I own a barbershop on Maple street, it may be a normal barbershop during the day. But when night falls, I assure you, it’s anything but normal. When the sun is firmly beyond the horizon, that’s when things get crazy.
I like to end my days on a high note. During the sun’s reign, I run my barbershop as strictly as I want; I only take appointments in the daylight hours. Some people hate my day schedule but my regulars love the efficiency. As soon as the sun goes behind the nearby hills and the darkness settles in, I quickly prep my shop for the night hours. My nightly routine consists of halving my prices and putting up a sign on my window cil stating: Now taking walk-ins.
And then, like magic, the flood gates are opened. My shop gets overrun with randos off the street. I have met a lot of interesting people by using this method of work. Guys and gals come of all backgrounds come inside and sit on the waiting bench and they wait patiently for their turn in my chair. I do ask them for their cut as soon as they enter my shop so as soon as they are in my chair, I can cape them up quickly and start working on them.
Now, a downside of my method is this: I do not offer perms, dye-jobs, or hair-care besides cutting. And all the styles listed on my board are very masculine and above the collar cuts. But that doesn’t stop the occasional female from coming in. In fact, I think they wouldn’t come in if I offered feminine cuts like like layers and bouffants and what have you. But that’s just me.
And in the summer or the ending weeks of spring, that’s when my nights really become hectic. One year in particular was really bad, I resorted to only offering one style of cut: a zero-zero buzz cut. But that decision didn’t seem to deter my female demographic, better yet, I think my deterrent backfired. I got more ladies in my chair and less men. Black hair to ginger, straight hair to curly hair, and young ladies to old women came in for the haircut.
I was surprised to see so many women in my shop and utterly shocked when only they came to my shop. Not a man in sight. But cash is cash, I care not to complain. Anyway, I want to highlight some women who came into my shop and gave me a chuckle or two.
Amy Ram:
The woman came into my shop around 9:30, it was a scorcher that day but rainy at night. She was wearing an ensemble that made her look like a lumberjack and her hair was brown and slightly curled. Her lips were lightly glossed and her smile was Oscar worthy. I invited her into my chair after an equally pretty madam left it. She sat in it daintily and removed her scarf and jacket which I quickly hung up for her. My hands quickly secured the cape’s buttons and in went my clippers into her scalp. That’s when I learned her name and backstory, she was raised rather religiously and dreamed of becoming a nun once or twice in her life. But she didn’t have the nature to be committed to the house of god. Amy could respect religion but she also knew that people would use religion as a crutch for their bad deeds. If she ever had kids, she told me as I was buzzing down the right side of her head, she wouldn’t raise them religiously but would respect them if her kids raised their children religiously.
Her stance on religion intrigued and entertained me when I was giving her her buzz cut. I finished my work and she paid me handsomely before putting her scarf back on and leaving my shop.
Aishwarya Brown:
The woman arrived around 10:15ish and she was a stoic woman with a surprisingly good sense of humor. Her attire was a traditional garb of Indian making. That black hair of hers cascaded down to the ground as soon as I released the flood from the sculpted bun she took precious hours out of her day to create. She told me her name and gave me a rundown of her life so far; her tale started in Idaho out of all places. She grew up in a small town and was an ace at school. Her ambition was heading towards the math and science sectors of the world but secretly, she dreamed of the arts. Aishwarya wrote poetry in her spare time and seeks to publish a book or two in the near future. She visited India in the summer of 2008 and met her husband there. They married and had a beautiful daughter the following year. I joked that she should bring her kid in sometime and Aishwarya agreed to that arrangement.
Aishwarya taught me a lot about the arts and pros and she encouraged me to write as well. And, just as a side-note, she looked hot in her buzz cut hairstyle.
Mrs. Chen:
I don’t know what drove a middle aged mother of three into my shop when she first entered my domain but she was quick to tell me her reasons for coming in. She was a second generation Chinese-American lady from a nearby neighborhood. Her wardrobe was very proper for her age but she desperately nodded a quick change. The reason for her visit was that raising two girls and one boy wasn’t easy with her long, black braid in the way. She told me her husband loved her hair to death but he would have to get used to her with a zero-zero buzz cut hairstyle. We talked about life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Mrs. Chen, her name was, she was very formal about introductions, loved to sew and practically made everything she and her little ones wore to events. Her daughters were big into percussion and guitars and her boy was a big chess player, he found it therapeutic she said. She asked me if I was going to teach my future kin my trade but I couldn’t be certain if I even wanted kids.
Mrs. Chen was insistent on me having at one child but I was adamant that I was wasn’t. After I gave her her haircut, she awed at it for some time and tipped me good for my handiwork.
And that’s for now, I’ll keep you posted when more ladies come in.
