chopped.
i’ve been feeling a bit discouraged lately. perhaps it’s a combination of feeling overwhelmed with life in general, mommying in specific, and stepping on the same pointy toys over and over again. overwhelmed with trying to meet every single need of these three little people in our house. and they can be quite needy at times. frustrated at not having enough patience, not enough kindness, not enough time to do any one thing well.
and having long, ratty, tired hair never helps matters.
so phil promptly sent me out a couple days ago to get a haircut. because there’s nothing like a good chop to refresh the ol’ outlook on life, right?
and i can’t believe i’m going to do this because i am EXTREMELY uncomfortable being in front of the camera and very much dislike seeing pictures of myself. but, it’s only about once a year that i get a haircut, so i’m throwing caution to the wind and posting not one, but a series of pictures of me. just me. and my new ‘do.
here goes.
are you ready? am i ready? hmm. stall… stall… no “before” pictures because frankly, i can’t find any of me without my hair pulled back into a ponytail.
this is me being extremely uncomfortable in front of the camera.
she cut it in a sort of a-line, but i don’t know… maybe it should be a little shorter in the back to avoid that bump back there?
in any case, i haven’t had my hair this short since phil and i started dating, oh, only TWELVE years ago.
this is my favorite part about the haircut. the pointy-ness of it when i look down. makes me feel just a tad bit edgy. cuz you know, that’s totally me. edgy and all.
ah but who am i kidding? i still look like this most of the time. : p
14 Comments
Kate Avedissian
love the new do…it totally will look great on those date nights with post-residency Phil. One hot mama…i have only one criteria for haircuts, can i put this in a pony tail???
what a fresh way to start a new chapter of you life.
Wendy Lee
love it Michelle!!! you look fabulous… just remember to let it down every so often.
Wendy Lee
by the way, great self portraits shots. every pretty and edgy. if i ever get out to CA again, you can take some of me.
Jessica
Yeah Michelle, you look like one hot mama!
Jenny
wowsers! you are one brave and hot mama. i could barely recognize you until i got to the last shot of you in a pony tail. 🙂
now you're going to make me look bad when we hang out.
SKim
Very nice photos… natural window light or did you get some toys.. err… equipment??
joyceandnorm
i love it! you must let your hair down from time to time!! but what do i know, i only cut my hair when it's long enough to donate. =p anyhow, you look fabulous! i know the day-to-day tasks can be very mundane, but it is totally worth it to see them grow a bit each day.
stefjayc
I love it Michelle! You've inspired me…time for the ol' chop myself!
michelle
aw thanks, you guys! totally blushing over here and still can't believe i posted all these pictures of me today.
wendy- i'd be SO honored to take pictures of you next time you're out this way!!
seh- no new equipment (i wish!), just a big ol' window in my bathroom. 🙂
Anonymous
i LOVE it! i think you should wear it down all the time. no more ponytails! but i know, it's just so much easier to tie it up… my hair used to be shorter than your hair and personally, i thought short hair was easier to manage than long hair (as long as i have my trusty straightening iron!)
Lorie
Wow – and WOW! Like others, I had to do a double-take…hardly recognized you! Might have been because of the new 'do, but maybe not. Whenever I see ya, you're always wearing a smile. These serious shots threw me for a loop! But, you look AWESOME! Love the new cut! I bet it gave you a new bounce to your step. Amazing what a new haircut will do…even if you have to pull it back most of the time. 😉
Minna
WOOHOOOOO!!
I LOVE the new haircut, Michelle. And I mean, LOVE. It's totally edgy, just like you. 🙂 (Happy face is not there for contradiction, I really do think you've got some inner-edginess).
And so brave to take and post pics of yourself. I LOVE that, too!!
michelle
lorie- i thought you would appreciate this post since you're the one who's always wanting to see my old noggin in more of the pictures i post. and since you well know how much i hate being in pictures. so this one's for you!
minna- i was hoping you'd see this post cuz i totally wanted your opinion of the new 'do! so thanks for your input. your opinion, as always, is important to me! and now, i shall go dwell on this inner edginess comment. 🙂
Anonymous
Janete Chun- Let's share photo secrets- did you do the black border in Photoshop? What lens/settings did you use? Ps- the cut looks good. 🙂
May 7, 2010 at 3:57pm
Kate Avedissian- yes, i have been wondering how you do that border thingy too
May 7, 2010 at 4:05pm
Michelle Tsai janete- sent you a message cuz my response was getting too long for the comment box! but THANKS!
kate- it's a preset for adobe lightroom (where i do my photo editing).
May 7, 2010 at 4:25pm
Laura An- Oh Michelle! You look super extra delicious cute! I LOVE the pointy ends on you! And get rid of all of your ponytail holders, this cut is too cute to hide in a pony tail! I bet you're loving the swishiness of your hair . . I would be .. .
May 7, 2010 at 4:43pm
Nancy Fam- wow, hot mama…looking good. your new do makes you look younger. what did the kids think of it?
May 7, 2010 at 6:08pm
Lindsay Osborne- Nice! I wish I could even hope to have my hair look that cool, but I have to admit I do always "need" it to be able to go up. It just seems necessary at this stage of life.
I'm so resonating with the pointy toys thing… I cannot explain how often I almost sustain severe injuries because I trip on something or someone.
May 7, 2010 at 7:11pm
Evangeline Chung Kwon- i saw the thumbnail of your post and thought…. "cool! michelle is now doing photo sessions with models." had NO idea that it is you! you look fantastic!!! i've been feeling a bit overwhelmed (burnt out) as well.
May 7, 2010 at 8:19pm
Kelly Yee- I love your haircut. Gorgeous! Time to let the hair down, sexy mama!
May 7, 2010 at 8:28pm
Christine Nah Song- You look GREAT! Don't waste such good hair in a ponytail!! : )
May 7, 2010 at 11:04pm
Michelle Tsai- aww thanks, you guys. *blush*
laura- it's SO totally about the swishiness! exactly!
nancy- funny you should ask… lauren stared at me for a good long while before laying her head down on my shoulder and deciding i'm just as good as the mommy w/ long hair. allie initially said she thought i looked like a boy. but now says she likes it. mikey asked where all my hair went and asked no further questions.
lindsay- i hear ya! pulling it back/up is SO key right now!
evangeline- *double blush*! hope you get a chance to recharge soon!
kelly- thank you! except i don't have time to do it all nice everyday so uh, the effect just isn't the same…
May 7, 2010 at 11:04pm
christine- thanks! 🙂 but the 'good hair' requires styling time which i just don't do most days so the daily look just isn't the same. but ODDLY, phil likes the plainer, unstyled look. men.
May 7, 2010 at 11:05pm