A trip down Memory Card Lane - the Great Drag Race

 I'm not at home this Hallowe'en so it's cancelled. Which is slightly annoying as I'd got my cobweb pattern tights and elbow-length gloves specially for this year's witchy doings. Maybe I'll have to be the Christmas Spider or something instead.

Whaddaya mean there's no Christmas Spider?  

Of course there is! You know, the spider who lives in the chimney and crawls into Santa's boot and bites his toe as he tries to manoeuvre quietly round your living room furniture ... You've never experienced that? It's OK, I'll pop round this year and make Santa wake the kids with expletive-laden stomping about and crashing into things. Merry Cursemas one and all!

So, as there will be no Hallowe'en photos this year, I'll carry on with my posting of rediscovered photos from past years. This time it's the Great Drag Race of 2010, an event I described in Episode 2 of my 2020 series on my First Steps in Trans Living (series here, with links although it's easier if I copy the relevant text below and add to it). This was one of the events that really increased my confidence. Now I have all the photos that my official photographer, Ange, took. She's a professional photographer and came with some impressive kit. Ange is the first T-Girl I ever met and she's something of a sister to me. Thanks, sis. 

Many trans people rely on fancy dress events to get a chance to be out as themselves without attracting undue comment. Events like Hallowe'en or Carnival, the school prom or the local drama club, and similar. So the opportunity I had to be out in public was the Great Drag Race in 2010.

Nothing to do with RuPaul, this was an event organised by Prostate UK and Prostate Action (now amalgamated as Prostate Cancer UK), which are charities that fund research into prostate cancer and look after sufferers and their families. A good cause, not just for men and their families, but trans women too as, even after transition, the prostate may cause problems. The reason it was a race in drag was to acknowledge the high-profile work done by women for breast cancer care with events like the Moonwalk or Breast Cancer Awareness Month. 

I'm not a drag queen and, frankly, neither was any other participant, but here was a chance to be dressed in public, with praise for doing so thrown in. Win-win! I had various sponsors though my contribution was slight as I managed to get time off work only at the last minute. 

It was quite a high-profile event, held in London Fields, a park in North-East London, and the compère was Peter Duncan, best known for his TV shows, notably Blue Peter (a very long-running children's magazine programme). A very personable, down-to-earth man in real life.

So although most of the participants being sponsored to run were just men who'd borrowed something off their wives, some of us like to think we were a bit more like the real thing. In fact, as I applied my makeup, one guy looked over at me and said, "You've done this before!"

This is my official portrait photo from the event:

(c) The X Foundation

 

This is my unofficial photo in the official photo spot:

 

And this is the unofficial photo of the official photo being taken, a metaphoto if you wish:

Stop giggling at the back. I'm entirely innocently holding a furled pink umbrella by my side for this family-friendly event. But, yes, you can see why I've never posted this before! Always check your camera angle, Ange! 

Ange did take a good artistic picture of me applying my makeup, though:

There was a general makeup table to sit at and apply such makeup as might be wanted and it was there that another official event photographer wanted to snap me before I was fully in Sue mode and I refused to allow her to as I was very much needing to be in stealth as I wasn't out as trans at this point at all. I know it's a contradiction to be in stealth at a high-profile public event but then trans living is a university degree course in finding inauthentic ways to be authentic. One day I might graduate.

Here are some more photos, looking neat and fresh before I ran the race:

So after makeup and photos the next thing to do was to break a world record. With pep talks from a professional drag queen (whose spicy thoughts perhaps overlooked that this was a family event - oops!), and from Peter Duncan and organisers, and then ten minutes training from choreographer Lisa Lee, we formed a chorus line of 128 queens and danced (or flailed around) for five minutes to Bonnie Tyler's Holding Out for a Hero. Guinness World Records considered this activity sufficient to qualify for the title of Longest Line of Dancing Drag Queens and so, dear readers, I am a world record holder with an official certificate to say so, and if Roy Castle were still alive I'm sure he'd tell everyone on his show about our outstanding achievement. Dedication and all that. (For younger and non-UK readers, Roy Castle was a musician, actor and entertainer who had a TV show for children called Record Breakers. "Dedication" was the lousy theme song that he sang at the end of every episode.) This record was broken by a new line of 144 drag queens at the Great Drag Race in 2012.

