North Carolina

Heather, Candi, and I.

So I went directly from Minnesota to Raleigh North Carolina. The good news here is that I have plans to meet someone here - Candi! This time I broke one of my personal rules - I went out drinking on a work night. Don't get me wrong, I will take a drink on a work night, but I try to draw the line at drinking too much if I have to work the next day. That line was well and thoroughly crossed on this trip though!





 We started in the Clarion hotel's lounge/restaurant where I met Candi and her friend Heather. So we are chatting it up and having a reasonably good time when other people start to show up. One guy keeps staring at us and giving us looks from across the bar, but everyone else was 100% cool. A younger couple came in and sat down and we all chatted and laughed. The woman appeared to be comfortable but the guy was all red in the face. He chatted and laughed with us, but clearly he was kind of embarrassed. Well, while we are talking with this couple a woman down at the end of the bar is talking to the bartender/waiter. We later find out her name is Noel.
"I just can't decide if I should have the potato pancakes or not!".
Candi over hears this and interjects "Oh yes hun, you WANT the potato pancakes!"
Noel says, "I don't know, I'm trying to watch what I eat", or something along those lines. At the same time Candi and I try offering our advice:
Candi - "Get 'em, you'll love 'em!"
Me - "Don't do it! You'll be sorry!" (yes, I'm trying to loose weight myself)
Noel looks at us and tells the waiter "I'll take 'em!" This of course sets of a conversation that lasts most of the rest of the night.

Me, Noel, and Candi

 

After speaking to her for quite a while, we found out that Noel is taking a new job as a music teacher. Talk about guts! Not only is she going to be responsible for a room full of children, but add to that the fact that she must appreciate music and is going to put instruments in the hands of those that can't yet play them. As an amature musician, I can only imagine how painful this is going to be for her!

It also turns out that the bar tender is fairly accomplished musician and the two launch off on a discussion involving lots of numbers. I play by ear, so when people start talking numbers to describe chords and notes, my eyes cross. Well, if I understood her correctly, we are the first TG's Noel has met! Considering she had never encountered one of us before, and yet immediately started laughing and talking with us, I've got to give her a thumbs up - way to go! If more people were like her the world would be a great place.
GOOD LUCK IN YOUR NEW JOB NOEL!



After dinner Candi and I headed out on foot to a place called the CC Club that was about a city block away. Noel was going to go with us but wasn't feeling well or perhaps she had reached the limits of her courage, but she backed out at the last moment. Of course I guess the other option is that maybe she was too damn smart to go out drinking at 1030 PM on a week night!

When we arrived, the place was literally empty - there were maybe two people in it and I had started to think that we had goofed. Somewhere around mid night the place was suddenly packed though, and they had a drag show. One of the Tgirls was just drop dead stunning (I hated her).

Eventually I had had enough (okay - MORE than enough!) and since I had to work in the morning, I called it a night before Candi was ready to go. She stepped outside with me and pointed me in the direction of the hotel and off I went. As it is a 21 story building, you could see the hotel roof and so it seemed perfectly reasonable to walk directly there. What I didn't realize is that there was no path or sidewalk between the bar and the hotel, so I had gotten about half of the way there when I found myself facing a block wall that was crumbling and falling apart.
"Hmmm . . . walk all the way back and around, or climb the rubble in heels and a skirt?", I ask myself. I figure "what the hell" and start climbing. Good to know that all those confidence courses in the Army are finally paying off! As I'm climbing over the pile of blocks the whole picture hits me and I see the next days headlines in my minds eye:
"Drunk drag queen breaks damn fool neck" or "Cross dresser found robbed, beaten, and dead on pile of blocks." That's okay, as Monty Python said "Always look on the bright side of life!"

The Mall of America in Minneapolis!

