My public first experience..

[Paradox]

Well, today I popped my public cherry, so to speak.

I changed into my denim skirt after work in the parking lot - I've been taking a skirt to work to change into for the ride home, to make the trip home a cooler experience (and to condition myself to wearing it outside of my own home, but still 'safe' in my car) in the unseasonably warm temperatures we've been experiencing here. Yeah, i could have been wearing shorts, but strangely (or stranger, you decide), I don't own a pair of shorts, and haven't for 20 years. Never felt comfortable with shorts - I'd always rather sweat in jeans in the high heat of summer.

I had decided that before the day was done, that i was actually going to get out of the car today, instead of beating it straight for home. In a skirt.

It really wasn't that bad, no flutterbys in the stomach, no real second guessing. I chose a retail pharmacy as my first test 'public outing', to pick up a case of pop.

The skirt that i chose was a very modest, very conservative ankle length denim skirt. I was also wearing a green tartan print Levis dress shirt, and a set of brown trainers. I had my black belt-pack on as a sort of 'Sporran'. I think that it was fairly obvious that i wasn't a transvestite or flaming cross-dresser, with my semi-crewcut haircut, mustache, and masculine shades... I hope.

On one hand, it was no big thing, on the other hand.. i sort of picked the wrong place and time to be at this particular chain-pharmacy. I got what i needed, then went to the check-out - keep in mind this is rush hour, so EVERYONE is getting their case of pop or bag of crisps etc on the way home - and they only had 2 check-outs operational, both with a line-up.

True to Murphy's Law, I picked the cashier line with the register that was electronically seizuring. I spent a full 5 minutes sweating it out in line, passively observing for the reactions of fellow patrons to the thin dude in the skirt.

I'm somewhat disappointed to say there were no overt reactions - i can't even say that there was any double-takes.

Could this be due to a fairly high ethnic Indian/Pakistani immigrant population in this region, who choose to continue to wear their garb of the Southeast Asian countries on our streets? Are people already conditioned to different forms of dress from the western norm?

To sum it up briefly, it was no Big Thing. A real confidence booster.

[knickerless]

I don't think it was anything to do with the origins of the local population. It is just that a denim skirt is invisible. I wear my denim skirts out most of the time and as you have found no double takes, no adverse comments, no nothing really. I had someone advise me today that he has never seen any men in skirts - perhaps he has and it has not registered.

keep on skirting.


Nick

[crfriend]

Well done, Paradox. Well done indeed, and congratulations on the first outing.

You're learning what quite a few of us already now understand -- most folks just don't care what we're wearing so long as it covers the "important bits". Furthermore, your experience is yet more testimony to add to the "denim is invisible" notion.

Put bluntly, the more blokes that the general public see out and about in skirted garments the better. It's time to expand the wardrobe a bit!

[MtnBiker]

Your experience is quite typical. Every time I'm out in any skirt other than a tartan kilt, the public reaction range from not noticing to enthusiastic support. A tartan kilt has the same range but causes more conversations.

It's great that you're out-n-about in your skirt ... inspired me to be out in one of mine today!

[cessna152towser]

My experience as well. In a kilt I am occasionally asked if I am Scottish, in a denim skirt hardly anybody notices. On the very rare occasion anybody has commented they have always been complimentary and have referred to the denim skirt as a kilt.

[tooslowprius]

I have worn all three of my skirts out in public. The three I have One is a just above the knee jean skirt, antoher one is a just below the knee jean skirt, and my last one is a below the knee kaki skirt. I have worn all three of these skirts out in public and never gotten a reaction or a comment. The most I have ever gotten looked at was when I went up to the Cleveland Clinic wearing my kaki skirt. As I was taken down the hall to an exam room I could see everyone looking at me never did hear anyone say anything or make a comment. I just walked on down the hall and went into the exam room. The thing you always got to rember is that as long as you persent them image that you are not trying to pass as a female and walk with that conffidence about you I don't think you will ever get a comment from anyone. Who knows I have often hopped I would get a male or a female ask me sometime why I like to wear skirts so I could tell them my veiws on life!

[Since1982]

I find most denim a bit rough for my tender legs, never could get interested in any boxer underpants, tights or other hose, as trousers is trousers and I prefer skirts, twill is also invisible though and I have twill skirts in at least 6 colors and 3 lengths, knee length, mid calf and lower calf. I don't have any ankle length skirts as all mine are straight or A-line.

[Bri]

I must be testing the waters a lot. I came back from the gym in very tight clothes and talked to my neighbor (she was digging up stubborn roots) and she was more than happy to talk to me and was even happier than we were taking care of the house we're in right now because most of the people before us neglected it.

Maybe I'm also assuming that they won't be accepting, but I really would almost like to know what the people before us were really like. I think the idea might be that she's thinking, well these new people keep the house up and are nice, at least they're nothing like previous tenants. So wondering how they would take me in a skirt.

But I have to say that you did a very brave thing that most men (sometimes even me) can't do. Although I drove home in a skirt from a meeting, and went to the bank in an adidas tennis skirt. I also walk out in the back yard all the time.