I am fortunate that by being self-employed as a consultant I can sometimes schedule my days off. So I scheduled a trip to Reno, Nevada using one of the several package bus tours available, with a two-night stay at a hotel in downtown Reno. Naturally, I did some shopping in preparation. I found a blue and white summer dress and pair of white sandals, which would display the red garnet polish on my toenails!
In preparing the night before, I selected four outfits, including the new dress. My only male attire for the trip were the pants and shirt that I would wear while traveling. I hung them on plastic hangers, and placed them in a dress bag that I had just purchased. On Monday I woke up at about 7:00 a.m. I couldn't resist entering a chat room, where I ended up staying longer than I should have. I chatted briefly with one of the people that I would be visiting there. I then got myself together, and almost literally threw my shoes, purses, cosmetics, and undergarments into a small travel bag. I decided to take my trusty laptop computer with me; as a confirmed chat-a-holic I can't bear to be without it!
So I left my house carrying the travel bag, my computer bag (which also had two purses stuffed into into a side pocket!) and the dress bag. I was running late, and saw the transit bus that I should have been on leave without me! I stopped to get a cup of coffee, and waited for the next bus, which fortunately got me to the terminal just in time for the bus to Reno.
After we left, I retrieved my laptop computer and the headphones that I use to listen to audio CDs using it. The skies were overcast, but gradually cleared as we traveled away from San Francisco Bay. At the first stop that the bus made, as I was typing this diary entry, I realized that I hadn't brought any cameras with me--either my SLR or a point-and-shoot camera. Oh, well, I will have to record my Oddessy using a single-use camera that I will have to purchase when I arrive.
I have made the trip to Reno many times over the years. The road to Sacramento and over Donner Summit is very familiar to me. My first trips were as a child with my parents. Later, I would wander up from time to time to test my skills at the Blackjack tables. But this trip was especially exciting for me, because this was to be the first time that I would be able to spend several days in succession en femme.
The bus arrived outside the hotel at the scheduled time of 4:05 p.m. The promised $13 cash back was actually in the form of a card good for credit on the slot machines, which I never play anyway. I registered at the desk and went to my room. I was disappointed that there was only a shower stall, rather than a full bath, since I had been eagerly awaiting a bubble bath. But I showered, and shaved my face and legs.
I had neglected to bring any hairstyling tools with me, except for a brush-comb combination which I generally carry. So I put on my new dress and shoes over the necessary undergarments, and put on some makeup so I wouldn't stand out too much on the trip to The Hidden Woman.
I first tried calling my ISP remotely using the room phone, which fortunately had an extra phone jack, but found that the phone was for some reason disabled, and wouldn't even allow me to make a local call to let the people know that I was coming. I did, however, find the bus map and location of the downtown transit center in the telephone directory, walked the four blocks there, and made the phone call from there. I rode the bus the two-mile distance, and walked back a few blocks to the salon.
I arrived just before 5:30 p.m., and was greeted at the lobby door by Carly, who works there, whom I had first met at California Dreamin' and had frequently talked to in a chat room. She brought me upstairs to meet Leona, whom I had also met at California Dreamin', and another client as well. We all chatted for a while, then it was my turn to be made over.
I sat on a high stool, and Leona removed my makeup using baby wipes. She pointed out the errors that I had made in applying it. Then she went to work. Using products which are readily available, but in colors that I would not have thought of myself, she proceeded to apply the makeup. She kept my natural lip line, which I had been trying to augment, and used a much darker shade of lipstick than I would have.
Then she began the process of finding a wig for me. I had suggested a very curly light brown one from her online catalog, but she felt that it wouldn't suit my face. Instead, she selected a shoulder-length wig with loose curls, and blonde! I was surprised. I never thought that my skin color or features were suited for that, but Leona is the expert! All through the process she didn't let me see myself in a mirror, as is her custom. When she was done, and let me look in her full-length mirror I didn't recognize myself! Instead, I saw this reasonably attractive blonde woman looking back at me. I was, and still am as I am typing this in my hotel room, amazed! Leona took several Polaroid pictures of the transformed me.
I knew that I would never be able to find the exact makeup that she had used on me, so I eagerly purchased the kit that she put together containing all of it. Since I would also be here the following day, she suggested that I come in at noon and she would teach me how to work her magic! While this was happening, Carly was getting ready to go out with me. First, we went to a friendly Mexican restaurant, where I enjoyed a Chicken Mole, a dish that I enjoy and rarely find on the menu at restaurants. Then we went to a gay bar, which she likens to Cheers, and spent many hours drinking soft drinks and chatting face to face. She introduced me to several of her friends there. We were visited by a person from out of town, who asked Carly about local places, and shortly came back transformed with a black dress, heels, and a long, curly wig. She asked Carly about makeup, her outfit, and wig, and was given the name of a transformation specialist near her home city.
It was after midnight, and although things don't close in Reno, I decided that I wanted to head back to my hotel. Carly let me off outside the main entrance to the Hotel's Casino, and I couldn't resist a trip to one of the Blackjack tables. Although it had been several years since I had played the game in a casino, my card-counting skills and strategy came back to me. I was surprised that just a single deck was being used, which makes things much easier to keep track of. So, as this blonde woman wearing a very short outfit, in less than an hour I made almost $100, the price of my hotel and transportation!
It is after 2:00 a.m. in my hotel room as I am typing this. I still don't recognize the blonde in the mirror. And I wish that this night would never end, but of course it must. So for now, I need to get to sleep, and dream of a wonderful day just past.
This page last updated: April 05, 2000
