Forking Sushi

Fantasia Fair: Sunday, October 19, 2014

People ask me if people recognize me when I switch between boy and girl modes. And I answer that I am positive that they don't unless they have seen me in both modes. Sunday, after I arrived in Provincetown, I registered while still in boy mode. Old friends Jamie and Barbara staffed the registration desk and have seen me in boy mode when I registered in past years  — so they recognized me and greeted me as old friends do. On the other hand, Marybeth and Emily did not recognize me. Marybeth, who reads this blog regularly, was handing out forms for folks who wanted to be in the fashion show and/or follies. Emily, who stays at the same B&B as I do during Fantasia Fair, was looking for volunteers for various things. Neither Marybeth or Emily had a clue who I was in boy mode on Sunday afternoon.

Photo shot by Melissa or Natalie

Full disclosure: I wear eyeglasses 24/7 in boy mode, but seldom wear them in girl mode, so that probably has some effect on the lack of recognition.  

By the way, Emily volunteered me to collect lunch tickets at a restaurant later in the week.

The previous week was "Women's Week" in Provincetown. There were still a few stragglers strolling through town Sunday afternoon and suddenly I became a little paranoid.

Last year, my aunt and her cousin attended Women's Week and I was concerned that they might have done the same this year. They are clueless about me being a woman, but if they saw me in boy mode walking down Commercial Street, I would have a lot of explaining to do. So I ducked down a side street and walked back to my B&B via Bradford Street, which has very little foot traffic as compared to Commercial Street.

Returning to my B&B, I made the transformation into girl mode for the rest of the week. For the evening, I wore my black jump suit from Fashion to Figure, nude high heel pumps from Payless and jewelry from Avon.

After checking myself out in the mirror more times than I can remember, I grabbed my nude handbag from Avon and walked two blocks to the Saki Restaurant for the Fantasia Fair Welcoming Reception.

The weather was pleasant and I hoped it would hold for the next seven days, but it was not meant to be.

I encountered so many peeps at the reception that it is a blur now, but through the blur I do recall meeting Davina, another Chicago House B&B sister from the UK by way of Brazil (and I thought I had a long trip). Another Chicago House sister, Natalie, arrived along with my ham radio sister, Melissa, and sister blogger Diana. We sisters grabbed a booth before all the booths were grabbed.

For over an hour, the waitstaff served a variety of Japanese finger food that we munched on while discussing a variety of girly and not-so girly topics. Then we all got in line to sample the sushi buffet. Unsuccessful with chop sticks, I asked for a fork and was able to enjoy all the sushi I had buffeted.

Things were winding down and I was tired from the four-hour roadtrip and loading/unloading the luggage, so I said my goodbyes and returned to my B&B at 8:45 PM.

After I removed my makeup, moisturized and slipped into my nightie, I fell fast asleep with visions of femulations dancing in my head.

 

 

 

Wearing Le Redoute.

 

 

 

Femulating in the 1909 Philadelphia Mummers Parade.

Not Singing in the Rain

It was a dark and stormy night.

Actually, it was a dark and stormy week… at least the meat of Fantasia Fair week. Tuesday through Friday, a Nor’easter blew through Provincetown — not the best weather for strolling around town, but that did not stop the girls from getting out and strutting their stuff up and down Commercial Street.

I was prepared bringing an umbrella and three types of outerwear to keep me warm and dry throughout the week. I probably could have gotten by with just two types of outerwear because I only wore my black sweater coat once. Most evenings, I wore my white fake fur jacket and most days, I wore my blue trench coat.

The trench coat got rave reviews. My B&B owner, Chris, loved the coat and I received unsolicited comments about it (“nice blue”) from strangers while walking around town.

Over-packing, I brought the following items that I never wore: two sweaters, two tunics, one blouse, one corset, one pair of leggings, one pair of shoes and way too much jewelry. I also brought too much makeup and too many boxes of stick-on nails; the set of nails I stuck on Sunday afternoon survived the whole week. I relied on my iPhone for photos, so my Canon camera, its charger, tripod, and computer cable could have stayed home.

On the other hand, I left my light-up makeup mirror at home and missed it, but managed to survive using the mirror and lighting in my bathroom.

