Byuri! (and 6 months on Testosterone)

My Byuri shipped! The wig I ordered was out of stock so Iplehouse has refunded me the price, in points, which is fine by me. I'm totally ecstatic. Byuri will be my first Iplehouse doll, and my first tan doll.

I still don't have a name picked for him, but I have a few in mind. I'll wait and see what sort of impression he gives me, once I put in his eyes and find the right wig for him.

And in non-doll news I used the last of my vial of testosterone this evening giving my shot. Luckily I have an appointment at the Gender Clinic on Monday, and I should be able to get a refill script then.

Those un-interested in my documentation of changes/etc, can stop reading here.
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Interestingly, this is week 27, so last Friday marked 6 months on testosterone. I should do a photo comparison.

Items of note in recent past:

I've dropped alot of mass. I've only lost about 3lbs, in the last two months, but I've lost quite a bit of mass, and I've gained muscle in my back, legs, and arms. I still have a tire around my middle, but that's pretty much all that's left as evidence that I used to be REALLY FAT. I'm still over 200lbs, but I'm getting more comfortable with how I'm looking.

Also at 6 months, I'm really starting to notice visible changes. My lips have changed shape. They've gotten more pronounced, my profile is more visible, the skin has gotten firmer, more defined. My lips have gotten a bit thicker, and my nose no longer looks out of place, or overly large, in my opinion, in relation to my other features.

My hairline has shifted, subtly, but it's shifted. I have a scar on my forehead, that used to be about 2mm below the hairline, and it's now over half an inch from the hairline. It's not receding, it's just shifting. The angles of the hairline are sharper. I still don't have sideburns, but I've got notable stubble on my chin, and in a patch on my neck just below the chin.

I'm also fuzzier on my legs, arms, and I'm seeing hints of body fuzz on my neck in the back, below my hairline, and the peach fuzz on my tummy is getting darker.

My legs and butt have completely changed shape. I've lost what little cushion I did have on my backside, and my thighs have shrunk quite a bit (as have my upper arms).

I purchased some new t-shirts on Friday and I think I should have gotten them in a large, as an XL is too big. I'll wear them as intended, for working out and sleeping, but when I do purchase again, I'll be looking at Large or Medium, depending on how much more mass I've lost.

I did mean to track these things on a weekly basis, but the changes have been so subtle that they all kind of hit me at once. My voice has dropped noticeably. More than it had at Christmas, when I called the family.

I've noticed changes in how I react emotionally too. I understand women (and female reactions) even less than I did before. My female co-workers try to get sympathy and I shrug helplessly, because I don't get why the behavior of their boyfriend/etc is bothering them.

I'm also less prone to reacting to the little stuff that bothers me. I let alot more, GENUINELY slide, because it just doesn't bug me now. When I do react it's over-much, but I'm not reacting to nearly the amount of stuff I did before. And frequently those reactions are shortly after my shots.

Which, is why I shifted to doing them Wednesday nights. I was doing them Fridays, but then I'd be RAGEY all weekend at work, which doesn't bode well for someone who is supposed to be in power, let alone someone who is supposed to provide customer service. I had initially just shifted them to Thursday mornings, but I found I was still a bit ragey on Saturdays. So, taking the shots Wednesday night after work instead, it's barely into my system by Thursday mid-shift, and I'm not totally angry by close, and the spike is mostly balanced into my system by the time I work Saturdays.

The main consistent side effects I've noticed, are increased appetite, increased libido(not that I'm doing anything with it), and a spike in anxiety/depression for the first day or two after my shots. The appetite thing has been consistent throughout the whole week for several weeks in a row now though, so that may just be that I've reached a steady base-line of T in my system, my new normal.

Also notable, I seem to have grown an inch or so in height. Which, is surprising, because I am 27, so theoretically my growth plates should have been closed. I currently stand at 5'4", as measured today by a co-worker who insisted that there is no way I was 5'2".

No Arvid.

I don't think I went into it, but I decided not to get Iplehouse Arvid. He's gorgeous, but because I bought my bed, he's totally out of my price range. Instead I opted for Efreet, which I had wanted anyway, and I CAN manage on a layaway.

I'm a bit disappointed because I really did want Arvid, but I'm trusting that this didn't work out because something even better will. That's kind of how my luck goes.

