Yearning For Haircut

[DR FREUD]

I got my haircut in early March just prior to staying at home which I am still doing. I am over the magical age and have other underlying health issues so staying home except for essential grocery is the norm. I usually take a drive once a week and pick up a Iced Coffee at drive thru and park at the beach and enjoy the scenery then drive home. It keeps me sane to just get out but my shaggy head of hair (I'm bald on top) was causing me to really need a trip to the barbers. Here in Florida the barbers have been open for at least 3 weeks but now Florida is possibly the next Corona NYC for the US. I had every plan of going to my barber this am then yesterday afternoon after reading additional articles I decided it was not a good idea. My friend Whip had remarked a month or so ago to just do the haircut myself as he does. I rejected that idea at the time but found the bag of clippers under the sink and took the plunge last night. While my cut is simple, 3/8 inch all over and everything off the top, I was concerned about getting the back of my head even and that was a needless concern. All went well and I feel like a new person again. Couldn't trim around the ears like my barber does but I'm satisfied with the job and will continue until the virus lets up. How many out there cut their own hair or shave the heads? I have no desire to do this permanently and will return to the barber as soon as its safe but for now, Success!!!

[+ bashful]

I got my haircut in early March just prior to staying at home which I am still doing. I am over the magical age and have other underlying health issues so staying home except for essential grocery is the norm. I usually take a drive once a week and pick up a Iced Coffee at drive thru and park at the beach and enjoy the scenery then drive home. It keeps me sane to just get out but my shaggy head of hair (I'm bald on top) was causing me to really need a trip to the barbers. Here in Florida the barbers have been open for at least 3 weeks but now Florida is possibly the next Corona NYC for the US. I had every plan of going to my barber this am then yesterday afternoon after reading additional articles I decided it was not a good idea. My friend Whip had remarked a month or so ago to just do the haircut myself as he does. I rejected that idea at the time but found the bag of clippers under the sink and took the plunge last night. While my cut is simple, 3/8 inch all over and everything off the top, I was concerned about getting the back of my head even and that was a needless concern. All went well and I feel like a new person again. Couldn't trim around the ears like my barber does but I'm satisfied with the job and will continue until the virus lets up. How many out there cut their own hair or shave the heads? I have no desire to do this permanently and will return to the barber as soon as its safe but for now, Success!!!

 

Cut my own hair too, back in early May. A couple of gouges around the ears, and a little uneven in back, but not too bad. Felt much better. They finally opened barber shops this month. I waited a couple of weeks because my regular barber decided to retire instead of returning, so the other guy in the shop was busy at first. Got my haircut last week. Much much better.

[+ RJD]

My last haircut was February 22nd, so I’m at 4 months now. I have a standing appointment every 4 weeks under normal circumstances. Let’s just say I’ve passed the Heat Miser stage and have graduated to troll doll.

 

Thankfully, hair salons can open this Friday in Pennsylvania with obvious restrictions and limited capacity. Between preparing the salon, acquiring the required supplies like sanitizer, disinfectant, masks, and gloves, they won’t be “open for business” until the 30th. Between the later start, 4th of July holiday, and all of the clients desperate for an appointment, the earliest I can get in is July 11th. That day can’t come fast enough.

[+ Pensant]

Had a friend do mine until the shops reopened a few weeks ago. Have had two since. I moved to a buzz cut, 2 on top fading to a 1 on the sides and back. Just love it!

[Sixty]

Had my first haircut yesterday in 4 months ( Brooklyn. NY ). They raised me $3, 12 to 15, for short hair. Have been using the same

establishment and hair cutter for nearly 10 years. I made an appointment, which I never do, just to play safe. They placed chairs on

the street for customers to sit on while waiting to be called inside. THE NEW NORMAL??????????

Next comes a manicure and pedicure in about two more weeks, PHASE 3.

[marylander1940]

[+ pepa_e_mango]

I now have an excuse to wear it long!

[MEDIA=giphy]Mdvuv5wETkoo3m582E[/MEDIA]

[+ g56whiz]

Yea. It’s either a comb over, ponytail, violin or a haircut. It’s been since late Feb.

[+ poolboy48220]

Monday, I had my first haircut since just before shutdown. Lots of precautions; my guy's doing one person at a time, sanitizing things between each customer, we both wear masks, disposable aprons. My hair looks much better but my beard is still crazy; next appointment in a month, maybe we can skip the masks & he can do something with the beard. I'm actually interested in leaving it longer but want his expertise in working with all this new "raw clay" :-)

[+ Charlie]

I had a haircut in February, but the lockdown in CA came just before I was ready for another. I tried trimming with a scissors for awhile, but I wasn't very good at it. My spouse always keeps his head shaved close with an electric razor (with my help), but I wasn't going to let him near me with scissors in his hand, so I just let mine get shaggier and shaggier. When barbershops re-opened at the beginning of this month, I made an appt with my barber, who has a one man shop. When I arrived, he took my temperature, then asked me questions from a long typed list, before he allowed me to sit in the chair. I told him to shave everything down to a 2, which should last for awhile. I had to wear a face mask, and he said he wasn't allowed to touch my eyebrows, nose hairs or ear hairs. The beard, of course, I can do myself. I always tip, but this time was more liberal than usual.

