Back From Cali

If I am addicted to anything, it is perhaps the thrill of travel and new places. There is something about removing yourself from your everyday existence, from the normalcy that is your immediate environment that, at least to me, seems a necessary part of life from time to time. I travel outside my realm in Lexington probably 3 to 4 times a year, always in search of that new experience, new friend, new environment, or perhaps just the removal of the burden of deadlines and time restraints and the demands of day to day existence.

If you haven't noticed my absence the past week, I won't take it personally. It seems like I have been gone much longer than 8 days, though. It's funny how being somewhere new or starting a new journey can make time seem like it is going so much slower. Only in a routine does time seem to fly by at lightning speed and suddenly years have gone by without our even hardly noticing. That's part of why I like to indulge in the experience several times a year. It's like a 'stop and smell the roses' moment, a moment to catch my breath and look around me to enjoy what's there before it's gone.

This last adventure took me to the great state of California. My first visit to the state outside of the LAX airport brought me to the heart of San Diego, the seaside cliffs and beaches of La Jolla, the downtown streets and Balboa Park, and, yes, even a baseball game where, unfortunately, the home team did not prevail. I think I'll get over it, though. The weather was perfect, the people friendly, the Mexican food divine. So much life crammed into a week that it's hard to comprehend all that I saw; but I can tell you that I enjoyed every minute of it.

While I haven't always done so in the past, I have tried to make a greater and greater effort to support the local gay community and businesses when I travel. If nothing else, it gives a glimpse into how the community lives in other parts of the country and provides a new set of faces (and bodies) to look at. On this trip I had several positive experiences, and if you are in the area, I would recommend checking out the scene. The first night of the trip brought me to a restaurant called "Lip's" where the waiter's (or waitresses if you prefer) were all in drag and doubled as servers as well as performers for the evening. The show they put on was definitely one of the better ones I've seen, extremely creative and quite entertaining. One of the funnier moment of the evening came when a very tall, tattooed queen stripped off her robe to reveal a fat suit complete with sequined nipple tassels while Fergi sang 'my humps, my humps, my lovely lady lumps, through the speakers. Also of note, the host for the evening sang her own songs (no lip syncing at all) and did a admirable impression of Cher to the audience's great delight. The only thing I didn't like about the evening was that there seemed to be a large number of straight women out for their bachelorette parties, but besides that, the experience was definitely one I would not have wanted to miss.

Later in the week, I had the fortune of dining at a place called 'Hawthorne's' located in the North Park district. The restaurant is in an old theatre that has been renovated and turned into a lovely restaurant and bar with a very nice atmosphere and an incredibly delicious menu. My companion for the evening informed me that the risotto was incredible, and upon tasting it myself, completely agreed. I had two house cocktails that were so good that it only took 2 to enlighten my senses for the evening and of which I have forgotten the name of other that it had something with the word 'pink' in it. The atmosphere was filled with old friends, male couples out on the town, and jovial conversation over colorful concoctions. It was somewhere I felt welcome and excited to be a part of.

There was a refreshingly large number of night spots to choose from that catered to the gay community. I wish I had had time to experience more of them; but, with the time I had available, I was limited in what I could do. Friday evening found me at a place called 'Rich's', which is mainly a dance club with traveling DJs and theme nights throughout the week. The night before I arrived, they had a CD celebration party for the recent Moby release of "Last Night." That is something I would have thoroughly enjoyed had I been in the city for it. For this particular evening, we were graced with a DJ traveling from Los Angeles spinning mellow tribal tunes and working up a fairly good crowd before the evening was over. It was an enjoyable experience all around.

I found as of late, especially in Lexington, that word of events and happening within the gay community is not spread as well as it could be. I think it is important to support as many functions and people as we can in the community. If we don't, then these things may very well stop happening. There won't be any more events to go to, nowhere where we can act as a community and be amongst those like us. That is why I am trying more and more to support the places and people of the gay community when I travel and even when I stay at home. If you know of an event, of something you think is important going on, then I encourage you to spread the word and do your part by simply attending if nothing else. For my part, I hope to continue sharing my experiences in places like San Diego in order to spread the word about what's happening and where to go, what's available that celebrates who we are as people. I encourage you to do the same.