A girls' night in

 Photos at last! 

Much as Roz and I enjoyed eating out over the weekend, it does take a toll on the budget, so we stayed at home on a couple of evenings and I did the cooking. It's also easier to chat about trans life in private than when out in public. 

I mentioned my spicy bacon sauce for pasta in my last post but, when eating at home, I also had the opportunity to introduce Roz to some Italian salamis and cheeses that are not often exported, and two local wines. This region of Liguria is not known for its wine but there are some nice light, fruity ones.

As for trans life, well, although most of my clothes now come from the women's racks, when I am out and about I don't present as female at the moment. So Sunday evening was an opportunity to put my face on and look more the part! I did promise at the start of this month that I would prepare for prettiness so here's me at the opening of the new dressy-up season:

And full-length:

I thought a simple outfit would be best and I do like the wide-leg trousers as they are very comfortable.

Roz has been living full-time for some years and looks great. Here she is with her (in)famous Scottish beaver who sports a kilt, sporran and denim jacket. An LGBT activist, he never misses a Pride march!

Raimonda the Ray looks on! 

Here's the little devil on his own:

It's the goofy teeth and manic stare that endear him! Anyway, he didn't nibble anything he shouldn't have done and didn't fight with Cuthbert the Snake. (Cuthbert is a cuddly draught excluder).

Oh dear, I think we're reverting to childhood! Perhaps the soft toy menageries are something to be discussed (and maybe analysed on the couch) another day.

It's been several years since I have had a girls' night in and my adrenalin was going because it felt strange after so long. Strange but right. It was pretty amazing to be 'back' properly with another TGirl. 

 

I need to defuzz better now autumn's here but I expect more appearances with my makeup on (and skirts) as the season progresses.

I'm sad Roz had to return home since being with a lovely trans friend again after all this time has left me very happy. Next week, though, I have one of my oldest and closest (male) friends coming to stay and I am also looking forward to that visit very much.

Sue x

 

A weekend with a trans friend

 It's been a long while since I was last able to spend time with another TGirl but this weekend it happened.

Roz flew all the way from Scotland and I met her at Nice airport on a warm sunny evening. I hadn't seen her since my visit to Britain in spring 2019 and five years of living full-time as female has made her a very confident and good-looking woman. I am quite jealous of the F for female in her passport. Hurrah for living in one's right gender!

As Roz loves trams, we took one from the airport to a hotel in a typical old building in the very centre of Nice, just off the main square. We enjoyed an evening meal at Jach, a Lebanese restaurant, sitting out in the mild evening air, and then took a stroll along the famous seaside Promenade des Anglais and the tangle of streets in the old city.

Place Masséna, Nice

The next morning we enjoyed breakfast at a typical brasserie, Maison Margaux, and had another little stroll round town in the sunshine. 

 

Promenade des Anglais, Nice

We then took the train to Italy that passes through Monaco. It's slow, stopping at every little station, but the coastal scenery is beautiful. And mobile phones go mad as you pass from one country to the next: "welcome to France, your tariffs are...; welcome to Monaco...; welcome to France (again)...; welcome to Italy..."

Menton, France, "city of lemons", sandwiched between Monaco and Italy, is a typical riviera town

 

Over the years, several previous attempts to have Roz come to stay have been thwarted by serious last-minute problems so it seemed like a miracle when we were actually home and she had unpacked. Living on the side of a mountain gives me some beautiful views over the sea and she loved that.

The nearest town to me is Sanremo (or San Remo: there's a longstanding dispute as to whether it's one word or two) so I took her down the mountain into town. It's a pretty place with a vibrant social life and café culture. It's best known for its casino and the Ariston Theatre (where the national song contest that spawned the Eurovision song contest is held), but there are other attractive things to see like the Russian Orthodox Church, the harbour and a tangle of medieval streets rising up a steep hillside. 

Sanremo

One essential thing to do there, though, is to stroll down the main street of an evening, have an aperitif at an outside bar table and watch the world go by. A small fluffy dog, preferably carried in a handbag or basket, is a regular sight, especially with older women and gay couples. 

We had authentic and huge Neapolitan pizzas at the Napul'è restaurant by the old fort... and it's just as well the walk home took half an hour so we could work it off!

