I love the sun. I always have. "Curse of the Irish" or not, I'm a sun seeker. I've been burned so many times, I think I'ved actually got more freckles than not, and yet... for some reason or another, I just can't seem to "tan" like I used to...
It has been 30+ deress here for the last few days, and it's going to stay like this for at least a few more. I've spent every bearable minute I could muster in the sun, and yet, still no tan. Sure, with no sunscreen I burn in 20 minutes. But it's gone the next day. If I use so much as SPF 4, and stay out for two hours, I'm still as pale as a [freckled] ghost the next morning ... but if I stay out longer than 2 hours, I burn, blister, peel, and an still as pale as a [freckled] ghost the within a day or two.
So what gives? I used to have great tans 10-20 years ago, but somehow I've lost the ability. I've heard people say "oh, as you get older, you lose the natural oils in your skin, and you can get a deep colour anymore" - bullcrap. How do you explain those 80 year old prunes that hang out a Wreck Beach then? Sure, they've been out in the sun for 80 years, that's why they look like prunes... but they still got some hella-wicked colour, so it can't have anything to do with age!
Maybe I'm just not spending as much time in the sun as I used to? Also true. I didn't used to have to go in for fear of blistering, and I certainly didn't used to worry about burning my forehead and crown either... a full head of hair and ponytail took care of that just fine! So why do I blister so easily now? Is the sun getting hotter/stronger/more damaging/etc ??? Yeah, I hear that's true too... but I still see lots of OTHER people out there with great tans... why doesn't affect them? (don't you dare say natural oils!)
Okay, so maybe the lotion I use now is different than the stuff I used back in the day? Also true... I used to cake on the coconut oil, but I've since developed a mild alery to nut extracts, and the stuff has started giving me a rash whether I go in the sun or not... yeah, but I still use TANNING lotion as opposed to sunblock, so where's the frikken tan?
Here's a beauty theory... "oh, well you've probably put on 40 pounds in the last 15 years... your skin is stretched. You know, you're only born with so much pigment... it's spread a lot thinner now that there's more of you to cover. Trust me, lose weight and you'll tan better." SURE.... I'll bet I get a GREAT zebra tan between all the flaps of hangy wrinkled skin! Remember, I've already lost all my natural oils, so all that skin's not just joing to snap back into shape like it would have decade ago.... Uhuh...
So, given the alternatives, I guess I'm relagated to a life of staying plump, drinkin' beer, wearing a hat, and diving for shade every 90 minutes or so. Yeah, that makes for a great day at the beach. Actually, I suppose drinkin' beer makes pretty much any activity great... ya know, maybe life ain't so bad. I could've been born in Siberia! Wearing a parka and sipping vodka on the permafrost probably wouldn't be quite as fun.
So there's my rant - it sucks to have lost your tanning abilities - but if ANYONE knows the secret of a good tan, please let me know! NO lectures on why being in the sun is BAD... I don't wanna hear it. Oh, and Como, no offense, but I've seen you at Wreck, and the parts of you that see the sun every day aren't much darker than the parts that only see it on the weekends.... so while you may be an expert at "How to be naked in the sun for an entire summer and still look like a Siberian imigrant", I doubt you've got any vauable tanning tips ;-) SPF 45? Come on.............. seriously, even if you're like me, and burn in 20 minutes, SPF 45 lets you be in the sun for 15 hours straight without getting any sun - what the hell kinda fun is that???
Cheers,
"I'm trying to get back into the stupid rant vibe" - Calvin.
it's too early in the year to be getting a good tan... while all of your above theories combined make good sense, the fact is that we're not close enough to the sun for your skin to turn as brown as you want it to...
Posted by: sage at June 18, 2004 03:56 PMDamn! how did you read this so fast? I just saved it, re-read it, then went to the page to see how it looks, and BAM - your reply was already there! Freaky....
BUT, you may have a point there, man.... still it's damn hot right now - a few hundred thousand miles difference from the sun can't make THAT much of a difference when we're already getting THIS much, can it?
Then again, this IS Vancouver - maybe all those Wreck Prunes are spending their mornings in tanning booths, or getting 'spray on' tans....
hey...stop looking at my bird...actually i only get naked for you...anyways...my secret is simple...go out in the sun get the worst burn possible and watch it all turn white....i have no idea how to tan...my room mate works in construction....he got his tan started in april...we've had 2 or 3 days that were good enough for tanning..and he got burned...he's at the point now where he doesn't need sunscreen...and his tan gets darker and darker...i've seen it in other friends who do out doors work...like billy...he's doing land scaping...he's pretty dark right now...i think if you were to were a hat and apply the sunscreen or tanning lotion every 20 mins to 40 mins and spend all your time in the sun you might see some improvement..perhaps...just as a tester...since i have been employed as delivery guy...the one arm test might give you some information...perhaps as you drive to and from work...and where ever else...keep your left arm on the window ledge and in the sun...take daily pics and record every detail...you'll probably notice the underside stays white......just an idea...
i'm still pretty caucasion right now...but then again...they do say it's not good to tan...so why are you ranting....not that i mind....i'd be interested to here how the test goes...
and another thing...you never see fat tanned guys do you ? except for truck drivers...and even then its a farmers tan or what ever....
and why don't you try a tanning booth ....just on your right side...then you can still carry on with the left arm test?
Posted by: vetiver at June 19, 2004 10:08 AMYou're a hoot, man...
I tried new tanning oil yesterday, and I'll be damned if it didn't have nut extract in it ... I didn't even realize until about 10 minutes later when I got hives everyhere I aplied it... that ruined my day in the sun, but at least taking an antihistamine makes the rash go away - in about 4 hours. So today it's only supposed to get to 28 - nice and mild compared to the weekend! I'm not going to use lotion anymore, I'm going to try to get burned and see what happens... shouldn't take long!
i spent all day saturday and sunday out in the sun, coated in 15 spf, and i still got a bit of colour on my arms, face and neck... yay farmboy tan.. so, i guess my distance-from-the-sun theory is incorrect...
Posted by: sage at June 21, 2004 11:40 AM