Ransvestia

thinking Ed ought to meet her sooner or later, but he had to wait till much later.

On Sunday, she was up before I was, all sparking in an orange print dress and a white apron, bringing me breakfast in bed. She came briskly into the bedroom, already made-up and wearing one of her long, blonde wigs. I think she had nearly twenty wigs in all. Her tiredness had evaporated and she looked, well, lovely, if you can use such a word about a man. I looked a wreck, of course, as I usually do on any morning when I don't put my rollers in. Looking at her, brightly whizzing about the apartment, vacuuming, dusting and generally being very domestic, depressed me no end. Finally, thank goodness, she was through. The apartment had been blitzed in a way it had never been done before. Pat, you see, had matched my inept housekeeping, even, on occasions, surpassing my worst efforts by far.

"Well, I'll be off," she said brightly, arranging the wig in the mirror that hangs on the back of the outside door, arranging the wig so that it fitted around her ears, but allowed her big, gypsy earrings to show.

"Where are you going?" I asked. I'd got dressed, but my hair wouldn't be awake for at least a couple of hours.

"Probably to the zoo, though sometimes I go to church," she said, satisfied at last with her appearance. "Depending how I feel, but I don't like to stay in on Sundays, particularly in the mornings."

"Neither do I," I agreed, surprised to find someone who felt as I do about Sunday mornings. It's the deadest part of the week, but I'd never go to church, not me. "But I don't have any choice about it usually," I said. "My hair needs the rest." I pulled disconsolately at a few, straggly wisps.

Valerie laughed. "Why don't you get a wig?" she asked.

"On my salary?" I'm a perpetual grumbler, as you can see, and I haven't improved with age.

"Oh," she thought for a moment. "If you'd like to come out this morning, why don't you borrow one of mine?"

So I did after a little persuasion. It was one I'd admired from the moment I saw it on the block in her room, and I guess Valerie had