Hi,
I’m suspecting that this post will be a late one. After school activities have swapped to the end of the week, so my usual writing time will be delayed. Not that I mind, it gets Child 2.0 and I out of the house, and while he’s doing his activity, I can have a cup of tea and a think.
I’m hoping the tuck shop will be selling bright ideas and inspiration, as I’m a bit short on both at the mo 😉 I think it might have to be just a flapjack, mind you.
Chams Poster
In terms of good news, the A3 signs I created* and ordered for Chams have arrived all the way from Italy (did you bring them, Sue? 😉). I’m hoping one fits nicely near the stairs for new visitors.
While something bigger might have been more visible, I’m not sure it would have fitted in the space and I wouldn’t want to block the stairs for safety reasons. That and it’s touch and go up the stairs in certain shoes 😁
( * Funny in that I can’t bring myself to say designed, any more than describing blogging as writing. ).
If you’ve been to the Chams web site any time in the last umpteen years, you’ll recognoise the glittery logo and the coffee cup. Okay, so Chams is there for all trans folk – from non-binary, trans masc, trans femme, genderqueer, and genderfluid people – so the Choose Happy sign may feel, well, not 100% inclusive. Or more accurately, not 100% representative of our attendees, but this is probably me overthinking things. Thank you as yet undiagnosed ADHD neurospiciness 🙃
But 🙂I do think there’s an element of truth on that mug. I’m fairly sure we don’t get to choose who we are. What we do have a choice about, however, is trying to embrace it and, perhaps, make peace with it too. Perhaps it’s one thing to tolerate something about yourself, and possibly quite another to fully accept it. So yeah, choosing to try to be happy. To attempt to accept who you are, the cards Fate has dealt you, and to make the best of it; perhaps that’s all any of us can do.
Personal
Some new (to me) shoes arrived this week, so they’ll need a wee stretch and breaking in before Chams on Thursday. Which reminds me, this week also has a dewookification appointment. Short term pain for long term gain. I shall do my best to enjoy the pampering experience and also a good chat with the beauty therapist.
Oh, and I’ve noticed a drop-off in my news reading. I used to have an subscription to the Guardian, but after a series of TERFy articles at the weekends, I found myself thinking ‘do I want to pay for content that upsets me, is often inaccurate, and targets myself, friends, and family?’. So I didn’t renew and as such the app stopped working. Given that, I check the site at lunch and that’s about it.
TBH, this is as well as reducing – or more accurately narrowing – the filters I have to collect trans related news, well, I’m finding it better not to know. I just end up frustrated with the cr*p written by uninformed and/or hostile individuals about trans people. Part of me feels I should be more informed, but then I think about the phrase Mark Twain didn’t say about the news 😉
Still, the weekend beckons, it’s a shorter working week soon, and a visit to Chams.
L x
If your fed up with the Guardian, perhaps you should consider Lord Gnomes mighty Organ, also know as Private Eye, that have a habit of doing stories that nobody else with touch with a barge pole. Unlike a lot of news organs they are not biased towards any polticial party
Perhaps that’s a better choice, Anon. That or Queer AF, who release a weekly newsletter of inclusive journalism.
As to Lord Gnome and his organ, FWIW, I’ve always enjoyed the Eye’s dedication to holding power to account: corporate, governmental, or otherwise. All that and it’s funny as too.
Posters, that sounds fab !
We don’t seem to do badly at attracting new people, would be interesting to know how most do
Izzy x
Good to see you the other night, Izzy.
A good question about how folk find us. I wonder if I can update the contact form to ask that? Of the folk I remember to ask, most seem to use a search engine, or they’ve been told about us. There latter being via GPs, mental health professionals, or dressing services. Oh, and some burk who runs YATGB 😉