Takin Care of Business

I have had several friends I see on a regular basis tell me they can't make a comment on the blog and what's up with the advertisements?

It is my understanding,you have to become a member of the blog to make a comment.(no charge) The spot to do it is on the right hand side about 2/3's of the way down.(Almost clear to the bottom.) The only right I have is to censure any haters or trolls.

Now, the ad's...Google pretty much has total say on which ad's you will see. Sometimes they are worthwhile for you sometimes not. An example was the ad I had today from some obscure university I had never heard of. Perhaps they have read my writing?

Why have ad's at all? Bluntly, like Connie, I need the cash and while I know you can make some sort of respectful return on the time you put into a blog, I haven't seen it yet. Easily, I put an hour a day into JJ's for a very small return.

How is the return figured you ask? Good question. Say you like "Joe Blow's Burger Rama" and an ad shows up on the blog and you you check out the ad, I get an itty bitty kick back.

The ad for the book is a good deal, I get a nice kick back from that, while Frock Magazine is an exchange.

So, if you have paid attention, every once in a while, I position the ads in a different place to create more much needed revenue from a community which is notoriously broke.

Then there are those who fund their blogs through a Paypal account (donation). I have always felt bad about that. It seems to put more pressure on something I started doing for fun.

So there you you go, I hope some of this info helps!!!!! 

If You Bought a New Cadillac-Would You Drive It?

Years and years ago, I heard Oprah interview several transgender women and their spouses who decided to stay with them through transition. A couple all the way through SRS. 

She (Oprah) zeroed in on one of the transgender women and asked her about the surgical procedures she endured. Then, she pushed the envelope farther and asked the trans woman about her "sexual" future. In other words, if she had a chance to fall in love and be sexually attracted to a man now-would she "try out" her new "equipment?" After pausing and with her wife sitting there-the trans woman said "no."

I paraphrase here and quote Oprah's quick response as a non believing "if you bought a Cadillac, why wouldn't you drive it?" Which brings me to another point.

Katie and Arin Young, Trans and Looking for Love, BBC

Katie Glover editor and publisher of Frock Magazine recently wrote a thoughtful article for the Independent  about the BBC3 Documentary "If you're young, trans and looking for love" you may want to check out. Katie doesn't "skirt" the issue and gets quickly to the "meaty parts."-or the promise (failed or not) of SRS.


You may want to follow the link above to read it.

My only point to be made is Sex Realignment Surgery should never be presented as a be all end all to any transgender person. After all, sex is sex and gender is gender and many times the two don't have to meet for a trans person to live a meaningful life.

To each his own though, so if you do have a new Cadillac in the garage, don't you at the least have to "test" drive it to keep it usable if you need it?

A Beautiful Frock!

Katie Glover from Frock Magazine just emailed this message: Hi Cyrsti, just a quick heads up to let you know that we have finally published the app version of Frock Magazine containing your column. 



You all can see it here!

If you didn't know, Frock is the world's fastest growing quality bi-monthly transgender and drag magazine. Voted 'Best Niche Magazine' in both 2013 and 2014, Frock is inspiring, entertaining and informative to transgender and drag people and their supporters all over the world.

Check it out!

She's Baaaack!

I am back again on my PC and all is well again in my web world.  Recapping a couple of  items from the Sunday Edition this week, the military was in the transgender news with Chelsea Manning and beyond. Chelsea won the approval to be called "she/woman" and  the U.S. Army has taken a step that makes it more difficult to discharge transgender troops, but other branches of the armed forces have yet to follow.

The Army announced Friday that it was elevating authority to discharge transgender service members from local to the assistant secretary of the Army for manpower and reserve affairs, the highest level to which that authority has ever been assigned.  “In essence, the announcement places a moratorium on dismissals by requiring officers to explain their decision to discharge a transgender soldier to a high-ranking civilian leader, a move many would view as potentially damaging to their careers,” reports USA Today.

We also spotlighted a story on transgender model Andreja Pejic. (above left)  She told Gay Star News about the ten years it has taken her to get to this point in her life. In the article Andreja spoke of knowing the possibility of a MtF gender transition was possible as early as 13, but was hesitant for career reasons and now says there are other trans models in the closet for the same reason.She also mentioned the Leelah Alcorn tragedy. Follow the link above for more.

