In 1960, 1970, 1980, etc., second-hole (lobe piercing) earrings were unacceptable. They were flashy, they were too much, they were whoreish, and they were unprofessional. Cartilage piercings were unheard of, and nose rings weren't even a thought - they were an abomination.

But times they are a'changing.

I have worked at a daycare for a year. I work with all ages, infants to 12 years old. When children see my nose ring or my many earrings, the conversation goes like this pretty much every time:

Child - "Why do you have that ring in your nose/on your ear?"

Me - "Because I like it there."

Child - "Oh."

A while later... Child - "I like it too, then."

(I was told once that when working with preschoolers/school age children, it's a bad idea to have nose rings, because they may pull on them, or tell me they don't like me because of it. If I'm being completely honest, if a child is going to pull on my nose ring, or dislike me because of a piece of metal on my face, there are definitely other things happening there. Children aren't spiteful with no purpose, no background, no reason.)

But that's not what this is about.

I distinctly remember, one girl in my math class one year, got a Monroe piercing (above her lip). She was called into the office and told that she either had to take it out or go home. Again - she was PULLED OUT OF HER LEARNING ENVIRONMENT, (Algebra, which is confusing enough already), taken into the office, and told to either GO HOME or TAKE IT OUT. ALL BECAUSE OF A CENTIMETER WIDE PIECE OF METAL ON HER FACE.

Can you tell this is a subject that fires me up?

If you aware of piercings and the piercing process, it isn't cheap. Getting a piercing can range anywhere from $30 to $60. Which means that that girl in my class, who was probably 15 or 16 at the time, went and paid to have it pierced, and then was forced to take it out. (Also, being 15/16, her parent had to go, which meant her parent approved. But the school didn't. Because, you know, the school paid for it and raised her, so you know, they get a say in the matter.)

She ended up taking it out, because she had to go to school, obviously, but the entire situation is utterly ridiculous, to say the least.

Because, you know, that piece of metal in her lip, reaaalllllyyyy hindered my learning. It was awful. I couldn't focus at all. I can't believe she would make a choice that only affected her, and her alone, and expect me to be able to learn Y = MX + B while she sits there with a lip ring?!

When I say it like that, doesn't it sound ridiculous?!

That's because IT IS.

When I was in high school, not many people had nose rings. I got my first nose ring my senior year (I didn't get called to the office over it, surprisingly). But teachers, and my mother, and my family members, etc., would all ask,

"Didn't that hurt?"

"Why would you want that?"

"Those aren't very professional."

We'll start with the first question, we'll just get it out of the way. Yes, a needle getting pushed through a chunk of your skin hurts, but the great thing about piercings is, I chose to endure that pain. And with MY nose/ears being the one being pierced, you'll NEVER have to experience it! Isn't it great how that works?

My response to the second question... Why should I even have to answer that, and defend myself to anyone? Why did I choose to wear jeans today? Why did I choose to wear a grey sweater today? Why did I wear my hair pulled up today? Why am I wearing a nose ring and why do I have all those earrings in my ears? BECAUSE I WANT TO AND BECAUSE I LIKE THEM THERE.

My response to the third question is a bit less sassy, but is the main purpose of this article.

If when I get older (and if I still want to wear my nose ring) and I interview for a job, the first thing they will see when I come in the room and shake their hand is my face. My smiling, happy, I do what I want for myself because I'm an independent, self-defined, woman, stubborn like my daddy, face. And when they see my face, their eyes will either narrow in on my nose rings, or they won't. And if they do, and they inform me that in receiving the job, I will have to take out my piercings, due to "unprofessionalism," I will politely refuse their job offer. That may sound dramatic. Hear me out.

I will not be employed at a company that judges my job performance on, again, a piece of metal in my nose. Because I will guarantee there is a company out there that would welcome me, my talent and job readiness, and my nose rings, with wide, open arms. And I can't wait.

I'll talk about the judgment of tattoos in another article because that fires me up too. One thing at a time.