The Kates, I   By Melissa Tawn   A pair of transsexual students successfully transition and end up running a restaurant together.

CHAPTER 1. THE RESTAURANT

St. George Island is neither the most picturesque nor the most interesting island among the many in Puget Sound, and certainly it is not among the largest. Nonetheless, any boat which takes tourists through the area, as well as almost every boat owned by vacationers who rent homes on the islands for a few weeks or months, is bound to make a stop at St. George Island. The reason for this is the justly famous St. George Island Salmon Restaurant, a unique culinary experience few would want to miss.

The restaurant can only be approached by water, and it has several quays at which individual pleasure boats and larger tourist boats can dock. It is built to resemble a Kwakiutl longhouse, with two large totem poles in front of the main entrance. The entrées on the menu consist only of salmon dishes, of an amazing variety. A special treat is given with desert - salmon-flavored ice cream, prepared on the spot. The restaurant rates two stars in the Michelin Guide. Its regular patrons - and all Seattle and Vancouver food critics - felt that it had been short-changed by Frenchmen who had no idea of what salmon could and should taste like. To them, it should have been given a full three stars - an honor which few restaurants in the world have ever attained.

The walls of the entrance hall to the restaurant were covered with autographed pictures of famous people, including assorted Nobel-prize winners, actors, writers, two presidents and several foreign heads of state, who had dined there.

Unofficially, the restaurant is known as “The Kates” after its two owners - Catherine Chan and Katherine Jefferson - and “dining at The Kates” is one of those unforgettable experiences which no visitor to the Puget Sound area, and certainly no resident, ever forgets. The two Kates are almost always present to personally meet and greet the guests as they arrive, though often one of them would disappear into the kitchen and help the chef prepare some of the special meals.

Kate Chan, like almost all of the restaurant staff, lives in the Canadian city of Victoria and commutes to work every morning by ferry boat. Kate Jefferson, on the other hand, lives in a large home several hundred yards from the restaurant, which she shared with her “husband”, Harold O’Hara (they were never actually formally married, but the few people who knew that didn’t care). Harold mans a small radio station - financed jointly by the American and Canadian Coast Guards - to pick up signals of boats in distress and relay them to the appropriate help providers. Its large antenna was situated on the top of St. George Island’s sole hill.

Despite the similarity in their names, the appearances of the two Kates could not be more different. Catherine Chan is, as her name implies, of pure Chinese origin. She is also a seventh-generation American, descended from a Chinese laborer who came to San Francisco during the California gold rush of 1849 and who brought his bride from China a decade later. Four generations afterwards, the family moved northward to Washington, and settled in Spokane, where they own a prosperous grocery store. In appearance, Catherine is very petit, thin, and delicate looking, with the face and long black hair of an actress in classical Chinese theater, and the studied mannerisms to match. She wears size 2 dresses. Katherine Jefferson, on the other hand, is a big booming and gregarious African-American woman, ten inches taller than her business partner and almost double her weight. Her dresses are size 16. Her family had been in America since the 18th century, when her ancestors were brought as slaves from Benin in Africa (via Trinidad) by a close friend and neighbor of George Washington. Her grandfather had been a street punk in Chicago in the 1930’s when he was picked up by the police and, in lieu of prison, agreed to sign up for the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) and was sent to build and maintain trails in the national forest on the Olympic Peninsula of Washington. Surprisingly for someone who had rarely seen two trees together for the first 17 years of his life and had never seen wildlife larger than rats, he developed a love for forests and stayed on to become a forest ranger, a job also taken on by his son - Katherine’s father - after him. After his leg was badly mangled in an unfortunate accident, Katherine’s father became head of the US Forest Service’s supply depot and logistics office in Port Angeles on the Olympic Peninsula.

Yet the two Kates were the best of friends, ever since they met while attending the University of Washington. They also had one very important thing in common, though of course none of the guests to the restaurant, not even the tour guides who visited them almost every day, would ever have guessed it: both of them had been born male!

CHAPTER 2. BECOMING THE KATES

They first met during their freshman year, at a student transgender support group. At the time their names were Charles (“If you think life is tough, try going through it with the name Charlie Chan”) and Thomas (“I can imagine, and being Massa Tom Jefferson is no great shakes either, believe me.”). At the first meeting of the group, they both announced their preferred female names. Though they spelled them differently, they became “the Kates”, and “the Kates” they remained.

There were, initially, twelve UW students enrolled in the transgender support group. Several of them dropped out after the first month, when they realized how serious and daunting the problems of transitioning were. In fact, of the original group, only the Kates actually completed the entire transition process, including SRS surgery. They did not start out with equal chances.

