Rand: thanks very much for the validation. You're right - people transition and/or become aware later in life that they are trans quite often. There isn't a set protocol for it. Thank goodness.

The meeting went great! Looks like I have a new friend! I'm so excited. We seemed to hit it off really well. Not only is it an FtM friend but it is just the first new friend I have made in literally years. There has been so much stuff in my life that took me into isolation and I'm just coming out of it now, with my realization of being trans being a huge catalyst; that's probably why it feels like such a relief right now. There is another guy, also FtM, who may be coming to stay with us for the weekend so he can visit a friend out here. We have already been in communication as he is a friend of my wife's and she alerted him (with my permission) to the fact that I need friendship and support right now from other FtMs. He's a really nice guy, I met him before at one of the trans community Christmas dinners we went to a few years back. It'll be a matter of reconnecting under different circumstances.