This and That Thursday

In the news...

A few days ago, Stan Jones posted this 1979 womanless pageant photo on Pinterest. This event took place in Burns, Oregon, and I could not help wondering if any of these gurls are now militia men or women.

On the tube...

Last night, Turner Classic Movies (TCM) showed Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean. It was on past my bedtime, so I did not watch it, but I have seen it before and recommend it.

The plot, according to IMDB, "The Disciples of James Dean meet up on the anniversary of his death and mull over their lives in the present and in flashback, revealing the truth behind their complicated lives. Who is the mysterious Joanne and what's the real story behind Mona's son, James Dean Junior?"

Karen Black plays Joanne and is the key character from the perspective of a trans-chick flick.

In the air...

Frequent Femulate readers know that I go to Dayton, Ohio, every May to attend Hamvention. I already made my hotel reservations, but I am trying to decide how to travel to and from Dayton.

In the past, I have made the 735-mile trip by automobile with me driving solo both ways and I have learned to hate it, especially the return trip which I do in one day. After 13 hours on the road last year, I told anyone who asked that I would fly this year. I have said that before and ended up driving, but this year, I am seriously considering flying.

And if I fly, I will do it as a woman.

I have made many roadtrips including the Dayton trip, as a woman, but I have never flown as a woman. Jenn, one of the gurl hams I usually see at Hamvention sent me this link to a recent article about flying transgender. Despite that less than encouraging article, flying as a woman does not worry me; I will be thrilled to do so.

What gives me pause about flying as a woman is how to pack. For my Dayton roadtrips, I typically have two big pieces of luggage, my makeup tackle box and a computer bag. So I will definitely have to pack differently if I fly pretty.

Wearing Elizabeth and James.

Gurls attending the Closet Queen Ball in Los Angeles, circa 1974.

Piercing and Shaving

Susie Hune recently wrote to me about piercing her ears and removing her hair. Her thoughts on these topics were interesting and I want to share them with you.

A summer or so ago, my daughter and granddaughter finally convinced my wife that I should get my ears pierced (took about three years). Conservatively, I’ve noticed that about 90% of the guys with any kind of earring are wearing them on both ears. (I think they can’t remember for sure which side they’re supposed to go in!)

So we all trooped over to the mall and Piercing Pagoda and got ‘em done. I got the little gold balls that were unobtrusive and wore them to Mass the next day. I had one comment by a friend of mine in the choir, followed by another member. Both were very positive! No comments from any of my other choir members… or even sneaky glances! It was a non-event and very anti-climactic. Not sure how I feel about that.

Now I have access to my wife’s earrings and have had fun going out to Kay Jewelers to pick out new ones (as Susie, of course).

So, no time like the present, Stana. In fact, give yourself a present!

This leads to another subject: outward appearances and what the public will accept.

I’m almost 70 and one of my greatest regrets is that I didn’t have something done with my body hair when I was younger. I body shave everyday and it’s time-consuming to say the least. Half-hour showers are the norm and I wish removal of gray hair with laser was possible.

If I have one suggestion for anyone in our shoes (heels), it’s find ANY excuse to get all the non-female hair removed from your body as young as you can!!! Laser or electrolysis… just get it removed! There will come a time in your life where you’ll regret not doing so. If you consider that I spend about 30 minutes per day for face and body… multiplied by 365 days per year… that’s a lot of shaving cream, razor blades, and water. The plus side is the feeling you have when you are hair-free below the neck. Oooh, that’s nice, particularly in a nightie!

And again, I go everywhere in the summer in women’s shorts with bare legs and no one gives me a glance (except for the few that know all about me and from them I hear “nice legs!”)
.
In summary, get your ears pierced, Stana, and encourage your readers to get all their masculine hair removed using any and all excuses available.

Wearing La Femme.

Xavier Dolan

Rebelling from Gender

Shannon, a Naugatuck Valley girl like me, suggested some blogs I should visit and perhaps, add to my blog list. And so I did.

