So, umm, yeah. This tattoo is, umm, interesting. And, in a strange sort of way, kinda hot.
Category Archives: General
He Forgot the Goatee
Just got an email from Scott Johnson of the Extra Life and he got me into a Extra Life strip. Check it out here.Jeff
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BigHoustonBear’s Blog
Hi folks – Welcome to my very first blog ever! Yes, I am a blogging virgin – so please be gentle with me…..
Let me take this first opportunity to introduce myself – I am BigHoustonBear (a fairly accurate description of me, actually). From my little speck on the web I hope to keep you up to date with what’s going on in the Bear community in and around Houston. I’ve been active in the Houston Area Bears since 2004, when I made the transition from Boston to Houston. My 15 years in the Boston area were a tremendous time of growth and self acceptance, but eventually it became clear that it was time to be closer to family – but not ‘too’ close. I am by birth a native southerner, born/raised in the sticks of Mississippi. No, I did not engage in entercourse or marriage with a sibling or cousin, or with farm animals. I do have some rather interesting stories about being gay in Mississippi, but that’s for another time and place.
Back to the task at hand – BEARS! Our little group in The Houston Area Bears (HAB) is comprised of a diverse membership, all of whom embrace the bear culture and all that entails. Many of our members also belong to various other organizations as well, all of which take a very active role in raising funds for our community and awareness of the issues we face. HAB is no exception. For the past two years HAB has been proud to support H.A.T.C.H. (www.hatchyouth.org) an organization under the umbrella of the Montrose Counseling Center, dedicated to helping our GLBT teens and youth become responsible, aware, and proactive adults by providing them with peer-led counseling, education, resource referrals, all in a safe, affirming environment.
What’s New With Houston Area Bears
HAB just finished participation in LUEY Weekend. NOW – for you LUEY virgins, read carefully……Organizations like HAB belong to a collective of clubs and organizations known as the Houston Council of Clubs (HCC). Each year, participating clubs put together a weekend long event the weekend after Mardis Gras. The name LUEY is an acronym for Let Us Entertain You. The initial intent of LUEY was to keep the Mardis Gras party-spirit alive for those returning to Houston from New Orleans. This year marks the milestone 35th anniversary of LUEY, quite a remarkable accomplishment, particularly in our community! In a nutshell, for you virgins, LUEY is a weekend-long bar-crawl through Houston, with the HCC member clubs hosting cocktail “receptions” in various bars around town. Now, when I say “cocktail reception”, I use the term loosely….this is not your stereotypical pretentious, dress-up, hob-nob type of affair – oh, far from it……Insatead of waiters/waitresses in black-and-white serving flutes of champagne and cosmpos, try to picture scantily clad, burly, muscular men in leather and ripped 501’s spooning out a glorified trashcan punch in Dixie cups. Not to disparage the cocktail receptions at LUEY – as a matter of fact, there is an unspoken competiton among the participating groups as to who can make the best cocktail. This year, HAB had a very tasty libation we called “Chocolate Rain”, which met with rave reviews.
Saturday afternoon there is a lunch served at one of the local establishements, usually The Ripcord, Houston’s leather bar. You may have heard stories about the “activities” on the back patio….I myself would never engage in such activities (and write about them on a blog!!) On Saturday Night there is a dinner served at our incredible country-western bar The Brazos River Bottom (HELLO – we are in Texas-it’s a requisite!) followed by a long-standing tradition known as the TIFFLE Hat Parade. The Tiffle Ladies are the spouses/partners/boyfriends/designees of senior board members of each club, who have the distinct honor of modelling an outrageous hat constructed by members of their respective club. Again, we go back to the competition – when you have any group of creative queens vying for some sort of title or sash, well, the competition can get fierce…
All this brings us to Sunday and the LUEY Show of Shows, where each member group of HCC stages a short variety skit. There is no particular theme in mind; however, I am most proud to say that HAB has come to be known for having the most twisted and the most original skits. This year was no exception – for those who stayed until the very end, you know what I’m talking about…..that last little surprise will soon be uploaded to our website for all to enjoy.
