mn t-girls – Hannah McKnight

We Had A Latte Fun!

September 19, 2022 by Hannah

This past Saturday was the monthly MN T-Girls outing and we spent the afternoon at Cafe Latte, an upscale coffee shop in Saint Paul!

Café Latte is very much a Saint Paul landmark and I used to visit there when I was in my late teens so it was very fun to go back… this time en femme. All in all there were about a dozen of us having coffees and girl talk. We chatted about everything from makeup to family to clothes (of course).

I didn’t get any pictures but everyone looked super cute, lol.

We also planned the events for the rest of the year… Halloween, the annual photo shoot, and the return of the holiday party. It was a fun afternoon and it’s even more fun to look forward to what’s next!

Love, Hannah

Because We Can Can Can

August 7, 2022 by Hannah

Yesterday was the monthly MN T-Girl s event and it was a very unique outing. The group has had private shopping events and lovely dinners but this month? We had some fun.

Can Can Wonderland is… well, it’s an arcade, a restaurant, and an indoor mini-golf art installation in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

For some reason the girls have asked throughout the years to go mini-golfing and who am I to disagree?

So, about a half-dozen of us spent a rainy Saturday playing pinball and vintage video games. I didn’t get a chance to play any golf but the course looked amazing.

It was a nice break from packing and work stress and I can’t wait to go back!

Love, Hannah

Patio Partying with the MN T-Girls!

July 18, 2022 by Hannah

Saturday night was the monthly MN T-Girls outing and we celebrated the end of a long week with a lovely evening of food, girl talk, and drinks on the patio at Aster Cafe!

I had written a few days ago about how much I was looking forward to Saturday but it wasn’t until I sat down and could just… rest for a little while when I realized how much I needed a break from the real world.

It’s always wonderful to see the girls and make new friends and joining us for dinner was my friend Alicia from California who was in Minneapolis for work. Rarely do the stars align so perfectly when I have friends in from out of town so I was very happy it worked out.

Special thanks to everyone at Aster who treated us like ladies and served us yummy food!

Love, Hannah

Hello from Pride!

June 26, 2022 by Hannah

Yesterday the MN T-Girls made a fabulous return to Pride and it was a wonderful day. Organizing and preparing for Pride is a lot of work. I mean, we have to set up a tent! In heels! But we did it. Want to see?

Look at the beautiful t-girls and look. at. all. the. PINK.

And look at me!

Although preparing for Pride is a lot of work, once things are set up the fun really begins. It was a good day. The weather held, we chatted with a lot of people, and the T-Girls made me proud by talking with others about the group.

Every year as we struggle with driving metal stakes into the ground to secure the tent I promise myself that we are never doing this again but after a few minutes of being a part of the community I remember why we will be back.

Thank you to all of the MN T-Girls who helped make the day a success. Thank you to everyone who stopped by to say hi. It’s nice to know that we are helping others live their lives and find friendship and support.

Love, Hannah

We Should Totally Be In The Pink Zone

June 21, 2022 by Hannah

Oh hi!

It’s Pride week here in Minneapolis/Saint Paul and the sparkly pink glitter really hits the fan with this weekend’s festival.

The MN T-Girls will be there on Saturday and we look forward to seeing you. We will be in space 078 (in the Orange Zone) and you can find us on the map:

We should totally be in the Pink Zone though.

Come by and see us unless you’re a creep.

Love, Hannah

Thoughts on Pride

June 19, 2022 by Hannah

So, Pride is this upcoming weekend. I mean, Pride is allll of June and many cities have Pride celebrations outside of the month but Minneapolis will have their Pride festival beginning later this week.

The MN T-Girls have had a booth/tent thing for a few years but last year due to COVID we skipped it but we went as festival goers to a scaled down event.

I love Pride. It’s amazing how… normal it feels to be there. When I am out en femme I feel comfortable but I also feel a little like an outsider. As far as I know, I am likely the only trans person in whichever boutique or coffee shop I am in but I am also usually the only girl in heels and a dress as well.

But Pride? Girl, I am underdressed at Pride. Between the drag queens and other fabulously dressed girls I feel I need to up my glam game.

I still feel a little on edge at Pride. In my boy life I have a lot of LGBTQIA+ friends and acquaintances that don’t know about Hannah and although I am certain they would be accepting and even enthusiastic about my gender identity I still would prefer not to go down that road.

Pride is about celebrating every letter in the LGBTQIA+ acronym but it’s also normal for cis and straight allies to come to festivals and cheer at the parade. Which is good. We need allies and we especially need allies who actually stand with us and go beyond simply saying they support us.

