Six Old Skool Things...

1. Red Neckties In the dapper days of the 30s and 40s, we inverts (as we were called then) could spot each other by the red ties dangling from our collars. For practical purposes, these days we would be helping gaydar-less queer men and straight women parse out the metros from the homos. 2. Invert Seriously antiquated, and seriously campy. Imagine saying invert every time you call out your homo-sista? In our post-Stonewall, hypothalamus-theory age, thats downright hilarious! 3. Supporting Small Gay Businesses Sure, buying everything at a chain drugstore or on Amazon.com might be less expensive and more convenient, but remember when supporting that independent gay bookstore was not only about reading books by and about queer people, but a show of support and solidarity for the community? 4. Drag Balls In the 30s, Manhattans most buzzed-out parties used to be city-wide drag balls that brought together people of all shades and sexualities. Moreover, they werent about having the biggest, butchest-looking muscle queens in tow or about gay male dominance, but glamour glamour glamour for everyone. 5. Sexuality Experimentation The hippies were on point in trying to love everyone in a myriad of ways. Straights tried same-sex and gays tried the other way on principle and not just from heavy usage of chemical substances. Why have we become so uptight about our sexual identities? 6. Gay Brothels Yes, we did! We said brothels! And why? Because making prostitution illegal has never made it go away, nor has it made money-for-sex any safer for client or sex worker; so why not legalize and regulate brothels so that theyre sites to educate about safer sex rather than letting sordid encounters in sketchy conditions become a real breeding ground for disease?