Pride Day At The Gay Baths
For any gay man, summer is a reason for celebration. Not only is the weather warm and beautiful, but it is also when most cities in North America host their Pride Day festivities. We have come a long way. Since Pride Day generally falls on a Sunday, many in the gay community take the preceding Thursday and Friday off work. That way, men can devote four days to enjoying the festivities leading up to the big Pride Day parade. If you want to know who is gay in your office, look around to see who works Thursday and Friday during Pride week. If someone is absent those two days, return on Monday or Tuesday. You know.
Many in the straight community associate Pride Day with celebrating the advancements of the LGBT community. Outsiders see it as the day all gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender people can come together with Pride – to celebrate being gay for just one day. But I have observed that many gay men do not mark Pride Day that way. Pride Day (or week) for most gay men is the one day they can do whatever they want to excess – to party, get drunk, get stoned, and squeeze in as much sex as possible in 24 hours.
Now, I bet you’re asking yourselves, what does Pride have to do with the baths? You would think the baths would be a ghost town with all the festivities on the streets. You have a parade to watch, booths to visit, and many people on the streets and in the bars celebrating being gay. Who would want to be in a bathhouse on Pride Day? – it just so happens that Pride Day (or week) at the baths is the single biggest money-making day of the year.
Let us start with Pride Week and the events leading up to the actual Pride Day parade. Many men from other countries check into the local baths for the entire Pride weekend, which is cheaper than a hotel. Over the weekend, these men go bar and club hopping before returning to the baths looking for more action. As mentioned earlier, many men take Thursday and Friday off from work during Pride week. So it is easy to see why Pride week is the busiest time for bathhouses. On those days and nights leading up to Pride Day, the baths are just as crowded as a regular Saturday night. With all of the celebrating and events just before Pride, scores of gay men push everything to excess – drinking, drugs, so why not sex?
Interestingly, out and closeted gay men are at the baths during Pride. It is almost like they want to be part of the Pride Day festivities in a gay environment. But not go to the parade. Many guys are lounging around the baths, aware that the Pride parade is happening. I think these men feel that being gay is only a part of their psyche. It is not all about who they are. One year I was shocked to see a relatively well-known gay writer at the baths on Pride Day. He is an icon in the literary world, highly respected for his work. Because of his celebrity within the gay community, you would think he would be marching proudly in the parade to the crowd’s cheers since he is well-known and respected. But he was, lounging by the pool, working on his tan. He has reasons for not going to Pride, and other gay men probably feel the same.
Some men have seen the parade so often that it has become redundant. Others feel it has become too large and intimidating, especially for older gay men struggling to maneuver through the big crowds. While some feel Pride should be a 365-day feeling, why have a single day designated? At the same time, a handful of other gay men think that the event has become hypocritical. After years of gaining acceptance from the heterosexual community, the parade re-enforces negative stereotypes in the media with images of half-naked gym bunnies, drag queens, and butch lesbians. But other gay men go to the baths early because they know it will be a madhouse, so it’s best to get a good room ahead of time.
Once the parade ends, a new wave of gay men arrives, all hot, sticky, stoned, drunk, and incredibly horny. After seeing so much flesh and skin during the three-hour parade, these men are ready for one thing – SEX! Within half an hour, the baths become jammed-packed, but the staff has prepared for the influx. Bowls filled with condoms and lube is placed along the hallways and in the lounge area. Towels quadruple as the washing machine runs non-stop to keep up with the demand for new towels. Rooms get cleaned at record speed after someone leaves. Waiting lists for rooms and lockers get longer and longer. The room attendants carry walkie-talkies for that one day, as they frequently contact the front desk. There is so much traffic going in and out of the baths. Some men stay for hours of non-stop sex. But others drop by for a quickie. They come in, get off with someone, then leave to continue partying somewhere else – all in 20 minutes.
As the late afternoon turns into nightfall, there is much more freedom in having sex that day than any other day. Men are walking around completely nude instead of wearing a towel. There are blowjobs and different types of sex/orgies happening openly in the hallways. Many couples arrive at the baths looking for a threesome. Many men are calling ahead of time to reserve a room or two!
One year, I remember one guy who did nothing but go up and down the halls blowing every guy he could find. Another year so many guys came and went at record speed that the hot water ran out! It forced many men to take cold showers, which was not what they had in mind. In short, it is one big orgy, with everyone having sex with everybody, and this is just the afternoon. When night falls, it gets even busier, with even more men checking into the baths, looking to get off. Sex is happening non-stop. The orgies usually die down at around six – in the morning!
If you are curious about what the bathhouse in your city is like on Pride Day, you should drop by. Who knows who you might meet?
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