Talking about my hair again. What of it?

I didn’t realize how much grey* hair I had until the latest batch of cheap, washout, at-home hair dye started to, well, wash out. 

Either I haven’t been paying attention or it’s been a stressful few months.  Or maybe my age is finally catching up with me.  I am an elderly 30 year old, you know.

Way back in my mid twenties I used to leave the grey hair be.  I thought it looked neat to just have one or two white hairs in my otherwise brownish locks.  Recently, however, I’ve been taking a different, more painful approach. 

I pull them out.

But at this point it’s getting a little ridiculous.  I find at least two new ones every day.  So I think it might be time to dye again.  I am scared to go permanent, though, because the color I use is dark.  Actually, it’s black, but mine doesn’t usually look black, more of a super-deep brown.  But don’t we all remember that trend in high school where people would dye their hair black, then it would grow out and they’d have about 4 inches of light brown roots and black ends?  I do not want that.  And I think I’ve established already that I am lazy when it comes to taking care of my hair, so I would be the one with the embarrassing roots and really, I’m not sure I need another issue to worry about.

But at some point most women dye their hair regularly, right?  The greys start taking over before we’re ready, and before we want to look like a grandmother.  How do you know when to take that step?

And before you suggest it, just know that I am way too cheap to have it professionally done.  I have a hard time paying the $20-30 just to get it cut, so there’s no way I’m going to pay to have it dyed. 

And I’ve got a box of my usual, washout hair dye, which actually will last for a couple of months, instead of the 28 washes it says on the box.  Or maybe I just don’t wash my hair often enough, which is probably more likely.  But I haven’t done it yet because I am waiting until I get a haircut first.

Do you remember how I feel about going to get my haircut?  It’s extremely awkward for me, as I am a socially awkward person in general.  But I want to have it cut before I dye it because inevitably I will mess up the hair dye, leaving whole patches undyed.  More than likely it will only be noticeable to someone who is close to my head, thus I don’t want to have the stylist roll her eyes at my botched dye job behind my back.

I realize that I am crazy.

It’s not something I can help.

Guess who didn't get much sleep last night?
Also, if you make the photo black & white you can't see all the grey hair.

*spelled with an ‘e’ because it’s prettier