I have a particular coworker who is very stylish and always looks absolutely gorgeous. She is dismayed by my grey hair and urges me to dye it. She finds it utterly incomprehensible that I don't even own any make-up. The poor misguided soul has come up with the same plan other folks have floated, which is to get me drunk and then dye my hair when I can't put up a fuss about it. She does not realize how hopeless this is. She feels quite certain she can wear me down. It amuses me that my greys bother her so much.
The other day a male patient came in and the first words out of his mouth were, "I love that you don't dye your hair. It's gorgeous. Don't ever dye." Unsolicited compliments fortifying my position, gotta love 'em. I made sure my coworker was made aware. She countered that the man is clearly not a good judge of aesthetics. And so we go back and forth in the battle over my hair. I find it kind of hilarious.
This evening after getting home I put up this shot over on Facebook and added a skewed poll asking (and simultaneously stating the results would not affect my decision), "Should I wear the grey proudly or dye it so I can conform to narrow expectations of a society obsessed with youth?" Other coworkers began placing bets as to who will win this tete-a-tete. Silly people betting against me. Dey don't know me vewy well, do dey?
22 comments:
Ah good for you. So far, I've been lucky that I haven't anything more than the odd, stray gray but I'm thinking it unlikely that I will go the dye route when they begin to take over. I also know folks who criticize others for not covering their gray. Most of them look absolutely beautiful with their natural locks.. as do you. Why change that?
Stand your ground!
I've never tried a Facebook poll. I heard about a couple that used one to decide on a name for their child. Now they call the kid "Like."
I persuaded my wife Jill not to dye her hair when we retired and although she occasionally gets sentimental about it I like it grey and other people have made favourable comments too. Most retired women in NZ allow their hair to stay grey now and it looks great. The occasional oldies die theirs blue or purple! Hmmm? Dave
You do what you like to do,do not listen to others,is your body,is your hair,and I like it grey.
I think you should dye your hair red to match Calypso.
Good for you! Wear that grey proudly! Lord knows you've come about the grey hair very honestly. They're like the additional stripes on a soldier's uniform.
Gray hair was once respected as the sign of wisdom and I think it's time to bring that notion back.
(Can't do that by hiding our gray!)
Don't dye your hair, you beautiful woman. You've earned the right.
Odd time to post!!!
Salt-n-Peppa FOREVER!!
I saw a woman with long grey hair the other day, which is not at all common over here, and it looked fabulous on her. In fact, she looked a lot like you...so, be proud of your greys and happy that you can pull it off so well. I, on the other hand, am not so lucky to have such great hair....
Keep it grey! The wisdom thing is big with me but I have so little hair left, on my head, that I'm losing out on that side of things as well.
Ah, my pet peeve. Don't you DARE dye your hair.
I stopped 5 years ago, to the eternal disappointment of my boss who's still trying to get me to dye it (along with another woman in the office).
Arguments:
- You're letting yourself go (c'mon, it's not like I don't bathe or brush my teeth!)
- My hairdressr said you look 10 years younger with your hair dyed (of course, the hairdresser has a vested interest doesn't he?)
And then there's the oh! you're so brave! contingent. Ladies, I'm not facing death, I'm not fighting terrorists, I just let my hair go natural. If people don't like it, they can look away.
Yeah, I have grey hair, and I'm 49 and dying my hair blonde will not make me 30. Get the hell over it.
Plus, funny enough, I've never had so many compliments as since I went natural.
"Gray hair is a crown of glory. . ."
I think it makes you look distinguished. . . ;)
At my 25th class reunion, one of the women, who'd been a loose acquaintance 'back in the day', had a full head of striking silver-white hair. I told her I thought it looked great, and I thought she was gonna kiss me right there. . .
My wife, alas, wishes she'd go gray (she's really into the whole 'crown of glory' thing), but has nary a silver thread in her mid-50s. And her mom, who's 79, only has a few, so it ain't looking promising. . . ;)
I think you're right about our youth-obsessed culture. It's kinda sad, really. Life is what it is, and you might as well enjoy each part of it for what it is.
(And frankly, if it was my co-worker, after a while I'd probably tell her that her little joke was getting tiresome. Honestly, what's it to her what you do (or don't do) with your hair? But then, I might not be as kind as you are; and I don't have to work with her every day, either. ;) )
Wave your freak flag high, baby! I know, from seeing your gorgeous mane up-close, that it is a thing of rare beauty. Screw the narrow-minded conformists who want to have everybody fall in line and march lockstep to their insipid drumming. Be you, not the you somebody else thinks you should be.
Amen. You keep it. Unless you change your mind and color it neon green just for spite. Hell, that might be fun... get one of those temporary sprays and show up for work? Well (she said sweetly), it's not gray.
I suppose my opinion doesn't count for too much, as I have no hair of my own to speak of, though some of it, I suspect, would be gray if it grew out. My beard is 50%.
I wish my wife would let hers alone as well. If nothing else, it would save loads of money. Actual quote from ever-tactful son #1:
Mom, you have a stripe on your head!
Roots were showing along her part. Ka-ching There goes another $100. Shut up, boy!
Good for you! My wife doesn't dye hers either, and I love it!!
do i really need to answer this?
That is a very cool stripe ya got going on there! I also did not wear makeup on my wedding day...I was so gorgeous without it!
I say keep it the way you want to and watch out for those makeover show scouts...your co worker may have sent them after you!
It is YOUR HAIR and you can wear it however you like! I can't believe anyone would even protest how someone wears their hair! WTH???
Be grey. Be blue. Wear it long. Shave it. Doesn't matter. You are beautiful! :)
I think there should be a DSM psychiatric diagnosis for women who are bothered by other women's hair. Why do we do this to each other? Why can't we live and let live?
I don't see men nagging each other over hairstyles. At least not straight men.
Lime, I just like that you are you. Please don't take this the wrong way, but I really don't care what color your hair is one way or the other because it doesn't change who you are to me.
--snow
I'm w/you. I will never dye my hair. Stand proud. You are beautiful just as you are.
Wow. It's like I hardly know you at all. I would have totally guessed you'd conform.
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