Very [Black] Girly Moment #3: "Ethnic Person. Ethnic Hair."

Anyone who knows me knows that diplomacy is not my strong suit. I try; I really, really try, but I just don't always succeed. There are times, however, when I stop trying because people just don't understand the subtle. The following stories is one of those times. Picture this:


It's too dang early on a cold Tuesday morning in October. I'm walking to class with the first professor with whom I work and we're just talking about random things. Somehow, the conversation leads to me expressing my excitement that the parentals are mailing to me. She then asks what the package will contain. I tell her my winter wear (boots, scarves, etc.) So far, so good, right?

And then...

I'm game for trying new things, but I like my hair products
and I shall have them.

I tell her they're mailing my conditioner and thus ensues the confusion. She asks why I need them to mail me conditioner. I try to explain that I need a certain type of conditioner for my hair texture. This, of course, is my attempt at diplomacy, as I didn't want to just say that non-processed black hair needs certain products that aren't available here. Yet, she tried to argue me down, telling me that if I looked a little harder, I could most likely find the products I needed at a Corte or Farmacia (see dictionary). I gave diplomacy one last shot and tried to explain my hair situation yet again. I mean, the simple fact of it all is that I can't just put your basic 99 cent Pantene Pro-V in my tresses and expect something good to come out of it, especially not in this dry Spanish weather! I'd actually like to return home with a full head of hair, thankyouverymuch.

So, did diplomatic attempt Number 2 work? Y'all already know it didn't. So, I had to break it down for her by pointing to my lil' curly head and saying, "Ethnic person, ethnic hair."

Her response? "Ohhhhhh."

*rolls eyes because it's too dang early for all this*