We are here on the Blind Side, Life can be tough enough, without making it even more difficult. So why do people make life-changing decisions that effect, both themselves and those around them? And where do they dream up these ideas? From the married father of seven who decided to live as a six-year-old girl to the women who takes ‘feeling blue’ to a whole new level, here are 15 People Who Live a Strange Life.
15. Paul Wolscht
There wouldn’t be many adults that haven’t dreamt of their childhood with memories of care-free days hanging out with friends and not a worry in the world.
Well one Canadian father decided enough was enough, making the decision to turn back the clock.
Transgender father Stefonknee Wolscht left her family to escape adult life and become a six-year-old girl!
During an interview with Daily Xtra, Ms Wolscht explained how living as a child helped her to escape her depression and suicidal thoughts.
Play therapy, an alternative to traditional methods, allows her to fulfil her desire to be a young girl. Raised as a boy, she missed out on the opportunity of playing with dolls and dressing as a little girl.
Ms Wolscht now spends each day doing adult things, but as a young child.
Even when in prison for nine days, she made her cell a Kingdom, singing children’s songs throughout the day, believing that if she wasn’t an adult, no one could hurt her.
By not acting her age, Ms Wolscht doesn’t have to deal with the hurtful reality of her past and has several friends who participate in the same form of therapy.
Where some people turn to drugs, others turn to their inner child as a coping mechanism.
Married to a woman for 23 years and with seven children, Ms Wolscht began her transition six years ago, following an ultimatum from her wife.
She was told to either stop being trans or leave.
Now 52 years of age, Ms Wolscht lives with an adoptive ‘mommy and daddy’ who are completely comfortable with the unusual situation.
14. Living a Blue Life
Feeling blue? Not as blue as Valeria McCulloch of Miami, who for over 20 years has been dressing herself from head to foot in the color.
And not just any blue either, a specific shade of blue, Yves Klein Blue. There’s no spontaneity here when it comes to choosing clothes, shoes and even furniture. Everything is blue.
The color is said to transmit peace, serenity and comfort, due to its sky and sea-like properties.
Nicknamed Valblv, McCulloch is an artist and accessories designer, and fell in love with the color when she began her journey into the art world, studying and experimenting with collage.
She found the color to have almost spiritual-like qualities.
Not surprisingly, Valblv majored in color therapy in college and discovered the color blue had a rich history throughout the ages.
It was historically worn by Germanic tribes to ward off enemies, and was used by Christians to denote divinity.
By wearing blue every day, Valblv feels like she is constantly in a dream, with her commitment to the colored-cause so extreme, she is said to paint her Chanel and Christian Louboutin shoes with custom-ordered electric-blue Sharpies!
There is clearly no limit to this loyal wearer of all things blue.
13. Victorian couple
A gift for her 29th birthday changed the life of history lover Sarah Chrisman.
Husband Gabriel gifted her the old-fashioned undergarment, which inspired her to finally give in to her longtime obsession with Victorian-era attire.
Prior to receiving the some-what unusual gift, Sarah never had an interest in wearing a corset, but now believes, both her and her husband, were born in the wrong century.
In fact, for the past six years, the pair have tried to live a lifestyle consistent with the era, one that has always been their favorite time period in history.
The slightly radical couple have been waging a silent rebellion against modernity for the last decade, trying to replicate the lives of those living in the late 19th century.
They both wear the same formal clothing, don’t have phones, a computer or a television.
A writer, Sarah pens her historical fiction by filling up notebooks in longhand using a fountain pen. Their home is as close to a replica of the Victorian era as it can be, with the mattress they sleep on sewn by Sarah, and a huge iron wood-burning stove that dominates their kitchen.
In the evenings, they read books with light from lamps or replica ancient light bulbs.
12. Kaz James, The Human Dog
If you have ever thought that your dog has a better life than you do, why not become one?
Thirty-seven-year-old Kaz James from Salford, Greater Manchester eats his meals out of a dog bowl, often barks, and is said to lick and bite his friends!
A ‘human pup’, he claims to have felt like a dog since he was a child, giving in to his pup persona in his late teens.
