Men in Pink Pull Profuse Paychecks

Men who wear pink shirts earn £1,000 more, a new study finds.

Photo from photoXpress

Pink is unusual for men, isn’t it? It is a question of a man’s masculinity. The color is too pretty for a gallant character he portrays.

But it takes confidence to wear light colors. Men in pink don’t have insecurities having a pink bearing above his skin.

A new study reveals that men who wore pink earns £1,000 more yearly. Compared to those who wear the traditional colors, these men are better qualified yet half of them take the public transportation to work, leaving a lower carbon footprint.

The same study reveals that men in pink are twice as likely to hold a Master’s degree. 10% of pink wearers have a PhD extension on their name.

And the ladies love the pink color. Men in pink get more compliments and romances from female colleagues.

Pink is historically a man’s color. Men, for centuries, dress more elaborately than women.  The noble knights and celebrated kings wore exaggerated clothes. In the late 18^th century, pink was common shade for a man, says Bronwyn Cosgrave, author of Costume & Fashion: A Complete History.

Today, men are coming back to a freer fashion.  One in four men feels more attractive when in pink. “Pink is a colour more men have been embracing recently and it’s encouraging that they are not afraid to experiment with brighter colours”, added Stephanie Thiers-Ratcliffe, International Marketing Manager for Cotton USA.

Another color deemed feminine before was purple. But in today’s society, men in purple shirts get the most pay raise, and are more likely to drive a car worth £20,000 or more.

The generalization that “pink is for women and blue is for men” is diffusing. Pink, blue and any other color is now for men and women.

What color of clothes you look best with?

Sources:
Men in the pink; BBC News
The power of pink: Men who wear shirts of that colour earn £1,000 a year more than those who don’t; Daily Mail UK
Men in pink shirts are “better qualified and have more office romances”, says study; London loves Business

Changing Definition of Sexy Women

Women have different body figures, and varying eras in history dictates which is sexy.

Photos from whiterskin.info, contourcorsets.com, asunnydayinla.com, fanpop.com

In today’s societal standards, skinny women classified as sexy. Gyms are rampant, plastic surgeries are in the trend and different kinds of diets are accessible. And when I say diet, it no longer means a mere lessening of food intake but in the fashion of low carbs, bland and slimming teas.

It isn’t natural. Human body requires the normal healthy foods. It could use some fats as well for energy and body temperature maintenance, among others. But the last time people are pleased with plump women was during the renaissance era.

In the 1400s to the 16^th century, the attractive women are curvy. To get sexier, they just have to eat more. This translates to the overweight we know of today, but back then they get praises than ignores.

In 1837 to 1901 (Victorian era), sexy perception shifted and women have to sacrifice for it. They compete to get the slimmest waistlines, wearing corsets so tight some breaks their ribs. Sitting is out of choice. There’s an extra burden to merely breath. Just imagine constricting your waistline up to 12 inches!

In the 1920s, there is one question women ask: “do I look boyish yet?” They wore garments to keep their chests flat and mimic the abs of men. They hide their curves and cut their hair short. And men like it that way.

In the 1930s to 1950s, Hollywood started to influence women. Sexy will judge women’s arms and legs apart from face and chest; hence, the lifting of weights. Women desired to show off their feminine sides with their choice of clothes.

In the 1960s, it is claimed that the British teenage Twiggy modeled the skinny body and women followed to be the same. Contrary to the renaissance era, women don’t eat at all to persuade themselves that they’re sexy like Twiggy who weighs just 89 pounds.

From the 1980s, advertisement featuring the “sexy” women boomed. What people see in TV and print portray the perfect body which was tenuous, large breasted and stout hips. Fats are everybody’s enemy and weight loss became a lucrative industry. And until now, the skinny type is the sexy one.

Only 2% of the population will have ideal model body without trying ; while the rest of the women will have to work for the sexy status.

What’s sexy in your standards?

Sources:
The Perfect Woman Throughout History; Google Sites
A Timeline of Sexy Defined Through The Ages; StyleCaster News
Women in the 1920s in North Carolina; NCPedia
Perceptions of Body Image throughout History; timetoast
The Ideal Woman Throughout the Years; MFL Mar Mac

Death of Handwriting

When’s the last time you received a handwritten letter?

Photo from FontFont’s flickr

Note Writing is imperative during my grade school years. I remember starting with a date on the uppermost right side of the page; 07-16-96, short for July 16 of 1996. I copy exactly what my teacher writes on the board. I will underline a word and encircle it three times like how she wanted to exaggerate on it.

