Throughout most of my childhood and high school career, I had long, thick, wavy hair. Mermaid hair. There was so much of it, I rarely knew what to do with it. I kept it in a precarious bun on top of my head most of the time. To straighten or curl it would be an hours-long endeavor that I was never up for. Truth be told, the long hair that so many of my friends and girls my age wanted was heavy, stubborn, and overall an annoyance that I complained about every day....

...so I chopped it all off.

And here, for all the world, are the top questions and comments I have received over this year-long journey through the world of pixie haircuts.

1. "What made you decide to cut it?"
The honest answer: boredom and irritation. I was never good at styling it when it was long. It was thick, so I could never achieve the silky smooth straightened look that was so popular when I was in high school. I asked my sister one day if I would look good with short hair, and she said, "There's only one way to find out."

2. "I could never pull that off."
Incorrect! You totally and completely can, if you decide that you like it. It's like when women's magazines tell me that women who are shorter than 5'3" can't wear maxi skirts - I do, often, and I love them. Confidence is key to "pulling off" anything. "Pulling it off" is a myth. People like my hair because I like my hair. That's all there is to it.

3. (insert somewhat offensive joke/comment about my sexuality)
Not only is it true that not all lesbians have short hair, not all women with short hair are lesbians! Amazing. It's almost as though stereotypes aren't always true! What a revelation.

4. "Did you cry when they cut it?"
I asked for this haircut. I asked them to put 15 inches of it into a ponytail and then cut it all off. So I kind of knew what I was getting into. I like change.

5. "What's your favorite part about having short hair?"

• I can get ready for almost any event in under 30 minutes.
• I don't have to spend as much money on hair ties or curling irons or straighteners or product of any kind (although I do have to get it cut much more often).
• My head feels about 5 pounds lighter than it used to. I cannot emphasize this enough - my hair is very thick.
• I've become much more comfortable with myself. I'm not hiding behind my hair like I used to. I used it to cover my face or my acne or my ears, kind of like a security blanket. But now, I'm totally uninhibited. Short hair fits my personality better. It almost felt like I was playing dress-up, playing this character of a girl with long hair for a very long time.

I think Emma Watson said it best: "The majority of the boys around me were like, 'Why did you do that? That's such an error.' And I was like, 'Well, honestly, I don't really care what you think!' I've never felt so confident as I did with short hair - I felt really good in my own skin." It's so liberating - and I've never felt more like myself.