By day he is Kaz the store manager, but by night he is Kaz the human pup who wears a customized £2,000 fur suit, carries items in his teeth and snacks on Bonios!
With help from an online ‘pup play’ community and open-minded friends, he feels he can finally be himself.
As an owner of two human pups, he says he never really felt like a human, and is thrilled to be able to express himself without judgement from others.
Eating out at a restaurant, however, makes him feel uncomfortable. He doesn’t like eating at a table either, preferring his alternative dog bowl.
And just like the canine variety, human pups like their stomachs being rubbed, ears tickled and chew toys.
11. Chloe Jennings-White, The Woman Who WANTS to Live in a Wheelchair
Consider spending your life in a wheelchair, full-time. It’s not something most of us would do by choice, but for Chloe Jennings-White, living permanently in a wheelchair would be a dream come true.
A healthy, happy research scientist, the 58-year-old, West Bountiful, Utah-local has a Ph.D in Chemistry, lives in a beautiful home and is happily married.
She enjoys skiing and clearly doesn’t lack intelligence, but dreams of one day becoming permanently paralyzed!
It may not make any sense to some people, but to Jennings-White it is the perfect solution to a psychological condition she suffers from.
Diagnosed with Body Integrity Identity Disorder or BID in 2008, she refuses to accept the fact she has working legs, preferring instead to use a wheelchair.
Jennings-White believes she wasn’t meant to have working legs and was always jealous of disabled children and envious of her aunt who required leg braces following an accident.
Having felt this way since the age of 4, she tried to paralyze herself at 9, after riding her bike off a stage. Her attempt failed and she was just left wondering why she was the way she was.
Pushing herself to the limit on her skis, Jennings-White participates in any activity that might result in her becoming a paraplegic. Doing so, brings her a sense of relief from the anxiety caused by the disorder.
Her only hope of permanent loss of her lower limbs, other than an accident, is a US $25,000 surgery.
To most this would seem extreme, but to Jennings-White it would mean she is no longer a fraud and can legitimately use her beloved wheelchair.
10. White German Couple Identify as Black
A white couple have taken their obsession with being black to the extreme, injecting themselves with Melanotan, a synthetic hormone, to darken the skin.
The delusional pair, Martina Big and Michael Eurwen of Germany, identify as black and say doctors have told them their future children will be born black.
After encouragement from one of her Kenyan friends, Big even traveled to Kenya to be baptized as a ‘real African woman’.
They baffled interviewers of This Morning, when they claimed that after their hormone treatment their DNA would be changed!
Fans of the show questioned the legitimacy of the couple’s claims, saying no amount of cosmetic changes would affect their genetics, and others joked that if tanning injections made a person black, then a glass of water would make a person fireproof!
This is not the first time a white person has claimed to be black, and no doubt it won’t be the last.
9. Mr Broccoli
If you’re going to dress up and identify as your favorite vegetable, don’t do it in front of Good Morning Britain’s Piers Morgan and millions of viewers.
Branded an ‘idiot’ by Piers and his co-host Susanna Reid, Mr Broccoli was trying to make a very serious point about veganism but failed due to his comical appearance.
At the time, Piers said, although Mr Broccoli had the right message, his method of delivery is what had irked him the most.
Asked if he practiced what he preached when it came to the environment, he replied ‘No, I’m just a broccoli’.
He gave the same response when asked several additional questions, pertaining to his knowledge of veganism, including the science behind meat-eating and the effectiveness of plant-based diets.
The interview concluded when Mr Broccoli took a banana out of his pocket, pretending to use it as a telephone. Piers said enough was enough and the vegan activist was ordered off the set.
Instead of getting his message across, he ended up making people think that all vegans are twats.
8. Ja Du, A “Transracial”
Tampa resident Ja Du, formerly known as Adam, now identifies as Filipino, despite being born white.
Describing himself as ‘transracial’, Ja Du came to the realization as a young child that although he had been born one race, he identified more with another.
For as long as he could remember he had been drawn to the country’s food and traditions after watching news station WTSP.
No other channels drew his interest as much, and he spent years learning about Filipino life.
Their culture intrigued him to the point that he wanted to be Filipino, so he changed his name and purchased a purple Tuk Tuk.
