"Here I go, off the road, crank the stereo..."

Hi peeps,

How's life treating you? Well I hope!

There's a them to this blog: well, other than cross-dressing and all that goes with it. It's not the journey of nervous n00bie to whatever I am today either.

It is, of course, music.... or more precisely: lyrics.

I don't know what it is about the stuff, but even the bad stuff entertains (well, depending on your definition of bad I guess). Funny how what was naff can become pure disco cheese: sometimes capable of making the most seriously cynical museo cut some rug in a comedy turn. Yeah, like most of you don't know the words and the actions to Reach for the Stars or YMCA :-)

But -and as usual - I digress. Such is the bumps and lumps that come with a stream of consciousness blog. On many nights, ideas seems to rattle out of my brain and shoot out as a burst of gibberish from my fingers. On good days, I get whole sentences out. Sometimes, they're even grammatically correct. Today, I'm a little all over the place. Perhaps writing it down first would be better? Oh well!

Anyways, there's a point to this wordgasm and it's this: there are songs that speak to you.

Now I don't mean if you play your metal albums backwards there's hidden messages of corrupting Satanic lore ("Eat your greens" or "The Darling Buds of May is sh**!" for example). I also don't just mean emo angst, metal rage, the heartfelt strumming of country nor the UK equivalent: the Sarf Landen rap-talk-sing divas: but sooner or later, and unless you're listening to just instrumentals, there'll be a line or a couplet that rings a bell in your head and you connect.

Maybe even you misconnect: maybe the lyric is interpreted by you in a way the artist hadn't originally mentioned. The joys of context and personal experiences I suppose. I won't quote any examples - I'm sure you've got a few that mean something to you personally and if you do, I'd love to hear them.

But one thing I would like to know: who is writing the stuff for Girl's Aloud and why do I seem to connect with those lyrics? :-) Maybe I'm just egocentric... am I a blogger.... and a tranny. ;-)

Take care,
Lynn
x

[ Today's lyric: No Good Advice by Girls Aloud ]

ps: I was sent a link to Glender Blender the other day (thanks Harry). It's a series about a TG folk. There are a few teasers on YouTube which may interest you. If it catches your eye, there's a number of videos available on CrushedPlanet. Happy viewing!

"Back in black, but no heads are turning..."

Hello dear reader(s),

Funny when the the writing bug strikes you. I suppose I could say 'muse' but that would imply some divine inspiration to my pondering wouldn't it? Where was I? Oh yes. Of late I've been looking at the new autumn fashions that are out and about. Like Amy sings, we're back to black (again), but that's not necessarily a bad thing. I did so struggle with acid brights - especially the idea of brightly coloured tights. Maybe for Smurfs or clowns, sure, but with open toed shoes? No, thanks. I may be a simple tranny, but I have my limits.

B*lls. I'm off-topic again. [deep breath]

Like bears, Trannys have a hibernation time - although ours is over the summer. Mmm, reminds me of that cr*p joke:

Q. What's the difference between a tranny and a bear?
A. One has scary teeth, huge claws and is hairy all over. The other one's a bear.

But low grade gags aside, there is a tranny off-season....

(although I seem to have been bypassed this year and stayed at it. But them I am a bit odd)

... and it's about now that the situation, at least for some of us, begins to shift. Can it be that there's more evening wear in the shops? Is it that simple? Is it hormones again? Dark nights perhaps? I don't know, but I can tell you this. There are some fabby new dresses in the shops for this Christmas! :-) A shopping trip is most certainly in order at some point!

I notice that patterned tights are on models on the high street once again. I thought we'd done that? Does fashion loop so much more quickly now or now that the credit crunch has hit, are we re-imagining (I hate that word!) last year's fashion at an equally fast pace? Purple seems back on the cards too. Still, it'll be interesting to see what actually sells and what my female friends end up wearing.

Not that I'm obsessed.

Oh, okay. Maybe a bit. :-)

[ Today's lyric: The Dawning of Doom by Die Krupps ]

"The good, the bad, the average and unique."

Hey peeps!!

Screen savers are funny things. They're there for when you're not using your computer. So why have one? Our home computer is set to cycle through the ompabytes of family photos stashed on the old (and hopefully, trusty) hardware sat by my feet.


I am a terrible at taking photos, I - unlike my Dad, my mate and my young son - do not have 'the knack'. They - like a Republican on a hike in the woods - just point and shoot. The images they capture are spot on. People laughing, scenery framed and no blur: the moment caught and laid down in a digital tableau. I'm not jealous but I am slightly envious. Is there a difference? Mind you, I bet none of them can run in heels :-) (Ed: like that's a 'life skill'!).

