Whether by choice or not, bald heads make a statement

A few weeks ago I found myself with a rare free evening and decided to check out a college basketball game at the University of Maine’s Alfond Arena. It’s a pleasant way to pass the time, whether the Black Bears win or lose, because I don’t get many chances to watch basketball at my own leisure. As a sports reporter, most of the time I’m at a game because I have to be.

This particular night wasn’t to be for the Bears and as the visiting team took the lead my attention started to wane. I scanned the Alfond for familiar faces and saw two male acquaintances sitting next to each other.

For some reason my eyes kept wandering their way. They’re both friendly enough and certainly handsome – one’s married and the other has a girlfriend so I wasn’t exactly watching them in that way – but there was just something about them, sitting there next to each other. It hit me.

They’re both bald.

And ever since that moment, I’ve noticed a lot of men with bald heads. You know what? I like it.

I don’t know the reason men decide to shave their heads. It could be a statement, like the punks of the 1970s. It could be sheer laziness, as if a morning shampoo and comb takes a lot of effort. It could be, like some of the people I meet in my job, that they’re swimmers and want to feel sleek in the water.

But I bet the reason most men shave their heads is because they’re balding. Maybe their hairline is uneven, or they don’t know what the heck to do with what little hair they have. You can’t exactly comb it over to one side. Well, you can, but it looks silly.

I don’t know the balding patterns of my friends at the Alfond. If they are losing their hair, I admire them for their shaved heads. It’s kind of empowering. It’s a way to take control. It’s as if they’re saying, I know I’m going bald and I’m going to control my baldness, on my terms.

This is just the kind of confident, strong sentiment that’s right up my alley when it comes to men, or people in general. Why can’t more men, or people in general, be this way? Why fight baldness with plugs or drugs when you can revel in it? Real women won’t care anyway.

Baldness has other connotations for me. It says, I’m not a slave to hairstyle trends (even though baldness itself seems to be a trend). It’s also not seen very often among men in our society, which makes it kind of exotic.

Now I notice bald men wherever I go, from Shaw’s to the gym to Chili’s. I want to give them all an encouraging and appreciative pat on the back.

As I was mulling this over a few weeks ago, I realized, baldness has become sort of trendy.

Last Sunday during the Academy Awards I caught a glimpse of actor Jack Nicholson with a shiny bald head. Later in the week I found out he had shaved his head for a movie in which he portrays a cancer patient. So Jack has gone bald for money, but it did look good on him.

Pop star Britney Spears got in on the bald act last week. She shaved her head. Most so-called experts believed it to be a sign of the singer’s breakdown. But what if it was her way of taking control over her appearance in a troubled time? What if it was a way for her to start over, like a newborn baby with no hair?

I ran into more baldies last week at high school athletic events. There are usually plenty of hairless people at swim meets, because swimmers claim it helps them feel smoother and therefore faster in the water.

I haven’t come across many girls who shave off all the hair on their heads. But I did meet Amy Harrison, a senior at Mount Desert Island High School who swims on the school team and decided to shave her head for the Class B state championships. She did it, she said, not only because the guys do it, but also because she likes to be her own person.

She donated 13 inches of her hair to Locks of Love, an organization that provides wigs for young people who have lost their own hair because of an illness.

A few hours after I met the MDI swimmer, I interviewed Amber Palmer at the high school basketball tournament. That’s a personal record, by the way, of interviewing two bald girls in one day.

Amber, who is a senior at Washburn High School, has cancer and is almost finished her chemotherapy treatments. She occasionally wears hats and bandannas – who wants to go completely bald in a Maine winter? – but refuses to wear wigs. It’s just not her. There you go. Another confident bald person.

Amber mentioned she’s a little nervous about going to the prom with no hair.

I don’t think she has anything to worry about. Not only is she smart, but she’s also got style – trust me, you don’t often see a girl in a pinstriped suit at a basketball game – along with tons of school spirit, and a great attitude.

Seems to me Amber will have a great time at the prom, hair or none.

Jessica Bloch can be reached at jbloch@bangordailynews.net