@*Beth*:

Yeah, i can see now, Beth, that what i wrote initially was cultural appropriation. I was so excited i thought only of my own joy with my experiment. I didn't consider what the other person would feel like. I guess it's sort of like someone being super moody and saying they were like me because i am bipolar. I know i'd feel dissed. It's a tricky world!

I think it is worthy to like cross-dressing tho and i will continue to play with this, but i will not say to any trans men that it is like them, because of course it is not. I won't alter my voice or change my name either.

The issue of cultural appropriation is a challenging one for me because i am so curious and like to experiment and explore. I know Eastern men and women are delighted with my wildly-colored African kaftans but i guess the difference there is that this sort of dressing is not a target of controversy and a source of suffering.

When i grew up there was a Folklore Festival each year in our small city. Different ethnicities would set up food booths and have dance performances showcasing their various cultures. My dad was a history teacher and a lover of exotic food so he was delighted with it and he would take me and we would enjoy ourselves. I went to Lebanese Fest this year for just the very first time and had a ball. Felafel sounds like laughter!

I guess there is a line between celebrating a culture and appropriating it and i have to develop the skill to recognize it. I guess it's minority cultures that are currently suffering that are the issue.

And yet, even then, here in Canada we are having an Indigenous Renaissance and there are many traditional items, clothing included, belonging to that culture for sale. Our Indigenous are showing themselves to be energetic entrepreneurs!

If there's any culture that has suffered, it is the Canadian Indigenous, such a shameful chapter of our history. So it's a blurry line. I guess the key should be if the culture is OFFERING to share of themselves and at this time the trans movement is still too new and private and oppressed for all that.

It's just like my own culture, of the mentally ill. There is somewhat of a renaissance going on in our culture re mentally illness, with awareness skyrocketing and support exploding. Young people talk about their mental health openly and i am always shocked that they are so matter-of-fact about it.

It is welcome, of course, but it DOES require some adjustment. I am still not open about my bipolar but have been letting people know that i have Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) which is pretty close to the truth. I am warming up to the new inclusivity. There was a truly wonderful character in "Ozark" who had bipolar and i thought they did a fabulous job of showing how painful it is. So maybe i will have the courage to admit to bipolar after all!

Cultural appropriation of Judaism was an episode of "Seinfeld" long before the term was even invented. Jerry's dentist converted to Judaism just for "joke telling immunity." He wanted to tell Jewish jokes without getting in trouble so he became a Jew. He said he would use a "shtickle" of fluoride on Jerry. Jerry was (properly) appalled and found the dentist's enthusiasm annoying and kept telling the dentist that he shouldn't say such things but the dentist was so enthusiastic he persisted. I guess i am like the dentist! (Note that the dentist was played by the eminently talented Bryan Cranston who went on to play Walter White in "Breaking Bad.")

I'll be more careful going forward. It's been an education!

Mmm, felafel...