Trans Day of Visibility 2024

 It's a big day: here the clocks go forwards, it's easter and it's Transgender Day of Visibility.

I'm focusing chiefly on the last of these as I've managed to get my makeup on without health issues and, at long last, taken some new photos. 

But first, look at these gorgeous eggs a relative sent me. They're very much in my good books right now as they clearly know how much I love both chocolates and nuts! Nut coated chocolate eggs have got to be the best, right?

I thought I'd best photograph the eggs immediately despite being in my ancient grey dress as they were likely to get scoffed straight away but I managed to restrain myself from eating them till I'd put a new prettier dress on and done my nails.

Yes, I know I'm on a plan to lose weight but I'm prepared to suspend that for special occasions or life would be really dull. 

Truth be told, I think I'm looking a bit old and although I went outside (we're supposed to be visible today, you see) I really didn't like the photo results at all. Whilst getting ready I think I look OK ...

The world through a pink-tinted lens.

 

... but I look tired and old when ready for my close-ups ...

... so maybe it's best not to take any close-ups and just do full-length pictures instead.

This is the first time I have worn this dress. I bought it last autumn when I was fat and now it's too big but it's a nice spring pink colour so I thought I'd wear it. 

Sorry about the thick tights but it's a surprisingly cold day. But the fluffy cardigan looks nice with the dress, I think.

Someone was asking me recently about soft toys so I had a few poses with Raimonda the Ray and her companion, a blue whale whom I haven't named yet.

I've mentioned Raimonda before (Fluffy Things) - I bought her because she matched the cushions and she's soft with beans inside so she's like a cushion, too. But the whale doesn't quite match. I got him/her in Montpellier last year. Suggestions for whale names gratefully received. 

I hope to go out walking later and be properly visible. If so, it will be the first time I have been out and about en femme since 2018, so I am very nervous. But I will let you know in my next post if I manage it. I also plan to spend the next two days taking more photos as it's been such a while. And besides, I don't want to take my nail polish off just yet.

I hope the world realises that we trans people exist, have a right to exist and are nice people. I was delighted to read President Biden's words about Transgender Day of Visibility quoted by Stana in her inimitable Femulate blog here. More leaders need to have the humanity and courage to do the same.

Wishing you all a good weekend and lots of chocolate.

Sue x

Health drive

 As part of my weight-loss programme, I'm also cutting out certain things that I've realised are not good for me. 

Coffee - The most significant thing I've dumped is coffee. Now, coffee is for me a very strong drug. I never have more than two cups a day or I won't sleep that night. 

For 15 years or more I've had digestive problems that doctors couldn't solve. After a lot of thought, I suspected that caffeine might be the cause, but decaffeinated coffee made no difference, and tea and soft drinks that also have caffeine don't have any effect, so I looked elsewhere for causes, without success. A few weeks ago, I decided to forego coffee for a while to ensure best sleep and within a fortnight my digestive problem vanished. Although I've drunk coffee since my teens, it used to be that instant stuff. Fifteen years ago I started working for myself at home and had time to make real Italian-style coffee and that's when the problems began but I didn't put two and two together then. I wish I had. Still, at least I know now. The coffee machine has been retired.

Alcohol - As part of losing weight, I have inevitably reduced the amount of wine and beer I drink. In much of the Western world, alcohol is a social lubricant that gets conversation and bonhomie flowing, and here in Italy a glass of wine with a meal is so normal that there are no taxes on it. But it's very fattening, hence my reduction now. I've noticed how much better I sleep, work and feel without it. And I'm wondering if very low alcohol intake may also be helping a bit with the body temperature regulation problem that was what caused me to move to the Mediterranean in the first place. So I think that unless it's a significant social occasion, I'll go without booze from now on. It also saves a lot of money!

Sugar - Obviously, the sugar has to be cut down if you want to lose weight. For years I've known how too much sugar can really irritate my gut so I've always been moderate with it, although I have a sweet tooth so sweeteners are part of my daily diet. The artificial ones like aspartame are best avoided as, over time, they are not good for your liver. Things like sucralose are better, but even they provoke your body to make excess insulin as it anticipates sugar from the sweet taste but doesn't get it. I'm gradually cutting down on this, too. 

All this is the stuff from the East that Western mercantilism and consumerism have asked us to buy and swallow for centuries. Curse you East India Company!

