A Conversation About Curly Hair With The UPS Delivery Man

/ Ally Bean

Our new front sidewalk, pristine and perfect.

THE Scene

I heard the UPS truck pull up in front of the house, mid-morning. I looked out the study window and saw the UPS delivery man step off the truck carrying a thin squishy envelope package for me [a t-shirt from Lands’ End].

He’s a nice guy, handsome, a regular in our neighborhood, and I’m a nice person so I walked out the front door and started walking down the sidewalk to meet him halfway.

Save him a few steps in the intense summer heat, ‘ya know.

Welp, I smiled and said “hello” while extending my left hand to grab the thin squishy envelope package, figuring he’d hand it to me. But instead he froze in place about four feet in front of me and just stared at me.

I followed his gaze and realized I had MY HAIR TIED UP on top of my head in what probably seemed to him to be an UNUSUAL style. I was wrong about that assumption.

THE CURLY HAIR BACKSTORY

When I can, like on days when I’m staying home, after I wash my hair I don’t use a hairdryer;  instead I pull my wet curly hair into a topknot held in place with an elastic.

Then I twist bandana around it in such a way as to tie up my hair. This way my hair dries off my neck AND it forms groovy, beachy curls in the process.

It’s AN OLD-FASHIONED WAY of styling your hair that back then involved clean rags, but now as an affluent suburbanite I use A BANDANA purchased at Walmart for $1.98.

THE CONVERSATION BEGINS

Curly hair, he said.

Yes, said I while trying to reach over to grab the package from his hand, but to no avail.

You do that when it’s wet, he said. It wasn’t a question, it was a statement.

Yes, said I whilst staring intently at the package in his hand, hoping he’d remember why he was here.

Huh, he replied.

A LONG PAUSE during which time I began to notice how hot it was outside standing on the sidewalk in bare feet in the direct sunshine. DAMNED HOT.

THE CONVERSATION CONTINUES

My wife does that with our daughter’s hair, he explained.

Yes, said I nodding my head in what I hoped was a conversation-ending gesture of understanding.

I thought she was pulling my leg when she said it’s what you do with curly hair. I had two sisters but they had straight hair, he continued.

Yes, said I.

They never did that, he confided.

Hmmm, said I wondering where this conversation was going to go next.

After another LONG PAUSE, during which time he further scrutinized my hair like I WAS A SCIENCE PROJECT, he handed me the package.

THE UNEXPECTED COMPLIMENT

The bandana is a nice touch. My wife doesn’t use one of those but it looks cute on you, he said.

Thank you, said I whilst pondering how out of kilter the Universe must be that I, a gray-haired woman of a certain age, had just been told my hairstyle was “cute” by a handsome 30-something man.

I’m going to suggest she get some bandanas for our daughter’s hair, he told me.

Good idea, said I.

And with that he FINALLY handed me the package and said “goodbye” as he walked back to his truck, SHAKING HIS HEAD IN AMAZEMENT, mumbling about how he couldn’t believe his wife hadn’t been joshing him all along.

~ THE END ~

PLEASE NOTE: I’m having difficulties leaving comments on some blogs and it’s incredibly frustrating.

I don’t know if the problem is in my browser or if it’s another example of gremlins in WordPress. The problem seems random. Rivergirl, yes. Nicole, no. Kate, sometimes. And so it goes…

Also, on random blogs I’m not consistently receiving an indication that there’s been a reply to my comment when there has been one. Another gremlin?

266 thoughts on “A Conversation About Curly Hair With The UPS Delivery Man”

    • Judy, that’s EXACTLY what is happening to me, too. I compose my comment, then get an error message, and my comment has vanished. So I try again… and again…

      Good point about accepting the compliment graciously, as if I am soooo accustomed to being complimented on my looks. 😆

      Liked by 5 people

    • Arlene, when I find out other people are having difficulties commenting I don’t feel so bad. Thanks for telling me. And yes, the conversation was on the verge of weirdness, but then turned flattering. He’s really a nice guy.

      Liked by 2 people

  3. First I envy your curly hair. My hair is wavy but the wave isn’t strong enough to let it dry naturally unless I want it flat against my head. Second, I, too, am having issues commenting and sometimes a followed blog doesn’t show up in my reader. Fortunately I get an email too so I know. At first I thought it was blogs that were hosted outside of WordPress but now I’m not so sure. Another blogger told me she has to log off and sign in to comment on some blogs. Not sure what’s going on but I’d sure like to know.

    Liked by 4 people

    • Enjoyed this. It is so typical of some men not to give their wives credit. But hey a compliment is nice at any age. On the other hand, I wish I could do that to my hair, but mine is so thick and heavy that even hairdressers have never been able to put it up. It’s a low librarian-style ponytail for me. No complaints though except maybe on those really hot days.

      Liked by 2 people

      • Bitchy After 60, you’re the second commenter to mention that this man doubted his wife! That he did, but no more. I often wear my hair in a low ponytail. I like that look. In fact after my hair dries into curls, it looks nice pulled into one.

        Liked by 2 people

  5. I had a friend say she was having problems, she logged out of her WordPress and logged back in and that seemed to solve it! Who knows!

    I bet your hair looks adorable and also, that’s a long conversation about hair with the UPS guy! You’re fancy with your $1.99 bandana!

    Liked by 3 people

    • Nicole, I tried that, too. In some cases it worked, in others it made no difference. I don’t care how I am supposed to leave a comment, I’ll follow any procedure, BUT I want it to be consistent throughout the whole system.

