Saturday, November 2, 2024

November 2024. Hope for the future? Or is it a fever dream?

Hi!

Disclaimer, if you don't want to read strong political opinion... click away now! It's a deep departure from my regular blog posts. Screenshots, quotes, weblinks... this blog post has it all!

For the first time in many elections, I didn't "vote in person." The leaders of my county took the advice of the majority of my neighbors by pursuing only "secure" paper ballots this year. I dropped my completed ballot into the secure box at the polling place and I'm glad that I did. Looking at the polling place, I didn't see any privacy screens, just a big empty room with a Disney park series of switchbacks leading and a long table with chairs. My wife and I went Wednesday after work. I was still in my blouse and jeans from work. When we dropped our ballots into the secure box, the woman wished us a blessed day. Um... thanks?

For the first time since I moved to this weird town, I have seen more political signs for the Democratic candidate than for the convicted felon who also has a judgement against him for rape. I see more signs for the Democrat running for US Senate than her anti-choice GOP challenger. Heck, there's even a Nevada Assembly candidate who is a Democrat! It'll be a cold day in He11 when we see Democrats running for Nye County or local races, though. Quoting Blazing Saddles here, 

  • "Jim: [consoling Bart, who is upset that his attempts to be cordial with the citizens of Rock Ridge led to him being racially insulted] What did you expect? "Welcome, sonny"? "Make yourself at home"? "Marry my daughter"? You've got to remember that these are just simple farmers. These are people of the land. The common clay of the new West. You know... morons."

 

Blazing Saddles (1974) - Quotes - IMDb  


No offense meant to the minority of intelligent folks here. But...my town has made the list!

"Why does 24/7 Wall St. say Pahrump is the worst city in Nevada?

The factors included how many residents experience poverty, lack of access to affordable housing and rates of substance abuse disorders and crime. 24/7 Wall St., which authored the article, pulled data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the FBI, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention."

https://www.rgj.com/story/news/data/2024/11/01/what-makes-this-city-the-worst-place-to-live-in-nevada-find-out-here/75987434007/  

Crime here, nah! Only the best people live here!  

https://pvtimes.com/news/four-suspects-face-drug-gun-child-abuse-charges-137170/ 

https://pvtimes.com/news/pahrump-man-suspected-of-attempted-murder-located-in-mtn-falls-137138/

But... I'll bet that most of these folks are stereotypes. Two of the surnames in the drug story are influential "families" in this town. Whether they are related to THE families, I don't know. And I'll bet I dollars to doughnuts that the families don't support candidate Kamala Harris.

I've actually lived in TWO of the listed "worst places!"


My town's local TV station is owned by a trump fanatic.  Here's the Facebook page of the station.

https://www.facebook.com/KPVM25 

This is what was posted four days ago. 


I'd be very concerned if I were associated with this PAC giving money to ensure political support. I wouldn't cash that gigantic fake check or the normal sized one that she probably will get in the mail. My wife received an unsolicited check for $47 from that PAC earlier this week. I hope that the Federal Election Commission does a thorough investigation into this issue and I also hope that the current administration looks into the immigrant behind the financial campaign's potential immigration problems and foreign operative status.

The station owner has the comments off for most of the political videos they post on their Youtube channel.  You know that they cannot handle criticism or others calling them out for misinformation. 

KPVM 25 TV - YouTube 


It's hard to be a blue dot in a red town. It's hard to exist publicly when you know that your neighbors openly mock everyone who is different or thinks independently.  

People ask why I stay here. I have been here for 12 years. My cost of living relatively low. My taxes are low. It's just that the culture here is SO screwed up. Foolishness breeds foolishness. Forty-thousand people living here and it's not even an incorporated place. There's no town government, just a Republican led County Commission. The citizens dissolved the town board before I moved here.

Because.... I don't know why.

Okay, you've lived through my incessant rant about life in Pahrump, NV. 

Yes, there are some good things about being here. We don't have much traffic. Smog isn't an issue. Cost of living is relatively low. Gas is cheaper than Vegas. We have a dark sky at night and the stars can be magnificent, well they were until all my neighbors all decided to put spotlights around their houses ruining my dark sky. We occasionally see wild horses and burros in town. The weather is mostly tolerable and it rarely snows. 

Have a good weekend. I hope our nation does the right thing and we have our first woman of color elected to our nation's highest office.

Thanks for sticking around.

Heather.


https://kamalaharris.com/




Thursday, October 24, 2024

Nails. Halloween. Celebrities.

Hey everyone!

Tomorrow's Friday and by the grace of my employer, I'm off work. And I'm looking to get into a bit of mischief! I'm getting my brows waxed and for the first time I'm getting acrylic nails done! I have an appointment booked for late afternoon with my adult daughter and maybe the youngest kid, too. I'm hoping to get a length of a minimum 1/4" beyond the tip of each finger. Right now, some of my natural nails are about that long and I am able to work and type without interference. I intend to get a bright red gel coating to really stand out.

