It surprised even me.

I was getting my haircut a few days ago along with my spouse, and while he was in the barber's chair, I overheard his stylist (who'd cut my hair earlier) mention that "her girlfriend was into the whole drag king thing". To understand the depth of my shock, you have to understand that we live in po-dunk, bible-belt USA. Even the small percentile of people who'd be into such a thing here, I wouldn't expect to so openly talk about it. The idea that I'd run into such an opportunity never occurred to me. And since it was such a rare opportunity, I went back to the salon the next day and left a note for her, explaining my situation and my interest in drag.

Lo and behold, she called me back. And last night, I went to a drag show at a gay bar. Her girlfriend wasn't the only drag king there, and I was able to see a few ladies who were very convincingly able to pass as guys. This gave me alot of hope for passing myself, even without the use of hormones. Also, I learned that my town actually has a gay bar. Again, who knew? So now, I have a very sweet-stylist lady and drag king willing to show me the ropes of creating facial hair, and a place where I'll feel safe with my first few attempts at full fledged drag. All in all, it was a really good night.

I wore a binder, which is like a man-girdle for transmen. Basically, it's a contraption that conceals one's breasts better than ace bandages, with better security, though it can be rather uncomfortable. Even with that minimal effort, I had gay dude's checking me out. While I'm not really into gay guys (though there was one very hot drag queen there) it suggested to me that I was at least passing with some people, and with just a little more effort, I should be able to do so full time.

My next goal, I think, is to find a voice coach. That tends to be what gives me away, if my breasts are bound, and with a bit of work, I think I could make it at least more androgynous. It is my hope, that for my real life test, I might do so without the aid or hormones, which can have lasting effects. While I feel confident in my path, I'd hate to have my voice drop and start actually growing facial hair only to find that life as a man wasn't as fulfilling for me as I had imagined. That is the purpose of the test after all. It's not an obstacle put in place just to get you frustrated on your path to transition. Honest, it's for your benefit, and it is a GOOD thing. Make wise use of it, and really, continue to take things slow.