My schedule was very full because there were a lot of things that interested me at Fantasia Fair this year and I tried to take in as much as I could. About half the things were at the Boatslip Resort, which was a half mile from my B&B. The other half was at the The Crown & Anchor, which was two blocks from my B&B.

For things at the Boatslip, I carried my heels and wore my 1-1/2-inch Payless wedges for walking and switched to my heels at the thing. For things closer to my B&B, I wore my nude or black patent Payless heels and carried my wedges just in case.

That shoe strategy worked for me most of the time. The only just-in-case times occurred after a couple of particularly busy days walking up and down Commercial Street — my feet could not even stand the short two block walk in heels back to my B&B.

If you have been following along so far, I posted words about my first day, Sunday, at Fantasia Fair and mostly photos for the rest of the week. A lot of interesting things occurred during the week and I plan to to cover them all over the next few posts. And as a preview, I leave you with a list of all the things I did during the week.  

Sunday, October 19, 2014

3:00: Registration and Check-in - Boatslip Lobby

6:00 - 9:00: Welcoming Reception - Saki Restaurant

Monday, October 20, 2014

9:30 - 11:30: Orientation Brunch - Miqqi Alicia Gilbert - Crown & Anchor Paramount Room

12:00 - 1:30: Walking Tour of Historic Provincetown: The Heart of Ptown - Robert Anderson

1:30 - 2:45: Yellowed and Fading: Searching for Transgender Identity in Vintage Photographs of Crossdressing - Ms. Bob Davis - Crown & Anchor Cabaret Room

6:30 - 8:00: Town & Gown Dinner - Crown & Anchor Paramount Room

8:00 - 10:00: Town & Gown Show: Exact Change - Crown & Anchor Paramount Room

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

9:00 - 9:45: Guided Vocal Warm-up Excercises - Heather Verdui - Boatslip Room 110

10:00 - 11:30: Style Your Wigs (Bring Your Wigs if you Got 'Em) - Luna Maria - Boatslip Room 114

11:45 - 1:15: Lunch - Post Office Cafe

3:00 - 4:30: Femulate Blog Party - Me - Boatslip Downstairs

6:30 - 10:00: The Virginia Prince Transgender Pioneer Award Banquet 'Wizard of Oz' Theme - Jamison Green & Mariette Pathy Allen - Crown & Anchor Paramount Room

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

10:00 - 11:30: Being Gendered: From the Inside Out and the Outside In; How the Social
Construction of Gender Affects Self - Erica E. Anderson - Boatslip Room 110

11:45 - 1:15: Lunch - Bayside Betsy’s

1:30 - 2:45: Evolution of an Activist: How to Keep Busy Helping Others for Fun and
(almost no) Profit - Jamison Green - Crown & Anchor Cabaret Room

6:00: Dinner: Lobster Pot

8:00 - 10:00: Fashion Show - Crown & Anchor Paramount Room

Thursday, October 23, 2014

10:00    - 11:30: Things You Can Do When You're All Dressed Up - Jan Brown & Me - Boatslip Room 112

11:45 - 1:15: Lunch - Bayside Betsy’s

1:30 - 2:45: The Adventurous Evolution: The Life and Times of Trans* Over the Past Century or So... - Moonhawk River Stone - Crown & Anchor Cabaret Room

3:00 - 4:30: Planning Your Transition - Natasha Wilkie - Boatslip Room 110

6:00: Dinner - Ross’s Grill

7:30: "Just Gender film" - Crown & Anchor Cabaret Room

Friday, October 24, 2014

10:00 - 11:30: Authors' Roundtable - Crown & Anchor Cabaret Room

11:45 - 1:15: Lunch: Crown & Anchor

1:30 - 2:45: Waging a Culture War on Two Fronts - Marci L. Bowers - Crown & Anchor Cabaret Room

3:00 – 4:00: Shopping

8:00 - 10:00: Fantasia Fair Follies - Crown & Anchor Paramount Room

10:00 - 1:00: Late-Night Dancing In Purgatory - Club Purgatory

 

 

 

Wearing Club Monaco.

 

 

 

Actor Stanley Baxter femulating in the 1962 British film Crooks Anonymous.

