The road less travelled....

This loc journey has been something else.

I started locing a little over a year ago after years of fryin’, dyin’, shavin’, jheri curlin’ (don’t ask). I actually wanted to loc from 2006 (when I bc’d—chopped off my relaxed hair) but alas, the friendly skies were calling and they weren’t trying to hear about fuzzy starter locs.

Toward the end of my tenure in the sky I just said “fuck it” and started my journey. I didn’t really shop around (which in retrospect was dumb, but I digress). I just wanted them so bad.

So I got em’. And I loved having them.

But I just couldn’t shake this feeling that my parts were a little too big.

Here is one month into my journey:


Something just wasn’t right to me.

I ignored my feelings and the constant “your locs are too big.” Now I know what other people say shouldn’t matter, and that is definitely true. However, with any hairstyle…if you are not 100% in tune with her your hair, the unhappiness is going to eat at you. So while my hair may look like




I was feeling more like


Now don’t get it twisted. These locs are beautiful…for him…and that is the beauty of locs. For me though, it just didn't feel 100% right. When I finally mentioned my dissatisfaction with the size of my locks, my loctitian was offended. Hell, I could even say she threw me a little shade. It didn’t help that my locs up until that point were being maintained by latching. For those of you who don’t know, let me put you on to latching. Latching involves using a hook to “crochet” your locs into tightening. So while it may look neat, it leaves a knot at the top your loc.

Sorta like this:



Here is a closeup of my lovely illustration.



Two of my friends convinced me to see someone else. That I did, and it was a great decision. Haven’t heard from the latching lady since. I wish her the best, but her style of maintenance wasn’t for me, Now that that I was ready to switch to palmrolling, what was I gonna do about this…



Something had to be done. I was still holding on to the hope that my hair would get itself together as it grew longer, The truth of the matter however was that it was going to grow out exactly like this. So I made the decision to take my locs down. When you take locs down, you’re basically undoing them like braids. Thing is, the process takes at least three times as long. It took about 45 minutes for one of my locs to unravel. It was a tedious process (that gave me sore fingers) but it was worth it.



With the help of my Senegalese sistas to twist my hair up, I'm back in business. Some would call my situation a setback, but I think things are turning out just the way they should have.

This is my journey. My loc journey.

And I love it.