Hairdos

After a short bus ride, I arrived at the new address for the salon, and found it immediately. With all the 'Grand Opening' signs, it was impossible to miss. This new location was considerably nicer than the run-down strip mall where I'd stopped first, and they also appeared to have more space. In addition to doing hair, signs mentioned that they also offered some other services like massages and bikini waxing, as well as tanning beds.

Inside, the salon was busy. Along one wall, several stylists worked on their female clients, and a few more customers were seated in a waiting area near the front desk. However, the wait wasn't long; soon after I checked in, an available stylist called me back. She took a quick look at my hair and shook her head. "When was the last time you cut this?" she asked. I just shrugged since I could not remember how many months it had been since I last cut it, by hand. She followed up with, "Did you have a particular style in mind?" There were a few styles I'd seen that I liked, and I tried to explain them, but apparently, I wasn't getting it across very well. She pulled out a book with some popular styles and began to flip through them. Many looked interesting but they weren't quite was I wanted, but then I saw one that was close and pointed to it. "Oh, that's a nice one," she added. "Let's begin."

The stylist's fingers and scissors nimbly began to remove sections of my hair, thinning it here, shortening it there. While she cut, she tried to start up a conversation about some TV shows, but I'd never seen any of them. After several minutes, the hairdo had taken shape; the unruly mop had been transformed into a stylish head of hair. She handed me a small hand mirror and turned the chair so I could see it from the side and back. Finally, she asked, "What do you think?"

Is that really me? My hair looked amazing. Over the years, I'd had one very basic style, which either my mom or I had cut by hand. That hairdo had become part of my identity. I'd thought about changing it, but besides pulling it into a ponytail a few times, I never had the courage to do anything beyond that. With this new hairstyle, I actually looked pretty. "It looks great!" I exclaimed.

At the checkout, the clerk motioned toward a prize wheel. "As part of our new grand opening in this location, there's a giveaway for our clients. Give it a spin." Each pie shaped slice had options like '$5 Off Next Haircut', '20% Off Hair Product', and so forth. I gave it a whirl, and handed her my credit card. The ticking sound from the flapper rolling over the pegs steadily slowed and then stopped. When I glanced back at the wheel, I was shocked to see that I'd landed on the one slice with a unique color which read, 'Grand Prize Pick'. The clerk excitedly reached under the counter and pulled out a glass bowl with small sealed white envelopes. "You've won one of our Grand Prizes! Pick one."

I actually won something big? What could it be? I reached into the bowl and sifted through the envelopes and pulled up one from near the bottom. Then I quickly opened and read the small paper inside. "It says, 'Free Brazilian'."

The clerk explained, "That's one of the top prizes. Our Brazilian bikini waxes are very popular. Would you like to schedule it now?"

A bikini wax? I'd heard of them, but I'd never had one. The years of overgrowth down there could certainly use some major work, and removing some of the hair might also help cool that area during this nasty heat wave. "Sure. When is the soonest you could get me in?"

As the clerk began to check her appointment list, she suddenly stopped and looked up. "There was a cancellation, so I could get you in next if that works." With a quick nod, I confirmed it.

I returned to the waiting area which was now empty. While I waited, I tried to envision what the Brazilian procedure would be like. I reached down and started to tug at some of the hairs. In a few minutes, a stranger was going to be touching me there, and several of these hairs would likely be gone. Soon my tugging had changed to stroking along the contours under the hair and rubbing the most sensitive locations. It felt really good, but the fun ended once new customers arrived and took seats in the lobby.