Cyrsti's Condo OMG

Ian never really thought his sister would set him up on a blind date. He is downstairs waiting! Pull up those big girl panties!

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"!!!!

Trans Visible Again?

Lately it seems, I'm increasingly writing about transgender women breaking the gender barrier and becoming more and more visible. The fact that several of the most visible right now are transgender women of color. Women such as Laverne Cox and Janet Mock are truly "out and proud" - but after listening to Laverne I learned life is still not as easy for her as most of us would think. As her Mom told her-her hands and feet were too big for a woman's-even though now she has her Mom's full support.

Now Best-selling author and transgender activist Janet Mock (left) has been named a special correspondent on in Entertainment Tonight. In her first appearance she delved into the issue of cisgender (nontrans) actors playing trans roles and a host of other topics in an interview with Transparent star Jeffrey Tambor. (More here.)  

Certainly, I am thrilled every time I see a positive transgender story and now even more thrilled when a trans person is actually involved in the process. (rare) I know the only persons who can truly understand my mtf gender transition are those friends of mine who are going through it too.

I do wonder how all of this "plays at home." I remember years ago when the transgender term was rare at best and most cross dressing images were characters up to "no good."  When my wife and I were watching one of these shows, the cross dressed character became the "elephant in the room." I did my best to not be too excited.  

I also wonder if this rush of transgender education and publicity helps those of you (in a relationship) considering playing in the girl's sandbox.  For women like me, I can only hope my friends and acquaintances think, "Hey! There is a person like Cyrsti!" 

The Trans "Big Three?"

Candy Magazine is marking it's 5th anniversary and  has revealed a fold-out spread which features 14 transgender role models and leading trans activists, including the gorgeous quartet of Laverne Cox, Janet Mock, and Carmen Carrera taking center stage.  For a closer look-go OUT-here

Not surprisingly, the Cyrsti's Condo post "Is Cross Dressing a Gateway Drug?" has brought in comments-and good ones!
I'm going to try to condense them in this post.

1. Paula GoodwinDecember 15, 2014 at 7:59 AM

   This is along the lines of "it's just about the clothes" the only way to find out is to do it, but the big question has to be why we enjoy the clothes, is it simply because we want to experience the clothes at a more intimate level than just looking, or is it because it's the way we can experience womanhood. ~ we can only work that out for ourselves, and part of that working out process involves the cross dressing stage.
2. 
   joanna SantosDecember 15, 2014 at 8:02 AM

   I can relate to this topic very much Cyrsti and it is not an obvious distinction to make. In fact the person themselves does not know where they fit into the spectrum until much reflection has been made. Perhaps the best thing is to let much time go by before committing to anything and find your comfort level as you go. Once you reach it you know where you can stop. After all this process should be organic.
   
   Joanna
3. 
   Pat ScalesDecember 15, 2014 at 12:35 PM

   Perhaps crossdressing is a gateway drug for some but not for others. I like being a CD. I can probably come up with a long list of things I like about being CD. I am also rather pleased with being a guy for the past 6+ decades and being happily married to a wonderful woman for the past 4+ decades. I know that there are multiple aspects to who I am, what I like, who do I relate with, how do I relate with them and how can I go about making the most of my situation and go about making life and experience with others bettter.
   I count myself as fortunate in that I can deal with my dressing and gender issues as being one part of who I am. I tend to try to avoid labeling myself and others since there are few labels that are one size fits all. Yes I am CD. Yes, I am a guy. I also work full time and have a work life and position that impacts many people.. I also drive a car and golf and occasionally ski. I do lots of things and try to think in terms of what I am doing rather than defining myself as what I may be.
   Pat

Well, I couldn't write it better than these three ladies did! Thanks to all!  As always though, I am going to take this all another step in a future post.

Cyrsti's Condo "Quote of the Day"

Oscar Wilde: “An idea that is not dangerous is unworthy.” Scare us with yours.

