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Big Day at the Barbershop

Sharon and the others were still eating breakfast when Billy showed up to join them.  He was happy to share the pancakes that Jen had taken it upon herself to prepare.  Substantial quantities of pancakes, maple syrup and orange juice were consumed along with the coffee that Gail had made earlier for herself and Sharon.

“Let’s get this mess cleaned up guys.  We need to go if we are going to get there ahead of a crowd.”  Sharon knew that by 11:00 AM there could be a number of people waiting and it was already 9:20.  She hoped to have the shop pretty much devoted to her considerable bunch.

Amid the usual silliness, laughter, arguments, and discussions, the table was cleared, dishes put in the dishwasher - one large bowl ending up in the sink for later washing.

Sharon had already applied an almost unnoticeable amount of very pale eyeshadow around her eyes, reproducing, to the best of her ability, the effect created by Gail.  She was careful to understate the effect rather than overstate it, at least in this case.  But she did want Jimmy to notice it.

“Come on you guys, pile in the car.  We need to go.”  One Chinese fire drill later they had settled in and were on their way.   They park about a half block away in a large space.  Sharon was not yet very skilled at parallel parking and picked the first three car space she encountered.

As they entered, to her relief Sharon saw that the shop was empty.

“Hi Sharon.  The crew is ready for haircuts again I see.  Whose the new member?”  Jimmy pointed out Billy.

“That’s my friend Billy.  He’s going to get a Michael Jordan cut.”  Jen had encouraged Billy in his idea for his haircut and didn’t want anyone to talk him out of it.

“Yeah, Mother said I could if I wanted.”

Sam the head barber remembering the episode of the previous year was a little skeptical at this statement and looked to Sharon for confirmation.

“Its OK Sam, his Mom really did OK it.  I’ll be responsible for it.  Billy, Sam can give you your special haircut and Jimmy can do one of the twins.  How about you first Gary”

“OK.  I’m getting a flattop this time, but next year I’m going to get a mohawk.”

“Is that right?  A mohawk?  Well I can give you a real good mohawk right now if you want.”
Jimmy was teasing him to see what his reaction would be.

“Ah, I can’t have one this year.  Mom said it wouldn’t grow out enough for school if I got one now.”

“They can get a flattop with a ‘high and tight’ Jimmy.   What do you think?”

“Sure, that would be fine if it’s a short flattop.  It will show a bit of skin on the top.  If he had gotten a mohawk I would have clipped the sides as close as possible with my edger.  Its almost as close as shaving.  That’s called white side walls when its done as part of a flattop.  That’s what Sam is going to do with Billy.”

Sharon wanted to watch Billy’s cut as well as the twins.  She didn’t want to miss any of the action.  But she like Jimmy’s suggestion.

“How about that Gary, Jimmy can cut the sides just like he would for a mohawk.  I think you would like that even better.”

“Sure, it OK with me.”

Jimmy fastened the cape around Gary and picked up his clippers.  Sharon sat down to watch the show.  She turned to Billy whose head was already partially clipped to about one sixteenth of an inch.  She watch a few passes of the clippers, and then turned to Gary where Jimmy was running his large clippers up the side of Gary’s head leaving nearly bare skin behind.  He knew exactly when to lift the clippers in order to leave longer hair for the flattop.  He continued around Gary’s head.  Beginning right at the top of the cape in the back he buzzed a path up to the crown before lifting off the clippers.  

Sharon turned to Sam’s chair where Sam had reduced Billy’s head to a rather uneven field of stubble.  Jen was watching in riveted fascination as Billy’s mop of sandy curls disappeared to reveal a very well shaped head.

Sam had observed Jen’s intense interest in this process.  “What do you think Jen?”

“Cool.”  Jen was at a loss for words, but her intense concentration on Billy’s haircut was obvious. 

Sam picked up a different, smaller clipper and began the process anew.  This time he was more deliberate, making sure he covered Billy’s head completely.  Billy showed little evidence of any hair now.  His sandy colored hair was essentially invisible against his light brown skin.  Sharon thought he look much better without all that hair.  She told herself to tell Mrs. James how much better she thought Billy looked.

She turned her attention to Jimmy’s chair to see Jimmy pick up a wide comb that he had shown her earlier which he call a ‘flattopper’.
“Hold real still now Gary, so that I can get it square.  I don’t want you to end up lopsided.”

Gary visibly stiffened and stared straight ahead as Jimmy carefully straightened his head.

“That’s it, hold it right there” Jimmy admonished.  He placed the big comb on the top of Gary’s head and ran the clippers over it to get the basic shape created.  Looking at Gary from the front he was satisfied with the result although it was obviously too long.  He would reduce the length and determine the width of the flattop as he proceeded.  If it was too wide the hair on the outer part would be too long and would not stand up.  Jimmy used his barber comb and clippers to shorten the cut.  The final step would have to be done freehand.   He applied a small amount of crewcut wax to Gary’s hair and brushed it vigorously to make it stand up straight.  Satisfied, he replaced the clipper cutter head  with a different one and checked to make sure that Gary was holding his hear perfectly square.  Sharon couldn’t tell what he had put on the clippers, but guessed that it was a head that would not cut quite as close as the previous one.

“One more time Gary, then you can relax.”

