My Almost Two-Year Length Check

Tomorrow marks two years since my buzzed big chop. So I figured why not go ahead and post my length check? I’ve done one before at the 6-month point. I also thought I did one at 1-year, but I can’t find it! Imma blame that on the move from Blogger to WordPress. (Yeah, that’s the ticket!)
Anyway, I did a quickie length check the other day that was not nearly as in-depth as the 6-mo. check. Here’s what my numbers are looking like:
Front: 11.5″
Crown: 11″
Back: 9″

my most recent blowout, before the bday celebration & a night on Bourbon St. got to it!

All of those lengths are stretched out; I have no idea how it measures with shrinkage. Actually I try not to think about that because it’s kinda sad… LOL

I’m impressed with the length of my crown! It was not looking too good there for a while, but Big Sexy pulled through. And lowkey, I’m a little disappointed with the back, but not really surprised considering how scissor-happy I’ve been lately. Now whenever I have a knot, it gets cut, no questions asked. That may or may not be a good thing. Not really sure that I care though. :-/

That lack of care is what has me trying to decide what’s next. Do I cut it like I’ve been considering? Do I go back to the perm? Something else all together? I’m considering putting an end to this phase as a loose haired natural and getting locs. Not really sure though. I need about three more people to say I’d look good with them LOL
So yeah, there it is! I’ve made it two years completely chemical free and nearly three years since the last touch up. Go me!

The Zombie Apocalypse & Who I Want On My Squad

Soooo just in case you haven’t read this gruesome story, here’s the long & short of it: A Miami man was shot and killed by police officers while attacking another man. And by “attacking,” I mean he was eating his face… literally, taking bites out of the man’s face…. while naked. Yeah, let that marinate. Somehow the victim survived (although according to reports he is virtually unrecognizable) and word is that the attacker was on some kinda super cocaine/LSD mix. While this only deepens my fear of drugs (because I just know I’d end up like the naked chomper, or on YouTube in the midst of a bad trip), it also poked at another fear that I dismissed as silly until now.
The zombie apocalypse.
Don’t laugh! I didn’t always think this was a possibility. Zombies were just found in campy horror movies, right? But between the CDC’s blog post on being prepared for a zombie apocalypse and History Channel’s “Zombies: A Living History”–both of which came out last year–the wheels got to turning. Sure the CDC said it’s preparedness post was really about any type of outbreak or epidemic, but I get the feeling that was the government’s way of telling us something without really telling us. (I may be a tiny bit of a conspiracy theorist; so what.) And then “Zombies” described how certain chemicals, which some countries/groups may already have ready to use in biological warfare, could cause “zombie-like” symptoms. That was enough for me to sit up and pay attention. Now with this story? It’s confirmed: I need to get my ZA squad together.

the crew from Zombieland

So who makes the cut and who is automatically disqualified? This may sound cold & calculating, but in a case like this, it’s survival of the fittest! So here goes:
1. The elderly, disabled, and small children can’t come with. I know, I know; I said it was cold! But truth is, they would be an added liability and the squad can’t afford that. Of course, the exceptions would be my momma and any kids I may have. Maybe just my favorite kid, I dunno… (jokes!)
2. I need 2-5 slower fatter people, depending on how long we expect this thing to last. Yes, it seems to go against logic, but I need to be assured that I can outrun somebody in the event that we have to retreat instead of fight.
3. Everyone on the squad has to be comfortable with weapons. I’m talking guns, knives, blunt force objects. If you’re too squeamish or just can’t handle the idea of knocking the undead’s head off, you can’t be a part of Team Tori.
4. Definitely need a person/people who are good with electronics and mechanics. Know how to hot wire a car? Good! Can you rig up radios, cell phones, etc? Awesome, you’re in. And even though I can’t really explain why I feel like this is important, I do. Plus it’s my squad, so…. yeah.
5.  The squad can always use someone who knows a thing or two about hunting & gathering. Considering the fact that we may have to abandon the cities and deal with a limited food supply, we need to know how to set traps for game and which plants are okay to eat. It would suck to avoid getting your face eaten only to die from not knowing that the flower you ingested was full of poison.
Forget it, I just need Katniss, Peeta & Gale on my squad.
So who am I missing? What kind of folks would you want on your team? And are you not at least a little freaked out?

Dating Games: Three Questions I Hate

That “getting to know you” stage with a new guy is always awkward for me. On one hand, it’s exciting because it’s so new and fresh. Who doesn’t love getting to know someone and discovering your commonalities, interests, and (hopefully) chemistry. But on the other hand, it can feel like an interrogation at times. That’s especially true at the very beginning, when y’all are still feeling each other out. And while I don’t mind answering most questions, these three common question are as irritating as nails on a chalkboard to me.

