I have long hair and love it. I don't know how I'll ever be able to part with it, but I am sure I will at some point...
That being said, I love doing different looks (ponytails are fun for when I'm in a rush).
Try a loose bun, curling the ends of your hair first so it stays all day without crazy stick out pieces.. (the BEST hairpins I've found are "bunheads" [try googling it for a store] that are actually for ballerinas and will HOLD tight all day with just a few pins, even long thick hair like mine);
try a chignon, even try teasing a bit at the crown, using hairspray and putting back like 1/3 of the upper half, pulling a few pieces free to frame the face-- like a brigitte bardot look?
I also agree-- on some days, I just love to use like a 1 to 1.5 inch barrel curling iron and curling it all over, and using a bit of Redken Rewind paste to hold the curl after I've softened them by running my hands thru the curls. I use crane clips to separate my hair into sections to do this better and always use thermal protect spray/creams
It just takes some effort because of the amount of hair. But enjoy it!
I always give lengthy responses, but I hope this was pretty clear to understand...