Oh lordy what a gourd!

Every child learns that it is impolite to stare. You mustn't stare at the invalid, the handicapped, the deformed. The world is full of rude people who will stare and make the less fortunate feel uncomfortable or sad. You must not stare.

I stare. I am curious. Mostly about things that I find strange. I am not interested in the man in the wheelchair, except for the cute one that I saw the other day. I have no need to ogle the woman with the fake leg, except the one in my neighborhood that I think is the local smack dealer. I stare. I do not do it to make anyone feel bad, it's just that some people are so weird I can't help myself.

Here are a few examples:
Men with ponytails. I'm not talkin' cute Asian guys or my friend Jason's pigtails. I mean the 30-something, hippie/REI patron who for some unknowable and, I'm sure karmic, reason chooses to wear his hair in a style that went out with powdered wigs. I think it's creepy. I spent some years in a town where the men [no matter the age] wore socks with birkenstocks, tie-dye, and ponytails. It's time to give it up. If you want the flowing locks, think Brad Pitt in Interview with the Vampire.

There was a woman in the library tonight attending an opening of an alumni show. She was rail thin but her head seemed enormous. "Look at the size of that melon," I thought. Upon closer inspection, I realized that the monstrosity was due entirely to her hair. A wig? A severely matted ratted sprayed infested wig? I just couldn't get close enough to tell. I knew that my incredulous staring would give me away as a gawker. An uncouth, impolite, rubbernecker. Well, she approached the desk to ask a question all the while tucking her chin to her chest and her eyebrows to the ceiling. Was she trying to keep the wig on? At one point she used her index finger to wipe away a strand of her bangs, I saw a few wisps of greyish hair at the scalp, but the wig did not move. Was it her real hair? All I can say is that wig or au naturel, if you wear hair like that, prepared to be looked upon with some awe.

[As a result of my extreme cowardice and parsimony I do not have any photos to share. I didn't want the scary lady to eat me if I took her picture, but I wouldn't be able to upload it anyway because I didn't pay extra for the service on my celly. Silly me.]

The longer I stare, the longer it seems to me that these strange lookers are strange doers as well. I guess it's down to the eternal question: which came first....? Do they behave strangely because they look strange and people stare? Or are they already strange and their appearances are just physical manifestations of their intrinsic nature?

I think I need to think.
Je pense donc je suis?
Je suis, donc, je pense?

Addenda:
Mullets
Large boobs
Tattooed faces