I guess this is how a sheep feels...

On July 27th, I got my hair cut. I got all of it cut. After all was said and done, my cut hair measured 15 inches.

My wet, pony-tailed cut off hair on my cutting mat to measure its length. Turns out the long ones are 15 inches and the short ones are 13.

Here is the picture of my hair before I left.

When I was in fourth grade, I got a hair cut I didn't like, so after it grew out and got trimmed up, my solution was just to never get a hair cut again. The result was hair that I sat on in college. So my second semester of college I got 10 inches cut off for Locks of Love. My hair was still well past my shoulders.

Over the years I have continued my lassiez-faire approach to hair care, but it has resulted in beautiful hair that makes great wigs for cancer patients. In the past 8 or so years since I donated my hair the first time, I have donated my hair again, and we are now at donation number 4.

I am not the type of person who is highly concerned with the exact lay of my hair on a day to day basis, though there is nothing wrong with that type of person, it's just not who I am. Generally I just let it hang long, and when it gets really long, I throw it up in a bun (that's 12 years of ballet that I will never lose :)). Eventually it gets long enough that it starts being in the way. My family pulls it as we sit on the couch, it starts to get stuck to high chair brackets, I plan my showers around how long it takes to dry, etc. So at this point, and it seems to be when my hair is 15 inches past my chin, it's time to cut it off and start over.

15 inches shorter. My head looks so small.

Knowing myself and how proactive I am about hair care, I have decided to dedicate my hair to Locks of Love for the next 10 years. This means I will continue to live as I do, but I won't get layers, length altering cuts, or inflict massive damage onto my hair. It takes about 2 to 2 and a half years for my hair to grow to the desired length, at this point, I will cut it off and send it away. So I figure that over the next 10 years or so, I might be able to donate it 4 or 5 times. We'll see. And hey, by then I should be one heck of a spinner too (check out my first post if your confused)!

Before I go, I want to emphasize that my decision, like giving to any charity, is a highly personal decision. Any group that you may choose to support will be glad to have your help, this is one that works for me, though I would love to hear about any groups that you help!