      The bandana could be the best style investment I’ve made lately. 😜

      Like

  6. I suspect your issue is cross-site tracking. Both of my browsers — Safari and Firefox — required some tweaking to eliminate the problems. Here’s a good place to start: an explanatory memo from WordPress itself. Note this particularly: “If you’re using one of these versions of Safari, you must grant WordPress.com access to log you in on custom domains.” That may explain why you can get into some sites and not others. Anything that ends with ‘wordpress.com’ is accessible. Other URLs, like ‘thisismyowndomain.com’ may not be.

    I never saw the banner, because I already had enabled cross-site tracking on my phone. On my desk PC, where I use Firefox, it was easy enough to solve the problem. If you use FF, go to Settings, then Privacy & Security. Go ahead and select “Standard” Enhanced Tracking Protection. Then, add wordpress.com and your URLs to the list of managed exceptions. Scroll down to Cookies and Site Data and add the same exceptions. You should be good to go.

    Liked by 4 people

    • Linda, THANK YOU. I’ll check what Safari is up to. It recently upgraded, which often means that Apple has changed something just to infuriate users. They’re notorious for such. I only use my desktop computer when I blog, so that means if I can fix it here, I’m golden. Bwha-ha-ha!

      Liked by 1 person

  7. Now, as for your encounter with the UPS dude, I’d be flattered beyond belief. Those drivers are tracked within an inch of their lives, and the fact that he was willing to stop for a bit of human conversation seems both amazing and charming. Not only that, he’s going to have something to talk about when he gets home — something beyond “I managed to cut my time today by two and a half minutes.”

    Liked by 2 people

    • Linda, this UPS delivery man is cordial, seems genuinely happy in his work. I am laughing about the idea of him having something interesting to say to his wife about, of all things, curly hair.

      Liked by 1 person

  9. Men! Seriously, it’s like they can’t accept that their wife could actually have knowledge of which they are unaware unless it is confirmed by an outside source. Though props to this guy for accepting confirmation from a non-male.

    I’ve never tried the bandana thing. My hair is somewhere between wavy and curly, depending on humidity. If I take a shower before bed and pile it in a heap above my head on the pillow, it dries pretty curly.

    Liked by 3 people

    • AutumnAshbough, you raise a good point. He didn’t believe his wife until he saw me doing the same thing– and boy did he stare at me. Not in a leering way at all, just in amazement. It was funny.

      You might have luck with the bandana thing. It’s easy to do once you get the hang of rolling your wet hair around a piece of cloth, then tying it up. Kind of like a messy bun, but with purpose.

      Liked by 1 person

  10. Well, having thin, straight hair my whole life, I have no idea what you are doing with your curly hair and a bandana. I cannot picture it at all. I wish I could. Many times in my life I have wished for curly hair and even had some curly perms back in the day, altho, they never looked naturally curly to me. Anyway, I might be a bit jealous of your curly hair but good for you that you got a compliment from the UPS guy!

    Liked by 4 people

    • Ellen D, I can understand how this bandana thing makes little sense to you. For those of us with curly/wavy hair it’s one of those old ways of *setting* your hair, as they used to say. The conversation with UPS delivery guy was a hoot, actually. But it was so HOT standing on that sidewalk. Ouch!

      Liked by 1 person

  11. A lot of people said they’re having trouble leaving comments. Do you follow Ann Colman? I think she had a solution but I can’t remember it. If I do I’ll get back to you

    Liked by 2 people

  12. We always have handsome UPS men on our route. Once, when the boys were very little, we had a driver who was very goodlooking, friendly, and walked a bit bowlegged. My littlest one at the time said, “I like the UPS guy. He walks like a cowboy.”

    Like Ellen D., I’ve had straight hair my whole life, so I can’t imagine clearly what you’re describing with your curly hair. But I will say that this summer, with its insane humidity, my own hair has picked up an annoying little curl at the ends that I, who always wished for it, no longer want. Sigh. Are we ever, ever, truly happy with our hair?

    Liked by 3 people

    • nance, this UPS delivery guy has been on our route for about a year, I guess. I like your son’s criteria for what makes a UPS driver a good one. That’s cute.

      I tried to find a YouTube video of how I do my hair up, but there were none. I sure as heck am not making one. As for this summer’s humidity, I have no doubt that you’ve learned something about the perils of curly hair. Lucky you!

      Like

  13. I’m so sorry about the gremlins. How frustrating! I didn’t know this trick with curly hair. I must try it. May I ask how long it takes to dry, please? I have fine hair but a LOT of it. I always love your stories!!! Thank you for writing this one. I could picture it in my head and was in hysterics!! Btw, Land’s End t-shirts are the best! I have about 7 or 8 that my sister gave me. I raved about them so much that she ordered me 5 or 6 more. I will have to meet the UPS man with your hair drying style. I will let you know what happens. 😂😂😂

    Liked by 3 people

    • Susan, my hair is coarse and thick-ish so it takes anywhere from 3 hours to half a day to dry– depending on humidity. I usually let my hair get almost dry, then use the hairdryer to finish.

      I, too, have discovered the joy of Land’s End T-shirts. I started buying them during the pandemic because I wasn’t shopping in retail stores, and now I like them enough to continue buying them.

      Liked by 1 person

  14. Yes, WP has these issues every now and then, but the degree to which you’re experiencing them is wild! I don’t think I’m having any issues with this at the moment.
    Your description of the delivery man is wonderful. I can totally picture the two of you, him scratching his head and complimenting you and you shifting from foot to foot from the heat. Fantastic vignette!

    Liked by 3 people

    • Lynette, in my experience if I ignore the WP problem it usually goes away on its own. This time I’m not so sure, but I carry on like the determined blogger I am.

      The conversation with the UPS delivery guy was one of those situations wherein I find myself experiencing something while making mental notes about the details of what’s going on so that I can write about it later.