I have a good penmanship. My teachers would love me to copy a passage from the book to the board when they’re feeling slack. My seatmates adore my notes. In high school, my friends begged to photocopy my notebook. I really like writing with my hands. I’m proud of it and I enjoy the attention, especially the ladies in college since it’s peculiar for a guy to have a beautiful penmanship.

But in my second year in college, I don’t write as much on paper anymore. I used my phone to take photos of my professor’s scribbles. There was this particular professor who said that his only request from us is to give him heads up if we’re going to take a picture; and he will smile or act like a passionate lecturer.

People now use their smartphones to list grocery items or laptop to write a mail. It’s easier that way. We just need this small box in our pocket to note anything. It’s perfectly legible too.

It’s convenient to write this post using my laptop than in paper. I will have to type it anyway if I handwritten this, to reach you. But I miss the praise I get from my penmanship. It’s my style; parts of my individuality are imprinted on every curve of letter a and the dot on letter j.

“Schools don’t care how a child holds her pencil as long as she can read” (Suddath, 2009). Education would only care if you fared pass on a test. It won’t grade your penmanship. And in standardized tests, we don’t need to write. We just choose the letter or shade the circle corresponding to the right answer. There’s also spur of tablet and computer use in schools.

It’s true that performance won’t be affected whether you have a legible handwriting or not. It’s just that, it’s us. Using our hands to write is human. When we receive a typewritten letter, it can be from anybody because the font is computerized. But if you open a letter and you see the first handwritten word, you know who wrote it. It’s each person’s distinct feature.

Would you mourn the death of handwriting?

Source:
Mourning the Death of Handwriting; TIME

Hairstyles Experiment

This decade has experimented on hair more than any other.

Photos from Paul Waite’s and Lindsey Gee’s flickr

The 100,000 to 150,000 hairs on our scalp have an evolutionary purpose. It is our natural sun-block as it protects our head against the sun. It regulates our bodily temperature by trapping heat from escaping our head. But the more important prospect we root on is, it makes us look good. It is our extension of self-expression and fashion.

You remember that oceanic expanse of hair that’s aggressively intruding a personal space? Everybody looks like that in the 80’s; but now, people are more creative in stressing distinction through their hair.

It dazzles me how women can change hairstyles in a blink. One moment my sister’s hair is shoulder short, then on a different place it was way down her back. And I have to beat myself because I know how hair extensions work without researching about it. Women can switch hair colors too, braid it, put a hole in it, cut it shorter than men’s hair, and shape it like a ribbon or a horse.

Men started to care about their hairs as well. It used to be 5 mins lapse time between bath and going out of the house, but now we have to style our hairs. A man will give permission to touch anything in his body but not the hair. We hated spending so much time for beautification and we won’t risk anybody messing with it. There’s a serious trouble to place a finger on men’s hairstyles, including artful shaves, emotive spikes (that comes along with flat emotion), mohawk and doll-head wig.

I spiked my hair upward like a pointed weapon. What experimentation did you do with your hairstyle?

Getting People’s Attention

7 billion people in the world and each has their own unique personalities. 

Photos from photoXpress; TJ Sengel’s and Julie, Dave & Family’s flickr

Some of them loved to be in the center of attention at all times. For the diminishing number of people, they keep their private lives intact. There are instances though that we need to attract people’s attention.

Applying for a job, impressing a person, boosting your ego – there are many situations in which you’ll have to get people’s attention. Being too shy isn’t filling up anyone’s social credential, and a feed of attention once in a while won’t hurt, isn’t it?

At those times I feel the need to have people’s focus on me, I wear red shirt. Red color is dominating. It can easily be spotted against any other color and it is memorable. When there’s a rubbish know-it-all I’d want to outperform, I speak out louder than usual and let what my brain got to outsmart. But those are rare times.

People who act the craziest get the most attention; that is not the norm of my actions though. I’m usually a composed and relaxed dude. The only way I’ll act stupid and crazy is when I went beyond my body’s alcohol tolerance threshold.

I’ve seen some techniques in screens. People utilize a prop, most times a cute dog or a baby. It’s some kind of a chick magnet. According to the survey of Askmen.com, “being a great father or husband” is the main plus factor that defies a real man. Taking care of a baby would shift heads of women. In a study of University of Austin scientists, a woman’s face is mostly important to 75% of men. I agree with that, the eyes, the smile, the skin are all attention grabber. I guess makeup is a prop to get attention too.

Extremes looks can shift heads as well. We’ve been hyped with recurring news of Lady Gaga’s outfit, sometimes meaty, sometimes see-through, or Katy Perry’s new unnatural hair color. The peculiar extremes will surely get attention with raised brows.

How do you get people’s attention?

Sources:

Great Male Survey: Gender And Success; Askmen.com

10 Traits Men Appreciate Most in Women; Genius Beauty