transjoy

Driving in the car and one of those songs that can take you back to a time in your life came on .. Soundgarden’s “Fell On Black Days” … and I felt transported back to college (grad school actually). But the “memory” I was reliving was of a twenty something Jessica in a black dress dancing to the music … which was not something that ever happened.

My brain was filling in gaps of memories and gendering me correctly and creating the backstory i kept hidden. I was not recalling deadname’s memories I was recalling the Jessica who wasn’t able to be her and living what she would have done. Truly #transjoy!

As many fucked up thjngs brains can do this time you did good kid … you did good.

So what has Samantha been doing in the west coast?

I spent the past several days with the Amazonian princess, Terra. She is doing great after surgery, and it was a pleasure being able to spent time with her and help out with her recovery.

As an added bonus I got to meetup in person for the first time with @NineIsntPrime and @bumpus.

Lots of laughs and good times.

As I sit at my hotel tonight before I fly back tomorrow, I am simply in awe at our community and the friendships that have formed.

#trans #transjoy

Hey everyone. I skipped Trans Voice Friday entirely last week, but this is a very, very special week for me, so I had to make sure to celebrate it with another voice recording. It’s not just that I started HRT; yesterday I also had my last voice training session. My voice coach said I was ready and that I just need to continue doing my exercises for a few months to make sure this voice becomes my default.

She said that I was a rare case for her, because several elements of my voice were already quite feminine and others just needed a bit of work; I am the first one she wrapped with in just 5 sessions. :o I feel privileged but also a bit in disbelief; can’t this really be it? If so, I am a lucky gal.

As part of the training, I recorded a weekly audio with the same text, and yesterday she played back the first and last ones… and I was shocked. Even though I was aware my voice had changed, I had no idea how much. I had a bit of a sore throat when I recorded the first one, so that might have had an influence, but still. I feel on top of the world right now. Things are finally clicking…

#Trans #TransJoy #TransVoiceFriday

A belated Valentine’s dinner with my partner, best friend and number one supporter. 💖
#transjoy

CW: selfie, ec

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Holy moly, I just got madam'ed for the first time on the phone! I called the hairdresser to book an appointment for my first ever girl haircut, and made the absolute best girl voice I can muster, and I noticed no hesitation from the hairdresser. Straight up, “what do you want to do madam?” It made my day, and girls, did I need that. #TransJoy

On this #TransDayOfVisiblity, I want to specifically highlight Bernie Wagenblast.

She is one of the famous announcer voices for New York City's Metropolitan Transit Authority! (See video for demonstration)

From her wikipedia page: Bernie Wagenblast is a transportation journalist, radio personality and voice-over artist. She is the founder and editor of the Transportation Communications Newsletter. She also edits The AASHTO Daily Transportation Update, published by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, and hosts AASHTO's ETAP Podcast and the ITE Talks Transportation podcast for the Institute of Transportation Engineers.

Trans folks putting the 'trans' in public transit!

#transdayofvisibility #transit #publicTransit #publicTransportation #trans #transJoy #bernieWagenblast #MTA #NYC #solarPunk

I'm back out again, having a Saturday morning coffee.

It's a lovely sunny day here today, which always helps boost the spirits a little.
Nice to just be enjoying life like any other woman - even if this one just happens to be trans...

Coffee first, then I need to go do some shopping...
Then home, a walk and I must do some housework! You know, just normal, everyday stuff...
But I may change out of this dress!

CW for eye contact

#trans #transatsixty #transselfie #transjoy #transvisibility

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I had a wonderful time getting a long overdue makeover today. I'm now wondering if I should change my pfp to a closeup mugshot of the first 'cheerful' pic (instead of cute, furry, sable). What do you think? #transjoy

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I have been incredibly lucky with my coming out, and I know it. Apart from my ex-wife's initial reaction, I have been met with nothing but support and acceptance. In some occasions, it goes even beyond that, and that acceptance comes with a dollop of kindness and love on top.

Take today, for example. I was feeling under the weather so I called in sick and went to the doctor. My GP was busy so I had to go to another doctor in the clinic, to whom I had to explain the discrepancy between my presentation and the name and gender in my file. After he asked me about HRT, he added that he had a lot of respect for trans people because he couldn't imagine how hard it must be to take this step and asked how I was feeling about it and what my experience had been like so far.

A bit later, picking up the 3-year-old at the creche, there was only one teacher left, a very sweet and friendly one who has babysat the kids a few times and is the closest to us there. She apologised that she hadn't spoken to me all week, but she was always busy when I was there, and she really wanted to tell me how much she admired and respected what I had done. Also, she said she and another teacher remarked how much happier I seemed now and that that in turn made her very happy. ♥️ I ended up staying a bit longer to talk to her about transition and, well, just girly things in general.

I am truly blessed. I never imagined when I started coming out that this path would have had so much starlight illuminating it. I know there will be transphobia and some bad moments in the future, but when they do happen I can take solace in all the kindness I have received so far. This is how it should always be.

#Trans #TransJoy #ComingOut

Four years ago today, on the beautiful Northern California coastline near Mendocino I carried a picnic dinner bundle towards a secluded spot overlooking the Pacific Ocean, followed by my long time partner, C, and our dog, Jade. Little did either realize I was carrying something else besides our meal ... something hidden deep inside that I had only just revealed to myself.

