Hairy

[Anchorite]

I am a hairy man. I am also handsome because my mum and dad say I am, so it must be true.

Practically every instance of an 'attractive' man depicted in the media is one of hairlessness, especially in the torso (chest and back) and limbs (arms and legs) area. I know that there's nothing 'wrong' with being hairy, but I do wonder whether the need to depict men as hairless is an intentional bias in favour of encouraging men to shave as much body hair as possible. When I was married, my wife didn't seem to mind having a hirsute husband. In fact I have good reason to believe that she actually preferred this, but my theory is that the insecure possessiveness inherent in monogamy is akin to a human-pet relationship and a desire to feel comfort in 'cuteness', such as stroking fur. Not solely, of course, but a factor that I can't rule out. (My positronic brain awareness reduced marriage as a social obligation designed to validate the necessity of procreation, and I did my job, whilst suppressing a lifelong urge to self-destruct and/or live in meaningless anchoritude and pray for a lonely death in solitude.) Anyway, back in the world of the living, (I cannot tell, and care little, whether I verifiably exist or not) I vaguely recall writing some vain nonsense about being an 'ape-man' trapped in the consciousness of a non-descript overpopulated interglacial homo sapien-dominated biome.

I am a hairy man. I am also handsome because my mum and dad say I am, so it must be true.

A

 

[Butterfly]

Personally body hair doesn’t bother me. Most men have hair naturally. My first partner was quite lucky. He naturally only had hair on his legs and pubic region. Everyone I have been with since have had body hair in various places. I know the kind of ads you mean. But equally I have seen men (and I mean realllllly hairy) post videos about their daily body hair care routines.

I don’t think most women are bothered. It’s a part of life.

 

[Anchorite]

Thank you for your insight. 🙂

I think my paranoia regarding this stems from 'unspoken' assumptions about hygiene and cleanliness, which I can appreciate can be just as hard for women/girls as much as men/boys, for similar yet different regions. I do find it hard to prioritise hygiene perhaps as much as others do, and I kind of accept that because I don't shower and bathe myself in chemicals every day, I am likely shunned as a kind of stereotypical 'dirty old man' - though this is mainly due to my appallingly low self-esteem, incipient narcissism (in the 'classic' sense of the word, referring to admiring myself more than others - not specifically to the detriment of others, but more so because I have tried to adapt not to care about what others think) and genuine advertising industry-induced paranoia.
I even find myself feeling more of an affinity with people of either sex (I'm bisexual) who are hairy (visible or private) because I twist my mind into contortions that convince me that hairy people are uglier and to be avoided. I try to resist this, but life as it is doesn't make it easy to discard my fear as delusional and irrational. I sweat a lot and probably do stink more as a result, but I am a poor working class 'geeza' with a massive, socially-informed inferiority complex that I require therapy to overcome anyway, and I try to resist the temptation to just give in and live - as I joke with my kids - like 'Mr Twit'. 😅

A