"Minneapolis" isn't quite accurate - it was actually Bloomington Minnesota, but I think that most folks outside of Minnesota don't know of it. Well, what Bloomington is well known for is that it is the home of the Mall of America (MOA) - the largest mall in the United States. It was the largest in the world for many years but someone else swiped that title (I think it was those pesky Canadians). :-)

It goes with out saying that there is no way I'm going to be next to the MOA and not go shopping! It also appears to be a good time to GO shopping as every store in the mall was having sales of 40 to 70% off of most things. I wore a cute little skirt that flares out at the bottom! I don't care if it might be a bit old fashioned - I loved it and that's what counts!



I entered the mall through Dillard's. It's sort of a method with me to help remember where I park. If I always park at Dillard's then I don't have to sit there 4 hours later asking myself "DAMN! Where did I leave the car??!!" Boy am I gonna be in a world of hurt if I go to a mall that doesn't HAVE a Dillard's!

So as I'm walking in, two woman are walking towards the door and I can hear what sounds like the end of a conversation or debate on outfits. One to the other while looking at me as they approach "Now see! This girls outfit is . . ." and that's where she stopped talking and acquired that "is that a guy look?" that I'm starting to hate.
I smiled as I walked past and then couldn't resist turning to see if they were looking back at me. Sure enough, I busted the one that was talking turning to get a second look. Must be that neon sign on my head saying "Cross dresser" again.
Well, there went my "I'm passing" confidence right out the door at the start of my shopping :-(
Oh well, why worry about it - there's shopping to be done!

Didn't take long for two things to occur to me.
1 - A mall this size can not be well air conditioned so it was often quite warm.
2 - The red knit top I was wearing was a REALLY bad idea if you're going to be somewhere warm!

By the time you factor in the wig, the makeup, the nylons, and then the top with the high neck, you have a recipe for getting HOT!!! When I noticed that there was perspiration running down my nose, I figured "That's it, I don't care about hiding the adams apple, it's time to get a blouse that is cooler!" And so, another great shopping quest is begun!

I took a few pics of the mall just to try and give a concept of its size. This place is truly huge, with an entire carnival inside! I mean we are talking roller coaster, Ferris wheel, etc, etc - all the full sized rides of a carnival and its inside the center of the mall.

The Mall of America.

 (It has been years ago now and now I don't recall who it was, but I was contacted by a magazine asking permission to use this photo! Isn't that cool?!)



Well, other than being far too warm, I enjoyed the mall! I found a store called Nordstrom Rack and found a great pink top for my favorite skirt! (Pic in my next blog entry). Well, when I went to pay for it, the SA was a cute blonde lady maybe in her mid 50's and she was very friendly. She told me that she thought the new top was awesome, and "by the way, pink is my favorite color!", and "I love your ear rings!" she says. I told her "thank you very much. I can't wait to try it on with my favorite skirt!" She told me she was sure I'd look great in it. I said "I hope so, and maybe it wont be as hot as THIS one!" while tugging on the top I was wearing. She just sort of giggle and said she was pretty sure of that! She looked pretty hard at my debit card when I handed it to her so I sort of giggled and said "Don't laugh TOO hard!". She just laughed and said it was absolutely not a problem! Way cool!
On the way back to the hotel I came across a theater and stopped to see what was playing. "Oceans 13" was about to start so I went for it! Cute show - I really enjoyed it!

Doing the Dirty Work

(21 June 2007)

My truck is like 4 thousand miles PAST due for an oil change, so I get home from work, throw on some old sweats and a tank top and head out to get dirty! It's NOT one of my favorite things, but hey, there are things that you just have to do in life, like them or not. So I'm headed out to the garage door in all my red neck finery when my spouse looks at me and giggles. As soon as she realizes that I noticed her giggle she puts her hand over her mouth like she's gonna hide or stop the giggle I already heard. I give her my best "Spock" raised eyebrow and ask "What?"
"You don't want to know"
This of course makes it irresistible - now I HAVE to find out what she thought was sooo funny.
"Yes I do, out with it! What are you laughing about?"
"Sure you want to know?" She does this to me once in a while. I think it's a game she enjoys. It's like her "tell 'em just enough to scare 'em to death and then say no more" game. (see blog regarding bees).
"GRRRRRRR" Yes, I DID actually growl at her. "What's so damn funny?!"
"Well" she says "You're the only guy that I know that can make a wife beater shirt look girly"

Note: For those of you that are not rednecks, a "Wife Beater" shirt is a tank top - a shirt with no sleeves.

