How Wearing Heels Gave Me The Confidence I Didn’t Know I Needed

Putting on my first pair of high heels as a gay person boosted my confidence to new heights – and you can do it, too.

If you’re opening this blog post for the first time through a Google search, you’re probably expecting a girl to be writing about high heels, right? 

Wrong! 

I’m a dude who is a big flaming ball of gayness who just so happens to wear heels every so often when he’s feeling risqué. 

Listen, if I can’t afford to be a drag queen, I have to do the next best thing. 

Now, let’s get into the good stuff: if it wasn’t already clear by now, I love wearing heels and bending those dumb and stupid gender stereotypes that only girls can wear heels. 

Before I ever even considered slipping on a pair of heels, the only people who I thought could pull them off were either drag queens or actual women. And that’s where I was wrong about myself – because little did, I know, I would end up loving the hell out of wearing them. 

It all started at a drop-in dance studio here in Winnipeg. I was working part-time at the front desk where I would check people in and watch in awe as people danced in the studio next to me. As someone who has quite the lengthy background in dance, I was beyond jealous as I sat in a chair watching people live their best lives. 

But it all changed when I was working one night, and I caught myself staring at one class in particular that was going on: Sexy Street Jazz. Basically, like jazz, hip hop, and dancing in stilettos all in one. I couldn’t stop looking at the one guy in the class out of all the other girls, who was wearing six-inch stilettos. And btw – he was completely tearing up the dance floor. It was fabulous. 

My boss happened to be teaching the class that night, and after it was over, I asked her how I could start dancing in heels like that. She told me to buy this pair of open-toed “sock booties” from Call It Spring (sadly, this is not a Call It Spring partnership). 

They were almost four inches and the heel were a stiletto style, which seemed like a lot at first, but they were actually pretty comfortable! I went in the next day to the nearest Call It Spring and I bought the heels. 

And before I knew it, I was taking Sexy Street Jazz classes every single week and absolutely loving it. I had such a fun time dancing in heels I ended up performing at Pride Winnipeg 2019 alongside other heels dancers from the studio. Being able to express myself so freely in front of that many people will be a moment I cherish forever. 

I unfortunately don’t have a video of the performance, but here’s a fun screen grab of when we performed the Pride dance at the drop-in studio’s year-end showcase:

Aldin standing on a stage surrounded by four other girls. All of them are wearing black high heels and black shorts with different coloured t-shirts.

As a gay man, I grew up being attracted to girls before I entered high school, because that’s what my family taught me. I didn’t get to truly express myself until after high school when I had access to my own money and job – and ultimately, my first pair of my heels.

Even though I had to shove my heels in the back of my closet when I wasn’t in class, I never felt more confident and like myself when I was dancing in heels. 

I always felt like I was missing something in my life that would help me with my confidence. I struggled to find what it was for quite some time. Although I don’t wear heels everywhere, I go (I’m not THAT confident yet), whenever I’m feeling low or not so confident, I’ll throw on a pair of heels and I almost instantly feel better about myself. 

Because, yes, I AM that bitch. 

Not only did I gain a new obsession for heels and a huge confidence boost, but I gained so many friends who I can go to a heels dance class with and laugh, have fun, and forget about everything else.

Aldin sitting in a booth at a restaurant with five other friends from the drop-in dance studio in Winnipeg.
Half of the heels crew

I’m not telling you to buy a pair of stilettos and go to a dance class, because it’s not for everyone. If you do want to go to a dance class, I highly encourage you to do it. You will learn so much about yourself.

But what I am telling you, whether you’re a girl or a guy, is to embrace your feminine and girly side and put on some heels. 

Whether they’re a 2-inch pump or a six-inch stiletto, if wearing them makes you feel badass, who cares what other people think? And even if you just put them on for a quick photo, hey, it still made you feel good at the end of the day. And that’s awesome! 

I haven’t been to a heels class in quite some time because I dislocated my knee in August of 2019 and I’m still waiting to get surgery on it (thanks, COVID!)

However, they have made a few appearances on my Instagram, specifically this post and this one, too (feel free to follow me if you aren’t already!)

I hope you enjoyed this week’s post, and I hope it inspired you even a little bit to step out of your comfort zone the next time you go shoe shopping. 

Let me know in the comments: do you wear heels? Or are you more of a sneaker’s kind of gal? 

Cue Taylor Swift singing the lyrics from “You Belong With Me”..

..“She wears high heels, I wear sneakers.”

Anyway.. see you next week! 

My Top 3 Favourite RuPaul’s Drag Race Queens

There are so many good queens from RuPaul’s Drag Race – but we all have a favourite (or more!)

Because, why not?

If you aren’t watching RuPaul’s Drag Race, I have two things to say to you: 1) what’s wrong with you? and 2) you’re really missing out.

Not to brag or anything, but I have seen any and every season, episode, or spin-off version of RuPaul’s Drag Race. From the regular show, to All Stars, to the U.K. version, even the Canadian version!

Ask me and I’ve probably seen it.

So, over the years of my obsessiveness over the show, I have seen my fair share of queens come and go, and naturally, as most gay men do, I OBVIOUSLY have my favourites and my not-so favourites.

So, today, I’ll be talking about my top 3 favourite queens from the franchise, and what about them makes them my favourite.

Let’s get into it!

Alyssa Edwards wearing a blonde wig and pink dress, surrounded by three men in suits.

Alyssa Edwards

Alyssa Edwards is probably one of my all-time favourite queens from RuPaul’s Drag Race. From her iconic lip sync moments, to her tongue pop, and her gigantic wigs, she is everything most drag queens aspire to be, and is literally known as a “walking meme factory.”

