All posts by Sandra

Anyone Know Who Drew These?

I’m sure quite a few readers here have seen these drawings before, as they’ve been re-posted on several sites and have been online for over ten years. Obviously they were drawn by a French artist, and although they’re very simple and unpolished, I’ve always thought that they were incredibly sexy and beautifully convey the helpless damsel in distress scenario. I also like the modest and overly feminine style of the dresses that the girls are wearing, with the high necklines and the bows in the hair, and the strange wrinkles in the fabric with the tight pinching ropes. I’ve found probably 35 of these drawings over the years, and I think they’re so good in their own unique way that if the artist had a few hundred of them, he or she could easily open their own website and get quite a following. Does anyone know who drew these and if they have a website or anything? I’d love to think that maybe there are lots more of these out there…

The Death Clock Re-Visited

I was reading something about glam-rock star Marc Bolan of T-Rex, who died back in ’77, just days before his thirtieth birthday in a car crash. And that led me to a link for the good ol’ Death Clock website. I’d forgotten all about this website but I really enjoy it! The concept is so wicked. You type in some details about yourself and it tells you statistically when you may expect to die. There are also settings for a normal, optimistic, or pessimistic reading, which slant the numbers. The normal reading gives me about 25 years, though on the pessimistic setting I’ve only got ten (damn, that’s soon!) There’s also a sadistic setting, but you don’t really want to go there. The optimistic setting puts me way into my nineties, which is so far away that it’s almost not worth considering. I am a bit death-obsessed, I’ll admit, so I LOVE this kind of thing. Here’s to many more good and active years ahead for us all (uh, as long as we can avoid exterminating ourselves as a species on our little planet). As the Brits say, Cheers!

DeviantART

A while back a friend told me that I should put up a gallery of pictures on DeviantART, so I finally took the time and did it – here’s the page. I really hope that it’s viewable with a free membership.

While I’ve downloaded some nice drawings and photos from the site in the past, I have to say that the navigation and ease of use for setting up a profile and posting pictures is really horrible. I hate to be so negative, but it probably took me an hour and a half just to upload 30-some photos. Sadly enough, it’s set up like a site that you would have found back in the late-90s, where each picture has to be uploaded one at a time, with numerous drop down menus to maneuver and boxes of text to fill in and absolutely no “batch” features for uploading multiple pictures. It’s really wildly frustrating, I hate to say, and could really use some streamlining. That said, I posted several pictures at the above link, including quite a few older ones from Ts in Trouble. Ah, the good old days!

Liplocker Gag

Here are a few extra shots from the recent liplocker gag gallery that was recently posted on the site, including a couple more glamour shots of yours truly. Kali, AmberKatt and I had a real fun time shooting this set and it was really sexy being forced into a kiss with Kali ;-) Check out Hottbonds for the gag and other good leather bondage gear (and those tight skirts that I like so much).

Also, I’ll be on the road for a couple days this week so this week’s update on the site, with Bettie Cho returning for more tight bondage, will be posted on Tuesday or Wednesday. Then we’ll be back to our regular weekly schedule…

Memories of Chainguy

As I mentioned in the last post, a friend suggested I post a selection of shots that Paul (Chainguy) and I did over the years. Hopefully this won’t seem like it’s all about me but rather in memory of a good friend who’s passed on. Like I mentioned earlier, Paul was a great guy, with a very clever sense of humor, a fine appreciation for the absurdities of life, a love of Shakespeare’s soliloquies and of good movie quotes (he was always quoting that Jack Nicholson speech from “A Few Good Men”).

I fondly remember spending hours with him geeking out over bondage and photography (we spent ridiculous amounts of time comparing the histograms on various shots – why? I’m still not quite sure.) In addition to the shots from the various galleries below, I still have about 10 upcoming Chainguy galleries on my computer that haven’t even been edited yet. And of course he also shot several other galleries with my friends Delilah, Bettie Cho, Nina and Vicky, some of whose shots appear below on recent blog posts. The 50-some shots here are posted in the approximate order that they were taken, starting back in 2006 when we first shot on the back porch at that beach house that we’d occasionally get access to. Some of my favorite times were those series of galleries that we did in the mountains north of L.A., which sadly enough were all burned out a couple years ago. And the last four shots below, which are all fairly recent, haven’t yet made it onto the site but should be showing up in the months ahead.

