What mom cares about most is that I'm happy, healthy and enjoying my life.

I wanted to show America a different kind of man. If there was someone like me when I was growing up, my whole life would have been different.

I always wanted to shave. It is a very natural process. For my birthday I got a lot of shaving stuff.

Obviously the transgender movement has not progressed in the way that the gay and lesbian movement has. But Im an activist - thats just the kind of person I am.

Gender is between your ears and not between your legs.

For me, it was never a question of whether or not I was transgender. It was a question of what I'd be able to handle transitioning and having to do it in the public eye. One of the issues that was hard for me to overcome was the fear of that.

Being self-supporting is important to me.