Strange Garb by Dax Tran-Caffee
March 19th, 2008 12:00 PM
I have been crossdressing off and on since I was 16, and I must say that what I wear is not at all unorthodox in the Bay Area, where I am originally from. But I have since moved to Chicago, and I have discovered that things are quite a bit different here, (especially since my first year here was spent on the south side). Since August 2006, I have not worn a skirt in public, which was my attempt to adapt to an environment where most of my neighbors kept pit bulls chained up in the yard.My living situation has changed quite a bit from last year, and I finally got up the nerve to try a little sociology. For those of you living in SF, in 18 months I have only once seen a man in a skirt (and he is a fellow Performance Art MFA student). While my experience in the Bay was always positive and encouraging with lots of friends and support, crossdressing in Chicago was a very lonely project.
Goals:
I. PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT - become more comfortable wearing skirts in social situations
II. SOCIAL EXPERIMENT - document significant reactions from friends, acquaintances, peers and strangers
III. GUERILLA PERFORMANCE - disturb the paradigm of what clothes are available for men to wear in Chicago
Self-imposed restrictions:
1. a skirt every day, in public, for an entire week
2. no pants under the skirt
3. different outfit every day
4. document outfits, record all significant reactions
5. attend all regular meetings, classes and work
6. no hiding from my neighbors
7. must go out in public for at least a few hours every day
8. own the action – act normal, calm, confident; do nothing to escape from or estrange the situation
9. no excuses – the project must be presented as fashion / lifestyle, not as a game, art project, or social experiment
10. do not purposefully direct conversations toward the outfit
11. do not hide behind friends, or seek safety in numbers – venture out alone as often as possible
12. can be as feminine as I want, but cannot actively attempt to pass as a woman
THURSDAY, March 6th
35ºF / 24º F, cloudy
I expected to have many interesting exchanges with people throughout the day, but I was horribly disappointed. Most people ignored the outfit, which I found strange, considering that I spent most of the day in an art school. One female classmate asked if the skirt was a cheerleading skirt, but dropped the conversation after that. 3 or 4 students asked if I was doing a project for a class, but avoided addressing the clothes directly. One female classmate politely complimented my legs after class. At least 4 people mentioned that my moustache was gone, disregarding the skirt -
the moustache has been gone since February 18th (when it left a note on my pillow and took off). Most interlocutors registered the skirt with body language, but avoided comment. One female bicyclist asked if I needed help when I stopped on a bridge to take a picture (this is something that has never happened to me in pants).
FRIDAY, March 7th
27ºF / 16ºF, light snow
There were at least 2 more comments about the missing moustache on Friday. I went through an entire class without anyone talking to me. Two female ex-classmates made extensive conversation with me in the computer lab about how I looked very different without the moustache, and with longer hair. I went shopping in Wicker Park, and had no unusual reaction from sales associates - this was expected, as people who are in customer service are generally very cautious. I ran into my upstairs neighbor on the back porch - I almost ran back inside, but then stepped out and said a brief hello. She did the most wonderful double-take, and I haven't seen her on the back porch since.
SATURDAY, March 8th
25ºF / 16ºF, snow showers
Unfortunately, I stayed in for most of the day on Saturday, working on my computer, so this outfit was almost a waste. At 9PM, I decided I would have to go out in order to satisfy my list of rules, so I walked 1/2 mile in the cold to a taqueria, where I ordered enchiladas without incident. I passed several hoodlums on the way, but it was cold and they didn't have anything brilliant to say. As I was walking home, a young man shouted from his car:
SEXY BITCH!I have to say that I was happy to have someone say anything, even if I had to settle for a cat call.
SUNDAY, March 9th
36ºF / 22ºF, light snow
An ex-lover liked the skirt wearing, and congratulated me. Puppet Face came over to work on a project, was excited that her eccentric fashion aesthetic was rubbing off on me, and noted that Chicagoans often keep their mouths shut about things that are too weird. My male roommate returned from out-of-town, and made a point to tug at my skirt once a day for the next 4 days, which was incredibly annoying. I went out with Terpsichore to a dance performance and dinner at a restaurant, without any incidents (though I caught a few glances) - this was expected, as people have never given me trouble about crossdressing when I am with cute company.
MONDAY, March 10th
34ºF / 22ºF, light snow
An instructor made a pertinent point in my morning performance class: "When performing, it is enough to just be present." A male classmate asked if the skirt was for Kung-Fu, and when I said it wasn't, asked if it was for Karate. A female classmate rubbed my hip while walking by, saying "pretty..." - classmates don't often touch me, even in physical classes. A female classmate waited until after class, when the room had cleared out, to say:
I like your outfit today, it's so cool.A female colleague, at an organizational meeting, immediately commented about the skirt, called me "the coolest person ever," and noted that we have the same leg warmers - there was absolutely no comment from the 10 men at the meeting.
