livinginpdx

Welcome to the Mecca that is the GLBT scene in Portland! It’s sustainable, and just a little splintered and small, but it’s definitely alive!

The GLBTQ scene has seen quite a change in the past few years, with clubs opening, closing, moving and struggling mostly, as a community we’ve been able to hold onto our venues and improve upon certain ones while others have left us feeling a little stretched thin and stale.

Being a major out and proud member of the community for almost a decade now has earned me a little clout and more experience in dealing with catty and dramatic individuals than anything. What can I offer? A clear view, free from the BS that consumes this community. Some may say that I have baggage, but let’s face it, this is experience that can’t be won through a charity raffle. Grrls, bois, queens, qwirrs, ya feel me? Oh yes.

I am going to really show where my alliances lay here, and though I have them, there are valid reasons for such choosings.

PDX is a genome in the world of GLBTQ issues. We are the bio dome of experimentation, holding our own as a queer community with the likes of NY, SF, Chi-Town and LA. Boasting some of the most intensively queer zip codes in the States. So we need to be able to cater to our community.

I’ve heard the rumors about how our Queens and Kings need work. I agree somewhat, but when they’re on fire, they are HOT!

Our musicians are lacking in the PR department, and our music community is REALLY catty! Let’s face it, if you don’t sound like Ani, you’re not a real musician, while a majority of our great talent will undoubtedly be found doing open mics at local coffee shops. No wonder the musicians are unknowns. Who goes to an open mic unless:

a. Your friend is playing or,

b. You are playing.

The answer is more than likely, no one.

Right now, unless you can GUARANTEE 20 - 30 people in attendance, you don’t have a venue. There are only a few people in town who can pull numbers for events. Even then, our power players are crossing their fingers that their pull doesn’t slip for the next event, cause the silent rules state: Whether you used to get 200 people to an event is moot if you don’t do well at the present time.

PORTLAND is FICKLE!

We are all about the almighty business dollar. So what if I’ve been frequenting your establishment since your inception and you’ve successfully made a niche for yourself and managed to hang on through the rough times. I still can’t get a spot.

I haven’t been to Mississippi St. for some time now, as my experience with the needlessly high-strung hood left me feeling like a number. I go to enjoy, not to be another drone making my way to the cool sector just to be seen there while I sip coffee and daydream about smoking a cigarette on the sidewalk. *(Smoking is bad, mmmkay?) Mississippi has nothing to offer me that I can’t get somewhere else… Like in a Baptist Church sermon. If I want to be talked down to and thought of as lesser-than-thou, I’ll go to Clackamas, thank you.

Let’s talk about the Egyptian Club. Every lesbian in the city of Portland and surrounding areas, it seems has some affliction to the ERoom. There are certain elements of the club that linger on the palate, for example the amount of smoke. Everyone seems to use this as the excuse at the moment, but that’s all soon to change at the beginning of the year when every bar goes smoke-free. What’s the excuse going to be next?

Let me say this for the ERoom.

1. Only successful Lesbian Bar in town for 13 years.

2. Great staff.

3. Great promotions and events.

I’m going one step further, here. Just about every self-identified lesbian in town has been through the doors. Which means:

Your DRAMA has been put on public display there, chances are because YOU wanted to be seen. This bar has seen more than its share of fights, blood, puke, sex, hook-ups, break-ups and everything in between, and she’s still standing. For the entire population to bag on the only place in town where they’ll put up wih your W4W BS for 13 years, HELLO, is more than disrespectful, it’s ignorant and self-absorbed. Yes, ladies… We ARE all part of the lesbain dating wheel, yes, we’ve all been there, but let’s make an effort to create new outlooks and experiences there, shall we?

Listen, I know you’re not going to agree with me outright, but at least I’ve got you thinking about it… And now all you have to do is own it for yourself and take charge. Can you do that? I ask for nothing in return.

Now, get out there and make some new memories. You may just begin to believe in happy endings and far away kingdoms again.