"So put on some pants and dress like a girl" There are PLENTY of occasions when I as a man, am the only person wearing a dress. I have not worn trousers in over a month. In the past winter there was a Sunday where the temperature dropped down to -9°C/15°F. Now that's quite cold for the Dallas - Fort Worth area of Texas. Sure enough, I wore a dress. And I was the only person wearing a dress. I sat at a table during coffee hour with several trouser wearing women, and said to them, "It takes a man to wear a dress". Boy, did I get reactions.
I understand the functionality and comfort for a woman to wear pants and a comfortable top, but it is not for me. I was raised in the 1950's and 1960's when woman only wore dresses or skirts & blouses. Even on the oldest and snowiest days of the year the girls in elementary school wore snow pants under their dresses which they had to remove after arriving at school. To wear pants to church was sacrilege and you'd be turned back at the door. If I am going to emulate a woman, I am going to be attired in a dress, heels and hosiery, and all the proper undergarments. I find it somewhat amusing that it was perfectly alright when my young adult daughter wore men's jeans because men's jeans had useful pockets to hold her slim wallet and cell phone while women's pants had worthless pockets. She also wore men's shoes because they fit better. My teen, early twenties granddaughter always trolled the young men's jean's section of the thrift store because her skinny butt fit better in them. And, so it goes: "A Man In A Dress" shouted at a guy, but never a "Woman In Pants!" at a lady.
I'm fortunate to never have been hassled in the past 10 years for wearing a dress as I guess I look like a woman. The amazing thing is no one reacts to my masculine bass voice. As far as pants are concerned, as a man I find dresses and skirts far more comfortable as there's no wedge of cloth against my male junk.
No one has yelled anything about me when I have been out in a skirt/dress as a man. We have this idea that we "can't" do it because it is rejected by society -- I still have that mentality -- , but it is not really a thing (except with my wife).
In public, I have been laughed at fewer than 10 times that I know of in my ~20 years of going out in public in a skirt/dress as a man. I have seen fewer than 30 looks that I would interpret as disgust or disapproval. I have seen looks of surprise, and I have noticed that people try not to stare and will not speak to me. But if I speak to someone, they respond normally. I think that, for the most part, crossdressing is like a face tattoo or a wheel chair. It is different, people try not to stare, but it is not that big of a deal.
I believe that the only time anyone thought I was a girl was in 1963 when my mother dressed me up as a girl to go trick and treating. It was my first time in girl's clothes and mom put me in a dress with a full skirt and petticoat, anklets, Maryjanes, a wig and some lipstick with white gloves.
I loved it, but dressing as a girl wasn't something mom ever encouraged after that wonderful Halloween. In college during my fraternity's "hell week," the pledges had to get dressed up as girls for a day. Our sister sorority gleefully assisted us. That time I wore pantyhose and a dress, but looked much worse than when I was nine.
Occasionally I go out en femme to crossdressing gatherings, but I never present myself as a woman to civilians. I love getting all girlied up. I've always loved it.
And Stana, you do a great job with your blog. Thank you.
I absolutely love today's Funny! I often think about a world in which the clothing "assigned" to each gender is reversed, and today's post is a perfect visual representation of that world. Maybe someday...
Once when I was in grade school I saw a newspaper article which had suggestions for April Fool's day activities for schools and to my astonishment one suggestion was, "have all the girls wear boy's clothes to school and have all the boys wear girl's clothes. At that point in my life I had only dressed up as a girl once for Halloween. I'd just started feeling strong yearnings to dress up again. I didn't understand them at all, but I haven't forgotten that article over the past sixty plus years. I was jealous of the unknown boys who might have come to school as girls that day and I wished I were one of them.
As I got older I learned of Womanless Beauty Pageants which I have never participated in and to my astonishment "switch gender days" at high schools which suddenly seems politically incorrect.
