Im kinda shy about talking hair with strangers as well..... only because the few times Ive done so I didnt feel like it was well-received.
I was at the grocery store and saw this young woman with beautiful, mid-back, thick relaxed hair. So pretty! Since her back was too me in line, i was able to drool and ogle to my hearts content.
I did intend on saying something eventually, but wasnt in a rush for her to turn around.
When she finally did turn around, I smiled very pleasantly and told her that her hair was lovely. (My own hair was in a bun, so she couldnt tell anything about it except that it was pulled from my face.) Anyway, so she smiled faintly and thanked me. Then, despite this cool reaction, I proceeded to ask her if she did anything special to grow her tresses that long. Now of course i know what it takes to grow/retain some hair, but i asked this out of mere curiosity.... just to see what techniques she might use, if they were anything like what we do on the board, etc.
At that point, she looked me up and down and then responded rather coldly:
"Oh, I get it trimmed often."
I was like,
"Aaah, so getting it trimmed is what makes your hair long? I see.... Thanks."
Hmmmm...... her response sounded very generic and contrived to me.
Im not saying that she was lying or being a hater.......... but if someone (whether it is a stranger or a friend) asked me how i grow my hair long, my response is NOT going to be that I get it trimmed regularly. That sounds like that "black stylist/hater" type answer. Personally, I would talk about wearing protective buns frequently, moisturizing, stretching relaxers, etc....... Essentially, i would talk more about retaining hair then actually growing it, since we all know that our hair is gonna grow regardless.
Anyway, that one incident kind of turned me off.
So now when i see beautiful hair on a sista, im more inclined to smile at her pleasantly and keep it moving. I may compliment her, just to be nice, but I doubt i'll be asking for anymore advice anymore. I dont think folks always wanna share.