new thread
Hello fellow hairy people,
Well, this old geezer may not be much to look at nowadays; but at least I'm trying to grow the beard out a bit longer, as well as the hair hasn't *quite* reached terminal length yet....
But the real star of this pic is not about hair, but the home-sewn outer-space dancing shirt that my friend Lily made for me a couple of weeks ago.... Somebody put on a good Swing music CD, will ya please, I'm in the mood to get down & boogie!!!
"An outer-space shirt for an outer-space kind of guy!", was my response when a friend asked about it when I wore it to my local C&W dance bar last week.
"Space-case" is the terminology I remember using and hearing back in the '70s, re. coming across people like me (LOL)!
- Ken
There is so much to like about this picture Ken!
That shirt is out of this world, cosmic dude, you look wonderful and full of life. The beard is looking amazing.
You really bring a warmth to the board :)
Thanks for posting and brightening my evening,
Dave
Thank you Dave for the kind words! I'm still working on losing some weight -- I haven't "succeeded" much (but at least haven't been gaining any more weight recently, either); but as long as I at least eat healthy and don't couch potato around the house too much, at least I know I'm going in the right direction...
I'll pass the word along to my friend Lily, letting her know the nice compliments over the beautiful job she did with that shirt!!
- Ken
That's a great look for you Ken and fits your personality perfectly. Being a big fan of braids myself, I've always appreciated the way you wear yours. Cheers to continuing to gain some further length!
Thanks so much, Jason, I really appreciate all the wonderful feedback! And as I told nuttidave, I'm going to have to share with my friend Lily all of the complimentary comments about that beautiful job she did with that shirt!
I should post a back view of my braid, too.... Hmmm, stay tuned!
- Ken
Hey Ken...why do you think you look or are an "old geezer"...you seem very young (at heart) and I would say you don't look a day over 50...(which is the new 40...)
Hi there beachbum,
Actually, I'm in my late, very VERY late 20s -- I just look like hell for that age (had a VERY tough life, resulting in premature aging), that's all.... And if you believe that story, i also have a bridge for sale (LOL)!
Seriously, though, thank you for your kind comments!
- Ken
I'm 57 years old now, i'll be 58 next month so I definetly fall
in the old geezer department. After all in two very short
years i'll be turning the big 60.
And this old geezer is very set in his ways, I'll continue to
wear my hair long, and i'll continue to wear what I want for clothes.
Excellent on all counts, my friend! Thanks for the update :)
--Val
Thanks so much, Val!
And since I know you'd also be interested in this topic...
Re. any recent weight loss, I added some comments in my reply to nuttidave about that, in case you're interested. I so appreciated your positive support when I went with my sister-in-law off to "the fat farm" (Hilton Head Health in South Carolina) last December, just thought you'd appreciate hearing how much I enjoyed the experience, and that I feel it did help my outlook, as well as help me make some changes in the right direction.
Later,
Ken
Wow Ken! That's some shirt and to think I thought my shirts were wild in some of my previous update posts!LOL.Well you certainly got me beat on this custom job so it's back to the drawing board;)Other than that you hair and beard are fantastic as always my friend:)Cheers
Mârk
Thanks, Mark!
Yep, before we know it, we might be having ourselves a wild & wacky "shirts for longhairs" competition!" Wouldn't that be fun? (LOL)
I've commissioned my friend Lily into making 2 more cool homemade shirts for me, as I know her sewing work is excellent (she has made some beautiful dance shirts for her husband Brian, as well as I've always greatly admired her drop-dead gorgeous dance outfits that she's made for herself in the past). I had a blast going with her to the local fabric store here in SF several months ago, looking through huge rolls and rolls of various kinds of cool colorful patterns, eventually settling on the 3 that appealed to me the most... Wait until you see the other 2, as they're just as fun & wacky as this outer-space one!!
Later, 'gator!
- Ken
This old geezer says you look marvelous! Love the hair braid, cosmic shirt and chin whiskers!
Bruce
Thanks so much for the kind words, Bruce! And I'd also like to say, it's really great to see you back here at MLHH again -- your wonderful presence has been sorely missed!
Long Lox 4ever,
Ken
Hi Ken,
What a great picture of you! That is such a cool shirt, and your hair is in such an awesome braid, and the longer beard is progressing very well too. I need to get cracking and try to learn how to braid mine as well.
Take care, and keep everything growing,
David
Thank you so much, David, it's always a great pleasure hearing from you!! I miss our days of moderating together; but my life is a bit different nowadays from how it was back then, so best not to mess with things too much, as I don't want to "bite off more than I can chew!"
Re. self-braiding, a friend of mine who used to have waist-length hair taught me an easy method of doing that a long time ago. One of these days I should do a YouTube video on how his method works; but for now, I'll just describe it by typing up a follow-up post maybe after showing a pic of the back of my braid...
Thanks again for the kind words, David!
- Ken
Here's a back shot of my braid & outer-space dance shirt; plus, for those who are interested in learning how to self-braid, here is a method I learned from a local former longhair friend of mine, that I find to be the easiest way to learn & succeed at doing the braiding on your own (although I have to give proper credit to this particularly nice braiding job being thanks to my partner):
1) Gather all of your hair back into a normal ponytail (whatever is "normal" for yourself!);
2) Divide the hair hanging down below the hair-tie into 3 equal sections, tossing one section over in front of your left shoulder, another section over in front of your right shoulder, and the third section flowing down the middle of your back...