We did a lot of rope bondage, but true to his nickname he really LOVED the handcuffs and shackles. I remember him at many parties in L.A. putting himself out and selflessly volunteering to cuff numerous ladies, crossdressers and guys. He was that kind of person – always thinking of the needs of others ;-) Speaking of parties, I was afraid that the last Club Fantasy party on April 1st would really be depressing without Paul being there. And although I missed him and many others commented on how he was always a regular there, it was still a really nice time and we had a big turnout, close to 40 people, which is huge for us, and it was a great group of people. Paul would have loved it and would almost certainly have had several girls all chained up for much of the evening. We will miss you, my friend…

Cool California Days

I’ve been having a really nice time in L.A. and the weather’s been the usual perfect. The memorial for Paul (Chainguy) was really nicely done and had a big turnout. I’m so thankful I was able to be there. A friend suggested that I should post a selection of Sandra pictures taken by Paul over the years. So next week when I get back to Colorado I’ll go through all the old shots and post a few here.

Yesterday I had the chance to take the L.A. subway (it’s really nice) down to Hollywood and visit Out of the Closet, my favorite thrift store. As always, I found a few items that I can bring back. What I really love about that place, aside from the usual good selection, is that it’s so gay that I never feel the least bit of shopping anxiety when I’m there. A nice change from the butterflies I often get at the mall.

I’m planning on a couple shoots while I’m here the next few days, then looking forward to Club Fantasy on Friday. And finally back to Denver late on Sunday.

Club Fantasy, Next Friday, April 1st in North Hollywood

I’ve been having a nice time in L.A. and saw a lot of friends last night at the Femme Fatale Party at the Threshold Clubhouse. The Club Fantasy TG Party will be held in the same location next Friday, on April 1st. My friend Barbara is bringing several items to give away on the exchange table, so I packed several wigs to give away, still in excellent shape, that just didn’t quite work with my face. Hope to see you there on April Fool’s Day!

Back in the Denver Airport

After a sleep-deprived night I’m sitting here again in DIA, waiting on my flight to L.A. It’ll be nice to see old friends again though I wish it were under happier circumstances.

Been listening to: Since I’m heading back again it seemed appropriate last night to listen to The Thrills’ excellent album “So Much for the City.” I remember back in 2003 when it came out and there was all kinds of talk on the radio about these Irish guys who sang songs about California and had the jangly-guitar sounds and harmonies of surf music. They were gonna be huge! And then they released a couple more albums, which were good but never really re-captured the excitement of their first effort, and they’ve since been pretty quiet since 2007. Big Sur was one of their best songs. Ah, so young and full of promise. I miss those days…

Eight Years of Trannies In Trouble

Yet another year has passed with Trannies in Trouble online now for eight years. I’m always amazed when March rolls around, and usually this time of year I mention the Iraq war, which was just gearing up when I went online with the site back in ’03. Well, the war’s apparently officially over, though of course things are still a mess over there. Barring any unforeseen catastrophe – such as the internet imploding – I’m looking forward to the site humming along for many more years to come. I’ve really got my eye on year nine and especially year ten, which will be here in no time, and then onward into double digits. Really the site has been one of the best things in my life so far and I can’t imagine not doing it. And I have to give a huge thank you to everyone who’s supported the site over the years – I really couldn’t do it without you! So here’s to the next year and the next and onward!

Memorial for Paul Logan, March 27th / Club Fantasy, April 1st

I just learned that the memorial service for Paul Logan (aka Chainguy) will be held on Sunday, March 27th, from 1 PM to 3 PM at the Threshold clubhouse in North Hollywood, California. I’m going to go out there a couple days before so that I can also go to the Femme Fatale party at Threshold on Friday, March 25th and hang out with friends who knew Paul. And then I decided I may as well stay that week and go to the Club Fantasy party on April 1st. That’s always my favorite party but it’ll probably be tough this time, since Paul was a regular there every month. He was the kind of friend where everything felt better once he showed up. It was always, “Oh cool, Paul’s here, now I can relax.” There will be a lot of people there who knew him, though, so I suspect we’ll probably all hang out in the back room and have a good time.

