No Roadtrip Again

In past years, I would have begun my annual 750-mile roadtrip to Dayton, Ohio, this morning to attend the biggest ham radio convention in the world. But due to the pandemic, Hamvention was cancelled again this year.

Attending Hamvention gives me the opportunity to present as a woman for five days. Needless to say, that extended stay en femme is something I always look forward to and have sorely missed in 2020 and again in 2021. (The photo above is the gang at our booth at Hamvention two years ago.)

Due to my age, my family is urging me to fly rather than drive to Dayton in the future, so next year my “roadtrip” could be decidedly different if I take their advice. I am sure I will enjoy flying as a woman for the first time. And it will allow me to check off another entry on my bucket list.

Actually, there are not many undone items left on my bucket list. A lot of the undones are low priority; it is not important to me whether I ever accomplish them or not. Maybe it’s time to revisit y list and edit it accordingly.

Wearing Zimmermann

Jawn Galliano

My Motherly Moment

Dressed to kill for the IFGE
Convention Banquet

The traffic light is on the verge of turning green and the anticipation is palpable. Things are getting back to “normal” in Connecticut and in a few more weeks, I will feel safe to go out en femme visiting my old haunts and some new haunts, too.

Meanwhile, I spent some time recently looking over old photos from past hauntings – recalling the good old days – when I came upon my photos from the 2004 IFGE Convention. 

My friend Sylvia drove and I navigated our way to a hotel near the Philadelphia airport where we had a blast over an extended weekend attending workshops, presentations, dinners, lunches, social gatherings and a banquet.

Recalling the Philly convention, I remember attending a presentation by the mother of a young transgirl. She was very young – single digit in age.

I have no idea why I decided to attend that presentation. I was not the parent of a trans-child. My guess is that none of the other presentations in that time slot interested me, so what the heck.

The mother walked in with her daughter in tow, went up to the dais and prepared to begin her talk while directing her daughter to find a seat in the audience. The room was almost full with over 100 attendees and the girl looked a little lost going up the aisle looking for a seat.

I had an aisle seat and when the girl got to me,  she gave me a big smile and asked me to pick her up so she could sit in my lap! I was speechless and she sat in my lap for the duration of her mother’s 45-minute presentation.

She was perfectly behaved, a little lady and her mother thanked me afterwords for “babysitting.” 

I don't know why her daughter picked me over all the other people sitting in that room, which included some cisgender women in addition to the male-to-female majority. No matter the reason, it was the highlight of the convention for me – I passed with motherly colors!

Wearing Boston Proper

Paweł Góral femulating Céline Dion on Polish television’s Twoja Twarz Brzmi Znajomo.
You can view this amazing femulation on YouTube.

Transcation

Next week, I will be on a transcation, that is, presenting as a woman while I travel 726 miles to Dayton, Ohio, to attend a ham radio convention. Unlike the girls above, my transcation will be solo, but I expect to see a lot of friends and acquaintances, who I have not seen since last year's convention. So, although I will be solo en femme, I will not be alone.

This will be my seventh transcation to this convention, so you would think it would be "old hat" by now. In many ways, it will be familiar, but this year, there will be one big difference and I am a little nervous about it.

During my six previous Ohio transcations, I was invisible to most people... just an old lady in her Subaru driving too slow in the passing lane. Although I am a well-known writer in the ham radio world, my fellow hams know that writer as a male. As a result, very few people saw my name badge being worn by a female and put two-and-two together.

For example, I will never forget walking up to a friend I had known for over 30 years, saying, "Hi, Tom" with him replying, "Do I know you?" If I could fly as a woman under the radar of friends and acquaintances, I am sure I flew under everybody else's radar, too.

This year, I am receiving an award at the convention. This fact has been publicized in all the ham radio media. The convention's web site displays my feminine visage next to the award announcement. Over 20,000 printed programs will be handed out at the convention containing the same photo and announcement, so all those people who were clueless in the past will now be clued-in.

Whereas in the past, maybe a couple of hundred people were clued-in, this year 20,000 to 25,000 will be in the know and that is a little scary. So wish me well.

Wearing Alexis.

Jack Haley (right) in the 1945 film George White's Scandals.

