I’m Right, You’re Wrong

by Marinka on December 14, 2010

It’s time, once again, for I’m Right, You’re Wrong! Yay!

First, I’d like to give a shout out for my friend Kevin, who recently did his own version of this and very rudely improved on it. Check out his post, Me Writer, You Wronger.

Second, this installment of I’m Right, You’re Wrong, is a little sensitive.

So for the first time ever, I’m offering anonymity. I bet you can’t see through it.

Disagreement: Should women in cold climates shave their legs/under their arms in the winter?

Disagreers: Anonomarinka and Western Society

Position One: It’s cold. My skin is dry. I wear tights and pants and long sleeves. No one can see my underarm and leg hair. Let me be. Please, dear Lord, let me be.

Position Two, paraphrased: HAVING UNDERARM HAIR IS DISGUSTING! HAVING HAIR ON YOUR LEGS IS MASCULINE! If your only standard for whether you groom yourself or not is if other people see it, it’s safe to assume that you shit in the kitchen sink when no one’s around. YOUR POOR HUSBAND! YOU’RE PROBABLY A LESBIAN! And not a lipstick lesbian, either.

So?

Do you shave in the winter months?

And do you judge women who don’t?

One year ago ...

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{ 72 comments… read them below or add one }

Issa
Twitter:
December 14, 2010 at 6:59 pm

I shave my underarms every day. I can’t stand to not.

But I can go at least a week, sometimes two in between shaving my legs in the winter. First? I live in the land of snow. And dryness. And my skin is already falling off because it’s so freaking dry. I just can’t shave that often. Even though, I really should every day.

That is all.

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Roxanne December 14, 2010 at 7:04 pm

I shave under my armpits almost every day, just because I don’t like the feeling of hair under there. I shave my legs whenever THEY WILL BE SEEN BY OTHERS. And sometimes not even then.

I’ll be as hairy as I please. But maybe that’s why I’m divorced C.C

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MFA Mama
Twitter:
December 14, 2010 at 7:04 pm

Screw shaving in the winter!

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lisa adams
Twitter:
December 14, 2010 at 7:09 pm

That would be a YES and YES. waxing/shaving year-round. Pedicures, too. I do it as much for me as for my husband… Hate hair any day of the year and love seeing pretty toes in the shower. Plus, once you hit menopause you will be stripping like an exotic dancer at all hours of the day and night, so you won’t be able to hide your hairy parts anymore.

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Kim
Twitter:
December 14, 2010 at 7:11 pm

I shave every other day whether I need to or not. I guess it’s a thing with me, I don’t feel clean if I don’t.

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Nona
Twitter:
December 14, 2010 at 7:13 pm

I shave in the winter, but just because it bugs me. But to each her own. If this anonymous woman wants to rock the Chewbacca look in the frigid months, rock on.

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K-Line December 14, 2010 at 7:15 pm

I never shave my legs (like 5 times a year). Note: I have blond leg hair and I don’t care about it. I shave my armpits once or twice a month.

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Anathema December 14, 2010 at 7:17 pm

Armpits get shaved regularly, for comfort. Legs get shaved for special occasions. I can use every ounce of extra insulation I can get, and they are not that bad at their worst. They never get to masculine – maybe 12 year old boy, but definitely NOT masculine. This rapidly changes if I have cause to wear pantyhose though.

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Melissa
Twitter:
December 14, 2010 at 7:18 pm

I shave in the winter if someone is going to see my legs or armpits. Which, I am single and not having sex at the time, so no thanks. I will be a chubakka.

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Cheryl
Twitter:
December 14, 2010 at 7:25 pm

My 2 sisters and I don’t shave. I’m pretty hairless; they’ve got abundance. Quite frankly, I’m jealous of their pit and leg tresses.

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Robyn December 14, 2010 at 7:35 pm

i shave my legs and pits in the summer only. then again…i’m a happily partnered lesbian mama.

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Allyson December 14, 2010 at 7:49 pm

I shave as often in the winter months as I do in the summer months.

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Amelia December 14, 2010 at 8:11 pm

I have huge mental issues with body hair and I shave my legs, arms, part of downthere and armpits DAILY. I feel DIRTY if I don’t. But I’m aware of my lunacy and don’t judge others for not doing it. For god’s sake though, shave your toes if you wear sandles!

