Although I’ve been an inmate for nearly five years, I have not changed my outside appearance much, aside from my limited wardrobe. This may sound cliché, but there is a certain ‘look’ that is common on the inside.

“The guy is bald, with a goatee, and has tattoos covering his arms.” In the outside world this description of a man would probably be useful identification. If those same characteristics were used to describe a guy in prison it would literally sound like a joke, because of the vast number of prisoners who fit that description.

It would be the equivalent of a Saturday Night Live skit where a foreign character says, “He looks like a man, kind of short and kind of tall.”

It’s not that the people who look that way have a high propensity to end up in prison; it’s the fact that many prisoners adopt this look once they are here.

I suppose a lot of it has to do with looking tough. The propensity to want to look tough is much greater in this environment than the outside world. I couldn’t tell you why a shaved head has this effect, but I don’t think many would argue it is the case, even if we can logically discern a shaved head doesn’t actually make someone tough. Tattoos don’t either, but I think an argument can be made that an individual covered with tattoos may look scarier than someone who is not.

The way I see it is a person covered in tattoos obviously has little regard for consequences. He has shown a willingness to make permanent and decidedly negative life altering decisions without considering the future.

That’s not someone I want to mess with. I maintain that I’d rather cut off my pinky finger than get a tattoo. My rationale is that, while even if a missing finger might be as unsightly as a tattoo on my hand, when people saw it they would likely not assume I had done it on purpose.

I realize my opinion on the subject is a little extreme. If you don’t believe covering oneself with tattoos, especially facial tattoos, is a disadvantage in life, just consider how difficult it will be to get some jobs having made this obvious choice.

Of course, the tough factor doesn’t explain the “Man bun” which is also quite popular among the inmate population. In many places in prison it is rather inconvenient to get a haircut, so I’ve heard some claim it’s just easier.

For some it’s about money. The prison charges $2.00 for a haircut, and while that doesn’t sound like much, it’s relatively expensive. That’s a day’s wages for some working inmates. I’d find a way to get a haircut in that position, but that’s because it’s not my style.

I also think the really long chin hair (not a beard), which tons of prisoners sport, looks ridiculous, but that’s just an opinion.

People, places, and cultures have their own styles and prison is no different. Hair can be cut or grown back, but for the same reason I don’t use a “prison handle” (nickname) I haven’t chosen to adopt a prison look.

I’d like to avoid any further branding that might identify me as someone on this side of the law. I know I’m labeled as a felon for the rest of my life whether I like it or not, but I choose not to look the part or embrace the lifestyle.

Brian Wood, formerly of Layton, is an inmate at the Utah Correctional Facility in Gunnison. He pleaded guilty to nine felony charges for offenses from 2011 to 2014, including counts of burglary, drug possession and prescription fraud. He could spend up to 25 years in prison, depending on parole hearings.