That is so Gay.
Yesterday I went with a girlfriend of mine to look at a house over in Oak Lawn, an area of Dallas known for its tolerance, acceptance and welcoming of people of all lifestyles. It's our really lame version of the Castro, but nice nonetheless. As you can imagine, the stores are well decorated, the lawns nicely manicured and the men well chiseled. M and I are in the market for a new home - buying this time - and I thought that I'd take a look at a house that was touted in the ad "a tropical oasis in the city". It was. Gorgeous pool, amazing plants, a greenhouse, really nice inside, but a shitty kitchen, so it's probably going into the "no" pile.
On the way back to Straightland, I notice these floats going by with some REALLY tall chicks with big hair. Big hair is no anomaly here, but tall? Floats? Platform latex boots? Too much rouge? It's Gay Pride!
While it's no San Francisco pride ("Where's all the techno?" my friend, also from SF, asked), it was really good to see so many people out there. There was live music, and a lot of petitions to be signed. I learned that just because we're out now, doesn't mean that's the end. We need to get to the Coming Out Project and revisit our outness, over and over again. Also, I just found out that there is Gay Bingo at one of the churches I had my eye on, and I should come there too, and support my fellow gay people in Dallas, because being queer here is tough. And, according to some of the church groups across the street, God Hates Fags. Oh, and I also learned that I pass for lesbian very, very easily.
I think that besides the booths and the costumes (not a lot of those either), the best part of Pride in Dallas was the amount of families with small kids I saw. People here determined to teach their children tolerance, acceptance and open mindedness from square one. It makes me think that the big migration into Texas, and Dallas in particular, from California, New York and other areas, has proven beneficial to the people here. Yes, Dallas went demo in the last election, but the Metroplex as a whole (which encompasses Ft. Worth, Plano, Frisco and other rapidly growing areas) did not by any means.
Which brings me to my next topic - where to live. M and I are buying a house in the next six months or so. Where, though, is the big issue. Though he'd prefer to live closer to the city M is very open to living anywhere, and I, being the difficult one, am not. I refuse to move north. I just won't. And M and his family think I'm being closed minded about it, and that's ok, but this is a stand that I will take. There are many reasons one would move north:
1. Ridiculously oversized homes. We're talking 4,000 square feet for $150,000 and up. My problem there is that big homes need to be cleaned. I hate cleaning. Also, who the hell needs that much space? My last apartment was like 300 sq. ft.
2. Cheap.
3. It's rapidly expanding. We're talking "Planned Communities" and "Home Owners Associations (HOA's)". Now, HOA's take care of your landscaping and street maintainance, and many have private security people to monitor your streets. You're also restricted from painting your home specific colors, putting up a DirecTV dish or a basketball hoop, and you need to pay annual dues in the thousands. And gated communities keep out others. All others. They have schools INSIDE the communities. I keep thinking that they're putting something in the water and all the residents are being programmed to rise up against us.
4. COSTCO is up there. And Outback Steakhouse (I love me some Outback).
5. Um, you can pick out your own trees, since nothing is growing there yet. Except cows.
And here's a few of my reasons NOT to:
1. There are more Republicans north. That's just a fact. There are more registered Republicans in North Dallas and Plano - over 65%, and when you get north of that it goes up to 80%. I can't and won't live there. Yes, some people are able to see across party lines and make nice with people, but I am not one of them. I wouldn't purposely pursue a friendship with someone with the exact opposite beliefs as me, so why would I surround myself by people who I wouldn't want to socialize with. Are they all bad people? No, of course not! But do I want my children to grow up around intolerance and bigotry? Never. (On a side note to my Republican friends - YOU are the exception, not the rule to your party. I'm talking gun-toting, right-takingaway, anti-reproductive rights, gay-hating crap mongers here, not you.)
2. There are more guns north. Yes, it's true. Texans like their firearms. There are more registered guns and permits in Tarrant and Collin County (Ft. Worth and Plano) than in Dallas County. I hate guns. I would NEVER EVER EVER allow my kids to play in a home that has guns in it. Since we're buying a house that our kids will live in, why would I put another obstacle in the way?
3. Because that was the deal. When the big decision was made that I would move here rather than M moving to California, it was decided that in order to keep my sanity, we would live in an area that was more accessible to the city, more liberal and, let's face it, less Texas. So now we're making another big decision, and that's gotta play into it.
While he thinks that we should never close our minds to any area, M agrees that we should live down here. He's like the real estate king now, picking out houses to look at, but to explain to everyone else- parents, friends, etc. - why we're looking to pay more and have a smaller home, rather than the behemoths up north, it's really difficult to do without sounding like an elitist asshole. And I *am* an elitist asshole. I can deal with that. But I'm not a REPUBLICAN ELITIST ASSHOLE. That's the big difference.