Finally, a couple of you commented on the addition of a direct link to "Frock Magazine" on the top right hand side of the blog:

1. Sally BendMarch 6, 2015 at 1:39 PM

   Very cool idea putting Frock directly on the front page, hon. What I did was create a page for it within my blog, and then just update the cover image/link on my front page for each issue
2. Pat ScalesMarch 6, 2015 at 2:52 PM

   It was an excellent article in Frock. I am proud of you for your contributions to the T community. We are a diverse bunch in terms of age, interest, proclivities and needs and you surely fill a spot in the T world.
   Pat
3. Thanks to both of you ladies!  In fact Sally, Katie Glover, the editor of Frock mentioned the same idea to me!  And, Pat, Katie and I had actually been "chatting" back and forth for over a year before we could come up with an idea which would possibly work.  Thanks so much for the compliments!!!

Cha-Changes In the Condo

This morning I got brave and did a little more in depth "shuffling" of rooms here in Cyrsti's Condo.

The biggest change is you all can access "Frock Magazine" anytime you want by going to the upper right hand of the blog.  When you move the small tool bar to the right at the bottom, you will get access to a full screen view of Frock.

Then, you can go to page 48 (of course) and see my article! YAY!

I also have tried to remove some links I believed to be underused...especially with a few of the blogs I was linked to.  Similar to so many other things and people in the transgender/cross dresser community-things come and go!!!

I guess you could say, I'm trying to put the blog on a Spring cleaning diet.

Back to the Gender Alphabet

Every once in a while I have to slow down my everyday life again I try to reestablish who I am to others by explaining it all to myself.


In this weeks Cyrsti's Condo Sunday Edition, I responded to a comment from Connie on how I sounded as if I was somehow "talking down to" or "demeaning" cross dressers. Surely, Connie was right, but even more surely I do not feel that way. Ironically, the same subject came up with my VA Doc visit this week. One of his first questions was, "How long have you cross dressed?" Finally (I'm not the sharpest tack in the box) I came up with this answer for the average binary gender civilian: I have been a cross dresser since the age of 12, I have been transgender since birth. It was a "birth right" I didn't ask for but here I am.


Most of the time, at that point, I have to backtrack into the basic difference between gender and sexuality and hope for the best.


My problem is now, I risk offending the very group I respect to the max-cross dressers. After all, I identified with Cd's for decades and even did my best to hide behind my dresses to extend my life. All of it just quit working. I wasn't a cross dresser anymore than I was the macho guy down the street. I just took it all to a point of no return. None of that makes me any better or worse than the next person-cross dresser or transgender!


Finally, in this post, while we are talking about gender words, lets talk about the word I consider a gender slur. That of course is the "tra__ny" word which as far as I know still remains a fave word used by enabled older cis gay men (Rude Paul.) If you have a strong feeling one way or another, Frock Magazine is running a survey you can take here.

Your Holiday Frock!

From Katie Glover, Editor of Frock Magazine :

The brand new Holiday issue of Frock Magazine is now available for desktop computer users at http://frockmagazine.com/frock/.

Read about the plight of a reader who came out and now has to live in her car!

Meet Olesia from Moscow and New York drag legend, Charles Busch.

Who are the 5 most influential trans people in the world today. Find out in this issue.

And meet The Trans Before Christmas plus heaps more. It's all in the new Holiday issue of your favorite free trans and drag mag - Frock! Please help us get this out there by telling all your friends! Now, it's time to hop into your Frock!

And! Don't forget my article "Frock of Ages"!!!!

Sugar Buzz?

I have a couple dear generic friends who have dealt with weight problems as women most of their adult lives. In fact one of them who reads the blog is a pound short of losing 200 pounds!!! Wow Yay!!! Min! (And a totally sweet person.)

When I whine and cry to my partner about being the cause of a "whip lash" neck injury or a facial smirk to a generic; on occasion she will say "I know, I have been an over weight woman-shut up already!" I understand a lifetime of insecurity about my looks!

Of course she is right and we go on with our lives, with or without the world.

The appearance topic is one I will be discussing here in Cyrsti's Condo and in a couple of my Frock Magazine articles. If you are considering a gender transition, how much will appearance play into it?  To put it bluntly, most of us will never be able to achieve a very high level of feminine beauty.  But-if that is all you are after, stay where you are in the system.  After all, jumping from being a cross dresser to a transgender person is a big move and one I would argue has nothing at all to do with appearance.

