The Pride Parade

Didn't have much else to do today (other than see to Spain's goal against Germany on their way to victory), so I checked out the Gay Pride Parade in a little more detail than normal. Usually I just glance around while getting my afternoon coffee, but today I stuck around and took pictures as well as a short movie clip. Enjoy!!



The 39th annual parade..... so the first one was in 1969!













Dawn Clark Netsche, some government official, looks to be the Marshall.













The mounted cops.













Apparently the parade "Queen".

















Crazy like 'nawleans.


































Outside Hydrate, you're at least getting misted and provided some relief from the heat. It wasn't too hot today though. Some cloud cover helped.










Now THAT'S a hat!












Even the pooches are showing their support.












I didn't realize so many Iowa Hawkeyes were gay. Maybe it's just their alums. :-)













Local ABC news folks. I didn't see the Fox float, so I didn't get to see if Amy Freeze was on there or not.










The WGN float had Tom Skilling AND Bozo the Clown!! Who knew?!?













Chicago's police and firemen.












There's always a political agenda as well. There were a bunch of other thoughts expressed as well.
O'Bama's supporters were out in huge numbers as you might expect. No McCain float for some reason.










Some crazy headgear and outfits.












Look at this action shot!! Those two women were smokin'!!!












If you put up with gay guys in thongs, you get to see gay women grinding on each other! Whoo-hoo!













Oh, yeah, and nipple pasties! They were a hit with everyone seemingly. Not as many women as I thought would be wearing them actually were.









I tried to document as many as possible....












....at least what I could find.....

















......you know, for my readers.......











.....who couldn't be there to see the happenings....

















.....for themselves.










This lesbian gal was cute! Damnit.













Some people dressed up for the event though.












The blond in the foreground was all dressed up, while another gal just has a bikini top on. All are welcome.












I thought this was one of the neater dresses.













Not everyone looked in the mirror before heading out though. Ugh.












While others clearly did check a mirror....and have been busy at the gym.











One of the best shirts I saw.


















Another good shirt. It says, "Hawaiian Girls grow nice coconuts." Another shirt said, "I don't like people who take drugs.....like cops and customs agents."








This dominatrix was the only person in the parade I knew. She's a Starbucks barista!















Another shot, pre-dominating.












It's not all fun and games though. You have to go to the bathroom at some point. Usually someone else will go in with you. I didn't ask questions.











Someone in the parade overindulged and passed out on the float. This is the curbside scene as the paramedics were attending to her/him/it. I think the paramedics had to be called three times while I was watching, which, of course, caused the parade to stop for a bit each time.








The whole day is too much for some people, so they just pass out.













Not everyone was lucky enough to grab a chair though. This girl's "friends" were nearby.









Hopefully this Dikes On Bikes video will show up complete with the sound. They are always a big hit with the crowd.