Or should that read "My Manly Journal for Manly Men"; no, that's too long and can be too easily miscontrued. Skip it. The subject is what it is.

I suppose to start, I should acknowledge, in this public forum, that, yes, "I have become a hair addict. I have been growing my hair for 4 years; however, I notice that in the last weeks (since joining this board, actually), I have become a hair junkie." <<removes himself as gracefully as he can from the podium>>

I admit that I have tried many of the tips on this board. Everyone reading says, "So WHAT?!" I would agree; however, I feel the time of my wandering experimentation must come to an end and I need a more scientific approach (if you will) of my hair lengthening adventures.

Quite simply, I lose track of time of when I did whatever and how it turned out. When I first tried an ACV rinse, the result was horrible; the second time better. Why was that? I only know that I used less the second time around, but when did I do that first ACV? Mmmmm, getting old and the brain cells have gone to the great beyond. I've no clue. So I have decided to "fess up", say I'm a hair addict and journal my trials and tribulations when and if I see fit.

Why do it publicly? Why not just keep a Word journal all to myself, away from prying eyes? Well, two reasons actually. First, let's get the hard one out of the way, I find this forum to be a welcoming, caring environment. People here listens to what you have to say and never passes judgement. They offer good advice. They have probably gone through many of the hair-lengthening exploits I'm to encounter. Why not choose a public forum where people are supportive. Besides, and here's the more idsidious reason: I'm curious to see if anyone will bother to read it...or...comment!

S. Freud: Aha! So vee 'ave the true reason, do vee not?

Patient: Well, yes and no.

S. Freud: Vhat is dis, 'yes and no'? Dis ees either a yes or a no!

Patient: Umm, well, I admit it has a place, but it is not my entire reason.

S. Freud: AHA! I knew eet! Der ees more!

Patient: Only what I stated as my first reason.

S. Freud: Jou are a sick puppy. Time ees up. See you next week.

**Ahem, sorry for the short little diatribe. So, as SFreud has pointed out, the attention is welcome, too. And that is my second reason.

So what's up with this journal? Where to begin? Well, let's get the gory details out of the way first. (And it's July First, at least in this neck of the woods.)

My hair is, as of today, approximately 25" long. This measurement is taken from where the hairs begin at the top of my forehead, around my noggin, and down the back. I will not, refuse to, measure very often at all. Too, too depressing.
I have wavy/curly, fine hair.  Usually wear it in a single, 3-stranded braid. I'm so glad I learned to do that!
Normally, everyday, I unravel the braid and comb and BBB it. Then I re-braid.

For the past week, I've avoided BBBing my hair (just to see what I thought of the results); I think the jury might be in. I broke down and BBB'd it today. It felt so wonderful. I'm not sure if my hair appreciated as much as I did, but then whose in charge here? <G>

Tonight, as I have started this journalling journey, I am doing a coconut milk conditioning. This is an item I've read on another board. I know my hair loves coconut oil, so why not coconut milk.

I've taken a half of can of Thai Kitchen Coconut Milk and placed that in a bowl. Microwaved for a brief time to make the solids melt. Afterwards, I dipped my hair into the bowl to cover completely. My original intention was to just do my length; however, as I was dunking, I dunked too far. You might say, "I've dunked where no man has dunked before." Okay, maybe not.

Anywho...the idea then is to place your hair under a showercap or somesuch, then wrap in hot towels for 30 minutes to hour. As SFreud said, my time is up.

The theory, at least as reported by others, is that it conditions the hair extremely well, making it slip and slide. Well, with my waves & curls, that will make life much easier.

We'll let you know how it went in the next installment.