      Liked by 1 person

  15. I chat with my mail carrier quite often. He’s seen my sweaty and disheveled after walk hair, drier blown hair, wet gelled hair, and now very gray streaked summer mussed waves. Clearly hair is not his concern as there has never been a comment. I feel glad that he has not mentioned the gray.

    Liked by 2 people

    • Deb, I was surprised by this conversation, having never worried about how I look when I accept packages from UPS or FedEx or Amazon or the USPS. But wouldn’t you know this guy was paying attention to, of all things, my hair. I find your experiences more in line with how I assumed, until this, life goes.

      Liked by 1 person

  16. I’ve always loved your curly hair. Can’t imagine you with straight hair!
    I used to put my hair on top of my head and roll it around juice cans to smooth it out.
    I think it’s pretty cool that a young man noticed your hair. Take the compliment and run!

    Liked by 3 people

    • Beth, thanks for the compliment. I don’t know that I can imagine me with straight hair either. I remember doing that thing with the cans, but the frizz and curls came right back. I agree, I’ve taken the compliment at face value! 😍

      Like

  17. I was holding my breath until you reached the point where he said “my wife does that to our daughter’s hair” when I changed position to “c’mon, get on with it dude” until I reached the lovely closing compliment 😀 What a nice man! He sounds much like the lovely Daniel who wore long shorts year round to show off his shapely calves and was our work DHL guy. The girls positively fought over talking to him until I realised they all feigned deafness of the doorbell for the rest of the day, so I started changing up his pick-up times to keep them on their toes 😀

    Oh & yes, curly hair does rock! I miss mine…

    Liked by 4 people

    • Deb, the conversation was unexpected but ended on a bright note, if you ask me! Still, I wondered if I’d ever get that package he was holding.

      How hilarious that you had a delivery guy with shapely legs– and the girls noticed. It seems to me that we often forget the impact we can make on other people as we go about our days. Did Daniel know he was causing a stir? Probably, but gotta love him for it. And you for messing with the girls’ minds.

      Liked by 1 person

      • Oh he knew, but he didn’t play on it, which I liked him for. There was mass mourning when he moved on according to the guy who replaced him. He was a nice guy too, but Daniel was a hard act to follow (professional and pleasing on the eye!)

        I had my fun with them, they were lovely girls to work with. That’s the bit I miss about working from home.

        Liked by 1 person

  18. LOL, I married a curly haried womena dn we hae 2 curly haired adult children. Our son favors the bandana. My wife puts hers on top, I remind her she looks like a mushroom (BTW it is not the correct thing to say). LOL The joys or is it curse of curly hair?

    Liked by 3 people

  19. Commenting issues are SO MADDENING. I am maddened for you.

    What a delightful little exchange with the UPS guy. I am glad that you showed him the bandana light.

    Yesterday, I saw the mail truck parked outside my driveway when I was coming back from my walk. The mail person was in the back of the truck, flinging packages and envelopes into the front seat. I thought I would save him a trip up the driveway — and save him from even leaving his vehicle — so I waited by the truck. I started to feel awkward, so I started to read a catalog I’d found in our mailbox. Nothing. I finished the catalog. Then the mail person drove away, no package to deliver. I’m sure I made him VERY self conscious though.

    Liked by 3 people

    • Suzanne, yours is a story of no act of kindness goes unpunished. What a nice person you were to wait, but then to get nothing for your effort. Gotta laugh.

      I’m sure this UPS delivery man shared is new bandana knowledge with his wife and daughter. He seemed taken with the idea.

      Liked by 2 people

    • Robin, I like what you shout. Yes, yes– that’s the spirit. I like all our delivery people around here, at the moment at least. A few have been churlish, but lately they’ve been courteous. Case in point, I guess.

      Like

  21. Now I feel like I should grow my hair out so I can put it up like you do except my hair isn’t naturally curly. It’s wavy but it will curl in high humidity AND if my haircut is layered. A lot to consider so I think I’ll keep it short 😉

    I haven’t had any issues with commenting on blogs lately but I also haven’t been visiting many. The only thing I recently noticed was that I couldn’t directly reply to a reply to a reply to one of my comments on a blog post. I had to go back to the replier’s original response and put my final (for now) reply there. Awkward. I don’t know if that would be a WP problem or if the owner of the blog can actually limit the number of replies to comments.

    Anyhoo … take that compliment and run with it (preferably with shoes)!

    Liked by 3 people

    • Marie, I don’t know that this bandana thing would work if your hair isn’t layered. Best to go with the short hair until you’re ready to take on the rigors of curly hair.

      I’ve had the same experience as you. If I want to reply to a reply I have to visit the blog post again, then input my commenter information again. It slows downs/discourages conversation. You could be right that it is intentional on the part of the blogger. I dunno.

      Liked by 1 person

    • Grace, this is the first comment I’ve seen from you. The commenting system is becoming more unreliable which, I suppose, doesn’t surprise me. Any way to make things more difficult… the WP motto?

      Liked by 1 person

  23. It seems to me by the comments above that your problem with leaving comments is, for once, not a fault with WordPress, but caused by the browser!
    I use the WordPress Reader for personal blogs and Feedly for everything else (news, youTube channels, interest sites, etc). I would use Feedly for blogs too, but the free version limits how many feeds you are allowed.

    Liked by 3 people

    • Margy, it very well could be a problem on my end. I have Safari on this computer so if it goes wonky, my experience in blogland is messed up.

      I pay for Feedly so that I can have many feeds and folders. This seems to keep my organized– or at least organized enough that I fool myself into thinking I have it together. Sometimes.

