WINTER BLUES

The sky is ash
The trees are bare
The silence stark
No life anywhere

Dreaming of Cheers Standing Up to Life: Book 3 Part 2 of 23 by Tiffany Shar

Intro by Carla Ann

“Tiffany, I’ve asked you how everything is going with people and the activities you’re involved in, but you haven’t mentioned how you are coping with everything.” She emphasized the ‘you,’ when she asked that.

“Well, better than I was last year,” I started. “Way better than last year… I have a lot of friends now, and I’m not getting picked on every day.” I saw her eyes boring into me looking for something else. “Alright, I don’t know how I’m doing right now.” I told her honestly.

“What do you mean?” She asked.

“Well for one I’m really tired of everyone guessing I’m five if I wear the wrong clothes.” I told her hesitantly. I was sure my parents had filled her in with everything anyway, “Tuesday was pajama day. Mom and I had found some cute pajamas with feet on them that would fit Amy and me, so we wore them for pajama day. We really did look cute dressed like that, and I was having a lot of fun with it. That was until the sub in English class thought that I was someone’s little sister that had come them to school that day.”

I was really surprised Dr. Reynolds didn’t laugh about it, but I continued, “Then the next day the whole squad was wearing shortalls and our hair done in pigtails and I looked to be about five again. One of my best friends even brought a doll to school to play a joke on the sub that we’d had. I don’t think she knew that it really upset me though. I’m not five, I’m twelve! Amy has grown about five inches here in the last couple months, but I’m still the same height I was last year. It’s good for cheerleading stuff because people can toss me so easily… but…” I was doing my best to not go into tears over all of this. “as long as we’ve got my puberty stopped then I won’t be doing much growing. That’s all on top of the fact that I’m never going to be able to have periods like my friends… and I’m stuck with this stupid thing between my legs,” I told her with a great deal of exasperation. “I’m so tired of having to look at it, or hide it, every time I turn around. I know you can’t do anything about it till I’m eighteen – but I wish it could be gone now!” I had gone to tears now.

This chapter follows events after the and the court case that ensues concerning the 'Honour Killings' There is litle or no transgendered material in this 'interim connection' chapter but there is some philosphical exploration of the relationships between faiths and transgenderism. (Have I got an agenda here?) I ask myself. Possibly, even probably, yes.

The Encounter

by Philippa Jane Kingsley
 © 2010, all rights reserved.

Philip Prince stood nervously in the checkout line at Payless Shoesource, a closed box of red patent pleather 4" heeled pumps in his hand, his bags from the department store across the street in his other hand.

Masks

Each day as I rise from my bed
Daily chore I’ve come to dread
Which mask of mine I must wear
For God forbid my face go bare

Malfunction

The 3 laws of Robotics:

1. A robot cannot harm a human being, or through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm

3, a robot must protect its own existence, except where such protection would counter Law 1 or Law 2.

Matt, the engineer assigned to fix me calls me Abe. That’s when he isn’t using profanity. My official designation is ABEVE - 2110 - MU. The MU stands for mining unit, because that’s what I was designed to be.