Small entry for a simple hair day. Just the usual WCC, detangle & whatever else. The curious thing was the water this morning. Sudden and dramatic fluctuations in extreme temperatures had me adjusting the water (mostly in vain) every few seconds, which extended my shower time quite a bit. Both of my parents reamed me for this, of course. *sigh* And they wonder why I procrastinated moving back home for so long. 

Egads, I just found what seems to be the most freakish hair growing out of my head. Contrary to the rest of my spiderweb strands, this one is coarse, dark and curly.    This may be natural or an effect of my medication. And the curliness could be the result of having been badly stretched. Either way, a frightening discovery.

And on the subject of sinewy strands, I have considered, of late, sending a lock of my hair to my distant sweetheart once it reaches my first short term goal of 2 feet. Since I've known him throughout much of my hair's journey, and as well since he's shared so many of my experiences whilst growing it, I think it might be fitting that he have something to commemorate it also. A small part of my physical self as much as of my achievement. *He* seems to think that it would be romantic. It's an idea, at least.

Many tasks await me when I return home. One of which will be cleaning out my oil bottle again and mixing up a new solution. This one will have aloe vera gel in it. I think it may be in my best interest to experiment with the oil to aloe to water ratios to find a suitable blend for my hair. One that will moisturize the very ends and prevent their splitting, without causing the oil to "climb" up my hair as it commonly does when applied heavily.

Alright, enough of this mindless jargon. Back to work.

Finally another WWCC day. Woo! My roots needed it.

Every day, I'm becoming less and less fond of my TRESemmé leave-in conditioner spray. I like that it's oil-free and has the scent of old-fashioned roses, but it doesn't detangle worth a deuce! When I go back to Target for new hair stuff, I'll be sure to pick up some Pantene Detangle Light Spray Conditioner, and use the TRESemmé to lightly mist the top half of my hair. That part never gets touched when it's wet anyway because I only detangle from about the ears down.

Yesterday was a "naughty" hair day.    I didn't oil the ends, and actually used a blowfryer!!!    Yes, I used the low, cool settings and my hair was about 97% dry beforehand, so it was pretty much just to finish, add body and smooth out the frizzies. My hair behaved quite well afterward and I left it down all day, even though I was wearing a hooded shirt...and even though it was a windy day. I know these decisions will come back to haunt me.  

Today, I forgot to throw a hairtie in my purse before leaving for work, so I can't make a braid. But no blowfryer today and I did oil the ends. My oil solution seems to be diluted enough to where it will absorb into my hair. I'm still unsure about the oil-aloe-water ratios. Oh! Another thing I'm almost out of - aloe vera gel! I'd better make a shopping list while what I need is still clear in mind.

Alright, I've got: Pantene Restoratives Time Renewal shampoo, conditioner and treatment; Pantene Detangle Light Spray Conditioner; distilled white vinegar; and pure aloe vera gel. Anything else?

Oh yes, and I found all of my manicure tools over the weekend. My nails are now short, smooth and a deep shade of crimson. My folder may have been in the armoire in my bedroom all this time. So my computer-borrowing habit is still a secret. I hope.

As for braiding, I'm getting pretty turned off of it. I can never seem to divide the strands evenly enough and it always seems to come unravelled during the day and get ratty-looking. Perhaps I need to find a better contained style for my spiderweb hair. Like an easy updo or something.

Anyway, my father and his homeless friend are working on the RV whenever they have a spare moment together. All's well on the romance front (except for the distance, of course!). It looks as though I've finally reached Stardust level here! Woohoo!    And the phones are ringing like crazy, so I'm gonna get going!

Today has been particularly horrible. One of those Murphy's Law type of days.    And frightfully busy, to mention! I couldn't even list all of the things that I had to address this morning! *sigh* But anyway...

Another Snowy's Treatment this morning for over an hour with the usual ingredients. All of my current hair stuff is nearly gone, so I may run to the store tonight. After a month of using Ice Shine S&C, I have determined that my hair does indeed respond better to Pantene Restoratives. So I'll pick up some Time Renewal products next.  

In other news, both yesterday and last night, I finally slept deeply enough to dream. Pleasantly, even. Both times, I dreamed of my distant sweetheart, who has unfortunately been anything but sweet lately.    So it was quite disheartening to wake up to the bleak reality after such lovely dreams. *sigh* I'm afraid that things have not been going well for us at all. He's losing faith...and I'm losing patience.

