Most men have developed a metrosexual lifestyle nowadays. I don't think this lifestyle is opposed to the macho persona. Who ever thought that being macho means not having to take a bath? I remember the old Mandom commercial with Charles Bronson on the lead. Machismo wasn't separated from what-is-soon-to-be-called metrosexuality then. But does having a metrosexual lifestyle a luxury or a necessity?
I was raised by my parents to always be conscious of my personal hygiene. Quite personally, I could say that I always had an aversion to unclean objects. They said that the first word that I learned to speak was 'dirty.' So even as a child I was already leaning towards that direction.
And I remember in elementary school when the teacher expected the gap under your fingernails to be kept clean. Classmates who were guilty of having dirt under the nails went through the rolling pencil ordeal. This was done by using the pencil like a rolling pin except that, instead of dough, it was the fingers being flattened. I can vividly recall signs are plastered all over the school, "CLEANLINESS IS NEXT TO GODLINESS," to discourage littering.
On the physiological aspect, the lack of personal hygiene has uncomfortable effects on my body. If I don't take a bath, I would be itching all over and rashes would develop. If I don't use a certain kind of shampoo, dandruff would break out and my head would be itching non-stop. I was born with an oily skin and if I don't keep my face clean, it is very prone to pimples.
On the other hand, when I used to wear my hair longer, I went to the beauty salon because barbers can only handle short hair. My head was flat on the backside so that a short razor cut wouldn't do it for me. My hair is also straight and limp so it looks thicker when it's grown long. Barbers do not style hair, they just cut it short. You might say that a barber is like a civil engineer and a hairstylist is like an architect. Barbers don't care about hair condition or esthetics. Hairstylists know what kind of hairstyle is good for your hair type or even the shape of your head.
So you see, having a metrosexual lifestyle is borne out of necessity. It's not about having a soft feminine side. This body just wasn't designed to withstand the lifestyle of a caveman.