Fort St Tecla, Sanremo

The next day was wet. I haven't seen a full day's rain in this area since last December and, much as the land needed a good soaking after this summer of drought, it annoyed me that it happened when someone had come all the way from rainy Britain to the supposedly sunny riviera! But we weren't going to be put off. We saw the remains of the Roman villa, the harbour with its famous (or infamous) yachts and some of the old town with its steep, winding streets, city walls and colourful houses. We had a nice bowl of pasta for lunch at one of the small but excellent restaurants in the town centre, Nuovo Piccolo Mondo.

The black blob in the wall is a six-pound cannonball. It lodged there during a British bombardment in the War of the Austrian Succession. The date: 3rd September 1745. There are other signs of other raids, by Barbary corsairs in the middle ages, Turks in the sixteenth century and even World War II damage.

Sunday, however, was a more normal day here, with dry sunny weather, so we enjoyed our sightseeing better. There's a particularly well-located restaurant, Salsadrena, on the promenade where we enjoyed a relaxed lunch. Two years ago it won an award for being one of the Top 50 pizza restaurants in Italy, which is quite an accolade. I can assure you the pizza is excellent, as are the other dishes, and the view of palms and seafront is beautiful.

Salsadrena restaurant, Sanremo

We don't normally eat out this much! So much so that we decided to eat at home that evening. There was time for a bit of sunbathing on the terrace and then I made a proper effort with my hair, makeup and everything and we ate in and had a good chat about trans life and other things. Have you tasted my spicy bacon pasta sauce with my home-grown herbs and chillis? I think it's pretty good and my guest, who loves chilli, seemed to agree. I'll save details of girl time at home for a forthcoming post, including pictures of the two of us.

Sadly, yesterday, it all had to end as Roz needed to return home. So we took the coast railway back to Nice, where the nearest airport is, and I saw her off. I know she got back home safely to Scotland in the evening. 

I feel sad she's gone but I have some very nice memories of a good weekend. And a sensation, too, that life might be returning to normal. More importantly, I feel much more alive and positive this morning as I have had so little face-to-face contact with any close, long-term friends for three years now. Good company is what has always made me happiest.

Next week I have another close friend from Britain coming to stay, so I am sure there will be more sightseeing pictures from this part of the Med in due course. And more positivity as a result - yay!

Sue x

Ever changing

 The weather has cooled somewhat and I feel autumn is very much on the way now. In fact, last night I slept with a sheet over me for the first time in three months. The outdoor pool closed yesterday and the general run of seaside activities is winding down. It's the equinox on Friday and the nights will draw in more noticeably after that (in the Northern hemisphere, at least).

I do love summer best but as I've mentioned so often, very hot weather makes TGirl life harder, with the need for wigs that boil your head and makeup that won't stay on. Autumn promises a rather prettier time.

Queen Elizabeth is being buried as I write. That marks the end of a very long era. I think Charles III will be a good king. Everyone used to poke fun at him for his notions on organic farming, climate change, accepting different faiths and the like, but that is all now mainstream thinking and practice. Evidently a man ahead of his time - a pioneer of sorts, despite outward appearances. I would say, cautiously, that he seems more humane and genuine than most people in high places. I wish him well in what may be difficult times ahead.

I am now preparing for a visit by my lovely friend Roz. Previous attempts to have her to stay have been thwarted by all sorts of unexpected events so I'm hoping that nothing goes wrong this time. I'll be meeting her at Nice airport and we plan to spend the first day of her holiday in Nice itself. Most importantly, though, it'll be good to see a trans friend again after all the chaos brought about by Covid. Let's hope we're seeing the end of that and a return to life as it used to be.

So, I have mixed feelings at this moment of seasonal and other transitions. But whenever I have this autumnal feeling I think back to my favourite childhood book, Finn Family Moomintroll by Tove Jansson, the last, evocative line of which is: "It is autumn in Moominvalley, for how else can spring come back again." As a kid, that prompts you to go right back to the start of the book (since it opens in spring) and read it all again. But now I take this as a reminder of the cycle of things: one thing ends in order that another can begin.

Have a nice autumn, everyone. For me, the next week with Roz should be a lot of fun and I expect there will be photos...

Sue x

The surreal and the kitsch

 Thank you for messages wishing me recovery from this bug I have. I'm improving but I'm not 100% yet. The weather is still quite hot and I am getting ready for long overdue visits by friends over the next few weeks. These Covid years have been weird beyond description.

This time I was going to add to my previous posts about transgender themed films at the Venice Film Festival but Stana at Femulate got there first so I will simply link to her page about Casa Susanna, a documentary by Sébastien Lifshitz about the guest house for TGirls in the USA of the 1950s and '60s: Susanna's Casa is Our Casa. There are links there to a trailer, clips and reviews. 

