January Photo-a-Day: Week 4

January Photo-a-Day.  Prompts by Fat Mum Slim.

This past week has been so cold that I didn't really want to even take my phone out of my pocket to snap pictures outside.  It was so cold that I didn't show much more than my eyes when outdoors.  I was so cold that it hurt my eyes.  Because of that, most of my pictures are inside this past week.  Hopefully, this next week sees temperatures past the twenties.

January 21 - What you do

21. I love trying new things with my hair now that I don't look like Hey Arnold anymore.  I tried to blow it out and can now even put parts in my hair - with the assistance of a few bobby pins.

January 22 - Corner

22. This is a corner of my pre-war apartment elevator.  I like that it is winter and I don't have to touch the buttons without gloves or with my keys anymore.  They just seem as though they are icky.

January 23 - Electric

23. I like to shred items with my name on them that come in the mail.  I guess I am a bit paranoid, but I don't like my name and address to be in the trash and then wind up in someone's hands.  Same with private information and even prescription information.  I finally got a shredder here in NYC - didn't bring mine from StL.  Now I have eliminated a huge pile of papers and feel lighter.

January 24 - Stripes

24. I love my Uniqlo clothes.  They have some sort of heat technology that makes you warm without needing a lot of layers.  I have this striped tunic that I am in love with (also have it in tanish).

January 25 - Landscape

25. I found this shop where I would eventually get my printer.   I like the little bitty park that is across the street from it.  The shops are behind the trees.

January 26 - Together

26. I don't know why this man sitting across from we on the subway had on two watches.  I guess so he could tell the time two times as well when his hands are together.  I tried to take the photo all sly, but my flash went off as I accidentally hit the snap button before I even had it pointed right.  I tried to play it off, and got a better picture after sitting like I was just looking at ish on my phone for a few stops.

January 27 - Sun

27. I should have known this printer would not be the sunshine in my life when, as it was being transported up the conveyor belt to be handed off to me, it slipped back down and I heard it sliding and tumbling.  I should have known.  Instead, I figured it must be padded enough and took it home.  After setting it up, it printed every page completely black.  I called customer service and they said it was broken and needed service.  Now, I must figure out how to carry this big-a thing back down to the beautifully landscaped store and get another one.  So much for saving time on school prep this week.

Headaches and hair

It's Tuesday.

It's dreary.  It's colder than I have suitable clothes for, and I have a headache.  Only thing worse will be if it starts to rain on me on the walk to the train and then to the apartment.

But, I will put on a mask and make people think I am ok as I head home to try and figure out what to do with my hair.  Looking in the mirror for two hours last night did not produce any ideas for improvement.

Luckily, people at school were really nice and said nothing mean about me.

I actually started to wonder about their sanity as I was actually complimented during each period and before school by students and teachers.  I guess people are really nicer than I tend to imagine.

I could be Arnold's sister

Went today to the barber to get my afro cleaned up.

Since I took out my twist-braids, it's been really uneven and needed to be evened out.

I should have known not to do it this way.

I have not had anyone beside myself or my boyfriend trim or cut my hair in over 12 years.  I know that when I go and pay to have someone else do it, it will not look the way I want it to look.  Or they will interpret trim to mean several inches.  Even when the BF did it, he often would cut more than I wanted.

So, what made me think this time would be different?

I guess I thought that since it was a barber - a man - he might be more used to cutting afros.

Image source

I guess I thought wrong.

I left out of there thinking it looked ok until I got a better look in car as I walked to get on the train to the grocery store.  I had a flat top.
Afros should not have flat tops!

They should be round.  I didn't get to get a better look until I got home and realized just how bad it was.  The top is significantly shorter than the sides, so much so that I look like I could be Hey Arnold's sister.  I look like my head is shaped like a football.

It is so short on top that I am not sure if I can put my twists in and then rock a twist out.

I should have known better than to trust a man to cut my afro when all the customers inside were getting fades and low cut styles.

Back to square one of growth.  Next time, I go to someone who regularly cuts afros... or I go back to doing it myself.

Seven months and still going strong

Still going strong with posting each day this year.

Here are the top 10 posts from the month of July.  Feel free to read or re-read any posts.

