color talk

me and my purple mug

for over 2 years, i lived with two different people who had a strong aversion to the color purple. no, not the alice walker novel, but just the color, purple. during this time, i went out of my way to avoid bringing home items that were of a purple hue because i didn't want to offend anyone. 

I realized not soon after my second purple-hater housemate moved to San Francisco that i actually really like the color purple. for example, at this moment, i have some chamomile/oatstraw/skullcap tea steeping in a purple mug. I have had this mug since my freshman year of college. my mom bought it for me at cost plus world market in santa cruz, a day or two before she headed back to the midwest, leaving me to my own devices, armed with such essential items as a faux leatherman from target, many cans of soup and this very purple mug. i have dropped this mug at least once or twice, and it has survived. i like its texture (smooth) and its shape (oval).

Directly behind my purple tea mug is my purple Sigg water bottle. My friend Ayla once referred to it as my 'lesbian chalice'. I have had it for about a year now, and it has all sorts of dings, dents and paint scrapes on it. 

I also have a purple quilt on my bed. My mom made this quilt for me as a birthday present the year after I graduated from college. She is one of those people who claims she isn't that creative or crafty, and then busts out a handmade quilt.

I do not consider myself to be one of those people that has an obsession with a certain color or theme. But i wonder how often that stuff just happens on accident. you know, when you were little you really liked frogs and now, 20 years later, your family still gets you frog stuff for your birthday. that happened to my friend with hello kitty. 

I guess I did have a long term quasi-monogamous love affair with the color blue. we still see each other from time to time but we have definitely opened up our relationship. 

moving on to another color that people have strong feelings about, pink. my friend Naomi cut my hair yesterday and i decided i wanted a lil' added flair to it. luckily there was a container of manic panic hot hot pink hair dye that someone had left behind. pink is a color i have always appreciated, in small doses. i don't know if i have ever actually dyed my hair using manic panic before. i know that in high school i wanted to dye my hair blue, coincidentally right after my friend Sara dyed hers green, but it never happened.

 i did dye my hair dark red/magenta during the summer after my freshman year of high school.

i went up to Minnesota to visit my friend Erin. she said she would help me dye my hair. so we got stoned and mixed up the dye. she handed me the bowl, said 'here you go, have fun,' and walked over to the couch and turned on the television. i didn't really know what to say. i just went into the bathroom and did the best i could. my hair was still red for school pictures the following September.