Why does a career woman dye her hair green? It’s more than a midlife crisis

Why does a career woman dye(dī) her hair(her) green? It’s more than a midlife crisis

By Siân Morgan

The day my hair turned green, strangers became friendlier(ˈfren(d)lēr). After a half-century(ˈsen(t)SH(ə)rē) of being an introvert(ˈintrəˌvərt), this was a nice surprise.

In the queue(kyo͞o) for my first mammogram(ˈmaməˌɡram), I was slightly overwhelmed by the anxious and confusing rush of medical staff behind the counter and grumpy(ˈɡrəmpē) clients in the waiting room. When the young receptionist(rəˈsepSH(ə)nəst) looked up at me and broke into a wide sparkling smile, my first instinct was to look behind me and step out of the way to allow her to chat with her friend; but there was no one there showing any recognition. Oh! She’s smiling at me!

“I love your hair!” she exclaimed, and suddenly I felt that warm rush which happens when strangers connect for a brief moment in our otherwise busy and efficient days.

It’s difficult to put my finger on exactly why I dyed my hair. When people ask, which they don’t often do, I joke that it was my midlife crisis. If I don’t have green hair at 50 it’s never going to happen! This prepared answer is, frustratingly(ˈfrəˌstrādiNGlē), the only thing I can manage to say in the 10-second allotted(əˈlät) sound bite(bīt). But I yearn(yərn) to explain in a more meaningful way. I yearn to do this because I see the wide variety of reactions, the discomfort, the dismay and the delight elicited(ēˈlisət) by my turquoise(ˈtərˌk(w)oiz) coif(kwäf).

These reactions are amplified(ˈampləˌfī) by my line of work. As a director of a department of engineers, I already stand out for being one of the few women in my field. I have developed a professional, traditional work persona(ˌpərˈsōnə) and most of the engineers that I know are not exactly what I’d call walkers-on-the-wild-side. Perhaps I’m stereotyping(ˈsterēəˌtīp) by saying that we tend to excel at efficiency without frills(fril). Appreciation for hair colour, hair styles, even hair in general is not high on our list of priorities.

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