In March or April 2000, I did a search online and started learning that there are others like me (who do not get a sexual thrill out of dressing, we just enjoy it) and learning a lot about transgender issues.
In early June 2000, I had a makeup session. I went to it fully male, just carrying my wig and purse, and the makeup person worked on me. As I went home, I still had the makeup on, but there were no reactions from other people. It was great!
A week later, I picked up pizza and then the next day walked around town with fingernails painted with pink polish, but otherwise totally male. Where I went was to nail studios around town to see and ask about manicures. I do remember one lady who giggled as I left, but otherwise did not get much reaction (which is good!).
In mid June, I started going to work with nail polish on. Since I travel on the subway to work, that is another opportunity for people to notice or react. Anybody who has noticed has not reacted. In late July, I started wearing hose instead of socks.
After a couple days my boss said 'we would have to do something about your fashion', so rather than making a stink of 'take me or leave me' we reached a compromise basically of my wearing nail polish only.
By this time I have identified that I do not want to do hormones or any surgery - I am a biological guy who is between male and female gender wise and so I like mixing and matching gender signals.
In mid August I went to the mall in a skirt, but otherwise totally male (and with my male pattern baldness it was obvious that I was a guy!) and while I know that several people did see me, nobody said anything.
Labor day 2000 was the first time I was out of the house totally femme outside of the monthly support group meetings or otherwise with people I knew from there. My wife and I went to a mall in the next town over (about an hour drive) and had lunch and did some shopping.
In mid October my wife and I went to a mall again - this time the local mall where it is possible (though not very likely) to see someone we know. One of our stops was to shoe store to get sneakers for my wife. The impression I got was that the young lady who waited on my wife knew that I was a guy looking like a lady and smiled because of that. In other words, I experienced for myself other people being kind to us!
The next week I went to another local mall (different mall but again about a half hour away) by myself, and again did some shopping. A 25-30sh guy helped me find the right section. Then it was the same guy who checked me out. As it my turn to check out, he said something, I'm not totally sure what. The entire time he was helping me earlier and the entire checkout, he treated me fine as if everything was normal, which is one reason that I'm not totally sure if he said "You're turn sir" as it was time for me to checkout, even though I was wearing long-hair wig, breasts, above the knee skirt, and strappy heels. Well, whatever he said, I really don't care.
At the end of 2000 in the course of a month and a have, my wife and I saw three movies; 'Charlie's Angels', "What Women Want', and Miss Congeniality. In all cases, I thought it would be poetic justice for me to see the movies en femme, so I did. I wasn't really trying to 'pass' as a girl, just a guy being feminine. Again, no reactions. Some more small steps!
And of course, life continues in 2001.
This page last updated 18 January 2001
URL: http://www.geocities.com/darlene_20832/bio2000.html