The first image I wanted to be

It snuck up on me around Christmas 1986 and left a lasting, defining impression. I had experimented with dressing by then, but I figured I was safe enough going to see a family fantasy film. One I still love, and not just for this scene near the end.

Cut for those not wanting my weirdness to ruin their childhood...

Sarah's ball gown in Labyrinth.

In the transition where she was caught in a romantic dream, I went from having good fun and thinking Jennifer Connelly was beautiful as well as an identifiable hero to, well...

Here I am, 27 1/2 years later, still dreaming of finding myself wearing a ball gown, changed and dressed and styled without my knowledge, corseted and petticoated and dressed in a dream of a gown, looking so beautiful...