Looking for Small Comforts in the Suburbs
The older I get the more I love the suburbs, or in our case the exurbs. I like the immediacy of all the amenities we need in one direction and the closeness of our rural neighbors in the other direction. We truly have everything at our fingertips and this includes various doctors and services. We have a brand-new hospital two minutes from our driveway. It has a state-of-the art ER, an immediate care center and a surgical suite. Last year I had minor sinus surgery and the commute home, still groggy from the anesthesia, was blessedly short. We also have a world-class children’s hospital in the same complex. As the parents of minors this is a huge comfort.
In the past year I have switched almost all of my doctors to be close by. I found a dentist that is open until 7pm. My general practitioner is in the hospital complex and my ENT is on the floor above him. Our vet is also two minutes away and this is almost as comforting as the children’s hospital. For groceries and other shopping we have every store one could imagine. They announced we are getting a Cabela’s next year and my heart did cartwheels. Plenty of restaurants provide us with good meals when we don’t feel like cooking. It’s pretty great for a busy family.
The one thing I miss from my previous providers, carefully selected when I saw them less often and driving was less of a burden, is good bedside manners. My new doctors and dentist are all competent but you feel like a number, not a patient. Their practices are built around efficiency and volume. My old doctor knew where I went to college and my major. My new doctor checks my file before he asks any personal questions and they are always the same. “How is your job at…(checks file)…Acme Inc going?” The dentist tries a little harder but there’s still something missing.
These things are the price we paid for choosing a cookie-cutter life in the suburbs. We chose stability and efficiency in our daily routine so we could be free to pursue happiness in other ways. I tell myself I don’t need a personal touch when I drop off my dry cleaning or the dog gets his check-ups because I have more time to think about my next blog post or plan our summer vacation or get ready for hanging with the boys on my next hunting trip. But one service has become intolerable and that is my trips to get my hair cut.
I grew up going to the same barber as my grandfather and my dad. His name was Roy. He had an anchor tattoo on his forearm from his days in the navy. He liked to fish and he had a huge stack of outdoor magazines in the shop. He talked politics and sports and of course, fishing. He offered three basic cuts: flat tops, buzz cuts and what I would call the ‘Roger Sterling‘. I remember the look of disappointment on his face when I asked him for a bowl haircut in the early 90s because they were popular then. I had to go back two days later to get it taken off because my Catholic high school wouldn’t allow it. He was kind enough to not charge me AND let me leave his shop without any gloating.
Roy’s shop is now closed and even if it was open it would be far out of my way. Louisville still has plenty of real barber shops but my area seems to be a dead zone for them. Instead we have Great Clips and Super Cuts and the dreaded Fantastic Sam’s. We also have something call Sport Clips where the girls wear tight-fitting referee outfits and for a few extra dollars you can get a warm towel on your neck and an amateur massage. My only trip there was with my wife and I was so embarrassed by the atmosphere that I felt the need to apologize to her.
Last week I was visiting my mother and stopped in to the barber shop near her house. Right away I felt at ease. The barber was a young guy but he knew what he was doing. He gave me a simple cut for less than I ever pay at the generic shops by my house. He used a vacuum to clean up my collar, a service I had forgotten even existed. Then he used warm shaving cream to shave the back of my neck. I nearly cried.
This experience was awesome but it’s still not my neighborhood shop. That’s what I want. I want to get up early on Saturday mornings like my dad did, drive five minutes, wait my turn while reading the paper, talk politics and get a real man’s haircut. The suburbs offer a lot and I will put up with a generic experience in most places, but I have found my line in the sand. I’m not asking for much. It’s just not civilization until I get a real barber shop.
I understand entirely.
I have a pretty good little barber shop where I’m at.
They remember me, though I don’t come in as often as I should.
And they have a thick gel that lathers up into warm cream as they smear it on your neck. THen out comes the straight razor.Report
I cut myself pretty badly with a straight razor once. The worst part was that it didn’t even leave a tough-guy scar.Report
Singapore doesnt really have a suburb. The New town concept means that business and amenities and residential areas are arranged in small clusters. It makes for a system that is fairly accessible by public transport. (It also helps that the public transport system is quite efficient, although there have been a recent spate of breakdowns.
I get my haircut at the nearby indian barber. His father used to cut my hair when I was younger and my father’s hair when he was younger as well.
With regards to shaving the back of the neck and side-burns, my barber doesnt use shaving cream, just warm water and a straight razor. And I get the back massage free. (Other people who dont get the massage still pay the same. Customer loyalty has perks)Report
Since I usually get a buzz cut, I’ve found it much more economical to buy my own electric shaver–less than $100, probably even less than $50–and I’ve had it for more than 3 years. It must’ve saved me at least $200 or so.Report
Mike —
I can sympathize with your experience here. It’s why we started Kennedy’s All-American Barber Club. While we only have 13 locations at the moment (FL,CT, and MD), we’re aggressively expanding. Maybe we’ll be near you soon?
In the mean time, I thought you might appreciate this shaving video for your at-home shaves — how best to do it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwepcpMTW7g&list=PL09EDF3FAD0AB7B9D&index=1&feature=plcp. And if you want to watch what we do at Kennedy’s, be sure to watch this video too: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNb9esTRtKM&list=PL09EDF3FAD0AB7B9D&index=3&feature=plcp.
Regards,
ChrisReport
Your blog spoke to me on a couple of different levels. One of course was the glass half empty side of me that bemoans the losses of that sense of community in the world around me, much like you. The glass half full side of me is affirmed that I made some good choices in that, after 27 years in the transportation industry I was given the opportunity to pursue my lifelong dream of becoming a barber. I had noodled the idea since the early 70s when I was a young teen getting my curly mane tamed on a semi regular basis by my grandfather’s barber. After becoming a licensed barber I worked in a couple of shops, but eventually opened up my own shop based upon images I had seen of the barber shops of the 30s and 40s. I even wear a bowler hat when cutting and play big band in the background. I don’t necessarily do it for my customers. I have created an environment where I want to spend time and share space with the finest people in my state. I wish you lived close by so you could come in and enjoy the banter, the look and feel of the antique chairs, and a classic good looking men’s cut finished with a hot lather neck shave. Perhaps someday you might be visiting the Northwest part of the country. If so look up Kevin B Barber’s. We can crank up the old Victrola, and you can take a vacation by stepping back 75 years in time.
Blessings!Report