Archnemesis

Through the years I have had many, many haircuts, colors and styles, but one thing has stayed consistent: my hair is my archnemesis.  I got my first perm (a disaster) when I was ~8 years old and my hair has since seized every opportunity to defy me. While other children in my 3rd grade class were dreaming about growing up to be doctors, lawyers, and astronauts, I just dreamed about one day getting my hair under control. It’s really all I ever wanted.

There are a few topics we just don’t discuss in my family. One of them is my 8th grade prom and the hairstyle I wore. Really the only thing I remember about my 8th grade prom was my hair & I have no words when I look at those pictures.  No words.  Just lots of resentment towards my mother (ha!!!  just kidding, Mama!).  We don’t discuss the teased bangs from 7th & 8th grade, either. In high school my life pretty much revolved around my hair. I bowed out of dances, ballgames, pool parties, overnight trips, etc, because I just didn’t know what to do with it.  During this time I discovered frost & tip and rollers, the two primary and crucial ingredients for frizz.  Fantastic!

The picture above is an excellent representation of the way I wore my hair in college.  I take full responsibility for the cut and the color was by Mama.

College was a little bit better.  I learned how to scrunch my hair with mousse and I also kept it chin-length most of the time.  Like, literally, I cut my own hair. I know, I know.  When I went to pharmacy school, I was introduced to the wonderful world of professional hair care.  Oh my goodness.  Paul Mitchell, foils (!!!), and ceramic smoothing irons changed my life.  Seriously.  Yes, I still get an afro when my hair air dries and I have a tendency to change the color more than the average person, but compared to the early days (namely my 8th-grade prom), it is a vast improvement.  I have even let my hair grow out after keeping it shoulder-length for years.

 

However, that doesn’t mean that I can ease up and become comfortable.  I just need to be aware that my hair is always looking for a good excuse to defy and humiliate me.  Take this whole recent color fiasco.  In April, I went from blonde –> brunette in hopes of achieving lower-maintenance color:

 

I had hope for this hair color.  I really, really did.  But for some reason my grays do not accept dye, so I ended up with gray streaks.  When I went back for a touch-up, it ended up red and I almost died.  Worse mistake ever.  I’m still paying for it.  Literally.

 

Tonight I went in with this faded gold-ish color:

 

She foiled my hair as usual, washed the color out, blew it dry, and it was the color of Angela on the Office.  Not kidding.  The girl was shocked.  I was shocked.  I told her it was way too light so she put a concoction of several chemicals on it, so when I left it looked like this:

A little closer to normal.

This is summer 2007.  Probably what I am going for.  Or this:

   

What we (me + the girl who does my hair) are so confused about is why my hair has suddenly started growing more than 1 inch per month.  Seriously?  I don’t know what I’m going to do.  I can’t keep up.  I’m wondering if I should just shave it and get a wig.

Sunny Side Up

Mondays are a different experience with my new job.  It is so, so nice not to dread the beginning of a new week!

This morning I walked around the neighborhood for about 45 minutes before work.  So nice – it is still hot in the mornings but much cooler than it was last month!  I didn’t want to stop!  We walked again with the pugs this evening.  Enjoying the last of summer, but definitely looking forward to the fall and cooler weather.

We have so much to be grateful for & are looking forward to a fun and adventurous weekend!

  

Ironic?

Weekending: Sunday Headwind

Well, today was a big day for me + cycling:

Allow me to introduce you to my first pair of cycling cleats.  I suppose now I am “official.”  We went out to Sander’s Ferry and Brent showed me how to clip in and out, get started and stop.  Not that hard!  I thought I would never be able to learn, and I was wrong!  I almost fell over right at the end but caught on to Brent and he helped me steady.  Clip-in pedals just make you more efficient on the bike.  I had been riding with tennis shoes + toe cages and this was not good because it made my quads work harder (and fatigue quicker) and it gave me foot cramps.  Today with the pedals + cleats it was unbelievable how much easier it was to pedal (=less work) and how much more balanced I felt on the bike. I was able to get down in the drops (the curve of the handlebar) & even stood up a little bit – something I have never been able to do with the toe cages.  I used to not even be able to reach down and get my water bottle while riding!  So I was very encouraged by the pedals + cleats today.

Unfortunately, it was a hard ride (and shouldn’t have been)! It was windy today!  It felt like we had a  headwind out + back.  My legs were also really tired from yesterday (boo!), so we just took it easy.  Not going to lie, it was a little discouraging because it was so hard today.  Maybe that’s because I also kept looking down at my shoes the whole time. Ha!

The scenery was beautiful, as usual!  It was not too hot, either.

 

Can I just say that it feels very good to do things that I don’t think I can do?  I have mentally discounted cycling for so long because I had this vague idea that I would never be able to get used to clip-in pedals and would never feel comfortable or balanced enough on the bike to stand up, draft, etc. I thought that I would never understand the gears or be able to make it up hills without wanting to die.  Basically, I gave up on cycling because I didn’t think I could do it.  And it was really hard when we started out at Oak Mountain (5 years ago?!?) and obviously I need much much more training.  But it is getting better, definitely!  I actually want to ride and I can’t believe that!

Three cheers for proving yourself wrong about yourself!

Weekending: Frog Ridge, Flip, & Flora

This morning we headed out on an early ride.  Brent took me on a new (to me) route, Frog Ridge, so that I could get some practice with hills.  It was wonderful!  So cool and beautiful and peaceful.  It was moderately hilly (for me!), but there were no major inclines.

Cows were out!  And very impressed with us, obviously!

What an amateur! Ha!

 

 

After we got back, we headed to Cahaba Cycles in Birmingham.  They were having a sale this weekend and I took the plunge and got clip-in pedals and cleats for the bike.  It is supposed to make it easier by distributing the work to all of the muscles instead of just the quad.  I guess we’ll see!  I’m a little nervous about being clipped in to the bike.

Before Cahaba Cycles, we stopped at a new restaurant we’ve been hearing great things about: Flip Burger Boutique.  It was fantastic!  So many choices.  We both got the bacon + cheese burger, & fries.  The fries were the best ever.  EVER.  Then, for dessert, we got one of their famous milkshakes.  It was a KRISPY KREME DOUGHNUT milkshake.  Not kidding.  It was FANTASTIC.  We split it and it didn’t taste too rich, but it ended up being very heavy.  Can’t wait to go back, though!  They have all kinds of interesting items on the menu – every kind of burger you can imagine!  Next time I am getting the lobster roll for sure!

They use liquid nitrogen in the milkshakes which makes them really cold and creeeeaaaaamy.  Here’s a great review (with pictures) of the restaurant on a food blog: http://gastronomyblog.com/2010/01/09/flip-burger-boutique-birmingham/

 

Tonight we headed up to the arboretum, Oscar’s favorite place in the world!