Short Hair, Don't Care

Recently, I found my new hairdresser, Jude, in the most millennial way possible. Instagram. It was truly a serendipitous moment, but a great one at that. I had been mentally battling it out in my mind about whether to grow out my locks or chopping several inches off. After meeting her online by coincidence, it was pretty evident that I was going to go with the latter decision.

Photo Credit: Alex Bell

We initially bonded over short hair and philosophical life thoughts, and eventually covered topics like travel, life experiences, work, learning, and family. As someone who is very protective about my hair, Jude had this confidence and ease to her which made it easy to let her cut and dye my hair. 

Photo Credit: Alex Bell

Before my haircut, my hair was flat and lifeless, stringing along the remains of what was overgrown highlights. After my visit with Jude, my hair was voluminous, bouncy, and uniform again. She and I worked together to fuse our visions into an asymmetrical, slightly textured bob. For a little fun element, Jude added a little bit of a subtle rosy tone on top of my remaining highlights to give my hair a little peak-a-boo of color when the sun indirectly hits it. My favorite part about the cut and dye is that my hair is conservative enough for business functions, but has a bit of personality and flair to it as well.

Photo Credit: Alex Bell

I love the way that short hair makes me feel. I initially chopped off 9 inches of my hair back in 2014 as a way to defy traditional beauty standards, and I'm glad that I did. In that time, I've learned to also love my freckles, my curves, my scars, and my blemishes. Imperfection is beauty, and beauty is imperfection. I've learned that once you embrace your individuality, radiance and beauty both follow suit. 

What are some things about yourself that make you who you are today? Feel free to tweet me or shoot me a message on Instagram @Tran_gerine. If you're interested in checking out Jude's other styles, you can check her out at Salty Blonde Cut Co., or check out her on Instagram here.

Until next time, happy styling!

Melissa

Stream of Consciousness

Life.

"You'll figure it out," they say. 

"What does that even mean?" I asked myself. How come figuring out life comes easier for some, and harder for others? Is it luck? Is it fate? Is it privilege? Is it hard work? Is it a combination of all of the above? 

The older I become, the more these thoughts resonate in my mind. Needless to say, I think about life lot. Memories of the past creeps in from time to time, bringing in both happy and painful memories. The present is a work in progress, and is filled with lots of trial and error. Finally, the future is a hopeful reminder that there will be better days to come. 

Recently, I experienced an "ah-ha" moment in my life, and I'll never forget it. It was so subtle, yet so profound. It was on the first Saturday of this month, and I remember feeling extremely tired driving home from a work event. I realized a few things during this half hour long drive home at night. We live in a generation where we live fast, speeding through life trying to experience everything quickly and valuing nothing. We see things as expendable...temporary. We miss a lot of really great opportunities, because we're too busy running off to chase the next thing. We have advanced technology at our fingertips which allows us the ability to communicate and to build further connections, yet we are the generation that struggles the most with communication and building meaningful relationships. We say we want certain things in life, but lack the motivation and commitment to stick to plan.

I don't know about you, but I don't want to live life fast. I want to live life fully with meaning and purpose. I want to value every moment as if it would be the last. Some of my fondest memories are those that don't exist in photographs, but rather, as supercuts in my mind that play over and over from time to time. Everyday, I'm working on being more transparent with expressing my thoughts and emotions, and I'm loving it. Finally, I've learned to stick to a plan. Knowing all too well my long-term goals, I know that it will take a lot of patience, hard work, and commitment. Although, I haven't quite figured out everything in my life yet, I'm okay with that. Everything will work out in due time. 

I am ready. Are you?

What are some of your thoughts about today's world? How do you deal with some of these issues plaguing our current society? Let me know some of your thoughts. You can connect with me on Instagram and Twitter via @Tran_gerine. Talk to you all again soon!

-Melissa