[Stories & Tips]

Before I begin this article, let me start out by saying that I am not a girl who generally cares about her appearance. I love clothes but hate having too many, never wear makeup, hate straightened hair, and usually have no qualms about leaving my house looking like a bag lady.

My new passport just came in the mail. When I went to CVS to get the photo taken, I was in a rush and looked gross, as usual. My photo, however, was a whole new level of ugly. I didn’t want to seem like a princess and ask them to take a new one, thinking, “Hey, who cares about that stuff anyway? Not me!”
Turns out, I do. Even my best friend, who saw the photo lying around, burst out, “Wow that is absolutely the worst photo of you I have ever seen. It doesn’t even look like you!” This photo is universally heinous. But why do I care so much? Who is going to see it besides airport employees; am I really so eager to impress them? Apparently so, because now I feel like every time I board a plane I’m going to have to dress to the nines just to disprove this stupid photo. Otherwise my chances of meeting my future husband at customs are severely diminished. Does anyone else feel so photo-conscious? I think that my worries are totally stupid and yet I have this passport for TEN YEARS. A decade of terrorizing immigration stations everywhere, turning border protection agents into stone. Thank god I have duel citizenship.