Cyrsti's Condo

At our transgender support group meeting last night, I heard a self professed cross dresser say emphatically he couldn't be transgender because he likes women. The whole outburst was a little unnerving to me because he looked straight (no pun intended) at me when he said it. I simply said, don't tell my cis-woman partner of five plus years I can't like women because I'm trans. From there, and I am not sure he listened, other's in the room tried to explain the difference between gender (between the ears) and sexuality (between the legs). I guess I shouldn't have been surprised at his lack of understanding and hopefully a few more statements such as that will help him to understand. Plus, it just so happens, I know at least a couple more of the participants are married to, or live with cis women and a couple more participants are bi-sexual. A learning experience for him to be sure. I hope a positive one. Perhaps too, if you have heard the old saying &quo

"Us" is similar to "they." The faceless minions in the world, not in the new movie. If you use "us" as in the TGLBQ community, it's a serious deal especially to civilians. After all in a previous recent Cyrsti's Condo post, Connie and I discussed using the "she" pronoun at all when referring to Zoey Tur. Perhaps you remember the Simmons College " SocialWork@Simmons " Blog we participated with here in the blog. Now Simmons is passing along a "Gender and Sexuality - Defining Terms for Everyday Use." Here is the intro:  " Navigating the dialogue that surrounds gender and sexuality can be difficult. The terminology used by and for individuals along the gender spectrum is specific, and preferred usage can vary from individual to individual. Consider the acronym LGBT, which stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. It’s used all the time in phrases like “LGBT community” and “LGBT rights.” Yet, some peopl

KerPlunk! Another Sunday Edition has hit your virtual front porch. This week, we are locked into 90 degree plus temperatures and humidity levels which make the heat feel into the 100's. Vintage Ohio. Our "Joe" (coffee) this morning is going to be iced.  Let's get started! Page One-The Week that was-or Wasn't: On different ends of the transgender spectrum last week, "senior citizen" Caitlin Jenner won an ESPY Sports Courage Award and 14 year old teen trans girl Jazz Jenning's first "reality family show" debuted. Of course Jenner is (and will be) a lightning rod for anything transgender. And, even though I was conflicted about Jenner being chosen for the award-I thought she did a wonderful job of speaking to the tragic problem of teen transgender suicide. More than a few people continue to think no matter what, just throw religion at the trans (problem) and it will go away. With tragic consequences. Page Two- "Jazzin it Up": Tr

No it's not a new television show (unfortunately). My friend Bobbie  was kind enough to send along this information from a police publication called "Dealing with Transgender Subjects". Here is an excerpt: "Officers must often protect and serve members of special groups. Providing this service can bring challenges that demand agency guidance or targeted training. One such group that has rarely been seen or contacted by officers in the past has become empowered to step out and live openly in their communities. They are the transgender individuals. On every continent there is at least one culture that gives social recognition to individuals who don't fit the gender binary of male or female. Only until recently has medicine made it possible to match the individual to their appearance with surgical procedures. Our Western societies have forced these individuals underground (into "the closet") to survive by avoiding ridicule and persecution. Being trans