Hair- The Continuing Saga

"Why do you think you can control your life when you can't even control your hair"?

I envy people with normal hair - you know, the straight kind that looks good even in the midst of a hurricane. My hair is the kind that's always having a party. Any kind of weather, any movement of air within 20 miles of my hair - it's party time! I've given up trying to get the "normal " kind. I did have it straightened for California Daughter's wedding and loved it until my darling granddaughter came up to me and asked "what's your name"?

Color, now that's a different story. I have spent lots of time and money on the color part. That's me, about seven years old, with very dark and very straight hair. (My family has a weird curly hair gene - straight hair till puberty, then , BAM! - here comes the curly wild stuff! ). I've been light brown, dark brown, red (which seems to be the official hair color if you're over 50) and most recently, blond.

I've decided to try a new color - the one that's hiding underneath the blond - the gray color. I'm pretty sure my blond hair isn't fooling anyone into thinking I'm 20 years younger. I don't want to look older, but looking one's age isn't really a bad thing, either. Look how the fantastic Helen Mirren pulls it off! Of course, she'd look great with green hair, purple hair or no hair and most of us aren't that lucky, but still - she looks smoking hot with GRAY hair!

Graying baby boomers have taken on turning gray with some attitude and of course, support groups, web sites and books. One of my favorite is "Going Gray, Looking Great" with some brave souls posting before, during and after pictures. I figure right now I have at least 4 colors going - some gray, lots very dark , dark blond and light blond highlights. I feel like I should wear a sign: " Not being lazy - growing out gray hair" because, trust me, at this stage, the look is serious shlumpadinka!

As if the whole color thing isn't enough to consider, length is apparently a serious topic - serious enough for the New York Times to weigh in on whether middle-aged women can have long hair. When I told my hairdresser I was going to stop coloring my hair, he thought it was a bad ideal. Of course he did - his driveway is full of man-toys paid for by foils and highlights. Then he told me that if I did go gray, I would have to keep it really short because " you can't have long hair if it's gray". Oh really - is that a Federal law or just a city ordinance? I'll take my chances - not that I plan on having it really long, but I've grown accustomed to my wild curly hair and want it back. Right now I'm in the process of cutting it shorter and shorter so I don't have too much of the Great Divide going on!

There is a serious sisterhood of women who have let their hair go gray. I often compliment a woman with great gray hair, and every one of them has said they were glad they did it and commiserated with me over growing-out process. Best of all, every one of them looked fantastic. Here's to fantastic gray hair - long, short or whatever we want it to be.