My prior post was about the visit with our son and his girlfriend... We had a great time, and look forward to their eventual return, as well as our visit to her parents' place down south later this summer. Below is a picture of one of the beaches we visited on the Delmarva side of the bay...very pretty - and clean. (Those little blurs are an attempt to remove the pix of the kids, for obvious privacy reasons.) That almost-invisible bridge in the background is the Bay Bridge between Annapolis and the Delmarva. Looks so deceivingly calm and peaceful from this angle.
It can be a 4-1/2 mile, stunningly-beautiful 6 or 7 minute drive...particularly at sunset. Or it can be your worst traffic nightmare, with a backup stretching for many miles - which takes hours to unravel!
Matapeake Beach
After the kids left, we switched gears - into antique car mode, and loaded the old car for a week on the road. Without boring you by all the minutiae, we spent a week (and 1300 miles) traveling in south-central upstate NY, seeing the many sights the area has to offer. Particularly notable were the Corning Museum of Glass, the Curtiss Museum in Hammondsport, NY (a lovely little town - would be fun to live there) and for you NASCAR fans, a lunchtime spin around the racetrack at Watkins Glen, with a bunch of other tourists' cars.
Trees were in bloom, and we were told it was about 3 weeks later than normal due to the cold winter.
Don't you wish gas was still the price shown in this museum exhibit?
On the track at Watkins Glen...now THAT was fun!
Strasburg isn't the only place to find a Red Caboose Motel...this one is in Avoca, NY!
Mandy on a boat at Seneca Lake. Tripods are wonderful things...
Pedal pushers like these (but in different fabrics and colors) were my typical attire for our entire vacation. Only twice did I enjoy the privilege of wearing stirrups - the one pair of long pants in my suitcase. Both occasions were for dinners out, with friends, at nicer restaurants. (And I didn't spill anything on them...)
Rain was in the forecast for several days, and my wife didn't want the suede insoles of my sandals to get soaked. The first day, with rain in the forecast, she suggested "ballerinas look great with pedal pushers, so just wear them today. You won't be the only one dressed so comfortably. And, don't forget your pantyhose." How could I forget my pantyhose? Closed shoes feel so hot and sticky without them...
I was paying attention to the locals as we were "out and about" sightseeing. And, my wife was right...I certainly wasn't "the only one dressed so comfortably." Many females (of all ages) were wearing outfits similar to mine! (Well, except for the pantyhose, I guess!) My appearance must have been sufficiently girly to not attract much attention - except from a few pre-teen and teenage girls on tour at one of the museums.
One difference between my outfit and those of the other women: my shoes. Their ballerinas typically were lower-cut and had cute string or bow decorations on the vamp. About half displayed at least some toe cleavage. Mine don't. IF I ever find some girly ones like theirs "which actually fit", undoubtedly I'll be wearing them. Thus far, however, they've eluded me.
For the rest of the vacation, I just wore my ballerinas whenever it was supposed to rain. That was apparently a correct choice, as nothing further was said. Others with us had no issue with my attire... When we were alone, waitstaff and clerks either addressed the two of us as "ladies" or "folks." Around others, no gender-specifc pronouns or titles were used. The only times I heard the "S" word was when I was with several men.
It was another fun vacation!
Rain was in the forecast for several days, and my wife didn't want the suede insoles of my sandals to get soaked. The first day, with rain in the forecast, she suggested "ballerinas look great with pedal pushers, so just wear them today. You won't be the only one dressed so comfortably. And, don't forget your pantyhose." How could I forget my pantyhose? Closed shoes feel so hot and sticky without them...
I was paying attention to the locals as we were "out and about" sightseeing. And, my wife was right...I certainly wasn't "the only one dressed so comfortably." Many females (of all ages) were wearing outfits similar to mine! (Well, except for the pantyhose, I guess!) My appearance must have been sufficiently girly to not attract much attention - except from a few pre-teen and teenage girls on tour at one of the museums.
One difference between my outfit and those of the other women: my shoes. Their ballerinas typically were lower-cut and had cute string or bow decorations on the vamp. About half displayed at least some toe cleavage. Mine don't. IF I ever find some girly ones like theirs "which actually fit", undoubtedly I'll be wearing them. Thus far, however, they've eluded me.