Aaaarrrrgggghhhhh! Much gnashing of teeth, feet stomping, and cursing that would make a sailor blush. Ahhh, third time is the charm...so they say. Who is *they* anyway? Most of the time those people are dead wrong. This is my third attempt, today, to make an entry in my journal. First, I was just about complete when I acquired the little-known affliction known as "Stupid Mouse Clicks Syndrome". The only known cases of this disease are found in the population that uses computers. Closely related to the "Fat Finger Syndrome", the afflicted individual clicks on the wrong button even after double-checking which is the correct button to click. In my case, I clicked "Reset" instead of "Preview"; I lost all the text I typed for the entry.

Needless to say, there was much wailing, hair pulling (figuratively, not actually), and cursing accompanying this incident. Okay, I am smarter than the average bear, I'll quote into my code editor, save and then paste into my journal entry. Oh I'm so very clever as I begin my second attempt to write into my journal. I am patting myself on the back and basking in my cleverness when.... <<triumphant music swells>> the power goes out. Arrgh again!

Okay, calm, "Om mani padme Om". Thus, we begin installment 2.75!

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Hi Sakina. Thanks for the tip about JessiCurl. I believe I've visited her site and even bookmarked it to return again. I will have to give her products a try.

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Bing-bing! You are correct! I am an only. Tell her what she's won, Bob. "Thanks, Rogue, it's a new.....HAIR TOY!!!

Our next letter comes from Greek_Lady who siezes the day and also the night! Knew those years of Latin would come in handy someday. She writes:
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Thank-you! I like to think I do have a sense of humor; I figure everyone has one, some are just too small to ever see. Similar  to the Grinch's heart, two sizes too small.

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LOL! Perhaps it is! I'll ask SFreud next time we have a chat.

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Oh thanks, Gabi! You're supposed to be helping, not encouraging my habit! You are most correct, that there are worse habits to have. If I feel the need to rationalize, I tell myself that I am stimulating the economy! Now, I can also add, "It's all gabi's fault." I don't think SFreud will appreciate the latter one. He's a bit stuck-up, and here you tell me he's really Dr. Happy?!

Let's close up the viewer mail, Paul. <<cue music>>

What a weird week it has been! While I enjoy short work weeks, I seem to be off a day until about Thursday when suddenly a leap ahead a day. On the plus side, my hair has behaved itself all week long by staying nice and soft. Since Tuesday, we’ve been cloudy and/or rainy, so not being out in the sunshine has contributed, I’m sure. Thursday (or was that Friday! ) I had to put just a dab of shea butter on my braid ends; the hair was feeling thirsty.

Finally, yesterday, the sun came out in all its glory. Sometimes, I think I’m a plant or at least my body chemistry thinks it’s a plant. If I don’t see the sun for more than two days, I feel wilted and unloved. As soon as the sun comes out, I feel invigorated and happy.

Since we did have some sun, I decided to get some too, but first the preparation for the hair. Thus, begins the Shea Butter Adventure! Awhile back I bought some shea butter which I’ve been using on and off; this was delivered in a zip-loc type bag that I had cleverly placed into a re-sealable container. The intent was to eventually move the shea from the plastic bag to the container. Of course, shea is some pretty sticky stuff in solid form and I have been too lazy to attempt the move. Besides, I wanted a different container than the one I originally selected. As I was going to treat my hair to some shea, I says to myself, “Self! Now is a good time to move this to the selected container.” Little did I realize that I was a first level rogue tackling a shea monster with a challenge rating of 15! Och, I’m smarter than the average bear, Boo-Boo and the ranger won’t even know. Cleverly (note to self: whenever you begin a project thinking you are clever, you are looking at the scale of cleverness through rose-colored, dyslexic glasses!), I will heat the shea slightly in the micro-wave because it will be easier to get out of the bag AND the butter left on the sides of the bag will come away.

