Hello 
I'm Siobhan Curran/Kisa Naumova, and this is my weblog. I tend to write about stuff like crossdressing, Macs, code, cats, wine and Second Life, but in general it's just an ongoing conversation about all sorts of stuff. If you'd like to know a little bit more about what this all is, I recommend starting on this page which has a little bit of info on who I am, and what I'm trying to do — or you could dive into my five years worth of archives if you like.
Otherwise, feel free to close this box and explore...
Come together: Virtual communities, multiple identities?
Ray Mears++
Siobhan and Marion are being terribly frugal, and making chicken sandwiches for the next day from the scraps left after their tea...
M: "We'd be OK on a desert island"
S: "Aye, that we would"
M: "What would your luxury item on Desert Island Discs be then?"
S: "Asda"
Yup 
Although I'm not sure if that's an urban myth or not.
tail -f /car/in/front/
I seem to spend my life watching the sun come up over Skipton through the rear window of cars in front
You Have to see this.
That is fucking brilliant 
*yay!*
Inquisitive Naivety
'Scuse me a second. There's something confusing me about the whole 'tranny scene' that I don't really understand.
I have, you may have noticed, recently decided that as soon as I'm not living hand-to-mouth and have a bit of cash floating around for more 'exciting' times, I'm going to pull myself up by the boot heel-straps and get my arse back 'on the scene'. As it were.
I'd love to put this more 'daintily', but I can't think of elaborate euphamisms right now — basically, I fancy starting to date again.
(I said this the other day, didn't I? 
)
But the logistics of it all confuse the hell out of me...
Being someone who doesn't (at present) live in a particularly trannie-friendly city, "going out", to me, means elaborate preparations — clandestine taxi rides, or pre-arranged hotel rooms and the like. It's always such a palava.
To me, the idea of a date is popping out for a drink with someone, to see if there's any 'magic' — but always with a 'back door' to slip out of in case it just doesn't seem to be working.
Does that make any sense?
I'm finding this hard to put into words, but basically whilst I might like to go out on a date as Siobhan, I'm still not au fait with the concept of putting myself into an unknown situation, with an unknown person, and an unknown outcome. I'm OK in that 'big group' outing thing — because I can just scurry back to the safety of my friends if it all starts going wrong — I just can't seem to get my head around the ins-and-outs (no pun intended) of a one-on-one meet-up.
...
What I'm wondering, I guess — as usual putting it utterly badly — is whether or not that 'classic' Go Out On A Date™ thing actually happens within the TV community. Or perhaps, whether it happens outside of our 'usual haunts'.
Ack, you know, thinking about it, maybe if I lived in tottering distance of Canal Street then the idea of going out as Siobhan on a date with someone to Via Fosse wouldn't be fraught with complications. Maybe I wouldn't be more inclined to reply to invites with "can we meet as guys first?"
Maybe the thoughts I had earlier — about how I doubt I actually live up to the mental image someone's constructed of me, based on carefully pruned photographs, and snippets of 'characterised' text-based conversations — are all prejudiced by my dislocation from a more connected 'existence.
Maybe I'm just talking out of my arse.
Of Course dates can happen within the tranny scene. I would have said the Pink Picnic was fairly tranny scene friendly, I was the one standing out like a sore thumb until Becky arrived.
Conversation before the first date will round out the mental images there is always going to be a disconnect between the on line person and the real one, typing the words instead of saying them robs most of us of nuance and subtlety.
As for meeting as guys first or even both meeting as girls or a mix of the two will all depend on context, knowledge and what your vibes are about the person.
I suppose dates happen wherever you want, and feel comfortable with, them happening. Doesn't help much — but going with whatever you feel comfortable with is surprisingly important. Might be an idea to arrange a friend to call you after an hour so you have a get out clause in case they turn out to be a complete psycho. (As many of my dates have discovered... sigh).
My opinion on the penultimate paragraph... "surprisingly similar"
As someone with zero experience of 'trannie dating' I realise my opinions may be of similar value; but, for what it's worth:
Assuming the parties involved aren't just looking for a shag, then I would have to say that anyone 'dating' you and expecting you to 'be' Siobhan is, at best, naive and at worst, fucking delusional. If somebody forms an image of you based on (presumably) the Tranniefesto, then they must know that you're not Siobhan 100% of the time. If you were transitioning, then that might not be an unreasonable expectation, but you're not. I mean — do the maths! Surely 'dating', of whatever flavour, boils down to the same thing: two people getting together to see if there's any kind of 'spark' that may be worth pursuing? Ok, for people in our situation things may be more complex due to the number of 'people' involved; but, at the end of the day, everyone has to be interested in everyone else or the whole enterprise is ultimately doomed. However, the ride might be fun...
Of course, I could be talking out of my dorsal passage; but you established the precedent 
I sort of went on a date with a guy where he came and picked me up and took me to canal st, and when I felt uncomfortable I hooked up with some friends I knew were out.
It can still work over a distance, if you find yourself stuck in Liverpool you can give me a call
I had to read that a few times until I worked out that Jessica wasn't asking you out on a date.
It's that smiley face that makes it look untoward, i really didn't mean that
I presume the title is a reference to the fact that people appearing on Desert Island Disks (assuming you can 'appear' on a radio show) have been banned from requesting "Ray Mears" as their 'luxury item'?