Miss Hathaway (my cat) informs me that i’ve been ignoring her entirely too long, so I must give her the attention she thinks she deserves. Next week look for an update on BEARWATCH 9 – BOOTY CAMP (www.bearwatch.net). Trust me, it’ll be worth it!
Nakia’s Annual Birthday Bash
Straight from his press release:
To celebrate his 33rd birthday in style, Austin singer Nakia
is inviting a few of his closest friends – and anyone else who’d like
to attend – to a party on Wednesday, Feb. 20, at Jovita’s in South
Austin. “Nakia’s Annual Birthday Bash Celebration,” as it has come to
be known, kicks off at 6:30 p.m. with former Weary Boy Mario Matteoli, who will warm up the stage for an 8:30 performance by Nakia & His Southern Cousins. The birthday set will feature scheduled appearances by Monte Warden and Cella Blue of the White Ghost Shivers, plus a few other surprises.
Jovita is at 1619 South First St., (just south of the Colorado river) in Austin, TX. I know some of COL will be there. Will you?
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International Bear Rendezvous: Bear Patrol. A preview of the biggest IBR ever
All of us on the IBR 2008 Committee staff are putting the finishing touches on our 9-month preparation for what we hope is the best IBR ever. Bears On Patrol- Bears in Uniform celebrates just that- police, fireman, army, etc.
Before we get into a little tour of what to expect, we want to remind everyone that IBR is a monumental event and it takes about 300 shift volunteers to operate smoothly. Without volunteers there would be no IBR. We have a large number of volunteer shifts, including Hospitality Suite and Hospitality Den (Bear Den)shifts that do need to be filled. These consist of manning duties like checking badges, replenishing snacks, etc. It may sound “boring” but these areas are IBR central for people gathering and you’ll meet tons of nice people here!
You receive one volunteer token for each volunteer shift you do. One Token is good for a IBR commerative dog-tag, 2 gets you a spanking brand new IBR 2008 hat, and three, a T-shirt. And you also get an invitation to the IBR 2008 volunteer thank-you luncheon and check distribution (what it’s all about when we give out the BIG checks!).
Please check out our volunteer shift page and browse the different shift areas, times, and titles available. If you sign up for a shift, PLEASE remember to CHECK YOUR SPAM folder and CONFIRM the shift so we know you are coming !!
THE LINK IS: http://www.bosf.org/woof/volunteer
And now for some updates:
IBR registration packages for this year includes non-showtime access to FOUR different draft beers in our hospitality suite Friday to Sunday. And a 40% bigger Bear Den (lounge area) open to 4 AM Fri-Sun !
There are over 700 attendees signed up already, and although some events have sold out, we still have room at:
– Beach Blanket Babylon (get tickets at HQ)
– Bears Bath and Beyond (walk-up at event)
– Golden Gate Experience(pay bus wrangler outside hotel)
– Blow Buddies (pay at event)
– Crusin’ the Castro Historic Tour: meet outside hotel at 9AM, pay on tour
Here’s some highlights:
Thursday:
IBR’s Welcome Fuzz Ball, sponsored by A Bear’s Life: Enjoycomplimentary draft beer, snacks and h’orderves as you meet new andestablished friends. Stevo and the staff from A Bear’s Life will bedoing a one-night-only subscription special, which gets you a raffle ticket to some GREAT prizes like mountain bikes and items from LOGO TV network!! At 5:45 IBR will do it’s first live-auction (of nine!): A morning live on the air on Energy 92.7 FM! At 6pm, the lights will go down and the BEARatones will perform their wonderful songs for you. Check out their new website: www.bearatones.com . Then there’s the raffle drawings and more fun, and then time for the BOSF Annual members meeting. At 7:30 we start pre-registration and will-call for”An Evening With Kathy Griffin”, and then you can enjoy the Welcome Fuzz Ball, or prepare for FOUR different IBR Partner welcome parties!:
Lone Star Welcome Party
Eagle Tavern Welcome Party with “BEHR”, the Whoa Nellies, and Future Villain Band
Dirty Hearts and Broken Wings: Viva La Basket
Bearracuda’s Underbear Patrol Party
And our IBR shuttle buses can take you to them all safely and withouthaving to pay for taxis. When you’re done for the night, our Bear Den will be waiting for you and open until 4AM !
