Barber shop

When we lived in North Babylon I always went to the same barber shop and waited for Joel's chair. Joel usually has a line of hairy men waiting for his scissor talent. Joel rides a Kawasaki Eliminator. Even after we moved I drove back to the Babylon barber once a month, for a few months.

Then I started getting my haircut in Manhattan during lunch. It saved time. Genaro works on 35th Street and 7th Avenue. He too has a real passion for haircuts and is also a biker. When I took the night shift I had difficulty being in Manhattan during the day. It worked out only once and I explained to Genaro that his customer was only lost temporarily. Eventually (but I hope never) I will go back to the day shift.

Wherever I've gotten my haircut I noticed two types of barbers. Those who work quickly and those who are more concerned about a job well done. It could be true of most people and how they approach their job. But barbers perform their work in front of a live auidence, consisting of multiple customers. Those customers soon realize which barbers cut hair well. Not which barber is quickest to finish. Saturday mornings are usually the busiest time for haircuts. On that morning the quicker barber will make more money. But that's the only time. The quick worker will be bored most days while people line up to visit the meticulous stylist.

One advantage to my nocturnal shift is less crowded barber shops during the weekdays.
My current barber shop has three chairs. Benny, John and Ben. It's a little confusing to have a Benny and a Ben in the same small shop.

One noticeable difference with this particular barber shop is the air compressor hoses attached under each of the three main mirrors. Those yellow hoses stick out when you first sit down. They use the compressed air instead of a blow-dryer when dusting off cut hair from their customers. It works well and I wonder why more places don't have this.

My first visit to this barber shop landed me in Ben's chair, furthest from the window. On the first visit you have to take your chances with which barber you get. Ben did a good job without rushing. So I went back a few times and requested the same person. Eventually the other barbers figured out I would wait for Ben so no words were necessary when I entered. I could just point and nod my head towards the chair near the wall.

I noticed that most customers waited for Benny, in the chair next to the window. Benny cut hair well and quickly. But that's not what made him popular. He was the most popular barber because of his friendly conversation. I sat in Benny's chair only twice. Both times Ben had a day off. (I never kept track of which days which barber worked.) He worked quickly both times. On the second seating he remembered me and my hair style. "Short flat-top?" He confirmed before starting.

On the Tuesday before Thanksgiving Ben cut my hair. Benny was working next to the window. When I was done I decided to go across the street, to SevenEleven, for coffee. I offered to buy both of them some coffee. Both declined. (I will eventually do a whole blog just on coffee etiqutte.)

Today's grooming was different. When I entered the place I noticed a new face near the window. As usual I sat down with Ben, near the wall. My first question "Whose rotating the barbers?" was asked with a smile but none was returned.
"Benny was hit by a car" Ben answered.
"Oh. Is he okay?" I calmly asked
"No. He was killed. He was closing up just over a week ago. He was walking across the street to get some coffee."

Life is too fragile. Too short.
The rest of my haircut was in silence. Partly because of the little electric buzzer.