Stop Staring!

All you tall girls out there... I know you've experienced this... the STARE. People stare because we're tall, because we're wearing heels that make us even taller, because we're so much taller than the people we're walking beside. They stare, stare, stare... and it is freakin' annoying. So... I. stare. back.

The worst stare is from icky guys who don't just stare, they leer. They think they can, and I have had 'average height' friends confirm that I do get more of these stares than they do. One of these days, I swear, I'm going to go over and ask if they need a close up and then tell them off. It drives me nuts, and it happens a lot around the area I work (not with colleagues, with people outside the building). Same guys, day in and day out. I want to tell them, "yeah, I'm tall, I don't stare at you because you're short." But I never will.

I don't mind the usual 'looks', but the leering stares... just creep me out. At least I know I can take them down, if I need to.

Time for my Summer Hair Cut

I'm getting my hair cut this weekend... and will probably add some more wispy bangs or something fun for summer. I've always wanted to get a really short do, but the one time I did... ahem... in 7th grade... I learned very quickly that short, Does. Not. Work. For. Me. All I need to do to remind myself how bad it can be is pull out my 7th grade pictures. It makes me wince just thinking about it. Oh, what a sad time in hair that was for me... the Pat Benatar look just didn't work for me.

Now, that was about 20 years ago (yep, you now know I'm in my 30's), but the hair and height are the same. I know tall women who can pull of short hair... I. am. not. one. of. them. I've come to terms with this... so instead of going short I get more layers or bangs or go with a fun color.

I've learned to not fight the hair... the hair will always win.

Stand Up Straight!

To make myself feel shorter, I used to slouch. My Mom would tell me not to, but as soon as she was out of the room, I'd be slouching. What a horrible habit I formed. This stopped as soon as I learned to embrace my height, but I still notice that I do it occasionally, usually when I'm tired, or sitting for a long time at my desk.

One thing I've found that really helps is low impact Yoga... usually Hatha yoga. The long stretches, the forced back work and really feeling what it is like to have my back straight all help. In fact, I think I'm a whole half inch or inch taller since starting to practice yoga a few years ago.

If you're looking to make your posture better, I highly recommend checking out the available Yoga classes in your city. Not only will you gain better posture, but the other side effects are fantastic as well. Things like not wanting to scream at every driver on the road next to you in rush hour traffic. :-)

Can you grab that _______ off the top shelf?

At any store with high shelves, I will almost always be asked if I can grab chips/pants/tampons/etc. from that top shelf way up there. When I do it, the person asking always says something like... I wish I were that tall, Don't you love being tall? My answer... yes I do, but not because I can get things off the top shelves.

I wonder how people would react if I asked them to get stuff for me on the lower shelves (you know, cuz it really hurts my back when I bend over from way up there). I don't think it would go over to well. I'll probably never know. Why? Because I'd never ask someone who is not an employee, who is a complete stranger, to grab something off any shelf for me. It's rude.

Thanks for allowing the mini-rant. Just got back from a trip, and for some reason got asked this question frequently.

New Jeans

I went shopping yesterday, knowing I would need to try on 100 pair of jeans, just to get to the one pair that was long enough. I knew that this would involve many four letter words, crushed dreams, and at least one complete meltdown.

Why all the drama? Well, I'm 6' tall, with a 36" inseam if I wear even a 1.5" heel. The same height as most models who show us all of the wonderful clothes we should be wearing. Funny how all of the clothes they wear, are never long enough in the store. Never. ever. never. This drives me to have a meltdown at least twice a year, as I cannot and will not wear pants that are not long enough.

So, I scour and search, for the one pair that was made with end material, or accidentally got cut long, or by some miracle were made to be long, on purpose! Well folks, yesterday, was the day that I found not one, but TWO pair of jeans that were long enough and looked good on. This miraculous event deserves a party, a celebration.

Ladies and gentlemen I was able to walk out of a store with two pair of jeans that I could wear, immediately! No trying to find the long version online, no boo-hooing because I didn't find anything. No... none of that. Instead, choirs were singing, birds were chirping, and I... I was floating on air because I had done the impossible.

In case you tall girls out there want to know what I found, here they are:

7 For All Manking - Dojo (They say 34" inseam on the site, but the pair I found in store... 36")
Citizens of Humanity "Amber High Rise" (They also say 34"inseam, but the pair I found in store... 35", perfect for flats and tennies, also, the rise is not THAT high, still below the waist)