Candis Cayne

I'm catching up on Season 2 of "Drop Dead Diva." Today I'm watching the episode "Queen of Mean," which besides guest-starring the wonderful Cybil Shepard, also features a transgender character named Allison. The character began her life as a man, married a woman, and then transitioned to a woman. Her wife has recently died and the wife's parents are suing for her estate, saying that when Allison became a woman, she revoked her claim to being her wife's legal partner, under California family law. Allison is, of course, fighting this in court to be able to stay in the home she shared with her wife and keep her possessions.


First off, I'm really pleased with how this character is treated. One of the lawyers in the firm representing Allison had a subtle, yet visible disdain for her, at first. Yet, through the course of the trial, he comes around and realizes that Allison is simply fighting for something that everyone wants-- the right to love their partner and have their union respected by others. There is also a very touching scene with Allison and her father-in-law. *sniff!*

Secondly, the actress playing Allison immediately caught my eye. Must be the 'Dar. ;-)
Upon looking up this episode, I found out that Allison is played by actress Candis Cayne, who is herself a transgender woman. Born as a man in Hawaii, Candis was a drag queen and eventually transitioned, and is now a successful actress, appearing as a regular character in "Dirty Sexy Money."

Gorgeous!

Homemade Holiday Gifts

There were a few handmade gifts in my pile of loot this year during the holidays. I made a few items myself, too, for my loved ones.

This is one of my favorite gifts, lovingly made and given to me by my little sister. She made a matching one in blue for our mom, too. I love that she used organic cotton yarn, (Mom and I are both sensitive to wool), and in such a beautiful neutral color.


I also made a gift for my friend, which I'm excited about. I think it turned out well. A while back, we had somehow ended up talking about an organizer for earrings made from a frame and screen material. I said they could easily be found on etsy-- I've seen many that I thought were nice. Well I'm hoping that she didn't order one from etsy, because I made her one. I used a vintage frame that I bought at a thrift store last year. (I knew it would come in handy sometime!)
I asked my girlfriend to bring me home some screen, knowing that they replace windows all the time at her job. She brought me a big clean piece, so I had plenty to work with. Busted out my trusty staple gun and stapled the screen to the frame. Then I glued black felt to the back of the screen, covering up some blemishes in the frame from past staples, and giving it a soft backing so it won't mark up their walls at all.