Courtney's life begins here, redux

[Lori Dee ✅]

My electrologist told me she is naturally near-sighted, so that helps even with the magnifier.

There is always a need, so it could be a lucrative business. She is always booked solid, and there are other salons around. So even with competition, it can still be worth getting into.

[Gina P]

What a great idea, and career move. That would be a really interesting job. We could use one here in my part of WV. Every town and hamlet has at least 2 beauty saloons but I have yet to find an electrolysis.

[Courtney G]

Thanks, ladies, for the words of encouragement!

I'll be honest: at 60 years of age, I don't really want to go through the cash investment, training, setting up a business, which will include fitting out a space for my practice, as well as commuting to/from school during training, then commuting to my practice location once I'm up and running, plus the period of low revenue whilst I acquire customers.

I make less money now than I'd likely make after a few years in business but I work at home, sometimes in my pajamas. I can dress any way I want, and I don't have to satisfy anyone's requirements around gender. I eat at home and can nip out on the nearby bay if the fishing is good and my customers are taken care of. I can look at the water from most of the windows in my home and often see ospreys and bald eagles from where I sit. Plus, I'm mostly the housewife here, so I'd still have to take care of the home if I was spending many hours away from here.

Basically, it's a "Plan B" but definitely something I'm considering. I'm making a push to increase my current business's revenue. I really hope I'm able to succeed because the work aspect of my life right now is very enjoyable. I'll be eligible for social security benefits in a little over a year and a half and I might consider starting to collect then, or 1-2 year later. I just need to make a bigger contribution to the household finances.

My mother passed away when I was in my 20s (she was 57) and my father passed a few years later, in his low 60s. I hope to live a long time but I'm not a "live to work" person; I'd rather work to live.

[Stottie Girl]

Thanks, ladies, for the words of encouragement!

I'll be honest: at 60 years of age, I don't really want to go through the cash investment, training, setting up a business, which will include fitting out a space for my practice, as well as commuting to/from school during training, then commuting to my practice location once I'm up and running, plus the period of low revenue whilst I acquire customers.

I make less money now than I'd likely make after a few years in business but I work at home, sometimes in my pajamas. I can dress any way I want, and I don't have to satisfy anyone's requirements around gender. I eat at home and can nip out on the nearby bay if the fishing is good and my customers are taken care of. I can look at the water from most of the windows in my home and often see ospreys and bald eagles from where I sit. Plus, I'm mostly the housewife here, so I'd still have to take care of the home if I was spending many hours away from here.

Basically, it's a "Plan B" but definitely something I'm considering. I'm making a push to increase my current business's revenue. I really hope I'm able to succeed because the work aspect of my life right now is very enjoyable. I'll be eligible for social security benefits in a little over a year and a half and I might consider starting to collect then, or 1-2 year later. I just need to make a bigger contribution to the household finances.

My mother passed away when I was in my 20s (she was 57) and my father passed a few years later, in his low 60s. I hope to live a long time but I'm not a "live to work" person; I'd rather work to live.

Amen to that Courtney! I am working part time so the amount of money that is coming in is pitiful but I've never been happier. If I can get made up to full time as I hope I will be this year then my wage will mean I'm just about comfortable and that's all I want. When I've had high paid jobs they always want a pound of flesh for that and the quality of life is terrible. It led to two breakdowns in my case. I will take less cash and grab more of life everytime now thanks.

[Dawn Kellie]

I wish at this point I could swing part time. Wife and I got ourselves in some financial trouble. It's our own making and we are working on a couple things to get us out.

[Lori Dee ✅]

I will take less cash and grab more of life everytime now thanks.

I had a boss who could not understand why I would turn down overtime hours. Their pay was really good, but I said my time was worth more than they were willing to pay. He didn't understand. My wife and I ran two home businesses in our spare time, selling scented candles and jewelry. So he could pay me $50 per hour, or I could go home and make three or four times that. Plus, we enjoyed it.

The only time I would agree is if we needed to catch up on a job and they switched us to working four ten-hour days. That gave us a three-day weekend, and our employer did not have to pay overtime for it. Win-win.

