WHEEL OF COLOR

I'd just gotten back from a hairdresser's appointment and I was in the kitchen starting dinner when my son Alex came in. “Whoa! You changed your hair color!”

“Well, I didn't really have much to say about it.” I pulled out a pan from the drawer and put in on top of the stove.

“What do you mean you didn't have much to say about it.” He went to the cabinet and took out a glass then went to the refrigerator to get some water. “By the way it looks nice.”

“Thanks!” I stopped and took the ends of my hair between my fingers and tipped my hair up to look at it. “I guess I'm a brunette now.” I looked at Alex. “Does it have some auburn highlights?”

Alex shrugged his shoulders. “I have no idea. I just know you left as a blond and now you have brown hair.” He leaned against the counter top and took a sip of water. “So,” he placed his glass down. “You didn't ask to change the color of your hair?”

“Nope. I never do.” I shook my head. “Denise looks at me when I walk into her shop and says things like, 'Do you want to warm up your color?' or 'We should really tone that down a bit.' and I just shake my head and say sure.” I went to the refrigerator and got out some burger meat. “Then she goes back in some small closet to put together my new color.” I walk over to the counter next to the stove and began making patties. I looked over at Alex and smiled. “Personally, I picture her holding a color chart where she flicks a spinning arrow to see what color I'm going to be.” I put the patties in the pan and turn on the stove. “She's like a chemist as she mixes all the ingredients into a little bowl, comes out, paints my head, turns on a timer, and forty five minutes later I get to see what color hair I'm going to have!” The burgers begin to sizzle in the pan. “Can you get the salad out of the fridge and put it on the table?”

“Sure.” Alex goes to the fridge and gets the salad. As he was walking to to table he passes behind me. “It does look nice.”

“Thanks.”

Alex came back and leaned against the counter. “But don't people usually tell the hairdresser what color they want to be?”

“I'm assuming yes.” I looked over at Alex. “But Denise and I have been doing this for years. She knows all I want to do is cover the gray and as long as she doesn't pick a cartoon color we're all good.” I took the spatula and flipped the burgers.

Alex shurgged his shoulders. “Well, if you're happy. I'm happy.”

Just then my husband Steven came into the kitchen. “Hey, I remember when you were that color a few years ago.”

I looked over at Steven and smiled. “Denise thought it was time to warm my color up.”

Steven looked confused. “What's that suppose to mean?”

I shrugged my shoulders. “I wasn't sure either.” I smiled as I pointed to my head. “But I guess it means this!”