Transgender Vets! Uncle Sam Wants You!

Don't panic!  Don't be like me and have the reoccurring monthly dream I have about being drafted again! (Really I do!) I do know many of you have many worse dreams you don't talk about!


What I mean is there is a trans vet survey LGBT Survey currently being circulated by the VA.

They request passing along the link by email only.

If you have received crummy or great treatment during your stay in the military or now since discharge...(VA or not)  this is your chance to respond to it. OR if you are feeling trapped and alone-links are provided during the survey to help you!

Email me at cyrstih@yahoo.com if you want the link!

Picking Up Pat!

As promised in our last Cyrsti's Condo post, we were going to visit Pat's "roadside" breakdown:

 I have two events to relate

About a dozen years ago I was on a business trip that involved a 7 hour car ride through the middle of nowhere. I spent a night at a motel and took to the road in the AM wearing a brown skirt, black tank top, hose, heels, wig and makeup. About an hour down the road the car lost power and I saw black smoke billowing from my tail pipe. While the car was still coasting to a stop I stripped the wig, grabbed some slacks and tossed a shirt on top of my bra and tank. I did get a tow to a gas station on the other side of the middle of nowhere in a town with one gas station, one general store and two feed and grain shops, and while Gomer and Guber puttered about there were several other patrons (mostly women) waiting for their cars. I was very conscious of the outline of my bra and tank top and knew that the skirt under my slacks had to look odd and the hose clad ankles could be seen between by pant cuffs and shoes. It was an uncomfortable experience.

About 4-5 years ago I had dressed in a short coral lace dress, hose, heels, etc. and went for the first time to an LGBT bar. I had a few and was pulled over by a cop. Dressed as I was and having had a few adult beverages I chose to just sit, be polite and accept a ticket for speeding at 41 in a 30 MPH zone. Normally I would have had quite a bit to say about getting a ticket for 41 MPH.

As I said Pat, except for a couple different turns along the road (if our vehicles broke down or not) perhaps you would have found yourself on a HRT regimen too.  Mind you, I'm not saying that makes either of us better.

I'm sure we have many other readers here in the Condo, who have had similar experiences on the road and "back in the day" perhaps thought their car was "safe haven" to explore the world and their femininity. 

More on the idea in the next post!

Tow Me Baby!

Well, I'm certainly glad I haven't been the only one of us here in Cyrsti's Condo to be at the mercy of a broken down car and whomever.
I'm going to pass along this experience (and the link for more of it) from Paula, then one from Pat who experiences make her one turn away from being where I am now.

First Paula:

"I showered, shaved, and got myself presentable.   I had a solitary pair of trousers with me and this was the day I wore them, however as they are black slacks with a high waist and no pockets they are obviously fem, especially when coupled with fishnets, court shoes and a black satin blouse, my grey M & S jacket finished off this outfit nicely.   Though I say it myself I thought this was quite a classy look, just the little bit of the fishnets showing on the top of the foot and the odd glimpse of ankle, really making it a little bit special (dare I say sexy), rather than all plan black and grey.

After a good breakfast I was all set.   Unfortunately this was Gloria’s cue for a sulk.   All loaded up and ready to go, apart from a flat battery!   One of the hotel staff tried to give us a jump start but we could just not get enough power across to start the van engine ( a big old diesel can take quite a bit to get it going).   So they called a local garage to come to my help.   I was all packed away and the room had been cleared so the staff invited me to wait in the restaurant area, where the breakfast buffet was still laid out, after a couple of pints of coffee the truck eventually arrived.

I think they were probably pretty quick but when you are waiting these things always seem to take ages, add to that a certain nervousness about dealing with mechanics and garage staff in a language I am uncertain of dressed as was.   I have to say that the chap who came was fine, we just about managed to communicate, and the staff at the garage did there best.   At all times I was addressed either as Madam, or after they had checked the log book etc. as MadamG*&#$%n"

It seems Paula has an affinity for breaking down and in France and "French Loo's" go here to read more:

"On another occasion Gloria broke down in France, that was a lot more complicated full story here http://paula-paulasplace.blogspot.co.uk/2011/10/france-part-5-so-this-was-to-be-my-last.html"

We will get to Pat in the next post, after all she has broken down and isn't going anywhere!!!

It's Backwards-Both Ways

On occasion, even I'm impressed on how poor my communication skills can be especially when we are talking about one of my HRT doctors.  The reason I have two is even though my primary physician at the VA (Veteran's Administration) has a transgender niece, he is still not medically qualified to monitor my blood work and/or estrogen level.  For that I need an Endocrinologist. That's OK because  an elevated estrogen level can cause blood clots.  Especially at my age!

I see my Endo Doc about every six months or so and it always has been a struggle (for whatever reason) for him to write a prescription for what he says he is going to write it for. It took me a couple appointments to get the amount of estrogen I wanted and he said I could have.

Then, there is my other main HRT med, commonly known as "Spiro".  It's also used to control blood pressure but one of it's "side effects" is to lower testosterone. Since I have plenty of blood pressure to control (it's normally high), Spiro was good for me in a couple ways. Somehow though, I was certainly stockpiling enough to last awhile.