Like the Littlefee Bisou. I probably could have just had the $400 in cash if I'd waited and bumped and bumped (my sales thread), but I think I'm much happier with him, than I would be with whatever I would have put that money towards. I liked Bisou anyway, even debated buying this specific version. And I got a GREAT deal, and recent positive feedback in the DOA marketplace. So, it worked out well. The trader is happy with her Sweet Dream Piccolo, and I'm happy with my little sleepy (AND open eyed) Bisou.

My luck seems to go that way, most of the time. Stuff I want will fall through, but stuff I need works itself out. Stuff I want will fall through, but something I want even more, will fall into my lap, a little way down the road.

Maybe I'm just a serial optimist. It keeps me going though.

Long day is long. Also dolls.

Today was a busy but awesome day. :] I slept in later than I meant to, and poked around online for about an hour, before I finally entered in all my receipts and my direct deposited paycheck.

That done, I fretted for a bit, and then placed my order for Iplehouse Efreet, on layaway of course. I wanted him from the moment I saw him. I've ordered him in the light brown resin, with a faceup, jeans, and a shirt. My initial payment has been confirmed, and I also saw that my Byuri is currently "on makeup" according to my response in the Q&A. So hopefully he'll ship in the next week. :]

Then Pherret got home from work a bit early, and so we all went out to lunch (Osaka, Pherret, and myself). We ate at Ninja, a reasonably priced Japanese restaurant, and I tried sushi for the first time. I don't eat fish, but Osaka couldn't finish hers, and I was still hungry after my meal, so I tried it. It was tasty. I still don't like fish, but I enjoyed the flavor.

After lunch we went and got our hair cut (me and Pherret anyway), and then had frozen yogurt at the Skinny Dip. I had lots of delicious fruit bits off in mine, and tiny gummy bears. :]

Then Pherret left to go pick up Ringo since it was about time for the school bus to drop him off, and Osaka and I went to Ross. We got a curtain rod there, a dog bed, and Osaka got a cute belt.

We also went to Game Stop, since our favorite one, is there in the same shopping complex, and I picked up Dragon Quest VI for the DS.

After that we went to Target where I picked up a refill of my thyroid medicine, more vitamins, etc. And we also found some great curtains there for Ringo and my room.

We have a huge window that lets in a ton of light, and in the interests of preserving our dolls, it made sense to get some window coverings.

Then after Target we went to the bank(s) to run some more errands, and then to the mall. Osaka and I took Ringo to Build A Bear to surprise him with his belated birthday present from me. I got him the pink star-covered bear with the speakers in his feet, to use with the MP3 player he got for Christmas. I got the black one for myself.

And that was pretty much all the running we'd planned so we had dinner at Cracker Barrel and came home. :]

It was a very productive day, and very busy. When we got home, Osaka put up the curtains straight away. They're great. I'll probably take new photos of the room soon to show that and some of the other changes.

As it is, I started feeling way more tired than I should, around 9pm, so I'm probably gonna take a shower and go to sleep soon.

Introducing Simon Oliver Valentine

So I did manage to trade my Piccolo off. He's enroute to his new owner, and my trade arrived today. Best Valentines ever.

Meet Simon Oliver Valentine. No idea who he is yet, but I'm certain that's his name, and I bonded with him INSTANTLY.





He is the Fairyland Littlefee Little Bear Bisou fullset, including outfit, shoes, wig, sleeping faceplate and faceup on both faces. Also there was a little engraved gold plate with his photo. I made out like a bandit.

More photos or whatever later. :) I need to go eat and maybe sew. Maybe.. e_e;;

Ringo-Rorek room.

Okay so I posted a photo of just my bed, but I wanted to show what the whole room looks like, so I took some new photos this morning.






The other bed is Ringo's obviously, and the suitcase visible is his Grandma's. She's visiting for a few days for his birthday.

These photos are mostly for the benefit of Wotan, who knows what this room looked like before.

The bed is done, long live the bed!

So yesterday was Ringo's (Osaka and Pherret's son) birthday. He's been sick all through it, the poor thing. He'd about lost his voice from coughing by 3pm, and barely had the energy to eat dinner or open his presents.

Yesterday was also my first day off since I got my bed shipped. Osaka and Ringo worked on getting Ringo's room all cleaned up and organized so we could put it together. Yesterday we assembled it, Osaka and I. We started about noon, and finished close to seven I think. I left for about two hours around four, to ship off my Piccolo to his new owner, and to pick up dinner for Ringo, and the rest of us.

