Groups and Organizations

So….. to join you click on the website link which routes you back to Yahoo groups where you have to send a request to join. The request to join asks that you give a reason in 200 characters why you want to join the group. No problem except it turns out 200 characters is hardly anything at all and to be honest what other details could they possibly need other than the fact I am the wife of a TG husband?? Anyway filled in as much as 200 characters would allow and sent the request.

In this post, the soulmate of a transitioning M-to-F discusses the various support and email groups she has been a part of over the years and some of the frustrations she has experienced.  Groups and Organizations, while written as a post specifically referring to her experiences in the UK, really applies to the experiences and frustrations of transgender folks anywhere.

As an aside, I remember, years ago, when I tried to join the Angels, only to be denied because I didn't live in the UK.  It seemed at the time that the only alternative in the States was Tri-Ess and I had plenty of issues with that organization.  It was nine years ago when I discovered a new group in Northern California, the Gems.  They're open to all flavors of TG.  Spouses are welcome.  Just a wonderful organization and you don't have to live in the area to be a member of their fabulous email group.

I'd like to add a section on the T-Central home page for local organizations.  If you are a member of one and truly believe in them, please send me the link to their website.

ObserVation: Her Stash and Me

Here some of my heel boxes stacked to be stashed. So I took the first storage box and systematically started to rummage. I sorted under-wear and shape-wear from the over-wear. Colours together if I could and packed it all under pressure again back into the boxes but with method(the creases ugh!).
With the heels I checked each box for content and noted the relocation co-ordinates. I didn’t mark them in any way with content just in case they got exposed to Mrs.A eagle eye. Even just numbering them was not on. I think I am a little paranoid with this.

As with any self-respecting and somewhat closeted crossdresser, Abi has a growing stash.  In this long, yet light and humorous post, Abi discusses, in much detail, the organization of her stash and also alludes to the perils of a closeted crossdresser.....such as trying out new shoes on the 45 meter hallway at work, after hours.

ObersVation: Her Stash and Me, is from Abigale's Airings.

Rediscovering my feminine side

After more than a year of smooshing the boys down, here they were, hoisted up beyond anything reasonable. And I felt…dare I say it…pretty. In a good way, for once. Not dysphoric, although it did feel strange to be wearing anything remotely sexy. I didn’t feel like a woman, either. Just like a guy playing around with gender expression. I wouldn’t want to do it all the time or even most of the time, but I liked it enough that said garment is now a part of my underwear drawer, as are some matching frilly knickers. :)

Vince is transmasculine.  There's no discussion of detransitioning in this post but, rather, Vince's commentary on gender identification via clothing.  Why can't a man (or a transman) wear a skirt?  Rediscovering my feminine side, is from Vince's blog, Becoming Vincent.

The Promised Land

Cassidy made a promise to her readers last week to post once a week from here on, to exercise those writing muscles. 

She has done so much more for us. 

She remembers where she was five years ago; a seeker, and how important certain blogs were in her search for what exactly was going on and how she might deal with it. Cassidy gives back. 

Being able to follow along as they did something I had never dared imagine was possible was incredibly important and inspiring. Their decision to share that journey helped me immeasurably on my own.

... another, equally important reason, is to hopefully be a record that someone else who was/is in the same place I was five years ago can look at and say, "If she can do it, then maybe I can too."

Head on over to read The Promised Land and leave Cassidy a big thank you. 

Epic. Iconic. Mine.

If there were a Maslow’s Hierarchy of feminine presentation, battling for the peak of the pyramid would be a handful of epic designs, pieces so desirable, timeless and celebratory of womanhood that generations of women lust for them. Me too.

 

 

Only Petra could have written that line, above.

 

Do you remember Petra?  

 

Well, this featured post, from Petra, is nearly a month late because I just found it.  Way down at the bottom of the T-Central home page is a group of long neglected blogs.  Every month or so, I check that list of blogs for broken links, blogs that have gone private, etc., and clean up the list.  Imagine my surprise when I found that the lovely and fashionable Petra had returned from a long hiatus.....over two years since her last post.

 

If you're into fashion - and a well written blog post - you'll enjoy, Epic.  Iconic.  Mine., from Petra.

“I Know I’m Trans…What Do I Do Now??”

Dara Hoffman-Fox is a licensed Professional Counselor and a gender therapist.  Although her site is a commercial site, rather than one of our typical personal blog sites, it's worth a visit.  

Dara has started a multi-part video blog titled I Know I'm Trans.... What Do I Do Now??.  Go here for Part One.

Not Finished Yet

Transsexuals don't have a lock on all the shame and guilt in the world. There are all sorts of reasons to bash yourself minute to minute because you don't feel you are right, or belong.