I'm so excited about this. I've told the women at work about my plans. Many of them are going out to the desert for a weekend of frolicking at Dumont Dunes to ride in their quads or side X sides. And yes, at least 4 of the women and their families/friends are going on this trip, probably at least 15 of their immediate family members are going to be there.  I've never been there; People say it's a fun atmosphere. I'd hoped to take my dirt bike in the past but it never happened and I'm not sure if my knees can handle the abuse at my advanced age (59). I've not ridden in a few years. We'll see.

Next week brings Halloween. I'm dressing up, of course. I was away last year because of my Mom's illness and subsequent passing. This is the first year for me to be "out" and celebrate work Halloween. I think one of my co-workers is disappointed that I'm going as Heather and not the way I dressed when I started working there. She said it would be fun. Meh, I have the pleasure of living as Heather and the drudgery of living in boymode. Heather will win, every time.  

I put an email out to the office today, reminding everyone that we're permitted to dress for Halloween within certain guidelines. I hope we get some other participants. I'll always be "over the top" for work Halloween but now instead of office girl, I'm able to glam it up and my youngest kid bought me the dream dress.  I'll be wearing a copy of the iconic white Marilyn Monroe pleated dress. I'm so excited! In my office email, I mentioned that we'd have at least one celebrity impersonator.

Election day is coming and I don't know if I'll be wearing that to the polls or I'll choose a different dress but I've gone to the polls the last few times as Heather and you know that I can't break that tradition.

Please remember to vote. We need every registered voter to protect our rights and our Nation's Constitution by choosing Kamala Harris and her running mate Tim Walz. As a trans person, the alternative is far too frightening.

I'll do my best to get photos.

Thanks for stopping by, have a great weekend. 

Heather

Sunday, October 20, 2024

Happy October!

I'm back,

I'd like to share some of the good things that happen during my days at work. As I've said a few times, I've been out at work for nearly two years. These two years have been mostly great. I don't wear much jewelry, pretty much only earrings. But people frequently compliment choice of earrings. My kids and I went to Reno a couple of years ago and while we were there, my oldest bought be a pair of earrings with cats in coffee cups. People LOVE them! When I do my nails, they're shocked that a.) they're my own nails and b.) that I paint them myself. Personally, my skills are basic and I often get paint on the skin AND my nails but the result is generally decent. Yeah, there are people who are rude or crass but the majority are great. When at work, I'm not known as Heather. I use my given name. After interacting with customers they'll ask, "what's your name?" I reply with my given name without blinking and people smile and thank me and I always feel that my goal is to be a good trans ambassador in a ridiculously conservative rural Nevada town.  Mission accomplished! (If I get a good photo of Marilyn, I'll share it.)

Halloween is coming! For years, my kids and I have been trying to bring Marilyn Monroe to my life. This year it is happening! We have the iconic white dress, I have a blonde wig and I'll rock the look. My plan is to spend Friday at a salon getting some prep work done. The plan is for a stylist to wax and shape my brows and getting my first set of acrylic nails. A goal is to have permanent eyeliner and brow lines done too. The salon that I previously have used wasn't available so I've enlisted my eldest to schedule at the same nail salon that did my first manicure about 3 years ago. She said that they do waxing too.  We have an appointment set for next Friday after she gets out of work. I'm really looking forward to Halloween. 

I've had the experience of flying en femme. Because my sister and Dad are getting me from the airport these last two trips, I chose to fly in "mixed" mode. I'd worn a bra with medium size breast forms, camisole under a clingy tee shirt, woman's jeans and Skechers. Going through security in Vegas, I didn't separate my electronics in my carry-on adequately, so I had a secondary inspection of my chargers, phone battery bank, Roku player and other items but not my backup set of breast forms. Leaving Bradley Airport for my return flight, I had my carry-on inspected because of my breast forms. Neither place had an issue with the breast forms I was WEARING! No worries.

I've really come to terms with who I am. I almost always wear a bra and breast forms, like 24/7.  Even when I go out in male mode, I have a bra and breast forms on. I used to wear a sports bra under a tee shirt to not have the clips and adjusters visible. There are only a few times where I worry about bra type now, some doctor visits or visiting certain friends where I'll just wear the sports bra and amaller forms. Most times, I don't even think about it. I make sure it's visible and have an ample bosom. Life is good! 

A point worth restating is my belief that a majority of people don't even notice who we are. It reminds me of the episode of the TV series M*A*S*H where Hawkeye bets that he could walk through the entire camp naked and almost gets away with it until he's in the mess hall, someone notices and drops a cafeteria plate and everyone notices his state of undress. I've done most regular activities in girl mode for over two years and find that nobody treats me poorly. 

