I am one of those “unfortunate” people who started losing hair in their mid-twenties, and by the time I was in my early 30s, I had accepted my fate and decided that my hair style from that point on would be to have no hair style.
After getting used to not having to worry about my hair (or lack of it), I became an advocate of baldness, putting aside the disadvantages while focusing on the advantages of no longer having hair on the top of my head. In my assessment, not having to pay a barber or buy shampoo for more than a decade has become a blessing rather than a curse. In addition, not having to worry about hairstyles, wrangle with unkempt hair upon waking up, or deal with hat hair. I guess that I am just thankful that even if I was cursed with premature baldness, the shape of my bald head is good enough and society has also become more accepting of those who walk around as such.
What I want more these days is to no longer have to do regular hair maintenance with an electric trimmer, which is a chore I do to myself every other week or so for the part of my head that still stubbornly insists on growing hair. The “shaggy” or sha-gilid hair needs constant attention or my head becomes unkempt, making the prospect of having it lasered or treated in order to reduce the maintenance effort has been something that has been on the top of my head for a while now.
If you come to think of it, after two decades of being bald, I no longer know what to do with my hair, if ever by some miracle I wake up with a full head of hair. If a genie plays a prank on me and grants me that non-wish, I might end up simply shaving away the hair, after looking at the mirror and not recognizing myself after waking up. I am glad that hair styling trends and hair care routines are none of my concern.
If there is one disadvantage of being bald, it is being extra-recognizable because our chrome domes do tend to stand out in a crowd and are easier to remember than facial features upon being introduced to new people. As someone who has major trouble with names and faces, this puts me in a very disadvantaged position as more people tend to remember my bald head than I can remember faces with hairstyles that can vary wildly every time we meet again.
The only things I worry about when it comes to the top of my head is keeping it tidy, sunburn, and hats. I have to remember that regular DIY haircuts are still necessary to keep my dome tidy, as well as needing to be aware of the threat of sunburn as there is no protective layer of hair is an issue. Aside from that, the only thing I have to think about when it comes to my head is my collection of hats, which are the only way to accessorize my head, as well as help give me that sense of variability or anonymity that rarely goes with bare bald heads.
Without hair, the only way to make a bald head different from time to time is through hats. In my extensive experience, it can be a fashion accessory that also helps increase anonymity. I have a relatively big collection of hats, but I can’t wear them that often here in the Philippines because of the heat. A hat can provide protection from the stinging rays of the sun, however, it can also get hot in there, especially for someone who is used to having maximum air cooling. One thing I do notice when wearing hats is that I tend to become more anonymous, as people tend to recognize the kalbo more when the shiny head is bare.
With so much of this article spent on my advocacy for embracing premature hair loss, maybe I should go ahead and start a party list. At least the kalbo of our society, who could be a truly underrepresented and marginalized subsection of the population, with a few exceptions of course, can get some concessions and have their concerns put under the spotlight too, as that is the real purpose of a party list before the system was bastardized by political dynasties and millionaires with vested interests looking for a loophole to continue their dominance of Congress.
Balding is part of the rich diversity of humanity. Bald is beautiful. Don’t let anyone impose their beauty standards on you.*
