Friday, April 29, 2011

Tangled in Your Hair

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"Alam mo, mas gwapo ka pag maikli yang buhok mo (You know, you'd look better with shorter hair)," Rommel told me, insisting that he drive me at once to the nearest barbershop.

I was aghast. A barbershop???? Rommel and his friends dragged me from the club the previous night and we were hanging out at his place and having lunch while still gulping down some alcoholic drink he concocted.

"Honey!!! He wanted to (gasp) chop off my golden locks!!!!" I told Vackie the next day.

"Hahaha. You should have told him to keep his hands off your hair," V said, laughing. "And that you never go to a barber. It's so ... antiquated."

 
 
Once upon a time, hair was as much as an indication of wealth and social status as it was of taste and fashion. How you dressed your hair showed who you were and who you did.

During the Roman era, women curled, twisted, and looped their hair to create elaborately arranged layers. In the 18th century courts of the European kings and queens, women and men donned elaborate wigs, mile-high coiffures and lavishly decorated curls. A complex hairstyle illustrated the wealth of the wearer as it showed he or she can afford to take the time to do his or her hair.
 
Nowadays, hair has become mainly an expression of personal identity. Women and men are experimenting with a plethora of styles that even stylists (and perhaps, even barbers too) are boggled.

All of a sudden, men in New York, Tokyo, and Paris don't want just a normal trim. Instead, they want 360 Waves, mohawks, dreadlocks, Afros and pompadours. And these are just the styles that have names. Often enough, these clever young lads crossbreed styles into hybrids to create their own personal look.



I always had a fascination with hair. In my lifetime, I have had short hair, semikalbo (nearly bald), long, curly, wavy, straight, with bangs, without bangs, and practically everything in between.

Hair allows me to play, to create a different character, a different version of me. You can be a foxy brunette one day, an edgy dark haired rock star the next, or a golden haired prince. It allows you to be anything you want to be.

But of course, everyone knows that in the gay world, the most commercial and sellable look is still the short haired clean cut one. Whether you're in Paris or Manila or LA, more than half of the population of gay guys sport this look.

So wearing your hair long can be tricky especially for someone like me. My features are not masculine. (Sigh). I am not dark skinned, hairy, heavy nor tall.

I look androgynous and the longer my hair grows, the more feminine my appearance becomes. Which in the gay world, translates to scaring potential dates away.

But … I am very stubborn. Although short hair does suit me, I refuse to change how I look just to please a guy. You'll get more men, my friends would say. But I don't need more men. I want someone who will be able to appreciate how unconventional I am.

My hair has grown longer over the past few months. I normally tie it in a ponytail so it doesn't get unruly. Yes, it is difficult to maintain. And on ordinary days, you look like shit.

But on some days, when the wind cooperates and you catch the sunlight in the right way, you just might get lucky.

 
 
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15 comments:

Ronnie said...

"You'll get more men, my friends would say. But I don't need more men. I want someone who will be able to appreciate how unconventional I am. "

- Aww, this is nice!!!

I find guys cute/hot when they 'ponytail' their long hair. Hihi.

Currently semikalbo here. :p

Nimmy said...

"There was a guy with a very fabulous look. Hair styled in a very messy but pasabog way."

Hehehe. Yan ang comment ko nung una kitang nakita. ;)

Guyrony said...

How very vain K.

;)

Spiral Prince said...

I know the feeling, Kane. Until two-three months ago, I wore my hair long, which caused quite a few arguments with the security guards in my school. I defended my hair and was usually triumphant in getting in, but there are days when I had to get it trimmed. My hair's growing longer and I'm still unsure whether to get it trimmed, given that I don't have quite masculine features just like you. But what the heck, being who we want to be trumps being who others want us to be in more ways than one!

xoxo

Eternal Wanderer... said...

ang haba ng hair!

literally :P

Anonymous said...

well i prefer guys with short hair o kaya naman semi-kalbo.. manly lang ang dating pero may binabagayan din naman ang long hair :)

Kiks said...

there shall come a time, K, when long hair will be the new in and men will just stumble over each other to get to you... and may get entangled with your hair as well.

ang mga pinoy, maaarte. sila lang ang ganyan.

R. Burnett Baker said...

I've had it long and short. I like it short 'cause I don't have to screw with it. Now, it's just "normal" length, whatever that is. But I don't worry too much about it now since the older I get the less desirable I am, and the less particular I become.... :)

Enjoy your hair! But I do like barbershops: They still fuss with the hot towel, straight razor, snip here, snap there, the buzz of the cutter, fluff of the neck brush... It's just REAL, and I feel like half a million bucks and relaxed!

Rick

Rei Mikazuki said...

Hay, I can so relate. I just had my --8-month long- long hair cut at a barbershop. Tapos, badtrip pa, ang pangit ng gupit nung hinayupak na barberong yun. I miss tuloy my stylist dun sa index malapit sa house namin before. :(

@Comment: Emotional, yeah? Actually, the last 8 months has been a rollercoaster ride of emotions for me. Seriously, I've never been this stressed and pressured like before.

Is "the search" worth the trouble, stress, and drama that will unfold? I think yeah, if it means it will complete a part of me, then I'm willing to take part in such act. :)

Just kidding, I still don't know, honestly. My thinking's really clouded right now, and it would not be wise to make a decision. Sigh.

Désolé Boy said...

I'm sporting a long hair now and I think I'm cutting it short next week myself.
.
.
By the way, is this really all about hair Kane?

V1nC3 said...

The sun is always out nowadays! So, just whip your I guess, back and forth. =)

Alter said...

no way. i like your hair. when your hair first saw me, it said, "Oh i know that look. you want yours fashioned after me."

I said politely, "thank you mr. kane's hair. you're so pretty but i'm not sure i can pull it off the way kane could."

haha

gillboard said...

But … I am very stubborn. Although short hair does suit me, I refuse to change how I look just to please a guy. You'll get more men, my friends would say. But I don't need more men. I want someone who will be able to appreciate how unconventional I am.

-words of wisdom only taken away from kane. :)

Raft3r said...

hehe
a blog post about one's hair
astig!

Bruce Kho said...

listen to friends especially when it hurts the most. had it been brought up in a different manner, you would have admitted the difficulty of managing your long tresses. not everyone can bring a fabio :)