Gary assumed his best military posture.  Jimmy checked the length that he wanted to leave in front.  Making sure he had the clippers level he began at the front and created a strip down the middle of Gary’s head.   Not satisfied with the result he made a second pass.  This time the front section was less than half an inch long.  Proceeding back it got progressively shorter until at the top of Gary’s head the clippers were right on his scalp.  At that point Jimmy kept them on the scalp and clippered a bare strip to Gary’s crown to meet the area at the back of his head that had already been denuded.

Sharon was as fascinated by this process as Jen was about Billy’s cut.  She got excited thinking about watching Frank undergo the same transformation.  Taking a quick look at Billy, she saw that Sam was in the process of using some very small and quiet clippers, going repeatedly over Billy’s head to remove the last traces of hair.  She wondered if he would lather and shave it next.  That was an exciting prospect and she wanted to watch it happen.

Jimmy was now beginning to match the rest of the top of Gary’s head to the strip that he had already created.  The flattop was becoming well defined.  Using his comb and clippers he squared the sides.  Sharon could see that now the flattop extended back to the top of Gary’s head but then began to curve to follow the shape of his skull and met the back at the crown.  It looked sharp she thought, but Jimmy was not yet finished.  He picked up the same type of small clippers that she had observed Sam using.  Starting on the right side Jimmy clipped high up the side of Gary’s head almost up to the point where the flattop began.  Sharon now saw where the term ‘white side walls’ originated.  Jimmy went to the left side and repeated the process checking to make sure that the two sides were identical.  Then he went to the back where he slowly went up to the crown of Gary’s head to meet the top.  Gary’s hair had now been reduced to a small horseshoe.  From the front it was squared off, but if Gary looked down the middle that section was so short that only skin seemed to show.  From the sides there was a flat top half way back that curved to follow the curve of his skull.  The sides were completely bare, or as bare as Jimmy’s clippers could make them.  Looking at the back of Gary’s head from different angles, Jimmy went over it one more time with his small clippers to remove any possible stray hair.

Checking the top once again he combed through the little hair that remained and made some undetectable final adjustments.  Having completed his work, he brushed hair off Gary’s face and neck.  He dusted his neck, removed the paper collar and clipped the region that he had not been able to reach.

“You’re done Gary.  Want to see how it looks.”  He spun the chair around to face the mirror.

“OK.”  Gary looked at the image in the mirror and ran his hand over his head.  “It’s pretty flat. Neat.”  He felt the back of his head and encountered only bare skin.  The tiny stubble left by the clippers was almost undetectable.

“Take a look at the rest.  Its just like that mohawk you wanted.  Jimmy gave Gary a big mirror and turned him away from the mirror so he could see the back of his head, now as bare as Billy’s.

Gary felt it again while examining himself in the mirror.  “It feels kind of funny.  I like the way it feels.”

Sharon heard Sam talking to Billy.  “There you go Billy, a really good ‘Michael Jordan’.  What do you think.?”

Before Billy could respond, Jen announced, “Billy you look really great.  Can I feel it?”

Billy examined himself in the mirror and grinned.  He ran his hand over his head and responded, “Sure Jen, its feels neat.”  Billy climbed out of the chair to walk over to Billy and rub her hand over his head.

“That feels really good Billy, but you said it would be smooth, and I can feel some bristles when I rub backwards.”

“Yeah, I don’t know.”  He looked at Sam for an explanation.

Sharon was thinking the same think.

“Jimmy I though you said that ‘white side walls were shaved.”

“They are, but we had to give up using a razor last month.  The health department said it was too dangerous and our insurance company said they might not be able to continue insuring us if we kept on.  It has to do with little nicks that happen sometimes no matter how careful we are.  They can bleed quite a bit, and if I have a little cut on my finger I might give somebody a disease of get one from them.  So we don’t do it anymore.  That’s why we have these little clippers.”  He picked up the small clippers.  “These cut very close, but won’t get it smooth like a razor.  If you want it really smooth, you can shave at home with an electric razor.  Some of them are almost as close as a regular safety razor.”

“My boyfriend Frank has been shaving me with a safety razor.”  I really like how smooth it feels.  Maybe we can do Billy and Gary the same way.  What do you think guys?”

Once again Jen jumped in.  “You really ought to do it Billy.  It should be real smooth - and shiny too.”  The last came as an afterthought based on her observation of sweaty basketball players.

“Can you do it for me Sharon?  I told Jen it would be smooth.”

“Sure, Billy.  I’m an expert at shaving now.  I have to do my legs all the time.   Do you want yours done Gary?”

“I don’t know.  Maybe.  After Billy.”  Gary was not enthusiastic about having his big sister perform this service for him.  Sharon decided she should not push it.

“I guess its not very important anyway.  That flattop is awesome.  What do you guys think.”

“Its keen Gary.”  Jen added her own thought.  “It’s better than a mohawk.”

“Is anybody going to be next?”  Sam was getting a little impatient at all the chatter.

“Sorry Sam.  David I guess its your turn with Sam.  Are you having yours the same as Gary.”

“I guess that would be OK.”  David sounded distinctly unenthusiastic.

Sharon hesitated then decided to let David have a say in the proceedings.  “Do you want it different?”

“Can I have it the same as last time?”