Faith's Adventures of a Gender Rebel got my attention immediately with a recent post that included the following image.

Faith looks gorgeous in the photo (she looks gorgeous in all her photos), but it was the caption of this particular photo that did it for me!

I dress like this because I just love being a man.

I have seen photos of Faith in various Internet locations in the past, but I did not know anything about her until Shannon sent me the link to her blog. Turns out that Faith has been posting photos on the Internet like forever, but only started her blog this past August.

I was fascinated by her blog posts mainly because we have so much in common. (If it wasn't for the age difference, I'd wonder if we were sisters separated at birth!)

I spent Sunday evening reading and enjoying her blog and I highly recommend it to all.

Wearing Eloquii.

Femulating actors in the 2014 film Billy Shakespeare.

Femulating Loves Company

A little company in the real world can go a long way in building your confidence for solo excursions. 

By Amy

A long, long time ago, I can still remember that going out as Amy alone was pretty scary. So I found a kind soul whose business was helping someone like me shop. She specialized in crossdressers. She did one’s makeup and hair, and in general, got one to the mall! I spent a couple days with her and she was constantly telling me how well I was doing.

In a few months, I gave it another try with even better success. We did the obligatory shopping, plus dinners out, museums and attractions in the area. I even met a few of her friends. My confidence was building quickly. Can you say hubris?!

In the following years, I started asking for appointments with women who were wardrobe consultants and had never considered helping someone like me. (I was rarely turned down). With an explanation by phone or a sincere email or both, I made appointments with these women in different cities (in my travels) and really had a great time improving my selection of clothes and personal style, as well as getting to know them.

I found that it took no time at all for us to warm up on the initial meet and have a fun day! In following visits, our relationships usually went beyond shopping to meeting for coffee in the morning just to talk, doing lunch or dinners. I have become friends with several of these women and stay in touch all the time.

One friend no longer does the wardrobe thing and instead, she is very involved in fashion shows,and productions of other events. So we have met up at different locations such as Phoenix Fashion Week to see the show and go behind the scenes to meet the many people she knows working the show. Very fun and the models are so pretty!

The moral to the story is that my seeking help or a partner to get me out made it possible to develop confidence, meet others and begin some long-term friendships that otherwise would not have happened. I often count my blessings that this group of gals is so accepting of me and willing to count me as someone who is fun to be with. And the circle is still growing!

Wearing Ann Taylor.

A 20-something femulator takes time out from shopping for a selfie.

Stana's Favorite Images of 2015

Happy Leap Year!

Wearing Wow Couture.

Crossdressed New Year's Eve party.

Happy New Year!

As another year ends 
And a new one begins,
May the girl in you come through
And your femulations be true.

Kathy's Favorite Photo (of Kathy!)

Hallo Stana,

At first I'd like to thank you for your blog. It's so inspiring and motivational for ― I guess ― a lot of people (including me).

My real name is Karsten (I haven't really decided on a "real" feminine name ― online I mostly go by Kathy so that's fine :D ). I come from Germany.

Always in my life I knew I was different. I also accepted that in a way, but I thought I could just live out those desires in private, for myself. I also have gone out en femme for a couple of years. But I never told anyone except my last girlfriend. She seemed OK at first, but I was still uncertain with my situation, so we eventually broke up.

Anyway, I still tried to keep things private, but in the recent months the pressure was getting worse and I finally decided to seek help. I outed myself to my sister, which was super positive and is now my biggest supporter (love u sis!). We still didn't tell our parents, but will eventually at the end of the year (so I can have the new year as the start of my long journey).

I also recently started to take pictures of me (something that I before avoided), but I never really was satisfied with it until That picture!

It feels like for the very first time, I really caught a glimpse of the beauty that is inside of me. I even started to cry a little when I first saw it on my computer screen :')

That picture moved something in me. I guess for the first time I realized who I really was. I am that girl! I will become that girl inside and outside. I will fight for being that girl ― for being me.

It will be a long journey ― but I'm finally on my way.

Wish you all the best in the world!

