the hair disaster

i have had very short hair for a while now and was feeling like i might want to start growing it out, but before i totally let it grow, i thought it would be neat to get some really cool ghetto designs shaved into the sides of my hair.  just for fun.

i went to a cute little barber shop and a nice black lady called ronda did the deed. i had a sinking feeling when, just as she was getting started, she said,  ''i haven't done this in a really long time.''

red flag, red flag!! i should have gotten up from the seat and said nicely ''thanks ronda, but no thanks.'' but i just sat there and said, ''thats ok, go for it, be creative, a few small swirly lines and spirals is all i want.''

for some reason she had me sit with my back to the mirror. i think the cord for the shaver was too short for me to sit so i could look at myself in the mirror.  another red flag!
when she finally turned me around to face myself i was shocked at what i saw:
i was not very happy about it!

 front

 side

side         

um hello? the sides were totally different from each other which is not what i had imagined. from the front it looked like my head was no longer round but totally deformed...... there is no way i was going to be able to go out in public with this hair doo! i payed ronda her 25$ and figured i would go home and see if it still looked so bad in the mirror at home. (my friend prairie rose's house)

upon arriving at home i realized it still looked just as bad and decided that when prairie came home she was going to have to help me try to fix it. luckily i am traveling with an electric hair shaver that has different sized attachments, it came in really handy!! 

prairie came home and was happy to help. this is the result:

 side

front

i now have a mohawk/crewcut type hair style. its been interesting getting used to it. the first couple of days it was a shock every time i saw myself in the mirror, but now the shock has lessened and i am getting into it. i feel fierce, like a modern warrior woman heading out into unknown territory ready to take on what ever comes my way.......

i have to think of the lyrics of one of my favorite songs by ani difranco:

this is me with out my hair

welcome to my open stare

i've got nothing to hide no more

why disguise what isn't there............

this look might be a blessing in disguise because i am not going to get hit on from men often,  i am now able to walk past a construction site without getting the whistles!!

and hey its hair.... it will grow!! 

lets begin!! los gehts!!

dear friends and family, old and new!!               grüsse mein freunde, alt und neu!!
hello and welcome to my very first blog.            hallo und willkommen!!

thank you for joining me on my adventures! this blog will be photos and ramblings from me as i travel through the good old US of A! i am excited about sharing the exciting things that happen along the way.

i plan to be traveling for at least a year. i will be exploring an alternative lifestyle of living in a camper and being on the road. besides reconnecting with friends and family, i plan on visiting communities along the way and i am excited to see where my path leads me. i am interested in meeting people who have decided to live outside of the norm. farms, eco villages, spiritual circles, sustainable communities and co-housing projects are just a few of the places i hope to find along this journey.

i feel like i will be led to the right places at the right times, to meet the people i am meant to meet.

i can't go wrong because, as this blog is named, love and light are leading me!!

its great  to be here and i am very excited!

i landed in new york city on the 13th of february. i arrived with a cold and felt pretty bad but was glad to see the smiling faces of a dear dear friend and my  sweet sister.  after a few days of rest and relaxation i was ready to face the big apple. here are some first impressions.....

wow thats big!

 empire state building with cab, so classic!

sunsets are beautiful!

 lots of flags here!

  big glass buildings!

  and lots of skyscrapers!

 i love sunflowers!

it's a very intense city this nyc.  its very different from berlin where i have been living for  the past 17 years. berlin is like a sleepy village compared to new york city. i understand the saying zoo york now.

when i moved to germany in the mid 90's i would see maybe one black person in a week. there was one mixed race guy in my circle of friends and he was the only one for years. only now in the past few years have more black people come to live in berlin and i have a few friends who are black.

i have been staying in brooklyn and it's a very interesting experience for me to notice when i am the only white person in the bank, on the subway, in a four block radius. this is something i have never experienced before and it's a very different feeling. there are a lot of black people here, they are beautiful and interesting to me and i realize i don't really know how to act or be around them.  i feel self-conscious and silly. i feel out of my comfort zone which is strangely a good feeling.  being out of my comfort zone is a place where i can learn new things about myself. its great and intense and i am thankful even though its uncomfortable.

here's some shots of brooklyn.....

 brick fortress apartments.

and colorful houses!

 strange apartment hallways.

 this must be a girls school.

lots of this style of building.

after a few days in new york, my sister and i took a bus up to boston to visit our papa. that was a fun time. boston is a university town, harvard, MIT and others and has a buzz about it but at the same time it feels smallish. its very new england and very european.  lots brick and old buildings mixed in with the new modern ones and the beautiful charles river.

here's a few pictures from there..

a view from a bridge.

 love the look of old and new

there is a lot of brick in boston,

even the sidewalks are brick in the old town!

schloss charlottenburg?

 the park

 european churches everywhere!

the grave yard.

make way for ducklings!

after the visit in boston i headed back to new york and sit here now in brooklyn, writing this first blog post. . this is just the beginning, there is loads more to come and i am sure writing this blog will be just as adventurous as the adventure its self.

thanks for joining me!!

lovelightleadsme and remember, love light leads you too!! XO mariko