All I could muster the energy for today is doing the laundry

 

I didn't have the energy to get up and get dressed today.  The weather was perfect to go outdoors, and I stayed in.  It was a perfect day to wear a dress, and I didn't take the time to do so.  

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As I write this entry, we finally broke 80° outside, and my apartment was starting to get too warm to be in without air conditioning. So, I turned it on for only the second time this season, and gave it some exercise. Realizing that I intended to be busy all day tomorrow, it made sense for me to do a couple of loads of laundry, making it possible for me to wear some of my summer dresses this weekend.

While doing my laundry, I decided to take care of a few things, such as double checking travel arrangements for our upcoming trips, and to buy several things from Amazon.  One of those things was a 60+ y/o book called "The Revolt of Mamie Stover", a fictional work about a Honolulu prostitute who becomes a wartime profiteer. (This is a very simple description of the story.)  Given that another work by this author, "The Americanization of Emily" is wonderfully cynical, I have wanted to read this book for a while, but couldn't find a good print copy.

Once I found what I needed to buy, it was time to see what the Theater Development Fund had to offer on discount.  And I found one play worth seeing - God of Carnage.  Although I had seen this play twice in its initial Broadway run, I figured that it would be a good play to see with RQS.  So, I told her about it, and she was interested in seeing the play when she gets back from her upcoming trip.

Although I didn't do much today, I feel good about not doing much.  Time moves at multiple rates when one is retired.

Getting out and about

 

Now that the sun is going down much later in the day, it has become much easier for me to get out and about.  It is warm enough outside for me to go out in the dresses I love to wear, as well as meet friends I haven't seen in a while. Soon, I will  be saying that I have nothing to wear when I have a closet filled with clothes. 

I'm extremely lucky that RQS accepts the fact that I often dress as a female.  She has said that after years of not being able to be her cisgender feminine self, being with me has catalyzed something in her to be feminine again.  (My words, not hers.)  And this is a very good thing for both of us.

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Tonight, I was able to have a zoom meeting with my two friends from Texas, and it appears that I may have been misreading one of them so far.  I won't go into any details, save that I wasn't sure of what was really happening.  Now, I have a better idea, and it looks like we'll all be having a great time in the short time we have together.

While we're talking about our Chicago trip, I have to mention airline schedules.  My friends will be leaving Chicago on an early morning trip. And that means one of them will be unable to take care of some business while in town.  (I hope that's cryptic enough, save for my friends and their privacy.) If this trip goes well, it would be nice to make this type of trip a regular yearly occurrence. 

Ear Piercing - a short post

 

I finally did it!  This T-Girl finally has pierced ears!

This afternoon, RQS and I went to the local tattoo/piercing shop to get our ears pierced.  I had let her make the appointment for the two of us, as I was a little apprehensive about taking this next step towards my feminine self.  So, we got up early today and made it out the door by noon, arriving at Big Joe's Tattoo & Piercing at 12:30 pm.

The shop was cleaner than RQS expected, and the place felt "just right" for what we were doing.  The piercer first checked to see if RQS's holes were there, and they were.  So, she sold RQS a set of studs that would keep her earlobe holes open until they have stretched enough for RQS to use her own pierced earrings. Then it was my turn.  After sterilizing my loves, she marked out spots on each lobe and then took out a piercing tool. As quickly as the tool was taken out of its wrapper, the piercing was done and I had tiny studs in my ears. 

I'll be doing aftercare for 2-3 months, and then I'll be able to wear my own earrings.  Yay!  I'll be able to wear my own pierced earrings when RQS and I meet Stephanie in Chicago.

Seeing the movie, "Paint"

 

Paint.  It's a wonderful little comedy starring Owen Wilson.  Other than a deliberate passing similarity in appearance to the late PBS host, Bob Ross, Wilson plays a unique and sympathetic character.  And it is a film well worth seeing before it makes it to cable TV.

But first....

Last night, RQS and I went to see this movie.  I wasn't sure of what to expect, save that Wilson went out to mimic the soft spoken feel of Bob Ross's programs.  Could this film be a parody of Bob Ross?  Maybe.  I was prepared for anything from a cynical, biting comedy to a love story told with humor. If this story tells of the growth of an apparent one-dimensional character to a person of depth.  Yes, it is, in part, a love story.  But not in the way one might think.

Sadly, if I say too much about this film, I will spoil it for those who haven't seen it.  But I will say that the protagonist's van is called "Vantastic", the same tagline that one of my favorite cruise bloggers uses. I can say, there is one joke that requires that the viewer wait to the end of the film to enjoy and it involves a modern artist known the world over.

Sometimes, it's better to stay home - a short post

 

Since RQS was getting together for dinner with an old friend tonight, I had a choice to make.  Do I go into NYC and attend one of the last 20 at 20 off-Broadway specials ?  Or, do I stay home, go shopping, and have a quiet night by myself?  Well, I'm glad I chose the latter....

I didn't get moving until 5 pm.  And I ended up making the choice to go for dinner at a local diner, then going to Wegmans to go grocery shopping. This was a stroke of fortune, as I had major GI tract issues after I finished loading my car and needed access to a rest room.  I could also say that I was glad to be in Marian mode, as it gave me more options after cleaning myself up.  

More often than not, wearing women's clothing can be much more inconvenient than wearing men's clothing.  Yet, I prefer doing this, as I feel that I can be my authentic self this way.  (Now, if only I had more physical attributes of a cisgender female.  I'd love to have a nice pair of breasts to put into my bras. Yet, that's a future stop on my path towards femininity.)  In the future, I will be making hard decisions, with input from my partner - how far do I really want to go, and will it be worth doing with the sacrifices being made?  Hopefully, the trade-offs will be small in relation to the gains I make.

Game Night - Not much to say tonight

 

It's the first Thursday of the month, and it was time to play games again.  For me, it's not whether I win or lose the game, or even play the game itself, it's being with people who accept me as Marian.

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Today was a day that I spent doing nothing, save cook some ribs. Knowing that the ribs had to be cooked today, I made sure to start cooking them right after I made breakfast for myself.  It was nice to have some home cooking for a change, even if I cooked my meal itself. Later on, the ribs were done.  And they weren't as good as the ribs I cooked last week. Next time, I'll place them on a rack, so that the fat doesn't keep my glaze from sticking to the ribs.

Around 5:30, I decided to get ready for game night. I decided to get into the dress I got in the Mystery Box, as it was warm enough to wear a short sleeved dress. And then, I went to game night - late.  Unlike most game nights, I didn't have the chance to get into a game.  Instead, I was gabbing with people who just finished their game.  

As I said, not much to say tonight....

I've been hemming and hawing about getting my ears pierced - until now.

 

I've had a set of pierced earrings for ages, but have never used them because my ears weren't pierced.  I've hemmed and hawed about getting this done, and I'm about to finally bite the bullet and get this done. 

Some of my worries about this were related to how noticeable the tiny studs would be while the ear healed.  I didn't want either my doctor or my brother to notice the piercings at this time.  Once the piercing has healed, I could cover the hole with a dab of makeup and clean it up when I got home. Now, I'm more secure in myself, and I want to proceed on my next step to femininity.

Although RQS had her ears pierced once, the holes have closed and it is time to do it again.  Given that I've read that piercing shops do a better job than mall operators with piercing guns, I'm  planning on making an appointment with RQS to get our ears pierced at the same time.  Once done, we will be following a regimen of tasks to keep the piercings clean while they heal.

Am I nervous?  Yes.  But it could be much worse....