Happy New Year! Last year I started off by actually listing some resolutions. Just for fun, let’s see how I did on those:
- Go on a diet/lose weight – Unless gaining weight counts, I don’t think I lived up to this one.
- Always take purse out of car before locking it – I came close a time or two, but this one was a success. No late night meetings with the nice man from the Auto Club.
- Go to new places while dressed – I had some success here. I suppose the ultimate was my visit to the DMV, but I also visited grocery stores, restaurants, night clubs and had my first pedicure/manicure at a salon.
- Improve femme voice – I did work on this a bit, but I still have a long way to go.
- Organize closet/drawers – Very little change here. I identified a few things to be sold or given away, but they are still taking up space in the closet.
- Win a large lottery – Sadly no. Would my odds improve if I actually bought a ticket?
I don’t think I am going to make any resolutions this year, but I will try to continue to do the things that felt right in 2009:
- Enjoy being myself.
- Make new friends (but keep the old, one is silver and the other gold – sorry, I am a lifetime member of Girl Scouts).
- Do what I can to help others on their own journeys of discovery.
- Show off my legs at every opportunity.
*****
In my December column, I started a story like this, “There once was a person. Sometimes he was a boy, and sometimes she was a girl.” We left as the person was anticipating a party where his friends would meet her friends.
There were some other important people in the person’s life. There was a spouse. She was always a girl. She did not really understand the person, and she did not particularly like it when the person was a girl. But she did love the person, and she knew that it made the person happy to be a girl sometimes. So she did not spend time with the person when she was a girl, but she encouraged the person to go out and be with her girl-friends.
There was also a child. This was a grown-up child who was also always a girl. She loved the person too. She also did not really understand, but she was supportive, said she was proud of the person, and even went out with the person at times when she was a girl. This made the person very happy and very proud of the child.
For several years, the little family had a party to celebrate the special holidays in December. They would invite neighbors, friends of the spouse, and friends of the child. They would also invite friends of the person, but only those who were friends when he was a boy. But this year, the spouse agreed to let the person invite some new people. Some people who were friends of the person when she was a girl. People who also were sometimes boys and sometimes girls.
When the night of the party came, the person was nervous about what might happen. What would his friends think of her friends? What would her friends think of his friends? The person came to the party as a boy. This was from love and respect for the spouse. The neighbors were there. The friends of the spouse were there. The friends of the child were there. And the girl-friends of the person were there too. They came to the party as girls. This was because it made them happy and because it was right for them.
So what do you think happened? It was a party. His friends met her friends, and her friends met his friends. Everyone ate and drank and talked and had a good time. It was a party. Then everyone went home and talked about what a good time they had.
The person was very happy.
*****
Throughout December, I continued to make one particular mistake. I kept neglecting to take my camera out of my purse. This means that there are no photos to spice up my ramblings. Well, perhaps the editorial staff will include the “after-the-fact” photo of my outfit for the CGS Holiday Party. I took that when I arrived home after the party. What you cannot tell from the photo is 
that my feet were killing me. Those are my feet, at the bottom of my legs, attached to the painted toenails. I did a fair amount of dancing and my shoes just were not right for such activities. They looked good, but they ended up being what Steve Martin called “cruel shoes”.
While I am talking about the Holiday party, I should mention my arrival at said soiree. As it happened, I had enlisted the help of my friend Tom-Tom to get me to the designated country club. Actually Tom-Tom is a GPS with the female voice of Kathy who is actually English. Kathy is very nice while giving driving instructions. She never gets upset when I repeatedly ignore her and take routes of my own choosing. However, she does get it wrong now and then.
As directed by Kathy, I was cruising southeast on highway 12. Kathy informed me that my destination was just ahead on the right. I spotted a sign that said, “Country Club entrance ahead”. Seeing this entrance on the right, as specified by Kathy, I turned into the driveway. The approach to the club was quite beautiful as it wound for a short distance through some trees. I saw that valet parking was being provided, and I decided to avail myself of this service to avoid the necessity of walking to and from the parking lot in the winter cold. A very nice young man took my car keys and bid me a pleasant evening.