"So put on some pants and dress like a girl"
ReplyDeleteThere are PLENTY of occasions when I as a man, am the only person wearing a dress. I have not worn trousers in over a month.
In the past winter there was a Sunday where the temperature dropped down to -9°C/15°F. Now that's quite cold for the Dallas - Fort Worth area of Texas. Sure enough, I wore a dress. And I was the only person wearing a dress. I sat at a table during coffee hour with several trouser wearing women, and said to them, "It takes a man to wear a dress". Boy, did I get reactions.
I understand the functionality and comfort for a woman to wear pants and a comfortable top, but it is not for me. I was raised in the 1950's and 1960's when woman only wore dresses or skirts & blouses. Even on the oldest and snowiest days of the year the girls in elementary school wore snow pants under their dresses which they had to remove after arriving at school. To wear pants to church was sacrilege and you'd be turned back at the door. If I am going to emulate a woman, I am going to be attired in a dress, heels and hosiery, and all the proper undergarments. I find it somewhat amusing that it was perfectly alright when my young adult daughter wore men's jeans because men's jeans had useful pockets to hold her slim wallet and cell phone while women's pants had worthless pockets. She also wore men's shoes because they fit better. My teen, early twenties granddaughter always trolled the young men's jean's section of the thrift store because her skinny butt fit better in them. And, so it goes: "A Man In A Dress" shouted at a guy, but never a "Woman In Pants!" at a lady.
ReplyDeleteI'm fortunate to never have been hassled in the past 10 years for wearing a dress as I guess I look like a woman. The amazing thing is no one reacts to my masculine bass voice.
DeleteAs far as pants are concerned, as a man I find dresses and skirts far more comfortable as there's no wedge of cloth against my male junk.
John
No one has yelled anything about me when I have been out in a skirt/dress as a man. We have this idea that we "can't" do it because it is rejected by society -- I still have that mentality -- , but it is not really a thing (except with my wife).
DeleteIn public, I have been laughed at fewer than 10 times that I know of in my ~20 years of going out in public in a skirt/dress as a man. I have seen fewer than 30 looks that I would interpret as disgust or disapproval. I have seen looks of surprise, and I have noticed that people try not to stare and will not speak to me. But if I speak to someone, they respond normally. I think that, for the most part, crossdressing is like a face tattoo or a wheel chair. It is different, people try not to stare, but it is not that big of a deal.
Joey
I believe that the only time anyone thought I was a girl was in 1963 when my mother dressed me up as a girl to go trick and treating. It was my first time in girl's clothes and mom put me in a dress with a full skirt and petticoat, anklets, Maryjanes, a wig and some lipstick with white gloves.
ReplyDeleteI loved it, but dressing as a girl wasn't something mom ever encouraged after that wonderful Halloween. In college during my fraternity's "hell week," the pledges had to get dressed up as girls for a day. Our sister sorority gleefully assisted us. That time I wore pantyhose and a dress, but looked much worse than when I was nine.
Occasionally I go out en femme to crossdressing gatherings, but I never present myself as a woman to civilians. I love getting all girlied up. I've always loved it.
And Stana, you do a great job with your blog. Thank you.
I absolutely love today's Funny! I often think about a world in which the clothing "assigned" to each gender is reversed, and today's post is a perfect visual representation of that world. Maybe someday...
ReplyDeleteOnce when I was in grade school I saw a newspaper article which had suggestions for April Fool's day activities for schools and to my astonishment one suggestion was, "have all the girls wear boy's clothes to school and have all the boys wear girl's clothes. At that point in my life I had only dressed up as a girl once for Halloween. I'd just started feeling strong yearnings to dress up again. I didn't understand them at all, but I haven't forgotten that article over the past sixty plus years. I was jealous of the unknown boys who might have come to school as girls that day and I wished I were one of them.
DeleteAs I got older I learned of Womanless Beauty Pageants which I have never participated in and to my astonishment "switch gender days" at high schools which suddenly seems politically incorrect.