Hi, Jesse, and welcome. I'm really glad you found your way here and that it feels like it may be some of what you've been seeking. I hope you continue to find that to be true.     No need to apologize. I don't feel like we need to come here with "answers" or "clarity" or really anything that resembles "completion." It's OK to be a work-in-progress, and I kind of hope that will always be true for me. My calendar page today says:     That's something I've long felt to be true.   And yet, I also understand that there's a balance between a comfortable open-endedness and a not-sure-what-I'm-doing feeling. I have been there, and recently. So, please, feel free to share any of what you're thinking/feeling/wondering here. We love having those, "Oh, wow. You too?" moments. We may not have the answers, but we can at least confirm that we're not alone in having the questions.

@Jamma Thank you! A Challah is a traditional Jewish bread, which is an enriched dough (with eggs and honey)    @Pema I see your schedule is *wide* open - let's make it work! Lol! 

I think we should have a picnic. Toli can bring baked goods, and the rest of us can bring...other things. My schedule is pretty flexible (outside of spring, summer, and autumn [and parts of winter]), so let me know what works for y'all.

I genuinely have no idea (NOT because you don't describe well, just because I suck at girl clothes)  BUT If you go to your clothing purveyor of choice, and pick women, and then pick tops, it will show you ALL of them. And then you can see what they call them? 

i don't have the best advice because i legit came out at the ripe age of 9, but heres my take:   being trans or androgynous isn't just an online thing or a "quirk" like others say.   i know it probably feels very hard thinking on living life as male, especially if you've lived through most of it as female. I'd say maybe test the waters and limits. try slicking your hair back and putting it in a low poytail, maybe wear more masculine clothing -- but if others start to question, and you don't want to give an answer, its pretty easy to brush it off as "oh i just wanted to be comfortable today" or "im just testing a new style".    and i have a pretty controversial opinion here: if you don't feel like sharing that you're trans, don't! if you end up passing very well but someone asks if you're born female, just say "oh no, puberty just hast hit me hard enough yet" or "i'm a late bloomer". because thats what i usually do.   (i also came by to give advice because i see Caine in your profile picture. every Caine lover needs to be heard. :3)

That bread looks amazing 😍 very impressed ! Don't think ive ever tried challah but I 100% would !

Hi all,   Bit of a strange question  as I dont really even know how to word what im asking    Im looking for some more feminine tops to complete a few outfits. What are the sort of woolen or sort of fluffy or i suppose stitched type tops called ?   I would describe them as cutsey but that doesn't quite cover what im thinking    Not tshirts/dresses or like basic jumpers. More like feminine tops in that sort of full coverage but fluffier material kinda vibe?    Sorry these descriptions are awful 😅

But the boy who cried wolf was a problem because he *lied* - if he had been shouting because a bad thing was happening, he should have shouted EVERY TIME.    Like the tiny babies who learn not to cry because no one will come. it doesn't mean they are OK, and it doesn't mean no one should help them.    I am a big believer in, if you need attention because something *is* wrong, then keep asking til you get what you need. You deserve help and care. Stopping recognising that, or stopping asking for that is *not* a good outcome.    YOU deserve help and care and love and safety. You do. having the determination to keep trying until you get all of those things is a super power, not a problem. 

Why thank you! I love poppy seeds. I did turn some cream into butter, to which I added spiced rum salt.  Fingers crossed. First of all, a gift, and second of all keeping busy. The boiler service, which meant I lost a DAY of work was cancelled at lunch time!  Also, I said some terrifying things in my writing, so I am trying to remind myself that it *is* necessary to go tomorrow. 

It's beautiful! I love the poppy seeds!

AAAAA i miss it so much, my grandpa used to make it really good  it but he now has dementia, and he forgot the recipe :( plus we dont have the money for all of the ingredients.   yeaah... i got told to go in a cage full of angry pitbulls if i believe some animals are holy. thats not really what i meant by it lol.   ive always gotten told that just because its unhealthy for me, doesn't mean its unhealthy for others. my mom told me that if all i do is vent, it'll be like the boy who cried wolf.

I made a thing...   This is an obviously imperfect, but smells amazing, Challah. Obviously there are 2, and I apologise because it is Monday, but I need it for a gift for tomorrow. 

Its hot and damp here.  Everything is growing like a jungle.  Last year we had to wait forever to get tomatoes. Now we have more tomatoes already then I know what to do with, and way too many green beans.     Right now I am getting ready for the big Independence Day festivities.  Lots of food to prepare, and also planning to attend the annual evening testicle.  This year, I'm going as my new girlfriend's date (although almost all of my partners are going).  She just received a promotion, too, and is now a private first-class.  Really proud of her!  Its also cool to have positive trans visibility, another example of a trans girl doing public service.

Good morning   wow what crazy weather we are having. Heat wave on the east coast and Midwest  extreme fires in the south west.  (I pray for the firefighters that lost their lives and their families) and snow in Idaho, Montana and Wyoming.     I don’t think our drought is over but we have been getting rain.   i read a couple of articles about the unusual geology and geography we have,  examples for the east coast include visible signs of the ice age in the Maritime provinces of Canada as well as Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont.  Not to mention the Great Lakes.  megalodon teeth found as far north as Calvert Cliffs Maryland.  Parts of the East Coast that appear to be land but are nothing more than floating islands or sand bars. Swamp land that isn’t land at all but floating grass and vegetation.   And of course Florida is nothing more than a coral formation that turned into land with sand and decaying vegetation.  But I think the thing most people would be surprised about is all the earthquakes we get.  Occasionally, one is bad enough to cause real damage, but one quake right here in South Carolina was the worst one ever on the North American continent.  We all know about the ones in Alaska and California but no one realizes that the East has a fault line that is active and a few hundred years ago had the worst one.     lesson for today.

Oh, fab, thank you!  I think the kids want to go to the oldest zoo the world, see a classical concert and eat Wiener schnitzel, but I am hoping not to miss something awesome that I don't know about yet.  We are going in the school holidays. Usually, I plan and know and such, but THIS trip, we didn't know what travel activity we wanted to do for the summer holidays, and this is what my daughter picked. 

We travel but I tend not to "advertise" it.  When I was there in the winter I found Vienna to be lovely.  Salzburg too.  I was ill the day we were in Linz but I'm told it was interesting.

Life will go one, you'll remember.

Yes!  I believe some reptiles also do this as well.   I also recently came across a video on Tiktok about a chimp named "Donna" who scientists believe is trans (ftm).  I've attached the video.    I feel like there's probably a lot more instances in nature we just don't know about yet, but I hope we come across more!  9dadeb9d968b8eb57aac232843f58aa6.mp4

I had a great time at Pride functions.  One picture is taken in our farm’s ATV during the Princeton Pride parade.  The second is of a Pride conference for the NJ Department of Agriculture.      Hugs,   Charlize

Pride celebrations tend to be a little later up here in the Great White North.  The larger towns up the valley had theirs this past weekend.  Our local Pride celebration runs this coming weekend.  We had a fine time at a queer elders' coffee house event on Saturday: reconnected with an old trans friend, and met some new gay and lesbian friends.  I have my pride flag flying on the garage.  (Note to self: remember to change it for the Canadian flag for July 1st, then change it back.)  We'll be attending (possibly marching in) the Pride parade on Saturday.   The fact that I can do this and still be on good terms with the neighbours brings me joy.  And the fact that I and my elder friends can live as ourselves as examples for younger LGBTQ+ folks brings me even greater joy.