It started out with the Transgender March Friday night. I saw a bunch of the usuals, as well as a lot of new faces. This was the first year I haven’t talked, nor volunteered to help. I figured I would just participate this year.
I’m going to be fairly honest here. The Transgender March is a great idea. The people putting it together do a fantastic job. They are out there making it happen for the rest of us that don’t. One of the problems I see, however, is there is a totally different tone between the Dyke March (which I will chat about later) and the Transgender March.
The Dyke March is a celebration. The Transgender March might be, but it seems more like a child barely staying afloat in a pool...grasping for air...fighting to simply keep her head above water. It feels like the organizers are fighting...fighting for their survival...fighting to be heard. It doesn’t feel like they are celebrating...they are out to say, we’re here...fuck you.
They also made political statements. I don’t know...perhaps the Dyke March was once like that, but it no longer is.
The Dyke March was the following night. I hung out with friends and teammates, and just had a good time. The march was slightly longer, and there was way more nudity, but there was far less in the way of feeling like an oppressed group.
For Pride, I helped work a margarita booth, then volunteered at the TGSF booth since they didn’t have enough people to staff both the float, margarita booth, and the TGSF booth. I spent a few hours hanging out there, saying hello to other people related to the transgender world, and handing out flyers I helped put together a few years ago. It was actually pretty cool, and some of the music from the Transgender Stage wasn’t too bad, either.
This is where things get interesting.
I was standing there when a young woman walks up to me. I look at her for a second until I realize she’s the daughter of one of my teammates...teammates that I have never told.
Her mom’s are standing a few steps away.
We say our hello’s.
One of them looks at the Transgender San Francisco sign in the booth I am standing in front of.
They don’t say anything. Neither do I.
We say our good-byes, and they head to watch the Transgender stage. I stay there.
Honestly, I have no idea if they know or not, or if this will make them ask questions. I can only be me.
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Friday, June 22, 2007
Harisu
It’s always nice to hear positive stories about transgender people. In this case, Harisu, the hot transsexual woman from Korea, recently married her super secret boyfriend. It’s awesome that she was able to do that considering she lives in a fairly conservative Asian society. Of course, she’s also uber hot...but hopefully that didn’t have anything to do with it.
Anyway, good luck to her and her new hubby. I hear they’re even talking about adopting kids.
Anyway, good luck to her and her new hubby. I hear they’re even talking about adopting kids.
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Hijab
We had a Middle Eastern woman start working in our building not too long ago. She wears half traditional garb and half western clothes. Thus, she wears something to cover most of her head such that only her face is showing. Supposedly the hijab is worn so that men cannot see them.
Recently, I came out of the bathroom stall and went to wash my hands. She was at the sink as well, but wasn’t wearing her cover since there were no men in there. It felt kinda weird seeing her like that...as though I was intruding on her in some way...like I was glimpsing into a different world. It almost felt like I was seeing her naked, but, yet, she was wearing everything except her head cover while she readjusted her hair.
Recently, I came out of the bathroom stall and went to wash my hands. She was at the sink as well, but wasn’t wearing her cover since there were no men in there. It felt kinda weird seeing her like that...as though I was intruding on her in some way...like I was glimpsing into a different world. It almost felt like I was seeing her naked, but, yet, she was wearing everything except her head cover while she readjusted her hair.
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Paying the bills
SRS itself cost me around $17,000. The labiaplasty added about $4500. I put the first amount on a very fortunate credit card that had low interest for anything purchased during a certain window...which for me just happened to be the window around my surgery. I paid for labiaplasty via money I had in other funds. So, that left me with the $17,000 credit card debt at around 3% interest. I’ve been paying it off about $500 per month...on top of the $600 a month I’m still paying on my FFS debt. Yes, it hasn’t left me with much outside of rent the past 2 years.
It’s been 28 months since I had SRS, which at $500 per month, left me with about a $2600 bill. I figured I’d go ahead and pay all of it off since I had a little extra in the bank account.
Ahhhh...it’s nice to finally pay off one of them. I still have FFS to go, but it’s down under $10,000 now. Since I’ll now have $500 a month extra to work with, I can try to get it paid off soon, too.
