Here I Go

I'm back. I hate getting this behind on the blog, but in my defense I've had a few things going on that needed to take priority. The first was a trip to California, where my husband and I paused from life to honor our marriage of ten years. It was a beautiful few days in Santa Barbara. I will share one "alopecia moment" from that: On our last day, which happened to be my 33rd birthday(!), we went hiking in the Santa Ynez mountains.

 

The hike was amazing...and hot. I had my little hat/scarf thingy but took it off shortly after starting. The mountain breeze, when there was one, felt so good on my head. But twice we heard people approaching from the other direction, and I freaked out a little. I hurried to put my hat/scarf thingy back on before we crossed paths with any other hikers and then took it off again after they passed. What a silly thing to do! I just didn't want to face people bald. I have no idea why.

Then, on the way down, I tripped over a tree root and took a pretty nasty fall. I came the rest of the way down with bloody knees, a red, sweaty face, and black dirt all over me. We didn't see any other people the whole way down...until the trailhead, where a group of very cool mountain bikers were beginning the climb. I was so embarrassed. I tried to walk directly behind my husband so no one would see. And then, all of a sudden I got gutsy. Maybe I was empowered by these bikers who were taking on an impossibly steep and rocky trail, but I suddenly thought that maybe, just maybe, I might look like an intense hiker who really hit the trail hard core. Maybe I sported a shaved head by choice. And wow, I'm definitely not afraid to get dirty. I must have gone "off-road". That image of myself got me out from behind my hubby's back!

It wasn't so cool though when I had to go into a pharmacy down in the town and ask for bandages and a washroom. I was quite a sight.

ANYway...the other thing occupying my time lately has been preparation for a huge move. I'm moving overseas in September (AAAHHHHH!!!!) and I had to hit the ground running after getting back from California. Passports, banks, realtors, all that. Speaking of passports, here's another "alopecia" moment. I had two sets of passport photos taken: one bald, and one with a scarf. I read that your picture should reflect how you normally look, but that hats and such were not allowed. When I was submitting the application, I tried to get them to use my scarf photo. The guy asked "Is it religious?" Honestly, I was tempted there...but I said no, it's medical.

So my passport will be illustrated with my beautiful bald head. At least I got to keep my scarf on when I renewed my driver's license....