Last week was my birthday.  I took the day off from work so I could go to the Las Vegas Pride Parade with my kids on Friday evening. At 6:30 the night before, my phone rings and it's my GP doctor's office about test results from a cardiologist I'd visited... BACK IN MAY. I was due to have a surgery performed on my nose to clear the nasal passages and resolve a deviated septum. It is long past the original surgery date because of the slow cardiologist. I learned that I needed new bloodwork and another chest X-ray to get back on track. I was already set to drive to Vegas on Friday and we scheduled a radiology visit and I'd go while wearing what I would wear to watch the parade; a slinky tan animal print tank dress. As stated above, the experience was great. Everyone was fine. I used my given name, as that's my name... I think the guy sitting near me was checking me out even and muttered something about my legs. We scheduled this Thursday morning for my blood test which I did before work. I considered just wearing my woman's jeans, no wig and a male tee shirt but I worried getting to work on time and then having to return home, eat and change my wardrobe/gender presentation. I decided to dress for work. I chose a low-cut floral blouse and jeans and did my thing, signed in waited for the phlebotomist in the lobby. She came out, called my given name and didn't bat an eye. Nobody in the lobby even seemed to react. We talked while she did the draw. She asked where I worked but said nothing about given name versus Heather. Again, life is good! The Ear, Nose and Throat doctor who will be performing the surgery has already encountered my as Heather. She's a bit "no-nonsense" in her approach but she never said anything bad.

I'm sure that I have other things to share since I posted those few months back but my brain is getting too easily distracted to put more words to the screen.

I'm doing okay, all is well and remember this:

Life.

Is.

Good!

I hope y'all are doing okay too,

Thanks for reading this. 

Heather

Wednesday, July 3, 2024

It's been a while. Hello again!

     I've been busy. Lots going on. Still living my live authentically. Yes, I still have days where I am out in public as the "old me" rather than the new, feminine me. I have NOT gone back to boy mode for work since I started the journey but I have worn jeans and leggings to work.

    Yesterday I saw a social media posting from my cousin about their sibling's kid and their journey to transition. I haven't seen most of that side of my family in person since my Mom's Mom passed away back in the early nineties.  Based on the length of time it take me to post on my own blog, I bet you can just imagine how great my "keeping in touch" skills are with people I actually know and am related to... Blah, blah, blah... I know never end a sentence with a preposition.. LOL. 

I'm the social media friend to 4 out of 5 of that set of cousins and both parents, well their Dad passed a couple years back.. so I guess I'm now just the friend of their Mom on that social media site. . Yadda, Yadda.  

My Uncle was in the military and a bit of a hardass, I remember a time when their family visited my house when I was little. Their five kids, my sister and me and the four adults packed into our small kitchen. I have no recollection of what we ate (maybe spaghetti?) but I do remember that the kids weren't allowed to drink their milk until they had cleared their plates. The bunch of us kids must have ranged from about five to twelve years old. I recall thinking my uncle seemed mean because of not letting the kids dring.. After retiring from the military, they moved to the Dayton, Ohio area.  They all seemed to lead okay lives until adulthood. Three of the sisters became widows within about ten years and the other sister has been out since the mid-nineties but living in the Cincinatti area wasn't welcoming for a gay woman. She later moved to Southern California and had a family.

I am sure that my uncle was a diehard member of the GOP and having seen some of the social media postings of his only son, my cousin... I think he shared Dad's viewpoint.  I know my cousin uses Facebook and he has a Twitter account that has not been active in a few years.  I had looked at both Facebook and Twitter reading his activity and interactions with his nieces and nephews and remember seeing disparaging comments.  You now know that I'm not connected to my cousin who is the kid's actual parent on social media   I use the term kid lightly, My offspring are "kids" but they're all in their thirties.  So my cousin's thirty something kid with a Master's in Education is transitioning. Never met them. Really proud of them! Their Aunt posted the info online and also shared a link to a crowdfunding site to help pay their way on the road to transition.  I replied to the Aunt's posting with something along the lines of "it's important to be true to yourself and awesome to be able to know each step is a wonderful turn toward an amazing journey. Shortly after I replied, their Aunt liked my comment. Woot! We donated to the cause.  I said to my wife  that I may not be able to afford the cost to do anything myself but I'll help a younger sister along.  I get up this morning and have a notification on social media that the kid's father "liked" my statement.about being true to one's self. I hope he treats his kid with the respect that they deserve. I'm glad they're doing this while they're young and able to enjoy living authentically. I can only imagine what my life would have been like if I had the knowledge I now possess back when I was young.

I'm glad for the person transitioning. It's a scary time in our world. I live in rural Nevada, surely not the most welcoming community to be non-binary. The young person lives in North Carolia! I hope their community offers support!

My own kid is nonbinary. I offer absolute support for them!

As a person who still struggles with a bit of fear when walking out the door, even after a year and a half of living everyday in feminine mode I offer all the positive energy and strength to them and their spouse.

Heather