When my Sisterlocks were installed July 2016, people would ask, “How many Sisterlocks do you have?” They always seemed shocked because I didn’t know. While I was thrilled to finally throw away my combs, picks, and brushes, my first consultant did not count my locs, and I did not care how many there were…I was just glad to have them. I read so many posts on social media with newly-loc’ed sistas sharing “the magic number.” Although I never took the time to count my own locs, I have, however, wondered over the years just how many Sisterlocks are on my head.

Years one and two certainly never found me curious enough to actually sit down and count my Sisterlocs. After all, why does it matter? Interestingly, if your hair isn’t an ever-present concern, one of the many joys of aging is the inevitable insomnia that you will encounter. What, exactly, do you do when you can’t sleep? As a menopausal black woman, I’ve decided that hormone therapy is not for me, and I’m not ashamed to admit that I’ve experimented with several homeopathic remedies to help control some of the side effects of menopause. One thing is true: a bedside fan is a must, and I try to carry a decorative hand fan in my bag just in case a hot flash hits me. I’m not the biggest fan of soy, but I found some relief with black cohosh, and most recently, transitioning to a plant-based diet. I’m convinced that eating plants will, ultimately, provide other health benefits. I’m putting all my eggs on the recent change in my diet and taking it one day at a time as far as the nutrients and foods I consume. Despite my best efforts to get the proper amount of rest, I still end up at 2:00 or 3:00 am, at least once a week, staring at the ceiling.

When I have these bouts of insomnia, I usually read The Word, pull out my computer to get some work done, watch tv, or surf social media to catch up on all I missed during the previous week. My husband travels for his work, and when the insomnia rears its head in his absence, I take it in stride because, as a school administrator, there’s always something that I can do until I fall back into a deep sleep. Tonight, well this morning, happens to be my next retightening, and I find myself wide awake three hours before my alarm is set to awaken me to shampoo my locs and make my way to my consultant.

Instead of doing the usual, I decide, “Hey, Andi! Let’s count the Sisterlocks!”

Nothing fancy for the count…no pomp and circumstance. I crawled out of bed, grabbed a bunch of ponytail holders on my way to the bathroom, closed the door so I wouldn’t wake up My Frank, and began to grab locs, counting one by one, bundling and banding handfuls of 50 locs at a time. Around 250, your girl had a bit of fatigue…not just from counting over and over again, but the way my chubby arms are set up… You get the point. 😜

So, what’s the magic number? After three years and one month of having a head full of locs, I’m proud to announce that the magic number is 380. Yes, I am crowned with three hundred eighty Sisterlocks.

Now that I know that my consultant touches 380 locs every six weeks for my retis, I’m truly in awe. 😍

Here are a few pictures from today’s retightening:

Before the Reti

After the Reti

My Sisterlocks are getting longer every single reti. All 380 of them!

Until next time,

Andi D😘