Egg Hatches Hen
It was on Oprah. That was the first clue I wasn't reading something straight out of the National Enquirer. A line in the short and cryptic email read,
"What must God be thinking."
Well, um, if you believe in God then you are aware He doesn't think. He knows. Thus, whatever it is, He saw it coming. Remarkably, I was able to push my snarkiness aside for the moment and clicked on the link. What did I find, praytell? That, yes, indeed, hell has frozen over and women have lost their end-all, be-all of bragging rights.
A man is pregnant.
Oh, yes, lawdy. He's knocked up and worried about what the hell he's going to wear in the coming months because clothing designers don't make 'man-ternity'. Yeah, he said that.
THOMAS IS WORRIED ABOUT WHAT HE'S GOING TO WEAR
Photo courtesy of oprah.com
Here's the thing though before all of you start reciting the 'Hail Mary' and get your lips a-flappin'... Dude really isn't a he. He's a she, or a she-he or a he-she. Wait a sec, let me back up.
Apparently, at one point and time, he was a woman. That should calm you right down. Thomas, the first pregnant 'man' was born a female. However, for reasons I don't feel I need to get into here, he, um, er, she suffered a gender identity crisis. As an adult she had her first lesbian relationship and then started dressing as a man. Then she, or he, researched a gender transformation. It's important you stay with me here...His, uh, her lover then wondered why didn't she want to just be a lesbian. Now, that would have kept it quite simple for the retelling...but then there would be no reason to retell it. *smh*
Moving on, Thomas found another woman, who is now his wife, and after — get this — taking pills his clitoris is permanently enlarged to the size of a penis. Here's what he told the good people over at Oprah:
"It looks like a penis," s/he says. "I can have intercourse with my wife."
Oh, holy clit, Batman! What must sex be like for them! Now, there's one for the porno collection.
In 2002, his breasts were removed and Thomas was legally acknowledged as a man. However, he never had his female reproductive organs removed. So, although, he never felt like a woman and went through the long process of a gender transformation, he refused to part with his female plumbing. As a woman, I get that. But I thought this was because he was convinced he really wasn't a woman? *Ahem* Makes no sense to moi, but OK it doesn't have to. Get this funny bit, all the men who know him, now say, they thought he was just a caring and sensitive man but definitely a man. Yeah, uh huh. Any man who thinks another man is caring and sensitive is telling his wife, "Yo, hon. That dude is gay." Being a woman, that's what the hell I would think. (Press tongue to side of cheek.)
Anywho, this couple now wants a baby. Being his wife has two grown children and no uterus —da-da-da dummm— they decide to borrow some sperm and try invitro. After a failed attempt with the doctor, of which they had trouble finding one (Out of all the things in this story, that truly surprised me. Those doctor types like setting themselves apart by breaking new ground. *shrugs shoulders*) they decided to do the process themselves at home. Now, I don't know exactly what that entailed between two people with the same reproductive wiring but low and behold, Thomas is now pregnant and showing! See?
THOMAS, THE FIRST PREGNANT 'MAN'
Photo courtesy of oprah.com
If you can't get enough, see a video of one of his ultrasounds, here.
So my question to you is, how do you feel about all this? In the record books, technically, a man will have given birth to a baby girl in the coming months. Is this in fact the first sign of the apocalyspe? Or is it just a funny coinky-dink and we should refrain from getting our panties in a bunch? It's really not much different from two lesbians having a child, actually that is what it is, isn't it?
THE EXPECTANT COUPLE
Photo courtesy of oprah.com
Seriously, he only looks like a man but he is biologically a woman. The mere fact her biological clock kicked in so severely that he went against all male instincts ultimately deciding to carry a baby to term, for me, casts his entire claim of a gender identity crisis in doubt. If he were really a man, he would not want to carry a baby. That is a woman's desire...along with proper maternity wear and a clitoris the size of a penis. Oh yeah! (Remove tongue from cheek to let it loll outside of mouth.)
"What must God be thinking."
