Have you thanked AIR lately?

[Anne2345]

I draw the air deeply into my lungs, and exhale. Breathe in, breathe out, simple, life sustaining air. I breathe air, therefore I may crossdress.

Despite the difficulties we all experience to some degree or another, we have much to be thankful for.

In this, beauty and life surrounds us. The world is alive. We are alive. We are crossdressers, blessed with a gift of femininity. I am very much grateful for the gift I have received, but I am also thankful for the air that allows me to enjoy this gift. Who among us, though, in the open air, on the air, or otherwise, has properly expressed appreciation for air?

Probably very few of us, I would wager, given how we seem to take air for granted.

So please allow me to clear the air, remedy this wrong, and air my appreciation for air. I very much appreciate and am thankful for air, and all that it does for us! :)

And before any accuse me of being full of hot air, or before you click off into thin air, please first consider the following before I, myself, log off the air.

We as crossdressers live in rarified air. Many in society may stick their noses in the air at those such as us, but they have no conception of the beauty we represent. I love who and what I am, and each and every one of you for who and what you are. Through the majesty of crossdressing, I joyfully and blissfully walk on air, time and time again.

By no means, however, am I putting on airs! I am not arguing that we are “better” than others, rather, that we are quite fortunate to be who we are. We have the opportunity to experience both sides of being within a single life. We are not restricted by gender, or the unwritten rules imposed upon us such by society.

To me, this freedom of self-expression is a breath of fresh air, as society’s “rules” are too confining and constricting. Collectively, we have thrown our arms up into the air, turned our backs to such rules, and chosen a path that leads to self-fulfillment and inner harmony.

There is no air of mystery here - we are a simple folk who simply desire to be ourselves. Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe the fresh, wonderful, clean air . . . .

[Sara Jessica]

I guess I technically thank air daily in these pages by way of my signature line, "head over heels in love with life". It's a constant reminder of how blessed I feel despite the difficulties I face daily given the gender cards I've been dealt.

It's a good place to be when you can recognize the blessing in this whole thing, and in all of the love around us, when there are many who for whatever reason have not come to terms with it and therefore feel it's a curse.

[Kate Simmons]

Air is a fluid element, one of the four basic elements, of Earth, Fire, AIR and Water. There may be a periodic table of physical elements but this element AIR helps to make us who we are as well as the other three. By virtue of this who we are is not just wholly scientific per se but also mystical and you can take that right to the bank Anne.;):)

[Anne2345]

Sounds all a bit airy fairy to me. :)

And just who air you to say so? ;)

[suzy1]

The thing that always sticks out for me in your lovely posts Anne is the point that what we have is a gift, a blessing and not something to curse or be ashamed of.

Now back to my simple world of worrying about what dress to wear Saturday night when my friend comes round.

Hugs girlfriend, SUZY

[LilSissyStevie]

I lived in the San Gabriel Valley (near LA) in the 1960s. You can never take fresh air (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUHlxBZMiqw&feature=related) for granted after that.

[Cheryl T]

We take it for granted because it's so Air Apparent.

[Frédérique]

Who among us, though, in the open air, on the air, or otherwise, has properly expressed appreciation for air? Probably very few of us, I would wager, given how we seem to take air for granted.

Where do you live, Anne, on top of a mountain? Pardon me while I cough…:doh:

How does one properly appreciate air? The same way you would appreciate gravity, I assume, but I digress. I’m the end product of a multitude of evolutionary changes, all of them based upon how things ARE here on the third planet, or were, to be precise, and we are the ancestors of many survivors who dealt with unwanted change successfully…

There is an atmosphere, composed of certain gaseous elements, and we, as living organisms, have learned to breathe it to “live.” Is it safe to say we are here against our will, that we never intended to be alive, or that this existence is a brief moment 93 million miles from the Sun, albeit to no knowable purpose under that sun? As such, why appreciate breathing, or air? You may be better off appreciating consciousness, or awareness, or the fact that you’re getting older, and, since entropy is a fact of life, air may be our enemy…

I mean, are we meant to be here? Never mind that – WHY are we here, breathing this “soup” that is slowly killing us? If I stop to think about it, it may be better to NOT think about air – there’s going to come a day when I will stop breathing, and I do not wish to think about that. If I stop to appreciate AIR, I will inevitably think about death – I will briefly be euphoric about being alive, but that quickly passes. There are things to do, and I can’t dwell on the “mechanisms” of life…

If I listen to my throbbing heartbeat, especially after I’ve eaten too many M&M’s, I wonder how much longer the thing will be beating, i.e. how much time do I have left. It’s the same with air, or breathing, and I’m only conscious of it when I’m going up and down the stairs in my house – the older I get, the more conscious I am of breathing, and it certainly doesn’t help that my artistic activities involve all sorts of breath-choking solvents and substances that I ingest involuntarily…

I haven’t truly BREATHED since I left my sea-level retreat in Massachusetts some years ago. Here in Kansas, the air is dry, usually filled with smoke particles, leftover herbicide fumes or dust from agricultural activities. Now and then a grain elevator explodes, or a dust storm re-arranges the terrain, so breathing becomes that much more difficult. There are plenty of wide open spaces, but no pristine air, unless you want to trek out to “God’s Country” on a cold winter morning and get yourself a lungful. Keep in mind that we live downwind of all those nuclear tests years ago, OK? BTW, wear a bright orange vest – it’s “fill in the blank” season…

I don’t really think much about air, unless my airbrush (or air compressor) isn’t working properly. I think about gravity often (see above), but I appreciate eyesight more than anything else. Of course, without breathing, or air, eyesight is either impossible or unnecessary. I breathe, therefore I AM, but if I appreciate air I have to appreciate existence, and that’s where problems arise. In other words, is this a paradise, or a containment vessel? I feel like a complete accident. I breathe air, and I have to eat and drink to live, but do I have to think about this comic situation?

There will be a surprise quiz about this existentialist post in a few weeks, no doubt originating out of “thin air.” :heehee:

[Cynthia Anne]

Oh Anne! How I love reading your post! And this one is no exception! I too enjoy air! It enables me to talk to people which I so enjoying doing! Unless I'm talking to a bunch of AIRHEADS!:eek: Hugs!:D

[kimdl93]

I certainly appreciate the air, but like the rest of this planet's inhabitants, I've taken it for granted for too long. Like Kansas, the air here in Texas is increasingly corrupted with petrochemical fumes, ozone and particulate matter. That breath of fresh air is getting harder and harder to come by.