That would be some picnic...

...with a stuffed picnic basket this big!  Can you imagine the number of girls we could feed?

My wife and I were traveling in Ohio a few years back (like 2012), and came across this roadside attraction in Newark, Ohio...a huge office building in the shape of a seven-story-high wicker basket.  It was the headquarters for a company many of you may recognize - Longaberger Baskets.   You'll go a long time before you find something quite this unique...well, except maybe the car...a 1990 Buick Reatta. 

What a Longaberger basket!

Unfortunately, it was the weekend and we were unable to get inside.  But it really is a one-of-a-kind attraction, quite visible from the state road through Newark.  Bet they get a lot of "nosey visitors!"

 Segue to the present:

Since I'm wearing sandals most of the time now, it was imperative that I get a pedicure.  That way I can show off my toes without being embarrassed.

I went back to the new salon, and was treated fine...as usual.  When they seated me in the pedi chair, I was the only one there.  But in rather short order, three other women appeared.  The first one who arrived, was seated right next to me.  We began doing girl talk immediately.  Lots of topics...from shaving our legs to our health, and everything in between.  It was fun!  I could talk forever with a seat-mate who conversed that  well!

The other two ladies came in a bit later.  They were not as talkative.  But none of them seemingly thought I was anything but what I appeared to be...a woman in shorts and a blouse, getting her toes pampered and painted.   It was so affirming to be referred to as "she" when she talked to the other ladies...I could really like this to happen all the time!

Since I was wearing sandals which kept all my toes away from touching leather, the tech put them on me and then added the toe separators before painting my nails.  Because my sandals were already on, once she finished the painting, she gave them a few minutes to dry while I sat at the pedi chair, and then she sent me on my way without any time under the drying table.  That worked well.  I'll have to try wearing them again next time.

My wife is visiting her sister in mid-America, thus I will take this time to tear apart Mother's stored clothes (and mine) to find a pair of pants for Mom, and check all my skirt outfits to be sure everything fits.  Keep your fingers crossed...

Hugs,

Mandy

A new adventure...

Recently it was time to get my driver's license renewed.   What a wonderful chance to try androgyny in an official governmental setting!

When I arrived at the DMV (in another town some distance away - we don't rate one where I live), it was well before opening.  I'd arranged to be there early, so I'd be at the front of the line.  Three local residents were ahead of me, but that was close enough to the front to keep me happy.  As it turned out, I was the first in line for driver's license renewal.  Yay!  And as the crowd grew larger, we were talking back-and-forth about all sorts of things.  My appearance didn't seem to bother any of them.  Of course, the age group represented was all late teens to early 40's.  (No older folks in the lot...well, except for me, but my makeup disguised a multitude of little appearance flaws.) 

And I'm pleased to say that my attire (below is the outfit I wore, complete with a purse, and all my usual permanent feminine cues, plus makeup and lipstick, but no earrings (I don't have pierced ears and/or small button type earrings), made a good presentation,  girly but good for the occasion.  (Sorry, the picture's color is a bit washed out.)   I kept fussing with my hair during the wait, to keep it as noticeably feminine as possible.

After reading some of the stories on-line about transgenders or crossdressers in other states who went to their local DMV,  and had problems because they looked "different from their gender-of-record",  I was more than a little bit apprehensive.   And, I didn't want to end up having totally wasted the morning if problems developed because of my attire.  Thus, I made sure I put a bag with a less-feminine outfit (women's shorts and a polo and fisherman sandals with closed toes), and a pack of makeup remover sheets, in the trunk of the car.   Just in case.  But as long as my face resembled my real appearance, I suspect I could have worn a dress...because nothing except possibly the collar, would be revealed in the facial picture.

I chose to use my regular voice during the visit...no disguising that today.

And the good news is: I had no problems whatsoever.   When addressed by the clerk, who had my old license with the "M" on it, and my records on the screen in front of him, he used "Sir" and "Mr." appropriately, in spite of my feminine cues and outfit.   What I wore (or looked like) was a complete non-issue, for which I was very thankful.  He had no concern whatsoever that I looked somewhat different from what the gender listed on my license might indicate. (Though my every-day appearance is just like I was presenting.)  This was a fabulous turn of events.

Had it been necessary for me to go back out to the car, retrieve my alternate outfit and retire to the restroom for a change and clean-up, that exercise would have put me at the end of the line for service (about 30 more folks had come in behind me at that point), and instead of being out the door with a new license in hand in about 20 minutes, I could conceivably been there two or three hours...   I'm so grateful that didn't happen.

The fun part is - afterward, I went to a big box store to check for a couple of items, and a grocery store to pick up some breakfast cereal on sale there.  In both cases, the female clerks addressed me as "Ma'am."   And when I visited Mom that morning, she didn't notice that I was wearing makeup...

Those incidents all came together to "make my day"...

More later,

Mandy

Harvest Time

A quickie today...

