skin.

Come springtime, my dear, darling dad has this great affinity for convertibles. By June, he appears to be of South American descent, rather than our fabulously fair and olive Norwegian roots. Unfortunately, a harsh reality has come about. For some time he had this weird, bubble-like, pimple-esque dot on the very tip of his nose. After a few months of constant prodding from those that care for him, he went in to a doctor and they discovered...you guessed it, skin cancer. He had some weird procedure done which resulted in some black thread stitched onto his nose for a week or so and today, they finally extracted cells from his nose. They had to remove a lot more than they thought, but thankfully results came back completely positive, and he is just fine.

We admittedly tan quite well in our family, our skin is quite suited to the sun's rays. There is no doubt that I've been addicted to the natural vitamin d, it's hard not to be. The sun makes you happy (example: it's sunny today and don't you feel great?!), you look skinnier when your, ahem, skin is darker, limited make up is needed during the summer months (giving your skin a break is fabulous). The energy boost you feel is fantastic and the self-esteem boost is even better. I have always felt better about my looks when I have a rich, deep color.

However.

Skin cancer is very real, wrinkles are very real, and quite frankly, I don't want either of them.

Pageants (ballroom included) aren't exactly kind to the pale. I blame my many visits (and far too much money) to the tanning salon on the harsh stage lights, the pressure to look like a "healthy" person, and the bad tanning creams, lotions, and sprays that simply did not deliver as the bottles promised. A recent study also showed that of those 25 and under polled, over 80% feel more confident and attractive with that bronze glow (how many references to "tan" do you think I can come up with?). I confess that I am definitely a part of that 80%.

Again. Skin cancer is scary stuff.

In November I competed for Miss Wasatch Front without stepping foot in a tanning salon and instead relied on a lotion I've used for years, but now I look back on the photos and AHH!! The flash made me look orange, and *gasp*, my hands are WHITE! Not a pretty look.

Since my dad discovered the button of cancer on his nose, I've been much more aware of my skin's health and what I can do to keep it looking young. At a recent function, I ran into some old friends and was shocked to see this middle-aged woman suddenly look like an over-processed raisin at the young age of 52. My family is blessed with youth--when I was younger, friends always thought my mom was about ten years below her actual age (the compromise is that we get peach fuzzy jowls...the perfect look for a sweet grandma!). Until a few years ago, people thought my almost 60 year old mother was in her early forties, but too many harsh chemicals and too much exposure can hurt the natural firmness of the Bacon skin.

Looking at magazines can make it hard to love the skin you're in (yeah, I stole that one), celebrities and models seem so perfectly bronzed and perfectly skinny and disgustingly perfect. But recently, rather than looking at that picture with awe and desire, I've noticed the orange hues that aren't as attractive. The fake February tanning they obviously went through looks, well, fake. It's not as pretty or desirable anymore. Instead, I've noticed those that sport their natural hues and that look is so much more becoming on a woman. It's taken a few months, but I have finally embraced my olive/fair skin. I've realized that with the right shade of powder (I hate foundation) and the right eyebrow wax (still waiting on that one...), I feel just as confident as I do in mid-July. I've learned to put away the bronzer and to pull out the soft blush instead. I'm beginning to love my natural skin tone.

From now on, I wear sunscreen outside. I've bought lotion and makeup that contains 30 SPF. It's funny, but I even feel more responsible and like an adult for thinking about the damage I could be doing to my skin. Your 20s are the most important years for your skin...and I really don't want to look pre-maturely old and leathery! It's a vain endeavor, but it's healthier, too.

True there's still the fact that I do like how I look tan, and I'm still competing in ballroom and in pageants. Come summertime, I'll be lathered up in sunscreen when pool-side, and I'm sure my easily tanned skin will still get some color, but my hours in search of the perfect glow spent underneath sun, real and fake, are over. I'm currently on the hunt for a good cream or lotion that can provide a nice, natural bronze, sans the orange wrist and white hand look. Airbrush tan has finally come to Utah and I know I'll be utilizing that service. All the while, I'm going to remember that while I may not be as naturally brown as some of my friends, but I will be saving my body's most vulnerable organ!


/end rant.