A Spooktacular Time in Syracuse
By Linda Jensen
"Get to Syracuse and fix that problem with widget
sales," my boss said. With that, my plans for Halloween
were thrown into disarray. I had planned to stay home, give out
candy to the neighborhood kids and then sneak out in drag to a
local gay bar late in the evening. Now that I was going to be
out of town my plans would have to become more elaborate. When
I asked my girlfriend for help with a costume she invited me
to come over and go through her stuff. Her daughter had
just been to a party as a gypsy girl and she thought that might
do for me. I tried it and it looked nice but it wasn't very
spooky and it wasn't what I was looking for.
My ideal Halloween is to go to a straight bar and
appear to be a female in costume. As the gypsy I would simply
be a guy in a peasant dress. I really wanted something that would
show my pretty, feminine body but disguise my face. First I visited
the local costume shop and decided on a vampire theme. I already
had a suitable old wig so I bought a tube of white make-up, vampire
teeth and a cape. Next I decided I could 'drag' out a nurse's
uniform and be a vampire nurse. The uniform is from the early
70's and so is very short. For accessories I retrieved white stockings
and garter belt.
Soon all was packed and I was on my way to Syracuse.
My day work was routine and my first evening I scouted for possible
bars to go for costume parties. The local entertainment weekly
listed many parties. It was possible for me to go to three different
parties - one during 'happy hour', another at a singles bar called
'Neighbors' and a third at a gay bar called 'Trexx'. (Gay bars
always get going late). I got held up on work matters so I didn't
get to the Happy Hour event but I did go to a mall where as a
man I got to try on several new nurse outfits, saying truthfully
one was needed for a costume. However, I couldn't find one better
than the one I had. Back at my motel I tried to rest for a while
but while my body was tired my mind was anxious to get on with
the business of dressing. Usual routine- bath, shave, moisture
cream and then instead of my usual foundation I put on the white
stage make-up, lined my eyes heavily in black and put on some
dark red lipstick. The dress being short and white revealed my
bra, panties and stockings quite clearly and to me looked quite
sexy. I styled the dark black wig with a Dracula type bang and
let the long hair hang over my shoulders. After taking a few photos
I headed for Neighbors. The parking lot was almost full and so
was the bar. After buying a drink I was able to find a stool at
a small high table. My costume sure attracted a lot of attention
. One woman suggested I get dental implants for my teeth. "No
way I've had enough trouble with these," I replied as I pointed
to my breasts but she didn't seem to get it. Later her friends
had to tell her I was really a guy. Through the evening several
people came up to compliment me on my costume and then ask if
I was woman or man. I think a few bets may have won and lost
on my answer.
I thought I had a good chance of winning the costume
contest but it was decided by audience applause and the group
at one table really cheered loudly for a friend wearing no more
than a mask. Afterwards some new friends told me that they thought
many in the bar still didn't realize that it was a man in the
vampire nurse outfit.
Soon I was at my next stop, Trexx. It was
crowded. The Best Drag Award had already been decided and Scariest
was under way. The costumes were great, much better than at the
straight bar. The winner of scariest was a young queen dressed
as Medusa- Yuk! I entered the final judging, Most Original, and
was a little horrified to see the MC interviewing all the contestants
about their outfits. 'Vampire Nurse' just wouldn't stand up to
the clever remarks that others were making so I invented a new
identity. When it came my turn I said in my best Boris Karloff
(sotovocce), " I'm not what I seem. One might think I'm a
nurse but I'm really a doctor. 'Doc Ula' is my name and I specialize
in blood disorders." To my disappointment the MC picked five
of her good friends as finalists, including one in nothing more
of a costume than a scouts uniform, calling himself a 'virgin
cub scout' and another dressed as a cowboy. Well, it turns out
the drag community in Syracuse is very incestuous and they take
turns giving each other awards and that includes the cash prizes
at Halloween contests. Outsiders need not apply. I didn't win,
and probably shouldn't have won, but neither should the organizer
have been pushing so hard for some good looking young guy who
was probably going to spend part of the night in her bed.
Now
what do you do when the contests are over and you still want to
party? For me, I went to the ladies room, packed my teeth, cape
and a tiara in my purse and tried to cover my make-up with a little
color. The only color I had was some blush. It looked blotchy
over the stage make-up but it was good enough that I attracted
the attention of one admirer who talked with me and bought me
drinks. Later I visited his house. The evening ended in the early
morning and the next day I returned home with some great new
memories and a few new friends.
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