A little while ago, I stopped shaving. I had the flu for about five days, and already had a five-day shadow developed when that began. Then with a lack of social engagements, I decided to let it keep growing, lest I lose such a generous head start that only began because I was too lazy when I was sick.
I took this picture, and it was more than three weeks without touching a razor at that point.
Aaron always keeps a neatly trimmed beard, so I asked him how he takes care of it; which direction to shave, what length to start trimming, etc. It was strange to be seeking shaving advice from someone at this point in my life. Most of the hair is around the mouth and on chin, with only an embarrassing half-dozen wires sprouting randomly from my cheeks, so it required a touch of maintenance.
For a long time, I didn’t know what to think of it, whether I liked it or not. Aaron said to me, “Sometimes, you don’t need to know”, and I went with that for a while. Maybe time would give me an answer.
Soon after, I started shaving again. It wasn’t getting any thicker, and I didn’t think I could pull it off.
I turn 30 in 11 months, and I still can’t grow a beard.
I should start by saying that I’ve wanted a piercing since late high school, either an eyebrow piercing or a tongue stud1.
For some reason though, I never seriously considered it. To me, it was like having children; one of those things you know you’d want some day, but don’t take it seriously. Then last week, I was sitting at my desk and randomly thought, “Why not?”. So I slept on it, and woke up the next day still wanting one. That’s when I decided to do it.
My biggest concern was that it wouldn’t match me. Some people with piercings look like they’re trying to overcompensate by being part of a “scene”, or by being younger (i.e. the midlife crisis, which my dad seems to be living out with three piercings last year), or it just doesn’t fit their face. The last thing I wanted to do was get something that screamed attention for the sake of it. Most people have told me that I’m a far cry from mid-life crisis age, but I’ve feeling much older lately.
So I figured that I’d rather get it at this age, than when I’m in my fifties like my dad, when it looks ridiculous. But as Tiana reminded me, it’s much less permanent than a tattoo. If I don’t like it, I can just take the piercing out with minimal scarring (as long as there are no other complications).
So I decided to get a horizontal, because I find that verticals are not really my style (and altogether too common for my tastes). The side seemed somewhat arbitrary to me, and I didn’t decide which side until I did my hair one morning and noticed that the part on my hair was on the right, and so it seemed like there was a more open space there for the piercing to fit.
I wanted a bolder look this time, since my last pair is much more subtle. Actually, they’re still my current pair, as I wear one or the other, depending on the mood.
Following the trend in most of my designs, I’m going for more contrast and stronger statements.
They didn’t sit quite correctly on my face (or most Asian faces, the sales rep told me, as we have narrow nose bridges), because they don’t have nose pieces. The frames would be too low for my face and my eyelashes would brush against the lenses, so I had to order some nose pads to add on myself, et voilà. A perfect fit.
Of note is the logo on the arms. This is the first time that I’ve seen the Versace logo like this, but further research indicates that it’s an uncommonly used alternate logo. I thought it was because the regular logo would have lines that are too fine for small representations, but that doesn’t appear to be the case, as I’ve seen it even smaller on watches and bracelets too. Which is just as well, as I wouldn’t care to wear anything with the Medusa’s head on it.
The winter storm watch continued at -14°C today. When you’re inside, the sun fools you with the warmth of its colour, until you step outside and feel the bite of the wind.
I spent an hour-and-a-half looking for various things and running errands downtown. The streets were packed, the stores were packed, and I found nothing.
So I spent a stupid amount of money on these awesome mittens at Club Monaco. I actually walked out of the store and out of the mall when I found them, for fear that I would purchase them, but alas, here they are on my hands. I had to decide between the white and black stripes, the grey and black stripes, and the flat grey ones, but since most of my clothing is neutral, I decided on the flashiest pair. The open hole for the fingers makes iPod and camera manipulation easy. They’re 100% cashmere; thin enough to wear indoors or inside your coat pocket.
So it wasn’t a total waste of a day.