TUESDAY, March 11th
48ºF / 24ºF, sunny
Nobody mentioned the skirt all day at work (I work in a puppet workshop), though everyone had an initial silent reaction; my activities involved climbing repeatedly over crates in a storage room, interacting with contractors in the building, and carving/sawing/sanding foam until I was covered in pink dust from head to toe. I had no incidents while documenting myself biking through alleyways on the West Side, where three of my coworkers have been assaulted in the past few years. After packing up my camera, I tried to ride with my left hand on my right handlebar and crashed into a parked car (blame it on the sunshine). I was only a little scraped up and dirty, and spent 10 minutes crouching in the gutter resetting the back wheel. I had bent my right pedal, and made it 3 miles with one foot to the bike shop, where I got excellent service (the mechanic remembered my name, first and last). That night, Terpsichore and I got an invitation to have dinner at a stranger's house (no relation to Su Casa) - while we were walking there, a woman in a car yelled:
"What are you wearing?! Stop stealing my clothes!"Nobody said anything during dinner, but Terpsichore brought up the skirt afterwards, and a brief conversation ensued about gender, which was an incredible relief.
WEDNESDAY, March 12th
43ºF / 30ºF, sunny
I walked back to the bike shop to pick up my bike, and a middle-aged man drove by in a pick-up, honked, gave me a thumbs up and smiled. I turned quite a few heads on the street, and got many smiles - especially from bicyclists. I had conversations with 2 more students about the missing moustache, with no mention of the skirt. I hung out that night with 4 coworkers. As I was leaving, two of them finally verbally acknowledged the skirt.
THURSDAY, March 13th
In order to contrast the week of skirts, on the 8th day I wore a three-piece suit to class. I received three positive comments about the suit (very specifically the suit) within 45 minutes of leaving the house. In contrast, it had taken 56 hours for three people to verbally acknowledge that I was wearing a skirt, much less express an opinion about the fashion.
Later that week, however, many students talked to me about the skirt-wearing, and several were disappointed that I was back to pants.
66 vote(s)
- Askew.
- TEA
- Lincøln
- JJason Recognition
- Herbie Hatman
- GYØ Ben
- susy derkins
- Dela Dejavoo
- Magpie
- Bambi
- Bex.
- Haberley Mead
- rongo rongo
- Julian Muffinbot
- Not Here No More
- Spidere
- Fonne Tayne
- Jellybean of Thark
- zer0gee
- Secret Agent
- Flitworth
- Burn Unit
- anna one
- Lank
- Iaman
- Yas
- LittleMonk
- Optical Dave
- Ben Yamiin
- lara black
- Loki
- Tøm
- Sparrows Fall
- Adam
- Angela rzrgrl
- Myrna Minx
- Le Renard Rouge
- Celina
- Vena Nightmare
- Andre W.D.
- GYØ Vicki
- Robert Burt
- TeaTime
- Terpsichore
- Gremlin
- Malaysian Eddy
- Kid A
- Tricia Tanaka
- Scarlett
- star5
- done
- Darkaardvark
- Icarus
- Rainy
- Fox Glove
- Pip Estrelle
- saille is planting praxis
- Mister Opinion
- Hey-Look-It's Caleb!
- Borgasm
- King of Spain
- Waldo Cheerio
- A M
- Markov Walker
- Sombrero Guy
- Samantha
Favorite of:
- susy derkins
- Iaman
- Ben Yamiin
- Tricia Tanaka
- Luai Lashire
- Tøm
- King of Spain
- saille is planting praxis
- Borgasm
- artmouse
- Donna de Fuera
- Markov Walker
- Samantha
- fin
Terms
contemporary, shplank, gender, sexy, public, savory60 comment(s)
You are a cuter girl than I am, and for that, you get my smoldering jealousy. You make me feel like a lazy girl.
TEA: I attend the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, the most eccentric art school in the midwest. About comfort - on the fourth day, I was as comfortable as I ever was in California. By the seventh day, I was outright blasé. This, however, was because people were so quiet about it that I was starting to get annoyed. It doesn't mean that I felt like I was being any more accepted by the community by any stretch of the imagination.
Ink Tea: If you're feeling so lazy... I have something for you to do on April 19th.
Dax is a pweety pweety pwincess.
Up in the clouds of SFØ Heaven, there are three ever-knowing gods, Seanian, Sammus and Iancules. They look down on this world with pride, knowing they created it themselves. Up in the Great Living Room of SFØ Heaven, there is a small chest, as yet unopened by human hands, a Pandora's Box of sorts. This box contains all the special tasks by the select few créme de la créme players. Each of the tasks is represented by a token, and are slotted into ten individual slots, ranked by coolness. These Tasks In Token Shape (or TITS as they are sometimes known) fit into a rank order in the chest.