Love Kathy

Calling all girls! My open invitation to post your favorite photo along with the story behind it and the reason it is your favorite photo still stands, so don't be shy, send me your fave foto. ― Stana

Wearing Alexis Sonia.

Boys are girls in Brazil, too.

Paula's Favourite Photo (of Paula!)

Hi Stana,

You recently put out an appeal for favourite photos. I feel a bit of a fraud since I sent you a photo a last year. That was the one with my trombone taken as an ad for a concert I was playing with the London Gay Symphony Orchestra. Since then a lot of water has flowed under the bridge and my life has changed in all sorts of ways. Not least that I am now living authentically full-time.

Earlier this year my Friend Vanessa Lees (http://www.vlfmp.tumblr.com) put together a photographic exhibition of portraits of trans people going about their normal day-to-day lives; a welcome change from the usual overly glamorous or sexualized images we so often see.

As one of her subjects, I was invited to the first night, maybe not quite a red carpet affair, but nonetheless, great fun. During the course of the photo sessions, Vanessa and I became better and better friends. She expressed this very generously by letting me have a pair of earrings she had made and a dress she had bought for herself, but had no occasion to wear.

Attending the exhibition I knew I wanted to present myself well. I also wanted to make a big thank you to Vanessa for all she was doing. I could think of no better way of thanking her than by wearing the dress and earrings she had given me. The photo shows me with one of the photos of me at the exhibition on that first night. It is a wonderful memory of a great evening, it was also one of those rare occasions when my whole look came out just how I wanted. I felt like a star, my self-confidence came together and frankly, I haven’t looked back since!

Keep up the good work, it is a very big commitment to keep getting out a daily blog, especially of complexity of Emulate.

Many thanks,

Paula

Calling all girls! My open invitation to post your favorite photo along with the story behind it and the reason it is your favorite photo still stands, so don't be shy, send me your fave foto. ― Stana

Wearing Dolce & Gabbana.

Marty at a New Year's Eve ball in Brooklyn, NY, 1974.

Paulette's Favorite Photo (of Paulette!)

Here's a picture of me, taken about 10 years ago. Born in 1950, I've had over half a century of happy crossdressing, and not "grown out of" my sartorial preferences yet.

However, since every silver lining has a cloud, here are a couple of (im)pertinent questions

1) I've always failed to understand my behavior. Luckily, Stana's recent heads-up on the topic broaches the not-unreasonable possibility of my mother's use of the female hormone diethylsilbestrol when pregnant with me to conquer miscarriage. And now since both parents are long dead, happily (can I say that?) I'm excused aren't I?

2) I've always enjoyed an arousal element and this is not yet extinguished. In my case, dressing still energizes like a dose of HRT. And so it has to asked, would not all seniors benefit from silk underwear and some decent heels?

3) After a lifetime in the closet, I worry just a little at the possibility of a sudden stroke while dressed. If not immediately fatal, surely I'll die of shame when the paramedics arrive?

4) Then how will my executors cope with the sheer quantity of my many extravagances? Will my heirs be forever finding caches of forgotten clothes every time the house is remodeled? ("Oh look, a hidden cupboard full of granddad’s crinolines. There, under that old bird's nest. Oh. It's another wig.")

5) And then there's the 1-in-5 possibility of late-onset alzheimer's. As when confronted by a wizened lady in the bedroom mirror, I shout, "Do I know you? You're not my mother. Get out of my house!"

Crossdressing is not easy at the best of times. All that dodging and hiding. Not to mention smudged lipstick on the teeth. And just lately I feel there should be some recognition of the extra difficulties faced by gender-bending seniors. Luckily, some of this is covered in Amazon's excellent Transparent episodes. And hooray, a new series started 11th December.

Keep up the good work!

Paulette

Calling all girls! My open invitation to post your favorite photo along with the story behind it and the reason it is your favorite photo still stands, so don't be shy, send me your fave foto. ― Stana

Wearing Pierre Cardin.

Two females and one femulator.