Tuesday, September 07, 2004

FFS Checkup, Street corners, and the Army of Kates

I was in the city tonight for a checkup with Dr. O. He asked me how things were going. I said there was still areas of numbness on top of my head, the scar line inside my mouth was still tight, and that my chin had a bump that was sore to pressure. He said the scar inside my mouth would continue to loosen, but he wasn’t sure about my chin since he said he worked well above that area.

We also discussed noses. Actually, I mentioned it, but he said he didn’t want to talk about it until after a year of healing since it was still fairly stiff.

We did talk about a hairline revision on my temples. He said he could usually get about 1.5cm in the process, obviously an easier job the longer I waited while the skin stretched more. Looking at my hairline, I would say that the right side needs about 2cm, while the left needs an advancement of about 1.5cm. He said that he’d start with the higher one first since he’d have more skin to work with. Makes sense. He told me that I’d lose any sensation on the top of my head that I had recovered by now, and that I would have to start all over again. Fun…just what I want. Last time, he said it was hit or miss on if he would actually cut the nerve again. I think this time he told me the bad news so that I wouldn’t get my hopes up if I lost sensation entirely. He also said that he’d perform the procedure under local anesthesia. Hmmm…even more fun.

The price: $2,700

Well, at least it is cheaper than lipo and it will definitely get the job done.

After talking to Dr. O, Rachel #5 and I ate dinner at a nice little Mediterranean restaurant where we both ate $7 salads that probably cost only a buck to make. It was nice to chat for a while, though. As we talked about our careers and futures beyond SRS, Rachel, who’s finished with transition, said that she moved into a new career and a new city. She said that before she moved here, every street corner she saw around her place held a memory of living as a man. She didn’t want that any more. I don’t blame her. I’ve lived in a lot of different places in my life and although I lived in most of those places as a guy, I still think I could go back to them. The hard part is dealing with people who know you that just don’t get it, or the ones who totally see you as some type of freaking weirdo. I told her I might move on some day as well...but I'm almost tired of moving.

We also talked about growing older since she just recently turned 30. I mentioned my nasolabial fold injections and she asked me why I had them done. I told her they were my own street corners, and I didn’t like revisiting them. They reminded me too much of being a man.

Finally, I call Rachel “Rachel #5” because I know five TS “Rachels” in the Bay Area. In the land of online TS forums, though, the name Kate reigns supreme. Why is that, one may ask? Well, part of it could be Authentikate, while the other could be that there are an exuberant amount of transsexuals whose boy name starts with a “K” but they can’t find a good girlie “K” name other than Kate (and Kara, of course). On the forum, all of the Kate’s are known as the Army of Kates since they are gradually taking over the world, and thus, spreading the “transsexual agenda.” Surprisingly, though, I only know one TS Kate here in the Bay Area.

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