What a great plan, as laid by mice and men. Ok George we begin. First, I did not get the butter soft enough; second, I had not realized I now had two gaping holes in the bag! Within short order, I had shea butter all over my hands, all over the counter, parts of it in the designated target area (the container) and tons left in the plastic bag. Ya know, I think shea butter could be used patch dry-wall. That stuff sticks like crazy at the proper temperature. So, I’m struggling with getting it off my hands and into the container. I figure I’ll scrape like frosting, except when I try to place a dollop into the container, it doesn’t come off my hand and some from the container appears to leap out onto my hands!  AAaaaargggggh! After several minutes of wrestling with the she beastie, I manage to tame it somewhat, but I’m sure my hit-points dropped to near zero. It was a harrowing experience.

On the bright side, I did use the excess on my hands in my hair. Wasn’t that the original idea, silly wabbit? Okay, okay, so trix are for kids and all that. I did manage to get some sun yesterday. I also used up the remaining coconut milk from last week’s episode. As I was outside puttering anyway, I took the coconut milk out of the fridge, went outside, and dunked my braid into the can several times. As the milk was very viscous from being cold, it stayed on my hair without making a big mess. This worked out fairly well. I did a quick CO wash prior to operation coconut. Didn’t want to have to try to get both shea and coconut out of the hair together.

I have to say the “milk” treatment does wonderful things for my hair. After allowing my braid to soak for about 30 minutes while I cleaned up the patio and then rinsing thoroughly, my hair was really super-soft once again. I learned my lesson from last week and while my hair was still damp, I put a little bit (only a very little bit) of shea on the ends and re-braided. This morning, it’s still very, very soft and equally important, it’s not the Lock-Mess monster of last week.

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LOL! Having fought the zip-loc, I cringe at the thought of playing with saran wrap too. 

I have thought of putting shea on my moustache and beard, but that puts the smell too close to my nose. I think that would be a little too intense. The eyebrow avenue is one I haven't thought about. If I had a Cro-Magnon eyebrow or even eyebrows that appeared like fuzzy caterpillars, I would be tempted. Thank goodness I don't have that problem.

Hi!  It looks like everyone else has jumped in to let you know you are not alone in you hair growing adventures.  Thriving on attention is a common trait amoungst long hairs - so you are not alone!  I've enjoyed reading your posts and look forward to many more.

Just out of curiousity....... you seem to have a lot of time to worship the sun, what kind of work (if any) do you do?  (insert green with envy smilie)

Keep up the experiments and reporting of your results!

I choose to entitle this particular entry, “Style Musings”. As I did Saturday, during the day, this morning, I simply undid my braid, combed out my hair, and did a pony-tail with multiple bands (hair safe, of course!  ) This evening as I contemplated re-combing and re-braiding my hair, I realized that it has been over a month since I wore a pony-tail. I also realized that my “tail” was tickling parts of my back that were unattainable 2 months ago. See, ever since my hair has been long enough, I’ve simply pony-tailed it. Then, at the end of May, beginning of June, I managed to braid my hair. Ahhhh, I still revel in the excitement of having a *real* braid. Since that time, I haven’t worn my hair any other way. There are two reasons for this: 1) I was so excited about being able to braid my own hair that I didn’t wish to risk forgetting how! 2) Getting the braid to look decent (no turning or twisting or stray bits) was paramount. This weekend, actually, I got lazy, just as I did this morning. Besides it felt really good to have my hair looser (is that a word?) than I was wearing it.

Why is any of this important? Well, I record the experience here so that I do not forget there are other ways to wear my hair than a braid or a pony tail. Sounds pretty basic and I’m sure most long hairs would say, “Duhhh?!?!”. This revelation, if I dare be as grandiose as that, was quite remarkable for me. Typically, at least as the last month and a half dictated, I’d braid my hair to go to bed. Tonight, I’m going to be daring…<<<ominous music>>> and leave my hair in it’s pony tail with multiple hair bands. I may even go for broke and run around the house with scissors! LOL! <<evil laughter — Buhhahahaha!>>

Note to self: it’s the simple things that make life a glorious experience.

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LOL
I realised that! I was just making fun of myself that I never formally did Latin  I think there's a couple of gals in here who know quite a bit of Latin, let them get wind of your knowledge and you might get to practice some! 
Aren't message boards such fun? You never know what you might come upon! Even CroMagnon males with caterpillar eyebrows! 