Alison's Weekend

By Alison, WA1YKL

This past weekend, I attended one of the largest Amateur Radio "hamfests" in the northeast. Its known currently as Nearfest, the New England Amateur Radio Festival, in Deerfield, New Hampshire It's a twice a year chance to paw over old and new radio and electronics equipment of all types, attend a seminar and meet many old friends.

Although I dressed primarily in "boy" mode, one ham who I met, also in "drab," must have taken notice of my long hair, pink nails, and long earrings. He carefully asked me if I was in transition. To which I replied,that I was only a "part timer." That was enough to break the ice and we had a very nice chat about the options for exploring gender identity and how this seems to becoming more common for those of us in the 50+ age bracket, including some hams!

I also had a prearranged meeting with another ham sister, Stephanie, who I had met recently online.  We chatted about our common interests in dressing and radio. I also invited her to attend a local Tri Ess meeting.

In addition to seeing all of the radio "stuff," I enjoy going to Nearfest as a way to reconnect with many old friends and colleagues, some who I have known for over 30 years.

On the second day, as the weather was much warmer, I wore a tee shirt with the First Event name and logo on it. While it didn't attract any mention from other sisters, it did not garner any rude comments from the mostly cisgender hams either.

Wearing Polo.

Peter Sramek on Hungarian television's Sztarban Sztar.

A Day at Comicscon

By Michelle Nelson

This was my first ever comicscon, first Silicon Valley Comic Con in San Jose, California. I have been to numerous Star Trek cons and I'm not that hugely into just comics and their art, but since it was local and I had been wanting to experience a comicscon, it was perfect.

I knew it would be big, but I was still amazed by the size of it, overwhelmed actually. The San Jose Convention Center is immense with three huge halls that were opened up to make one vast space. And every square inch of it was filled with something ! Not to mention the many halls and auditoriums where the talks and seminars were held.

And the crowds... I'm pretty sure this was the largest group of people I've ever been with in my life. I thought I'd be clever and get there early and did, but still had a hard time finding parking, and then ending up in a long, long snaking line just to get in. Guess everybody else had the same idea!

There were also three fascinating mini-museums, "Rancho Obi-Wan," a large private collection of everything Star Wars; the "Cartoon Art Museum" with original stills and cells and probably the best, the "Stan Lee Museum." So neat to see things drawn by his own hand. I didn't catch his seminar, but apparently he's still going strong at 92 ― good for him!

I actually went to only one seminar. I hated to take time away from other things waiting to get into them, but it was an incredible mix of science fiction and real science. For some of them, you waited in large holding areas to get in, but I was told by others that this was good because they were clearing the rooms after each talk, so people couldn't just squat and stay the whole day, as at other cons.

The vendors area made me think of a big box store with rows and rows and aisles and aisles, closely packed. At times, it truly was hard to even get through them ― you just sort of went along with the flow. I hate to keep repeating it, but I was again blown away with everything that was there ― so different from other cons I've seen.

I did make one big purchase, a replica of Gort, the robot from the The Day the Earth Stood Still (the 1951 original, not the grossly disappointing remake!) More than I should of spent I suppose, but what can you do, I had been wanting a larger one for along time. Also bought two poster prints.

The other great thing was seeing all the cosplayers, something I was looking forward to. Many I didn't recognize, but so much work went into them, it's hard to believe they are homemade in most cases. Large numbers of super heroes of course, and also something I'd heard of but hadn't seen before ― gender/swapped heroes and villains. Lady Lokis, Thors, Capt. Americas, like that. It actually seemed like there were more of those than the originals! And Victorian-themed superheros ―  they were quite fun too.

I knew I'd be going to this as Michelle, but then thought I too might fully experience the con by going Time Tunnel television series. How they always dressed really nicely ― dresses, heels, jewelry and then labcoats! It seemed funny to me even back when it was on.

in costume, which wasn't really too hard to come up with. I had gotten something together for Halloween and thought it would fit in just fine here. I was playing one of the lady scientists or engineers (forgive me, Lee Meriwether) from the old

There was also a large display by what looked to be almost professional cosplayers showing how they make various parts of their outfits. One of the people there complemented me on my crossplaying.

I got only one other comment along this line. Right at the start I was at a parking kiosk, chatting with a lady ahead of me on how we were already in a line before even getting in! She was wearing a dalek dress and her son, about ten, was dressed as the David Tennant version of Doctor Who. And he really looked like him with a blue suit, tie and hair brushed up. So the kid comes right out and asks me, "Are you in drag?"

