Category Archives: Notes & Scraps

… and straw shouldn’t go in my hair, don’t you think?

I realize that’s a ridiculous and unnecessary rhyme, but I wanted to preface this ridiculous and unnecessary post with something that’s as goofy as I am.

I’ve never worn straw in my hair, I should say. I have thick, super-curly hair, so I try not to stick too many foreign objects in my curls. I have to admit that I did put feathers in my hair back in 2012 — back when that was trendy.

I only wore clip-on feathers. I didn’t get any sewn in. If any Gen Z or Gen A folks are reading this and didn’t realize that Hair Feathers were not only a real thing, but also the height of early 2010s Indie Sleaze fashion, then … let me disabuse you of the notion that anything that awkward couldn’t possibly be it.

Hair feathers were it and then some. Everyone from tweens to forty-something indie rockers got in on the befeathering. 2012 was a wild year, that’s true — but I miss that era so much. Not to be stuck in the past, but I really loved the Blog House/Indie Sleaze years.

The only other “accessory” I’ve worn woven into my hair — other than a headband or flower crown — is rice. This was entirely accidental. I went to a Halloween showing of Rocky Horror and I walked around with rice in my hair for several days. Even after washing and detangling it, I would find little grains of rice. I dealt with that situation by combing it all out, one grain at a time.

Back in November, I would braid my hair every night before going to bed — but every morning, it would look more wild than ever. From time to time, my hair looked decent in the morning, but by mid-afternoon, it looked like frizzy straw. I felt like a hay bale.

But everything changed when I bought the UnBrush. This brush is incredible. I’m not doing any spon-con — and I don’t want to.

I just want all the curly-haired folks to know that this brush works wonders! I love it!

I have never been self-employed.

Not really, I should say. I’ve always been in school, working for someone else, or doing both of those things. Other than a brief period of unemployment after finishing graduate school, I’ve always been studying or working.

But because I’m friends with lots of folks who do media and art — freelance writers, photographers, videographers, folks who draw and paint — I see that lots of my friends have their own studios, or LLCs, or business accounts on Facebook.

I’ve never been tempted to set up my own business, because I know that it’s not for me. The two most “business venture”-y things I’ve done:

(1) I started a podcast, but I only posted about twenty episodes over the course of a year. That was more of a personal project, anyway, so I didn’t expect to sell any ads or make any money.

(2) I have a Teepspring storefront, where I “sell” all sorts of shirts (and stickers and mugs) with silly slogans on them. I’ve never made many sales — but I didn’t plan on making that my primary source of income.

With the podcast and the storefront, I didn’t feel like I was making “business moves.” They were just fun creative projects. Not very time-intensive, and they didn’t involve too much labor.

I like a good project. I’ve done lots of projects, from helping to build a deck to filling sandbags to doing bad oil paintings — but I don’t want a second job.

And this is coming from someone who’s worked two jobs at the same time before. I remember my six-day work-weeks and the days where I would work from 8 AM to 8 PM. I like being able to come home and have dinner before 9 PM.

I don’t want my own photography business — even though I only shoot landscapes and no portraits, so that point is moot — or my own freelance writing/PR business, because it seems like a lot of work for minimal payout.

The market is chock full o’nuts saturated right now. Everyone in the market has a podcast, a blog, a content creator page, a professional page, and a wall of platitudes that they sit in front of during their Zoom consulting sessions. Everyone in the market is worried about aesthetics, monetizing hobbies, side hustles, and branding. Everyone has a personal brand that features their name and their image quite prominently. Everyone has been told to brand themselves — because it could affect your business(es), past, present, and future.

Earlier today, I saw a post bemoaning this face-first style of branding. The marketer said that they were actually getting tired of having to brand every post, to make sure every post fit Their Brand, to get dressed up a certain way to film their content, to have their personal page linked to their business page, and so on and so forth. They said that their “next business” would be “faceless” — as a means of reclaiming some privacy.

I SMH’d IRL. (And I don’t really say things like that — but that’s precisely what I did.)

“SMH,” I said. “Starting a second or third business just to have some more privacy?”

I understand where they’re coming from. I do. That’s why this blog is semi-anonymous. (I don’t post pictures on here, and I think only people who know me on a personal level would be able to speak on the Real Sally — whoever that is.)

But I think it’s wild how people are overburdened by their side hustles and business ventures — so they’ve decided to start another one. 😵‍💫

I see what the ultimate goal is — to jump ship from the photography business to the anonymous “Farmer’s Wife” recipe blog, from the photo-heavy recipe blog to the anonymous “Angora Lady” yarn sales site, from the knitting YouTube vlog to a faceless vlog with close-up shots of the hands, only.

People are tired of getting dressed up for their cooking videos — and they’re realizing they could just show shots of the counter and their hands. They don’t have to put on a full face of makeup or trim their beard to do an audio-only podcast about urban legends. People just want to be comfortable while they’re working. Having to be on all the time — as an influencer, as a micro-celebrity — is exhausting.

I’m glad I’ve never started a business. I’m fine with following someone else’s rules during the day, so that I can go home at night and not have to worry about things like overhead, sales figures, SEO, brand reach, or anything that requires strategic financial planning.

I’m glad I’m not an influencer, or a content creator, or a consultant. I am an anonymous blogger — and this is the only faceless business I plan on having.