Friday Five:

Friday Five: Groups

And speaking of groups...

1. Tell us about any group(s) you currently belong to. (e.g. book club, knitting circle, walking buddies, etc.)
Yikes! Do I belong to groups! Well the first group that I belong to is the Connecticut Outreach Society which is a social/support group and I am the Executive Director of the organization. Tomorrow we are taking a shopping trip up to Northampton MA.
The next group I stop by and visit now and then is the Twenty Club.
Followed by Unity up in Springfield MA and I usually drop by and visit them once a month or so.
I am also on the Board of Directors of the Connecticut Trans Advocacy Coalition. We help transpeople find housing, jobs, medical help and legal aide.
Still more to come.....
I am on the Planning Committee for the True Colors Conference for GLBT Youth
And lastly (for now) I am on the Advisory Committee for the Trans Health Conference being held this spring at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine.
Whew!

2. Do you feel energized or drained by being in a group situation? If the answer is "it depends," on what does it depend?
Naw! Just kidding, yes I feel empowered, I feel that I am doing something that maybe will make the lives of the next generation of GLBT youth easier.

3. Is there a role you naturally find yourself playing in group situations? That is, do you naturally fall into the leader role, or the one who always makes sure the new person feels welcome, or the quiet one who sits back and lets others shine, or the host?
I just sit there and don’t say a word.
I don’t think you believe that for a second, no I take an active part and end up volunteering to help out even more.

4. Handshakes vs. hugs: discuss.
I don’t know why but the MtF trans-community always wants to hug one another, it is like our secret signal. You step into a room and everyone wants to hug you, you go out of the room for a few minutes and they want to hug you come back into the room.

5. Ice breakers: a playful way to build community in a lighthearted manner, or a complete and utter hell of forced fun and awkwardness?
From an engineering manager background, I just want to get down to business. At the True Colors committees they do that all the time. It has it good points and bad points.

Bonus: If you answered "playful and lighthearted," share your favorite ice breaker.
At the last True Colors committee meeting we had to put an adjective in front of your name and then repeat everyone’s name and adjective before you. Mine was Dynamic Diana