 

When looking at images from Casa Susanna and other places of the era, I always can't help feeling that style has lost something in recent years.

I have been paying closer attention to the news this week. This war in Ukraine that has disturbed me a lot has entered a new phase; and in Britain the change of monarch continues with a mix of surrealism and kitsch that I can't help but comment on.

Kitsch denote objects or art that may be deemed lowbrow because of their excessive sentimentality or garishness, though often appreciated in a knowing, considered or ironic way. I'd say a frilly sissy dress was kitsch, and so's a banana onesie. I'm not knocking them; there's room for everything that can be loved. For an exquisite example of well-considered kitsch you can do no better than watch the dream pantomime that ends Act 2 of Engelbert Humperdinck's beloved Christmas opera Hansel and Gretel in the Met Opera's 1982 production, which follows the original stage directions and has angels in classic Victorian angel garb - long blonde flower-wreathed hair, long green robes, glory-rayed haloes - descending from the rafters to stand in heaven-gazing guard over the sleeping children. This is nineteenth-century sentimentality writ large, in the days when the Germans were a sentimental people, and this beautiful yet knowingly kitsch throwback to the feel of the era in which the work was written should make you cry. 

It is the same with Queen Elizabeth's crowned coffin surrounded by sad guards in full panoply as one sees so often on Victorian memorials in English cathedrals. Gone are the glory days (!) when kings like William the Conqueror and Henry VIII would burst in their coffins, or die after falling off the toilet (George III) or tripping over molehills (William III); or coronations like George IV's where the queen got locked out, or other royal events where turnips were chucked or rude remarks were shouted (NB it's never been a good idea to do this). It's all really very stage-managed and very kitsch. I'm not saying it's lousy or wrong or not emotionally moving, any more than the delicious stage production above is, just very sterile in its overmanaged presentation and garish in its visual taste. On the basis that all this is good enough for the high and mighty, please don't mock a TGirl in an out-of-date outfit or a sissy in her frilly dress again. For the matter of that, don't abuse trans people just going about their daily business.

As for The Queue to view the coffin, I can only say that we seem to be entering the realms of Kafka, of Terry Gilliam's Brazil, of the Hitch-Hikers Guide to the Galaxy. When The Queue itself is now a tourist attraction, and there is periodically a queue to join The Queue, and there are tourists and journalists gawping at the queue to join The Queue, then we have left the realms of reality. If you wish to pay respects in this gruelling way, I am the last person to stop you. The fact is, I have no liking for the entire business of government, from heads of state to the lowliest jobsworths at the local council, and this is because I have to beg them for 'rights' to be treated as a woman or go about my day unmolested. By all means respect your queen, but respect everyone else too. I find many enthusiasts for government and nationality the world over often overlook that courtesy.

Sue x

Respect for old queens

 I've not been all that well these last few days. Nothing serious but I have caught some sort of chill or virus or something that's left me preferring to stay at home and rest. So I've been following the news a bit more than usual. Bulletins from the battlefields of Ukraine are positive, inasmuch as organised violence is ever positive (see also the mafia musical below), and a very old queen has died, which makes a direct difference to many countries that have or have had her as head of state.

Queen Elizabeth was around longer than I have lived and therefore seemed almost eternal. Not quite, though, and that makes for an odd feeling. I've always felt her successor Charles was a sensitive, humane man. Often ridiculed in the past as an eccentric for his concerns, yet his feelings on matters such as the natural and built environments have now become mainstream thinking. His own successors look to be supportive of the LGBT community.

A few allies are beginning to point out how many people have swiftly got used to new names, titles and pronouns: Queen Elizabeth, now King Charles; His Majesty; send him victorious, etc. Yet how often  enthusiasts for correct form refuse to acknowledge new names and pronouns for trans people who beg that their gender and names be acknowledged. 

It takes a while to get used to changes. If you know someone, whether monarch or trans person, as one thing all your life and then you need to adjust to the change in their position, it can take a while to get used to it. I have problems adjusting to my trans friends changes, either of name or even pronouns. If I use your previous name or forget your new preferred way of being addressed, then it's not me being disrespectful but just that I am getting old and forgetful and have to replace habits in my head. Do make allowances for that, as you would for everyone who still talks of Prince Charles even though his title has changed. 

