Loc'ing for Love! 1 Year Anniversary!

Ok, so technically 8/11 was my one year Loc anniversary . . . but i just made the video today, lol. So . . . happy anniversary to my Locs!

Click here for the video! I've disabled embedding b/c natural hair videos tend to "travel", lol. Feel free to comment and rate! I'd appreciate it! Thanks in advance!

Can't believe it's been a year! WOOOT!

A look back in Hairstory!

This past sunday (3/29) was the anniversary of me deciding to rock nappy hair full throttle (i.e. my nappiversary). I realised that a lot of folks got a chance to witness my nappy and loc'd journey but not many know that I used to be a press'n'curl girl (NO RELAXER!!). Of course it's all on my fotki but I know that some folks just go straight to the new loc stuff so I decided to compile a little collage basically depicting my hair changes from Fall 2003 to Spring 2008 . . .

(1) High School Senior 03-04 (2-3)College Freshman 04-05 (4) College Sophmore w/ Highlights 05 (5) College Sophmore w/ allover light color 06 (6-7) College Junior w/ black rinse 06-07 (8) College Senior 07-08 (9) College Senior Big Chop w/ a fro 08

I guess you can say that this is an ode to my beloved press'n'curl, I've been missing it a little lately. That's all I knew from age 6 to age 21 and I wore it well, lol. I just really wanted a change. I didn't cut my hair because it was damaged or looked crazy or anything like that . . . I actually just cut it randomly after watching Tracie Mae's big chop video one weekend. I had a dream that I went to graduation w/ a teeny-weeny-afro and it felt right . . . so I decided to go ahead and snip off the ends of my hair where the curl had loosened from constant heat styling so I could rock one! To my suprise, I was left with a LOT of hair . . . I only cut like .5" to 1.5"off. And I didn't even end up going to graduation w/ a fro . . . I had kinky twists, lol.

For a look at my journey up to my big chop click here!! Better resolution pics and more detailed descriptions of styles/experiences.

Don't get me wrong, ,ya'll . . . I LOVE MY LOCS! I LOVE 'EM I LOVE 'EM I LOVE 'EM! lol But, sometimes it feels good to reminisce . . . I can't wait to see what happens in the many years to come with my hair. Thanks for joining me on this trip down memory lane!

Bsquared86 Overload & Overhaul

OVERLOAD

In case you didn't notice, directly above the posts we have a new section called "Bsquared86 Overload." What is it? It's my twitter updates! Want to catch up to the minute MFA updates? Loc Updates? Mid-day rants? Music raves? Random Babble? Take a peek at the Bsquared86 Overload or, better yet, follow me on Twitter!

I joined Twitter at the urging of one of my friends and now I'm hooked. It's like bite-size blogging, lol. I don't always have time to blog but twitter is literally at my fingertips 24/7 (thanks to my handy dandy I-phone).

I started to just get a personal twitter account for fam and friends but I decided to make it open, using my blog screenname, because I want to hear from YOU!

Yes, you!

you, at your work desk, sneaking on to blogspot . . .
and you, in the campus computer lab lollygagging when you should be writing a paper . . .
and you, newly natural/loc'd beauty or makeup newbie searching for tips . . .
and you, aspiring MFA student that checks your email every 5 minutes and answers every strange phone number with a bright and cheery voice . . .

I want to here from all of you!

I want to talk to you . . . hear how your day is going . . . answer your questions . . . laugh at your fave youtube video . . . and stay up to date with your various projects and journeys. So come on over to Twitter and make yourself comfortable. If you're already on there, send me a message!

OVERHAUL

If you've been around this little piece of the blogosphere in the past couple of days then I'm sure you've noticed that my blog look has changed quite a bit.

I loved my old pink-zebra background and smiling title banner/thingy but it was time for it to go! The pink wasn't rocking my socks anymore and the narrow page layout made pic croppin/resizing a pain. I was also tired of looking at myself with my TWA (read:teeny-weeny afro) when I've been loc'ing for 6 months now (WOOT!). So, yeah . . . I needed a change.

First, I was in love with a turquoise background but it didn't feel crisp enough (if that makes sense) and then I settled for a white background . . . but the white was a bit too bland. So, I decided to go back to black. It's easier on the eyes (and wattage, according to Blackle) and makes me feel all sleek and chic (ok . . . that was corny . . . I'm sorry, lol).

