I'm here, I'm alive,.

 Hi everyone,

Been busy. Our office has been on overtime for MONTHS.  I've worked five ten-hour days nearly every week since September plus regular activities and volunteering a couple Saturdays per month.

I'm exhausted.  It's financially rewarding but phew. 

Back in January I got sick. It went around the office like wildfire. Five days out of work. I absolutely hate being sick. I think that part of the reason most of us at work got sick is that we've been working so many hours, some are working eleven hours and Saturdays had been offered and that led to everyone being overtired and not having enough personal time to do nothing so our bodies could keep our immunities up.  

When I volunteer, it's a completely different situation from work. We have a fairly tight-knit group working together, we all know our tasks and do what we need to do. It's a combination of physical and mental work and very fulfilling. We work anywhere from 8 -12 hours, usually twice a month.

About a month ago, I'd heard that one of my favorite places was holding an open house. I'd told my kids and one of my friends about the event.  Kids and friend were excited to go but friend backed out at the last minute. This gave me the ability to dress differently than if he'd gone.  

We drove to Boulder City, NV to visit the Nevada Southern Railway's open house.  Youngest wore her homemade rainbow dress and oldest looked like a mid-century lovely.  I wore leggings and a knit pullover.  If nothing else, we were colorful.  We toured all of their exhibits except the engine house.  We took a ride on the train.  It was a fantastic day.

I'm working my way up to being comfortable in public dressed however I'm dressed. It's hard. It's scary. It's totally worth it. Ultimately, nobody really cares. When we were at the Railway, I interacted with lots of people and never felt like they were staring at me or treating me differently.

Twice a month, my wife and I have been going to therapy.  I think it's been a good thing.  One of these times I'll attend my session in a dress. I've already worn the leggings with the knit pullover top. Her office is in a nicer area of Las Vegas, on the second story of a building with a couple of restaurants and offices.  When I'm not in my hometown, I don't worry as much about how I'm dressed or who sees me.  There are places in Vegas that I know that my co-workers go and I try to tone it down in case someone might be there.  Some would take it well and others probably wouldn't.  I can't say how it would be received even though they've all seen me on Halloween.

That's it for now.

I'll be on again soon. I'll share the adventures from Drag Queen Bingo.

Heather.