Water and Chapstick

I've been thinking about the way we* drink water and put on chapstick.

Warning: I'm going on a rant tangent - a bunny trail, if you will - that will probably be irrelevant to people under a certain age. I will not say what that age is; I'll leave you to determine that for yourself.

We're* all so concerned about being dehydrated and not getting our daily dose of water. How much that is will vary, depending upon who you talk to and what studies you read.

* When I say WE, I am, of course, referring to our collective society of humans and those in charge who've determined that these are issues with which to be concerned

When I was growing up, we played, rode bikes, ran around (literally!), and occasionally, we got thirsty. When that happened, we either turned on the hose and got a drink out in the yard or we went into the house, grabbed a cup, filled it with water from the kitchen sink, and drank it. Then we went back outside to play for a few more hours.

Until I was in high school, marching in a parade at the State Far parade in Pueblo, I never, ever, ever heard of someone having physical problems with dehydration. Now, I'm not saying they didn't exist. But it wasn't so commonplace that everyone carried water with them. In fact, pretty much nobody did that I knew. (Thus my nearly passing out at the end of marching in the parade!)

But today? The business of water for drinking is enormous. We have bottled water, carbonated water, flavored water, vitamin water, electrolyte water, additives for water, containers for water, filters for said containers, and on and on it goes.

We carry water with us everywhere. Purses, tote bags, backpacks, camera bags - they all have a spot for your water bottle.

As I write this, I'm drinking water from a Thermos intake water bottle, snuggled inside it's groovy water bottle cover/insulator that I picked up at Target yesterday. Oh, and my water is lightly flavored with TruLime. And it came out of a filtered water distribution system located in my freezer door.

I'm not saying it's a bad thing for people to drink adequate water. I'm just saying that I find it interesting that we used to survive** just fine without carrying water everywhere we went.

And on that note, what about lip balm? Yes, I used chapstick on occasion when growing up. But now? I cannot live without it. Maybe there's actually something IN the chapstick that soothes my lips, but also makes them desperately crave more. Maybe there's a Chapstick Conspiracy going on. I carry one in my pocket at all times (Burt's Bees Repleneshing Lip Balm with pomegranate oil, if you must know). In addition, I have a spare tube in my purse. One by my bed. Another on my desk. A few new tubes in a drawer at the ready. But there have been those rare times when I've had a lip balm emergency. As in, I left the house and there's no chapstick in my pocket. Not only that, but the one in my purse has been taken out and left elsewhere.

At that moment, my uncoated lips begin to shrivel and dry up (it really is dry here in Colorado!). I can no longer focus on anything with such parched lips. They may split open any moment. It's so severe that I will drop all plans and go to the nearest known store which carries Burt's Bees and promptly purchase at least two tubes - if not more for the home stash - before continuing about my day. And the sigh of relief from my lips being freshly balmed? Well, there's just nothing like it.

But I really want to know how I got to that place? This was not a phenomenon which has been with me for my entire life. In fact, back in the day, I don't think we had much more than Chapstick, Blistex, and Carmex. And I recall only using them if there were some unusual drying circumstances. I certainly had no stash at home and never carried multiples with me at all times in case of a lip balm emergency.


What about you? Are you old enough to have grown up without depending upon a water bottle and chapstick at your beck and call? Are there other items you've noticed that fall into this category?

Just wondering. Thanks for joining me in my random thoughts.

Now go drink some water and balm your lips. You know you're thirsty and your lips are dry, right?


**Yes, I am aware that there were always people drinking water - football players, cyclists, etc. I'm referring to the general public, living their daily lives in a somewhat normal (whatever THAT is) fashion.