Area Father Wears Skirt, pictures at 11:00

[Mychael Sporrano]

My 5 year old son just came home from school with a tale about how a few of his classmates were making fun of me for wearing a "skirt". I guess that they even drew a picture to capture the event on paper. I told him that if he can get them to color it nicely, he should nab that piccie and bring it home- I'll hang it on the refrigerator! He frowned at that idea and said he would tear it up. I like that the little guy wasn't upset because I had embarassed him. Being embarassed with me didn't even dawn on him. What bugged him was that his friends didn't know what a kilt was, and still really did not quite get it after his explanation.

Admittedly, I do get some odd looks in the schoolyard from the kids as well as some parents, but who cares. Last May I gave an amateur radio presentation to my 7 year old daughter's class while kilted, and since then I have shown up at the school kilted as I please. When I do career day this year I'll go for a traditional look since I have a traditional kilt this time around. That nice tweed jacket will come in handy that day! In fact, I plan on dressing well anytime I need to go to the school for official reasons.

Last week my wife told me that she was talking with a woman who said that her friend wanted to know if she had seen that guy around who wears a skirt, stating with disbelief, "...and he actually makes his kids dress like that too!" My wife's friend told the woman that it was a kilt and it wasn't like that with the kids since they dress themselves. She topped it off by saying, "I walk to the bus with his wife everyday and he's all right."

When folks ask me about wearing a kilt, specifically about if I feel awkward doing so, I tell them that at first I felt a little self conscious. However, once I came to terms with the fact that many whom I pass each day consider me a freaky criss dresser because to them I AM wearing a skirt, everything fell into place. Good litmus test for me to winnow out those with little tolerance, huh? If it wasn't the skirt it would be something else, right? I try to impart this same 'who-cares-what-the-neighbors-think' philosophy to my children. Wish me luck, but so far so good.

Rigged once mentioned something about how a neighbor won't allow her son to get near him because of his, er, propensity for cross-dressing. Reading that really bugged me. I am sure that there are parents who will not allow their children to socialize with my kids for that reason exactly. Shame on them.

Mychael

[bubba]

There's a family that lives nera me that's a good example of that idiocy. I finally shut him up by telling him in 10 years I'll still have a great sex life while he's limp as a overcooked spaghetti from pinching off his bits in tight jeans. I think the idea scared hell out of him

[Silverlake_Punk]

It is funny and sometimes sad the ways people sometimes react. This is not sad stuff.

PART ONE
I go to work kilted just about every day, and as a teacher of 7th & 8th graders, it can get really interesting. It's especially fun on parent conference nights. I work in South Central Los Angeles, and most of my kids' families are from Mexico or Central America. Many parents don't speak English, and it's really hilarious to hear my jaded, seen-it-all students explain to their Spanish-speaking parents why their teacher is wearing what they think is a skirt. The parents' eyes sorta get really wide, and they shrug and ask how their kid is doing in my class.


PART TWO
Last week I had to go to court (don't EVER throw a lit cigarette out of your car window in Los Angeles - it cost me $341) and this older latina woman saw me.

"C'mere c'mere c'mere c'mere!" she said.
"Yes?" I wasn't sure if maybe she was one of my students' parents.
"What is theees? Is skirt? Why you wear?" she asked as she plucked gingerly at the hem.
"It's a kilt. It's from Scotland. It's for men."
"For men?"
"Yes," I explained slowly. "It's a kilt and men wear it. Not women."
"Oh," she laughed, "Que buena! Que buena!"
She walked into the elevator, and I could hear her laughing as it descended.

[Rufus]

I was in Petsmart last weekend when I saw a kid looking at me all funny. He said something to his mother that I couldn't hear, but I did catch her response of, "It's a kilt. Now shut up!" :o

I'm not sure which surprised me more.

On Monday night, I heard my new neighbor's kids screaming something about a guy wearing a skirt. Took me a minute to realize they were talking about me.

[Graham]

I had a kid look at me strangely with a question on his face, I said "I bet you'd like one of theses to wear would'nt you?", he wnet and hid behind his mother

Mychael tell your son that there are people ALL OVER the world, even in Tasmania, who think he is really cool for wearing a kilt to school. We think he is a true Braveheart!

[bikercelt1]

I was at COSTCO (a warehouse shopping club) the other day and walked around the end of the isle as a youngster of about eight was coming around from the other direction. He froze like he'd just seen a monster from the latest creature feature turned tail and ran to his mother at the other end of the isle. As I walked by I heard her bend over and quietly tell him "no, it's Irish. That's the way men dress in Ireland and Scotland." He looked up at her, she nodded yes, he shrugged his shoulders and went on his way, apparently satisfied with that explanation. I saw him several more times before I left and he never gave me a second look.

Story #2: After services at church the other day I sat down in the social hall and looked across the table at an attractive Hispanic lady. She was saying something to the older stern looking Hispanic lady sitting two seats over from me. Remebering that several of you had mentioned that for some reason Hispanics have a particularly difficult time accepting kilts I started gearing up for the worst. The younger woman leaned across the table and asked "is that a Kilt? Do you know where I could get one for my husband? He's part Scottish and I love to see him in a kilt" I must have looked a bit startled when I turned and looked at the older lady, she just smiled and said "oh yes, I just love kilts! They look so good on men!" Then they continued their conversation in Spanish, occasionally looking over at me.

I guess we can't judge a book by it's cover or know how people are going to respond until we sit down opposite them and start to talk.

Jamie

[GMan]

I know several elementary school teachers who want me to show up in their clases all kilted as they talk about either different cultures or being yourself. I do however avoid walking by elementary schools for the reason that the kids may misunderstand why I am kilted. The only real problem I had with being called a cross dresser is that an early teenager 13 or 14 saying that I was dressed like a girl and he was going to take care of me. Likely story since I was twice his weight and much taller than he was, he was trying to impress all his buddies.

[TheFly]

Just for a second there, I thought you meant he was going to "take care" of you like a Sugar Daddy.

I would have said, "No thanks, your Mcdonald's paycheck can't possibly provide me with what I need. I'm high maintenance."

[David Woodington]

well I was at the Halloween Spirit store(Gearing up for Halloween) and I was approached by an elderly gentelman who asked me why I was dressed like a woman.I tried to explain about Scotts and pipers to no avail. When he kept it up both my wife and daughter attempted to intervene (I enjoyed watching them back me up)but they noticed his babbling was rather odd.Later as I was talking to the manager (who is also of Scotts ancestry and a kilt owner)was telling me he was rather an odd duck and not rapped too tight.This guy later came up to me and said that I had better watch out because there was a skelton behind one of the tomb stones and it was going to get me . A well I guess they do escape from time to time, Shame I did'nt have a net.just goes to show we get to meet all kinds.


Dave

[macwilkin]

I think a lot of a Latinos attitude towards kilts depends on where they are from in Latin America. In general, Brazilians (whose Marine Corps has a pipe band), Argentines and other South Americans tend to be a bit more accepting of the idea of kilts, especially if they come from a larger city like Montevideo, B.A. or Sao Paulo, where there are St. Andrew's Societies and Pipe Bands -- also, there were a lot of Scots that moved to Argentina at the beginning of the 19th century.

We have a good friend who is an exchange student from Colombia, and he likes the kilt -- he is always asking questions and wants to come to our Scottish society functions.

BTW, there are a couple of tartans for Argentina, and the Cochrane tartan is recommended for South Americans in general, because of Admiral Cochrane, the British soldier-of-fortune who fought for revolutionary goverments in S.A., and was the basis for "Lucky" Jack Aubry!

Cheers,

T.