      Liked by 1 person

    • I’m replying to myself having just seconds before been allowed to comment, but now I have to sign in again.

      Well just as long as this makes things more difficult… *sigh*

      Like

  25. I have some wave to my hair but it’s not curly. My mom used to do those rag curls for me in elementary school and I felt like a princess when she did. Is my blog one of the culprits? I know it has been in the past.

    Liked by 2 people

    • Margaret, my mother was good at making rag curls that were balanced. I may not be that good with my bandana approach, but it works well enough for me now.

      Oddly enough this time around I’m having no trouble with Typepad or Blogger. Just some WP accounts. Who knows, huh?

      Like

    • Kari, since living through the pandemic lockdown I appreciate this sort of conversation more. It seemed so real. As for using a bandana with curly hair, it is one of those approaches you stumble on… when you see someone else do it.

      Liked by 1 person

  27. I’m going to have to try that!! I stopped blow drying my hair recently and I’ve realized I have curly hair – not super curly – but enough that letting it air dry turns it into a big ball of frizz. My mom and sister have straight hair so you may have educated me as well as the UPS guy on how to deal with it!!

    Liked by 3 people

  28. I wonder if the extreme summer heat is affecting the interwebs?

    I love that you got a compliment from your UPS guy; it sounds like you enlightened his day.
    I had a fed ex guy (Dave) who was so darn sweet; he would hop off his truck to see my butterflies/caterpillars and butterfly plants as he was trying to mimic some of what I’d done here. (Don’t Tell Fed Ex!) He retired this year, and I do miss our conversations.

    Liked by 2 people

    • Suz, I can go with your explanation about what’s happening when I try to comment. Sure, WHY NOT? Blame it on the weather.

      That’s sweet that Dave wanted to see your butterfly haven. It helps to see how someone else manages to entice butterflies their garden. We had two healthy milkweed plants with 8 caterpillars on them that caught the eye of our landscaper. You’d think he’d be indifferent, but he was agog.

      Liked by 1 person

  29. I’m having similar problems with commenting and liking blogs, Ally. Some blogs are just fine, but others won’t take likes and require I register all my information, including WP password (I can see that I will be required to do that to post this message here). I can no longer “like” a comment made in return. It’s very frustrating and is souring the WordPress experience. Guess their “happiness engineers” are engineering something quite different….

    Liked by 3 people

    • Donna, you’ve described EXACTLY what’s happening to me, too. Thanks for saying this. It is beyond infuriating and seems arbitrary as to which blogs it happens on. I wonder if WP has taken to re-defining “happiness” to mean: mess with people’s minds and waste their time? 🫤

      Like

      • I tried to “like” your comment, Ally, but it wouldn’t register. I see that I will once again have to enter my WP details to post this. At least they aren’t asking for my age and weight…. Consider yourself liked, now and in future….

        Liked by 1 person

        • Thanks Donna. I tried the same experiment attempting to like my own comment here, and I wasn’t allow to do it. I do like that you tried. Honestly, I’d like for things to work smoothly with WP, but over the years they’ve successfully lowered expectations. 🤨

          Like

  30. LOL! It is amazing what we curly haired ladies and girls do with our hair to manage/tame the curls! I never did or do the top knot thing because I tend to get a headache from my hair being pulled back even loosely! It’s maddening so I air dry it or blow dry it. It’s all over the place today so, I’ll be bringing out the curling iron to tame the wayward curls today.

    I’m having some issues commenting on some blogs myself, and one of my friends says he hasn’t been able to comment on my blog for weeks. I don’t know how to fix it!

    Liked by 4 people

  31. WordPress has not been kind to me, but I just logged in here with no problem. I suspect it’s a pop up blocker issue with my iPad, but it’s odd that it’s only on certain WordPress blogs.

    I find your whole UPS guy exchange to be completely bizarre. Here, they are in such a hurry that they cut through our mulch instead of walking up the sidewalk. Or leave a note saying we weren’t home when I was here all day. Super annoying.

    But you’re cute, so that’s what’s important!!!

    Liked by 3 people

    • Bijoux, YOU HAVE ME LAUGHING OUT LOUD. Oh my, your last sentence. As if!

      If the WordPress commenting problem was everywhere I went, I’d accept that the procedure for commenting had changed BUT it’s random. On some blogs my comment goes right through, others won’t let me comment at all. I hope this a temporary glitch, because it’s darned annoying.

      Liked by 1 person

      • This has been an ongoing problem for me for the past year…so I mostly comment via the WP Reader whenever I have problems with a particular blog…however, it’s nice to know I am not alone in these experiences 🙂

        Liked by 3 people

  32. I am having trouble with blog commenting too so you are not alone. Begs the question of will this UPS driver now believe everything his wife tells him? Cute story my friend. I wish I had hair period. Curly, straight, I wouldn’t care. I am losing mine horribly and it is very fine to begin with. So nice to see you here.

    Liked by 3 people

    • Janet, thanks for letting me know you’re having trouble commenting too. At first I thought it was just me, but I’m learning it’s endemic. You raise an excellent point, will the UPS guy believe his wife more often now? I think he should, like I have any control over that. I’m sorry about your hair loss. Sometimes weird things happen.

      Liked by 1 person

  33. It’s good day when a UPS guy compliments the woman you describe. Have we ever seen a full frontal photo of your face. I wonder. . .

    Entertaining story. All my grandsons have curly hair. Mine is straight. Their hair story comes from a different strand, I s’pose.

    Liked by 3 people

    • Marian, I enjoyed talking with the UPS delivery man, even if my feet were burning up on the sidewalk. I don’t share current photos of myself. I figure that the interwebs have enough photos of people already.

