Yearly Archives: 2024

My Authentic Leather Self

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I received a message recently from someone who told me that he and a family member have been following this blog for a long time, and said,

I wanted to reach out to let you know how much I appreciate your blog and the way you embrace and celebrate leather culture. Your passion for wearing leather with pride and purpose has been truly inspiring to me.

I am grateful for the way your writing has helped us bond and discuss various topics related to kink, fetish and leather in a more open and understanding way.

Thank you for the work you do and for being such a positive role model. It means a lot to both of us.

Wow… I honestly had no idea of the impact this lil’ ol’ blog could have. While I do not think of myself as a typical example of a gay Leatherman, I guess I have shared enough about my fetish interests that it has had some impact.

I titled this post “my authentic leather self” to describe how I have evolved to…
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Leather Weather 2024

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Finally… the intense summer heat has broken. Time to hang up the suits and get my gear on!

I had a gift certificate from Schott Bros leather that was going to expire. During the hottest week of July, I ordered a new Schott Leather Trucker Jacket.

This jacket is thick, durable, and exceptionally well-made. Their marketing statement says it is lightweight enough to wear all year. No… not by a long-shot. This jacket is heavy… almost as heavy as my Schott Perfecto motorcycle jacket.

But man, it fits …
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Where The Heck Have I Been?

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I really hate letting this blog go sallow. Here it is July 2024, and the last time I posted was in April.

So where have I been?

Contrary to perceptions you may have that I have fallen off the planet, I have just been busy doing other things.

In May I traveled to Hawaii for 10 days (for an advisory committee meeting!) I just returned home after almost a month in Canada (for play!)

I do appreciate receiving messages from people who have read deep within this blog where I …
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Awesome Road Trip

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North America experienced a total solar eclipse on Monday 8 April, 2024.

I was considering flying somewhere to see full totality, but on advice from pros I trust, I decided not to pay for an airline ticket, hotel rooms, and so forth in case cloud cover made it a bust.

However, a close friend is such an eclipse enthusiast, we decided to wait until the Friday before to review weather information. We spoke that morning and decided it looked potentially good enough to take a road trip toward Ohio or Indiana.

My buddy picked me up on Sunday morning, and we…
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Asked for Dates

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Hmmm… I did not think that I would be asked for a date again by anyone. There are many more handsome younger men available.

I do not go out socially (much), and do not go to bars, restaurants, or other locations where singles mingle.

I still have trouble considering myself “single.” Even after three years since my husband’s death, I still feel married. As closely as we were bonded, it really wasn’t “until death did we part.” I really do not like to check boxes on forms that says “widowed.”

However, I was pleasantly and humorously surprised when not one but two people recently approached me, at first to compliment my suit (never thought a suit would do that!), then strike up a conversation that led…
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The Power Suit

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It is interesting to me that since I changed my website and this blog to re-introduce myself as a gay man into boots, leather, dress shoes and suits that I have receive more email in the last two weeks than I have received in a long time. I appreciate the complimentary feedback.

With permission of someone who asked me a question, I am answering it here.

“I see you’re into men’s business suits. You look great. I am a young guy, just graduated from college, and started a new job where the boss asked me to wear a ‘power suit’ when I meet company leaders visiting next week. I didn’t want to tell him that I don’t really know what a ‘power suit’ is. Will you show me yours?

Sure thing!

According to what I see on search engine results, consistent with my own thinking, a “power suit” is…
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Blog Update

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Since I changed my “Booted Harleydude” website on March 1, 2024, to “Rick’s website (aka “BHD”) A Gay Guy Into Boots, Leather, Shoes, and Suits” along with its header image and home page images too, I thought it was appropriate to change the image header and statement of this blog to:

BHD’s Musings: the life and times of Rick aka “BHD”
An average former biker, gay leatherman, bootman, shoe & suitman, ‘burbs living guy”

… so the transition will be complete.

As I said on this blog when I made the decision to …
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Growing A Hobby Into Professional Results

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When my husband was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in July 2020, he knew his life would be shorter than we anticipated. Actually, he thought he would die much sooner than I did. Unfortunately, he was right — six months after diagnosis, surgery, and failed chemo treatments, he died.

Knowing I should have a hobby to concentrate on and enjoy, for my last birthday (I do not have birthdays any more) in August 2020, he bought me one of the best digital SLR cameras available on the market. He knew I had creative talent, but I was so focused on my career which was highly technical and scientific, I did not use the creative side of my brain (much.)

In my new life after my husband died, I took a year to grieve. The year of 2021 was a fog. But when I look back at what I did that year, I was …
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Boots and Suits, 2024 Update

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I realized I posted in 2023 about wearing boots with suits. This choice of clothing is a preferred choice often for me.

Some style queens you find on the internet write reviews that are not accepting that some of us prefer to wear boots with suits and good-looking dress cowboy boots can make a man stand out from the crowd of dress shoe wearing suited men.

Don’t misunderstand, I like dress shoes too, and wear them with my suits as well.

But… being a Bootman from way back, I enjoy…
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Decisions, Changes

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My Booted Harleydude website has been around since 2005. The screen name was selected because:

a) I own and wear a lot of boots. This website was created primarily to catalog my extensive collection of cowboy, dress, motorcycle, and work boots.

b) I was (note past tense) a biker and owned and rode a Harley. I am also an old-school gay Leatherman, so I cataloged my motorcycle gear and fetish leather gear. Over time, I built quite the collection.

Well, come March 2024, I have made a hard decision to sell my Harley, hang up my helmet, and stop riding motorcycles. Long ago, I decided not to attend any Gay Leather events. I don’t have the interest, stamina, or desire to attend those types of events.

Why?
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