Pride Photos by Danny Casillas

According to the weather services, it's going to be GREAT weather for Pride!  Lots of shirtless men, baby!  Hubba Hubba!

I'm getting a LOT of requests to volunteer for events this weekend.  I wish you guys knew how much this means to me. Honestly, the main slots have been quite thoroughly filled, except for the big, important  ones: 

Today, if you can spare the time, come to the Leather Realm and help set up. They can always use extra hands. Between 10am and 6PM, the team will be at the far south end of Marston Point. Just walk up to the entry gate, say "I'm volunteering to help set up the Leather Realm" and head on down to the far end. Look for the black-plastic-covered fence: we're behind it. A whole bunch of guys showed up to help out yesterday, and it was wonderful to see how energetic and friendly everybody was. The team finished up much earlier than they ever have before, and it was because of the wonderful men from FMSD who boosted the turnout so wonderfully.

If you're going to be marching in the parade Saturday (and I would love to see a LOT of us together), please bring snacks, sunscreen and water for several people. I'm bringing a bunch of these, plus water and sunscreen. We'll be carrying bags of supplies to help sustain each other. I'm bringing the banner, if you want to help carry it. We haven't been getting many responses to Wish Linda's request for snacks and stuff for the Parade Contingent, so please let me know if you are willing.

For the first time ever, FMSD will be hosting an information table at the Leather Realm. This means that we need volunteers to come, sit at the table behind the banner (in the shade) and answer questions about the local FetishMen's community. If you don't know much, that's fine - FRIENDLINESS, sharing from your own experiences, and the ability to point at the banner's Web site link are the main things that we need. Reassure shy, doubtful new people that we are nice guys. 

If you have an iPhone or Android, then you can add guys to FMSD's email list, right on the spot. In fact, please help us out for years to come by having the link handy on your phone.  We get several new members a day, because of good men like you, helping friends get connected.

If you want to make a BIG DIFFERENCE and gain lots of Good Karma Points, please show up at the Festival at 7PM on Sunday(when they close down) and help tear down/pack up the Leather Realm. Every year, everybody is wiped-out after a long weekend, and goes home, leaving a tiny handful of volunteers to stay up until 3AM, desperately trying to clear everything away in time for the deadline the next morning. It's not fair to them, and it grinds away at their idealism and strength. Let's give them a BIG boost this year (and every year). I will be there, and I would love to see you, too.

Jess Durfee is the chair of the San Diego County Democratic Party, and a fine, fine man that I have known for decades.  He saw my grumbling about bad cop behavior, and talked with Captain Mark Jones of the  San Diego Police Department, letting him know that we were on high alert after last year's problems. I hope that it did some good. Given Captain Jones' history with hassling Occupy protesters in San Diego, I'm not sure what good it may do.