My Friend Bandy

Bandy is the resident canine at The Chicago House B&B in Provincetown. She spends a lot of time resting on a couch in the common area of the B&B. Whenever I saw her last week, I would stop and visit her for a few minutes and rub the back of her ears. We became fast friends.

While I was posing for photos Friday night before going out, Bandy was off the couch for the first time in my memory and walked over to me. She wanted me to rub her ears and I happily complied while Melissa photographed the event.

Wearing ASOS.

Professional femulators at Andy's in Newburgh, NY, circa 1958.

Going Out Friday Night Photo

Photo shot by Melissa.

A Happy Restaurant Hostess

Are you a good witch or are you a bad witch?

Photo shot be Diana.

My New Blue Dress Fits Like A Glove

(Photo shot by Diana) 

A Monday at Fantasia Fair Photo

(Photo short by Melissa)

I Can See Truro From Here

(Photo shot by Natalie)

On the road at 9:15 AM, the traffic to Provincetown was very cooperative and I arrived at my B&B at 1:30 PM, 17 minutes sooner than the Google iOS Maps estimate. 

After I moved the bags into my room, I walked to the hotel where the registration for Fantasia Fair was located, picked up my registration package, and ran into old friends Jamie and Barbara. Then I trekked back to my B&B to unpack and femulate.

I Veeted my body hair, showered, shaved and made up my face, and dressed. I wore my black jumpsuit and nude heels. 

At 6 PM, I walked two block to the Japanese restaurant for the Fantasia Fair welcoming reception. Met up with my old friends Diana, Melissa, and Natalie. I also met Davina, a girl from Brazil who reads Femulate and has exchanged e-mail with me on occasion.

We grabbed a booth and spent the evening exchanging girl-talk while eating delicious hors d'oeuvre and sushi. 

I was very tired and called it quits at 8:45 PM, returned to my B&B to face the explosion that occurred in my room when I unpacked. After dealing with the contents of my luggage, I began this blog post and here we are!

Eastbound

I finished packing and loading the luggage in the Subaru for a 9 AM departure to Provincetown and Fantasia Fair. The next blog post you read here will come to you from Cape Cod.

Going by my past Fantasia Fair experiences, my days will I be so full that I will not have much time to share words with you here during the Fair, but I promise to post a photo or two or more each day and fill in the details when I return.

 

 

 

Wearing Philosophy by Republic.

 

 

 

Actor John Hubbard femulates in the 1940 film Turnabout.

Lily’s Favorite Photos (of Lily!)

My name is Lily Longlegs.

I like the headshot… one of the best pictures I have of my face. It was taken at a step down. The second is at home. Lots of people say I have the best legs - wish they had them - and this shows them off real good not to mention the rest of my body (not bad for a 62 year old)!

Administrivia: You all have sent me a lot of your favorite photos; thank-you and keep them coming (to stana-stana @ sbcglobal.net). I promise to post them all and I will do so in the order received.

 

 

 

Wearing Ann Taylor.

 

 

 

Exy Davis, male model.

Trick or Treat?

Another co-worker stopped by my cubicle and asked if I was going to dress for Halloween. My response was non-committal. I was not being coy. I just really don’t know if I will dress for Halloween this year. And it’s not like I have to plan ahead for it --- I can decide the night before or even the morning of. By the way, my co-worker plans to dress as a priest for Halloween and suggested that I dress like a nun. The only nun that I would ever consider dressing like is the Leather Nun of comix book fame, but that would be too way over the top for work. If I dress, some variation of business woman drag is more likely.

 

 

 

Wearing ShoeDazzle boots.

 

 

 

A Halloween Princess Diane femulation.

Ready or Not

Some things never change! I posted this image the last time I went to Fantasia Fair and its sentiments still apply.

Got one packing chore out of the way. I went through the Stana Jewelry Collection and selected what to take to Provincetown. I know I over-packed, but at least I got that done. Now I just have to pack my clothes.

Checked out the Subaru for the roadtrip. Driving lately felt like the tires needed air and sure enough, one tire was short about 6 pounds.

Did I mention that I hate driving? Actually, the trip to P-Town is not bad --- four hours on decent roads without a lot of traffic during midday Sunday.

Accuweather predicts daytime temps ranging from the mid-50s to mid-60s with nighttime temps no worse than the low-40s. The only rain in the forecast is a “stray shower” on Wednesday. I can live with that!

