Gay surroundings and people do provide me a definite sense of comfort and normalcy, wherever I may be. I'm in Tahoe this weekend, as you know, and last night the conference participants were allowed to go enjoy Tahoe on their own. Great idea and we were given some options of gambling in Reno or a dinner cruise on the Lake. All I kept thinking about was where the gay bars/clubs are in the area because I missed my people. Now, mind you, I never go out clubbing/bar-hopping when I'm home in San Francisco, but whenever I take a trip it's one of the first concerns I have to find my people.

So last night I searched on the web and found really nothing in the remote area of Tahoe, however there were a number of gay bars in Reno (about an hour away) so I decided to take my rental car and drive into Reno (not for the gambling but for the gay scene). The first place I found was closed down and the second bar was a total dive where I walked in and out pretty quickly (I always feel bad doing that to bars I'm not interested in, but it's not my scene). Finally I found the one gay nightclub Reno has to offer and hung out there for a couple of hours. How lame it was. If this is the gay scene of Reno, then I must say Reno has very little in the sense of a gay scene. And this commentary is coming from someone who knows what small gay scenes are like, being originally from Kansas City.

In any case, I always have more of a sense of courage when I'm away from home, so I go and sit right next to this really cute guy at the bar and start chatting. He's very nice and cute and we bond quickly. Unfortunately, I then learn that he's straight, at the bar with his gay friends, has just recently broken up with his girlfriend who jilted him at the altar, and is now proceeding to literally cry in his beer. And I mean major crying. Well, now what do I do? I want to be compassionate and sympathetic, but then hanging out with a sad straight guy was not why I came to see the gay scene in Reno. Ugh. We hang out for a while longer and I kinda mosey around the bar some, but it is quite lame and eventually leave and head back to Tahoe.

It's probably ironic that I never go out clubbing or bar-happing in my hometown of San Francisco when it does have probably the best gay nightlife of any city. But I know that the real reason I don't is because living in San Francisco is having my gay community and surroundings constantly around me without having to be in the dark nightscene. One of the reasons I love San Francisco is because I can be openly gay and not have to live it through the bars, but can actually live it constantly in my everyday life by just being surrounded by my brethren in my home community. I'll be home soon and happy to be around my people again. Hasta luego!