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one of the strangest things happened to me about 10 days ago when a good friend from Chiang Mai called me and asked if she could stay in my place for a few days before her post-op operation. Ponlien http://www.asian-ts.com/preview/03/ponlien.html
has been a good friend since i first met her last May, and since she had no other friends in BKK whom she could stay with before her surgery she asked me and I was kind of honored by the whole thing. Of course I volunteered to take her there on the day of the operation also, and would be the last one to see her as she got lead into the surgery.
This was all very strange and confusing for me. On the one hand, I felt obligated to help a friend in her time of need, and it felt good that she could lean on me like this. On the other hand, I have always been dead-set against ladyboys doing this, and taking her to the actual hospital to have her dick removed is almost like being an accomplice in the whole thing. But my 'jai dee' side won out and I told her to come down on sunday night; her operation was on tuesday.
Monday we had to go for 2 tests; HIV and 'psychiatric'; this is to make sure that the ladyboy is mentally stable enough to actually have this operation. Obviously farcical, as the whole exam takes 30 minutes and what can you learn about a person in that amount of time? In the west this process takes a year or more or weekly visits with a psychiatrist. anyway, she is 'sane' and HIV-, and ready to go through with a pretty major-league operation.
Tuesday morning was very odd; I am not sure how she slept the night before, but somehow she did and we were off at 8AM to get checked in. when we get to the clinic, there was another girl at the counter; I say to Ponlien, 'is that a ladyboy' and she says yes, and she was just cut last week. Don't read this if you are eating dinner LOL.
anyway, this girl was walking in obvious pain and discomfort and VERY slowly; ouch, better her than me. Last chance for Ponlien to back out, but she has wanted this since she was 16 [she is now 22] and today is her big day so there is no turning back now. so now it's our turn to check in, and i think she was happy to have someone there with her rather than be all alone. they take her blood pressure and other vitals, and then put us both in a special car for the trip to the Hospital, about 5 miles away. there she is treated very well and she comments to me how the staff is so nice and treating her very special and how they all care so much, etc... me, i just feel strange some more; I hate hospitals in the first place and when i think about what will happen to this kid in a few short hours my skin is crawling.
now we are escorted to her room; nice big room, and she changes into her hospital outfit and waits to be taken to surgery. Me, I leave.....no way I can sit there for 4 or 5 hours while they do something so barbaric to my dear friend.
I called her the next day from the states.....I had to leave there to come home exactly the next day. turns out she had the operation and was doing fine 36 hours later, and was very happy with her new life as a lady so far. Again, better her than me. This was all just the capper of what has been a very strange 2004 for me, and the night before the operation my head was filled with some of the strangest things I have ever seen and done in my life.
again, i will have a long trip report as soon as I find the energy to re-live all those very odd things that happened to me between January 14 and March 16, but this was one of them. anyway, best to a very nice girl and someone with a true heart of gold. despite the fact I am still against her decision, I am happy that she has finally achieved her goal.
Jon
has been a good friend since i first met her last May, and since she had no other friends in BKK whom she could stay with before her surgery she asked me and I was kind of honored by the whole thing. Of course I volunteered to take her there on the day of the operation also, and would be the last one to see her as she got lead into the surgery.
This was all very strange and confusing for me. On the one hand, I felt obligated to help a friend in her time of need, and it felt good that she could lean on me like this. On the other hand, I have always been dead-set against ladyboys doing this, and taking her to the actual hospital to have her dick removed is almost like being an accomplice in the whole thing. But my 'jai dee' side won out and I told her to come down on sunday night; her operation was on tuesday.
Monday we had to go for 2 tests; HIV and 'psychiatric'; this is to make sure that the ladyboy is mentally stable enough to actually have this operation. Obviously farcical, as the whole exam takes 30 minutes and what can you learn about a person in that amount of time? In the west this process takes a year or more or weekly visits with a psychiatrist. anyway, she is 'sane' and HIV-, and ready to go through with a pretty major-league operation.
Tuesday morning was very odd; I am not sure how she slept the night before, but somehow she did and we were off at 8AM to get checked in. when we get to the clinic, there was another girl at the counter; I say to Ponlien, 'is that a ladyboy' and she says yes, and she was just cut last week. Don't read this if you are eating dinner LOL.
anyway, this girl was walking in obvious pain and discomfort and VERY slowly; ouch, better her than me. Last chance for Ponlien to back out, but she has wanted this since she was 16 [she is now 22] and today is her big day so there is no turning back now. so now it's our turn to check in, and i think she was happy to have someone there with her rather than be all alone. they take her blood pressure and other vitals, and then put us both in a special car for the trip to the Hospital, about 5 miles away. there she is treated very well and she comments to me how the staff is so nice and treating her very special and how they all care so much, etc... me, i just feel strange some more; I hate hospitals in the first place and when i think about what will happen to this kid in a few short hours my skin is crawling.
now we are escorted to her room; nice big room, and she changes into her hospital outfit and waits to be taken to surgery. Me, I leave.....no way I can sit there for 4 or 5 hours while they do something so barbaric to my dear friend.
I called her the next day from the states.....I had to leave there to come home exactly the next day. turns out she had the operation and was doing fine 36 hours later, and was very happy with her new life as a lady so far. Again, better her than me. This was all just the capper of what has been a very strange 2004 for me, and the night before the operation my head was filled with some of the strangest things I have ever seen and done in my life.
again, i will have a long trip report as soon as I find the energy to re-live all those very odd things that happened to me between January 14 and March 16, but this was one of them. anyway, best to a very nice girl and someone with a true heart of gold. despite the fact I am still against her decision, I am happy that she has finally achieved her goal.
Jon
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