In fact, the last couple times I refilled my "Spiro", I wondered why I had more than the pharmacy did!  As I began to think about it, as reticent as the Doc was to give me more estrogen, the more he spoke about upping my dosage of Spiro. That was cool but telling me would have been even cooler! What confused me was somehow he wrote the prescription for double the amount I was taking but the instructions on the pill bottle (from the VA) said otherwise. I was following the instructions and becoming a Spiro "hoarder."

My next appointment with him is in September, so I have plenty of chance to take the right dosage and he can check me for "Low T" and high "E". And yes, I have checked up on the effects of a higher dosage. Plus, I have talked to a couple other trans women who were prescribed even higher dosages. So I should be fine.

What frustrates me though is I actually checked the size of the "girls" and found I am getting comfortably into "C" country.  I may have been able to take up residence there already if the "Doc" and I had been on the same page!

Cyrsti's Condo "Cover Girl" of the Day

Our feature cover today is the androgynous model from Singapore Andrew Semuel.  As a sidelight, I wonder if Andrej Pejic's coming out as transgender will encourage more of the male to female models these days to do the same?

There Are More of Us!

It's been a very exciting week for the transgender community!

As more and more transgender women are not going from one closet to another-by going stealth-much is happening! The message to the world is becoming clearer. We are here, always have been here and will be here!

Laverne Cox  visited  "The View" to talk about her starring role in the Netflix series (Orange is the New Black) , as well her position as one of the most prominent voice for the mainstream transgender community. At one point during the discussion, Whoopi Goldberg brought up how, as the first transgender activist to gain this level of notoriety, Cox had to take the "slings and arrows" of the critics. Cox responded:

"This weekend I was thinking about Sydney Poitier. He won the Academy Award 50 years ago for best actor and it was actually the year the Civil Rights Act was signed. What he says about that moment is that he didn't feel like we had overcome as black actors because he was the only one. And so I think the revolution happens when it's not just me -- there's more of us."

Then, male to female androgynous supermodel Andrej Pejic, (shown below) did what most of us suspected- and came out as transgender.

She is now known as Andreja!

Another Trans Barrier "Crushed!"

Ashley Love (journalist, media advocate), Tamara Adrian (ILGA World Trans Secretariat), Tara Avery (cartoonist, Prism Comics) during this year’s Pride month

Maybe I should say the barrier was dissipated by a death ray? What ever!!! The fact remains
this  year’s Comic Con will hold the first-ever trans-specific panel, Breaking Barriers: Transgender Trends in Popular Culture, marking a positive step forward in comics, film, TV, and pop culture.

While there have been LGBT panels in the past, there have never been one that was solely created for trans panelists. Breaking Barriers will be moderated by trans female comic Tara Madison Avery. Joining Avery on the panel is Dylan Edwards (Transposes), Milanie Gillman (As the Crow Flies), J.D. Saxon (Mahou Shounen Fight!), Elizabeth Lain (F*** the Limit!: The 30-Day Art Project), Ashley Love (Trans Forming Media), and Michelle Nolan (Love on the Racks: A History of American Romance Comics).

Read more on this story from SheWired here.

Be Cool in your "Boyfriend Jacket!

If you would have told me I would have been looking for a light jacket to keep me warm on a July evening last Spring-well, I may have thought you were crazier than I am!

But thanks again to the summer "polar vortex" our evenings here in Ohio are again dipping into the 50's.

Every now and then here in Cyrsti's Condo, I refer to a fashion site called Fabulous after 40, which as the title indicates, focuses on women past the age of 40.  Recently they ran a post called "The Casual Boyfriend Jacket-for Grown Up Girls."  To be honest with you, I didn't quite know the definition of a "boy friend jacket" but liked the transgender irony of it.

Here's the scoop and a picture from "Fab after 40" :

"Have you noticed that as you’ve gotten older your body has gotten softer and rounder and sometimes you don’t look as polished and chic in your clothes as you’d like to?

A simple solution for that is to add a jacket to whatever you happen to be wearing.  You see, a jacket is like hanger. It gives you body structure and shape. Throw one on and you instantly look more polished, slimmer and trimmer.

One of my favorite styles is the boyfriend jacket, which has been pretty popular the last couple of years.

Remember the days when your chivalrous date would lend you his jacket on a chilly evening? That’s the idea behind the boyfriend jacket. It’s a softer, slightly oversized, but not baggy jacket, with a relaxed look and feel. It’s a casual alternative to the fitted blazer, but still looks polished."

I feel better (and a little warmer) because I happen to have what could be referred to as a "boyfriend jacket" in my closet which I used to have to wear back in the day to cover the hair on my arms.  It was difficult to find because of my size of course and it is slightly tailored in at the waist.  It's just a wardrobe basic I have kept over the years and now I'm glad I have.  My "boyfriend" doesn't need it anymore!

For more idea's on the jackets, go here.

Cyrsti's Condo Womanless Pageant OOPS!

I just love this picture which obviously comes from a womanless beauty pageant somewhere...
Check out the expression on the guy's face and the slightly pained look on the cross dressed contestant's face.

From the look on "her" face I wonder where his hand is and what is it doing????