I have a replica chest with my task tokens. This went straight to the 4th slot.
No, I'm not high. I just felt like being odd for once.
You've inspired me to wear more skirts and dresses. It's funny that as I am pegged as kinda butch looking in my clothing and hairstyles when ever I wear anything girly, everyone is stunned and comments on it. It's sad that people didn't say anything about the fabulousness of your many outfits.
You'd think that someone would have at least said something about the squid tie!
More skirts in the world is the answer to all our problems, certainly. Congratulations on your bridal Strange Garb, by the way.
Thanks Dax, it was such a fun time.
Where did you find the skirts? And yes, the squid tie rocks.
Clothes as the medium, so much said to that many people.
You look different somehow... Oh, your moustache is gone! And, did you do something to your hair?
Wow, you look (for the most part) both stylish and comfortable, things I often feel are mutually exclusive. I think need you to be my personal stylist.
I like the squid tie, but really you look great in all the skirts. I'm surprised you didn't get more comments, maybe Chicago is too urban and everyone wants to seem unsurprised. The mustache comments are hilarious, though.
I'm planning on being there. Email if you've got something special in mind.
i love that you did this for a week. while it is kinda disappointing no one commented, i am choosing instead to be encouraged that no one said anything nasty. i think that's progress.
I'm going to have to do this at my school.
Those are ridiculously cute outfits. I covet the second one especially. Beware my snatching fingers and grabbing ways, and hide away your elegant grey clothes!
The skirts mostly came from Bay Area thrift stores. The only Chicago-found skirt is Monday's, which I picked up at a thrift store on March 8th (and was actually hand-made!) - the shopping trip mentioned on Friday's notes was because I only had 6 usable skirts, and 1 pair of winter tights... and that just wouldn't do for a whole week.
Bex doesn't need a personal stylist - she's always naked.
Beware stealing clothes from my closet, Miss Pants, I have a propensity to steal as well...
kudos that you had the, em, cojones, to not only ditch the moustache (i couldn't believe mine eyes), but to go the distance and wear more than just a 'simple' skirt. the black dress shot (#12) is professional, even... wait, you're wearing earrings, too, aren't you!
The spinning photo is fantastic.
Did you find your stance change as a result of the skirts, or was it conscious?
Ace outfits, the lot. An extra yay even for wearing all the colours. And I never thought blue leg-warmers and diamond stockings could be sinister, but combined with the way you're holding the dozuki and that puppet's head they send shivers down my spine.
Part of me wants to ask what suit you wore for contrast, but I can see how showing it isn't quite in the spirit of the restrictions you chose.
Damn you for looking so much better in skirts than I!
You look delicious and, as usual, I'm impressed (nay shamed) by your dedication and follow through.
Inspiring.
See, looking at these, I don't think I thought of you as a "pretty girl" dressed this way; it really seemed like no effort was made to "pass." Okay, the little black dress pic from the back is pretty feminine. And in the image with the squid-tie outfit, I definitely had a flash of "girl" that I attribute as much to the hair as I do the skirt.
But mostly it was just good solid cross dressing. You know, like a... I suppose the best comparison I can come up with just now is a toned down or less glitzy version of the "executive transvestite" explanation Eddie Izzard detailed in Dress to Kill.
As a man who has worn a skirt before (and, yes, there are pictures of this, I may dig them up at your request) I can comfortably say that this is basically amazing. I can totally understand your personal development thing (they are incredibly awkward at first) and I also love the social experiment aspect to it.
Anyway, nice job :D
Oh, the other reason I was surprised you didn't get more comments is that whenever my husband wears a utilikilt, he totally gets stopped by strangers asking about his skirt. Sometimes to the point of tourists wanting to be photographed with him. This is very puzzling and calls for an SF0-wide day of experimentation.
Maybe it's a Midwestern thing.
The Utilikilt has not quite caught on yet out here, it is true.
Interesting results. Did you ever take a cab? Whenever I'm out and about in drag, cab drivers are the only ones who want to talk about it or acknowledge it.
I'll have to take a cab next time I'm feeling ignored!
Especially rules #8 and #9, which make your experiment far more than the silly lark suggested by the task description. (Not that I have anything particularly against silly larks, of course.)
Tasking with integrity, as always, Dax.
Loki: Those were the hardest restrictions, of course! It's so easy to talk your way out of sticky situations with simple phrases like "it's an art project," "it's for a class," or "i'm doing this thing called SFZero."
And it was great to see you in Chicago. Come back soon!