Wow, busted. I said I was and he said he didn't know until I spoke. His mom said she didn't know either and we continued our chatting! I saw them a few times in passing throughout the day and they always waived.

There were many kids and whole family groups dressed, too, and themed couples and groups. I can only once again respect the work people put into this. Mine was about as simple as you can get, but even it got many compliments and photo requests ― amazing. I guess if you put even a little effort into something, people appreciate it.

I don't know how much going in costume increased my enjoyment of the con, but it was fun. Talking to other cosplayers about, who and what we were, taking photos together and I might add here, everyone was polite about taking photos, always asking first. I did feel a connection I don't think I would have otherwise.

One funny thing, Woz was said to be walking around the show, just like anyone else, possibly in costume. I didn't see him, although for all I know he could have been right next to me in costume and I would have missed him!

I thoroughly enjoyed the con. The only drawback was the crowds and the long lines for just about everything. But that's hardly the con's fault ― genre stuff is just so popular. It was actually handled quite well, considering. There were many entry/exit gates, where you checked in and out each time. The badges were wristbands each with a chip in it; what do you expect in Silicon Valley, I guess. Security people were present, but unobtrusive.

My only real complaint was that there was only one food concession on the whole floor. I had lunch early, but the line for it was reaching grotesque lengths as the day wore on. But my complaints are all related to just the number of attendees,and you can't blame people for going.

The only other thing I suppose was that the area for the celebrity photo ops was completely curtained off; you couldn't even get a glimpse of them. I did get one photo op though and a free one at that! One area had a green screen and after you were in front of it you would be placed in a still from one of the Hunger Games. You even got a 4x6 print of it. It was of course a promotion for the latest movie, but still, mighty nice. And it was in one of the very few uncrowded areas, too.

I suppose the thing to do would be to go both days, spend one at the seminars and one shopping and viewing or mix and match. And get your pass early online. They send it right to your home, so aside from just being sure of getting one, you bypass all the pre-check-in, let alone trying to get in at the time. Whenever I happened to pass by the entry area, it was filled with people trying to get passes!

I'd say it was no question about it being a rousing success, so I'm sure it will be back next year. My recommendations for this or any con really, would be to get your pass online, go early, do both days and have an early lunch!

Wearing Blank Itinerary.

Richard Schaefer, crossplayer

Philately

Recently, I renewed my interest in stamp collecting.

My mother collected and encouraged me to collect, so I began collecting as a pre-teen and continued well into my mid-teens until life got in the way.

In the interim, I inherited my mother’s collection and a collection of an uncle, who I did not know collected until he passed on and we discovered his collection among his belongings.

About two years ago, I finally got around to see what I had inherited. There were some interesting items, but I did not strike it rich. However, I did catch the bug to start collecting again and have basically been spending a few hours each week organizing what I had in hand and adding a few items from here and there.

As luck would have it, the American Philatelic Society (APS) is having their annual StampShow just up the road in Hartford later this month. From what I gather, the StampShow is a real big event, the stamp collector’s equivalent of ham radio’s Hamvention and I plan to attend one day of the show.

And I plan to attend en femme.

Never having attended StampShow or any other big stamp collector events, I am not sure how to dress. Casual, business casual, or business formal?

I looked all over the Internet for photos of women attending StampShow to get an idea what women wear there, but I have not found much because similar to ham radio, women are in the minority in the stamp collecting world.

From the few photos I did find, I am guessing “business casual,” but I am not sure, so if any of you are stamp collectors and have attended StampShow in the past, please pass along what the average woman wears there.

I want to fit in and not stand out.

Wearing Metrostyle.

Actor James Lecesne femulating on stage in Diary of a Mad Playwright in 2010.

Gender Surprises at the Convention

Although I was unable to attend last weekend's ham convention en femme, it was transgender enlightening nonetheless.

There were quite  a number of people in attendance who knew me before I came out as trans and began attending ham radio events en femme, that is, they have known me in boy mode and girl mode.

There were also a few people in attendance who only know me in girl mode.

The people who only knew me in girl mode were surprised by my appearance in boy mode. I know because they mentioned it to me and some said they were disappointed that I was not a girl.

