Bleh, I hate it, to be honest, but I've always looked young for my age. Runs in the family - dad is fifty, looks thirty; grandmother's seventy, looks sixty; etc. When I was fifteen, nowhere near trying to pass, I was at a Chili's with my mom and grandparents. The waiter (who was actually the manager) gave me the kids menu and, upon asking for the adults menu, told me "I'm sorry sweetie, but that's up to your parents." Suffice to say, the menu said 'ten and under'.

Now, trying to pass, I have even more issues with age. I've been told I look between 12-14, but more towards twelve. It doesn't help that I have to buy clothes in the kids section either, so even my style looks a little young. When getting out of my car, I've been asked on multiple occasions (by strangers who should just mind their own buisiness) if I drove here, and received numerous surprised expressions when I tell them yes. I've been ID'd for buying video games and rated R movie tickets and on one occasion when I was out with my family seeing one such movie, the woman at the counter stared pointedly at me and asked my father "And, how old is he?" The pleasure I felt from being read as male was instantly squashed by the woman's expression and tone of voice which told me she was not at all impressed with my father for bringing such a "young child" to see a high rated movie. I didn't even give my dad a time to react before I sternly told her that I was, in fact, old enough for this movie. She looked like she didn't believe me, but apologized anyway.

I've never really lied about my age, other than staying silent when my parents want to get me food/tickets/etc. for a lower price, and even then, I was always a bit uncomfortable about it. I'm a junior in high school, and yet people assume I'm in seventh grade and/or twins with my younger sister. I really hope T makes a difference in that respect. 


Edited for personal info.

Quote from: Thomas. on December 02, 2011, 05:12:45 PM
I got a haircut a while ago, and it really made me look more male. The only problem is that I look like I'm about 11.  I'm not much older though but a few years at least so that kinda sucks.  I guess it could be worse, but anyway, what I'm wondering is what do you do if someone asks your age? Do you lie and say something that seems more believable or do you say your actual age and hope they don't connect the dots?

Also, would/have you ever used that in your advantage? Say if the tickets to some event is X amount if your under 15 and XX if your 15+. If so, how did that go?

it is funny that for the girlsin this forum it seems it works the opposite way. There are some chicks that claim to be in their 20's but in their pictures they look like 40. I do not know if it is the make up or their lifestyle.

Quote from: Jen61 on December 04, 2011, 04:52:50 PM
it is funny that for the girlsin this forum it seems it works the opposite way. There are some chicks that claim to be in their 20's but in their pictures they look like 40. I do not know if it is the make up or their lifestyle.

Their makeup or lifestyle could make a big difference, but it's a basic problem we all face when going from one apparent gender to another. Ftm's tend to look too young, and mtf's tend to look too old.

Quote from: Noah James on December 04, 2011, 04:37:19 PM
I've been ID'd for buying video games and rated R movie tickets

I've was asked for ID at Wal-Mart a couple months ago cause I was buying a movie about serial killers that was "18+"  I was 21 and didn't have my ID on me. She refused to sell it to me. Went back down a little while later when my mom went down, and pretty much threw my ID in her face. She turned to mom and said "Sorry, I thought he was 12" While it is indeed great to pass, it gets annoying when you have to forcefully prove you're an adult sometimes. -_-

Quote from: Kyle_S on December 04, 2011, 06:39:15 PM
I've was asked for ID at Wal-Mart a couple months ago cause I was buying a movie about serial killers that was "18+"  I was 21 and didn't have my ID on me. She refused to sell it to me. Went back down a little while later when my mom went down, and pretty much threw my ID in her face. She turned to mom and said "Sorry, I thought he was 12" While it is indeed great to pass, it gets annoying when you have to forcefully prove you're an adult sometimes. -_-

She was just doing her job...if Wal-Mart is anything like other stores, they have to card you for alcohol if you look thirty, so 18+ items might require a similar response.

I understand that, Arch. I wasn't downing on WM. I was just saying it rots me that it happens so freaking often.

Sorry, I misunderstood when you said you practically threw your ID in her face...sounded like you were taking it out on her.

I didn't mean that literally, lol. I just kinda handed it to her with a small bit of  "See, I'm 21 like I said!" attitude. Haha. My bad for making it sound that aggressive.

I've been on T for 15 months and still look younger than my age. I'm 19 next month but look around 16.

At the same time, it's not a huge problem because some of the guys from my graduating class don't look any older than me. It's not completely unrealistic for an 18-year-old to look 16. But it is frusterating because I want to be taken seriously as an adult.

I always tell my actual age. Reactions vary, but everyone believes me because I say it with a straight face, flat tone and no indication of joking.

I've never used it to my advantage. Being categorized with young teens is no advantage to me.

Quote from: Kyle_S on December 05, 2011, 12:26:14 AM
I didn't mean that literally, lol. I just kinda handed it to her with a small bit of  "See, I'm 21 like I said!" attitude. Haha. My bad for making it sound that aggressive.

FWIW, I think you look more like fourteen! (Okay, I'm not really sure because your profile pic is pretty small, but I don't think you look twelve.)

Quote from: Natkat on December 02, 2011, 06:08:36 PM
hmm now when I am gay I am glad there are people pedos who actually think its attrative with boys who looks young, and still I try not to look like im way too young.

Just kidding. Couldn't resist, couldn't resist.

But, anyway, more on the subject at hand: I guess I think of passing as an adult versus a non-adult (not necessarily exactly your age) is a part of passing in general for me. (I wanted to look like a man, not a boy.) It was important to me, and though I still don't look my age, there is a point on T where you at the very least appear adult and your appearance begins to catch up with you. It just takes time.

