Day Night Double Header: Game One

In the olden days, baseball teams used to play double headers; two games in one day for the price of one, often on Sun-Dees. In 1978 I saw a Sun-Dee doubleheader at Chicago’s Wrigley Field, Cards and Cubs, in the days before Wrigley had lights for night games. In 1985 I saw a Cards and Dodgers twi-light double header. Game one was supposed to start at 5:30, but rain delayed the start by a couple of hours and then it went extra innings. Game two started about 11 PM and lasted until 3 AM. I was young and the Cards won both games and I lasted until the end (my date, being sensible, left after game one).

Now, teams only play double headers when they need to make up rained out games, and each game is a separate admission; no two for the price of one anymore.

Back in April, I had a different kind of double header, a morning outing and an evening outing, doubling my pleasure.

Last week I wrote about a Sun-Dee shopping trip to Clothes Mentor, where my GG friend Michelle went hog wild (she’s from Arkansas, home of the Razorbacks) buying up almost everything in sight, while I limited myself to four dresses. While we were out, Michelle told me she was meeting with her real accountant Thursday morning.  Although Michelle refers to me as her accountant–I prepare some spreadsheets for her business–she has a paid accountant to advise her, do her tax returns, and the like. Michelle owns a successful salon, but is still learning the ropes about running a business, and accounting isn’t her strongest skill. I always say “I trade spreadsheets for pedicures”–and I get the better end of the deal.

I offered to go with Michelle her meeting with Bonnie, her accountant, and she gladly accepted. 

A couple of days later, Michelle upped the ante. She asked if I could come as Dee, instead of guy me. She said that Bonnie was open minded and wouldn’t care, and Michelle wanted Dee to come to the appointment. Michelle also suggested wear what she called my “hydrangeas” dress, one I had bought at Clothes Mentor. I didn’t need much arm twisting to agree to dress. 

I had a couple of logistical issues. First, my son works nights so he usually goes to bed around 8 AM, so dressing before that time was a complication. Second, our cleaners were coming between 8 and 8:30 AM, when I normally would be dressing. Between the two, for somewhat obvious reasons, dressing at home was out. My solution? Pack my girl stuff in my gym bag, go to our downtown YMCA for a swim, then get dressed in a family room at the Y. 

Go in as a guy, come out as a girl. I’ve done it before at a Y about a half hour away, but never at this particular location (for the record, there is another location besides our downtown Y that I go to where the staff does know me).

My goal was business professional; the dress Michelle suggested, nylons, and nude pumps. When I got to the pool, ready to swim, I found out there were no swim lanes as they were having a water aerobics class, so I just retreated to the family rooms and got dressed.  These days, with staff shortages, I was pretty much able to walk out in Dee mode completely unnoticed. I did stop outside for a selfie with the Y sign.

We met for about an hour and then I went to Michelle’s salon, and set up my laptop to do some work as follow-up from the meeting. Whoever said that accounting can’t be fun?

After that, I went to Dee-signer Shoe Warehouse to try on some heels another GG friend, Ms. Dee-ism, had sent me pictures of while she was shopping, the gold glitter heels.They were a size small and out of my comfort zone, but it was nice my friend was out and about and and thinking of me.

After that, it was home to clean up and handle my afternoon errands–but stay tuned next week for Game Two of my doubleheader.

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D-I-Y/Dee-It-Yourself

My suggestions so you can Dee-It-Yourself for a better and a happier life

Choose Happiness

During my younger years, before cable TV and zillions of channels to choose from, I would occasionally watch Leo Buscalgia lectures broadcast (always during fundraisers) on the local PBS station. I wasn’t the only one watching; they were extremely popular at the time.

He would talk about love and life, but the message that resounded with me was when he discussed Viktor Frankl’s book “Man’s Search For Meaning”, and how a person’s outlook on life was a choice. Buscalgia would recite passages in Frankl’s book where individuals in the direst circumstances–the concentration camps of WW II–could still find something positive in life.

That stuck with me. I decided to choose to be positive and optimistic–and to choose happiness. For me, that has made all the difference.

Mind you, I’ve had a pretty lucky life. Educated parents, financial security, good health, and no personal tragedies, so no major tests of my mental strengths. Yet, I still credit a portion of my personal success to the idea I chose to be happy.

In contrast, we all know people who seem to be perpetually grumpy. I always tell others these individuals “aren’t happy unless they’re unhappy.” Their lives are chock full of negativity and pessimism, and how the train left them at the station (of life). In my opinion, being negative is often a choice too (obviously, people do suffer from mental illness, but that’s not what I’m discussing here).

I believe at least part of the success I’ve had as Dee is caused by my positive outlook on life. Before I started going out, I was afraid to be seen by people while dressed, but I now find my best experiences are those where I do interact with others. I’ve made friends–and those friends have introduced me to others–and I enjoy life more. I was open to the idea that I could be out and about, and people would see the real me, even in a dress and heels. I was hopeful things could turn out well–and it has turned out far better than I ever would have expected.

Life is about choices. 

Choose happiness.