Even though Alyssa never won Drag Race or All Stars (which she was EXTREMELY robbed on), she’s made a huge name for herself and is more famous than some of the actual winners. She’s proof that you don’t have to win Drag Race to be well-known, because if you have some of the best lines, you’re sure to be a fan favourite.

Some of my favourite lines from Alyssa’s time on Drag Race include:

  • “Get a grip, get a life, and get over it.”
  • “I don’t get cute, I get drop-dead gorgeous.”
  • “Why the hell you squirpping like a chirrping, like a bird?”
  • “Baby, nothing was notarized. No contracts are signed. My attorney was not present. That was hogwash.”
  • “Reading you is like reading a Walt Disney book, it’s simply too easy.”
  • “BACK ROLLS?”

Even if you don’t know who Alyssa Edwards is, I’m sure some of those lines made you smile or giggle.

P.S. I ended up meeting Alyssa in May of 2019 and I almost pooped myself. She is SO beautiful in person (and extremely tall).

Photo of Shangela, a drag queen, wearing a blonde wig and blue dress against a pink background.

Shangela

One word: Halleloo!

Shangela is another one of my all-time favourites. She was on Drag Race three times, and didn’t win a single time. But did that change a thing? Absolutely not, because Shangela has taken the world on by STORM.

Not only did Shangela serve look after look on the runway, she’s best known for her infamous death drops and amazing lip-syncing skills.

Some may also know her from when she got upset with Mimi Imfurst for saying she probably got all of her looks paid for by a sugar daddy.

If you’re interested, you can watch that brawl (it’s 20 seconds) go down here.

She’s also toured 184 cities, made an appearance in A Star is Born, hosted the GLAAD awards as Beyoncé (AND RECEIVED A STANDING OVATION FROM BEYONCÉ), collaborated with Ariana Grande on her song “NASA,” attended the Oscars, and has a few iconic songs out there. To name a few, there’s “Call me LaQuifa,” “Werqin’ Girl,” and “Sugar Daddy.”

She is also currently starring on the T.V. show We’re Here, where Shangela, and two other Drag Race queens, visit small conservative towns all over the U.S. and host a drag show there.

It’s pretty awesome, and a good tear-jerker.

All-in-all, Shangela has made a name for herself, and rightfully so.

Aquaria, a drag queen, wearing a shoulder-length blonde wig and a sparkly black and gold dress and matching gloves and hat against a gold fabric background.

Aquaria

Aquaria is the winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race season 10 (they are currently filming for season 13), and she is the first generation Z winner of the franchise. But don’t her age fool you – Aquaria is a force to be reckoned with.

Aquaria made a name for herself in the New York nightlife because of her amazing musicality and flexibility, but came up under the wings of legends Susanne Bartsch and Amanda Lepore.

But she’s mainly known for her iconic runway looks and her unique take on fashion trends, which landed her a spot at the Met Gala, where she appeared alongside fellow Drag Race winner from season 7, Violet Chachki.

Aquaria, a drag queen, posing at the Met Gala 2019, wearing a white wig, black dress made out of bows, and long, bedazzled silver fingernails.
Aquaria at the Met Gala. Photo by Broadimage/REX/Shutterstock

She’s also appeared on Vogue Italia, was the face of the M.A.C Viva Glam campaign, and also Jeremy Scott’s Moschino x H&M collaboration. 

Aquaria is still young and has a lot to show, and I can’t wait to see what she does next.

As you can tell, all three of these queens are pretty iconic in their own way, and it was

How A Biden Presidency Will Affect the LGBTQ+ Community

Joe Biden and running mate Kamala Harris are strong supporters of the LGBTQ+ community – but how?

As most of you may know by now, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have been called by the Associated Press as President-elect and Vice President-elect.

In simple terms, Trump is fired. The cheeto is OUT. Hell to the yeah.

But some may be left wondering – how will a Biden presidency affect the LGBTQ+ community, and what does he plan on doing for them?

First, we need to analyze what Trump has done (or in this case, hasn’t done) for the LGBTQ+ community.

Since 2016, Trump has been chipping away at the rights the U.S. has established for our community. He’s barred transgender people from openly serving in the military, rolled back protection for transgender students, prevented U.S. embassies from flying pride flags, and banned the use of the word “transgender” in all reports from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

On top of his policies, Trump has appointed over 200 judges within his term as president. I’m not sure where many of these judges stand on topics like LGBTQ+ rights, but most notably, he appointed judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court. If you don’t know who she is and where she stands on LGBTQ+ rights, here’s a brief rundown from NBC News.

Spoiler alert: She’s never said outright whether or not she supports the LGBTQ+ community, but it’s pretty darn obvious she probably doesn’t!

Now that we’ve got the bad stuff out of the way, how will a Biden presidency affect the LGBTQ+ community?

Well, it’s simple: both Biden and Harris support LGBTQ+ rights, and Biden has promised to undo the damage Trump has caused to our community by making the Equality Act a top priority in his first 100 days as president. Kamala Harris has also been an advocate for transgender women of colour, and ending the epidemic of violence against them.

Although Biden hasn’t walked in a pride yet (based off a quick Google image search) he’s still been a huge advocate for the community since his time as vice president from 2009-2016.

However, Kamala Harris wore a FABULOUS bedazzled rainbow denim jacket to San Francisco’s Pride 2019:

Kamala Harris at a Pride festival in San Francisco, wearing a bedazzled jean jacket which is rainbow patterned.
Photo credit: Gabrielle Lurie/The San Francisco Chronicle, via Getty Images

Although we have two big LGBTQ+ allies coming in, it’s going to take some time to fix the damage Trump has already done. But one’s thing for certain – we’re finally back in good hands.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be celebrating Trump getting kicked out with some wine and a mini cake from Sobeys.

Let me know in the comments: are you looking forward to a Biden-Harris presidency?

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