After all my logic and my theory - Post about how St Louis should not be the most dangerous city in the country.  I incorporate some Fugees - you can never go wrong with Lauryn Hill... unless it is dealing with paying taxes, right?
Saturday Quote: Why complicate life? - Great quote.
Nahwlayduhs - Post about my long-time incorrect understanding of what a candy was really called.
Social Construct with Power - A bit of my thoughts on race and race identification and relations.
Possibly the worst invention ever - If you have ever been in a bathroom with toilet rolls that do not move a full circle, you will understand this rant.
Thick and full of body - The hair dresser said I have more and thicker hair than anyone she had ever dealt with.  I guess I should be proud, even though my hair style took 14 hours to complete.
Summer is tasty plastic tubes - How could you not enjoy frozen freeze-pops in the summer time?  Reminds me of childhood.
You may rejoice, I (still) must mourn - Just my views on the US's independence day.
The things I do for hair - More on my 14 hour hair styling extravaganza.
Pleasing others vs living my life - I have spent a lot of my life trying to please others.  I am trying to work on making myself happy.

The things I do for hair: part 2

I'm still recovering from my hairdo - which I am starting to really enjoy.

I woke up so early to get it done and was there for so long.  I couldn't sleep well since they were kind of tight the first night.

When my sleep is disturbed for even one night, I am messed up for a long time.

I'm hoping that I can sleep well tonight and get back on a good sleep schedule.

Thick and full of body

During my 12-hour adventure in hairdressing, the lady repeatedly told me that I have more hair on my head than anyone she has ever seen.  I still don't fully understand this.  My head is not much larger than others.  I have discovered that I sometimes have three hairs seeming to come out of one follicle - I guess others just have one in all of theirs.  This is why my hair is so thick - I guess.

I remember in my youth, I was helping Kid Sis #2 with some sort of assignment she was doing for school.  She had to create a commercial and I still don't remember what the class was, but I helped.  The product was the A.H.C. - I don't remember what that stood for, but I was one of the voices of the commercial that used the product successfully.  I just remember using a strong Nigerian accent and saying something about how the A.H.C. would make your hair "teeek and full of bo-deeee!"  We all still laugh at that commercial.

I think I have been secretly using this product since my hair is so thick and full of body requiring me to use more of the extensions than other people for the twists.  Despite getting the amount she said that everyone needs, we ran out before my hair was 3/4 finished.

I had to go to the store with 3/4 of my hair completed in braids and a small afro puff.

I looked crazy.

Two good things did happen, though.

1. There was no one else in the store when I went in there, so no one except the cashier saw me looking crazy.
2. The hairdresser put my hair in an afropuff, so I now know I can rock a bunch of those when the twists eventually come out.

A third thing happened about 3 hours after the store run... she finished the twists and I was able to go home, clean up, and sleep.  Fourth good thing that happened is that I slammed down some diner pancakes, bacon, and eggs the next morning to make up for not eating much during the marathon twisting session.

The things I do for hair

Long day.

I went to get my hair done.  She said to be there at 7am.  I rang the bell at 7:03.  We started at 7:15.

Finished the last twist at 9:10pm.

The hairdresser said that I have more hair and thicker hair than anyone she has ever seen.

I am not exaggerating with the time.  She did take a few short breaks to deal with her two-year old twin girls.  But it lasted that long.

Proof:  I watched six and a half movies.
The Wood
The Bachelorette
Brown Sugar
Mr. and Mrs. Smith
The Karate Kid (new one with the Smith kid)
G.I.Joe
the first half of A-Team

I'm too tired to do anything besides take the shower that I needed after sitting and having sticky toddlers crawl on me intermittently throughout the day.  I don't even want to eat - just figure out how to wrap my hair around my head so I can sleep adequately.

It will take a few days to get used to the extensions (I'm going from 2 1/2" hair to twists that now go down to my mid-back.

Life's jolts

I've done it a few times.  Not completely, but a little bit.

When I went off to college, I got to be different - an individual separated from my siblings and from the impressions I left in hs.  When I moved into an apartment outside of the dorms it was a new reinvention.  When I started teaching in Columbia I was a totally different person than I had been before.  I had friends like I had never had before and did things (in my after school life) that I had never imagined doing and it was all a blast.  When I started teaching in Saint Louis it was a small change.  I had new colleagues that were great.  I had a boyfriend that helped me grow and see and do things differently.  Eventually, I cut off all of my long, straight hair and went natural and short.  When I moved to another district I made more changes.  I started using my first name on official papers.  I dressed more professionally everyday to work.  People had never known me with long hair and I went even shorter - completely shaven.  I moved to a different division of the school and it was even more of a chance for me to be seen differently.  I have reinvented myself in small ways with my family and friends.

