What's Up, Doc?

It takes my mind and body a few days (more like weeks) to get used to the switch between standard time and daylight savings time. So to my discombobulated mind and body, the 10:45 AM doctors' appointment on the second day of daylight savings time felt more like 9:45 AM. (The appointment was a six-month follow-up exam for the varicose vein removal procedure I had during the summer.)

Instead of sleeping in late to make up for the time change, not to mention getting over a week-long head cold, I had to get my dupa out of bed early to get pretty for my doctor's appointment. (No one said being a woman is easy!)

The weather forecast was promising with high temps in the mid-50's, so I decided to wear my long-sleeve sweater dress and thereby, forgo heavy outerwear (I did take along a lightweight coat just in case).

Basically, I wore the same outfit I came home wearing after my last visit to the mall, that is, my new Ann Taylor sweater dress and my Payless white kitten heel booties. The only difference was I wore a black bag instead of the fuchsia Jessica Simpson bag.

I arrived at the doctor's office 10 minutes before my appointment. Checking in with the receptionist, I informed her that I had different insurance than when I last visited the office. With a big smile on her face, she said, "It looks like that's not the only thing that's different. You look fantastic!"

"Thank-you," I said as I blushed.

After I handed over my new insurance cards, she asked, "No name change?"

I shook my head no and she asked me to be seated to wait for my appointment.

I cooled my kitten heels for about 20 minutes in the empty waiting room. While I sat there, a female physician's assistant (PA) who works in the office came into the waiting room to get a cup of water from the water machine. She said, "Hello" as she walked back to wherever she came from taking her sweet time to check me out.

Finally, a male PA who I had never encountered before fetched me to begin my appointment, which started off with an ultrasound. He did not react to my female presentation and called me by my male name. He asked me to bare my leg and put on a pair of paper shorts and slippers, then left the examination room to allow me to strip in privacy. I was glad I wore thigh highs rather than pantyhose, so after I took off my booties, I only had to remove the hosiery from one leg, hike up my skirt and slip into the shorts and slippers.

The PA returned, had me lay down on the examination table and began the ultrasound exam. It is painless, but messy because they use a clear gel on the ultrasound probe for better conductivity. When the test is done, they hand you a roll of paper towels to remove the gel from your skin.

The test took about 15 minutes and I passed (no blood clots).

He moved me to the next room where two female nurses took my blood pressure and photos of my leg. One nurse was new to me (I think she was a new employee and in-training), but I had dealt with the other nurse on previous visits and she went gaga over my new appearance. She "loved" my dress, my booties, my hairdo, my makeup; she "loved" everything about me!

She fetched the doctor and when he came in the room, he shook my hand and asked how I was feeling as he examined my leg and viewed the before and after photos of my leg on the nurse's computer screen. He was his usual very pleasant self, but did not show any reaction to my feminine presentation. Then everyone left the room, so I could get dressed.

I had done a thorough job of removing all the gel from my leg, so slipping into my thigh high was not a problem. When fully dressed, I exited the office and drove home.

And so it goes.

Wearing Bebe (Source: Bebe)

Walter Evers (Source: Pinterest)