Well, um, if you believe in God then you are aware He doesn't think. He knows. Thus, whatever it is, He saw it coming. Remarkably, I was able to push my snarkiness aside for the moment and clicked on the link. What did I find, praytell? That, yes, indeed, hell has frozen over and women have lost their end-all, be-all of bragging rights.
A man is pregnant.
Oh, yes, lawdy. He's knocked up and worried about what the hell he's going to wear in the coming months because clothing designers don't make 'man-ternity'. Yeah, he said that.
THOMAS IS WORRIED ABOUT WHAT HE'S GOING TO WEAR
Photo courtesy of oprah.com
Here's the thing though before all of you start reciting the 'Hail Mary' and get your lips a-flappin'... Dude really isn't a he. He's a she, or a she-he or a he-she. Wait a sec, let me back up.
Apparently, at one point and time, he was a woman. That should calm you right down. Thomas, the first pregnant 'man' was born a female. However, for reasons I don't feel I need to get into here, he, um, er, she suffered a gender identity crisis. As an adult she had her first lesbian relationship and then started dressing as a man. Then she, or he, researched a gender transformation. It's important you stay with me here...His, uh, her lover then wondered why didn't she want to just be a lesbian. Now, that would have kept it quite simple for the retelling...but then there would be no reason to retell it. *smh*
Moving on, Thomas found another woman, who is now his wife, and after — get this — taking pills his clitoris is permanently enlarged to the size of a penis. Here's what he told the good people over at Oprah:
"It looks like a penis," s/he says. "I can have intercourse with my wife."
Oh, holy clit, Batman! What must sex be like for them! Now, there's one for the porno collection.
In 2002, his breasts were removed and Thomas was legally acknowledged as a man. However, he never had his female reproductive organs removed. So, although, he never felt like a woman and went through the long process of a gender transformation, he refused to part with his female plumbing. As a woman, I get that. But I thought this was because he was convinced he really wasn't a woman? *Ahem* Makes no sense to moi, but OK it doesn't have to. Get this funny bit, all the men who know him, now say, they thought he was just a caring and sensitive man but definitely a man. Yeah, uh huh. Any man who thinks another man is caring and sensitive is telling his wife, "Yo, hon. That dude is gay." Being a woman, that's what the hell I would think. (Press tongue to side of cheek.)
Anywho, this couple now wants a baby. Being his wife has two grown children and no uterus —da-da-da dummm— they decide to borrow some sperm and try invitro. After a failed attempt with the doctor, of which they had trouble finding one (Out of all the things in this story, that truly surprised me. Those doctor types like setting themselves apart by breaking new ground. *shrugs shoulders*) they decided to do the process themselves at home. Now, I don't know exactly what that entailed between two people with the same reproductive wiring but low and behold, Thomas is now pregnant and showing! See?
THOMAS, THE FIRST PREGNANT 'MAN'
Photo courtesy of oprah.com
If you can't get enough, see a video of one of his ultrasounds, here.
So my question to you is, how do you feel about all this? In the record books, technically, a man will have given birth to a baby girl in the coming months. Is this in fact the first sign of the apocalyspe? Or is it just a funny coinky-dink and we should refrain from getting our panties in a bunch? It's really not much different from two lesbians having a child, actually that is what it is, isn't it?
THE EXPECTANT COUPLE
Photo courtesy of oprah.com
Seriously, he only looks like a man but he is biologically a woman. The mere fact her biological clock kicked in so severely that he went against all male instincts ultimately deciding to carry a baby to term, for me, casts his entire claim of a gender identity crisis in doubt. If he were really a man, he would not want to carry a baby. That is a woman's desire...along with proper maternity wear and a clitoris the size of a penis. Oh yeah! (Remove tongue from cheek to let it loll outside of mouth.)
Posted by LoisLane at Saturday, April 12, 2008 2:20 PM 
Categories: The Egg Chronicles,Times in Life,Potted Luck
Categories: The Egg Chronicles,Times in Life,Potted Luck
Alright, at first I was confused as hell. But i'm glad to find that he was really a she in the beginning. So what's the friggin miracle? Many women have more severe pregnancy circumstances than this. Please!
