Missy Elliott’s “Work It”
For anyone who’s ever been to a black beautician, time is not on your side. You perfect the fine art of waiting. Waiting your turn (appointments are just a guideline). Waiting for your relaxer, color, roller set, etc. Waiting under the dryer. Waiting once the dryer shuts off. Waiting to be “finished” is the chair. A basic relaxer for not-quite-shoulder-length-hair can take anywhere from 2 1/2 to 4 1/2 hours. Since I only have to go every two months, I guess it’s not so bad.
And let’s not even talk about the costs. Just refer to Chris Rock’s amazing documentary on black women and their hair “Good Hair“.
While most people (women in particular) are sensitive about their hair and who they all touch it. I would venture to say it’s even more of an issue for black women. I can’t just walk into the neighborhood Sharp Cuts or the most expensive salon in town. Not everyone knows how to do black – or more politically correct “ethnic” – hair. My “perm” is actually a “relaxer”, bleach should NEVER touch my hair, there’s no such thing as a “quick dry”, a bad cut doesn’t last for a few months, more like years (if not decades), and more and more. Let’s just say it’s more different than not.
With the wait times, costs and difficulty to find trained hairdressers, why further inconvenience yourself when it comes to getting your hair done?
When I moved to Austin, I knew it would not be a “Chocolate City”. Like with most things (including attending Iowa State and studying abroad in Italy), I adjusted. People are just people but beauticians are not just beauticians. I needed a black beautician or at least someone very familiar with “my people’s hair”.
Google and Yelp were of no help. Eventually, I found a lady who could do the job but it didn’t seem very well. There was no confidence. I was coming off of 4+ years with piece-meal care and sporadic salon visits. I needed someone to help/teach me more than I needed a perm every 8 weeks.
Six months into my Austin experience, our office manager with the most gorgeous, thick, curly long hair became my hair savior and sent me to her hair dresser. [Cue heavenly chimes] Teena is awesome, a young expert interested in always learning more. Easy to talk to, relate to and trust. Since my first/virgin relaxer 15 years ago (whew, that’s a long time ago), my hair has never been healthier. While I recognize a lot of that is due to my maturity in caring for my hair and ability to go whenever necessary. I also credit much of that “hair health” to Teena’s capable hands.
So where do loyalty issues come into play?
Well…her salon is so far away…
When I first started visiting Teena, here salon was 20 miles from my office but only a few miles from my home. Over the last few years, I have consistently moved further and further away. She’s now 20 miles from my office and 25 miles from my home. Understanding the appointment times, distance and traffic, there are simply no convenient times to go. Every two months, I’m dedicating up to 6 hours just to get a relaxer, i.e. chemically straighten whatever has grown in since the last time, typically 1/2 – 3/4 inch worth.
How do I make this easier? Easy – Find a closer beautician. My mom was really good at this. She hates driving, waiting and paying. Every 6-9 months (it seemed), she’d find a new faster/cheaper/closer hairdresser. While there’s nothing wrong with “moving on”, I’m partial to consistency. However, every time I move further away, I struggle with my mother’s “choose convenience over loyalty” motto.
This latest move unfortunately coincided with Teena’s maternity leave. My hair was in desperate need of professional attention and she was busy attending to a new baby. How selfish… [Sigh] After an internal struggle trumped by external vanity, I tried a new person two miles from my apartment.
While I felt a little guilty, I decided to try it. It was a small, well-kept salon and the beautician pleasant and open. The shop is owned by her sister, another beautician. The appointment went well and all was gravy…until she made me feel guilty unintentionally.
As part of standard new client inquiries, she asked about why I’d come to her. I explained that my current/old beautician’s shop was too far away. “Oh okay” A few minutes later, she told me about her clients who had driven close to 100 miles to her shop. (Strangely enough from a very large city to a tiny one.)
While that trip is extreme (and probably only taken by one person a few times), this woman, a stranger, is telling me about her client willing to make that trip. Yes, that’s crazy. But this lady obviously appreciates this client’s loyalty and trust. So what’s every 8 weeks to continue with someone I trust and believe appreciates it?
While I’m thankful to have a more convenient back-up, I’ll head back to Teena when it’s time for another service. I curse my loyalty issues during the 4-5 hours but praise them 4 weeks later when someone tells me how good my hair looks or Teena comments on how much it’s grown since we started together.
Results over process, right?
Jo’van
The Truth: According to Jo'van 