Harvest time on the Delmarva....no autumn leaves nor cold winds blowing.  (We could use a few of those right now....)  This is a telephoto view of one of our many farm fields

From what I've been told, this is a grain and straw harvest.  The grain is grown, it turns brown and a harvester cuts the plants and lops off the grain.  What remains is the stem of each plant, i.e. straw, low in nutritional value but useful around the farm in the barn, and in other areas such as landscaping.  A baler makes the cut straw into neat bales for transport and storage.

Prior to moving here, I thought harvests occur in the fall.  Not always!

Delmarva Harvest in July.

More later,

Mandy

Post-Vacation Update

Having survived a 2 week plus vacation with the kids and grandbaby at their place in TN, my nails had grown out.  It was time for a fill.

The nail tech at my new salon had tried a different gel color for them last time. one thin coat of a very light pink, which in practice turned out to put a light-colored sheen on my nails.   This was a little noticeable, but nothing was said by my wife.   This time around, the tech made the single coat a bit thicker.  Now the light color is more noticeable.  I like it, and still nothing has been said, which is good. 

A picture of my new finger nail color...

And she made sure to "not" shorten my nails...she believed they were too short last time, and thinks they need to be still longer.   Plus, she thinks I should wear with a pretty hot pink color for summer.  (not the first time I've heard that.)  She and the other techs have tried to convince me to just "do it."   But since the salon is in my town, the best I can do is promise them that one of these days I'll let them paint my nails whatever color they want, as long as I can remove it with polish remover.   They're OK with that,  for now...

Below is an outfit like what I wear often during the summer.   It's feminine, and quite cool in warm weather.   And now that warm weather is here to stay a while,  my closed shoes are packed away and I'm back in sandals again.  Guess I need to get my toes done to match my fingers...    I wore this outfit to visit Mom in the nursing home (where the picture was taken) and she really liked it...that's a good thing!

I visited a nearby MAC makeup store, to buy some makeup for a scar on my arm from having a mole removed earlier this year.   The scar is bright pink, and about 3/4" in diameter.   Results were much better than from my visit to the makeup store in TN.  And I had not one, but two techs.  Both stayed with me the entire time...one a pro, one a trainee.  I will actually be applying several different shades of makeup to my arm - blending them with a brush, then applying finishing powder.  Not cheap.  Not time-efficient.  But then, the scar is probably permanent, so knowing how to cover it when I need to is essential.

I was dressed in typical androgynous style, and definitely found myself treated as a woman for my entire visit, about a half hour.  It was fun.  They even took time to recite a list of all of the things this makeup regimen can be used to cover, which among other things, includes bruises and "love bites!"  Hmmm...   I truly doubt they'd have confessed those two little facts to anyone but another woman...

Then I visited the eye doctor again, this time to get eye exam paperwork filled out for a driver license renewal.  (I hate the machines at the DMV and would rather have my doctor fill out a form.)   Surprisingly (actually shockingly) one of the assistants at the eye doctor's office  (whom I have known for several annual exams) began to address me as "Ms." I didn't correct her.  Perhaps I should have, because when the female eye doctor entered the room, she referred to me "Mr." and I heard "his" mentioned twice in front of the tech.  But then, for some reason, she began to just use my given name.  (Maybe she saw the light?) 

I complimented the doctor on her beautiful red nails...which is all it took to initiate a several minute discussion among the three of us, about why she switched from pink, and I received compliments on my nails from both of them.   Plus a discussion of my long hair, and then lastly,  "Why on earth haven't you started wearing color on those pretty nails?"  "Yes, your hands would look wonderful if the next time you come in, you have beautiful red nails like mine."

I think they suspect something...

More later...

Mandy

On Vacation Part 2

One of our activities during our vacation was ferroequinology-related...we visited the "stuffed and mounted" steam engine in Nashville's Centennial Park.  My outfit is typical of what I wore daily on the trip.  Everything is from the women's department.  

The steam engine was Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis Railway J3 class #576,  built by American Locomotive Co. in 1942 and retired Sept. 2, 1952.  It accumulated 725,000 miles in freight and passenger service.  This class of J3 locomotives could handle a 15 car passenger train or a 50 car freight train in the mountains.  It is a 4-8-4 (not called a "Northern", instead a "Dixie" and because of the yellow along the belt line, nicknamed "Yellow Jacket"), and was designed by NC Superintendent of Machinery Clarence M. Darden.  Upon retirement it was donated to the City of Nashville and has been on display ever since.

Plans are to lease the engine from Nashville, and move it to the Tennessee Central Railway Museum on the Nashville and Eastern Railroad.  Once funds are raised to restore it, and the restoration is complete, the J3 will pull excursions over the 108 mile N&E, using 14 passenger cars in the museum's collection.

On the way home, we stopped at the same motel as on the way west...got a different clerk, and I was identified as male, complete with the dreaded "S" word...some days you get the bear, some days the bear gets you.   And once again, we were addressed as "Ladies" at the nearby restaurant.  Not every southerner is intolerant...though it was "geezers night" and apparently some of them fit the mold.  A party of old folks nearby kept checking me out.  Oh, well...it is what it is.   Other than smiling at them occasionally, I chose to do nothing else.

