On muggles

On the eve of the last book and the latest film in the Harry Potter franchise, can I launch a campaign to expunge a particularly irksome Potterism from the Tranny Lexicon?

The word is muggle.

In the Potter universe it's uttered to describe non-magical humans, i.e. most of us. It's an ugly-sounding word, and it's designed to be. It's used normally in a derogatory sense. Muggles are generally seen as bland, ordinary and so stupid as to not realise the whole magical sub-culture of witches and wizards going on under their very noses.

In trannydom the word seems to have been adopted to mean "non-trannies", i.e. everyone supposedly not blessed with the magical ability to tip-toe merrily across the gender divide, like a wizard tip-toes merrily through brick walls at train stations (you can't tell I've only read one book, can you?).

To my ear, the tranny muggle still has the derogatory connotations of the Harry Potter muggle. It smacks of an elite looking down on a lesser class of people. I can kind of understand how it's a reaction by trannies who want to overturn the misconception that they are a lesser class of person, but I still think it's misguided.

And I don't really see why we need a word, when there's a perfectly suitable, albeit hyphenated, one in the form of "non-tranny". Or, how about this radical idea? Just call them people, which is what they are.

I'm sounding terribly lefty and right-on, aren't I? :-S

Let me phrase it another way for the trannies who are reading: we all know we're a little bit special, we don't need to rub it in to all those who aren't!

And to the non-trannies reading: Call me a tranny if you like, because that's what I call myself, but if you don't use derogatory words for me, then I'll practice the same courtesy to you. :-)

We Sparkled

Sparkle ... what can I say?

No really, what can I say? I've run out of new and interesting ways to do post-outing write ups without slipping into tired cliches.

I want to say "it was so nice to see x y and z again", but that would be boring. But then again, I did meet a lot of nice people, both old friends and new. And it was nice. Really nice. I'll just leave out the list of everyone, because you know who you are.

But that wasn't the important thing.

I want to write up a detailed account of the 3 days, but that would probably be boring too. So I'll summarize: I dressed up a lot. We went out a lot. Sparkle happened around us. And in many cases despite of us.

But that's not the important thing either.

I want to write gushing praise for people like Kim Nolan, and the AXM people, and the hundreds of other people who put an amazing amount of effort into making Sparkle happen.

That's important, but that's not it.

We took quite a few pictures:



But, believe it or not, that's not the most important thing.

This is the most important thing: I felt great. And, for the first time in a fair while, I felt like I looked great. Which, sometimes, is the most important thing of all.

Transmission interrupted

If you're part of the UK tranny scene you may have already heard that Trans-MISSION has been suspended until further notice. The organisers have really been messed around by the Masque Bar, and it looks like they're going to have to seek another venue.

Vicky and Jasmine have worked really hard to make the club a success, despite this and other setbacks. But of course that doesn't stop people kicking them while they're down.

It really narks me when I see this kind of thing. Okay, so everyone has different tastes, and Trans-MISSION can't possibly appeal to everyone, but to say things like that about Vicky and Jasmine just because of a perceived slight makes me despair at the vacuousness of some trannies.

For the record, Sparkle did grow out of TX's annual birthday bash. I don't think even Kim Angel would want to deny that. She used a lot of savvy by building Sparkle around the kernel of an already popular tranny event. Saying that doesn't lessen what she and others achieved with Sparkle. The tranny scene in the UK is very interconnected, and despite some monstrous egos, remarkably collaborative.

I hope that TX gets it's issues sorted soon. If only because if they don't I'll have to re-write my standard form letter reply to closeted trannies who write to me to ask how to get out of the closet! At the moment it basically says "get a makeover... go to Trans-MISSION".

But it does sound like an end of an era. Nevermore possibly will the sparkly curtains be hung from the windows of a bar next to the Barbican!