Pride Goeth Before… the Haircut?
Posted by Aarti on February 23rd, 2012 . Filed under: Uncategorized .Once upon a time, in a little city called Chicago, there was a young woman named Aarti.
She was in her twenties, living it up the way that Sex and the City told her to (ie. breaking up with her college boyfriend because everyone told her that she couldn’t POSSIBLY be sure that he was the one if she hadn’t “played the field”. What a gross term. Don’t ever listen to someone who uses that term), and while it had been exhilarating for a couple of months, the joyride had crashed. She found herself desperately unhappy, and realised that she’d been a fool to break up with her noble boyfriend (who had moved to LA to pursue his dreams of being a character actor).
So, she decided to ask him if he’d take her back. She wasn’t sure if he would, but she needed to do it.
She had a plan. In the four years they’d been together, they’d taken boatloads of photobooth pics. She’d saved them in a little box. What better way to request his hand again than by sending him a little photostrip of herself?
She bought herself a new top. Then she looked at her recently-trimmed mane and thought, oooh new hair-do! So, rather than return to her tried-and-true hair dresser, she decided to try her friend’s uber-hip one, who worked in an uber-hip part of town, and had an uber-hip haircut herself: hair about 1/2 inch long, all over. It looked gorgeous on her.
I sat down, told her that I wanted her to give me a cute pixie cut, something that Winona Ryder may have been rocking at the time. Then I took off my glasses and let her rip.
Here’s where the people-pleaser part of my personality bit me in the butt-onsky. And I know I’m not alone here. My Spidey-senses tingled. She seemed to be taking an awfully long time. And more and more hair was falling on the floor behind me. But, I thought, I’m sure she knows what she’s doing and I don’t want to hurt her feelings by putting my glasses on and checking on her.
“All done!” she finally said.
I put my glasses on.
And felt the tears sting my eyes.
My hair was… gone.
Or at least pretty much gone. And whatever hair was left, bore a striking resemblance to her haircut.
Oh, I said.
“Oh no! You don’t like it!” she gasped.
No, it’s ok. Um, I think I just have to get used to it.
And then, the icing on the cake: I paid her $80 (plus tip!) for the cut, even bought a little product, and left. Ooooof.
I remember my friends gasping at me when I saw them. I remember whipping my head to get invisible hair out of my face, and then realising that my mane wasn’t there anymore. For the first time, it dawned on me how vain I had always been about my hair, how much I derived my identity as a woman from my locks!
There was nothing to be done but let it grow. And later that week, I went to the photobooth and took this “beauty”:
Bren’s first thought when he got that photostrip in the mail? Oh dear. She must be really distraught!
And blessedly, for me, he took me back… and a few years later, he gave me this photostrip:
And they lived happily ever after.
-x-
aarti
p.s. That curly hair tip tomorrow! I promise! I started telling this story and it was just too good to cut short!!
February 23rd, 2012 at 3:17 pm
Oh my word, that is too precious!
February 23rd, 2012 at 3:37 pm
haha, too cute!! love the photo strips!
February 23rd, 2012 at 3:44 pm
Cutest thing EVER. That Bren of yours, he is a keeper.
February 23rd, 2012 at 4:19 pm
Wow. Total win for both parties.
Minus the haircut. (Sorry. But pretty positive we’ve ALL been there.)
February 23rd, 2012 at 7:17 pm
Oh Aarti! How sweet! What a great post. He loves you no matter WHAT haircut you have! Made for each other!
I got a major haircut recently and I miss my long hair now so much – I can totally relate to realizing that our hair plays such a role in our “perceived” identity. It’s silly isn’t it?? But oh so true. =)
February 23rd, 2012 at 7:51 pm
I love this story.
February 23rd, 2012 at 8:24 pm
Seriously woman, this is the cutest story ever! I miss you on FB already, by the way.
February 23rd, 2012 at 8:28 pm
So sweet.
February 23rd, 2012 at 8:43 pm
Wonderful!!!
February 23rd, 2012 at 8:51 pm
Thanks for sharing a truly wonderful story…. (and love that you said the story was too good to ‘cut short’!! ; )
February 23rd, 2012 at 11:03 pm
And that is the best aw I have read in a long time.
February 24th, 2012 at 6:54 am
Awww! Read so many of your replies to tweets about this post that I had to read it myself and, dang it, you made me get all misty.
Adorable story. Almost Hollywood in its perfect cuteness.
Thank you for sharing it. =)
February 24th, 2012 at 8:07 am
Cute story!!
I feel you with the whole “i have curly hair, but i want a short cut.” I did the same thing, right around when I met my husband. I looked like a BOY, & I have a big head(square jaw etc). NEVER AGAIN. Guess we’ll just have to settle for longer curly hair & let the straighties have their pixie cuts. 
February 24th, 2012 at 10:15 am
squeeeee! This is just the cutest. So clever and sweet.
I’ve always believed in the saying that “you’re not a real woman until you cut your hair short.” It’s true!
Girl, your smile is ELECTRIC!
February 24th, 2012 at 1:45 pm
What a great story!!
February 24th, 2012 at 6:59 pm
Love this story! Thank you for sharing.
February 25th, 2012 at 6:34 am
What an awesome story… and you are way brave to share those photos! Good for you! I hate when people hide bad haircuts. It always grows back, right?
February 25th, 2012 at 11:53 am
Aw! That was such a cute story. I have had terrible experiences in hair salons. But so far not got a boy cut done but they have cut a lot of hair once and my mom was so annoyed. You know how “Indian moms” insist on having long silky hair for the “BIG” day
PS: You look super cute in that pics.
February 25th, 2012 at 1:31 pm
You would look fabulous bald!
I love the Sleepless in Seattle-esque-ness of the story between you and Bren. Lizzy is right. There needs to be a screenplay written about this!!
February 25th, 2012 at 8:03 pm
You two are so adorable! So glad you proved that the typical dogma can be wrong!
February 27th, 2012 at 6:53 am
“too good to cut short”. Nice pun. X D
February 28th, 2012 at 9:54 pm
Note to self. Don’t succumb to my pixie hair desires.
Glad Bten is in your life. Can’t imagine you with anybody else. 
March 1st, 2012 at 12:45 am
Haha, this is both hilarious and adorable. Thanks for sharing!
March 25th, 2012 at 9:57 am
From one curly girl to another…..I so connected to this story!
April 5th, 2012 at 1:54 pm
So adorable!