Happy, happy, happy hair care. I confess to being mildly enthusiastic over my *new* hair routine I discovered over the Style Musings episode. **Flashback sequence** Whew! I’m back. I discovered that my hair likes a pony tail with multiple bands (is this a bubba tail?) to sleep. My hair is much more restive and relaxed in the morning. A great benefit is that my hair  more cooperative in the morning too. Perhaps it’s still asleep when I do my comb-out. Anyway, by sleeping with the pony tail, I can comb-out my hair and braid it for the day in about 15 minutes! Yeaahhhh, ***happy dance****

Previously, it would take me about 20 to 30 minutes to unbraid, comb, brush, possibly oil, and re-braid. Life is good.

Yesterday, some major thunderstorms moved through the area with a torrential down pour that lasted a good hour. We haven’t had any rain for about two weeks. I remembered reading somewhere that rain water was good for the hair, and so I let me inner child go out and play in the rain. Now, I know many are saying, “Ummm, we thought you already were your inner child!” To which I can only respond by saying, Guilty as charged. I may grow old, but I do not always have to be grown up.

The after effects of the rain water were truly fantastic. I came inside and started dinner; thinking that my hair would dry enough to comb after my prep-work was done and I was waiting for shell noodle water to boil. The time came and “Hokey Smokey, Bullwinkle!” The comb slipped right through my hair. Feeling daring, because there were no tangles, I used the fine tooth, horn comb being extremely careful to stop if I felt the slightest resistance. Amazing! Even the fine tooth comb glided through my hair. After my hair was fully dry, I added a bit of shea-monster to the ends. This morning my hair feels so clean and soft. Maybe we’ll get some more rain in the next couple of days. 

You are NOT wasting web space!  Your contributions are appreciated whenever you able to make them.  Other than Susan being a slave master for me - requiring me to work 28 hours a day, there are no minimum requirements for anyone else.

[I admit, however, I do look forward to more conversations with Dr Freud.]

Don't feel bad - I know you didn't REALLY mean it.  Just had to poke you a bit  to get you out of your funk.

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Thanks, BB, your poke did the trick.

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LOL! Thanks, gabi. Your mentioning of spelling “vamoose” got me to thinking. I bet that slang actually is a corruption of vamos. I am uncertain if I’m spelling it correctly, but the Spanish for “go”. I wouldn’t be surprised if some of my Polish relatives corrupted the word. As I barely passed my freshman year of Spanish, I can’t be positive; however, the Latin derivation for the Spanish would be vadamus. I did a search and came up with this…

http://www.answers.com/topic/vamoose

va•moose (v&#259;-m&#363;s', v&#601;-) 
intr.v. Slang., -moosed, -moos•ing, -moos•es.
To leave hurriedly.
[From Spanish vamos, let's go, from Latin v&#257;d&#257;mus, first person pl. present subjunctive of v&#257;dere, to go.]

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As in "vameeces ye leetle creeters!" 

*cough cough* ditto ...g

August 7, 2005
Well, the internet mode will not go on-line, so this long overdue entry will sit in my Word journal until I remember to upload it. The broadband company was having trouble for most of the day Friday, so this is probably some backlash from that. I’m sure, just like Friday, the internet will come back this afternoon.

I did an ACV rinse yesterday. This time I added some rosemary essential oil to mix in order to diffuse the smell of the vinegar. Last night was D&D and I wanted to insure that I did not smell like vinegar. The result was fantastic. The rosemary completely removed the vinegar smell, making the rinse so much more pleasant. Need to remember to get a pipette or an eye-dropper for next time. I tried to only put a drop or two in, but the oil and my hand had other ideas. Whew! Let me tell you, in a 3’x3’ shower, 2 drops vs. lots-o-drops makes a huge difference. At least it was better than the vinegar smell. The end result was that my hair obviously appreciated the ACV. It became so soft and manageable. I had no trouble popping in my braid.

