Street Fantasies

Sometimes we take the fantasy out of the club and into the street. After last call at Barracuda one recent Tuesday night, Bianca del Rio, Dina Delicious, and I decided to pop into Unicorn next door on our way for a late night nosh at Cafeteria. We decided to mess with the counter person at Unicorn. Of course, Bianca had nothing but nice things to say about Ben Andrews while we were shopping for ... um ... personal items.

A year and a half ago, Cazwell decided to have a Burger King fantasy for his birthday. See if you can spot Acid Betty, Logan Hardcore, James Coppola, and Michael Formika Jones in attendance. I'd forgotten my camera; so I shot footage on my old cell phone. I whipped up a dub version of his song "All Over My Face" to go along with it. Check out the "All Over My Face" video directed by Francis Legge. Speaking of Francis, have you cast your vote for the 6th Annual Pill Awards? He's up for Best Director for another Cazwell video: "I Seen Beyoncé at Burger King." Wink, wink, nudge, nudge.

Fantastical Flashback: Circus (December 2008)

Looking forward, into the fantasy of a new decade, doesn't mean that past fantasies have faded away, particularly those digitally narrated through images that can always be re-arranged anew. For me, recovering from this New Year's Eve weekend and thinking about parties I'd like to be a part of this year has included thinking about past ones that I thoroughly loved, like the once-monthly Circus thrown by Dina Delicious (pictured above with Acid Betty).

A good party inspires more than just my Wonder Twin Brian Mills (pictured below left) busting a move or Jordan Fox (pictured above) and Acid Betty giving good face.

A good party does more than attract noted New York Nightlifers like Kenny Kenny (pictured below with Juan) and James Coppola (pictured further below left)--or encourage Brian's straw-less drinking.


A good party doesn't just congregate the beautiful Andre J (pictured below left) and Acid Betty, annoyed that I'm taking too many pictures. (A good night for me means waking up to a full camera).

A good party is an effervescent event that continues past last call, after the makeup and glitter, after images have been uploaded and settle into external hard drives and bandwidth. A good party doesn't inspire melancholic nostalgia; it gives energy and history to fantastical new ones.

Festal, Famous, and Fabled: F Word Relaunch, Part One

The view from behind DJ Bill Coleman booth at last night's F Word was fantastical--and not just because the derrière of Glammy-winning go-go boy Matthew Camp (pictured above) was so often in view. It was nice to see so many people out nursing the previous night's hangover with more of the same. Plus, it was great to see my Wonder Twin Brian Mills (giving me dragalicious eyebrows as well as some new poses for the new decade below) since I was behind the decks at Lucky Cheng's for New Year's Eve and he was fêting away at a party in Long Island City. I thoroughly enjoyed the disco ball fantasy he was sporting as his shirt.


So many people were there to celebrate the F Word's relaunch, now at Rebel every Friday night, that it's going to take me a couple posts to go through all the pictures I took. Of course, Jane Lane (pictured below) was there. She was sporting a prom-ready corsage and made sure I was properly hydrated after wending my way through the crowd (and up and down several flights of stairs) to find her.

Also there (pictured from left to right below) were James Coppola, Danny, and Nancy Nosecandy. They were clearly showing their enthusiasm for the new year underway. Or, maybe they were still thirsty. I know I was soon off to get my next round.

Keeping the Fanta'zhézhé Real

My quiet night at home was tossed out the window with Baby Jane's comment to her status update: "what would you be doing this evening Sethingtons?" I'd liked her status update, thinking about her plans, after all. We were set to have a B-eautiful night accompanying Epiphany, swinging though Boybox at G Lounge, Bonbon, and The Box. So, I was pondering my look for the night, going through things I'd bought in London and Venice ... to find the evening reduced in one of Jane's subsequent updates: "Scratch that! G Lounge it is." I donned a version of the new uniform--with my hipster leather suspenders on full display--and headed out.