3) With your fingers, slowly gather the left section together enough to place it firmly over the middle section of hair, tossing the formerly "middle" out of the way by then putting that portion over to the left...
4) Now take the section of hair that's over your right shoulder, bringing that section over the middle (again, now getting the former "middle" out of the way by tossing it over to the right)...
5) Left over middle; then right over middle; then left over middle; then right over middle... ad nauseum!
6) Eventually your fingers will figure out how to do this with dexterity; but when first starting out, take it slowly... I find it best also to NOT try to look in the mirror while learning how to do this; but to instead learn this strictly by feeling, rather than relying on the eyes.
7) When your arms start to get miserably uncomfortable (which for me, happens usually waaay early in the braiding process), stand up and turn your head upside-down, letting your hair fall forward & upside-down, too (but while still having your hands hold onto that braid with a death-grip - LOL)....
8) This is where relying on feel, rather than eyesight, is indispensable -- because now there's now way you can see what the hell's going on, anyway!
9) Continue working your fingers in such a way as to take each of the 3 sections of hair: left over middle, then right over middle, then left over middle, then right over middle... again, "ad nauseum!"
10) Tighten (by gently pulling) as you go down -- you'll also notice that the 3 sections of hair are gradually getting thinner and thinner in volume as you go down...
11) Hopefully you were a good boy scout, and remembered the old motto, "Be prepared!" -- in this case, by having your hair-tie ready nearby!
12) Stop braiding before you lose it and have to start all over again, and then quickly tie it off wherever you'd like to end it -- and there you have it, your own self-braided braid... Happy braiding practice!!
- Ken
Ken,
A great look for you! Cool shirt too. Busy and crowed out there with all those saucers! The L A of outer space?
peace,
jonalbear
Thanks, jonalbear! Yes, I'm essentially a walking, talking "LA of outer space" guy -- only flew up North to SF in one of those saucers in order to permanently escape from tinseltown (LOL)!
Hope that you & John S. are having a wonderful summer so-far. Boy, do I ever miss those Lakes this time of the year -- there's nothing quite like the Traverse Bay area, and being surrounded by all that blue blue fresh clean water!!
Long Lox 4ever,
Ken
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Hi Ken, I have to admit your beard draws my attention even more than the shirt. Hopefully you will grow it out really long. The shirt appears to be unique. I have never seen one like it.
Reminder: The longhair party is on Sept 22 this year. Hopefully you can attend it again.
Scott
Thanks for the reminder, Scott -- and yes, I will try to make it again this year.
I've been experimenting a bit with hair color on my beard (with the "Just for Men" product that you see in most Walgreen's stores)... I'm due to give myself another coloring job soon, in fact! The next time I post a new pic of myself, it will probably be on the beard & mustache topic.
Thanks again for the nice comments, as I greatly appreciate them!
- Ken
Just a side note on beard coloring. You can use regular hair coloring on your beard instead of the "Just for Men" (JfM)beard coloring. To do so just use the plastic tray and brush that comes with JfM kit and then use a plastic spoon to mix equal parts coloring and developer. Once mixed it will turn into a gel that can be brushed on. You can even allow it to "cook" for a while to start the darkening of the mix before you apply it so it doesn't have to remain on as long. Regular hair coloring takes 20 minutes to process rather than the 5 minutes of the JfM product. The upside of using hair coloring is that you have a lot more variations of shading to choose from and it's easier to get the right tint since it doesn't process as quickly.
--Dale
That's a great shirt, Ken! I'm sure you will get positive comments on it from people in public, as well as on the board here.
One thing you might consider is having your hair down when you wear the shirt. It is so attention-grabbing that it draws the eyes to your midsection, then as one's eyes travel upward your beard is smaller and your hair is smaller still, making your image taper to a point. The effect is that it makes your head look smaller than it is and your belly look bigger than it is. Untying your mane and letting it expand to its normal volume would end that distortion and make you look proportional. It's the difference between being seen as a "big guy" and a "fat guy", and you are a great looking big guy. I'd go for anything that emphasizes that look!
Letting your beard grow longer, and perhaps trimming it some on the sides so it doesn't look too wide, could also make your head appear larger while adding thinness to your look.
One advantage we have over shorthaired guys is we can sculpt our manes and beards to help us achieve the look that we want. We should go for it!
Bill
I think you should take a picture of the back of your head as well so we can actually see your hair and braid in full. :)
Matthew
He did:
Looking great Ken - digging the beard and braid!
I have a couple of stars and planets tie dye shirts. This "space case" would love to dance with you any day :-)
- Oren
Hey Ken,
So if you had a "space-case" back in the 1970's, which type of case was it... Star Wars or Star Trek :o ??? Someone previously might have asked - unfortunately lately I've been a late to the party, sorry ~_~ . Anyways, I know which case I had :D ~
Sincerely,
Eric
(Star Trek)
Hey !
Awesome look Ken !
You look a bit like a french artist and humorist from the 80s/90s, Carlos, who is now deceased. Same look, same beard, same colorful shirt !
Cheers,
Vivien.