Uber Hates Gays? (Or just the gay bars?)

Let me start by saying that I don't really think the fantastic towncar-hailing elite VIP-style private shuttle service hates those of the homosexual persuasion. In fact, I am personal friends with the author of the blog post I take mild offense to in a moment.

But really... Uber?

Are there no gay bars currently open on Capitol Hill that are worth being seen rolling out of my "private driver" whisk me off to?

In a recent blog post offering a five buck discount on Uber's services, author (and, again, my friend) Jen Joyce, Seattle-area Community Manager for Uber, listed five locations: Linda's Tavern, Neumos, Li’l Woody’s, Big Mario's, Grim's and helpful links to two additional Capitol Hill resources: CHS & Hillebrity.

Great! What about "The Gays"? How about shout-outs to the homo watering holes: Purr, The Lobby Bar, Cuff Complex, Diesel, R Place, a personal fave Poco Wine Room, or the female-friendly Wildrose (Taco Tuesday anyone!)?

Capitol Hill is more than just a gay ghetto, indeed, but the gay haunts were curiously absent in the eyes of this reader.

Okay, fine, sure... The Social was given a shout-out, but unless I missed my invitation (always a possibility) there has yet to be a grand opening for this "blessing" of a business. (See, I'm talking about 'em-- does that count?)

I love Uber. Uber loves me. (I'm told.)

Does Uber love "the gays"? (Or, more specifically, the many predominantly gay establishments on "The Hill"?)

Where would you recommend Uber's customers head with their Tuesday evening $5 discount? Wait, it's Tuesday tonight, ehh?

Cya on The (Gay) Hill!

Want to show Uber there's money to be had from the gays on The Hill? Sign up for a $10 discount (and $10 will go into my "more money for drinking" fund as well) here: http://bit.ly/bmw-uber. (Thanks!)

Lifelong's Gay Bingo: Canceled

This just in...

Lifelong AIDS Alliance, who (via. Chicken Soup Brigade) started the Gay Bingo concept here in Seattle, are not planning to continue the event in 2011.

The event, Lifelong interim Executive Director Amanda Madorno tells me, netted "a little over $60k", and the board and staff after internal consideration have decided to focus on events with higher returns.

GLAMAZONIA hosts Come As Your Mother Gay Bingo in May 2007. Photo by Brian M. Westbrook / brianwestbrook.com

The non-profit has begun notifying supporters, volunteers and sponsors via. email and phone calls today. An email to the database and official press release are forthcoming, Madorno says.

Regarding the future of "Gay Bingo" in Seattle, the organization has "a couple of ideas" and plans to "sit down and talk with people".

I'm told the decision was a financial one.

There is hope by the organization that a partner will carry on the tradition and the organization focused on helping those living with or affected by HIV/AIDS will remain a beneficiary.

You can find photos from previous events on my photo site: http://photos.brianwestbrook.net/Seattle-Events/Gay-Bingo

What do you think of the organization's decision to cancel Gay Bingo? Are you disappointed? Will you miss the event? Would you like to see it restarted? Comment away!!

More information as the story develops....

Update @14:22: Just received this note from Maurice Jones, board president:

Dear Friends of Lifelong:

As a supporter of Lifelong AIDS Alliance, you know that for more than 27 years we've been making a significant difference in the lives of people living with HIV and AIDS. We hear daily from those we serve that our services are often the difference in their ability to stay well and receive care. In addition to our housing, insurance, and nutrition services, Lifelong brings hope and dignity to an otherwise vulnerable population.

This has been a year of transition and renewal for us. We've made key changes in staff leadership, increased enrollment in our insurance program by over 400 clients, reduced barriers to housing access, and lowered the number of individuals on our nutrition program waiting list by 100. Throughout, our top priority has been and remains fulfilling our mission to prevent the spread of HIV, as well as to provide practical support services and advocate for those whose lives are affected by AIDS. We have been blessed by the support of people like you - reflecting the impact HIV and AIDS has on so many lives here in our community.

We've also taken a strategic and practical look at how we continue to fulfill our mission in light of current economic realities. Like most nonprofits, we've felt the effects of decreased giving and continuing financial pressures. To ensure we continue to meet the needs of our clients and community, the Lifelong board and senior staff have spent the last three months conducting a strategic review of our programs, services and fundraising efforts.

As we prepare for a future both challenging and rewarding, we have reduced staff, implemented across the board cost-savings, streamlined services and looked at ways to strengthen our fundraising. Through this process, we have made the decision to no longer produce Gay Bingo. Although all of us will miss the fun and energy of Gay Bingo, we know this decision is best for Lifelong and the clients we serve.

The decision to no longer produce Gay Bingo was not easy. In fact, we searched for other alternatives but none made as much financial sense to the agency and our ability to serve our clients. All of us at Lifelong will miss the Gay Bingo events. After 17 years, the history of Gay Bingo and the enjoyment it has brought to so many will always be a part of Lifelong AIDS Alliance.

We bring renewed focus and resources to the fundraising activities that have the greatest financial impact for the clients we serve. We are optimistic and excited at the potential for success as we move ahead with plans for our second annual Community Breakfast in February, our very successful Dining Out for Life event in April, and the 25th Anniversary of the Seattle AIDS Walk & 5 K Run in September 2011.

