Ginger #2 - TJ Alger

This week's ginger is TJ Alger, a Simpson College sophomore from Okoboji, Iowa.  He was born on August 7, 1990, and has had red hair since day one.  His ginger-ness was no surprise, however, since his dad has a red beard and gingers are common on his mom's side of the family.

TJ is just your average, 20-year-old guy.  He likes to play sports and drink "adult beverages."  Although being a ginger has set TJ apart from the norm throughout his life, he doesn't mind one bit and doesn't consider being called a "ginger" offensive at all.  Like the rest of us ging's, TJ gets the typical jokes from close friends about his "situation," and says he commonly hears things like:

"Hey, you

ginger f&*k!"

He doesn't let the joking bother him, though.  Name-calling becomes like a part of life when you're a ginger - it's all about how you handle it.

When TJ "grows up" he plans to move to Nigeria where people won't judge him for his hair color.  He also plans to become a volunteer firefighter.  Gingers save lives and change the world every day - thanks for being one of them, TJ.

Well, that's Ginger #2 in a nutshell.  Look forward to another ginger-post next Sunday!

Ginger #1 - Yours Truly

When deciding who to write about for my first official ginger-post, I thought that it seemed appropriate for the first ginger to be featured to be none other than yours truly, aka me!  This will let you get to know me a bit and hopefully get you interested enough to check out my blog posts to follow.

My name is Julia Ann Robinson and I was born on December 26, 1990.  Yes, the day after Christmas.  I was born with red hair, which I got from my ginger-dad, Jim, and have had red hair my entire life.  My mom, Brenda, and younger brother, Lee, both have brown hair and are dark-skinned.  Needless to say, we don't look much alike!

Throughout my entire life my red hair has been a huge part of who I am.  Growing up I didn't get a lot of jokes about it, that I remember anyways, but it always seemed to be my identifier.  When girls guarded me in sports they never yelled out, "I've got 24."  No, they yelled out, "I've got the red headed one!"  People even just tended to call me "red" sometimes, but it never bothered me much.  "Carrot-top" was always a name that got under my skin a bit, along with some other inappropriate names for red heads (you can figure it out), but most people were respectful to me about it so it wasn't a big issue.

My high school and college years were really when the name "ginger" set in.  More and more people started to call me that, and I never understood how that name's supposed to be offensive.  When people call me ginger someone will always say, "OMG! Doesn't that bother you?!?"  But honestly, no, it doesn't.  I am a "ginger" and I enjoy my hair color, so if people want to acknowledge me for that asset, so be it!

That is all of my ginger-story that I will share with you for now, but I hope that this post caught your interest and maybe even made you smile!  My next post will be next Sunday featuring another ginger on Simpson's campus.  

Get excited! :)

Hello Hello Hello!

If you are reading this you are probably a Facebook friend, a follower on Twitter, or another Simpson student in my Journalism 2.0 class for which I was required to create a blog.  Oh, or Professor Chappell.  Anyways, no matter why you're checking out my blog, I'm glad you are!

This blog is going to be all about my life as a "ginger."  Most people don't realize the impact having red hair has on your life.  It's not just another hair color that you're born with, it's a lifestyle.  If you have blond hair you're called a "blond," if you have brown hair you're called a "brunette," but if you have red hair..... well, it's a different story entirely.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining.  Over the years I have come to truly love and embrace my hair color.  I have even taken on the identity of "Ginger" for my column in the college newspaper.  And although I've endured my fair share of teasing about my "ginger-ness," I believe it's made me a stronger person, so in a way I'm grateful.

Besides writing about my own life as a ginger, I will also be featuring some of my fellow gingers on Simpson's campus and other fun little ginger stories. I plan to post a new blog every Sunday night, so get excited!