"What Other People Think of Me is None of My Business"

It would seem that the 4th of July came a little bit early this year in Lexington as Main Street seemed to be flooded with homosexuals of all kinds out for a night on the town this past Thursday. If you've spent any length of time in the city, you know that the only two events that brings them out of the woodwork like that in this town are Halloween and the all-day 4th of July celebration. As it was hardly cold or dark enough to be October, I began to think that maybe the time had unknowingly passed me by by a month or two and I was in for a firework show at sunset.

But wait. That wasn't right. It wasn't quite hot enough. We hadn't even barely passed 80 degrees yet here in the city. There hadn't been an barbecues. The pools were't even open yet. Then I looked down at the ticket in my hand and was quickly reminded why we swarmed to the theatre that evening. That night, for one night only, we were graced with the presence of openly-gay actor Leslie Jordan!

"My Trip Down the Pink Carpet," said the pink perforated piece of paper in my hand. I really didn't know what to expect when I walked in, I just knew I supposed to be here. Fourth row center, I sat and applauded as he came on stage to a crowded theatre (which I was pleased to see) and began. Within seconds we were bowled over in our seats with laughter over stories of childhood crushes, Hollywood hobnobbing, and the adventures of a young gay man from the Midwest. Somewhere in the middle of it, though, suddenly I saw myself in this man standing before me on stage. Suddenly his story was almost too relatable: the shame of high school, the ever conscious effort to be more masculine (and therefore appear straighter) to those around us, the fears of encountering our first drag queen or entering our first gay bar. Suddenly this was all of our stories wrapped up into a short, funny man with gray hair and a sense of style.

On goes his story as he reveals more about himself, a journey through rehab and recovery, the darker side of self-hatred and his work with a suicide hot line for GLBTQ youth. Apparently, it's not all pink carpets and Hollywood parties. Apparently, there is more to us than that. The laughter stops for a moment and we are forced to look at the reality of who we are, what it means to be a gay man in the larger scheme of things, what it means simply to be a MAN.

Ah, yes, the moral of the story, the piece to take home and ponder. No matter how gay or straight, sissy of jock, short or tall we are; whether we lug around hammers and power drills or murses (man purses) and expensive cologne; above all else, we are men, simply MEN and can be proud to live life however we see fit and right.

Perhaps there should have been a fireworks display that night as we left the theatre in the crowd that we were, filling the streets with the diversity that we are. Congrats to Lexington, another step forward. But even if there were no bright lights in the sky that night, forever I will take with me the realization that I don't have to be any certain kind of man, I can be whoever I want to be and can be happy no matter what others think of me. "What other people think of me is none of my business," he said with a smile and a look that screamed liberation from the burden of living up to other's expectations. Freedom is what it is. Freedom to accept oneself openly and without fear!

Leslie Jordan is best known for his reoccurring guest spots on the television program 'Will and Grace' and his performance as a Tammy Wynette-obsessed drag queen in the feature film 'Sordid Lives.' His comedy show 'My Trip Down the Pink Carpet' played at Lexington's Kentucky Theatre on Thursday May 22nd to a delighted audience. Thank you Mr. Jordan!