I am lounging around in my room with X. X & I are intimate friends but not boyfriends. X tells me his friend Y is throwing a party, do I want to go?

Now the gang that X & Y belonged to always threw fantastic parties but they were always fancy dress parties --- and everyone went in serious fancy dress. The previous party had been thrown by X himself and his flatmates. X hosted as the devil: red catsuit, skin died red, horns, trident. One group of girls went as a pack of cigarettes. The flat had trees growing down from the ceiling.

In the past I'd managed to be kind of exempt from fancy dress by turning up late as part of my own gang. We would be kind of guests or visitors to the party, without really being part of the party, spectators. This time, for some reason my gang wasn't around so much (maybe at the time I was hanging out with X much more), so I'd be going with X. So I reckoned I had to think of some costume.

We mulled it over together. After trying out and rejecting other ideas (I can't remember any of them) I said what about going as a woman?. But I didn't want to go in "drag": at the time I thought all that drag stuff was offensive and even misogynistic. X agreed. I said, I would have to "do it straight", go "as a woman".

OK, so we set about sourcing the gear, some bought some borrowed. Y himself had a pair of size 9 stilletos and a decent brunette wig --- previous fancy dress party he said.

I didn't relish the prospect of walking all the way across town alone in my costume, so I walked over to X's flat in civvies and changed there. I have to say I was pretty unimpressed by his costume --- just a flash 70s suit. But, to be fair (a) he did look exactly like the cool black dude in the old Babycham ad and (b) I was too impressed with my own costume to bother being impressed with anyone else's. We tottered over to the party each carrying a hefty bag of booze.

As well as my stilletos and wig, I was wearing a Little Black Dress, black stockings and suspenders, and even a bra with rolled-up socks tucked into the cups. Interestingly, no knickers.

Um, I don't mean I wasn't wearing any knickers: I meant I was wearing my usual white cotton men's briefs.

So we arrived at the party, which was really swinging: lots of people, music, babes, drink, laughter.

Nobody was wearing fancy dress.

To be continued ...

I enjoy wearing women's clothes. The foundations were laid in my early puberty, and my habit is basically the same as it was then.

I've enjoyed wearing women's clothes on and off since childhood, let's say since I was around 8 or 10. I went through my sister's and especially my mother's wardrobes, trying on knickers, tights, slips, skirts, dresses, blouses, as opportunity allowed.

When I was very young it was all tied up with my discovering or exploring my erotic sensuality. Sometimes I would use knickers to help me masturbate --- feeling myself through the fabric, feeling the fabric embrace me. I think sometimes although I was very turned on and stimulated by wearing, it wouldn't necessarily resolve into masturbation. Instead the clothes would kind of magically eroticise my whole body, turn me into a sensual person.

It seems clear to me that I was using the clothes as a fetish for femininity, and femininity itself was already for me a fetish for a whole range of behaviours and feelings. Maybe I associated masturbation with femininity: I remember stretching it out, and trying to live as long as possible in that white buzzy space that comes just before orgasm.

My whole erotic awakening is infused with the textures and smells of women's underwear. Not just wearing. I was 15 or 16 when I came across real pornography for the first time, until then --- i.e., for 7 or 8 years from the age of 8 --- the women's underwear sections of mail order catalogues were my only pornography.

In teenage and twenties there were several times when I had the house to myself for days at a time. In the evenings I would dress up in whole outfits and waft about the house, feeling how the slips, skirts and dresses swished against me. By now masturbation and wearing had more or less completely separated (apart from occasional joint sessions).

There has never been any interaction or disturbance between my wearing habit and girlfriends. I don't think I've ever tried on girlfriends clothes.

Only twice before the current phase have I worn women's clothes in Real Life (i.e., outside the home). Once home alone I waited till 3am and went for a walk in one of my mother's dresses; once as a student I went to a fancy dress party dressed "as if I were a woman" (that is a very funny story if anyone is interested).

The current phase started around 4 years ago --- after at least ten years of not wearing at all --- so it's obviously tied up with my other sex-life troubles with my wife. I think as a response. I don't think it has had any causal influence. My porn habit may well have had a deadening influence on my sensuality (in fact I assume it has), but I don't think wearing has.

The phase I'm in now I just wear knickers (this and this are the most recent times). If A is away I might wear a camisole vest too (i.e., an M&S Cotton rich lace trim vest). I wear these to work, under my work clothes.

