Vera's Finishing School [Paperback]

Yet no need to fear. I don't see myself becoming a cross-dresser
any time in the near future, particularly since I like my

mustache. And Veronica notes that "no applicant is ready
for the freewheeling life an academy deb if he is not ready
to let go of a handlebar.

"Yet," she went on to say, "there are exceptions to every rule,
even this. I relaxed my rule once when a Hassidic Jewish man
applied for entrance. I knew that his long beard and side-curls
were part of his religious observance and thus not to be removed. Under all of that hair, his long-lashed eyes emanated sincerity and earnestness, so I took pity on him. We used a veil and turned him into an Arabian princess, not only accomplishing his transformation but doing our bit to heal Mideast relations.

There is a basic difference between the way women walk and
the way men walk. Men take control of the earth. Their feet are
planted firmly on the ground. Women go with the flow. We dance
through life. High heels are designed to complement that dancing,light-footed movement. In the days before sidewalks, the entire base of the shoe was often elevated. These early platform shoes made it possible to rise above the muck. Men wore them as well as ladies. But while men have toppled from their pedestals, we ladies remain there, usually being admired. High heels show off the calves and other parts of the anatomy to advantage. The higher the pump, the higher the rump. In high heels the buttocks are raised to provocative heights, inviting admiring glances. Just as some women choose not to wear high heels because they do not want to invite those glances, many men are starved for that attention. In high heels, our students' legs appear longer and, though our girl
may be concerned with her height, her legs can never be too long.

Even before the first official Voice class, new students at Miss Vera's Finishing School receive some instruction on girl talk. I don't know how many times I have asked a student to say "yes" instead of "yeah." There she is, all dressed up in the sheerest nylons and sexy pumps, seated in the makeup chair, wearing a lovely, soft negligee or perhaps a silk slip, bra, garter belt, and stockings while being transformed be the Dean of Cosmetology, who used the finest powders, lipstick, and blush. Inside she feels all relaxed and excited at the same time . . . all lush and juicy. Then I ask a question and she answers, "Yup," in a voice like John Wayne. This won't do. We start be refining speech in small, simple ways. Say, "Yes." The phrase "Yes, Miss Vera" is music to my ears. It is not so much how high she speaks her words that counts, but how deeply she feels what she says and how much of that feeling she
lets pass through her ruby lips.