 

 

 

Wearing Theory dress and Clare bag.

 

 

 

Professional femulator Paolo Ballesteros.

Jamie's Favorite Photo (of Jamie!)

In response to my open invitation to send me your favorite photo along with the story behind it and the reason it is your favorite, I received a bunch of photos and stories that I will begin posting in the blog today starting with Jamie. My invitation still stands, so don't be shy, send me your photos!

Here is my favorite photo to date. One reason I love this photo was because finding this dress at the thrift store made my heart leap. It is beautiful and most importantly it fit!! The second reason I love this photo is that it was taken the morning I went to the Boston Pride Parade with some very close awesome friends. This being only the second time Jamie went out into the broad daylight. A much better experience than my first time because this time I carried a pair of ballet flats in my purse to save my feet from 12 hours in heels. A lesson I learned the hard way previously.

 

 

 

Wearing Ann Taylor.

 

 

 

Carolyn (right), a femulator, appeared in a 2007 episode of King of the Hill.

A Presidential Library En Femme

By Paula Gaikowski

While traveling around the country on business I have started visiting presidential libraries. No matter what your politics are, those libraries are typically beautiful sites that offer a historical walk through a president’s term. Just be prepared for a favorable view of their legacy.

This day’s plan was to visit the Reagan Presidential Library with Kris and Rene.

I got up early as I had a long ride thru LA traffic to get there. Before leaving I stopped at the morning buffet at the hotel. I always wanted to go en femme to one of these breakfasts. How many times while on business I would envy the business women getting ready for their day.

Today I would be one of them. Then a really cool thing happened. When I came in, an older woman who was running the breakfast greeted me with a pleasant “Good morning!” When I left, I bumped into her outside. She smiled again and said, “Hello” and asked, “You are so beautiful --- what kind of makeup do you use?”

First, I was like pinch me? Is this a joke? I smiled back and said “MAC, thank you very much.” Poor woman probably needs glasses.

Two hours thru LA traffic got me to the Library just in time. I recognized Kris from her photo and we both quickly met up with Rene. I was a bit nervous, but thankfully the girls seemed very composed and relaxed. I had visions of Secret Service agents following us around the Library speaking into their wrist bands. And like all of my fears about going out dressed, these too were unfounded. The people in the Library treated us like any other women. The place was busy with busloads of school kids. But as we made our way thru the exhibits nobody paid us any mind. Understandable since both Kris and Rene are cute, and are super passable.

I do regret passing up photo opportunities in the recreated Oval Office and the recreated White House press room. How cool that would have been having photos of myself in those settings!

One of the more enjoyable events was touring Air Force One. As we made our way up the steps of the aircraft, we noticed there was a Library photographer taking souvenir photos. Once done with your tour, the pictures were available for purchase at the finish. Okay --- this was too good to be true --- three transgender women and someone coaxing us for photos!

As we made our way up the jet-way, the photographer prompted us, “Ladies, forward, ladies to the left, perfect!”

As I walked through Air Force One, I was taken back to my days in the Air Force when I saw this airplane on a regular basis. I would always watch in awe as it flew overhead. Now to be walking thru this historical craft as a woman was gratifying and affirming in a come full circle view of my life.

The campus was delightful and we wandered the grounds taking in the picturesque view of the Simi Valley, stopping off in the gift shop and of course taking photos. We chatted with a several people, nobody seemed to take notice anything but three women.

This was my first time out to a museum en femme and also my first time out with a group of transgender women. It was a great way to get out into the world as a woman. Don’t be afraid to go from chrysalis to butterfly, you have nothing to fear. If I can do it you can too!

Our last stop was a visit to Ronald Reagan’s grave. It was a serene and tranquil spot. Politics aside, it made me reflect about Reagan’s amazing journey from Dixon, Illinois, to this very spot. In turn, I too considered my passage of time, in some ways just as amazing when I think back to a time when I thought I’d never experience any part of my life as a woman. Guilt, shame and self-loathing now replaced with positive feminine energy.

As we parted I believe I could hear Ronald spinning in his grave.

 

 

 

Wearing Cameo.

 

 

 

One female (center) and two male high school students participating
in Geschlechtertausch (Gender Swap Day) in Germany, 2014.