If A and B are both away for a few days I might spend an evening dressing up in A's skirts and dresses. The pattern for dressing up is exactly the same as it was in my childhood.

This habit has always been secret. I've written about it in my diary but I've never ever told anyone or written about it in a public forum. This blog is the furthest out of the closet I've ever come.

I have a tiny collection of a few pairs of knickers & some odds & ends. It's tiny partly because I have to keep it hidden; partly because periodically I am overwhelmed by shame and throw everything out.

• Pink gingham shirt: non-iron, hidden placket, very soft;
• Lovely silk tie: kind of brick-work effect pattern in random pastel colours;
• Cotton boxer shorts: pink flowery design.
• Oh, and trousers of course: just basic navy flat-front chinos.

Kind of a joke, if also a fairly lame hommage to What I Wore Today, which I think is a fantastic blog (I'm not a regular reader, but I just love the idea of it. It seems to have been going for years). Maybe that should be femmage?

There is a slightly more serious point, which is that it is possible to play across gender stereotyping without actually wearing women's clothes.

In the meantime, xdress can go on my blogroll.

These are basically the same design as the black chiffons I was wearing yesterday, but a little roomier in the front, and a little less roomy in the rear. They're still sexy to wear, and they stay on.

Gingham is the main reason I like them. My heart leapt when I saw them. They strongly remind me of the first pair I ever wore --- a pair of pink gingham bloomers really or 'school knickers' belonging to my sister. I must have been around ten, and I quickly ended up going through both my sister's and my mother's wardrobes. I don't think there's anything significant in the family connection --- sister's and mother's clothes are obviously going to be the first source for any young boy dressing up like this. It was very secret from the beginning, and very exciting.

I am currently wearing a pair of black chiffon bikini knickers from Marks and Spencers. The item isn't on their site any more but the Lace Frill Trim Bikini Knickers have a similar design. I am writing this in the smart cafe of the Business School.

They are a lovely pair of knickers. Lots of fun. Why do I like them?

• I like chiffon. Just the idea of wearing chiffon is exciting. Wearing something secret and thrilling under my business suit.
• They are tight and roomy in unexpected places - like, duh, they're designed for a woman's body. I find "boy shorts" impossibly uncomfortable, but these are just right. They are just uncomfortable enough to remind me they're there, to be slightly arousing; to give me a special secret feeling in this public desert. So I'm tight and contricted in front and very loose and free and open in the rear.
• In fact, they're so loose that I have this constant feeling that they're falling down! Which is very exciting.
• After a while walking around in them they have in fact fallen down (but remember I'm wearing trousers). They're holding me snug in front, but behind, they're resting underneath my buttocks or at the top of my thighs. Walking through the park I'm aware that my behind (under the suit) is completely open, unprotected, framed in fact, or at least underlined. This gives me a vague but definite homoerotic thrill.

We have video of a mane salon burglary, and you may be able to help police solve it. The break-in happened newest Friday at the Supercuts Salon on West 23rd street. A snow-white male, thought to be in his 20's or 30's, forced open the rear door and beat about 40 minutes in the business. While there, he pried open a safe and took an undisclosed lot of money that was in three AmSouth Bank money bags.

Police believe the burglar was about 5-9 and weighed about 150 pounds. He was wearing a baseball cap over his shoulder period bushy hair. His tee-shirt had a circular logo on the front and he was wearing cloth gloves.

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I had to bring this here to the blog........  It's a must read because it will give you a look at things from the other side of the street. Here is a young Muslim Girl just venting. After reading this, I really thought long and hard. And even though I STRONGLY disagree with a certain part of her poem, it still sends alarms off in my head that we as one race, "THE HUMAN RACE" have to do better in how we relate with one another. -- ACE

BY: HIBA

I wrote this piece during the French Government’s hoopla about banning Muslim girls from wearing head scarves in schools. Why Us? A poem to all condemned Hijabees.

Why do people think twice before hiring me?
Why am I being gazed at pitifully?
Why the political drama in the French community?
Why the rejection, discrimination n mockery?

