THE SHOCKING STOCKING MAN

I am very pleased to share my shocking story with you on this

magnificent bluebird day. Yes, just perfect for a shocking story!

         During the 1970’s, my parents reluctantly sent me off to a co-

educational state college, as opposed to anxiously sending me off to

an all-female college.

               The times were sure changing. My parents were right.

They always seemed to be right.

               I was very fortunate for their “Rightness” about the times.

But I won out in the Battle of the Coed State College!

               My life and education were to take a very welcome,

exciting twist!

My new neighborhood at college was to become the upper floors

of a ten-story co-ed high-rise. The floors somewhat alternated as

either male or female. The seventh and eighth floors were male

while the sixth, ninth and tenth floors were female. Each floor had

four suites, each with four shared rooms and a large community

television lounge to be enjoyed by all.

               As my parents drove away from dropping me off and

moving me into the dormitory, my eyes shed tears while I happily

nearly shook my hands off with waving.

               The adventure had begun, and I embraced it with every

ounce of my strength. I rapidly made many new friends from all five

floors and learned many new games. I learned quickly that games

were key to interaction, which was the key to new friendships and

relationships.

               One evening early in the semester, an odd incident

occurred on my ninth floor. I was sitting in the lounge watching

television. As one girl stood and turned toward her suite, a naked

man stood watching us all as we were viewing the television

program. She screamed and he ran off in the direction of the north

stairwell. Then he screamed back at us before he was suddenly

gone.

               “Can you describe this person, Monica? Tell me anything

that you can remember,” the Resident Assistant asked.

               Hushed silence settled over them as all waited to hear.

               “Naked, but wearing a stocking over both head and neck,”

Monica described.

                “Male or female?” the RA asked.

               “Most definitely male,” Monica responded.

               “Describe him as best as you can,” the RA requested.

“This stocking man was male, definitely male,” Monica

insisted.

The RA realized that no further helpful information would

be forthcoming.

Monica relished the fact that it was she that had stood up

and turned when she did, although she hid this feeling quite well.

News of the incident circulated rapidly, especially among

the upper floors.

Two afternoons later, he appeared at dinner time on the

sixth floor. He used a second stocking to pull back and forth

between his upper thighs in front of three girls waiting for the

elevator. The girls ran off faster than the naked man!

Eight nights later “Stocking Man” made another appearance

at about 3:00 pm on the tenth floor.

Deborah had been watching a soap opera by herself when he

walked into the lounge and sat down in a chair to Deborah’s left.

When she turned to greet the newcomer, she couldn’t believe what

she saw!

He stood up and waved to her.

Deborah ran to her suite yelling as Stocking Man escorted

himself toward the south stairwell. He traveled down one flight to

the ninth floor and proceeded to casually walk over to the

television set and just turned it off. He then disappeared back down

the south stairwell leaving four shocked girls staring at each other.

“Describe him, Deborah,” the RA asked. “Height, weight,

cologne, anything?”

“Oh, he was definitely male. Most definitely!” Deborah said

excitedly.

The RA was called to the ninth floor. She took the report of

just what occurred.

“I thought he was really cute,” Angie said. “Actually,

handsome!’

“I’m looking for a solid physical description,” the RA insisted.

"Hairy, smooth, muscular, tattoos, or scars?” the RA pushed with

frustration.

Nobody had seemed to notice those features, but all would

swear that he was a large male.

“Has anyone ever seen him before or know someone who

has?” the RA asked.

All present gave a negative nod of their head, except Nancy.

“His face looked a bit different, but I recognized everything

from his neck down,” Nancy remarked.

The RA just ignored Nancy.

“I want everyone to be on the lookout for a male in

possession of a woman’s stocking. I’ll alert the RA’s on the men’s

floors. We’ll figure it out,” the RA said confidently. “It appears that

he’s just an exhibitionist.”

The next morning was extremely cold. Stocking Man got off

the elevator on the tenth floor wearing red ear muffs, strolled past

a few girls, stopped and visually shivered, then disappeared through

the south stairwell.

More and more sightings were reported as the semester

continued. Incidents were happening at all times of the day and

night.

Stocking Man was found one morning sitting alone,

watching the early morning news on the television on the sixth

floor. If the girl hadn’t screamed, this incident might have been his

last!

Attendance noticeably increased in the female lounges as

the school year progressed. During the evenings, it was often sit-

on-the-floor room only. The prized seating on the side couches

gave the student a good view of both the television and the rest of

the floor, as well.