Well, at first I was offended.
Then I smiled deciding it was a compliment!
Then I wasn't sure.
Then I got it filthy changing the oil in my PICKUP TRUCK!
So there! Ain't nothing girly about a guy in a wife beater shirt covered in oil under a pickup truck.
Stupid wife. . . what does she know any way? ;-)

A boob in Delaware . . .

So - I'm on the road again and this time it's Delaware! Newark Delaware to be exact. I asked everyone on several Yahoo groups, and posted on a couple of boards that I belong to, if anyone knew of anything fun to do here. I got back maybe half a dozen responses, most boiling down to "the only good thing to do there is leave". Hmm . . . doesn't sound promising!
Well, based on that advice, I was going to drive to Washington DC to see the Smithsonian again, but the more I thought about it, the more I thought "been there done that" and so I looked for something else to do. What do you know, I'm not far from Philadelphia, and that is where the liberty bell is! I thought maybe I would go take a little look see!

Should I wear my favorite long pink skirt or my new shorter dark pink skirt?
Favorite long, or new short?
Favorite long, or new short? 
Favorite long or . . . . AAARRRGGGHHH !!
My brain got stuck in the loop! I love my long pink skirt but I'm gonna wear it out if I don't start to wear something else once in a while - shorter skirt it is!

Funny thing that - the shorter skirt I mean. I was nervous in it!
Me. Nervous in a short skirt, and its not really a "short" skirt, just shorter than I have been wearing the last year or two.

I was wearing something else that was new but I feel silly saying it - breast forms . SHHH!!
Keep it down - don't say that so loud! They felt HUGE! Normally I use a H2O bra, very small relatively speaking and now I had these things hanging off my front end and I felt WAY self conscious about them. They may have to go as anything that makes me less than confident is a bad thing, a death blow to passing.
I figure I'm probably being silly so I decide to give them a shot anyway and I'm headed out!






On the way out of the hotel I saw the book store - book stores and I are good friends. When you spend as much time on airplanes and in airports as I do, reading is a good hobby to have. Well I was almost done with the book I was reading on the way here (it's pretty good so I'm going through it fast) and I needed a new one. What the heck, shopping for a book while looking pretty is as much fun as anything else, so I headed in! Found a book, bought a book, left with the book. No one noticed me, laughed at me, called the cross dressing police, or towed my darn car so I figure that we're off to a good start!

Books in hand, I headed to Philadelphia to see the Liberty Bell.I get into the area where the Liberty Bell is and start circling looking for a parking area. This is obviously a tourist spot because the streets are FULL of people walking with cameras, riding horse drawn carts, etc. As I am searching for a parking spot my cell phone rings. While I had completed the job that I came here to do, it was only noon, it's a work day and I love my job, so I answered the phone. It's one of my co-workers looking for help on a instrument I know a little better than he does. I help him with his problem and then it strikes me - he lives in PA! Not in Philadelphia, but in the state, so I ask him if he has seen the Liberty Bell and where was the best place to park? He told me that yes, he's seen it, but that I wont be able to because as a method of crowd control you have to get tickets in advance! They're free, but you still have to get them - I just drove an hour for nothing! I was just thinking this when he says "Guess what? Your not far from me right now"
My heart jumped solidly into my throat at this comment. What was I gonna say if he said "come on over" or "I'll come meet you"??!! This is one of my favorite people and I'm not looking forward to coming up with an excuse to snub him, but I'm "dressed", didn't bring boy clothes, and am an hour from my hotel. Fortunately fate took pity on me - he had to let me go because a customer was calling him! I figure this is my chance to escape the city and State before he suggests a get together, so I head south for Delaware.

