Oh jeez Kaitlyn, did you stop to reload halfway through this?!

That was some pointed stuff, but I'm game and I'll admit to multiple good points. I'll also admit that it's impossible not to like you. I really believe that you're earnest and sincere and I appreciate that. I also appreciate just the right amount of bitchiness, because without it I'm afraid this discussion would be a little too academic in nature and would bore the pants off of me. Oooops, better cover my pickle. ;-)

Okay down to business;
Are you really saying that it's the bullies who are being mocked and scorned? Because there's been some pretty strong language directed at poor little me and all I did was choose to live my life differently. Can you believe that someone would have the nerve to live her own life? I realize that I'm being a little uppity for a pre-op but I can't help it. This is how life made me.

...and I believe what I said was SRS brigade, but now I see I'm being maligned for something else as well. Let's list the things I'm allegedly doing wrong in my transition so far;

1. I'm not sure I'll ever get SRS
2. I'm managing the process carefully so I can maintain my career
3. I'm not sure I want to be stealth
4. I don't always sit down to pee

I'm sure there's more but those are what I've gleaned from the thread so far. So the consensus is I'm not a TS? (maybe not yours, but it's been promoted) I'm cool with that. It seems silly to argue over the label, but why on earth is it so important that I live my life according to your rules, or even the prevailing wisdom? I don't know if you've noticed but I have very little respect for tradition, or seniority. Those things haven't served me very well so far.
If we kept track, I bet that list would grow exponentially over the next few weeks because I have no interest in doing anything that doesn't bring joy into my life. Am I selfish? You bet. I'm not getting any younger and it's inconceivable to me that I should waste any precious time entertaining the demands of the narrow minded. It took me um, 39 years to declare my freedom and that means freedom from everyone who would chain me with their expectations of how I should live.

Why do you think I'm twisting my mind into knots? I accepted my fate sometime after puberty. I stopped crying about my tiny pickle and I just moved on. The agony has passed, I've dealt with it. There's an outside chance that I may revisit that particular pain, but I won't make any guarantees. What I'd like you to remember is, it was a very important thing for YOU to do. I've read dozens of horror stories from girls who regretted the SRS, some to the point of suicide. I just bring that up because there are a million stories in the naked city and every single person has a different perspective. I'm surprised this is such a difficult concept for you to grasp. You seem much brighter than that. (oh no I di'unt)

What I find most compelling about this thread is how similar it is to the message I get from the fundies who always feel compelled to tell me that I will never be a woman. I was born a man and I will die a man no matter how many surgeries I have. I spend very little time (none) trying to convince them otherwise because I understand that their minds are made up. They have a rigid belief system that will not allow for any variance in spirituality, much less something as "simple" as gender. It's quite interesting that I get the same message from a site like this. Surprising. A tiny bit disheartening, but definitely interesting.

Now to my apparent desperation. What?!
I might be an attention *****, but I'm certainly not desperate for affirmation. I'm possibly a borderline narcissist, maybe a little full of myself, arguably full of crap but I am not desperate. Good lord, you may as well call me a dude.