You Talking to Me?

Monday night, at the cross dresser - transgender support group meeting I go to, one of the co-moderators climbed her high horse and said something I hadn't heard since a transvestite mixer I went to in the mid 1980's.

She puffed up like a rooster and said, "Why should I wear pants, I had to wear them my entire life." "I never wear them." Fortunately I didn't have to open my mouth because another "jeans wearer" was sitting almost next to her and let her have it.

Plus, if you didn't know it, nearly 80 percent of the time, I don't wear dresses. I call it my lesbian upbringing. But, I regress:

In no uncertain terms jeans woman reminded the moderator, these days (if she noticed) almost all women wear some sort of pants and/or leggings. And, then added the clincher, if the moderator wanted to blend better or even look better, she may want to consider adding some sort of pants/slacks to her wardrobe.

Similar to a summer thunderstorm, the disturbance came and went without further comment.

There is nothing wrong with always wearing dresses...or pants. Just be a woman and enjoy the fact you can. Then, do your best to stay out of someone else's business.

A New Friend?

Yesterday, I tagged along to one of my partner Liz's therapy sessions and was sitting there casually fooling with my phone, when a younger (twenty something) girl sat down close to me.

She was very friendly and almost immediately started a conversation the tried and true feminine way, she complemented me on my hair color. I told her thanks and it was in transition back to my original color.

She was wearing some sort of a blue/green lipstick and light green feather earrings...both of which I complemented her on.

After our brief enjoyable conversation, I asked if she was there to see the same therapist as Liz and she said yes. So when Liz came out I learned her name (Alex) and prompted introductions all around.

Hopefully, I will get to see her again and no, nothing was ever said about me being transgender.

Is Transgender an Umbrella Term?

At Monday nights' cross dresser - transgender meeting, an interesting topic was brought up...is a cross dresser in reality no different than a transgender woman. Or, as the old joke goes, what's the difference between a cross dresser and trans woman ? Normally, about two to three years.

The point at the meeting was a good one. If you are dressing as the opposite gender, aren't you crossing gender lines and being transgender anyhow?

As I see it, the difference for a transgender woman is how she thinks. A cross dresser is likely to be more gender fluid and still enjoy her time being a guy. A transgender brain tells the person it's a "no brainer" (no pun intended). The trans person suffers a constant conflict between what their senses are telling them versus the body they were born with.

Thus, I still use the term transsexual to describe most of the people who are able to go the distance and get a sex realignment surgery. From the beginning, these trans people just know to feel complete, they just need the surgery.

Then there are transgender women such as me, who go against many lines of thought and see no need for surgery. If I was much younger though, I am the first to admit, my thinking could be different.

So, I have no problem with combining the cross dressers with the trans group and then leaving them out at surgery time.