As part of our Lifelong community, we wanted you to be among the first to know. You have played an important role in the work we do and the lives of people living with HIV and AIDS. We are deeply grateful for your past participation and support and hope that we can continue to count on you as a partner and supporter through these three key events as well as our many volunteer and giving opportunities.

Looking ahead, our goal is to continue - with your generosity and support - to serve the over 3,500 clients annually who depend on us not just for services, but for caring and hope.

Thank you for your joining with us,

Maurice James

Dick's on Broadway: Closed for "Extensive Plumbing Repairs"

Fans of late-night Dick's Drive-In location on Broadway take note: The burger joint will be closed for three days until Sept. 11th for "extensive plumbing repairs". The other locations of the popular local eatery remain open -- and contrary to speculation, there's no reason to be concerned the location made famous by Sir Mix-A-Lot's "Posse on Broadway" song is closing.

Photo by Joe Mabel, originally uploaded to Wikipedia

(Other storefronts along Broadway, including Jack-In-The-Box, have -- as you may have noticed -- closed for Sound Transit light rail station construction.)

A message left for callers on the Dick's Broadway answering machine explains:

"The Broadway Dick's Drive-In will be closed for three days starting Monday September 8th for extensive plumbing repairs we will reopen Thursday Sept. 11th we apologize for any inconvenience. If you'd like to leave a message please wait at the beep."

From now until Thursday, Queen Anne Dick's (500 Queen Anne Ave. N., 1.7 miles away) is your closest alternative (see map, below). I also recommend In-N-Out -- the nearest is in Redding, California (1275 Dana Drive, 595 miles away) -- as a temporary substitute (not mapped below).


View Larger Map

My Campaign for One Page Trip Results

I need a haircut.

Many "Green" initiatives are complex, involved projects that span multiple agencies and take months to complete. Here's one tip for the Metro KC website that can save precious resources with a few lines of code (or, more likely, a few *less* code).

My mother is in town. I lent her my vehicle today so she could trek out to Bellevue Square in (as my friends and I refer to the other side of the lake) "Eastern Washington". Hopefully she'll return with plenty of expensive gifts for me. Meanwhile, back to that haircut... I'm heading out of town for the weekend and have a busy week next week. Fortunately, I was able to schedule an appointment with Liana @ noon today. Without my car... I'll be taking the bus. Yay, fun!

So I go on to the Metro KC Transit Planner ("Plan Trip" @ transit.metrokc.gov) and enter the address of my office (1501 4th Avenue) and that of Liana’s Hair Salon (1125 E Olive Street) with an arrive-by time of 12:00 Noon. The trip results suggest three single-bus itineraries on routes 11, 10 and 49. Sorted! I print the results to take with me… two pages spit out of the printer behind my desk. (See PDF)

The second page is merely footer information and links to "plan a new trip" and invitations to "investigate alternatives". All the essentials are on the first page.

Suggestion: Compress the trip results page so that most single-bus itineraries print on one page. I suspect I'm not alone in printing my results – and all those extra wasted pages throughout the Metro transit system could be conserved. A few minutes of simply eliminating line breaks (do we need a solid bar at the top of the results?), reducing font size, or merging some results to one line (could "send feedback", "plan return trip" and "revise original entries" be place on the same line?).

Now with page two in the blue bin for each of my outbound and return trips – I'm ready to get my haircut and the world will no longer be subject to my shaggy do.

Thanks for listening and joining me in the fight for single-page transit results!

American Idol Finalist Blake Lewis in Seattle

American Idol Finalist Blake Lewis stopped by Westlake Center in Seattle today. I snapped some photos from the 16th floor of Century Square and had the photos featured on Q13fox.com (local website for FOX affiliate). I've decided I should bring my Nikon digital SLR to work more often. :) You can see the complete gallery on my photos site here or visit the q13fox.com page for more on Blake Lewis' American Idol "Hometown Visit" here. (They've recorded bits during the visit for broadcast on American Idol -- check local listings!)

More photos of American Idol finalist Blake Lewis' Seattle visit

Read my friend Chris' blog posting on Blake Lewis (Hunkdujour.com)

Washington State Domestic Partnerships One Step Closer: SB-5336 Passes Senate

For many of Washington State's domestic partners, today marks a surprising victory in the State Senate. In a 28 to 19 vote, the Senate passed SB-5336 granting same-sex partners many rights previously granted only to heterosexual married couples. The bill, sponsored by a coalition of openly gay state Legislators, was initially expected to fail during this first attempt. Now, with the House expected to approve a similar bill and Governor Christine Gregoire promising to sign the bill into law -- it seems domestic partnerships may become a reality in the Evergreen State!

I've reported on the topic of equal rights for the State's gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community on Sirius OutQ New (ch. 109). You can hear clips of past stories here:

• Sirius OutQ News: WA State Introducing Marriage Equality Legislation (01/10/07)
  
• Sirius OutQ News: WA State Gay Marriage Ruling Protest Rally (07/27/06)

For more on this story:

• Seattle Times: Domestic partnership bill passes state Senate
  
• Read the bill: SB-5336 (Washington State Legislature)