April 16, 2011 - Express Yourself

Happy Saturday everybody! Today is the first of a ten day vacation for me. Spring Break is always the best of the yearly breaks that we get in school, if not only for the weather, and since my Christmas and winter breaks totally sucked, I’m going to make for it this time, for sure. Instead of venturing out into the city last night as I normally would do on the first night of a long vacation, I went to the Bunkhouse again for their ‘Da Bunk Fridays.’ All in all I had a great time and my visit gave me the inspiration for today's “E” post…

E is for Express Yourself

In the gay world, youth and beauty are everything. If you’re not young and beautiful, you’re nothing, especially here on Long Island, where the young ones are as pretentious as their parents. Now I’m no slouch for someone my age. I think I carry myself off pretty well. I’m in shape, I look a lot younger than my real age, and I believe I dress pretty well. I understand many of the workings of life, and I can see the parallels between generations.

As I made my way around the bar last night, I couldn’t help but take notice of how the young ones dress these days. There seems to be no one particular style that everyone adheres to…a hoodie here and there, a few Mohawks, and an occasional oddity or two. Many my age refuse to give these kids props for dressing the way they do. They think they're just plain weird. I disagree.




Other than the particular styles I mentioned, people dress in a wide variety of styles, just as it was when I was their age. I saw people wearing sunglasses in the dark, a couple of guys in nice shirts and ties, and a few young ladies looking very nice in pretty dresses. Dressing is a means to express yourself and what we choose to wear is an extension of who we are as a person. Individuality is one of the spices of life and I celebrate it, not demean it.

I particularly admire those who take care in dressing the way they feel, without worry of what others think. It’s their way of expressing themselves and I say they should. In the early 1980’s when I was first introduced to clubbing, I partook in the latest fads, too. I had two pairs of parachute pants that I wore endlessly, one in black and one in red, I wore ear cuffs, and I even had a blond tail once. I'm sure anyone reading this post can remember something 'crazy' they once sported. It's totally normal and totally cool!


Parachute pants from the 80's

So, for those folks with the nose rings and tattoos, the strangely colored t-shirts and such, I say bravo. Show the world who you are. Express yourself!




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