Every summer for as long as I can remember, my ultimate goal has been to develop some sort of color on my otherwise ivory skin. Don’t ask me why it’s so important, but I purposely let myself burn every time, as I’ve learned there is no other way for me, personally, to tan. It’s not healthy and I’ll probably end up with skin cancer later, but I am determined to find the trick to tanning. Lotions do not work on me, I either end up all streaky or orange, or both, none of which are the desired effect.
So this summer I’m documenting my time spent in the sun as a sort of experiment to see what works and what doesn’t. Hopefully at the end I’ll know and be able to share the secrets for all of those gingers and their relatives who have red hair or not, but still somehow acquired the gene for morphing into lobsters in the sun.
May 16, 2010
Today we took the new boat (!) out for a few hours. To start out, I had some residual burn on my arms from yesterday’s soccer game in a small splotch. While in the sun, I think I waited about 40-45 minutes before putting on sunscreen, then I used a light layer of SPF 8 on my arms and shoulders and basically everywhere exposed. After about an hour and a half I put some 35 on my face and arms because it was starting to hurt and I didn’t want the burn already there to get worse. I was too late, however, since half an hour later as we pulled the boat in I started to discover I really did get some color.
Now, sitting in my home, I can now say this is a legitimate sunburn I possess on my arms, shoulders, neck, and chest, not just one that will go away in two days’ time. Right away I applied aloe lotion when I got home and I haven’t changed yet so it’s not so painful but I’m expecting showers to be killer, and even carrying my purse on my shoulder is going to make me wince. Now, you must understand I’m not complaining, since multiple times I was told to put on sunscreen, and I brushed it off. I don’t regret it either, because seriously, there is no other way to tan. Once this peels I’ll be good to go and spend some more time in the sun with light sunscreen and it will hopefully build after that. Or at least that’s what I want to happen. Again, this is an experiment, so we’ll see how it all pans out.
For documentation I’m uploading a picture detailing the severity of the pink I’ve acquired on our outing today. Which, by the way, was fun, and we’re all happy with the boat and its roominess. Note: Despite my fears, I narrowly escaped being plagued with an aviator tan. I don’t think I took my sunglasses off for even 5 minutes, so I consider myself pretty lucky.
1 comment:
oh my gosh, shannon. that's not healthy. although, i'll admit it: been there, done that. i hope you don't die of pain! love you, katie
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