BY MERLIN’S BEARD

    Does your beard hang low? Can you tie it in a knot, can you tie it in a bow?
    Some of Murray State’s men may be able to after participating in No Shave November, a celebratory month without shaving.
      “It’s freedom from the blade,” Joe Benson, senior from Beaver Dam, Ky., said as he proclaimed his passion for No Shave November.         “The month of November is time to seek freedom – freedom from caring about what people say.”   
    As the month progresses, some men may begin to look more like lumberjacks than they did when they arrived in August, all because of friendly competition.
      “This year I’m trying to amass this big manly beard on my face,” Benson said.
    Benson said he has participated in No Shave November for four years. His experience began as a competition on Halloween night when the guys at Murray Christian Fellowship decided to shave clean and go as long as they could without shaving.
      “I keep up the tradition to encourage other people to do it,” he said.
    After four years, Benson said he looks forward to No Shave November.
      “It’s always good to ring in the cold season with this beard on your face,” Benson said. “It’s a manly thing, you know?”
     TJ Richmond, junior from Mayfield, Ky., said he could not keep up with No Shave November. He shaved his beard last week.
    “It’s just bothersome,” Richmond said.
    After weeks of wearing a beard, Richmond said it gets itchy and annoying and the cold air only worsens it.
    Though no longer bearded, Richmond said he enjoyed sporting his.
  “A lot of people can’t grow good beards so I guess when you can, you should,” he said. “Try to make it as bushy as possible.”
    Though bushiness is key, Richmond said there are more guidelines to keeping a beard.
    “If  it’s not real thick it looks pretty good,” Richmond said. “When you’ve got it (nicely) cropped and sophisticated it looks good.”
    Benson warned No Shave participants of the comments they may receive. He recalls his friend’s experience at a hairdresser’s.
    “This girl was like, ‘You wanna keep those nasty, curly, huge, puffy sideburns?’” Benson said. “He was like, ‘I can’t shave, it’s No Shave November.’ And she (asked), ‘Who says?’ And he (replied), ‘Men say.’”
    Despite comments and criticisms, Benson and others proudly wear their beards.
    “You can really see a difference every year,” Benson said. “I’ve had other guys come and say, ‘Your beard’s looking good.’”
    But what about the girls? Can they participate in No Shave November?
    “It’s cool, but it’s still gross,” said Benson. “It’s cool, but don’t let me see it.”
    In spite of the double standard, Lauren Birdwell, sophomore from Adairville, Ky., said she participated for a residential college competition to see who could go without shaving her legs the longest.
    Birdwell went for a month and won the competition for her floor.
    “I’m so excited to shave. My legs were itching so bad,” she said.
    No Shave is not just for guys; Birdwell proves girls can do it, too.
    “If I was a guy I would participate in it because I think it’s kind of cool,” Birdwell said. “I like to say that I’ve done something (like that). I like to compete.”
    After the competition is over and November has ended, Murray State men and women will finally shave, but maybe not all.
    “Maybe I’ll get a Murray State Beard Team to go to the nationals,” Benson said.
    With 542 days left until the World Beard and Moustache Championships in Trondheim, Norway, beard growers still have time to prepare for the competition.
    “We talked about it,” Benson said. “I would be embarrassed to have someone laugh at my little beard.”
    Whether or not men at Murray State decide to extend their beard past November, Benson said endurance is the key.
    “It’s a rough and rugged sport,” Benson said. “It’s not for the faint of chin.”
    Contact Phelps at robinj.phelps@murraystate.edu.