For what it's worth, here is the path I used.  Very early in the game as I started to venture out, I just wanted to see if I could navigate the feminine world at all.  I found I did have an innate sense of my own style, dressed towards it and managed to blend.  I found that shopping and "walking the malls" looking at myself in mirrors was OK-for awhile.  When I started to interact with the public was when I began to discover how natural I was, or could be. I called it "jumping out of the mirror and into the world."

The process was intensely personal, euphoric and painful at the same time.

If my generic friends were writing this, or if my deceased wife was "ghost writing it", they all would say mere appearance is a shallow gateway into the girl's sandbox. Embracing the layers of a woman's existence is a whole other experience!  Easy to get all dolled up and get your sugar buzz on in your heels and hose princess, but what happens after the buzz? I am so not in to telling others they are right-but they are.

So, if you are considering transitioning, have fun and enjoy the girl part of your appearance but just remember- the sugar buzz always goes away after you have eaten cotton candy and the real world is waiting.

I Didn't Have to Practice

I have two people in my life who have had a difficult time adjusting to who I am. Both from different perspectives.

One is from my distant cross dressing past and the other my deceased wife's sister.  I'm fairly sure I mention them too often here in Cyrsti's Condo.  So, to cut straight to my point, I'm about ready to cut ties with one (sister in law) and on occasion think I'm getting my point across to the other.

Here is the example.  He often sends me YouTube videos of mainly drag queen transformations and critiques them heavily.  Not a problem with that. If I have the time to watch them, I do too.  Today though, he sent me a fairly simple straight forward video involving an effeminate blond man.  I replied, I wish I had his skin and build to work with. He replied back "except the nose." I said wow! That was quite the catty comment, better pull in those claws.

What really got to me was he said "you must be practicing on your feminine responses."  I became more than a little frustrated and said "when will you learn, I'm way past the practice mode."  I just let my natural self come out and here she is. 

Ironically, the whole point fits in well into my Frock Magazine series about transitioning later in life. Indeed what have been my biggest surprises? One was when I found building a new circle of friends was easier to rebuild from scratch; than to babysit the few remaining ones I still had. Who for the most part refused to even consider I wasn't going through some sort of a late mid life gender crises.  (Like the two above.)

So no, I didn't have to practice much. My friends brought the real me out of me. I had it easy. Not having to practice per se' just was icing on the cake. I knew quickly I was doing the right thing.

The pleasant surprise was I didn't know I was getting it this right.

The "Golden Age" of Transitioning?

As sometimes happens, it seems Momma Karma throws a glob of spaghetti up on the wall of the Cyrsti's Condo kitchen here, just to see it if will stick.  This time the "glob" was made up of different ideas about transitioning later in life. Of course there was the latest post about 14 year old trans woman Jazz Jennings who I know some "purists" would consider to be "true transsexual" - because she was in the right place, at the right time,  with the right family and transitioned.

On the other side are the trans folks like me and on occasion, I get tons of feedback on my lot in life as a transgender woman. In fact,  Pat wrote me a very complimentary email concerning my Frock Magazine articles called "Frock of Ages", they deal only with the trials and tribulations of a later in life MtF gender transition. Thanks Pat! Of course, here in the Condo, you all get a taste of my noggin which is constantly throwing all kinds of gobs of spaghetti against what ever wall it can find. Including but not exclusively discussing, jumping the gender fence while you still can. (Before the Grim Reaper catches me!)

I almost called this post Deja Vu (which come to think of it would make quite the eclectic name!) Basically, it means having the sensation you have experienced your present, in your past. Isn't Deja Vu even stronger for transgender women and men because we have experienced so much-from the other side of the gender fence. Surely, most are rather mundane, but an example of one which isn't could be going to a football game, or a music concert or even to the mechanic to get your car fixed?

I also keep going back to Paula Goodwin's comments (and I paraphrase) at our age, less and less is new. She is right of course until you view the world from the polar opposite gender.  As my partner Liz says "how many humans have a second chance to build a new person?"

