out at 3pm again this year." So, I stuck it out. I don't remember exactly what led up to it, but one of the morning bartenders, and a regular ended up taking off their shirts. I was told that I should take mine off, and shot back with, "I will if you'll buy my next drink." And, so, the shirt came off. And, from what I hear, it surprised a lot of people. Honestly, it surprised me too, because the self-conscious Steve that I've always been was nowhere to be found that afternoon.
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Shaunna's Happy Hour
with JR |
Shaunna's shift ended, and we went home. I picked up some dinner, and then Dan and I went back to Blackstones. I, unfortunately, faded pretty quickly, because I overdid things earlier in the day. But, it was a blast.
Sunday on Peaks was the culmination of Pride. And, it was an interesting study of the Portland LGBT community. There are many people who don't attend the gay bars (Styxx or Blackstones) who I have probably seen on the streets of Portland, and never knew they were "family". And, it's always interesting to see who interacts with whom at these events, because "types"who you wouldn't expect to interact, do. It started out with the Ferry ride to Peaks Island, during which, I discovered that there was way more capacity on the boat than there were life jackets. (For someone who doesn't swim, this is very concerning!) Once I got over my fear of going down like the Titanic, it was okay. I took pictures along the way. We were greeted by the Pride Committee, who were already on Peaks, setting up. I met a bunch of people who Dan knew, who I had no idea who they were. We spent the majority of the day with Darren and his boyfriend, David, and Miss Evie, along with appearances by Ralph from Blackstones, and a friend of Dan's who had moved away to DC.
My only issues with the day were: when I ordered my burger with no bun, and got one anyway, and at the end of the day, when we were given a cup of Coke with some kind of alcohol (tasted like Rubbing Alcohol) by guys from New Hampshire, who we met while waiting for the Ferry back to Portland. Otherwise, the day was perfect.
All in all, the Pride Experience was one of the best experiences that I've had. And, while I was hardly able to contribute anything to it, for this Pride, I want to do whatever I possibly can to make next year's Pride bigger and better. And, I want to thank everyone involved with every part of planning the events that made this year such a success. You all deserve the biggest pats on the back, and the most heartfelt thank you's. You all are amazing, and I'm so grateful to you all for giving me an event that essentially made me feel that it's really okay to be me...because, essentially, that's what Pride is all about.
All in all, the Pride Experience was one of the best experiences that I've had. And, while I was hardly able to contribute anything to it, for this Pride, I want to do whatever I possibly can to make next year's Pride bigger and better. And, I want to thank everyone involved with every part of planning the events that made this year such a success. You all deserve the biggest pats on the back, and the most heartfelt thank you's. You all are amazing, and I'm so grateful to you all for giving me an event that essentially made me feel that it's really okay to be me...because, essentially, that's what Pride is all about. 