These are just a few of the times I have reinvented myself.

I think that reinvention comes in different forms.  The obvious are related to appearance.  Some others are related to a change in mindset.  For me a change in mindset comes from a change of scenery, from a change in perspective, from a change in life associates, from the different jolts life gives me.

Honestly, I feel like I am overdo for a major jolt in my life - a new reinvention.

This was the last Stream of Consciousness Sunday that Fadra is hosting.  I thank her for this and am glad I found it during my quest to find topics to write each day.  I think that the freedom to just write on Sunday has been a great release and has really made me think about different things in my life.  Most of the time, I have written based on her prompts which are often thought provoking.

I think I will continue to do this sort of writing to help me just do brain dumps on Sundays.

You can see the link up on Fadra's site to read more of people's five minute stream of consciousness musings.  Today's writing prompt: What does it mean to reinvent yourself?

June fourth photos

Here is my fourth week of somewhat random photos I'm taking to participate in Fat Mum Slim's Photo-A-Day-Challenge.

21. Where you slept - I love gathering together with family.  We are so accustomed to all being in the same house that we are pretty good at finding places to sleep.  There was a time when we would all visit my parents' house and a few of the five children would be sleeping on couches.  Somehow, the dog had earned a bed in my sister's room, but we were on couches.  Go figure.  My place for the past week was this couch.  It is so comfortable that I even slept on it after all the bedrooms and the air mattress were free when everyone left before me.

22. From a high angle - This was an easy, not very creative one this week since I was flying.  This is taken somewhere over the land between Atlanta and Houston.

23. Movement - Nephew #1 is trying to be paparazzi to Kid Sis #3 during a car ride in Houston.  It still amazes me how easily young kids adapt to technology that we never had as kids.  This kid is so into his technology that the other day he was watching television and Kid Sis #3 told him he had to go to the bathroom to clean off his face and blow his nose.  His response was that he had to wait for the commercial because the television he was watching didn't have a pause button.  Seriously, kid?!?

24. On your mind - I have been having pain in my elbows for some time now.  About a month ago, it became unbearable in my right arm.  It hurt to squeeze soap from the dispenser, to turn my wrist, to lift anything off the ground, or to push my self up from a chair.  I finally gave in and went to the doctor who diagnosed me with tennis elbow (which is apparently common even if you don't play tennis, which I don't).  The treatment includes deep tissue massages to work out any scar tissue.  These hurt like a mother.  After two treatments, I'm not sure if it is improving yet, but I do think I have figured out that the twisting of my hair (like little braids all over my head) has caused the pain in my elbows.  I guess I may have to give in and pay to get my hair done.  It's been over a decade and a half since I have regularly gone to someone and paid to do my hair.  There have been two times that I have paid.  I'm really not trying to pay to have someone do my hair, but I guess I may have no other option if I want my arms to heal.

25. Something cute - Nephew #2.  So freakin' cute!!  It was awesome to get to finally meet him and so fun to make him smile.  He is wearing a onesie from the place of work of Big Bro and his girlfriend.  She shot this picture of him looking totes adorbs!!

26. Where you shop - I've been meeting my boo for lunch each day.  It's a nice little thirty minutes of us time in the middle of the day.  Some days I make lunch from home and supplement it with some food from this fancy grocery store in the middle of downtown.  It's a Schnucks (if you know the store) but goes by a much fancier sounding name.  It is pretty nice on the inside and makes me feel like I need to dress up like all the business people that shop in there at lunch time.  Instead, I typically have on a pair of jeans and a blouse - casual Friday everyday for me, right?

27. Bathroom - I was living out of a three bags all week: one for clothes, one with laptop, and one with toiletries.  I am organized enough to make it work and fortunate that Kid Sis #2 allowed me to use her washing machine a few times during the visit since I pack very lightly when I travel and reuse outfits.

You can see pictures from the first, second, and third week, too.

Next installation will be abbreviated since June ends before next Wednesday.

