Thad1527 Appreciation Thread

[Thad1527]

Aerialists! Drag queens!

 

[Thad1527]

And me. (I remembered to take a selfie.)

 

[Thad1527]

Tomorrow I'm having brunch with a former co-worker. It'll be fun catching up

 

[Araucaria]

Good Saturday morning, Thad!

I believe you're at Southern Decadence in New Orleans right now, and I'm sure you're having fun. Enjoy yourself at Bearracuda!

 

[MusicMan321]

Hi Thad

 

[rmcrae]

 

[Eaglex]

 

[Thad1527]

Hello from New Orleans! The week got off to a rough start. My nonstop flight Thursday was cancelled. They had problems with the brakes...then let us board...then came back to the gate, since the delay was too long and the crew could not legally keep working.
Frontier couldn't provide me an alternative, so I got a refund, booked a more expensive connection on Southwest, and went back into town to hang out at my "home" bar, the Bike Stop. I did get to make out with a cute guy named Roger. And I returned to the airport for a 6am departure to Nashville. The connection was fine and I did reach New Orleans before noon. My Airbnb was waiting although I had to call the owner to unlock the door. But I had some time to crash before Bearracuda Friday night.
More to follow!

 

[Thad1527]

Bearracuda! It was at the Joy Theater on Canal Street. (I'd be there often to transfer buses all trip.) When I entered, it was early (9 pm) and the men were just starting to come in, but I noticed, yikes, there was no place to sit! There was a VIP area upstairs but I hadn't paid for that.
There were bears go-go boys on the stage at the front and many attractive guys dancing. I came to dance and the music was OK, but I prefer actual songs rather than the techno played. It was too loud to talk to anyone.
I left around midnight.
I bought my ticket long ago, since it sold out when I came to Decadence two years ago. But I found out there was another party in town, Club Closet, with Bright Light Bright Light. He's really Rod Thomas, a talented musician originally from Wales who's done lots of DJing in NY. His latest album, Enjoy Youth, made the top 10 in the UK this summer, and he does fun things like this. (Of course he's not singing, silly!)

 

[Thad1527]

So I went to the wrong party.
I was staying in the Bywater and the owner of my Airbnb recommended Elizabeth's, a local breakfast/lunch restaurant. Good call! This Red Velvet Waffle with blueberries and whipped cream was amazing. And with bacon. Yum.

 

[Thad1527]

I had no plans for Saturday; did some exploring and discovered Crescent Park along the Mississippi. It was cloudy.

 

[Thad1527]

Sunday was the Southern Decadence Parade through the French Quarter! I was too busy enjoying it all to take pictures. It's on the edge of being family-friendly; the giant stuffed cock-and-balls from Swiss Navy lubes set  that tone. (I took the samples.) LOTS of dancers! All kinds of local groups. It was a joy.

Sunday night was the highlight of the trip for me. Amber Martin and her pianist Drew Brody performed a tribute to Bette Midler. The idea was to replicate her long-ago performances at the Continental Baths in NYC. The audience here was in towels. You could rent them there, but I bought one at Walmart and brought it.
There was a wraparound balcony which served as a backroom. There was lots of sex happening there, and, yes, I did get a blowjob. I didn't "finish" but it was still fun.
Amber opened with Bette's "Friends", killed "Do You Wanna Dance," and poured her heart into "Stay With Me" from The Rose. Yes, we know that one was way after Bathhouse Bette. But it's too good.
Johnny Dynell played actual songs to dance to before, during, and after Amber's sets. Yeah!!!
After her performance Amber stayed, danced and talked to me (and everyone, actually). This was the 7th year she's done this show, and she thought this one was the best!
I couldn't find a YouTube video of Amber as Bette...but she can do ANYTHING. This is Amber as Stevie Nicks.

She's putting out a COUNTRY album soon.

 

[Thad1527]

Oh, between the parade and the show I took a cruise! I rode the ferry from downtown to Algiers. It's about a 10-minute trip. RTA runs it; they operate buses, streetcars, and ferries in New Orleans and it's included in all bus passes.

 

[Thad1527]

Monday I went to bingo at the Phoenix. It's the leather bar in the Marigny section and it's my favorite bar in the city. I got to meet two real gay porn stars! Sir Kirk, professional dom, hosted the bingo. It was a fundraiser for the Rougaroux, the local inclusive rugby team. Sir Kirk took off something after each bingo game, so at the end he was wearing just mesh. The boy Is HUNG. He was funny and fun and apparently offers group lessons:

 

[Thad1527]

Also there was benjamingreyxxx, who has done quite a few porn scenes. I'll leave it to you to easily find them. He was nice enough and I got to be next to him when he bought drinks.

 

[Thad1527]

I moved Tuesday! I left the comfy Airbnb and went to the fancy Le Meridien hotel downtown for two nights. The check-in was friendly, the room clean and comfortable, but I missed the space and the Airbnb kitchen. And I didn't care much for the location...I was often getting lost or going the wrong way going or coming. It's centrally located but I was feeling "spun around" and going away from the French Quarter when I wanted to go there...etc!
I did ride busses to a laundromat in East New Orleans before Le Meridien. Thank you, Google Maps. It was clean, spacious, lovely, and I was the only person in it at noon on a Tuesday...until my dryer was almost done and a couple came in to wash.
Tuesday was far quieter. The Decadence crowds were gone. I had a quesadilla near the hotel, then off to the French Quarter for bar hopping. Karaoke was at Good Friends Bar, but making a request involved scanning a QR code and my Android smartphone doesn't do that. I met Otis, the bartender at Bourbon Pub Parade, and had a drink at Rawhide and finished at the Corner Pocket (but the famous dancing boys on the bar were gone).

 

[Thad1527]

Wednesday was rainy! Fortunately, Mother's Restaurant was right across the street from the hotel.

 

[Thad1527]

Yes, the baked ham is excellent.

Wednesday I pretty much repeated the Quarter pub crawl, adding Crossing, an interesting steampunk-decor bar. Otis was hosting Musicals Night at Parade with a good crowd. I talked for a while to Anthony, longtime bartender at the Corner Pocket, where I was the only customer for a while, then to Raul at Rawhide with only a few others. They were supposed to be offering "Jockstrap Pool" and I was ready even though I'm a poor pool player...but the table was idle.
I got a burger at world-famous Clover Grill on Bourbon Street, open 24 hours and it was tasty. Only a couple customers there, too.
I actually like the rainy Wednesday vibe.

 

[Thad1527]

Thursday started rainy but cleared up. I went to Phoenix around noon; they're open 24 hours. It was a nice small crowd, and socially inept (sometimes!) me talked to people and only made a fool of myself once. There was a straight couple staying nearby who were in town to get married Saturday! He went to culinary school and you know foodies love New Orleans. I spent most time talking to Glenn, a local, and Jim, a concert pianist associated with Xavier University, the only Catholic HBCU. (Loyola University has a major music program too, but Jim was happy at Xavier.)

Then off on a streetcar to the central Amtrak/Greyhound station, an express bus to the airport, and a slightly late nonstop flight home. My assigned window seat was next to someone with a baby on their lap! The flight was far from full and I didn't want to make the baby move, so I asked the flight attendant and was allowed to sit in an empty row further back.

 

[Thad1527]

I'm home! Didn't do much today, made spaghetti for dinner. Where did the day go?!

Camden County Pride at Cooper River Park in Cherry Hill, NJ is scheduled for Sunday.