cdallen2004 Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 Are there any gay districts in Houston, sort of like Dallas' Oaklawn area?Nice home, manicured lawns with artsy peeps? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
themidtownguy Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 Are there any gay districts in Houston, sort of like Dallas' Oaklawn area?Nice home, manicured lawns with artsy peeps?<{POST_SNAPBACK}>i think montrose area Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tw2ntyse7en Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
travelguy_73 Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 Montrose of course, but from a residential standpoint, it is much less gay than it used to be--too expensive for many people.I would say that if you are talking about where people actually live, not just shop or hang out, then almost any neighborhood inside the loop is gay. From Westbury to The Heights to Upper Kirby to Eastwood/Idylwood. I don't think there is a single area that has a mass concentration anymore. I suppose it is considered progress when you don't feel like you have to live in any one particular area to be yourself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rps324 Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 Montrose is labeled as such, and it is where the gay bars are, but I don't think it is the epicenter it was in decades past. A lot of people within the gay community, along with a whole lot of other people, were simply priced out of Montrose a long time ago. Heights & Garden Oaks became popular choices. Same song, second verse. Eastwood is gaining interest, a home in there was recently featured on the cover of "Outsmart". Oak Forest is gaining from both gays and straights priced out of Garden Oaks, & surprisingly, (to me at least), Westbury has emerged as a new hot spot for gays. I read somewhere, (I wish I could remember the publication) that W.A.G.L., the Westbury association of Gays & Lesbians, has over 600 members. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heights2Bastrop Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 There were a number of gays in Timbergrove. You could tell because they had the nicest yards. They were also among the nicest people in the area. If I was the only straight in a neighborhood, I wouldn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lowbrow Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 I second Timbergrove. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tw2ntyse7en Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trophy Property Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 There were a number of gays in Timbergrove. You could tell because they had the nicest yards. They were also among the nicest people in the area. If I was the only straight in a neighborhood, I wouldn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 I think the nice yards have a lot less to do with a green thumb and more to do with a dual-income-no-kids setup. It's a lot easier to afford a nice groundskeeper once a week if you have two paychecks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestGrayGuy Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 As a representative of my people I will comment here. There are major and minor districts. The major ones in my opinion are of course:Montrose and the HeightsThe secondary areas are:Westbury, Garden Oaks, Timbergrove, Inwood ForestIt is true that our community is spreading out of the so-called "gay-ghetto". Some call this progress. I ,however, like coming home to a portion of the city that is ours. Montrose offers that feeling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MidtownCoog Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 I ,however, like coming home to a portion of the city that is ours.I have heard Ray Hill say it's progress nontheless.His stories of having to hide inside Mary's from HPD in the 70s is something to think about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssullivan Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 I'll also add the Braeswood area, along with the Museusm District/Hermann Park area. I live here, and I know quite a few gay singles and couples in the area. Not trying to stereotype myself and others here, but there is some real truth to the old saying that gay people move into blighted areas that were once grand and fix them up again. Montrose is an old example of that, and some of it has gone on in Westbury and The Heights to some extent.But aside from those areas, I don't think there are too many neighborhoods in this city without a decent number of GLBT households. I even have friends who live in (gasp!) Sugar Land, Pearland, The Woodlands, and Kingwood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest danax Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 Not trying to stereotype myself and others here, but there is some real truth to the old saying that gay people move into blighted areas that were once grand and fix them up again. Montrose is an old example of that, and some of it has gone on in Westbury and The Heights to some extent.<{POST_SNAPBACK}>A gay guy bought a house in my east end neighborhood about 3 years ago and has done a great job of restoring, not remodeling, the 1940s interior, did almost all of the work himself, and it looks fantastic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qol2005 Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 I'm surprised no one has mentioned Missouri City!From what I hear they support the Midtown economy in many, many ways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestGrayGuy Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 Ray Hill is a quite a character. I love talking to him about the old days. He is a valuable asset to our community. I aspire to be as good of a community leader as he is.The younger "Queer as Folk" generation does not appreciate or realize the struggle to get us to this point.Ray helps remind us of that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomv Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 Westbury is so hot they even named a street for "the community"- Gaymoor Drive ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayLSU Posted March 5, 2005 Share Posted March 5, 2005 I'm surprised no one has mentioned Missouri City!From what I hear they support the Midtown economy in many, many ways. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> i assume you are talking about the married suburbanite males that drive into midtown for a little male/male lovin???? i have definitely heard that from quite a few neighbors and friends in midtown. i am hoping that (prostitution) is all in the past?!?!?!?!? