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View Full Version : Encounters with a couple of crossdressers.



donnalee
05-31-2015, 10:35 AM
This thread was prompted by a couple of recent encounters with some of us.
I'll do the second first as that one was quite brief.
I was driving down the main drag here a couple of days ago; as I neared the first turnoff to my house, I noticed a 60-ish couple walking in the same direction holding each other close. She wasn't dressed too remarkably, but he was wearing a nice patterned calf-length skirt, aqua tights and a pair of tan 2-inch heels; very well coordinated as to color and style. As I passed them, I saw he had bushy gray hair and a full beard. That's the second crossdresser I've seen in the immediate area with significant facial hair this year, and I don't go out that much. I guess the neighborhood is starting to improve.

The first and even more interesting one was a guy who has been helping me with some work around here; due to a significant heart condition and a destroyed lower back, a number of jobs have gotten too much for me and he's been helping me with some of the heavy lifting. He showed up one day when I was mowing the lawn and struggling at it; the new battery powered mower I was using was quite heavy and I was having some difficulty pushing it up the hilly part of the lawn. He asked me if I needed some help, so I asked him how much; he said $5, so I let him get to it. He turned out to be a hard worker, so I said "I'll pay you $15 an hour." (being on a rather meager pension, that's as much as I can afford, even for casual labor). he worked until dark and did a good job, so I kept hiring him when I could. He would stop by occasionally and we would set a date and time to work for me. I kept my word and he kept his; gradually we became friends. It was obvious from the beginning that he was homeless, although he tried very hard to stay clean and dressed with a certain amount of style and his use of a series of different names made me suspect that he'd had legal problems, perhaps with some left unresolved. That had nothing to do with the work he did for me. The other thing was that he had a drinking problem, but he never let that interfere with the work he did for me, either. Occasionally, he would stop by at different times, usually to borrow a few dollars for "food", a lot of those times i would come to the door dressed as I am more or less out to most of the neighborhood, plus he didn't seem to mind, in fact once commenting positively on what I was wearing. I hadn't seen him for the better part of a month when he showed up on my porch a week ago. He looked pretty woebegone, definitely on his uppers, so I took pity on him and invited him in. We sat & talked, I provided some lubricant and some snacks, just trying to be a good host. it was then he told me that he dressed, too. He'd made himself a space away from the other homeless and didn't let anyone visit him; he hadn't lived with anyone for years because he didn't want this known by the other homeless. Life can get pretty primal among people that have little to lose, so I could understand his reasons. It was getting late, so I said "You can crash on the sofa if you want', and he took me up on it. I offered him a clean gown to sleep in, the same as I use, which he declined. I don't usually get to bed until dawn, before i slept he started to get up, so I cooked us both some breakfast, then went to sleep. When I woke that afternoon, he was sitting on the sofa so quietly that I thought he had left, so I commented "Oh, you're still here" and went to shower. By the time I finished, he had gone. He was an excellent house guest, always asked first and was very considerate and well mannered; I would have no problem inviting him again.

2B Natasha
05-31-2015, 11:13 AM
Hello Donnalee

Before the other start in with all the worry of a mother hen and the sky is falling. Your actions with your Gardner where quite humanly. I love to read of others treating each other with dignity and respect. What a great story to read. Thank you.

Laura912
05-31-2015, 11:55 AM
Stepping into another's shoes...homeless, dealing with alcoholism and cross dressing. Any one of those is enough and with all three, the sum is truly greater than the parts. You were very kind.

Stephanie47
05-31-2015, 12:21 PM
Donna, you're a decent human being. Society needs more people like you. I always find it interesting that those you have the least, share the most.

Dana44
05-31-2015, 12:34 PM
Donna, Nice story. You are a humanitarian and it is great to have people like you in this harsh world.

hope springs
05-31-2015, 02:01 PM
Dignity and respect, there isn't enough of it in this world. Thank you for spreading some around

Bria
05-31-2015, 02:57 PM
Donna, this sounds like love your neighbor as yourself. These days it seems that many of us (society) have read too many horror stories to be comfortable giving a dignified helping hand to someone in need. Bless you, I'll remember you in my prayers.

Hugs, Bria

donnalee
05-31-2015, 10:26 PM
Thanks to all for your kind comments. I spent a number of years broke and scuffling and know what it feels like and how much a kind word or helpful act can mean. This was just an attempt to pay a little of that forward.
Before 1978 and the real estate boom that started in that year, there weren't any homeless to speak of; even in the SF Bay area where I live (certainly one of the most expensive places in the US) a room could be had for around $50/month, a cost that even General Assistance would cover. When real estate prices started going up as baby boomers started nesting (usually beyond the means of anyone with an ordinary income), more people started to "gentrify" poorer neighborhoods because that was what they could afford; it was a domino effect, raising prices to the less moneyed and driving the poorest onto the street. It also became necessary to have at least 2 incomes in order to afford housing, so mom had to work too, spawning several generations of latchkey kids as well as multiple generations of homeless people. This is probably the best climate in the world, so living on the street here is much easier than elsewhere, but it is still tough. How someone could dress at all under those nearly impossible circumstances boggles the mind. It requires a great deal of thought, courage, determination, imagination and effort, all admirable qualities which need to be supported.