Scraps Again

Scraps Again
08.22.04 02:49 pm
I woke up this morning at six thirty to the unbearably familiar sound of downpour. I think anyone who grew up in Seattle knows the feeling, the mixed feeling of comfort and dread, that waking up to the rain again feeling. The concert of tiny splashes puts us to bed and wakes us up again in the grey light of morning for nine months of the year. But its just August, can we have another few weeks? I havent even gotten a tan, or a clear hot day at the beach. The italian plums in my yard are ripe now. That matte whitish dust that covers the plum surface doesnt wash off in the rain, the tree is heavy and dripping. Under the 45th Ave viaduct there are concrete pathways over a swamp, telltale leftovers of what the whole area looked like before golfcourses, stadiums, married student housing, the gap and honeybee hams. The geese still come here and I think theyre sorely dissapointed every time. Anyway, a huge willow tree cracked in half in the rainstorm and fell under the viaduct, blocking the pathways and dipping its tendrily arms into the horsetails and stagnant sulfuric water. I had to bushwhack my way through the branches, trailblazing for the frail looking, Asian, Banana Republic employee girl who looked to have been standing in front of the tree, wondering what to do, for some time before I got there. I was wet and drippy when I got to work. We learned foiling techniques and sectioning this week. There are six sections to a full foil and actually the same six for a partial foil, they're just compressed into the area above the occiput. I really like the weaving part, getting the hairs you want foiled seperated from the ones youre leaving natural. Its hard to get the hair covered in product and not pull the foil away from the scalp giving the client "instant growout." Practice practice. The other challenge is placing the foil packets in the small vertical sections in the temples. They have to be vertical because if theyre horizontal theyll look all stripey when you pull your hair back. I cant wait to do it on a real head, as youre all called in the bizness. I think Im gonna recruit Carrie again, good for blonde highlights.
BTW, I remembered the word that Ms Kendra says that makes me want to holler, I had to write it down on my paper so I didnt scream it out loud: Accrost. Instead of accross. Also, alls. As in "Alls you have to do is..." She's amazingly consistant with them both. I shouldnt be so picky perhaps, but theyre just such strange quirks for English at all let alone someone who has put so much effort into speaking perfectly. On Tuesday I gave her daughter who is 15 and about to start high school a deep conditioning treatment. She has the thickest curliest caucasian hair you can imagine and its really long. Very tangly. I got shampoo in her eye. Minty, eucalptus scalp treatment shampoo. It was awful, I had to give her a five min cold eyewash. We still managed to have a really good time after that, I gave her some ideas for the teen mystery novel she wants to write (murder among the contestants of a reality show!), and bribed her with popsicles, Ms Kendra said she loved me, despite shampoo faux pas. Her eye was tearing the whole time and I know it killed because even my hands were tingling all day from how strong that shampoo was. Of all people for me to make the shampoo mistake with. Note to all: when you emulsify your product at the shampoo bowl (ie. rub your hands together before spreading the shampoo through your client's hair) do it behind their head so you dont have to bring your hands over their face with drippy product in them.
I spent the rest of the day with La'Quara, a 4th quarter student who has the station right next to mine. She is ghetto fabulous. Deep reddish black skin, new nails every few days, long auburn microbraids and hazel contacts, different outfits every day. Shes a fox. And pretty nice too, I mean a friendly hardass. Her man is a DJ around town, Ive seen him at clubs downtown for years. He's huge and has great braids and a big belly. She says she doesnt like pretty men. Hilarious. She and I did a rollerset and mani pedi on an extremely nice older woman who said we make a great team. It was fun. Friday was busy as hell. I started the day with a pedicure on an elderly woman. Her feet werent bad, but your skin gets so thin after 85 or so years of walking the earth, its like its ready for you vanish years before you actually make the exit. Your bones give calluses from the inside out. I am always afraid I'm rubbing too hard, or that my file will tear their papery skin. Hasnt happened, but it could. she said I was a joy and that I must be an exeptional person coming from my generation, seeing as how most young people today are selfish and thoughtless. It was a kneejerk reaction to want to disagree, but when I thought about it, its pretty much true. Most of the people I know are pretty exeptional. If I had any doubts about that fact they were dispelled after a brief stop at this club on Blanchard between first and second on Friday night. Wow. All the men looked overgroomed and faggy and the women looked hungry, in every sense of the word. Moving on, I had tried to book these three appointments for members of my sister's friend's wedding party for three or so days. Ms Christina...because she was totally overwhelmed by the concept of making three appointments at once, only booked out one other stylist and left two at the same time to me. I went in the breakroom to tell Tamara she had an appointment, I was going to ask her to do one of the flower girls' updos but Bintu had already asked her to take the Mom of the girl's rollerset. Bintu is about 2 months pregnant and always hungry and emotional. I guess Tamara didnt want to do a rollerset, so she stormed out and I was left with three clients at 1 o clock and chloe coming in for a spiral set at 130. I couldnt stand there in the breakroom and argue about who did or didnt want to do what so I just started shampooing the woman and figured Id either finish them all and reschedule with Chloe or someone would take over. I did an nice airform flatiron on the mom, who hadnt wanted a rollerset after all, ironically, and a french braid on one of the girls. Bintu finally came through and did a nice bun updo on the other girl and I got to spend the next three hours doing Chloe's hair. She looked adorable. The curls made her look about 12. I used bendy rods since curls always come out tighter in a set than they do in a perm and I was using a perm style wrap. I wanted them to be real hangy and spirally and I was afraid they hair wouldnt have enough room to spiral up the regular rods. It was so cute. Her man asked if she looked like Shirley Temple. I said yeah, but Jewish...more like Shirley at Temple. She made me promise to put that in here. Happy Chlo? I always feel hella stupid retelling my own jokes.
I know I'll do a way faster and even better spiral set next time. These things have a pretty quick learning curve. It was a long day. My feet werent too bad at the end though, I must be getting used to it. Then I raced off to the wedding where I saw my sister had been given a HORRIBLE updo by Gene Juarez. It was all falling out and she had a trillion unjustified pins sticking out of this rumpled pony-bun in the back like a porcupine and her part wasnt straight. I pinned it back up to the best of my ability without redoing it completely. Whichever half assed stylist did that updo probably got paid like 50 bucks and it couldnt possibly have taken more than 15 minutes tops. What a shame. Nobody come to anyone but me for wedding updos, K? Ill be in Santa Cruz all next week at dance camp. I love saying dance camp, its so silly sounding. My four day summer vacation! I cant wait, endurance tanning here I come.