I walked into the club to find one couple sitting in the lobby. I smiled at them and looked around for some evidence of where the CGS party was being held. Seeing no signs, I strolled toward voices coming from what appeared to be a dining room. When I reached the door from which the voices were coming, I realized that it was not our group (too many guys wearing pants). I returned to the lobby and found the coat check room. I asked the lady in coat check if she knew where the CGS function was. She had no idea and directed me to the concierge/valet office by the front door. Approaching this office, I saw a sign for the country club. The name on the sign was definitely not what it was supposed to be. Oops.
The same young man who had taken my car was now in the office. I explained that I seemed to be in the wrong place. He very graciously gave me directions to the proper club, brought my car around, and wished me a pleasant evening. He was cute. Too bad he had to work!
The correct venue for the party ended up being very, very nice. It was a beautiful setting and a delightful evening! I sat between Julie (aka The Terminator at the Halloween Extravaganza) and Jill (this time with her gorgeous blonde hair and a killer minidress). The standout dancer of the evening was a hot guy named Rodney. He had much more energy than I did (of course he was only half my age), and he definitely knew his moves. He was even brave enough to suffer through a close dance with me, but I think his feet may never forgive us.
*****
The dance with Rodney (sorry about your feet) reminds me that something I would like to do is to take some dance lessons where I can wear heels and follow. Anyone out there dance foxtrot or tango and interested in leading?
*****
I recently had the good fortune to spend a fun couple of hours at the Rock Bottom Brewery with Lyseth (known to all I am sure) and two newcomers, Jerzi and Sarah. We sat at a table in the bar area and were served by a delightful young woman with the unexpected name of Brigitta (as in Angela Cartwright’s role in Sound of Music). Jerzi and Sarah were both in drab (poor dears), Lyseth was looking stylish as always, and as shocking as it must be to hear, I was showing a good deal of leg in my red sweaterdress. Anyway, after we had chatted a bit with our server, it was obvious that she had seen through our artful presentations and recognized the wonderful people inside. So while Jerzi used the opportunity to hit on the lovely lass (tee hee), I used the opportunity to ask her when she had tumbled to “the truth”. To her great credit (thank you Brigitta), she at least pretended to have taken awhile to see. Ultimately she said it was my voice that convinced her. Not a surprise, but if I am unable to find my voice, perhaps I should take up signing. Actually I already know some sign language, but it is really only appropriate when someone cuts me off while driving.
*****
The December T-Party at Big Shot was not quite as well attended as it was in November, but there were still about 20 girls celebrating the season. There were several ladies making their debuts that night. One of these was Holly with whom I talked at length, and who is now the Transformations December Calendar Girl (check her out at http://www.transformationsbyrori.com/Calendar%20_Girl_12-09.htm).
*****
One of the perks of being a regular contributor to the Primrose is that I get away with writing just about anything that comes to mind (well, there was that one joke about Katie and Tiger Woods that was edited out, but why quibble). Since I am writing this late in December, I would like to offer a couple of year-end personal observations before I release you from this particular trainwreck.
It is both surprising and delightful when I meet people who read my column. Frankly, I am not sure why anyone would want to waste time with my ramblings, but I am grateful to those of you who do so. Thank you!
I feel that I have blossomed as a full person in the last couple of years, and this is due in no small part to the wonderful people of CGS. I am grateful for the warm and caring reception I have received at every function, starting with my very first meeting. I am also grateful for the diversity of backgrounds and lives that mingle freely within CGS. My thanks to all of you for being a part of this very special organization.
If you have spent any time listening to my bragging, you know that my wife is very special to me. She does not understand why I do what I do (who does?), and she really does not like to see me as Greer. But she accepts that I cannot be a full and happy person if I repress this important part of myself. She willingly shares our master bedroom closet with my whole wardrobe including multiple wigs. She does not flinch when our grocery list includes mascara or lipstick for me. For all this (and much more), I am truly blessed and I am very grateful for her love and support.Recently though, she really went above and beyond the call. I was complaining about the cost of buying a nice winter coat for my femme self, and she volunteered to make one for me. We selected a pattern and went to Vogue fabrics to pick out the material. She modified the pattern a bit to fit my somewhat unusual shape, and then worked for hours to put everything together. The end result is a beautiful grey, wool herringbone coat that is fully lined and wonderful to wear. Thank you my darling!
*****
Thoughts? Comments? Suggestions? Please send to me at greercd@hotmail.com.
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