Something borrowed......OR cut...
The dreaded hair follicle test commenced yesterday at 4:30 pm on a blistery hot afternoon in Houston...wait sorry I forgot, I had to drive to Pasadena, Tx to attend the epic event. The day started off as usual, nothing major occurring. I left my place of employment at 4:00pm hoping to get to the testing facility at 4:30 in order to attend to all the other important things in my life that are piling up at the moment....digressing as usual....so the drive took about 40-45 minutes. As I pull up to the front of the building I notice that the door hours say 7-5pm. I remember vaguely (this is a lie, because I never forget anything) the woman telling me that they do not close until 5:30 pm. LIAR!! So I walk in and as nice as possible tell the young woman at the desk why I am there. She then says to me "Ok, we will need $215.00 and we only take cash today." My response was "Of course you do." ......so after a couple of curse words and trying to figure out which direction to go in and how fast I can possibly make it back I venture out to get cash. Right away a man in the testing center says to me, "You look happy to be here." I think GOD was testing me to see if I would actually punch someone and risk getting arrest. I didn't.
So off to the ATM/bank to get my money.....the first ATM decided it did not like my amount so it just kept saying TRANSACTION CANCELLED. I finally found a credit union in BFE to actually work and give me the $215.00 i needed to basically flush down the toilet for my test.
Returning to the testing facility I signed in, paperwork in hand and was sent down the hall to see Linda (very southern, very sweet).
The first words out of Linda's mouth were "How do you wear your hair?" Now, this is a unnerving question when someone is wielding scissors and they are not your hair stylist, she stated that she asks this question so she knows were to cut..."so the hair wont look so strange when the hair grows out"....."sometimes it tends to stand out and look funny"....thanks for the tip Linda, guess I should find some nice hats......after three somewhat large cuts to the right side, back, and left side of my head I was free to go.
On my drive home through the worst 5pm traffic in Houston I slid my hand up the back of my head and could feel the 1/2 inch long hair poking out of my scalp.....each side felt the same. I quietly drove home and did the calculation in my head....each drink I had that night cost $1,265.00...not including tip.
8 hours of community service starts Saturday at 7:30am sharp at the spay and neuter clinic.....cant wait to see what exciting tid bits this brings.....should be good.
Cheers ! :)
So off to the ATM/bank to get my money.....the first ATM decided it did not like my amount so it just kept saying TRANSACTION CANCELLED. I finally found a credit union in BFE to actually work and give me the $215.00 i needed to basically flush down the toilet for my test.
Returning to the testing facility I signed in, paperwork in hand and was sent down the hall to see Linda (very southern, very sweet).
The first words out of Linda's mouth were "How do you wear your hair?" Now, this is a unnerving question when someone is wielding scissors and they are not your hair stylist, she stated that she asks this question so she knows were to cut..."so the hair wont look so strange when the hair grows out"....."sometimes it tends to stand out and look funny"....thanks for the tip Linda, guess I should find some nice hats......after three somewhat large cuts to the right side, back, and left side of my head I was free to go.
On my drive home through the worst 5pm traffic in Houston I slid my hand up the back of my head and could feel the 1/2 inch long hair poking out of my scalp.....each side felt the same. I quietly drove home and did the calculation in my head....each drink I had that night cost $1,265.00...not including tip.
8 hours of community service starts Saturday at 7:30am sharp at the spay and neuter clinic.....cant wait to see what exciting tid bits this brings.....should be good.
Cheers ! :)
I have two questions:
ReplyDelete1. It appears as though you had to take the follicle test because you traveled out of the country. Does the same thing apply if you just travel out of state?
2. I saw on an earlier post that the follicle test was the 5 panel test. Do they also test the follicle for alcohol? Your earlier post was unclear whether the follicle was tested for alcohol, or it was just one of those breathalyzer machines.
Thanks,
BP
P.S. I did my community service at the same spay and neuter clinic that you did yours in (at least what you described was very similar to the one I went to).
Hi, Let me try and clarify.....
ReplyDelete1. The follicle test was only required if I traveled out of the country...why I have no idea. When I traveled out of the state they did not require a follicle test I only had to get a travel permit and took a UA as soon as I returned.
2. They say the follicle tests for alcohol, after doing some research it seems that there are some follicle tests that can detect alcohol but my test was administered 2 weeks after my trip and the hair was taken from an inch off my heaad, so it couldnt have possibly detected anything that I had consumed within the past 2 weeks of being out of the country so basically its a bogus test. But it does give you a bit of a scare in to not doing anything illegal.
I did my community service at the facility off Shepherd and I-10....nightmare.
Let me know if you have any other questions.
Hi there,
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure if you can answer this or not, but you said your hair test was 2 weeks after you returned... Do know if this is the norm (waiting 2 weeks)? I have had a trip planned for a long time and do not want to cancel it, but if there is a 2 week buffer in between my return and my hair follicle test, this would give me a lot of relief. Thanks for this blog, it has been very helpful so far, and it's good to hear other people's stories about the lovely Harris County employees.
Thanks
They require you to get the hair follicle test within 30 days after you return from your trip. So its your choice whether you want to go right ahead and do it asap or wait.
ReplyDeleteYes they are a joy to work with, arent they. :/
If you have any other questions dont hesitate to ask.
Cheers.