“Why not.  That looked good and I’m sure Mom would like it.  Sam, he had a three eights inch crewcut with, what did you call it Jimmy?  Not a high and tight ...”

“A low and tight Sharon.  Sam knows.  Jen are you going to get a haircut this time or are you just going to let that mop keep on growing?”

“It is not a mop and I am getting it cut.”  Jen headed determinedly toward Jimmy’s chair.

“I want it cut exactly the way you did it before.  Billy said I wouldn’t, but I am and I’m going to keep it that too because that’s the way I like it.  Everybody likes it this way.”

“I can certainly do that Jen and I think you looked terrific with that haircut.  I see that I won’t have to trim your eyebrows this time.  You look real nifty.  You’ll look even better after we take care of all that extra hair on you head.  I sure hope my clippers don’t overheat.”
Billy, who had moved down to a chair where he could watch Jen’s haircut, laughed at this.  “Yeah Jen I bet it’ll get stuck.”

“I don’t see how Sam ever got through that big mess you had.  Mine isn’t half that bad.”

“Time to get this show on the road.  Head down Jen.”  Jimmy had checked with Sharon, indicating with his hand if Jen’s request was to be honored.  Sharon had nodded assent.

Jen lowered her head and Jimmy used his clippers with the No. 2 cutters to go up the back of her head.  He finished in a few measured passes and tilted her head to the left so he could perform the same magic on the right side.  Again a few passes reduced that side to a soft burr.  Walking to the other side he repeated the process.  All of this had taken little more than a minute.  The transition from sides and back to the top was a perfectly even line around Jen’s head.  The top of course was far to long from two months of growth and didn’t blend with the back and sides at all.  Jimmy  picked up another clipper, attached a one half inch guard to it and proceeded to reduce the top to the required length.  Jen’s fine hair formed a soft velvety mat on her head that did not stand up stiffly, but tended to conformed to her very nicely shaped head. 

Jimmy retrieved the original clippers and replaced the No.2 cutter with a No. 1.  This time he clippered the sides only about one inch above Jen’s ears before he began to taper into the longer hair above.  The back received the same treatment.  Now came the critical details.  He carefully went over the sides to make sure that there was no tell-tale transitions between the three regions.  He took special care to blend the transition from above her ears to the longer hair above it.  In a ‘low and tight’ the transition would be made very definite, but in this case it was to be unnoticeable.  Similarly, the transition from the sides and back to the top had to be just right if the shape of Jen’s head was to be perfectly displayed.

Billy watched with unwavering attention as Jen’s more than one inch long hair, which lay flat, was reduced to a half inch long brush that stood up just enough a create a soft halo effect around her head.  Billy had an urge to be able to touch it and run his hand through it.  He didn’t know it but he had been bitten by the bug that infects people with a life long fascination with seeing girls and (later) women get their hair cut short and to have his own cut.

Having completed the major aspects of Jen’s cut Jimmy created a neat hairline in the back and around her ears with his new edging trimmer.  Combing through Jen’s hair he checked once more time for any unsatisfactory areas.

“Jimmy, can you do her eyelashes again?  I know they’re still pretty short, but I think you can redo the upper ones anyway.”

“Let me look.  Hum, they are still short but I think I can trim them a little.”

This exchange had caught Sam’s attention.  “You’re going to cut her eyelashes?  That sounds dangerous to me.”  Sam, not present when this idea was first suggested by Sharon and perfected by Jimmy was about to quash this idea when Sharon put in a plea.
“Its OK Sam.  Jimmy did it for Jen and me when you were gone.  He did a great job.  Please let him do it again.”

“That’s right Sam.  It was not so bad.  Jen and Sharon are very patient and don’t move and I have steady hands.  It’ll be alright.”

Sam was not convinced but gave in.  “I’ll let you do it this once, but no more.  They’ll have to find someone else to do it from now on.  Its just too risky Jimmy.”

Jimmy acknowledged this new directive from his employer.  He had not been eager to perform this service, but didn’t want to disappoint Sharon.

“Hold still and close your eyes Jen.”

Jen complied and Jimmy proceeded to trim her eyelashes.  They had grown out only a little in the past two months and Jimmy trimmed them even closer than he had managed the first time.  He checked his work, brushed off Jen’s face and announced, “its all done Jen.  I think it looks even better than last time.  Do you want to see.”

“Yes.” 

Jimmy obligingly turned her to face the mirror.  Jen looked at herself with approval, and ran her hand over her head.  “Thanks, it feels nice.”

Jen stepped down from the chair beaming at Billy.  “I told you I would get it cut again.  You want to feel it?”  She walked over to where he was sitting.  Billy had been watching with heightened anticipation of this possibility.  He reached up to touch her head, but couldn’t reach it while seated.  Jen obligingly leaned over to put her head within reach and Billy ran his hand over the soft brush of her head.

“That feels neat Jen.  You look really cool.”

“I think so too Jen.  Jimmy really did do a better job this time.  You’ll have the best haircut in you school when school starts.”  Sharon could not help but admire her little sister’s big eyed innocent look.  Her blue eyes seemed even larger and more blue than before and had now become real attention getters.  No one could miss them.