There is no simple answer to the pointless questions about "true transsexuals" of course. Just because Jazz Jennings can build her life from the ground up is a testament to her family and many who came before her. Remember how not so long ago, gender dysphoria was officially treated as a mental illness?

At any rate, I am not going to sit here and write about any golden age of transition-except in your noggin.  I finished one of my Frock articles by writing (and I'm sure you all who have transitioned more than me will agree) if you choose to go down this path-you will know if you are right.  The true test comes when the newness wears off quicker than the makeup you are putting on every morning! Genetic or not, "more mature" women need more "upkeep!"

When you get to the point of "Deja Vu" being one of your feminine experiences.  You know your male self has finally left the building.  Just tell him to "leave the gold!"

"Frocked?"

No, fellow party girls, not crocked- Frock (as in the magazine).  Have you ever heard of it?  If you haven't, you should because it is quite the publication put together by Editor Katie Glover.  I like Frock because of the way Katie has been able to cover our very diverse community.  In Katie's own words:

Frock Magazine is your free drag and transgender related bi-monthly, for drag queens, transsexuals, transvestites, crossdressers and transgender people everywhere, full of features and articles about well known members of the transgender community, crossdressing clothes and clothing guides, make-up tutorials, transgender related movie and book reviews, trans-activism, news and fiction


In addition, you can count on colorful, classy pictures and you can view the whole magazine on line free or purchase it for your very own!

Oh yes, while you are there check out my article on page 52! "Frock of Ages" (Follow the link above!)

And yes sillies, I always read Frock before I was humbled and flattered to be chosen to write for it!

Cyrsti's Condo "Sunday Edition"

And.....Hereeeeee we go kids-another glorious Cyrsti's Condo Sunday Edition. Ker Plunk!

Page 1.- The week that was-or wasn't.  Outside the friendly confines of the Condo, the world  went on. Most of it out of our control. Fortunately, the din over Kelli Maloney (the boxing promoter in the UK) coming out as transgender is subsiding and the media awaits the next well known person who opens the door and comes out.  We certainly know they are in the shadows-anymore, it's not if it will happen it's when.   We will have to check the Las Vegas betting lines to see if they have odds on when!

Page 2.- Mama June and TV Land Revisited.  In this case we didn't use the old TV initials yesterday to

The "Anti-June Cleaver?"

discuss transvestites, instead remembering June Clever from the "Leave it to Beaver" sitcom.  The post evolved (or unraveled) into a discussion of stealth, SRS and life back in the day.  Michellewhois was kind enough to fill us in on what the era was like for her.  Before we get to her, just to fill you in, "test driving a new car" was a paraphrased remark I heard Ophra  Winfrey make to a transgender wife who was on a show (long ago) with her original genetic wife.  The trans woman had just gone through SRS and said she had no desire to have sex with a man. Ophra looked at her and said why if you bought a new car,(vagina) why wouldn't you test drive it?

 Cyrsti you said in this article how back then ( the 50's and 60's), we should get the "Car" (I love that metaphor), try it out and go stealth. Back then it was very necessary to do just that for the very few that had the operation. Even back then, gays were treated better than those of us that were transitioning. I remember back then some of the names that even the gay guys used to call us and don't even think that lesbians back then gave us any support. If one didn't disappear, only to become someone new, you took your life in your own hands. If you were lucky you found the underground groups that helped support you. Drag queens were your only friends at times. Today it's a very different world. I wish that back then it would have been at least half as good so I could have been a wife and even a mother.

Thanks Michelle!  I was more than happy to pass along that old horse I have been beating for years about how hard it was to even consider coming out, back in the day.

Page 3.- Checking Gender Levels.  It seems no matter how far I try to run from labels, I get stuck all up in them.  The latest label-rama ruckus here in the Condo involved the relatively new label "gender fluid". I said I think it is a very workable label and semantically very close to transgender.  I translate transgender literally-between genders.  Pat added:The assortment of labels that get attached to us is mind blowing. I would agree that gender fluid can work with your concept of equilibrium.  I agree and like the term.  I think it comes from the younger peeps among us who are trying to find their gender way and is yet another label I would have loved to have embraced in my youth-as I searched.

