I have a “Mane Squeeze” membership to the Blo Dry Bar. In addition to scheduling appointments with my regular hairstylist, I schedule visits twice a month to have my hair shampooed and blown out into various styles at the Blo Dry Bar. The Red Carpet (smooth throughout, with some bounce on the ends) is my favorite.

During my pre-teen and teenaged years, this membership would have been a dream come true.

My hair has been a problem for as long as I can remember. Because I was born with a full head of dark brown hair, all childhood pictures of me show a round face surrounded with a fuzzy cloud of unkempt locks. It wasn’t for lack of trying on my mom’s part. She combed and styled to the best of her ability; but my thick, coarse hair sprang out of ponytail holders, thwarted the taming of the banana clip, resisted braids, and warped hair bands.

By the time I was in middle school, my mom and grandmother drew straws to see who would be unlucky enough to take me to the hairstylist, a trip that always ended in tears. If the stylist cut my hair too short, it looked as if I were wearing a thick brown helmet; if left too long, it was unmanageable. Blunt cuts turned into blobs. Bangs were out of the question because they created an unruly series of bumps and rolls across my forehead. My hair wasn’t curly enough to wear in natural loops; and it certainly was never straight or smooth.

Finally, in my mid-thirties, I found a hairstylist who was practically a miracle worker. She managed to find a cut, style, and color that suited me. This meant that for exactly 48 hours every six-to-eight weeks, my hair would look and feel good. After that, it was back to its rebellious ways.

Over the years, I’ve purchased beach wavers, flat irons, smoothing creams, satin pillow cases, leave-in treatments, and conditioning bombs. I was a true believer in one brand until I discovered there was a class-action lawsuit against it. Apparently, the product made hair smoother while also making it fall right out!

When the Blo Dry Bar opened in my town a few years ago, I signed up immediately. Now, my hair looks nice for 48 hours after my regular stylist appointment and for about 72 hours after each of my two blowouts. For 192 hours a month, I’m happy with my hair. The rest of the time, it’s still game on; me versus my hair every morning.

Recently, the Blo Bar hired several new blow-out specialists. While chatting with one of the new stylists as she wrestled my hair into compliance, I had an interesting thought. What if one of these wonderful stylists happened to be single, and what if I introduced her to my 24-year-old son who is also single? What if they fell in love and ended up together forever? I would have a Blo Dry Bar specialist in my family…ready access to someone who could transform my hair on a more frequent basis. My son and his new love could live in our finished basement where she could just pop up in the morning and make my hair a thing of beauty. Even as I dared to dream, I knew my plan would never work. I’ve dabbled in matchmaking before; and my husband has warned me never to try it again (a slice for a different day).

For now, I suppose I will just have to settle for 8 good hair days a month. It’s better than none.