For the rest of the vacation, I just wore my ballerinas whenever it was supposed to rain. That was apparently a correct choice, as nothing further was said. Others with us had no issue with my attire... When we were alone, waitstaff and clerks either addressed the two of us as "ladies" or "folks." Around others, no gender-specifc pronouns or titles were used. The only times I heard the "S" word was when I was with several men.
It was another fun vacation!
Mandy
ReplyDeleteBoth Corning and the track at Watkins Glen are on my to do list. I may have mentioned that I came across an old 1992 Porsche 968 that my older son has detailed and I would love to try running that baby around the track at Watkins, which I understand turns right rather than the traditional NASCAR motif of "Go fast...turn left".
Did you visit any of the vinyards around Seneca Lake on your trip. My younger son runs one about ten minutes north east from Watkins. You may have seen it if you looked east from the boat ride.
The capris with the ballet flats and pantyhose are a great look and undeniably feminine. To the common eye you present as feminine and it is clear that your wife has become somewhat accepting about people perceiving you as a woman. In fact her chiding you about wearing your panty hose would seem to indicate that she has a comfort level with you being perceived as a woman rather than as a man wearing womans clothes.
You are right about shoes not feeling right without pantyhose. You are also correct that some of the ballet flats that girls wear do show toe cleavage but when I see them worn without pantyhose it looks wrong and somewhat dirty and I think that wearing hose makes a great difference.
Keep us posted
Pat
Hi,
DeleteThat Porsche would be right at home on the WG course! We weren’t racing, just driving around it. But we were told some of the folks hit 80+ at times. And yes, the turns are predominantly right-hand. But it’s a road course and not just an oval, so there are some left hand turns, too. Try it the next time you are visiting!
The winery we visited this vacation was on Keuka Lake. On a previous visit, we stopped at one on the left (west) side of the lake (about 10 minutes out of town), and had a good reception. We didn’t get any vineyard tours, though.
Thanks for the comment on my outfit...it's always good to get feedback!
Yes, it seems my feminine appearance has gained some traction with my wife. Though as many times as we’ve been down this road before, I just keep waiting for the other shoe (a ballerina?) to drop. In the meantime, I get to enjoy being “miss-identified” by strangers, and “pushing the envelope” a little, whenever possible.
Unfortunately, my first fully-femme outing in early April had to be canceled due to weather. One I had originally planned for August was stillborn, due to the costs involved.
I’m happy that my everyday wardrobe is accepted by my wife as well as it is…even though it’s only “half a loaf”! That’s a lot better than “none”… Now, with some luck…I can do a few car shows…
Mandy
When we have done the winery tour with my son it has been fun. Since he is in the business he gets the business discount. Since he is known that usually means free admission to the tasting rooms and half price on purchases.
ReplyDeleteI picked up that Porsche when a friend told me that his wife's, grandmother's, spinster son died with a bunch of toys. It had 11K miles and I paide $11K for the car. It was stored in a locked garage on a battery trickle charger, under a car cover. It was in pristine/supermint condition. When we were moving from our house to a condo I realized that I would not be able to properly garage the car so I gave it to my older son for his 30th birthday. He is a true car guy and does all of his work on his cars himself. He spent a month detailing the car and entered it in the Great Adirondack Car show and took 2nd place in the import division behind the founder of the BMW club of America who had a fine mid 1970s, 2002i. At the show he met a few Vette owners and when they were done he took them on a run around the back roads and the 4 cyl., 3000cc, 6 speed manual, 968 was able to out run the muscle cars on the twists and turns.
I do understand the ebbs and flows of your wife's acceptance and tolerance of your attire. While we are at different places in how we present my wife's tolerance is equally mecurial.
Pat
Sounds like having a son in the business makes wine tours more fun! Good for you! But even without a relative in the business, we enjoyed our years living up in "wine country."
DeleteThat Porsche sounds like a real "keeper." I'm glad he's taking good care of it... You can be glad the opportunity to buy it came your way! I'm not sure our son would be so diligent...
Mandy