When Kathi came over, she even commented how good my hair looked. As we were discussing her birthday plans for next week, I mentioned that I had a favor to ask. That I wanted to braid my hair and her take a snap or two. Lo’ and behold, she happened to have her camera with her. So we snapped a few pictures of my braid. After attempting to crop and correct the color on them, this morning, however, I’m not really pleased with them. Here’s one of the better ones. I need to find a place in the house with more light. Usually Kathi does a really good job with the camera, but all the snaps were kinda sideways. 



Could be that I’m just being picky this morning too. 

August 16, 2005
Yeaahhhh, happy, happy dance.  I finally have a internet connection this morning. I finally called the cable company yesterday and they scheduled a technician to come out on Thursday. Apparently, after thinking long and hard about yesterday and last night, Mr. Modem was scared into cooperating. Now, I can visit Longlocks, again and finally update my journal.

Hair is doing fairly well. It got a good wash on Saturday. The ends still feel dry and a little scrunchy. I shea buttered the braid’s tail last night and this morning that feels better. Might be time for a deep conditioning treatment. Can’t this evening as I’ll be with Dad, but maybe tomorrow night. I’m undecided what ingredients to try; it’s a three-way tie between something completely new, a cocnut milk soak, or just a heavy oiling.  I’ll just decide tomorrow night.

Off to upload this while Mr. Modem wishes to be online. I’m sure his internal, infernal meter is running.

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Oh my!! Journal groupies!  Sorry and thank-you all. *sniff* Gives me a warm glow inside to have all this support. I’ll have a little grin all day thinking about it. 

But isn't it nice to know you were missed NR?  Glad to see you've escaped from the exile those evil Internet Sprites placed you in!

Of course you were missed!

"Thingyeyed" was not what I wrote, but it works. lol.

The board has a censor mode with a sense of humor. 

Yezz, vee are yoor groopeez Very nice looking braid!

Anais

hmmmm....... I have visions of a pink flowered shower cap on your head with goo dripping from under it.

:::  flees away on my speedy bicycle! :::

Actually NaturalRogue, thingy is a good choice for the actual word that was censored out. 

What I meant is my braid is always crooked.    

Nothing to report on the “hair witchery” front. Did an ACV rinse Tuesday and added a proper amount of rosemary eo this time. Actually got the eye dropper out, instead of trying to pour from the bottle. I only used two drops, next time I’ll go for three because the ACV was still pretty potent. Also, it seemed to take longer to rinse it out of my hair. Could be that I did the ACV in the morning, instead of the usual evening type routine.

Something is happening to my hair this week; the ends are very dry and it seems no matter how much shea or oil I put on them, they simply suck it all up. Granted, I haven’t gone overboard with the butter or oil, but it’s very strange how dry they feel. At least they cannot be compared to straw, just drier than the rest of my hair. I’ve also noticed more tangles when I comb out my hair. I comb and get the hair tangle free, then move it slightly to find more tangles. Aaargh! Of course, one factor is that I have gone for several days without getting my hair wet at all; perhaps my hair had gotten used to being wetted down every day. Mmmm, something to try next week if the tangle monster continues.

On a bright note, I’ve written enough replies and such on the board that I’ve become a diamond. BikerBraid found a truly exquisite diamond to make the announcement. As as usual, everyone has gone out of their way to make it truly special. Can’t wait for the initiation rites to begin.  LOL!

**laughs and runs away**

On the hair front this week…

Now that the week and a half of fence construction is over, I was able to take much lunch breaks under the balmy Texas sun. My hair has popped back to where it was before my grumblings on the 27th. I am coming to believe that my hair might need water every day, in addition to daily shea butter. Must keep this in mind as the seasons change.

