I identify as… a girl, usually, but sometimes genderqueer.
As far as third-person pronouns go, … People have never really gone as far as to call me he/him but honestly, I don’t think I would mind much. She/her I’m just familiar with.
I’m attracted to… Gorgeous and handsome women who wear men’s boxers and style their hair too much. Also, well placed tattoos.
When people talk about me, I want them to… keep talking. The more information I receive from people, the more I can look into myself and truly decide what I am. But who says I need to decide?
I want people to understand… that gender and sexuality are completely unstable. It’s all about fluidity.
About Jen
This road that I am on seems like it is growing longer every day and I don’t want it to end.
I think you’ll like this because it deals with a biologically female 17-year old’s attempts to physically realize the gender he identifies himself as. It’s an interesting article because it concerns a minor, and validates a minor’s feelings about their gender.
“Describe an outfit you’ve worn that expressed the complexity of your gender.”
Sashimi wrote…
When I shaved my head, I didn’t do it to be rebellious. I did it because it was the first time in my life I felt free. It makes me feel so sad when people assume I am trying to make a political statement and that is therefore okay to insult me. I disrupted my small town with a razor. But I wish that it had been accepted. I don’t play with gender to disrupt. I just can’t fit into a genderbox.
The outfit I’ve worn that expresses the complexity of my gender is a shaved head and no clothes. Just me. Raw.
I constantly feel like my style of clothing does not support my body type or my gender. Much of the clothes I want to buy— such as scarves, unique tank tops, and pants/shoes that do not quite stick with the male category- are not in the male category, hence I cannot wear most of them. I know there is absolutely nothing stopping me from buying some things. But, things like women’s pants and some tops— I like the design, the layout of most of it— it would feel out of place to wear it or even attempt to wear it because of my lack of breasts, and because I identify as, and am biologically, male. I feel clothing should be a persona reflection of the inner spirit of someone— but how can I ever hope to show my inner spirit this way if the mirror I use only gives a certain pre-approved list of things that the mirror will reflect?
I identify as… a hermaphroditic androgyne. Someday, they’ll have a surgery for that.
As far as third-person pronouns go, … I’m a big fan of xe/xem/xir, but it’s difficult to enforce. I’m comfortable with he or she, but prefer he.
I’m attracted to… ultra-femme academic brunettes. I have a pretty bad weakness for them. Passionate intelligence and cynicism a must.
When people talk about me, I want them to… talk about my research, my guitar playing, my kick-ass not-always-funny jokes, the fact that my hair always seems to change colour without reason. Gender is great and it is a great part of my personality, but I’m sick of being “the lesbian” or “the butch/oddly dressed girl.”
I want people to understand… that 32 is the perfect number, Pollack was a genius, Marie de Guise is misunderstood, and that non-gender is an applicable gender.
About Mx. Anomaly
I’m a postgraduate student in history at a UK university. Someday, I would like to write about cultural representations in early modern Europe and help the historical community understand how personal presentations effect interpersonal relationships. I play the guitar, have a weird passion for growing basil, and really love people in general.
My mother told me as a child that I would look ugly if I cut it off. When I hit puberty I started looking and feeling like a boy with long hair. She told me as a teenager that I didn’t have the face for it and gave me a look like she thought I was crazy. I cut it finally in my early twenties and I heard her voice in the snipping of the scissors. I heard her voice all the time telling me I looked ugly until it was grown out again. And now I hear the comforting voice of society telling me how pretty my long curls are. Meanwhile my own voice is just a sigh of quiet confusion.
How do you balance all the voices in your life: familial, societal, your own? What ends up “winning,” and why?
This is an article on how homosexuality in women is on the rise, but it touches on androgyny and gender variance. I read it about halfway and it made me think of Genderforking in general.
Every once in a while, I reflect upon myself and am struck by the uncharted territory. When I don’t know myself, how can everyone else look at my face and claim to see any part of the real me?
How do you show people the “real” you, if you don’t know all of it yourself? Do we ever know “all” of ourselves, or any of ourselves?
As far as third-person pronouns go, … they’re just words, so whatever you want to say is fine. Pronouns (like skirts and pants) don’t define my gender.
I’m attracted to… white transmen.
When people talk about me, I want them to… mess up their pronouns and at the end of the conversation, be so confused that they don’t know which way’s up.
I want people to understand… that gender is an abstraction that we as a society have arbitrarily chosen to define our lives. But that’s not a good enough reason for me.
Mr. Richmond’s paintings are sensitive, controversial, & beautiful. Even if they didn’t deal with gender variance & homosexuality, they are lovely enough that I’d still want them in my home. My favorites are Room With A View (above) & The Cher Within. His paintings are available for purchase in his Etsy shop.
As far as third-person pronouns go, … she, her, etc.
I’m attracted to… women and transgender people that don’t fit the classically pretty norms
When people talk about me, I want them to… treat me with the same respect they give to everyone else.
I want people to understand… My gender is not a choice. I’m just choosing to stop hiding and start being happy.
About NewlyKate
I am a graphic artist who creates still and animated graphics for a living. I speak a little Japanese. I’m working on being a vegan. I’ve been breaking gender norms for as long as I can remember.
