At least where I live long hair is very common!

[ericthegreat]

Earlier tonight, I was at the subway station waiting for the train to take me home. The bench I was sitting on had two women who both had long hair. The woman sitting behind me had long dark hair pulled up into a high ponytail, and the woman right next to me had a buttery blonde mane that she wore loose and down past bra strap length. Actually, every day on the train and especially as I head into the city for lunch and some shopping, I will see many women both young and older and also many young girls with at hair that is at least longer than APL. And just last night I was in Chinatown having dinner and there was a couple sitting at the table in front of me. The girlfriend had a beautifully highlighted waist length mane. As they were on a date I didn't want to disturb their evening. But I have to say, she had very beautiful hair, both in terms of color and the length and thickness. I'm glad I happened to be seated at the table right behind them.

[Shiva]

In NYC everything is common, lol.

I really miss NYC, but I am only a 2 and a half hour drive away.

[Quixii]

Yeah, I realized that where I live, a majority of people (well, women) I see have between shoulder length and BSL. That's why it still surprises me when people tell me I have "really" long hair.

[halo_tightens]

I wouldn't say that it's "very" common in Southern Illinois, but it's certainly not UNcommon at all! Just at the hospital where I work there are several ladies with hair that's at least BSL. There are even a few of what I consider super-longs in my tiny town, wearing braids or loose hair that's classic and beyond. There's inspiration all around me!

And loads of jealousy on my part til I start to catch up... :rolleyes:

[Yayasmurf]

Long hair is not very common in my town. I was in the grocery a few days ago and noticed a buggy out of the corner of my eye. I thought I was in someones way so I said excuse me and tried to move my buggy. She smiled and said you're not in my way I just wanted to tell you how awesome your hair is. :)

A day later an older gentleman stopped me to say I had lovely hair and he wished more women would let their hair grow. I said thank you.. he was very kind. It really made my day.:)

[RavennaNight]

Yeah, pretty common here too. But we are almost neighbors! I often read threads about being the odd one out because of really long hair and honestly get :confused:. It is just so very common out here, many girls have waist length hair. There are guys with MBL hair floating around. BSL-TB is common for women.

But then I travel, see and understand. It is in fact very regional. In Akron OH, I felt like I had really long hair comparatively. Most girls were at most shoulder-APL. There were a few guys with long hair, but not the norm. So it very much has to do with where you are.

[Eniratak]

I actually have been made fun of because of my hair. XD. So, it's really not that common down here.
However, I know quite a few people who live about forty-five minutes from me that have long hair, but that's because it has to deal with their religion, so.

[Arctic_Mama]

It's certainly more common to see virgin, healthy long hair here in Alaska than it was back where I grew up (Southern California), and I think it's due to a number of factors. But yeah, BSL to Hip length can be spotted easily enough if you're downtown, especially.

[yellowchariot]

It is somewhat common down here in the NE Tennessee and SW Virginia areas to see past BSL length hair. Which I think is great! Its most common with women in their mid to late 30's, though the younger ladies (18-20's) have neck to shoulder length hair.

[mira-chan]

Yeah, pretty common here too. But we are almost neighbors! I often read threads about being the odd one out because of really long hair and honestly get :confused:. It is just so very common out here, many girls have waist length hair. There are guys with MBL hair floating around. BSL-TB is common for women.

But then I travel, see and understand. It is in fact very regional. In Akron OH, I felt like I had really long hair comparatively. Most girls were at most shoulder-APL. There were a few guys with long hair, but not the norm. So it very much has to do with where you are.
Same experience here (another neighbor :D). I work in a college too so that's another area where longer hair is more common. There are 2 other longer than classic length people just in my department, not to mention the students.

[ericthegreat]

Is there something about NYC in particular or simply any major international city that encourages its citizens to grow longer hair I wonder?

But then again, yellowchariot and halo tightens hail from modest communities as well so again I wonder, what effect if any does living in a particular place have on people who intend to grow their hair longer? Does a certain atmosphere attract more long hair friendliness?

[Anje]

Long hair's quite common around here, too. BSL is quite normal, but I see hip and tailbone quite frequently, some in better condition than others. Meanwhile, at school I know a woman with classic and another with fingertip length (often worn down!) is on my floor.

Makes me feel a bit competitive, but I don't have the genes to compete with a lot of what I see around! (Especially the woman with the knee-length braid who worked at academic computing last time I was there!)

[camirra555]

I see a fair amount of waist to classic when I'm out and about. Usually it's on asian or south asian women. I'm always tugging on my boyfriend and saying "look at her hair!"

[MemSahib]

Another twist is our area. Yes, there is long hair but almost exclusively on Pentecostal women or women who are in a less wealthy economic bracket. If they have money, they cut, color and strip the life out of it.

[SallyLopez]

I was thrilled to see lots of gorgeous long hair when I started going to a Spanish-speaking church with my husband (then boyfriend). We went to midweek evening services and many of the women would come with freshly washed waist-length hair, sometimes set with a headband or flower or clip, and always beautifully maintained. One family who regularly sat in front of us made me drool with envy because the mother and her two teen daughters all had this lustrous, wavy, incredibly shiny black hair with perfect ends. Later the younger daughter cut hers to shoulder-length and everybody was appalled (I think she wanted to make a "I'm not my sister" statement). Her father told her only lazy girls cut off their hair.

My favorite picture of my mother-in-law shows her bathing (in her bra and slip, which is so cute) in the middle of the river by my husband's family home in Mexico. Her lovely red-brown hair is cascading all around her shoulders and down to her waist, and she looks SO YOUNG! She's 49, but she could probably pass for ten years younger. To tell the truth, most Latina women I've met look very youthful. The hair helps, I think. I'm so glad my husband loves my long hair and is very encouraging to me about growing it longer.

[JamieLeigh]

In North Alabama, it's about 50/50. I usually see several waist to hip length people every time I go to Walmart. Men and women alike. Sometimes the hair is well-taken-care-of, but lots of times it's on people who, like MemSahib pointed out, are obviously in economic stress, and who don't really appear to care what their hair looks like.

Occasionally I will see someone with my length or longer, but it's rare. Usually the ones here with near knee length or ankle are the ladies who belong to the Pentacostal and Apostolic churches here.

[Babyfine]

Long hair(beyond) BSL is not very common here at all.(small town midwest)I myself have been described as having very long hair-and my hair is only to BSL!!
It is now a few inches longer than my avatar pic. Not long by LHC standards(or even my own standards) at all! But to people here, it's "long".
I need to get a new pic up. Plus at my age, it's even rarer to have long hair here.

[Heidi_234]

So common where I live, when I joined LHC I was one of the shorter haired people out there. Within my group age most of the girls have APL/BSL hair, waist is very very common, and hip is frequent length as well. Beyond that it's already quite rare - I saw a few with classic length (for some reason half of them were redheads, I wonder why it is so) and one mother with knee length hair. That was an amazing sight. :thud:
Now on the longer side of the spectrum. :D

[mira-chan]

Is there something about NYC in particular or simply any major international city that encourages its citizens to grow longer hair I wonder?

But then again, yellowchariot and halo tightens hail from modest communities as well so again I wonder, what effect if any does living in a particular place have on people who intend to grow their hair longer? Does a certain atmosphere attract more long hair friendliness?
I think it's both how international it is and that people conform less in general, less pressure to. It's not common to talk to strangers so they don't get to voice their opinions on hair length (outfit, etc.) thus less pressure. It's not exactly encouraged but not discouraged either. It's just no one mentions it in general.