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Hiya Carrie,
I would guess that is what confuses most people about the whole thing because Thomas, who was born Tracy, really does look like a man. After peeling back the layers, however, one realizes it's a woman in man-ternity! BAAAAH! I still can't get over that one. You are right, the only miracle here in regards to her pregnancy is the miracle of life. As appearances go, it only shows you cannot judge a book by its cover.
However, the question remains: what about the transgender issue? I bet there are some transgender folk who balk at the idea that his woman, who feels she is a man, wants and is carrying her own baby. To me, that goes against everything they say their 'crisis' is about. If you are a man born in a woman's body, then you should truly gravitate to all the is male -- meaning no desire to do anything that the female gender does.
I would say the real miracle here is that clitoris the size of a small penis. I still can't get over that. *SMH*
Thanks for being the first to comment on this potentially hot-button topic, so glad you did!
LL
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Oprah is having a "Jerry Springer" moment. Whatever sells ratings is what they all go with whether it be fact or fiction.
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Hey Nash,
I can always count on you for a funny. LMAO. I think what really pulls people's attention is that this is an otherwise normal, middle- to upper-middle class couple. They live in suburbia and not the ghetto or the trailer park. From what I read, they said they came forward because they wanted to share their version of the story before it got out and, I guess, like the majority of American viewers, they trusted Oprah with the retelling of it.
I must add, I didn't see the show for myself, I read the online version here. Take a look for yourself, Nash. I don't doubt the veracity of their story. I simply question the underlying issue this raises about the authenticity of gender identity issues. From my perspective, Thomas sets proponents back...by light years.
Thanks for reading Nash...and for the giggles. Jerry Springer, now that was good TV. (Press tongue to cheek.) *winks*
LL
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The dude is a lady. No miracle. But it is a sign of what passes for news nowadays.
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Hmmm, AW,
That's a very good point. Although, I don't consider Oprah a news broadcast, or even a newszine, I pretty much bet the hometown paper, which wasn't disclosed in the material I read, will do a story on the birth.
However, news is loosely defined as what's happening both, the usual and unusual. The fact Thomas is a transgendered male, who has decided to be impregnated and carry his/her baby to term is unique, as no other transgendered male -- that we know of -- has done the same. So by that very definition of news, I believe it is, in fact, news even though the pregnancy itself is not some weird science experiment but rather a practice enjoyed by fertility-challenged women -- for whatever reason -- everywhere.
Also, what I find to be a hard-news story, is the idea that fertility doctors repeatedly turned them down when they asked for help. Imagine the outcry had this been a heterosexual couple who reached out to the medical community. In my opinion, there was some serious prejudice going on in the case of Thomas and Nancy, which will probably be glossed over. The Oprah report actually says the doctors flat-out told the couple their staff didn't feel comfortable working with someone like Thomas. What happened to the oath that states, I will provide medical care to all who need it? I guess, it should be rewritten to state all who need it who share my social mores and beliefs and look like me.
When it boils down to it, Thomas' reproductive wiring is the same as any other woman despite the confusing wrapping it comes in. That just smacks of intolerance and prejudice but I have a feeling because this minority is such a small minority not widely accepted by society the vile intolerance will be accepted under the guise of religion and the Bible.
However, doesn't that good book say not to judge lest ye be judged? I thought I read that somewhere when I was a kid.
Ok, that's my soapbox on that since you brought up a valid point. Please feel free to challenge me. Btw, that goes for anyone who reads this and feels compelled to respond.
Thanks for taking the time to read and respond, Alonzo!
LL
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This is really a WOW story. For Tracy, oh my bad, Thomas to change his/her gender, he/she is really confused. How you say you want to be a man and not whom God made you to be, a woman. This goes to show you who is really in control of your life, the Lord. But like you said earlier, where is the miracle; other than the clit growing into a penis. I just pray that the child does not be confused like their daddy or damommy.
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OMW, Adrian... you are a crack up! Damommy...that's a good one. I actually tossed around...Mandukes instead of Madukes...but, ehhh...it didn't really work for me.
