February 25, 2011

Question . . .

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Warning: If you don’t want to hear about my hair, skip this entry. I realized after writing it that this is a completely self-absorbed entry. Oh well.

I had a guy at work (a customer) ask me a question the other day. He told me he used to have long hair for years (I got the impression he meant long as in mid-back, longer than mine), but that his mother had cancer and had to go through chemotherapy, so as a show of solidarity and support, he and his brother both shaved their heads since she had lost all her hair as well. He said it had been about a year since he shaved his head but he was looking to grow it long again. Well, his question for me was to ask if I was aware of anything that would help grow hair faster. There’s no such a thing. Believe me, I used to long for something like that. Growing long hair takes patience. It’s an oh, so slow process. He obviously noticed me as having "long hair" and probably admired it in one form or another, or else he wouldn’t have asked. So I passed another milestone. A while back I passed the "being able to tie" (pony tail) the hair (all of it, including what’s on top) "milestone". I still don’t wear it like that except to run or hang around the house, just because I think it looks messy in a tie, mostly due to the curly/frizzy nature of my hair. I’ve learned just not to fight it. It looks best just naturally curly and hanging. There are moisturizing products that help cut down on the frizz and make the curls/waves more uniform. So, now I have passed the "getting asked advice about long hair" milestone from other guys. I tried to be helpful. He had had long hair before but it sounded like he kept it long for years, so the idea of (and whole process of) growing it out is somewhat of a new thing to him. I told him I knew of nothing to increase growth rate but I’ve heard that good nutrition and vitamins help (but I kind of doubt this . . . vitamins are not a cure all or a magic potion, they simply help the body function normally). We also discussed the two different "schools" of thought . . . whether to just grow it, or whether to get regular trims. For me, I’ve decided the "regular trims" deal is a chick thing, IMO . . . also pushed by hairstylists who want to make money. There is NO truth in the statement that regular trimmings make hair grow faster. Hair grows from the base, not from the ends, so trimming the ends changes nothing, except makes hair shorter . . . the opposite of what you want. I’ve researched, I’ve watched videos on it, and yes, there may be some truth to the whole "regular trimming" = healthier, less damaged hair. But in the final analysis I determined that the trade of was not worth it . . . I MAY have healthier hair with regular trims but 1) it costs money, and 2) it would take me longer to reach my length goals due to cutting a little off every so often. I determined that these two SURE negatives outweighed any potential positive gains I might could make with having fewer splits/healthier hair, especially since there are things one can do to prevent damage, like no heat treatment, rare blow drying, and easy on the towel drying and combing. Also, split ends can be cut upon discovery . . . by ME. Well, now I’m rambling. I didn’t tell him all of this. I did tell him that I decided to just grow it without trims (at least for a while) and I said "this is almost 2 years of growth". He was surprised. I mean, yeah, two years and it’s just now past my shoulders. Yep. Patience. I did tell him though, that his (apparently) straight hair would probably seem to grow faster than my curly hair. Much of the length of curly hair is tied up in the curls, in the waves, ringlets, or whatever the case may be. Straight hair grows straight to the ground, so appears longer, faster (although does not appear as full and thick, usually).

My biggest regret at this point is that I didn’t grow long hair when I was younger, before I started going grey. I have got quite a bit of premature greying on the sides of my head and the long hair emphasizes that. I’ll probably be like my mom’s brother . . . all grey by mid 30’s. Shit. Oh well. A couple of people have suggested I colour the hair, but I don’t want to because 1) colour damages hair, 2) it’s a hell of a lot of work, and 3) once you start it sucks to stop because the roots will show. Natural is natural. I’ll just be natural and proud, LOL. I am thinking about using a mild bleaching agent in my hair later this spring/summer. Perhaps the grey would be bleached to white which would then be blended away by the red and golden undertones in my other hairs (bleach turns my hair redish gold, not blonde, I guess because I have redish undertones to my brown hair, not surprising, given the red beard, and the red hair in the family). Then again, unless I’m planning on cutting the hair short again soon after I do this, perhaps it would be ill-advised to do something even as drastic as bleaching. Of course, I’m talking about a mild product like Sun-In, I would never use the harsh bleaching products anymore than I would use hair colour/dye.

It’s silly but I’m glad people notice the hair. That’s why I wanted to grow it long. It makes a statement. And it has (theoretically) aesthetic beauty. So yes, for someone to notice (man or woman) is great. This is not the first comment I’ve gotten on the hair, obviously. It is, however, the first time I’ve got an "advice" question. It must not look too horrendous, if I’m being asked advice on hair. Ha.

-AR

PS: I will probably go to a hair salon at some point in the coming months and the stylist will tell me I did it all wrong, that I should have been getting regular trims, and now I need to just whack it all off and start over. Whatever.

PPS: One other problem I see with colouring the hair is two fold: 1) It may not look as natural, and 2) It would be hard to have multi-toned hair. That’s one thing I like about my hair . . . it’s multi-toned (gold, red, brown, and yes, grey, LOL).

Went to my home group meeting tonight and the speaker for tonight’s meeting, who is from the Evans group, said she missed me at the Evans meeting. I haven’t been in quite some time. I really need to get back there sometime. It won’t be this coming Monday as I have to work in the evening. I’ll get back eventually. Nice to know someone misses me. Someone cares. Sometimes I wonder.

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