June 28th - Mr & Ms Atlanta Eagle Bar Night - Atlanta, GA
June 29th - Gear Night @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
July 5th - ONYX SE Kinky Carnival / ABF @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
July 20th - Fundraiser for Eagle Employee @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
August 2nd - ONYX Anniversary Bar Night @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
August 3rd - Stations @ 1763 - Atlanta, GA
August 9-11th - Southeast Black & Blue Weekend @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
August 23-25th - Trident Knights Run @ Parliament House - Augusta, GA
August 30-September 2nd - Master/slave Conference - Rockville, MD
September 6th - ONYX Bar Night & O.P. Party @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
September 12-16th - Folsom Europe - Berlin, Germany
October 4th - ONYX Bar Night @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
October 11-13th - American Brotherhood Weekend - Chicago, IL
October 18th - Pantheon of Leather Awards, DOMCOM - Atlanta, GA
October 18th - ONYX and Panthers L/L Celebrate @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
November 1st - ONYX Bar Night @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
November 29th - Needles and Tattoo Branding @ Incognito's - Atlanta, GA
December 6th - ONYX Bar Night @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
December 7th - ONYX Christmas Party "Holiday Heat" @ Spring 4th - Atlanta, GA
December 21st - Twisted Toyland @ The Jungle - Atlanta, GA
January 3rd 2014 - Mr SouthEast LeatherFest Presents "No Pain, No Gain" / ONYX Bar Night (Demo) @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
Jan 24th - Mr & Ms Atlanta Eagle Bar Night / Fundraiser for Mr SELF 2013's IML Run @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
Feb 7th - ONYX Bar Night @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
Feb 14-16th - SECC Weekend @ Parliament Resort - Orlando, FL
Mar 7th - ONYX Bar Night @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
Mar 14-16th - RSVP (Co-Presenter) - Baton Rouge, LA
Mar 22nd - Panther's Pledge Fundraiser @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
Mar 22nd - Frolicon Fundraiser @ Incognito's - Atlanta, GA
Mar 28-30th - Conductor's Anniversary Run - Nashville, TN

The time just keeps on moving and the events just keep on coming! It gets difficult trying to keep up with it all, but things keep getting worked out. It's how you know you're in the right places at the right times doing what you're supposed to be doing. I love this, the travel, the family, the love, the Leather. It IS me. I'm just happy to be here experiencing it like this, surrounded by such amazing people.
It's this kind of amazing that brought me to the decision to compete at IML 36 in May. It's a leap that I'm ready to take, a fun I'm open to experiencing, and a challenge I'm willing to endure. Let's go SouthEast, we're competing for International!

...but until May, there's still the SouthEast to attend to! Let's go over the past couple months, shall we?
Winding down from the incredible-ness of "No Pain, No Gain" in January I thought I'd take it easy for a weekend and learn more about something I'm personally interested in - Branding! On Jan 10th Master Sergeant held a branding class/demo at Incognito's and I'm so glad I went. I got to pick up not only some good information, but also some wares while he and his private were in town.

MLK Weekend, Jan 17-19th I flew up to DC for Mid Atlantic Leather Weekend. There were so many SouthEast people there that I could hardly tell I left Atlanta! Also I got the chance to grab a meal and spend a little time with Madeline our very own SouthEast BootBlack - which is ALWAYS a good time. ONYX hosted a kick-ass cocktail party that was well attended and received. The Men of ONYX raised $2000 to donate to SMYAL, an organization to assist homeless LGBT youth and had a GREAT time doing it. I'm sure there are pics of these hot men modeling the auctioned gear on FB *wink*. It was a triple-duty wonderful kind of weekend for me since MAL is an anniversary for me and my boy Spec who met me there with cupcakes, AND my Daddy was in town, AND I attended the IML Judges announcement wherein I made my first profession of competing at IML 36! Sometimes I just have to step back and re-realize, I AM a busy man...

I have to send yet another shout out to Mr and Ms Atlanta Eagle Tank and Lizzy - they let me take over their bar night Jan 24th to raise some funds for my run at IML 36. These two just continue to support me through this year and I really appreciate it. It's this crazy Atlanta Leather Community family kind of thing we've got going. I realize that I'm super lucky to have this particular community, cause it just doesn't exist everywhere for everyone. Really very grateful!

