Do Blondes have more fun?

So I’ve been brunette my whole life. Well most of it, I don’t know if you count wispy baby hair…

A few months old

Any way, yes, I’ve had dark hair for a long time. And not to sound smarmy or conceited, but I have beautiful hair. Which does in fact sound horribly arrogant, but hear me out: Growing up and living with horrible self-esteem, terrible body image problems, and general insecurity I realized early on that I definitely didn’t complain about my hair as much as my friends did. It was long, straight without the help of a straightener, shiny, and didn’t frizz. For years I begged my mom to let me get a perm. I thought curly hair would be the key to my happiness. She always said no. Always. I never understood. She was and is a fantastic mother. Rarely was I denied something I truly wanted. (I know I’m spoiled. And fortunate. Very Fortunate.) And I truly wanted curly hair.

See back in my youth I thought I was adopted. In my mind I didn’t look like anyone else in my family. My brothers all looked alike, dark hair, big smiles, and hazel/green eyes.

Halloween one year with my Momma and brothers. (notice Mom's perm)

My other brother and sister even looked alike, auburn/redheads. But I didn’t look like anybody. With my straight as a board boring brown hair and my poo brown eyes.

School picture day

I knew that all my siblings were half siblings. I knew we had a different dad or different mom. But I at least thought I should look like somebody! My own mother had curly hair and hazel eyes that were definitely green to a 4 year olds mind! My hair was decidedly NOT curly. I used to sleep in those foam rollers the night before school picture day or special occasions to try and get my hair to curl. It wouldn’t.

Attempt at curly hair at one of my birthday parties

Plus my dad had strawberry blondish hair, at least what was left of it, and blue/green eyes of all things! I would sit in my bedroom in the little wicker chair that every sibling has ever sat in and stare at myself in the mirror. I finally worked it out in my head that I was Asian. I had to be. My eyes slanted. I was also 4 years old and had no clue what I was talking about. I would sit there and hold the corners of my eyes down so they wouldn’t slant up. I would sit and stare and squint and work myself up into a good mad.

I waited for the day when my parents would tell me I’m adopted. I secretly longed that I had a twin sister too. And then, and I can’t give you an exact date or time, I went with my mom to the hair salon and I realized she permed her hair. That it was in fact naturally straight, just like mine. And I decided that my eyes were in fact green (something I still choose to believe) and noticed that my hair was really red in the sun. So maybe I did look like me family after all. Maybe I wasn’t adopted. Maybe I act so much like my father I exemplify the Sharp name. Maybe I look so much like my mom (something we still don’t see) that EVERYONE comments on it.

Suffice it all to say, I still wanted curly hair. And I’m sooooo glad my mom wouldn’t cave on letting me get a perm. My hair survived my youth, tween, and teenage years wonderfully. I used to watch girls pull apart their split ends in Spanish class, listen to them complain about the rain because it meant their hair would frizz up, hate how thin it was, or how nappy it would get. I never seemed to have those problems.

Senior year of high school

And aside from some questionable bang years (which we’ve all gone through) and that one time I tried blonde highlights in middle school, I developed really great hair. It wasn’t until College that I decided to own that fact and be proud of it. It was nice to cling to my great hair when I felt really awful about my weight. I could proudly announce that “Yes, I could be a Pantene model” knowing full well I could never be a real model. And I think its important to recognize the good things about yourself. Girls often get caught up in everything that’s wrong with them. I had finally found something about myself that I loved and was proud of. So I’m sorry if you think less of me because I can admit I have fantastic hair, you’ll just have to get over it, because I’m not backing down from my fantastic hair pedestal. So there.

Now that I’ve gotten that soapbox out of me, let me get back to my real reason for posting:

I have great hair. And I’ve always wanted to be blonde. So I decided to do it, to stop talking a big game to every stylist I meet and actually make it happen. People constantly ask me, WHY? And I’ve formed several answers: 1. Thought I would try and be ugly for a while. 2. So I can pick up more dudes. 3. I think it would be fun to ruin my hair. But my best answer: Why not? We’re only on this Earth for a short time and I want to meet my Maker knowing that I lived my life to the fullest. And if that means being blonde for a while, then by golly, get me the bleach! And because I have fantastic hair, a great stylist, a good complexion, and the fact that we didn’t do it all at once, my hair is STILL fantastic. Fantastically blonde. Almost. I mean that’s a lot of brown to cover. We completed phase 3 and we still have more to go. And no, I do NOT want to be white blonde. That would be horrific on me. I want to be a buttery golden blonde, something that flatters my complexion (thank you Daddy for being a red head.) So there you go. My transformation to blonde.

So to answer the question: Do Blondes have more fun?

1. I get more attention from men. The ones that know me are the first ones to compliment my blondeness. Men that I don’t know make small talk with me more often too.
2. When I do something stupid, I have something to blame it on. “I’ve lost me keys. I guess the blonde is just seeping into my brain!”
3. Pastels. I lived in a jewel tone world for a long time. But pastels finally make sense. Lilac, excellent on me now. Pale pink, so feminine. White even looks better.
4. I don’t look as good in black. Which sucks because most of my wardrobe consists of black
5. Brown and other Neutrals. I love them! And they work.
6. I feel more girly. And Feminine. And delicate. Not that I am delicate with all this Newlywed weight I’m carrying around. But I feel dainty.
7. I feel more sexy. I feel like a hot blonde. Not that I am one, but I feel like one. And Jacob tells me that I am one.
8. Sometimes when I look in the mirror I don’t recognize myself and I think there’s a stranger in the house.
9. I miss my dark hair. Especially when I look at wedding pictures.
10. Bridget Bardot styles. So sexy. I feel like a total vamp when I do it to.

So I don't really have an answer. Life is different as a blonde. But I'm going to be like one of those cliff hanger movies people can't stand, I'm going to leave the answer up to the audience...

If you like me better as a brunette, fantastic. If you think I make a good blonde, fantastic. If you couldn't care less and can't believe you've read such a long post, fantastic. But it all boils down to this: I'm happy. And whether you like it or not, I'm still going to sleep good at night.

Before the first color (looking particularly squinty)

Phase 1

Phase 2

Phase 3

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