After four days of not shaving, the scratchy, scruffy feeling begins to turn to soft and fuzzy. So it was tempting this morning to let it go a little longer, to see what the next stage might be. In my nearly sixty years, I’ve never worn a beard or a mustache, even though I was alive all the way through the 1970s. In fact, I was in my twenties during the entire decade and still shaved every day, or nearly. You’d think I’d be tempted to join the prevailing crowd, but I couldn’t stand the feeling on day one of not shaving, so I never got to day two.

Besides, back then I actually did care what I looked like, for all the good that little bit of vanity ever did me.

Anyway, I shaved it all off this morning, and the smoothness felt even better than the fuzziness. Maybe some day I’ll get to the point where I want to try growing a snowy beard to match the hair on my head. Or maybe I’ll just get so lazy that I won’t want to shave at all. Either way, it’s a lifestyle change I’m not quite ready for just yet.