Susan's Place Transgender Resources

When @CynthiaR and @Pugs4life first posted their introductions, something happened that introduction threads weren't quite built to hold. Their stories kept growing. Replies turned into ongoing conversations. Partners read alongside. What started as "here I am" became "here is where we are now, and here is where we are going tomorrow."

I saw an opportunity in that, and created the "Our Journeys (https://www.susans.org/index.php?board=550.0)" board to give those threads room to breathe. Until now it has lived under the blogging section, but the threads themselves have made clear that the work they are doing is closer to peer support than to blogging — first-person narratives that document transition and navigate the issues that arise from it, written over time with community reading and responding alongside.

So we're moving Our Journeys up to the Community Conversations section as a top level board, where it belongs alongside Significant Others talk, Transitioning, and the other boards that hold this community's lived experience. You'll find it at the bottom of that section.

What this means for you:

• Existing threads in Our Journeys move with the board. Nothing is lost, no links break, and you don't need to do anything.
• If you have a thread that both documents your transition and works through the issues that come with it, you can request staff assistance to move it into Our Journeys. This is open to trans members, partners, family, and anyone walking a sustained arc they want to share — not just partners.
• Replies are welcome and encouraged. These threads are stronger for the community that grows around them.

Thirty years in, this place still works because members keep showing us what they need, and we keep building the rooms to match. CynthiaR's and Pugs4life's threads became the foundation of Our Journeys, but they aren't its ending destination — the board grows with every new thread that joins them. When you're ready, yours can be one of them.

With much love and support,
— Susan💜

I noticed that board and was wondering when it had arrived. Mystery solved.

Hugs, Devlyn

I'm not quite following what the difference is Susan?

I have never read Cynthia's or Pugs4Life's "blogs" as it seemed to be a very personal discussion between a group of well known friends. I did not think I, as a newcomer, had any place butting into the conversation and I felt like I was intruding a bit so I have not been viewing their blogs. But because of that I have nothing to help me know the difference.

I have a blog (First one I ever have done so I am new to all this) and use it for anything that comes to my mind including transition topics. Are you saying you want us to create a different pseudo blog for only transition matters and separate the discussion? In these new blogs is it only discussion related to transition that will be permitted i.e. all other posting will be removed?

I am a bit of a chatterbox so I might need to reign myself in a bit! I hope people have not been getting upset when conversation deviates a bit.

Hi Stottie Girl,

You asked good questions, and I'm glad you asked them out loud, as others are probably wondering the same things.

The short answer: your blog is fine exactly as you're using it.

Member Blogs is meant for whatever comes to mind, including transition topics. Nobody's going to be upset by your thread wandering, and nothing is being removed. The "chatterbox" thing you're worried about isn't a problem — it's what blogs are for.

What the Our Journeys board for is a narrower kind of thread — ones where the writer is actively in the middle of doing transition work and using the thread to navigate it in real time. Amy's thread and Cynthia's are like that. They're not private discussions between friends — anyone is welcome to read them, and replies from new voices are welcome too.

They can feel intimate because the writers are in vulnerable stretches, but that's the work the thread is doing, not a closed door.

The pinned thread on the new board explains the distinction in more detail if you'd like the longer version read Our Journeys — what types of threads belong here (https://www.susans.org/index.php?topic=254018.0).

Short version: your blog stays your blog. Write whatever you want there. Our Journeys is just a dedicated room for a specific kind of in-the-middle-of-it writing, and you'll know if you ever have a thread that fits it.

With love,
— Susan💜

Quote from: Stottie Girl on Yesterday at 08:09:32 AMI'm not quite following what the difference is Susan?

I have never read Cynthia's or Pugs4Life's "blogs" as it seemed to be a very personal discussion between a group of well known friends. I did not think I, as a newcomer, had any place butting into the conversation and I felt like I was intruding a bit so I have not been viewing their blogs. But because of that I have nothing to help me know the difference.

I have a blog (First one I ever have done so I am new to all this) and use it for anything that comes to my mind including transition topics. Are you saying you want us to create a different pseudo blog for only transition matters and separate the discussion? In these new blogs is it only discussion related to transition that will be permitted i.e. all other posting will be removed?

I am a bit of a chatterbox so I might need to reign myself in a bit! I hope people have not been getting upset when conversation deviates a bit.

I enjoy your threads. I like seeing what your doing and thinking. 

Quote from: Susan on Yesterday at 08:28:41 AMHi Stottie Girl,

You asked good questions, and I'm glad you asked them out loud, as others are probably wondering the same things.

The short answer: your blog is fine exactly as you're using it.

Member Blogs is meant for whatever comes to mind, including transition topics. Nobody's going to be upset by your thread wandering, and nothing is being removed. The "chatterbox" thing you're worried about isn't a problem — it's what blogs are for.

What the Our Journeys board for is a narrower kind of thread — ones where the writer is actively in the middle of doing transition work and using the thread to navigate it in real time. Amy's thread and Cynthia's are like that. They're not private discussions between friends — anyone is welcome to read them, and replies from new voices are welcome too.

They can feel intimate because the writers are in vulnerable stretches, but that's the work the thread is doing, not a closed door.

The pinned thread on the new board explains the distinction in more detail if you'd like the longer version read Our Journeys — what types of threads belong here (https://www.susans.org/index.php?topic=254018.0).

Short version: your blog stays your blog. Write whatever you want there. Our Journeys is just a dedicated room for a specific kind of in-the-middle-of-it writing, and you'll know if you ever have a thread that fits it.

With love,
— Susan💜

Thanks for the clarification Susan. I appreciate it. I think I would need to see examples before I really gauge whether it is something for me or not but I kind of grasp the concept now.

This highlighted posting area for transition journeys may indeed help some readers.

My transition journey at this point may be boring though, many days I think there is not much to specifically say about it.

Sometimes when someone asks a question though responding in her topic may be helpful, and double posting the answer in my transition journey may be overkill.  So I likely will just continue to do what and where I do for my posting.

A good initiative Susan.


Chrissy

Quote from: Dawn Kellie on Yesterday at 09:07:11 AMI enjoy your threads. I like seeing what your doing and thinking. 

Thanks Kellie but I don't think, judging by what susan says, there is any reason why you couldn't do both. I enjoy writing down my inanely boring life on my blog! What amazes me is that anyone reads it ha ha!

I think for me, as I am still closeted and do not have a partner, I would not have enough experiences currently to warrant a separate thread but that might change in the future. I don't know though, maybe I should take another look at the two threads in question and go back to the start.