Abedy

And a full quote for just this, nothing to contribute to the topic? Sad. The sky is not the limit. The ground is. The Society of Skydiving Ducks

...is: Arching. Who'da thunk? OK, has one flaw. What about freeflying women? But here you read: https://www.livescience.com/60780-posture-arched-backs-attractiveness.html Hugs, Hannah The sky is not the limit. The ground is. The Society of Skydiving Ducks

The season is coming to a close -- at least here in Germany -- and it is time to reflect. And since I had a really strange encounter in freefall this year I thought this might be an interesting thread. Here we go: I was making a tandem jump. The student had a good position and no video flyer to be considered so I waited tossing the drogue and... in about 3800 meters (~ 12,500 ft) it happened: Someone had let off two helium balloons with their threads knotted together and a piece of paper (probably a birthday or wedding wish?) attached. And we were heading towards it at almost terminal speed. It happened so fast but I saw it very clearly, stretched my legs and... pfffft it went past us at insane speed. I don't think anything bad would have happened (but I'd rather not find out actually) however I was shocked, looked up (in vain, of course) and then tossed the drogue. WooHoo, huh? So, anything unusual you encountered in freefall? Hugs, Hannah The sky is not the limit. The ground is. The Society of Skydiving Ducks

Short follow-up Hannah has now made more than 250 tandem jumps since "out" full time, 650+ in total. Oh, and I now often wait until 3500 meters or even longer before tossing the drogue. Old girl capable of changing habits Living happily, still college teacher, still married. Twice a granny by now. See pics attached, hope you'll enjoy. Hugs to you all, Hannah

Well, there are things worse than being ogled Oh, two tandems today (then weather hold and call-off eventually) but I got kissed by one of my students. A twenty-something cuuuute girl Hugs, Hannah The sky is not the limit. The ground is. The Society of Skydiving Ducks

Aww, thanks so much

Thanks so much. Transitioning was -- eventually -- a question of death or live my true self. So seen, it wasn't that brave Hugs, Hannah The sky is not the limit. The ground is. The Society of Skydiving Ducks

I bet it is. All men should make such experience for a week. Or live as a woman for a week. (And vice versa...) For me, now with body and mind aligned, it feels more and more fine to be the target of flirtation. And, if the guy is good-looking and well-groomed, I " give in" to a certain extent. OTOH, I am also (still) into women. Which makes me kinda bi I reckon. I am curious where this journey is gonna lead me Hugs, Hannah The sky is not the limit. The ground is. The Society of Skydiving Ducks

Wow, that pic was not enough? Hmmm... Hugs, Hannah The sky is not the limit. The ground is. The Society of Skydiving Ducks

Wow, looking attractive. Something in return. Hugs, Hannah The sky is not the limit. The ground is. The Society of Skydiving Ducks

Hi folks, I am back in the air and have made about 50 tandem jumps this year so far. See pic attached. (Ywes, we all look not very flattering in freefall and hence the second pic.) Things have changed a lot since my coming out here: I now understand on a very practical way that leverage and techniques are essential for female TIs. 3 years of estrogen (and testosterone even lower than most cisgender (i.e. natal) women) really have an impact on your physiology despite all working out in the gym. Students now are even more open, not few of them confide their anxiety or even very personal information in me and this is so rewarding. I also need to get used to men hitting on me. Wolf whistling, "the male gaze" and flirtation (up to invitation for a cuppa) -- it takes time to get used to. Sometimes, it feels good. Sometimes, I now -- in a very practical way -- see that society still is objectifying women. But heck, that is life

Aww, thanks so much. The sky is not the limit. The ground is. The Society of Skydiving Ducks

Huh, huh

No, this is a TearDrop VIPER and the riser covers are exactly in the position they ought to be after opening.

Well, had to go under the knife again (on 24 Feb 2016) but now I am back in the air again, see pix. Will resume tandems in a fortnight, cleared by doctor and meeting all other requirements. Life is good, great, right and I get a lot of glances from both men and women, so all the effort was worth it I guess, see pic #4

For the boys: How to sleep on my belly with cup C boobs The sky is not the limit. The ground is. The Society of Skydiving Ducks

Oh yes, I second this!

Made a second tandem jump the week after, really great. (Sorry for the shitty quality, I just took a screenshot... literally ) More to come next season as I underwent some follow-up surgeries (3.5 hours in the operating theatre again, part corrective ones (scar tissue) and part for relieving body dysphoria such as tracheal shave) but that was that, I'm done now (I hope, at least) but won't be able to do tandems for another 4 or 5 weeks which comes close to the season finale No worries, doing fine, healing much faster than after the really invasive surgeries half a year ago. But heck, really, nobody chooses this. So I am looking forward to next season Hugs, Hannah The sky is not the limit. The ground is. The Society of Skydiving Ducks

I made my first tandem jump after GCS (gender-confirming surgeries) yesterday. As if I had not had a longer-than-expected delay (due to unforeseen scar tissue problems) everything was so great. No moment I had to have a second thought. The student was excited as well and thanked me so much. Reassuring.