I thought I'd never catch my breath

Today, I almost cried.

Thrice.

For some reason, many people think teachers have it so easy.

Summers off are a blessing for teachers, right?  That there are no curriculum revisions, workshops in other cities, setting up classrooms, learning how to teach new classes, lesson planning, learning how to use the new technology given to us, etc.  Many think that we get paid regularly throughout the summer to just do nothing.

Today, I had to budget my last check of the school year (yes, it is a bit larger than my usual bi-monthly check, but far from magnificent in its amount).  In order to live responsibly throughout my non-teaching months, I try to pay forward all my bills so that I don't have to pay any again until my first check of the school year in mid-August.  (Just writing that I won't see any income for twelve weeks is really frightening.  Each summer it brings me dread.)

I have the money deposited in my bank and decided it would be best to send money orders or direct transfer from my account rather than checks or using a credit card.

The withdrawal to pay for my rent, my cell phone, my internet/cable, my electric, my gas, my bi-yearly car insurance (Why does insurance cost so much?? And why haven't I moved to a place where I don't need a car?), my AAA, my credit card balance, and my car payments for three months was so large that I almost cried when I wrote out the withdrawal amount on the slip in the bank.

I felt like I had these sort of stacks
for a brief moment.

I almost cried and had a panic attack when I went to the teller and told her in which denominations I wanted the money back.

I shoved the money into my front pocket so I could see and feel the large bulging money that barely fit into my tiny pocket.  So I could know that for that brief moment between the bank and the post office I felt like a really rich person who just carries stacks on stacks on stacks (man I hate that Soulja Boy song!) of money daily.

I thought I was going to be fine at the post office when I had the money orders made.  The lady was really nice.  We talked about my hair and how she wants to see what it looks like in certain styles I described to her.

It was friendly banter even as I was telling her the dollar amounts for each of the money orders I needed.

It was friendly banter even as she started printing the first money order.

Then she read the total amount of money I owed.  And then I passed her the massive stack from my bulging pocket.

What she gave me back in change was not even enough to buy a fast food value meal.

At that point I took a deep breath and let it out.  She said that she always feels really bad giving people change after they pay for large money orders.

At that point I almost cried.

This is all I have left on my dresser.
I wish I could turn the smile on
my eraser upside down for effect.

To hold the tears and feelings of angst in, I explained to her my situation.  She explained to me that she thought all teachers get paid throughout the summer - she has a friend who has it that way for his teaching job.  We talked about the differences in school districts.  We talked about what I teach and why I like it.  As she continued to print off my money orders, I continued to answer her questions so that I would not cry.

When we finished, like Lauryn said, "I compared myself to Tony Braxton, thought I'd never catch my breath."

I walked over to the post office table in the middle and started filling in money orders and addressing envelopes to be sent to businesses so that I can live the rest of the summer in peace.  Well, at least not worrying about whether I have money to pay my bills.

I do have money left that is not being moved over to my do-not-touch-savings.  I will, hopefully, not starve.  I just have to budget the rest of the summer and make sure that whatever I do with my money is worthwhile.

I guess I won't be going to any celebrations where I have to make it rain.  Unless they want it to hail when I throw up coins instead of dollars.

I love the freedom my hair provides

There is really something liberating about being able to do activities without worrying greatly about your hair.

My twists, shrunken from moisture,
but still cute and easy!!

There are so many black women who do not workout because they do not want to sweat out their hair styles.  (Seriously,  Google it.  There was even a push by the surgeon general to get black women to exercise and worry less about their hair!)

Even when I had relaxed (chemically straightened) hair, I did not really worry about sweating my hair out.  I would wash out the sweat, blow dry it straight, and then style it back again.  I guess that is too much work for some women.  I didn't spend a lot of money on mine - I still prefer to do my own hair rather than pay someone to do it.  Maybe the cost of the style makes a difference in your willingness to mess the 'do, I don't know.

My natural hair has allowed me to feel even more free about getting sweaty and wet and to play and go in the rain without worry.

So easy to maintain.  So easy to style.  Just a comb, some water, and I'm practically done.

I hope for more African American women to experience such freedom.

B is for Beauty

Even when I was real young, I started looking at people in a way that I don't think a lot of people look at others.

