Weird and Random Thoughts

Tuesday, April 30, 2013
8:26pm

I can't really say why I've been AWOL lately. But my last post was 19 days ago, so feel free to call me a slacker. While I'm aching to get this school year in the bag and move on into summer vacation, a handful of random topics have floated in and out of my brain recently. These are they . . .

My hair. Two years ago this month (April) was the last time I colored my hair. I found my first gray when I was 13 and in 8th grade. I did not, however, start coloring it until I was 29, after I had my last baby. By then my hair was salt and pepper, and definitely noticeable to anyone who looked at me. It was a tumultuous time in my life, and coloring my hair gave me an emotional boost. I looked my age rather than older than I was, and it changed the texture of my hair. It was dark brown (the natural color of my youth), and silky. Gone were the wiry gray hairs that gave it a course appearance. I loved it! But this lead to decades of coloring. The last couple years I dyed my hair, my roots were so very white, and my hair grew fast, so it seemed like I was constantly trying to camouflage roots, or every 2 to 3 weeks, locking myself in the bathroom to reapply the dye. This routine was tiresome. Since the roots were so silver-white, I decided I'd stop coloring just before the end of that school year, and grow it out over the summer. By August I was ready for a super short haircut, and 99% of the artificial color was gone! All that was left was a little bit of brown on a few of the tips, and that went bye-bye with the next cut. It was liberating.

For the past 2 years I have felt so free. I try to keep my hair in cute short styles, and my skin looks pretty young for my age. Still, I know my silver hair has made me look older. And I have found myself wondering lately, what it would feel like to color it again. I would certainly look younger, but when I tired of the routine . . . and I most certainly would . . . I'd have to go through the entire process of growing it out again. My husband has been supportive of my choice, and he does like the silver hair, but he admits it does age me. Random topic #1.

Then there's the documentary I watched today. Sweet Misery: A Poisoned World. I have heard many times over the past few years that diet soda is bad for you. But of course, we know that regular soda is worse, right? I mean . . . all that sugar! This documentary explores aspartame, which is found in far more products that diet soda. This stuff is really horrible. And the extent to which the company that manufactures it has deceived consumers should be criminal. One of the three key ingredients is, in essence, wood alcohol, which turns into formaldehyde in the body; and the body doesn't get rid of it. This crap accumulates in the body, and there is a list of something like ninety symptoms it can produce, some leading to serious illness and death. So, now that I know this, I cannot in good conscience go on consuming products with aspartame. Random topic #2.

My life. This is one of my standby random topics to mull over. We are nearing the end of the school year, and while I am thrilled to know I will soon be on an extended vacation, I am faced with the prospect of teaching another year. (sigh) I look at jobs in other organizations or companies, but I wonder what skill set I bring to the table. What am I qualified to do other than teach? I would hate to give up the benefits I have as a teacher, in particular the vacation time, for some other drudgery. If I could find something for which I felt a passion, for which I couldn't wait to get up in the morning, I wouldn't mind giving up summers off. So, what's a gal to do? Random topic #3.

How much weight can I lose in 2 months? Yeah. I know. I asked a similar question a month ago. How much could I lose in 3 months? I have held my own, but I haven't taken the bull by the horns as I intended to do a month ago. Tomorrow is May 1st. On July 4th I will fly up north for 12 days. I want to feel smaller. I want to feel it when I sit in the airplane seat. I want to have to dig out smaller clothes for my trip from the assortment of multi-sized clothes tucked away in a box "for when I lose weight." Plus, when I was at the doctor's office last, I was feeling pretty cocky about my success thus far, and I told him I'd be down another 30+/- pounds when I saw him in 6 months. Holy crap, have I got some work to do! Random topic (with a side of guilt) #4.

I think that's enough for now. I wish I had some inspiring wisdom to share, or some hilariously funny story to tell you. But, after my 19-day absence, this is all I've got. I'll try to do better next time. Oh, and if you should like to watch the documentary I mentioned above, it is available to watch online. http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/sweet-misery-a-poisoned-world/

Until next time . . .

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