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Always Home and Uncool
Twitter:
December 14, 2010 at 8:33 pm

I never shave my arms and legs and it sure doesn’t makes me feel any warmer in the winter. Maybe if I actually wore clothes once in a while …

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Keyona
Twitter:
December 14, 2010 at 9:21 pm

I shave under my arms 1-2 times a week. I haven’t shaved my legs since about September and don’t plan to anytime soon. I try not to judge but I don’t understand how anyone could deal with a jungle under their arms.

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deborah l quinn
Twitter:
December 14, 2010 at 9:33 pm

shaving legs in winter unless you’re planning for weeks on the beach at St Bart in which case screw you and your leg hair–strikes me as a waste of time. Tights, tights, tights. And pants. And it’s a bazillion degrees below zero outside right now so who cares if your legs are a bit…downy. Underarms? Out of pity for the lads and lassies in my yoga classes, I shave them…when I remember.
Of course, I’ve been married for more than a decade now, so being all smooth shaven and shiny isn’t quite so much an issue for us…sex has become more a matter of “are you awake” and not “have you waxed?”
sigh

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Leila
Twitter:
May 26, 2011 at 9:54 am

Ditto. I shave regularly in the summer, but in the winter? It’s a waste of time and water in the shower. Every now and then I’ll have a go so I don’t go all Sasquatch on the hubby, but please, once it’s pants and leggings weather, that stuff gets put on the back burner of things to do.

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Aly December 14, 2010 at 9:39 pm

Hmmmm . . . cracked, itchy winter skin vs. a little bit of hair growth??? Not a tough choice for me. In the winter, the legs only get shaved when they’re going to be seen. And by the way, unshaven does NOT mean un-groomed! I still shower, for pete’s sake!

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kiki
Twitter:
December 14, 2010 at 9:58 pm

pits? yes. legs? not so much. my skin gets super-dry in winter, even with the slathering of lotion. if it’s a no-sock day, i’ll shave to mid-calf just in case i’ll be crossing my legs and showing skin. such a great topic. thanks for sharing, Marinka. happy shaving…or not.

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Ann's Rants
Twitter:
December 14, 2010 at 10:12 pm

You went to Barnard didn’t you. Or was it Bryn Mawr.

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The Lady AshEfield December 15, 2010 at 11:47 am

or was it Smith? btw/ i could use some shelving- wanna swing by?

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I'm Nate's Mom December 16, 2010 at 9:25 am

It was Wellesley, where the infamous Globe columnist Mike Barnacle called us all “unshaven feminist spinster tartlets.”

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Heidi December 14, 2010 at 10:33 pm

I only shave in winter when my husband tells me (good naturedly – is that even a word?) I am causing him to bleed when my legs touch his in bed, which is every 3-4 days. I truly have sharp man beard that grows on my legs. It sucks! Pits? When I think about it. Summer is a completely different story. Everyday for both. Can’t have 5 O’clock shadow on your legs right?

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Maria from nj December 14, 2010 at 10:36 pm

If Julia Roberts can have hairy pits, so can I. Legs on occasions only.

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amy2boys
Twitter:
December 14, 2010 at 10:45 pm

I shave in winter, but less often because of dryness. I’m not real hairy so I can go a while without seeing it, but once I can clearly see it, I have to shave it off or it makes me nuts.

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the mama bird diaries
Twitter:
December 14, 2010 at 10:49 pm

Yup, I shave. Legs and under arms. But my toe nails look horrible – jagged with chipped polish. Does that help?

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annie December 14, 2010 at 10:54 pm

I’m in the. pits – when i remember but usually weekly, and the legs – screw it camp. Hell of a bonus of the drug i’m taking? I didn’t have leg hair to shave all summer either. I LOVED it!! I’m in a cold snowy climate, i’ll take any insulation I can find. And no, I haven’t shit in the sink for eons. WTH??

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Jen December 14, 2010 at 10:56 pm

I shave my pits nearly every other day or so because having hair there makes me itchy. In the winter, unless someone is going to see my legs, I only shave them once a month or so. I only do that much so that in warmer months I’m able to restart shaving without the help of a weed wacker. I’ve never understood the argument that you should be smooth all the time for your husband/boyfriend/partner/whatever. It takes more than a little extra fuzz to scare my husband off. Maybe if I didn’t shower for a month. Maybe.

