college try

 

Well...I gave it the 'ol "college try". This pic is a few months back before the facial hair became a "problem". Last December, while out on a short OakTeam run, I cut myself shaving and decided to give my chin a break for a while. After a month or two, I thought "hey!"..."what the Hey!"..."let's go the whole year lettin' that mess grow on my chinny chin chin, looking dumb as shit and scaring people away even more than I usually do". A year goes by in a flash, right? I should be able to withstand the thing poking me in the chest when I look down or jamming me in the throat in the middle of the night. It got at least twice this long, to the point that it could touch beyond the tip on my nose. I could look down and see it. It was finally put in order by my wife who braided it into a nice little weapon. I've worn it like that for the last month or so until today when I took out the braids to dye it. Yuck! what'a mess! I got to thinking about the original plan of having a raffle at my birthday show Christmas night to give away the right to buzz it off. I looked at the hair in the sink as I combed it out. "This thing AIN'T gonna make it that long!" I thought. I mean, you're talking about 5 more months of discomfort and shedding and braiding and getting poked and dying it and looking stupid(er). I sat the dye down at that point and knew it had to go. I realized the relief of failure would be greater than the glory of winning. The $10 hair buzzing shears from Dollar General were already plugger in. All I had to do was pick'm up, flip the switch and apply to face. The first swipe went across the bottom of my chin. Hair the length of my fist suddenly floated into the toilet and there it lay. OK...it's done. Finish it off...and so I did. I left just the "soul patch" plus a little south of that. I was only slightly disappointed. 8 months is a long time. I gave it all I cared to give it. Isn't that what the "college try" is? Do it until you don't give a shit anymore?