Page 4.- The Back Page  Semper Fi!   If you haven't had the chance to check out the nothing short of amazing Mtf transformation video here in the Condo yesterday (of the former Marine) be sure to do so! She does an amazing job of describing the trip many of us took to get to where we are and the euphoria we feel.  As I said, I didn't believe the video was real at all until I read the background bio in the latest issue of Frock Magazine.  And YES!  my latest "Frock of Ages" article is on page 50!  

And with that, we are out of here.  The hot humid weather has returned here in Ohio as September approaches and my old dog and I have errands to "walk"  I love you all! Have a good week! 

It's NOT About Passing!

To be quite truthful with you all, I saw this mtf transformation somewhere and dismissed it as a fake-until I saw the article in Frock Magazine!  While you are there..be sure to check out my "Frock of Ages" article on page 50!

Frock Magazine Goes Mobile!

From Frock editor Katie Glover:

We have created a FREE App version of Frock Magazine specially for iPads and iPhones, Android tablets and smartphones and Kindles. You can download it to your phone or tablet from the App Store or from Google Play. Just search for Frock Magazine. We have also created a free issue of Frock Magazine which you can also download from within the app itself (see cover below). Go get yours now!

Taking It All for Granted?

I read a post this morning from the Paula's Place blog which I visit regularly.  Here's an excerpt which caught my eye and heart.  She has being doing an alphabet blogging challenge which explains her reference to the "R post."

My life is at a point of flux and I am uncertain which way it is going to go. A few days ago under my R post I said I was Ready, well I am but I am also uncertain, and just a little frightened. I am aware that this is a one way journey, and that I am getting close to a point of no return, and I need to consider how this will affect other people as well as me. 

 Many of my friends are telling me that I should only consider myself, but I believe I need to consider my daughter in all my actions, how will what I choose impact on her life. She is stridently inclusive in her outlook, but these things can often be different when they are personal, when it is your own father. I am also uncertain about my wife, my Church, and my customers. At some point I will need to make these decisions but not just yet.

Of course I was in Paula's shoes for literally decades.  Now, I try never to take my situation for granted because as I have said a zillion times here in Cyrsti's Condo, the path to my transition was made easier by several very sad events in my life.  Here's an example:  Through Frock Magazine, I recently learned of a film company which was searching for participants to work with them on a transgender documentary.  Being the curious critter that I am, I contacted them to learn what they were looking for.  It turned out they were looking for transgender persons who were in the process of actively coming out to others-which pretty much left me out.  I told her my story of almost everyone of substance in my life fooling around and dying on me in a two year period. (Except my parents who passed years ago.) With a clean slate, I just started over and formed a circle of friends who never knew the old me to start with and came out to my only child, a very accepting daughter. It was clear, I didn't really fit what she was looking for.

So while I can understand Paula's dilemma's, as the days pass, I have to be careful I don't lose my empathy for her and so many like her.  Not having a job to worry about transitioning in, a wife who passed years ago who never accepted me being more than a cross dresser and an accepting religion-I'm certainly in the right place for the sad reasons.

At the end of each day and at the beginning of each new day, I must make sure I never take any of my life for granted and Paula, follow your soul girl friend!

Cyrsti's Condo "Sunday Edition"

"Ker Plunk" this Sunday Easter Edition of Cyrsti's Condo just hit your door! (I hope-or look in the bushes!)
Section 1.- Easter.  For some of you, Easter does have a deep religious meaning which of course I respect as I was raised with it.  For others, not so much - or at all.  To me, the right to worship as you please, takes all precedence. On the non religious side of Easter, it was one of a few special occasions as a youth, I especially yearned to be a girl.  Of course, I wanted to be the one in the frilly pastel dresses, white tights and new shoes for Easter Sunday.  Ironically, several genetic women I know tell me how much they hated it and got in trouble continually for getting their new clothes dirty.  My partner Liz's Mom, in particular was never happy with daughter dearest wrestling in church with a boy who went on to be an infielder for the Cincinnati Reds. But you go with the cards that life dealt you the best you can.  I'm sure you all felt somewhat the same around prom time or even Christmas when you were stuck in a suit and the women in beautiful, colorful gowns.

Section 2.- The Week in Review.  For me, the week here in the Condo was a short one indeed because of computer problems. Looking back, we received quite a few quality comments about our "Trans Girl's Guide to Eating Out" post here on the blog and in my email (cyrstih@yahoo.com).  Several zeroed in on my own personal experience of older women being meaner to me than younger ones. In fact though, if you are in the wrong place, at the wrong time, with the wrong person-age does not matter.  Ignorance and bigotry comes in all age brackets.