I realized that there were some people who were happily with others who I did not find attractive.  I realized that there were people that others found gorgeous that I found not attractive.  Almost everyone finds someone that they can call a friend and possibly even someone that will be their life/most of life partner.

As cheesy as it sounds, I began to find the beauty in all people.

I think this helps me in life in general as well as with educating the children.

Their beauty may be external - say the person that most people call ugly has really cool eyes, or flawless skin, or perfectly taken care of nails.  Or it may be internal - the person clearly has a great sense of humor since s/he laughs at my dry, sarcastic jokes.

As a teacher, it really irks me to hear students joking with other students by calling them "hella ugly" or saying comments about others when they think I'm not listening and calling their bodies or their faces disgusting.  I always get on them about this.  Let them know that not only is it genetics (most of the time) that determines how we each look, but their comments could be hurting the other person in ways we may not ever know.  Even though a kid might joke off being called super ugly, that student may be going home and really doubting their appearance.  The student making the comment may be saying it to someone else because another student said it to them first and they want to hurt someone else the same way they were hurt.

There are people who make fun of black girls who have hair that is natural (thankfully, I have heard several students and teachers say that my natural hair has motivated them to do the same).  "Nappy-head" should not be an insult.  Most black people's hair grows out of their head in coils, waves, or curls, not straight as their weaves/relaxed hair look.

Hopefully, the bullying stops and people see that there is something good in everyone (well, almost everyone) - either in their appearance or their mental abilities/skills.

And hopefully they realize that it is more than just the appearance that matters and will lead to life-long, meaningful friendships.

A is for Annoyances

A is for Annoyances.

Today, I am starting a new challenge... writing from A to Z for the month of April.




Today, I join it with my usual Stream of Consciousness Sunday post, where fadra's prompt is "I don't wanna..."

I don't wanna pack up and move.  Even though I hate this place, I hate packing and moving and reorganizing even more.  But I know that any place will be less stressful and easier to manage than this place.
I don't wanna retwist my hair this morning.  But I know it is easier to deal with during the work week than my regular 'fro.
I don't wanna deal with allergies tonight.  For some reason, I am pretty much fine during the day, but, like clockwork, when I lay my head down on the pillow to sleep the itching and stuffiness begin.  I have tried new pillows, washing the sheets more often, and taking meds, but I always wake myself up in the night rubbing my nose for relief.
I don't wanna wait two more months to see my newborn nephew.  But, I can't easily get down to Texas for a weekend to see him since I have to coach track meets each weekend until the end of May.  Perhaps it is time to play a little hooky.
I don't wanna feel like blogging is a chore.  But, I also don't want to go through long spells (months) of not writing like I did the last few years.  Hopefully, this letter theme idea will give me some new juice to keep going in April.  I have already written each day this year, and want to see how long I can keep this up.

That is my five-minutes stream of consciousness post.  You can see others' writings or join in at all.things.fadra.  You can also see the directions for how to go about the writing.

What is your genius?

Today during a professional development session about learning iWork, the facilitator asked us "What is your genius?"

He wanted to know what we are really good at beside teaching our subject matter.  What are we really passionate about?

I was really shocked that so few people in the room had an answer.

Maybe they were ashamed to admit their online porn addiction, or their WOW game play, or maybe they are really unsure.

It was reassuring and kind of saddening all at the same time.

I don't know my genius, but I figured that I was alone in this.

He made us create a slideshow using iPhoto with about 10 slides.  Mine ended up consisting of randomness.

• A basket: I have a lot of random knowledge about random things - I once was at a trivia night with my mother and other lawyers and was able to answer many law questions better than them.  My mom still says that I am really smart (sometimes even lets it slip that she thinks I am the smartest of my four siblings.)
• The logo for How It's Made - I love that show and learning how things work and how they are put together.
• A beautiful natural woman: Hair care - I love learning about how to care for natural hair.  I am looking forward to growing mine back out so I can play more with it.
• A piece of food: Nutrition - I can tell you about what to eat that is good for you, what you need to eat when you are pregnant, how much and what you should eat if you are trying to lose weight or build muscle.  Unfortunately, I am often too lazy or tired after work to make really nutritious variety... I basically eat the same thing most days.
• A trash can and a recycle symbol: Minimizing my life - Getting rid of something each day has worked this entire month and a half.  I will try and continue through February.  I am also trying to not associate with people who are continuously negative.
• A pen and paper: I love to write.  Even succeeded in completed this NaBloPoMo posting every single day in January.  Not that every post was stellar or award-worthy, but I accomplished that mission and intend to do it again in February.