G Lounge was packed--at times in that hard-to-walk-around kind of way--which was nice since I thought it might be a bit quiet this week out with people traveling for Christmas. Making my way in, I enjoyed a hearty greeting from Glammy-nominated Go-Go Boy Geronimo (pictured above), whom I hadn't seen in a while. I miss how he'd come over and dance to my beats in between sets at another bar. Epiphany was there, by the bar; but I didn't see Jane, whom Epiphany said was there somewhere. "Look for the white glasses," she suggested.


After I said hello to DJ Cazwell and bopped to what he had on, Peaches' "F*ck the Pain Away," I found Jane Lane giving office boy realness with her best friend Daria Casey. Rob was there, too. I was working on my first round while everyone was passing off jackets to watch and figuring out what happened to Rendi. (Check out Jane Lane's animated ego introducing her Jane cam 4:49 into the clip below: "All Jane, all the time. Well, except naked time." She explains that "it's a public service. If my mundane little life can somehow provide comfort to lonely Web trollers, then I'll know my time here on Earth wasn't wasted." A sarcastic blog manifesto?)

We were losing people like we were on a shipwreck, taking on water. Rendi, Rob. Casey was about to bolt. Jane and I finished our next round and decided to head over to Barracuda. First we dropped by to pick up Rob at his apartment overlooking Barracuda launching pad. Along the way, Jane and I discussed the balance between ethics, comedy, and racial politics in Facebook posts.

We popped down to Cuda to say hi to Kyle, our favorite barback, and to Mimi Imfurst (pictured above) hosting her weekly Karaoke-fest. To my surprise, Cuda was also packed--was everyone out nabbing one last hangover for the road?--and Miss-ter T-Boy (pictured below left, with Nicho) was filling in at the DJ booth. James Coppola and Ben Andrews were there, too.

My De La Blanca sister Dallas DuBois (pictured above right, with Mimi) was by the pool table. Soon, Mimi dragged her onstage and asked her to sing "I'm A Little Teapot." Mimi and T-Boy lovingly traded barbs between the singers, among whom was Yuhua, giving a subdued fantasy, and belting out the Glee-revived Journey mega-ballad, "Don't Stop Believing." Someone should have sung the Cheers theme, since it seemed like Cuda was the spot for all of us to catch up and close out the night. Nicho was talking about his New Year's party at VIG 27. I was talking with T-Boy about doing a track with him. Baby Jane introduced me to, and told me to watch out for, Lady Blue. I told Bianca del Rio I had to edit that video I took of her and Dina a couple weeks ago. Glammy-winning Go-Go Boy Matthew Camp came to Cuda after finishing his shift at G Lounge.

Then, my De La Blanca sister Celso (pictured above, serving the dance floor at last week's B*tch @ss Trick party, with me beside her, and below from last night) came in with Tyler. T-Boy, Celso, Tyler, and I had more than a few laughs, both in Cuda and at Unicorn video store next door on our way home.

I'll share a couple quotes. At Cuda, Celso was waxing nostalgic. She longed for the 1991 club scene because if it were 1991, she reasoned, "my p*ssy would be beaten up tonight." Tyler was busting out his Hammer moves and chanting "Too Legit to Quit." T-Boy and I were reminiscing about Oaktown's 357, singing "Yeah, Yeah, Yeah" to the beat of whatever was playing at the time. At Unicorn, where we said hi to Ben Andrews' poster and greeted the last customers of the night, Celso sighed, "Who needs a Glammy when you can't get laid?" At the subway, I suggested that all she needed was a Penn Station fantasy. We all laughed, said our goodbyes, made our way home. I posted Mariah's "Fantasy" remix with ODB to her wall, reminding her to "keep the fanta'zhézhé real, son."

Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah!

We last left our children of the night--and I'm using children here like a member of a house, if you don't know anything about ball culture or haven't seen the fantastical documentary Paris Is Burning--at Vlada early into a Wednesday. Epiphany had just rocked some commando lip-sync. My Wonder Twin Brian Mills, Nancy Nosecandy (pictured below), and I had sopped up more cocktails than we could remember the next day.