But there's an old mantra that says "accentuate the positive." I have far better things to focus on, like the fact that today is payday! Woohoo!    I'd rather think about (and be grateful for) all of the things that I can afford now. And relish with quiet satisfaction the fact that I've earned everything that I have. I've worked for it.
   If I accentuate the positive aspects of my life, it should be a happier one (I hope). So once again, I'm going to distance myself from the freefall drama and negativity of the "relationship." If he wants me, he'll put forth the effort. But my life is my own.

So don't cry to me
If you loved me
You would be here with me
You want me
Come find me
Make up your mind
             -Evanescence, Call Me When You're Sober

True enough, BB.

Let's see...over the weekend, I did one Snowy's Treatment and bought new hair stuff!    Pantene Restoratives Time Renewal shampoo, conditioner and replenishing mask, a huge bottle of DWV and new bottles of Pantene light spray conditioner and aloe vera gel. Huzzah!

Yesterday was a clarifying day, as I didn't get to do one last week. The usual method of 2 Pantene Purity shampoo washes with a DWV rinse in between. Time Renewal conditioner, followed by Ice Shine conditioner...I still have a bit left over.

Today was the usual WCC with Time Renewal S&C and Ice Shine for the final conditioning. Had to use warm water on my hair this morning because that's how it goes when I have to get up early...I end up taking a shower while the sprinklers are running and am stuck with very low pressure water that's either warm, scalding or freezing. I know that cold water is best for hair, but not when it's 50° outside. Sorry.

Anyway, it was much easier to detangle today, having used Pantene leave-in conditioner on the length rather than TRESemmé. The latter is now my "extra" leave-in that I use but don't need. I oiled the ends of my hair just before leaving the house this morning and allowed it to air dry at work. During my break, I braided as usual. All is well.

So it's almost measure day. Only 3 days to go. I still don't know why I'm looking forward to it so much. I'll probably only have grown ¼" anyway.    But maybe I need to get shot down that way so I won't have so much anticipation for next month.
    For a long while, there's been this naive part of me that desperately holds out hope when the odds are stacked against me. That may be what's happening here. Or maybe I'm just curious to see how much my hair has grown since last month. hehe

In other news, my guy and I are getting along quite well. I swear, this is one of the strangest relationships ever. I can never harbour an aversion to him because he's my best friend and no matter what, we always seem to work things out. But still, something doesn't feel quite right. I'm not even sure what it is and I want to just let it go...some things you just have to let go of. But for some reason, my mind won't let me. Like unfinished business or something, which I hate. But still, we're getting along well and I'm glad for that.

While running amok gathering hair supplies this weekend, I also picked up 2 new CD's: Jet's Shine On and The Beatles' Abbey Road. The former reminds me a little of my guy's band and that cracks me up.

Also, I'm working both the morning and afternoon shift today and racking up full-time hours. Possibly overtime.    Why? Well, because my parents spent the weekend in Vegas with my father's family from WA and won't be back until tonight. But I don't mind - please! A weekend all to myself and extra hours on my next paycheck? I think I can handle that. 

Peace, people!

Isn't playing in the rain a wonderful feeling?!  --No matter how old we get!!   

Hooray! It's February!    I don't know why I'm so excited about that, nor why I've been anticipating it for so long. Now I can't wait for it to be March. 

Maybe it has something to do with progress and the idea of moving forward. Maybe it's about putting time between myself and the sorrows of last year; perhaps I'm anxious to enter a new stage of life or something. I really don't understand what the hurry is. Maybe I just can't wait to finally have really long hair! hehehe

It was a strange morning. Started out by waking up at 5 am, getting into the shower and doing a WCC, typical of any Thursday morning. Then, just as I'd gotten out of the shower, my mother knocked on the bathroom door and said that she wanted to work this morning instead. It was a spontaneous decision which she tried to justify with anything that she could come up with and even partially blame me for. Must be the full moon.   Confused and mildly angered at the inconvenience, I let her have her way. I hate working mornings anyway.
    There was no way that I was going back to bed, though I wanted to. When I'm up, I'm up and that's usually it. So I used the extra time to "get things done." I hung out and ate, did laundry, cleaned out my car, actually braided my hair at home for once and talked to my sister about upcoming plans for her birthday. Apparently, we -that is, as many friends and family are available- are going to a fondue place on Saturday night, followed by a club. Her actual birthday is the 6th, so we'll be going out for a "family" dinner that night. Family, of course, meaning my immediate family and a few close family friends. That's just how we roll. If you know us long enough, you become one of us. Like a mini Mafia or something...without so much blackmail, murder, embezzlement, etc. lol

On the romance front, I still have no idea where "we" stand. *sigh* The love is still there, but it's not like it used to be by a long shot. I wish that the faith I once had in our inseparability was still as strong as it used to be. But I am every bit as uncertain now as I was a few months ago when *he* had his last emotional crisis. I could hold onto my faith now as I did then, knowing that everything would turn out alright, but what would be the point? These breakdowns he's having can't keep happening every few months. They break "us" down and we won't survive at this rate.
    Even if our love is strong enough to endure the onslaughts of senseless drama, it shouldn't be tested so often. Neither should my faith, nor my patience. I'm tired of it and I have my limitations. Not because I can't withstand it but because I shouldn't have to. Argh!

