A Tick That Might Make You A Vegetarian

The nice thing about being is a vegetarian is you see headline's like this recent article and realize being a vegetarian, forced or voluntarily, is not a punishment! But check out this recent discovery:

"The lone star tick, or Amblyomma americanum, is found from Texas to Maine, identifiable by the white spot on its back. Its saliva has been linked to what's called a meat-induced alpha-gal allergic reaction. Somehow, the tick's bite induces a person's body to produce antibodies that target alpha-gal, a carbohydrate found in red meat. Once the antibodies latch onto alpha-gal, they induce a chemical chain reaction that releases histamines and other inflammatory proteins that spark the symptoms of an allergic reaction."

In other words if this tick bites you eating meat will make you swell up, rashes break out and even barf! How cool is that? But for the 100th time it is not a punishment to be a vegetarian, in fact, it is kind of privilege. At any rate, either we get bit by ticks or voluntarily become vegetarians it will be the way of the world after the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, correct?

Bald

Growing up I had bright red-hair, freckles, pale skin and I was a middle child. Now tell me what about that scenario is fair?! I've grown to like my freckles despite being unable to count them, my pale skin could be more pale and who cares anymore if I'm a middle child. But the bright red-hair has turned a rusty red and perhaps you have noticed that one of the few gifts my father ever gave me was a balding head. Thanks dad. So I keep it really short in an effort at acceptance of my baldness and some might think I wear a cap to hide my baldness but I love hats and have worn them since I was in high school.

At any rate I came across a recent study at the University of Pennsylvania that brought some comfort to me and my thinning noggin. The study found:

  

In one of the experiments, [they] showed 344 subjects photos of the same men in two versions: one showing the man with hair and the other showing him with his hair digitally removed, so his head appears shaved.

...the subjects reported finding the men with shaved heads as more dominant than their hirsute counterparts. In one test, men with shorn heads were even perceived as an inch taller and about 13 percent stronger than those with fuller manes...

The study found that men with thinning hair were viewed as the least attractive and powerful of the bunch, a finding that tracks with other studies showing that people perceive men with typical male-pattern baldness — which affects roughly 35 million Americans — as older and less attractive. For those men, the solution could be as cheap and simple as a shave.

Men with buzzed heads were associated with alpha males, members of the military, and action movie stars. The study also suggested that power-buzzed men are seen as being better leaders. So there you have it guys with lots of beautiful hair - Henry I'm looking in your direction! Bald or buzzed heads are...good? Of course I'm hesitant to point out this last comment but the article concluded but noting:

And how about men with a full head of hair?

Sorry, they're still seen as more attractive, if less dominant, than their hairless counterparts, according to the study.

Well...can't win them all.