[Gina P]

   I can't imagine starting a business at my age. Retirement, even with less money to spend, is far better than the stress. I worry often, how few years we have left in life. Many I knew, worked till they had everything in order to retire, then died only a couple of years later. Good luck on bosting your current business. There is a huge market for what you do. Perhaps more advertising?   

[Courtney G]

It's amazing that the laser removed the scar on your chin. So happy for you.

I have to chuckle. I read back through this blog and I noticed that a few months earlier, you suggested I check out laser for the scar. Perhaps your suggestion inspired me to proceed with that, but I can't recall. In any case, here's a belated "you were right!!"

[Courtney G]

(I can hear a bald eagle chirping outside my window while I type this - I live in a beautiful place)

Seems like a month since I've posted here. If I'm honest, I've been ruminating on deeper stuff, like "Am I really trans or is this just a fetish that I've taken to an extreme?" You know, impostor syndrome stuff.

But I went to electrolysis yesterday and my tech cleared a lot of dark hairs on my chin and it made me euphoric. Sometimes, I go there in girl mode, then stop at the grocery store on the way home with a pink face mask to cover the redness and remaining stubble. In yesterday's case, I wore one of my new Victoria's Secret push-up bras and a cute top, along with tight jeans and a some jewelry. I feel a little less awkward and nervous every time I do this.

Yesterday's top was black, so I wore a black scrunchie and watchband but today's is white, so I color-matched those bits again. I shaved my chin this morning and put some primer, foundation, mascara and lipstick on and when I wasn't in bad lighting, I thought I looked pretty cute, which was nice.

But I still hide in the neighborhood. I had a baggy shirt with me so I could get out of my car and retrieve my mail without tipping my hand. If I'm dressed in a revealing top (anything other than a hoodie) I keep a baggie shirt nearby at all times, in case someone knocks at the door. But I do get a tiny bit braver by the day.

I'm continuing to look at a career as an electrologist. I have been working hard to bolster sales for my business but I'd like to significantly increase my income. I discussed it a bit further with my electro tech while she worked on me yesterday. She thinks I'll be good at it and says it's not hard to get clients. It's an AI-proof career during a time when so many are in danger of losing their jobs due to AI. I was listening to a Bernie Sanders interview this morning in which he expressed his concerns about the lack of oversight and regulations on AI. "If a 50 year old truck driver loses his job to self-driving trucks, what is he going to do for work when so many others are losing their jobs at the same time?" This is really something to think about when considering a career these days.

There are very few electrologists near me and there always seems to be more clients than practitioners. It will require about a $30k investment and about 6 months of training and preparation. Since I live in a pretty conservative area, I'd probably put "trans-owned" on my website and Google local listing in order to weed out people who don't think I should exist. Of course, this could easily out me to someone in my own neighborhood if any neighbors should happen to look for this service, but it's a step I'd be willing to take.

[Gina P]

  I had to laugh when I read this. I remember back in the 70's during grade school, having to write a essay on what to do with all the people who would be put out of work by computers. 

Sorry you are having imposter syndrome days. Even after being out full time, I still get a blip now and then when those thought enter in. I remind myself how miserable I was back then and they quickly disappear.  

[Courtney G]

I had to laugh when I read this. I remember back in the 70's during grade school, having to write a essay on what to do with all the people who would be put out of work by computers

But computers are over 6,000 times more powerful than they were in the 70s (I looked it up). Now we have computers stocking shelves at stores, driving cars and trucks, writing documents (books, even!), checking people out at stores, creating websites, working customer support positions, building things, diagnosing problems, creating recipes, therapy and mental health counseling, fixing things, programming software code, medical diagnosis, accounting duties, legal work, teaching jobs and on and on.

And we build things that are made to be thrown out rather than repaired, so a lot of the hands-on "technician" work isn't needed. Cars are so reliable that mechanics have to make up stuff ("fuel injection system flush") in order to keep their profits up.

