Day 23, or whatever.

The beard off continues with a marked lack of interest from all parties. The three week mark came and went without fanfare, and the transition phase seems to be done. I think that sometime during the last week we went from two guys who were growing beards to two guys with beards. That's a pretty subtle but important change. The first time it dawned on me was when I went back to work on Sunday. I met one of our new hires, and I realized that because he's never seen me without a beard, the beard will always be a part of his perception of me. Anyone who meets me from now on will consider a beard to be the norm.

I've concluded that there is a point where a growing a beard stops being funny or novel and just starts being. That sounds too profound to describe a beard, but compare it to meeting a new 'significant other.' At first everything is new and great, everybody asks about it, and people can usually see the difference on your face. But after a while the novelty wears off, people start to think of it as normal, and stuff starts to itch. So it comes time to make a decision: keep it for the long run, or rinse it down the drain? I guess it depends on the circumstances and the person, but I do know this... when you make that decision you had better take action quickly, because you don't want to wake up every morning and not like what's grabbing your face.