Photos: 9 Life Lessons from Philly Drag Queens

Drag queens are the mothers of the gay community. Think about it: They’ll be the first to spank us when we’re bad, they wear clothes we all want to play dress-up in and they teach us that, with the right tools, we can be whatever we want to be. That was Huff Post’s Gay Voices thinking when they approached some of our most celebrated drag queens and asked them to share some of their rules to live by. Sharon Needles said, “Enjoy the shade that is being thrown your way. Remember, the more shade … the less chance for skin cancer.” And her boyfriend, Alaska, weighed in with a reminder to tip: “It’s good karma — and people who don’t tip have small wieners.”

Listening to these made me want to reach out to Philly’s fab crop of queens to see what kind of nuggets of wisdom they live by. Here’s what they had to say:

1. Normal gets you nowhere. —Kelly Cutrone. 2. Be yourself. Everyone else is already taken. —Oscar Wilde. Stay true to yourself and ignore the negative. After this, people will not only begin to accept you for who you are, but celebrate you as well.

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