Change in Hair: Cut the Mullet

I shaved my head when I graduated from college in 2008. It was liberating being hairless and finished with my undergraduate degree. No more exams and no more shampoo and conditioner for the time being.

I told myself I wouldn’t cut my hair again until something significant happened in my life. I decided to wait until I was debt free after paying off my student loans. I made my last payment on my student loans a couple of weeks ago and scheduled a haircut shortly thereafter.

For the great majority of my life, my mom has cut my hair. I’ve only been to a salon or barbershop about 10 times in my life. My aunt, my friends, or myself would cut my hair sometimes, but for the most part it was my mom. She’s given me a variety of haircuts including a shaved head, bowl cut, flat top, mullet, mohawk, and even lightning bolts shaved into the side of my head.

It’s been 21 months since my last cut and I was fond of the mass of hair I grew. I wasn’t totally ready to part with it so I made the perfect compromise: I got a mullet!

This rad mullet was cut by my friend Faye. I went to her because she had experience. She previously cut a mullet for my friend Danny who needed the hairstyle for his character Ben in the indie film Art House. Originally, I didn’t expect to like the style so much… but I’ve been rocking it for a week and half now and I love it- unfortunately to the dismay of my girlfriend Kelly.

Thanks Faye!

Honestly, I have a new fondness for the mullet. After the 80s passed in the U.S., the mullet generally passed as white trash. It seems more passable in European countries…  However, there are several variations, lengths, and modifications of the mullet that blurs its line of hip and horrendous. I feel mine falls in the middle of that spectrum…

It’s been a great conversation starter to say the least. The night I got it cut, I scored 2 high-fives within the first 30 seconds of entering a bar. I talked with one guy for a while. He made a bet with a girl that I was some guy who has been growing out his hair for a long time and got a mullet as a transitional hair cut. Right he was… at that time. However, the more I rock it, the more I think I’m gonna keep it. The guy then told me he shaved a hideous mustache right before a job interview and still got the job. He shaved the mustache off before his first day of work to the surprise of his employer who later confessed that he was confident in his skills but worried about his ugly mustache… But, he hired him anyway. And that’s the kind of people I want to continue to meet: the ones who pass off quick judgments to discover what someone is about. The people who will high-five and shoot the shit with a random person like me, sporting an awfully awesome mullet.

If anyone else out there decides to make the adventurous leap towards a mullet, contact Faye. She is building her mullet resume!

And now for a little pop culture of memorable mullets…

Don't tell me you never faked being sick in the early 90s so you could skip school and catch AC Slater's mullet in Save by the Bell.

This mullet made you hate Billy Ray Cyrus' music even more...

You could always count on Uncle Jesse's mullet to give you advice in Full House.

Remember when this kid got beat up and the principal said it was his fault for having such an awful mullet?

In this magazine ad, Mini takes a condescending attitude towards the mullet saying, "If we made the Mini any cheaper, he'd be able to afford it.  Don't make us do it."

What are you trying to say with this ad Mini?  Come on!  Are you suggesting that the mullet correlates to a certain socio-economic class?  One that you hope cannot afford your stupid car...?  Whatever.

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And who can forget the contemporary hip mullets of the indie pop duo Tegan and Sara? Their mullets are as catchy as their tunes.

And last but not least, it's a good time to recognize Wesley Willis and his smash hit single, Cut the Mullet.  RIP man.