Hi friends. Greetings from a plane, another plane, only four more trips left this year. I will miss this hectic schedule when it’s over, just like I miss the New Orleans deep humid heat when it’s gone for the winter. When you’re in the middle of it, it’s tough, but you find yourself adjusting and claiming certain specific pleasures from it. I like what the travel does to my brain, how I am exposed to new ideas and conversations. I like the way my skin glows in the summer sun, and the way the city empties out and the conversations between those who stayed behind are different. There’s always something to appreciate if you dig deep enough.
I took a college literature class with the theme "Mothers and Daughters in Literature" (such a great class!), and the first assignment was to write a hair story that involved our mothers. Though men were allowed in the class, there weren't any in that class--and the instructor said that she had assigned this topic several times, and no one had ever been at a loss. Everyone had a story to tell.
Hair is such a rich symbol--about beauty, control, values, risk, creativity, conformity, self-expression....So much!
Oct 1, 2022·edited Oct 1, 2022Liked by Jami Attenberg
This post is so ME right now. Thank you!!
I have bangs. (I have had bangs most of my life. What does that SAY about ME?! Well, it says I have a high forehead, and I probably just look better with them, than without.)
AAND.... I recently listened to my gut and made a big move...to resign from my job. Yesterday. (You can read about it my post I wrote today... at 4am).
As someone with bangs (although I’ve grown them out many times and come back), I get asked this a lot too! Also agree with all you said. I think I have felt guilty over being vain but really it’s okay to want to look how you want to look! ❤️❤️❤️
Yes, hair is fucking important. Just cut most of mine off. Started growing it out, like many people, during the pandemic and this is one of my moving-out-of-the-pandemic rituals. It does make me feel like a new person--like I’ve shed some of that heaviness and become lighter.
I took a college literature class with the theme "Mothers and Daughters in Literature" (such a great class!), and the first assignment was to write a hair story that involved our mothers. Though men were allowed in the class, there weren't any in that class--and the instructor said that she had assigned this topic several times, and no one had ever been at a loss. Everyone had a story to tell.
Hair is such a rich symbol--about beauty, control, values, risk, creativity, conformity, self-expression....So much!
This post is so ME right now. Thank you!!
I have bangs. (I have had bangs most of my life. What does that SAY about ME?! Well, it says I have a high forehead, and I probably just look better with them, than without.)
AAND.... I recently listened to my gut and made a big move...to resign from my job. Yesterday. (You can read about it my post I wrote today... at 4am).
Cheers to changes, big or small!! 💖💪🏻😝✨😉😎🎸
As someone with bangs (although I’ve grown them out many times and come back), I get asked this a lot too! Also agree with all you said. I think I have felt guilty over being vain but really it’s okay to want to look how you want to look! ❤️❤️❤️
Great essay. I put you right up there with my yoga and meditation practice for inspiration and encouragement.
Yes, hair is fucking important. Just cut most of mine off. Started growing it out, like many people, during the pandemic and this is one of my moving-out-of-the-pandemic rituals. It does make me feel like a new person--like I’ve shed some of that heaviness and become lighter.