Brian and I were trying to decide if we wanted to go celebrate the anniversary of Greenhouse with James Coppola or if we wanted to shake our groove thangs. Our thangs won out. We hopped in a cab to the gorgeous Hudson Hotel for the Happening that Jackie Birdy hosts every Wednesday.

Nancy was already working the floor when we arrived. Brian (pictured below) followed suit. I was feeling the lighted floor and the beats. And, apparently, the cherry infused vodka since, as I discovered when I woke up; I'd taken over 3 times the photos that I ended up keeping.

Also there was Matthew Herra C who had shed his shirt and was dance, dance, dancing his way from Jackie's bottle to Demanda to Nancy to anyone who was left on the floor.

Brian scored us another round of something. Then, I noticed Kyle at Jackie's table. As I roamed the room, snapping the scene, I chatted with the strangers I later found in my camera. I'm sure I had fascinating discussions with them about the need for a public option and Alexander McQueen heels.

I spied Brian and Herra drinking directly from what was left of Jackie's bottle. In our dance floor rush, Brian and I were still considering whether or not we were ending the night at Greenhouse. We were riding the perfect storm of libation and vibration.

On the escalator down and out, though, we decided we should head home before we felt shipwrecked. That should always happen the morning after. And it did.

Tuesdayifying

"Karaoke tells the truth about who you are," Mimi Imfurst (pictured above) told the crowd at Barracuda last night. What I learned about the crowd was that they like Morrissey and The Smiths. I guess they were still happy that Moz was OK after he collapsed onstage at the start of a concert last month, just after he opened with "This Charming Man."

The crowd learned a couple of things about me, too--namely that I used to be Mimi's DJ (check), and that I'm a great one (thanks, Mimi!). She pulled me onstage to chat when there were technical difficulties with the lyrics monitor that took more than a few minutes to fix. "That's what I get for coming early. Like Cazwell," she joked. Such a kidder, that Mimi.

Mimi assembled two distinguished judges for Karaoke night: Logan Hardcore (pictured above), who was giving her best Bianca del Rio impersonation, which consisted of "Hola" and "Si"; and Chandelier Period, who left the wig at the cleaners. It was quite the look last night: Dallas DuBois, Nancy Nosecandy, and Demanda all came sans face. Well, a painted one. All the while, I was trading texts with Celso (pictured below, from February, with my pensive Wonder Twin Brian Mills), who was lamenting that I wasn't spinning that night; she wanted to walk to my beats. She told me that she was coming to meet me. I sat tight.

Mimi and Logan were doing backup for one of the karaoke regulars when Celso arrived with the House of De la Blanca. They were off to see James Coppola (pictured below, from February, also with Brian, less pensive now) around the corner at The Gates. I finished up my cocktail with Nancy Nosecandy, Demanda, and Kyle, my favorite bar back (whose Jason mask I forgot to bring along after taking it home last Friday night), and head out.

The Gates was packed--and it was gorgeous. The DJ was working some fun mashups, like mixing the a cappella of Corona's "Rhythm of the Night" with the beat to Green Velvet's "Shake and Pop." It made me think of the time I saw Green Velvet spin at Mr. Black years ago and left a sweaty, fantastical mess. I thanked James for generously sharing his bottle with me and headed home because I had a mix CD to make--in the morning, I told myself by this point in the night.

I decide to pop into BOYBOX Tuesdays at G Lounge just for a minute to catch the last go-go boy set before I headed home. As I walked in, I saw DJ Drew G. on the phone in the foyer. I waited to say hello. We shared a drink--or 12. We were laughing so hard that suddenly it was 2 hours later and I was in a cozy bar underneath Coffee Shop in Union Square, mesmerized by a friend of Drew's who was cutting up a storm, bouncing like a rubber band man. I came to enough to realize that I had spent all the money I had on me and that I had to walk home. I made a nice discovery along the way: the 24-hour Best Buy in Union Square is open.