This weekend I'm running in the
Brighton Half-Marathon as a result of a crazy moment last year when I
thought that setting myself some challenges might be good for my
soul.
Of course having been forced to train
in bitter winter temperatures and against icy on-shore winds; the
half-marathon now a mere day away, the idea of running 13.2 miles on
Sunday for a healthy soul leaves me thinking that more sedate
challenges in the future might suffice.
I'm running as part of the Bear-Patrol
team, a community fundraising group who raise money for the Sussex
Beacon, an HIV inpatient unit and specialist service provision.
Hanging out with gay “Bears” apparently makes me a “Beaver”.
In
the post 'The lesbian checklist', I described how I had failed many
of the prerequisites of a “lesbian” label: no ownership of a
checked shirt, no knowledge of how to get a BBQ going, the
Channel
4 ‘Gay-O-Meter’ mocking me as a “straight acting girl”, the
'femme test' at Pride failing me as “Oh dear”. Now
I have been christened with a new label which is as butch as they
come.
Beavers
are adept at DIY after all, capable of building their own 'lodge' and
delux swimming pool! Their skills with building materials as renowned
as a butch lesbian!
Labels
can feel somewhat of a burden, with stereotypes whether we like them
or not giving us plenty of fodder to jest and joke at each other with
amongst our LGBT peers, especially when we don't fit them.
As
I am determined to finish the course and not fail for the team tomorrow or my
soul, being a 'Beaver' that's butch without the accompanying
stereotype skills necessary, might just be a label I'm successful at!
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