Antonette's Story A novel by Bronwen Welsh Copyright 2020

Chapter 16   Kate's wedding

Antonette's Story A novel by Bronwen Welsh Copyright 2020

Chapter 14   A tour and a wedding.

Antonette's Story A novel by Bronwen Welsh Copyright 2020

Chapter 13   Performing and more at Stratford

Antonette's Story A novel by Bronwen Welsh Copyright 2020

Chapter 12   Our first quarrel and I undergo surgery

Antonette's Story A novel by Bronwen Welsh Copyright 2020

Chapter 11   A prophecy comes true

“See,” Devi was saying, “a blue or green robe means you’re a girl, and yellow, orange or red means you’re a boy. At least for the Zyuneban. The Stasa have more complicated rules. And I guess we’re Stasa now, instead of Zyuneban like I was last time, so... anyway, pick whichever robe you feel like, if you can find one that fits you.”

“We weren’t entirely truthful last weekend when we told you that Davey couldn’t remember what had happened during the months he was gone,” Carson said. “Davey told us where he’d been and what he’d done, but... until a few days ago, we didn’t believe him, because we didn’t have evidence, and his story seemed pretty far-fetched.”

Antonette's Story A novel by Bronwen Welsh Copyright 2020

Chapter 7   'Ae fond kiss'

Antonette's Story A novel by Bronwen Welsh Copyright 2020

Chapter 6   Our first date

“We can sell it as a retirement package,” Carson said. “An eighty-year-old man might think it’s worth the... inconvenience of becoming a woman if he can be forty again.”

Antonette's Story A novel by Bronwen Welsh Copyright 2020

Chapter 4   I join two schools

 

Chapter 36 - We've Got To Talk

There's not really much to say about our time in grad school except it was all-consuming. What did touch far more on our lives was Sandra's increasing frustration with the male-oriented bullshit of the company she worked for. From her point-of-view, as well as our growing understanding of the business world, the company was missing obvious opportunities and playing turtle while technology and marketing opportunities passed them by. This culminated around our spring break in 1973, when Sandra and Doug uttered that immortal line: "We've got to talk."

 

Chapter 35 - Going Home, Part 3

Forgive me if I touch lightly on the year and a half we spent in grad school. It was a whole lot of work. Interesting, important, but it really doesn't touch much on my life as a transgendered woman. Nothing changed much on that front.

 

Chapter 34 - Alice's Restaurant Revisited

Arlo Guthrie's Alice's Restaurant was a major hit on a campus full of guys who were only one deferment away from having to schlep halfway around the world to try and kill people they didn't even know while those people were trying to kill them. Even though the Vietnamese weed was reported to be killer stuff, nobody wanted to be a killer to get it. Well, maybe some of the ROTC guys did, but they didn't like me and I didn't like them.

 

Chapter 30 - The Operation

On the personal front, things were moving along, too. Doug and Sandra returned looking tanned and relaxed. Doug was a chemist who Sandra had met at a professional conference. He had done some of the work on the materials they used in the medical business, and things had just clicked. He worked for one of the big names in that business (no, I won't name names!) and after almost twenty years without a partner Sandra had fallen - big time. For that matter, so had Doug.

 

Chapter 28 - Another Surprise

"Tell me again why we are doing this?" I mumbled.

It was Sunday morning. Far too early on Sunday morning since Saturday night had gone into extra innings.

"Because you're taking your parents out to brunch at eleven. You're doing this because you're a good daughter and love your Mommy and Daddy."

"And you're doing this to me because you wake up cheerful and know I don't."

 

Chapter 27 - The Wedding

When you are young, it seems that there is always some lesson to be learned. When you are old, you can look back and laugh at how many times you had to learn those lessons, because the young always think they have learned everything they need to know and don't need further schooling.

 

Sandra had arranged for our internship to start after the wedding, giving us some actual vacation time before we began to work. Besides, with a wedding in the works, two built-in assistants were a boon to the busy bride who also had to keep up with full-time employment.

 

Chapter 25 - Summer of Changes

Exams ended, we all were able to store much of our stuff in the garage of our new apartment. I left all of Conrad's clothes behind, leaving the only vestige of him on my body, to be removed a soon as we reached home. Indeed, Julie's home would be my home, Connie's home, our home. This time the bus ride was without incident, and Sandra was there waiting for us.

 

Chapter 22 - The Other 90%

This might be a good place to stop and talk about the 90% of my life that isn't directly connected with being transgendered. Of course, since this in a memoir of my life as a transgendered woman, it isn't surprising that that's what I've been writing about.

“Do you want to tell me what happened?”

 

“I don’t know,” Davey said. “Are you going to believe me? Mom and Dad didn’t.”

 

“I promise I’ll listen,” Dr. Menendez said.

 

Chapter 19 - Bouncing Boobies

I hadn't even had time to hang my new clothes up before Julie reached over and squeezed my new breasts. "They do feel almost real," she commented. I could vaguely feel her finger as it traced the nipple of the form. "And it has a nipple!" she enthused.

 

Chapter 18 - Perky Tits

Over the years I have developed a philosophy that has held me in good stead. Any time you interact with the medical establishment, the government or any form of bureaucracy, bring a book. Technology had forced an amendment recently - a cell phone or an e-book will work just as well as long as the battery is fully charged when you arrive.

 

Chapter 17 - Going Home, Part 2

We got settled in Julie's room and she cleared a couple of drawers for my clothes. She surprised me with a pair of matching nightgowns for us to wear and then dragged me downstairs to talk with her mother.

"Connie," she started. "I don't want to embarrass you, but I have a little present for you."

"How could getting a present embarrass me?"