The Sunday Paper, Reimagined

As spring wraps up, the pink watercolor blooms of the lone plum tree behind my parents' house have come and gone. Just a few months ago, she dressed herself in chiffon blooms of baby pink, magenta, and rose in the hundreds. A few months before that, she stood completely bare, just branches and bark.

The plum tree reminds me of the beauty of seasons. A year ago, I reached the lowest low I had always been afraid of hitting: going broke. But now, I've landed on my feet and danced my way through this year, literally.

Dancing was my first love, but I could never love it fully because of the complications around my body and gender. I spent years being the best version of myself back then, and this year I returned to art fully aligned with body, mind, and spirit. After a rocky first few weeks of relearning muscle memory and pulling techniques locked away in the archives of my brain, I started to see my flowers bloom. It also helped that other people saw my flowers, too. "You love dancing, don't you?" "I love watching you dance." "I appreciate your dedication." This wasn't validation. It was appreciation. A respect for the hard work, skill, and talent.

If a tree doesn't blossom, do you blame the tree or the environment? I learned just how important the act of feeding your soul is when you're in your element. Our bodies know when we're doing what we're supposed to.

So what flowers have blossomed for you this year? Maybe some inner child flowers you've been exploring? Or a new type of flower that you've discovered later in life? The only right way to bloom is to be in sync with yourself and your seasons. Too often, we caught up in comparing our cycles to others. We busy ourselves by admiring the green grass on the other side, unaware that we're not watering our own garden.

With summer around the corner, I'm ready to move from blossoming into fruiting. The first stages of birth on the hottest of days and the liveliest of nights. Are you ready for your next season?

This new Sunday newsletter will explore a theme each week, drawing on my yoga teacher knowledge to hopefully communicate with you all in a thoughtful and considered way.

And akin to the Sunday Paper, the rest of the newsletter will contain commentary and curation on topics like current events and politics, beauty and style, food & drink, local, and coupons.

Enjoy this at your leisure with a cup of coffee, tea, a glass of wine, or a joint.

Trans People on Medicaid Could Lose Gender-Affirming Care

House Repulicans quietly passed the "Big Beautiful Bill" last Thursday, which is offensive to all the thicc bitches out there. There's nothing big and beautiful about this budget bill, that, oh, what's that? They sneakily took out the word "minor" in their provision banning Medicaid coverage for gender-affirming care.

While this bill still has to pass the Senate, it's not looking great for the 276,000 transgender adults who are enrolled in Medicaid. Within that population, 38,000 live in states that outwardly deny access to gender-affirming care, and 74,000 live in states without laws explicitly protecting coverage, according to a 2022 report from the Williams Institute at UCLA.

This will bankrupt and ruin the mental health of tens of thousands of trans people across the country and make fleeing their states for places with protective laws an even more attractive choice. However, it's unclear whether states like California and Maine, which provide state-level protection for Medicaid beneficiaries, will still be able to use federal funds for gender-affirming care.

More evidence supporting gender-affirming care

Uh oh. Utah lawmakers are proven wrong. The results of a 2.5 year study on gender-affirming care for youth showed beneficial effects, the exact opposite of what the politicians who enacted the ban in 2023 wanted.

Don't Ask, Don't Tell Part 2: Trans Military Members Served This Country, and Are Now Being Punished

Trans military veterans and active duty members are facing unprecedented attacks from the Trump administration. Not only are active members being removed from service, which for many is more than just a career, but also a home, family, and place of belonging, but they are being denied any kind of gender affirming care in the future.
The Trump administration is now going to change the personal records of transgender military members to their sex assigned at birth. They will also mandate that the military ask future members about feelings of dysphoria.

AB Hernandez isn't Focused on Her Haters, She Has a State Championship to Win

Hating on trans women and girl athletes is still very much alive, even in a liberal-leaning state like California. Currently, our sister AB Hernandez is facing harassment from more than 30 adults who showed up at one of her races to spew transphobic nonsense.

