Simmons College

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In the grand scheme of things, I actually have very few dislikes regarding Simmons. Especially in regards to my identity, they've been 95% awesome about it. But, of course, there are always potholes; I'm actually tempted to blame AES as responsible for this certain recurring irritant through Simmons, seeing as how their track record is far more shameful.

Since my name change and the immediate document changes thereafter, AES, through Simmons, has been hounding me for my legal gender in regards for registration with Selective Service. Through the help of Simmons' financial services, I sent them a personal, hand-written letter for my legal exemption as a transexual male. (Doesn't matter if I even wanted to register; people in my current situation aren't allowed in and attempts to "trick" the government/military could have severe legal backlash.) As if by afterthought, AES then started prodding me for my legal name, in which I gave them the proper documentation in the manner they requested...again. A few days ago I once again got the warning of discrepancy and demand for legal update. In which I handed over yet-another certified copy of my court-appointed name change. (P.S. Those cost $20 a piece.) Just today, I have received yet-another "Ms." e-mail from Simmons requesting my gender. Come on, AES, get your freaking act together. I don't know what's sillier: them not shaping up or me still expecting them to shape up after five years of know-better.

So that's my current AES situation: they claim I'm not in school and are demanding I start paying back my (undergrad) loans, they say I'm attempting to be two people at once, while simultaneously arguing that I don't exist either way. (They switch back and forth depending on which will punish me most at a given time.) They continue to ask me for my legal name and gender--which, by the way, is technically irrelevant and useless for the sexed grounds of Selective Service--yet nonetheless decide to default for female with the greeting of "Ms." While through Simmons I continue to be regarded as "Ms." despite being documented as male in the school database and having already corrected the problem with and through the school months ago, AES itself continues to notify me through snail mail to my 6+ month old address. I've not only moved once since then, but twice, all the while making sure AES and other institutions are properly notified. Simmons said that the "Ms." thing would be resolved as long as I was declared as male in their system. Eight weeks after rechecking the accuracy of my school information, it obviously hasn't.

This is my second notification and third time for updating AES with my name, while this is the sixth time AES has notified me through Simmons in regards to my gender. Each gender letter starts out by calling me "Ms." despite my documentation as male with both AES and Simmons. An e-mail to Simmons' financial services regarding this "Ms." discrepancy from several weeks ago proved useless. As would be anybody's guess, this "Ms." thing is by far the biggest irritant in the entire AES conundrum. You can torture me with your repetitive idiocracy, blame me for your own inability to function, and take away my school funding so I die poor and lonely on the street, but if you indicate me as female, we're going to have some problems.

Oh, and don't even get me started on the worker-bee linkage between military registration and one's allowance to attend higher education. From the very structure of the U.S. education system to their fallacious expectations, I spit so many rants it'll make your head spin. Education should not be a privilege, and it certainly shouldn't come with conditions. A brilliantly strategic guise that keeps the masses opiate while they think they're making a difference. Lennon was right; working-class heroes.

So that's enough of that. Whatever happens will happen; I've done and continue to do all I can on my end. I continue to fare more or less well after getting my first shot. I was uncharacteristically mellow for those first 72 hours and enjoyed it thoroughly. Within that time, I also started experiencing some of the "unpleasant" side effects: dry mouth, decreased libido (yes, you read that right), alpha male urine, and something I'd never experienced before called "hunger nausea." With a mild exception of the nausea, these side effects cause little distraction to me, and I otherwise just continue to be chill.

The mellowness has somewhat waned from its initial burst and since made room for boredom. Like, so bored that I don't want to do anything; a bratty child. (Or maybe I can finally call myself a teenager. By second shot, perhaps.) How bored am I? I just blogged a complaint about AES; the bare-bones of mutual understanding of American higher education. I guess everyday life pales in comparison for having fought so hard to achieve it. It's not that I'm listless or lethargic; I seriously want to do something, but nothing seems capable of stimulating my brain enough, keeping my interest. It'd be annoying if I cared. I don't care that I'm bored, yet complain that I'm bored, and am bored that I'm bored. And why don't I do anything about it? Because I'm bored.

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