Katoey Profiles No. 2: Mint, 37, Chiang Mai Massage Therapist
Katoey Profiles is our weekly series: one Thai katoey, her story in brief, from her own interview. This is No. 2.
At a glance
Name: Mint
Lives in: Chiang Mai
Age at the interview: 37
Work: massage therapist at a massage shop
Goal: open her own massage shop. She is saving for it now
Her story in five moments
At seven or eight she saw the Tiffany's pageant on TV and wanted to be a "Tiffany girl". She didn't think she was pretty enough to enter.
Her parents knew she wanted to be feminine and let her be herself. She still talks to her mother about everything: love, work and money.
School was rough at first. Children called her names and one teacher pushed her into football to make her act like a boy. Later she moved to a school with many ladyboys and cheered on the squad for about three years.
She sold every day during a three-month trial at a make-up and skincare brand, then was let go. She says her boss didn't like ladyboys.
She learned massage at school and from YouTube, and takes pride in giving every customer good service, even though some ask not to have a ladyboy.
What she wants you to know
She wouldn't change a thing. Asked whether, starting over, she'd choose to be a man, a woman or a ladyboy, she picks ladyboy. She's happy being who she is.
Family comes first. She sends money home for food and bills, and seeing her mother smile is what keeps her going.
Love shouldn't be a secret. She ended a two-year relationship because he wouldn't tell people he loved her. They're still friends.
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