I met the first real-life guy who is bi like me (and other effects of coming out)

As many of you know, I came out as bi here locally in May. I have always been bi, and am married (opposite-sex wife) and monogamous. I'm coming out to be the true me and to try to be a part of the LGBT community by being out, volunteering for PrideFest, volunteering at the LGBT Center, etc.

I play bass in a rock/country cover band. Tonight, we were booked to play a rural lakeside tent party after their 4th of July fireworks. There was an opening country band, then fireworks, then us.

The first band had finished, the fireworks were popping, and I was sitting in a folding chair inside of a trailer, waiting for the sound guys to get the lights up before I set up my gear. A friend of the band comes up and says to me, "I just wanted to say to you, I am like you. I am bisexual too." I was stunned. I thanked him for telling me and asked him if he was "out". He didn't seem to understand what that meant, it was weird. He's older than me, probably mid-60's, just a friend who likes the band a lot. So that was actually really cool.

Since I came out, my drummer's gay brother and his husband have been coming to a lot of our shows, too. They sometimes bring friends, and they like to sit with me and my wife, etc.

I guess I'm just amazed at the LGBT people I'm meeting as a consequence of coming out while in this band. And I have to tell you, I started the night tonight feeling really out of place at that lakeside gig... the opening band's singer talked a lot on the microphone about how America is in trouble, everybody needs to register to vote, take back America, Make America Great Again TM... LOL. It was feeling like a cross between a Trump rally and Hee Haw for a little while. I was thinking about how I'd honestly be more at home in a gay bar watching a drag show. I kept my Bi Pride wristband on the whole night, though.

Just some notes, post coming-out. Sorry for the long post, but hopefully someone finds it of interest. I'm not the only bi guy in town! (!)

 

Thanks everybody for the feedback.

The crowd didn't really react to the singer's pro-Trump / anti-Obama comments. They weren't really into the band that much in general. Perhaps that's part of why the guy was trying to stir something up. But man, one of the cardinal rules of being in a band... never, ever, talk politics on the microphone. You should have seen this guy's guitarist giving him the evil eye, too... LOL.

The crowd was a bunch of rural small-town people from all around the area. Good people, and they were great to our band. I'm more of a city person, so I always feel a little out of my comfort zone in situations like that. But that's okay, we were their guests, and I appreciated that. I try to treat everybody with respect even if we're different, that's the way I'd want to be treated.