I'm ex army,trying to make a man out of me.I am now well on the way to becoming the woman I always felt I was.
I find it am.azing just how many TS lived macho lives before transition
macho careers are often sought by people who think it would be a cure for GID
Personally don't know of any proffesion men do that women do not. Maybe NFL player. Women are professional wrestlers, boxers,etc. Men don't mud wrestle. Remember the song by Helen Reddy, "I am woman, watch me roar."...
Academia is pretty gender blind, particularly in the liberal arts. In entertainment I stated out in the more fem areas, lighting, sound mixing - odd how it was OK for the girls to be at the back of the room running the machines, while the 'boys' ran the stage. I feel into the macho stuff like rigging only because our lights and sound piled higher and higher until it was so big we had to rig it.
Joined the military.
Drove truck for a year. but Heather is still gear-jamming.
Used to be an auto mechanic, but I knew a gal that was a Volkswagen mechanic.
Delivered appliances.
Was it all to cover GID? Maybe, I don't know. But many do try to be the gender they were born into. But they are will fail in the end.
Even the NFL. There are womens football leagues. Nothing is off limits anymore.
Janet
Even the NFL. There are womens football leagues. Nothing is off limits anymore.
Though we have no shortage of people in here who decry how much they hate sports, and how sports is such a male deal, I keep trying to say that lots of girls and females do sports, like sports, watch sports have favorite teams and all that.
A bunch of us were discussing the NCAA thing the other day and one of the girls gave this shattering critique of the game, and one of the guys who didn't know better said something to the effect that she seemed too 'cheerleader' to know that much. She said "yeah I was a cheerleader in HS and at UCLA dude, and I spend 8 years of my life kneeling courtside watching basketball games. I guess some just dripped in through osmosis." I was laughing so hard. Obviously, even a dummy who spend 4 years courtside at UCLA basketball game would come to learn a little something about the game, don't 'ya think?
As she said later, "I was a basketball cheerleader because I really liked basketball, duh?"
Quote from: tekla on April 01, 2009, 11:44:33 AM
Though we have no shortage of people in here who decry how much they hate sports, and how sports is such a male deal, I keep trying to say that lots of girls and females do sports, like sports, watch sports have favorite teams and all that.
I dunno, I dearly love football (the world variety :) ) and women's basketball. I do watch the NCAA men's tournament as well.
But to watch a performance like Jayne Appel put out night before last is to realize, unless you are totally brainless, that yes, doing sports and doing them well is NOT a "masculine" thing. Appreciating excellence and ability is NOT just for guys and doing so says nothing at all about how "feminine" or "real" anyone is.
It's wonderful to read a well-crafted poem or novel. It's wonderful to view and appreciate good plastic art or hear a great comedy show or watch a marvelous musical performance whether it's by (ok, I'm light on this) 9-Inch Nails, Lorena McKinnett or Yoyo Ma.
To respect beauty, grace, agility and effort as well as the talent and drive that comes of that sort of striving and will does
not know a gender boundary at all.
Nichole
I happen to like American football, Seahawks' fan. And I do watch Nascar, Jimmy Johnson is the Lowe's driver. ;D
Janet
Yeah the women's teams were awesome this year, but I stopped watching when my 'Clones went down.
Quote from: tekla on April 01, 2009, 12:19:06 PM
Yeah the women's teams were awesome this year, but I stopped watching when my 'Clones went down.
So ya saw Appel? Wasn't she absolutely brilliant? :)
Yeah I haven't seen a player bring game like that since Chamique Holdsclaw played for Pat Summitt. But I'm more of a fan of World Cup Skiing, and this year as well as last, Lindsey Vonn has been rocking it, first women to ever win back to back World Cups, doing it in both downhill as well as SuperG, she's been tearing it up. She's going to be the ticket to beat next year in Vancouver for sure.
I agree that one doesn't have to like sport(s) to be able to appreciate when somebody does it well and with grace and flair.
It does seem to be a fact though that competitiveness is a trait that is particularly innate to males.
I saw an interesting documentary on pre-school children. Psychologists separated them into groups according to sex and gave them a task that required co-operation.
The girls were naturally co-operative and practical - like "You're the tallest, so you'd better be the one that completes the job by putting the item on the high shelf....."
The boys fought over who was boss and their selection went to the short runt who shouted loudest and would have needed a leg-up to actually do it.
Yes, there is a spread of attitudes in both sexes, but competitiveness is an intrinsic part of being male - I mean hey, even our sperm compete to get to the egg! ;D
Advertising
Betting Office Manager
Parcel/Document courier
Tiler/Building materials warehouse assistant
.....and now an unpaid usher and seller of Ice Cream and programmes at the local theatre.