Watching Jen had taken her thoughts away from the dilemma that she was having regarding how she was going to get her own hair cut.  Jimmy was standing behind his chair and another customer had shown up.  She walked up to the chair and seated herself still undecided but not wanting the next customer to be unreasonably delayed.  The new customer went to Sam’s chair which relieved her anxiety somewhat.

Before she could say anything Jimmy spoke up to compliment her new look.  “I like the way you’ve done your eyebrows.  They were always too much for your face.  This way you eyes show up much better.  How do you want your hair cut this time?  You should do something to show off your eyes. I think.  They are quite striking now.”

“I know that, but I can’t decide what.  I been thinking of a chilli bowl with the bangs just down to my eyebrows.  My boyfriend would like that but I’m not sure I’m ready to go that far yet.  Mom said I should have shorter bangs to emphasize my eyes and brows.  Do you have any ideas?”

“A chilli would be very dramatic, but people would notice that and not notice your new look.  But you know a buzz cut would actually be the perfect cut for you.  Just look at what it does for Jen.  Remember how good it looked last summer?  And its actually less radical than a high shaved undercut chilli bowl.”

Sharon remembered and knew he was probably right.  “I did like it that way Jimmy, but a lot of the kids in school gave me a hard time about it.  I’m just not ready to go that far yet.  A couple of girls had chilli’s, which everybody thought was really cool looking.   That’s what everybody who wants to be different is getting.  So that’s what’s really ‘in’ now.”  

“Maybe you Mom has the right idea.  If you went with shorter sides with less of an angle, and shorter bangs, your new look would be what would stand out rather than your haircut.  You could keep the undercut the way it is.  It would look more like a high square bob than an angled bob.  It gets a little closer to a chilli.  Later you could change it to a modified chilli.”

“I guess you’re right.  How much shorter do the thing the sides and bangs should be?”

Jimmy looked at Sharon’s hair from the side and then from the front trying to image how it would look.  He put his comb along the side to get an idea at what height to cut it.  Finally he decided.  “Well, you have a nearly perfectly shaped face, so you can have any style you like, but to emphasize you eyes I would cut the sides to the middle of your ear with a slight angle like this.”  He demonstrated where the line would be with his comb.  It went from the middle of her ear at a slight angle to just under her cheek bone.  “The sides would act like a frame for your eyes.  Then I think that bangs should be quite a bit shorter, half way up your forehead at least and just as wide as they are now.  That way your eyes have two frames, skin that shows plus the darker frame of hair outside of that.  That is the way I’ve seen it done to draw attention to the eyes.  I think it will work that way for you.”  Jimmy was clearly convinced that he had the right idea and wanted to try it out. 

“Your bangs should be about here.”  Again he put he comb at the suggested location, this time near the middle of Sharon’s forehead.  He new bangs would be much shorter than before, but in keeping with the much shorter sides.  “The back would be a little shorter too, but not much.  The undercut would still give it the right look, and a little more of your nape would show, but not enough to make it look very extreme.”  Jimmy stopped to let Sharon have a chance to comment.

“That sounds like it would be very interesting, but I sure wish I could see it first.  You need one of those computers that can make changes to a person’s picture.”
“Wait a minute.  I may have a picture that is similar to that look in the back.  It was in a magazine that I get so I can keep up on modern styles and cuts for omen and girls. I’l be right back.”  Jimmy headed quickly to the back of the shop.

“I found it” Jimmy exclaimed as he headed back to his chair.  He had a magazine open to a page that showed a model with dramatic red hair, but the cut was almost exactly the one describe by Jimmy except that the back was a short wedge rather than undercut and squared off.  From the front there was no difference.  The side view would be different behind the ears and the back of Sharon’s head would display much more of her neck and nape than was true of the model.  But it was the front that interested her the most.  “You have to ignore the color, but otherwise the front is just about right.” Jimmy continued to make his case, more convinced that ever.

Sharon tried to image the pictures with her own face and hair with little success.  Giving it up she took out a picture of herself and put it beside the picture in the magazine.  Now she was able to get a better idea of what it might look like.  Finally satisfied she turned back to Jimmy.

“I thought you would try to convince me to get a chilli bowl.  So you surprised me by suggesting this cut.  I had almost convinced myself to get a chilli bowl, but now I see why you wanted it this way.”

“I’m sure it would look great and bring out your eyes even more than a chilli.  You can always get a chilli later if you want.  Just let your bangs grow for two months or so.”

“You’re right.  I’ll go with that idea.  Maybe later I’ll get a real chilli.  Frank would really flip out if I did and the other kids would think I was going punk, even though I’m not.  I just like to get my hair cut.  I guess I’m weird or something.”  For the first time Sharon mentioned her growing interest in getting her hair cut. 

“You’re definitely not weird.  I have quite a few customers, men and women, who just like to get their hair cut.  One of my customers has been getting her hair cut by Sam or me since before I started working here five years ago.  She comes in every two weeks to get her buzz cut shaped up.  She keeps it cut almost as short as Jen’s.   She told me she would love to get her head shaved but hasn’t had the guts to do it yet.  Last summer before she went on vacation for two weeks, she got it cut down to a real short buzz - just like David’s crewcut.”

“Wow, that wild.  Do you have very many like that?”  The idea of a woman wanting to get her head shaved was a whole new idea to Sharon.  That thought had never entered her mind before, but it sent shivers down her spine.