The edge I feel at Pride is mostly apprehension. Will I see someone at Pride that I don’t want to come out to? Maybe. Will a sudden strong gust of wind lift a tent off the ground again and cut me in the face leaving a scar that I still have? Maybe. Will this happen again? Maybe.

I’ve always been nervous and fearful about violence at Pride. It has happened and I think it will continue to happen. So far the worst of planned attacks have been prevented… so far.

I admit that stories like this give me pause and wonder if the MN T-Girls should even attend. The safety of girls like me at official T-Girl events is always my biggest concern, whether it’s about education about safely wearing a gaff or organizing events that will hopefully be without incident.

I suppose that’s the POINT of terror, to stop someone from living their lives. As a country we have the mentality of not giving into terroristic threats in all its forms, so there is that.

Pride is supposed to be a safe haven for all of us. Indeed, it’s sometimes the ONLY safe haven. It’s just a shame that even at Pride we have to be on edge.

Love, Hannah

MN T-Girls Return to Pride!

June 14, 2022 by Hannah

After two years of COVID, I am happy to announce that the MN T-Girls will be making an appearance at the Twin Cities Pride Festival!

As of this writing the festival organizers haven’t finalized their map as to where different booths will be placed, so please keep an eye on their website if you are interested in dropping by!

I would love to meet you!

Love, Hannah

Graduation Day

May 28, 2022 by Hannah

The first MN T-Girls event was held in November 2013.

I think. I don’t know, I am not a historian.

Since then I have evolved in terms of my presentation, confidence, and identity. I went from nervously going out into the real world and only visiting LGBTQIA+ coffee shops to strutting downtown and through the biggest shopping mall in the state.

My evolution is not unique. This happens to us naturally. The more often we go out the more confident we become. The more we realize that *this* isn’t as big of a deal as we might think it would be. The first few times I went out en femme I was sure I would be yelled at and harassed.

I mean, not everyone that I interact with is happy to see a transperson, but there’s been much less (obvious) hate than I expected there would be.

Part of the reason for forming the T-Girls was remembering how scary it was to go out en femme the first few times. I hoped more of us would be ready to go out into the real world if they could do so in a group. Safety in numbers, after all.

Over the years I have seen girls like me make their first step into the real world. I have held their hand as they shook in fear of being in public for the first time. I have walked to the parking lot of so many shopping malls so a girl wouldn’t have to walk in alone. I have sat next to girls at restaurants who were too terrified to say a word.

I have seen girls cry from happiness of being in the real world and I have felt their joy of being out for coffee en femme. I have seen girls blossom and grow and embrace this side of themselves.

And then, sometimes, I never see them again.

At one point they were there for each and every monthly outing but one day they stopped coming.

And I wonder about them. I wonder if something happened to them. I wonder if they went back into the closet. I wonder if they are okay. I hope they are happy and safe.

Sometimes I do hear from them, though. And most of the time they’ve stopped coming for a pretty amazing reason… they don’t need the group anymore.

They joined the group to make friends, to get used to being in public, to learn about who they are, what they wanted. This was a part of their journey. But somewhere along the way they no longer felt that they needed to only do things with other girls like themselves. They felt safe being alone. The saw the world was more accepting of t-girls than they initially thought.

When this happens I think of it as graduation, in a way.

And I can relate. As I stated earlier I myself started going out en femme to t-girl friendly cafes and transgender support groups but now I go everywhere.

They’ve found the confidence to be themselves in a very complicated, bewildering world. Of course I will miss them but I am so happy for them.

Love, Hannah

Beauty and Art

May 23, 2022 by Hannah

This past weekend the MN T-Girls visited the Minneapolis Institute of Art for a lovely afternoon of coffee, girl talk, and of course, art!

I love art and as much fun as it is to get lost in a mall, there’s something so peaceful about wandering around a giant, beautiful building and stopping and admiring whatever catches your eye. I love doing this alone and I love doing this with friends.

It was a lovely, quiet afternoon… a nice little reprieve from the stresses of the world.

Love, Hannah

Saturdays are for Coffee, Errands, and Yoga

April 24, 2022 by Hannah

Yesterday was the April MN T-Girls event and after almost ten years of monthly adventures it’s not always easy to plan something unique.

It was time for something fresh. I’m always thinking of new things for the group to do and I often get inspired by things that I would like to do en femme.

I enjoy staying active so I thought a yoga class might be a fun thing to do. We booked a private class at Blue Dog Studios and spent an hour stretching, breathing, and trying to balance on one foot. After years of walking on icy sidewalks in stilettos it was easier than I thought it would be.