Executive Committee Announces 2001 Schedule Chi Epsilon Sigma Executive Committee Minutes of the CES Chapter Meeting, March 24, 2001 Light Your Candle, Joan and Lucy Stone A Letter From Kalina in Bulgaria Feminine Spring, Kalina Of Risk and Life, by Rachel Rene Boyd Not So Fast! Take A Second..Or Maybe A Little Longer, Rebecca Adams Membership Survey Results Available, Rebecca Adams
Dear CES Sisters,
With this issue, The Wild Rose of the Chesapeake goes international. Thanks to Emily, we have two poems by Kalina, who lives in Bourgas, Bulgaria. As we all know, crossdressing is eternal and knows no political boundaries. Our sisters are everywhere. Thanks, Kalina. We hope you will be a regular contributor.
This newsletter is a labor of love for each of our contributing editrixes. Please join the staff by submitting your own insights into the world of crossdressing. You can send your input to RRBoyd@aol.com, or R. R. Boyd, P.O. Box 2252, Ashburn, VA 20146-9152.
Rachel Rene Boyd
The Chi Epsilon Sigma regular meetings will be held on the following Saturdays in 2001. Please note that the July 28th meeting will be a non-dressing event to express our appreciation to our spouses and S.O.s for their understanding and support throughout the year.
Terri Lynn Andrews, Chairperson
Becky Adams, Vice Chairperson
Grace Gardener, Secretary/Treasurer
Yvonne Sullivan, Past Chairperson
Donnene Edwards, Spouse Representative
Mary Alice Barrett, Membership*
Victoria Frost, Programs Director*
Rachel Rene Boyd, Newsletter Editrix*
*Non-voting members
You responded to the survey with some great ideas and we tried to incorporate at least 90% of them if not all of them. The meeting agenda and process this month was considerably different than those in the past. These changes seemed to have been well received.
We opened the room about 3:00 p.m., and at least one member showed early for a makeover session. While Laurie was helping out there, we rearranged the room into three round tables that seated ten each and a refreshment table. And speaking of refreshments, there were two welcome carafes of wine as well as soft drinks, coffee, tea and a tremendous party platter courtesy of your dues. Marsha and Doneene had made arrangements for the platter and delivered it about 5:30--turkey (besides Marsha…), ham (besides Rebecca…), roast beef, three different cheeses, potato(e) and macaroni salads, pickles, three different types of bread and cookies. Someone--we forgot to ask who--also deserves our thanks for the cheesecake that made up the dessert. Thanks to Julie we are now members of the "Always Eat the Dessert First" club…she saw to it that the cheesecake was the first item in the line!
Making up the horde of locusts gathered around the table this month were--Barbara Van Horn, Diane and Sharon, Emily and Laurie, Julie, Marsha and Doneene, Mary Alice, Rebecca, Rita, Terri, Tiffany, Yvonne Martin, and Yvonne and Linda Sullivan. Prospective members visiting the Chapter for their first meeting included Shana and Sharon.
Everything was in place by six so we visited and chatted among ourselves from 6 till 7:30. During that time while some members were changing others were having their photos taken by Marsha. She'll have her camera at all future meetings for posed pictures only; absolutely no candid shots and you get the disk!
At 7:30 Terri introduced our visitors--Sharon and Shana--and had several announcements. These included:
1. The April meeting will be on April 21 and will include a jewelry display by Lady Remington (Yvonne Martin is the program chair for that session)
2. Tammy is sponsoring a Dress Barn visit the following day, Sunday, April 22, to the local Dress Barn…the store will open at 9:00 for our shopping convenience!
3. May and June programs are as of yet not spoken for, so we need someone to come forward and pick from our roster of events.
4. Would also like someone to step up and take on the matter of arranging for an en drab cruise on July 28…please contact Terri, Sue Avalon, or Grace for details about the cruise last year.
5. The Virginia Chapter has asked if we wanted to join with them on a two-day Halloween visit to Williamsburg…Friday night get-together and a Saturday night party--all en femme in accordance with the Crossdressers traditional holiday.
