Monday, April 13, 2015

Tradition and a Raven

Wife and I have a tradition that we started the first year we were married, way back in 1994.  Easter was approaching, and we found The Ten Commandments on TV.  Near the beginning.  So we decided to watch it on our TV screen smaller than the monitor I'm looking at now. And watched... and watched... through commercials... until midnight.  We both had early wake up times the next day, and hadn't expected the movie to last five hours, but it did with commercials.

But we both loved it.  And the next year we bought a copy on VHS so we didn't get commercials.  And so it went as the years passed.  Every Easter week/weekend, we would watch the movie.  Eventually we upgraded to DVD.

Wife and I have been separated for nearly two years. including two Easters.  But the one tradition we managed to keep when all others have withered away has been that one.  And last week, MIL went away for a few days, which allowed me to see my daughter, my dog, and watch the movie with Wife.  We broke it up over two nights, both after I was finished work.  Daughter wasn't into the movie, but we watched it.  And yes, I was there as Sophie.

My 15 year old dog, Nittany


As we watched, we told many of the same jokes as we watched it that we've developed over the years.  It was like nothing had changed.  But it had.  I'm a woman now.  And we weren't living together.

But I'm very glad we could keep at least one tradition alive.  And maybe someday Daughter will join in as well.


The day after we finished watching the movie, I was in New Hope with my roomie, Linda Lewis.  The occasion was Raven 28.  I've talked about the Raven gatherings in previous entries.  They were started by the beautiful Jen Bryant who hosted them through number 27.  But now Jen is out and full time,.  Her work and boyfriend are taking up a lot of her time and she was ready to move on.  And so she did.

Jen Moves on.  Pic courtesy Jennifer Bryant

But she didn't want the tradition to die.  You see, TGs up and down the Eastern seaboard attend this event.  For many, this is the biggest event on their calendar.  For some, this is the only time they can be en femme.  So Jen passed the baton to Jane Reynolds.  Yes, the same Jane who I helped on her first night out a couple of years ago.  She is now full time as well, and has the responsibility of running this huge event.

Linda and I both wanted to show our support to Jane, so we headed to New Hope for the day.  We walked around downtown for a bit before stopping at Havana for lunch.  The time before when we visited there, the food and service were good.  Not this time.  The burgers were way undercooked, and they took a long time to arrive.  Linda and I were underwhelmed to say the least.

From there we went to the Raven Cub room.  On our way we bumped into Jane, who took a picture of us crossing the parking lot.  We then went to the Cub room where I bumped into many others including the gorgeous Valentina.  I don't see her often so it's always a treat.  Kristyn King took many pictures, as did several others.

In the Cub Room with Marie Lamonte, Linda Lewis, Valentina Torrelli

From there a quick stop in Jane's hotel room, as she invited us for a beer.  Then over to the Raven itself.  While we were there, Linda engaged two GG's in conversation about makeup (they admired hers) and suddenly we had new friends!  While we sat there, a TG named Michelle (I hope I got your name right) came over to me and told me how much she loves this blog.  As always I was very flattered.  She says she reads it regularly, so here you go!  Shout out to you!  :)

Linda had to work early the next morning, so we had to go early.  I missed seeing many people, including my dear sister Sandy Empanada.  But we had to get home.  I had to work as well, but not until 11 so I could sleep in.

I'm glad the Raven is in good hands.  I wasn't there to see if the whole thing went off without a hitch, but Jane seemed to have it under control.  I know it has to be difficult- even if Jen Bryant made it look so easy with her endless charm.

I hope everyone had a great time!


Random bitz:

This is the 302nd post in this blog.  If you count the 41 posts from my MySpace blogs, it's the 343rd.  For those of you who didn't know it, I have an older set of blogs:  The Myspace Blogs.  These were done on Myspace (duh) and documented the early part of my journey.  I started writing them directly after my first time out as Sophie.  So if you want to see how I've changed, have a look at them.  For those who care, you can also track how my writing style has changed over time.  And how my look has changed, etc.

Have a look!  Comment!





1 comment:

  1. I suppose this may not come as a surprise since I've been on a bit of a writing kick, but I thought it was interesting taking a peek at your older blog entries and seeing how your writing style has evolved. The earlier stuff has an enthusiastic charm, but I like your more recent style, which has a more narrative and confident feel to it. I guess you've changed in many ways along your journey! :-)

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