If you’re on Fetlife, here’s more information on the Memorial Service for Paul.

And the Threshold website here.

Some Recent California Pics

Well, it’s taken me a while here but I finally have some preview pictures from the last California trip, which was a lot of fun. Here are some nice shots with Kaitlynn Nguyen (some more of them will be going up Friday on the site). Also my cute friend Vicky whom I’ve known for several years from the Club Fantasy parties, where we’ve spent many fun evenings hanging out, and a few more of yours truly in distress.

That strappado in particular was tough! Oh, and that steel hogtie out on the patio was equally so. It’s bittersweet for me looking at many of these pictures since more than half of them were shot by Paul (Chainguy) who just suddenly passed away. There will be no replacing such a good friend, of course, but I know he’d want his pictures to be seen and enjoyed. I’m still waiting on word on his memorial service, which will likely be later this month. I’ll post more here when I hear the final date and also in the Yahoo Group for those who knew Paul and want to attend. I’m sure it will be packed.

Sad News About Paul Logan

Some readers here I’m sure have already heard the news that my good friend Paul (aka Chainguy) recently had a major health crisis and passed away in the hospital on Saturday, February 26th. He was 51. These last few days have been tough and I’ve been having a hard time believing that he’s really gone. He was a very good friend with a dry and clever sense of humor, and he also had a huge impact on Trannies In Trouble, shooting many of the galleries on the site.

I’m just waiting on news of the upcoming memorial to be held for him, most likely at the Threshold Clubhouse in L.A., where he was very active and where I often hung out with him at the Club Fantasy parties and at other events, and where we did quite a few shoots over the years. Flying back to California under these circumstances will be heartbreaking but I would regret it forever if I didn’t make it to the memorial service. He was loved and appreciated by many and I’m sure there will be a huge turnout. I don’t know yet when I’ll be leaving but it’ll probably be in a week or two. I’m going to keep this short but will write more about Paul later when I feel more confident about things. The shock is wearing off but I’m left with that empty feeling of disbelief as I go about my day.

Ts in Trouble on Tiffany’s Trapped Transvestite Caps

Tiffany Manners has a terrific captions blog, definitely one of my favorites, with lots of sexy pictures and clever captions. We recently exchanged some emails and she graciously agreed to do her caption treatment on a few of my shots. She has two series, here and here, and also another set of pictures with a Latin theme, which she did while on vacation in Cuba. Thanks so much, Tiffany – Nice work! Her entire blog is worth checking and she has a wicked and very sexy imagination ;-)

Anyone Know This Pic?

A friend in California gave me a copy of this wonderful picture, which I scanned here, and I was wondering if anyone knows anything about the photographer or model, or if there are any other shots that go with this one? It looks like it could be an old Irving Klaw picture, although I’m not sure if it’s exactly his style. In any case it’s a lovely shot and a great outfit and tie. If you’re familiar with it, please feel free to leave a comment below or to email me directly. Thanks so much!

Update – Thanks for the comments and to everyone who emailed me directly. Yes, it does look like the lady in question is Pia Sands from an old Harmony magazine. Here’s another pic below that a reader just sent me. The wild hair at first threw me, but I’m guessing that it’s probably just bunched up behind her back, since everything else – the outfit, hose, heels, gloves, tie, even the blotchy carpet – all seem to match up. So if anyone has any more scans from this set, feel free to email them to me – I won’t mind! ;-)

Update 2-28-11 – Another reader kindly sent in a few more nice color pics from the Pia Sands gallery, so here are a couple more below. Check out those seamed stockings!

