Haircut, Japanese styles

More everyday activities that I voluntarily turn into a blitz of cultural confusion.

I hadn't had a haircut in a while - like I mentioned, I decided to grow out my bob last fall to take advantage of my last long-haired years and therefore only got my brother in law's mother (who is a hairdresser) give me a few layers so that it would grow out without looking like, well, a grown-out bob. Since she did that in October, I haven't had a haircut.

Do most people harbour the same fear/dread/awkwardness I have of hairdressers, whereby you feel a sense of nervousness heading into the appointment? I definitely have that. Something about putting your whole appearance into the hands of a semi-stranger freaks the crap out of me. And yes, I do think hair makes your whole appearance. It really really makes you look different, and can really take you down a few notches on the superficial attractiveness scale. I once told Keith that he would be one cool dude if he would only stop wearing his hair like a lego-man, and that his lego hair took him down from a good 8.5 to a 6. He said I was mean. True as that may be, I stand by what I said. And don't you all start judging me either. I can name a half dozen of you at least who have said to him or me since he started having a hairstyle how much better he looks. I merely voiced, as his Partner of Honesty, what y'all were thinking. In fact I should get a medal.

Anyways, I do think it is nutso that we let someone have that much control over us who we don't know at all, cannot be certain shares our tastes, cannot be certain has any skills whatsoever (there's no certification in hairdressing is there?) and cannot be certain will listen to us or even understands our instructions on what we want. My fear of hairdressers also probably derives itself from never having had a regular hairstylist, as well as some pretty bad hair experiences in my most self-conscious teenage years. I absolutely remember when I was 12 the hairstylist giving me a bowl cut and then cut my fringe (bangs! I mean bangs!) so it was a good two inches above my eyebrows, which I'm sorry, always makes you look a bit mentally challenged. (Wow this post is getting less and less PC by the sentence). When you're just about to become a teenager that is NOT the style you're going for.  I totally remember during that haircut the woman also SLASHED MY FACE with the scissors and I was too cowardly to make a fuss (I was 12! I sat in that chair and did what I was told, including suffering injuries without comment!) but definitely got an angry red mark on my face afterward to prove it, which even scabbed over slightly afterwards.  When I was 23 I also got a perm, having gotten bored of having long-straight hair for 10 years. While I liked it at the time, everytime I see a pic from those old days I wonder what the hell I was thinking. I looked like an ugly step-mermaid.

So the last few times I've tried a new hairstylist I have always gotten recommenations from friends. In London Taryn introduced me to her hairstylist, a Chinese guy called Jay who was brilliant, he gave me my first graduated bob and I really liked it. He really knew how to style hair to suit your face shape. Too bad he disappeared and stopped cutting hair, Taryn, her mom, and I were all devestated. After that I used Kate's hairstylist at Clapham Junction Rush - nothing to write home about. I also occasionally engaged my bro-in-law's mom's services (once in a cruise ship cabin bathroom, when during a family holiday she couldn't handle that my straggly hair was almost down to my waist), but she's mostly retired and I thought with me being permanently based here it was time I got a proper regular hairdresser. So I asked Stef for her recommendation and she directed me to Misako Hair Salon and her hairstylist, Mako.

Misako is an all-Japanese run hair salon, and I can't decide if it is trendy or not. On the one hand, they are all Japanese. Tick on the trendy side. On the other hand, they are not based in a fancy location. Tick on the non-trendy side. Then, their shop is quite low frills - no receptionist, no computer booking system, unfinished concrete floor, one long mirror on the wall rather than a bunch of little stations, and each of the stylists wear their tools on themselves in different ways - Mako had a little cross-body purse, while the girl next to her had what looked like a toolbelt, and yet another had what looked like a fanny pack. I couldn't decide if this was low-key or deliberately minimalist trendy. Tick on both trendy and non-trendy list. Anyway Mako gave me a very nice haircut (I wasn't asking for anything crazy) but along the way a few points in the process made me giggle as usual. First, while she was washing my hair (I love getting my hair washed and my head rubbed by professionals), she held the ends of my long wet hair and then slapped them against the top of my head repeatedly. Wap wap wap wap. It didn't hurt but I felt a little bit abused. Then, when we sat back down in the hair-cut chair, she said "You like massage?" and I was super confused. Is this the small talk bit? Is she offering me one? Where? Here? On what part of me? Huh? So I just giggled and said "uh.. yes?" and then she proceeded to massage my heck and shoulders. Again, damn these little Asian women have strong hands. The massage ended with her holding her hands together like she was praying and then slapping the fist onto my shoulders. LOUD. more WAP WAP WAP. I almost giggled again. Overall very happy with Mako's work and will definitely go back for more wapping in 6-8 weeks!

Side rant: why on earth have we cultivated this expectation that we need to become best friends with our hairdressers? Why do they insist on prying our life stories out of us and telling us theirs, resulting in awkward small talk while they wield scissors around your head? You don't need to where I live, work, and play to give me layers and an overall 1-inch trim off the length. I don't really want to know about your life either. Just get on with it in silence.