Fake & Bake

It's that time of year again, folks. Time to "fake & bake". I still marvel at how many men, children, older women (heck, women period) choose to get their tan from a bed. Whatever happened to the good old days when people spent ample time outdoors getting good old fashioned suntans from playing and working outdoors?

I can't say I blame these folks. We do live in a society centered around convenience and materialism and this is just another easy way to get something we want with little effort. It is rather comical, though, to see the fake and bakers. You can spot them a mile away. This time of year many are burned from overbaking (OUCH!) and some are rather "oompa-loompa-ish" (can you say ORANGE?). I wonder if they acknowledge that they stick out... and not necessarily in a good way? Overall, I think it's easy to notice these folks simply because (a) any person relying on sunshine to tan doesn't have an all-over even glow - tan lines, sunglass lines, etc; are obvious, and (b) how many individuals are exhibiting a dark tan this early in the season?

My favorite people to gawk at are the young women (<21) who go overboard. They really look bad. Nothing natural to their tan at all. They are so fried, their skin is wrinkly and badly colored. In fact, even their lips are tan! They look so silly compared to the majority of the populace. But man, I'm sure they look great in that tanning salon!