A Hair Experience

I've been meaning to get a haircut for a few days now, but things just hadn't "clicked" yet. I had a hair moment yesterday and I finally got it done.

I hate getting haircuts as I'm sure my readers well know. Some of the reasons I don't like it include:

• I think it's a nuisance to have to waste time doing it in the first place. Scientists need to learn how to turn hair growth off and on.
• It's never seems to be the same stylist/barber twice. Do they get fired? Do they open their own salon? Are they avoiding me?
• What I tell them I want, and what they hear usually don't quite match. This is made worse by the next one:
• When English is not their primary language. When I walk into a salon or barbershop and hear broken English, I want to turn and run.
• They don't have any nitrous oxide to relax me. The dentist does, why can't hair stylists?
• $15 for that?!
  

Anyway, I have been meaning to try this little barber shop for some time, but kept hitting it on either Sunday or Monday when they're closed. Maybe it was just my inner self telling me that I really didn't want a haircut that day. Also, many times when I really need a haircut I don't have the right frame of mind to deal with it.

Yesterday it felt right. So right in fact, that I didn't even go home first (I usually like to have an after-work beer and think about things first). I drove up to the place, noting that there were no cars out front and walked in.

It was a single chair barber shop, and it's run by a Korean lady (so much for my broken English comment). Much to my delight she was just finishing up with a customer--An elderly Mexican lady that spoke no English. Apparently her husband sitting next to me didn't either, but the Korean lady seemed to speak just enough to get the job done. While I was sitting there I looked around and my eyes landed on the price list. I can't remember much of it but I do remember that men's haircuts said $10 and up, women's were also $10 and up, and a shave was $5. Wow, finally a place that has a 10-dollar haircut? Surely my short hair would fall into that category.

Anyway, when I got in the chair, she gave me very detailed haircut , a shave (with an aftershave splash too of course), and a shoulder massage. The price? 10 bucks! She even buzzed the little "old man" hairs growing outta my ears. When she was finished she vacuumed my head and neck so well that hardly any strays ended up down the collar of my shirt before I took a shower later.

I was very impressed. It was (at least from my perspective) a good haircut too--Not some sort of hatchet job. Anyway, I ended up giving her 15 bucks anyway because she pleased me.

The key though will be consistency. Will the next time I go be as good? If so, I've finally found my hair place.