Tan lines

Here in Georgia you don't have to make an effort to get a tan. Getting tanned, or burnt is such a part of daily life, that even the most simple activities, such as mowing the yard, walking the dogs, or going for a run, require sunblock. In fact, and I, and my husband, by whose neck alone you could truly call him a "redneck", can wholeheartedly attest to this, wearing sunscreen is no guarantee that you won't get some sort of a tan or sunburn anyway. So, living in Georgia means that unless you spent the entire summer indoors, and in case you were wondering, there are locals who manage to achieve this impressive feat, you will get some sort of tan. And this present the second problem of summer; tan lines. Now please don't mistake for some sort of valley girl who spends the entire summer carefully rotating on her lawn chair, making sure her entire body has achieved the same color, because I don't. But it would be nice if the tops of my arms aren't disfigured by a tan line from a t-shirt sleeve up until Christmas, because, yes, that is approximately how long it takes me to lose my Georgia tan.

Unfortunately, as far as tan lines go, this year is not going to be any better than previous summers. If anything, it will probably be worse, and this can entirely be blamed on my triathlon-preparation. Whereas in previous years I would stick to running only, this year I have been running, biking, and swimming, all of which take place outdoors, and all of which require different outfits. First, there is my bathing suit, which has the criss-crossed straps on the back. Then there are my three biking shirts. One has narrow straps which cross in the back, one is a cropped top that reveals part of my back, and has two broad straps going straight across my shoulder, and one is a sleeveless shirt. Then there are my running outfits, which consist of anything from a tri-top (something that most closely resembles a pimped-up running bra), several sleeveless shirts, and a variety of wide round-necked t-shirts. Then of course there is the bikini I wear when floating around in our mini-pool, and the variety of outfits I put on when I'm not working out. Let's just say my back looks like a map of the greater Atlanta area. There are several diagonal lines, four vertical lines that do not match up, and one very dark triangle, that apparently is not covered by several of my outfits. My upper legs, on the other hand, look like a sample that could be used in a spray tanning salon; "this color is the result of six sessions, while this next line is what your skin will look like after four sessions, and after only two sessions, your skin will look like the next line up from that". And my face best resembles an owl's; the wide sunglasses I wear when running and biking, as well as my swimming goggles have taken care of that.

I know this is truly a luxury problem; I mean, how many Dutch people complain about their tan lines? So yes, I am a little spoiled with all the sun I've been getting down here. But as a friend of mine used to say; luxury problems are problems too. And in all honestly, I can't wait to get back to work where my variety of tans will definitely elicit a wide variety of remarks from my students. So, for all those of you who are suffering from a rainy summer, please feel free to send some our way, you're more than welcome to some of our sunshine. And tan lines