 

My spouse and I both desperately need pedicures, but the nail shops have just re-opened, and I am a little more nervous about returning there.

[+ Axiom2001]

I was lucky and fortunate last week when my barber/hairstylist opened his shop at the appointed time. I stood on a nice mat by the door where he took my temperature then requested that I go wash my hands. My that hot water and liquid soap felt so good. ...got into his recently sanitized chair and received the removal of almost three months of hair growth. He cut my hair very closely (at my request), trimmed my eyebrows but did not touch my mustache at all, for I would have had to remove my mask. [He's a professed "germ-a-phobe," so I trusted him.]

 

As usual, he did a remarkable job, but next time I would like for him to do more distinct lining all around. His rate is $55, but I gave him $65 since I had so much hair to remove and he has not had any clients for almost three months.

 

Three days later I managed to get my very long-overdue manicure. Again, the manicurist was prepared, and she had opened her shop per the date and guidelines which she received from the county and State of California. The only thing that bothered me was that she was not wearing gloves although both of us used hand sanitizer prior to her beginning the procedure.

 

I felt sorry for her, for she has had her own business for over twenty+ years, and on that day looked very, very fatigued and drained. Her fee for a manicure is a little excessive ($50); I wrote a check for $65.00, for she has not worked since the middle of March.

[mike carey]

The only thing that bothered me was that she was not wearing gloves although both of us used hand sanitizer prior to her beginning the procedure.

As I recall, the aim is to have clean hands while they do their work. Whether the last thing they do before starting is wash their hands or put on gloves, their hands will touch the same things after that. Whether they're wearing gloves or not makes no difference.

 

In a similar vein, establishments that insist that customers wear gloves achieve nothing if they do not insist that those gloves are sterile ones that their customers put on as they enter.

[JayCeeKy]

[+ poolboy48220]

I wrote a check for $65.00, for she has not worked since the middle of March.

I paid my guy what I would have paid for all the haircuts I missed. He gave me free haircuts when I was laid off for six months in 2009, so I could look not-crazy for interviews. It felt good to finally be able to return the kindness.

[+ Gar1eth]

I paid my guy what I would have paid for all the haircuts I missed. He gave me free haircuts when I was laid off for six months in 2009, so I could look not-crazy for interviews. It felt good to finally be able to return the kindness.

 

That was a very menschly thing to do. (If you don't understand Yiddish-it's a very high compliment).

 

Texas is having a resurgence. The Texas Medical Center in Houston-taken as a whole-is considered the largest hospital in the world. They are at 100% ICU CAPACITY from Covid-19 and non Covid related illnesses. The governor today has put restaurants back at 50% capacity and closed bars down as of noon today. So I'm avoiding the barbershop. But truthfully I was avoiding the barbershop even before the resurgence. I figured if I was doing televisits with doctors because I wasn't willing to go to their waiting rooms that it didn't make sense to go to a barbershop where at least theoretically they probably disinfect worse.

 

Unfortunately because I'm old and mostly bald, the hair I have left on the sides is finer in texture and lacking body, so it frizzes and curls up. I actually bought Brylcream for the first time in years to try to get the hair to stay down. They sent me a 5.5 oz tube. It's enormous!! Considering the amount of hair I have left, I'll never be done with it. They'll end up having to bury me with it. But as in the after life I'll have a full head of hair, it will price very useful.

 

Gman

[+ g56whiz]

That was a very menschly thing to do. (If you don't understand Yiddish-it's a very high compliment).

 

Texas is having a resurgence. The Texas Medical Center in Houston-taken as a whole-is considered the largest hospital in the world. They are at 100% ICU CAPACITY from Covid-19 and non Covid related illnesses. The governor today has put restaurants back at 50% capacity and closed bars down as of noon today. So I'm avoiding the barbershop. But truthfully I was avoiding the barbershop even before the resurgence. I figured if I was doing televisits with doctors because I wasn't willing to go to their waiting rooms that it didn't make sense to go to a barbershop where at least theoretically they probably disinfect worse.

