To Gray or Not to Gray

Aging gracefully is for the birds. I consider aging a full contact sport requiring a lot of fortitude and an equal amount of attitude. I don't fear it, I'm just not going to let it roll over me.

However, I did decide after my latest birthday to give in just a little in the matter of my hair color. My natural color was brown. I was nearly blonde as a kid, then it got darker and more medium brown. Then darker brown just about the time I started turning gray (age 40). In 2000 I went red. I was tired of brown and red sounded exciting. They got the slogan wrong: it's redheads who have more fun. Redheads can be sassy and no one is surprised. We're not considered dumb, but intelligent and "brassy". So I hung with the "reds" for over eight years, but every time I colored my hair there was more salt and pepper to be covered. Some folks are blessed with that cool silvery gray (like my hubby). You've seen them. I especially admire ladies with that thick silver hair. Mine's not thick, but it is silvery, so this last time to the hair stylist I gave him the word: we're growing out the gray (or grey if you're British). He was surprised, but agreed there were certain things we could do to mitigate the suckiness of the grow out period of approximately one year or so.

So he put in some honey gold auburn highlights to take the color out of the part of the hair that has been dyed and gave me a wonderful cut. And now we grow. It looks kinda funky with the now muted lighter sections of hair and the gray/black growout, but so far it doesn't look like I've spaced off a trip to the salon. It will eventually. My dear stylist said it wasn't usual for a woman to ask to go gray. Most are very keen to cover up the passage of time. But that's my mantra: be unique.

In about a year the gray/black combo will be completely revealed and I'll have to change makeup yet again to accommodate. I have no doubt it'll look great. So I leave the red haircoloring I'm not using to those out there who do (you know who you are!) Red on, ladies!

P.S. This whole thing must be working as the cashier at Fuddruckers gave hubby and I the Senior Discount the other day and neither of us asked. Where I'm tickled to save the two bucks, somehow it's sorta painful to know it was offered in the first place. Had to be because of hubby. Yeah, that's it.

Yet another Postscript: Today is hubby's birthday. We spent it plowing around the mall, picking up some amazing bargains and then a wonderful dinner at P.F. Chang's. Then some video time with our Netflix addiction augmented by his very own Naked Newt wine. He pronounced the day a success. My job is done.