A good post, from Halle, who discusses some of her thoughts following her decision to transition. The title of this post, Not Finished Yet, is rather open for interpretation but, hopefully, Halle is telling us that she's not finished blogging yet.

The Transgender Kids Are Changing Everything

What is different about these kids and teens is not that they stand up against the scrutiny of adults who don't approve, but rather that they truly seem unaffected by any negativity aimed at them. 



The Transgender Kids Are Changing Everything, is a nice, positive post from Brianna. 

Brianna, who I don't think we have featured before is a "reporter-columnist since 2000", and "has reported on a wide variety of LGBT related events, written reviews and conducted interviews for magazines and websites." 

Another Authenticity Post

I asked myself, was I inauthentic for all of those years leading up to transition?  No.  And yes.  “Is it possible that I’m still being inauthentic today?”  Absolutely.  “Am I closer to authentic today than I was 4 years ago?  I think so.   What is it that makes me inauthentic?  What does it mean to live an authentic life?  Does it mean telling everyone every little detail about my life and my inner thoughts?  God I hope not!

It's a very authentic post from Lesboi pondering un-authenticity.  Got it?  Another Authenticity Post, is well written and worth reading. 

(Sorry, Don.  I'm a bit late in featuring this post)

I Already Knew

I don't remember saying yes, or okay when he said he had to see a transgender therapist to get the coveted recommendation letter for a physician to prescribe hormone replacement therapy.  When it was my turn to talk to the psychiatrist, I don't recall what words I used.  I must have said all the right things. My husband got his letter.



I Already Knew, is a from-the-heart post from Mary, the Trans-Gentle Wife.

Benjamin's legacy

There are some highly intelligent people who are transgender and transsexual and none to my knowledge suffer from mental illness. If anything they have suffered and tolerated dysphoria to a degree many people would find unbearable. We don't need to fix them we need to fix society which is something Benjamin repeated several times in his landmark book.

We should not be fighting amongst ourselves but instead focus on letting all people live with a degree of dignity and respect that all humans deserve regardless of their gender identification.


Oh, Joanna says it so well.  She, like myself, has been on a life-long quest to discover why she is the way she is.  In that journey, she discovered the writings of Harry Benjamin, a German born, American endocrinologist and sexologist widely known for his clinical work with transsexualism [from Wikipedia].   One of Benjamin's best known works, at least in the transgender community, is The Transsexual Phenomenon, which was first published in 1966.


I enjoyed Joanna's comments in her post, Benjamin's legacy.  It's a short post, but worth reading.


By the way, you can always find a link to The Transsexual Phenomenon on the right side of the T-Central home page, under the Articles section.  This is a very easy to read book.  Once I started to read it, I couldn't put it down.  I strongly recommend it.

David Bowie, 1947-2016

Yesterday, I was wondering if T-Central should feature a David Bowie post.  The decision was made this morning when I saw several Bowie posts from our bloggers.

If you scroll down the T-Central home page today, you'll see Bowie related posts from Lucy Melford, Paula's Place, Janitor Queer, Genderfork, and  A Woman Named Sophie. 

I probably missed a few, but there's a reason why Bowie was so endeared by, among others, the trans community.  When I was a confused teen, I knew that there was something different about me.  Hearing tunes like Walk on the Wild Side, by Lou Reed, and Lola, by the Kinks, certainly let me know that I wasn't alone in the world.  The song I liked best, however, was David Bowie's, Rebel Rebel, which reinforced with me the fact that there are indeed boys who wear dresses.

One more post I'll mention is my own Rebel Rebel feature from my old Calie's T-Tunes blog.

You've got your mother in a whirl 'cause she's
Not sure if you're a boy or a girl......

Rest in peace, David.

How Many Bras are Too Many Bras?

I like bras.
 
I love me.




Nadine's comment, above, pretty much says it all in this light-hearted post.   How Many Bras are Too Many Bras?, is from Nadine's blog, Unordinary Style

Orchiectomy II

The mutilation is appalling. Removal of gonads is a monstrous thing to do to almost everyone- apart from the few of us for whom it is simply right.





I have followed Clare Flourish's writings for some time now.  Her style is complex......very unique and always makes her readers think about what she's writing.  The reader clearly feels her emotion, her frustration, and her joy.

Orchiectomy II, is Clare's second post on the subject (referring to the surgical removal of the testicles).  She has a lot to say and it' not just about the title of the most.  There's much more in this, buried between the lines.  Checking out the links in her post will better clarify the focus.

Reflection on the Movie, "The Danish Girl"

For those of you who may not have seen it yet, the recently released movie, "The Danish Girl" has stirred quite a few emotions and many comparatives to not only my own life as a transgender woman, but to many others like myself as well.

For Christen, watching this movie was an emotional experience.  If you haven't seen it yet (I haven't, but I will), read, Reflection on the Movie, "The Danish Girl".