Shopping with Dawn...November 27, 2004
When
I first found out Dawn was going to be in Winnipeg the weekend of November
26 and 27, I had other commitments getting in the way of us getting together.
I did miss going out with Dawn and the girls for a social evening
on the Friday and when I found out I suddenly had Saturday free I couldn't
wait to
make
arrangements
for
a shopping
day with Dawn for the Saturday!
I wore a red sweater, black leather mini skirt, black tights and boots and felt it was the perfect "shopping outfit!" I usually just put polish on my nails, which I keep a little long all the time. Yet for this outing I put on longer nails brightly painted with red nail polish. I was ready by around noon and enjoyed the bright sun shinny day driving through Winnipeg to Dawn's motel.
I wound up parking half a block away and walked to the Place Louis Riel Hotel. Seems a convention was going on and the place was packed with "First Nations" people. Oh well, might as well prance through the crowded lobby in my mini skirt and heels! I was to meet Dawn in the restaurant but since she found it was locked from the outside I found her waiting in the lobby. She looked great in her skirt and heels and off we went, sisters on an adventure!
Our first stop was to Lady Godiva Boutique to visit Mary, our "Den Mother". Dawn renewed her membership to Masquerade and purchased a few "necessities" from Mary's store. And of course there were PICTURES!
Dawn was wearing nice high heeled shoes and really didn't want to go "mall walking" so we went to Penningtons which would be closer to the parking lot. Still a little tricky, walking on ice and snow in heels. But of course we are used to it by now :-)
The staff at Penningtons were very polite and helpful. Dawn found a beautify gold sparkly top and eagerly tried it on. I enjoyed walking through the store and teasing a guy out shopping with his wife and daughter. I think he had more fun checking out my legs than he did hanging out with his family! Dawn walked out of the fitting room wearing the blouse. Fitting a little snug around her waist it would look great with any black skirt! And since Penningtons was having a sale where they pay the tax, it was a great buy! She was very happy to have a new addition to her wardrobe that she could wear to the theatre that evening!
After finding such a great top we decided it was time to just find a nice lounge where we could relax, have some refreshments and enjoy some "girl talk". Going out to places like Club 200, or Gio's in the evening is a lot of fun, yet perhaps not the best places to go sit and talk. Talk without yelling over the music that is. Since we had to be back at Dawn's suite by around 5:00 PM to meet Christie we parked nearby and walked to the piano lounge in the Sheraton Hotel. Which by the way, is right across the street from Gio's!
There were a few guys sitting at the bar and a few small groups at a few other tables as we walked through the lounge to a table near the piano. No one was playing at the time, but it was a quiet corner where we could sit and talk comfortably. The bartender took our order and brought us our drinks, complete with straws so we wouldn't mess our lipstick :-) (Such a thoughtful guy) and we enjoyed the hour catching up on girl stuff.
Going out and about to the TG friendly places, where one would expect to find transgendered persons, crossdressers, is one thing. Places where we "expect" to be accepted. But to experience going out to "mainstream" venues, malls and restaurants, and being accepted at face value is such an empowering experience. Words alone can not express that empowerment. The felling has to be experienced first hand. A feeling like we no longer have to go about pretending. We can live our lives....Living our lives as we choose.
Did we get "looked at?". Of course we did. But there were no bad feelings or experiences. When you think about it. In your every day life, going about your own business, to restaurants and malls, think, just think, how often we "Look" at other people. Passing glances, the "check her out" looks, the watching out so we don' t bump into people looks. All part of human nature that we only begin to realize once we get past the fear "They're reading me!".
By 5:00 PM it was time to walk back to Dawn's hotel suite and wait for Christie to meet us there. And of course check out how well Dawn's new blouse will go with her skirt!! As luck would have it, I was able to join the girls for their evening out at the MTC Warehouse Theatre! Click Here!
Thanks for reading my story,
Sabrina
E-mail me at sabrina_markes@masquerade.ca
Member of the Winnipeg support group - "Masquerade"