From the Columbus Pride Survey

Parade/March

What was your overall impression of the Parade/March?
It was more-or-less the same stuff as every year, and every year it’s a decent parade. I HATED that the protesters joined in at the end of the parade; we didn’t go tromping through the Republican convention, did we? No; but that’s not something that you can control, I think.

How can we improve the Parade/March next Year?
Don’t let anyone force you into censoring anyone else’s floats or entries.

If there was a float building workshop would you attend?
Maybe

Pride Festival
Did you enjoy the Festival?
Mostly.

How can we improve the Festival next year?
Stroller parking. God, I got sick of being bumped into by someone with a fucking SUV stroller and then being made to feel like I was the one who was inconveniencing them. Those sidewalks are narrow. Possibly invite some more local artists to showcase themselves. There are approximately one billion queer artists in this city. Give them the chance to shine.

Do you understand why it is important to pay an admission at the gate of the festival? Do you have any suggestions for the admission donations?
I understand that it costs a lot of money to put on the festival, yes. I think that the “suggested donation” was a bit high for what we got. Hell, even San Francisco’s Pride is only $5 (I think; that’s what it was a few years ago) and it covers a HUGE chunk of downtown SF.

What did you think of the Entertainment for Pride?
It feels like there’s always the same lesbian-with-a-guitar musical act. I LOVED seeing Coyote Grace and Jeffrey Altergott on the main stage (Jeff was at Pride last year, but shoved off to the middle of nowhere in the Gazebo). Can we maybe have a few acts that aren’t folksy-types? And some local bands?

Would you be willing to contribute to a fund to pay for a special entertainer for the 30th Anniversary of Columbus Pride in 2011?
No

Family and Teen Areas
Did you or a member of your household participate in/use the Family Area at Pride?
No
If so, what did you think of the Family Area of the festival and how can we improve it?

Did you or a member of your household participate in/use the Slam Jam Teen Stage at Pride?
No
If so, what did you think of the Slam Jam Teen Stage and how can we improve it?

Additional Pride Month Events
These are the events that happened during June other then on June 18th and 19th.
Did you attend/participate in any of other Pride Month Events during June 2010?
No
What did you think of the lineup of additional Pride Month events?
I didn’t know that there were any, to be honest.

Additional Comments
Please provide any additional comments about Columbus Pride
I absolutely hated the theme. “Celebrate Our Families” would be a fantastic theme, if it didn’t make people think that gay pride would have ended up being a Disney parade, because people seem to think that “family” is code for “children”. I’ve heard so very much backlash against the Exile float, and so very little is being said about the fact that all families are diverse. I like seeing the different segments of our very diverse community coming together; I loathe like hell that some people seem to think that if we’re not all acting heteronormative that we’re awful people. My family is (currently) two men, but we’re also dating a third. I saw nothing in regards to the poly community. Granted, I wasn’t looking all that hard, but there was nothing there that I saw. And a large part of our community is poly.

Reach out to other parts of our community. Don’t just go for the bars and the churches and the “family-friendly” groups. There’s a HUGE pagan community in Columbus, including the oldest gay men’s pagan circle in Ohio. We were part of Pride a few years ago, but then it felt like we got brushed aside. I heard nothing at all in regards to an interfaith service this year.

I loathe April Fools Day. Hate it with the white-hot heat of a thousand thousand suns. The Death Star is strong today, and the guy with his finger on the button has a twitchy trigger finger.

However, ThinkGeek comes up with the best April Fools products, and some of them get made into real things. This year’s contestants:

My First Bacon
Tell Me Your Secrets Bear
Screaming Chef’s Knife
Monolith Action Figure
Canned Unicorn Meat
Dharma Initiative Alarm Clock
moodINQ – Programmable Tattoo System
iCade – iPad Arcade Cabinet

I think that the first five items should be real. Because they’re AWESOME.

I’ve also moved The Rules onto GMSS for ease of updating them. If you have any new or updated Rules that you’d like in the list, by all means, email me to let me know. I’ll be adding a whole new section for Bathhouse Etiquette, too. Send me those as well.

Dear employers,

NOBODY IS OVERQUALIFIED. In the current economy, with the retarded rate of unemployment, all you’re going to find are people who are overqualified, because, well, guess what! WE’VE ALL GOTTEN LAID OFF! You chose to keep the ones who weren’t qualified to be in their positions.

Seriously. People want jobs. They’re not overqualified. There aren’t enough jobs to go around, because the economy’s not going to bounce back to what it was. Hire the people who will do great work for your company. Don’t skate by with a sub-standard workforce. Because, really, that’s what’s turning into the new American Way. Outsourcing to India and China just causes a SHITLOAD of resentment from the American worker, especially those of us who have more than a decade in our chosen field.

Sincerely,
Seriously One Of Your Best Options

My birthday is in less than 2 months (March 9, for those of you who don’t know. Right now, the only things on my list (aside from things that are on my wishlist) are a job and 2 hockey tickets, one for me and one for Leon. We’re both hockey fans (shush, it happens) and supporting the Ohio gay hockey team? Yeah, that’s important. Plus, $5 for every ticket goes to support the GLBT center in Columbus. And it would be lovely to watch the Jackets kick the ever-lovin’ shit out of the fucking Blues. And that’s the way it will happen in my mind.

Evidently, they don’t teach geography courses at Regent University.

Guess what, Pat! You’re still a raging turbo-douche!