I'm a guy, and it seems that I'm too hairy! I'm not freakishly hairy,
but I've got pretty dark hair, and it's fairly dense in places on my
arms, upper back, neck, chest, and stomach. I try to shave my neck and
upper back once a month or so to keep in under control, but I can't
figure out what to do about the rest. Girls in my age range (early
20s) seem opposed to male body hair. I tried a home waxing kit on my
chest and stomach, but the hair was too dense for it to work properly.
I tried Nair and shaving, but, in both cases, I was left with a
prickly stubble even immediately afterwards. I tried using a beard
trimmer to shorten my arm hair, but people noticed that it looked
"prickly". Does anyone have any ideas on how to get this hair
situation under control?

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Request for Question Clarification by tar_heel_v-ga on 25 Dec 2002 17:27 PST

Are you looking at methods for removal or just controlling the length and density?

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Clarification of Question by gremlin-ga on 26 Dec 2002 13:19 PST

Either one. The main roadblock is that the result has to look natural
to a casual observer.

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Clarification of Question by gremlin-ga on 26 Dec 2002 18:48 PST

I can only budget up to $70/month and 2 hours/month for this.

As a woman in her early 30's, dating a man who considers himself
hairy, I'm just here to tell you that women are comfortable around men
who are comfortable with themselves.

I would say that you should make friends with a professional waxer.
Make sure that your eyebrows are well kept, and if you need/want to,
have the outside of your ears cleaned up while you're there.

As for the hair on your back, just have the person that cuts your hair
make sure that they shave your neck very well while you are there for
a haircut. If you go to the same place regularly, they should be happy
to shave your neck in between hair cuts complimentary.

Just make sure that you are comfortable with yourself, and that will
radiate to those around you.

I don't mean to sound like 'Ms. Perky Positive', it's just that I know
what my boyfriend feels, and goes though, and I know that his
hairyness doesn't alter our relationship in any way. As a matter of
fact, it's grown on me (no pun intended) and now I like it, a lot!

You may be interested in this article about back hair:

http://sharpman.com/Article.asp?ArticleID=132

Maybe I'm dating the wrong women, but in the past year, I've been
dumped twice because the girls couldn't "handle the hair". I'll be 30
and alone...
My self-esteem has been shattered. I'm completely unable to talk to
women unless I've been drinking, knowing that sooner or later, the
"big reveal" will come. Nevermind the constant self-doubt and nagging
fears. I'm not even comfortable going to the beach or SCUBA diving,
two things I dearly love. I just can't handle it anymore. As soon as i
can afford laser removal, I'm booking a session.

A lot of men wish to get their hair removed for various reasons. 
Methods will vary by costs and efficacy.  Waxing can sometime cause
problems related to ingrown hairs.  When the hair comes back it is
ingrown and can cause bumps and skin infection.  The best way is laser
hair removal.  It is permanent (give or take 10%) and will not cause
ingrown hair.

Here is a site that provides more information for men. 
http://www.hairremovalforum.com/formen.htm