Update 3-15-11 – Another kind reader sent in another Pia Sands shot from a different set of pictures. It makes you wonder if these shots were all done at the same photoshoot. She’s wearing the same heels and it’s probably the same room with that same carpet. Hmm, interesting…

Heading Back to Denver

Well, here I am sitting in the Sacramento airport listening to the bland smooth jazz muzak. My flight was cancelled so they routed me up here before heading back to Denver later tonight. I don’t know what it is about travelling that makes me so, well, horny, but I’ve got it bad tonight. I did buy a few old Harmony reprints of John Willie and Irving Klaw photos at the My Kinky Valentine event the other day, so maybe I’ll have to check those out later in the wee hours ;-)

It was a nice visit in L.A. this past week or so, and I got to do several fun photoshoots including one with Chainguy, where I did a very strict self-hogtie in steel restraints, crawling on my stomach to get to the keys at the other end of the patio. I’ll try to post a few preview pics in a couple days once I’m home and back to normal. And then will have to make an effort to go out this weekend – I think to Hamburger Mary’s most likely – to try to minimize any post-L.A. crash, which has been known to happen.

Busy in L.A.

It’s been a whirlwind of busy-ness here in L.A. After the Club Fantasy party and the corset tea I’ve been able to do several photoshoots, go back to Theshold for another party on Saturday, see some friends and even get in a little shopping. Just taking it easy today and trying to re-group before the next weekend. I’ll be checking out Threshold’s My Kinky Valentine this Saturday and probably shooting at least once more before I head back to Denver (I hear it’s really cold!) next week.

Terrific Party at Club Fantasy

We had a wonderful turnout at the Club Fantasy party last night – well over 30 people with a lot of play going on. It was really nice to see so many friends and meet some nice new people too. Then today I went with a good friend to a “corset tea” salon at the Hollywood and Highland Center and met some more nice people, including a charming lady whom I had the pleasure of sitting next to. The great thing about being in Hollywood and walking around crossdressed is that no one bats an eye, except for maybe the tourists, in which case I’m just playing my role in the ongoing freak show. That’s certainly one thing I miss about L.A.

Been listening to: I recently heard “Ghost of Love” again, from David Lynch’s super-bizarre “Inland Empire,” back in 2006. The hypnotic thing’s been going through my mind since. David Lynch even does the singing (what can’t he do?), though his voice is so heavily processed that I wasn’t sure if it was a man or a woman when I first heard it.

The Bieber: Is it wrong that I kind of want to see the upcoming Justin Bieber movie?

The Brick Testament on Transvestism

I promise I won’t turn this into a big Biblical blog, but this guy the Reverend Smith (who is described as “both highly presumptuous and extremely vain”) made a bunch of Bible illustrations using Legos. The one on good ol’ Deuteronomy 22:5 about crossdressing is pretty amusing. You can check it out here and be sure to click on the little forward arrows on the right side of that page to see the other illustrations. They’re all really clever – I especially liked the ones on “Homosexuality,” “Bestiality,” “When to stone your children” and “Sexual Discharges.” Funny stuff.

Jay Bakker on Huffington Post

I just read a very interesting article from Jay Bakker, the son of Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker, about his visit with his wife to an L.A. drag show. At the time he was moving towards becoming a “gay-affirming pastor” but was still uncertain about whether he really wanted to be seen at the club. The night however turned out to be a turning point for him, with the drag queens welcoming him warmly and talking about Jesus’s love. It’s a terrific story and he seems like a really cool guy. There’s also another good blog post about him from Cathleen Falsani on his views on gays and the church that’s also very interesting (and check out those tattoos!) Apparently they had to close the comments on that particular post because things got so heated.

His basic argument is that homosexuality really is not a sin. He points out that the Bible contains so many laws against things that we now treat as no big deal (eating shellfish, for example) and all kinds of calls for actions that are illegal (killing this or that sinner or non-believer), and that the three references in the New Testament that do appear to deal with homosexuality may be using words that aren’t even translated correctly. He makes a very good and passionate argument and the article suggests a growing movement of some evangelical churches to fully embrace gays and lesbians, and not in that creepy “we love you but you can’t do any of that gay stuff” kind of way.

Both blog posts are very good, and the whole Bible and gays question is always fascinating, even for a heathen like me.