 

Unfortunately because I'm old and mostly bald, the hair I have left on the sides is finer in texture and lacking body, so it frizzes and curls up. I actually bought Brylcream for the first time in years to try to get the hair to stay down. They sent me a 5.5 oz tube. It's enormous!! Considering the amount of hair I have left, I'll never be done with it. They'll end up having to bury me with it. But as in the after life I'll have a full head of hair, it will price very useful.

 

Gman

Recalling Tom Lerher "Be prepared, it's the Boy Scouts marching song . . .

[+ Charlie]

That was a very menschly thing to do. (If you don't understand Yiddish-it's a very high compliment).

 

Texas is having a resurgence. The Texas Medical Center in Houston-taken as a whole-is considered the largest hospital in the world. They are at 100% ICU CAPACITY from Covid-19 and non Covid related illnesses. The governor today has put restaurants back at 50% capacity and closed bars down as of noon today. So I'm avoiding the barbershop. But truthfully I was avoiding the barbershop even before the resurgence. I figured if I was doing televisits with doctors because I wasn't willing to go to their waiting rooms that it didn't make sense to go to a barbershop where at least theoretically they probably disinfect worse.

 

Unfortunately because I'm old and mostly bald, the hair I have left on the sides is finer in texture and lacking body, so it frizzes and curls up. I actually bought Brylcream for the first time in years to try to get the hair to stay down. They sent me a 5.5 oz tube. It's enormous!! Considering the amount of hair I have left, I'll never be done with it. They'll end up having to bury me with it. But as in the after life I'll have a full head of hair, it will price very useful.

 

Gman

I think a decision about getting a haircut, like most decisions now about what one is comfortable doing, depends on who the barber is. I have gone to the same barber for several years, and I trust that he is conscientious about maintaining the protocols. He is also gay and rather fastidious even under normal circumstances. He has a one man shop, and I noticed as soon as I entered that he had rearranged the furnishings for maximum distancing, had a hand-sanitizing machine at the entrance, and had removed all reading material. He scheduled appointments so that there would be no other customers present, took my temperature and asked me a list of questions before I could even sit in the chair. I would have been much more hesitant going to a stranger or to a large shop with multiple barbers and customers.

[+ Gar1eth]

The Brylcream isn't holding. I guess these days I need more than a dab (a reference younger members may not understand). I may have to end up shellacking my hair to keep the fly-away look at bay.

 

Gman

[+ WilliamM]

I finally gave in and made an appointment to have a haircut on Monday, also to get my beard trimmed. I am 76, and never had a beard before, The salon opened today.not surprised it is open seven days a week for a while. Yikes.

[+ keroscenefire]

I actually don't think getting a haircut is very high risk. There were two hairdressers in Missouri who worked while awaiting COVID tests and saw 140 clients between them. They ended up testing positive and did contact tracing on all their clients and not a single one ended up getting COVID. Both hairdresser and client wore masks while inside and did a lot of standard sanitation protocols, which apparently were enough to not spread the infection.

 

Of course I understand if you have underlying health conditions and it's not worth the risk. I got a haircut myself a couple weeks ago when cases were trending downward in my area. You have to call ahead for an appointment here and the barber I went to has these garage door type windows that they opened up to allow a lot of ventilation. Since there was no waiting, it was only myself, my barber and a few other barbers/clients in a fairly large space with ample social distancing. I think getting a haircut is relatively safe, though maybe wait a bit until cases start coming down again (if that happens). I think certainly extra caution is good if you're in an area with rising cases.

Edited June 27, 2020 by keroscenefire

[+ Lucky]

It was easy getting my haircut this morning. I just put the razor to my head and rode it like a lawn mower! My husband will touch it up in the back.

[+ g56whiz]

It was easy getting my haircut this morning. I just put the razor to my head and rode it like a lawn mower! My husband will touch it up in the back.

Does he make house calls? LOL

[nate_sf]

It was easy getting my haircut this morning. I just put the razor to my head and rode it like a lawn mower! My husband will touch it up in the back.

 

I'm in the same boat. I've been shaving my head clean with a razor every day for at least 10 years. Before that I used clippers.

 

Nowadays I use Headblade, which has made the shaving much more reliable than when I was using a regular razor.

[rustyrex]

I bought everything to start cutting my own hair. Did the first time about a month ago. Even though my place has reopened I’m not going back. They never listened to me when I asked them to cut my hair a certain way. Why bother paying for it when I can do it myself the way I want it.

[jonnychgo]

I had mine cut in Illinois the second day after they were allowed to reopen. No one could wait inside, appointments necessary and barber and customer wore masks. They clean the chairs after each customer. But I think they could have done more. It's been 3 weeks and I am fine. I gave my guy a larger tip (he is the owner) to try and help out for the lost income. I think now I will wait another 3-5 weeks.