So, yes, I’ve been on a spending crunch the past few years...trying to get through the financial hardships of transition. Going all the way back to January 2002 with my first electrolysis, I’ve spent over $100,000 on all of it...spread out over the past 5 and a half years. I’ve paid all but about $10,000 of it. That’s a lot of money...considering it could have gone toward a house or something, but, oh well, that’s transition.
Of course, I’m still looking at a few procedures. I figure to hit Dr. O later this year for a little jaw touch up on one side. After recovering from that, it should be on for some type of face lift dealing with the extra skin around the chin, capped off with hair implants along the front portion. I’m still up in the air about who to see for the facelift, but do have a couple of leads for the hair transplants.
There’s also a few items I’d like to buy that don’t deal with transition. My car is now over 12 years old. I could use new living room furniture and entertainment system. A new computer is also on the horizon...but, I’m just now coming out of debt...it would be nice to breathe some fresh air for a while before tunneling back down.
It’s been 28 months since I had SRS, which at $500 per month, left me with about a $2600 bill. I figured I’d go ahead and pay all of it off since I had a little extra in the bank account.
Ahhhh...it’s nice to finally pay off one of them. I still have FFS to go, but it’s down under $10,000 now. Since I’ll now have $500 a month extra to work with, I can try to get it paid off soon, too.
So, yes, I’ve been on a spending crunch the past few years...trying to get through the financial hardships of transition. Going all the way back to January 2002 with my first electrolysis, I’ve spent over $100,000 on all of it...spread out over the past 5 and a half years. I’ve paid all but about $10,000 of it. That’s a lot of money...considering it could have gone toward a house or something, but, oh well, that’s transition.
Of course, I’m still looking at a few procedures. I figure to hit Dr. O later this year for a little jaw touch up on one side. After recovering from that, it should be on for some type of face lift dealing with the extra skin around the chin, capped off with hair implants along the front portion. I’m still up in the air about who to see for the facelift, but do have a couple of leads for the hair transplants.
There’s also a few items I’d like to buy that don’t deal with transition. My car is now over 12 years old. I could use new living room furniture and entertainment system. A new computer is also on the horizon...but, I’m just now coming out of debt...it would be nice to breathe some fresh air for a while before tunneling back down.
Monday, June 18, 2007
Red Without Blue
The Frameline Film Fest coincides with much of the Pride activities in San Francisco. I looked over the films and decided to see Red Without Blue...with a few friends tagging along.. I’d seen previews of the film in the past (at another trans film showing) and it looked really interesting.
The documentary film is about a pair of twin boys...one of which grew up to be a girl (Claire). The other turned out to be a gay boy (Mark).
The film shows a few old clips of the young boys growing up, followed by recent shots of the two of them in different situations...one male, the other female. The film doesn’t dwell on transition, but more on the people and their lives...where they have been, what they have been through, and where they are trying to go in life....which, honestly, I found very refreshing.
The film does show some of the stuff Claire has had to go through, including a very bizarre trip to an electrologist, but transition was more of a side story. It also showed the lives of their entire family...including their separated parents. Their mom appears to be a repressed lesbian...living with her female friend in a very close relationship...yet, she blatantly states she isn’t gay. Seeing their mom progress with time is actually a very interesting character development. Their father, unique in his own way, is highly supportive of Claire...which almost makes you want to give him a big hug right there.
Overall, I would say it was an excellent film. It is due to run on the Sundance channel...and would definitely be a film to catch...if you can.
Since both Claire and her brother now reside in San Francisco, they, along with the film makers, were present at the film showing. Beth and I introduced ourselves afterward before heading off to grab dinner. She seems like a really nice person, but wow, I’m not sure I would like that much of my life up on screen. Sure, I post stuff in here, but it’s not living breathing full technicolor...it’s just silent black and white.
The documentary film is about a pair of twin boys...one of which grew up to be a girl (Claire). The other turned out to be a gay boy (Mark).
The film shows a few old clips of the young boys growing up, followed by recent shots of the two of them in different situations...one male, the other female. The film doesn’t dwell on transition, but more on the people and their lives...where they have been, what they have been through, and where they are trying to go in life....which, honestly, I found very refreshing.