We all touched on the difficulty of finding a friend of any sorts in the transgender community.  By "friend" I mean someone you can discuss highly unique experiences of say HRT, trans friendly spots and more.  For lack of a better example, the same sort of girlfriend a genetic woman would have. Briefly, severe problems still exist with stealth, closet and trans trolls which make it extremely difficult to find a friend.

Section 3.- Coming Soon!  This week, my first article in Frock Magazine was published.  I'm writing on the subject I know most about-transitioning later in life- and may do more.  In fact, coming up soon, May 30th-June 1st, is the sixth annual TransOhio Symposium in Columbus.  For the second year in a row, I will be doing a workshop on the subject and rolling out my book Stiletto's on Thin Ice-a Transwoman in a Man's World.  In the month of May, I plan on rolling out samples to you here in the Condo.  I can tell you this, it will be E-Published and very inexpensive.

Section 4.- The Back Page  That's it for this week kids!  I just can't get involved with the newest babble about who is transgender enough to speak on the matter, so y'all have a good week and thanks sooooo much for stopping by!!!!

Lonely Girls

It is seriously tragic how many of us in the transgender community suffer terrific loneliness. I can understand the world as a whole not understanding us but it has always been surprising to me how few  transgender people I have been able to meet. In my limited world, on Facebook alone, I know I have at least 75 peeps who claim to be transgender within an hours drive from me who haven't uttered one word about meeting for coffee or whatever. So, I wasn't surprised that just in the two or three days I have had my computer back up and running, I have had two comments on the subject of being alone already.

One was a comment Frock Magazine received on my article in their last publication:

Hi,  
My name is Nancy Wilhelm. I am transitioning at the age of 61. Your article "It's Never Too Late to Change" by Cyrsti Hart really hit me. I can really relate to what she had to say. While I face some of the same things she does I also have other issues. I am retired and on SSDI with no reserve. So, most (99%) of the things we need to do to really transition I can't afford. Also, the city I live in, as far as the transgender community, is really weird. I have met one (1) other TGirl total. The girls here are not interested in getting to know you unless you are young and looking for sex. I'm neither, so I have a total of five friends, 3 that I might see once every other month. In other words I'm a lonely girl here. Loved your magazine. I'm going to bookmark it. Hope you can keep it free. Nice to find something I can enjoy. Looking forward to the next issue.

Hugs, Nancy

The other was from a much younger person just exploring her gender identity, along with a supportive girlfriend but with no other idea of how to go any farther.  Fortunately for her, she lives within an easy driving distance of Columbus, Ohio which is an incredibly diverse city. I recommended that at the least , maybe her girlfriend and her should make the trip to Columbus Pride in June to at the least see how the "other half's" live. I did feel bad I couldn't come up with any better ideas of how to find a trans friend or even a trans group.  Maybe I'm being the bitch again but I agree with Nancy's take on what the majority of the "participant's" are into and it's not me either.

Truthfully, I gave up years ago finding transgender friends on line. I got burnt early when the trans "nazi's" got a hold of me and went my own way.   So, I do have my circle of wonderful friends and yes two of them are transgender and they are local.

It is exceedingly difficult to find a friend but far from impossible.  The "T" is beginning to not be as silent in the G&L Centers and there are some resources, plus there are good folks mixed in with the trans trolls.  It's just a shame we all have to go through yet another super difficult process.

Be sure to follow the link above to Frock Magazine and my "two cents worth" on page 30!

Turmoil!

If you would have told me a couple years ago I would go into panic mode if I lost my computer, I would have said several highly derogatory comments.  Now however I'm literally surrounded by electronic gadgets which hook me up to who knows where and panic me when they don't work.

Now that my "precious puter" seems to be well for awhile, I can catch up with all of you, work on the final stages of my book based on how it looks on my Kindle and continue to learn all the wonderful (and not so wonderful) features of my new Android phone.  To quote Star Trek, "Beam me up Scotty-there is no intelligent life down here!"