Wow, sorry for the rant.    This has been festering for awhile.

On a happier note, the sky is still heavy with clouds and we apparently even got more rain last night. I do hope that more is on the way. I love it and the city needs it.
    Anyway, work is swamping me right now, so I'd better get going. Late!

Thanx, Trish. *hugz* Although I think that *he* might benefit from that insight a bit more than I could.

Alright, after accidentally erasing my last entry just as I was finishing it, I thought I'd try another one today. 

The weekend was alright. Saturday night, I went out with my sister and a bunch of her friends to celebrate her birthday, which is actually tomorrow. There were about 11 of us total. We had dinner first at a place called Forever Fondue. Neither my sis nor I nor any of her friends had ever had fondue before (though I had read quite a bit about it), but we figured it out. It was fun to do once for the experience, but not something that any of us would do regularly. It took about 3 hours and the bill totaled almost $300 just for the 5 of us at one fondue pot!! 

After that, we rushed downtown to my sister's favourite club and danced away the remainder of the night. Most of the couples in our group ended up fighting and leaving early and most everyone was quite intoxicated, save for my sister and myself.
    A lot of guys asked me to dance, but I turned each and every one of them down. haha My sister and her friends protected me from them for the most part, but a few of them still got a bit familiar, and I'm not cool with being touched, no matter how slightly, by complete strangers. 
    I had borrowed a pair of my sister's shoes, and by the end of the night, my feet were screaming and my toes were numb. She was in the same boat, so we ended up leaving the club before it closed. All in all, it was an ok night, though my feet are still badly blistered. 

Tomorrow, we're going out for a "family" dinner - that is, my parents, myself, my sister, her bf, one of her friends and that friend's mother. We'll probably end up going someplace like the Corvette Diner or something, so says my sister. Saturday night was pretty disappointing for her, so she's hoping that tomorrow night will be better.

On the romance front, nothing's changed, really. The boy and I are getting along as always (we are best friends, after all), but God only knows when/if he'll make it out this way. I really hope for our sake and for his own that he gets his act together quite soon. I'm certainly not going to wait forever.

Anyway, so...hair. Really not much to report. Still doing the WCC routine every day with Restoratives Time Renewal. Detangling with Pantene's Light Spray Conditioner and my broken RS #45 and oiling the ends.
    Yesterday, I made up a new oil solution where I am now filling ¼ of my oil bottle with aloe vera gel and baby oil with aloe (mostly the aloe vera gel and very little oil) and filling the other ¾ of the bottle with water. It seems to work decently enough, though I need to add either more aloe gel or more water, I'm not sure which. But the ends of my hair are not nearly as greasy as they have been.

Oh yes, and good news at work. We're getting a scanner!!!    As soon as I learn how to work the thing, I'll be able to share all sorts of pix. That may mean hair pix in the future, if I can ever get my camera repaired! Believe it or not, its gears are still crusty from the Fruit Salad Incident of 2002. lol So maybe this year, I'll finally address the issue. Man, talk about procrastinating!    In any case, yeah...scanner...soon. I can't wait!

Nothing else to report, really. I haven't had time to do any sort of treatments yet this week. I've been wondering about alternatives to deep conditioning treatments, to be honest. They do eat up a lot of precious time when I'm able to do them.    So I've been wondering whether it might helpt to leave EVOO in my hair overnight every night and just do deep conditioning treatments when I can. Or perhaps I could use a deep conditioner every day after washing and just leave it on my hair until the end of my shower...then follow with a regular conditioner. Decisions, decisions... 

Also, I've been debating sending a lock of hair to my far-away friend in MI once I hit the 2 foot mark. On one hand, it would be a poignant, romantic gesture, seeing as he's been along for much of my "hair growing" journey. Plus, he'd have a physical token of myself and my affection. On the other, hand, however, it would bond me to him and I'd have no choice but to marry him. I wouldn't want to be with someone else whilst a piece of my hair was still missing from having given it to some other guy. Awkward. *sigh* Decisions indeed...