      Nice play on words there. Yes your grandsons’ hair stories definitely comes from another strand. 😀

      Liked by 1 person

  34. I sure hope this comment goes through since I’ve been having problems on some blogs too… something about an error due to not filling in all fields completely, yet there are no fields to fill in. So frustrating since I’ve never had the problem before.

    Anyway, I am way too jealous of your curly hair to comment nicely anyway.

    Liked by 4 people

  35. You realize that writing an entire post about your curly hair bandana system without posting a picture is an absolute tease, right? Being a woman of a certain age who has uncontrollable locks as well… I am more than slightly interested.
    😉

    Liked by 3 people

    • L. Marie, no this man wasn’t flirting. He was more stunned than anything else. Apparently he thought his wife had been joking with him, and there I was proving that she was telling the truth.

      As for WordPress, I don’t get it. Things were going great, then this problem… again… that I we seem to deal with every few years. This ain’t my first rodeo with commenting problems.

      Liked by 1 person

  37. I love that he gave you a compliment. We’ll deserved I’m sure of it! I’m so sorry about the blog comments. You’re not the first person I’ve read who’s struggling with this. Hang in there.

    Liked by 3 people

  38. I often pile my hair on the top of my head – one of my sister’s exes told me I looked like a rooster. I’ve noticed that if you comment in the reader it works out better then visiting the site. Don’t know why.

    Liked by 3 people

    • Jan, you look like a rooster, eh? I’m smiling. Another commenter said the same thing about Reader. I don’t use Reader at all so I didn’t know that. Maybe this is a WP ploy to get more people to use Reader? All I can say is that I find the inability to comment MOST frustrating.

      Like

  39. To me, he skated very close to the edge of being overly familiar. He colored safely within the lines, but still. I was feeling your uncertainty as I read along.

    I’m noticing a few weird things lately with WP. I haven’t had problems commenting, but I’m seeing some strange doings with statistics for sure. I just hope this doesn’t extend to the writing and posting processes. – Marty

    Liked by 3 people

    • Marty, the whole bit about his sisters kind of baffled me, but I just think he’s a stream-of-consciousness guy who says whatever floats into his head. My hair style did seem to throw him.

      I haven’t been paying any attention to my stats and probably should. I remember back when I started with WP there were never any problems. It was simple, things worked fine… then someone got the idea to mess around with all the systems, upgrade them, and it’s never been the same easy breezy platform.

      Liked by 2 people

  41. I mentioned this above, but thought I’d put it here in the general comments for others to use:
    As per the WP comment/like scenario: This has been an ongoing problem for me for the past year…so I mostly comment via the WP Reader whenever I have problems with a particular blog…however, it’s nice to know I am not alone in these experiences 🙂

    Liked by 2 people

    • laura, I don’t use WP Reader, but a few other commenters have said this, too. I’m sorry this has been happening to you for so long. That sucks. It makes little sense to have a blogging platform that doesn’t accommodate comments, yet here we are. 😠

      Liked by 1 person

        • Yes, I’ve often wondered about the job title, ‘Happiness Engineers.’ Is it some kind of WP inside joke? Like let’s pretend our goal is to create happiness, but we all know it doesn’t matter if we do or not– this is just a ploy to placate the blogging masses.

          Liked by 1 person

  43. I’m envious of your curly hair treatment, or lack thereof. My hair was once curly and is now sort of curly, but SO thin that it would look awful if I just wrapped it up. This UPS guy sounds delightful.

    I haven’t been able to comment on Nicole’s blog either. I have to go back and try to relog in or something. I hope my silly comment is worth the wait.

    Liked by 4 people

    • Ernie, my hair is frizzy/curly/wavy depending on humidity. The bandana thing works best when it’s wet outside.

      I don’t know why I cannot comment on Nicole’s and many other blogs. You too, I see. It drives me bonkers because I like to comment and it seems like I should be able to do that. BUT NO!

      Like

    • Jean, we generally have nice delivery people around here and I agree with you, it’s nice when they say something uplifting.

      As for the commenting problem, I’m snarling.

      Like

  47. haha what an odd conversation.. whenever I have these with strangers I always wonder what the end goal was?? Maybe he was a lonely driver and these types of interactions are the highlight of his day? in which case, that’s nice that you met him half way and gave him a pep to his step 🙂

    P.S. I can’t reply to comments or leave comments on other blog posts on my phone because the app zooms in on the comment box and all the letters are triple the size and the send box is no longer in view… thus my replies are always days later and I am behind on reading posts unless I have time and can sit at my computer for long periods of time 🙂 which I tend to do once a week —- ugh, WordPress!

    Liked by 2 people

    • Jenn, it was not the conversation I was expecting when I walked outside to meet the man. He truly seemed astonished that I had my hair tied up like I did. Maybe he was lonely, you could be right. He’s a pleasant person.

      I stopped using my phone for blogging. I had similar problems as you describe plus I decided that by limiting my access to blogland to just my desktop computer I’d establish sane healthy boundaries. I do what I can when I’m in front of the computer then don’t worry about blogging when I’m not. Blogging [and social media] can take over your life if you let it. Just saying

      Liked by 1 person

  48. This is adorable. I’m so happy you were able to clear something up for this man, probably to great delight of his wife, provide a suggestion for him to offer his wife, and receive a compliment. I’m sorry for the heat you suffered in the process, however.

    As to the issue of comments: I have to sign in and use my password every. darn. time I leave a comment somewhere nowadays. Maddening is what it is! I saw someone saying the same thing in a comment on someone else’s blog, so I was relieved to know it’s not just me. It’s not just you either. I wonder if it’s a Mozilla thing? Like, did we miss an update somewhere? Is mozilla just going bad now? No idea, but I don’t like it. If you don’t use mozilla, then there goes that theory.

