3004.2: Hairspray Queen
The hair-washing excuse came up again, and I feel compelled to explain it from my perspective. Not justify, exactly, but explain--feel free to comment if I've missed anything.
I think people who've never had hair past chin-length, if that, realize what a chore it is to manage really long/permed/styled hair. Even I, the tomboy who hated fancy dress time and grew up with a skewed perception of cleanliness [I admit, tho I've corrected that bad habit], realize that hair care above a certain standard takes a significant amount of time, which is why I prefer mine to be no longer than shoulder-length [tho, yes, it's grown out past that now out of laziness about cutting it]. Here are the problems:
I don't believe that "I have to wash my hair" is an obsolescence that should be removed from the Big Book of English Phrases, tho. It's not only familiar to most Americans [tho I'm not sure if it's crossed cultural borders], but it's a quick way to make yourself clear:Cliches in writing, bad; cliches in social transactions, good. That's because the common knowledge of the phrase saves you from having to be precise, thorough or anything else that feels wrong.
I do think it's a problem when people say "yes" but mean no, for instance, because they don't want to be perceived as "mean." Well, "I have to wash my hair" becomes the "not actually saying no" way of saying no for the spineless, then. It's also thoughtless, in that one needs not rack his/her brain for something suitable to hit the other person with a clue-by-four. [Catching up on my advice columns has taught me the benefit of being blunt when necessary.]
...I just remembered that one of my nightmares last night was something about turning someone down by saying and meaning no. It felt very liberating, which is somehow upsetting that it was only a dream. How was it a nightmare, then? Well, being in that position was awkward =p since I was telling off a forty-year-old married man with three kids... what exactly is my psyche doing at night??
I think people who've never had hair past chin-length, if that, realize what a chore it is to manage really long/permed/styled hair. Even I, the tomboy who hated fancy dress time and grew up with a skewed perception of cleanliness [I admit, tho I've corrected that bad habit], realize that hair care above a certain standard takes a significant amount of time, which is why I prefer mine to be no longer than shoulder-length [tho, yes, it's grown out past that now out of laziness about cutting it]. Here are the problems:
- Bathing first thing in the morning is problematic in the winter, especially, because it means having to get up earlier to spend maybe a half-hour[!] blowdrying to keep it from freezing in cold weather or going out with damp hair in general [ever have wet hair soak your clothes before?].
- Bathing just before bed also means that half-hour of blowdrying in order to avoid going to bed and soaking one's pillow.
- Blowdrying is damaging to hair [arguably] and ears.
- None of this includes time to brush and style hair, note.
I don't believe that "I have to wash my hair" is an obsolescence that should be removed from the Big Book of English Phrases, tho. It's not only familiar to most Americans [tho I'm not sure if it's crossed cultural borders], but it's a quick way to make yourself clear:Cliches in writing, bad; cliches in social transactions, good. That's because the common knowledge of the phrase saves you from having to be precise, thorough or anything else that feels wrong.
I do think it's a problem when people say "yes" but mean no, for instance, because they don't want to be perceived as "mean." Well, "I have to wash my hair" becomes the "not actually saying no" way of saying no for the spineless, then. It's also thoughtless, in that one needs not rack his/her brain for something suitable to hit the other person with a clue-by-four. [Catching up on my advice columns has taught me the benefit of being blunt when necessary.]
...I just remembered that one of my nightmares last night was something about turning someone down by saying and meaning no. It felt very liberating, which is somehow upsetting that it was only a dream. How was it a nightmare, then? Well, being in that position was awkward =p since I was telling off a forty-year-old married man with three kids... what exactly is my psyche doing at night??