I'm probably reading too much into things as usual, but I sense this antipathy toward my longish gray hair when I wear it down at work. It's funny -- I see men look and sort of smile, as though they are pleasantly surprised. But, of course, it is women who comment.
When I got my bangs cut, the shopkeeper at the eyewear store noticed and asked why I didn't cut the rest "of that" off. Last week a colleague said wow, your hair is getting long. I said, yes, and then there was this uncomfortable pause. I wore it up the next day, and a female executive said, oh, your hair looks good like that, as though it was unexpected. This weekend I practiced updos again.
I'm up for the good fight. Not going to cut or color just because that is the social norm. However, I do work in a corporate environment, and some concessions must be made. For example, I do not wear my Keen sandals to work even though I'd really, really like to. Little things like that. Wearing my hair up is a small thing, but I still don't get why there seems to be this wall of opposition.
Or maybe it's just my hair. I browsed through my photos from when it was in the bob stage, and it did look stylish. Does it suck now? Stylish Young Co-worker said my hair looks great. She would tell me if it doesn't. She is brutal. Still, I feel like I'm in the woods being hunted, and I'm scared to make a sudden move.
Slowly, and very, very carefully, I reached for the credit card and purchased some new shampoo and conditioner. We'll see if that gets me out of this slump.