Also, a lot of passing as an adult has to do with attitude and dress. Dress like a skater boy or something similar--or, actually, dress like any kind of boy period--and people will question if you're an adult. Men dress differently from boys.

Quote from: Noah James on December 04, 2011, 04:37:19 PM
I've never really lied about my age, other than staying silent when my parents want to get me food/tickets/etc. for a lower price, and even then, I was always a bit uncomfortable about it. I'm a junior in high school, and yet people assume I'm in seventh grade and/or twins with my younger sister. I really hope T makes a difference in that respect. 
Edited for personal info.

wow from your pic i would have never guessed you were a junior (same age as me) but at least you look totally male. people tell my i look younger than i am but not as much as they do to you.

I've been lucky, I've actually never had this problem. Actually, when I was still trying to be girly, I got offered a wine list when I was 13 at one restaraunt. I've always looked older than I am, and its caused some amusing situations (that one, the many times I was asked "Are you a teacher? in high school).

I think some of it might be how you dress, or your hair. Or something, hell I don't know. All I know is that I got pegged as being at least 22 multiple times when I used to wear all black ankle-length skirts, long black cardigans, and hair down to my ass.

Quote from: anibioman on December 05, 2011, 02:31:33 PM
wow from your pic i would have never guessed you were a junior (same age as me) but at least you look totally male. people tell my i look younger than i am but not as much as they do to you.

Yeah, I'll be able to vote in the upcoming presidential election... Man, I hope registration and all that isn't too difficult. 

Ah. This. So, I'm 27 years old. Pre-transition [before Testosterone, actively dressing as male, etc] I was most always clocked at up to five years younger than my actual age. At 19, strangers thought I was 14. But now that I'm pushing 30, it's become a sore subject, and one that makes me deeply uneasy. Let's make it clear- I don't care about my age. But other folks do. I look very young- I have huge eyes, I'm pretty short and narrow, kind of elfin looking. Teenagers assume I am a teenager, and when I'm revealed to be up to ten years older than them, it's an uncomfortable situation. I don't ever want to seem like a creeper-dude who hangs out with children. I attend conventions [anime, sci-fi, etc]. And there is of course an older demographic there. It's not hard to find folks in their late twenties, but that's not who I end up fraternizing with. The average 15 year old is honestly squicked out to realize I'm 12 years their senior, and that's a bad feeling. Suddenly they've been casually shooting the breeze [boy/girl problems, laments about school, parents, part-time jobs] with a bonafide adult. Five years ago, I sort of relished in the shock on someone's face [young and old alike] when they realized how much older I was then they figured, but now it's a revelation I dread.

Of course, there's the infuriating reality of folks my age dismissing my worth because they think I'm a highschooler. But mostly, I wish I looked my age, so kids would have a heads-up that the young man they saddled up next to was playing videogames that came out before they were born, someone who remembers the eighties, someone who watched Saved By The Bell in it's original run. I guess I don't want to weird anyone out.

I get ID'd easily if I go to buy cigs in a store I don't usually go to and I tend to avoid doing that. The most certain way to get me ID'd is to go and buy alcohol from a liqour store but they have pretty strict rules there and I think they're instructed to ask for IDs from anyone who looks under 25.

All in all, looking like a little boy does annoy, being 21 and all but I think of myself a boy who hasn't gone through puberty yet, that's coming up in the future if the people in the trans policlinic see I need T. And I do need it. I want to have a beard. D:

Quote from: Noah James on December 06, 2011, 11:32:07 AM
Yeah, I'll be able to vote in the upcoming presidential election... Man, I hope registration and all that isn't too difficult. 

I guess this may vary, but I accidently registered when I was at the DMV.  I was there to get my photo taken for my ID. When I was going though the screens on the device checking to make sure all my info was correct I just kept clicking yes. One screen popped up saying that I wasn't registered and had to pick. I clicked before my mind decoded the words and registered myself. They handed me my temporary with a "receipt" that printed out welcoming me to the democratic party.

Quote from: Sharky on December 08, 2011, 06:31:20 PM
I guess this may vary, but I accidently registered when I was at the DMV.  I was there to get my photo taken for my ID. When I was going though the screens on the device checking to make sure all my info was correct I just kept clicking yes. One screen popped up saying that I wasn't registered and had to pick. I clicked before my mind decoded the words and registered myself. They handed me my temporary with a "receipt" that printed out welcoming me to the democratic party.

Lol that is funny. Nope, not too difficult. Too easy, sounds like.

Quote from: Felix on December 08, 2011, 09:30:14 PM

Quote from: Sharky on December 08, 2011, 06:31:20 PM
I guess this may vary, but I accidently registered when I was at the DMV.  I was there to get my photo taken for my ID. When I was going though the screens on the device checking to make sure all my info was correct I just kept clicking yes. One screen popped up saying that I wasn't registered and had to pick. I clicked before my mind decoded the words and registered myself. They handed me my temporary with a "receipt" that printed out welcoming me to the democratic party.

Lol that is funny. Nope, not too difficult. Too easy, sounds like.

Damn. Alright then, guess I'm set for that! 
I wish everything was as easy as that sounded!

It's gotten better now that I've been on T for a while. I guess I'm looking more like maybe 15, which isn't too bad. I still get told I look young for my age occasionally, but not as often as before. I even managed to make it through college tours without any shocked expressions, which was stellar, especially since I identified myself as a transfer. Though I was still really self conscious about it. When I started to transition at 16, I looked 12. Which was way more of a pain in the ass. Especially since it meant there was no way I'd pass at college or once identifying myself as a college student. It's been strange adjusting to being treated as younger than I am... actually a really strange experience, because the funny thing is, as female, I always looked way older than I actually was- I'd already been offered wine twice before I turned 15. Oh well. I'm getting used to it.



Edited for personal info.