I have had my ears pierced since I was eight years old. I remember how badly I wanted them pierced: I begged and pleaded for at least a year before my dad's cousin, who is a beautician, offered to pierce my mom and my ears one afternoon when she was visiting. (She often came for a visit and did her mother's and my grandma's hair... when she did she brought a "mini-salon" with her.) I still have one stud from that piercing; gold with a pink stone in it.
That satisfied me for about seven years. Then when I was 14, I decided I wanted my ears pierced a second time... it was all the rage in my middle school. But mom said no. Of course, since I was 14 I didn't listen. Instead, I went to a beautician that my mom never went to and got them pierced again. (This was before you had to have "parental permission" to get your ears pierced.) I tried to hide my new piercings, but Mom saw them within 48 hours. She wasn't happy and I was grounded for a week, but she didn't make me take them out.
My sophomore year of college was a tough year and I experimented with all sorts of things. As a result of one of my experiments, I pierced my ears a third time; but this time I did it myself with a great big, extremely sharp darning needle. Even after standing outside on a frigid January Iowa day for a long time in order to numb my ears properly, it still hurt like hell!
About a year and a half later, I wanted them pierced again. However, this time when I got the cartilage in my upper right ear pierced and had both ears pierced a fourth time I let a "professional" do it. (trans. I went to the mall.) Not 3 months later I got my right ear pierced two more times. It looked cute, piercing was all the rage, and it was a such conversation piece. "How many do you have?" (11) "Did it hurt?" (Not really) "Does it hurt to sleep on them?" (Not as long as you get the side pierced that you don't sleep on) "Are you pierced anywhere else?" - wink, wink (No) Etc., etc.
I have taken good care of my ears and have never had any problems with my piercings. I usually wear 4 pairs of hoops in the bottom and 3 studs in the remaining piercings in the right ear... in fact, I still wear that first stud with the pink stone in my upper cartilage piercing.
But, slowly, over the last year or so, each time I take my earrings out to clean them and then go through the hassle of putting them all back in and I look in the mirror at my earringless ears I have begun to think about leaving them out permanently.
The first and second piercings are OK and I am quite fond of the cartilage piercing, but the others I think I could live without. I don't think they will ever grow shut completely: I have left the earrings out for weeks at a time and never have a problem putting them back in, so I guess I can always change my mind. But gradually I just don't think it looks so cute anymore... I am beginning to think that it borders on tacky.
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