Queer Modesto

Well, hello there, Queer Modesto.

Allow me to introduce myself- my name is Candy and I’m your new blogger extraordinaire, helping out Mike (and hopefully other bloggers- the offer is still standing!) to give you local GLBTQ news and information, as well as my opinions on just about everything.  I’m quite sure that I am horrible at introductions, but here are the basics:

I’m Modesto born-’n-raised, and I’m always going to call our little valley home.  I’m 22.  I’ve just graduated from Fresno State with a degree in Linguistics, and am currently unemployed (not to worry, though- it makes blogging that much easier!).  I’m shy and introverted, but I’m always working on it.  I’m fairly wacky and weird, in what I hope is a good way.  I love to write, read, cook, play DDR, sail, garden, and drink (you can always win me over with a cocktail or a glass of wine!).  I’m such a homebody, and it’s a struggle to get me out of the house and on the town.  I’m fascinated by politics (I lean towards Libertarian), philosophy, religion (particularly the Pagan ones), the Japanese culture, feminism, queer theory, language, sexuality, and more.  And lastly, I’m pansexual- I go for the boys, the girls, and everybody else who identifes as ‘neither’, ‘both’, or ’something in-between’.  And just because no good blog is truly great until there’s a hint of desperation, I am also single.  (If you want to know anything else, all you have to do is leave a question in the comments!).

Like probably so many other queer Central Valley natives, as I was growing up, I preferred to turn my gaze outward instead of inward,wishing I could have been born just a few hours away, in the gay mecca of San Francisco.  In my youth, our family kept a sail boat in Alameda for weekend fun, and my forays into the Bay Area impressed themselves upon me- being hurried past a man in garish, proudly freakish drag, simultaneously scared and fascinated, or seeing two men lying idyllically in one another’s arms on the grass near the pier.  These were things I could not find in my own city, I was sure of that.

I was barely conscious of my queerness when I graduated high school and left the nest for Fresno State (Stan State and the prospect of living at home while going to college being far too blase for moi).  And while no San Francisco itself, Fresno was bigger and far more metropolitan in my eyes.  When I did finally admit to myself that I was queerer than a three-dollar bill, Fresno offered up far more possibilities than Modesto ever seemed to (not that I was willing to out myself in the name of exploring said possibilities, of course).  But I signed up for the regular e-mail newsletter, politely declined requests to attend GLBTQ barbecues, and marveled at the idea that if I ever did break out of my shell, there were four (!) gay clubs to choose from, versus Modesto’s lone and solitary Brave Bull.  Fresno even had a gay store!  I was dumbstruck, really, at the difference in “gayness” between Fresno and my hometown.

Of course, I can now say that’s a pretty woeful outlook, one that neglects all the wonderful hidden gems that Modesto has to offer.  After having finally graduated from college (yay!), I am back in Modesto and hungrier than ever for some sort of queer community, for that quintessential reassurance that I am not alone.  And I confess to you, faithful readers of the Queer Modesto blog and those who just happened to stumble across it: I am not an expert in Modesto, and especially not an expert in queer Modesto.  In fact, it’s part of the reason why I decided to write for this blog- to force myself to learn more about my own community.  I want to take you all on a trip with me through our city, to discover Modesto’s queerness together, and I want to be one voice- out of, hopefully, many- who can represent what it’s like to be here and queer.

Yeah . . . that’s it, for now.  I hope to keep writing and updating here regularly, and to give you readers what you’re most interested in.  So please, comment.  Bloggers love comments.  We love them even if you just comment to tell us what assholes we are and how much you hate our blogs (of course, we love them a lot more when they’re a bit more positive in nature).   So comment, and if you see me on the street, go ahead and wave.  I will probably be bewildered, so yell out “I read your blog!” and then I will definitely smile, wave back, and, if you’re cute, exchange phone numbers.  Nah, I’m just kidding about the cute bit.  I exchange phone numbers with everyone!

Anyways, nice to meet you all, and here’s looking forward to blogging for Queer Modesto!