Of course, as is my wont, because I am never satisfied doing just ONE thing to my hair at a time, I started BBBrushing again. Not every day this week, but at least every other day. For a time, a while back, I was being extremely religious about it, counting strokes and what-not. This week, when I have done it (long compiles are great for that), I’ve just done a few strokes to separate strands and scratch my scalp. Besides, poor BBBrush seemed lonely sitting atop the hair accessory drawers.

Which reminds me, I need to take my Ric’s comb out and use it; I bet its feeling neglected. I must say I prefer the horn comb and my Rachel Stephens combs because they glide easier through the hair. The wooden comb is great because of its weight, but it just doesn’t have the same slip through the hair as the others. Anyway, we must rotate combs so that they do not rise up in rebellion! Vive la hair revolution! Perhaps I should remove the scissors from the comb drawer; I certainly do not need to supply the rebels with hair weapons.

I was also attacked by the poof monster this week, but it was not a horrible experience, it was kinda neat having tons-o-volume. I have worn my hair in a single braid, a bubba-tail, double-braids and just ‘cause I was feeling silly one day, triple braids. I sectioned my hair so that I’d have two braids on the side and then a single braid down the back. With my fine hair, they were really thin braids. I then gathered the braids together at the back and secured with a pony tail holder. It was goofy and different and more than a little fun. The next day unbraiding and combing out was quite the challenge. I apparently made the side braids tighter than I thought. A few snarls, several phone calls, plus working, it took me about an hour to unbraid and comb out my hair. The result was HUGE hair with tiny, tiny wavelets throughout. It looked kinda cool because my hair had some shape so I didn’t quite look like the wild man of Borneo.

Well, I didn’t wish to just put this in a pony tail because it would’ve been too huge, so I did a single braid, after putting a few drops of coconut oil on my hands. I knew I’d need some extra-slip to braid the hair. The result was really a very satisfying, straight (not *thingy*-eyed), fairly thick (for me!), braid. I should’ve attempted a picture, 'cause it was a real good one. That was yesterday, something tells me I shan’t be as fortunate today. Maybe I’ll attempt to cheat fate and simply wear it in a pony-tail. Bwuhahahaha!

The only time I can get a fat looking braid is when I did something to my hair that made it wavier. 

Next time take a picture so I can be really jealous that it was fat and not 'thingy' eyed. LOL

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Oooh, waxing is a good way to keep the Ric’s comb happy. My friend Kathi was over on Saturday and somehow I got started talking on hair toys. I showed her my combs and explained the benefits of each one. She really liked the Ric’s comb. She is a very tactile person and after handling it for about ten minutes, finally put it down, laughing, and saying how wonderful the wood felt.

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LOL! You know, Maroula, I actually said the same thing to myself that evening; it really was the best braid I’d ever done.

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ChiliPepper, if you try the honey, I highly recommend a really good rinse-out. The nice thing about honey is that if you don’t get it all out, you’ll know, and it’s easy to correct. Also, honey is all natural, so what could possibly be the harm. Oh! Something else, just use the cheapest store brand honey you can find; you don’t need exotic herb, fruit, or flower honey.

Thanks for the compliment; however, “shoulders”? There seems to be a story hiding there… 

It is quite obvious from your picture that you have nice shoulders, perhaps it's just the over observant nurse coming out in me

Sadly there is no interesting story attatched to it other than I said "There are guys that look like this on the board"  but I could make one up if you like   Sadly she asked how to delete herself from the board tonight.  Technology is really not her thing and we don't live in the same city so I can't help her much.

Part Deaux:

Well, it certainly is an interesting thought. Anyway, before we were so rudely interrupted. My latest experiment was with a rather expensive ($12.00 a bottle) conditioner. My thinking on this score was that for the past three months I’ve only used Suave Milk and Honey and VO5 Sun-Kissed Raspberry on my hair. I was looking for a really good conditioner. Well, OK, I wasn’t really looking for that, I was looking to spend money on my hair. My hair is at fault.   It needed a shopping fix.

