looking younger

[bruinaphi]

Originally posted by aephi alum
It's all in how you carry yourself. If you order a drink or buy some booze like it's no big deal, you won't get carded. If you dress well (nice shirt and slacks/skirt, no jeans) you'll look older. If you wear your hair short or up in a bun, you'll look older. If you stand/sit up straight, you'll look older; if you slouch, you'll look like a kid.

Sorry, but I don't buy that. I have had judges ask me how old I am when I've been dressed in a suit with my hair in a bun and glasses and makeup on. I've been ordering alcohol for a long time like it's not a big deal b/c it isn't. That hasn't stopped anyone from carding me.

[aephi alum]

*shrug* Maybe it's just me, then... I found, when I was 19 or 20, that if I wore my hair down and I wore a t-shirt and jeans, the probability of my getting carded was a lot higher than if I wore a nice shirt and slacks and put my hair up in a bun.

XO Princess's story reminds me of something that happened to one of my sorority sisters... she also looks really young for her age. She was sitting in the exit row of an airplane, and the flight attendant came up to her and asked her "Are you 15?" (Meaning, "are you at least 15") She was very puzzled (she interpreted it as "are you as young as 15") and said "well... no." So the flight attendant asked her to move! "Why?" "You have to be at least 15 to sit in an exit row." "Ummm... I'm 22." "...Oh." That poor flight attendant

[bucutie02]

okay well im glad im not alone on looking younger!

By the way, i always get the kiddie menu at restaurants if i go with my family. Once we were at Soup and Salad and the waitress which was probably in high school asked my mom how old her two kids were because "12 and under eat free!".

I guess if i were to dress up a little more i would look older. At school i just dress casual but when i go to work I do dress up a lot more.

I dont really wear a lot of makeup either, just eye shadow, mascara, blush and lipstick. I have always wanted to wear eyeliner but it doesnt look good on me, i look weird!

Thanks for replying everyone!

[KSigkid]

I think attitude has a lot to do with it if you're on the border of looking 'of age' - like AEPhiAlum said, the way you carry yourself, dress, etc. can push you over the edge. However, if you look way too young, no amount of acting is going to make up for that.

Now, I've always looked older than I am - whether it was in high school with my facial hair (what the hell was i thinking going with just the mustache), or even now clean-shaven, I've looked like I could be 21 from the time I was 16.

All in all though, it's like Rob said; looking young is not a bad thing. For the rest of our lives we'll be searching for ways to re-capture our youth, so why be upset if you look a little young.

Collin

[deltaphi94]

I have so many stories for this one! My aplogies in advance if I get long winded.

1. When I was 18 or 19, I went home from school on a break, and my mom and I went to look at some dolls she was thinking about buying. (Some lady had them advertised in the paper or something.) So, we go to this woman's house, and she asked me if I was enjoying spending the day with my GRANDMA. Well, my grandma had just passed away, so I got all serious and said something like 'my grandma just passed away, but I am having a nice day out with my mother, thank you.' She thought I was about 10, 12 at the most.

2. I worked as a sub in the district I attended for a few years after college, and I had another job in retail at the time. Both in the same town. The store I worked in had a key cutter, and I was one of the few who knew how to cut keys. This woman came in to have a key copied, and the cutter broke down before I had all of her keys done. She got all rude with me about it and told me to get the manager, so I did. There was nothing he could do, so she stormed out. That night, I got a call to come in as a long term sub for maternity leave. Her son just happened to be in that class. This is elementary, so I walked the class out to the bus lot, and there she was to pick up her son. She shoots me this horrible look and asks what I'm doing there. Subbing for the teacher... She says, "oh, I am so sorry about yelling at you at the store. I thought you were just a kid who didn't know what you were doing." I said, " Nope. Now you know I'm over 16, and I even have a college education."

3. I got called in to sub at the high school. This was fun because I knew I still passed for 17, and the students thought I was a transfer. When I was leaving, school hadn't let out yet, but there was a guy just outside the door, and he asked if I was a junior or senior. "Teacher" OOPS!

4. Another one from the high school... the father of one of my friends was working the same day, and I had lunch duty in the lobby. My friend's dad was on his lunch and headed home, and he stopped to talk to me. Right about then, the principal (who came in after I had graduated) walked over to us and starts telling John to watch a certain group. John told him he was on lunch, and the principal looked all confused, so he apologized and asked if John knew who was on duty. I told him I was, and he looked at me like I was nuts. He even asked John if that was true. I wanted so badly to walk him down the hall and show him my class composite picture from nearly 10 years ago.

Oh, and this is really bad but a lot of people think I'm my husband's teen daughter. We get a lot of turned heads if we hold hands in public.

BTW.... sometimes it doesn't matter how you dress. If you look young enough, it doesn't stop everyone.