He says he felt at home in the culture, like he’s in his own skin, and hoped that people would realize he was sincere about his new identity.
Said to be ridiculing the real issues about race and gender faced by people every day, Ja Du has received a deluge of criticism on social media, one saying it smacks of white privilege in the worst way.
7. A Japanese Jesus Christ
Rumor has it he was going to make his return to earth one day, but it seems we may have missed it.
An eccentric politician, Matayoshi Mitsuo, believes he is the second coming of Jesus Christ, and worse still, he’s taking steps to legitimize it.
Firstly, he needs to be appointed the Prime Minister of Japan, reforming Japanese society and then, according to his plan, the United Nations will offer him the honor of General Secretary.
Matayoshi Jesus, as he will then be known, will reign over the whole world, both from a religious perspective and a political one.
Not surprisingly, he has entered many elections and lost, with campaign slogans urging his opponents to commit suicide.
Born in Ginowan on February 5, 1944, Matayoshi is a graduate of Chuo University in Tokyo and a trained preacher of a Protestant sect. His life as a preacher has seen him develop several Christianity concepts, strongly influenced by Eschatology.
In 1997, he established the World Economic Community Party, with the major drawcard, the fact that he is the God and Christ.
At 73-years-old and with delusions of grandeur, it can only be hoped that Matayoshi’s attempts at power are never realized.
6. An Adult Baby
An adult baby? We thought we’d heard it all, but obviously not.
Imagine waking from your nightly slumber, dressed in a playsuit complete with napkin, in a giant crib.
This is the reality of Thornton, a 20-year-old man who lives part of his life as a baby.
Every morning, his ‘mommy’ wakes him and feeds him. He then changes into adult clothes and leaves the house for the day. Upon his return, he reverts back to his baby persona, spending his time playing with Lego, his collection of stuffed toys, and eating from his giant highchair.
You’re probably thinking, how ridiculous, but the reason behind Thornton’s sudden desire to become a baby, is really quite heartbreaking.
Abused as a teenager, he started wetting the bed at night and had to wear diapers. He liked the comfort that wearing the diapers gave him and began day wetting as well.
Thornton now has a woman caring for him, who is not his mother, but his roommate Sandra Diaz. She voluntarily cares for him and says she loves him like he is her favorite nephew.
On a disability benefit, following an accident at work, he is said to suffer from infantilism.
The condition provides him with the means to escape his abusive childhood.
In 2000 he started a website for other adult babies, and it appears he is not the only one.
His website helps ‘babies’ to find a ‘mommy’ or a ‘daddy’ keen to look after them, similar to a fostering system, but for adults.
5. Turning the clock back
A Dutch positivity guru has taken his passion for all things positive to new heights, requesting that an Arnhem court legally change his age.
Unhappy with his escalating age, 70-year-old Emile Ratelband is battling to make himself 20 years younger on the grounds that his age is proving an obstacle on a dating app.
Said to not feel his age, Ratelband compared his wish to alter his age to those who identify as transgender!
Born in 1949, he has asked for his birth date to be changed to 1969, reflecting his emotional state and helping him to find both new employment and a new love life.
As a 70-year-old, Ratelband says his options are limited. He can’t buy a new house, or drive a new car, and Tinder dates are non-existent.
Although doctors had told him he had the body of a 45-year-old man, the court judge refused to grant his wish, saying changing his age, was a whole different ball game to changing a person’s gender.
He said there were no provisions in the law for changing birth dates, and no legal basis for doing so.
Not content with the judge’s decision, Ratelband is prepared to renounce his right to a pension, all in the hope of securing himself a new partner.
Seems a little extreme really.
4. Nano, The Norwegian Woman/Cat
Cats have the purrrrfect life, don’t they? They sleep all day, party all night, and pretty much run the house. But would you really want to be one?
Our feline friends don’t have to get up in the morning, can follow the sunshine around the house, tantalize the neighbor’s dog and claw the kids when they desire.
What’s not to like?
Twenty-year-old Norwegian woman, Nano realized she was born into the wrong body, when she was just 16. She adopted feline mannerisms and has lived as a cat for the past four years.