Cyrsti's Condo "Star Reading"

All of us "Libra-ites" do not have a particularly exciting astrological "smootch" this week:  (September 23-October 22): Mixing of family, friends and your honey will have you short circuiting, as you’ll have to switch faces and be able to pull off a seamless performance. Yes, your charm will be put to good use, but beware of those that always look to step over the line and raise the ire in you. Sorry to say, at the end of the year, this is always part of the crap you’re going to have to put up with.

On the other hand, find a Cancer to hang out with this week:  (June 21-July 22): The mistletoe must be up, because you’ll need to be closer to your baby or any warm body that brings on sweet feelings. Love will be on your mind and commitment is getting more real. The fears you once held will now seem to be outdated. This week, a new age begins for you, one in which there are rainbows and even a few unicorns.



Hop on over to theFrisky for your "star-date"!

Is Cross Dressing a Gateway Drug?

Quite the subject.  many would suggest and have-that the mere act of putting on women's clothes leads people like me to where I am today.  Not unlike saying smoking weed leads to heroin.

I only suggest cross dressing doesn't take over a life, it takes you to where you can make a educated gender choice. My real point is - in my case at least, I found- I knew without a doubt I was doing the right thing.  On the other hand a comment I received recently through Google+ from J Spurling brought me back to my paranoia of accepting myself as transgender could indeed come from my cross dressing:

"I suppose that looking back, each phase built on the last.  Yet, it was always there under the surface, waiting for me to come to terms with it.  Now that I'm self accepting of this aspect, I'd like to say I'm not only a cross dresser, but fully transgender, yet I'm hesitant to self-diagnose.

As for how my wife has responded each time I broach the topic.  Initially, it was very vitriolic, she'd seen a professional psychologist on the TV state it was a man's way to ultimately dominate a woman. Wow, where did that come from, I searched and couldn't find anything like that short of Janis Raymond.  Last time she told me point blank to stop, and how would I like to be married to someone male...

For me that's a lot of pressure, because I'm all she has.  In a  sense Cyrsti, I'm going through what you went through.  So rather than self-diagnose and also to seek some coping skills, I'm going to start seeing a councilor who's experienced with our issues. "


Indeed "J" we are walking a similar path.  For the longest time, I equated any so called "cross dressing" success I had as another possible step towards going full time.  Looking back, I desperately needed someone to tell me would living 24/7 in a feminine world be "what the doctor ordered?" Yes-No? Also, at some point, I considered I was addicted to the thrill of cross dressing.  Ironically, this idea was instilled in my noggin by a firefighter friend who equated the experience with the "rush" of fighting a fire.  She turned out to be really addicted because she ended up going through SRS.


So, no, being a cross dresser will not lead you down the path to being a transgender woman or man. The process just gives you an idea if you truly want to.  Keep in mind being gender dysphoric is a huge difference than just wanting to look like a woman.

2015 The Trans Central Year?

2014 brought many positive changes to the transgender community, fortunately too numerous to mention. For the first time we saw trans women (Laverne Cox and Jazz) making it into most influential woman categories.  All of a sudden, the mere act of being born female with a vagina does not equate with the essence of becoming a woman. At the least, a very scary thought for many traditional binary thinkers.  Making the process even more difficult for those folks is it's looking like even more are in store for the future!


Here is one from the "Hollywood Reporter" : 
"ABC Family is continuing its push into the unscripted arena with a big swing.

The Disney-owned cable network has handed out a straight-to-series pickup for My Transparent Life, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.
The docuseries, from Ryan Seacrest Productions, centers on a teen named Ben who learns his parents are not only getting a divorce, but also that his father is becoming a woman.

The series will intimately follow Ben, his family and friends as they support each other through the unexpected journey and watch Charlie slowly become Carly, as she experiences the many stages of her transition from male to female. The show is described as a generational story of a loving family and circle of friends, supporting each other through the unfamiliar and unexpected situation."

Of course all of this is following the success of the Amazon series Transparent with Jeffrey Tambor (left).  For a start, I love the fact Tambor loves the part and is in many ways a truer portrayal of how most of us are able to visually transition. After all, we all can't look like Carmen Carerra, Janet Mock or Andreja Pejic. The best is yet to come!