Call Me Ginger

What do you think of my new hairdo? From this point forward, call me "Ginger."

Sarah Ginger.

I will never forget the first day of grad school. There was a sweet, innocent Filipino woman in my Tax Research & Property Transactions class. Her name was "Ginger." As the professor called off the names on his roster, he commented that Ginger sounded like a stripper's name. Dear god almighty--have we no filters? I guess you can say whatever you want as long as you are tenured!

But I'm a Ginger now, too. Apparently acquiring red hair is accompanied by the acquisition of professional strip-tease skills. Lucky me--a new career falls into my lap!

The last time I got my hair cut (or all of my hairs cut) was well over a year ago. I'm thinking it's time to do something about that.

Given the present state of my life, I'm tempted to go all-out-drastic-short, which I've done many times before. The periods of drastic shortness are followed, however, by 1+ years of growing my hair out again. I grow it out because it's too much effort to maintain the short style by getting it cut every 6-8 weeks.

And I know this; I know it every time I opt for the drastic shortness.

Alas, I've been told by numerous people (primarily those that are chromosomally capable of growing chest hair) that they like my hair longer.

I'm not sure that I care, though.

For shits and giggles, I tried one of those "Virtually Try On Hairstyles" websites, which, for the record, also allows you to virtually try on makeup as well.

As you may know, I am so not a hair and/or makeup girl. I own no "products," aside from whatever shampoo is in the shower. And I got rid of whatever makeup I had (and rarely used) in my downsizing efforts. I even got rid of all my nailpolish, which I did manage to apply to my toes and fingers a few times a year.

Needlesstosay, "Virtually Trying on Hairstyles" is very out of my character. So, bear with me here. I hope you have as much fun as I do perusing the possible me's that will never actually be me.

So, here's the deal with the virtual website: You upload a photo of yourself, indicate the outline of your face (for hair application purposes), and then indicate the outlines of your eyes, eyebrows, and lips (for makeup application purposes). Then, you flip through various hairstyles and makeup styles, which are applied over your photo.

Here is the photo I started with:

Good ole' plain me.

Here are some different hair options, all showing colors and styles that I will never wear:

The "Jennifer Aniston" look.

The modern-day "Sarah Fawcett" (haha, get it?) look.

The "cute girl next door" look.

The "nothin' special, but with bangs" look.

The "straight-hair-tossed-behind-one-shoulder brunette" look.

The "carrot-colored, lotsa bangs" look.

The "Kelly" look.
(In honor of my friend, Kelly, who looks beautiful with this 'do.)

The "just above the chin" look.

The "crazy curls" look.
(I love these curls!)

The "longish pixie" look.

For the record, there were many more hairstyles to chose from. But most of them didn't fit over the gray hat I was wearing in my original photo. Ha! Take that!

Wow, and there's so much variation in makeup. I had no idea! Here are just a few possibilities that don't make me look like a skanky ho. (If you wish to see the variations in detail, you can click on the photo to enlarge it.)

So many makeup styles!
(In order from lightest to darkest lip shade, though the eyes are different, too.)

What did I learn from this little makeover experiment? Well, I learned a few things:

1. I had no idea that a makeover could entertain me for hours!
2. A fancy haircut and makeup can make anyone look better - even me!
3. I wonder what the women who we idolize in our culture look like without their made-up hair and made-up faces.
4. Although I might look "better" if I were to wear a real hairstyle and apply some makeup, this is so not me.
5. My sometimes-frizzy, sometimes-straight, sometimes-curly hair has a mind of its own; taming it is a task in patience. Plus, makeup application requires the precision of a surgeon; I am not a surgeon.
6. I value every second I don't have to spend in front of a mirror.

Most importantly, this little exercise confirmed that I like me just the way I am. And I prefer friends and loved ones in my life who also like me just the way I am -- all frizzy-haired and makeup-free!