6. The Virginia Chapter has also learned that their offer to assist in hosting the 2002 S.P.I.C.E. session in Richmond has been accepted; our help may be requested.
Laurie provided a few additional details about such sessions and the role that the local chapters play…essentially logistical and administrative support because the national headquarters "does all of the heavy lifting." There was some serious discussion about CES stepping forward in 2004 and offering the Baltimore area.
7. Terri concluded by introducing Barbara Van Horn and having Barbara address her on-going project concerning a handbook for spouses. Barbara reminded us that details could be learned in the March newsletter on the web site. Barbara really needs input from spouses for this handbook--people have to tell it as it is.
Then the meeting was turned over to Rebecca who tried to moderate a spirited and emotional discussion on what the recent survey of membership revealed we want as a Chapter, where we apparently think the Chapter is headed and what ought to be done to meet our goals. (All members were sent an earlier e-mail offering the results of the recently completed survey in one of three formats--Word 6.0, Windows 97, or ZIP format…to date very few members have requested these results.)
Three themes emerged from the spirited discussion—
1. "One size does not fit all"…in contrast to what we were like three years ago we now have a very wide variety of interests and a number of degrees of comfort in appearing en femme. We also have a wide variance in the levels of comfort about crossdressing among the spouses and SO's.
2. "Girls just want to have fun"…but to do this we need to involve more members in active roles as program chairs. We've rearranged the meeting room, adjusted the agenda, encouraged spouses to meet for as long as desired, and agreed to supply the "eats" once a quarter. But the bottom line is that we need people to step forward to chair a chapter meeting in which we could possibly have—
a. A fashion show
b. Comportment and deportment classes
c. Clothing auction
d. Discussion groups
e. A Night at the Movie (we have seen one flick--Just Like a Woman--but have two more, "My Secret Wardrobe" and "All Dressed Up and No Place to Go)
f. Personality types
g. "Show and Tell" about hobbies and interests
h. And other programs of general interest
3. "Keep tacking"…just as in sailing a boat, we have to continually adjust to the needs and wishes of the membership so we'll occasionally shift patterns and programs but all the while moving towards the goal of supporting the crossdresser and his spouse and SO.
After about an hour of give-and-take with virtually every person in the room contributing something of value and relevance, the group agreed on five major points:
1. Keep the meetings monthly and keep the agenda and arrangement as at this meeting…focused on discussion, sociability, and each other.
2. Develop a geographical dispersion of separate activities operating on different planes of interests and degrees of comfort. To assist in this Barbara Van Horn will develop several "types" of activities based on the results of the survey. For example, some may want to host a pot luck in their homes en drab for concerned spouses and partners, others may want to host en femme dinners in their homes, and yet others may want to organize shopping trips en femme. And there may also be opportunities for makeover sessions with Heather as a group…as well as bra fitting sessions and wig maintenance. The opportunities are vast--just need to have people get organized…like Tip O'Neill said about politics…"all crossdressing is local."
3. All members will show initiative…it is our chapter, not someone else's. To this end Julie suggested the Tiara Award…given monthly to the Chapter member to wear at the session based on her contribution to the Chapter programs. Laurie said she could come up with "just the thing!"
4. Members agreed to show greater sensitivity in answering e-mails…conversely members will also avoid the "blanket" mailing when the subject applies to only certain members.
5. Members will also step forward and assist in interview sessions with prospective members. The Chapter agreed that the dual interview process is best but that we really need people to help out to get the process through as quickly as possible. Mary Alice and Terri noted that adjustments have been made in the procedures so as to allow for quicker response all around.
Thoroughly exhausted emotionally and physically the meeting ended at 9:45 with all members present agreeing that this was a "needed" session and that these occasional periods of intense debate showed both a vibrancy as well as a commitment to our goals and our cause of providing wholehearted support.
