Hair Changes

Aaaaahhhh! I am screaming because I am doing something that I haven't done in about 10 years. I am taking my extensions out and wearing my natural hair for a period of time that is longer than two days. If you know me well, you know that's a huge step for me because I can't stand combing hair! So, I've decided that it's time for more change...beginning with my hair.  I have taken out my beloved extensions.  For how long? I don't know yet.  I'm going to try wearing my natural hair out for a while. We'll see how it holds up especially since I plan on working out starting tomorrow. It'll either be good or very bad. If it holds up it'll be a miracle, if it doesn't hold up well under all the perspiration and activity then I'll probably end up looking like Don King. In fact that's sort of who I resemble right now. I washed, deep conditioned and blow-dried my hair and now I'm waiting for my sister to get here and straighten it for me.

I am not white so I know that this is going to be a daunting task. I don't have wash and wear hair. I've got wash it, wash it again, condition it, condition it again, leave in condition it and dry it and that's just half of it. I'm not complaining. I wouldn't change my hair texture for the world but sometimes it can be unmanageable…really I'm just lazy sometimes. I pray that I can stay up long enough to get it straightened, my neck is killing me and I've got sinus problems. Damn, I should have bought a wig. Not really, but I am rethinking my decision now and I want to give my hair a little break from the extensions for a few weeks.

All this talk lately about "Good" and "Bad" hair got me to thinking about why I wear extensions. The reason is really because of convenience. Unlike some people I love my hair. I love the kinky texture that can stand up to bitter heat and extreme colds. I like that I can straighten it, wear it curly or get it braided and it looks awesome in any style. I know a lot of African Americans prefer to have their hair straight because they figure it's more appropriate and professional but I love my hair and I would wear and afro if I didn't have to pick it out with a comb. Seriously, I started wearing braids in high school and would get it braided every 2 months. My friend Nana used to braid it for me and it was really convenient with school and all my extracurricular activities. In college it was even more convenient because I didn't really know how to take care of my hair. When it wasn't braided in high school my grandmother would comb it for me so I didn't have to learn how to press, curl or anything else. Thankfully when I went to college I met a bunch of cool chicks from Detroit, New York and DC and they all knew how to "do" hair. They taught me tricks that I still used to this day – ask me about a microwave ponytail. Anyhow, enough of the reminiscing I gotta do something with this hair.

 

Let the hair saga begin. My next post will include before and after pictures, maybe.