Fifth Friday @ Manny’s – Grooming Andrew by Manny

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For the first time, my Fifth Friday stealth make-over was going to have a twist. I knew in advance who the surprised client would be. I hadn’t met him, but I’d seen a screenshot of him earlier in the week. He would be in town for a wedding, and his drastic transformation would be made at the request of his buddy, the groom.

Tim Conley had popped into the shop on Wednesday and said he had a favor to ask of me. Tim was a longtime client, and I congratulated him on his upcoming marriage.

"The problem is, one of the groomsman," Tim explained. "When we were facetiming this morning, I was a bit alarmed to see how shaggy and disheveled he looked. He has great hair, but it hasn’t been cut in ages - flopping in his eyes, resting on his shoulder. Simply, way too much of it! Here’s a screenshot I snapped."

I examined the mop, and it was just as Tim had described.

"You don’t want the rest of the wedding party mistaking him for a bridesmaid," I laughed.

"Funny, Manny! Yes, his hair is actually that long! Andrew’s always worn in longish. It’s just that….well, in wedding portraits….I mean most of us with tidy, spiffy looks in matching tuxes, and one…" Tom explained.

"…one shaggy, sloppy Bohemian spoiling the pretty picture?" I said, finishing Tim’s thought.

"Exactly!" Tim remarked, with relief.

"I have a solution for that," I noted, pointing at the line of clippers that hung from my counter.

"Oh, Manny! Would you?!" Tim laughed as we concocted our plan to groom the untidy groomsman.

"When will you bring dear Andrew in for his surprise makeover?" I asked.

"Friday. He flies into town in the morning, and the rehearsal dinner is that evening. He mentioned needing to get a trim before coming, so I suggested we get haircuts on Friday afternoon, together, here. The wedding is on Saturday," Tim said.

"Let Andrew’s makeover be my wedding gift to you. I’ll tidy you up first, but save up my barbering juices for your pal. You can help by keeping him engaged in conversation while I cut….and cut….and cut… Andrew will be getting no ‘trim’. I can assure you of that," I chuckled.

Tim smiled sheepishly.

"Is this too mean of me?" he asked. "It’s just that Ashley, my fiancée, is stressing over every detail. She even suggested that I ‘uninvite’ him after I showed her the screenshot! But, Andrew was my roommate in college, and I want him to be a part of the wedding."

"Just not his long hair! I got it. Relax. Leave it to Manny!" I smirked.

As Tim left, I examined my own flowing chestnut mane with fiery auburn highlights in the mirror. It was down to my shoulders, and shimmering more intensely than ever. I wondered if anyone would ever concoct a plan to have me shorn! All my tresses, scattered about the linoleum floor waiting for the broom and dustpan. That would be the day! Emerging from the barber chair, seeing the barber grinning from ear-to-ear, feeling the sharp stubble, staring at my totally bald head in the mirror…unwilling to recognize the new me, in stunned denial.

Then my thoughts returned to my Fifth Friday client, Andrew! Just how short would I go with him? VERY! He was from out-of-town…which meant the makeover was going to be drastic!

On Friday, I was just finishing off my quick lunch in the back when I heard the bell on the door of the shop tinkling.

"Be right out," I called from my private area.

"Mind if I take a seat?" Tim called back.

Tim had nice, coarse black hair that he wore parted to the side in a fairly full, standard business cut.

The barber chair was facing away from the mirror. After I greeted Tim, my eyes quickly locked onto Andrew’s locks! Down to his shoulders and all over his face! The beautiful blond color was accentuated by dazzling natural highlights.

"Meet my buddy, Andrew," Tim said. "He flew in this morning from California for the wedding."

I played innocent.

"I’m Manny. Welcome to my shop. Are both of you getting tidied up, or just you, Tim?" I asked.

"We both are," Andrew said, confirming what I already knew with a bit of a blush.

Perhaps he was feeling conspicuous to be sporting such long hair in a traditional barber shop. But then again, my hair was every bit as long (albeit more groomed than his)!

I glanced at my pretty tresses in the mirror. One day it would be me in the chair, under that cape, on the verge of an impending brutal assault with fast-feed hair clippers….

I caped up Tim. I decided he too would get a shorter crop, so that the two could commiserate together as they left Manny’s Barber Shop.

I brushed the nice, dark hair and smoothed it down with my hands. The forelock was rather bulky, I noted.

"Nervous?" I asked.

Tim assumed I was talking about the wedding.

"I just can’t wait for it to be over. Ashley is going nuts with details," Tim commented.

I snapped on the clippers and nudged his head forward.

I normally used a #3.5 blade on him, but today was special. I snapped on a #2. I took him tight up the back and peeled off a generous layer of padding. It would be short!

As I clipped around to the side, Tim noticed rather generous clumps of hair falling to the cape.

"You are leaving me with some hair, Manny?!" he joked.

"Of course, and a very tidy look for the wedding. All those photos for posterity….you need to be very trim and spiffy," I replied as Andrew shifted nervously on the chair in the waiting area.