Rolling on to February I had the pleasure of attending SECC Weekend at the Parliament Resort in Orlando. I had never been so it was doubly an experience. boy Spec accompanied me so we got a little relaxing done at the pool in between supporting my ONYX Brother Dre as he competed for Mr. SECC - and WON, no less! I had a great time connecting with boy Andy in the pool and in a lawn chair (lol under a heater) smoking cigars with Geoff. I am super proud of Dre for going down there and really representing ONYX SE. I look forward to sharing trips around the SouthEast with him!

The following weekend boy River came up to Atlanta to teach at Whimper and I wouldn't have missed it! babygirl and I attended and enjoyed his talk about Mental Health and BDSM. And that evening I got to help him demo Erotic Bootblacking.. not that he had to twist my arm.. I mean, having a hot boy clean my Leather jockstrap and condition it with his mouth.. sounds like a good time to me! I'll take that one for the team!

March 1st was a momentous day as Atlanta gained a Leather store front with the grand opening of Barking Leather! Going out to support them was a MUST and it was pup Tory's birthday so there was cake. Leather, friends, cake, leather.. what more could I ask for! Shameless plug? www.barkingleather.com.

March 14th boy River drove down to Atlanta and we hit the road for Baton Rouge! Talk about southern hospitality.. the folks down there at RSVP really took care of us. They even prepared food for the potluck that I can eat (since I have a bit of a strange diet.) River and I presented two classes "Sex & Gender" and "Humiliation 101" both of which were super well received. The people asked questions and created just the right conversation for BOTH topics. AND we both received these amazing hand-made knitted Leather Pride hats! If you somehow haven't seen me with it on.. YOU WILL.. likely even after it gets (and stays) hot here in Atlanta.. cause its just so rad! I really quite enjoyed my time there and LOVE the whole setup there at RSVP - I'm totally looking forward to going back sometime. The drive was a bit lengthy, but the company was amazing and made the drive both there and back EASY.

March 22nd there were fundraisers all over! LOL.. or at least at 2 places so I did a little double-duty there. First I stopped by the Eagle with my donation for the Panthers Pledge's fundraiser to support Paws. I couldn't NOT get something for someone's future furry family member! After that babygirl and I booked it over to Incognito's to support the Pre Frolicon Party and Fundraiser for Beth. So much to give back to and so little time, but we made it happen.

I just got back from spending this past weekend again with boy River (TOTALLY not complaining) up in Nashville at the Conductor's Anniversary Run. Aaah to attend a Run in the south is like nothing else. I got to meet member clubs of the Mid Atlantic Conference of Clubs and just hang out and have a good time out on the Nashville scene. It was nice to get to Stirrups in Nashville and see my club colors in the display case - I LOVE how ONYX is everywhere, my Brothers totally get around.

And if that wasn't enough before SELF 19.. wait.. there's more! April and May are definitely going to be FULL months of Leather and Love and IML! But I'm getting ready for it. And now that there's a bit more warmth in the air.. time to hit the POOL at more of these events!

Next up?
*April 2014*
4th - ONYX Bar Night @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
11-13th - Mr / Ms Atlanta Eagle Contest (Judge) @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
17-18th - Frolicon - Atlanta, GA
19th - Mr American Rubber @ Rock Bar - New York, NY
20th - ONYX NY/Northeast Presents: Impact Play (Presenter) @ Purple Passion - New York, NY
24-27th - CLAW - Cleveland, OH

*May 2014*
2nd - ONYX Bar Night @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
23-26th - International Mr Leather (Contestant) - Chicago, IL

*June 2014*
6th - ONYX Bar Night @ Atlanta Eagle - Atlanta, GA
12-14th - Philly Trans Health Conference - PA (Tentative)
19-22nd - SELF 19!!! - Atlanta, GA

Let's Get It!