Isn't it great that we have Tri-Ess, and in most areas, a local chapter as well? Tri-Ess provides each of us with invaluable guidance and support for our own lives and for that of our chapters. Chapters provide support and a safe place for dressing. A place where you can meet others like you who are either cross dressers or spouses and SOs. It is one place where you can go for a social outlet and a safe haven for dressing without the fear of being outed. Comfort is what we are all looking for. However, in order for that safe comfortable place to continue to exist, everyone needs to care enough to be willing to help.
Anything that is accomplished for Tri-Ess or your chapter, is the result of the volunteer activity of someone. About now, some of you are probably saying, "That is true, and I would be glad to help if I had time." Just think, if everyone felt that way, we wouldn't have Tri-Ess, and we wouldn't have a chapter. And do you really think that the folks who are actively involved in Tri-Ess or chapter activities have any more time than you do? Unfortunately, there are cases of other chapters where too many members were "too busy " or just became complacent, and the chapter folded because something happened to a member who played a key role. Here in southeastern Virginia, there was a thriving Tri-Ess chapter that folded when a couple who was carrying much of the load moved. Only the cooperative efforts of members can prevent the demise of a chapter, or for that matter Tri-Ess.
"But what can I do?" You might be thinking. "I work long hours, and at most, I could only spare a few hours per month anyway. Besides, no one has specifically asked me to do anything." One way to become more active is to volunteer to help. When referring to volunteer activities, Bishop Fulton Sheehan used to say, "It is better to light one candle than to curse the darkness." In other words, it is better to do a little than to be unhappy because something either is not being done or is not being done well. And just think what could be accomplished if everyone in Tri-Ess was an active participating member. Sometimes we only have an hour or two a month to use for volunteering why not help your chapter and/or Tri-Ess? To use Bishop Sheehan's analogy, don't you think it is time to light your candle? Help support your chapter and Tri-Ess by volunteering for jobs that need to be done.
Dear Emily,
I have just seen the Lambda Mu, a Detroit Tri-Ess chapter website and found interesting legislative information there. That's great! In the USA there is a law defending crossdressers' rights! I can't say the same about Bulgaria, despite our country is a European Union membership candidate and has to follow all the Laws and Conventions adopted by European Council in Brussels. Emily, Will you do me a favor? Can you check about international Laws and Conventions on the topic of Transvestism and Crossdressing? If you have a lawyer member of your chapter, can I contact with her. HUMAN RIGHTS IN BULGARIA IS STILL JUST ON PAPER, UNFORTUNATELY.
So I was born in Moscow, Russia on 27.02.1968. I'm 33, the Christ's age. I've started crossdressing when I was 9 years old. When I was a child I didn't play with dolls and teddies. I liked guns, tanks, planes and constructor sets as all the boys. But when I looked at some beautiful girl in a pretty dress I wanted not only this girl...I wanted desperately to have the same dress. So one day I opened my mum's closet and put her silk evening gown on. It was a great excitement for me. When I grew to a teenager I started to buy women's clothes, saving my pocket money. First (we lived in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria then) I bought a girl's school uniform. It was a kind of black satin dress with buttons on the back. I hid it in my piano, behind the lower decca and when my parents were away I put it on. Then I bought some satin and jersey nightgowns. My parents often traveled between Moscow and Sofia, so I was left alone for weeks. I slept dressed as a girl in a glossy, loose lacy, long (I'm 199 cm. tall) nightie. I'm still crazy about satin nighties. They are far more comfortable than pajamas. Do you agree with me? Anyway when I was a student (I'm a Moscow University graduate) we lived in Moscow. My dad and mum often traveled on business round the former USSR so I had a lot of time to be a girl. I bought a whole wardrobe of skirts (I had a wonderful black leather mini skirt), dresses, nighties, cheap jewelry, etc.
When I was 20 I met Larissa, a Russian Jewish girl. We fell in love with each other. One day I put on Larissa's dress, as if kidding. She said, that I look great and sexy. So I told her I'm a crossdresser and she found it very interesting. We went shopping together, and we bought clothes for me and for her. Unfortunately we had to keep it in deep secret, because there was still Communist dictatorship in the USSR. Larissa went to Israel in 1989. Her Zionism appeared to be stronger than love...I turned to Bulgaria in 1990 and married my present wife. In 1995 my son was born.