Kate Chan looked feminine. In fact, even as a teenage boy she had been constantly mistaken for a girl by salespeople and even by guys who tried to hit on her at the mall. Her mannerisms, her unisex clothes, her longish hair, all contributed to creating that impression, which did not exactly displease her. She loved to flirt, but never allowed anything serious to develop. True, she was flat-chested but then girls of Asian descent do not have big large breasts as a rule. (When she finally did get breast implants, she limited herself to a minimal B-cup.) Kate’s voice was always sweet and she knew, from an early age, how to modulate it to make it sound like a teenage girl. Transitioning, for her, seemed like a piece of cake.

Kate Jefferson, on the other hand, seemed to have everything working against her. She was too big and too masculine looking. In high school she had been pressed into playing football. The first time she came to a meeting en femme she looked, as she herself admitted, like “a fullback in a dress.” She always had problems finding fashionable shoes in her size, and wearing heels was clearly out of the question. Transitioning, for her, seemed like an impossible dream. But Kate did have some things going for her. She was enthusiastic, she was optimistic, and she had a burning desire to fully live the life of a woman she knew she was. After the first group meeting, she asked for a private session with a gender counselor who had been the guest speaker, and together they devised a strategy for the next year. This involved a (medically-supervised) crash diet to reduce her excess fat and muscle, giving her a slightly more feminine body. However, far more importantly, it involved a behavioral change. From being a relatively quiet and introverted boy, Kate became an outgoing and gregarious woman. She laughed a lot, using both her face and her body to express her joy in life. She took interest in the problems of others and showed tenderness and care to those who needed it. She was always there for people who needed her - a big sister, if not a mother. Pretty soon her personality and body language trumped her looks. She may be a “big mama”, but she was definitely perceived as a woman. If Kate Chan was the triangle in the orchestra of life, she was the kettle drum.

Both Kates had a common passion: they loved to cook. After their first semester, they rented an apartment together not far from campus. The furniture was second-hand and the television was old and malfunctioned often, but the kitchen was equipped with the most modern appliances and utensils. They took turns cooking dinner for each other, each trying to get more and more elaborate. Word got out and soon their friends started dropping in regularly for a meal, and - of course - contributing to the cost of the ingredients. By the summer, the Kates had half a dozen regular guests every evening.

At the start of their sophomore year, the Kates decided to live full-time as women and formally enrolled in the pre-SRS program at the University of Washington Medical Center, one of the country’s foremost teaching hospitals. They obtained driver’s licenses giving their feminine names (as was their right under the very liberal Washington laws) and had their university records altered as well. They moved into a new apartment with an even bigger kitchen and dining area, and their “eating club” expanded to 15 people nightly. It helped finance the cost of their education, but that was secondary to them. Planning and concocting new and original menus was a joint obsession.

The gender counselors and doctors at the UWMC concluded that Kate Chan was ready for immediate SRS, but recommended that Kate Jefferson wait for at least another year. Kate Chan refused to be operated on unless her friend would be too, preferably on the same day. The doctors compromised on a delay of six months, and so the Kates patiently waited and began to enjoy their new status as fulltime women.

Finally, the doctors cleared Kate Jefferson for surgery too. Her personality had overwhelmed them too and, though they were initially a bit worried about her physical appearance, they soon forgot all about it. They saw her personality and it was most definitely all woman. The evening before the Kates were admitted into the hospital for their operations, they prepared a gala meal for the eating club based around some new salmon recipes they had invented. It was a great success. From then on, salmon was always associated in their minds with great and wonderful moments.

The Kates hugged each other just before they were wheeled into separate operating rooms and hugged each other again after they regained consciousness in post-op. They had done it!

CHAPTER 3. WHAT TO DO NEXT?

One of the integral parts of the gender counseling program the Kates had undergone involved game planning for the post-op life. Too many transsexuals forget that surgery is just the means, not the end, and have no idea what to do after it is all over. Neither one of them had any real future plans, both were enrolled in a “general BA” program, though they knew that they would have to declare a major at the beginning of their junior year.

To celebrate the final step in their transition, the Kates decided to invite their doctors over to their home for a special dinner. They worked on the menu for days and came up with something so sumptuous that Dr. Hildesheimer, one of the senior surgeons at the Medical Center, who considered himself a gourmet and was a well-known figure at Seattle’s top eating establishments (as well as a part-time food critic for one of the Seattle-area radio stations), declared that he had never tasted such good food in his life. “You two ought to open a restaurant,” he insisted. The Kates looked at each other and the idea clicked - a restaurant, why not? They decided to get degrees in business administration with special attention on the food services sector.

