I've written about my hair before but never in such depth as Latoya Peterson's "Nappily Ever After? Not quite" on the Racialicious blog.
It's a great post. All you straight-haired folks might learn something. I can't tell you the amount of times that Jews make comments about my hair. Luckily, very, very few have been racist. Most of them are curiosity based.
Top 10 Things you should know about this "nappy-headed" (I can call myself that but you can't!) girl's head:
1. Though I cut my hair very irregularly, it dries differently all the time so people regularly ask, "Did you get a haircut?" The answer is always "No."
2. I don't have to wash my hair more than once a week because it is very dry and NEVER, EVER gets oily. No, I know, you can't imagine that since your hair gets oily every day but really, it's true. NEVER.
3. I only comb my hair with a wide tooth comb when it's wet. Curly hair should NEVER be brushed. I "style" it every day by spritzing leave-in conditioner.
4. My hair gets very, very tall towards the end of the week before the next wash. At that point, it no longer fits under a hat, forget a sheitel. Some people think I get more haredi (ultra-Orthodox) towards Thursday because I cover my whole head in a tichel (head scarf).
5. My hair grows up but not down.
6. Yes, I have tried straightening my hair but I am no longer interested in doing so no thanks for the suggestion, no one asked you. Not even my grandmother feeling up my hair with a total look of disgust and asking me why I don't "fix" it is going to change my views on this.
7. Yes, if you ask nicely I MIGHT let you touch my hair.
8. No, there is no rule book (and if there is one, it's racist or straightist) that says a curly-haired girl must straighten her hair to be appropriate for fancy events. For my wedding, I went with wash and dry and plopped a tiara over my curls.
9. My husband likes my hair just the way it is. You can stop crossing your eyes now, he really means it.
10. You CANNOT run your fingers through tight curls (read #3), that road only leads to pain and hair breakage.
It's a great post. All you straight-haired folks might learn something. I can't tell you the amount of times that Jews make comments about my hair. Luckily, very, very few have been racist. Most of them are curiosity based.
Top 10 Things you should know about this "nappy-headed" (I can call myself that but you can't!) girl's head:
1. Though I cut my hair very irregularly, it dries differently all the time so people regularly ask, "Did you get a haircut?" The answer is always "No."
2. I don't have to wash my hair more than once a week because it is very dry and NEVER, EVER gets oily. No, I know, you can't imagine that since your hair gets oily every day but really, it's true. NEVER.
3. I only comb my hair with a wide tooth comb when it's wet. Curly hair should NEVER be brushed. I "style" it every day by spritzing leave-in conditioner.
4. My hair gets very, very tall towards the end of the week before the next wash. At that point, it no longer fits under a hat, forget a sheitel. Some people think I get more haredi (ultra-Orthodox) towards Thursday because I cover my whole head in a tichel (head scarf).
5. My hair grows up but not down.
6. Yes, I have tried straightening my hair but I am no longer interested in doing so no thanks for the suggestion, no one asked you. Not even my grandmother feeling up my hair with a total look of disgust and asking me why I don't "fix" it is going to change my views on this.
7. Yes, if you ask nicely I MIGHT let you touch my hair.
8. No, there is no rule book (and if there is one, it's racist or straightist) that says a curly-haired girl must straighten her hair to be appropriate for fancy events. For my wedding, I went with wash and dry and plopped a tiara over my curls.
9. My husband likes my hair just the way it is. You can stop crossing your eyes now, he really means it.
10. You CANNOT run your fingers through tight curls (read #3), that road only leads to pain and hair breakage.
