Going Public
with
Robin Jean
When you go to the Mall park as close to the entrance as possible and be constantly aware of where you are and the people around you. Exit your car as quickly as possible. Don’t be concerned that there might be other people around. Be natural, get out and become part of the crowd. Personally, I have never had an unfavorable situation, with one minor exception. It was after the 1997 Saturday night banquet at California Dreamin on the Queen Mary Boat in Long Beach. We closed the bar at 2 am and four of us decided that we wanted to prolong the night as long as possible, after all it was the last night of the convention. Since all the restaurants on the boat close at 11 we headed down town looking for a restaurant. In Long Beach California at 2:30 in the morning all you will find is a Denny’s occupied mostly by drunks.
All the tables were filled so we waited near the door in their little waiting area. There wasn't enough room for everyone to sit so I remained standing.
Now after all the lecturing I have been doing about dressing appropriately for the occasion, there I was standing in a Denny’s at 2:30 am in a long black dress with a thigh high slit showing a great deal of leg. I was probably a little conspicuous.
Unfortunately one of the girls in our little group was definitely not passable and we were quickly pegged
About 2 booths away was a guy who appeared to be somewhat intoxicated sitting with several of his friends. Apparently trying to impress his friends or whatever, he started on me. “Hey Baby .......... Come here Baby ............ You can sit with me Baby! This went on for about 5 minutes. I completely ignored him. Never looked his way, pretended he didn’t exist. Eventually when he realized that I wasn’t going to respond he stopped and sheepishly concentrated on whatever it was that he was eating.
He had been embarrassed in front of his friends. He had just been rejected by a guy in a dress, how humiliating, how embarrassing. He never said another word.
The management was very uncomfortable with what had happened and very apologetic. They rushed to get a table for us, and were very accommodating for the rest of our stay.
I have related this incident to point out that, like Denny’s most businesses are very accepting of transgenders.
Of course all of us, not unlike genetic females, must be concerned about being molested by total strangers in places like parking lots or dimly lit streets. One of our problems is that most of us do not think like women. Oh yes, we dress like women, we look like women and we may walk and act like women. But we still possess the general mentality of a man. Walking down a dark street or into a poorly lit parking lot we probably give little thought to the fact that some sexual degenerate might be hiding nearby waiting for a victim to come by. In fact, because we are in drag we might even feel more secure in a dark area where we are not as conspicuous. WRONG!!!!!!
Think ahead, be alert, after all you are just a helpless, vulnerable girl.
Another train of thought on safety
I have always stressed common sense when it comes to safety. However, I realize that many of you are interested in, and do partake in one-night stands. Hopefully you will be ever cognizant that you are subjecting yourselves to certain risks that could lead to personal injury or even worse.
Since I am not into guys I haven’t commented on this particular area of safety before but I know girls who do date and have discussed the matter at great length. Here are a few of the strategies that they employ.
Many of you who are looking for that instant gratification will probably scoff at these ideas but here are some very basic precautions that may keep you from meeting up with a Jeffery Dahmer.
1-Never meet someone, even another TG for the first time at his or her home or apartment.
2-Never meet someone, even another TG for the first time at YOUR home or apartment.
3-Meet in a public place until you get to know the person
4-If you are meeting a guy get his phone number and if possible his address and call him ahead of time. Let him know that you want to hang out at your favorite place for awhile to get better aquatinted, and that there are no preconceived commitments.
5-Introduce him to your friends so he will be aware that others have seen him with you.
These suggestions may sound simplistic and silly to some but if you don’t follow them or a set of your own precautions you could end up in trouble. Be safe
Stay on the beaten path! I can not emphasize this enough. The safest place you can be is in a crowd. It is natural to think that being on a deserted street or one with very few people is safe because there will be less chances of being seen. Nothing could be further from the truth. You will not stand out in a crowd as easily as if you are out in the open all alone. No one is going to confront you in a crowed store or on a busy street. Normal people will be reluctant to make a scene and will always be concerned that they just might be mistaken and won’t want to look foolish in front of other people. Besides, and I know I am being redundant, but nobody cares anymore. If nobody cares that the president of the United States was serviced by a 21-year-old intern in the oval office, who cares if some guy walks around in a dress? This is also true for some macho punk who might want to impress his friends, he won’t do it in front of witnesses. However, if you are confronted on a deserted street or parking lot by a group of teenagers or some adult Neanderthal types trying to prove their manhood, the situation could be ugly.
Avoiding Trouble/safety