And now, one more poem. It's dedicated to all crossdresser's wives. If you like it read it
to all the girls from your chapter.
From the Editrix
Newsletter Editrix
Executive Committee Announces 2001 Schedule
January 13
April 21
February 17
March 24
May 19
June 23
July 28 (DRAB)
August 25
September 22
October 27
November 17
December 15
Chi Epsilon Sigma Executive Committee
terrilynna@hotmail.com
beckyxd@hotmail.com
grace-gardener@home.com
yvonne@netrax.net
doneene373@aol.com
zoom@paonline.com
victoriafrost@earthlink.net
RRBoyd@aol.com
Minutes of the CES Chapter Meeting March 24, 2001
Light Your Candle
by Joan and Lucy Stone
A Letter from Kalina in Bulgaria
By Kalina
We grew as all the boys on planet
We didn't play with Barbies, Kens and teddies.
We played with plastic M16's, AK's and cruisers
All dreaming to be soldiers and sailors
But in the glowing dawn of our teenage
We felt a strange and unpredictable desire
Desire to get dressed as girls. Sounds nasty
But done we all got superb gratification
We didn't fall in love with other boys. We aren't gays
We loved our teenage queens, our female classmates
But we all also thought about their dresses
And now I'm out. In my jeans and my jacket
Carrying umbrella over my head
I am a man. That's perfectly doubtless
But "woman" in me I could never forget
And rushing ahead through the dull mist of morning
I dream about marvelous image "en femme"
I crave to go out dressed as a woman
But deep in my heart there's a feeling of shame
Oh, Lord! How hard is to be a crossdresser
Born as a boy with girlish desires
My wife can't accept my feminine image
I hide it. Deep in my soul from her eyes
But now in the humid mist of the morning
Desires and senses are getting too strong
My darling, I am your faithful husband
I'm not a woman! Don't get me wrong
Simply, I'm happy dressed as Kalina
And I know how hard it is for you to get it
That doesn't make me female, you can see that!
Lord, please forgive if that is a sin
By Rachel Rene Boyd
One of my great passions is flying airplanes. Recently I was reading an article in an aviation magazine about he risks and rewards of flying. We are seven times more likely to have an accident in a light aircraft flying from here to wherever than we are in an automobile. So why do we do it? Why do we accept a seven-fold risk to get there in only half the time? The answer, of course, is in the experience, the adventure, and the sheer joy of doing something we love.
It struck me that the same applies to crossdressing. We expose ourselves to extra risks when we crossdress. We risk the misunderstanding of our families. We risk our marriages, and sometimes our employment. We face risks we don't even understand from strangers who have sometimes been brutal to crossdressers. Why do we do it? I think Lane Wallace, an aviatrix I admire, comes close to saying it best.
"I have a friend who asked me one rainy April night how he could teach his two teenage daughters everything he wanted them to know about living a wonderful and worthwhile life; how to value and celebrate themselves and their bodies; how to walk their own path and not simply follow another's lead; how to know joy and be happy. I've thought of him and his question often.
"What would you tell them, if you could?" he asked. What would I tell them? It's a tough question, and the answer is longer and more complex than anything I could put down in words here. And what they probably need to know now is different than what they'll need to remember later on, when life has proven a little more complicated and difficult than they once thought it would be.
"But among the many things I would say, I think, would be that life is short and is something that was meant to be approached with gusto, not timidity; a brief and colorful banquet to be savored with every sense and moment that we have. Because no matter how we go about it, it all goes by surprisingly fast.
"I would also say that to drink from the full cup of life requires a bit of courage. There will be days when things don't turn out as you had hoped and you may know as many losses as you know gains. Your heart will not remain unmarked, and there will be days when you will look at the gray November skies and question the choices you have made. But I would wish them enough courage never to get so afraid of failure, pain, loss, or making the wrong decision that they let themselves get struck at top dead center—or bottom dead center, for that matter—or settle for walking through life with their hearts or selves protected, but only half alive."