The race itself was 10200 metres overall (six and a third miles), representing the 10200 people who die from prostate cancer in Britain each year. It was a warm summer's day and, frankly, running that far in a wig is no joke. The hair I chose was a cheap but light purchase from Doreen Fashions (a shop for trans women that sadly now exists only online). I did wear sensible running shoes but swapped them for four-inch court shoes for the last lap, and waved my pink umbrella too! Frankly, such shoes are not for running in - I bruised my toes! Sadly, Ange had got bored by this point and put her camera away so you'll just have to take my word for it. 

Some action shots now. The pleasant companion on my right kept pace with me most of the way. 

 

 

The whole event raised about £20,000 and was the first of several such sponsored races.

It was exhilarating being out in a very public place in this way and thereby gain more confidence. I spotted another TGirl participating. You could tell because we actually looked different from the rest. It was her first time out in public and, incredibly, she came on the Underground dressed already. I didn't actually talk to her on the day, only subsequently, because of the unwritten rule that you don't point out to a TGirl you may have spotted that she's a TGirl, even if you both are. She has now transitioned successfully. From small acorns like this, mighty oaks grow.

There's not a lot online about this event any more although I did find this on YouTube which gives a bit of the flavour. I'm in the photo at 1:08-1:11 sandwiched between the red dress and the white camera.

Thanks again to Ange for giving moral support and taking the photos and for the people who sponsored.

Thank you again to those who comment on my blog. I'm still having problems replying but solutions are being worked out...

Happy Hallowe'en.

Sue x 

A nurse in autumn

 It's been a strange year this, dominated by the hospitalisation of a relative of mine. He should be returning home today after six months on the wards so I have swapped the dramatic evergreen landscape of the coast for the autumn golds of the big city in order to give him a hand as he readjusts to normality.

Sadly, it's not going to be full-on fem time thanks to the vigilant bigotry and phobias of my family. Nevertheless, my 'masculine lesbian' or androgynous look of women's shirts and trousers that is my everyday attire these days passes scrutiny, and I have some warm tights to mitigate the cooler climate. You may wonder why I would help a bigot and the answer is that he was instrumental in helping me settle in Italy and even made the wise suggestion as to where I should move to, which has worked out very well. So I owe him one.

I'm not sure that I make a great nurse so we have the local visiting one from the hospital engaged to come and change his dressings and supervise his medication but I am here to shop and cook and generally deal with everyday stuff for a bit. 

What's struck me so far, as I hinted above, is autumn. The view from my bedroom window here is nothing but a mass of leaves turning gold.

 

I remember this tree from when I was little and it was just a spindly sapling in the road that people would casually run their cars into when parking. You wouldn't do that now as it towers over the whole house! It's a real contrast with the evergreen pines and turquoise sea of the coast I've left and you'll appreciate the acclimatisation shock.

If you want to see beautiful autumn colours from the Alpine region you could do worse than look at Violetta's fabulous blog: Violetta''s autumn

Milan where I now am is a fashion capital so I plan to use my time out to bring you any attractive or weird outfits and accessories from the designer outlets. 

 

A disturbance in the Force

The arcane powers that run Blogger seem to have hit a patch of instability, eddies in the space-time continuum or something, so once more I am having trouble replying to comments through my usual channel or through the substitute that I found for previous instabilities. Do not adjust your set. I will acknowledge your comment as soon as have found a way or the Supreme Blogging Council have found a fix themselves.

Sue x 

My new jewels

 In the last couple of weeks I've been talking about updating my jewellery collection.

Evidently someone was reading as I had a call from a gentleman in Paris who had a special offer on matching earrings, necklaces and tiaras, for rapid dispatch to discerning customers outside France.

Well, that was a stroke of good timing as these sparklies are going to replace my tired old stuff rather nicely. 

I always think a tiara is a perfect addition to any shopper's look as they rummage in the frozen food cabinets at the supermarket, don't you? A crown would have been nicer but apparently his employees have been a little clumsy and mislaid it. 

Apparently, I should not take calls from one Inspector Clouseau who is also after these items. Presumably he wanted them for his girlfriend? You've got to be quick, Inspector.

 

Peter Sellers in top form there examining the evidence after a jewel heist from a museum in the The Return of the Pink Panther, probably the best of the Clouseau films. 

