Bad Hair Day

[kerravonsen]

This is a phrase I find difficult to comprehend. I understand the words separately, but it seems like nonsense when they are put together. Does this phrase actually mean what it appears to mean? The only meaning I can parse from it is that the state of one's hair (whatever "bad" hair means) determines the state of the day, for the entire day.

Are people really that dumb? Or am I missing something?

Comments

[izhilzha.livejournal.com]

As far as I know, it just means that one's hair is not cooperating with the way one normally likes to style it (whether due to humidity, change of product, sleeping on it wrong, whatever).

I don't think I've heard anyone use it to define the state of the entire day. The emphasis is on the hair, and perhaps by extension one's entire appearance.

[kerravonsen]

Hmmm. Then why is it referred to as a Bad Hair Day?

[izhilzha.livejournal.com]

I always thought it was because one's hair could behave perfectly well one day, poorly the next, and be fine again the next day--that it was just One Of Those Days.

I also like jedibuttercup's explanation below.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

I agree: it's just a day in which one's hair wasn't right. I think it has to be borked from the start, not messed up by wind and rain, but I may be wrong.

I found this if that's any help.

[jedibuttercup]

In my experience, when used to refer to an entire day, the phrase means a day that just goes wrong from moment one; as in, you get out of bed and attempt to put your hair in order for a long day at work, and it just won't cooperate, and you don't have time to make it cooperate because you have somewhere to be, and things just refuse to improve from there.

Does that make sense?

[kerravonsen]

Sort of, but it still seems strange to me.

[infiniteviking]

That's my interpretation too.

[mistraltoes.livejournal.com]

My understanding is very like jedibuttercup's. When used broadly, it's a metaphor; it's not supposed to make literal sense. It's a day in which everything goes so wrong that even your hair doesn't cooperate.

[tptigger.livejournal.com]

I always took it as a day when your hair simply refuses to lay flat or otherwise cooperate (usually due to humidity). I may be too literal.

[kingbantam.livejournal.com]

THat's how I've always taken it too.

[kalquessa.livejournal.com]

For me a Bad Hair Day is a day when my hair doesn't look nice because it is being intractable and this makes my day slightly less awesome than it would otherwise have been. Because I like when I look nice and when I know that I don't look nice, I'm mildly bummed. Not enough to ruin the day, or anything, but still sort of vaguely bummed. So that's how I would define a Bad Hair Day, although I've heard the phrase used to describe something like what Jedi Buttercup describes, where bad hair is just the first sign that today is going to be That Kind of Day.