Ask GayDemon: Where Does Tom Cruise?

7 Aug 2016

Ask GayDemon: Where Does Tom Cruise?

Do you have any recommendations for places I can cruise? These days it seems like there’s nothing. Once upon a time I could go to the park toilets and pick up a hot guy to blow, but now they’re all locked!
-Cruising for Cruising Spots

These things used to never be in print, but rather a word of mouth affair. Unless you count writing scratched or scrawled onto bathroom stall walls. Or written on parchment by sex-crazed homo monks.

At some point, there were bar guides put out, and some of those included mentions of other environs. Often written in a medical, investigatory, shaming, faux-shocked kind of way as to expose the homosexual underground. But that's how they had to be written. They were actually just cruising guides.

Later full-on zines detailed exploits in these types of places, getting super specific to the point that vice cops looking to persecute public homosexual activity (while blatantly ignoring heterosexual public sex for the most part) smartened up and used the actual guides to figure out where to stake out and bust people.

There are still some online guides about these places, but it's like moving to a neighborhood because it's cool, but in the process the building you moved into is a giant, expensive condo one that tore down all the shops and affordable apartments that kept the neighborhood cool in the first place.

Ultimately, it's like reading about a bathroom bust then trying to go to that bathroom to hookup. The party is over.

So at this point, you'll just have to experiment for yourself, trying parks, locker rooms, adult theaters, college toilets, your neighbor's yard, wherever. But since this can be dangerous and may come to no avail, your better bet is likely to meet someone online and arrange to connect in some semi-public way. Just be aware that it may be just the two of you there, so whatever modicum of safety there is in group cruising environments may be gone if you're the only two in the park at 3 int he morning.

Also consider, many see gay folks as easy victims, especially if contact occurs in the guise of something seemingly underground, so it's just a risky affair no matter what.

So your best bet is a time machine. Just make sure to have bail money on you, preferably in vintage bills so you don't get busted as a time traveler.

I'll see you in the park.

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