Almost missed it!

Gah. The sixteenth not only sneaked up on me this month; it almost sneaked past. But I ran over to SF Novelists and dashed off the next (and probably final) post in my "Research for Writers" series: Get Help.

Comment over there; no login needed, but if you're a first-time commenter give me a little while to fish your comment out of the moderation queue.

Dear Yuletide Writer

Yuletide signups are open, and will run until 8 p.m. EST on Monday, if you were thinking of joining us for some holiday fun.

( Onward to the details for my signup. )

Thanksgiving Advent, Day Sixteen: Hair Screws

Tonight, I am thankful for these things:



I first encountered them years ago at my ballet studio. Bought some for myself, lost them over the years, and then my mother made herself a hero of the revolution by tracking down more. These days, Goody makes their own version, which are a bit longer (though not as nicely coated) as the kind she found for me.

What are they? They are magic. I know they can be put to other hair-related uses, but to me, they are the things that hold my bun up. For those who haven't seen me: my hair is down to my hips, and is relatively thick. When I put it in a bun (for ballet then; for karate now), I end up with a mass of hair more than half again as big as my fist. This is a lot of hair to bun, y'all, and it takes a vast number of hairpins to hold it, not very securely, in place.

I can hold my braid up with two of those, messily. Four makes it tidy. Six makes it secure enough to stay in place through two hours of karate and kobudo.

They are freaking magic.

We call them "hair screws;" I don't remember what Goody calls them. If they might be of any use to you, go out and buy some, stat: I want Goody believing there's enough of a market to go on manufacturing them. Otherwise, I will be back to buns falling down, and I will be sad.