I feel I need to spread a the message of this pressing topic to all males who have access to this post. In less than a week it will be the first day of November otherwise known as “No shave November”. I know the more popular thing to do would be to continue to shave or to wait for “Manuary”. But I’d like to encourage all of you to participate in both “no shave November” and “Manuary”. This world needs more facial hair in it, and I’m not talking about any of this skinny chin strap shit, we need more manly beards on your faces. Think of all the good you’d be doing for not only man kind but also for the environment, by not shaving. 

Retroly Whiskered Now

I’m sure we all remember the past, or can look back using the internet to find out all about the mens history of facial hair. Heck!, just google The Beatles! It seems to me that having lived in and traveled to the bigger metropolis’ of the USA has afforded me a vantage of watching this craze with hair on the face grow. I don’t think it’s in full swing nor to be swallowed by manscaping( just means a beard neater than my own, or stylized some way trimmed and neat.) or clean shaven. it’s not like the past trends of beards a polar shift from the 60’s-70’s. Todays man the hair is the bond, and topic, not anti-governmental actions or governmental political party if you look back even farther. Look at men with beards today you can see the only level field is their beard. The Beard is simply just at trend that via the interwebs have connected a vast not so pop POPCulture, with all types of Merchandise for or to apply if you need to sport a Beard for the evening. I don’t think this was so back in the day of Rasputin. 

For the Last couple of years i’ve grown and shaved my beard. Today it’s at it’s longest. They(all my beard forms) have all caused my life to change at some point or changed my perspective on how others view me and exactly what they see. I would say that my 1st in 06 was 1inch before i heard quarreling from management. I left the job moved to NYC, and YES!, I can grow out my beard. I was a puppeteer and my face wasn’t important. So, I grew it. Did the handle bar moustache. The image was kind of iconic(just wait till my face appears). I used to joke with my friends about the anal bleaching and manscaping that was always in the back ground of “MY” “gay culture”. I stayed away from that and just lingered with those who accepted my hairiness, gay straight, didn’t matter.

In 2010 Aug 27th I gave it up, with a prayer to a god i didn’t know saying i wouldn’t cut my hair for a year, protect, guide and strengthen me.  Back in Maryland where bear culture and hairyness in homosexuals was and has been few and far between.  Most men where ready made family oriented men who would not have said hi to me and my fem natured hairiness a year ago now nodded at my beard. They would love to touch it. fondle it and love the feel of it.  meet me in public; out of the question.  Men who rode hogs and choppers looked then grunted or nudged approval.  Whisker Wars on my Facebook wall. The names I was called was put in an earlier blog. It was after a year, didn’t think cutting the beard was good form, I gave the contract another year. I read Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin and a mini awaking came through. 

In the reading I noticed something that I don’t really think he wrote into the book, maybe because my own experiences I’m not sure. The facial hair folk where all kinda anti main stream main stream if that makes any sense. The tale is placed in San Francisco, and anything anti anti always seems to sprout out of their well of hope for equality.  It was not a natural cause where you go hiking in the woods like John Muir and come back with a beard because you didn’t want to pack the accoutrements of shaving. It was very much intended to be separate from, as we would call it today the 1%. Today the beard is not really a declaration of mans separation from a sect or a small statement of Party Fashion that has a trickle down.  The Beard culture of today is more than a trend, it’s a large scale social result of men being happy being men.  This is just my experience mind you and all a reaction to this article.  

With projects like Movember, Mustaches for Kids,  No-Shave November, and Novembeard the list is just getting started. Men are using their whiskers to socialize, donate, and educate. (we are also using them to other advantages as well) With projects like these in an increasing growth of men discussing Decembeard and Manuary, I hardly think this is going to be just a over when she finishes her singing. All this, all around just the beard. Not some stand up to the power and discuss the Bourgeoisie and Proletariat, or the passing a joint while peacefully sitting at a love in; It’s just all about the beard. Not the man or his ideals. It’s kinda nice, the whole “beards are for the undesirable” thought was an ancient Egypt! Hopefully we can all say good bye to the stigmas of poverty, witchery, and anarchy when it comes to the beard. If you don’t trust my view, take a look at In beards we trust, one of many great sources from Howstuffworks.com! 

Manuary?

The other day my boyfriend was talking about his beard when he said, “Speaking of body hair, Manuary is coming up.” Then he looked at me. I had never heard of Manuary, but I assumed it was something like No Shave November. So I asked and he said, “It’s when girls grow out their body hair.” I responded, “Shouldn’t it be called Womanuary then?” And he replied, “No, because they look like men.”

I was offended by this statement… I never shave anything and he knows that. Is he saying I look like a man because of my hair? Not only that, he is implying it is manly to have body hair, when in reality it is completely natural for woman to have body hair, that’s why it grows, and it is only society’s brainwashing by the media that has led them to believe it is unappealing. I told him all this and said woman should be able to do whatever they want with their bodies without being compared to a man or judged, no matter what month it is. 

He said i was being extreme and a crazy feminist (as if being a feminist is a bad thing) and a bitch.  
And his dad, who was sitting there listening, backed him up completely, and said I was over reacting.
I was a little more than annoyed.