TransLiving International

Welcome to issue 79 of Transliving International, the magazine that is proud to celebrate gender diversity in all its colourful entirety, and inclusion of every member of the community that falls under the wider trans spectrum regardless of how they identify. Recently I was having a ‘tidy up’ on my PC and going through various files and I stumbled across multiple copies of this magazine that I have been the editor of and it turns out that Issue 79 is my 51st issue as the sole editor! Of course, I was involved way before then as an assistant editor. Where have all those years gone? Over that period of time there have been so many positive changes in this magazine and I am still very proud of all that has…

I hope you have been bearing up with this cold weather we have had and used plenty of face cream against the elements. We will have just come home from Eastbourne when you receive this, so pray I do not get blown away down there :-) - I think that from the current weather forecast, we will probably need fur coats and fur knickers. After Covid, the group rather hit a bad time financially so we did an appeal for donations on line from our forum and Facebook pages. A very generously group of people helped us out tremendously. I am also extremely grateful to those who round up the figure to £40 for their membership. Others send considerable donation and this helps us immensely. What with phone bills, paper,…

Sonia Diaz, also known as Sunny Dee-Lite, is a successful entrepreneur and this year realised her dream to become your reigning Miss Continental. After a successful career in retail management, Sonia shifted gears to become one of New York’s premiere party promoters. During this time, Sonia reflected on her love of pageantry and began booking as a showgirl and competed in local pageants. Sunny Dee-Lite has won several national titles including Miss Renaissance, Miss Sweetheart, All American Goddess, and Entertainer of the Year. During the pandemic, Sunny faced the realisation that her life as a showgirl was on hold and took a chance on starting a customised wig-business, a skill she picked up over the years. Dee-Lite Dee-Signs Hair was born along with her trademark 360. Sunny Dee-Lite is a…

A captivating hand drawing of Milena Markovna “Mila” Kunis’ eyes was my initial exposure to Ileana’s work. You see, this drawing is prominently featured in the website banner for a group of which I am a member: the Vanity Club. The Vanity Club is the oldest and most dedicated sororal [of or like a sister or sisters] organisation of transgender women in the world and I felt compelled to learn about the brilliant artist. See vanityclub.org Online research and interviews made it clear that Ileana is an intelligent, gifted, and kind creative soul. A view of her graphite-drawing collection confirms her incredible talent. See ileanahunter.co.uk. Moreover, she’s loved by a ballooning fan-base proven by consistently top-notch reviews. Today, she especially welcomes trans and non-binary subjects. I was one of her…

The year was 1994. I was sitting in my room, feeling miserable after being unceremoniously dumped by an ex-boyfriend. I was devastated, broken-hearted, angry and a whole lot of other negative emotions. How could someone who used to make me happy, now brings me nothing but unimaginable pain? While wallowing in self-pity, in the background the radio was blaring out endless streams of sad love songs. I could feel myself being pushed, in slow-mo, closer and closer to the emotional wreckage zone. The DJ then played ‘Secret’ by Madonna. “Happiness lies in your own hand. It took me much too long to understand…” My ears pricked up. She’s right. I shouldn’t rely on anyone or anything to make myself happy. So, I packed my tears away and resolutely vowed to…

Last summer at my company’s ‘LGBT+ Giving Back’ event, I was invited to share my volunteering experience. Such an honour! I seized this opportunity and talked about my role as a regular contributor to TransLiving magazine. There were two other guest speakers billed for the event – and one of them was Jakob Kennedy. His turn came after mine. Jakob’s presentation was great. He was eloquent, charming and most definitely passionate about his voluntary work. His Manc. accent gave him that extra something. The audience was engaged. He had my full attention – and in my notebook I scribbled: ‘awe inspiring’ and ‘perfect for TransLiving’. As soon as the event was over, I wasted no time in contacting him to arrange an interview. After several failed attempts, we finally met…