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Cake day: June 29th, 2023

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  • Yeah a lot of trans people go for really cool names and that’s awesome but when you choose your own name it’s wise to remember the advice given to parents about their kids’ names. Yeah it’s badass and hilarious if a woman names herself Ebony Darkness Dementia Raven Way (no relation of course), or Margaret Killjoy, but Ms Killjoy is able to get away with it because she’s an anarchist theorist and entertainer. A trans guy naming himself Lucifer Eveningstar is going to really struggle to get jobs. Hell, making a conscious choice about names that are read as “ethnic” is also valuable. Like, it’s not my place as a white lady, but I have a very normal female name and a male dominated career and women in my career talk about whether or not you should use an androgynous nickname on your resume (you get more interviews but they’re with people who wouldn’t have given you an interview if they knew you’re a woman).

    If OP looks like he’s anglo or germanic, the name Angel/Angelo will likely occasionally get him questions on if he’s Italian or Latino if he ever passes for cis. If he takes the name Uriel people will think that that’s odd (but I’ve met a cis dude named Zebulon so it’s not like weird names are auto clocking). Gabriel could easily just be a name his parents liked or a grandpa or something, it’s uncommon but normal (where I’m from). Michaelangelo is very easy to brush away by professionally going by Mike and people will assume his parents are art lovers.


  • Angel/Angelo are some really low hanging fruit.

    There’s archangel names. Gabriel is a kinda twinky old fashioned man name and you can go by Gabe when you really need to hammer in the man aspect. Michael is so generic it hurts, a Mike could be any kind of guy. And if you wanted to make it extra you could make it Michaelangelo, who was a queer icon. Raphael is also on the list and doesn’t have much more to say about it. Uriel if you want a really trans name, but it may not always be read as masc.

    You could also go for saint names.

    Remember any name you take can and will be used against you in the hiring process, so names that are read as normal for a cis guy in your culture may be beneficial. Nobody ever had their resume thrown out for being named Mike.













  • I think about bits of it somewhat often as well as the global history of Trans identities is complex and because as a feminist I maintain criticisms of our society’s expectations on gender. But at the same time, I’ve experimented and messed with the social roles relating to gender since I was young. So when I look at groups like the hijra and two spirits I can see that in those cultures I might’ve fit in those genders. But ultimately, it’s a thought experiment. My culture and I shape each other, and as much as I challenge it i am also bound by it as my place of understanding of the self.

    But at the same time, the body wrongness that’s hard to see as anything other than innate. I remember having phantom breasts as a teenager. I remember being uncomfortable having a penis as a very young child. I do not believe there is a world in which I could be happy with a testosterone dominant body without serious neurological differences. I think in a time period where no form of estrogen was available I could have managed with mere removal of testosterone, but it would not have been thriving.



  • A lot of social organizations that men had used started dying. I have a friend who runs a freemason lodge and he struggles to get people to join. Other similar social clubs have also fallen by the wayside. Similarly the decline of long term geographic community has been brutal and people are less likely to get to know their neighbors or become regulars at the local bar.

    I see a lot of talk about how women’s liberation and the power to leave a bad marriage has been a component, but I suspect otherwise, having grown up with parents in a failing marriage. I strongly suspect that what a lot of these lonely men need is friends and community in a way that even a loving wife won’t cut it, much less a cold and distant wife and resentful children.



  • Not her but I am a woman who moved across my country and made friends within a few months. It’s social hobbies and active participation in subcultural events. I love bicycles, years back I got into volunteering at a bicycle repair cooperative, it made me some casual friends with whom I hung out working on bikes every other week. When I moved I found one to volunteer at again, though I haven’t started yet. Similar social hobbies/volunteering are great. And for subculture stuff, its just that that’s a really great way to find casual hang out events if you have a subculture you’re interested in. I know goths all over have bar nights, as do plenty of other communities. It just serves as a really quick and easy “hey we have this in common” starter.

    When in doubt, look up events happening in your area and check out any that interest you. Chat with folks when you’re at them.