On the (fortunately) few occasions I needed a potty enroute, I used the men's room, including at highway rest stops, since I didn't see any family restrooms.  There were no issues.  Though on numerous occasions, incoming men saw my long hair, stopped, and checked the sign to be sure they hadn't wandered into the women's room by mistake.  I'm used to that...

I only noted one occasion where an elderly (looked-to-be-70-something) male's eyes locked "unwaveringly" on me as we approached each other.  As we passed, I noticed him turning around to get a "side view" of me.  About 15 steps later I stopped, turned around, and he was stopped - had turned around and was still staring at me.  Of course when I turned around to look, he whirled forward and finally started tottering away.   Wonder what was going through his head?  I'll never know...but I bet his gray matter was sparking and short-circuiting!  (No, I didn't do or say anything....didn't want to be the cause of him suffering a heart attack or stroke on-the-spot!)

My take-away from this trip is that certain gender-ambiguous outfits can enhance my chances of being seen as a male, but with enough "permanent cues" such as hair, nails, purse, shaved legs, and so on, there is still sufficient femininity to cause indecision in people's minds.  Even in the "old south",  where some folks seem to be brave enough to ignore those feminine cues and risk offending a genetic woman who is a bit on the masculine side (thus doesn't fully conform to their narrow binary gender views),  I'm not seen as a guy 100 percent of the time - maybe 40-60 percent.

I can hardly wait for Mandy to be set free for a few days...July is now here, and mid-month is well on the way!

I'll leave you with a sunset picture from our son's side yard...a few clouds can sure make a humdrum sunset sing with colors!   Enjoy...

Hugs,

Mandy

On vacation...Part 1

We've been visiting our son, daughter-in-law and baby grand-daughter in Tennessee for the past while.  It has been good to see them again.  The baby is growing, and is moving toward her first steps -  she crawls very rapidly, and can support herself standing upright.  One day, it will just happen.   But not likely for this trip...

Mandy stayed back at home, safely tucked away in her suitcase.  My own wardrobe was mostly shorts, bare (shaved) legs, fisherman sandals, tunic tops, and purse, with long hair and light pink manicured nails, necklace, and a close shave - but no makeup.  My wife reminded me to take a couple of pairs of capris and a pair of stirrups in case we needed to dress up, and I threw in pantyhose, but they weren't needed very often.   After all, who wants to dress up in near-100 degree temperatures?

Enroute, we stopped at Big Walker Mountain overlook in Virginia.   The female proprietor addressed me as "Sir" when I paid my admission.  Guess she could see past the feminine cues.   The men folk around at quitting time didn't pay any attention to me whatsoever...I guess they didn't have a clue.    That's a good thing.

Though I climbed the 100-foot observation tower myself (wife not comfortable with open heights - neither was I, but what the heck), I was able to get some good pictures.  As per the following:

Big Walker Mountain overlook...and the observation tower...

The view from the top.  Note the tan-colored "swinging bridge" over the parking lot. 

Expansive views from the top of the tower.  You can't see it, but the wind gusts were swaying the tower.  Ugh...

I walked their swinging bridge, but only to prove I could do it.  (And because it was close to the ground, not over some deep canyon.)  That was the first - and only - time this gal plans to tread on one of those! 

At lunch and dinner time on the first day enroute (it takes two days each way), and despite my reception at the overlook, my androgynous casual attire didn't keep me from being identified as a female.  We were "ladies" to the folks at the restaurants - both for lunch and dinner.  The male motel clerk saw my driver's license but omitted any gendered greetings.

There were several informal "get-togethers" with the kids' friends during our visit, and I'm known as their "father" or "father-in-law," or by my first name.  No gender issues there...   Occasionally at stores and shops, we'd hear "Ma'am" and "Ladies."  But more often, no gender references, or the dreaded S word.  And the kids didn't bat an eyelash at female references.

One of our activities was to visit the Adventure Science Center near Nashville, with the kids and the baby.  It was fun to see our wide-eyed grand-daughter experience many new sights and sounds, and be around more kids than she has ever seen in one place in her short time on this earth...   It's definitely someplace that we will visit again as she grows.

Below is a skyline picture of Nashville, taken from the rest area near the snack bar...

And a typical interior picture of the Adventure Science Center, intentionally taken with few humans visible:

Now we're looking forward to the next time...

Stay tuned for On Vacation Part 2.

Mandy

Morning pictures

 
A couple of posts back, I mentioned that ten years ago, I used to venture into Baltimore's Inner Harbor on my way to morning meetings at the downtown office, in order to take pictures in the "sweet light" right after sun-up.   Here are some of the pictures...

Pride of Baltimore II

Waterfront scene with harbor cruise boats.

 Baltimore City Courthouse...

Did you ever have that sinking feeling?  
I heard that this one actually sank...right there at the dock.

For safety's sake (regardless of my attire), I wouldn't risk walking alone downtown nowadays...whatever the reason.   So I'm really glad that I have these memories...

Mandy