Notyourbeyotch

Some men should not have sex

The heyday of the baths is over. No more hot men having fun in the tubs with Miss Bette Midler singing her heart out. Here's what you will find in Flex: unattractive, 40+ men, walking in circles around the place. Yes, there are fetish areas, but if you don't like ugly (honestly) men, then you have no reason to go. Flex was better back at its old Warehouse District location. Since the move and expansion (to a dangerous location), the customers have not surprisingly abandoned the bathouse. I went twice this year, and I am proud to say I left without hooking up, as the options were pathetic. I have heard good things, but I think it is hype from friends of the owner or manager. I have not been back since. Also, the smell (cleaning fluid?, man fluids?) makes the halls reek like nobody's business. This is not a sexy environment.

Pose, stand, and model

Summer Sunday evenings are legendary, but legend is not usually fact. These men may like leather, but they talk and look more like big-built older queens and grown-up former twinks then real hard-core leather men. In other words, they may be leather, as in every man is a bottom. No real leather daddies under the age of 60-ish. Twinks come for the thrill, so you get the picture? Leather is practically dead in Cleveland. Only New York or Chicago have much fun for unattached leather men. Cleveland leather is little more than butch drag on otherwise twinky men. Columbus Eagle in Exile is better than the Stallion.

Time for some honesty

There was an opportunity to open a new classy club in Cleveland, so...we get another tiny bar in a bad neighborhood. That's not a racist statement. Around the corner and about two blocks away is a notorious crack-buying bar. A blue-collar union hangout is also very close (sound gay friendly???). Drive along Hamilton Avenue and you will see strange alien sights like homeless? men fighting and yelling in the street. Turns out a shelter and day labor places are nearby. This is where someone, with money, invested his funds, in a bathhouse complex and bar in such a seedy shady area. Again, why??? When will Cleveland learn? This is not a safe neighborhood, and I have no idea who these folks are who post positive reviews of this bar. You really should be driving in this area after drinking. If your car breaks down and your out of cash, you are out of luck.

Forget about this place if you want to have fun

I went with a friend to see the dancers on Friday night. Lame-O! For an alleged leather club, the strippers were smooth and shiny like Hollister models. Drag queens (Why?!) were holding court at the bar. The bartender, seriously, pranced and skipped behind the bar ringing the bar bell repeatedly. While the staff struggled to arrange the strippers' musical selections, the sound system went dead, to loud complaints. When gay guys on a stripper night are begging for the jukebox to be turned back on (and not demanding strippers to perform) you know something's not quite right. The lower level bar is closed, apparently for good. There is no real leather left in Cleveland. For all the CLAW hype, all of the city's leather action happens once a year when out-of-towners arrive. Why don't gay Clevelanders demand more? I'm starting to think that this town gets just what it deserves. Sad.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, maybe

I understand the diversity of opinions here, but let's get real. Some bars are nothing more than dumps. Man's World Complex is one. First of all, it's no complex. It's basically one big bar, and most hang in the main area. The Shed is mostly for country dancing on Sunday and a few loners who don't want to listen to the jukebox. The patio is for smokers and is not a place to mingle, as it is composed of patio tables where unless you are invited to join you can't really approach someone. The downstairs Crossover bar has now been closed, supposedly by the city. No surprise, as it was infested with cockroaches. Last time I went to Man's World was about a month ago, hoping for a change as Cleveland gay nitelife is poor, but the same old scene prevailed. On a Saturday night, only three or four people were in the main bar. There is nothing leather about Man's World anymore, and even the off-duty cop security guard is gone. The neighborhood is trash at night. The crowd is not friendly unless you are white trash or black trash. That's the truth. One bartender was OK, but the customers looked like halfway house residents. If this is your idea of gay nightlife, then have fun. But I for one think our city, future host of the Gay Games, deserves better clubs than dives like this one.