hair

the problem with wearing my hair down is greeting bearded men. not all bearded men but ones with a very particular amount of beard growth. this happened to me the other night at a private view. my friend's boyfriend had come down from london and i kissed him on the cheek. as i went to pull my head away i felt some resistance. a lock of my hair had become attached to his stubbly beard like velcro. it even made a soft ripping sound when i eased it free.

it's an uncomfortable predicament that seems to have been happening a lot recently. i don't know if it's due to the current fashion for beards and so there are more around, of if my hair has finally reached a beard-loving length. but i shouldn't be surprised. it's always had a will of its own - wild, untamable, light and breezy, and a little bit wayward.

in some ways beards are easier to deal with. there's a brief moment of awkwardness and a possibility that if i tug it back very quickly and with enough wishful thinking, the bearded man won't have noticed..... but really, i think he will. 

beard attachment might hurt my pride but at least it doesn't trap me. sometimes when i go to secret beach, especially if i'm in a hurry or it's very windy, i climb down the overgrown path. i'm feeling light and carefree when, all of a sudden, i experience a jerk, a mild whiplash. it's as if i'm a marionette and the performer has had a sudden change of heart. either a tenacious bramble with a penchant for curls has been patiently lying in wait for me or i'm walking too fast, nature is speeding by in a blur and my hair needs to pause and breathe...... or maybe it's just the wind. whatever happens, i'm ensnared. and wrenching myself free usually hurts. sometimes when two or more brambles have conspired together my hair is so entangled it's difficult to escape. part of me thinks my hair is complicit in this mischief but the other part wonders if it's fallen into a situation beyond its control, and when i tear it free i'll hear a tiny sigh of relief. i guess i'll never really know.