Snowy Weather, Gay Bars and Strip Joints

12/6/18     Leaving Illinois to spend our winter in Florida aboard Last Mango this year happened a bit later than normal. According to Karen we stayed up north way too long as it seemed that the cold weather came far too soon then followed by several days of snow the last one amounting to 14 inches in our little town of Kingston.

Not missing this at all.

When leaving our home Karen was overjoyed because the sun showed itself after almost a week of nothing but clouds. Approaching Bloomington the clouds returned and soon the sleet and snow started, by the time we reached Effingham it appeared we were in a winter wonderland with the ground and trees cover in white. It was very pretty but luckily the roads stayed clear and only wet. We had left later in the morning after attending a doctors appointment with my parents. Plans were to drive to southern Illinois or Kentucky and spend the night and get a good nights sleep. The little town of Metropolis did the trick and treated us well after Karen fed the cat that guarded the entrance to the Quality Inn. The yowling feline seemed to have it out for Karen but soon quieted after Karen gave it the only food she had, a piece of plain white bread. It seems that feeding the noisy thing was the price to enter because it left her alone thereafter.

Day two turned out to be a cool rain filled day all the way to Atlanta. Karen found us a hotel on the north side of town that is reputed to be the second most haunted hotel in Atlanta. We chose to stop in Atlanta to spend some time at the Clermont Lounge. Some cruising friends recommended we stop in thinking we’d enjoy the show. The Clermont touts itself as the oldest strip joint in Atlanta, also having some of the oldest strippers in the whole USA. 

Karen's new favorite bar in Atlanta

After checking into our hotel we decided to do a little sightseeing between the rain drops and grab a bite to eat. We strolled down to the Ponce City Market which is an old Sears Roebuck building. It’s huge, in fact it’s one of the largest buildings by volume in the south east US, 2,100,000 square feet built in 1926, very cool place now. After leaving the market Karen chose a bar to grab a drink and food. We crossed the street to “Friends” opened the door and quickly found out that Atlanta smokes, I mean smokes a lot. We grabbed two seats at the bar and awaited the bartender to take our order when my phone alerted me to a text. I pulled the phone from my pocket and the text from Karen read “I think this is a gay bar”. I took a look around and realized she might be correct. Our drinks came and we got chatting with a few locals about everything from Big 10 sports to the Affordable Care Act. We had a great time even through the choking haze of cigarette smoke, the bartenders great margaritas helped. 

I haven't seen one of these in ages. Thank God.

Karen's secret text.

Post Friends we stopped by a great liquor store and procured some alcohol and a very discounted rate compared to Illinois. We delivered the booze back to our hotel room and met a group that appeared to be having a family reunion. A husband and wife from Atlanta asked what we were doing here from Chicago, I informed them that we were going to the Clermont Lounge tonight and the husband chuckled. When I asked about his chuckle he stated that visiting it would turn me off from sex. We all laughed as the gentleman explained to his family members a description of the Clermont. Karen and I walked away laughing and made our way to the Clermont.

Didn't know there was a Collectors Edition

After paying the cover charge we entered what looked like any other dive bar I’ve been in aside from a scantily clad woman dancing across the surface of the bar. The place reminded me of a bar in Kenosha Wisconsin called the Interlude. Open seats at the bar were non-existent so we grabbed a table nearby. I bought 2 overprices drinks from the bar and we started surveying the place. I can tell you the Clermont hires strippers of all shapes and sizes but it appears that there’s a prerequisite that the strippers must smoke. I started chatting with a huge bouncer in the back corner of the joint and he informed me that things really start jumping around 10. The place did start loading up shortly after our arrival, mostly with small groups of men and women who appeared to be having bachelor/bachelorette parties. As the night progressed the place became standing room only. We remained in our seats when a 70 some year old woman dressed in a “naughty nurse” costume asked if she could use my chair for a private dance. I willingly gave up my chair and Karen and I watched the 70 year old “Naughty Nurse” give the geriatric equivalent of a lap dance. It was both disturbing and hilarious. I felt a bit bad for the 30 some year old man receiving the dance while his girlfriend/wife and friends looked on. A strange sight indeed as “private dances” appeared to be happening all throughout the bar that is now packed with people shoulder to shoulder. It was at this point that we both agreed it was time to save our livers from any further damage not to mention inhaling smoke or feeling like crap tomorrow morning. We exited the Clermont as throngs of people were entering. Pictures were obviously not allowed indoors but I grabbed a picture of Karen and some new found friends before we made our way back to the haunted hotel. 

Our Stripper Cash

New friends are around every corner.

BTW if the hotel is haunted we believe it’s haunted by weed smoking ghosts.