My crime: convicted of concealing my hair
A felony: refusing to expose, disclose & be bare
Labeled cloaked terrorists; Blacklisted fundamentalists
An impediment to society’s modern development

Rhetorically, the world speaks of democracy
In reality, extreme deception n hypocrisy
Why don’t u stay away; let us live; let us be?
We ain’t imposing; encroaching on your territory
We only striving; implementing the Lord’s decree
Trying to be the best Muslims we can possibly be

Why you denying us our God-given rights?
A safe place; free from prejudice and dislike
Why you blaming; judging us by what we wear?
They are only pieces of cloth; won’t bite; won’t flare

Why are we being persecuted, treated as inferiors?
Did you take the time to get to know our interior?
Ruminate; cogitate; let your logic dominate
We equal, historically, created by the same superior

Put yourselves in our shoes; let oppression be infused
I’m telling ya, you won’t survive; Islamic faith uncompromised
Stop tripping on what you don’t know; harassing innocent souls
It’s time you see past our veils; it’s time you let who we are prevail

First a little about my family. I'm 18, and very small, 5'7" 140lbs, blond hair and blue eyes. I've been told that I look a lot like my sister (who is a year younger than me). I also have an older sister who is 21 and my mom is 42. My dad left us about 10 years ago and is out of the picture. So basically I live in the estrogen house. I guess I should have known that I would get female tendencies at some point. My goal for this week is to get some pairs of panties of my own and to see what I like to wear as far as lingerie. It will require some sneaking around but, that's what I love to do.

I will try and update this site every day, but it might be hard since the house is never empty. I hope to hear from other people that do the same thing. Maybe even help me understand what this is all about.

my favourite part is when a class sleeper wakes up. haha. it's funny to watch as the disoriented student tries to come to terms with the non-sleeping world once they've been rudely awoken. a few things always happen---

• confusion: nobody can figure out why their bed is so hard and shaped like a desk. also they don't immediately understand how the wall beside them turned into another student who isn't wearing their favourite prince poster.
• sleep scars/wounds: the notebook does a wonder on the face. the worst one i've ever seen was a spiral bound from the eye to the ear. i just don't understand how something like that doesn't wake somebody up.
• disgust: as they come to grips with their surroundings, there is always a look of disgust (no matter how slight) when the student realizes s/he is in class. it's rare to see more contempt for the teacher/class than in that brief moment of realization.
• nodding off: while sometimes this also precedes the nap, it almost always follows. here's the thing about sleeping in class...when the student is woken up, it's not cause they're ready to wake up. usually there's a loud noise or something disruptive that does the job. thus...they are always still sleepy. some of the funniest jolting moments happen when somebody is nodding off. (sidenote---look for a person nodding off if you are bored in class. endless entertainment.)

the worst has got to be the teachers who think it's cool to wake students up and put them on the spot. honestly. the student probably fell asleep cause the class was too boring to begin with. or possibly they were up too late doing the piles of homework that the teacher assigned. in any case...they're not missing much.

so as i'm getting ready to graduate from college in a month and looking back at my experience in education---i wish i had slept more. i was always too afraid to. i liked being the good student. and i was afraid i'd be laughed at if i carried the impression of my notebook out of the room on my forehead or cheek. but i wish my fear of embarrassment hadn't deterred my restless jittering just to stay awake in class.

add this to your to-do list:

show the notebook some love...put your head down in class. =)

Full article HERE. Brett Favre should give this kid a brand new signed jersey he could hang over his bed forever. :)

(Kudos to Allison for the heads up!)

.

The Verdict:

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Until next time...

Waddle on!

Bodge101

There is a kerfuffle today on sports talk and radio call in shows about the fact that Roy was watching the championship game last night while sporting a piece of Jayhawk flair on his sweater. Apparently, a whole host of Carolina fans feel betrayed by Roy wearing the colors of the team that beat their beloved Tar Heels 48 hours before. These folks are nuts, or they just missed that part in history class about the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1865. I guess they think they own Roy Williams. I'm certainly glad they don't.

One of the many things I love about Roy is that he is his own man. He knows who he is and what he cares about (and doesn't give a flip about). More importantly, he is up front about what he thinks and feels. He wears his heart on his sleeve. He forms deep and lasting relationships with recruits, players, friends, and schools.

When Roy was hired, one of the first things out of his mouth at the press conference introducing him was how important his years at Kansas were to him and how hard it was to leave. Nothing has changed. We should be happy! We got him, and we are lucky to have him. In five years at UNC, he has a national championship and we're sitting on back to back ACC tournament and regular season championships. And to the extent that he was advertising a competing school, Roy's got nothing to worry about in recruiting for the next few years.

And the nutjobs who suggest that this supposed fashion faux pas was indicative of Roy not preparing for the game, or not coaching hard, explain to me how that would work for the players on the floor? Were they conflicted? Seems to me they wanted to win. You can Monday Morning Quarterback about how you would have coached the team as Kansas extended their lead, but it is preposterous to suggest that Roy did not want to win that game.