When I get back to the hotel, I look for, and come up with, plan C. If you lost track, here is a recap:
Plan A - had been the Smithsonian - I had decided not to.
Plan B - had been the Liberty Bell - I had been told I couldn't get in IF I found a place to park
Guess what? When they set me up with a hotel, it was right across from . . wait for it . . . wait for it . . . . The largest mall in the State!
Plan C - Go to the mall and resume search for pretty pink sandals!
Now I have to comment again on . . ahem <blush> . . . breasts . I am not used to these things that appear to be preceding me by a zip code and I feel very uncomfortable, very self conscious. I get the same feeling I get on the few times I've danced - I'm just sure everyone in the mall is staring at me - at them! I paid attention and not one person did a double take or turned around to get a second look, but still I'm just sure every one is staring at them and giggling.
I find a pair of sandals that I like, they aren't perfect, but they're good AND they are $80 sandals on sale for $40! I pick up the display shoe and turn to ask the SA for my size, but he beats me to the punch
"9 or 9 and a half?" he asked.
"Close, so close!" I said, "but it's a 10" (Damn it - I wish I had small feet!)
He brings out the shoes in size 10 and as he hands them to me I can see it click in his eyes that he has made me. Damn! What is it? Do I have a sign on my forehead? I THINK its my voice that gives me away, but I'm not sure. Tried them on and he was right - the 10 WAS a little too big. This guy is GOOD! I ask for he 9.5s, try them on, like them, and buy them! They have one of those little card machines where you swipe your own card so I used my debit card. Apparently your name comes up on his monitor, or on the receipt, because as he is bagging them and handing them to me, he says "have a nice day Mr Huddle". Grrrrrrr!!!!

Go back to the hotel where I put on my favorite skirt. You know - the one I wanted these sandals for? Like what I see and headed to see a movie feeling confident in my pretty long skirt.


Went to see Fantastic 4 and as I paid for my popcorn using cash, the kid behind the counter says "Anything else . . sir".
Just a small pause before the "sir".
Not sure if he did it for emphasis or because he truly was not sure what he was supposed to say. Either way, I wanted to jump the counter and choke him!
The movie was fair - not as good as the first two, but fair.
Two sirs in one day - my confidence is not high, so I head to the hotel where I try to decide if I have the guts to go out to dinner or not. One look in the mirror and I decide "not". 11 hours after I did my makeup, my makeup is tired, and my super "a year of laser treatments couldn't kill the damn thing" beard is starting to peak through. Took a shower and realized I hadn't eaten anything but half a bag of popcorn in a day and a half. Should have got a salad but did I? NOOOO, I had to go to KFC and get me some greasy, ultra fattening, "you will never be a size 10" fried Chicken.
Still thinking about going back to smack the kid that called me "sir". Hmmm . . Sir this damn it! <taking a swig of coke and licking chicken grease off my fingers>

Nothing of Importance

(16 June 2007)

No, there is no picture on this blog entry. What am I gonna do, put up a pic of me looking puzzled or clueless? Hold on, this might make sense in a moment. . .
So I've spent some time the last couple of days following links from the "friends" on my 360 page, to their friends, and on to their friends, and . . . you get the point! It comes as no surprise that there is a huge variety of people out there. More specifically, since that is what my page sort of centers on, there is a huge variety of TG people out there. There are people who's only interest is in the clothes, people who are only into the fetish aspect, and then there are people to whom these things mean nothing. And every once in while you stumble across people that make stop and say "WOW! She's neat!"

You read their blogs, and these people have it all together - they are doing something with their lives, and with their blogs. They speak intelligently of significant things.
Things like what does it mean to be TG and how can we represent our community well to others.
Things like abused and battered women.
Things like how does being raped affect a woman.
Important and significant things that they have taken the time to study, and then present to us in a coherent fashion.

