Karl Marx strikes back against critics.
Originally by Captain Fuerza.
Word of the wise, because sadly I’ve made this mistake more than once. I was in the process of growing a beard…soon to be of the civil war variety. I was a good 3 or so months into it and wanted to trim it down as I was beginning to look like a Jewish Rabbi in training. I had the clippers set to “5″ and (as you can imagine) had to clean out their hair quite frequently. When I did, I neglected to realize the clippers would be defaulted to a “1″ i.e. as close a shave as you can get. I than proceeded and next thing I knew, on the side of my face I could see flesh. The only way I could salvage it was to trim it into a lame ass goatee and sideburns.

Part of the reason I decided to trim down was to soften the blow/gawkers at work. I work in an office with mostly women that are over 40 and divorced, it made me realize something too. Any time I make a “drastic” change to my appearance by shaving or cutting my hair after letting it grow out a few months they feel the need to comment on it and let me know how they feel. They ‘ll tell me if they hated it and are glad I made the change or vice versa. Every time, it never fails. The men I work with never even acknowledge it, they pretend nothing has happened.
Yet another fundamental difference between men and women.
It is a spectacle in the sport of hockey. Players letting their facial hair grow out throughout their team’s playoff run. It originated back in the 80s when players did not want to re-open facial wounds during the playoffs, so they just quit shaving. It has evolved to be a timeline of survival. The bigger the beard, the longer that player and his team have advanced closer to Lord Stanley’s Cup.
It’s unfortunate though for those who cannot grow an acceptable playoff beard. Lets take the Penguins’ Sidney Crosby for example. Sure, he is a great player, but this kid cannot grow a beard to save his career. Now compare that to his rival in the cup playoffs, Kris Draper– a seasoned veteran — who puts Crosby’s pubie looking beard to absolute shame. Just take a look at exhibit A below. Draper and the Wings should win the Stanley Cup on beard performance alone.
The playoff beard doesn’t have to just be used by hockey players during the playoffs. It can be used by anyone for anything. Here is a list of 5 other reasons to grow a playoff beard. (Ladies, this list is not for you. Please don’t grow a beard, that’s not socially acceptable and to be honest, just plain gross.)
So there you have it ladies and gents…the playoff beard.