For those of you who do not know me....a simple google search of Maryee Sisterlocks and then click on Images should answer some questions.  I'm back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This was year 4...2007.

Have you heard of Gerrylocks? Thinning Sisterlocks

I stumbled upon Gerrylocks, who has Sisterlocks and is a consultant. 

I wish I would have kept my locks.  I did mail some of my locks to a SL friend a few years back who had thinning areas.  Not sure if it matched.  I guess on this second go around, since my back grows so fast, long and thick, I will be be "keeping" any extras...just in case.  What do you guys think of the Gerrylock cranial prosthetic and hairline integration piece? I'm sure I would have done this had I known.  But then again, I did run upon this website a few years back, but couldn't find anyone locally who was creative and willing to give it a try.  I love Sisterlock consultants like Gerry who are innovative.  If Gerry is your consultant, please share my page with her.  I already reached out to her and really want more than ME being blessed enough to get their crown back. 

Remember, if you are just starting to have thinning hair problems, I say get the Uturn and give it a try.  I believe the company have a money back guarantee, so look into that if you chose to order the product.  If the top and edges are your issue, focus on that only, take good before pictures, eat right, watch your stress levels, and if you are not taking all natural supplements, definitely get with me.  I can help you!!  If you order it, I'm not worrying or wondering if you will be faithful.  NO ONE wants to have  hair missing on top...male or female. #realtalk

Where do I begin???

Pamela Bishop You are re - locking Mary?? I have been thinking about it also!!

19 minutes ago via mobile · Like

Mary Evans Yes Pamela! If you remember, my hair started thinning out on the crown years back and only got worse last year when I was at that stressful teaching job. Well, I went to the famous dermatologist in Dallas, Dr. Blackburn, http://www.drraymondblackburn.yourmd.com/ He was sweet as pie, but told me I had too much damage from scare tissue and that my hair would not grow back. He gave me his "famous" salve and steroids shots in some places. I was religious in putting it on with little to no improvement. I changed my eating habits when I started taking all natural supplements and believe that helped some, but still, lots of scalp remained. Well, the health and wellness/weight loss company I am an associate for came out with this product that is "food for the skin" a couple of months ago. I started using it and it has a began growing my hair back! Like a miracle!! Shirley Williams, I will inbox you and Pamela my before and afters. They claimed it would work wonders for skin, like fine lines, wrinkles and acne, but scalp regeneration, too! Praise the Lord!!!

It's been a long time...

I moved to the Dallas area to teach....A lot has gone on since my last post...hopefully when the dust settles, I'll so a super duper update...thanks for following and hanging in there with me.

Maryee

Happy Locversary to me! I got my locks cut....but not off

Today my babies turned 7 yrs old.  Who would have thunk it?  I go back to work tomorrow, so I'll have to add videos, pics and major updates to this post before the week is up.  Check back. Blessings...

1st Amendment Standup - Black Churches - Gary Owen

Insanely funny!

This puppy's got jokes

Mama Always Be Teaching

This has been the year from hell, in many ways than one.  I haven't had so much drama around me in all my 39 yrs on this earth. 

I wrote Mama Always Be Teaching three years ago.  Now we have found out perhaps what the problem is.

What do you do when a loved one doesn't believe anything is wrong and is not willing to seek help?  Please pray for our family.  We need it.

Lockitup - Lots of Emails coming into your inbox or cell phone?

I've had this happen to me and on occasion, I'll have someone email me asking me to discontinue their relationship with the LHBE because of the insane amounts of emails they get in their inbox or cell phone.  The problem with that request is, the emails are not coming from the LHBE.

I think a lot of times when folks start researching natural hair, and especially Sisterlocks, they are directed to either lockitup, which I often refer folks to, or the the Locked Hair Blog Exchange.  The main difference between the two is, the LHBE is not interactive, per se.  There's not a lot of back and forth posting and multiple posts about folks updates and hair issues and the such.  Lockitup, on the other hand is par for the course. 

Here's my recent response to a sister who wanted to make the emails flooding her blackberry go away:

They are not coming from the LHBE, but rather lockitup.  That's the yahoo group you must have signed up for around the same time you became a member of the LHBE.  I'm a member of  lockitup and used to get all those emails as well. 

In order to reduce/eliminate all the emails, all you have to do is go into your yahoo account and click on "groups".  From there click on lockitup.  Then click on edit membership, where it has the title of the group and your email address.  There, you scroll down to step 2 and choose your message delivery.  I chose "special notices" because those daily emails drop from 30 to 0, and one every blue moon.  HTH.

Just know the emails are not from the LHBE, but lockitup.  If you have any other trouble, email me back. 

Blessings,

Maryee

Where are all the Black Locked People at?

Over the years while I have maintained the Locked Hair Blog Exchange, I've often checked out my stat counter map of visitors. For the longest I couldn't understand why the visitors weren't more evenly distributed across the nation. Finally today I figured it all out. The first picture below shows the visitors from America, Europe and Africa.  You can see clearly that the East Coast and Europe are heavy with visitors.

 

When you get a closeup of the US, you'll have a better glimpse of the breakdown.  I kept saying, "Do no people of color have locks in other regions of the US?"  

Then, I googled African American population in the United States and this is what I came up with.