But if you are determined deliberately to disrespect reasonable choices, then you're a jerk. The new British Prime Minister, Liz Truss, insists trans women are not women. The subject could be discussed reasonably, but rarely is. But since Liz Truss hates her given first name, Mary, would it be appropriate to call her Mary Truss to ensure she remains consistent in her approach? Joanne Rowling, that well-known transphobe, has no middle name and is J K Rowling for commercial purposes only. She also has another pen name, Robert Galbraith, which is hardly consistent with her feminism. Using a different name for writing, acting, soldiering, or whatever has an ancient pedigree and is, in some ways, justified by that long usage and tradition. I don't have a problem using these people's preferred names. Yet many balk at a trans person using a new name that fits their presentation or referring to them with pronouns that fit their gender and appearance. Double standards are very prevalent in the so-called great and good.

The old monarch is gone and there is a new one instead. The continuity, though, is clear. It's the same for us trans folk. I continue to have confidence that most people accept us and that newer generations will help build a society that acknowledges us more. 

 

More movie news

My post last week about the forthcoming film Monica seems to have been popular. The film didn't win any prizes at the Venice Film Festival but I would expect it to be on general release fairly soon.

There was another transgender film at the festival, Le Favolose ("Fabulous Girls"), more of a documentary about how trans women can, in some respects, die twice by being denied burial in the gender they lived in. I wrote on this important and often overlooked subject here a couple of years ago (Right in the End).

The director is Roberta Torre whose 1997 film Tano da morire (released in English as "To Die for Tano") was a sardonic mafia musical that I found compelling. (Yes, mafia musical, you read that right!) The director's contention in her latest film, based on the writings of trans activist Porpora Marcasciano, is that many trans people's history is still being eradicated in Italy. 

It might be released in English translation and the working title seems to be "The Fabulous Ones". Trailer and clip with English synopsis on this site: http://storytellertrailers.blogspot.com/2022/07/le-favolose-fabulous-ones.html

Sue x

The joy of wax

 I thought I'd share some tips on hair removal by waxing. This is partly inspired by Lynn's recent post and its comments.

If you are a TGirl like me who went through puberty that left you overmasculinised, then it's likely that you'll have ended up with insufficient hair atop and too much over the rest of your body. Inadequate top thatch can be remedied by applying a wig, hairpiece or hair extensions. But the excess hair elsewhere can be shaved, epilated or waxed. 

Shaving is easy enough but the results last just a day or two before the scratchy hairs come out again. Pulling on a pair of fine stockings over scratchy leg hair is not much good. As I've suggested before, use a men's razor not a women's one. This is because male pattern hair is thicker and such razors are designed for that, and because razors for the female market are overpriced.

Epilation is longer-lasting but even a quality epilator creates an experience that ranges from very painful to merely unpleasant. The results can be good but you do have to nerve yourself and I have almost stopped using this method.

Personally, I recommend waxing for the smoothest and most long-lasting finish. 

Do it yourself. There are various products such as Veet (formerly Immac) that enable you to do this. Products for women, however attracted to them any TGirl may feel herself to be, are not likely to be strong enough to deal with the thicker hairs that male-pattern hair growth has created on your body, therefore swallow your pride and accept that Veet for Men or similar will be the more effective version of the product. Or you can go for the full kit with proper wax, applicators, strips etc and the appropriate fondue set, as I call it, to melt the wax. 

Testing. You should test a patch of skin first to ensure that it does not cause a reaction. Give it a couple of days to see if there is a rash, eczema or other skin problem. If so, don't go any further with the product as you will regret it. Find an alternative product or alternative system.

Professional waxing. Although waxing yourself may be straightforward enough on legs, arms and chest, it is not going to be easy on the back and must never be done within the panty lines.

So the very best way to get the smoothest skin on your legs, arms, chest, back, brows or more intimate areas is to go to a waxing professional. It will cost, of course, but the beautician may be nice to talk to, encouraging of your trans life and will leave you in perfectly smooth condition. The salon should be pleasant in its decor, smell nice, have a comfortable, disinfected couch to lie on, be clean and clinically safe and, ideally, your waxer will be friendly and encouraging. They should give you safety and product advice before they begin. In return, do please take a shower before you go.

I have gone to local salons for women in both male mode and female mode for back waxes and leg waxes. For all-over body waxes I have been a few times to a specialist. Here's a short report on one experience.

Brows. If you want your brows waxed then your best choice is to visit a salon or makeup store. Other processes like threading or sugaring may be available but I have never tried these so I can't comment. I am sceptical of those who claim you can wax your own brows successfully. There is also the danger of hot wax near the eyes. I wouldn't recommend doing this yourself, therefore.

