Interview with Michelle Nastasis

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Michelle Nastasis, the first known Transgender professional poker player from Florida, USA, and author of 'QdQh: Queen of Diamonds, Queen of Hearts: The Life and Journey of Michelle Nastasis, the First Known Transgender Professional Poker Player!' (2020). Hello Michelle!

Michelle: Hello Monika!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Michelle: First, I really am a professional poker player. I've played in almost 5000 tournaments over the last 12+ years as a pro. My unofficial career earnings are just shy of $2M USD.

Second, I am very much a fashionista at the table. I have over 400 dresses and over 1100 pairs of high heels.

Interview with JaiLynn Joanna Desvignes

Monika: Today I am meeting JaiLynn Joanna Desvignes, an American transgender activist, model, and YouTube vlogger and influencer. Her vlog 'To Whom It May Concern' chronicles her own transition and provides recommendations to the transgender community all over the world. Hello JaiLynn!

JaiLynn: Hello Monika!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

JaiLynn: Sure... My name is Jailynn-Joanna, originally from New York and currently residing in the Bronx. I am a niece, a daughter, and a friend who loves living life and loves the life I’ve been given. 

Monika: Why did you decide to share your transition details on social media?

JaiLynn: When I began my transition several years ago, it was a very lonely journey in the beginning and I had to do a great deal of the research and journeying on my own. I also met other trans folk along the way who felt the same way but didn’t have the courage to share the most intimate details of their lives.

Interview with Nicola Nilla

Monika: Today I am meeting Nicola Nilla, an American YouTube vlogger. It has been almost 16 months since she launched her Nicola Nilla vlog where she shares her transition Story. Hello Nicola!

Nicola: Hi Monika! I can't believe it's already been 16 months since this all started.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Nicola: Yeah! I am a 27-year-old transwoman from San Francisco with a background in education. However, I like to dabble in a lot of different things like fashion styling, MUA, modeling, and photography. I like anything that allows me to express my true self!

Monika: Nicola is such a lovely name. How come you chose it?

Nicola: So it's kind of a funny story. My birth initials are NBL, and I wanted to keep those the same during the name change -- mostly out of simplicity but to also respect my parents. I already knew I wanted a unique "N" name when I was watching one of my favorite 2000s teen movies, Superbad. The side character, McLovin, spends half the movie obsessing over this girl he barely knows, Nicola. She really only represents that hot girl every guy wants to hook up with, and I thought that was badass so I took that name for myself haha! It's kind of a weird inspiration, but it stuck hehe.

Interview with Lucky Bradley

Monika: Today I am hosting Lucky Bradley, an American who has been an auditor at multiple governmental agencies, including the US Department of Defense. She is also a happy wife, and transgender woman that documents her transition on her blog ‘A Girl U Should Know’ and continues to be active on other social media. Before her transition, she had previously blogged on Accidentally Gay. She is also the co-author of Accidentally Gay: The True Love Story When a Wife Becomes a Husband. A book that detailed her experiences as a husband whose wife transitioned into her husband. Hello, Lucky!

Lucky: Hi Monika, It is great to meet you and be here.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Lucky: I am a 49-year-old transgender woman married for 28 years to a fantastic transgender man. We live at home with our own little fur baby cat, Tally. I have been transitioning since mid-2018 and it has been a roller coaster. After a bunch of HRT level issues though I think I am at the halfway point of physical transition. I have worked in many governmental agencies as an auditor, and my hobbies include photography, gaming, writing, and other forms of storytelling.

Monika: Why did you decide to share your transition details on social media?

Lucky: I have always shared my life online, since the early days of Myspace and LiveJournal. My sharing of my life became even more frequent when my husband transitioned in 2013.

Interview with with Tyler Keane

Monika: Today’s interview will be with Tyler Keane, an American teacher and transgender woman that documents her transition on social media. Hello Tyler!

Tyler: Hello Monika, I wanted to start off by thanking you for doing these interviews to help raise awareness for the transgender community.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Tyler: I just recently turned 24 years old, I work at an elementary school, with passions for photography and skateboarding.

Monika: Why did you decide to share your transition details on social media?

Tyler: I started posting about my transition on social media because at the beginning of my transition I was very alone. I didn’t personally know any transgender people at the time. I wanted to be able to share my experiences with other people, as well as learn about what other people have experienced.

Interview with Felicia Rolletschke

Monika: Felicia Rolletschke is a young German transgender activist and academic teacher. Her website Transformational Tomorrow is the source of all relevant information for the German trans community. I am going to discuss with her the most recent actions launched by the German trans activists in order to change the archaic gender-recognition law. Hello Felicia!

Felicia: Hello Monika! Thank you very much for doing this interview.

Monika: How are you doing in the pandemic times of COVID-19?

Felicia: As well as possible in times like this. Much of my work was and is based on in-person workshops so naturally during 2020 many changes happened and I had to improvise a lot. Nonetheless, I already had my first online workshops this year and am already looking on a filled calendar for March and the following months.

Monika: Felicia is such a lovely name. Why did you choose this particular name?

Felicia: Thank you! There were many names I considered. "Felicia" won in the end over "Ayana" and "Julia" for being a name that meant something to me personally, was easy to pronounce in both my mother tongue German, and my most commonly used language English, and it was at least familiar enough to most people, so they do not have to struggle when writing it.