Throughout the top four jobs, I had to front up as a big strong macho beer drinking porn reading man whilst desperately wishing I wasn't.
The theatre is where I am free to be me, a woman and be accepted without question or comment as such.
I have lost all interest in sports but retain a life long passion for aviation and I sooooooo wish I could knit!!
I have had a few...
Auto mechanic
Parts delivery driver
Aircraft mechanic in the military
Bicycle mechanic
Truck driver
I.T.
I was never into team sports like football and baseball.
Quote from: Steffi on April 01, 2009, 01:18:09 PM
...
It does seem to be a fact though that competitiveness is a trait that is particularly innate to males.
I saw an interesting documentary on pre-school children. Psychologists separated them into groups according to sex and gave them a task that required co-operation.
The girls were naturally co-operative and practical - like "You're the tallest, so you'd better be the one that completes the job by putting the item on the high shelf....."
The boys fought over who was boss and their selection went to the short runt who shouted loudest and would have needed a leg-up to actually do it.
Yes, there is a spread of attitudes in both sexes, but competitiveness is an intrinsic part of being male - I mean hey, even our sperm compete to get to the egg! ;D
Pre-school and with no sort of conditioning done even prior to their births like most children get? I think you may be under-estimating the gender-specific conditioning done by parents and extended families before a child ever reaches a school of any sort.
I have no doubt that in some ways testosterone does enhance "competition" and that the effect may well begin in uetero where an xy fetus has more difficulty in not being expelled by the womb due to its lack of xx.
But to think that somehow a pre-school situation is "natural" seems a huge stretch to me.
Nichole
Jewellery design and manufacture. >:-)
All of the jobs I've ever had:
Retail, retail... computer maintenance/networker and sign artist, retail, home improvement/remodeling, and... retail. The latter two I'm still doing.
I don't consider any of them particularly manly. If I'm pulling apart disgusting plumbing drainage in a home remodel, I don't go in there all gung-ho, I'm wearing rubber gloves and taking my time to make sure I don't get all gross, germy, and grimy. It's not only cleaner, it's safer. And I'm always nagging the guy I work with to do the same, which he usually does. He frequently calls me "Melissa" which is his youngest daughter's name, just because I remind him of her so much in personality, and he thinks it'll get on my nerves because he doesn't know I'm trans. Although he says he thinks something is off with me, he's keeping out of it and I like it that way for now. Granted at our current amount of work, I only see him once or twice a week anyhow. Mainly it's the crappy retail job.
WALL OF TEXT AHHH.
I was in a job that didn't have too many women in it. Meatcutting. When I first started it was a lot of heavy lifting and really hands on type of cutting. Now, unless you are on a line, there isn't much cutting going on. There are alot of women now in the field. I did line cutting for a while and never heard of a woman in that part of the business. I have seen them in the retail part in the late 70's. I'm not saying there wasn't any just that I never saw any or heard of any. I worked down in the Los Angeles area. Like I said, it was a lot of heavy lifting and big saws power and hand and knives and no protection from the knives. I saw a lot of fingers fly and a lot of accidental stabbings. I went into that field as it was for men. I was offered a manager training job in the bank but some idiot said to me, why are you working in a bank, thats for women. So, even dumber me, went to work as a butcher.
let's see. in high school i played football. Once I graduated I went into the Air Force and was an aircraft mechanic. I only stayed in for one tour however. I then went into the construction industry as an electrician for 8 years. After that I returned to the aviation field.
I don't think that jobs are necessarily masculine or feminine nowadays. However, generally the positions are still filled by the traditionally gender designated people. If that makes any sense.
Personally, what I do for a career does not define who I am. There was a time when it did, but that was part of the facade that I had built up to try and be where society expected me to be. I am good at my job, now I will be good at my job as a woman.
Quote from: Kiera on April 02, 2009, 11:43:53 AM
;D We 'ave "a resident mechanic (https://www.susans.org/forums/index.php?action=mgallery;sa=item;id=1589)" (been bugging her *hint hint* to fix me rear quarter fender! ::) )
Hope ya didn't drive a truck IN the military because THAT DRIVER was one of the things that made me QUIT! (something 'bout "no syncro"?)
Very cute mechanic :) Makes a change from the usual grumpy guys.
I have aways put myself in "masculine" work. I never wanted anyone to ever find out I have a passion for doing girls hair. I worked in a welding shop for a wile and the rest of the time into construction and boat fiberglassing. I like the skilles, but i hate the work , I absolutly hate it. If I want to make money I`m stuck with what I know. I think it was a total cover up of my GID.
