I have to tell you, this was my first time at this salon and I was a little hesitant. I'm not…read moreusually a person who "fears change" per se; it's just that when it comes to my hair, well...I want it to look good. That's not strange, is it? Don't we all expect to look nice after getting our hair cut? Like, that's the basic point, right? At a minimum, when you leave your hair salon, you expect to look good with your freshly cut hair.
ASIDE: At this point I should probably confess something. I recently had to change hair stylists (grimace). The woman (Coletta) who has been cutting my hair for over twenty years (just let that sink in for a second) opened her own salon. Much to my chagrin, Coletta decided to open it in Augusta, AR. While I was sad for the months leading up to the final cut (every seven weeks to the day), I was nonetheless happy for her and her family. You see, she's been traveling back and forth from Augusta to Memphis for the past 5+ years and honestly, I wouldn't wish that commute on my worst friend.
So back to BGS: I pull into the parking lot and honestly, the building is a little...underwhelming. I told my wife when I got home that it "reminds me of a house" to which she responded, "It SHOULD remind you of a house because it USED to be someone's residence" (her perceptiveness is truly one of the reasons I married her). I guess I expected it to be located in a commercial building or something.
So I walk inside and not to be dramatic, but it was somewhat of a transformation. Upon entering I was immediately taken in by the warm atmosphere of hardwood floors, comfortable living room seating, cool overhead music, and great aromas. Sure, there was the occasional hair product smell that would waft through, but it didn't remind me of the typical commercial salon (tile flooring EVERYWHERE, rows of chairs and hair dryers, that awful chemical smell, and thousands of mirrors). It was much more friendly and quaint than I imagined - not what you would expect from a hair salon.
So when the time comes, Pam calls me over, I sit down in the chair, and we talk. In her friendly "lifelong neighbor" way she begins to talk to me about my hair. She asks me how I like it cut; she asks me what I'm "used to;" whether I have a particular style I like; whether I like it longer or shorter here or there; she asks me if I like it cut straight across in the back or whether I like a fade cut. And it's at this time that I say to myself, "Everything's going to be ok. Pam's gonna to take care of it."
From that moment on it was smooth sailing. We talked about kids and work and school and music and how we met our spouses (hers used to be an Elvis impersonator - how cool is that!!!). I felt so relaxed I even told her name of the song I sang when I proposed to my wife.
Jana (the other owner) was also there. Jana was next to us doing a color for this really cool cat who rolled in carrying a newspaper wearing flip flops, shorts, and (maybe) a Grateful Dead t-shirt. When I pulled out my iPhone 6 with the Memphis Tigers logo Otterbox Defender case and played "Hey Nineteen" by Steely Dan, this cat gets up and starts doing a jig right there in the salon! We were howling, man. What a cool place.
Pam wrapped up, made another appointment for me (seven weeks later), and ran my credit card on some techno gadget attached to her iPhone. I gave her my John Hancock, held up two fingers, and said, "peace out."
BTW...my hair looks great.
