This is an adaptation of a talk given at
California Dreamin' 98.
The first paragraph may send you to lala land so inject a dose of caffeine.
The remainder will return you to a normal state.
The statistically controlled, double blind study of Gender Identity Disordered transsexuals with transitional identities, who had experienced hormonal or surgical intervention performed by practitioners trained in forensic psychiatry, was conducted in accordance with the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and showed that post-transitionally oriented, gender dysphonic transgenderists, experiencing rejection of gender role and psychopharmacological or psychotic delusions, frequently presented anatomical and gender role incongruity, accompanied by symptomatic pathological phenomena, that generally lead to institutionalization... yada, yada, yada, drone, drone, drone...
Doesn't that dissertation bring a series of irrepressible yawns to your face? Mine too. Let's see what else I can find. Bear with me for a moment. Ahhh, here's something more interesting. Let's see, "If a man puts his finger on a hot stove for a minute, it seems like an hour, BUT If he sits on a park bench with a pretty girl, then an hour seems like a minute." Ooops, wrong theory, I think that's the Theory of Relativity.
Hold on, I know that I've got something you'll like. On the program Early Edition a copy of the newspaper is delivered a day early. I woke up early one morning last week and had the good fortune to find editions of papers that were 10, 20 and 30 years in the future.
Mr. J.J. Allen took first place in the Tiara Ball Gown contest after placing as a finalist the last three years. J.J. wore a mesmerizing columnar, black crochet, slip dress with an illusion lining and under bust shaping from the Collete Dinnigan collection. The gown had spaghetti straps, a lavish lace fringe hem and back slit. The outfit included a matching Louis Vuitton drawstring bag. Being tall and slender was a tremendous asset but J.J. admitted resorting to strategically placed padding that produced soft, gentle curves in all the expected places. The delicate, elegant and incredibly sexy, Via Spiga 4-inch heels, with adjustable ankle strap wrap were the perfect touch. Lip, eye and nail makeup was brilliantly done in off-shoots of Revlon's LavenDare line. Shades of lavender light, violet haze, frosty white, plumscape, iced amethyst and wild lilac created an image of charm and seduction. Jewels including two rings, a watch, bracelet, necklace and of course crowning tiara all of lustrous black and white south sea pearls. For all the compliments and accolades, and there were many, J.J. said the best was when his dad came up to him quietly and simply said, "Nice dress J.J."
The combined Boards of Directors of two well-known West Coast transgender organizations, Powder Puffs Of California and Educational TV Channel, announced today that this would be the last California Dreamin' conference and cited declining attendance for the move. A spokesperson said that members generally felt comfortable enough to go wherever they wanted so there was no need to go to a special cross-dressing conference. More and more transgendered individuals have chosen to bend, shift or break the arbitrary, culturally-enforced links between birth sex and gender expression. More individuals see themselves as different, not better or worse, just different and find some level of gender non-conformance appropriate in their daily lives.
In a seemingly incongruous statement he indicated that support sessions sponsored by the groups were continuing to increase. More professionals who understand transgender issues are trained and available to help anyone who is struggling with gender related issues. He explained that it was a watershed moment to be able to switch emphasis from purely social programs to those that offer needed psychological support to members troubled by a gender identity disorder. He concluded that while there are real personal problems that need treating, the number of societal-induced problems continue to decrease.
Years ago when the Packers traveled to San Francisco we used to comment on the interesting characters in California. Now we have them here in Wisconsin and they don't arouse nearly as much attention. At yesterday's game, with the balmy weather, one of our male sports reporters wore a short dress to the game, and I have to confess that he has great legs! Time was that any guy who tried that at Lambeau Field wouldn't live to see the second half but now it just seems almost normal.
Last week my best friend and I went out for drinks and he confided that he had been having job problems and didn't know what to do. He cried. Know what? It was okay. In fact it made me feel like more of a friend to be able to be understanding and supportive. A month ago at my impending 50th birthday, I admitted to my wife that I was afraid of growing old. Instead of laughing she was very loving and we had one of the most intimate evenings I can remember. In retrospect, those old macho stereotype days weren't so good after all. I no longer consider showing emotions a sign of weakness. Instead it's a sign of being more human. Quite an improvement, even here in Green Bay.
So what does this all mean? As we move beyond simply finding a place to dress and gradually push down the walls of our carefully constructed closets, society sees and understands us better and begins to accept and even emulate some of our traits. Eventually we become such an integral part of the fabric of society that we cease to exist as an independent, definable group. Some scoff and say that can't be, but George Bernard Shaw saw a similar type of vision when he said, "You see things; and you say, 'Why?' But I dream things that never were; and I say, 'Why not?'"
Oddly enough, our common bond is in our differences. We have struggled more to understand and accept ourselves. Because of our struggles we can be more sensitive to the struggles of others. Through our sensitivity we can infect society. Once they catch understanding and acceptance there is no known cure.
I say, "Why not?"
What do you say?
