I am your typical guy. My friend Allison once told me that she was really stressed out and wanted to relax a little and get a haircut. This feeling doesn’t really apply to me. Relaxing and getting a haircut are two distinctly different activities. So when I arrived at the H20 Salon and Spa at 7:00 in the morning for a haircut, I couldn’t help but feel a little feminine.
I know this doesn’t make sense yet. Let me explain. My father is a celebrity to those who know him. He is that high school teacher you always wanted to keep in touch with, and did. Harry Connick Jr. did. As did Holly, the owner of the H20 Salon and Spa. My father taught her when she went to Chapelle High School, and the two have remained friends.
I was preparing for a vocal masterclass with baritone Gordon Hawkins. Gordon Hawkins premiered at the Metropolitan Opera in New York in a production of Verdi’s Un Ballo in Maschera starring Luciano Pavarotti. Nothing is more impressive in the opera world than saying “What Luciano told me…” Gordon has a famed career in his own right and in my hopes to impress him, I decided to look presentable and get a haircut.
My hair has been the source of much controversy in my life. Before getting it cut it was a large, fluffy, tangled mass of cuticle, cortex, and medulla. Whenever singing in a choir, I would have to stand in the back row, because it would block other people’s view of the conductor. I once reached back to scratch my head, where my middle finger was greeted viciously by a wasp. A friend told me, “If wasps are nesting in your hair, and you can’t feel it…it’s time for a haircut.”
First, I know it's been a few weeks now, but I like the haircut. Actually I didn't recognize you at first because I was so used to the big ball of curly fluff, but yea it looks good!
ReplyDeleteSo...did a wasp really nest in your hair and you didn't feel it?! That is funny, but if so, I agree with this friend of yours, haha.
Anyway, I like how you talk about hair and then how you talk about opera, but I don't really see a strong connection between them. It may be better to expand on each topic and split the piece up into two.
I really like the ending you have with that haircut. A wasp in your hair-hilarious. I guess it was time for a haircut. I like your easy flow and slightly comedic voice. It really speaks throughout the piece.
ReplyDeleteThis is one of your strongest pieces and most entertaining! You seem very comfortable with your voice and you seem to be more in control of your writing. I really liked this piece because I get the impression that your hair tells a lot about you. Apparently it does as I've learned about your interests, family, and friends in this short piece that successfully connects all of those. I'm not sure how you could expand this but you definitely should because I think it's great so far.
ReplyDeleteYou mentioned about how you wished you would have written humor more often, but this piece really brims with witty humor, mainly coming in the last line and your own connection with your hair vs your friend's "therapeutic haircuts" Well done.
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