You did what?

When I first thought about going natural, I didn't think about who
would like or dislike it. That was the last thing on my mind.

What I DID think about was how it would be seen in the work place. I
currently work in an office environment. I had to think about
whether or not some of the styles I'm considering would violate regulations .

The last thing on my mind was how people would perceive me after I did
my BC. I actually wasn't nervous until after my hair was cut and it was
time for me to look in the mirror. You see my hair has been short
before, so I knew it would look cute on me. What made me nervous was
not knowing how the texture would be. It definitely didn't have
anything to do with whether or not my family, friends, coworkers, etc. would like it.

However I was eager to share with my parents and friends afterward. They all liked it, at least, that's what they expressed. My dad however, didn't like it too kindly. He's a hair man and watches my mother's like a hawk after her salon visits. He doesn't want her cutting her hair, so his reaction was, "Why she do that? Why did she cut all her hair off?" I told him, "It's hair, dad. It will grow back."

I also had a friend, Mr. Luscious, cry out in horror; whether real or not, I don't know, when he saw it:

Him: What did you do??!! You cut your hair!
Me: I told you I was going to cut it.
Him: I thought you were just playing.
Me: Why would I do that?
Him: My hair!...Now, I can't run my fingers through it when I give you the luscious...Yeah (in denial)

He's special.

I have also had a few people who don't matter question why I did it and who made comments I felt they could have kept to themselves. I just dealt with them accordingly and kept it moving. What they eat don't make me ish, so there was no need to dwell on it. You know? For the most part, though, I've gotten a lot of compliments and praise.

I live for the weekends, because I can't style my hair any way I want during the week. For those of you who don't know, I'm a member of the armed forces and we have rules and regulations concerning our hair. I can't wear anything that is faddish or gets in the way of me wearing my cover. There are rules about braids, cornrows, plaits, etc.

I know I've been pushing it with some of the styles, but my chain of command hasn't said anything. I haven't done anything outlandish. I've just worn some headbands. They were black, which matched my hair color, so I'm thinking that's why they didn't make a fuss about it. I also wore it in a puff; which was a bit risky, since we're not supposed to wear ponytails. Ha!

Anyway, what about you? Have you gotten any flack for going natural?