I then returned to my page and it suddenly seems so inadequate. The only things of any significance I have offered are my history and some of my family history. This might be of use or value to someone someday. There might be some small value to my blog for people with a "What makes a crossdresser tick?" or "what kind of person is a cross dresser" question. I doubt it, but maybe.
Things of significance or importance - not here.
Well spoken dialog to get you to think - not here
Anything that makes you go "wow" with wonder - NOT HERE.
Nope, all you find in my blog are photographs and my flapping my gums about clothes and malls.

Today I followed links at random from the "friends" on my 360 page. I couldn't possibly tell you how to get there again, and would hesitate to do so in any case as I don't want to traumatize anyone else the way the photo affected me. Anyway, I found a page with a photograph of a woman that had been beaten so badly that it honestly took me a few moments of looking to realize it was a face I was looking at. This page tried to describe what being raped does to a woman and what WE can all do to help those we know who have gone through it.

My page? My new pink skirt and search for matching sandals. I think I feel sick to my stomach . . .

My Steel Child

It's funny how things from your childhood stay with you and affect you later in life. When I was very
young, my father had a 1968 Fastback Mustang. Some where along the line, I must have decided this was a very cool car, and now, 30 years later, I still think the 67 and 68 Mustangs are way cool cars!

My very first car was a 1967 Mustang. It was half bondo, but it had side pipes, mags, a sun roof, and a LOUD stereo and I LOVED that car. I have since owned a 65, 69, and 70 Mustang, but relative to this one they were all in very poor shape.
I made one serious mistake with all of my other mustangs - I let working on them intimidate me and tried to hire others to do all the work. The flaw with that plan is that it costs a lot to hire others to do everything, and I flat out couldn't afford it on a corporal/sergeants pay. In the long run I was forced to get rid of the cars.
Well, as you can see, I got the bug again and bought this one about a year ago. "This time" I told myself (and my wife) "I will do the work myself!", and so far I have. Of course taking things apart is easy, the proof is in getting it back together and running, and I haven't got there yet!

The guy I bought it from in San Antonio fibbed through his teeth and said it ran well. Well, we had to stop at every gas station between San Antonio and Austin to fill the radiator and cool the poor beast down. This turned a 2 hour drive into a 4 hour drive! :-) People came over to talk to my son and I at just about every stop we made. Even with the hood up and me pouring water in and over the radiator, guys still wanted to tell me what an awesome car it was! Yes, my ego is alive and well and I liked this.

This car is awesome! It has been in Texas and parked in garages for all of its life. For more than 15
years it was parked and didn't even move. Thanks to someone smart years ago getting the car rust proofed, this 40 year old lady doesn't have any more rust than my 4 year old pick up. It has just about every option you could have got with this year and model. In dash air-conditioning (not that after market unit that mounts under the dash), power steering, automatic, the roof console, the center console, the GT hood, and it's all 100% original.
The bad news is that as far as some of the moving components are concerned, parking a car and not driving it for 15 years is one of the worst things you can do to it. Engines and transmissions do not like this. All of the rubber in the steering components are shot or gone.



Well, we pulled the engine out and got it rebuilt and setup to accept unleaded gas. I have just got it back about a month ago. This weekend I am working on the engine compartment, sanding it down and painting it so we can put the girls engine
back in. Next things I have to do is get the transmission looked at, and buy all the steering components (tie bars, pitman and idler arms, and anything with a rubber protected joint).

We researched the cars history and found that it had been purchased by an Air Force colonel for his wife Dorthy. The bumper still has the 1967 sticker that allowed it on the AF base! Bad news - the poor man died a month after he bought the car. We have tentatively decided to name the car Dorthy in honor of the Colonel and his wife.

Well, wish us luck because I am NOT a car guy, have no idea what the heck I am doing, and I'm scared to death that I bought a car that made it 40 years in good shape, ripped it apart, and it will never run again! Keep your fingers crossed . . .

