- Been thinking a fair bit about appearance this week. For one thing, I chopped all my hair off. (Well. I paid someone to chop it for me. You know.) It’s now shorter than it’s been since high school, when I looked like a pompom. Never wanted to go there again but needs must: psoriasis => hair loss => hair growing back in weird bunches underneath longer hair and, well, yeah. Not good. So now I have what can best be described as art teacher hair. I’m applying masses of product and scrunching wildly to keep the pompom at bay, but it’s still basically just a big wild ball of curls with NO respect for gravity, or symmetry. Each day is a new perky surprise! This isn’t terrible, no. But it’s art teacher hair. Or nerdy yet feisty best friend hair. What it definitely isn’t is CEO hair. And since I have no CEO aspirations, that is of course fine in itself, but: it is not hair to be taken seriously. It is chaotic hair. And I really wish it weren’t such a very flagrant reflection of my inner self.
- Possibly because I keep examining the new hair suspiciously, I’ve also become sharply aware that I appear to have reached an age when I actually do need to wear make-up. Not a lot – mostly just eyeliner and semi-sheer lipstick, which I always liked wearing anyway. But it’s now pretty much compulsory. Something to do with my skin becoming blotchy and eyes puffy; I have to do something to give my face a little definition or I look absolutely unwell. This is not fun. Even though make-up in itself is fun. I have Feelings.
- What is more fun, is finding a very easy and yet rewarding way of getting dressed in winter. First I grab a pair of tights, literally whatever comes to hand. Then I choose a skirt to go with them. I have four (4!) short cord skirts in different colours, plus one in hot pink velvet, so those are all fun options. WITH POCKETS. Then I just need a vest and a jumper, which will of necessity be black or grey or just possibly brown. This sounds like a really super boring way to get dressed, but I have some nice extra-long vests (again, in 4 colours) with lace hems that work well under the jumpers.* So it’s all about the colour combos, never about worrying what will actually fit me or be comfortable, and it’s awesome. Much more fun than jeans and just as easy. Summer will be harder though.
- Also fun, in a very different way, is having a daughter slowly growing into primping age. I am not sure I’ll find it fun if and when she starts getting really concerned about all that, but right now, it is. She’s just able to shop in the grown-up shoes, and has chosen a very cool pair of biker boots for the winter; she has newly pierced ears and is planning to “schmink”** for the upcoming school party. Based on the last (and only other) time she schminkt, this might be just lipgloss, because she’s always running late. I invited her to practise her look but so far she hasn’t bothered. I like this about her. I like that she can have fun with being girly, but isn’t really that interested. I hope this lasts.
- Meanwhile M surprised me by taking me aside so he could very shyly, quietly, secretly tell me that he wants to grow his hair long. LONG. Of course I said that’s fine (and reminded him that Daddy had a ponytail when we met). I do wonder what’s going to happen when it starts to really get in his eyes and annoy him; I haven’t figured out how boys are supposed to deal with that in-between hair. (And no, I don’t think he’ll consider a nice clip.) But I do know a kid around here who always had long hair and somehow he made it work. And I’m looking forward to seeing my boy looking all elfin.
* I’m not sure when it happened that I started saying “jumper” like a Brit? That’s new. I’ve spent years struggling with the jersey/jumper/sweater decision literally every time I had to refer to one, and yet now it’s just automatically “jumper”.
** Apply make-up. German has so many good verbs.
Woolly thoughts (and fuzzy logic) 