As usual . . . the banner was created by ME and I hope that you will respectfully leave it where it is (swiper, no swiping!).

Stay tuned for a few other structural changes . . . I'm currently at work on the sidebar . . . it feels both cluttered and empty to me, lol.

How do you like the new look? Hate it? Love it? Miss the old? Good riddance? Any suggestions? Helpful HTML tips? Leave me a comment or tweet me on twitter!

What 6 months look like . . .

I started my loc journey on August 11, 2008 and on February 11, 2009 I officially completed 6 months of loc'ing and began my 7th month.

I'm so excited! I can really see the changes! WOOT!

For more comparison shots please click here.

For more loc journey pics please click here.

For pictures of my hair before locs (straight & nappy) click here.

Have any milestones coming up in your own life?

PLEASE SHARE in the comments!

Love Loc'down!

I forgot to mention in my last post that October 11th was also my

2 month LOCaversary!

as usual, join me in my happy dance

Yes, ladies and lads . . . this will be my 3rd month in my journey to loc'dom. How exciting?! Here's a comparison shot of my progress since my 1st retwist on 8/17 and my 5th retwist on 10/15.

Isn't nappy hair amazing? I mean, seriously. Something is happening atop this head of mine that is special and powerful!

I decided to adopt the "Don't ask, don't tell" policy for my hair though. If people don't ask me if I'm loc'ing then I don't tell em- simple as that. I'm just not in the mood for any long conversations about it or any questions.

I've basically been natural all of my life (more about that on my fotki "About Me" page, check it out) but I was getting my hair pressed from age 6 until last March. Rocking a fro this summer, I encountered jokes, questions, and just a few drippings of disdain about my hair. Everybody pretty much accepted this new nappy-all-the-time Bsquared but I know that a few of them are waiting for me to get over this phase and press this wilderness out, lol. Mostly because they're just used to me having (kinda) long, straight hair. (Click here to see the old me.)

Anyway, I always knew that I wanted to loc my hair one day and, just how I woke up one day and decided to stop pressing my hair, I decided to start loc'ing my hair. I am a DIYer-- I started my own fingercoils and I do all maintenance myself. For the first time I have total control over my hair. If I want to wake up tomorrow and comb these suckas out, I will. No money lost and nobody's time but my own.

Back to this "Don't Ask Don't Tell" policy. A week or so ago, a lady stopped us in a parking lot and asked who maintained my locs, offering me her card. I panicked for a minute, thinking "Damn, lady, you just outted me in front of my mom!" but when my mother didn't mention anything I thought that either she didn't hear the lady clearly or didn't care. Anyway, today, we saw S. Epatha Merkerson (the black supervisor on Law & Order) on a commercial with her oft-hidden-under-a-wig locs showing. And my mom said, "Look, she's rocking her locs!" and I said "Me, too!" and pulled at a few of mine. Apparently, my mom had concluded that their were two types of locs- the kind you can take out (really coils) and the kind that you can't (actual locs). Eventually, I ended up telling her that, yes, I had coils but now I'm loc'ing.

"You're going to loc your hair?"

"I am loc'ing my hair. See?" pulling a couple out so she can see

"So, you know that if you don't want those anymore, you have to cut all ya hair off!"

"No, I don't. I can just take my time and comb them out. I mean, I can cut my hair off but all that doesn't matter b/c I plan on having these for a long time."

I gave her a quick explanation about how not all of the hair locs at once and how I just retwist the bases, etc. She looked a little confused but not bothered. YAY! One parent down, one parent to go. She was the most important one for this particular change, though. My dad is bald . . . hair issues aren't his area. But, my mom-- I care about what she thinks. My whole plan was to just get them used to my hair like this. I started rocking coils back in July, I'd coil my hair and after a week I'd rock a coil out. And they both like it, I even coiled my moms hair one day. I just wanted them to be comfortable with my hair like this-- I wanted them to approach it like just another hairstyle without clouding their judgement with their preconcieved notions about locs like thinking they're nasty or unruly or smelly or ugly or _________. And, I think it went well.

One small step for loc'dom, one leap for nappiness everywhere! Ok, that was corny . . . sorry.

See more pics of my hair journey- from a press'n'curl to a fro to locs- at public.fotki.com/bsquared86.

Oh . . . wait . . . don't leave! COME BACK!