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Kristine
Twitter:
December 14, 2010 at 11:19 pm

Oh, I couldn’t take the ITCH of it all growing back in and then, you know, staying there.

As for the judging of those harrier than thou… uhm, do you prefer “hippie” or “homeless”? HA. No, I think we’ll be fine. As long as I don’t see it.

Ahem.

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Antropologa December 14, 2010 at 11:31 pm

To me this does not differ greatly by season for my legs, but then I have blonde leg hair. Maybe a couple times a month, maybe a tad more often in the summer but not a lot. And once a twice a week under my arms. Honestly I do not think anybody cares about my hair accumulation.

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dusty earth mother December 14, 2010 at 11:37 pm

You’re right. No shaving. And my leg hair is so long I can braid it.

Betcha wanted to know that.

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Glamamom
Twitter:
December 15, 2010 at 12:46 am

I had laser hair removal so you know where I stand.

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Hally December 15, 2010 at 2:35 am

I do remove the hair under my arms at least twice a week during winter. As for the legs, this happens maybe twice a month.

Now, if it wasn’t for the fact that I feel slightly embarrassed at the presence of body hair during my classes at the gym I would probably do it less often. My boyfriend has a sickening amount of body hair and so he has no rights to complain. Most of all now that the body hair also includes facial hair in the shape of a beard he refuses to get rid of!

I always find that the removal of body hair is a great way of making a seduction that much easier. “Honey, I just shaved, wanna get naked?” There really is no faster way of getting your lover’s interest 😉

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kimberly December 15, 2010 at 2:35 am

It’s called moisturizer, look into it. I shave every day, because – eew. The idea of my hairy legs rubbing with my husbands hairy legs sends a shiver and reminds me of guy on guy porn.

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The Lady AshEfield December 15, 2010 at 12:38 pm

i have loads of het girlfriends that LOVE guy on guy porn– but then again- i think they all go in for the overly muscled and shaved genre…very 80’s.
this whole obsession with being smooth- male or female- is ridiculous….imho.

signed-
The Lady AshEfield

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Kimberly December 15, 2010 at 6:34 pm

Ok, I confess. I like guy on guy porn.

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Amelia December 18, 2010 at 3:36 pm

Guy porn is hot.

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Ester Jean December 2, 2011 at 2:16 pm

seconded!!

Alicia
Twitter:
December 15, 2010 at 5:07 am

I shave my legs maybe 4 times a year, with maybe 2 of those times being during the summer. I don’t really wear things that show my legs whether it’s summer or winter, so whatev. I do LIKE the feeling of softy legs, but I’m not willing to do the task to get that.

Shave my underarms every three or four days (that is a command), year round, because I don’t like the feeling of underarm hair growing out.

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calliope December 15, 2010 at 5:58 am

I do the pits all year round because I feel like my deo doesn’t work as well if I don’t. But legs, meh. I’ll shave them in the winter if I have a gyn appointment or something where someone will see my legs (besides my husband).

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Gdot December 15, 2010 at 6:12 am

Do I judge other people? What kind of person would I be if I didn’t?? !!
Seriously people …. I really don’t think we needed the level of detail you provided.

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Marinka December 15, 2010 at 8:37 am

The kind of detail that I provided about less frequent shaving? Oh, the humanity!

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Gdot December 15, 2010 at 8:07 pm

No. You kept it free of detail …
It’s the 50 people who felt the need to give us more of a visual then necessary on their ‘shaving’. This has caused me to drink 2 bottles of cheap wine to blur my memory!….. Well one, but once I got started I thought of a few more things I could blur……

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hoodyhoo December 15, 2010 at 6:52 am

The rules are and always have been — you only have to shave it if someone’s gonna see it. That means you only have to shave in the winter if you’re planning to have the sexy-time or wear a dress for some reason.

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GrandeMocha
Twitter:
December 15, 2010 at 6:53 am

Pits shave, legs no. I ouldn’t mind haveing a werewolf to cuddle up with now that it is cold at night. Don’t think he’d mind hairy legs either.