Lane Wallace, "Of Risk and Life", Flying, Hachette Filipacchi Magazines, Inc., January 2001.
There once was a successful rancher who died and left everything to his devoted wife. She was determined to keep the ranch and make a go of it, but she knew very little about ranching. So she decided to place an ad in the newspaper for a ranch hand.
Two men applied for the job. One was a gay Texan and the other a drunk from Oklahoma. She thought long and hard about it, and when no one else applied, she decided to hire the gay Texan, figuring it would be safer to have him around the house than the drunk. He turned out to be fantastic worker, worked long hard hours every day and knew a lot about ranching.
For weeks the two of them worked, and the ranch was doing really well. Then one day the rancher's wife said to the hired hand, "You have done a really good job and the ranch looks great, you should go to town and kick up your heels."
The hired hand agreed readily, and Saturday night went to town. However, one o'clock came and he didn't return. Two o'clock and no hired hand, two-thirty, in came the hired hand. The rancher's wife was sitting by the fireplace and quietly called him over to her.
"Unbutton my blouse and take it off", she said. Trembling, he did as she asked.
"Now take off my boots." He did so, slowly.
"Now take off my socks." He did.
"Now take off my skirt." He did.
"Now take off my bra." Again with trembling hands he did as she asked.
"Now," she said, "take off my panties."
He slowly pulled them down. Then she looked at him and said, "Don't you ever wear my clothes to town again."
Allen, JJ The Man in the Red Velvet Dress (1996) (Personal)
Belenky, Mary et al. Women's Way of Knowing (1986) (Personal)
Bullough, Vern & Bullough, B. Crossdressing, Sex, and Gender (1993) (Personal)
Colapinto, John As Nature Made Him (2000) (Personal)
Ekins, Richard Male Femaling (1997) (Personal)
Garber, Marjorie Vested Interests: Cross-dressing and Cultural Anxiety (1992) (Personal)
Gilligan, Carol In a Different Voice (1982). (Personal)
Harragan, Betty L. Games Mother Never Taught You (1977) (Personal)
Kroeger, Otto & Thuesen, J. Type Talk (1988) (Personal)
Lawrence, Gordon People Types and Tiger Stripes (1986) (Personal)
Moir, Anne & Jessel, D. Brain Sex (1991) (Personal)
Roberts, Jo Ann Coping with Crossdressing, 3d Edition (1993) (Two copies)
Rudd, Peggy My Husband Wears My Clothes! (1993) (Two copies)
Rudd, Peggy Crossdressing with Dignity (1993) (Two copies)
Rudd, Peggy Crossdressers (1995) (Two copies)
Tannen, Deborah That's Not What I Meant! (1986) (Personal)
Tannen, Deborah You Just Don't Understand! (1990) (Personal)
Tannen, Deborah Talking From 9 to 5 (1994) (Personal)
Videos
Title /Presenter
Crossdressing With Dignity /Jo Ann Roberts
Basic Makeup /Jo Ann Roberts
Art and Illusion: Tricks and Tips /Jo Ann Roberts
"Just Like a Woman" (2 copies) /Movie; 1 1/2 hrs
"All Dressed up and No Place to Go" /"Discovery" show
"The Secret Wardrobe" (3 copies) /MSNBC show
Tapes (Cassettes)
Dr. Kate Thomas /Session with Chi Epsilon Sigma
The Best of Gender Talk… /September 20, 1995 and April 10, 1996
"Borrowing" Procedures and Policies
In keeping with the conservative idea that a "government best that governs least," we have simple policies and procedures...Understand, you have to be a member in good standing…
1) Books and videos are on a meeting-to-meeting, month-long loan, possibly longer if there is no waiting list for that particular book or video.