    Liked by 3 people

    • Betsy, this conversation was one of those that I was recording in the back of my mind as it happened. It was unexpected and took a unique turn when this guy complimented me.

      I get tired of signing in all the time, too. It seems counterproductive, to put it mildly. I don’t use Mozilla so I don’t know about that. I use Safari. Maybe WP doesn’t play well with both of our browsers?

      Like

    • Suzanne, I gave you a photo… of our new sidewalk. What more could you want? I just did a quick search of Mack & Rita. It looks fun, I like Diane Keaton. As for WP commenting, beats me what’s going on, but I do not like this development.

      Liked by 1 person

  50. Allie – I had to skip the other comments (I’ll go back and read them next) because I need either explicit directions on what you are doing, a link or a picture because I am baffled. I have curly hair but whenever I put my hair on top of my head (usually dry and before bed to keep it out of my face), when I remove the scrunchie all my roots are flattened out. Usually, after washing, I comb out all the knots, add product, scrunch and either air dry or put it up in a turban for a few minutes before letting it down to air dry. Inquiring minds need to know. 😉

    From what I’m hearing there are comment issues all over the place. I think some it might have something to do with browsers, some if it might have something to with both Blogger and WordPress. I know that some people can’t comment on my blog if they are using Safari; but others can. Weird. Also, all of a sudden, I have to approve every comment prior to it being published. Unless I have previously approved a comment from that person…and I don’t have approvals turned on. If I happen to get a notification that someone’s left a comment (and that’s very iffy lately) they are usually all rolled up into one email that gets added on to every time someone else comments.

    Maybe these platforms should, I don’t know, get actual blogger feedback on what works and what doesn’t?

    Liked by 3 people

    • Gigi, when I use this old-fashioned way of styling my hair it adds volume. I just pull my hair up into a top of the head ponytail [looks silly], use a bandana starting at the end of my ponytail to roll my hair into one big bun, then tie it all off on top of my head. I looked for a video, but couldn’t find one. I do the scrunch and air dry approach when there’s less humidity.

      You sound like you, too, are having all sorts of blogging difficulties. I don’t know why some systems will just stop letting you comment, or accept comments without extra moderation, or utilize the like button. I have Safari and I’ve had no difficulties commenting [yet?] on your blog.

      Yours is an excellent suggestion regarding feedback. I suspect that all blogging platforms are more interested in being state-of-the-art than being user friendly, so why bother asking the users? Just saying

      Like

  52. Ally, I’m late to the comments section and I know others have given you their feedback. I too have had instances where the comment I try to leave comes back as an error, as well as leaving likes that don’t like. When I have exited the website and gotten to the WP reader, I can then do both. Hope by now you have started to see some relief from the WP gremlins!

    Liked by 4 people

    • walkingoffthechessboard, thanks for joining in here. Your positive WordPress Reader experience is what a few other commenters have mentioned. I don’t use Reader, never taken to it, so it never occurred to me that it could be the solution. Food for thought.

      Liked by 1 person

    • That’s happening to me, too, though exiting and relogging has provided no relief. And I have more of the “sometimes” than any consistency. I even started to copy my comments into the clipboard before hitting “send” because more often than not I error out 😦 The app stopped working weeks ago. I’m at a loss. If you find a solution, please do share!

      I found the conversation with the UPS guy adorable 🙂 I’m glad you were able to contribute to his daughters! I recently saw someone post that their delivery guy found out that they have an elderly, ailing dog, so he started to leave a dog-treat on their packages when they deliver… They shared a photo. Some of these guys are amazing!

      Liked by 3 people

      • Endless Weekend, you said and I do this, too: “I even started to copy my comments into the clipboard before hitting “send” because more often than not I error out 😦”. And isn’t that super annoying?

        What a lovely story of another kind delivery person. Dog treats for an ailing doggo is a sweet gesture that seems so normal, yet such kindnesses are few and far between anymore.

        Liked by 1 person

        • More than super-annoying since I tend to remember that after my funniest comment has been lost in the ether of the “error message”, and I can only recreate a mediocre one…

          And, yes, there isn’t enough kindness anymore. I wonder why that is?

          Liked by 1 person

          • I hear ‘ya. I’ve had that happen and feel irritated with myself for forgetting what I said just a few seconds ago. Old age, it’s brutal. Kindness, however, is eternal.

            Like

  53. Enjoyed the bantering on this post. Here I thought it was just a gremlin in my computer with the comment/ like issues. Welcome back from your writing pause btw. My muse is on vacation. Have no idea when she’ll be back. It tends to happen when we get busy @ work.

    Liked by 3 people

    • DM, I agree that the commenters make this post. The inability to easily comment makes me feel like I’m doing something wrong, but I’ve come to realize that it just might be that the system is whacked, not me. Hope your muse is enjoying her time off!

      Liked by 1 person

  54. All I could think about when reading this story was a recent NYT article about how heat has been affecting UPS drivers: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/20/business/ups-postal-workers-heat-stroke-deaths.html

    Maybe he was just really hot to the point it was affecting how he communicates?

    As for the commenting, if I cared more I would get my own blog off wordpress. I’ve sort of learned which blogs I’m going to have some comment trouble with and which I’m not. What confounds the trouble for me is that I can never really remember what my WP password is, and I have two kinds of WP accounts. I’ve taken to copying comments before I hit “post comment” so that if I do have trouble, I don’t have to recreate a whole comment.

    Liked by 2 people

    • Rita, I saw that article too. It was a super hot morning, so who knows? Although he seemed with it, more amazed than ailing.