Towards the end of their junior year, Kate Chan noticed a small article in the Seattle Times to the effect that the restaurant on St. George Island in Puget Sound was in dire financial straits and that the tour operators were worried that there would be no place for their groups to eat. They called upon the American and Canadian tourist authorities to come up with a plan to save the place. This was clearly an opportunity. The Kates talked to Dr. Hildesheimer and reminded him of his idea that they start a restaurant. He remembered their cooking well and not only agreed with them, but expressed willingness to cosign any bank loan they needed in order to buy the place. Even with such a distinguished guarantor, it was difficult for the Kates to negotiate a loan until they had the idea of inviting the president and CEO of the bank to dinner, along with Dr. Hildesheimer and some other well-known Seattle gourmets. One taste of the food prepared by the Kates convinced the bankers: they approved a very generous line of credit for the project. To make a long story short … within six months the deal was done. The departing owner even threw in his house on St. George Island, for which he doubted he could find an independent buyer. He warned them, however, of the Coast Guard’s plans to set up an emergency radio station on the small hill not far from the house.

CHAPTER 4. AN ASIDE ABOUT MEN

Kate Chan may have had a big lead on Kate Jefferson when it came to passing as a woman, but it turned out that she fell behind her when it came to one important aspect of being a young woman : attracting men. Kate Chan dated many guys, but very few of them were interested in a continuing relationship. As one of them put it later, going out with Kate Chan is like being with a rare china doll. She is so delicate and so perfect that you are afraid to touch her, lest something break. Men respected her, adored her, and were slightly in awe of her. They did not ask for a second date.

Kate Jefferson, on the other hand, had a much easier time. She was mother earth. She did not look as pretty as her friend (or as most other girls) but she had a magnetic warm personality that made guys feel at home with her. As they cuddled up to her ample bosom (her implanted breasts were a large D-cup!) they would psychologically revert back to their early childhood in the arms of their mothers, and they couldn’t get enough of it. Within four months of her operation, Kate Jefferson was no longer a virgin.

By unwritten mutual agreement, the Kates never talked to each other about their relationship with men. It was the only part of their lives that they kept to themselves. Kate Chan pitied her friend whom, she was sure, was not pretty enough to attract men. Kate Jefferson pitied hers whom, she suspected, kept on turning down guys because they weren’t on her plane of perfection.

CHAPTER 5. CELEBRATION ON ST. GEORGE ISLAND

The original plan was for both Kates to share the departing owner’s house on the Island, but after a few months that turned out to be impractical. The only other resident of the island was Harold O’Hara, the Canadian who manned the Coast Guard radio station. He was a giant of a man, originally from Winnipeg, who even towered over Kate Jefferson, and it was natural that he be attracted mainly to her. This left Kate Chan without a social life and so, after a few months, she decided to move to Victoria, which has a large Chinese population. As already mentioned, it was agreed that she would come in with the restaurant staff on the first ferry boat every day, and leave with them on the last boat. Thus the restaurant project, which was originally intended to bring the two friends even closer together, ended up in separating them. However, it ended up working fairly well.

Harold moved in with Kate Jefferson as soon as her friend had left.

The Kates spent most of their time mingling with the staff or greeting guests. They did not have offices at the restaurant, but they did have their own private retreat or inner sanctum if you wish: their own private kitchen, off of the main kitchen. Nobody except for the cleaning crews would dare enter this kitchen uninvited. Even Pierre, the restaurant’s chef - an internationally-known figure - stayed clear unless invited in. Here the Kates could relax and indulge in their continual competition of inventing new and more challenging recipes.

One day, when they were both working there on a new concoction, Kate Chan suddenly turned to her friend and asked her an uncharacteristically-personal question.

“Kate, how did you tell him?”

“Tell whom, what?”

“Harold. How did you tell him that you are a ts? Or didn’t you tell him?”

“Oh, I told him all right, after we had sex. We were lying there and I said that I had a big secret to impart … and I told him, in as simple and straightforward a manner as possible.”

“And what did he say?”

“He said that the surgeon who operated on me must consider himself very lucky - there are not many men who get a chance to release beautiful hot genies from their bottles.”

“That’s sweet.”

“It’s just blarney, but of course we women live on blarney to a large extent. Anyway, after we got dressed we did have a long talk, and went over what it meant to us and our relationship. After that, he asked me to marry him.”

“And you turned him down?”

“Not quite, I told him about how you refused to have surgery until I could have it too, and that the least I could do to repay you is not to get married until we are both ready to have a double wedding. So he is on ice at the moment. Not that that makes him any less hot in bed.”

“Well, you can start defrosting him, I hope.”

Kate Jefferson squealed excitedly: “You have someone? Why didn’t you tell me.?” Have you told him about yourself? How did he react?”

“Calm down,” her friend replied. “Yes I have someone. We have been going together for over a year now. He is a doctor - a gynecologist believe it or not - and so knows all about transgender. That was not the main problem we had.”

“What was the main problem then?”

