2/17/09

Choppity Chop Chop...

Hi Everyone, I'm Joia. I'm a natural newbie. I chopped off a good 8 or so inches of relaxer last week and it was probably the coolest thing I've ever done, hair-wise. I'd been wanting to go natural for a while, especially after hairlusting over other girls' elasticity and volume. I just knew my hair could be like that. I'm excited to try new things with my hair and watch it really blossom. I can honestly say that I don't miss my relaxer one bit. While I realize not everyone is crazy enough ready for the big chop, I'm glad I chose to do it this way. I didn't have some "ah-ha" moment while she was cutting my tresses, but it's kinda dawning on me now. Having new natural hair is kinda like having a baby placed on your doorstep - you have no idea what to do with it, but you'll figure it out as you go.

I've been wearing comb coils for the past week. The first few days, my head was cold and I felt a little self-conscious, but people have literally chased me down to ask where I got them done! Such a pleasant surprise...

**before...obviously...and yes, I just walk around in my undies, so sue me!!**

**GOOD RIDDANCE!! just kidding...sorta**

**3 days after the BC**

**1 day after the BC**

As with many things in life, I realized that going natural and cutting off all my hair wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be. My top 3 reasons for not doing it sooner were: 1) that I'd look GODAWFUL with short hair (I don't), 2) that I'd never get a date (sounds even dumber when I type it) and 3) that it would be too difficult caring for my natural hair. I'm sure I'll run into some challenges with my hair, but what's new?? I'm mostly happy about the fact that I'll be able to plan trips without calculating the humidity index first. My relaxer, while I enjoyed our time together, really limited my ability to exercise and travel, two things I really love to do. Now I can sweat and jetset as much as I want without fear of "ruining" my hair.

Another strange byproduct of naturalness is this overwhelming need to nourish my hair. Suddenly, I'm eating better and drinking assloads of water. Burger and fries? No, thanks. I'm realizing that what I put into my body directly affects what's going to grow out of my head. **duh** I'm even experimenting with homemade products. This is more because I'm super-broke and can't afford Carol's Daughter or Miss Jessie's Expensive-Ass Puddings. Fortunately, my mother is natural so I can steal her stuff. So, we'll see how it turns out - this vegetable glycerine moisturizing spray I've concocted.

So I'll be blogging about this journey as well and I hope you ladies (or gents) find some courage and wisdom in my story. :)

J

3 comments:

  1. Go put on some pants, woman! LOL! Your stylist definitely did her thang with those comb coils. You look even more like Mum with your short do. I'm interested to see what you shall do after comb coils. *grabs popcorn and has a seat*

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  2. This is just to let my other co-authors know that they'll be receiving an email whenever there's a comment on the blog.

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  3. Looks great! I love it! I hope I can muster up your courage, girl!

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