Six Senses: Touch (His)

[Mike Handley]

Since I was old enough to sit on a cushioned booster board and still endure the embarrassment of the barber pumping the chair even higher in order to earn his two bucks, seeing a striped pole outside a barbershop has spurred synapsual arousal.

 

Never mind that poring over the dog-eared pages of the shop’s Field & Stream magazines might have subliminally fueled an eventual career in that genre. I can still hear scissors swishing, clippers humming, and I can smell the Old Spice, hair tonic and full ashtrays.

 

But I mostly remember the gentle bite of someone else’s comb, the prick-slide of a straight razor across the back of my neck and the tickling of clippers nipping rogue boy-hairs, all while I was afraid to open my eyes to see the scalping.

 

I can still imagine and savor the slight pressure of the barber’s unseen hand turning my head this way and that, the loosening of the shawl’s collar and the applying of a steamy towel, which opened the pores to allow trepidation to ooze freely.

 

Living with the shame of a fresh haircut was more easily forgotten than the sensory overload promised behind the pole.

 

 

(This is the final of six installments exploring the senses, a joint effort with my talented wife, Gita. If you missed the others, I urge you to go back and read them off our respective pages.)

[Jamie Hogan]

"...which opened the pores to allow trepidation to ooze freely." My word, sir, but that's a hell of a turn.

 

Read the whole series Mike. Gita's too. What a sweet, embarrassingly talented two-part harmony it was. Keepers, one and all. Congratulations.

[Mike Handley]

I'm 49, Michael. I'm sure the price was lower than two bucks when I first started going, but that's the figure that stuck with me. I do remember the Coke machines (I think I was 9 at the time), which allowed you to pull out a glass bottle for a dime. By the time I realized there was money to be made from returning the bottles, I think it was somewhere between 2 and 5 cents apiece.

[Michael Brown]

The two of you may have thought I was ignoring this double barreled treat, but I was super busy and thought I'd wait until you had finished the series so I could read it in a sweep. I should have looked earlier to avoid including the mention of the barber for the same reasons mentioned here in my latest piece.

BTW, is there that much difference in our ages? When I was a kid, a haircut by a barber fronted by one of those peppermint poles cost 75c, although he was always given the quarter tip.

This Touch was terrific (and sensual for reasons I won't discuss), and now I'm off to catch its mates.

[Mike Handley]

Thank you all for reading and for the warm comments. There's much to be said for pixelated friends, eh?

[Cath Barton]

Great, and as others have said, great smells too. Ah, Old Spice! Thanks for a fab series.

[Edward Dean]

So wonderfully wrought Mike.

Can't agree with Gita more on your most excellent ability to wordpaint life in its essence.

You have both a painters eye and a writers ear to coalesce your two talents together. Truly remarkable.

[Harry]

Hey, Floyd's chair is open and you're next! I fought with my folks trying to get out of haircuts (a hippie born to squares man). I have an entirely different regard for butch wax, combs soaking in blue alcohol and that brrrrt brrrrt feeling when you run your fingers up the back of your neck after a fresh crew cut. Now I let it grow (what's left of it) until it bugs me and then buzz it off myself. Nice Six and series of them Mike!

[Angela]

Sir, you make me want very short hair - chair lift, razor, towel, and Old Spice.

These posts have been good reading.  I hope you don't keep us waiting long before you try something like this again.  Truly enjoyed it.

[Gita]

Part of what I have enjoyed  about doing this series with Mike is the differences in our takes on the same subject. All of Mike's reveal the kind of person he is: observant of the world around him and well-adjusted. Clearly, he has enjoyed his life and brings that appreciation to his writing with the telling detail and good humor.

[Miriam H. Harrison]

Very nice. It wasn't until I was older and got my hair cut short that I came to understand the sensations described here. Having my hair cut when it was long was sensual, too, but in different ways.