Girls from the lower floors ad even other dormitories could

often be found in the television lounges of the sixth, ninth and

tenth floors.

New friends were being made as a result of the uninvited

visitations.

It became very unusual to see a girl sitting alone in the

lounge at any time of the day or night.

Stocking man was spotted as he streaked across the entire

ninth floor. As he prepared to leave the floor, he stuck his buttocks

in the direction of the lounge. He then shook and swayed his

buttocks while some girls yelled and screamed. Others clapped. It

was like an organized performance! Stocking man then turned to

face them, waved, did three jumping jacks and then disappeared

down the north stairwell.

The girls went wild. They each had their own personal

experience with a celebrity in the company and security of others.

The RA appeared, once again desperately hoping for some

means or something to help track down this pervert. But that hope

would only once again be dashed.

“Edna, tell me what you saw,” the RA demanded, her patience

wearing thin. “He had an average physique, average weight and firm

buttocks. He seemed very confident. He knew how to do jumping

jacks well and he teased us. He even thrilled us! He may have

experience as a stripper.”

“I saw him when he first showed up out of the stairwell,”

Vivian volunteered. “He was bigger than my brother’s. I mean,

bigger than my brother. I mean taller. My brother is three inches

taller than I am.” I didn’t think he was very tall, but I agree with

Edna. Average height and weight, and he had very firm buttocks,”

Rachel nodded with a wide smile.

               “Oh brother, he we go,” the RA said as she suddenly

decided to depart.

               Stocking man had become a celebrity!

               The tenth floor taped up a poster board sign saying,

“Welcome Stocking Man, to the tenth floor.”

               Copycats began to occasionally show up.

               “I saw him two different times, and some parts were

different sizes. I’ll bet the second time was a copycat,” Cindy

insisted.

               One girl swore that he had a tattoo on his left buttock, but

if he did, it must have been one of those temporary fake ones, as he

was never seen again sporting it. Another possible theory was that

he had accidently sat on Judy’s cupcake and the purported tattoo

was nothing more than a smudge of chocolate icing.

               The young men of the seventh, eighth and even fourth

floors were not unaffected. It was one thing to prove you were at a

poker game at the time of an incident, but at times it went

considerably further. Suppose you had no alibi because you were

doing your school assignments? Bob Silver wasn’t very happy about

being dragged out of the shower to have his body scrutinized by

three strangers.

               “What makes you guys think you can ravage my body for

kicks? Is this a college fraternity initiation prank, a kangaroo court,

or what?” Bob screamed.

               It was all clearly getting out of hand. The incidents

continued all through the school year. Obviously, the bare

description of witnesses would all be very similar, but in some

instances their might be much variation. People see what they think

they see or see what they want to see, especially when under

duress or intense excitement.

               Come the end of the school year, the identity or capture of

Stocking Man remained unattainable. No one ever spoke to him or

heard him speak. Voice can be a big identifier. He was an average

young man when seen about campus and rather interesting when

observed during one of his incidents. But is it safe to assume that

he was a student, at all? He had never hurt anyone. He was clever in

his co-ordination of his incidents.

               The school year ended with Stocking Man as a celebrity.

               I never revealed to my family any recall of the existence of

Stocking Man for fear that my parents would not allow me to return

to the same school and all my newly acquired friends. It was my

secret to keep.

               I kept my secret just as Stocking Man kept his.

               Things that were debated throughout the past year were if

he even was a student at all, or did he act alone?

               Did he live in the lower floors, or possibly in one of three

nearby dormitories? The suggestion of his being an experienced

stripper was an interesting supposition, but could not be

investigated as the small city offered no such employment. To know

his current home mailing address might be a starting point, but it

could be a needle in a haystack at best.

               The next school year began with me rooming with my

friend, Anna on the ninth floor of the same dormitory.

               For whatever reason, Stocking Man did not make any

return appearances. Did he grow out of his exhibitionism or did he

not return, at all?

               Did an incoming freshman plant one plain tan stocking in

the laundry room? It caused quite a stir! Did somebody else plant it

there? Could it have been intentionally left by Stocking Man himself

just a few months earlier?

               Many of us missed the incidents.

               The subject had become a great way to strike up a

conversation with a stranger and make new friends.

               Stocking Man was clever and smart.

In less than a year he had become a celebrity, and then a

legend, and yet his identity would remain unknown.

               Shocking!

               Just shocking!

               Thank you, Stocking Man!