Maybe one day I will have a true genius.  Then, perhaps it will be easier for me to figure out what I will be when I grow up.

Wordless Wednesday: Fros not fights

I love this...

From Frolab.

Peace is my reward

I have been really good at minimizing things in my life.  I am still throwing out/recycling/giving away at least one item each day - either at home or at work - this morning's items were an old umbrella, an old nose ring, six spare buttons that do not seem to match any item of clothing that I still own, and some detangler/leave-in conditioner that, even with my super short hair, didn't seem to work and smells unattractive.

During December, the work ladies decided to do 12 days of necklaces leading up to break.  I am so minimal that I don't even own twelve necklaces - I had to mix in scarves to act as necklaces.  I have gotten rid of earrings that I haven't worn regularly throughout the past year, I  have three watches (one of which has been without a battery for over two years - might be time to get rid of that one, since I clearly have not missed it).  I have enough rings to wear on each of my fingers (if they were all the same width) but still have some that I may decide to part with since I haven't worn some in quite some time.

Basically, I don't have a whole lot of jewelry.

Even before my recent big chop, I was really getting in to rocking larger jewelry on my ears and around my neck to coincide/counteract with the short hair.  I love the contrast of short hair and big jewelry.

I have a few larger pieces, but this morning decided that I will get some more.

I don't buy a lot of things for myself, or others, really.  I didn't get myself anything for my birthday or the holidays until about a week or so ago.  I decided to get some peaceimages pieces.  LOVE HER and her jewelry.  Do check her site and show her some love if you like what you see.

The new Vision Studs arrived Friday, and I put them on this morning for work.

Love them!!!

Had to do an impromptu photo shoot of them because I loved them so much.

Now, I have decided to treat myself with more of her stuff as a reward to myself for getting rid of more things and for not having spent much money the past three months.

I know that is kind of counter productive -- buying something to reward myself for not buying and for eliminating excess, but that is what I am doing.  I will still be eliminating and not buying much after this.  Might have to get rid of some more jewelry to counter the new additions.

I have already put an order in for two more items.  Maybe I'll share those in pictures when they arrive and I rock them.

So peace is my reward for minimalism.  Lovely.  Not as rewarding as full-out world peace, but I think this peace looks great on me.

Long hair, don't care

Three nights ago, I had my boyfriend's niece cut my hair.  She is in school to be a cosmetologist, and has learned a lot about hair.  She hasn't yet learned how to cut a fro, but I gave it a go anyway.

She used a traditional method you would use on straight hair.  It was not too bad, but once washed out, it was not super even all the way around.

Two nights ago, I decided to do another big chop.  In total, in two days, I cut off about five inches of hair.

Wow!

Back to under an inch in length.

I'm using this as a new beginning in a few different ways.

I am going to retrain my hair to not be tangled, I am going to retrain my self to take better care of my hair, I am going to learn more ways to protect the ends as it grows so that it looks great as it gets longer, I am going to keep it shaped as it grows out so that it looks great as it gets longer.

I am going to become more disciplined with my hair and my life.

In my life, I basically am more of a follower to some extent.  I don't just do what others do, but I am slightly lazy and more or less let things go as they go, unless it is something I have an understanding for and can control easily.

I am going to begin to take more control.  I am not going to allow others and outside situations to dictate what I am doing.  I am not going to let others allow me to fail.  I am not going to allow people to annoy me.  I am not going to sit back and not know what I want.  I am going to formulate plans and take action to really figure out what I want in all situations.

I am going to begin to take more control.

No, this is not some sort of Jan 1st resolution that will fail in a few weeks.  This is something I have been working on throughout the past year and that I feel I will be even better at this year.  

My hair is just the beginning of my new beginnings.

Six Items or Less - No, undies don't count

Since January 10th, I have been participating in the Six Items or Less experiment.  Here is some information on it:

What do our clothes say about us? ...

The scope of the Six Items project expanded rapidly around the world, exposing individuals and even entire families to explore a life with less...

The experiment is simple: each participant gets to choose six (and only six) items of clothing and pledge to wear only these six items of clothing for a month...

