April 18

Compare and contrast: Something is different about today's photograph.

I decided to have my hair, which I've been growing out for a couple of years, cut off today. I've been growing it out partly out of vanity, but after finding out about Locks of Love, an organization which makes wigs for children, most of whom have a condition called alopecia areata that causes total hair loss, I had a goal: Grow ten inches of hair out so I could donate.

Good intentions being what they are, I kept growing more and more frustrated because my hair just wasn't long enough. Caring for it was taking more and more of my time -- just washing and drying it could waste half an hour of my day. Out of desperation, I went to the salon today. My stylist, Denise, shrugged and told me that the hair on the back of my head wasn't nearly long enough, but the hair on the top and sides could be used. I'd decided the hair was coming off anyway, but that just made my decision easier.

Now I feel lightheaded. :-)

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April 17

Normally I don't go in for self-portraits. They're just not my thing. But today, a convergence of factors made me decide to go for one.

This is the first really pretty day of Spring we've had, and with the temperature set to drop dramatically over the next few days, it makes you want to make the most of it. I was also having a great hair day, which is a precious and rare thing in and of itself. And, having done laundry, I had the most appropriate shirt to wear for the weather -- a light cotton shirt described by my friend Scott as "both great and extremely queer." Boyfriend brought it back for me from India, and I think it's awesome.

So with everything having fallen into place so beautifully, I hauled the tripod out onto the sidewalk, plonked my butt on the front steps and used my remote control to get the photo. It came out pretty well, didn't it?

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February 07

I got my hair done today.

I'm still sick, but going to the salon and getting my hair cut and styled left me feeling very good. And, not for nothing, but I'm very happy with the results. I haven't had a haircut since July, so I had collected a lot of split ends, and my hair was tangling easily (especially in the back). I went in with no particular hairstyle in mind, only asking the stylist to lose the split ends, to take off as little length as possible, and to shape it a bit so it would look nicer.

Offhand, I'd say that Denise more than met the brief. At the risk of living a cliché, I have to admit it: I feel pretty. :-)

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