Getting Buzzed!

Hey, it's Stephen. I just gave myself a buzz cut. I guess that doesn't sound like the most interesting thing to blog about, but it something that changes my look quite a bit, and people who have known me for a long time (or for long enough to get used to my look) might be shocked to see me.



Those are the "before and after" shots. The before shot is from me wearing a hat (I have bad "hat hair"), and then I made the hair stand out so you could see how long it was (with the curl to it you can't see exactly how long, but it was long). Click on a photo to see it larger.

Why? It grows SO FAST!

Okay, so why did I do it? Frankly I am so tired of having to get my hair cut every two months. And I mean "have to." After one month I should get it cut, by the second month it is ridiculously long. Most guys could do fine getting it chopped every two months, but their hair doesn't grow like mine.

Growing up, my sister was so jealous of how fast my nails and hair grow (and how thick my hair is). How fast does it grow? This past year I measured that because I was so frustrated with having to cut it so often. It grows more than ¼ of an inch every week. In fact in one month I have 1 ¼ more inches of hair than I had at the beginning of the month.

So when I say that by 2 months I HAVE to cut it, I mean it. I go into a hair cutting place and the lady asks "how short?" I reply "A number 2 on the sides, and then just blend it." She is shocked because a #2 is very short, and my hair is long on the sides. Yeah, more than 2" long! She always says "are you sure?" and I say, "yes I know it is long now, but I need it to be a #2." I need it to be a #2 so it can be short for at least a while. Then I tell the lady I had a #2 on the sides just two months ago. That always floors them.

So I am tired of needing a hair cut at least once a month (and absolutely having to have one every two months).

I could 1) make Jen cut it, which always makes her nervous. 2) grow it out and donate 15 inches to charity every year, or 3) buzz it myself once a week.

I'm trying number 3 out. Number 2 doesn't seem as professional, and number 1 (no offense Jen), has the potential to look like it wasn't done professionally (though with my hair growth rate there wasn't a haircut she every gave me where it no longer mattered in a week's time -- the mistakes had grown out).

I've started out with a #3 adapter to the clippers. I'll probably end up doing a #2 just so it stays short enough to not need combing for the entire week.

Anyway, that's the news on that.

Oh, and if any of you have ever wondered about my previous hair style, here is the story on that (oh, and it is a fascinating story). I part my hair on the right (your left), because back in grade school my brother Chris' part was on my right (his left), and then when I copied the style in the mirror, I looked like him.

I imagine that hair style was first on me by the 3rd grade or so. Yep, 20 years with the exact same hair style (except for when I parted it in the middle for a few adventurous years). This very conservative hair style has been with me for quite a while.

Why? Well, again, it grows so fast!

When I was back from my mission I decided to try to finally branch out and embrace some new styles. My first (and only attempt) was the "Cesar" cut. It was a spikey cut where the top, front hair was a bit longer than the rest. It lasted about a week until the hair was getting too long for the style.

Eventually the only style that looked okay was either to slick it back or comb it to the side. I realized then that I was stuck with a part to the side and combing my hair to the sides. As my hair grows long, it works within this style. So that is the story of why I have had the same hair style for 20 years.

We'll see if I like this style (both in terms of the look and the maintainance). If I do, it might last a decade or two as well. I think that buzzing myself (and having Jen do the edges/ neck) once a week will be better than paying $10 and trying to find the time to go get it cut every 2 months. We'll see.