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Hi, guys.
I had my school reunion over the Easter weekend. There were about 250 out of 400-odd from my year who made the effort to attend, so not too bad a turnout. I saw some people who I hadn't seen in over 20 years, so it was great from that point of view. Not only that, I wasn't the only guy with long hair. There were two of us. I had it braided at first, but let it loose later after nearly having someone's eye out when I turned round too quickly.
I was pleasantly surprised not to receive any negative comments although I did catch the odd hostile look - mind you, those were from bald guys, so I guess they were maybe jealous that I've still got most of my hair. I got a lot of compliments and quite a few surprised looks, especially after I let it loose. One comment was that I seemed to have all the hair that all of the other guys had lost. My hair was the longest there, even including the women, so I was pretty happy with that.
This morning put a big smile on my face. I hit another milestone - I caught the ends of my hair when I put my jeans on. I'd say I've achieved my goal of waist-length hair before 40.
Great story, Viking! I was given an award for "Guy with the longest hair" at my reunion!
Brett
Thanks, Brett.
I remember reading your story and wondering if the same would happen to me.
Good to hear it went well and you enjoyed yourself. And congrats on the length. :D
Thank you, Mr Frodo.
I must admit I was a little nervous about attending, as I was worried about the reception the hair would get. Still, I needn't have worried and it's given me a little more self-confidence.
The closest I came to being criticised was when one woman said it wasn't fair that my hair was in much better condition than hers even though it was longer. I suppose I could have been a little more diplomatic about it but I had been drinking for a few hours by then and told her that if she stopped straightening and colouring it, her hair would probably be in similar condition. Who knows, she might listen.
I wouldn't even call that criticism, more like a bit of envy (which I personally take as a compliment, after all, how can they be envious if you're not doing well?). I get similar comments from women now and again. I generally just smile.
Congratulations on your length!
And it sounds like you had a good time at your reunion.
Nobody recognized me at my ten-year when I went in with long hair and a goat- I had to introduce myself to everyone but two.
Doesn't it feel great to age better than your former classmates? ;)
Thank you!
I had a great time. I really enjoyed catching up with my old friends. A few have aged better than I have, but, given that I drink, spend as much time in the sun as possible and used to smoke heavily, I think I'm doing quite well.
At my reunion (20 yrs), one of my classmates didn't see my name tag (my long locks had fallen in front of it) and started asking me what college was like today! :)
Congratulations on reaching your goal.
My 20th college reunion was last summer. One of my former profs made that same quip about gaining hair that others had lost.
No negative comments on campus, but then again, I never expected any (after all, some of the guys in my class used to have long hair themselves).
But I did get some dirty looks from people everywhere else on my trip. This DID surprise me, because I went through the same Midwestern cities and towns in 2007 (mid-back length) and 2006 (shoulder blade length), and never had any negative reactions.
Thank you. That was only the first goal. I wanted to get to waist length before hitting 40, but ultimately, I just want to see how long it will grow.
I just couldn't believe how many of the guys had lost most if not all of their hair. I'm just glad I missed out on those genes.
I'm originally from a deeply religious area where long hair on men is seriously frowned upon, so I was a little wary, so I was pleasantly surprised at the lack of criticism. Both of my sisters were at home at the same time. My elder sister was a little annoyed as she's had long hair for about 20 years now and hit terminal just above waist length and my hair's grown longer than hers in less than four years.
Hi Viking,
That's a cool review from your HS reunion and having people notice your hair is awesome!Yea, I bet those bald guys were jealous but some may just have chosen to go with the flow since most guys are like that nowadays.Its great being a standout if you don't mind the stares from people.Also that's certainly a milestone when the tips of your hair get caught in your jeans:)Now you know its longggggggggg!Cheers my friend and thanks for sharing.
Mark
Thanks, Mark,
I must admit if I started losing my hair seriously, I'd probably take a razor to it myself - although I had that done to me once in July, 1995. It wasn't a very good look for me and little old ladies crossed the street when I walked towards them. Word of advice, don't drink on a Tuesday afternoon in an Irish pub in London. Someone decided my hair was too long and just happened to have clippers with them. Before I realised what was happening, he'd clippered a diagonal strip about an inch wide diagonally across the back of my head. If it had been a little lower, and horizontal, the barber might have been able to salvage some of my hair without it looking ridiculous, but I ended up having a zero crop. Not good - first time my scalp had seen the sun in over 20 years and it was like Velcro as it grew back. I ended up with quite a bad sunburn and the pillow moved with me whenever I turned my head in bed.
Hmm...maybe the skullet wouldn't be such a bad option after all!
I'd absolutely lose my mind if someone were to do that. I'm thinking he'd best consider how he'd feel with those clippers inserted into some sensitive portion of his anatomy. At the very least the cops or other patrons would have to peel me off the guy.
Ditto. I'd probably wind up in jail.
What pub was it?
It was one of a well-known chain of Irish pubs in Islington. I haven't been back there since.
To be honest, although I was annoyed at the time, it wasn't such a great loss. I'd had the long hair chopped off a few months before then, so my hair was pretty short anyway. I did get a couple of laughs out of it though. The next morning when I went back to work, having only started a couple of weeks earlier, everyone thought I was another new guy! However, I did have to explain what had happened to the boss.
Hi again Viking,
I always felt that guys with shaved heads looked mean and I don't blame that lady crossing the street to avoid one.
As for that jerk who gave you that unwanted cut there is this one remark that could have been made.......
"I'll be BACK!"
And to the pic..
Obviously just joking of course.LOL
Mark
LOL
I felt like it. If anything like that happened now though, I wouldn't be as forgiving as I was then.
Man come on!
Did you at least try to bust his head? I think someone would have left that pub in the ambulance and the other in a police car.
And he had clippers with him? Who the hell carries around clippers? Sounds like he planned it. Did you know this guy?
Paul
Never met him before - or since.
He and his mates had been messing around at the other end of the bar. I wasn't really paying much attention. Next thing I knew, I heard the clippers right behind me and by then it was too late. It's the sort of thing that these days would end up on youtube later the same day, but that was before the advent of camera phones.