“Sure, as I said we have quite a few guys who come in every two weeks.  They’re usually getting crewcuts of one sort or another.  Several ‘high and tights’ and even a couple of ‘white side walls, every once in a while someone wants a full headshave.  Several women come in for short clipper cuts regularly, every 3 or 4 weeks.”

“No, I meant women who talk about getting their heads shaved.”
“Only the one I mentioned, but some of the others would love to get buzz cuts or crewcuts.  They talk about it, especially in the spring, threatening to get one but usually not doing it.  One did early this summer.  She came in with her boyfriend who was encouraging her.  When she hesitated he told her ‘Go ahead Em, you’ve been wanting to for a year, and you’ll look great’.”  I just waited and finally she blurted out ‘I want a crewcut’.  I told her she would good in a nice crewcut and helped her decide how short it should be.  She was very excited about it.  When I had finished and she got to see it she was elated.  She had wanted it for a long time but couldn’t get up the courage to do it for fear the people in her office would think she was crazy.  When she came back last month, she said everyone loved it and thought she was really brave to do it.  Some of the women admired her for the courage to do it and said they would like to get one themselves but their husbands or boyfriends would be really mad.”

“I know Frank would love it, if I got a crewcut again.  Maybe next summer I’ll do it.”

Jimmy had pinned up Sharon’s hair and was finishing ‘shaving’ her undercut.  He had used his new edger to get the area up to her ‘hairline’ as close as possible.  He let down a one half inch section from the right side so that he could create the length and angle that he had described to Sharon.  He had to keep the angle shallow, but then had an idea which he decided to suggest to Sharon.

“Sharon, I have another idea that you might like.  See here, if I make this section that falls in front of you ear angle down so that the front is longer, you can get it to curl forward onto you cheek if you give it a little help.  Your hair has a bit of natural wave in it.  That will frame you eyes even better.”  Jimmy demonstrated the effect by holding the strand so that it was higher and curved forward.

“That’s interesting.  I’ve seen something like that before.  Will it work?”

“I’m sure it will.  But if you find it to be too much trouble, then I’ll recut it to the original plan.”

“I like that.  I think having it curl forward would be interesting.  Where have you seen that?”

“Actually it was in an old book that I looked at when I was in barber school.  It was printed
sometime around 1935, and showed how to cut a lot of different bobs for women and girls.  My Grandmother had her hair cut just that way when she was about sixteen.  She told me it was 1926 and that she had been begging her Mother to let her get her hair ‘shingled’.  She went to the local barbershop and got it done.   She kept it cut that way for about six or seven years.  ”

“Shingled?  What is that.  I’ve never heard that before.”

“It is just a short bob with the back tapered up from the nape.  It pretty much the same as a wedge cut, like the picture I showed you.  Do you remember seeing pictures of Dorothy Hamill the ice skater?  They called her haircut a wedge, but it was nearly identical to a shingled bob.  Louise Brooks, you’ve  probably never heard of her, a 20's movie actress  was famous for her shingled bob with short bangs, just like Dorothy Hamill, except a little shorter.”
“Never hear of her, but I did see some stuff about some of the past gold medal winners during the last olympics and one of them had a short bob a lot like mine.  It flew out like a halo when she did a spin.  Was that her?  She was cute.”

“It must have been.  I’ve never seen another skater with a style like it.  When my Grandfather saw her during that Olympics he mentioned it to my Grandmother and said he had always liked the way her hair was when they first met.  He had an old picture taken when she was about 21 and showed it to her.  She took the picture to the shop, showed it to the woman who had been cutting her hair and said ‘that’s the way I want it cut’. And so she got her ‘shingled bob’ again and has kept it ever since.  Grandfather loved it.  It still looks great.”

“Your Grandmother is still alive!  You’re kidding me”

She’s alive alright.  She’s something.  She’s eighty-six now and lives in one of those assisted living places,  but she still gets around with her cane and can use her computer to send e-mails to us.  She is still a good typist too.  My Grandfather died about 10 years ago, and she said that he had always liked her bob and so she was going to keep it.  She would really like your haircut.  She always liked short hair on girls.  She kept my Mother’s hair cut short until she got to be sixteen and insisted she had to have long hair like all the other girls.”

Jimmy had been steadily working on Sharon’s cut during this entire conversation.  He had finished the sides and back to his satisfaction.  The slight reverse taper on the back made it turn under somewhat.  He had done the same on the sides which had the same effect there.  He was confident that a little gel and a small round brush would achieve the effect that he had promised.

“Ok, Sharon, Its time to do your bangs.  How much shorter do you want them?”

“Let me see how it looks now.”  Jimmy spun her around and she examined the unfinished haircut.  “They should be short, that’s for sure.  But I’m afraid to tell you how short.  I can’t judge.  I trust you to get it right.  I’ve been happy with your decisions and so I’ll let you decide.”

“OK.”  Jimmy thought that very short bangs would be ideal, but because Sharon’s previous cut had given her wide bangs he hesitated to go as short as he would have liked.  He decided to make them a little longer that he had originally suggested.  If that turned out to be too long he could make them shorter.  He pinned up most of the hair than made up Sharon’s thick bangs and combed down the remainder.

