Monday Musings: Birds, Bobs, and a Television I Can Tolerate
We’ve been in Vancouver for a week now, and it’s been exactly the kind of break I needed. My daughter and I escaped to the forest one day, and I soaked up every minute of it. There’s something about being among the trees that settles me almost immediately, and whenever I’m up here, I try to get as much of that as I can. We breathed in the cool air, listened to the birds, and used the Merlin app to figure out which birds were making all the noise.
I also got my hair cut into a bob. Which I haven’t worn since probably my late forties or early fifties.
My hairdresser here in Vancouver is very careful and precise, which is important because when your hair is thinning, every strand matters. A few careless snips can take months to recover from so I can’t go to someone who’s casual about that.
We talked through all of it…my face shape, hair texture, the thinning, and what might actually help, instead of just sounding promising in the chair. At one point, I told him I didn’t want to look like Little Lord Fauntleroy. He looked vaguely confused, and that’s when I realized the reference may have expired with my generation.
For years, I’ve added layers in hopes of creating more volume. This time, we did the opposite. He cut it blunt, straight across, so you don’t see through the ends as much. He only took off about two inches, but it feels like a completely different approach. I’m still playing with it, but I think I love it. Or at the very least, I’m not standing in front of the mirror feeling like my hair looks straggly. We briefly chatted about going even shorter but I chickened…maybe next time.
We also did something this week that I don’t think we’ve done in more than 24 years. We bought a television.
I realize that sounds completely unremarkable, but it felt strangely significant to me.
I grew up in a house where the TV was broken for a long stretch. The screen didn’t work, so I remember sitting on the floor as a little girl listening to Bewitched and trying to figure out what that funny little sound was. I knew Samantha was twitching her nose, but I couldn’t actually see it. Eventually, the television got fixed, and we’d watch Star Trek together as a family on Sunday nights, but that was about it. My parents read. I read. Television was never the center of our home.
The TV we have in California was handed down to us by our son about 15 years ago, when he upgraded and realized we didn’t even own a smart TV. That tells you pretty much everything.
So walking into a store and actually choosing one together felt deeply out of character. I cared less about the technology than I did about how it would look on the wall. I didn’t want a giant black rectangle looming over the room like a modern monument to poor decorating choices, so we chose a Frame TV. I suspect I’ll appreciate it even more once I can make it pretend to be art.
Which is apparently what happens when your design preferences finally overpower your lifelong indifference to television.
My daughter and I also spent some time browsing the Sephora sale in person. I don’t know if this is universal, but every Sephora I walk into has the same overpowering smell. Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t enjoy being sold products I already know I don’t want, which is why I usually prefer shopping online. But it was more fun with my daughter because she has a much higher tolerance for retail chaos than I do. The place was packed, and I was reminded very quickly why I like to click “add to cart” from the privacy of my own home. Still, I did manage to replace a few things. You can see my other favorites in this post.
So that’s been my week: forest air, a new haircut, and discovering I apparently do have opinions about televisions after all.
Very Chic!
Love your cut, I’ve always loved your hair style, but this one stands out!
I can relate. I told my hairdresser that I had a “Twiggy” haircut when I was 13, and she had no idea what I was talking about!
LOL, I had one of those at around the same age.
Your haircut is stellar. Polished. You could easily go shorter with no worries! Younger look?
Nothing better than a reset in the forest with a great haircut. You’ll love the Frame TV, you can upload your own photos free of charge. The artwork requires a subscription.
Your new haircut looks really chic! I have to say though that until your doctor treats your thyroid correctly the hair will continue to thin out. Check out Stop the Thyroid Madness online. Hopefully you can find a doctor near you who will treat it correctly. Ive been fighting with this a good share of my life, I’m grumpy about it. A lot of our sensitivities and intolerances also stem from not being treated correctly. Your best bet will be a naturopathic doctor.
I am looking into one, you’re right
I love the new cut on you. I’ve had a Bob in some form or shape since my 40’s. It seemed to work best with my always very fine hair. Now it’s thin (have now started on oral minoxidil because of you) in addition to fine. I’m in need of a change and now want a few layers….or a little more texturizing. However, hate “see through” hair, so I can’t do too much. And I know exactly who Lord Fauntleroy is…..it’s how I describe my hair….so you know how old I am!!
LOL
I love the new bob. And we are obsessed with Merlin. We use it around the city and especially like using it in Golden Gate Park identifying everything from parrots to hawks to hummingbirds.
We are too. Now I know a Raven without checking the app
Jennifer,
Loving your new Bob!! It’s stunning and looks perfect on you: youthful, elegant and so very stylish!!
Keep this hairdresser!!
💕
He’s a good one, thank you!
Your hair looks amazing!
Love the outfit
Love the Bob. I have no patience to grow it out to get it to the Bob stage, but I am tired of the short pixie I’ve worn for 20 years.
Maybe in stages?
After a bad haircut, I told my coworkers my bangs looked like Mamie Eisenhower. The older people laughed, the young ones had no idea.
Your haircut looks wonderful.
LOL!!
Love your haircut!!
Love your new do… my hair turned curly when I turned 60. It has taken me a while to get accustomed to it and now I’ve had to go shorter to cover those bald spots from the thinning hair, thank you to age and Hashimoto’s. I think the curl might be leaving after enjoying it for a few years. Your thyroid… it’s an uphill battle that changes with every doctor. This last change has left me gaining 5 pounds overnight about every other month regardless of trying to get out and walk for 30 to 60 minutes a day. At my age, I’m not sure anything will bring it down unless I starve myself, but then that promotes holding onto all the stored fat so it’s not a win-win situation, but a fail-fail for me. I’ve been dealing with Hashimoto’s for 30 years… Wishing you the best in finding a doctor that actually listens to what you say since you know your body the best! I’m still trying to find another one since I leaving the last one who actually heard me. I certainly love reading your daily emails! Not everything is a fit, but most everything speaks to me about something, clothes, health, something personal. I appreciate the effort and time involved in what you do for our age. Thank you! I don’t know if you have done something with bras as I am fairly new to getting your emails but I thought it would be interesting comparing bras for our age. There are so many places to choose from online and in stores… Soma, Victoria’s Secret, department stores if you can actually find a brick and mortar anymore. I’m with you, the sense in some of the stores keep me from entering them anymore. Sometimes just to get to the store and what you have to pass through. If it’s a closed in mall is terrible, especially when it affects asthma. Under wires are painful, but I feel good in them because I’m not using my jeans to keep the girls in place if you know what I mean.
Your haircut looks great!
I love the “forest bathing” term used below. My husband and I went up the mountain near us yesterday and did the same thing, big breaths of fresh air in the pine trees as we walked up the trail. So restorative.
Your haircut is perfect. Don’t go shorter to what I call the “I give up haircut.” I think a blunt cut is much better for those of us with thin hair. Diane Keaton supposedly had thin hair, but she always had a blunt cut.
Jennifer,
Your new haircut looks great and is very flattering. Perfect length.
Enjoy!
That was a fun read. I think your hair looks great like that. I have the same problem and am going to try Instant Coverage Hairline Powder by Prime Prometics as soon as I have the time to watch the video. It doesn’t seem like it’s going to be difficult to use but I want to make sure I know what I’m doing.
I love your hair. When mine was thinning years ago from hormones I needed to take that’s what my hairstylist recommended and I stuck with it for years. Since having chemo I’ve kept it short. We love walking in the woods too. I think that’s one of the reasons I like to golf. Your outside and it’s so pretty. I’m not ashamed to admit that I might be addicted to TV! I’ve loved it all my life. It’s one of my first memories as a child, laying on the floor with my brother watching TV.