It was here, looking over the view immortalized in the photo below, that I came out, hesitantly and with a lingering cloud of uncertainty that I "might be" a transgender woman.

I recall little of what I said that day, I'm sure little of it made sense no matter how much I had agonized over it the preceding couple of weeks since realizing that truth myself. But I will always remember C's reaction ... taking in the news, allowing me to speak and then smiling, hugging me closely and assuring me that *we* would tackle this together.

In the 1461 days since there have been a collection of ups and downs but the trajectory of my transition and my life has remained positive. C (and Jade) remain by my side and have been foundational allies and support in my transition. And as I've come out to others and met so many incredible friends in the community, I am graced by such support and love from so many. Thank you all.

Four years ago I did one of the hardest things I could image, to speak words that could have destroyed my life and relationships, all for the possibility that I might have a life that more fit who I was and had always been. I took those steps, said those words, and have been rewarded in ways I could never have imagined.

#TransJoy

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I...um...I just got a mother's day card from my adopted nephew? 🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭🥰🥰🥰🥰😭😭🥰😭🥰😭

I never even conceived i could ever receive a mother's day card...I just...i'm crying again 🥹😭

#TransJoy #FoundFamily #QueerJoy

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A year ago, tonight, a girl who’d never seen her own reflection was sitting with her Eldest child for bedtime. And after Eldest fell asleep, she came across a post suggesting that wishing that she was the other gender was not a very cis thing to do.

It only took a few days to conclude that she wanted to transition so she could show her children what it meant to live authentically. She didn’t want her example to them to be living in the closet.

Anyway. It’s been quite a year.

#Trans #TransJoy

I have never before in my life read or felt seen as deeply by a feminism like that from A Short History of Trans Misogyny, and this week on #StainedGlassWoman, we're diving deep into mujerísima to understand exactly why Jules Gill-Peterson's work truly is A Love Letter To The Dolls unlike anything I've ever encountered before.

#trans #MtF #nonbinary #TransJoy #Feminism

https://stainedglasswoman.substack.com/p/a-love-letter-to-the-dolls

On the way to a meetup with wonderful trans women yesterday, my mom called with a #TransJoy story that I had to share.

Her good friend’s daughter B. has a 4-year-old. On the way to school last week B. noticed they were looking extremely sad, asked what was wrong, and her kid said “I just wish I had a magic wand that could make me a girl.”
Right away, B. simply answered “You don’t need a magic wand. If you want to be a girl, you can just be a girl.”
She told the teachers when they arrived, everyone was immediately supportive, and now B’s daughter is out as a girl and filled with joy that she can be herself. Quick as that, no ridicule, no gatekeeping, no hesitation.

You can just be a girl.

You ever just look in the mirror and laugh because no seriously what the fuck must have happened to make this possible? Like reality broke, right? It's the only possible explanation.
#TransJoy #TheSelfiesMustFlow

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It's Pride month, and now that we're 55 years after Stonewall, it can be awfully easy to forget why it's all such a big deal--and what Pride exists to do.

This week on #StainedGlassWoman, we're diving into the lifesaving importance of Pride and the Prejudice that makes it so necessary. Grab a rainbow flag, show yourself a little love, and join us as we talk about internalized self-stigma and shame.

#Trans #TransJoy #MtF #Enby #FtM #Psychology

https://stainedglasswoman.substack.com/p/pride-and-prejudice

I tried recording this submission to #TransVoiceFriday a couple of times… so 1) I could make it shorter, and 2) try not to cry.

Both tasks were impossible because of the subject matter. This is about how a mastodon friend saved my life.
Apologies for this going kinda long. It clocks in at 13min. 😬

#TransJoy

I’m at my neighborhood pool…

in a swimsuit.
.
.
.
😐
.
.
.

I’M AT MY NEIGHBORHOOD POOL IN A SWIMSUIT!!!

Aaaagh!!!

#TransJoy

Ever wish you had something small enough to explain a really basic part of being trans to like... your coworkers, or your clueless parents? The kind of people who just sorta bounce off the long intro articles you send them?

This week on #StainedGlassWoman are Doc Impossible's Trans-Torials, Creative Commons-licensed, standalone, portable, *printable* intros to transness for those folks!

#Trans #MtF #FtM #Enby #Transjoy

https://stainedglasswoman.substack.com/p/trans-torials

I’ll be honest.

My hopes when I started transition were low. My expectations were even lower.

Reality has blown both out of the water.

#transjoy #trans #selfie

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I’m rebuilding my account. Point me to other Trans people worth following?

DO NOT suggest Charlotte Clymer 🙏 #transgender #transjoy #t4t

PSA to cis guys:

If you take enough estrogen, then when you mist your makeup with setting spray you’ll feel a gentle and highly affirming patter of tiny droplets settling on your boobs.

You, uh, might not be cis, though.

#TransJoy

Four years.

A lot can happen in four years. A whole universe of changes. Impossible amounts.

Four years ago, today, I admitted to myself that I was trans.

And since, the whole world has opened up for me like a flower. Somehow, I am me, now.

Trans joy is the biggest miracle I know.

#transjoy

To the other #trans people in the Fediverse: How old were you when you started to question your assigned gender at birth vs when you came out?

I started to question my gender when I was about four years old, but I didn't come out until 2011 [age 28] (and then started HRT in 2019! [age 36])

Please boost for visibility! I'm curious to know everyone's answers!

#transgender #transjoy