Sadly, I'm still catching up and even finding your great comments in the midst of my virtual office mess here in Cyrsti's Condo, like this one from Linda Marie Daniels-which goes back to last Sunday:

Regarding the 50 something women in the restaurant who were so rude: unfortunately, after a certain age, most people don't change their opinions about the world. Although there are older people who are willing to examine long held beliefs, most "dinosaurs" are going to keep their ideas about transgender people. The good news is that younger generations seem to be more able to look at people as people, regardless of whether they don't conform to strict definitions of gender identity. The bad news is, at least for "dinosaurs" like me, that change in attitude as the ideas of a new generation become the mainstream, will be a little late for me. Great post as always. Happy Sunday to you!

Thanks Linda Marie!  You all know I am one of the "dinosaurs" too. As a matter of fact I mentioned it this morning when I was working on a new article for Frock Magazine. I was on my soap box again ranting about how our generation (and me) was notoriously in the closet/ stealth as transgender women and cross dressers.  All of us know we can make a case why that was but the past is just the past and we have left ourselves with what we paid forward-nothing. Now, whatever we can put into the transgender piggy bank is better than nothing!

I do have a spousal checklist in one of my book chapters which may be of interest to this discussion too. It compresses three sample kinds of spouses from accepting to call the divorce lawyer I will have to remember to pass it along to all of you.  The key term is remember! Sorry kids, have to wrap this up now. The dinosaur needs a nap!

Cyrsti's Condo "Sunday Edition"

"Ker Plunkt!" Another Sunday edition of Cyrsti's Condo has hit your door, get a hot cup of coffee ready and lets go.

Section 1.-Fashion.

We topped 75 degrees here the last couple of days in my part of the world and I was able to experience the delicious sensation of short sleeved feminine fashion.

As we were living our house this morning, Liz looked quickly at my T-shirt and jeans outfit and said "I like the 'Tom Boy Chic' look."  Of course I was impressed and we headed out to pick up her son. Along the way we stopped to pick up pop and snacks and I wasn't paying much attention to the world until-I turned around and saw this bearded guy looking at me.  I figured at the least, he thought Wow! did that big woman (me) just get back from the gym or worse. Another blog post to be sure!

Section 2.- Fighting On.

As always, the transgender world fights on from many different points of light.  This week, among others, Texan trans woman Laura Jean Krug won her battle to be reinstated as a substitute teacher in Texas.  These battles are similar to hand to hand guerilla fighting-fought by individuals everywhere on a case to case basis.  What seems to be happening though, the country as a whole is beginning to learn who we are as a people and respond on a positive morally and legally sound basis.  On the other hand, I encountered two  "smirkers" at dinner with Liz.  We were enjoying an "Oyster Fest" evening and two 50 something women in the restaurant had to make me part of their nightly entertainment by staring at me and smirking.  The good thing is, you notice I said "50 something", nearly all of my smirkers are human dinosaurs and are on their way out and are living in the past.

Section 3.- We Got Mail.

The comment we received this week which received the most feed back here and on my email (cyrstih@yahoo.com) came from Connie Malone in the Pacific Northwest:

On transgender hiring: Why wouldn't an employer want to hire me? I have all of the expertise and experience that was afforded me by being a man, but now I'd only have to be paid 77% of a man's salary.

Connie has a wonderful sense of sarcasm and she is actually the first to urge me to write a blog, so this is her fault! (Kidding!!!!)

And Mandy Sherman commented:


THAT is PRICELESS! Particularly with the news having the 77% figure front and center lately... Companies which are hiring really should be seeking TG workers, to help keep their costs down! And that would help improve the TG unemployment rate, too. For the right opportunity - whatever that is - this girl might even consider applying. 77% is a lot better than nothing!


Back Page.- As I wrote here yesterday, I do have an article posted in this month's Frock Magazine, please be sure to check out the issue and as always thanks and have a great week!

Frock Magazine

For what has seemingly been an eternity Katie Glover at Frock Magazine and I have been trying to get together for an article. Finally the sun, the moon and the stars came together and another literary masterpiece of mine made it into this issue.

The subject is a familiar one to those of you who frequent Cyrsti's Condo-MtF gender transitioning later in life.  I have tons of opinions on subjects but at the least I am living this one.  At any rate, if you have never visited Frock Magazine, it's is quite the effort.

Please take the time to follow the link above (and me too!)