Panty area. If you want waxing in the panty area then a specialist in intimate waxing is your only proper option as, firstly, the wax is different from standard body wax and is applied and removed differently since the skin in more intimate areas is more delicate; and, secondly, there are personal and professional reasons to leave intimate treatments to those who specialise in giving them rather than everyday beauticians. If you are a pre-operative TGirl then do not feel ashamed to go to a beautician who specialises in intimate male waxing. They are professionals and there need be no embarrassment in it. They do not need to know you are trans unless it is relevant, e.g. you go to a male waxing specialist in female mode. The fact is, though, you are not likely to have many clothes on anyway! Your professional won't be worried about any reactions your body has to being handled. But don't then ask for 'personal services' or try any funny stuff as this may land you in trouble. Whilst working, my waxer, Pauline, regaled me with stories about some men who have completely the wrong idea about the services they might get; and I could tell she was not the sort to stand for any nonsense.

Pain. How much waxing hurts depends a bit on your constitution. I find epilation unpleasant; others less so. I have had only minor discomfort with waxing and I'd say only the ripping from the tummy area isn't very nice, and the chest could be pleasanter. I have not found back, leg, or other area waxing especially painful, nor is the sensation of the hot wax going on unpleasant, but I have known others howl, especially the first time they ever had the strips ripped off them. Someone I knew didn't especially like having her brows waxed. Bear in mind that male pattern hair, as above, is thicker than female hair and takes more power to remove. The beautician's skill can also be a factor in what you feel. But an experienced professional is unlikely to make you suffer.

Post-wax care. You will need to avoid hot showers and sunbathing or tanning for a couple of days afterwards as the skin may be a bit red and sensitive. Lotion containing tea tree oil is a good product to apply if you are a bit sore, or aloe vera gel or salves, or your preferred moisturiser. Your beautician will often offer fancy oils and so forth for your post-wax skin care and it's up to your purse and skin type to decide if that sort of thing is for you. If you are or may be prone to ingrowing hairs, then use a suitable gentle exfoliating regime, but only once any soreness has gone. I use exfoliating gloves but loofah mitts are good. Rather than a brush or loofah, gloves/mitts can be got right round all your curves. 

Shine. In compensation for any soreness, though, the smoothness is heavenly. Stockings and lingerie go on and feel very differently from when you have hair or when you have merely shaved. If you prefer to be bare-legged, then you will probably notice your skin's natural shine. This can be enhanced with suitable oils but go easy or you'll just look wet. Gossamer thin 5-7 denier tights with a slight sheen are available and can make your legs look fantastic.

Regrowth. You are unlikely to see any new hair growth for at least two weeks, so this is a good treatment to have before going on holiday or to a festival or other long event. The irritation is mainly needing to allow a bit of visible growth before your next waxing, but that goes for epilation too. This is so that the wax has something to grip, if only a few millimetres.

All-over smooth is the only way to go

I hope those suggestions are helpful. I wish you a smooth autumn.

(Finally, if you have an adult sense of humour, or even a childish one, which is often the same thing, then Amazon still displays the hysterical review of Veet for Men from a man who ignored the warnings not to use the product in the panty area: Veet for Men review.)

Sue x

Transgender film "Monica"

 The Venice Film Festival is on and for the first time a transgender story with a leading actress who is also transgender is being shown. Monica, directed by Andrea Pallaoro, stars Trace Lysette in the title role.

The plot is about a woman who felt she had to leave the family home but who then returns after twenty years to look after her dying mother. We gradually learn the reasons for the split and see the rebuilding of a relationship. 

My super trans intuition tells me that maybe, just maybe, the daughter is transgender. But, hey, that's only a guess. Based on the blurb!

Reviews so far have been quite mixed, ranging from "boring and dull" from audience members, to three stars, to high praise by more thoughtful film critics. It does seem quite a slow-burn, understated film and, truth be told, the trailer doesn't exactly catch fire, but you may disagree:

Could do with more zombies or aliens, I reckon. They always pull a crowd! I will likely go to see it when it is on general release, being a bit of a fan of transgender movies.

It's competing for the Golden Lion for best film, and has some stiff competition. But I mention it as it is a first. And every trans story raises awareness of trans life just a bit more with the public.

This is Trace Lysette's most significant role to date. She has played both trans and cis charcters before and said in a recent interview that she was interested in being offered a variety of roles in future and not being typecast in trans roles.

