Hear me

"What do you look for in a partner?"
"I look for nice ears."

Huh? SAY WHAT? Hahaha... Hypothetical conversation, my friend! Today I wore a hairband.

R: Hey! I like your hairband and earrings today!

Hmm... I almost always wear earrings because I have so many. But I think this is one of the few times someone actually commented on my earrings. That led me to wondering why most people do not notice ears unless they are bigger than Dumbo's or emitting a strange smell.

I think I got my first ear piercings in primary school. It was done at a neighbourhood goldsmith shop and cost a whopping $20, including the studs. For fear of making me suffer twice, my mum requested for my ears to be pierced simultaneously by two ladies. Hah! What pain?

Now my ears look like this

That's right. I have had my ears pierced many times subsequently. Ah, those teenage years. Was I rebelling? Nope. Was I trying to stand out from the crowd? Perhaps. But I pierced my ears over 15 times because I like it. My 2nd piercings were badly infected. I was told I could remove the studs after a week, and I did. In place of those studs, I wore tiny, tiny silver dots. I think they were less than 1mm in diameter. Subsequently, the studs went through the front of my piercings and were lodged in the middle of nowhere. To top it off, I was in Malaysia and did not have any other studs to replace them. Gritting my teeth, I refused to let them close and poked the studs through again. Pain.

One of my most memorable piercings was done in Toss at Far East Plaza. By then I had discover the low price tag of ear piercings - a mere $5. I went into Toss and asked to get one on my right ear. The gentle looking salesgirl took out the gear and I thought she was going to do it for me. Great! Shouldn't be too painful. But she picked up the telephone and called someone to 'come down and do a piercing'. WHO?! TELL ME WHO!!!!!!

Down the escalator bounced a skinny man with longish hair. He had those enlarged ear piercings and a few tattoos. Wooot! Exciting!

Him: SO! YOU WANT TO GET A PIERCING?
Me: Yes, but not one like yours.
Him: HAHAHAHA! THIS TAKES A LOT OK? So where do you want yours?

It was one of the best piercings I have ever gotten. It did not hurt and it healed beautifully. I left the stud in for 3 months or so. Despite not having any earrings in it for over 7 years, it has not closed and still can hold a earring.

In the end, my right ear has 8 piercings and my left ear has 3.

Nowadays, you will most likely catch me with a signature earring on each lobe rather than a row of metal studs.