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Alice December 15, 2010 at 9:01 am

My legs feel dry and scaly (and hairy) if I *don’t* shave. It’s exfoliating! That’s just science!

So I shave and then moisturize like crazy. I shave the armpits as well, because I’m often at the gym wearing a tank top (and pants, of course–AND PANTS) and I don’t really want to show anyone my hairy pits. Although I understand some people are into that. Which is fine!

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From Belgium December 15, 2010 at 9:28 am

The pits=yes ; legs= nope

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CSY December 15, 2010 at 10:20 am

During the summer, I shave my pits and legs REGULARLY. Winter – no…unless Hubs complains that he’s sleeping with a Yeti.

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Megan
Twitter:
December 15, 2010 at 10:32 am

I live in Florida so I shave year round. Plus it drives me crazy to have hair on my legs and pits. But I totally get why you don’t. I think it’s fine.

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Peajaye
Twitter:
December 15, 2010 at 11:02 am

Sorry, I’m getting to this post late because I spent last night plucking the hair our of my ears. (Do women get hair there as well?)

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elizabeth-flourish in progress
Twitter:
December 15, 2010 at 12:02 pm

I shave every single day. Well, there was that one time I gave birth and couldn’t waddle out of bed…my unshaved legs/pits were the great tragedy in that situation, not the sleepless nights, spit up, crying and frustration.

I’m okay with the legs, unless some lady decides to rub against me. The pits? not really acceptable, in my opinion. Ew.

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Whitney
Twitter:
December 15, 2010 at 12:02 pm

I LOVE I’m Right, You’re Wrong!!

I take Position 1! However, I wear leotard and tights daily so I must shave. I HATE IT, but I must do it.

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christy December 15, 2010 at 12:22 pm

Arms yes, legs only if I’m going swimming! So, not very often…

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Phoenix Rising
Twitter:
December 15, 2010 at 12:47 pm

Sometimes, in the winter, I don’t shave my legs because I believe the heat from the natural leg warmers offsets the I’m-a-classy-mom-with-smooth-legs image. But I always shave my armpits otherwise those suckers itch.

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JK December 15, 2010 at 3:26 pm

Oddly, no and yes. I don’t shave but if I can see that you haven’t, I’m grossed out. My husband says he’s never noticed so why bother? Even he doesn’t see under my arms in winter. It’s just too damn cold.

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Jane December 15, 2010 at 3:50 pm

Me: How come you never tell me, I’m hot?

Him: *pause* You’re warm

Me: WARM! WTF

Him: Seriously, when was the last time you shaved your legs?

Me: It’s WINTER!!! I HATE YOU and FUCK OFF!

Slam door and scene!

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Anne
Twitter:
December 15, 2010 at 4:05 pm

I haven’t shaved my legs in 7 or 8 years. One day I was in the shower, razor in hand, and suddenly thought, “Why am I doing this?” I couldn’t answer that question, so I quit doing it. I’ve never had a man complain. Most don’t even notice.

As for the pits, I don’t really shave those either. I sweat less and smell better because of it. I hate the bumps, cuts, and terrible itching it causes. I shave them about once a month during the summer and next to never in the winter.

Shaving legs and armpits just doesn’t make sense to me.

However, the work zone is a completely different story. There is a very good reason to shave down there. Gotta keep it clear. 😉

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MommyTime
Twitter:
December 15, 2010 at 5:00 pm

Wow, you’ve really gotten to the TMI edition of Right V Wrong, haven’t you? Here goes: I shave what my four-year-old calls my “armpets” even in the winter because I find it itchy not to. The legs on the other hand? Only get shaved when I’m planning to take the kids swimming or to exercise on the gym treadmill rather than at Pilates class (yoga pants are long enough to cover most of the offending hair, and that room is so dimly lit that no one would notice anyway). But I am firmly of the opinion that this should be a private matter between a woman and her leg hair and that her husband should only get 1 vote in contrast to those other two.

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Becky Mochaface December 15, 2010 at 5:53 pm

I still shave in the winter. Less often.

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b.a. seagull
Twitter:
December 15, 2010 at 6:51 pm

If my daughter called them arm pets, I would shave immediately.

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anna see December 15, 2010 at 10:24 pm

Hmm. Shave pits? Abolutely. Legs? Not often.

