We're in the middle of the big season for gay street fairs here in San Francisco. Gay Pride was a few weeks ago, Folsom Fair is coming up, I've been making my plans for Hairrison Street Fair, but yesterday was the rehearsal for Folsom Fair, the Up Your Alley Street Fair (or Dore Alley).
This year they extended the footprint of the fair to an additional two blocks of 10th Street, but it was still very crowded. Had they not added the extra space, it would have been very, very uncomfortably crowded.
This time around, I made sure to interact with my friends rather than get frantic about shooting pictures. I could easier get myself all in a tizzy about not missing any photo ops, but the reality is, you can't be everywhere and shoot everything no matter how hard you try. I just chilled, took a shot here and there as the spirit moved me, and ended up with a respectable 367 pictures. And I got to get caught up with my friends.
I saw a lot more nakedness this year, and a lot more public sex, even right in the middle of the street. Those type of guys are never the kind you actually want see naked, but god love 'em for putting it out there.
Up Your Alley has always been our little hometown secret, to allow guys who are normally working a booth or throwing an event at Folsom Fair to get a chance to have some fun. It started on Ringold Alley, which was THE cruisey spot after the bars closed in the 70's and early 80's. After the first Ringold Alley Fair, the neighbors on that block decided they didn't want that reputation, so they made the cops clamp down on cruising, and the street fair had to move.
At the time, Dore Street had a big parking lot halfway down that served as headquarters or entertainment stages or other times, the food court. That parking lot is now condos, as is the big abandoned building on the corner, and a few other properties down the street. I took a walk up Dore Street at one point yesterday and hardly recognized the street. It's gotten very yuppified, and I fear those new neighbors won't put up with street fair shenanigans for too much longer.
Enjoy the photos from Up Your Alley while you can! Members of Lavender Lounge VIP Room can find them in the Paparazzi section. If you are not a VIP Member yet, now is the time to join. I'll have new photos from Lazy Bear Weekend next week, too!
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