Androgynous Mystery

Woman 12/29/08

I love a good mystery. The twists, the turns, the investigations, the luck, and most satisfying of all, the answer. So, imagine my delight at having not one but two mysteries wrapped into one subject. I’ve searched online, and still no answers, so this is going to be fun for a little while. Though if I never get the answer it will ultimately be very frustrating.

It was the bag that caught my attention. From my vantage point, it was a large cardinal red canvas duffel with “Stanford Rugby” printed on the end panel. White accents, and a white panel across the length of the bag, with a name written in large black basic type.

The owner was wearing a snowboard jacket that was white with a cool grid print that reminded me of a city map. I couldn’t make out any brand markings on the jacket. It had light Carolina blue zippers and hoodie drawstrings. You could make out the grey lining since the jacket was open. There was a pocket on the left bicep and hand pockets lower down. Underneath was an unzipped black fleece and a red tee that I think read “Stanford Alumni”. I’m sure of the “Stanford” but the “Alumni” was partially obscured so I could be wrong.

Here’s the first mystery. The initial assumption was that this person was a guy. After all, large rugby bag with name typically points in that stereotypical direction. But, once I moved seats for a closer look ; shaggy hair like Ellen DeGeneres streaked platinum blonde covering forehead and ears, delicate angular face with slight acne on chin and around mouth, though no facial hair whatsoever. Add the round metal stud protruding out from under the bottom lip and the black eyeliner completed the face. The hands were small, clean and slim with manicured nails. Basically, all signs pointed to a woman. A young one.

She got up to leave and her beltless dark blue skinny jeans revealed a pair of dark green boxer shorts underneath. Her shoes were basic dark blue New Balances, though I cannot be sure. So, for a spilt second, the gender was really in question. Could it just be a wispy slight teenage boy? Or a young woman in college who is wearing a men’s snowboarding jacket, likes boxer shorts, and currently into her androgynous phase?

The second mystery just adds to this delicious stew. The name on the bag was “Jesse Gardner”. Looking up the Stanford Women’s Rugby website revealed no such person on the current or recent alumni roster. No name, nor a matching photo. The Men’s website is undergoing upgrading, but no such person can be found on the existing website. And a Google search has turned up nothing.

If she is not the team, is that bag her boyfriend’s or brother’s? Or a hand-me-down from another family member? It looked fairly new, so it’s not a second generation heirloom.

Two more little clues: a medium plastic Kinokuniya shopping bag, and a light olive-green Manhattan Portage messenger bag.

So, two mysteries. One more so than the other. But certainly both require answers.