It will be a long time before a computer-powered robot can stick a little metal probe into the base of every hair follicle in a human face. And hopefully, they won't come up with a drug that makes all of your facial hair fall out.

[Charlotte Kitty ✅]

With AI I'm just embracing it where I can and hoping the fact I'm not too specialised in my role will help. I've somehow got to keep in a job for another 24 odd years at least. Its scary as everything is going down hill in the UK.

[Dances With Trees]

For the last 25 years or so of my productive life I worked as a grants writer. Most of it in Indian Country. The typical grant proposal required about one month to put together between research, writing, and gathering documentation. Now, I can imagine someone in the IT department saying, 'Hey, Siri, write me a grant proposal for the Behavioral Health Program. Ten minutes later, the Tribal Chairman signs it.

[Courtney G]

For the last 25 years or so of my productive life I worked as a grants writer. Most of it in Indian Country. The typical grant proposal required about one month to put together between research, writing, and gathering documentation. Now, I can imagine someone in the IT department saying, 'Hey, Siri, write me a grant proposal for the Behavioral Health Program. Ten minutes later, the Tribal Chairman signs it.

What a coincidence. One of my neighbors is a grant writer who is winding down. When I asked her about that as a career choice, she demurred.

[Stottie Girl]

But computers are over 6,000 times more powerful than they were in the 70s (I looked it up). Now we have computers stocking shelves at stores, driving cars and trucks, writing documents (books, even!), checking people out at stores, creating websites, working customer support positions, building things, diagnosing problems, creating recipes, therapy and mental health counseling, fixing things, programming software code, medical diagnosis, accounting duties, legal work, teaching jobs and on and on.

And we build things that are made to be thrown out rather than repaired, so a lot of the hands-on "technician" work isn't needed. Cars are so reliable that mechanics have to make up stuff ("fuel injection system flush") in order to keep their profits up.

It will be a long time before a computer-powered robot can stick a little metal probe into the base of every hair follicle in a human face. And hopefully, they won't come up with a drug that makes all of your facial hair fall out.

Well to be fair there are robots doing intricate surgery now so the technology could very well do the job of an electrolysist! Thankfully the cost of designing. developing and aquiring such machines would be prohibitive, at least for now anyway. Who knows what Cyberdyne systems are developing for us in the future ha ha!

[Petunia]

Hey Courtney,
I'm sure you don't need another pile on or someone trying to massage your ego,
but for the life of me I can't see how you walk around without being all woman.

Yeah, I get all the self doubt, I've seen it through out my life that the best, capable, most competant people are the ones who doubt themselves the most.  It's the imposters who are so confident, self assured who are failing.

Please beautiful lady, stand tall, proud, shoulders back and chest out (I like the way you said you like looking at what you have, it is quite magnificent) and just walk forward.

Don't doubt yourself. This is what you worked toward.

The only thing you are missing is confidence and that can be faked

[Gina P]

  I think you miss understood me about the essay comment. The world is constantly changing. Back in  the 70's most worked in factories. Automation has replaced those jobs. Programmers and data entry jobs became more prevalent. AI is now replacing those jobs. Doctors now operate on patients thousands of mile away using robotics. Even my Bottom surgery was done partially with robotics. So far the trades have been largely safe from the new technology but that can change as well. Perhaps we can move to a 4 or 3 day work week, more holidays?? Electrolysis and the beauty industry, I would think, would always be hands on, as most of us like the pampered contact that only human hands can provide.

[Courtney G]

I think you miss understood me about the essay comment. The world is constantly changing. Back in  the 70's most worked in factories. Automation has replaced those jobs. Programmers and data entry jobs became more prevalent. AI is now replacing those jobs. Doctors now operate on patients thousands of mile away using robotics. Even my Bottom surgery was done partially with robotics. So far the trades have been largely safe from the new technology but that can change as well. Perhaps we can move to a 4 or 3 day work week, more holidays?? Electrolysis and the beauty industry, I would think, would always be hands on, as most of us like the pampered contact that only human hands can provide.

