Not Really Around

In the next four days, I am packing up someone’s truck with our stuff which they’ll then drive to WI; meeting with an elected official about ENDA, dropping off the last of our donations; putting a bunch of stuff into storage, and finally, at long last, packing up the kittoi and the car and heading to WI.

So I won’t be around much. Consider this my annual blog vacation.

Moving Thoughts Pt. 1

I’m going to be an Old Person for a moment, so bear with me, but I just went through a lifetime of cassette tapes – and yes, I am keeping some – ones that my artist friends made me, or ones that were particularly good compilations (especially if they have music I haven’t otherwise tracked down in another form yet), compilations used at parties – it seems I used to throw a lot of parties, go figure – and other rare & interesting things, like a tape of Yul Brynner singing Romany songs.

& What I was thinking, in choosing a bunch for one of my students who likes cassette tapes – he has an older car that plays them – is that Kids These Days won’t have this kind of physical detritus to part with painfully at some point in their adult lives. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing, but it is a thing, & I wonder what that means for them. I feel similarly about vinyl (although I know that’s kind of hip again, apparently) — these were all Things of Love, fetishy tokens of friendship and a shared love of music. So what do the kids swap these days when they have a crush on someone? Playlists? Seems a cheap imitation, but I suppose love & friendship are still the same, & heartbreak too.

MSNBC

MSNBC just did a really good job talking about the gender binary, chomosomal variations, and the athlete Caster Semenya. Props to them!

Sex Stuff I Mentioned at TransOhio

First, there’s that porn flick How to Fuck in High Heels.

Then, there’s the all-kink inclusive summer camp we’ve been to called Dark Odyssey, which is taking place from 9/16-21 in a campgrounds in Maryland (although sadly, we can’t make it this year).

& Here’s two I didn’t mention (at least not by name):

I really like this Spare Parts harness.

& I mentioned not too long ago that I’m a big fan of this silver bullet vibrator.

NCTE: Flying Now Requires Gender

From NCTE:

Washington, DC, August 17, 2009-The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) rolled out a new phase of their Secure Flight program over the weekend. Passengers will now be required to provide their birth date and gender when they book an airline ticket as part of a move to help distinguish passengers from those on the government’s “watch list” (often called the “no-fly” list).

NCTE has issued a new (.pdf) FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) about the Secure Flight program and its impact on transgender people. The resource includes information about how to navigate the new process, particularly if you have identification that does not match your gender presentation. NCTE firmly supports the right of transgender people to maintain our privacy and to travel freely.

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