Frustration

I expect this to be hard on people who have known me for a while since it is a dramatic change. But my one roommate had only met me once before the movein when I was still being called "kerri" and he cannot for the life of me remember that my name is Max. I dont think its all that hard. Almost the entire theatre department has gotten it down by now. A couple queers are having some trouble with it but overall everone is doing pretty well.

Full Time

Been in school for a week. Talked to both of my teachers about being called Max and they are really cool with it. Everyone in theatre is adapting well too. People I'm closer to have a harder time but they are picking it up well. I no longer have my job at the salon so I am truly Max all the time now. I love it. Its weird hearing it all the time but it feels good. I'm not used to responding to a name all that much because before it was the 'ary' sound I would hear and I'd respond to things like 'Gary,' which is just awkward. Max isn't as much of a problem and I've only met one other Max and he's a guy.

Beautician or Mechanic?

Sounds like a weird question, but I really dont know what I would rather do. Beautician is pink collar work, minimum wage, high stress and from my salon experience: a bunch of overly stuckup elitist snobs with no real fashion sense. Mechanic is a blue collar job, decent pay, little respect and a hard field for a woman. Both require me to go to a trade school, and to be honest both would require me to move since I dont like the cosmetology programs in Minnesota.
A mechanic would take more schooling. It looks like about 2 more years of my life, but overall the costs of being a mechanic and going to cosmetology school are about the same. I'm really not sure what I want to do about it. I think I really want to be a mechanic. I kinda have since I was a kid. But more importantly I like to take things apart and try to figure out how they work. I like to work with my hands, wear casual clothes and frankly not have to put on a fake smile when I am having a really crappy day. I want the backwards baseball cap and coveralls. I want to work with tools and get grease all over me, I want to be able to help people. I thought that I could help women by making them feel good about themselves and reclaiming their appearance as their own, but its not a reality. No woman goes into a salon thinking "I am doing this for me and not to look more pleasing." At least if I can fix cars and a woman is on the side of the road because her car broke down, I can help her without her having to fear being raped or killed by accepting aid from a stranger. I can talk to women and not belittle their knowledge.