Anyway, I purchased BioSilk Hydrating Conditioner. The ingredients are what really caught my eye as I saw nothing bad:

Rosewater, Cetearyl Alcohol, Dicetyldimonium Chloride, Stearyl Alcohol, Hydrolyzed Silk, Sage,, Comfrey, Rosemary, Thyme, Nettle, Peppermint, Chamomile, Algae, Mint, Lavender, Aloe Vera, Menthol, Honey, Sodium PCA, Lauryl Methyl Gluceth-10 Hydroxpropylidimonium Chloride, Mineral Oil, Trimethylsilylamodithicone, Olive Oil, Jojoba Oil, Wheat Germ Oil, Silk Amino Acids, Acetamide MEA, Pathenol, Hydrlyzed Glycosaminoglycans, Sorbitol, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Diazolidnyl Urea, Methylchloriosotiazolinona, Methylisothiazolinone, Parfum.

Whew! At least I saw nothing bad, until I typed this out. Now, I see there was a ‘cone’ in there. Sneaky bastard. I’d completely missed this in the store.    Doesn’t help that interspersed with all those ingredients, they had Spanish interpretations. Grrr.  

Anyway, I might as report the results: they were great! What I did was a simple conditioner was with Suave Milk and Honey; this was simply to wash my scalp and hair. Then, because I wanted a clean slate, so to speak, I did an ACV rinse. My intent was remove any product build-up I might have and give this BioSilk conditioner a fair chance on its own. After the ACV, I applied the Biosilk especially on the length of my hair. Some was on the top too, because I’m sloppy that way and it made it easier to comb out in the shower.

Initial results were extremely positive, and now, I understand why, the darn ‘cone’.   This week I have yet to wash and for the most part, my hair feels and smells good. I’ve done braids on either side of my head, three days of a bubba-tail and three days of a single braid. I first noticed some drying of the ends today when combing out my hair. All in all, even with the dreaded ‘cone, I think I find this to be a possible quick solution to a long moisture treatment. Overall, my hair has looked fine, and if I had not wetted it one day, it might not look bad. Not that it looks bad, but pulled back it appears (even though it is not) greasy. However, even this appearance did not prevent me from going out in public. So while I may think my hair is not at it’s best, because of the water treatment, it looks fine to be out in public. I should add that I’m rather particular about how it looks when I go out, so rest assured, it doesn’t look dirty or greasy.  

Just wanted to fill in on the latest hair adventures before I forget this stuff. Even though, I found the nasty ‘cone in the Biosilk, I’m sure to use it again. It did a remarkable job on my hair for the past week. I think I’m at a point that I’ll see how long I can go before washing again. I’ve no plans to out and about so even if I end up looking like a grease ball, Champagne is the only one to complain. As long as she gets fed, I’m pretty safe. This might well be a good test for this coming colder weather when I know I won’t be washing or wetting my hair as frequently.

Funny    Now I know it's my hair's fault - not mine 
when I need to spend all that money for conditioners, shampoos, some oils, brushes,..........
Thanks! 

Well, I feel so much better knowing that "my" hair isn't the only hair controlling a wallet!! LOL!  

Now if only I could maked those darn strands get a *real* job instead of just hanging around for hand-outs.  

Ditto what Moonchild said, hope you and yours are safely out of the path of the storm.

Let know how you're doing!!

Thanks for the info, NR - I'm sure lots of visitors will learn a bit from this.  Being a Navy brat, I listened to many stories from my dad about hurricanes, tropical storms, etc.  As a baby I know I "survived" a hurricane in a quanset (sp?) hut on base.  I think I'm glad I was too young to remember.    My father always loved to sail, yet I have only been on a sailboat once.  My "peaceful" experiences that might relate would be to be in the northern woods, miles and miles from any city, town or lights.  Sitting under the light of a full moon, maybe watching the northern lights and listening to the sounds of the woods - the frogs, loons, maybe even a wolf. 

Hope the rains are not too bad for you.