      I hear ‘ya. I don’t remember my password either, so I’ve written it on a 5″x3″ index card for fast reference. I, too, am copying all my comments before I attempt to send them. This is doable, of course, but I question why I have to do it at all. WP used to be easy breezy fun.

      Liked by 1 person

  55. Your updo sounds interesting Ally – I wish I had either curly hair or straight. Wavy is the worst, as it just goes wild in weird places and then you fight with the straightener to make it behave. Your delivery man was probably just happy for a bit of conversation. On the other hand, he may just make a viral youtube video of his kids hairdos!

    Liked by 3 people

    • Joni, I hope he does make a video of his wife putting his daughter’s hair into this style. Then I could link to it and feel like I done good in this world by sharing my bandana trick with him. Sorry about your wavy hair conundrum. I think wavy hair looks pretty but I understand what you’re saying.

      Liked by 1 person

  56. Hi, Ally – This is such a fun and well-written post. I have curly hair too, so I was smiling all of the way through. I often plop my wet hair with a t-shirt towel, or tie up my dry hair into a nighttime ‘pineapple’. But I have never done the bandana thing. Good idea!!

    Liked by 3 people

    • Donna, I do the pineapple thing, too, at night like you mention. Try wrapping your wet ponytail around a bandana, tie it up, and see what happens. If nothing else it seems to be a conversation starter! 😉

      Like

  57. Strangely enough I have not been having problems leaving comments. Not a clue in the world what that means. Those happiness engineers don’t seem to engineer much happiness. I love how you wrote up your delivery guy encounter. We get very few deliveries but they always comment on finding our place and how nice it is… unless they get lost and then they seem a bit more cranky! I (or my husband) always walk out to greet them so they don’t think we have killer dogs.

    Liked by 3 people

    • Bernie, I’m glad that someone who comments here isn’t having problems commenting on blog posts here– or anywhere. I thought it might just be me so I mentioned it and found out I’m not alone.

      I’m sure if I had ‘killer’ dogs I’d meet the delivery people every time, too. But usually I’m too busy to even notice they’re out front and they come & go without any interaction.

      Like

    • Nicki, I agree. I enjoy casual conversations, missed them during the lockdown days of the pandemic. This man is a pleasant person, who I seemed to baffle with my hairstyle.

      Like

  59. Being in the middle of one of those awkward and seemingly inescapable conversations can be funny. A couple of years ago, I walked out of a store and got stopped by someone I didn’t recognize. She looked to be my age, and my first assumption was she was the parent of one of my former students.

    “Pete, How are you? It’s been a long time.”
    “Yes,” I replied, hoping something would register about who I was talking to.
    “Are you still painting houses because we’re looking to get some bids?”
    I had a summer painting business for about 20 years, but I’d given it up about five years before. “No, I don’t do that anymore,” I said, wondering if I should confess I didn’t know who she was.
    The conversation lasted another 30 seconds, and she finally realized she had the wrong Pete. It was pretty funny.

    Liked by 3 people

  61. That’s quite the conversation. LOL – I’ll have to try that styling technique. I use hair clips for volume and leave the long strands to air dry—ringlets instead of beachy waves. I do have some bandanas…I think!? Hmm. BTW – did the shirt fit and did you like it?
    I’ve been having issues with the comments too – most of the people end up looking like ‘someone’ instead of the real gravatar names. I think WP has been attacked by upgrade-itis. I hope it gets resolved soon!

    Liked by 2 people

    • Shelley, the conversation was pleasant, but not what I thought would happen when I walked down the hot sidewalk. I do the hair clip + long strands air dry approach, too. It’s just when it’s humid and hot I like my hair off my neck. The shirt fit and is a lovely pale aqua shade that looks good on me graying-haired self.

      That’s an interesting observation about no gravatars. I’m not seeing that here… yet, I suppose. I agree that WP is having one of its bouts with upgrade-itis, a wonderful term btw.

      Like

      • It was a blogworthy conversation and the added bonus of giving us curly-gray-haired ladies something new to try with our hair. I immediately wondered…what about the frizz factor in the humidity?! The bandana coverage would definitely help with that for my hair.
        Yay – glad to hear the shirt worked out well too. I just bought an aqua colored shirt too – I love it. It’s fun to find colors that we enjoy wearing.
        Glad you’re not wondering who is commenting on your post. I’m hopeful the cure for whatever is going on appears sooner rather than later. 😊

        Like

  63. Hmm. My curly gray hair is getting thinner and thinner. I wonder if your bandana technique would give it a little volume to fake thicker hair. But I’m not sure I understand how you wrap the bandana around your hair. I mostly just scrunch my damp hair as it dries and hope for the best.

    Liked by 2 people

  64. (Great sidewalk. Annoying WP with the commenting issues – ditto situation)
    I have straight hair and have always tied it up off neck out of the way to damp dry trying to get some volume out of it when I take it down. Easier than messing with curlers ( or orange juice cans – in ancient time those were used to straighten hair and avoid flatness – fluffy and breezy was in)
    What a great story. Laughed all the way through as you told it so well.

    Liked by 2 people

    • philmouse, thanks for noticing our wonderful new sidewalk. We contracted last November to have it made– and the finished product was in August. One must have patience when one improves one’s home. 😏

      As for the conversation with the UPS delivery man, it was one of those out of the blue conversations I find myself in. It made me smile, but talk about unexpected.

