Diary of The Girl With the Super-Long Hair, Part 1: Psychology 101

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In the spirit of Hair Week here at Racked, writer Cynthia Drescher talks about her relationship with her super-long mane—which she hasn't cut in years. Here's part one of three.

I have a little secret. I haven't had a haircut since Korea. Really I mean since a trip I took to Seoul, South Korea several years ago, although whenever I reflect on this, my mom says it makes her think of how Korean War veterans might begin a grisly tale. So we begin my tale, of how I've been "the girl with the long hair" all my life thus far.

It was Sakura season in Seoul, the cherry blossoms were out and thus so was the entire population, taking posed photos, their smiles wide and their right hands forming perky peace signs.

I couldn't get into the spirit; I was feeling frumpy, and it was all the fault of my long long hair in humidity. It needed to go.

At the time, I was chilling with that friend everyone seems to have?the one who has decamped to teach English abroad. She brought me to a salon above her English school in the Gangnam neighborhood of Seoul, where I commanded the stylist to do whatever she wanted to my hair, so long as it was cut. $15 later?the cheapest and best haircut I've ever had?my hair had lost feet in length and I was sporting a style I've only recently started seeing on some style bloggers. Yep?I was too sexy for my hairstyle.

Rewind to my second grade self, unpopular and a loner. I was the last to be picked for kickball teams during recess, and the first to suggest taking on group projects for myself in Social Studies.

There was, however, one way in which everyone wanted to play with me, and this was by taking up my braided pigtails like the reigns of a horse, and we'd gaily gallop around the schoolyard.

So now you may break out the psychology 101 on me and say that my having long hair somehow relates to a desire to be popular, going back to those formative moments by the jungle gym. Sadly I have to burst the bubble and admit that the sole reason for my long hair, hair which regularly gets so long that I sit on its ends, is pure laziness. What can I say? I pride myself on being low maintenance. Plus I look really great with a sidepart. Regardless, I know most hairstylists would have a heart attack over what I do to my hair.

Stay tuned. The Diary of 'The Girl With the Long Hair' continues on Wednesday.
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