The Search for Pink Sandals

(9 June 2007)

LIKE Indianapolis! I have learned where some of the neat places are to hang out, AND I have met a few people there that make it feel like home, so I have a good time there.
I prefer to travel to a customers location the night before, get a good nights sleep, then see the customer first thing in the AM while I am sharp (or at least as sharp as I can be), so I got there the night before I had to be there. I got a hold of Gina Sinclair and let her know I was there and that I would be pleased if she could join me for dinner. Things are a bit tougher for her than for me because she is married and her spouse doesn't know AND Gina owns her own business. I still haven't figured out how she has gotten away with so much with a spouse that doesn't know! I just couldn't imagine how things would be if mine didn't know and wasn't some what accepting.
So, Gina can't meet me the first night - I'm on my own! Hmmm . . . I've got all these pretty clothes, Gina can't meet me tonight, what ever shall I do??! WEEEEEEEE - I'm ah goin to the mall! (In some ways we ARE "worse" than women!) I consider a couple of new outfits I've got, but decide on my favorite pink outfit because I feel confident in it and I head for the mall!
I had been walking for a few minutes when a woman from a kiosk says "Excuse me Ma'am?" (Yes - it happened AGAIN!) I stopped and looked at her and she asked me if I straighten my hair! This sends a number of thoughts scampering through m head:
1 - I must have passed! This is not a question you ask of someone if you know they are wearing a wig. Bless you lady, you just made my day!
2 - Wow, do all women get harassed like this by every kiosk?
3 - I swear I am not kidding - I had the absurd urge to lift my wig off thus showing my bald head, taking a bow, and say "uh uh, sure don't!" Personally I blame Karen Hutton for this urge! The urge passes and I don't do it.
I settle for a compromise - with a bit of a laugh that I just can't help, I tell her, "Nope I sure don't". I winked at her and added "my hair is fake anyway!" While she was still trying to figure out how to respond to this I was walking away feeling pretty smug! I walked the entire mall and didn't get a single look that I thought was a "huh, I think that's a guy" look.
I have seen a lot of girls whose shoes match their outfits and I'm thinking it sure would be nice to have a pair of pink strappy sandals to go with my favorite new skirt. I walked the entire mall and didn't find a pair I liked! I found flats that were pink, and I found pumps that were pink, but no strappy sandals! How can it be so hard to find a pair of pink strappy sandals??!!
While on my endless search for cute, pink, strappy sandals, I come across the book store. I know I've got hours in airports and on airplanes ahead of me, and I'm almost done with the book I brought, so I decide to look for a book. I find one that looks interesting and go to the counter to purchase it. I handed her my debit card . . . you know, the one with my picture on it? She glances at the picture, glances at me, and then tells me that she needs to see my ID. I smiled and told her that my ID looks just like the pic on my debit card but hand it to her anyway. You should have seen the look on her face when it clicked that I was a male! I'm almost ashamed to say I am starting to get a kick out of that look! lol So - two apparent confirmations that I am being perceived as female - life is good! Finish my shopping, and went to dinner at English Ivy's. This is a great place to eat, really good food, really good drinks, and very friendly.
After dinner, I try a place that Gina has recommended - the Metro. I'm still not sure if this is considered a "gay" club or not - I didn't really see anything going on that I considered "gay". (No guys hugging guys, or girls hugging girls). It appeared to be mostly college age folks having fun and I was the only Tgirl there. So Tuesday nights are karaoke - I like Karaoke! My hobby is writing and recording my own music so I do a fair amount of singing. Most places I go to the Karaoke sucks - is truley awful, but not there! They have some outstanding singers and I really enjoyed it! I got up and sang "Who'll stop the rain" but couldn't seem to get in the groove - it was fair but I sure didn't impress anyone. The really funny thing was, four or five songs later someone got up and sang "Sweet Transvestite" from the Rocky Horror Picture show. Not sure if that was done "in my honor" or if they would have sang it anyway. The good news? He did an outstanding job of it! Called it quits early and got to bed so I would be fairly sharp in the AM.