When dinner was done, and the bed was assembled, I shifted the majority of my things from where they had been, to all the storage under the bed. :] I also got my bookshelf in order, and cleared up one more storage tote.




I'm pretty pleased with how it all turned out, and there is still room in the room for Ringo and me to move around and do stuff.

In regards to the Piccolo, I ended up trading him for a fullset Little Bear Bisou, with faceup, and faceupped sleeping faceplate. So, I'll still have a sleepy-eyed doll, but he can be openeyed too, and I have the littlefee boy I've been wanting since I got Sarabelle. The posing on those tinies is just incredible!

Health Care Reform My Left Foot

I just got a letter from my HMO. I effectively have no coverage for prescriptions. Most of my medical cost is prescriptions. I am full of rage, and lack the words to articulate said rage. Thank you Health Care Reform.

Letter as follows:

The Affordable Care Act prohibits health plans from applying arbitrary dollar limits for coverage for key benefits. This year, if a plan applies a dollar limit on the coverage it provides for key benefits in a year, that limit must be at least $750,000.

Your health insurance coverage, offered by Aetna Life Insurance Company, does not meet the minimum standards required by the Affordable Care Aft described above. Instead, it puts a coverage year limit of:

Most this plan will pay per month for prescriptions $35

Benefits stated below are paid per coverage year and held to the Usual and Customary Charges.
Out of Area Benefits are paid the same as In Network Benefits under this Plan.
In network deductible: $100
Out of network deductible: $200
Plan pays in network expenses at: 80%
Plan pays out of network expenses at: 60%
Maximum Benefit paid: $10000
Coverage Year Maximums applied to the Maximum Benefit stated above:
Outpatient Expenses limited to: $1000
Emergency Room Expenses limited to: $600
(applies to the Outpatient Expenses limit)
Hospital Services (other than Room & Board) limited to: $1000
Outpatient Office Visits:
$15 per visit copay/base deductible (in or out of network)
In network visits are paid at 100%; out of network at 50%.
Outpatient office visits are subject to the outpatient expense coverage year limit of $1000 and the $10000 coverage year Maximum Benefits.
Wellness Benefit:
$15 per visit to an in network provider
Plan pays 100% for an in network/50% for out of network
Coverage Year Maximum: $200

In order to apply the lower limites described above, your health plan requested a waiver of the requirement that coverage for key benefits be at least $750000 in coverage for key benefits this year would result in a significant increase in your premiums or a significant decrease in your access to benefits. This waiver is valid for one year.

If the lower limits are a concern, there may be other options for health care coverage available to you and your family members. For more information, to to:
www.HealthCare.gov

If you have any questions or concerns about this notice, contact (MY PLAN) at (THEIR NUMBER).

Some states offer a Consumer Assistance Program to help you better understand your health care coverage options. For more information, please go to:
http://www.healthcare.gove/news/factsheets/capgrants_states.html

I pay $60 every two weeks, for this coverage. A reasonable rate for what the plan used to be. It used to cover way more prescription costs. I don't have the info handy on what that used to be.

I bought my bed.

Doo dee doo dee doo. So today my tax return deposited, as well as my normal paycheck. I ordered the bed I'd been looking at, online, bought a mattress locally, and did some other shopping. I got some sheets, a duvet, and DC Universe Online. I also bought Guitar Heroes 2 and 3 because they were used, for $3 apiece. And, I bought some much needed shoes.

My Vans that I bought back in early October, have been split on a side seam for awhile, and I keep gluing them closed again. They broke in quickly and broke apart quickly as a result. I purchased a pair of Sketchers athletic shoes specifically for working out, and a new pair of Vans for general use. I still need or want to get work boots, so I quit breaking my shoes on those cement floors.

So that's new bed ordered and paid for, including the mattress, sheets for it, a duvet, shoes, a couple videogames, and a GREAT afternoon out with the BFF Osaka.

I still need to do the math and decide whether or not I'm ordering Arvid, but, I'm hoping to be able to do so. I'm not going to be unreasonable though. I'll see what I have to work with, when my next check deposits on the 18th, and I won't spend anything I don't absolutely need to, between now and then.

This is the bed I ordered, by the way:


It's slated to arrive between the 10th and the 14th, and I had it shipped directly here. Over the weekend and into the next week, we'll sort through Ringo's room and determine what of his and my stuff will go into storage to make room for the bed. I think he and I are both excited to share space. :]