Every now and then, I get a little restless.
I begin itching for a change. A new piercing, a fresh tattoo, or, more rarely but on occasion, a serious haircut. My hair journey has been fraught with impulsive decisions. There are the (literally countless) times I’ve decided to give myself bangs, cutting my hair with kitchen scissors over the bathroom sink. This almost never works in my favor, but I keep doing it. There was the drunken night I scheduled a balayage and then had to google what “balayage” meant. As it turns out, it wasn’t what I wanted, but I was too embarrassed to cancel the appointment and instead spent three hours in a salon chair. And, of course, there are the times I’ve dyed my hair with box dye and immediately regretted it. Most recently, it was during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. In my defense, everyone was going a little stir-crazy. I armed myself with bleach and pink hair dye and, at one in the morning, coated my hair from scalp to tip. The result was frizzy, fried, but undeniably pink hair, which I rocked for three months without touching up until my roots grew past my ears. All of this to say, I’ve made some bad hair decisions. But after the Pink Predicament, I decided to leave my hair alone for a while. I let it grow out for four years, only giving myself the occasional curtain bangs and leaving the rest alone as it healed from the box dye bleach and general angst. Until now.
The restlessness started this past weekend. I stared at myself in the mirror whilst having a bad hair day — never a good decision — and started to wonder: What if? What if I chopped it? What if I reverted back to a hairstyle I used to love in high school but had grown out? That’s right, reader. I thought to myself, “What if I return to the beloved bob?” I thought about this for approximately 12 hours before I rolled up to Great Clips. I didn’t go in completely blind. No, I may be impulsive at heart, but my brain is logical, so I collected data like any good scientist would. I scrolled through haircut photos on Pinterest. I surveyed my friends and family, holding up fistfuls of my hair to make it look shorter and demanding, “What do you think about this?” The consensus? My loved ones gently told me I should wait. They suggested sleeping on it. It’s a big change, after all. Hair grows back, sure, but why not give it a few days to make sure it’s really what you want? Alas, I don’t work that way. I nodded through this advice, thanking them, my mind already made up. At Great Clips, the very nice stylist asked me what I wanted to do. “Make it choppy and sloppy,” I requested. “The messier, the better. Make it look like I did it myself.” In fact, my loved ones should be thankful I didn’t do it myself. I seriously thought about it, but ultimately chose to go to a professional, and we’re all the better for it. Now, 24 hours post-haircut, I’ll admit, it’s growing on me. (Pun intended.) I’m a fan; it’s a literal weight off my shoulders. Not only does it look cute and different, which was the goal, but it satisfies that urge I get every now and then to change up my life. No piercings or tattoos or box dye for me this time around. Just a good, old-fashioned chop. I highly recommend doing something out-of-the-box every now and then, something to change up the day-to-day and throw some fun into the routine. Especially as winter approaches and we get bogged down in routine, it’s time for a little mischief. Maybe in your life, that’s an impulsive haircut, or something else. Let me know what that looks like for you! This haircut will hopefully tide me over for a few months, until my next thing. I promise to seek advice before my next decision. But whether I take that advice or not remains to be seen.
