Gifts That Keep on Giving

Most people wait until the holidays to be charitable, but nobody gets into the spirit of giving like the gays, which is why I love them so. For us, opportunities for togetherness aren’t just a seasonal thing. Counting the blessings we create among our chosen families is a year-round pursuit of happiness, and it’s inspiring, a gift that keeps on giving.

I’ve found my own golden rule of giving, which I’ve borrowed from REAL BAD, my favorite Party With Purpose. It’s “Be Bad, Do Good,” and the lineup of holigays coming up offers great ways to go about it.

Friday, December 3, is the last Nasty of the year. My filthy fun-raiser takes place every first Friday at The Powerhouse and benefits Project Inform. Instead of Christmas presents, we’ll have Crisco cans decorated with red ribbons symbolizing AIDS awareness. By playing a little game called STICK IT IN! (use your imagination), we’ve raised just over $8,000 this year alone to help fight the HIV and Hepatitis C epidemics.

Also benefiting Project Inform at the Powerhouse is Studio 33, a birthday party in honor of my Sister Phyliss Withe-Litaday on December 8. It’s a glam, dirty, disco underwear party with a wet underwear contest at midnight – you won’t find more fun on a Thursday night.

I’m almost certain to drop my pants and dance on December 10, when my angel of disco, DJ Abel, comes to town for Black XXXmas at Factory. It’s the 6th year in a row for this party, which brings together Gus Presents and Luke Johnstone’s Industry for a circuit powerhouse that I look forward to all year long.

On December 11, it’ll be dance around the clock, with charity in between:

The Sisters of Perpetual IndulgenceAn order of queerGay. Can be used interchangeably as a term of pride or as a derogatory term, depending on context. A term intentionally and politically reclaimed by some, in protest of the term’s historical use as a slur. nuns to community service, ministry and outreach to those on the edges, as well as to promoting human rights, respect for diversity and spiritual enlightenment. The sisters believe that all people have a right to express their unique joy and beauty, and they use humor and irreverent wit to expose the forces of bigotry, complacency and guilt that chain the human spirit. They vow to promulgate universal joy and expiate stigmatic guilt while serving their respective communities. Although the San Francisco House, founded in 1979, is often referred to as the "Mother House," the Sisters have no central seat of power and no single ruling body. Houses now exist around the world, and each is an autonomous, unique group with its own Habits, culture and rules., the ultimate naughty-and-nice do-gooders, give us a chance to have a cocktail and some laughs in support of their fundraising and community awareness programs, with Project Nunway III at BeatBox, a badass charity fashion show that pairs Sisters with designers to develop a new-year themed look made from recycled materials.

And the beat goes on from there, with another party on December 11 that sounds exactly like what I’d ask Santa for if he’d invite me to sit on his lap: Disco Christmas is an exclusive sneak preview of a shiny new dance palace called The Grand Nightclub at 520 4th Street. DJs Steve Fubs and Paul Goodyear will bring disco and house music home for the holidays, and I’ll be bringing the holiday cheers and queers.

That’s just about twelve days of Christmas fun, with plenty of special sparkle while we give it up for those who give back. Won’t you ho ho ho it up with me under the disco ball, to help drink up the good times and dance off the holidaze craze?

This entry was posted on Friday, November 25th, 2011 at 12:00 pm. It is filed under Articles, Bring It! and tagged with Abel, BeatBox, Disco Christmas, Gus Presents, HIV, Industry, Luke Johnstone, Nasty, Parties With Purpose, Powerhouse, Project Inform, Real Bad, Sister Phyliss Withe-Litaday, Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.