Anyhoo, enough with the cerebral wanderings! The other day I'd left the computer running while I popped downstairs to make the ever lovely H. and myself a cup of tea. I came back to see a picture of my young son, very young in that particular picture, splashed across the LCD. Had it been any other screen saver, I'd have nudged the mouse and got back to surfing. Not this time....


I stopped and cycled through a few images. Each one kicking off memories of places, people and parties from the last so many years. How we all change - especially the kids. How some people aren't here any more: departure, divorce and, of course, death. How I've changed: fatter, balder, wrinklier; yet despite those shallow negatives: I'm happier. I see images of us having good times together. Some people have gone and some I miss dearly. One, I am glad to see the back of.


I was reminded of Roger McGough's poem about saving a family album if there was a house fire. I've spent the last 10 minutes or so looking for it, but I can only remember fragments. Photos, like all nostalgia, are easy to get lost in. Unlike looking back, I find photos remind me of the now: to cherish what we have and to look forward to what might be.


Sh**. This is upbeat. This can't be a tranny post can it? :-)

In other news I had a very pleasant time at Chameleons the other night. It had been a while since I'd seen everyone and good things seem to be happening to people (which is nice to hear!). The website had mentioned a Bring & Buy but that was off for a reason I didn't get around to hearing.

Anyways, I'd brought along an old wig (oddly the one in my blogger photo) because last time I tried it, I didn't like it. I wondered if someone else might. A few folk tried it on but no takers. Maybe it'll go to a new home on eBay... or be set free to roam the highlands, pouncing on unsuspecting celebs who aren't fooling anyone. :-)

Sandy also mentioned that Chams has been at Nuthall for the last 3 years. Crikey. Three years? Where did that time go! That first night out is still etched in my memory. Three years... sheesh. :-)

Stay safe,
Lynn
x

ps: I notice that Justine's blog has disappeared. Anyone know where she is?

[ Today's Lyric: Carter USM: The Only Living Boy in New Cross ]

"Although nothing seems right... in cars."

Howdy partners,

I've had this post rattling around my head for a while. Don't worry, it's not exactly deep nor scary. So what's the biggie? There's been a shift in my lifestyle; not the giving up thing which seems to have done the rounds of late, but in some small way, the end of an era for me. I'll get to the point in a mo. Sheesh, you'd think I was paid by the word wouldn't you! :-)

Anyhoo, for the last decade or so I've ridden my motorbike to/from work in pretty much all weathers. As H's job has changed, we're now a 2 car household: my biking days are over. Dare I say I was lucky for 10 years? I guess so. I've come off twice (and it bloody hurt - that tends to focus your road sense) but Fate was kind to me and I, unlike other people I knew, saw neither serious injury nor expensive repairs.

In the last month of the summer holidays, I'd been in two minds over getting a car. On one hand I liked riding the bike to work: it was cheap to run, great through traffic queued traffic and ultimately, fun. The feel of the wind, the noise and just the feeling that you weren't cooped up, but more part of what's going on around you. To me, that's the appeal of biking, not burning down a country lane trying to 'get my knee down'. I know some folks love that, but it's just not my bag, baby. :-)

The downsides to biking, of course, are that it's not so fun when you spend 10 minutes either end getting togged up or finding somewhere to dry your gear when the heaven's have opened. Then there's the whole safety issue.... I've not missed riding in the driving rain on only two wheels this week.

Course, the filp side to queues and higher road tax is that I get to take Wee Man to school (a bit of father/son time together). I can listen to MP3s without deafening myself and I can just get in/out without wandering into the office looking like a kevlar Darth Vader.

So while I'm happy with my little tin box, a little part of me can't help a little sad I won't be riding off into the sunset. Perhaps if I'd waited to swap transport in December, I wouldn't be feeling quite so nostalgic. :-)

Slaptastic

In other news, I spotted L'Oréal's Star Secrets in a magazine. Basically, they're small packs of make-up, where each one if themed along a look from one of their celebrity models. While they're not cheap, you do get blusher, 3 shades of eyeshadow and lippy in a cute little packet. I bought a set the other day - the colours looked very nice - and I'll give them a spin next time I'm out.

Talking of make-overs (Ed: coo, that was seamless), I've had a bit of a change around on the old blog. I won't win any design awards that's for sure, but it's nice to have a bit of a change around once in a while.

Take care!
Lynn
x

[ Today's lyric: Gary Numan's Cars... although I do have a soft spot for the Fear Factory version :-) ]