Seriously, I hope they catch the rather attractively accessorised thief. But thank you, whoever you are, for getting Trump and Putin and Sarkozy and Prince Andrew out of the top news spots for a bit.

Sue x 

Darn it

 As I wait for a relative to emerge from hospital I've just been enjoying the continuing summer as the weather has been wonderful for months. People are still on the beach and I've been using my spare time to explore. 

Last time I wrote I was looking over my jewellery to see what is worth keeping and what needs replacing, and this week I'm looking at mending some clothes that are worth it. We live in a throwaway society but actually I'm getting a bit disgusted with that attitude we've developed of ridding ourselves of imperfect items and just buying new ones. The quality of material gets worse each year, so that's another incentive to keep things. 

Socks, tights and stockings are probably not worth darning these days, it's true, but a favourite pair of jeans is worth patching even if they're cheap as, frankly, it's actually less hassle, time and, of course, money than going out to find another pair like them. 

Definitely ruined. Tsk! That's the second pair this week!

Outdoor events

My potted plants continue to grow in the fine weather. This little lithops has just put out a flower.

This weekend was the Sanremo rally with fast cars zipping all over the place. Next week is the Tenco music prize contest for the best original singer-songwriter. And harvest festivities continue; there are a lot of roast chestnuts to be had around the place.

 

The best climate anywhere?

I've been exploring the nearby bay and hills of Ospedaletti and Coldirodi this past week. Not a well-known part of the riviera but Ospedaletti on the coast is said to have the best climate in Italy, being uniquely mild in winter and never too hot in summer. The riviera here has a perfect combination of hot air blowing north from Africa, hitting the Alps where they plunge into the sea and creating a subtropical microclimate for a few miles inland that remains springlike throughout the year. Ospedaletti bay is just that bit smaller than neighbouring bays and so it gets the best of this phenomenon. 

I especially liked walking past fruit crops typical of this area - vines, olives, lemons and pomegranates all laden with fruit - but also encountering banana groves and other exotic plants. 

Bananas at Ospedaletti

Pomegranates at Coldirodi

You'll have to pardon me if this doesn't impress you but we never had things like this in damp grey Britain where I used to live. Lovely oak trees, yes, but no bananas!

Ospedaletti was founded by crusaders who were shipwrecked here, as this mural and statues show. 

 

The church they built is a curious blend of religious building and maritime museum.
 

It doesn't rain much here so water for agriculture is collected in round concrete cisterns all over the mountainsides. They're useful but not pretty, but occasionally someone makes theirs pleasant by putting goldfish in or plants around or even painting them.

 Ospedaletti bay:

 Neighbouring Sanremo bay from Coldoridi:

Thanks for reading. Have a good week.

Sue x 

Domestic goddess in need of nail care and jewellery

Not a very fem time all in all this autumn but there's a lull between having had friends to stay and before I go off to help a relative who will be coming out of hospital. As if to emphasize the low fem vibe, I have broken every nail on both hands in one way or another these last few weeks. I take care of my nails as I love having them long and neat, and they're even better when painted, but for some reason I've battered and broken them all. Not at the same time but they've not all been even for a while now. This is distressing. I know the problem will fix itself but that takes time.

Still, as if in compensation, the autumn continues to be glorious with endless sunshine and temperatures in the mid-20s C (that's mid-70s F). I'm still in my summer clothes and nicely tanned. Also, I didn't put on too much weight when my friends were here and we were eating out a lot. Maybe we did enough walking to burn a lot of the calories.

 

Girly wishlist 

Recently, I've been looking out for real Italian leather handbags and belts. Nothing purchased so far but I'm homing in on something colourful rather than the usual black, cream or tan. 

I also need to update, replace and expand my jewellery collection and I've seen some nice items this week. I never buy anything too expensive, just something to decorate and catch the eye. This is my favourite ring which I bought about fifteen years ago in Kingston-upon-Thames and I've been wanting something similar since but have never yet found anything that appealed quite so much. 

 

It's also the season of perfume samplers in the run-up to Christmas so I'm on the look out for a new scent. 

More news if I bring something home. (Oh, and obviously presents along these lines are welcome, Santa!)

