Is it blasphemous for a drag queen to admit being completely over the annual LGBT Pride Parade and festivities? It's a question I've been asking myself since Sunday, when I realized - at least for me, and quite possibly for me alone - the event lacked the charm and appeal of years past.
There are some seriously talented mofos in this town. There are also a plethora of outlets in which artists can showcase their work. It seems that any given night you can go to a bar, club or gallery and enjoy a reception or at least some fine art. Nearly every bar now has a collection or local artist work.
Last night, being the first Thursday of the month, two great happenings exploded on second street. First off we hit Varnish for their 30 Under 30. None of us are below 30, but we didn't have the couger vibe going on so we passed through the crowd seemlessly. There was one piece in particular that blew me away. One looked like spitballs on wood that created an amazing face of a boy looking through a scope of some sort. Brilliant!
After taking in the scene and sitting in the backseat for a little relaxation (it was a long day in wine country) we crossed the street to the bass pumpin' good times of 111 Minna. ArtnowSF had a showcase and they're typical live art in 3 corners of the gallery. There was much more wine drinking, dancing and chatting with some of our favorite guys: Joey, Kris D and the hot and sassy bartenders that put 111 Minna in that special place in my heart.
Wow, last night City Hall was all aglow with one of the best celebrations of the month. After a 5 year struggle, they unveiled the bust of Harvey Milk...on his birthday!
It was a festive occasion with Chihuly-esque balloon sculptures, servers donning colorful hankerchiefs and tables draped with every color of the rainbow. Copious amounts of donated beverages from vodka to bubbly and good wine flowed freely. None of that $2 chuck for Harvey's peeps! M&Ms, cheez-its and mouthwatering passed hors d'oeuvres from local restaurants.
The ever smiling crowd consisted of all the big players, the Sisters, the Gay Men's Chorus, drag queens of all shapes and sizes, Frank Chu, and the standard politicos. Good on the 'commission' that met every Monday for the past half decade to make last night happen! The entertainment was astounding and joyful commencing with Somewhere over the Rainbow.
You can visit Harvey's bust by the office of the Supervisors, cleverly placed near where people tie the knot, and you know pretty soon most of those couples are going to be gay. Hooray!
Tuesday night we celebrated 7 of the best local independently run businesses with a little soiree at Anchor Brewery. It was the 4th Annual Small Business Awards and in the house were El Rio, Cole Hardware, WAGES, Hazel's Kitchen, Books and Bookshelves, the Luscious Garage crew and the amazing Scott Hauge. A few past winners came along to party with us for another year of inductees. Andrew and Tom over at Anchor are pretty rad dudes, they even take (and tell) jokes well. Schedule yourself a tour so you can get down and dirty with them. On tap was a sweet variety of brew, but the most popular seemed to be the Summer Ale, the ever so refreshing wheat. This particular brew was the perfect compliment to the cheesy quesadillas, chix nuggets and chocolate cake brought in from Ananda Fuara. I think the traditional accompaniment to vegetarian food is some sort of Lhassi, but everything in balance, right?
This was one of my favorite events because you get to chill and kick back with a cold one and chat with some spectacular folks. Sure, you can chat with Caroline, Richard, Dawn, David and all because they are the face of the businesses awarded. They're the ones with the useful advice - be it car maintenance, reading material, how tos for around the house and in some instances how tos in the dating department. If you're single head to Hazel's for a sandwich and a chat with Leslie, I hear she can score you a sailor. El Rio is always a place to get lucky at scoring, after all they have great bands, shuffleboard and tons of fund raisers, need to score a pet, watch for Rocket Dog benefits!
Being one of those so called localvores, I've always preferred to support my neighborhood businesses. It's easy in most areas of SF to get your food, books, CDs, clothes, hardware supplies, housewares and nightly entertainment from these sorts of businesses. Sometimes it takes a few more trips than going to a mass store, but it's always worth walking into a place where they know your name, half the time they know what you're looking for and they actually take time to give a shit. With the increasing lack of interpersonal interaction I relish these tete a tetes more and more.
So when you step away from this here computer, go forth and patronize that little mom and pop on the corner, trust me it will make your day...and their's.
Last night was Lowcard rag's 5th anniversary. It was a party full of skaters drinking shitty beer and ogling photos of wallies, fakies and nollie heels from the past 1825 days. This is more than a lame, local skate zine, recently they covered the beloved Skatopia and are out to take over the international skate world. Filling a void left by Big Brother and a bit more .. let's call it 'user friendly' than Thrasher or Slap. Hell, you can enjoy Lowcard as a non industry creature too!
If you haven't heard of this magazine, don't feel bad, it started out printed on bar napkins (no back issues left!) and just went glossy last year. You can pick it up around town in cool spots like Cruz Skate Shop and Needles and Pens or you can just get yourself one of those subscriptions, that way you get a ton of stickers. Glossy costs money yo, but at 3 solid dollas a pop it's a steal! After the poorly hung photo viewing at Hamburger Eyes the masses ended the celebration at that uber hipster bar on 24th, because what's an anniversary party without betties, bunnies, Pabst and tall boys?
Were you in a bar last night? Did you notice piles of dirty glasses and cocktails with no ice? Was your bartender unusually cranky? Well, you can blame 111 Minna and Fernet! Last night they coaxed the brightest, best, sexiest and swiftest of barbacks out for the 1st Annual Barback Olympics.
We cheered on the barbacks from such illustrious watering holes as Benders, The Homestead, Annie's Social Club, John Colins and that place with the outdoor patio. They performed magnificent and rigorous feats of wonder such as
Fruit cutting
An ice bucket race which incorporated tire maneuvering skills
Beer stocking race
Keg changing
There was plenty of flesh on display and the open bar kept the good times rolling!
I heard there was some food and Blasthaus DJ action but all I saw was the bottom of a Fernet glass.
Who won, who knows? They all did a stellar job, my money was really riding on the gal from Homestead though!
View image">These guys know who won, I wonder if they recall because I saw them downing bottle after bottle of amaro.
The Hellraisers descended upon ODC at the YBC on Friday night. While the dancing and the music were a new sensory experience for many of us, I challenge anyone to explain what was going on. There was some Hunting and Gathering, some Twilight Zone-esque airplane action and a lot of tossing around of bodies. I'm going to create a pop up video dance show, where in the background you get some description rather than ethereal 'art'.
Seated beside me was a 'young and avid dance fan' who was nodding and sobbing along with Lang/Sawa portion, I was going to invite her for a soothing cup of chamomile after the show so she could explain to me what was going on, but I lost her in the after show free wine fete on the mezzanine.
Sounds like every other night in the Mission, but it's the current Asian Art exhibit.
I was especially impressed with some of the current 'erotic' work that dated back to the 16th-18th century. I had a wonderful dream about Shoki the Demon Queller last night! He's one of those 'strong, silent types'.
Check it out before May 4th!