So I am excited about my weight loss. Today I am just half a pound (0.2 kg) short of a two stone (12.7 kg) loss to date. My target was to lose 50 pounds (22.7 kg) by May 1st so have a gigantic (and dangerous) effort to make if I want meet that now, but the main point is that I am now much lighter than I was. In fact, I am probably the lightest I have been for ten years and still losing so I can get back into those cute little dresses and short skirts I used to wear.

What a waist!

As for the hay fever or allergy I have been suffering from these last few weeks, which arose in a warm week in February when I did lots of spring cleaning with the windows open, apparently there is an epidemic this year involving not only regular hay fever sufferers but also a huge number of people who don't normally suffer from hay fever but who have been affected for the first time because of a combination of pollen and pollution at an unusual season. My condition is improving. 

It's been unusually wet this winter which has made me feel cold but the benefit has been that the local reservoirs are full, a relief after the worrying drought of 2021-23.

There is a very strong, cold wind blowing which is set to remain for a week. I think I shall stay indoors and plan my trip to Britain in May. It's never cold and wet there!

Here's to perfect health.

Sue x

Back

 I'm back to my blog after my visitor has gone, and I notice the bots have been at work. It's hard to judge what real people are reading here when there are thousands of hits a month from some weird entity. Oh well, the wonder of modern communications and all that.

My recent visitor was very pleasant company and came primarily to help me sort and file hundreds of documents. You wouldn't believe the amount of paperwork that moving from one country to another generates! At lest some nice spring weather enabled us to spread everything on my outdoor table. It's so much pleasanter to work in the sunshine than indoors. Even a boring task becomes agreeable!

 

Bird of paradise flower in the spring sunshine

My assistant has recently graduated in English and had a lot to say about gender-bent literature, such as a recent production of Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew where the shrew is male not female. Additionally, she told me in some detail about her dissertation on women science fiction writers, such as Ursula Le Guin and Anne Leckie, and their imaginary worlds where gender works in a very different way to that among the humans of Planet Earth. Rather interesting. (You can read about some gender issues in sci-fi in my previous post here: Pizza, apes and aliens.)

On the theme of books, more and more little book exchanges are springing up all over the place. This one in a park in Ventimiglia, on the border between Italy and France. A great idea. Take one and leave one.

She asked no questions about my being trans and did not refer to the trans side of her sister. These days I operate on a 'need to know' basis and if gender discussions arise only when talking about books then so be it.

Inevitably, going out involves eating out and that affects my ability to control my weight loss so I have had a bit of an increase this week. But I am confident that I will be heading in the right direction again in the week to come. I can certainly see and feel the difference.

Sue x

A bit of a break

 Sometimes you need a break from the routine so I took the last week or so out from the blogosphere and social media. It's not like there's as much cheerful reading out there these days as there used to be! 

There are various things that have gone wrong in my home largely because of the wet and windy weather we've had of late. A small leak from the roof, a faulty air con unit and other electric problems. I continue to suffer from some sort of allergic reaction that makes me sneeze a lot and can't put my finger on it, although that's diminishing now.

But, on the positive side, I have been losing weight as intended, although not as rapidly as before. That slowdown is intentional as it's not healthy to crash down. Last Friday I had this urge for chocolate and wine, both of which I have largely avoided these last six months, and thoroughly enjoyed a 200g bar of milk chocco with hazelnuts and a bottle of easy-drinking red. I've got those cravings out of my system now and my weight-loss plan didn't seem to suffer too badly for it. I'm over half way to my target of 50lbs (22 kg) off. When my nose stops running and ruining my makeup, I'll take those wretched update photos I keep planning and never being able to do. Who said trans life was easy?

The daughter of a very good friend of mine is coming next week to help me with some secretarial/clerical work I need doing. As her mother is a very supportive trans ally and her sibling has spent some of her teenage years socially transitioned as F-M (although now seems to be reverting to F), I think I will have pleasant support from a young person. I have every confidence in this younger generation that seems far more humane and in touch with gender and sexual realities that previous generations, including mine.

I have also made plans to revisit the UK in May, partly to continue dealing with residual administrative matters and also to see friends I wasn't able to see during the Brexit and Covid years.

A dip in the archives

Seven years ago I went for a day out in London with a friend. It was cold, but going out as a tourist in the low season was a good plan. Here's me at Buckingham Palace.

You can read the story of my day out here: Another Day Out

Sue x