Comfort in the Salon!
I am finally at the salon putting braids in my hair! between having to answer questions from my toddlers about the true length of my hair, or them asking about my integrity aka why I am pretending that the weave-on is my hair when it is not, or them threatening to embarrass me by saying “I will tell my teacher that you put another hair on your head” I had resorted to simply managing with my normal (relaxed) hair.
The slight problem has been the heat! Why is it soo hot in Lagos? Before I go too far from the front door, I have sweat-ed buckets and my hair is limp! I don’t know if it’s the heat or people forgot to warn me that as you get older, your hair starts to be tougher to relax? or what? I suddenly can’t go four or six weeks between relaxers anymore. Anyway ever since the onslaught of hair challenge by my toddlers I have been rocking my regular hair, heat and all. 
But you know I mean really it is December, the number of outdoor fairs to attend is increasing, the invites to the Christmas parties are pouring in and I just don’t feel fabulous enough with just my limp short ponytail any longer. After a lot of rationalizing, trying to put in a weave again, to which my darling toddlers were ready to remind me about my “fake and lying” hair, I have decided braids might be the way to go. With braids it is not considered fake, I am not really pretending to have hair that is not mine nor am I claiming length that isn’t mine? Right? Braids is just a “style” so I have decided to rock my braids for the December period!
I finally make it to the salon, I had watched and figured out the relatively “slow” day at the salon so I can be sure of at least two people dedicated to my hair at a time for a quick pick ‘n’ drop do. It is much cheaper going to the salon than bringing them home these days as they charge astronomically more for home service than going to the salon (I don’t recall it working this way when I was much younger in the days of my amigo and I would braid at a fraction the cost of going to the salon). Anyway, I finally make it into the chair, balance with my book, looking forward to some quiet time with not much to think about.
Why then is the braider going to spoil my relaxation? I hear her talking to her colleague expressing her relief that a certain colleague is out on maternity leave because that particular pregnant colleague does not like to use gloves when she is relaxing her client’s hair.
She toot toots a bit more, shakes her head disapprovingly and then goes on to say ever since she learned that relaxers cause cancer she no longer relaxes anyone’s hair without wearing gloves!
So she is clearly worried about her hands touching the relaxer she is applying to her clients head….errr so what about the clients and the millions of women across the globe putting relaxers in their hair? Are we actually exposing ourselves to such risks?
There (out the window) went any relaxation while braiding my hair because of course, I started to ponder whether what she was saying had any merit? I was actually too horrified at the thought she might be right to engage her and ask her where she heard this? Was it a reputable source? What if this is something to really worry about? Then what?
My toddlers won’t let me “fix weave-on” and now I might not be able to relax my hair again?! Ha this falls right into the “greener living” project o! first was to get rid of the microwave, do I also need to get rid of hair relaxers too?