Logistically, there are exceptions that don’t count towards the six: undergarments, swim wear, work-out clothes, work uniforms, outer wear (rain slicker, outdoor jacket), shoes and accessories. You can get multiples of the same item for laundry purposes, but different colors count as separate items.

For my six, I chose

1. Black dress
2. White button-up blouse
3. Jeans
4. Black cardigan
5. Black long-sleeved t-shirt
6. Gray sweater

These were really good choices for me.  I counted about 17 outfit options/combinations I could create with these six pieces (I only ended up wearing 7, but in different ways).  I was able to go to work and hang out and even attend the Lauryn Hill concert all with ease and without looking out of place.  The dress was something I have had for at least 8 years and have only probably worn about 5 times.

Initially I was worried about how hard this would be.  But, it turns out that it was way easier than I thought.  A couple years ago, I started getting rid of clothes that I didn't like.  Last year I got rid of some more.  When I decided to do SIOL in December, I got rid of even more.  I by no means am living super simple with clothes, but I have definitely pared down.  I also was worried about looking the same day in and day out.

Then I remembered that every summer I basically wear the same thing each day when I am not out coaching.  When Kid Sis #3 found out I was doing this, she asked, "Isn't that what you always do anyway?"  When I am not working, I am basically in similar clothes each day.

I was concerned that my students would notice my outfits and realize before anyone else what was going on.  I am in front of them and in the halls with them each and every day for long periods of time.

All of my fears were for nothing.

I loved the clothes I chose.  That dress that had seen so little wear in the past years has now become a favorite.

Scarves have become my favorite.  I have tried out so many different ways of wearing them around my neck and around my body that it is truly amazing.

I got so many compliments on so many days on my outfits.  Some one I don't normally see at work (outside of my coaching clothes) even asked me if I was going on interviews after school since I looked so nice.  The kids even complimented me on my outfits.  One girl compared another student to me as the after portion of "What Not To Wear" and the kid as the before.  The minimal items and the desire not to look the same each day made me really focus on looking put together each day.  It also made me use accessories, tights, and shoes to make my look different each time I wore something.  In these pictures you can see two examples of how I mixed up the dress.  In the first, I wore the black T on top with the scarf to break it up and make it look more like a skirt.  I wore ballet shoes that day.  In this picture I rocked my boots and just had the cardigan on top (the dress is short-sleeve, so I always had something on top.  I wore the dress with the white shirt on top, with the gray sweater on top, tucked in to the jeans to look like a shirt, and different colored tights and shoes and a lot of different jewelry.

I was really impressed by my creativity throughout this.  I have not seen myself as being really good with fashion, but perhaps with time and practice, that may be a calling of mine somehow.

I only told three people that I was doing SIOL, and no one else noticed (or at least said anything to my face about it).

I have always gotten my clothes ready for the week on Sunday nights, but with SIOL, it made it even easier to do so.

Today is the last day.

Next, I am going to up it to 15 items (no experiment, just doing it on my own) and continue to the end of February.  When I picked my 15 pieces, I started trying to figure out how many ways I could mix them and had to stop counting, because I was becoming overwhelmed with all the choices.

Through this experiment, I have come even closer to figuring out a few things:

• What type of clothes I really like and what I need to focus one when I go shopping for clothes - I know that quality is way better than cheap items that will only be ruined after a season of washing and wearing.  Each of my items were good quality and made it through a lot of washing and (most of them) three times a week wear.  
• I know that I can live off of very little - Again, no one noticed.  That is a credit to my creativity, but as many on the SIOL site have said, no one really cares what you wear.  It is really about wearing clothes that suit your body and lifestyle, and not looking out of place.  I have donated or sold even more clothes.
• I have started trying to travel with just a carry on - After this, I know that this will be even easier.  
• I love this six - With exception to the white shirt, and I don't totally love that because I feel like the arms aren't as long as I would like them to be.  They are by no means the MJ of sleeves, but I have long arms for a woman and like my sleeves to come to a certain point on my hands.  When I picked my 15 pieces, it was almost hard to get to 15 because I wanted to make sure that the pieces fit my style and that they would all look good together and be a decent quality.
• I am not easily bored with clothes - Not until this past Sunday did I get antsy about wearing something different.  That was when I was getting my clothes ready for the week and was getting excited/anxious about all the options for Thursday.  I stuck with my 6, and Thursday will wear something totally different.  Though, I did consider wearing the dress again since I like it so much.