I know what the Bible says and I know how I feel about my own gender -- loving it -- however, there is a segment of the population who struggle with gender identity -- and die in that struggle -- daily. Think Brandon Teena whose lifestory was made into an Academy Award winning film, Boys Don't Cry. So for me that's the unresolved issue or problem in Thomas' story.
I still ask, has Thomas set back the advances of transgender equality with this whole notion of her/his own ma- or manternity?
PS: Yeah, the clit thing really gets me...I'm not even sure I'd wanna see something like that. However, she or he could potentially make a fortune in the XXX movie industry, I'm sure. *winks*
Thanks for reading Ad, so glad you're back! *claps*
LL
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I watched this show when it aired and although suprised, was accepting because underneath it all, Thomas/Tracy is really a woman when you peel back all the layers - clit/penis or not...for whatever reason she identifies with being a male more than a female...
To be honest society fears and critizes daily what THEY say is right or wrong...who is to say that something like this was never meant to happen ??? Society is too judgemental for me... in feel that a persons body is just a vessel, if you may, it a tool used to carry the being we truly are...which most of the world has no clue who they are anyway...
I guess the bottom line is who are we to judge? For me I have no opinion on this issue except that I hope things work out for them and that people need to realize that maybe just maybe what we know is to be true may not be in the whole scheme of things..
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Hey Mannie,
*claps* I totally agree. Who ARE we to judge. I know that I'm barely in charge of my own life, let alone what others choose to do in society. I don't scorn them for the choices they make, at all. I just feel that as a segment of the population seeking to get approval from mainstream society, it's cases like Thomas' putting them ten steps back for every baby (excuse the pun) step forward.
I think it's because you were born in Germany and, I am of the opinion that Europeans in general, are more lenient and accepting of things outside of societal norms. Although, many European countries are Christian --or otherwise religious-- many of the native people are not. For instance, here in the Czech Republic there is no national religion and most of the people are either atheist or agnostic. Because of that, I think it leaves greater room for people to accept the evolution of things, however, they evolve.
Just a little more of my two cents.
Thanks for reading and chiming in...
LL
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Well, first of all, she is not a man. It's a woman with facial hair and a really big clit (though I'm sure it's still not the size of your small to average penis).
So, there's no pregnant man on this Earth (that anyone knows about). There's nothing for the record books here.
I will say that this chick is beyond confused. I understand straddling the fence (hello, drag queens who are happier in a skirt and heels but aren't rushing out to get things added or taken away), but she's taken it to a whole new level.
And the guys who claimed they thought she was a dude: I would've taken one look at her and saw she was no man. Look at her face! She looks like a hairy woman. Look at her hands. Dude, that's a chick!
So, when I first heard this news on my last trip to NY, I was quite annoyed. Why did this become major news and not a brief? Why was the woman on Oprah? She's a woman parading as a man with the help of a some hormones.
I see those everyday on the bus ride to work. And I bet most of them have had children at some point in time. But none of them are famous.
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Hey Joy,
Um, I wanted to point that technically, she IS a man. He was legally acknowledged by his state as being a man in 2002. So, as far as the law is concerned, she is a he. That's where my statement for the record/history books comes in.
I do agree with you on the other points. Although, she won't admit it...to me and you and I'm sure others, she seems confused because if she felt as if she were a man...she would not have made the choice she made. Oops, I mean he. HE. LOL. Furthermore, he rationalizes it by saying that it isn't a female choice to have a child. It's a human decision. There he's right. In ideal situations, couples sit down and decide whether or not to bear children or adopt or have none at all.
However, I contend, the idea that HE wanted to carry his own child weakens his claim of gender identity confusion. He is not confused that he possesses the plumbing to do this and given the option he did. To me, that is maternal and female. Therein, debunking her own claim of gender identity confusion. Ya know, it makes me wonder if she ever thinks...oops, there I go again...*ahem* he thinks his first lesbian lover was right. Maybe he should have just stayed a woman if he wanted to have a baby.