Despite studies showing that trans athletes have not outperformed their cisgender counterparts, let alone trans women being disadvantaged compared to cisgender women by several measures, narrow-minded people like Chino Valley Unified School District President Sonja Shaw who doxxed AB, "revealing her name, her high school and the fact that she is trans, in February."

How did this even happen?

Three California Catholic and Lutheran high schools banded together to write an open letter to the California Interscholastic Federation demanding trans girls be banned from competing in youth sports. Their letter can be found here and focuses on the May 10th prelim competition.
On May 10th, is when the 30+ adults protested her while she was competing. But our girl AB still slayed and made it through to the Master's Meet right before the state competition.
JUST IN: AB is going to the CIF State Meet!

The Dolls Are Getting Published, Two Additions to the Trans Literary Canon

Artist and activist Tourmaline published her first book, Marsha: The Joy and Defiance of Marsha P. Johnson. Unbelievably, this is the first biography of one of the most influential activists in the queer, trans and POC community.

Big-time doll, Harron Walker, has also published her first book, Aggregated Discontent: Confessions of the Last Normal Woman is a collection of essays that examines living under modern American capitalism and it's trapping. Harron investigates the Big Questions in her book:

“What could we accomplish—individually, and as a collective— if so many of our lives, trans or cis, didn’t revolve around trying to get healthcare?” she writes. “What would we be capable of if none of us had to worry about answering that perpetual question of access?”

Trans People on the Silver Screen

I'm adding this movie to my list after reading this review from Tristan Scott, a trans reporter at The Spectator. The movie is giving trans high school dramedy, she's the man but queer vibes and I'm very much into it.
The film isn't available for widespread theatrical distribution but you can buy a pass from Frameline Film Festival to watch online with your snacks and bevvies.

What's the furry community really about? Dr. Hazel Ali Zaman-Gonzalez, assistant professor of social work at Pacific Lutheran University, dives into how fursonas create space for queer folks and trans people of color to explore identity and belonging.

Frameline Film Festival is back in San Francisco with a zesty collection of queer and trans films. The SF LGBTQ+ Film Festival is going on now, but viewers can also purchase a streaming pass for later viewing in June.

Thailand Is Actually a Doll's Paradise

While the U.S. is going backwards on trans rights, the Thailand is here to truly Protect The Dolls. Earlier this year, the Thai government voted without resistance, to invest nearly $4.8 billion in providing free hormone therapy to trans people in the country.
Although Thai people cannot legally change their gender easily, leading to common issues at airports, the country still leads the way in accepting trans people into every milieu of society.
Bangkok will be watching World Pride in Washington D.C. this year as it prepares for it's bid in the future.

Baddie Brooks, Miss Trans Michigan, pens a letter to the community voicing her commitment to fighting for trans rights.

To me, thriving means achieving my dreams. I deserve to grow old and start a family. I deserve to chase my dream of being a musical superstar touring internationally. Transgender people should flourish in any career we pursue. We are someone, and trans people deserve the chance to thrive — forever and always.

Beauty Deals and Steals

This Make Up For Ever face palette is 30% off, though the total price is still around $66. But you're getting 12 to 18 palettes in one product so that evens out to $5 per color. And with this many, you'll be covered from base to concealer to blush.
For all my dolls who get electrolysis, or anyone else who gets some sort of treatment done on their face. I swear by the Avene Cicalfate+ cream. My former Russian electrolgist in Beverly Hills recommended this to me as a post-care product and it has saved my life. It's on sale right now at Ulta.
Sadly, our favorite gender-affirming underwear brand Urbody is closing shop. Their final sale with discounts up to 60% off is live on their site. Get your tucking panties now!

That's all for this week's edition of Sunday with The Girls. What did you think? Share, comment, and subscribe to spend your Sundays with The Girls.

Kai