"So is it shorter now?"

I went to Great Clips yesterday to get my hair cut. I did this for a few reasons. 1) Because I hadn't gotten my hair cut since the end of November in London. That's three and a half months without a trim. 2) Because the ends of my hair were so fried that it looked like I systematically lit them on fire. You know you need to do something about the mess on your head when you want to take scissors to it yourself. Or a pair of pliers. And 3) clearly the most important - Great Clips was having a sale. $5.99 for a haircut! When I got my hair did in London, I paid 51 POUNDS - more than $100! Now granted, that's because the Romanian girl talked me in to styling and conditioning products, but my hair needed it!

I had barely walked in the door before I was sat down and the scissors were whipped out. The girl didn't even wet my hair down - I think they only bring out the spray bottle if you pay more than $6 for a haircut. I suppose that makes sense. Good thing I didn't curl it! But she just kind of snipped here and there, and then three minutes and 1.5 inches later, she's like, "Muss it up! Make sure it's straight!" So I kind of gingerly poufed my hair and she's like, NO! REALLY MUSS IT UP! So I threw my hands into my hair and gave it a couple of good shakes, and I was out of there.

I've been squeamish about getting a hair cut since I was six years old and went in for a trim - and my waist-length hair was instantaneously shoulder-length. I think I've written about that before. It was just so jarring. It was like getting a third arm cut off. I WON LONGEST PONYTAIL CONTESTS WITH THAT HAIR, PEOPLE. I should have had it insured. I could have been a childhood millionaire.

Day number two of presentations went swimmingly. We're all a bit scared of our professor, so we begrudgingly decided against showing the Billy Madison clip on business ethics to wake up the class. This is the funny thing about my school - you get a professor, like this one, and after a few classes, you're like, this guy is a tool. If we talk about the state of the media ONE MORE TIME, I'm going to bungee jump off Memorial Union. And then you have half the class, particularly during Friday lectures, who are so hung-over that they think the state of the media is New York. And then one day when you should be preparing for your presentation, you're instead mindlessly surfing the internet and randomly decide to google your professor. That's when you find out that this tool is really a SUPER GENIUS and has redesigned newspapers all over the United States and that people actually PAY MONEY to attend his lectures. It makes you feel very small indeed - or like you should at least keep one eye open during class.

I had my weekly coffee date with the Koreans today. I learned something VERY interesting that I want to share with you! I went against cultural norms today and asked my Korean friends how old they are. Young, who looks 25 tops, is 35. Jenny, who looks 35 (even though I told her 30), is 41. But when I asked them their ages, Jenny said, "I'm 43 in Korea, so ... I'm 41 here." And I looked at her like she was crazy and said, "What?!" And she said, "Yes, I was 2 years old when I was born." And I was like, "WHAT?!" Apparently in Korea, everyone turns a year older on New Years Day. And they also count your first year as when you are conceived. So, for example, if you were conceived in November, you're one then, and then as soon as it hits January 1, you turn 2. So then when you're born in August, you're already 2 years old. SO STRANGE. I love learning about new cultures. They also showed me Korean characters, and I was fascinated. How can you write and read in pictures?

As I was waltzing through Super Wal-Mart last night, I was talking on the phone to my sister Amy, who provided me with one of her memorable blond statements. It made me realize how long I've been away from home because I don't remember the last one - and it's not like she's stopped blurting out stupid things since I've left, obviously. I told her about my haircut and how I was so excited that it was so cheap and she's like, "Awesome! So is it shorter now?"

.....................

I said, "No, Ames! It's longer." And she said, really?!! And I burst out laughing, scaring several Wal-Mart customers, thinking that she must be kidding - but she wasn't. When I explained it to her, she said, "Oh... I thought maybe she cut in it a way that made it LOOK longer..." And I said, "What?!" And that's when she burst out laughing, too. She's ridiculous. I love her.