Friday, 27 July 2012
Thursday, 26 July 2012
Nervous...
About 5 weeks ago I sent off my application for a new passport, as Stacy.
A couple of weeks ago they took 200 euros from my credit card (though I am not sure that means anything, they warn you that if you apply for a passport they will take your money anyway!).
On Wednesday DHL left me a message saying they had tried to deliver a package that originated in the UK and needed signing for...
Could this be my passport? (And the return of my doctors letter and deed poll?)
Or could it be a rejection saying I did not have the right supporting documents!
I have to admit I am nervous as hell!
Sunday, 8 July 2012
Give me my house back!
A few weeks ago I posted about having out kitchen refitted, about a week cooking in the garden and a week of stress.
Well the kitchen and the stress materialised. The cooking in the garden? Not quite so much!
A mixture of things conspired to get in our way, strangely enough given the last few days bad weather was not one if them!
It all started on Monday. The fitter came and ripped the old kitchen out - all in a couple of hours! In the afternoon the electrician came and annoyed the hell out of me. You see I had worked out all of the energy use of the different bits of kit and had in my mind a way of connecting everything so that we had as much power available on the counter top as possible, and wasting as little as possible with the other circuits. The electrician however had other ideas... He insisted that he was going to do it his way and so now I have hidden circuits using nearly 1KW less that what is available and the counter top plug is shared with the fridge and extractor fan. So that is 400W that I can't use on the counter, which would easily have ran with the other circuits. I think I may have offended him by working out the groups myself... Oh well, it's not the end of the world, just annoying!
I had a bit of a stressful day in the office, got home and to be honest just did not feel like the hassle involved with getting the BBQ working. So I got the camping stove out instead and ruined one of my old frying pans on it. Mrs Stace went to snack bar to get some unhealthy French fries and we had some salad with it to make life a little easier.
Tuesday... The plasterer came, and we found out that he had the wrong instructions so he has to come back again to finish! And the energy company came to fit the 380v 3 phase supply that we need for the hob. The house was built with a supply already, but it was never wired in. When it was wired in it also needed a new meter. And whilst they were fitting it they also fitted a new gas meter.
And that is where it went wrong. We only have on thing that uses gas in the house - the CV boiler. They fitted the meter and left without checking if everything was working (it wasn't) so in the evening Mrs Stace went to fetch a Chinese take-away whilst I waited for the boiler people to talk me through resetting the machine.
On top of that the kitchen was delivered Tuesday morning and it took up the entire living room! We had to climb over the back of the sofa to sit down! After enjoying the take-away and we decided on an early night (seeing as there was not enough space in the room anyway ;p), I went to lock the front door and... Sniff, sniff... Gas. Wonderful! We called the emergency line, opened all of the windows and doors to clear everything away. The emergency gas man arrived and did a simple test, something that he said looks weird but you never know. he tried to undo the pipes with his hands. Well I say tried, what I mean is he succeeded in undoing them by hand. OK... That would be the cause of the leak then! All sorted, he actually restarted the gas boiler for us before leaving and we decided to wait half hour to check that the smell did not come back before going to bed. An early night suddenly became a very late one!
Wednesday and Mrs Stace had to go in to the office so it was my turn to work from home. The fitter cam with someone else and whilst I was working away they fitted most of the kitchen. It's actually amazing how quickly these things can get fitted once people start to work.
By the end of the day everything except for the extractor fan hose and the new hob was fitted; the fitter did not want to put a large glass hob (and single most expensive thing in the kitchen!) in place whilst he needed to drill above it. Smart move :)
Wednesday we went to visit my sister-in-law and her family for food, so yet again nothing outside.
Thursday... The last few bits and pieces were put in place, the hob dropped into it's temporary position and it was done! The people from the stone factory came to measure the for the counter top once everything was in place and then everyone left. We could cook for the first time! A simple oriental dish just for the first use of the kitchen. And... Everything worked! During the evening we ran the ovens for the first time (240c for 1 hour just to burn them in and get rid of the smell) - and were amazed at how quickly they warm up!
So that was it. Friday and yesterday were spent trying to get the kitchen, dining area and living area back to some kind of order (hahahahahaha) and today we are just living with it. We have space to eat, space to cook and space to chill. Things can slowly get back to normal over the next week.
Today I try to use everything! I have a lovely meal planned for Mrs Stace and I today, where I can use lots of toys, and I am going to make a banana cake for the office tomorrow. We'll see how everything turns out!
