life in japan Archives | Page 4 of 8 | Queer As Cat

[Random] Thoughts, Gender[queer], Japan[ese], Mental [Un]health, Queer[ness]

QAC 55.5 – Life Update: Post-Election Mental Health | Staying In Japan | Outted To Dad

November 23, 2016 / No Comments

two weeks ago any vague plans that i’d had for my immediate future were abruptly shattered when America elected Trump as the next president of the United States. two weeks later, i’m still struggling to cope with the news and the resulting blow to my already poor mental health. in this video, i give voice to my thoughts on being forced to navigate HRT in Japan and forgo (for the time being) other gender-related medical things that i’d hoped to pursue in America. i also talk about possibly moving to Tokyo in a year’s time, having been outted to my dad via Twitter and a new book by Ashley Mardell that i highly recommend. longass video is long, so here are some jump points for those of you only interested in specific things. @00:00 – post-election mental health @03:50 – shattered future; staying in Japan @08:55 – name change, HRT…

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Vesper H.

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QAC 30 – Gender Expression / Presentation Blurb
October 28, 2014

got a new hat…! W00T!
August 9, 2014

re: gaslighting in the aftermath of the 2016 US presidential election
November 19, 2016
[A]sexuality, [Random] Thoughts, Gender[queer], Queer[ness]

them gay enbian feels

October 16, 2016 / No Comments

archiving Twitter stuff. again. i should really stop saying meaningful (to me) things on Twitter where it’ll disappear into my feed beyond retrieval. that or, you know, i could just rehash the same thoughts directly on Tumblr… but where’s the fun in that? anyway, random thoughts on being bi / pan and enbian– wooo…. but see, it gets even ““gayer”” because by “nbs like themself” i totally mean non-binary people who are like me and i don’t just mean in that they’re also non-binary. for one, binary people aren’t the only people who can be (hyper)masculine and / or (hyper)feminine. secondly, masculinity / femininity isn’t even a defining factor of attraction for me, even if it can be a potential point of aversion… my understanding of my own attraction may be nearly as nebulous as my actual experience with it, but if there’s one thing that i know for sure it’s that any attraction i do…

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Vesper H.

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humbled
July 31, 2018

Documentary Explores The Reality Of Being Black And Gay In The Church
November 14, 2015

QAC 02 – The Road to Asexuality
May 17, 2013
[A]sexuality, [Random] Thoughts, Gender[queer], Japan[ese], Queer[ness]

…one of many examples of why navigating セクマイ / LGBTQIA spaces in Japan can be painful at times.

October 7, 2016 / No Comments

first the context: the above screenshot is from the registration form for a meetup that i’ll be attending that is exclusively for trans men and non-binary people who are AFAB who have not medically transitioned in any way. the meetup is being hosted by a group that itself is a support group for trans men and non-binary people who are AFAB and who have not medically transitioned in any way + their partners………..

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Vesper H.

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QAC 35 – Body Image: An Intersection of Black, Non-binary & Asexual Identity
March 16, 2015

QAC 11 – Growing Up Ace (Asexual)
July 21, 2013

QAC 51 – #ProudToBe Black Non-Binary Bi Pan AND Asexual
June 22, 2016
Q&A

Q&A: “Any recommendations for meeting other trans/non-binary either Japanese or gaijin in Japan?”

September 20, 2016 / No Comments

nerdyglitterpatrol said: Hey Vesper. I’m a non-binary transman (fledgling danso) living in Japan. I came here very recently, at the end of July, so it’s been about 2 months now. I’ve been curious about finding other non-binary or trans individuals that I could be friends with to generally explore the lgbt and non-binary parts of Japanese life, culture, and society. Any recommendations for meeting or making friends with other trans/non-binary either Japanese or gaijin in Japan? Second part of my question. I’ve considered using mixi, but I have no idea how it works and while I’m decent at conversational Japanese, reading it is another story. I’m also hesitant to come out as non-binary trans to Japanese people because the concepts seem to be underdeveloped in Japan, Japanese people don’t seem to know what to do with non-binary/trans individuals. And it’s hard for me to come out to my cis friends…

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Vesper H.

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Feedback: “I just wanted to thank you for your post on the alterous vs platonic thing…”
February 23, 2016

“the ace community goes overboard with words?” i.e. word vomitted “nah”
April 5, 2018
[A]sexuality, [Random] Thoughts, Gender[queer], Japan[ese], Queer[ness]

“lesbian night”

September 19, 2016 / No Comments

since some people said they’d be interested in hearing about my experience at a “lesbian night” event at a local gay bar this past weekend…. here’s a tl;dr word vomit post about the night that can pretty much be summarized as: i had a good time, but awkwardness was awkward and culture shock was shocking, as always in Japanese LGBT spaces.

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Vesper H.

