Danrambles’s Weblog

Over the last few years I’ve come across more and more people that, upon finding out I bartend at a gay bar (and now club), respond with “Oh, I don’t go to gay bars.”  It gets on my nerves every time.  Gay bars can be a blast.  A great place to meet new friends, new fucks, and new over-priced liquors.  But with more and more gay bars closing up, it seems many people have the same idea that gay bars are…umm… gay.

There are different articles online that predict gay bars to be extinct over the next ten years.  Entrepreneur.com lists them along with record stores, pay phones, and camera film manufacturing places.  I can’t believe any of those three still exist today!  When was the last time anyone used a pay phone??  The idea that boy bars are no longer needed definitely makes sense.  Just in the last six years that I’ve been going out, things have changed drastically.  Society has become much more accepting of homosexuality.  Five years ago I would cringe at the thought of going with friends to straight bars, and would be hesitant to even hold hands with a guy.  Now I don’t think twice about such things.  Two nights ago, I made out with three different guys in a crowded straight bar, and only two of which I knew (maybe thats a topic for a seperate blog).  The point is no one yelled ‘queer’ at us or even batted an eye.

Since Cincinnati seems to have lost the majority of the gay bars worth going to over the last five years (Carols, Union, Hamburger Marys/Universal Grille, Pipeline, even Vertigo and Oscars with their once-a-week nights), I think people are being forced to wander out into straight-land.  And it turns out, it’s a blast!  I swear I see more gays out at those types of bars than I ever see at the gay bars that still remain.  And not only guys, but guys I’ve not seen before.  There’s this whole world of gay boys that are either smart enough to hang out at straight bars, which is great, or this whole other group that only have straight friends and think that they’re alone in the world. (“I thought I was alone, too!  I’m so scared that I’m gay… we should hang out tonight and talk about this!… totally easy to pick these guys up)

There are, of course, certain things missing from the straight scene.  I’ve been to many different bars, and never have I been offered a bump.  I’ve not yet had a chick come up to me and ask if I know who the dealer in the room is.  And everytime I go to the men’s room, there are people actually going to the bathroom.  Never are two guys making out or fooling around in a stall.  Now, all of this may be a hard thing to adjust to.. but I promise eventually you won’t even miss it.  And actually, dare I say, I think it’s even better without any of that activity.  (But no matter what, if you’re at the same bar as me, there’ll probably be at least two people in the bathroom still fooling around.)

I’m thinking dance clubs will stick around a while.  A gay night club is a different entity than a small bar.  Drag shows and afterhours dancing can’t be integrated into the straight bars, so I’m sure these places will continue to have a market.  Maybe that’s just high hopes for my own job security.  What are your thoughts?  When you go out with your friends, is it to mainly gay establishments?  Or are you frequenting the straight scene more often than not?

Here’s the link to the article I mentioned.. http://www.entrepreneur.com/extinction/index.html