Good haircut = new lease on life (a saga, just so you're warned)

I had been annoyed with my hair for quite some time. I was growing it out...which seemed like a really good idea when I started. I looked back at photos of me in college, with long, pretty hair, and remembered all of the fun I had fixing it and being creative. And there were other justifications - wouldn't have to get my hair cut all the time, which is cheaper, and when I straighten it, I wouldn't have to wash it every day, which allows me to sleep more in the mornings.

However, there were some very fatal flaws in this logic. The most glaringly obvious one is that I do not have anywhere near as much free time as I did in college. Fifteen hours of class a week, punctuated by afternoon naps, girly trips to Sonic, doing a little bit of homework, and going to parties left me lots of extra time to do things like fix my hair (and my friends' hair) into elaborate up-do's and funky braids and such. Or just spend forever and a day straightening it. Nowadays I give myself one hour in the morning to get ready, and this includes everything from shower to breakfast to dressing and blowdrying my hair (for which I have allotted about 5 minutes). So lately I've felt like my curly hair was sticking out from my head in every direction but the ones that I would have preferred. And I was going through a LOT of this product, which is like gold for one's curly hair, and costs about the same. So I decided to take the plunge and pay someone to chop it all off.

Cue second part of the decision process, because I do not have any sort of an idea about hairstylists in DC. None of my girlfriends have curly hair (that resembles mine, anyway), and if I like someone's hair, it typically turns out that they pay $90+ to have it done. Which is all fine and good for them, but I just can't pay that and also buy groceries. And a good haircut, while valuable, is definitely not worth going hungry to me. So I went the nerd route and searched the internet for recommended beauty salons. I found one in the Washingtonian (which apparently has information on more things than restaurants - who knew?) that seemed reasonably priced and was close to my work.

It ended up being a great experience too. There are several factors that contribute to me enjoying a haircut: 1) The stylist not only LISTENS to what I have to say, he also tells me what he intends to do before he starts chopping; 2) He does not attempt to chat me up the whole time...there might be a little chit chat, but for the most part, he just does my hair and leaves me with my thoughts; 3) He does not give me layers that in any way resemble Carol Brady's hair or a mullet. All of these factors were present, and in day 2 (having worn the "do" both curly and straight) I am still a happy camper.

I know that few of you that read this actually live in DC, but if you're interested, the place was Subairi, I went to Daniel, and I ended up spending $52 for cut, blowdry, and tip. Worth every penny for the feeling of extra cuteness thanks to my new hair.