2) Contact me, Becky (beckyxd@hotmail.com or snail-mail at CES Secretary, P.O. Box 368, Arendtsville, PA 17303), for your selection.
3) I'll get it to the next meeting for you…or I'll even mail it to you if you want to reimburse the Chapter for mailing costs (usually $3.60 as I'll send it Priority Mail)
4) Then you bring it back at the following meeting.
These policies and procedures are subject to change if conditions and situations warrant the change!
Now that you've "come out" to yourself, you've decided to also tell your spouse that you are a crossdresser. So you think congratulations are in order? I don't.
At least not yet. Let's go back a bit and think about several aspects of this "coming out" of yours. Are you prepared for what's most likely going to happen? Are you prepared for the questions, the emotions, and the reactions? Are you able to present the appearance of someone who is in definite command of the situation--and himself? If any of those answers receive less than a resounding affirmative response at this time you need to give this whole thing some serious thought.
It makes sense to know your enemy…and that enemy is you.
It is not your spouse because if there is anybody who trusts, loves, and respects you--as she thinks you are before you come out--it is your spouse. And once you have informed her of your crossdressing inclinations there will forever be a wall there that wasn't there before…she will no longer look at you in the same light that she did before you revealed your second self. For some of us who have raised children through that perilous "passage" known as the teen years her reaction towards you will be the same as your reaction towards your children when you realized that they do tell lies. They really do tell lies with a straight face and they tell them to you. That element of "trust" that was there will no longer be there…regardless of her eventual degree of tolerance and support. It can't be…simply because she is human.
But it has to be done…eventually she must be informed because I can assure you the truth will out and it is best--not "better" but "best"--for everyone if someone--namely you--is in control when the truth is made known. And basically that means no surprises…no mislaid panties under the bed or in the car…no tell tale traces of lipstick or fingernail polish (on you!)…no walking in on you en femme…no mysterious links on the computer…no website addresses that she can link back to. When there are surprises such as those you have lost control, assuming you ever had any.
So be prepared. And the first one to get the going over is you. How comfortable are you with your crossdressing inclinations? Do you have some idea of when they started and how they started and what they involved at that time? You had best know those answers because she's going to want to know. Be prepared to answer in as definitive a way as possible such questions such as "Does this mean you are gay?" "Where's all this going to end?" What's going to happen to me?" "Are you going to lose your job?"
Take your time and do your research. Know who you are first. Know what motivates you as far as crossdressing goes. Know what you are comfortable with in terms of compromises and an end game. In other words know where all of this is going to end. Have your facts and theories at hand. Remember that if she goes to the Web after you've come out and she types in "crossdressing" she'll be confronted with beau coup triple-X sites and everything from SRS through B&D and S&M before she even finds Tri-Ess or CES. So have your resources at hand…the same ones you did your research in when you learned you were not the only male in the world that either liked to wear feminine attire or thought that he would.
Be prepared for strong and deep emotional response…tears, slammed doors, the whole nine yards. After all while you've lived with this penchant of yours all of your knowing life she just learned about this five seconds ago. Rehearse how you are going to tell her…the exact words…and rehearse them time and time again until you get them right. Chose your words carefully and think about the reaction those words are liable to evoke in her and change the approach and the words if necessary. Rehearse in your mind the whole range of responses you can expect and how you would react to the one you love most when she responds to your "coming out." And mentally rehearse again and again.
You also have to be prepared for the passage of an interval of time…time for her to adjust and to acclimate to this sudden change in the balance of affairs. Don't push. Allow her to give full vent to her range of emotions and be there to support. Whatever emotions she shows are valid…and she needs to know that. And she needs to know that there are others who share her emotions and who have been there and have gone through shame, anger, frustration, jealousy, shock…the whole gamut. And let her know that a willing ear and a supportive person is only a phone call away through your CES organization.