During the experiment I even tried things out with my ever growing TWA.  I had my sister braid some of it and tried out some of those comb-thingies that you can slide into your hair.  It may be time for me to invest in some of PeaceImages hair combs - I have been looking forward to the day my hair is long enough to mess around with since I became natural (finally stopping the cutting has really helped out - who would have thought, right?)

So SIOL no more.

It is still rather likely that I will keep wearing some of the same outfits in the next few weeks.

The community on the website was really great - it was cool to read about their journeys, trials, and tribulations as well as to see some of the options they chose.  I may do one of these experiments some of them suggested next.  Each of which will be a breeze after limiting myself to 6 items for 31 days.

• Project 333
• 30 in 30

Or maybe something completely different that comes up or that I create - for now it will be 15IOL for the next 19 days.  Perhaps after that, I will be able to pare my wardrobe down even more.

Hairdressing is my next calling

Ever since I was small, when I went to the stylist and asked for a trim the person would inevitably cut at least two inches from my hair.

Perhaps I was incorrect in assuming that a trim would not be the same as a cut. I know that my ends were not bad most of the time, I got regular cuts so they were never split. Most times I wanted a trim just to even it out since hairs grow at different paces.

With my mini-fro, I have the same issue with hairs being different lengths. The braid lady trimming the sides of the braid didn't help the hairs much at all.

So... last night I decided to go over the hair with the 8 guard again to make it even.

Little did I know that I have hair dresser skills and can trim excessive amounts of hair despite the desire of the client -- in this case, me.

The initial trim leads to some hairs not looking even, which leads to me cutting just a bit more, which leads to me seeing things in my hair/head that I don't like, which leads to me cutting more, which leads to it not being even, which leads to me cutting even more.

I am now no longer 2" or more.

I am now a little over a centimeter in length.

Which is fine. I will still keep growing it.

Though I am now almost tempted to go lower -- it just looks so good short, and it is super easy now. I don't even need a comb anymore. I am back to ab brush and to not needing extra time to untangle the coils.

Loving my mini-fro

I am still loving my hair. I took the braids out (rather found a lady who took them out in 20 minutes for $30 - much better than the over half a day it took last time I had microbraids). Dealt with all the questions from students and teachers about why I took them down after only a month and a half.

Now I'm back to the mini-afro. Stretched out, the hair is about 2 inches, in the natural fro it looks about an inch long. Now dealing with getting used to having to comb it regularly, especially after sitting against something to pick it back to its beautiful roundness.

I bought some scarves and am playing around with rocking them. All in all, I am enjoying this length. Never imagined that I would since it is so in-between and since I really liked the ease of being bald.

I may put some braids in again one day, but for now, I am enjoying being able to really get in and feel my scalp all the time - washing, playing with the coils, etc.

The only issue I am dealing with now is that I have some hairs that are super-tightly coiled, some that are wavy, some that are completely straight. Not sure what that is all about, and not sure how to deal with it other than to use the clippers and trim my fro. I am using an 8 guard on the clippers and that is the longest I have for my clippers.

For the next trim I may have to go in and see some one. Which in itself is a bit frightening.

Last time I went somewhere to get my hair done it was to get a weave put in before the big chop. (I looked so crazy that even though the process took 6 hours, I took the 'do down about an hour after getting home.) Before that, the last time I had someone do my hair was when I was in college and went and saw the white dude in Brady to put some layers in my hair -- turned out to be one of the best hair cuts I ever had -- loved it. Before Brady-man, the last hair stylist in my hair was probably for my senior prom where the stylist gave me some slightly crispy, too-much-gel-in-it hair.

I may try to put some braids or twists in the front and let the mini-fro go in the back, or see if I can get someone to do some little two strands that I can take out and have a twist-out.

For such short hair, there are so many options.

Goal is to go until May without cutting it -- that will be a year. I would love to be able to rock a long poof in the back of my head, or a nice afro-twist-out. Or even to twist some bantu knots back like I used to before the natural hair; I'm sure they will hold better and look cool with my kinkier hair.

If it doesn't work out after that, I may go back to the bald look.

At least I know I look good with no hair. And it was super easy.