Quote from: innainka on February 15, 2014, 07:37:24 PM
We all seem to carry insecurities in the gender department, call it dysphoria or else.
I remember so clearly during my life of denial anything remotely feminine was quickly identified and annihilated at once.
I after all, needed to present the hyper-masculine pose to be accepted as a male I so diligently worked on being.

Then came the reckoning stage when slowly I allowed femininity to infiltrate my life. Then after tasting the forbidden fruit, that is "being your self", I opened to her with all my heart.

Then third stage, as in the first, it is a mask, however, this time around it is a true representation of my psyche and inner core. So here to I play up the essence, just as any woman out there.

The more secure we are within the gender of self, the less we care how others see it. We simply take life by the horns and dance tango intertwined and fulfilled.
Dysphoria though will make one crawl down on fours until such doubt is gone!

Hi, thanks for your answer , you really seem to understand what bothers me , what was the real reason behind this topic . Anyway , I am always glad when another person could describe what I feel , especially when the story seem to have  a happy ending . You just give me a boost of happiness and peace . Thanks

Masculine things I do:

Fly my own airplane
Scuba Dive
Ham Radio
Concealed Weapons Permit
Motorcycle
Sports Car (but it's a Miata -- widely considered a "chick car")

Feminine things I do:

Member of League of Women Voters
Sing in church choir
Go to Opera, Symphony and Theatre
Listen to classical music
Do water aerobics with 95% women in the class, exercise by walking or using elliptical trainer or pin select weight machines.
I have 10 times as many women friends as male friends.
I ignore most team sports with the exception of minor league baseball, which I consider a social event.

I think one of the most telling things is that any social or family gathering where the men and women separate into different groups I am always with the women.  It's always been that way.

Randi

Well, there's another Pilot here both fixed and rotary wing,
I own a very fast 21 foot Bass Boat & love to fish as well,
I own a 97 Ram 2500 4x4 lifted 8 inches with 35's on 17 x 10's & V10 motor,
I love the outdoors, and doing home improvements,
I own an arsenal of guns and other weapons,
I'm an avid Star Trek/Star Wars fan and play many online computer games Such as Star Wars: The Old Republic,"
And I very much enjoy working on and modifying my Boat to make it go even faster.
And before my aircraft accident in 91 (mechanical falure) I played drums, bass, keyboards, guitar, and sax, and wrote my own songs.

But do those things make me any less of a Woman? I certainly don't see it that way and neither do my neighbors nor the guys at the boat ramp.

I do alot of feminine things as well:

I love knitting and chroche,
I have 4 kitties I love very much, Gizzy, Angel, Jester, and Luna,
I love shopping for shoes, and shopping in general as long as it isn't for groceries,
I love to cook, and make up my own recepies,
I love a good mani/petty, painting my nails pink, and coming up with unique styles for my long straight black hair,
I love reading Cosmo with my daughters,
I love to wear pink, And dress up for a night out in my favorite LBD (little black dress),
I love to get together with the girls in my neighborhood for girls night out,
And I love being treated like a lady ie: men opening doors for me, sliding in my chair, etc., etc., etc.
I also have many more interests too numerous to mention here.

The above for me, and the hobbies my sisters here have are just that, hobbies and things we like to do. They don't make us any less Female. And I too am an avid feminist. As women we are stronger emotionally and can handle stereotypes better than most cis men can. As a child I enjoyed playing with dolls and a big dollhouse I had and I mostly played with other girls. I also liked to ride my dirt bikes. I really didn't fit in well with boys which lasted into adulthood. None of the hobbies and occupations mentioned within this thread makes any of us any less women. In fact from what I read so far, we have some very talented girls here.