Trace Lysette at the Toronto Film Festival 2019 for the premiere of Hustlers, in which she played Tracey

Let's see how the film does, if it wins a prize or commendation.

 

Kiwi Farms closed

This uniquely nasty anti-trans site has been closed by its provider and this is to be welcomed: Kiwi Farms shut down. I try to post a greater number of positive trans stories, like the film release above, than negative ones as I do think the public is broadly pro-existence in most things and haters are a minority. But something needed to be done about this site.

Stay safe.

Sue x

Why not wear a kilt?

 Over the years, a number of women have asked me why, instead of wearing women's skirts, I don't just wear a kilt. It's the same idea, same basic look, zero hassle with epilating, makeup, etc. and less threat from transphobes.

Although the questioners have been well-meaning, they miss the fundamental point. I don't wear skirts because they are more attractive or more comfortable or cooler or pleasanter than trousers (though they are) but because they are a badge that affirms to me who I feel I am and a sign to others of how I wish to be regarded: as a woman. A kilt, although very like a skirt, is a garment for men, and I don't wear men's clothes as they fail in those two vital tasks of acceptance as a woman. Yes, there are kilts for women, too, which can be very similar to men's ones, and I would wear those. That's because they are women's kilts, not because they are kilts per se. I don't want to be taken for man in a kilt.

Kilts may, of course, be a half-way house that will satisfy a lot of trans women who may wear the item to feel more feminine but who do not wish to be out as transgender. 

These days, there is a whole range of garments that pass as kilts, such as 'utility kilts', that have quite a following. You can get them in various manly designs - camouflage, 'tactical', steampunk, 'gladiator' leather ... They are certainly practical and I saw a man in a workshop a few years ago wearing a short utility kilt that suited him and didn't seem odd. His being Scottish helped, but it was more like a black pleated miniskirt than a standard kilt. 

 

There seem to be cargo kilt designs for women too, though mostly shorter as, hey, women need to show a bit of thigh, right? 

Naturally, all this can have traditionalists frothing at the mouth. But as with all things traditional and many things masculine, the kilt to be genuine must, they say, be won by someone entitled to do so and to a strict set of rules on hem height above knee, belt size, kilt pin placing and all manner of proper and correct materials, accessories, fit and deportment. It's a minefield! No wonder most Scottish men these days wear jeans! 

My feeling is, if it makes you happy and you aren't intentionally insulting someone, then wear what you want. 

So a kilt is a great garment, and there's a huge array of kiltmakers these days. But a kilt is not for me. I'm not a man, you see.

 

Back to school

Wishing workers and children a brave return to work and school this autumn. The week to come is often the most depressing of the year! Here's something to lighten the mood:

(c) Terry C Wise

Sue x

Plans for pretty

I haven't taken any photos all summer and that's because it's been too hot and my makeup will not stay on my face. You don't want to see me without it, believe me! Given that trans law states that photos must taken as often as possible, I'm at risk of being thrown out of the club!

Since recovering from eczema, though, I've not used oil-based foundations but only water-based ones and they just don't cope with this kind of heat. The temperature here has barely varied for ten weeks, not even by night. It's only just today dipped below 30°C (86°F), and by below I mean 29.5!

However, the slow drop in temperatures is making me consider a really good, thorough makeover this autumn. I'm growing my finger and toe nails long, smooth and even so that they will look their best when painted. That will be once the swimming pool closes mid-September. I'm applying my various new hair trimmers. And I keep adding items to my wardrobe. So I feel a fully feminine photo session coming up soon. Much as I like hot weather, I also like to feel pretty but this year the two things have been mutually exclusive. 

In some ways, getting ready to look one's best is a chore; but in others, it's part of the satisfaction of being a trans girl to see one's feminine aspects getting enhanced.

All will be revealed ...

In the Pink Fog

Charlotte Sparkle is blogging regularly again and I've added her interesting trans blog to the blogroll, right. Link here too: In the Pink Fog. 

Welcome, Lotte.

Creature feature

A few days ago I suggested that the gecko who shed his tail might get called Norbert Shortbutt. But a friend pointed out that the name wouldn't be apt if, or rather when, the tail regrew. This is a good point. So how about Hugo Regrow?

For all I know he's female and actually answers to the name of Xorktalinda, Princess of Night and Stalker of the Shrubbery, Slayer of Ants, Scourge of Moths! Still, there are lots of these geckos about in the evening, not just this one. It's considered good luck to have them adopt you and this is partly why these critters keep featuring here!

 Sue x