Love and Leather ALWAYS,

Optimus / Raymond Walker III

The past few months have been a little more laid back than the hyper-active, plane-hopping, event-attending situation I experienced just after SELF 18. I had even began to worry about it, but I believe that all things happen for a reason. I realize today that I needed the break to create some change in some personal situations and to prepare for the most recent Mr SELF event "No Pain, No Gain"... but we'll get to that, let's start with October *wink*

Columbus Day weekend I attended my first American Brotherhood Weekend and had an amazing time. It really felt like home with very much the same "Family" feel, like SELF! The contestants were sincere with heartfelt speeches and the contest was downright funny! I am proud to say that both American Leather Woman 2013 and American Leatherboy 2013 are from Atlanta and are both near and dear to me O.B. my very own predecessor and pup Tank (respectively). It was amazing to watch them do their thing on stage. I had the opportunity to meet some amazing folks and hang out for a bit with my Producer Ms. Gross, who continues to amaze me with how connected she is to heart of the transmasculine community EVERY time I see her. It's rather encouraging really. A major highlight of that weekend was having the opportunity to sit out front of the local dungeon, smoke cigars, and talk Leather history/relationships with boy River and a couple of guys who have been in the Leather/Kink community probably almost as long as either of us have been alive. It was a centering experience and one that I will cherish from that weekend.

The following weekend both my boy (a member of ONYX) and my Daddy, who is also one of the five founders of ONYX came into town to attend the Pantheon of Leather Awards at DOMCON and accept the "Large Club of the Year Award". That weekend was rewarding in all kinds of ways! It was certainly an honor to stand on the stage with Brothers that I hold so dear, celebrating my Leather club in such an awesome way. Since the Panthers L/L received the "Small Club of the Year Award" we celebrated together at the Atlanta Eagle afterwards with cake and a toast! I love it when Leather clubs can come together, have a good time, and celebrate one another. Its one of the things that reminds us of how similar we really are despite whatever differences we may experience.

Trying to lay a little low and ramp up for the holidays I didn't get out of town at all in November and December. But in-town events I attended were low-key enough to keep me from feeling rushed through a wind of titleholder crazy but still keep me connected to the community. I mean ONYX SE Bar Night is a regular thing on the calendar of course, but other than that in November I visited a new dungeon here in Atlanta, Incognito's -- and I REALLY like that place. The atmosphere is friendly, there's a lot of space and good equipment for just about anything you want to make happen, and there's snacks and coffee available! ALL great things if you ask me. I attended a Needle and Tattoo Branding demo and of course with my own needle/blood fetish I was in heaven. I even got the chance to feel a few 18g needles for the first time that night. EXCITING!
In the spirit of the holiday season at ONYX SE's December bar night we put the call out to raise some funds for Lost N Found. We were hoping for a better turn out of donations, but I suppose you have to give people the benefit of the doubt with the holidays coming up. The following night we held our ONYX Christmas party over at Spring 4th - which is a GREAT party venue for a good value. Sadly, it was cold and rainy that night so we didn't draw as much of a crowd as we had hoped, but we still had a good time mingling and dancing. We are hoping that if we can keep this as an annual event then we'll get our attendance up and raise some money for a good cause in the process. I guess there's always next year.

Later in December I attended my first Twisted Toyland! Which left me feeling like, "Why have I never come to this before?!" It's the perfect time/place to get your kinky loved ones great Xmas gifts and spend some holiday time together. There was food, vendors, raffles, and pictures with a Kinky Santa! I mean.. what more could a Leatherman ask for leading up to Christmas?! I was gifted a rather nice metal cane by a sweet and dear friend, and also received my first can of Hubbard's and boot brush with the ONYX logo on it from a precious babygirl. This is definitely going to be a standing appointment on my calendar. It really helped break up the up/down roller coaster that tends to be the holidays for me. Ever since I lost my dad on December 13, 2011 its been kind of a hard time for me. Getting out with friends, taking fun pictures with Kinky Santa, shopping sexy Leather wares, getting big breast hugs, and helping friends pack up their vendor wares really got me out of my own head even if only for an evening.

