These days, I go to work everyday. I'm very good at what I do for a living. I dress in slacks, sport-shirts, turtlenecks, etc. I keep my face, underarms, legs, tummy and chest shaved in preparation for the times when I can go femme.

The kids are now in high-school and almost ready to graduate, so there are times when both of them are out of the house for a day or two at a time. Even though their mother is at home with me, I don't let that stop me. I go right ahead and get dressed-up anyway.

There are times that I am able to go femme for two days in a row. I'm working on a novel, also, and planning someday in the near future on moving out into my own place. I have some land I can sell to buy a small house, condo, townhome or duplex without having to take out another mortgage. But right now, my income is needed for my family.

For myself, I spend very little. I drive a very late model crew-cab pickup, and have nice clothes that don't cost a bundle. I exercise regularly, eat right, visit the chiropractor and dentist to keep myself maintained well. My one vice is my dress-up fetish. But when you consider hobbies that I could have had: word-working, hunting, fishing, golf, etc. you really can't find a cheaper hobby long-term than cross-dressing. There is the initial investment, of course, but once you've gotten past the initial start-up fees.

To begin, of course, you have to have one or two good outfits. You need a wig, some make-up, and a good pair of shoes. Later, you can add more outfits, shoes and accessories. Make-up and pantyhose are your biggest consumables, having to be replaced at regular intervals. But you only have to replace things as they are consumed, which means that the maintenance fees for cross-dressing are very low. You take care of your clothes, shoes and wigs and they will last for a very long time and bring years of enjoyments. I'm still wearing the same wig I bought in 2004. Washing it fairly regularly restores its appearance and it looks great all over again.

Also, once dressed, you can get all sorts of household and career-related tasks done. I will dress-up in the morning, make coffee and breakfast, then either sit down at the computer and work on my novel, or I'll fire up my laptop at the kitchen table and take care of all the myriad of electronically typed and filed reports my career requires as a by-product. I can cook, vacuum, dust, sweep and clean floors all while wearing a short, tight skirt and five-inch heels. So all-in-all, even though I feel selfish dressing-up, at least one of us gets some kind of sexual satisfaction in our relationship, plus I get a ton of work done, and it saves money in the long-run because I'm not paying for expensive equipment or trips for another hobby!

I stay for the kids, certainly not for their mother. But I dress up for me. I know it's terribly selfish of me, but I now know that she had a purpose in marrying me. Now that she has gotten her two kids and her two-story house in the suburbs, that purpose has been fulfilled.

She is unable to earn anything that resembles a decent living. If she could, I'd have been gone five years ago. She is much more interested in her charitable activities, thereby keeping the home in an uproar almost perpetually while doing things for others that in no way benefit the family while I earn the living. She gets the recognition for being so selfless and everyone tells me "how lucky I am to have found her".

But make no mistake, there is no bitterness here. I am like the person who realizes s/he made a mistake that has cost dearly, and have vowed that once I get past this mistake, it will never happen again. And....there's the kids. They're both worth ten each of their mother. Even if I had been smart enough to avoid marrying her, I'd have never had them. So....in a way, things work out for the best.

I'm hoping in a couple of years, she'll get the house (paid-for), and I'll have my own house (also paid-for), the kids will get an education and everyone will live happily ever after. The kids will just have two homes to return to when they come home for holidays. I'll try to stay close by.

Meanwhile, Miss Lesley is here to stay.