The DJ who's not a DeeJay

Caution: Vanity post. (I have one every few years)

During the first few months of the pandemic, most of the world was in a state of lockdown or some sort of directive to stay home. On my social media feeds, I saw friends either cutting their own hair or having someone cut their hair in hopes that it could possibly resemble a decent haircut. Some have succeeded. More have failed and are just relieved they don't need to go out and be seen.

I, on the other hand, took this opportunity to grow my hair long... a.k.a. pandemic hair.

The last time I sported long hair was way back in college. I only had a few photos as proof, and I can't quite remember how I looked. I do remember making the mistake of going to a beauty salon for a hair relaxing treatment (cause I had wavy hair.)

This time around, I had different reasons for letting my hair grow for the past one and a half years, and I wanted to share why.

1. To see how wavy my hair really is. My hair was straight when I was a kid and started becoming wavy when I turned 9 years old. Every time my hair grew an inch or two longer, it would go haywire. One of the ways to prevent my hair grow in different directions was to maintain short hair. So what did I recently discover? I discovered that my hair would curl naturally when long. 

2. Reminds me of my mom. I probably inherited my mom's wavy hair. Having wavy hair reminds me of how mom would always say I also had curly locks, and it runs in the family.

3. Staying at home. Staying at home and working from home meant that I didn't have to meet people in person. Meetings were virtual, and I could easily tie my hair to hide it and make it neat. This also meant that getting a haircut last year was close to impossible, which was totally fine with me.

4. Trying out different hairstyles. There aren't that many you could try out when your hair is short. So far I got to try the ponytail, the full-bodied teased up hairdo (which actually is my fancy term for the look when I just woke up) and spiked hair (with a ton of supergel.) Spikes don't work on curly hair and any possible pointed hair strands turn into a doodle (or scribble) like form after a few minutes. 

5. Thinning hair. When your hair is getting thinner, you'd want enough hair, hopefully to compensate for the balding areas. Having long wavy hair helps in covering thinning spots and gives the illusion that I still have a decent amount of hair... but not for long. 

6. Last chance. You can't grow long hair if you don't have any hair, to begin with. And looking back at the last decade, my thinning hair is not going to grow as much as hair as it used to.  

7. Pandemic. I had an ideal plan to get a haircut when the pandemic ends. But we all now know that the virus is here to stay for the long run. So scratch that plan.

Overall, it was both fun and challenging for my scalp to support more than it's used to.

I saw this sign above a Barber Shop in the Sta mesa Area near MRT Pureza terminal in Manila.  

Something to rejoice about. LOL!

Caution: Vanity Post.

Every Mondays to Fridays at our nearby mall, there's a promotion going on with the barber shop named "Expresscut". It's a haircut plus 30 minute half body massage for only P100. (USD $2.50).

I was set to get a haircut today and a hair cut would cost P65. So I figured availing of the promo with the bundled massage for an additional P35. is a very good deal.

So first off is the haircut. I requested for a shorter cut than the usual cause it's summer and for a more refreshing look and feel.

Then the dreaded stinger hit me. The barber asked if I undergo any treatment for thinning hair. I said no. He then went on with a sales-pitched tone about a hair grower that thickens the hair. Gone are the glorious days when I used to have my hair cut in a salon either at Ricky Reyes or David's salon with an experienced hairdresser. I used to get comments on how shiny, healthy and thick wavy hair I got. Now I get a sales talk on hair-growing treatment.

Since my barber forced the topic of the hair thickening (yes, you would be forced against your will if the barber was cutting your hair and you can't move one bit), I figured I'd ask some questions. Apparently the information I gathered is that it is a hair thickener/grower called "Herbalin" (or Herbulin). It is a liquid based treatment made from 42 different herbs with no chemicals that is applied to the thinning hair region every night. My barber then continued telling me success stories of how many of his customers have bought the treatment and have seen actual results.

Of course all this is astonishing if you're just listening to the barber while having your hair cut. I was of course in my "speculation mode" all the while just letting my barber talk while I sit there. I figured the least I could do is search for it on the net and check out some testimonials in addition to the credibility of the product and at the same time check if there are any side effects or things worth noting. And then my barber showed me the box. It had some unfamiliar writing. Upon closer inspection, I saw the bold letters "Made in Pakistan". No offense to those from the country, but if I can't read the instructions on the box, I'm most likely not going to be interested at all. It's a good thing my time was done and up next was the massage. Ahhh... time to relax and enjoy some much needed pampering.

I had to move to another special chair designed for massage. I was told to sit while my face and upper back would be attended to. I thought I was going to have some quiet time relaxing and enjoying the massage when all of a sudden, the masseus asked the exact same question the barber asked me earlier... if I did anything about my thinning hair. Oh no ! Not again !

I kinda gave the cold shoulder this time and told him that the barber already told me about the liquid treatment they're selling. He didn't ask too many questions and instead just marketed the product. He did a bit of small talk as well telling me that his regular clients include huge Americans, one of them who broke his massage chair for being overweight and the other having such a huge physique that he couldn't lift.

Overall, it was a good massage. I got my little pinky twisted though while he was attending to my hands. I also got my neck turned to the extreme right and left which is something I haven't felt in my lifetime. I requested that my lower torso not be massaged cause it's a ticklish-prone area for me.

And so my trip to the barber shop became something worth telling.