“I’m going to do your bangs now.  I have to establish the line first so hold real still.”   Working carefully he trimmed them to about an inch above her brows.  He wanted them to be precise, making a perfect arc across her forehead.  He released another section and cut it to match the line he had established, but this time the fringe was a little wider.  He decided that they should be a little shorter and trimmed off an additional quarter inch.  He was still unsatisfied with the way they looked - too heavy he thought.  Razor cutting would make them look better.

“Sharon, I think that your bangs should be razor thinned to make them less heavy.  It will work nicely with your thick hair.”

“Well, I’ve already said you can do whatever you think will look good.  So why not?”

“Jimmy reached into a drawer for his special razor cutter with the guard that he used only rarely for an occasional customer who knew about his skilled razor cuts.

He quickly razor tapered the under layer of Sharon’s bangs to give them an airy look.  Taking small section he worked on the remainder of the hair that would be Sharon’s bangs.  The effect was to add a little lift to her bangs, making them less thick and more in balance with the sides and back.  Now he evened the line of her bangs which extended more than an inch beyond her temples.  The look that was achieved was that of a wide frame around her eyes.  The yet to be curled forward sections on each cheek promised to add even further to the frame and additional emphasis to her eyes.  Jimmy dampened the cheek curls with a spray bottle, then rubbed a small amount of gel into his hands which he proceeded to apply to the damp hair.  He combed it through several times and coaxed the curl to form which it did readily.  Finally he used a round brush to hold it out while turning it under and forward and using his hairdryer to finish it.  Jimmy demonstrated that he had considerable skill at using these tools despite advertising himself as a barber.  He was tempted to use the razor tapering technique on the remainder of Sharon’s hair, but decided it might not work with the undercut.  Finally he was satisfied.

When viewed from the front, Sharon now sported a short bob with little cheek curls and wide but short bangs that had a slight lift.  From the side the high hairline in back, almost to the top of her ears, angled down to her cheeks where it curved forward. Her small ears were partly exposed, showing off her large hoop earrings and sapphire studs.   From the back the high shaved nape created a very arresting look.

“It’s done Sharon.”  Jimmy once again turned Sharon to fact the mirror and handed her the big hand mirror.  He said nothing more, waiting for her comments and hoping for her approval.  He though it was a terrific look for her - unique but not wildy extreme.

Sharon examined herself in the large mirror.  The big eyed girl in the mirror had short hair that drew attention to eyes that had been made more prominent by high arched brows lighter than her hair and artfully applied makeup.  The light makeup around her eyes contrasted with the dark frame of hair, now far enough away not to make the contrast too intense.  She was captivated with the way she looked.

“Can I see the sides now?” 

Jimmy silently turned her first to the right and, at her gesture, to the left.  Finally she turned her head to the left to see the back.  Jimmy turned the chair away from the wall mirror so she could view it better.  She put her had up to feel the nape and how high far up the under cut went.

“I love it Jimmy.  I’m sure that I’ll keep it this way at least until next summer.”

“It’s a very good style for you Sharon.  Its more flattering than a chilli would be.  If you wanted something more exciting, you should get a buzzcut.  But if you decide to get a chilli, I’ll give you a really good one.”

“You’re right.  Maybe I’ll get it buzzed next summer.  Frank would love that.  I might even get him to get a nice ‘high and tight.’”

“I guess we’re all done then.”  Jimmy brushed the last few stray hairs from Sharon’s face, applied a little powder to her nape and brushed that clear of stray hairs also.

“Not yet Jimmy.  I promised Mom that I would get my eyelashes trimmed just like Jen’s.  Will you do that for me please?”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure.  Mom said my eyes would stand out even more that way.  What do you think.?

“I expect she’s right.  I’ll do it for you.”

Jimmy put the headrest back on the chair and tilted it back just as he had done for Jen.

“I’m ready, so hold very still.”

With great care he trimmed from the middle of one eye to the inner corner.  The cut lashes were only an eight of an inch long, but still longer that what he had accomplished with Jen. Using his little scissors and even more care he trimmed very close to the eyelid, leaving a nearly invisible line of tiny stubs.  He turned Sharon’s head slightly so he could see the other eye and proceeded to trim the lashes from the middle to the outer corner of her upper lid.  Again he had to try a second time to get the lashes as short as he wanted.  He went around the chair to the other side and proceeded to repeat the process.  He examined both eyes and decided he had gotten the upper lashes as short as he reasonably could.  Although he could see the lower lashes it was not easy to reach them.

“Open your eyes Sharon.  I’ve done your upper lashes, but I think I can do the lower ones easier with your eyes open.  You’ll have to hold them still while I cut.  I think I can do it quickly, but I’ll have to be very careful in case you blink.  Just tell me when you’re ready.”

Sharon opened her eyes and blinked a few times.

“I’m ready”

Once again Jimmy worked his magic.  He did not try to get too close because he had observed that lower lashes were invariably light colored compared to upper lashes.  A few quick snips and he was done.  He had stopped only once for Sharon to blink.  He raised the chair back to its upright position.
“I guess we’re really done now.”

“Can I use the hand mirror.  I want to see how I look.”

Jimmy handed her the large hand mirror.  She stared at herself, closed one eye then the other.  Turning her head she tried to see how she looked from an angle.  She thought her eyes seemed even bigger but didn’t know if that was her imagination or not.  She was sure that the hazel color was more noticeable.  She decided that she might need to change her makeup, but didn’t know what would be appropriate.  She was certain it was going to be a while before she got used to this look.

