Reading the face and body that nature gave me — what do these features mean? and where did they come from? — and the face and body that I have fashioned, and re-fashioned, over time — what was I aiming for, and why? and what did others make of it? — and my face and body as I use them in action, presenting myself to the (sociocultural) world around me — what sorts of persons do I think I am? and what sorts of persons do others see in me? (Yes, persons. Like everyone, I am a conglomerate of identities and personas.)
Well, yes, life, the universe, and everything. But I can bash at a bit of the answer — if not 42, then maybe 2, or 3, or even 7, or at least some satisfying ancillary information about 2, 3, or 7.
The raw material for these musings is pictures of me collected in my 5/20 posting “Forty facial years”:
1958 through 1995, so not quite 40 years. For my face, in 8 shots, the last two providing more of my body as well. Today just the visuals, with little commentary, beyond locating the photos in time, place, and occasion.
(also, significantly, noting facets of my appearance and of the way I’m presented in the photos).
