Looking at what I have planed for 2010, it looks like alot of fun-filled with wonderful opportunities, experiences, books & growth.

My husband thinks that my 52 books in 52 weeks is a bit aggressive, but I think it’s entirely possible and I’m looking forward to it.  So far I have 16 books listed to read, and 2 of them have been bought.  I have started SAME KIND OF DIFFERENT AS ME and will follow it up with WHY IS GOD LAUGHING.  Some of the other books I have on my list are biographies about Steve Martin and Randy Owens.  I’m looking forward to those as well.

Here are a few things I’m looking forward to this year:

Sky Diving, Sacred Sex Retreat with Tracy, Lots of exercising to get down to my goal weight, I would also like to walk on coals this year, a spiritual retreat, and maybe even try some churches here in town and see if I can find a place that feels like home.

Here’s an experience I can share with you now.   Last night, my hubby and I went out on a date:  Sherlock Holmes, Cheesecake Factory, and drinks at Pitchers & Pints where my friend Remington is the bartender.  Pitchers & Pints is this little tiny bar that reminds me of the bar in “Cheers”….”where everybody knows your  name.  I have been to neighborhood bars before, but nothing like this.  When we walked in, Remi saw us and gave us a big smile and a wave, but the rest of the crowded bar hardly gave us a thought.  We aren’t regulars there.  We found a place to sit along the bar and visited with Remi when he had a chance to visit with us, and we drank our beers and people watched.

Remi is a gay man and just plain adorable.  He loves to laugh and have fun, and working at the bar is perfect for him (right now).  He gets to socialize and drink..two of his favorite things.  But on this particular night, he was supposed to be do a “lap dance” for a Drag Queen.  This might sound unusual to alot of people.  This building as been a bar since 1965, but it has taken many different personalities.  When my husband and I moved to Boise it was a Gay bar and was featured in the show “Insomniacs”.  Then it changed names a couple of times and is no longer a “gay bar”, but certainly there are still lots of patrons from the gay community that visit there.  So when Remi was asked to do a lap dance for a Drag Queen, this isn’t quite out of the ordinary as you might first have thought.  Anyway, Remi wasn’t thrilled about having to do a lap dance for a Drag Queen so we spent much of our night with him teasing him about the idea.

Music was playing from the juke box, and every once in a while, the whole bar would break out into song  and sang along with it.  Then a beautiful woman walked in.  As soon as she entered the bar, she struck a pose and I heard Remi say, “There she is!”.  Immediately, the woman came to sit beside us and introduced herself to us.  I don’t remember her name.  She was quite the character.  Before long she was flirting with the two 70 year old men and her designated driver was hiding behind her glass of water.  It was quite humorous.

At one point the owner of the bar came in.  He and his partner had never seen us in the bar before.  They both introduced themselves to us and wanted to make sure we were having a good time.  In truth, we were having a great time.

Then a young man who I had recognized from Forever Red (an event to appreciate those who work for and with people with HIV and AIDS) came in sat down next to me and said, “Remi, give me a beer and quick!  Before they get  here!”  I laughed and we introduced ourselves.  His name was JD.  The “they” he was referring to were the Drag Queens from “The Court” (a nonprofit charitable organization that raises money for GLBT scholarships and AIDS/HIV issues).  JD and I started talking.  He was a very interesting young man.  He is clean-cut, blonde and very cute.  I remembered seeing him walk up to the stage at Forever Red while “The Empress” (the reigning Draw Queen of The Court) was doing her presentation, and he gave her a rose, kneeled as if greeting royalty and kissed her hand.  I asked him about that.  He told me it wasn’t about  honoring HER; it was about honoring what she represented…all the work “The Court” has done for HIV and AIDS.  It made sense to me then.    Then I asked him, based on his entrance request for a beer (“before they get here”) if it was easier to get along with straight women or Drag Queens.  His reply, “Straight women!”.  He told me that before he came out, when he was a teenager here in Idaho, he was the president of the Young Republicans, had a different name and a completely different appearance.  Then he came out, fell in love and got married to the man he loved.  But that man broke his heart, and JD became JD and now instead of President of the Young Republicans Club he hangs out with the Drag Queens and The Court…

Isn’t it funny where life leads you?

The Drag Queens came and went, and Remi never did have to do his lap dance.  But as we closed the bar, I thought about the fun night we had sitting on those two bar stools.  I watched a group of about 5 people singing and dancing and having a great time.  I watched 2 older, weather, gentlemen flirt like 30 somethings with a beautiful 20 something young woman (I’m sure it made their year).  I watched a young man’s  heart-break and his boyfriend dumped him for a “hook up” he had just met that night.  I watched a Drag Queen celebrate her birthday with her other Drag Queen friends and saw the men that hung out with them, roll their eyes at the drama that came with being a Drag Queen.  I learned new things about “The Court” and how a young man’s life changed as he came out of the closet.  I watched Remi dance behind the bar and be the ultimate host for this neighborhood bar where people came and went.  And when they entered, there was Remi always with a hug or a wave to greet his customers..adn when they left, there was always a hug and “i love you” good-bye.  And through it all, the music played and we sang and sometimes even danced.  It was a great night filled with laughter and friendship…in a bar where everyone knows your name!