Back to Blogging - Day Three

Today's assignment is to re-post a title I liked. I found it very hard - not because I liked so many of my former titles, but because I liked so few. I think usually my title is the idea that got me writing that day, and because I often think in little throw-away lines, I just use them as titles. Occasionally, I know what I want to write, but add the title at the end.

In searching through, I liked this one because it gave a better idea of where I was headed than many do. And, I have to admit that I was intrigued by the fact that hair use #2 is for cleaning up oil spills. Apparently the booms they have been using to clean up the BP spill are filled with human hair. I read somewhere that hair dressers all over the country have been shipping hair to the Gulf. I was ahead of my time!

Hope you enjoy the re-run.

Hair - it's Way More Than Just Head Cover

It seems that hair is on my mind a lot recently. You know, the stuff that covers your head. Well, not doing that so well these days, but it's one of those things that I just kinda take for granted. For some reason, tho, I seem to keep bumping into new considerations, like these:

Hair as Mulch - I am not making this up. A few days ago I heard a piece on NPR about using hair as mulch. Seems a retired hair dresser - guess that's an old fashioned term, but I am an old fashioned kind of girl - decided that he was throwing away something valuable and found a way to make mats of hair that one can use as a fertilizing mulch. If you don't want to purchase someone else's hair as mulch for your garden, you could use your own - save it, or perhaps put it in your compose and let the nutrients go there.

To Clean up Oil Spills - About 10 years ago NASA experimented with using human hair to clean up oil spills. They were apparently interested in oil spills at sea, but I didn't know that we had to worry about oil spills from space craft... maybe it was interagency cooperation. Since we haven't heard much about this, I guess it didn't work out.

Make Clothing - A designer in Australia has actually done this in 2007. It takes a lot of hair to make this little number, but I think it's pretty - not my style, mind you, but great for the right person. Wonder how if feels. More importantly, do you use conditioner when you wash it?

Build Furniture - Apparently you can make chairs out of hair - at least one inventor in London has done it. Should I sit in my hair chair in my hair dress?

Art (and maybe Crafts) - Dartmouth displayed a huge wall hanging made of hair. I actually think it's attractive, altho I don't have a wall long enough so won't be making a bid for it. This one actually makes sense to me. I've always liked fiber art, altho the fiber normally comes from sheep and llamas. Guess is you can spin sheep hair, it's not a big step to spinning human hair. We once met a woman who collected dog hair, spun it and knitted sweaters. Dogs are like family members for most folks. You know, our ancestors kept hair from loved ones. I've seen it rolled into scroll-like designs and kept in a locket. Perhaps this is not such a new idea after all.

Hair! Flow it, show it; long as I can grow it, my hair!

Hair! (hair, hair, hair, hair, hair, hair)
Flow it, Show it;
Long as God can grow it, My Hair!

Hair! (hair, hair, hair, hair, hair, hair)
Flow it, Show it;
Long as God can grow it, My Hair!

Back 2 Blogging - Day Two

Today the assignment is to post something that I wish more people had read. Since it is a fairly long post, here's the link, and I won't try to copy it over.

It's basically a post about our obsession with our weight and size and some thoughts on accepting a healthy weight, rather than a size. I worry that we as a nation - at least the female half - are so concerned with our size. It cannot be healthy to hear 10 year olds saying they are too fat - especially when they are not. But, it's equally bad to see the 10 year olds who are already 50 pounds overweight and to recognize the struggle they will have for the rest of their lives.

Why can't we find a happy medium? Why are we still failing to teach our children and ourselves about healthy eating and healthy exercise?

On the down side, I see that nearly a year later I have not actually made any progress in my own struggle. Today I promised myself that I would not have a sugary snack all day... and I succeeded. Now I feel like a member of AA and am telling myself "one day at the time".

And perhaps that is the secret: progress is measured in one small step, or one day, at the time. I'm psyched for day two. Think I'll reward myself with a trip to Jazzercize!

Back 2 Blogging

It's only 11:30, so if I hurry I can still do today's assignment. I need to write this week. Things are not going well and I am bottling up too much inside, so maybe this is the kick in the pants I need. Back in March 2009, I awoke to a gorgeous morning. Wanted to write about it, so I started this blog. So, welcome to day one.


Little House in the Snow Storm

I HATE snow, but this is the most gorgeous morning I have ever seen. It's only the third largest snow I can remember, but by far the prettiest.

The biggest was 1979 in DC when we got more than twenty inches, but I was too worried about missing a day of work to enjoy it. I shoveled for hours to get my car cleared, before realizing that work was out of the question - we were off three days, but I had wasted the best one. The second largest happened in 1983, but we were in Charleston and drove home to it, so we missed the first day ah ha experience. And the most fun was 1966 in Williamsburg. We got about eight inches over spring break. As one of fewer than 50 "women" who had stayed at school, I spent two days wandering all over town with my "day student" friends - played on the golf course, learned to play pool, and had a wonderful time.

But this is Laura Ingalls Wilder snow. At least eight inches on the back deck. It's still coming down and blowing and almost a white out. Huge cardinals in the trees all hunkered down and puffed to the max. The bird feeders are covered with finches and the occasional woodpecker, and all the small birds taking shelter underneath the table on the deck - with its snow hat.

It brings back a primal memory I have of snow in Lafayette, Indiana, when I was about four and the snow seemed to cover the windows. It's not that deep, really, but has that same heavy blanket feel.

I'll be tired of it by noon and will hate it by noon tomorrow, but for this morning I think I will glory in it for a while - and take some pictures. Later I will worry about the shrubs, but for right now they can just be lovely lumps of cream.

Wishing all of you good conditions, altho I know some of you are also getting a bit of this frosting. For now, I'm going back to my fire and watch the birds out the window.