So roller coastering through the holidays I realized that I wanted to do something special for my dad's birthday and it was coming up fast but conveniently it began during an ONYX bar night. So I decided to have an event to raise money for the American Diabetes Association in his honor - the first in hopefully a series "No Pain, No Gain". With my most interesting fetish (or at least to me as of late) being needles I decided to "sell" needles that would be used in a Needle demo to raise the money for the cause. THIS.. turned out.. AMAZING. You HAVE to see pictures on FetLife and Facebook. HUGE thanks to Jackie (Ms. Atlanta Eagle 2012) and boy River for helping make this event happen. It was an absolutely phenomenal experience. We raised $350 at the bar that night and another $110 through online contributions bringing the amount raised to $460 - and I took 114 needles that night (which included 14- 18g needles!). I had never taken more than a few needles at a time before that night, Jan 4 - which would have been my dad's 57th birthday. I received amazing support from our community that night - even from out of state! Along with that I received such a great gift of love, community, and encouragement from everyone who attended ..and a sense of release from some of the grief I carry with me daily.

While planning for No Pain, No Gain our community suffered a loss of one of our SELF family members, Nefarious - Mr SELF 2009. And though it was hard to hear and see so many people grieving the loss it was encouraging to continue with the event, raising money to save lives through the loss of someone dear to the community.

Thus was my past Quarter as Mr SouthEast LeatherFest 2013. It's kind of hard to believe that the year is halfway over. It's time to get my bags packed and hit the road. I've got some more of the South East to see and do!

In Love and Leather,
Optimus
Mr. SouthEast LeatherFest 2013

It has definitely sunk in that I am Mr. SouthEast LeatherFest 2013 - and.. I'm loving it. Not because I'm "famous" or some other disillusion of grandeur, but because of the love I get to witness in our community as I see Leather and Kinky folks come together for different causes. It's hard to miss when you're attending as many events and bar nights as you can and staying involved with the things that concern U/us.

I have the great fortune to live quite close to a city where there is an Eagle - Atlanta, GA. With this I have taken the opportunity to support Mr and Mrs Atlanta Eagle at their bar nights along with some of the bar nights of the Panther L/L club. I ALWAYS have a blast getting together with these guys, whether we're raising money for a travel fund or to help out Lost-N-Found Youth of Atlanta, we always have a great time doing it. Since the Eagle is ALSO the home bar of My Leather club ONYX SE, I am ALSO at the Eagle just about every 1st Friday of each month with my Brothers! You should definitely come out and see us if you haven't - we have a good time and apparently our Jello Shots alone are worth the trip. ;)

Along with Leather club bar nights, the Atlanta Eagle also hosts some awesome events like SouthEast Black and Blue Weekend which I also attended. This is where the contest to select Mr. Southeast Rubber and Southeast Community BootBlack was held. Having recently competed I had a few flashbacks watching the contestants, but I was very happy to be there to support Brittany who was such a big help for all of us competing at SELF. So you can imagine how my heart filled with Joy to watch her win the title of 2013 SouthEast Community BootBlack AND be presented with her Leather Vest all in the same night. Made me all the more glad to have made it out to the Eagle that weekend.

Since I earnestly believe that education should Always be happening, I also attended the Education Stations event at 1763 over in Tucker in July. I had a lovely time watching, learning, and experiencing with a few good friends of mine. I earned a new neon glow cracker for my single-tail and realized a new appreciation for the violet wand and an item that looks MUCH like a whisk... which is exciting for me since I actually also love cooking.

Smack dab in the middle of my summer I drove down to the Parliament House in Augusta to join the Trident Knights for their annual run, which this year was a "Hillbilly Hootenanny!" Yes, overalls and all. You have not lived until you've played hillbilly games barefoot on the patch of grass at PHouse beside beside the swimming pool and eaten your banquet dinner off of a table covered with table cloths of blue jeans. I had the pleasure of being accompanied by my boy Spec, who was also celebrating his birthday that weekend, which just made it all the more fun..of course. Overall it was a super relaxing weekend and I was honored to represent SELF at the event and assist in small part during the Trident Knight's presentation of awards at the banquet.

