Aussielicious

Last week, there was a big announcement that the organisation known as New Mardi Gras, formerly Mardi Gras, was now going to be called Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, which after several years of the “New” title was always going to happen. The bit that is causing the debate is that the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade is now going to be called the Sydney Mardi Gras.

There are groups in the LGBTQI community that feel like that isn’t right and it’s losing the very thing we are fighting for. The argument of the organisation is that it’s now MORE inclusive and has it’s sights set on the future of an all inclusive community. I for one think it’s fantastic. By listing all the separate groups, we continue to hold up the divisions between us all and that string of letters has grown and will keep growing so that no one in the outside community knows what is going on at all, therefore defeating the whole purpose.

As humans, it’s natural to form groups with like minded people but to provide a united front and fight for equality and recognition, this step makes perfect sense to me! Congratulations and all the very best for many years to come.

Some comments my flatmate made about the TV coverage of Saturday’s Gay & Lesbian parade, as well as re-discovering some heated debate on an old post on this blog, have really made me wonder about the “Gay Community” and whether we will ever really show a community spirit.

The debate on an old post stemmed from me making an assumption that a female acquaintance was a lesbian because she went camping in a group of women and I didn’t know of any straight women that did that. Someone called my comments “typical vacuous Sydney queer”. The debate raged on about the term “Straight Acting” and maybe it was to distance themselves from the effeminate, camp stereotypes of gay men.

My flatmate took issue with the coverage of the parade because it played into all those negative stereotypes that the wider community have. The stereotypes that we are over-sexed degenerates, camp, effeminate men or butch men hating women, that all gay men like wearing women’s clothing and so on and on and on and on. To an extent I agree, the coverage by the straight media does usually tend towards that but there is an argument that these are the kind of things in the parade.

My issue with the term “Straight acting” isn’t with gay men who appear to be straight at all. I know many gay men that are very masculine and blokey, but guess what? They aren’t acting. I also know lots of men that are naturally and comfortably camp. I put myself somewhere in the middle and I’m comfortable with that. My issue is when you feel like you need to put on a completely different persona to be accepted. Where would the defiantly and in your face “straight acting” guys be without the loud and proud, openly gay men and women who have so famously fought for our rights and acceptance for so long? Still in the closet I imagine.

On the other hand (and I’m allowed to be a fence sitter, I’m Libran) I can understand the discomfort with the overtly in-your-face campness and the idea that it might make some people uncomfortable. I just hope that one day we get it through our heads that while we fight for acceptance in the wider community, it might be best to show some within our own “community”.

The theme for this year’s Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras is “Say Something” and Kylie is lending her support to her beloved gays with this message for a happy Mardi Gras and a call for no more homophobia!

On Monday morning, I was driving to work when a woman called in to the radio station I listen to, to complain about Fair Day, one of the big events on Sydney’s Mardi Gras calendar. It had been held in a big park the day before. In part of that park is a public swimming pool which was closed because of Fair Day.

The woman was complaining that “The Majority” don’t get a street parade and a big fair day that is unwelcoming to others. I beg to differ. In Sydney ‘The Gays” get one parade a year, one big Fair Day and a handful of other events.

Given that the “majority” is 9 out of 10 people and we are just one out of that 10 I believe they get a lot more than 9 times the number of Fairs, fetes, music festivals and countless other events where gay people are distinctly made to feel uncomfortable and perhaps even unsafe.

She proposed a “Majority” parade with women in power suits and men with briefcases. I don’t know what planet she’s living on but a lot of us, “the minority” wear suits and carry briefcases and walk amongst the “majority” every day, unnoticed. Our Mardi Gras parade started over 30 years ago as a protest for gay rights and all the participants were arrested. Our parade today still calls attention to inequality and unfair treatment, as well as celebrating that we have actually come some way forward towards equality which she would take from us no doubt.

What would her parade celebrate? Keeping us from being married? Keeping us from being able to adopt? Keeping us from being able to donate blood? The caller has just proven how far we have yet to go in our fight for our rights. Thankfully the radio hosts basically told her that her parade would be bloody boring and that she was being a bit unfair.

Once again it’s time for the Mardi Gras madness to begin here in Sydney. The Lifesavers With Pride, the float that I’m marching/dancing with had our first rehearsal tonight and it’s going to be another fun routine. I am not feeling that in shape at the moment but nevertheless I will have my red aussieBums on and be dancing up the street with a massive grin on my face once more. It’s such a fun thing to do and I wouldn’t miss it for the world.

