I'm afraid my quest for terminal length has come to an end - at least for now. My active lifestyle just isn't that compatible with pampering my hair, especially with very long ends. I also have limited time in the morning and I'm not able to painstakingly detangle it before braiding it. I would hear snapping almost every time so I know I was inflicting damage.

I found that I could no longer fully enjoy my long hair because I rarely wore it loose. The last few inches would always tangle and just not look good most of the time.

The length itself was cool and if I had different genetics (coarse hair), it might be an entirely different story. My hair is super fine and very difficult to keep healthy after a certain point.

I had my wife cut 4 inches off. It was less than the dramatic 7.5 inch cut from May 2012 but still quite significant. I love how I can now run my hands through the ends and not hear snapping. Who knows, maybe I'll try again for terminal at some point but I'm starting to think I'd do better to maintain with regular trims.