Give Me a Head of Hair

Ah, Youth

I’ve always had long hair. Well, not when I was born, obviously, but from a youngster throughout my teens and into my adulthood. Other than a couple of perms back in the 80’s (who didn’t have a perm back then?), I’ve not dyed, bleached or colored it since. It’s never been too thick or too thin. My hair was something David really appreciated and he would tell me whenever I’d ask if I should cut it, to keep it long. Like so many other things, I took my hair for granted when I was younger.

The Race

Now that I’m in my mid 50’s, my hair’s starting to go silver. One of these days, my brown hair with it’s copper and golden undertones and highlights will be completely silvery gray. I’ve never thought of myself as vain, but I miss my old hair. One of these days, I’m sure I’ll just miss having hair. It feels like there’s a race going on — will my hair turn completely silver/gray/white first or will I lose it all first?

 

For the Haha's — Whip the hair ..like a boss

 

Know what my hair on my head looks like now? Well, it’s a wisp of itself compared to what came out of my brush. Here’s what I cleaned out  after one good brushing. It’s as big as my mouse.

I know, it looks like a small, furry animal, which is what our cat, Birdie, thought it was. It’s her toy now.

Braided Bygones

More than thirty years ago, an old friend braided his long hair into a ponytail and then cut it short. Unless he’s gotten rid of it, his braid sits in a shoe box somewhere among his other important keepsakes, where he can visit his crowning glory and think about his hippie youth.

I started thinking about all of this when I braided my hair after I brushed it. It may still be long, but it doesn’t have the thickness and luster and fullness it once had. I’m losing hair both in quantity and in the thickness of each strand. Rapidly. It’s fairly depressing. I’m thinking about doing what my friend did and just cut it all off. These days, I usually just wear it in a bun, anyway.

Other Uses For Human Hair

Victorians used human hair to create artwork. Resourceful or weird? Google suggested 10 uses for human hair —

At the rate I’m losing my hair, I should be bald by the end of this year. If I were a gambler, I’d put my money on going bald before going completely silver. Unfortunately, for me, either way is a losing deal.

So what should I do with all of the hair not on my head? Should I save it and use it for something purposeful? I think making clothes and furniture is out. Growing food or using it to make soy sauce?! Ew. I don’t want to even know what that’s about. Also, it’s probably too late to try and use whatever’s left to make myself a wig. Too bad. Maybe I’ll pass on that thought to my daughter about her own hair. In the meantime, Birdie’s having fun with this last batch from my brush.

Bad Genes?

Hair loss is more socially acceptable  for men; but women lose it, too! In our family, David and Ry have thick, gorgeous blonde locks. Lauren and I, however, both brunette, struggle to keep what little we have intact. As if we had any control.

What Do You Miss?

We grieve so many things throughout our lives. One of the things we sometimes grieve is something like losing our hair or going gray aka aging. Is there any feature you had when you were younger that you dearly miss as you age?

Sparkle on,

Mona

19 thoughts on “Give Me a Head of Hair”

  1. My hair is too thin. I always wore it long except for the time my mom gave me a pixie cut in the 2nd grade. When my thyroid quit working my hair decided to start falling out and breaking. I started using white vinegar instead of conditioner. That helped immensely. For about 2 years prior to Covid I started wearing my hair short. Loved it. Never thought I would. So easy to take care of. I had highlights done once but since Covid I haven’t even been to the salon! I need a cut so bad! Highlights would be nice, too, because it hides the gray quite well.

    Reply
    • Hey Deb! Other than the Covid thing, it sounds like you found a really good solution. Like you, I need a hair trim really badly, too! It might be time to try and do this before the Covid variants take over. Ugh. Are you any closer to getting the vaccination? I was hoping that we’d have it by now; but so far, no dice. I’m also not interested in waiting in a mile long line, where I’d probably end up with Covid. Wouldn’t that be ironic? In the meantime, I’m going to try white vinegar and see if that helps. Thanks for the tip! Mona

      Reply
  2. ‘It doesn’t happen all at once,’ said the Skin Horse. ‘You become. It takes a long time. That’s why it doesn’t happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don’t matter at all, because once you are Real you can’t be ugly, except to people who don’t understand.”
    ― Margery Williams Bianco, The Velveteen Rabbit

    Reply
    • Sherry,
      Thanks so much for re-reminding me. I’ve worked hard to become real. I will keep this in mind, my friend! M

      Reply
  3. My hair is quite thin and fine, and a few years ago, I was losing a lot of it, but then I started taking Biotin every day and it really seems to have helped. It definitely feels much thicker now and I don’t see as much in the sink!

