Velma No More

So I got a haircut on Saturday, and it was absolutely fantastic. For a while here I was trying to grow my hair out a bit. For some unknown reason I was fascinated by the idea of being able to put my hair in a ponytail. I was determined to make it happen, but I got impatient and realized short hair suits me a lot better. So I have gone back to short hair AND my natural color! I can't even remember the last time my hair was my natural shade. Too long!

 

 Before

After

 This new hair cut has kind of been the best thing EVER! I have never had it this short before, so I have been getting used to it. It seriously is fantastic though. When I wake up it pretty much looks the exact same as it did the day before, I barely have to use any shampoo and conditioner (heck to the yeah), and it takes a total of about 2 minutes to style. Talk about my kind of a hair cut! I am a little worried that because it is so easy to manage I will find myself becoming very lazy when it comes to appearance. I am going to do my best to avoid that.

The kids at work had very mixed feelings about it (as they always do with my wild and crazy hair cut changes). One little girl came up to me and told me that she loved it, but then got really quiet and told me she had to tell me something. I told her that it was ok, and that she could tell me what she was thinking. She then proceeded to tell me that I looked like a boy... HAHAHA! It was actually really cute. She was so embarrased, and I think she was confused as to why she liked it so much because it was a boy hair cut. Working with kids you develop a thick skin pretty quickly, so comments like these obviously don't offend me. I know they don't mean anything by them. They are just voicing their opinions, and being honest. The majority of the kids liked it, but a few told me they liked me better with longer hair. I always love hearing what the kids have to say about my new hair. Their reactions facinate me. My favorite quote of the day was when one of my little first graders came up to me and told me with much enthiuasm, "You look handsome!" Seriously the greatest thing of my life!

One of the things I want to teach the kids I work with is that not everything in the world is black and white. I want them to realize that there are all types of different people, and that everyone has different interests. I want them to know that it is ok to be different, and as long as you are happy that is all that matters. That is why I let them say whatever they want about something as silly and pointless as my hair. I want them to be able to express their curiosity and confusion as to why I choose to cut my hair short like a boy. By letting them talk to me about it I can tell them that yes, the haircut I have is a boy haircut, but that there is nothing wrong with that. Girls can like "boy" things, and boys can like "girl" things. I want them to see that these "things" that we have classified as being strictly boy or girl stereotypes can easily overlap, and that it is perfectly normal and ok. I don't know if this makes any sense. I just think that people, specifically kids, nowadays are unable to have complete control over their creativity due to social norms and gender stereotypes. I want to teach these kids that it doesn't have to be that way. That you can still be normal even if you bend the rules of society a little.

I feel like I am rambling, so I am going to stop that discussion here.

 (Apologies for the crappy insta pic)

This weekend I went to my first concert of the year! It was more of a dance party, but I see nothing wrong with that. It was just a bunch of dj's doing their thing. One of my friends knew one of the djs, so that is why we went in the first place. That isn't usually my type of thing, but it was actually very fun. It was quite an interesting night full of dancing, unexpected run-ins, and seeing Neon Trees at Village Inn afterward. I know I probably should have been starstruck... but I wasn't. I tried to be, but I was just kind of like, "Eh... Neon Trees. It started with a whisper.. good song. Lets listen to that on the way home." It ended there basically, but it is a fun story!

Well that was basically my weekend. I got to see some old friends from high school on Sunday, so that was quite fun. I also got to see my friend Emily who I haven't seen in FOREVER, and we went and took some night photos for my photography class. It was so much fun getting to hang out with her, and I am so happy to have my concert buddy back! Other than that, I had a pretty relaxing weekend. Any of you do something fun over the weekend?