You also have to be prepared for a range of final outcomes…all the way from an immediate separation leading to divorce to acceptance. (There's a fine line here--under certain legal and theological circumstances she may be entitled to an annulment of the marriage because apparently you brought into the marriage a factor that you hid from her. So bluntly speaking the burden may be on you to show that this predilection for feminine attire on your part is not a sexual or psychiatric disorder and therefore not an impediment to a successful marriage.) Consider all of the possible options from her perspective and be prepared to address each one in a way that you can live with. And this means that you really need to do your homework about who and what you are. And thus we are back to the very first steps. As Shakespeare says in Hamlet, "…this above all. To thine own self be true and you cannot be false to any man"…or woman.
Yes, if you are prepared for the consequences, congratulations are now in order for deciding to tell your spouse.
But for the sake of all, don't run out and tell her five minutes after you finally acknowledged to yourself that you are a crossdresser. Remember that T.S. Eliot in his Murder in the Cathedral notes that "this is the greatest treason, to do the right deed for the wrong reason." Do your research and do your planning…you owe that to her.
Are you woman enough to take the gender quiz? Go ahead and try it girls, just for fun. Thanks to Mirror Images, the newsletter of The Erie Sisters for finding this link. To take the test, go to: http://www.thespark.com/gendertest
For those of us who know!
1. We have the right to discuss the subject of crossdressing openly with our parents.
2. We have the right to have our "Dad" (or "Mom" if FTM) when needed.
3. We have the right to seek the support of our peers through such resources as the CD-Kids forum.
4. We have the right not to be pressured into seeing our parent
crossdressed or into going to public places with him/her.
5. We have the right to be asked for permission before any of our belongings are borrowed.
6. We have the right to not have to deal with transgender issues during our teenage formation years.
7. We have the right to be able to bring friends home without fear of what they may find.
8. We have the right to education and learning materials suitable for our age and maturity.
9. We have the right to say "No" without fear or guilt.
10. We have the right to be kids.
I have completed compiling the raw data from the survey I sent out about a month ago. Sent out 37 individual surveys and received 25 back, a 67% return which is not bad for such a survey. There are several (at least four I could name right now...) whom I expected to respond who did not; however, that was their choice. At this point I would suggest that we close the survey and provide you, and the members of the Executive Board, the data we have received.
Therein lies a potential problem. I compiled all of the answers received into an individual file numbering some 59 pages in length. (Can be a ZIP file.) All identifying data has been stripped from these responses and with one exception I would guarantee you that you could not trace back the remarks to a single individual.
I then took the individual questions and did a horizontal compilation (i.e., compiled all of the responses to Question 1 in one file, the same with Question 2, et al.) Those files vary in length from 5 pages to 15 pages. I have all files, by the way, saved in Rich Text format or in Windows 95/6.0..."youse pays youse money, youse takes youse choice" as we say in Baw'lmore.
Frankly speaking the replies were quite interesting and quite revealing of the issues we have ahead of us if we want to keep this operation going. For example, how do we develop a program to retain the individuals who:
Want us to take the front lines of the GenderPac movement in Congress?
Feel like fish out of water because of our attention towards spouses at meetings when their spouses do not tolerate or support their crossdressing?
Want us to spend more meeting time devoted to spouse issues?
Want to go out partying en femme on meeting nights?
Want meetings devoted to basic instruction on how to apply makeup?
A really diverse group indeed! We have a Board meeting scheduled at our place for March 11. I am willing to ship you everything you might want to see before that board meeting...just let me know what you want and how you want it.
Basic survey
Compiled answers (59 pages...can ZIP it if you can open ZIP files)
Question 1 Basic demographics as to spouses' knowledge, toleration, and support
Question 2 Meeting site
Question 3 Meeting dates (no file created; no cmts rec'd)
Question 4 Program desires
Question 5 Drab get-togethers
Question 6 Spouses' reactions to meetings and agenda (5 part question)
Question 7 Membership status
Question 8 Downloading - Only 1 individual was a Mac user and could not download so did not create a file for this question.
Question 9 Newsletter – This was the only 100% positive area about CES--and so there is a file here.
Question 10 Dues, local and national
Question 11 Catch-all...and there was a lot said in this response!
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