Awesome Day Twenty-Two: An Introduction to Hair

Sometimes when I go to Hollywood, I can't even fit myself into the same category as the other women I see.  Manicure-wearing, whitened-teeth-flashing, implant-flaunting, perfectly-styled-hair-tossing, designer-clothing-donning, stiletto-marching Los Angeles women really freak me out.

It's just not me.

I never learned any of that--never learned how to grin through the pain of heels every moment of the day, never learned how to hate my small breasts enough to validate a multi-thousand dollar purchase of new ones, never learned that what I wore was a definition of my self-worth, never learned that buying a new body was a legitimate way wander through life, never learned the importance of a weekly manicure.

I grew up on a prairie in Wisconsin, you guys.

That's not to say I'm totally removed from it.  Of course not.  Those of you that know me, know that.  I have nice clothes.  I wear make-up.  I care about how I look.  I love me some heels when I feel up to it.  But I also wear jean shorts, t-shirts, and flip flops on a regular basis.  I get my face ready for work in about one minute flat.  I think I've had three manicures in my whole life.  And I have no idea what to do with my hair. 

I had a minor freak out the other day when I realized that, if I'm going to dive into this whole television world, I am going to be judged on how I look all the time.  And while my headshots look perfectly polished, I might severely surprise some casting agents if I walked into an audition looking as I do in real life some days.  

Fight it as I might, as a woman in the TV world, I am expected to look picture perfect if I want a job.  

And I could really use a job.

So thankfully on Awesome Day Twenty-Two, my friend Vanessa (after hearing me express my concerns about my lack of hair knowledge), invited me to come over.  She's an actress.  She has audition-ready beauty secrets.  I desperately needed in.

Vanessa introduced me to the magic of hot rollers.  I remember them from my days in high school theater, but honestly had forgotten such a thing existed in the world.  Over girl talk and superfood salads, Vanessa walked me through the (super quick) process.  

Ta-Da!

I had hair with volume.  I was one step closer to life as an LA presentable woman.

I don't think I'll be getting implants or botox any time soon.  And those butt-hugging mini skirts just aren't really my thing either.  I can only T&A so much before my sense of self is completely gone.

But at least now I know how to do my hair.  And this is a huge, Awesome step forward.

In other Awesome News for the day:  We checked out a rad set of music at downtown's La Cita last night.  The Cypress Junkies, comprised of Eric Bobo on percussion (from Cypress Hill back in the day) and DJ Rhettmatic (from the Beat Junkies), are a super rad, super Awesome DJ-drummer combo that mixes electronic beats with real ones.  These two men know their craft, and they have passion.  It was really cool to see.  You can check out their soundcloud here, but I don't think it even begins to describe the Awesome of seeing them live.  Keep an eye out for them.