Hi, thanks for your reply which due to its length helped me understand your point of view. First: Transgender people usually do NOT like to talk about GCS (gender confirming surgery) especially not in public. This topic is usually brought up by cisgender (i.e. non-trans) persons (of which a good number is pretty curious about GCS, some missing basic etiquette) If I am close to someone and we are in private I will answer questions if they are asked to UNDERSTAND and to gain more insight. As you write: Transgender people are born this way. It is not a lifestyle. It is only a "choice" insofar as one day, when you have had it, when you are so worn out, so desperate, and hit rock bottom you have to decide whether you stop living a lie into you are pushed by society based on the short look at your genitalia by a midwife or physicians when you were born or whether you admit to yourself and transition into living true to your gender. Some trans folks opt for HRT and/or GCS as elements of their transition. I did so. Maybe in a hundred years with society being much more open and educated about gender issues, I would have decided to transition without HRT and GCS but I live now and HRT made and makes me so happy, feel so right and real. GCS is nothing I'd ever regret. I is so great, so really great to be able to simply roll out of bed, put on a T-shirt and pants and go out and to not have to wear a bra with gel pads, to "tuck" the southern polar region and to cover 5-o'clock-shadow with layers of heavy make-up. And my body now feels right. It is so great when your physical appearance is in congruence with your gender identity. So maybe HRT -- which is simply taking pills (estrogen is not available for injection here in Germany, unfortunately) -- being "disturbing" to you may not be HRT as such itself but your knowing it is part of my being transgender? Again, I would never, and the same is about almost all trans folks, tell you about surgery at lunch. Really, at lunch? I'd find surgery talks while having lunch disturbing myself no matter what kind of surgery. When I am at my drop zone, I do not talk about anything trans related to my fellows. (I only told about my life and what it means to be transgender when I introduced myself to my new trans-friendly drop zone crew and some folks around and that was that.) Surgery? HRT? Why talk about it? We talk about skydiving. The weather. With girls, maybe some girl stuff. Dresses, shoes, how macho men can be aggravating us and when we react telling us the hormones speak out of us. No, I simply am Hannah, one of the women at my DZ. Best wishes, Hannah

Hi, thanks for your wishes and your warm reply. No worries, I not only don't see your observations as disrespectful, on the contrary. It is really great to learn that to you, my posts were 90% from a woman's point of view even back when I still lived in guy camouflage. I joined dropzone.com years later than you but after I had learned I am transgender so I was aware of who I am but still didn't dare to live it, to admit to it. But I had let go of overly "male" behaviour by that time already and when I wrote something, I usually didn't "mask" my words. Again, thanks so much for your kind words and wishes. Hugs from Germany, Hannah

I'd really, really, really appreciate if you read one of the article (links provided in my reply I posted yesterday) to realise that "chromosomal distinctions" do not suffice in respect to gender. TIA & Best wishes, Hannah The sky is not the limit. The ground is. The Society of Skydiving Ducks

First of all I think it is a pity that you make cheap remarks to ridicule Wendy's comment. If you think about it seriously you may realise why she wrote this. Personally, I am sorry that you feel "pushed to accepting" (which isn't possible, you surely mean "to tolerate" as "to accept" comes from within) other human being for who they are. I am so sorry I inconvenience you by not leading the life I was ...oh wait... I was pushed into by society. I dunno how you come to the idea that transgender people "don't accept themselves." It is just this accepting themselves, this no longer pretending to be someone you were pushed into, this embracing of your true identity that leads to happiness, authenticity and inner calm. Please read the first post in the thread I started when I came out to DZ.com for a report of first-hand experience. Oh, and my students told me that I am more authentic now, others added I am calmer, so this is something I don't only imagine. They deal with me day by day and, guess what, address me with female pronouns, call me "Ms", and I often get commended for how I dress or my make-up. And some of them are religious and nevertheless treat me respectfully and affirmingly. You expect us to "accept our bodies" and really mean to "stop the nonsense" and I read between your lines I should go back to living as the man I have never been. Just to not disturb your black-and-white view on the world. How sad. And, to your information: We don't "want to lopp of body parts" - a good number of trans people just want to align their body to their gender. Which in my case means I not only didn't "lopp off" but gained parts on my chest and down there a good deal of the wrongly plumbed privates are now inside me. Other trans people are happy the way their body is. Trans people - as I said before - come from all walks of life and transition in different paths. Best wishes from Germany, Hannah The sky is not the limit. The ground is. The Society of Skydiving Ducks

Mandy, thanks so much for your replies.

Thanks for your kindness, I really mean and appreciate this. As for chromosomes, life isn't that simple. It is true that a very great percentage of women bear XX chromosomes but as it has already been shown, this isn't the complete picture. I'd like to point out ONE of many more facets of life's diversity: Women with CAIS - complete androgen immunity syndrome. When they are born, the physician looks between their leg, sees a vag and announces a girl being born. We all start female in the womb, you know. And if you happen to be immune to androgens (testosterone the most important one) your body keeps developing female as much as possible. Which means the outer genitalia don't develop into a pecker and a scrotum. It often takes until check-ups to find out why the girl doesn't start menstruating to find there are no uterus, ovaries etc. These so-called XY-women are women, nevertheless. There have even been XY-women who had children! So there are many more facets, and that is why you need to consider: Sex - what is between your legs, Gender - what is between your ears. You can also say sex is who you go to bed with and gender is who you go to bed as. Sex and gender go together in about 99% but this doesn't mean the at least 1% who happen to be trans or inter are anomalies -- we are just part of how diverse and rich life is. Here is an interesting article from a Conservative website, by a scientist, that elaborates in detail about many more biological aspects: http://www.thepublicdiscourse.com/2015/07/15377/ This article from the Globe and Mail which also isn't a socialist newspaper (but yeah, to some 'muricans already its being Canadian makes it a suspicious source ) which also gives some insight: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-debate/think-gender-comes-down-to-x-and-y-chromosomes-think-again/article24811543/ Best wishes from the other side of the Atlantic, Hannah