OH BOY ! The room is full !!

[Teresa]

When we reach a certain age in the UK we can have a flu jab free on the NHS , I was booked for mid morning at my local GP surgery so I wanted to check some boot cut jeans out and possibly go on to the out of town store to have a second look at a nice pair of brown ,knee high , heeled leather boots and also find a full bodied strapless bra .

This morning was chilly with some rain so I decided on a long sleeved blouse and navy cardigan with my slim fit jeans and black leather knee high boots . I squeezed the jeans purchase in first and liked then so much I asked the SA to remove the tags so I could wear them out the store , at least now I have a choice of wearing the boots outside my jeans or inside with the boot cuts .

I parked up and entered the surgery , I know I'm out pretty well now but the whole place was heaving with people , I managed to squeeze in the waiting room it was full and lets not forget all the other people were senior citizens and yes I did get some prolonged stares . I had to own this one so I struck up conversation with the guy next to me about the need for flu jabs . Eventually my full male name was called so when I entered the the room with two nurses doing the injections I asked if it was possible to use my shortened version on the records , one nurse immediately called me Terri so we chatted and had a little fun while I was given the flu jab in my left arm and then a pneumonia one in my right arm .

On leaving I handed in a questionaire at reception (which had been circulated as we waited) , again I checked to see if my name could be changed , luckily for me because I had chosen a derivative of my male name I didn't need other documents .

Yes I did go on to visit the out of town store and yes I did buy the boots , they didn't have the bra but I did find a lovely suspender belt in cream and at last a retail outlet that stock Charnos 24/7 stockings so I bought a couple of pairs . They are double packs in three sizes and four shades so I bought natural tan and barely black .

So it ended up another lovely morning and despite the quatity of people not only at the surgery but also the shopping centre I felt really relaxed and comfortable .

[Allisa]

Teresa I love the way you squeezed in some shopping just like any woman would do after achieving her initial goal for being out and about. Your becoming a real natural to this femme lifestyle.

[Dee Baker]

So lucky to find suspender belts and stockings in the store. Here in the US they have disappeared from the store shelves.

[Bobbi46]

Don't leave us "unsupported" like this, where are the pictures of this new outfit then?

[alwayshave]

Teresa, I love shopping for lingerie. Not so much getting the shot.

[Teresa]

Bobbi,
Do you know a good photographer ?

Jamie,
The boots were my compensation , I've been looking for two years , I saw them last week and this week I snatched the last pair in my size . Another customer saw me trying them on and asked me to walk up and down because she was thinking of getting a pair , I'm not sure what the husband thought ,then two more commented on what nice boots they were for the price considering they were leather and went looking for their size in the racks . Looks like brown might be the in colour this year .

[Bobbi46]

Teresa, yes I do know of a good photographer but you would have to get over here first! trouble is Rosé would be in the way!!

[Lana Mae]

Way to go! Shots and shopping! Hugs Lana Mae

[HollyGreene]

So lucky to find suspender belts and stockings in the store. Here in the US they have disappeared from the store shelves.

There are not many shops in the UK that stock them either. Usually only the high-end department stores or specialist lingerie stores.

[Teresa]

I know the shopping side is the lighter side of my thread and many thanks for the lovely comments , I have to admit shopping is like rolling off a log now no matter what type of shop I'm in .

If I could come back to the essence of my thread , while some of my harsher critics may be saying what's so clever in what you did ! My reply to that is I don't see it that way , I'm still pushing the boundaries , perhaps it never totally stops . In some respects what I experienced yesterday was possibly more daunting then standing up in front of a lecture theatre full of people , at least they knew we were members of the TG community . I walked into a waiting room full of people my age and certainly older ( I make no bones about my age , you can see it on my profile page along with my dog ) , this age group are possibly our harshest critics , we all know what waiting areas can be like , every new person gets the full attention of the majority of people , as I said I did get some prolonged looks .

This one incident raises all the old questions to me , of passing , the use and need of labels , what we actually are beneath the surface . If I had stood up and shouted what I felt my label is, it would have fallen on deaf ears , would they have really cared if I had full SRS or not , I had fairly tight boot cut jeans on and hope my tuck was pretty good otherwise they must have seen enough evidence of appearing like a woman . If Id' expected any comments to be made this would have been the situation most likely to happen . I had several conversations with people as we moved down the waiting list and made no attept to change my voice, was it total acceptance or degrees of tolerance ? Who can say for certain .

Do we really need labels, do they serve any useful purpose ? I've often argued that they do , I can see now it's an attempt to find oursleves , believing we belong somewhere so we can understand and come to terms with it all . I now realise being out they have no value to the public and if we are still stuck in the closet they have no value because no one else knows about your dressing . The only value is to our wives / partners and the medical profession , they need certain guidelines to build a frame work when trying to counsel us .

[AngelaYVR]

I've been going out for years and I didn't think there was any situation left to faze me. Then the other week I heard that my favourite local brewery had introduced a new ale that was only available in their own pub. It was in a more rural area and I can tell you it took some effort to get my arse in there to buy a few bottles! I hadn't felt that exposed in a long time but it went all right despite sucking the air out of the room when I walked in. It was the one and only time I have felt over-dressed. So yes Teresa, we can always find a new situation to test us! And the only label I'm interested in was on the beer bottle.

[Teresa]

Angela,
I love that one !
Marcelle use to say labels are for soup cans , even better still labels are for select beers , maybe I might prefer labels are for wine ! Not sure if either are that good for the figure , what the heck no harm in a little self indulgence sometimes !

I know there will be situations that will take some dealing with but I'm getting there and so far not a single problem .

[lingerieLiz]

I went to pick up some meds at a local grocery store. In the US many grocery stores have pharmacies that give shots. My wife had been on me about getting a flu shot. I had on a white cotton tee and was wearing a bra. The tee had short fem sleeves but I had a rain jacket on. As I'm standing there the gal getting my medicine informed me why don't you get your shot today because it is free and no line. I figured OK I'll slip my arm out no biggie. Well the tech came in to give me the shot and says which arm. As I'm slipping the arm out she helps by pulling the jacket down out of the way. I'm sure my projection was obvious. She then pushed my very short sleeve up onto my shoulder at which point I'm sure she noticed the strap and as she was cleaning the spot my bra strap slipped down where up on she catches it and pushes it up as she is giving me the shot. She acted like nothing happened and I've used that pharmacy for several years and no problems.

[Connie D50]

Once again Teresa you make my day by just reading about you getting a shot thank you for your post. Connie

[Beverley Sims]

As I have said before it does get easier every day.

Go for it Teresa.