(Mods: this post is about economics and my personal situation, not politics)

As a consequence, corporations have made more money while paying less to a smaller workforce, while becoming more profitable and efficient whist wages have stagnated since the late 70s and the middle class has shrunk by a surprising 20% over the past five decades. The wage gap numbers are stunning - beyond anything we could have imagined, while corporations use loopholes to cheat and avoid paying taxes altogether. This is why American businessman, lobbyist and political commentator Andrew Yang suggested a "universal basic income" in order to provide Americans a dividend to help them live on while this country runs more efficiently. Similarly, others have suggested that a 5 day work week is no longer required to run the economy, so your suggestion is spot on. But corporations (and others) called Yang "crazy" for making such a wild suggestion. They pulled out a racist trope and called him "Asian math guy" because we all know Asians are great at math (sarcasm).

But the fact is that working-class Americans built all of this and many can't afford to live here. Homelessness has risen to the highest levels since we started measuring it. I consider myself so lucky to be among the last of a generation that were able to afford homes in decent numbers. I know several millennials who work full time and have been saving for years but can't afford a home now because prices have been rising (largely due to a lack of construction combined with corporations buying up rental properties) faster than they could save up. Higher interest rates don't help. My wife and I are extremely lucky to have purchased our homes "before" and sold recently at a significant profit. I'd hate to try to do that again.

I have this little internet business that I've been running for over 10 years and a ruthless larger company has just come onto the scene and is stealing all of my customers. They're employing offshore labor who are using AI to create a much larger entity that I can't compete with. They can outspend me 3:1 on advertising. I'm getting AI'd out of business. I'm using AI myself to try to keep up, but they're better capitalized.

I downloaded docs from the electrology school and sent them a message. It looks like I have to do several months of online learning (400 hours of online classes and quizzes) followed by 250 hours of hands-on "insertion" time, working with the equipment. Time I spend working on myself in the lab counts towards my hours, which means I can work on my legs or arms as part of my education. The whole education/certification process will take about a year, so this is a longer-term plan that I might have guessed, but that's ok.

The biggest concern I have right now is the physical aspect. I have steady hands and great coordination but my eyes are old and I worry about how my back might respond to sitting over a work table for hours at a time.

Still not sure if I'll proceed, but I'm strongly leaning towards doing so right now. The biggest challenge is to make 20 hours of classroom time with a 3 hour round trip drive while continuing to run my current business and serve my customers.

[Courtney G]

Hey Courtney,
I'm sure you don't need another pile on or someone trying to massage your ego,
but for the life of me I can't see how you walk around without being all woman.

Yeah, I get all the self doubt, I've seen it through out my life that the best, capable, most competant people are the ones who doubt themselves the most.  It's the imposters who are so confident, self assured who are failing.

Please beautiful lady, stand tall, proud, shoulders back and chest out (I like the way you said you like looking at what you have, it is quite magnificent) and just walk forward.

Don't doubt yourself. This is what you worked toward.

The only thing you are missing is confidence and that can be faked

Honey, I DO need someone to massage my ego, lol. I have low self esteem. Clinically speaking, I have some form of body dysmorphia, which means even when people tell me I look good (or pass as a woman, etc) I have trouble believing them. My eyes see and my brain tells me that I'm not enough. FFS has helped a little bit and the body development this medical transition has caused has helped a lot, but it's a slow process. Sometimes, I think I look cute but I don't know if I'll even believe I could pass or even get by.

Thanks so much for the kind words of encouragement and flattery!

[Dawn Kellie]

Honey, I DO need someone to massage my ego, lol. I have low self esteem. Clinically speaking, I have some form of body dysmorphia, which means even when people tell me I look good (or pass as a woman, etc) I have trouble believing them. My eyes see and my brain tells me that I'm not enough. FFS has helped a little bit and the body development this medical transition has caused has helped a lot, but it's a slow process. Sometimes, I think I look cute but I don't know if I'll even believe I could pass or even get by.

Thanks so much for the kind words of encouragement and flattery!

I think you look amazing.  I can only hope I look half as good.😗