This past weekend was the Capitol Pride parade and festival. I walked in the parade for an openly gay candidate running for the city council. It was an amazing opportunity. The gay energy and enthusiasm were outstanding.
On Friday evening, after happy hour with the neighbors, I met up with a friend from Lawrence who just moved here. Chris moved to DC for work. It was great to go out with someone that I actually knew.
Saturday was the US v England World Cup game. A week ago I ran into a girl going to the metro and she remembered me when we were both interns in the Kansas Senate. She now works full time for Rep. Jerry Moran (hopefully soon Senator Moran). She invited me to a pub to watch the game at and cheer on America! We shared some beers and clapped when everybody else in the bar did.
After the game, I headed to the Pride Parade and met up with the other campaigners for Mark Morgan's race for city council. Naturally, the parade was in the evening so the gays could have a cocktail during. Throwing beads and giving stickers to the drunks was a memory that I will remember forever! After the parade, the candidate took all the volunteers out for some drinks then I met up with Chris and a few of his friends (one a KU alumni I knew from the Dole Institute!)
I woke up Sunday and headed to the festival to work the Log Cabin table. It was already extremely hot by 9 in the morning. I knew it was going to be a gay sweatfest. I worked and talked with people at the table for thre
e hours then walked around the festival and tanned. I ended up in the beer gardens to watch the stage performances and drag shows. There were some truly fabulous and timeless drag queens that entertained me for the afternoon. I hung out with another volunteer for Pride that I met at the auction. We chilled and had some drinks to cool down, but we were helped by the weather also when an instant down pour occurred. Its raining men, Hallelujah. The rain only lasted a couple of minutes but it was long enough to soak everyone. Then the sun came out again. The drinks were almost as strong as the sun, it was almost like being at a beach in Mexico, but with out the beach...As the afternoon progressed, a couple that had been together for 30 years got publicly married. The two men have loved each other for half of their lives and with the recent passage of gay marriage in DC they were allowed to get married and they chose to do it at Pride. It was beautiful and pretty moving. It was my first gay wedding and it has taken years and a lot of work to do something as simple as a wedding ceremony for people in the gay community. What a journey, one that still has a lo
ng way to go.After the wedding, I ran into yet another person I knew at KU! It sometimes is a smaller world than I ever thought DC would be. It has been fun continually and miraculously running into Kansas and KU people! We hung out for a while then went out for an after Pride party.
An entire weekend to make me and thousands of others proud to be who they are! Thank you Capitol Pride for the great past week and weekend. Sometimes it takes close friends or a festival to do that, but do something to make you feel proud.
Lesson Learned:It helps to be tall, blonde, loud, and memorable. I am easily recognized and stand out in a crowd.
Hey Alex, So glad to hear of your memorable pride weekend in DC - where will you be next year??? I would find you no matter what in a crowd - of course your height and hair helps, but it's usually your laughter that I hear first! I am so thankful you are filled with laughter and joy - it will be my prayer that you can always be! Love you, MOM
ReplyDeleteGay Republican? Had men like you had their way the President would be a man that would have never signed the Matthew Shepard Act, repealed DADT, put forth initiatives for federal workers- you are a traitor to your own cause. Filth of the highest degree.
ReplyDeleteShame on you for fighting against everything us ACTUAL activists attempt to accomplish.
Alex!! I didn't know you had a blog! SOOO EXCITING! I've just caught up, and I've been realizing how much I've missed seeing you around Lawrence (and Martini night lol) It sounds like you are having the time of your life and accomplishing so much during the time of your stay in DC. Congrats!!!
ReplyDeleteAnonymous- Obviously Alex is a citizen in his own beliefs first, and gay is just a part of who he is. Republican is also a part. That doesn't mean that he hasn't continuously worked toward equality for the LGBT community. Why would you want to live in a world where ALL the Republicans are straight? The more we've got on the Republican side, the more chance we have of gaining the rights we deserve. Shame on YOU for being so closed minded and assuming only a Democrat can be responsible for the LGBT movement. There have been faults by both parties, but Alex is working for your future and the future of others. I'm curious to see what you have accomplished as an "ACTUAL" activist. The true activist is Alex. Gay AND Republican.
The true activists are the people that get folks elected to the office that vote for the initiatives that actually make differences in our lives. Considering that I know that man voted for Lynn Jenkins- who voted AGAINST the DADT repeal- and will probably campaign or do something for Patricia Lightner- all folks who don't support equal rights, not to mention I have it on good authority he's a fan of the people in the state legislature(Callous bigots they are) and the Senators we have(Total bigots), I think it's safe to say he's working against the people that are actually pushing us forward as a movement.
ReplyDeleteYou can talk about how nice and great it is that he's both- and clap your hands for diversity like your trying to bring Tinkerbell back to laugh. But- he's working against us. You vote for Lynn Jenkins and then cheer when Nancy Pelosi ushers in a DADT repeal? To hell with you. You vote for Republicans for the House and potentially hand it to John Boehner in 2010? Congrats- EVERY piece of LGBT equal rights legislation that would have come up for a vote prior will NEVER make it out of committee.
Make up all the nice crap you want- and the people with a head on their shoulders will call it like we see it.