I combed the bulky forelock down and it hung midway over his eyes.

SNIP, SNIP, SNIP!

Off it came, halfway down the forehead.

I went into overdrive with the thinning shears and reduced the puffy helmet of hair significantly. Tim’s standard business cut could now pass muster as a military officer.

I spun the chair around and he blinked and gulped.

I held up the mirror.

"Nice job, Manny," he said, although I could tell he was still trying to get used to the much shorter crop.

Perhaps it was a bit of penance in advance for what was to come with Andrew.

Off came the cape.

"Now for your friend!" I chirped.

Andrew’s eyes were very wide, even startled, as he shuffled to the chair. He paused and looked at himself in the mirror.

For a moment, it seemed as if he was getting cold feet and changing his mind. But, then, our plans fell into place as he finally ascended the metal foot rest and eased into my big barber chair.

I decided I would not go through with the charade of asking him how he wanted it cut. I would quickly inflict the first chop and there would be no turning back….

The cape flew through the air. I wasn’t very accustomed to fumbling with long hair to fasten the clip.

"Looks like you spend quite a bit of time in the sun, Andrew," I noted as I pulled a brush through his magnificent mane. "Surfer?"

"Whenever I can get to the beach, I’m there!" he replied cheerfully.

"Tell me about the waves where you surf. Are they getting rougher and higher with climate change?" I asked.

Andrew launched into a long, detailed explanation and seemed totally engrossed in his account….which was exactly what I wanted.

As he babbled, I sectioned off a generous shank of his forelock and delivered the first chop with my barber shears. The 12-inch lock fell to the cape. It was the beginning of the end to his surfer hairstyle. The forelock got whacked down to a mere inch!

The stunning clump of hair fell smack into Andrew’s lap.

He paused and tried to look down, but I steadied his head.

Tim helped distract him.

"Tell him about the competition you just won, Andrew!" he encouraged.

As he did, I quickly delivered a few more chops with the scissors and took off a lot of length from the top of Andrew’s head. The shiny hair felt very soft and silken as I handled it in the reduction process. Most of the cut hair fell to my feet.

As I picked up the clippers, Andrew was still giving me all the details about every wave he had mastered in the competition.

The clippers broke into a quiet buzz that filled the blanks during a pause in his heroic surfing escaped.

"I don’t want it too short," Andrew said nervously.

"Oh, it won’t be as short as Tim’s, but we do need to take off a lot of his," I said, establishing my authority over the length.

And with that, the clippers went up at the nape, stripping off mounds of lovely blond hair with natural sun-kissed highlights. It fell in sheaves like a harvest of ripe summer wheat.

I was quick and firm. My hand kept Andrew’s head captive, like in a vice.

So much hair fell to the cape that all he could do was to resign himself to the fact that his hair was being cut very, very short.

As his long hair fell, what remained was much darker in color, almost a medium brown. The very short pelt on the sides and back made him almost unrecognizable.

"I think it would be nice if we both had the same haircut," Tim suggested from the waiting area.

"Yes, that would be nice," I replied quickly.

I took down the remaining length on top, using clipper over comb. Then I returned to clipping with a #2 blade at the back and sides.

By the time Andrew’s haircut was over, the floor of my shop was carpeted with an immense golden layer of hair.

I was excited for the big reveal. I swiveled the chair around slowly so that Andrew could see the new him.

"OMG!" he gasped. "It’s so short!!"

"And it looks great, perfect for a summer wedding," I retorted.

"I love it!" Tim beamed. "Such a great pal to humor the bride and groom by getting a proper haircut for the wedding."

"They’ll be mistaking me for one of the cadets at the naval academy," Andrew sulked.

I withdrew the cape.

"Most of the hair that got cut off had been very damaged by the sun," I said dismissively. "Dry and brittle. Now it’s refreshed with a good pruning."

Andrew felt his clipped nape.

"Oh, that does feel amazing. And it might be better without wet hair slapping me in the face while I’m surfing," he noted, warming to his new short crop.

Then he glanced down at the floor.

"Geeez! All that came off me?" he marveled.

"Came off us!" Tim added. "You know, Manny, I think I like this shorter length. Let’s make it my new look permanently."

"What about you, Andrew? No more long, surfer hair - will that be a permanent change for you too?" Manny asked.

"I sort of miss the old look," he said wistfully. "But, perhaps it’s time I adopt a more grown-up hair length myself."

Tim pulled out his wallet to pay.

"No! The haircuts are on me - my wedding gift for you and Ashley," I beamed.

"Thanks, Manny! How about joining us for the stag party tonight? We’ll have a lot of fun and get drunk," Tim suggested.

"And, I promise not to whip out a pair of scissors and chopping off that long hair of yours while you’re passed out, Manny," Andrew laughed while showing his crossed fingers.

"Maybe it’s time the barber gets a taste of his own medicine!" Tim added as he playfully grabbed my treasured locks and game them a loving tug.

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