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NICK THE KNIFE
I had the same barber for 18 years. I always went to Nick the Knife. I dubbed him the knife about 5 years in to our business relationship. He was an old time barber with lots of magazines in the waiting area. He was always playing big band music on AM radio. I never had to say a word. I got on the stool and he cut my hair just right.
Nick was eccentric. He was a crazy right wing nut but he was my crazy right wing nut. I just had to tune out when politics came up. It was best to talk baseball or the weather. I could get his goat by mentioning climate change. Of course, he was an old guy and eventually he would retire on me. I was devastated. Just because he was 79 years old was no reason for him to just up and abruptly retire.
It left me with a void in my life. I was wandering in the wilderness without a regular barber. It is a search that still goes on. Once, I even got my hair cut in the airport in Memphis simply because the opportunity presented itself. It is hard to find a good barber. I walked into one place feeling hopeful but I noticed they were playing Maroon 5 on the radio. I just turned around and walked out. How can you get a haircut with Maroon 5 playing in the background. That’s just barbaric on so many levels.
I may have found a new place. I found a barber shop around the block from my childhood home. It’s a Latin place. They would have Latin music playing in the background. It was far younger in clientele than me but I could dig the music. I would prefer old timey jazz but this was acceptable. One time, a woman that could barely speak English cut my hair. She still managed to do a good job.
Of course, then the pandemic hit. I haven’t had a haircut in over 20 months. I might be wearing a ponytail again if this keeps up. The last time I wore a ponytail was in 1998. I will go back to the Latin place again if they survive the pandemic. Otherwise, the search may begin all over again. I really should have taken Nick the Knife’s picture when I was there. Then at least I could display the photograph on my desk. A good barber is more essential than many people realize.