Labor Day Weekend is usually a huge weekend and an extra bar night for ONYX SE here in Atlanta with the big Black Gay Pride event put on by ITLA. That weekend is also the weekend of my partner Israel's birthday..but after some convincing and a little bribing I made my way to Maryland for the 10th Anniversary Master/slave Conference! And guess who I got to spend the weekend with in the process - the Lovely and Oh so fun SouthEast Bootblack 2013 - Madeline! We had a BLAST driving back and forth from DC to Maryland and getting caught up on the happenings in our title year thus far. I also got to see and connect with our ever-traveling Producer Catherine - which was good for me. Like with all conferences, some of the best times happen in the smoking section or in the hallway - and I had one of those moments. A member of one of the MaST chapters remembered me from the recent SELF contest and stopped me outside to state his and his club's support of me during this upcoming year. I could hardly get "thank you" out, I was so taken aback and completely honored by his words and the sentiment. This was my first time attending MsC and I definitely plan to go back. I really appreciated the Spiritual connection I could feel in and between the people both attending and presenting. It was a different world from the Leather bars and Runs that I find myself getting all the more used to, but I Loved it. I got to spend a good part of the conference sponging up a TON of information (and pointers) about M/s and D/s relationship dynamics. Then Madeline and I got to assist Rod (an ONYX and Leather family Brother of mine) in selling Raffle tickets to support the MsC History Project! THIS was probably one of the highlights for me.. and probably for a few other choice attendees. Let's just say I ENJOY selling raffle tickets - especially when you get to suggest options like "Boots-To-Balls, Muff-to-Cuff, Pussy-to-Pumps, Spread Eagle, Reverse Spread Eagle, or a Combo Package thereof" *big smile* I may have scruffed my knees a bit, but all in all we helped to raise over $950 before the end of the weekend - and I was happy to do it "...for the children."

ONYX SE's September bar night we shared the Atlanta Eagle with the O.P. party which just turned out to be a LOAD of fun. While the Southern Comfort Conference was in town Original Plumbing magazine threw a party at the Eagle during our bar night - and it was pretty Spectacular. Mostly I enjoyed seeing SO many Trans/Queer/GenderQueer -identified people at the Eagle having such a GREAT time all night long. And I appreciate the Eagle, ONYX SE and ONYX supporters for being so receptive of the crowd and for just making it an all around FUN night of Leather, Love, and Laughter! It was just the beginning of the immense amount of LOVE and great desire for inclusivity that I would soon see expressed in the community that I love so much.

I am recently getting back into the states from spending a bit of time in Europe - some of which was for vacation purposes.. I mean, who CANT use a vacation, right?! But ALSO, I HAD to find a way to make it up to Israel for being out of town on his birthday, so we spent a week and celebrated our 3 year anniversary together in Paris. My trip overseas BEGAN however, with me flying into Berlin to attend Folsom Europe. Even if my expectations had been higher I STILL would have been wowed by how much fun I had. I had the opportunity to represent the SouthEast at the 1st German Titleholder Conference hosted by German Mr Leather 2013, Tyrone R. It was a room of fantastic titleholders from all over Europe and the Americas discussing issues in the Leather community and with Leather competitions. I am honored to have been a part of the conversation and to have been able to provide some insight for our European counterparts in regard to some of the challenges we face here in the SouthEast and some of the methods we've employed to combat the issues. I really appreciate the receptiveness of those in attendance and Tyrone's forethought to hold such an event! I also had the pleasure to peruse the dark room in a German bar AND attend the PIG party.. BOTH things that one should NOT miss experiencing if ever in Berlin and most definitely at Folsom Europe - Just Sayin.

While away in Europe I did hear tell of some disheartening news around ILSb and the requirements for contestants, but it sparked something in my own Leather club that I knew was there - but REALLY appreciated seeing in action. The Men of ONYX got together, drafted, and published a public response to ILSb's previous decision to exclude Trans persons from competing in the contest. ...I'm not even sure if words are adequate to express what their diligence and quick action in regard to this means to Me. I mean, these are the Men that have (and in many ways still are) raised me in Leather and to see them demonstrate this kind of compassion and love for a community so dear to me, albeit different from them -- Amazing. I am grateful also that the board of ILSb has changed their mind in regard to their prior decision but had it never happened, I may have not been able to have THIS experience.

I love my community for all the support and love I am continually shown. I can only look forward to continuing to experience that love and share it with everyone I come in contact with! I'm still way excited about traveling, meeting new people, hosting some round-tables and continuing to support our Leather and Kink community in whatever ways are needed. If you've got an event you would like for me to attend PLEASE feel free to contact me and we'll see what we can do!

In Love and Leather,
Optimus
Mr. SouthEast LeatherFest 2013

mrsoutheastleatherfest2013@gmail.com
Optimus_Prime