 

Domestic goddess 

I've been doing a lot of gardening as everything is growing like crazy and I've planted new cactuses and succulents, which are really cheap at the market. I've found that a pine tree and a palm have started growing in my herb pots. Presumably the seeds were dropped by birds. So I've repotted them and, since forested blocks of flats are all the rage, I shall join that trend and they can join Arnold the Olive, who continues to thrive.

 

It's harvest season and I'm into mushrooms. I got some nice fresh porcini which I straight away made into a tasty stew and pasta sauces, with my own home-grown parsley and chilli thrown in. 

I haven't taken any photos of myself in domestic goddess mode so far because I don't do my hair and makeup properly every day and I do like to look right for a photo. But I do love my home life in a dress or slacks. It just feels completely right and normal.

 

Local events 

This weekend is a local holiday here - yes, they have local and regional public holidays here in Italy as well as national ones - so, given the wonderful weather, I'm planning a barbecue on holiday Monday.

Yesterday, a whole line of Morgan open-top cars rolled into town. I have no idea why, although classic cars and rally cars are a feature of the area with several rallies and gatherings every year. I have little interest in cars - insufficient masculine enthusiasm for sport and engineering, I'd say - but my fem mind observed that there seems to be one rule for owning a Morgan: the driver must be male and wear a cloth cap and the passenger must be female and wear a headscarf. Complete that requirement and presumably any model and colour is yours to purchase. 

Have a good weekend.

Sue x 

More tour guiding

 Another quick post as I have had friends to stay for two weeks and they went home yesterday evening. So now it's time to catch up with the blogosphere. If I haven't answered your comment or email yet or seen your posts recently, I will do very soon.

In my last post I described some of our travels and eating experiences on the riviera. Let's do the same again.

Last week we went to Monaco old town so this time we went to Monte Carlo to look at the highlights of the Formula 1 circuit, drink a very expensive coffee at the famous Café de Paris outside the casino, and enjoyed the new Mareterra complex with its peaceful terraced woodland, blue grotto and extraordinary meditation space covered in coloured glass crystals and globes (video below). 

The pretty Larvotto beach area was also pleasant but didn't do my gender dysphoria much good as all the locals seem to be young women with perfect tans and skirts so extremely short yet without revealing anything that you wonder if their buttocks actually start under their shoulderblades. Evidently a well-disguised mystery of the well-heeled. 

We had a perfect day in Nice, where I was earlier this year. The old town with its winding streets contrasts with the elegant boulevards of the newer city and the high hill of the original ancient Greek settlement. I love the mosaics they've made up on the hill and find more every time I visit.

The views from the top of the Bay of Angels and the famous Promenade des Anglais are amazing. Here they are in moody light.

 

We also went to Bordighera with its date palms, ancient pilgrim path and old walled hilltop village centre with its views along the coast.

 

Sanremo and its crazy tangle of walled, gated, steep, stepped streets, large harbour, baroque churches and elegant shopping district was a must, too. 

We varied out food choices a bit, too. Very good Thai in Nice, Mexican tacos and an amazing margarita in Monaco, Neapolitan style pizza in Sanremo. But freshly made ravioli and huge tiramisù pudding in Bordighera may have topped the list of perfect meals. It's hard to beat fresh local food anywhere. At home we enjoyed local Taggiasca olives, local lavender honey, mountain cheeses, hazelnut spread and lovely, fruity rossese, pigato and vermentino wines. And, of course, pesto, the sauce for pasta that this region is famous for made with basil, cheese, pinenuts and olive oil.

Many thanks to Jan and Alex for their lovely company. And for getting me to take them round all these attractive places in lovely warm weather, all of which was a reminder to me of why I moved here in the first place.

Port Lympia, Nice

Monte Carlo casino from the Boulingrin gardens. (Boulingrin is a corruption of English "bowling green".)

The world's northernmost date palms at Bordighera overlooking the coast

The cascade at Nice

The tangled vines of a Moreton Bay Fig. These grow all over this area. This one's in Sanremo.

High-rise Monaco (left) and Roquebrune, France (right) from the stunningly beautiful railway that runs along the coast.

Greek-style mosaic in Nice of an ancient Greek ship. Hard to get it all into one photo but the French reads: "Happy is the person who, like Ulysses, has had a good trip."

And a link to a video of the Mareterra meditation space with its pinkish light and thousands of glassy crystal and sphere shapes.

 

Sue x