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my collection…
March 7, 2013

an example of intersectional acephobia if ever there was one…
December 16, 2015

QAC 48 – Non-Binary Gender Norms & (A)sexuality: Yeah, No.
March 27, 2016
[Random] Thoughts, Japan[ese]

*yawns* …so that happened.

September 17, 2016 / No Comments

…i’ve lived in Japan long enough that i rarely if ever experience culture shock anymore, but every time– EVERY time i’m in a Japanese LGBT space, be it at Pride, at a meetup or a bar / club the culture shock is so fkin profound it almost leaves me speechless… might write a blurb later about tonight’s ‘adventure’ at “lesbian night” at a local gay bar if ppl are interested. looking forward to the (gaijin! yes plzzzz) ace meetup tomorrow! although apologies in advance because i’m going to be dead on my feet. it’s 1:30am and i’m still walking home, but have to catch a super early train (among several) in the morning to get to Chiba…… (´-﹏-`；)

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Vesper H.

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5 years and counting…
May 14, 2018

ARTICLE: “Why Transgender People In Japan Prefer To Be Told They Have A “Disorder””
August 17, 2016

QAC 66 – Split Attraction Model: Opting Out Of Romantic Orientations || Grayromantic | Asexual
March 12, 2018
Art[sy Fartsy], Japan[ese], YouTube[r]

adventures in YouTube Space!

September 11, 2016 / 1 Comment

just got back from YouTube Space Tokyo where i attended a 5 hour intensive workshop on the basics of video production…! for those who don’t know (and it seems like not many do), YouTube has created various resources and programs for youtubers (referred to as Creators) both offline and online with perhaps the biggest offline resource being access to YouTube Spaces located around the world. YouTube Spaces feature everything from state of the art recording studios, equipment and editing software to workshops and events. access to these resources is based on the number of subscribers your channel has and if you have over 1k subscribers, you’re welcome to attend certain workshops and events for free. so that’s what i did. this post will be photo heavy.

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Vesper H.

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Tokyo Rainbow Pride 2016 selfies
May 14, 2016

#TRP2015 準備完了
April 25, 2015

insert self-indulgence here.
August 16, 2017
[A]sexuality, [Random] Thoughts, Gender[queer], Japan[ese], Queer[ness]

WHINGE: navigating セクマイ stuff

September 2, 2016 / 2 Comments

…i’d normally limit this to a few whingey tweets on Twitter, but since dad is currently snooping around my social media accounts… might as well be thoroughly whingey on here.

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Vesper H.

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QAC 36 – What Acephobia & Asexual Erasure Looks Like
April 27, 2015

QAC 23 – Being Forced Out of the Closet (Bi/Panromantic Non-binary Asexual)
February 24, 2014

more Sailor Moon Crystal fanpersoning #SCREAMING
May 17, 2016
[Random] Thoughts, Black[ness], Japan[ese]

adventures in Japanese TV: “haafu”

September 1, 2016 / No Comments

aaahhh, more annoying Japanese TV. despite what i said (in Japanese) while letting off steam livetweeting on Twitter, i know it’s not fair of me to expect anyone, let alone this guy (Jun Soejima, an actor / “talent” btw), to react any certain way or educate the people around him on behalf of other black people in Japan. i really don’t actually expect that or anything else of him, despite my whining, but it does admittedly annoy me when people on Japanese TV just laugh off some really shitty, problematic stuff that people say or do to them, be it re: racial issues, trans issues, or anything else. they’re in a difficult situation and have all kind of things to consider when they react to something, whereas i can huff and puff at the TV saying all the choice words i like without consequence. i get that…. but meh. it was…

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Vesper H.

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QAC 48 – Non-Binary Gender Norms & (A)sexuality: Yeah, No.
March 27, 2016

『[4ｺﾏ]☆Ｘジェンダー☆』
July 31, 2016

QAC 24.5 Life Update: Tokyo / Asexual Pride + Outted Again + More
June 3, 2014
[Random] Thoughts

“”summer vacation””

August 20, 2016 / No Comments

[ video: a soundless and unfiltered 1 minute compilation from tonight’s 1 hour firework show shot from my apartment window! ] tomorrow marks the end of my one week “summer vacation” and i’m ridiculously bummed about it, but at least it’s ending with a bang. D; tomorrow’s agenda: go see the Ghostbusters movie since it’s finally come out in Japan. or maybe X-Men: Apocalypse? or maybe both. the real agenda is to just not care about the world for a day. wish me luck.

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Vesper H.

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…so this happened at TRP today.
May 7, 2016

QAC 04 – Why I Identify as Panromantic & Biromantic
May 24, 2013

QAC 47 – Re: “Transitioning” in Japan / Body Mods & Dysphoria || Tea & Word Vomit
February 28, 2016