Hair

Hair: for me, it has recently become an obsession. After my Year 10 Formal, I decided for the next dress-up occasion I was growing my lifelong shoulder-length 'do. I desired "Mermaid Hair", the sort of shiny, healthy stuff that drapes over breasts, hanging down to your waist. Never a fan of "The Little Mermaid" or similar stories, I have no clue what suggested to me that mermaid hair was the epitome of feminine chic.

Expecting blues and greens for a mermaid illustration, were you?

Two years later and I have my mermaid style: when straightened, it reaches the middle of my back. It's heavy, it gets in the way all the time and it is unbearably hot in summer. Suddenly, after my goal has been achieved I no longer see it as the ultimate girly accessory.

One day I want my face to be framed by a style similar to Alexa Chung's, the next I'm favouring Carey Mulligan's cute crop. I am not familiar with their work, yet I desperately want their look. I am constantly buying hair magazines, trying online style simulators (specifically, the free one at InStyle), and for what? For nothing. I stagnate when it comes to the action of cutting or colouring.

People hate change, but humans are meant to be able to adapt fast, which apparently makes us superior to other animals. So why the hell can't I act as a superior animal and get my hair done? I can't blow caution to the wind and just experiment because I fear what others may think of me. Hair is such a huge part of our culture, yet it is just one aspect of human appearance...

Hair.

Nice locks can attract a partner. Hair - or the absence of hair - can demonstrate youth, maturity, health and illness. The natural growth and colour of a person's mane are altered based on belief systems, eg: Punks, and members of certain religious groups. For women in particular, their tresses also provide a constant topic of conversation. Oh, and styling the mop on your head also creates jobs! It's not just emotional and social, you can capitalise on a person's crown of glory.

Growing up, our attitudes towards hair are quickly influenced. We readily accept the notion of short styles for boys, and longer lengths for the girls. In primary school, I remember when boys got nits their mothers would often just shave their heads. Problem solved! But for us girls, we suffered chemicals slathered on our scalps and hair-pulling with metal-toothed combs to keep our precious, precious locks.

Now I'm older, I do like short cuts. I like bobs and undercuts and all sorts of things. But I'm a scared little cry-baby whose hair will be the same for a while to come.