“It looks different doesn’t it?”

“Well it does.  It’s an interesting look.  I think it makes your eyes seem more open and that makes you have sort of a surprised look.”

Sharon examined herself again and realized that it was true.  She looked as though she was surprised.  The high arched eyebrows had that effect to some extent, and now her more prominent eyes had added to the effect.

“I suppose people are going to start telling me that I look surprised whenever they tell me something they think I haven’t heard before.”

“Maybe, but you have a head turning look now.  You’ll have to learn to handle a lot more attention that you used to get I think.”

“Maybe I’ll have to tone it down some except for special occasions.  I don’t want to get a lot of looks every time I go out.  I have to talk to Mom about it.  Anyway you did a great job on my hair.  I love it.  Mom wanted me to get my lashes cut and she’ll know how to take care of it.  We’d better get out of here.  Unless I miss my guess we’ll be back in a month.”

Sharon herded he gang back to the car for the short drive home.  It was a noisy ride with everyone talking at once kidding each other about their new haircuts.  Sharon remained quiet, still not sure about how she felt about her latest transformation.  She had loved her new eyebrows, and her new haircut, but the combination of that with the lack of eyelashes had been a bit more than she could be comfortable with, at least not yet.

They arrived back at the house and the gang got out and headed through the house.

“Billy, come on out to the back.  Sharon you promised you would shave his head smooth.”  Jen was determined that Billy get his ‘Michael Jordan’ haircut perfect.

Sharon was still worrying about how she looked and had lost her previous enthusiasm about helping Billy achieved the desired effect.

“Can we do it some other time Jen?  I’m not very interested right now.”

“You said you would, Sharon.  And Billy told everybody that it would be smooth.  I think you look really cool too.  I bet Frank is going to freak out when he sees you.  Your eyes look so big.”  Jen knew that a little flattery would soften up Sharon.

“Thanks for telling Sam that I could get my hair cut this way Sharon.  And I think you look the best too.  I like it.”

Somewhat reassured Sharon gave in.  “OK, I’ll do it.  Jen will you get out that bowl that we use when Frank shaves me.  I’ll get some disposable razors and shaving cream.  It’s going to feel funny Billy.”

Sharon held up a can of shaving cream and announced “Its going to feel cold Billy” as she pressed the top and gathered a generous quantity in her hand.  She put it on Billy’s head and began to smooth it around until she had a thick layer covering his whole head.

Jen burst out laughing. “That looks really funny, Billy.”  Gary and David who had been watching in rapt fascination at the proceedings joined in the hilarity.  And indeed Billy did look a sight, with his head covered in stiff white foam.  Sharon tried to remain serious but couldn’t refrain from a quick burst of laughter herself.

Billy remained solemn and stern faced, suddenly not entirely sure he wanted to get his head shaved if it meant having to be made fun of.

“Don’t pay any attention to them Billy.  They’re just jealous.  They’d all love to get shaved the same way.  What about you Jen, wouldn’t you like me to shave you head just like Billy’s?”

Sharon picked up a disposable razor and remembering how Frank shaved her own undercut, started at the base of Billy’s skull and made a stroke upward.  Washing off the razor in the bowl of warm water, she made a second stroke.  Soon she was working steadily removing the cap of foam.  She felt the shaved area and knew that she would have to repeat the process.

“It looks funny, but  I bet it feel neat doesn’t it Billy.  Maybe I will get it shaved.   I don’t think Mom would let me though.”

“Mom’s pretty cool.  She might, maybe next year.  She said that Gary could get a mohawk.  Getting it shaved isn’t any worse.  Besides she lobbied for Billy.”

“Lobbied?  What does that mean”  Billy wanted to know.

“Oh, she talked to your Mom and told her she thought you ought to be able to get it shaved.  That’s lobbying.  Trying to get somebody who’s in charge of things, to do what you think is right”

By now Sharon had nearly completed Billy shave.  She took a second small towel and dampened it so that she could clean off the shaving cream on Billy’s head, but then realized that it was unnecessary if she was going to go over it again.

“Billy, I have to do it again if you want it really smooth.”  She began to apply shaving cream again without waiting for Billy’s reply.  She was beginning to enjoy the process and had the thought that it would be lots of fun to be able to shave Frank’s head the same way.

Sharon opened the second razor, wet it in the bowl and began to repeat the process.  This time she checked carefully to make sure there were no unshaven areas.  As she did it occurred to her that Billy’s scalp might be irritated by all the scraping.

“Jen, you know that cortisone cream that Mom used on us?  Its a red tube in the first aid box in the medicine closet.  Can you get it for me?  Billy will need some.  Maybe you should get that aloe vera lotion also.”

Jen ran to get the requested items.  The bowl of warm water was now filled with foam, and Sharon tossed the contents into the grass.   “Be right back Billy.”  She headed to the kitchen to rinse out the bowl and fill it with very warm water.  Returning she got her small towel wet and wrung it out.  She carefully wiped Billy’s head free of shaving cream.  Jen had returned with the red tube of cortisone cream and a small bottle with a green label that proclaimed the healing virtues of aloe vera.