On the other hand, the folks who have known me in boy mode and girl mode made no mention of my appearance in boy mode and interacted with me as if nothing was different. I am sure they noticed the difference, but were too polite to inquire about what was going on.
I did explain to a few folks why I was not dressed en femme and they indicated that they understood.

One woman went out of her way when I explained what had happened. I had registered for the convention as "Stana" and expected that I would receive a name badge with Stana printed on it. I brought a black Sharpie with me to make the correction.

Sure enough, when I picked up my badge at the registration desk, it read "Stana." I planned to fix it as soon as I settled down at our booth.

But before I had the opportunity to do so, the woman who checked me in at the registration desk, hunted me down in the crowd and handed me a peel-off label printed with my name and call sign, but with an "S" replacing "Stana." So instead of making an ugly fix with a Sharpie, I neatly covered the miss-print with the new label!

That was very cool!

 

 

 

Wearing Sammydress.

 

 

 

Femulating fellows attending the 2010 Atlanta Cotillion.

Murphy's Law in Spades

I planned to rise and shine Thursday morning, get dressed en femme and drive to Hartford to help set up our booth at ham convention. Instead, I woke up to a family health emergency, which took up the better part of the day. I never made it to Hartford in either boy or girl mode that day. Luckily, two fellows from my group set up the booth without me.

I planned to rise and shine Friday morning, get dressed en femme and drive to Hartford to staff the booth during Day One of the convention. Instead, I spent over three hours dealing with the health issue — the hours I would have spent getting dressed en femme. By the time I had dealt with everything, I just had enough time to get dressed in boy mode, drive to Hartford and arrive at the convention just as the hall opened at 9 AM.

 I staffed the booth most of the day, surprised people who were expecting to see Stana, and in general, had a good time, while keeping tabs on the home front via the call phone.

My daughter held down the fort at home on Friday, but could not do so on Saturday. So I stayed at home to hold down the fort on Saturday and did not attend Day Two of the convention. Actually, I was relieved that I did not attend the convention on Saturday because I was so exhausted from the previous two days.

There were two trans visitors to our booth (that I was aware of). One was a regular reader of the blog, who I have met a few times at the Dayton, Ohio, ham convention. He was in boy mode and was surprised to find me also in boy mode, too.

The second was a transwoman en femme. I assume she was post-op, but you never know. She gave no indication that she read my blog, so she didn’t know me from Adam (or Eve). She just happened by our booth and engaged me in a long discussion about what our group had to offer.

And so it goes.

Wearing Dior.

Icelandic womanless beauty pageant (dragkeppni) contestants in 2005.

Weather

We just went through a very humid spell the last few days. Luckily, the high humidity ended in time for the convention I am attending today through Saturday.

Although the convention hall is a modern air-conditioned facility, getting in and out of the building today requires lugging stuff for our booth from my car, through the clammy parking garage before experiencing the modern wonders of indoor climate control. So less humidity today means less perspiration as I do my booth babe set-up duties.

Mid-July means that fall clothing catalogs start showing up in my mailbox. I received my first fall catalog yesterday and look forward to more because the fall is my favorite season for both the weather and the fashions.

While on the topic of weather, every evening I watch the weather forecast on WTNH out of New Haven because the weather forecaster, Erika Martin, is a fashionista. She seems to wear something different ever night and I love her fashion sense. 

Stay cool!

 

 

 

Wearing Ralph Lauren (bag).

 

 

 

Actor Jaleel White femulating on television’s Family Matters, circa 1997.

In My Neck of the Woods

I am looking forward to attending the ham radio convention in Hartford en femme during the next three days. However, I do have a little trepidation about it.

The last five years, I have attended a ham radio convention in Ohio en femme. Although there are over 22,000 people in attendance, not a lot of people travel from my neck of the woods to attend. And although I am a well-known writer in the ham radio field, most attendees don't match that up with a woman staffing a booth at the convention.

On the other hand, there are likely to be a lot of attendees from my neck of the woods at the Hartford convention including ham radio friends and acquaintances going back nearly 40 years who know nothing about me en femme. Their reactions could be interesting.

Going on past experience, I probably have nothing to worry about, but I do.

 

 

 

Wearing Nanette Lepore.

 

 

 

Professional femulator Margeaux Powell