02 January 2009

The Cold, Again

I really got spoiled by the warm weather in Florida: I don't think I've been warm since I got off the plane the other day!

Funny, how I used to like the cold weather so much. Or, at least it didn't bother me. I take that back: I felt superior to people who complained about the cold. They were such sissies, I used to tell myself. You know: Cold is a reflection of the depth of my soul, and all that.

Now I'm wondering where my newfound appreciation of warmth and sunshine, and the translucent blues of the Florida sea and sky, come from. Could it be that I'm really developing in some way I'd never anticipated? Or is it that I'm growing older?

Or maybe it's just the hormones. (Lately, ads for Jameson's Irish whiskey have claimed, "It could just be the taste.") Maybe just the hormones. No big deal, right?

As the doctor prescribed them, he described some of the effects they could have on me. "They could make you more emotional." Check. "You will also experience crying jags and giddiness." Mmm-hmm. "Tiredness, possibly." Definitely, sometimes. "And your the hair on your head will grow and fluff out. So far, so good.

He didn't mention anything about feeling cold. One thing I noticed, long before I started in my transition, is that in a room, if any people are complaining about the cold, it's usually the women. And. most of the time, it's the men who find the room too hot.

I used to be one of those men. Most homes and offices seemed overheated to me; I could go outside in shorts and a T-shirt when other people shivered inside their down parkas. I can't even begin to count how many times I heard, "Aren't you cold?" If I was feeling particularly ornery, I'd advise the person who aksed to curl up in foetal position and to place his or her head in some place where it wasn't meant to be.

But now I'm one of those cold chicks. And, well, you know how much guys like that! ;-)

Blame it on the hormones!