I've always felt that, once your team is out, you root for the team that sent yours packing, and argue that the only team that could have beat yours was the eventual national champion. Roy was doing no different. What I love about Roy is that he is unscripted, often un-PC, and completely genuine. And Roy genuinely loves Kansas. And when they're not playing UNC, he roots for them. More power to him.

The flip side of this is that we don't care about coaches that love UNC and no other, and have never been seen wearing anyone else's logos. Remember John Bunting?

The answer is, you can't!

Not unless you know more about him than he does about himself.

Not unless you know his demographics and his psychographics.

Demographics and psychographics are the two essential pillars supporting a successful marketing program.

If you know who your customer is—demographics you can then determine why he buys—psychographics.

And having done so, you can then begin to construct a Prototype to satisfy his unconscious needs, but scientifically rather than arbitrarily.

Again, demographics is the science of marketplace reality. It tells you who buys.

Psychographics is the science of perceived marketplace reality. It tells you why certain demographic types buy for one reason while other demographic types buy for another.

Let me give you an example of how these sciences might be utilized in your Marketing Strategy.

Notice the shade of blue. I call it "IBM Blue." Why? Because it's IBM's color. That's why, I imagine, IBM is called "Big Blue" in the marketplace.

Why that specific shade of blue rather than another? Why blue at all?

Because that shade of blue has an extraordinarily high appeal and preference to IBM's Central Demographic Model.

They see that shade of blue, and it's love at first sight!

Ever heard the expression, "True Blue"? That's what that particular color is: the color IBM's Central Demographic Model consumer knows it can depend on.

What do you think would have happened had IBM chosen orange instead of blue?

Well, since orange is at the opposite end of the preferential spectrum for IBM's consumer, the IBM success story may not have been so momentous. It's hard to imagine "Big Orange" instead of "Big Blue." I think IBM's customer would have had trouble buying an orange computer!

Now, I know that sounds ridiculous, but you can test it if you like.

Remember the little test I suggested earlier, the one with the navy blue suit?

I'd like you to visualize someone wearing such a suit. Can you see him in your mind's eye?

Deep navy blue, vents in the back, possibly a pin stripe. Sharply creased trousers. White starched shirt. A red and blue striped tie. Black, highly polished wing-tip shoes.

Now how do you feel about him?

• Does he look businesslike?
• Does he look like someone you can trust?
• Does he appear to represent something solid, reliable, dependable?

Of course he does.

Research shows that the navy suit is perhaps the most powerful suit a person can wear in business. Instant impact.

Now visualize the very same person you did before, but this time he's not wearing a navy blue suit.

Now he's wearing an orange suit.

That's right, a two-piece orange suit!

An expensive one at that.

And with it, he's wearing a white-on-white silk shirt and a green and white striped Italian silk tie.

And a silver belt buckle with his initials in green jade across its face.

And a diamond tie pin, two carats, glimmering out at you just above the top button of his vest.

And proudly peeking out of his finely creased orange pants, an incomparable pair of white lizard cowboy boots!

Can you see it?

Do you get the picture?

Well, you better take it fast because he's out of business!

And what's important to know is that the difference between the two men isn't in them—it's in your mind. Your Unconscious Mind.

What's more, the difference is perceived instantly without a moment of thought.

The fact that you couldn't conduct serious business

with the man in the orange suit but you could if he were wearing blue says that there is no such thing as reality. At least as we understand it.

Reality only exists in someone's perceptions, attitudes, beliefs, conclusions—whatever you wish to call those positions of the mind from which all expectations arise—and nowhere else.

So the famous dictum that says, "Find a need and fill it," is inaccurate.

It should say, "Find a perceived need and fill it." Because if your customer doesn't perceive he needs something, he doesn't, even if he actually does. Get it?

Those perceptions are at the heart of your customer's decision-making process.

And if you know his demographics, you can understand what those perceptions are, and then figure out what you must do to satisfy them and the expectations they produce.

You can know your customer's psychographic reality. Each demographic model has a specific set of perceptions that are identifiable in advance.

Women of a certain age, with a certain amount of education, with a certain size family, living in a certain geography, buy for very specific psychographic reasons.

Those unconsciously held reasons will be different from another group of women, of a different age and marital status, with a different educational background, living in a different part of the country.

And these differences predetermine what each group buys.

Are you beginning to get a sense of the complexity of this business called marketing? I hope so.