1 Year in Sisterlocks

It's my one-year Sisterlock anniversary. Lockversary? I'm posting a recent picture to show the progress. It's been a great ride. I can't wait to see what the next year will bring.

A tribute to Grandma Cilla

This is a tribute to a woman whom I've never met. My Great, Great Grandmother Cilla, born a slave circa 1852.

Watching the PBS series "African American Lives 2" has really piqued my interest in genealogy. I'm attempting to learn as much as I can about my family history.

There are a lot of missing leaves and branches in my family tree, but the ones I've uncovered so far are fascinating.

All these years, I never really realized the significance of an old picture in my grandmother's photo album. It's an enlarged black-and-white print of a proud, sable-skinned woman in a plain, angle-length cotton or linen dress and an overcoat, sitting beside her adult daughter, who was similarly dressed.

The older woman's hair was lush and very thick, neatly styled in about three large plaits, likely never having felt the heat of a straightening comb, nor the sting of a relaxer.

I stared at my ancestor this weekend, and for the first time I saw myself. "That's my hair!" I thought. "That's my heritage."

For years I've been a big fan of natural hair, but I never felt prouder or more blessed to have my nappy mane, which always seemed to rebel against any form of straightening, no matter what I did.

Now I know why.

I really wish I could post a picture of Grandma Cilla, but I doubt my 90-year-old grandmother in Ohio would let me borrow a rare photo of her grandmother from the album.

I'd always heard stories about my great great grandmother Cilla -- how she grew up on the plantation, and how, as a little girl too young to work the fields, she was used to help train the slave-catching dogs to follow a scent.

Now, for the first time, I feel an even deeper connection.

I think she'd like these Sisterlocks.

I've been tagged!

Here goes...

Seven random, quirky facts about yours truly:

1. I wrote the "dawn of the new millennium" cover story for a newspaper on Jan. 1, 2000. I watched the ball drop, noticed that Y2K didn't blow up the world, and knocked out the story.
2. I have a Star Trek uniform somewhere in my closet.
3. I can type my name in upside-down numbers on a calculator.
4. I took eight years of Spanish classes and still like to listen to Latin music. I'd like to pursue a master's in Spanish or Romance languages some day.
5. I love TV documentaries, and the more weird they are, the better. One of my favorite series is "Modern Marvels" on the History Channel. They actually did a one-hour special on cheese. Fascinating.
6. Astronomy is of big interest to me. I used to be secretary of an astronomy club and a card-carrying member of the Planetary Society. http://www.planetary.org/home
7. Once got an autograph from baseball legend Stan Musial -- only to lose it.

I was tagged by
Docs Locks

I tag:
http://sogolocs.blogspot.com
http://ebonygirl-mysisterlocksjourney.blogspot.com
http://my-roots.blogspot.com
http://littlelocs.blogspot.com
http://robinslockshaven.blogspot.com
http://napppatiti.blogspot.com
http://freedomtojustbe.blogspot.com

Tagging Instructions:
1. Post seven random, quirky facts about yourself
2. Link to the person who tagged you.
3. Post the instructions on your blog (done here!).
4. Tag seven random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs. They cannot have been tagged before.
5. You must notify the people you tag by leaving a comment on their blog.

I'm Back!

Been way too long since my last post. Not going to make excuses. Just got lazy.
My locs are 11 months old now. They had a real growth spurt over the summer. I hadn't realized the growth until I did a braid-out style last week and the darn things were hanging past the top of the shoulder in places.
It's a bit weird having something on my neck, but I think I can get used to it!
Here is a new picture. It may be a bit fuzzy because it's from my cell phone.

-AN UPDATE: I wrote in a previous post that I had changed shampoos. Well, my consultant put me back on the Sisterlocks starter shampoo. I'm cool with it, though I miss the abundant suds. I'm still braiding and banding, but I found some ouchless small bands that make the process much more pleasant.

Journey of an Extension

I found this remarkable series of newspaper articles from 2003 that traced the origins of human hair extensions. From the devout women in India who sacrifice their long hair at a Hindu temple, to the hair processing factories, and all the way to the corner beauty supply store and the braiding salon.

This is years old - but new to me.

It's really enlightening. It's a four-day written series, with a narrated slideshow (requires Shockwave). http://www.tennessean.com/special/hair/

There's also an audio recording of a roundtable discussion.

In the Headlines...

It's been a while since I've blogged, so here's a summary of recent events:


New Shampoo.
I was running out of starter shampoo, so my consultant suggested I give Suave clarifying shampoo a try. I washed my hair with it for the first time yesterday, and I'm very pleased. It comes in this cool, clear bottle, has a light, pleasant scent... But the best part: It cost just $1.59! Cleans like the dickens, too. I used it diluted in a trigger spray bottle -- just as I do with the Sisterlocks product, and it works great and creates a nice lather. My consultant asked me to let her know if this product alters the feel of my hair too much, and I'm happy to report that so far, it hasn't. (Still braiding and banding, by the way.)

The count
Finally broke down and decided to count the locks. The grand total (unless I messed up): 504. I got curious because I had been reading posts on lockitup where people were complaining that they didn't have enough locks; some even took theirs down and got them redone. I feel blessed that mine turned out great, because this is one sister who isn't about to pick out 500-plus locks.

Natural hair meetup
The Michigan natural hair meetup on May 6 went well. I'd encourage sisters from other parts of the country to try the same thing.
It was such a beautiful experience, being in the room with so many other sisterlocked sisters. We were fortunate to have Dr. Cornwell's sister and niece there. We all learned many interesting tips, asked questions, answered questions, poked around in each other's hair and shared our testimonials. There were a couple of unlocked women there, and I believe this event will help them as they decide what they will do.
The biggest takeaway, however: Sisterlocks are like snowflakes. No two heads look alike. Everybody looked great, yet nobody looked the same: there were thick locks; thin locks; lush, curly locks; colored locks; loose-curl locks, micros, on and on. My favorite quote from one of the women there, looking around at everyone else: "I have a serious case of lock envy!"

Growing
On a personal note: My hair appears to be growing nicely, but it's one of those things that's so gradual, sometimes you can't really tell. I wear a headband less often now. Will post some pictures eventually. I'm two weeks away from my third-month Sisterlocks anniversary and my second retightening. That may be a good time to do it.

Peace,
Treklocs

That hair thing ... again!

I have a friend who is interested in Sisterlocks, especially since seeing mine. She's been wearing a press and curl for years, but is looking for an option that will give her more freedom to exercise.
She broached the subject with her husband recently. His reaction: "I'd be very disappointed."
My friend was so ticked that she thought about getting her locs right away! But she knew she wouldn't be doing it in the right spirit.
Anyway, her hubby later apologized and acknowledged that he had no right to tell her what to do with her hair.
I mention this because it illustrates a point that frustrates me: Why do we as African American women have to climb over so many hurdles just to be ourselves in this society?

On a positive note: I'm now nearly three weeks into SLs. Had my follow-up appointment earlier this week. My consultant says the locs are coming along quite well! She especially loves the way the ends are behaving. So that's a relief!
And I reached a milestone of sorts: A few days ago, I gave away my ceramic flat iron. No need for that anymore. (It never straightened my hair much anyway -- LOL.) I guess I'll have to give away my electric pressing comb, too. Gotta find another way to test the smoke detector. :-)
The collection of hair oils, creams, sprays, etc. will be next. This is going to be fun.