Here is a promo video for Mardi Gras 2011 for all you folks still not sure if you are going to make the trip down under to play with some hotties down under. Mardi Gras definitely brings a different vibe to this beautiful city of ours. If you live here, get out and be friendly to the tourists and if you are a tourist, enjoy the friendly locals!

Last night was the wrap party for the mardi gras float and the launch of our DVD. Chadd has done a great job once again putting all his footage into the DVD and making sure we all look like we are having a ball. We were so it might not be that difficult.

I designed the cover again this year, but then had to design another one as the committee thought the first one looked too much like a porno. Maybe I’ve been desensitised after years of being single and masturbating to porn but the porn I buy is much more racy than the cover I designed (left). Oh well, people liked to have the option.

Watching this I can’t help but smile. The parade was so much fun.

Last night was the Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras parade and we had so much fun! The parade had over 6,000 participants and zillions of sequins and dodgy fashion choices that are perfect for mardi gras. Our routine was a really high energy routine that left us all exhausted half way in.

I was just browsing a couple of the local news sites online and one of the galleries had this photo of me and local blogger boy Shannon next to me! Our routine was a disco inspired number that the crowd seemed to love. Apparently the judges thought we were pretty good too. In our first year, 2007, we won sexiest float, last year we won best choreography, and last night we took out the grand prize of best float! That is despite, with a third of the parade to go, our generator blowing up so we had no music or lights. We did prove that we can all count to 8 over and over again after that to try and keep the routine going, some of us just didn’t do it at the same time! So much fun!

Now that the Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras parade is only 9 days away, I’m about to kick my all-too-pathetic training regime up a notch. Tomorrow morning is going to hurt at the gym. I’m going to do the Spartan 300 routine again. I’ve only done it 3 times, many months ago and it hurts like a mother fucker. Mainly because I never do any cardio.

I am fully aware that it’s all a case of too little, too late, but hey, I need to do what I can. So, it’s off to bed for me so that I can get up at 5.30. That bit hurts just thinking about it.

Tomorrow night is our first rehearsal for this year’s Mardi Gras Parade. We had some issues in preparation earlier in the process but we have a really enthusiastic committee and we’ve locked in a new choreographer so tomorrow night will be great. I’m fighting hard for my beloved front row position and I can’t wait to see the routine!

This year’s sleaze ball is set to be sexy as all hell with the sporting theme “Game On” sure to have all the lycra fetishists and jock muscle boys all in a fluster. The Stingers, Sydney’s gay waterpolo team have teamed up with Mardi Gras to offer a chance to win a double pass. All you need to do is go to the Stingers Site and register. Given that tickets aren’t cheap and there’s only a few weeks left until the long weekend, this is a fantastic way of getting to go along and sweat it up in what you can pretend is a massive locker room… oh yeah!

Each year I’ve posted a video that Chadd has put together for me of me doing the routine in the parade. Chadd has been nice enough to do it again for me but I have to say, I’m not happy. This year I was even worse with my diet than I was last year. I had such good intentions of eating right and doing cardio and all sorts of good things in the lead up. None of it happened. Yes I’m being very vain. Yes I’m being hard on myself but I’m getting cranky with myself for my total lack of discipline. It comes from never having to worry about what I eat because I’d never put on weight. Now, as I’m in my mid 30′s, I’m not as lucky. Sure, I’m not fighting the flab but my habits need to be sorted out and soon or as I get older I’m going to get fat.

Anyway, here’s the video of me in this year’s parade. Last year someone posted a comment telling me that I was being very self absorbed not showing the rest of the float and how could I have only thought to film myself. Chadd handed me the video camera on a long extension rod at rehearsal one night and asked to see just how I would film myself doing the routine. It’s not at all possible, but it was funny.

The wonderful Chadd that does our photography and video for our float has put together this teaser for the upcoming DVD that we produce every year for participants. It’s looking good I have to say!

This video would have to be one of the best I’ve seen of Mardi Gras. This guy does amazing work, I think through time lapse filming or stitching photos together to make a video. He treats them in such a way that everything looks like a tiny little world populated, in this case, with thousands of little gay people. It’s beautiful to watch.

Mardi Gras from Keith Loutit on Vimeo.