    Reply
    • Hey Suzanne,
      Biotin? We have Biotin at home. You know who uses it? David and Ryan. I’m definitely going to start using Biotin starting today. Thanks for the tip! I’ll pass that along to Lauren as well! 🙂 Mona

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    • Ivor,
      That’s easy for you to rhyme! Ha! I hope you’re staying relatively cool on the flipside of the world! Paint? No. A gorgeous wig? Why do they have to be so expensive? Mona

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  4. I’ve had a bald spot on the back of my head since I was 22. I always blamed it on a nasty sunburn I got at that time watching a ballgame in Denver (I can’t stand wearing hats) rather than natural causes. That may actually be the truth, though, because 23 years later, it really hasn’t grown much and I still can’t see it without a mirror behind me. And if I can’t see it, it’s not really there, right?

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  5. Oh, Mona. Opening up Pandora’s Box with that question:). My old rack? Would love to have that! Tee hee. And I’m a fellow ’80s perm gal. WHAT were we all thinking?

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  6. Hey Kay,
    That’s so funny. My old rack has fallen and it can’t get up! Ha! I haven’t a clue what I was thinking back in the 80’s, but my hair was fried during the first half of it! Mona

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  7. Years ago I saw the signs and did a pre-emptive strike by shaving mine. But you are right, it’s more socially acceptable for men. Maybe one day I’ll show you a video of me trying to wax my head. Hint… it did not go as planned. 🙂

    Reply
    • Hey Lee,
      How goes it on the road during a major pandemic?
      I’ve always wondered how men shave and wax their heads. Please do share that video! Lol. 🙂 Mona

      Reply
  8. Being in an RV during the pandemic is actually pretty good. It’s easy to social distance in them. We have been having a great time. Well, until my wife broke her knee and tore some ligaments. We are now grounded in my hometown in Texas while she gets surgery this week followed by several weeks of recovery.

    Your blog won’t let me post a link so if you want to see that video you can go to my blog and enter “wax” into the search box on the right side. Enjoy! I did not!

    Reply
    • Lee,
      So sorry to hear about your wife’s injury. Ouch! I hope her surgery goes well and she is fully recovered soon. Texas is about as good a place as any to be grounded. I live in the DFW area, but you may be in West Texas or East Texas or down around the coast or out in the Hill Country. It’s a big place! I hope you’re ready for some really cold weather if you’re anywhere near North Central Texas. It’s not supposed to get out of the 20’s on Sunday (Valentine’s Day!) I’ll search for your video. I’m looking forward to seeing it! Mona

      Reply
      • I’m in Marshall. A couple of hours from the DFW area and I am not looking forward to that cold that’s coming. If I didn’t have an injured crew member we would just drive away from it! 🙂

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  9. It might also be a hormonal thing. You might look into PCOS symptoms and see if you have it; I’ve been eating a PCOS friendly diet lately and it’s helped my everything.

    Reply
    • Hey Sarah!
      Yes, I have PCOS aka chocolate chip cookie dough ovaries. That’s a long story which I won’t go into here. Also, though, the doc said my losing hair aka alopecia is quite possibly hereditary. Since my dad’s lost most of his hair, the doc thought this might be why I’ve also lost so much. So, yay, thanks Dad! Diet???!!!! Yikes. I don’t diet very well at all. I’m glad it’s helped you, though, and if any other woman is reading this and has a similar situation, I hope this might also help her. Either way, I’m curious as all heck to hear specifically how it’s helped you. My guess is that it’s a high protein, low carb diet? Am I close? I also had/probably still have endometriosis. My late 20’s were so much fun. They tried to throw me into early menopause back then and gave me super expensive Lupron shots. After two or three shots, my period sorted itself out and became normal. My gynecologist couldn’t believe it. Go figure. Still haven’t gone into menopause yet at 56 years old. Go figure. Love you much, my friend! Mona

      Reply

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