Category: Outdoors

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Beauty Drag Queen Event History LGBTQ Organization Outdoors Place

Shhh! Librarians are getting loud at the Washoe County Library

I know I’m a little bit late to the table here. But….the Washoe County Library Downtown branch. Y’all.

I met with Jamie Hemingway, marketing library assistant, and Debi Stears, collection development manager, on Friday at the Downtown Branch of the Washoe County Library.

Right to Left: Jamie, Debi, Erica
Credit: Erica Pionke

Jamie has always been involved as an ally in the artsy LGBTQ world and Debi’s been a straight woman in a gay world of friends and roommates and bars since she was young.

Jamie jumped onto my radar during a LinkedIn search for LGBTQ in Reno. She is listed as hosting Drag Queen Story Time for the last few years. She organized it for the first time in 2019, around Pride. You may have read about it in national news that even the mayor of Sparks opposed. Though the turn-out was FANTASTIC.

In 2022, they plan to host Drag Queen Story Times on June 25th at the Downtown branch at 10:30 and 11:30am and on June 26th at the Sparks branch at 10:30 and 11:30am.

The Downtown branch space is AMAZING. It’s like walking into a rain forest. They have these floating pods with plants all around where you can sit under the natural ceiling lights. The entire roof is windows!

On the ground floor, two floors under the entrance, there is a pond with running water. The floor of the ground floor is littered with the leaves that have fallen off the plants over the night.

Credit: Erica Pionke

Jamie and Debi told me that when the library was being planned, they wanted to site it at Idlewild Park by the river. But because books and water don’t go so well together and rivers have been known to flood and destroy anything in their path, the move was denied. So whoever was running the show back then said, “Fine. If we can’t have the library in the park, we are going to have a park in the library.” Hence, the indoor rainforest.

Y’all, check this place out. It’s incredible. And check out my next post to learn more about all the awesome things that the library provides to the community.

The kiddo-ski area of the library. Credit: Erica Pionke.

Categories
Health LGBTQ Non-binary Organization Outdoors Place Sports

Mesa Rim Climbing Gym is not Super Gay. But they are Gay-Friendly.

Credit: https://mesarim.com/reno/#

Nothing really gay happened while I was at Mesa Rim Climbing Center tonight.

I called for a climbing partner and was met by Samuel, a tall climber who designated himself bi when I asked.

They fly a Gay Pride flag from the rafters, next to the American and Nevada state flags. Their binary bathrooms signs also announce that they are allow non-binary users.

A lot of the young folks could have been gay or trans or just needed haircuts. They kept a stash of LaCroix under the stairs. Just a strong low-key gay-friendly vibe. But nothing super-gay.

I asked the front desk if there was anything super-gay to know about the place or any big gay events they may hold periodically and they looked confused. But they were very nice.

It’s a great center. Very clean, which is difficult with all that chalk and sweat and young people who use their gear outdoors a lot.

They have a super-dope virtual tour of the location you can check out on their website.

Some of the location highlights include:

  • top-rope and lead belay
  • bouldering for days
  • a yoga studio
  • cardio equipment
  • a full set of weightlifting and cross-training equipment
  • hang-boards on hang-boards on hang-boards
  • a snack section
  • a gear and merch section
  • I think I saw a birthday room
  • an upstairs lounge (no nasty climber couches, but tables and stuff)
  • group and one-on-one climbing classes
  • workshops
  • team climbing
  • a rooftop deck with grill
  • co-ed sauna and binary locker rooms that include non-binary
  • They also have kids stuff, for the gays with shorties

The website shows that Mesa Rim operates 6 locations here, in California and they are opening one of them in Texas this fall. They say their “… founders dreamed of creating an inclusive space where people of all walks of life and abilities could venture out of their comfort zones in pursuit of a remarkable movement experience.” Righteous.

Check out the vid I made tonight.

Credit: Erica Pionke

Categories
Health LGBTQ Outdoors Personal History Place Sports

Reno Rollerblading

Wanna hear a joke?

Q: What’s the hardest part about rollerblading?

A: Telling your parents that you’re gay.

Hahahaahaha. But…wait…seriously.

Credit: WordPress GIF

Little did I know, all those years, pushing the rink floor and the pavement on those rollerblades through the University of Illinois campus quad in Champaign, down the Lakefront, and all through that great city of Chicago that I would have to have that conversation with my parents that I was dating a woman.

Since then, I’ve rollerbladed the hills of Wyoming, the parks of Las Vegas, the National Mall in Washington, D.C., and now the Parkways of Reno/Sparks. Reno and Sparks have some amazing bike trails which double as rollerblading heaven.

Terry, from Reno 911 knew how great these streets are for rolling. Especially by the Taco, Taco, Taco.

Credit: WordPress GIF

Just this past weekend, I drove myself down to the Rosebud Nature Study Preserve at Veterans’ Parkway and Pembroke Drive in Sparks. There, I strapped on me ole trusty K2 blades and rolled for a pleasant 20 minutes south, over creeks, past fields of cows, passing underneath the Parkway, and to South Meadows Parkway, where the trail ended.

I could have kept rolling down the perfectly manicured, smooth sidewalks which line this southern part of Veterans’ Parkway, but I didn’t know if my new knee agreed. I had my ACL replaced this time last year and I’m still trying to figure out what it will allow me to do. I turned around and made it back to my car. It was about 7 miles in 40 minutes. Not bad. And I didn’t have to worry about traffic except at well-kept stoplights.

I hardly noticed the cars passing by. I saw a LOT of friendly bikers. It was one of the first beautiful days of Spring. I sang 80’s songs to the cows as I paraded past.

If you love the 4-wheeled boots like I do, I encourage you to check out some of these trails. Wear your brightest neon clothing and rainbows while you sweat and firm up that booty. See you out there!

HAPPY TRANS DAY OF VISIBILITY!!!!