You can thank the great Yeezy for the post title. "Love Lockdown" is his first single from his upcoming album. Peep the video below. It's kind of wierd to me. I expected something a la Glow In the Dark Tour.

Do ya'll like it? Let me know in the comments.

Stay tuned for an MFA update/post soon!

Narcissism

I'm not really a narcissist . . honestly, i'm not . . . I promise *crossing fingers behind back but realizes that you can't see me and it's harder to type that way*

Okay . . . so, two of my favorite pass-times, aside from general lollygagging and random instances of tomfoolery, are fooling around with hair and makeup. I dedicate alot of time and energy into taking care of my hair and i waste-er um- invest alot of money in makeup.

To keep up with my journey in both realms I have a fotki photo album thingamajiggy
that can be found HERE.

Basically, I have seperated my hair Journey into two parts

One section that depicts my hair trials and triumphs during college, aptly titled It Really Was A Different World in honor of my other favorite pass time and (obsessively watching A Different World). It culminates, of course, with a series finale featuring my graduation but not before I throw in a "Very Special Episode" dedicated solely to me big chopping (hair lingo for cutting) my pressed ends off and deciding to wear my natural, glorious, amazing, nappy hair exclusively!

The next section is in the beginning stages, because it chronicles my journey to LOCDOM! Yes, friends, I am loc'ing my hair and I'm very excited. To keep with the trend of having albums related to my obsessions, I have titled this part iLoc in honor of my love of music (get it, iLoc . . . iPod? corny I know). I begin with a "Prelude" and move into my first track "I decided (That You Are The One For Me)" in honor of the hot Solange track.

The makeup looks I choose to keep neatly stored in an album entitled, I Lay my MAC down. There, I display the few looks that I actually capture in a decent picture. I'm getting a little better about taking pics and giving specs though.

There are a couple of other goodies in my fotki too-- like True Life:I'm A Product Junkie, where I list most of my hair products and tools, and Who is Bsquared86?, where I display some non-hair or makeup pics that just showcase both my digital manipulation (low level graphic design)and my muse (me).

Well, that was just a little look into some stuff that I like to do in my free time . . . which is usually ALL of my time these days, lol. Hope you enjoyed it!

::peace::

I'm back + Adventures in Lazytown

Okay . . . I know . . . I know . . . I totally suck at this . . . but after a 5 month absence, I'm back! Mostly I'm back because I stumbled across a few blogs that fancied my interested and I've been posting comments on them and reading them regularly so I figured . . . why couldn't this be me?

So, if anybody is reading this . . . please thank . . .

• Those That Can't Do by my good friend, Ms. Brown. She's a newbie in the blog world too, chronicling her first year as a teacher and, in my honest opinion, she's funny as hell.

• mFA Weblog by a few good folks. Where, oh where was this blog when I was slowly losing my mind trying to understand Master's of Fine Arts Programs in Creative Writing last year? I'm so happy I found it.

• Afrobella by a beautiful sista that loves hair, makeup, skin care, shopping, and entertainment. She's an incredible writer and apparently a force to be reckoned with in the blog world!

I read a grip (read:"a lot") of other blogs as well, but that list would take forever. These are my current faves and major inspiration right now.

Adventures in Lazytown

As I mentioned in my first post, I'm taking a year off between undergrad and grad school and though I am very happy about that decision I am starting to suffer from "busy envy." Most of my friends are doing things with their lives even if it's the same thing they've been doing for years. The point is that for the first time in my life, I'm not doing a dag on thing but living. I knew that the moment would come that I'd be watching my friends go to grad school and I'd think, "Man, I should have just went on ahead and went to whatever school accepted me!"-- I just didn't know that it would be this hard to fight these feelings of "loserdom." I have been utterly and unapologetically lazy this summer . . . but, my folks haven't complained (yet). I want to get a job but I need some wheels first (long story).

But, anyway, I did what was best for me . . . I honestly can say that I know more about where I want to go to school and what kind of MFA program I want to get into than I did back in the winter when application season was ending and deadlines were taunting me. So, I am ANXIOUSLY awaiting starting grad school in Fall 09 (or Summer 09). The only thing between me and grad school is these dag on applications! Arggh . . . essays and samples and recommendations, oh no! As a matter of fact, I need to be sending out very flattering and sincere emails to old professors now to beg them to write a few (or 15) glowing recommendations . . . *crosses fingers*