I`m not saying that what I have done women don`t do, but it is masculine work.
Quote from: almost,angie on April 04, 2009, 03:18:20 PM
I have aways put myself in "masculine" work. I never wanted anyone to ever find out I have a passion for doing girls hair. I worked in a welding shop for a wile and the rest of the time into construction and boat fiberglassing. I like the skilles, but i hate the work , I absolutly hate it. If I want to make money I`m stuck with what I know. I think it was a total cover up of my GID.
I`m not saying that what I have done women don`t do, but it is masculine work.
Ditto 8) I do love to make good money though!
Sorry, cant talk about it much. It did however involve extracting good folks out of bad places often times. I'd much rather play music, but have no regrets :laugh:
i was in the U.S.M.C. for 4 years i also have kids and im still in the macho type job even after starting my transition i am a auto mechanic i think you can be trans and do a macho type job just be true to yourself. but thats just me
Retired military also. I would take my leave all at once and that would let spend a month at a time - full-time. Ten years ago when I was attending meetings with a group in Milwaukee I noticed that the girls going for SRS were really negative to us that were in the military and I was also surprised at how many were once military. I didn't do the military for any other reason except that I really enjoyed my work and the type of work I did was solo work or in small groups without any supervision. I really enjoyed being independent from the Gen-pop. Maybe I have a split personality even though I am cognizant of both sides. ??? I really enjoyed my solo time in jungle and rain forests ( my speciality enviorments ). The first time I entered a jungle I felt like I really belonged there even more then the forest areas I grew up in. It's so alive and beautiful. Hugs, DG
I was a librarian. Got started on my career at Cleveland Public Library in the cataloging department, which was 100% female.
Guess I don't qualify for being trans. :P
Well, I haven't had a real job yet. As far as college goes, I started out in Computer Science (not exactly a macho fest, but it was a 10:1 m/f ration) then switched to Creative Writing (which is about 3:2 f/m). Lately though I'm thinking about saying screw college and opening an online jewelry shop because jewelrymaking doesn't hurt my brain.
Quote from: Vesper on April 19, 2009, 03:40:30 PM
Well, I haven't had a real job yet. As far as college goes, I started out in Computer Science (not exactly a macho fest, but it was a 10:1 m/f ration)
Most of the women in I.T. don't stay so the ratio in school is quite a bit higher than in the workplace.
I am in the Canadian Army where I am in armoured recce. I joined the army to make a man of myself and when that didn't work I got married and had kids for the same reason, when that didn't work I sought out combat. I killed a lot of people in Afghanistan and it bothers me, not because they didn't deserve it, they definitley deserved it but I didn't kill them because they were evil I killed them to prove I was a man. Anyway after I came home I couldn't take it anymore, I spent another year trying to repress my GID but I cracked eventually. I was on a grenade range trying to figure out the best way to stuff a grenade under my flack vest without being stopped or having shrapnel hurt my buddies but I couldn't do it. I went to my Troop officer instead in tears and told him I was a transsexual and I needed help.
Since then I've been in therapy, started HRT and I begin my RLT at the end of the month. We are lucky in Canada because in the Canadian Forces we are legally protected and the army supports those of us with GID and they pay for the therapy, the hormones and the GRS. As my Sargeant Major said; "I don't give a f*** what's in your pants, just so long as you know your job and stay out of sh**". It hasn't exactly been a easy time since that day on the range but it's better than it was before. The funny thing is that I've met a few transgender people in the army now and I'm sure there is a lot more out there. I know there are definitley men and women trying to get killed in Afghanistan and Iraq right now to end their GID.
I was a welder.
Lotta chick welders though.
Would've loved to look like Alex from Flashdance while I was doin' it. LOL
don't be silly! no way
Quote from: Naturally Blonde on April 20, 2009, 04:54:18 AM
don't be silly! no way
Way.
I've met a few female welders and have heard of many more.
Quote from: Nikki on April 21, 2009, 02:47:19 AM
Way.
I've met a few female welders and have heard of many more.
you may have done but that isn't me! or the way I ever wanted to live my life.
Quote from: Naturally Blonde on April 21, 2009, 06:04:39 AM
you may have done but that isn't me! or the way I ever wanted to live my life.
Splendid! ;)
Quote from: Vesper on April 19, 2009, 03:40:30 PM
Well, I haven't had a real job yet. As far as college goes, I started out in Computer Science (not exactly a macho fest, but it was a 10:1 m/f ration) then switched to Creative Writing (which is about 3:2 f/m). Lately though I'm thinking about saying screw college and opening an online jewelry shop because jewelrymaking doesn't hurt my brain.
Really, jewellery making
was my macho career!