Finding a Label that Fits

Let’s talk about labels for a moment, my friends.
I used to hate labels. I felt that labels boxed me into a neat little package that society could use to make instant judgments about me without taking the time to get to know the real me. That made me angry. Tell you what – I used to have a real problem with labels.
Until I figured out that it wasn’t the labels that were the problem. It was the fact that I wasn’t the one choosing my own label.
Don’t try to define me. I am the only one who can define myself. I get to choose my own label.
That realization changed the way I look at labels. I want one now.
But how does one pick a label?
I have a few labels in mind that I like, and several that I can eliminate immediately. I’m not a femme. I don’t feel like boi is a perfect fit. I like butch but I don’t think I’m quite that awesome.
 
Right now, I’m trying on “soft butch” for size. I like it. I think it fits. If that label turns out to be ill-fitting, I can easily return it and try on another. I don’t know which label I’ll go with, but I do know that I’m free to pick my own and to swap it out with another whenever I feel like it, or even continue on with my previously label-less existence.
I want a label that fits, though. I’m taking my time to make sure I choose one that fits. I’m not sure which label it will be, but I do know one thing for sure – I love the Hautebutch label.
I got a HB shirt this week. It was fancy, yo. My shirt came with those little clear bobby pin things holding the sleeves in place. My shirt had strip of plastic to hold the collar’s shape. The buttons were thicker than I had imagined. I have a thing for buttons, fam. I thought they would be nice but I was not anticipating the luxurious feeling of the solidness of those black buttons.
The feeling that I got from undoing all those protective things put into place with such care is inexplicable. It was more than just getting a shirt in the mail. More than getting a new article of clothing to dress up in. More than those neat, perfect lines of black stitching.
I unfolded my shirt, held it up, and took a long look at that Hautebutch label.
 
 
I knew right then that no, I have not picked from soft butch, androgynous, stem, and all the rest, but I do know that I have found one perfect label for me:

 
What's your label? Do you have one? Let us know how you self-identify. And help me out here, yeah? How did you choose your label?