Yeah, she did look quite effeminate in his appearance on the show. However, Tracy/Thomas is originally from Hawaii and I think of Polynesian or Asian descendent...clearly, this is an assumption based on her appearance as a child and subsequent photos...so I'm basing my conclusions on that. However, in a still photo from years ago with his wife Nancy, he merely looked like an dimunitive Asian bloke. I'm not saying all Asian men are small-framed but his look reminded me of that. His distended belly on Oprah notwithstanding, had I only viewed the aforementioned picture without any context, I'd have thought about him -- just a small-framed man.
Thanks for taking the time to stop by and leaving your thoughts,
LL
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So the law recognizes this pregnant person as a man.
I guess it's a good thing that I'm not Supreme Judge for the Earth, because there's a how lot of things I wouldn't recognize!
BTW, so when will the law recognize that women ought to be paid the same as men for the same work? Or blacks the same as whites?
Well, I guess the law technically DOES recognize that... it just doesn't happen in practice!
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I'd thought I'd hear from you again, after you read that.
After I read your post, I started digging around because I wanted some numbers regarding how many people we are talking about. The following came from a blog written by an African-American transgendered woman. The blog is called, TransGriot.
""By counting the number of surgeries performed over the years, Dr. Conway estimates there are as of 2005 at least 40,000 postoperative trans women in the U.S. These women have transitioned out of a population of roughly 100,000,000 adult males*. Simple division reveals that at least one in every 2500 people born as males here has undergone sex reassignment surgery (SRS): i.e., ~ 40,000/100,000,000 = 1/2500."
I had to rely on this information as there is no concrete federal data on the number of transgendered people in our population. Coincidentally, the blog's topic was about lobbying for an additional category for transgendered folks to the 2010 US Census. Remember, the above refers to only women who were born as men. Going back to the point about Thomas' impact on the transgendered movement, let's switch roles. What if these transgendered women, meaning born male, went back to peeing standing up or decided they liked their facial hair but still wanted to wear dresses? It doesn't match with carrying a baby to term but REAL men will never be able to do that. So, wouldn't that behavior have the same impact on the gender identity crisis facing transgendered individuals?
Let's look at if from a racial point of view. What if black people could opt out of being black? There are many of us who already don't relate to our own culture or struggle (ie, Condaskeeza and folks like her), so what if they could medically transition into being white? They could call it a racial identity crisis and term them, transracial. They can have lobbyists in Washington too. It sounds ridiculous, but that's what I'm starting to think of this gender identity bit, if they can be so convinced they are something they are not, only to conduct themselves in a manner grouping them with the gender they claim not to be but where born into.
As far as you bieng Supreme Judge for the Earth, um, er, can we have four-day work weeks, with several weeks paid off and require everyone leave their native country at least once in their lives? And, oh yeah, almost forgot, as Supreme Judge of the Earth, you better make a proclamation that all men must love intelligent, successful, driven tall women, or you're going to be in a helluva lot of trouble.
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It's all good as long as the child is going to be cared for,right? So what if your mother is the bearded lady,lol. I kid, I kid. I don't see it as a miracle though, seeing that she was a he. Now if he was always a he, then we got something cooking. There is a sense of WTF going on though,just for the fact that if you were serious about a gender change in the first place, then why would you want to do something so maternal. I am not trying to knock what he is doing, but if this wasn't for publicity, then why are you on Oprah? I'm not impressed, I come from NY, where strange things are a dime a dozen. I once was a man take a poop in his hand and then sing to it like an opera singer. Now that was something to see...
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Hahahaha... I laughed continuously at your comment. Especially the part where you said, "I once was a man..." LOL. I know you meant 'saw.'
That is precisely my point, Muj. If he was so serious about being a man, he would never, ever (evah, evah? evah, evah) want to be pregnant. How bout you, Muj? If I'm not mistaken your wifey just had a baby... were you jealous...did you have preggers' envy?
The other poster who commented about seeing stuff like that on the way home from work everyday originally hails from NYC and lives in another big city...so I think NYrs may be hardened to some of this. The person who sent me the email, is from that other coast and currently lives in the South. So there may be something to the idea that geography plays into how 'abnormal' this is perceived.
Um, why the heck couldn't I think of, "Her mom will be the bearded lady." OMW!!! That is a gem...good one, Muj, thanks for stopping by.
LL
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