Well, many of you here may be wondering in your heads, "what is a metrosexual?!?" Is it a foreign language or something like that... then some of you may be thinking "I’ve heard this word so many times, but I still don’t know what it means??" Well, according to wordspy.com, the term metrosexual (pronounced met.roh.SEK.shoo.ul) is ‘an urban male with a strong aesthetic sense who spends a great deal of time and money on his appearance and lifestyle.’ (wordspy.com, 2004). This definition is almost correct, but they left out the part that states that a metrosexual is also a heterosexual, meaning that he is as straight as a man can be, thus likes women. In other words, he is a man who seems stereotypically gay except when it comes to sexual orientation. Famous metros include David Beckham, Orlando Bloom and yes... Mr. Simon Cowell. This picture basically sums up what a metro sexual is.

I always knew I was not one of those buffed up macho fellas who never liked anything but football and nude women but I never really deemed myself as a metrosexual until late last year or beginning of this year. I was reading a newspaper article about metrosexuals. It was the first time I had heard the word, so I read the whole 3 pages (which was a rare thing for me). I found that I wasn’t alone... previously, I often wondered if I was the only guy around that was like this... but then I found out that there were SO many people like me all over the world.

I think the reason why I’m a metrosexual firstly is because I like shopping. I can spend hours in a shopping center just looking for an outfit, say for prom or something like that. As it is, I have gone shopping more than 6 times in this month alone. I especially like to go shopping in places with extremely cheap bargains where they bundle the clothes on a table, and there would be people like me just digging and digging, just to find the shirt that fits us. And to make matters worse, I have to admit, I am easily attracted to words like ‘SALE’ or ‘FREE’. This may make me sound cheap or like Hokkiens say ‘kiam siap’. But a man gotta do what a man gotta do to get good bargains. If one were to look into my closet, I have A LOT of clothes... I mean, A LOT!! Even for a girl I think. Some of my clothes have to be put into my father’s cupboard too (which is quite empty to start with). I still remembered during the first semester, I had so many clothes that I only started to repeat my clothes only around the month of May. Once, I actually went home and counted how many tops (meaning shirts and t-shirts), and ended up having more that 80 tops. This does not include house clothes too. Just tops that could be worn for going out. Even for the play Hip-Hopera, I was the wardrobe advisor and provider. I provided all the clothes, from shirts to pants, from sunglasses to shoes. As a result from this love for fashion, I’ve been asked many times by male friends of mine for some fashion advice.

I also have this fetish over my hair. If any you noticed, I change my hairstyle almost every few months. So far, my most outrageous hairstyle was my Mohawk with the zigzag lines on the left. I take much pride in my hair. One of my most hated things would be waking up with a bad hair day!! So for those who see me in caps, it would most probably mean that I’m having a bad hair day. Let me ask the guys a question, how much is your normal haircut. Well, I also have the tendency to over indulge in my hair. Sometimes, my hair cut alone (without wash or dye) can go up to RM58, and another RM10 a week just to maintain it so that it looks the same, which is A LOT for a guy. But after reading a few web sites on it, I found out that that was the average price for a metrosexual’s haircut. Phuueh~!!

Some of you may also notice that I have many girl friends... meaning girl who are my friends. After asking a few of them why they rather hang out with me than other guys, it was because they felt more comfortable with me than when they were with other guys. According to them, I am more sensitive with them and understand them better. Besides that, most of them time, we share common interest such as shopping and watching movies. Maybe its also because I actually take time to sit down and listen to what they have to say, which sometimes can be very interesting. I also feel that women are very fragile emotional creatures that like to be pampered and cared for. Therefore, I actually take the initiative to make sure that they’re happy. I mean, one of the things that can totally tear my heart to bits and pieces is watching a girl cry. That’s the worst thing a guy can do.

I’m also quite a classy and refined sort of guy. I enjoy watching and taking part in things like performing arts and attending jazz festivals. And I know not many guys like these sort of things, especially at my age. When asked if I prefer beer or wine, I would say wine. When asked to pick between watching a football match and a watching a mamma-mia, I would pick mamma-mia. I’m also one of the few people that actually enjoys fine dining in classy restaurants.

Now to prove that I’m not gay, I am very much straight. I am totally obsessed with model especially shows like America’s Next Top Model and I’ve have had a few girlfriends. But I’m currently single but not too available... hehehehe. And I have another thing to admit... I’m homophobic. I don’t know if that’s bad but everytime I meet a homosexual, I freak out... especially those who act like this "OOHH MMYY GGOODD" and start waving their hands around like nobody’s business. I’m not discriminating against them, but everytime I meet one, I feel extremely uncomfortable and don’t know what to do. Maybe this is because they have traumatized me. Let me tell you one experience. I was in the Great Eastern Life Shopping Mall, shopping as usual, with my family. I was carrying so many bags, so my parents told me to put the bags in the car. So I took the car keys and took all the bags to the car. Then after putting all the bags in the boot, I proceeded to the lift. While walking to the lift, I was followed by a few guys that were all acting kinda poofy. But I didn’t think much of them... so I just continued walking. As I walked, all the sudden I heard them say "Amboi!!! HANDSOME!!!" I was SO scared that I walked even faster and while waiting for the lift, I was so afraid that I would be alone with them in the lift. Fortunately, there was another family there and the lift came fast enough for me to avoid them. But this was just one... I’ve had some experiences that were just as frightening.

Well, to conclude this speech, I would like to say that I although I may have sounded a little big headed in this speech, it just that I take pride in looking my best in front of everyone. I would also like to add that you should not care of what other people think and just learn to be you, because what matters most is that you are happy. Don’t try to be someone else because the best form of flattery is imitations. So I end this by saying ‘I’m proud to be a METROJAYA!!!’