I think it's a personal space thing for some people. For me, I use it as an educational experience for strangers, because many of them get the wrong impression about dreads. This may sound weird (and it did to me at first too) but a guy asked to feel them, and when I told him about keeping them clean, he said the only people he knew with dreads never washed their hair, and apparently stunk to high heaven! Now the weird part was that he asked if he could smell mine. Well, I wanted to prove to him that not all dreads are dirty and stinky, so I obliged (I wasn't alone in case you were wondering. Had a whole group of friends with me). I had just washed with baking soda, so they were extra fresh. He was quite amazed at the lack of odor and the non-greasy feel. I don't think I would have done that had I been alone, but I'm glad he learned about dreads. My coworkers like to touch them all the time, because half of the people there also want dreads.
Hi all! This is my first post. First off, let me just say that if it wern't for this site, I would have walked towards the awful waxy path! Thankfully, I read the anti-wax posts before I made that decision. It wasn't until much later that I read how bad crochet hooks were. Oh well. Life is a learning process. So, who am I? I'm a cartoonist/writer for a local paper that my brother-in-law runs. It's pretty cool, but doesn't really pay the bills, so I also work at a *ahem* very corporate coffee shop that shall remain nameless. They don't like crazy colored hair, but there's nothing in the dress code that says I can't have dreads!
Here's another fact: This is actually my second attempt at dreads. The first time, I had them for about 7 months, and crocheted the heck out of them. Big mistake. On top of that, while I thought I was ready for my dready journey, turns out I really wasn't. I was basically dreading for all the wrong reasons. So, I cut them off, and decided to start over. It was very nice having a fresh start. After nearly a year without them, I decided I would give them another go. I've had dreads 2.0 now for about 4.5 months. I was trying my darndest to keep them neat and orderly (and yes, still occasionally crocheting them), but then had a revelation while seeing my mom's ivy-covered house. The ivy grew wild and did what it wanted. Some clumped together, other strands went off on their own. And yet, they were all still beautiful. So that's when I tossed the crochet hook, and stopped fussing. I've been full neglect, using baking soda to wash my hair (thanks for the tip!) officially for the past month, and I am loving it! I'll be posting some pics very soon.
Thanks 
I will be on the look out for any others converging.
soaring eagle said:
well if u sdont want a huge dread u should seoperate them often they will grow together if u let them
Wow! I was always so scared to go full neglect, but I did it anyways. Sometimes, I still feel a little apprehensive, but this definitely made me feel better about the decision. Joyous, even. I have 5 small dreads converging into one big one, and it worried me at first, but now I kinda' like watching "The Phat One" grow. Basically, my only fear is that I'll get a beaver tail, but 4.5 months in, and everything's staying separated, so I don't think that's gonna' happen. This was quite inspirational.
