There, but for the grace of the goddess, go I

The day after getting back from London I turn on the news to hear of a serious rail crash, amazingly it’s about a mile from where I live, as the crow flies. Had I stayed in London another day I would probably have been on the train behind the one that crashed, and would have been held up for hours in the ensuing chaos. It could have been worse. I could have been on that train and getting off at the next stop…

Trains being derailed at 95mph is pretty shocking stuff, even more so when it’s just up the road and you were travelling on that line the day before. Last night the rescue helicopters were buzzing overhead all night, searchlights lighting up the scene, occasionally whizzing off into the distance, presumably carrying away the injured.

This doesn’t happen in Grayrigg. Actually it’s not really Grayrigg as reported in the media, but in Docker, a few miles from Grayrigg. These things make a difference when you live here you know. Grayrigg has perhaps a couple of hundred inhabitants, Docker has a population of about twelve, I guess. Anyway it’s literally just up the road. This doesn’t happen here…

So, I’m just glad to be home safe and sound. Actually the trip to London this time was pretty good. In fact it’s been great fun. My consultation for the tracheal shave went as expected. They can do it, there will still be a slight lump left (unable to quantify exactly how slight), there is a 4 – 6 month waiting list which I’m now on, and they offered me the option of voice surgery; a couple of sutures to basically tighten up the vocal cords, with a 70% success rate. I have time to think about that, it only adds 10 or 15 minutes to the operation time, but I doubt if I’ll go for it. Still, I’m keeping an open mind, and will look into it further.

The long waiting list time could delay my SRS which I’d hoped to have no later than autumn this year, or I could go ahead and book it anyway and see what happens, or I could have the trach shave done privately, including the possibility of having it at the same time as SRS, which is what my friend Gillian did. Hers has come out very well, what lump is left is virtually unnoticeable, the scar has healed well and her voice hasn’t been affected, which is one of the associated risks with this procedure, unlikely though with a competent surgeon. I have yet to decide which route to go, but am not going to rush into any decisions.

The day after my consultation I had my regular 3 monthly appointment at the gender clinic, a fairly pointless affair from my point of view, but that’s their requirement so it has to be done. Next appointment should see a second opinion on SRS and therefore eligibility for a referral (not that I’ll need it if I go to Dr Suporn). Plus I will have been full time for 2 years and can then apply for my Gender Recognition Certificate – legal status as female, and new birth certificate. Woo-hoo!

So that was the business out of the way. My consultation was early morning so I had the whole day and evening to myself in the Big Smoke. What to do with myself...?

I decided to do what I do best and go shopping, but where? I chose shopping Mecca and hippie paradise - Camden Town. Good choice. Bloody good choice.

The weather forecast was bad and it was midweek, I thought it was going to be a bit of a washout, but the forecast was totally wrong; it was warm, sunny, glorious, and the shopping was AWESOME! I went to Camden many years ago and didn’t think much of it. Perhaps I didn’t find all it had to offer, perhaps it was because I was with a girlfriend and couldn’t actually buy any of the lovely clothes for myself, but this time I loved the place. Groovy music everywhere, retro shops and stalls, food from all over the world, new and second-hand clothes, bargains galore. Fanbloodytastic. I spent quite a lot of money, and came back laden with bags full of goodies, loads of stuff. What a day! Super.

The next day I had to check out of the hotel in the morning and had several hours to kill before my appointment at the clinic, so, determined not to spend any more money I went to Harrods, just to look mind. Intriguing to see how the other half live, but just too bloody expensive. There was a guitar exhibition on there too, which was more interesting than it sounds so it turned out to be not a bad way to spend the afternoon. No way was I going to spend anything at Mr Al Fayed’s establishment though. Fish and chips there was £17.50. I’m sure not many people go to Harrods to eat fish and chips, but that’s an indicator of the priceyness of the place. It’d cost you about 3 quid in Kendal.

I went across the road for lunch (I quite fancied fish and chips actually but Mr Al Fayed can jolly well bugger off if he’s asking those prices), instead I found a cool place that prepared only healthy stuff, and I had a large super-food salad, including my first taste of the new 'big thing' – Edamame beans (soy beans in their pods) very nice too.

The hotel I stayed in this time was much better than on previous trips; clean, quieter, and a comfy double bed with lovely brass headstead (think "Bedknobs and Broomsticks"). The better hotel really helped make the trip more relaxing, as did the smooth journey each way. I guess I was lucky there.

It was a really good trip, but it’s nice to be home, in one piece.

xx