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjb434 Posted March 7, 2005 Share Posted March 7, 2005 Chances are it is not prostitution but simply going to a gay bathhouses. Midtown has three of them i see advertised in gay weekly magazines. Technically these places aren't for sex, but that's what happens there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tw2ntyse7en Posted March 8, 2005 Share Posted March 8, 2005 ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestGrayGuy Posted March 8, 2005 Share Posted March 8, 2005 Unfortunately, these places are HIV and STD breeding grounds. Our community is facing a new crisis unlike any we have seen before with a rising apathy towards catching AIDS. Coupled with an ever increasing use of crystal meth along with unprotected sex, I fear that our generation is creating a super HIV virus, resistant to current treatment methods.It is quite scary and I hope our community will wake up soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssullivan Posted March 8, 2005 Share Posted March 8, 2005 I second WestGrayGuy's comments on this issue. I am on the board of one of the area's nonprofit counseling/mental health services that serves those with and affected by HIV/AIDS and it's scary to see the rising number of young, newly infected clients we are getting. While we typically have not served the under age 18 population, we have referred a number of high school students who have recently tested HIV positive to services that do serve that age population in the last year.The good news is that there is a growing response forming within the community's mental health and HIV/AIDS service groups to respond to this. There has been some major new grant money awarded to a couple of organizations that are teaming up to tackle this very issue. Whether the new initiatives to target young, recently out gay men who are most at risk of falling into the drug use and unsafe sex habits works or not won't be known for some time. But at least something is being done, and hopefully it will help keep more people from falling into these self-destructive behavior patterns. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tw2ntyse7en Posted March 8, 2005 Share Posted March 8, 2005 ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssullivan Posted March 8, 2005 Share Posted March 8, 2005 Could this be considered a form of natural selection?Well I prefer not to think of it that way. And truth be told, this is not just a problem in the gay community. The fastest growing segments of the US population for new HIV infections are outside the gay community; African American heterosexual women are actually number one if I remember correctly. And the use of drugs like crystal meth is rampant in all groups in society, not just with gay men. It's just that in the gay community we're seeing new infection rates going up after years of going down because people are becoming more apathetic. And there is a population of mostly younger, but not always younger, men engaging in club drug use, which leads to a much higher incidence of high risk sexual behavior. So not only are the drugs destroying minds and lives, but the STDs that are being contracted as a result of the drug use are making the problem much worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjb434 Posted March 8, 2005 Share Posted March 8, 2005 As a gay man, i prefer to think of it as natural selection. HIV and most STDs are one of the easiest diseases to avoid. The people I fight for are the ones that contract them under conditions that they had no control. Such as blood transfussions or doctors who are careless. Or especially babies of HIV+ mothers.As for gay men and you who pound away drugs and have unsafe sex, they get what they deserve. It may be harsh, but it's a reality. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N Judah Posted March 8, 2005 Share Posted March 8, 2005 I read that AIDS is becoming huge among retirees, especially in places like South Florida. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestGrayGuy Posted March 8, 2005 Share Posted March 8, 2005 I hate to think of the spread of HIV as natural selection. Unfortunately those that are HIV positive may believe that they can engage in unprotected sex as there is no futher harm to be done. This may be were the natural selection would occur. By mixing different strains of HIV, a drug resistant strain will emerge, more potent than before. I am afraid we will soon see the effects of the experimentation. Ssullivan:Which organization are you a board member? I am active in an organization raising money for HIV/AIDS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssullivan Posted March 8, 2005 Share Posted March 8, 2005 Ssullivan:Which organization are you a board member? I am active in an organization raising money for HIV/AIDS.Bering Support Network Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tw2ntyse7en Posted March 9, 2005 Share Posted March 9, 2005 ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssullivan Posted March 9, 2005 Share Posted March 9, 2005 As a straight man I agree completely. Gay people first make the choice to not be in a male/female relationship for procreation, and then some further make the choice to gamble with their life via unsafe sex & drug use. It just seems like homosexuality will kill itself off like the Shakers of the 1800's.My fight is also for the helpless children, unknowningly blood transfused, and especially the civil servants who must come in contact with the infected on a daily basis. tw2ntyse7en, I don't want to start a big argument here about the origin of one's sexual orientation. However, I will assure you that not a single gay or lesbian person I know, including myself, actively chose to not be heterosexual. There is significant scientific research that points to sexual orientation being determined at birth or very shortly thereafter. It has nothing to do with a choice. The only choice I ever made was to be true to myself and how I was created and stop being miserable trying to live up to the expectations of others by trying to be straight. The fact is that homosexuality is a very natural occurence that has been around throughout human history. There is significant evidence of same-sex attraction and coupling with animals as well. I can't tell you why or how I'm gay. I just know that I am, and looking back at my entire life, including childhood, I always have been. My friends will tell you the same thing. I know more chose to be attracted to the same sex than you chose to be attracted to the opposite. I encourage you to learn more about this issue before making further judgements, because from what you've said so far, it's one area you know very little about. As for choosing to engage in drugs and risky sex, this is not an exclusively gay problem. It has been well publicized recently, and at times in the past, as a big problem in the gay community, which it is. But I have two heterosexual sisters with mostly heterosexual friends, and hearing them talk, much of the same stuff that goes on in the gay community goes on outside it with heterosexuals. And, just like there are heterosexual people who value commited, monogomous, stable relationships and look down on drug abuse and high-risk sexual behavior, I would argue that the majority of gay people feel the same way. It's a small, but very visible, part of our community engaged in those behaviors. The rest of us are trying to be valuable, contributing members of society who are either single and seeking a committed, long-term relationship, or in one already. Please don't take any of what I said as a personal insult or criticism, because I don't mean it to be. I just believe from what you said that you don't fully understand all of the issues involved here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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