This service call is to replace a consumable component of the instrument - in other words an easy service call.
Easy service call = done early.
Done early = I GITTA BE KIM! ha ha ha
So! Gina will be eating dinner with me tonight but it will be many hours before she can meet me. Unlike (apparently) unmotivated little ole me, Gina owns her own business and she is gonna be tied up for a while. Once again, I have some time on my hands so decide to go shopping. Well, at first I tried on an outfit that looked OK at home but I didn't like it here! I don't think the blouse and the skirt quite go together. Close, but not quite. By the way - I WOULD appreciate your opinion - does this blouse and skirt go together?
Decided that the above did NOT look right together and tried the next outfit I had bought. This is a pretty red top with a "floaty" black skirt - very girly! The problem is that I have to wear very heavy makeup to hide the beard shadow and it then becomes hard to blend the makeup down into the cleavage area. This is why I prefer tops that go around the neck, you avoid the whole "Gotta blend it down to the cleavage " thing.
Anyway, the more I looked at this, the more I thought it didn't look right. The skirt and blouse go well together, but it didn't look right on ME - darned if I know why. Looking at these pics it looks pretty good, but it did not look right live and in person!
Ultimately wound up combining the two failed outfits into one:
  It's not what I intended when I headed out, but now I DO have a new outfit put together! Problem - I feel like this is a "bad face" day. What is a "bad face" day you ask? Glad you asked! It is much like a "bad hair" day, where no matter what you do, you can't get your hair to look good, but in this case it refers to the face and makeup. I keep looking at myself in the mirror and thinking "nah, not gonna go out - I look like a man in a dress" :-( I came real close to showering and just meeting Gina in boy mode but decided to "cowboy up" and go for it. Met Gina for dinner (You guessed it - English Ivys!) and had a pleasant evening. Gina had to go in boy mode - no time and no good excuse for the spouse I guess.
The following day, met Gina for Dinner again - this time SHE got to go dressed so we had more fun! Before we went to dinner, I had some time on my hands so I shopped a Goodwill there. There was one man there that I think "read" me - he kept giving me looks that fell just short of a glare. Try as I might, I just couldn't find any "give a s&#t" and so I ignored him. Found a cute little skirt that I hope to try soon.
Bad news though! I spoke to my manager who I am reasonably friendly with, and told him I enjoyed working in Indy and was more then willing to come back if they needed me again. He tells me that they are working on getting a service contract with this customer and that if they get one, they will be hiring someone to live there to support the contract! Dang it! I LIKE going to Indy but soon may not be able to do it any more! sigh . .

Welcome to the dark side . . .

(2 June 2007)

Well, the new skirt and top I bought in Houston this week has inspired me to try a few new looks. I mostly stick with darker or earth tone clothes, but in Houston, I found this REALLY cute skirt, that is bright and colorful and I adore it:

I guess that the idea here is that I am thinking that I should step a little outta my comfort zone and I might find things that I like a lot.

So I am bragging to my wife about my new outfit and I told her that I was thinking that maybe I should try to find a pretty pair of sandals to go with it.
She said "What do you mean? You have lots of sandals."
"Nah, I mean flats that you wear without nylons. You know, like most women wear these days."
"Oh, I see. OK" she says.
"OH and I think I want to buy some female pants too." I add.
"Pants?!"
"Yep, I guess my tastes are changing! The next thing you know I'm going to become a tom boy!" I said.
My wife looks at me, and does a little theatrical bow, and spreads her hands in the classical 'look at me' pose and says "Welcome to the dark side!"
I'm not sure if you have to be in our marriage to get the humor, but I thought it was hysterical and we laughed for some time. It's great to have someone to laugh with isn't it?