I am glad to say that I am now an official member of Neighborhood Unitarian Universalist Church of Pasadena. Tomorrow will be my first attendance as a member rather than a perpetual guest. Being a member means I have a greater say in the church's affairs - and I must also take responsibility for financially sustaining the church. I am pledging a modest amount for now, but will start stepping up soon, as I know how important the church is for me in terms of meeting like-minded people.
I am also stepping up my leisure activities and socializing. To make up for years of being forced away from the trans community in Los Angeles, I attended a memorial service this afternoon for Christine Daniels, who had written for the Los Angeles Times as a sports columnist named Mike Penner for a long time. Penner had come out in 2007 and started writing under Daniels' name, and the Times was very supportive of her, but the obnoxious transphobia of the sports world forced her to resume using a male identity against her will, and it proved to be too much, leading to her suicide over Thanksgiving weekend in 2009. I never got to know Christine - but I am grateful to now be able to connect with her valuable friends who continue to carry on her spirit. This also means my novel can finally start seeing some inspirations again - and resume its progress.
I'm also enjoying other activities - like exercise and shopping. It's also nice that some of my favorite looks during my teenage years are coming back one by one. In a way, I'm becoming a teeny bopper that I had never been - to a point where I still get carded if I try to buy a drink or gamble. To add to this teeny bopper theme, this past Tuesday I was at a fundraiser for the Matthew Shepard Foundation, which was done in the format of a drag pageant (my friend Calpernia Addams being one of the judges) - and the surprise guest was Tiffany! Yes, the late 1980s teeny bopper idol best known for "I Think We're Alone Now" (which she indeed sang that night). She was also auctioning off her signed shoes for the foundation - and while her archrival Debbie Gibson wasn't there in person, her shoes were being auctioned off too.
I've been waiting for this chance to rebloom, ever since my identity and life were taken away against my will by the Arizona theocrats in 2001. Finally glad to get my life and identity back. My next steps will be to start building a real support network. I will need to start attending some group meetings regularly, and also to start working with a shrink (I'm in touch with Lisa Maurel in Orange County). A social network is what I've been missing out sorely on, and it's time to build it at last.
When I have time, I'll have to start with some Europe travelogues (way overdue, and mostly done at Facebook), then move on to more recent photos.
