I have dressed up all my life, but the real epiphany hit in the summer of 1997, when I was 40 years old. I went on a trip to the Southwest and took the opportunity to get acrylic nails in a salon for the first time, shopped openly for women's clothes, and opened up to a few people I met who commented on them. When I returned home, I revealed all this to my girlfriend at the time, who immediately and without hesitation dumped me and said she wanted nothing to do with me as a girl. (The relationship was not real serious to begin with and had some problems anyway, so this was not a big emotional trauma, and I am on good terms with her today.)
Shortly after, I started going out regularly in public as Diane, bought my first corset and breast forms, began electrolysis, got some femmy tattoos, had my hair colored and styled, started getting makeup lessons ... the whole nine yards. I decided at that moment that any future love interests would have to know about Diane from the absolute beginning; even better would be to meet somebody for the first time while dressed.
I'm pretty much out and about all the time now, although not at work.
- Diane