The film does show some of the stuff Claire has had to go through, including a very bizarre trip to an electrologist, but transition was more of a side story. It also showed the lives of their entire family...including their separated parents. Their mom appears to be a repressed lesbian...living with her female friend in a very close relationship...yet, she blatantly states she isn’t gay. Seeing their mom progress with time is actually a very interesting character development. Their father, unique in his own way, is highly supportive of Claire...which almost makes you want to give him a big hug right there.
Overall, I would say it was an excellent film. It is due to run on the Sundance channel...and would definitely be a film to catch...if you can.
Since both Claire and her brother now reside in San Francisco, they, along with the film makers, were present at the film showing. Beth and I introduced ourselves afterward before heading off to grab dinner. She seems like a really nice person, but wow, I’m not sure I would like that much of my life up on screen. Sure, I post stuff in here, but it’s not living breathing full technicolor...it’s just silent black and white.
Friday, June 08, 2007
Morally Straight
I saw a Cub Scout the other day. Seeing him made me remember back to my days of scouting...it also made me realize something else.
When I was in Cub Scouts and Webelos, I had a lot of fun. I'm not sure if it was because we were younger and I had fun with the other kids, or because I did a lot of stuff with my dad. When I joined Boy Scouts, I really didn't like it. Half the time, the scout meeting was spent playing video games (yes, they had them back in the 80's).
My father was an Eagle Scout. It's one of the highest ranks you can obtain in the Boy Scouts. In scouting, you go from the Cub Scouts, to Webelos, to the Boy Scouts....or, well, that's the way it flowed back then. You go from Webelo to Tenderfoot when you join Boy Scouts. I think I made it to the next level of Second Class or something before I cautiously and very frighteningly told my dad that I no longer wanted to be in scouts. In a response that caught me off guard, my parents, even my dad, expressed no disappointment in my decision.
Now that I look back, though, I realize the only time I had fun in Boy Scouts was when my dad was around. He made the whole experience fun. I enjoyed spending time with him on the different activities.
I was never much of a fisherman. I don't know what it is, but touching a fish is just kinda yucky for me. I could put a worm on a hook, but any time I caught a yucky fish, my dad was there to take it off the line.
When I was in Cub Scouts and Webelos, I had a lot of fun. I'm not sure if it was because we were younger and I had fun with the other kids, or because I did a lot of stuff with my dad. When I joined Boy Scouts, I really didn't like it. Half the time, the scout meeting was spent playing video games (yes, they had them back in the 80's).
My father was an Eagle Scout. It's one of the highest ranks you can obtain in the Boy Scouts. In scouting, you go from the Cub Scouts, to Webelos, to the Boy Scouts....or, well, that's the way it flowed back then. You go from Webelo to Tenderfoot when you join Boy Scouts. I think I made it to the next level of Second Class or something before I cautiously and very frighteningly told my dad that I no longer wanted to be in scouts. In a response that caught me off guard, my parents, even my dad, expressed no disappointment in my decision.
Now that I look back, though, I realize the only time I had fun in Boy Scouts was when my dad was around. He made the whole experience fun. I enjoyed spending time with him on the different activities.
I was never much of a fisherman. I don't know what it is, but touching a fish is just kinda yucky for me. I could put a worm on a hook, but any time I caught a yucky fish, my dad was there to take it off the line.
Friday, June 01, 2007
Gay Month
They should just change June to Gay. If you were born on 6/11/83, you would say you were born on Gay 11th, 1983. April, May, Gay, July... It works so well with May.
Anyway, there are a ton of LGBT activities later in the month. There is, of course, San Francisco Pride on June 23-24, with the Transgender March on June 22nd. 'Transgender Week' is the week before SF Pride.
Frameline also has their LGBT movies running from June 14-24.
I'm probably missing a bunch of items, but those are the ones I'm looking forward to now.
...hmmm...I wonder if they would rename the June Bug to Gay Bug, as well.
Anyway, there are a ton of LGBT activities later in the month. There is, of course, San Francisco Pride on June 23-24, with the Transgender March on June 22nd. 'Transgender Week' is the week before SF Pride.
Frameline also has their LGBT movies running from June 14-24.
I'm probably missing a bunch of items, but those are the ones I'm looking forward to now.
...hmmm...I wonder if they would rename the June Bug to Gay Bug, as well.
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