Well the kitchen and the stress materialised. The cooking in the garden? Not quite so much!
A mixture of things conspired to get in our way, strangely enough given the last few days bad weather was not one if them!
It all started on Monday. The fitter came and ripped the old kitchen out - all in a couple of hours! In the afternoon the electrician came and annoyed the hell out of me. You see I had worked out all of the energy use of the different bits of kit and had in my mind a way of connecting everything so that we had as much power available on the counter top as possible, and wasting as little as possible with the other circuits. The electrician however had other ideas... He insisted that he was going to do it his way and so now I have hidden circuits using nearly 1KW less that what is available and the counter top plug is shared with the fridge and extractor fan. So that is 400W that I can't use on the counter, which would easily have ran with the other circuits. I think I may have offended him by working out the groups myself... Oh well, it's not the end of the world, just annoying!
I had a bit of a stressful day in the office, got home and to be honest just did not feel like the hassle involved with getting the BBQ working. So I got the camping stove out instead and ruined one of my old frying pans on it. Mrs Stace went to snack bar to get some unhealthy French fries and we had some salad with it to make life a little easier.
Tuesday... The plasterer came, and we found out that he had the wrong instructions so he has to come back again to finish! And the energy company came to fit the 380v 3 phase supply that we need for the hob. The house was built with a supply already, but it was never wired in. When it was wired in it also needed a new meter. And whilst they were fitting it they also fitted a new gas meter.
And that is where it went wrong. We only have on thing that uses gas in the house - the CV boiler. They fitted the meter and left without checking if everything was working (it wasn't) so in the evening Mrs Stace went to fetch a Chinese take-away whilst I waited for the boiler people to talk me through resetting the machine.
On top of that the kitchen was delivered Tuesday morning and it took up the entire living room! We had to climb over the back of the sofa to sit down! After enjoying the take-away and we decided on an early night (seeing as there was not enough space in the room anyway ;p), I went to lock the front door and... Sniff, sniff... Gas. Wonderful! We called the emergency line, opened all of the windows and doors to clear everything away. The emergency gas man arrived and did a simple test, something that he said looks weird but you never know. he tried to undo the pipes with his hands. Well I say tried, what I mean is he succeeded in undoing them by hand. OK... That would be the cause of the leak then! All sorted, he actually restarted the gas boiler for us before leaving and we decided to wait half hour to check that the smell did not come back before going to bed. An early night suddenly became a very late one!
Wednesday and Mrs Stace had to go in to the office so it was my turn to work from home. The fitter cam with someone else and whilst I was working away they fitted most of the kitchen. It's actually amazing how quickly these things can get fitted once people start to work.
By the end of the day everything except for the extractor fan hose and the new hob was fitted; the fitter did not want to put a large glass hob (and single most expensive thing in the kitchen!) in place whilst he needed to drill above it. Smart move :)
Wednesday we went to visit my sister-in-law and her family for food, so yet again nothing outside.
Thursday... The last few bits and pieces were put in place, the hob dropped into it's temporary position and it was done! The people from the stone factory came to measure the for the counter top once everything was in place and then everyone left. We could cook for the first time! A simple oriental dish just for the first use of the kitchen. And... Everything worked! During the evening we ran the ovens for the first time (240c for 1 hour just to burn them in and get rid of the smell) - and were amazed at how quickly they warm up!
So that was it. Friday and yesterday were spent trying to get the kitchen, dining area and living area back to some kind of order (hahahahahaha) and today we are just living with it. We have space to eat, space to cook and space to chill. Things can slowly get back to normal over the next week.
Today I try to use everything! I have a lovely meal planned for Mrs Stace and I today, where I can use lots of toys, and I am going to make a banana cake for the office tomorrow. We'll see how everything turns out!
Saturday, 7 July 2012
6 months!
Well actually it's nearly 7 months!
7 months of living as Stacy... I wasn't actually counting, but someone in the office asked me a few weeks ago and I was surprised that it had been so long...
So how's life been treating me for those months? Well so far so good!
My colleagues have been amazing over the that time. From my team when I told them what was happening, to the department when my boss told everyone, to the company as a whole when they were told by their bosses.