“Soon as I put this on I’ll be finished.”  She squeezed out a generous amount of the cortisone cream and proceeded to smooth it on Billy’s now smooth scalp.  “This will help it feel good in case there is any irritation.  And the lotion will make it feel smooth.”

“Yeah, Billy.  When I put it on my arms and legs they feel real soft and smooth.”  Jen had discovered its value after too much sun and water had resulted in some dry flacky skin that did not please her.  “Can I feel it now.”

Billy had already explored the latest results and declared it satisfactory.  “OK, its feels neat.”

Jen put her hand on his head and rubbed it.  “That’s feels nice.  Will it stay that way.”

“Not very long.  It only takes 2 or 3 days for it to grow out again.  I’ll bet Michael Jordan shaves his every day.   Billy, if you want to keep it like this you’ll have to get someone to shave it twice a week.  That’s a lot of bother.  If you had an electric razor you could do it yourself if you wanted to.”

“Maybe your Mother will do it Billy.”  Jen was an enthusiastic convert to Billy’s new look and feel.  “Can I ask her for you?”

“She’ll want it to grow out for school.  That’s what she said anyway.”

“She might like it.  If everybody says it looks neat she’ll give in.”

“It can’t hurt to ask anyway.  I think you look real good - much better than before.  I tell her too.”  Sharon thought Billy really did look better.  And was willing to try to help Billy.

By now Sharon had regained some of her enthusiasm and was ready to give Gary some help if he wanted it.

“Well Gary, what do you think.  I can do you if you want.”

“Not me.  It’s too much bother.”

“That’s fine, It a lot of trouble anyway.”

“Sharon, I’m going to Billy’s house.  I’ll be back for dinner.  OK?”

“Sure Jen.  See you later.”

“You guys should get some lunch.  There’s stuff for sandwiches in the refrigerator.”

“Can’t you get some good stuff for sandwiches sometimes?  We’re going to the park after.”

“It is good stuff.  What’s wrong with it?”

“Ah it’s the same old stuff.  Can’t we get something different.”

“Sure, next time you go help Mom with the Groceries and pick out something you would like better.”

“I hate going to the grocery store.  Why can’t you do it?”

“If I go then you’ll have to eat what Mom and I choose.  You know we can’t get that expensive stuff at the deli counter Gary.”

“All right, I’ll eat what you choose, but I’m not going to like it.  Maybe I’ll have peanut butter instead.”

Sharon laughed “We have plenty of peanut butter and that’s fine with me.  I’ll just fix myself a good ham and cheese sandwich.”  They all headed to the kitchen.

Having eaten her sandwich Sharon headed to her room to re-evaluate her latest look.  She decided that maybe a change in her makeup would be helpful, but wasn’t sure what it should be.  She thought that she really needed Gail’s advice.  But one thing did seem possible.  If her brows were lighter they might not give the surprised look effect that she was worried about.  She knew how to make them appear lighter from Gail’s demonstration.  She decided to try it herself.  She applied a bit of Vaseline to her brows and then used a soft brush to dust them with her beige face powder.  She overdid it and her brows became almost unnoticeable.  The effect was a surprise.  Her eyes now dominated her face.  She seemed to be looking back at herself with wide-eyed intensity.  She liked the effect.   Sharon realized that it was just that effect that she had been drawn to in the model that she had seen in Laura’s fashion magazine, and that she  had found so arresting in the way Jen looked.  She definitely needed Gail’s help to make the most of her new look.

Cleaning off her brows so she could compare the before and after, she decided that maybe the original was quite interesting in its own way.  Maybe, like Jimmy said, it would get attention.  It was still wide-eyed and slightly surprised, but when she smiled the result was very pleasant - at least she thought so.  She seemed to have a large eyed elfin look.  She decided that she liked it after all.  Several different looks seemed possible she thought.  Gail could probably help her with other ideas.

Having made these discoveries, Sharon’s mood became excited.  She couldn’t wait to have Gail see her new haircut and look.  After a few minutes she decided to try to imaging how she would look with the buzz cut that Jimmy had suggested.  She pushed all of her hair off her face, but that was not a good indication.   She remembered that there had been a few pictures taken the past summer when she had her unexpected crewcut.  Maybe there was a way to alter one in the computer to simulate how she now looked.  She could ask Frank if he knew how to do that.  She went to where Gail kept a box of photos that had yet to get into the family album, hoping to find a useful picture.

Several minutes of rummaging turned up one photo, but it included Jen, Gary and David as well.  After quite a bit of searching she finally found what she was hoping was there.  Gail had taken a number of pictures during that Saturday afternoon barbecue. Among them were close-ups of both Jen and herself.  She thought that her Mom had wanted some pictures to show how good she and Jen had looked in their crewcuts.  The one of herself was just what she needed.  Frank could scan it into his computer.  She thought it ought to be possible to touch up the picture to make her brows the same as they looked now.

As she looked at the picture she realized that she had actually looked far too intense, almost a scowl.  Her heavy brows had dominated her face.  Frank was right, she had looked like a female version of Groucho.  But the crewcut had looked good and complimented her face shape. She also realized that the change that Gail had achieved was striking.  Sharon began to appreciate it even more.  She waited eagerly for Gail to come home so she could be show some more tricks.

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