i can not tame my hair?

[Michael]

I am a white man an I have very thick curly hair and I am fed up with a pony tail, the only thing is i dont want a buzz cut or anything too short. I can not find any low maintenance hairstyles that suit my hair (all the ones i find are for guys with slightly curly hair). if i got my hair cut short it will turn into an afro!
Do i have any option appart from chemically straightening it?

I need something that will look good with little effort.

here is the style i like if my hair was straight!

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/6...9bf07a.jpg

http://img2-2.timeinc.net/ew/dynamic/img...hris_l.jpg

http://cdn.buzznet.com/assets/users16/tr...067462.jpg