Friday:
Bears’s Bath and Beyond- An even bigger response this year, DJ Jeb Edwards and rolling bus service!
Golden Gate Park/ De Young Museum- Explore one of the best parks in the US, with tons to see, and/or the De Young Museum
B’EROS- Enjoy our first year at this wonderful spa!
Jail House Rock Bingo- The biggest-planned Bingo ever, with porn model jock strap auctions, an Iphone and an Itouch as some of the raffle prizes, and we will do IBR LIVE AUCTION 2 and 3.
-SWEAT 1: Castrobear Presents’ first of three Partner dance events, at the famous EndUp.
Kandy 3: SugarKRASH: KuMa SF’s hot party, presenting Tiffany !!! Buses run till 4AM for this event!
The IBR Contestant Introduction- At the Eagle Tavern
Bearfilms.com’s screening room- Accessible through the Hospitality Suite, and including your favorite stars!
Cyberbears.com’s screening room- Enjoy Cyberbear’s debut at IBR!
Saturday:
-Cruisin’ the Castro Tour- See the brand-new retro signage of the Castro Theatre and businesses as “MILK” finishes filming in the Castro. Get a wonderful historic tour you won’t forget.
-Squares for Bears: Enjoy this fun community group and get your dancing feet on!
-Eagle Tavern Beer Bust- can you say FUN? Meet the contestants as they get on their knees for a good cause !
-Dinner and Show- Featuring Mark Alan Smith ! And 2 more live auctions!
-Midnight Madness: “An Evening With Kathy Griffin”- BOSF presents Kathy Griffin in a one-night sold-out show at the Castro Theatre, filmed for her Emmy Award-winning “My Life on the D List”
-BEARRACUDA: DJ Rotten Robbie, and three floors of fun !
-SWEAT 2: The official Saturday night Bear/Muscle Bear dance !
Sunday:
Dim Sum gobble- Need I say more? Back at the spacious Canton restaurant. Enjoy !!
Beach Blanket Babylon- 30+ years and a must-see show!
Play Party- The guys at Blow Buddies throw on another great afternooner 🙂
PLAY T-dance- Susan Morbito spins for a wonderful Partner dance event!
Eagle Tavern Beer Bust- The Sisters are hosting a terrific beer bust,and come see Bearfilm.com’s America’s Next Top Bear Model !
SWEAT 3- A great way to end the weekend, dancing your butt off with the official closing night dance party of IBR !
International Mr. Bear Competition- Who will win the titles- come and find out, as we also recognize our service award winners, and are entertained by the famous San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus’ Lollipop Guild. And THREE more live auctions!!
Did we mention there are over $12,000 face-value in live auctions this year? That’s right. Trips to Spain, Hawaii, Alaska, and packages for the Four Seasons Hotel Spa, Lazy Bear, Kathy Griffin tickets,Russian River B&B, and a chartered private boat cuise for 6 !! You can see more details on our website under “Auction”, and place a proxy bid starting Friday at the IBR HQ/Store.
Our website for IBR is: www.bearrendezvous.com Hours of fun just exploring, or better yet, come enjoy in-person and experience yourself!
All of the Committe, Sponsors, Partners, Holiday Inn Golden Gateway and IBR optional event staff, are looking forward to welcoming you for a weekend that we hope you’ll enjoy and remember for a long time. And our IBR Beneficiaries thank you for your generosity by supporting IBR and making their mission statement dreams come true. We hope to see you in just a few days and if you’re coming from afar we hope your journey is a safe one!
Sincerely,
Richard Tramontozzi
IBR 2008 Logistics Coordinator