It's Hard to be a Girly Girl Around Here

As I have mentioned before, my family raises tobacco. Every summer we head out to the fields to set, top, and prime. Working in the field this summer has put a little kink into my attempt to become a girly girl. The combination of sweat, dirt, and bugs is enough to make any girl run away screaming. It is just not a good activity for most girly girls out there. However, the girls and women in my family work hard and do not mind getting a little down and dirty. We are used to the dirt stained hands and the blisters.

One day in the field, we were brainstorming about blog post ideas and we stumbled upon a great one. We decided that it would be entertaining to do a blog post on how to remain girly while working in a tobacco field. After thinking about it for a while, I compiled a list of items that are required to keep yourself as clean and pretty as possible while working. I don't know how much this will help any of you out there, but maybe you can just be entertained by our misery.

The first thing you should never leave the house and head to the field without, is water. You will be thirsty during the day because the sun is hot. Taking water breaks periodically is necessary to keep from becoming dehydrated and getting sick. Water is also a healthy subsitute for soft drinks or other sugar drinks. You need water while working in tobacco.

The next thing that you should never leave your home without is a hat. It can be any kind of hat that you want, as long as it covers and protects your face from the sun. The hat gives you shade and keeps those powerful rays away. No sun=no sunburn faces. The sun can be very cruel to faces. I mean, what girly girl wants to have wrinkles before her time?

I just thought that this was cute :)

Going right along with the hat, you should also apply sunscreen before you head out. It keeps you from those painful sunburns. Take it from me, you do not want to be working out in the field with sunburn. It is not fun. Plus, it also protects your skin from future wrinkles and keeps you from getting what we like to call a "farmer's tan." I don't think any girly girls want one of those.

Now, if you are like me, you don't do well in the sun. My eyes are very sensitive to light and can really start to hurt if they are exposed to it without protection. For this reason, I always wear sunglasses while I am working. They help me to see clearer and keep my eyes from hurting later in the day. Just make sure that your shades are really protecting you from the UV rays. I have some plastic ones that did not get the job done.

The last thing that I always make sure to take with me to the field are gloves. Wearing gloves while you work keeps you from having dirt stained hands. Believe me, those stains take forever to go away. The gloves also help to stop blisters and callouses from forming on your hands. I personally use rubber gloves. These really come in handy (haha get it?). Anyway, these really come in handy for a girly girl who doesn't want embarrassing, dirt stained hands all summer. The boys will not be attracted to that!

So there you have it. Everything that you need to stay as girly as you possibly can while working in a tobacco field. These items can also apply to all kinds of outdoor work, from gardening to working with straw. I hope all of you hard working girly girls gained something from this post. AND if you have never had to work in a field somewhere, then look down at this picture of my cousin Katelyn and I and count your blessings. But, no matter what kind of work you do...stay girly my friends :)