“His name is David Katz, and he is seriously Jewish. He wanted me to convert to Judaism before we got married. I told him that one transition in life is enough, but he insisted and I finally gave in. I finished the process last week. Yesterday he gave me this,” said Kate, holding out her hand to show off a very expensive engagement ring.

Kate Jefferson stood back and stared back in mock horror: “You’re Jewish? Gee, you don’t look it at all!” Then she started giggling and hugged her friend. “Mazel Tov! This is absolutely wonderful. How did you two ever meet?”

Kate explained that David had long ties with the Chinese community of Victoria, and even claims to be a distant relative of Two-Gun Cohen, the Chinese general. When her friend looked at her in disbelief, she explained that Morris Abraham (“Two-Gun”) Cohen was a British-born Canadian from Saskatchewan who had been hired by Dr. Sun Yat Sen in 1905 as a bodyguard and later as aide-de-camp. He eventually rose to be a major general in the Chinese army. According to one story, at one point in time he was engaged to marry Chiang Kai Shek’s sister-in-law, but her family disapproved of her marrying a Jew, and the wedding never took place. “Fortunately,” she concluded, “my family is more tolerant.”

“Nu, so ven is your wedding?”

“Well, I told him that I wanted a double wedding with you, so I suppose the four of us will have to sit down and figure that out.”

“Won’t that be somewhat of a problem?”

“Well, we will probably have to have parallel ceremonies, of course, but we can have a joint reception afterwards, right here at the restaurant.”

“But wouldn’t David insist that the banquet be kosher?”

“You will be surprised, but our restaurant is, essentially, kosher. Look, we only serve salmon, which is a kosher fish. We use only vegetable-based oils and fats, and don’t have any meat products whatsoever on the premises. Everything is prepared here - even the bread. We don’t buy food from outside suppliers. It will need to be inspected by a kashrut inspector, but Dave will be glad to pay for that.”

“Let’s do it,” said Kate Jefferson excitedly. “I will talk to Harold. He is a Catholic, and would surely want a Catholic wedding, but his priest in Vancouver, Father Dugan, is head of the British Columbia Conference of Christians and Jews, so I imagine that there will be no problem from that side. Hey, this is going to be fun.”

“Father Dugan probably knows Rabbi Meyerson then. He is also active in that Conference. David and I belong to a congregation of what is called “Modern Orthodox”, which means that you are not going to see a bunch of old fogies with long beards and earlocks, just some very nice regular guys wearing knit kippas. It is going to be really great fun.”

The Kates hugged each other and began, each in her own head, compiling a check list of what had to be done.

The preparations took several months to complete. Father Dugan and Rabbi Meyerson met several times and worked out a ceremony which, while compromising the rites of neither religion, emphasized the essential unity of the double wedding. Invitations were sent out, first to family and intimate friends and then to a wider circle of acquaintances and regular patrons of the restaurant. Three weeks before the wedding, the appointments secretary of the governor of Washington called and asked to reserve a table for a party which was to include the governor and select guests, including a former president of the United States who would be vacationing in Washington. After she was told that the restaurant would be closed on that particular date because of a private function - and after the nature of the function was explained to her - she called back an hour later saying that the governor, who had dined at The Kates several times and was well-known to the owners, would be honored if he and the former president were allowed to attend the wedding as guests. The Kates were delighted to add him and his party to the guest list. Harold, who was a Canadian citizen after all, felt that parity should be maintained and soon the Premier of British Columbia and his party - which was to include the Governor General of Canada who also happened to be vacationing in the area at that time - were also added to the guest list.

Pierre, the resident chef of The Kates, suggested that - for the occasion - they invite a guest chef to help out, the internationally-known Eitan Katriel from the “Chez Eitan” restaurant in Tel Aviv, who would insure that the proper culinary forms for a Jewish wedding celebration were carried out. The main dishes were to be planned by the Kates themselves, who were trying to outdo each other in culinary creativity.

The event itself, when it finally happened, went through so perfectly that it was clearly on its way to being a local legend. The wedding ceremonies took place on the lawn behind the restaurant, where a temporary altar and chuppa were built. Afterwards, the guests (who numbered over 400) adjoined into the restaurant proper for an unforgettable buffet dinner. David had brought in a group of kleizmer musicians from Montreal, and Harold had invited some Irish folk-musicians from Winnipeg, who wandered between the tables and entertained the guests while they were eating. After the dinner, the tables were taken out, a bar was set up, and a dance band from Seattle played for the guests until the wee hours of the morning.

At exactly midnight, both brides slipped away and walked out to the end of one of the quays, where they hugged each other tightly.

“We did it,” they said in unison. “We are the most fortunate women alive.”

Then they hugged each other again and looked out over the water.

AUTHOR’S NOTE: The main characters of this story are fictional. However, Two-Gun Cohen was a real person.