1. Why are you single?
Why is this said as if there must be some kind of defect that has kept other men at bay? For some reason, the fact that I just haven’t met anyone that held my interest doesn’t fly. And of course if I said something outlandish like “well after that last *&^%$# cheated on me I gave up, but I’m giving it another chance now!” I’d probably be looked at as a psycho. (That isn’t my reason, BTW.)
2. Are you a romantic person?I assume my answer is no, because I really don’t know what makes one romantic. That’s bad huh? But it’s the truth! Am I a romantic because I believe that there’s someone for everyone or because mushy stuff (sometimes) get to me? Or is it based on something that I do? I dunno, this question is just too vague for me. Makes my head hurt.
3. How many people have you been with?
It’s certainly important to have the sex talk, especially if it looks like that’s where things are headed. But the importance attached to the number of partners is misplaced, in my opinion. The number of partners doesn’t indicate whether a person is disease-free (you can be safe with 20 clean partners and you can catch hell from one ill-conceived romp with the wrong one). It doesn’t necessarily prove whether one is a prude or a freak. It definitely won’t let you know if that person has any skills in that department. Basically it’s used to determine if someone is a ho, which varies according to people’s standards and opinions. I’d much rather ask questions like “Do you practice safe sex and have you been tested? Are you currently (as in within the last month) involved with someone sexually? What do you like to do in the bedroom?” These tell me much more than some random number
that’s probably not accurate anyway
.
So those are the three questions that I can’t stand. What questions from a new/potential boo grinds your gears?

My Pre-Birthday Introspection

Y’all know the drill. (Or maybe you don’t? I don’t know how long you’ve been reading this blog.) My birthday is around the corner and I’ve gotten all introspective. I’m on my “What am I doing? Where is my life going? What does it all mean?” flow. Hours short of 27 *ahem* 25 and I still don’t have concrete answers.
Fortunately, I at least know what’s important to me. At the center of it all, I crave Balance and Peace of Mind. Yes, they are totally different, but in my mind they coexist. Peace of mind comes through being balanced, and balance is more easily achieved once you are at peace. So what aspects of my life need balance? All of them, honestly, but some more than others.
I want to find the balance between opening up to other people and not leaving myself totally vulnerable.
I want the balance of keeping my head on straight but taking leaps of faith.
I want to do something I love and something that’s profitable.
I want to be independent but be even closer to the people who love and support me.
Maybe the problem is that I want it all. But more than anything, I want peace. So I guess the mission for this year is to figure out how to get it, then go after it.

31 Day Reset: Do One Thing

As I’m sure you’ve figured out by now, I am once again doing Rosetta Thurman’s 31 Day Reset. The first time I got sidetracked and ended up so far behind that I said “forget this” and scrapped the whole thing. This time I’m doing a little better; I haven’t kept up with it daily like I’m supposed to, but I haven’t let it go either. That’s progress, right? Right.
So here is today’s challenge:

Today, you will do one thing to move yourself closer to your ideal life… Today’s exercise is not related to your everyday to-do list. You are being asked to complete one task that is personally significant to you and your ideal life… Your one thing should meet at least one of the following criteria:

• Something you’ve been procrastinating on for a long time
• Something that terrifies you
• Something that inspires you

The one thing I decided I will do today is get a firm understanding of where my new business is financially by getting my balance sheet in order. Right now I have all my receipts and records of sales, but they aren’t organized and recorded as they should be. This is something that I have procrastinated on because it scares me.

*cue the scary music* dun dun duuuuuuun

To think about how much money I’ve already invested in it is nerve-wracking because 1) I haven’t exactly hit that income point where I have money left over after paying bills and 2) knowing that I am operating in the red–and probably will be for at least the first year or two–is discouraging. But I know this is something that is absolutely mandatory if I am ever to have a successful business. Sure, once I get going and get some real income I can hire someone to take care of the accounting and bookkeeping. But for now it’s me, myself, and I (and my mom). So I need to be on top of all aspects of my business. Even the ones that I hate.

31 Day Reset: My Values

This is actually from day 4 (today is day but I still wanted to share them. The challenge was to list out what matters most to us. Then from that list, we were encouraged to pick out the top ten which would be our values. Then from that list, we looked at whether we were actually living our values (day 5) and created a personal mission statement (day 6). I won’t go into the long list of things that I wrote out, but I will share my ten values. They are, in no particular order:

1. Knowledge
2. Creativity/Innovation
3. Integrity
4. Respect
5. Passion
6. Social Responsibility
7. Balance/Peace of Mind
8. Spirituality
9. Love
10. Financial Stability

It took a while to whittle down to these ten, but I know that these are the most important things to me right now. Am I doing all I can to live these values? Honestly, no. But I am working on it, which is a step in the right direction.
Have you considered your personal goals? What are they?