The one ring (Francis)

So I wanna talk about the various perks and no so perk-ish things I have come across in my recent few months donning jewelry. The first and most super awesome advantage is what I would like to call the is-that-thing-real advantage or the built-in flirt deterrent. This is when you can, with a wave of the hand, send unwanted attention away. This trick is like having a magic wand when someone who is interested in you sexually approaches. You simply say, "These aren't the droids you're looking for."

And they go about their business. It works especially well if you have a beard (I learned this from a co-worker, thanks Kenya!). You just casually stroke your beard with your left hand and away they go. Like being a freaking Jedi! There has only been one instance were it hasn't worked and I think the poor woman just lacked an acute awareness for details, oh and high school tour groups, they just don't care.

Another slightly less awesome pro to hand jewelry is you have a constant toy readily available to play with! Much to Dahnya's dismay I am constantly fiddling with my ring. So much so in fact that I drop it quite regularly.

As far as cons go I can only really think of two. The first is really just a minor safety issue that would only effect someone with my peculiar habits. The problem is it's not really safe to wear and operate machinery. I always forget about it and have started training my students to remind me to take it off in class.

The second con isn't really a con so much as an annoyance. This is that it is a glaring symbol for some people. As with any symbol it comes with outward declarations, suppositions, connotations, etc... So if marriage comes up in conversation the assumption is often that I have some soap box I wanna stand on or that I am the expert on the subject. To be clear I have no interest in proselytizing the world. People, I've been married for not even three months! Don't call me an expert. Sorry, for that little outburst.

So all in all, it's a pretty powerful little object. I'm sure there are tons more pros and cons that will surface as time goes on.