I may have overdone Pride this year, and we’re only halfway through the month. In the last 14 days, I’ve marched in one parade and attended a second in DC. Participated in a panel discussion plus moderated another. Attended one additional panel discussion and a four-hour symposium centered on being queer in architecture. And wrapped by attending the opening for the Queer Identity in Architecture and Design Exhibit the AIA Dallas LGBTQIA+ Alliance installed at the ADEX.

The possibility exists that I have reached my limit.

Most years, June comes and goes, and I do very little in terms of celebrating Pride. I may write a blog post like this one. Or just be happy in my own little sphere of queerdom, quietly going along. But two Pride Parades this year? I’m sure that seemed like a good idea at the time.

I cannot recall the last year I attended a Pride celebration in Dallas. Certainly before the new organizers decided to move the parade out of the Gayborhood and into Fair Park. And from September to June. I do recall going to brunch with James’s co-workers one Pride and then bowing out before everyone lined up on Cedar Springs. However, we did go through a lot of Prosecco while enjoying mimosas, so the memory of when that was might be a bit fuzzy.

Yet this year, not only did I march with the winning float from the Alliance’s Set the Stage competition (thank you HKS for the fantastic design), but I was also able to convince my sister and brother-in-law to tow the float for us. Brave souls, considering we lined up at 11 that morning and didn’t start moving till 3:30. I may have called in my favors for the next year or two on that one.

Plus while in DC for the AIA National Conference, James and I watched the first two hours of their parade, where the route was going right past our hotel. Not close enough to watch from our room, but within a very quick walk. And I must say, those girls had it together. Their schedule said: “Starting promptly at 3” and they meant it.

Which meant we were shocked after two hours of watching, going to dinner, and coming back to the hotel to freshen up, that people were still marching at 6:45. We finally received a text at 7:15 from a friend saying their group had reached the end of the route, and she was headed back. Shame they weren’t the last group! Dallas may have to up their game.

However, best this year for me was the exhibit at AIA Dallas. Partly because this was a project I worked on with the other Alliance leaders and was an opportunity for us to highlight some little-known architects and designers, as well as introduce their queerness to architects (and hopefully others) in Dallas. But also, because this was the final piece of an entire Spring program centered on the queer community in architecture. Which means Lisa, Paloma, Tyler, and I can finally take a breath.

I can’t say I’ll be quite this involved in Pride next year, although something is telling me that’s a lie. Besides, DC Pride was fun – at least the parade part. And there are plenty of other cities celebrating, so June may be a chance to find another out-of-town Pride to attend. Maybe somewhere with cooler temps but an equally fabulous crowd. Or at a minimum, a fantastic brunch full of mimosas.