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Miss Britt
Twitter:
December 16, 2010 at 8:29 am

If I tell you, what would be the point of me wearing pants all winter?

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mel
Twitter:
December 16, 2010 at 9:26 am

I wax my underarms because it requires less up keep and it seems to grow back a lot slower and finer. I can go for a bit without shaving my legs.

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Jos December 16, 2010 at 11:38 am

armpets, that’s hilarious! personally I need all the help I can get staying warm in the winter. the rest of the year I like to think of it as a fashion choice & I’m lucky to have a husband who is very appreciative of all the different “style” possibilities 😉
as far as hair on others, I love unexpected pit fur viewings, especially on women who look “pulled together”– the deliberateness of leaving hair there is very sexy. don’t even get me started on men with lots of chest hair…. HOT HOT HOT.

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Mwa (Lost in Translation) December 16, 2010 at 4:07 pm

Shaving means “tonight good sex may be on the cards.” Mediocre sex doesn’t even merit a shave.

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Alexandria
Twitter:
December 16, 2010 at 4:23 pm

i’m half greek and incredibly hairy. so in the summer i shave just about every day. in the winter if my husbands in town i shave 1 or 2 a week depending on how frisky i feel LOL if he’s not in town i don’t shave until he gets back. and when i’m mad at him i don’t shave at all.

but i think you need a natural body coat for the winter LOL

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Lady Jennie December 16, 2010 at 4:56 pm

I shave about once every two weeks in the winter. My mother in law, while blessed with a beautiful head of hair, has no hair on her legs. Lucky huh?

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Monex December 16, 2010 at 5:33 pm

Almost all women have underarm hair from puberty onwards but most remove it when wearing clothes where the underarm area may be visible. Just look at the fuss kicked up by Julia Roberts when she dared to sport hairy underarms in her evening dress on the red carpet .

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Erin December 17, 2010 at 11:18 am

hot button issues in the blogosphere…

1. Breastfeeding.
2. Guns as gifts.
3. Body hair and the choice to remove it.

Wow…you certainly hit a nerve with some extremely hairy people:)

LOVE IT!

I myself shave *everything* everytime I shower… now….how often I shower…that is something that I’ll keep between me and my loofah:)

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Mackenzie June 1, 2011 at 12:53 pm

I know, this is ancient, but I’m going through all of your archives…

Like other commenters, I’m a blonde, so even if I ignore my legs or arms for months no one would ever notice. But I still shave my armpits every day, just because it’s the only part of my hair that grows in dark, and if I don’t shave daily then somehow it grows about two inches over night and becomes impossible to keep remotely clean shaven unless I re-start doing it every day.

Leg hair is lucky to get shaved at any time. Normally only if I’m trying to look classy. And even then, it’s a toss up between whether I care or not or if I can get away with tights.

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Ester Jean December 2, 2011 at 2:30 pm

Pshhh to the former comment! I thought only a blonde 11-year-old could go unshaven for months and “no one would notice.” I am a blonde and have to shave at least once a week, but if I were bare-legged, anybody sitting within 3 feet of me would notice. In the summertime I shave every day, but I loathe it and resent the pressure I feel to conform to the demands of western culture.

As for the initial question (I had a good laugh at the idea of pooping in the kitchen sink!), FUCK society and all their stupid expectations of women. It’s regoddamndiculous! I live in a camper. In Alaska. In the dead of winter. There are 24″ of snow on the ground, through which I have to walk 30+ yards in -20 degrees to go take a shower. I am an extraordinarily large 5-months pregnant, and my fat ass has no interest in bending over in the shower to shave any more than once a week. Besides, I feel dizzy once I stand up. I do shave my armpits every time I take a shower just because that is a personal preference – it seems painful to not shave them. But I do not judge women who don’t shave, in fact I admire them. I admire them in the summertime too 🙂 I wish I had the fuckitall to say to society but, alas, I am a lemming.

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Kei April 4, 2012 at 1:46 am

I hate shaving. I had to shave my legs today bc they seem to drier if I dont, but not sure thats why i was surfing and arrived here. Anyways winter time i wear pants so I almost never shave my legs. Always tweeze my armpits. Any hair I shave will grow back quickly which is why I hate it. But I can assure you I dont poop in the sink in fact I shower twice a day and always shower after I poop.

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