      Like

  72. I’ve been having all kinds of issues with WordPress in Firefox, my browser of choice for many years. Heck, with Firefox, it won’t even recognize that I’m logged in to my own blog! I, very reluctantly, use Edge for WP reading and commenting now, as the bugs don’t seem to be present there… though there are still issues with commenting on blogs that are independently hosted (those ones you don’t have that nifty bar at the top with notifications and such when you visit)…

    Liked by 2 people

  74. Handsome or not, I don’t think I’d like to be his wife. He didn’t believe her when she told him this was normal way to style curly hair until he saw you had done it? Ha! I think that kind of attitude could get a bit old, day in and day out. But on the upside, a compliment is always a good thing!

    Liked by 1 person

    • Ann, I get what you’re saying. I’m glad I confirmed that his wife was right, but question why there was a need to do so. Still, I’m vain enough to take a compliment when I get one. Call me shallow.

      Like

  75. What a delightful conversation, and I’m impressed that you made such an entertaining post out of it. My husband made friends with our last UPS driver, so much so that when we were having yard work done while we happened to be out of town (brave or foolish, I’m not sure), the UPS driver stopped by to make sure they were being careful around the sprinklers and sent Larry a text update of the progress. Perhaps we are ordering too many packages…

    Liked by 2 people

    • Christie, it like your story. It’s nice that the UPS driver took an interest in your yard work to the degree that he did. I know all delivery people are busy, but occasionally a few seem more personable than harried. Sounds like you’re ordering just the right amount of packages.

      Like

  76. Ah, the WordPress gremlins are leaving me alone at the moment. They seem to jump around to different bloggers randomly. I guess now is your turn. Sorry – that stinks. As for the hair, I’m going to have to request a picture. I have curly hair and I have never heard of dealing with it this way… I know you don’t put your pic on the blog, but maybe from the back? Or maybe you could just clarify – does the bandana go just around the tied hair on the top of your head, or around all the hair? I may have to try this tomorrow.

    Liked by 2 people

    • The Travel Architect, yes, the WP gremlins are random, irrational little creatures.

      As for how you do this, pull your wet hair up on top of your head to make a *pineapple* ponytail, use an elastic to hold the ponytail in place. Then using a thinly folded bandana [or long cotton rag] roll your hair around the fabric starting at the end of your ponytail. You roll your hair around the fabric toward your head and eventually you’ll have a bun, a topknot, on your head. Use the ends of the fabric to tie the bun in place. You’ll look goofy, but it does allow your hair to dry [slowly] and form curls. I looked for a video, because I know I’ve seen one, but couldn’t find it. Back in the day this was known as making rag curls.

      Liked by 1 person

  78. Ally, you gave the UPS guy a revelation for sure. I always wanted my mom’s dark, curly hair and instead I got my father’s dishwater blonde, straight hair. He was balding even when I was a child and after my teens I grew my hair to shoulder length, just cutting it once in a shorter layered cut, (a decision I regretted and immediately decided to grow it back). My father asked me to cut my hair so he could have it made into a toupee – I said “no way” and my mother told him it was a stupid idea. He went and got a toupee anyway and it looked like a furry animal on his head. My mom refused to go out of the house when he wore it, so it sat in the drawer as he didn’t wear it to work. 🙂

    I am also having issues leaving comments. I either have to log on with WP credentials and still end up posting as “Anonymous” or a profile pic is just a ghosted image. WP being wonky. I wonder if anyone told WP or just assumed others did because it’s been buggy for a few weeks now?

    Liked by 2 people

    • Linda, using your hair to make a toupee? Oh that’s like a SNL skit come to life. I’m glad your mom intervened. I also understand why your mother didn’t want to be seen with your dad when he wore his toupee. Gracious

      I have’t approached the Happiness Engineers about the commenting problem, but I imagine someone has. I’m just waiting the problem out, as often these things rectify themselves as mysteriously as they appear. Who knows?

      Liked by 1 person

      • It was SNL-worthy for sure Ally. The toupee didn’t match his hair color so it was quite a sight to see. My mom was pretty headstrong about things – this was one of them. I would think some of their Happiness Engineers might well be bloggers and discovered the problem already … or maybe not since it has lingered over several weeks’ time.

        Liked by 1 person

  80. But hey. For all our complaints about WordPress’s imperfections, it’s still where all the loveliest, kindest, friendliest people hang out and safely comment on each other’s posts. For proof, look no further than this sea of comments.

    Liked by 2 people

  82. Love your post – and not just because we share hair styles! Thanks for the giggle. Bandanas, head bands – I love days when you can pull it all up in a poof and your storytelling about the exchange with the UPS driver was marvelous! 😉

    Liked by 2 people

  83. I loved hearing about your conversation with the delivery guy. I wasn’t sure at first where he was coming from — but I could picture a lightbulb moment on his head! LOL

    I need to search for a video because try as I might, I couldn’t quite picture how you’d put on the bandana…and I’m very curious!

    Liked by 2 people

    • M, the conversation was off the wall, but ended up being cordial. Nice guy who was observant, I’ll give him that.

      If you look above you in the comments under The Travel Architect I added a video. It’s not quite how I do the bandana thing, but it gives you an idea of how rag curls work.

      Like

      • The delivery guys always seem to be in a hurry so it’s cool to see they are able to chat a bit sometimes. Our UPS guy has been leaving a treat for my dog, a doggy biscuit on top of the package. Your explanation to The Travel Architect gave me a good idea of how you do it. I saw the video you linked. Funny, the first part of the video where she takes the top half of her hair and twists it and clips on top of her head — that’s how I’ve been putting my hair up. And it does leave it wavy when I do it with my hair damp.

        Liked by 1 person

        • I like knowing your UPS guy leaves a doggy biscuit with your packages. That’s sweet. The video shows the idea of how to use fabric to make curls, and after that you’re on your own. It’s one of those whatever works, works situations.

          Like

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