Effortless Imperfection

i miss falling asleep and waking up to the sound of distant fog horns.

Think of slapping a hand. If someone slaps a hand over and over again in the same spot, the slaps become progressively more painful, and the hand becomes progressively more sensitive. Once the hand is hypersensitive, its protective instincts kick in, and its main focus becomes the prevention of further injury. The person attached to the hand becomes acutely aware of any movement in the direction of the hand, of any shadow that could signal an oncoming slap.

We’ve had pretty nice weather so far this summer, which has encouraged me to spend a lot of time outdoors and set aside the various art and sewing projects I began a few months ago. I’m sorry to say that the lack of substantial hobby-related accomplishment has also prompted me to neglect this blog.

That may be changing soon (or now), though…This morning, I was woken up at 5am by flashes of lightning and the sound of booming thunder.

In San Francisco.

I’ve lived here for about 5 years now, and not once have I ever seen lightning. I heard one rumble of thunder, one time, several years ago, but usually when it rains in the Bay Area it’s the boring sort of rain. The sky is always one color of drab gray; interesting cloud formations and eerie green skies are not the stuff of San Francisco storms.

I have no idea what happened in the universe last night/this morning that caused the violent storms, but it was kind of freaky. Normally, I prefer a good storm with my rain. It keeps things interesting and reminds me of the power of nature. This time, though, I felt like the lightning and thunder were signs of something bad and wrong. Silly, I know. But seriously, that was a Midwestern-style storm. One particularly frightening flash of lightning took out our power – An outage which lasted over two hours! The accompanying thunder shook the apartment building and scared my cat. It was weird.

Anyway, I’ll probably be blogging more in the near future, barring any natural disasters.

So, I’m sitting at my computer, enjoying a heathy pour of 2-Buck-Chuck, and I look in the mirror.

“Boy, I could really use a haircut,” I think to myself.

After slurping down the last of my fine vino, I decide to give it a go. After all, what better time to go at your head with sharp objects, than after a large dose of judgment-impairing alcohol? Right?

And now I have a drunk haircut.

I haven’t posted in a few days because I had to go out of town unexpectedly. My boyfriend’s grandfather passed away, so we went to Alabama to be with his family and attend the services.

Aside from the sad circumstances surrounding our visit, it was a nice trip. His family is very kind and generous, and also very fun. It was interesting to hear how a man’s wife, children, and grandchildren remember him and talk about him after he has passed away.

…

On a lighter note, I begin sewing lessons tomorrow! I’m really excited and hope to learn a lot. I’ll be leaving town for Chicago on Thursday evening, though, so I’ll have to wait until after I return (the following Thursday) to continue the lessons. I’ll update the blog again after my first session. Wish my luck!

Yesterday was my birthday! I had a blast at my Bday BBQ Bonanza… I have fantastic friends and family, and it’s always a great time when we all get together. My family, who are spread out in different places, were incredibly thoughtful and sweet with their birthday wishes, phone calls, and flowers. My friends, who are like family, were equally kind and generous with their offerings, and made time on a gorgeous day to celebrate with me. I’m a lucky gal.

I’ve always had an interest in hair cutting and coloring, and my friends and I used to cut and dye each others hair all the time, starting in about 7th grade. I cut my own hair for awhile in high school, too.

A couple of years ago, I started cutting and coloring my own hair again. I figured that it would save a lot of money, especially if I bought professional hair color online, instead of using the crappy, expensive stuff that comes in a box for home hair coloring.

Now, though, compared to when I was in high school, my hair is very short and it’s a bit difficult to cut. I have to use a couple of mirrors and it usually doesn’t turn out exactly how I want it to. It’s still way cheaper than having it done professionally, but it takes a really long time. Also, I hate cleaning up all the hair. I’ve thought about going to school to become certified as a stylist, but I’m pretty sure you have to become a certified aesthetic practitioner or something, which involves beauty-related areas other than just hair. At this age, I don’t know if it makes sense to start something like that.

I’ve begun to wonder if the shape of a person’s head changes over time. I feel like it’s much harder now than it was a few years ago to achieve the cut that I want, whether I’m cutting it myself or having it done professionally. Even when I bring pictures of myself with the haircut that I want with me to the salon, it doesn’t seem to turn out looking the same. Maybe my face, and not my head shape, has changed, and that’s what’s making the difference.