But restrictions #8 and #9 aren't exactly about integrity. Cross-dressing is fine with me and the outfits are very stylish, but you are "doing this thing called SFZero", aren't you?
My god… the moustache… it's gone pure shock here!
Yep… still in shock!
First science guru is back and then the moustache has dissapeared… I think I need to go lay down.
Dax...as I was reminded by Mr. Mascarpone, you have a quantity of moustache wax and no moustache. I'm in the opposite situation.
Hmm...
And this is stunningly amazing, btw.
If I had your address, I would most definitely supply you with a stick or two. A moustache should not go unwaxed.
Dear Dax,
I know there's some argument as to whether we are west or mid-west, but I've seen many the utilikilt (as well as other more "regular"/traditional kilts) here in the twin cities.
Love,
Inky
Apparently MNØ is much more classy than Chicagø...
See, I wore a skirt to school the other day, and my teacher told me that it showed individualism and bravery, and I'm a girl! No one wears skirts at my age, it seems.
Good for you!
There is no dispute, Minnesota is not the west! Scandalous!
I believe "The West" does not start until after the Missouri River in South Dakota.
I agree with you Burn, but I've been told that we're very much the west by some near-east coasters. And civilization ends in Chamberlain.
I'm going to admit to you, that I didn't want to give you a vote for this at first (despite my deep appreciation of your style).
But I recognize that this initial reluctance is simply because my brain and heart don't want to admit that cross-dressing is unorthodox. But that's because my brain and my heart come from a place where gender-bending is sexy, and expression is revered.
Sadly, that is not reality yet. And your praxis deals with that bravely (because this type of thing really can open up that scary reality monster).
So on second and third and fourth thought - you get my vote tenfold. And you're welcome to come and chill in my (would you believe, Chicago-based?) pocket of the universe anytime, in whatever expression you wish to share... (just don't wear that second outfit ... I truly believe that Ms. Goblinpants will abscond with it if given half a fleeting chance. I've seen it before, and it's not pretty).
Cheers!
I was also wondering if crossdressing qualified as "strange garb." I really wish that it didn't.
(Dax and Gremlin)
(I love the act of cross-dressing. I do wish it were less "strange garb". I don't want to have to go to drag shows to see it, though I adore a good drag show.)
Yes.
The lack of comments you got reminds me of the first day I went to high school after getting my nose pierced. I was ALL about shock value back then, so I didn't tell anyone I was doing it because I wanted to revel in their SHOCK at this RING in my FACE (gasp!). And then yeah, no one said anything.
Oh, and the skirt with the vest: SO. HOT. Nicely, nicely done.
Also, I'd be interested to get your take on the drive-by catcall. What was your reaction to it?
Umm...
There's not much you can do in reaction to a drive-by cat-call. I mean, they're gone before you can register what they said. I think that may be the rationale for doing it, even.
Yes, surely. But I mean, how did it make you feel?
People are more well-behaved in Chicago. Or so it seems.
Oh uh...
It made me feel good. I love cat calls.
No, that's really interesting. Because I often think to myself that if only men could experience such a thing as being called a "sexy bitch" by some stranger driving by, that they would understand how I feel. That is, that they too would feel the awfulness of that driver's self-importance for inflicting his opinion on me as though I should want it (is it really a compliment if it's tossed at you like a cigarette butt from a car window?), and the inability to yell back (although I may have gestured once or twice), and the vaguely menacing quality of them being in a car and therefore able to interfere with me physically as well as verbally if they so chose. Even if they're just on a bicycle, you can't outrun them if you have to.
And it's not just because this is a repeat occurrence that I feel this way; I've definitely gotten more angry each time, but from the start it's felt really unsettling.
But I guess it really hinges on one's state of mind when one is walking around alone.
I have definitely gotten upset at cat calls before.
It really depends on how comfortable I'm feeling at the moment, which tends to put some perspective on the offender.
What I like most about getting remarks is that, because I'm being mistaken for a girl by a heterosexual boy, I feel like I'm the empowered one.
your praxis makes me wanna put on a skirt.
ive wanted a utilikilt for ages.
you are beautiful and you have super nice fashion sense. It's no fun being a girl, it's so hard to cross-dress. :P Also, in my experience, girls like boys in dresses and boys want nothing to do with the whole affair. So, it makes sense that ladies had more to say about your skirts.
What art school do you go to?
Also, I love each individual outfit. I like that this wasn't a half-assed "oh i'm going to throw on some skirt" thing. You look great in skirts/dresses by the way. I'm surprised that even people at your art school seemed to take on a "don't ask don't tell" sort of attitude regarding your outfits.
Has this experiment caused you to become more comfortable with the idea of crossdressing in Chicago?