There were only a couple of people who didn't quite know how to deal with me, but neither one of them was a problem. One of them told me outright, 'Sorry, I don't know who I should speak to you any more; so I am just going to treat your normally OK?' I liked that one! How else could you treat someone? The other person just remained civil, but didn't speak that much - just said hello in the corridor. It was a shame as we used to talk more, but at least he wasn't making an issue out of it.
And working for an internet insurance company really helps, it was a nightmare trying to get the life insurance organised for the new mortgage, it would have been much worse if I didn't have colleagues who could sort everything for me.
Outside of work my friends have all been amazing, both those left in the UK and those that I know in Holland. The people I was expecting to be the biggest have been fine, shocked yes, but the have been fine :) The next trip to the UK is going to be interesting though - I have to start the whole stress process of meeting people for the first time again, I was hoping that I was going to be over that by now!
The biggest complaint so far has come from my French colleague who keeps on asking if I have to wear heels as I was tall enough compared to him before I transitioned. I tell no, I don't have to wear them. I just like them :) I just think he needs to get taller ;p
Due to personal circumstances I did not start hormone treatment before I transitioned - this has led to quite some delays in documentation. Being an ex-pat really does not help here, I have to fulfil the laws of the UK, as well as the laws of the Nederland. And... They are different... Ergo I only sent off for my passport a couple of weeks ago. Who knows when it's going to turn up! And most of my documentation in Holland (driving license, residency permit, bank account, tax records etc) can't be changed until I get it back. I see a day off of work to organise everything once it arrives!
And, lastly, one of the biggest surprises that I have had. Living as me made the world of difference. I had two trips where I still needed to be him in December. That was only weeks after I transitioned at work but even then I felt more uncomfortable going out in my suit than I did the first time I went out as Stace!
About 14 weeks ago I started on blockers for the medical study I am taking part in. Apart from a bit of tiredness and a few hot flushes I didn't feel that different. Then about 6 weeks ago I started in hormone patches and again... I've not noticed that much. The difference between living as him and living as Stace had a much more profound impact on me than the hormones have had so far!
Here's to the future
7 months of living as Stacy... I wasn't actually counting, but someone in the office asked me a few weeks ago and I was surprised that it had been so long...
So how's life been treating me for those months? Well so far so good!
My colleagues have been amazing over the that time. From my team when I told them what was happening, to the department when my boss told everyone, to the company as a whole when they were told by their bosses.
There were only a couple of people who didn't quite know how to deal with me, but neither one of them was a problem. One of them told me outright, 'Sorry, I don't know who I should speak to you any more; so I am just going to treat your normally OK?' I liked that one! How else could you treat someone? The other person just remained civil, but didn't speak that much - just said hello in the corridor. It was a shame as we used to talk more, but at least he wasn't making an issue out of it.
And working for an internet insurance company really helps, it was a nightmare trying to get the life insurance organised for the new mortgage, it would have been much worse if I didn't have colleagues who could sort everything for me.
Outside of work my friends have all been amazing, both those left in the UK and those that I know in Holland. The people I was expecting to be the biggest have been fine, shocked yes, but the have been fine :) The next trip to the UK is going to be interesting though - I have to start the whole stress process of meeting people for the first time again, I was hoping that I was going to be over that by now!
The biggest complaint so far has come from my French colleague who keeps on asking if I have to wear heels as I was tall enough compared to him before I transitioned. I tell no, I don't have to wear them. I just like them :) I just think he needs to get taller ;p
Due to personal circumstances I did not start hormone treatment before I transitioned - this has led to quite some delays in documentation. Being an ex-pat really does not help here, I have to fulfil the laws of the UK, as well as the laws of the Nederland. And... They are different... Ergo I only sent off for my passport a couple of weeks ago. Who knows when it's going to turn up! And most of my documentation in Holland (driving license, residency permit, bank account, tax records etc) can't be changed until I get it back. I see a day off of work to organise everything once it arrives!
And, lastly, one of the biggest surprises that I have had. Living as me made the world of difference. I had two trips where I still needed to be him in December. That was only weeks after I transitioned at work but even then I felt more uncomfortable going out in my suit than I did the first time I went out as Stace!
About 14 weeks ago I started on blockers for the medical study I am taking part in. Apart from a bit of tiredness and a few hot flushes I didn't feel that different. Then about 6 weeks ago I started in hormone patches and again... I've not noticed that much. The difference between living as him and living as Stace had a much more profound impact on me than the hormones have had so far!
Here's to the future
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