Next Stage-- cut

Well... I have an appointment this afternoon to get my hair cut. The problem is, I'm still waffling. I don't know if I want to just have it cut a bit shorter or if I'm going to take the monumental leap of faith and do the Jamie Lee Curtis thing.

My mind keeps wandering to years ago, when I had a miscommunication with a hairdresser and instead of a trim, she cut it short. I mean short! I left sobbing, "I look like a boy!"

But something has shifted in my mentality and I no longer am worried about what others think I look like. Okay; to a point. I kind of wouldn't mind having such short hair that I could take off my riding helmet and just spike it back up. I wouldn't have to worry about getting into the infrared sauna and having to wash my hair all over again. It definitely has its advantages.

On the other hand, I'd end up going from medium (since I had it cut from long last month), reddish-brown hair to very short, suddenly gray hair. And that might be a wee bit of a shock to the system.

So, I won't know until I sit at my hairdresser Daphne's mirror at 2:00 this afternoon. I'll bounce it off her and we'll see what happens!

Stay tuned.

Silver Foxes

When I was looking for a new car, a few years ago, I noticed on the road, every single car of the brand I was researching.

Now I'm singling out all the gray women. There are many more than I had thought. And they aren't all elderly, with tight curls adorning their heads. They are all ages. In fact, some of the younger girls are even dying their hair an extreme platinum, that honestly looks gray or white. Go figure.

But I've been seeing some gorgous women in their 40's and 50's with short, salt and pepper and long, lustrous, multi-shaded gray locks.

I've been talking to some of them and it's amazing how many wish to discuss the gray issue. Many never did dye their hair-- others, as I, suddenly realized that they were being sucked into a lifestyle not of their choosing.

I was conversing with one, 65 year-old woman in the mall yesterday, about why it is that we've always accepted gray hair on men, but not women. "Right," she said. "And have you ever noticed that women go gray but men are silver?"

Hmmm....

American Medical System

I'd like to congratulate fellow Americans (I have both Canadian and American citizenship) on the small step forward with the health care system.

Although the rising prices in the States and Canada will continue until we work on prevention and stop allowing Big Pharma and the Medical Equipment providers to rule the roost, it is better than it was before.

I cannot believe the Republican rhetoric. My god! They would have us all believe that it is unAmerican to make sure that the least among us are looked after. If that is so, it is time to stop being American and start being human.

However, I do not believe that is so-- Americans are no different than any other of our Earth's citizens. They want to help. But when we have politicians who pretend to be good Christians, tell us all that everyone needs to pull themselves up by their own bootstraps, no matter if life beats them down time and again, it's dangerous. Eventually, when they hear it over and over, most people will begin to believe.

Nonetheless, President Obama has done his good deed for the day-- for the year-- for a lifetime....

The Launch

Well, between our businesses , a longstanding illness that has been overcome, and many more excuses, I know little to nothing about blogging.

But I figured-- what the heck-- just get in and get going.

So, here we are....

Why Gray Cougars? Because I am 56 and have been using henna on my hair for several years. I refused to use dye for 2 reasons-- one: I despise the way that it makes hair look. Everyone walks around these days with their hair all one colour. There are no highlights unless one wishes to spend much more money at the hairdresser and have them added. Even when they are, they are in bunches and often those hideous blocks.

That's why I love henna. It creates different tones and colours throughout the hair.

Two (and most important): I will not douse my scalp with the horrendous chemicals that these hair dyes encompass. There are enough toxins in our world without buying extra carcinogens to put straight into our bloodstreams.

Henna is great but it's time consuming and messy. So, a few weeks ago, as my hair was beginning to show that lovely skunk look, with grey roots sprouting, I sort of had a belated epiphany. Why was I doing this? And for whom? Not for my husband, who loves my hair, not because of its colour or length but because it is attached to me. Not for myself who has many other things to do with the time necessary to keep it coloured. And certainly not for the billion dollar hair dye industry which keeps the dangers under wraps as it merrily spends millions to promote changing one's hair colour.

And what's really scary is that kids are doing this now.

I started to wonder, who decided that gray, in all its variants, is not beautiful? Oh wait, I know! The billion dollar hair colour industry!
I hear people say, "I'll wait until it's white. Mine is steel gray (or salt and pepper) and that's ugly."

According to whom? Oh yeah-- the billion dollar hair dye industry!

So, enough. Why are we allowing corporations to tell us what we want?

And before you all can start screaming that you are doing it for you -- come on.... Seriously, think about it. What if you looked in the mirror and thought, "Cool! More gray!"

Think it can't be done? Mute those ads when they come on TV. Look past them in the magazines (or dwell on how ridiculous it looks when every hair is the same exact colour).

I am now "toughing it out". I have the henna that does not want to leave, with lots of black, gray and silver following along behind. It's going to look weird for awhile but I guess that's the price of getting sucked into the whole beauty industries' large black hole.

This blog will be about going gray, health concerns, politics, animal rights, human rights and all things controversial. I hope you'll come along for the ride!