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PARTING SHOT
272
January15
Here’s your
c h a n c e
t o g e t
published.
W e ’ r e
looking for
5 0 0 - w o r d
written contributions on any
funny, poignant, practical or even
controversial topic that touches
on expat life in Singapore. Simply
email your stories to contribute@
expatliving.sg and we’ll consider
them for inclusion in an upcoming
issue.
Correction:
Last month’s Parting
Shot was incorrectly attributed; it
was written by Ann McCutcheon. If
you missed it, be sure to read Ann’s
entertaining article at expatliving.sg.
Hair Today,
Gone Tomorr ow
By Amy Moore
“H
e’s gone!” I blurted down the phone to my best friend. “I can’t
believe it. After five wonderful years he has just upped and gone
without so much as a goodbye or a note.”
“What?” gasped the voice at the other end of the phone. “Your
husband’s left you?”
“Nooo,” I wailed. “It’s even worse than that. Marcus who colours my hair has
left Singapore.”
“Oh my god,” she gulped, “that’s awful. What will you do? Can you find
someone else?”
“I don’t know,” I sobbed inconsolably. “Only Marcus knows the difference
between a soft natural blonde and a cheap peroxide colour, and the way he
places the foils is artistic genius. What will I do? My roots are showing already,
I can’t leave the house looking like this, and I hate hats!”
“It’s okay,” she muttered sympathetically. “We’ll find you another hairdresser.
Keep your hair on! I’ll start ringing around – there must be plenty of hairdressers
in Singapore who can treat your locks. After all, every woman I meet here seems
to be blonde, so somebody must be doing something right!”
While some may sneer at my predicament, there are hundreds of other
women, and even men, who will understand the anguish of losing their favourite
hairdresser. Your hairdresser deserves to be your BFF – after all, they make
you look more attractive and (hopefully) younger, while a new look can gain
you admirers and boost your confidence. And admit it, who doesn’t like sitting
in a comfy chair, getting a head massage, being attended to by young and
trendy staff, drinking free coffee and reading the magazines that you never
get round to buying?
For colour-assisted blondes like me (born blonde, of course, but then nature
interfered), going to a new hairdresser can be very daunting, especially one
who is used to working on Asian hair. Not only is it a different texture, but also
the colours you get offered are invariably the kind that look better suited to
Barbie, rather than the soft natural blonde you aspire to.
When I first moved to Singapore I practically accosted strangers in the street
to find out who cut or coloured their hair. I lingered outside salons to see the
results, and I browsed expat websites with a vengeance. Yes, it takes patience,
perseverance and even the odd disaster (in my case, tiger stripes, green tinges,
and ginger streaks) before, tra la la, you find the perfect hairdresser and the
world becomes a happier place as you swish your head with that “because-
I’m-worth-it” flick.
Thankfully, on this occasion, my fellow blondes came to the rescue and
hooked me up with a marvellous colourist, and my locks have never looked
better or more natural. I am currently persuading my stylist never to get married,
have kids or leave Singapore (except when I am away too!).
Yes, my partner thinks my hair obsession is over the top, but as his own crop
is rapidly receding and a few grey spikes are appearing, I expect he’ll soon be
asking for my hairdresser’s number.
Terriana | Dreamstime.com