The Chronicles of the Life of a Hairdresser in Training...almost...

This blog will really kick off in December when I actually start school. Until then, this vast amount of empty space will be filled with my random thoughts, poems, or song lyrics I've found enjoyable or mind boggling, and some of the millions upon billions of pictures I have taken - some astoundingly beautiful, and some up-your-nose shots that probably shouldn't have seen the light of day. :D

~The Story~

I've wanted to be a hairdresser since the age of nine. At the age of 17, my grandmother, Susie, started cosmetology school in Erie, PA for hairdressing. While there she met my grandfather, Herbert, who was going to school for barbering. By 18 she was married :) Whenever we made a family vacation up to Wellsboro it seemed like some one was always getting a hair cut from grandpa. I remember taking a trip to his barber shop with my mother when I was very young. I sat and watched him work on the various men who came into his shop. He made them laugh and smile as they swapped stories of what they remembered of the 'old days' and what their kids were up to now. At one point I crawled up into one of his big, black, barber chairs(they always just looked like fun to sit in, and I was curious to test this theory). Grandpa walked over and asked me if I wanted a hair cut, vigorously, and with wide, frightened eyes, I scrambled out of the chair and ran to my mother. I'm not sure why I was scared, but both mom and grandpa seemed to find it amusing.

We started looking at schools in February. I found it to be one of those things where, you don't think about them, therefore, you don't see them. But as we dove into the search for a school...they popped up everywhere! we visited three schools, each specializing in their own areas. The school I chose, International Institute of Cosmetology,http://www.studyhair.com/index.shtml, as it turns out is pretty much run by Italians :D They're very serious about what they do. They make it clear that THIS is your CAREER. Not an easy way out. One of the first things they teach you, starting out, is how to cut hair with a razor (not the kind the barber uses on your little brother in the summer to give a buzz cut, a straight razor, with teeth. Think...Sweeney Todd, but not as bloody). By the end of my training I should be able to give a whole hair cut using only the razor, a skill that's nearly been lost and that I can charge an arm and half a leg for. As part of the whole, we get TOYS! about $2,000 worth of hair tools. But for now, I spend my time waiting for school to start, helping my mother out with chores, and waiting till I can drive other people around by myself.