Well, I guess it all makes sense now. I am sure in the states where the population of African Americans is sparse, they may be some locked brothers and sisters, but the East Coast and South/South East Coastal states dominate.  When I visited the DC-Maryland area in 2007 it was a love fest seeing all the locked brothers and sisters.  The more we blog about it, vlog and document it pictorially, the more ubiquitous it will become. 

It felt like a year, but was only about a minute

I think anyone who has never experienced an earthquake can truly imagine or understand what goes on in your mind while it is happening.  Most of us within the past week and a half have had more shocking footage fed to us with the help of technology through news and internet social media sites than ever before.  In some cases, it is inconsolable.

When I lived in Southern California from 2002-2005, I experienced a light 4.8 M earthquake September 3, 2002, but nonetheless, an earthquake.  I was living in Irvine with a family who rented me a room for $500 a month.  My bedroom was upstairs facing the street.  I remember it like it was yesterday.  I was sitting at my computer hutch and it was about midnight.  Not sure what I was doing up that night.  But I was up, on line surfing the net.

I actually heard it before I felt it. The walls grumbled.  Almost like someone was drag racing outside.  Before I knew it, my bedroom began to waggle.  I sat there thinking, "OK, the house is rocking from side to side.  I'm in an earthquake".  I became immobilized, eyes fixed on my monitor, in a complete daze.  I couldn't move.  It felt like eternity, thoughts flashing through my mind that if the earth split its belly open, I might get swallowed up.  Before I knew it, the house ceased moving, however, my computer monitor was still rocking back and forth.  It creaked.  I stared into the screen, but looked into nothingness.  I was jolted back into reality, grabbing the monitor so it would stop.  I doubt I was even breathing during the entire episode.  How could one think to breath with the thought of potential imminent death ensuing?  

My earthquake experience was nothing compared to that which happened about 5pm Tuesday January 12, 2010.  Not many people in this generation will ever forget that day.  I know I wont.  Trying to pull away from the "train wreck" and see something positive, I stumbled upon a CNN IReporter's behind the scence footage at JKF capturing the return of Americans on a flight from Miami to New York.  Her name is TonyaTko. 
The video is a bit long, but shares a variety of testimonies from the folks as they arrived back to New York.  I think I've seen a video or two of hers on youtube.  Be encouraged, be inspired, be filled with hope, but please know there is plenty work to be done.  Plenty. I gave $50 to the Red Cross last week.  I don't think this will be my last time giving.  Just gotta space it out.  If you can give, if only $5+, a week, a pay check, a month, please do. You can give to the Bush/Clinton Help For Haiti Fund or the Red Cross.

And she pleaded, Don't Cut Your Hair

My Sisterlocks are well known at my school, more amongst the students than the teachers.  In class, I get to educate the students about my hair, natural hair, types of locks, and especially the care and maintenance.  Boys and girls alike of all races ask lots of questions.

We had picture re-takes this past Thursday and on Monday night, I called myself shampooing, oiling (this Texas weather is crazy) and bantuing my locks to have a nice snazzy style for my pics and to have a good 6yr photo.  Well, I got tired/lazy and only bantu'd the front.  I didn't take a picture of what it looked like, because my camera is dead, but the kids immediately noticed the curls up front.  As usual, my AA boys and girls, mostly, "Ms. E., your I like your hair!"  They love, love, love, when I curl my locks or do something different other than free style.  I don't blame em.  I guess looking at me could get a little boring day after day with little or no changes other than wardrobe.

Two of my female students walked by looking in amazement commented how different my locks looked.  I swear, only the front 4 inches back were curly.  The back was pulled up into a pony tail, that oddly looked awfully long down my back that day.  One said, "Would you cut off your locks?"   I said, "I've thought about it and I might."  The other jumped in, "Don't cut off your hair!  They're so long!"  This one rarely talks, but had something to say about my pondering of cutting my locks.  Mind you both girls have perms, which they actually keep up and pulled back in ponys nicely.

But, there's something about long hair.  And I think as well, there's something about knowing that the long hair a black girl/woman sees as real, meaning that person's hair, is amazing.  I'm not going to lie, when I look at pictures of my locks or see the back in the mirror, I am truly amazed.  You have to  understand, I've had hair care drama my ENTIRE life.  Even before I knew what hair meant to me as a little black girl, I found out the hard way.

If you see how my hair looked straight, or with a bald fade, or with my Q-Braid extensions, you'd know it's been a journey.  From Day # 1 with my Sisterlocks to today, has been quite a journey.  So those of you who have daughters, neices, cousins, friends, don't preach, just model before them the love you have for your locks and having natural hair.  Show them you can be sexy, confident, educated, accomplished, and beautiful with your hair in its natural state.  And even if I decide to cut my locks one day, I do have the confidence to know it will indeed grow back as long as I want it to.

Those of you who teach or are around young children, especially girls, what has been your experience with them and your locks?  Please share.

Celebrating 6 yrs Sisterlocked!

I just wanted to make my last post of 2009!  I celebrated 6 yrs Sisterlocked 11-28-09, Thanksgiving weekend.  It's been such a blessing learning so much about myself, my hair and my fellow locked friends around the world.  You've made this journey a special one.  Here's a picture of Jen and I with our extended Houston brother and sister Tim and Jackie. We brought in 2010 with them and had a blast! The other pics are of my god daughter, Kalee and her grandmother, Mrs. Butler on Christmas. She's 88 years young and is "yet holdin' on". We love them so much! True gifts from God.  Happy New Year!