Footage viewed over 100,000 times on YouTube has Nano revealing she has superior hearing and sight, hates water and can communicate by meowing.
Her sensitive hearing was put to the test when walking through Oslo’s central station with a presenter, telling them she could hear keys clinking in pockets, people with ice under their shoes, and suitcases rolling along the ground.
Nano is then seen to stop dead in her tracks and start to hiss, as she senses there is a dog close by. How the presenter holds it together at this point, we will never know, but Nano says, even though her psychologist believes she will grow out of it, she has no interest in ever living as a human.
3. Heidrun Barth, the human mermaid
A mum who prefers to live her life as a mermaid is disappointed that she can’t use public swimming pools with her tail.
Heidrun Barth of Saxonia in Germany claims she was born in the wrong body and is not human, but a mermaid.
Banned from using public swimming pools for fear her tail will take out another swimmer’s eye, Barth spends her free time swimming in lakes and posing on beaches in her £1,400 custom-made Ariel tail.
Considered a health and safety concern, the 41-year-old bookbinders’ choice of swimming attire is unique, but she promised to respect other people’s space.
Her promises have proven useless and Barth has been banished to the shores of natural swimming holes instead.
Barth’s obsession began as a young child who fell in love with The Little Mermaid’s Ariel, and she dreams of one day owning a house by the sea with its very own pool
She has red hair like Ariel, loves being in the water and can’t imagine living her life any other way. Barth has even attended a special mermaid course with her children, who have all taken an interest in her unusual beach attire.
In her spare time Barth sells custom-made sequined tails for other mermaid enthusiasts and performs for audiences, including children.
2. Dragon Lady Eva Tiamat Baphoment Medusa
For one reason or another, many people turn to plastic surgery to either enhance their looks or fix a medical issue, but one pre-operative transgender woman has taken her desire for change to the extreme!
Unhappy with her appearance, Dragon Lady Eva Tiamat Baphoment Medusa turned to a body modification artist so she could look more like a rattlesnake.
Over the last 20 years, Tiamat’s procedures have included having her ears cut off, her nose shaved, horns implanted, eyebrow dome implants, a forked tongue, fangs, and scales tattooed all over her body.
The dramatic modifications to her body have cost her around US $60,000 so far, and also include body piercings from top to toe, and the whites of her eyes dyed green, resembling those of the reptile she dreams of one day becoming.
Tiamat’s belief that she was raised by Western Diamondback rattlesnakes after being abandoned as a young boy, have fueled her desire for this disturbing transformation.
Although born to a human mother in the Phoenix area, she says her choice to transform into a snake is in honor of her reptilian parents.
Considered a body modification extremist, Tiamat no longer looks human. Through a series of bizarre and, no doubt, painful procedures, she has managed to escape the confines of the human body.
1. Jareth Nebula, The Alien
If you thought that extra-terrestrials were just a myth, you might need to think again. A former transgender man, Jareth Nebula now identifies as one, abet genderless.
Looking for all the world like a teenage girl with a penchant for piercings and colored hair, Nebula was formerly a woman, but decided to transition to a man in their late 20’s.
After undergoing hormone replacement treatment and having their breasts remove, Nebula still didn’t feel they were in the right body and decided on a more radical option – life as an alien.
Not male or female, in fact, not even human, Nebula decided they were simply ‘otherworldly’.
Stuck in a human body, they have revealed they suffer from a condition called EDS (Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome), a rare condition that affects connective tissues, giving Nebula both stretchy skin and extended mobility range.
Their joints can easily be disconnected, and the condition can leave them in a lot of pain.
Unable to understand what a genderless alien even means; Nebula’s family still see them as a trans man.
With a huge circuit board tattooed on their face, no nipples, 78 stars tattooed all over their body and a combination of neon, gothic, and pastel clothing, Nebula’s desires are simple – they just want to be accepted.
Bored with your appearance? Feel uncomfortable in your own skin? Perhaps you’d rather live your life as an adult baby, maybe a genderless alien or a human reptile. Today your options are only limited by your imagination it would seem, oh and the reaction of your friends and family! Also, check out our other cool stuff showing up on screen right now. See you next time!