Decidedly Obscure Human Complaints.

Last Saturday  Athens Boys Choir - a trans spoken word artist named Harvey Katz - performed in Salt Lake City at an independent cafe located in a low-income area of the city. I grew up in that area and hadn't been there for quite some after I moved out. I was very pleasantly surprised by how vegan-friendly and cozy this Mestizo Cafe is. I'm a fan. It also helped that the place was packed with gender variance and transtastic'ness galore. Harvey Katz was excellent. He did his spoken word thang, then his singing song let's dance thang. During the spoken word portion I was caught off guard slightly by the audience finger snapping during certain parts or bursting out with "Mmmms!". It was distracting, but apparently a thing that happens at spoken word events. I know, because I did a quick Google search on it after the event. And I found that I'm not alone. After one person asked on a forum why people snap during poetry sessions, members responded: ...

Look what popped up in The Salt Lake Tribune yesterday: Bountiful police » 'We're glad he works here,' says chief. By Rosemary Winters As a child, Kerry Bell dreamed of growing up to become a policeman -- both a police officer and a man. Becoming a cop was relatively simple -- Bell joined the Bountiful Police Department 14 years ago. Becoming a man took more time. Born female, Bell came out as transgender about a year and a half ago and started a transition to a new life as a man. He always had felt male, but did not think switching genders was a viable option until he saw transgender people gaining wider acceptance, along with advances in medical technology. Read More >

I just got home from spending the entire day at the downtown library for Trans Action 's 1st Annual "(UN)Packing Gender Conference". It was a really refreshing experience. And exhausting. Only because I had to leave my apartment at 7:30am to help Jude setup for the conference. Workshop #1: Makeup! The first workshop I attended with orange juice and a bagel pertained to highlighting feminine features with the magic of makeup. I chose this one over the how-to-shave workshop going on at the same time because a.) I don't need to shave yet, and b.) I can't resist my love for SPFX makeup. I know how to make a bloody eye socket, zombies, werewolves, fangs and anything monstrous - but beauty makeup? It couldn't possibly be more foreign to me. Eye liner? Eye shadow? What's the difference? And I learned a few things! For instance, I learned that applying white eye-liner under one's eye can make it look larger. Or that applying a light color to the inside...

This is embarrassing. About two weeks ago a friend of mine at City Weekly referred me to someone who wanted to interview me for  Transgender Awareness Month . Even though I'm actually very shy about this sort of thing, I agreed to it. Instead of doing the interview somewhere with just the two of us, I requested that we do it at the Utah Pride Center so he could potentially interview some other trans-identified people. I didn't feel comfortable about the idea of being a representative of other trans people. I also hoped that I would appear for about 1.4 seconds and other people could fill up the remainder. I'd be a blurb. Get in, get out. Part done, stage fright averted. But that's not how reality panned out. As my awkward and rare video documentations have proven, there's something about a camera 2" from my face that instantly liquefies my mind and transforms me into a terrified, monotone robot. No humor. Only terror. Absolute, sheer sweat and redness. ...

A lot of transgender amazingness has been happening in Salt Lake City within the grand GOP state of Utah. Just last night I went to Trans Action 's "Open Mic". Prior to that I sat on a panel with other trans people. And prior to that I watched a film down at the library with some other trans panelists. And prior to that I attended a trans chili cook- off. In other words, I'm really getting a lot of trans exposure. It's wonderful, really. First, those ordinances passed protecting LGBT individuals from workplace and home discrimination. Throughout there have been little bits of media coverage pertaining to Transgender Awareness Month, especially last Monday when Rosemary Winters published Transgender community pushes for acceptance, awareness in the Salt Lake Tribune. Some of the reader comments on the site are really empathetic and supportive, while others are less so. For instance, one transphobic reader commented: "As long as IT is cornfused about or ...

Prior to 1978, Mormon leaders forbid Blacks from holding the Mormon Priesthood. In 1978, due to mounting pressure from pending lawsuits concerning racism, Spencer W. Kimball conveniently received a revelation that people of color could hold the Priesthood and enter the Temple. If the LDS Church had not changed its views on this, it would have lost its Tax-Exempt 503(c) status - as pending litigation in several states in America was proceeding. The California-based Christian Research Institute Journal sums up the LDS Church’s financially-footed flip-flop on its racist doctrine: Writes Latayne C. Scott in " Mormonism and the Question of Truth :" "LDS leaders... perceived threats in both the outcome of a recent court case on racial discrimination and in the possibility of an IRS review of the Church's tax-exempt status. So, in a statement the LDS Church released to the public - which was a far cry from earlier revelations - they announced that Blacks were sudden...

So excited! Our family canine companion, Ganymede, is one of the first two pitbulls to graduate from the Good Canine Citizen program here in Utah. Gany, my pup, is the cute little golden brown guy who knows how to "stick em' up!". He is now, officially, a local celebrity: Animal Experts: Pit Bulls the Perfect Pet   I can't stand it. He's so adorable and I'm so proud. He's the best advocate EVER for pitbulls. I'M GOING TO IMPLODE.

I don't have television so I'm a bit out of the loop when it comes to what the hot issues of the day are. So, lately, I've been hearing through the grapevine bits and pieces about Chaz Bono showing up in the media for announcing his plan to transition from a female to male. My grandma even e-mailed me about it: "I watched Chaz Bono being interviewed and he was so clear and intelligent about his transition. Of course it made me think a lot about you, Mel, and what life must have been (and is) for you. I continue to worry about your health and safety but heck, I worry the same about all of the family. I just want you to be whole and happy. To B U." Awwww! Go Chaz, for being open and brave about his transition, even in the face of a media onslaught. I have been reading news online this. In one article released October 30th from People Magazine , Cher was quoted in regards to supporting Chaz's decision to pursue a sex change: "The one thing that ...

Now it's November which might just become the year's second best month seeing as it's Transgender Awareness Month and Utah has some pretty spiffy trans activism going on these days. There are a slew of upcoming trans-awareness events planned throughout the month thanks to Trans Action : Utah ain't so bad!

Here are a few photos from my family trip to San Diego! Look at this cute little ol' guy - a "Tapocyon" hanging out over at the Museum of Man in a plastic tree. Apparently he's similar to what modern dogs and cats evolved from and has retractable claws, which kitties retained and pups lost along the way. Mom and I, enjoying our Spongebob Squarepants pops in Balboa Park Mmm! Vegan pizza from Stephanie's Bakery in San Diego! On the purdy beach at sunset with the mom and brother.