This sounds awesome, N_R 

Honestly I would be to scared for something like that. I love the outdoors and all.......it's just something about water and a little boat......

Amazing.

Current Hair Care:
Morning comb-out to get my hair to sit still and remove the sleeping, stray hair halo effect. Evening comb-out and put hair to bed in a bubba-tail. Using the bubba tail at night works really well to avoid tangling and knotting during sleep. Always shea butter the ends.

Washing:
CO wash at least once a week. ACV rinse around every two weeks.

Styles:
As for styles, during the day, a single braid most often, followed by a bubba tail. If I’m not going out in public, I like doing double braids. One day, I’ll get them even and smooth enough to wear out. KB showed me how to get a French braid started, so I’ll be starting to experiment with that too.

Equipment:
Heavenly Harvest horn comb for dry combing; Rachel Stevens #45 for wet and shower combing.
Shea butter for moisturizing the ends and smoothing braids.
Suave Milk and Honey conditioner for washing. Occasionally use SKR because I like the smell; however, it does seem to leave residue on the hair because by day two my hair seems to smell like crayons or paraffin.

All in all, this regime seems to be working fine. Periodically, I’ll do a deep conditioning with virgin coconut oil or coconut milk when I feel my hair needs it.

Hurricane Hair Care
Last week I was in Fort Lauderdale, presumably for FLIBS (Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show); however, Wilma had other plans. As a result, I went to FLL for the hurricane. The forecasts indicated Wilma might be category 1 or tropical storm strength by the time she hit the east coast. In typical weather forecasting tradition, this was waaaay wrong. She slammed into Florida as a cat 3, weakened to a cat 2 (almost cat 3) and pummeled Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade counties.

I was staying with friends who live on their boat; about 4 am 10/24 we left the boat to go into our offices. Wilma hadn’t yet arrived, but was close. About two hours later, Wilma came roaring into FLL. I’ve seen pictures of the winds of a hurricane, but they do not do justice to actually being there. Wilma was a fast moving storm, so about 3 or 4 hours later we were awaiting the eye and the short lived ensuing calm. MB dared to venture out and check on the boat. By now power was completely out. As we waited for the eye and word from MB the wind direction changed 180 degrees still roaring! The boat was fine; however, MB was stuck in the car at the marina as the backside of Wilma moved over the area. We found out later that FLL never saw the eye; we were too far south.

Later that afternoon, as the skies cleared to a most brilliant blue, we like most folks went out to see what Wilma had done. Evergreen and deciduous trees were either defoliated or had so many broken branches, they looked dead. Typically, Florida is rather green this time of year; however, now the trees looked like winter up north. Palm trees were snapped in half by the force of the wind. Awnings, roofing, tree limbs, power lines, and signal lights were everywhere. One gas station in particular not only lost the overhang over the pumps, but pieces of the sheet metal were ripped away and wrapped around telephone poles and trees many blocks down the road. The carnage was incredible and very sad.

95% of Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade were without power; FPL said this might last for 2 or 3 weeks. Almost all cities were placed under a boil water order. Every town was under a curfew. People that did not prepare properly had no ice, no water, and no fuel. We were fortunate; my friends had prepared well, and living on a boat meant we had plenty of water and power from the boat batteries.

When I left on 11/02, power was restored to many areas, debris was being steadily removed. The long gas lines of the prior 4 days were down to normal. Downtown FLL, which was the hardest hit, still had very spotty power and was still under a boil water order. It was quite the experience, and as I stated, we fared well.

I'm sure Wilma was an experience you will never forget.  I'm glad you survived it.

Glad to see you back amongst us safe and sound NR!

Its great to have you back and thanks for the receipe! 

Sounds yummy!  Actually, my favorite scented candle is orange AND patchouli.  You might want to give that combo a try.

Cynde

Just wanted to wish you and your family a




Hope to "see" you soon 

I've been wondering too. Hope you are well!

Anais