Thursday, June 29, 2006
Requiem For A Barber
On Christmas Eve, I paid a visit to a high school classmate of my Dad's who was also the unoffical "Family Barber". This was a man who had basically cut my hair since I had hair. We talked about the usual stuff; sports, music, and a bit of other stuff. He showed me pic of himself in a group that included future NFL Hall Of Famer Joe Namath. As I left he wished me a "Merry Christmas."
Little did I know that would be the last haircut I would ever get from him. He passed away Tuesday.
"Buzz", as we all called him, was one of those people that the more you got to know him, the more amazed you were at him. In addition to being an excellent barber, and veritable encyclopedia of sports and musical knowledge, he also could seem to pull all sorts of facts out of head. One of other memories of him will be when he used the word 'narcissist' to describe the Pittsburgh Steelers Quarterback. I don't know whether I was more amazed that he could pronounce the word, or that he could use it properly.
Of course, if you dared open your mouth in his shop, you were inviting a challenge. You'd better be able to back up whatever you said. I think that I may have learned how to discuss and debate a bit in the "Big Chair". And I could catch him off guard with being able to answer his challenges in many cases, answer his trivia questions, and even "turn a phrase".
This ability to talk also lead Buzz into the booth for High School football and basketball games, where his freewheeling style was a refreshing complement to the dry facts. When he once compared my high school alma mater's gymnasium to a maze, you knew what he meant. Of course, he also had a habit of "loosing" my dad at football games.
He also had an opinion on EVERYTHING, and had no shame in expressing them. He would tell you what he liked (Football, Baseball, Basketball (save the NBA), Celine Dion), and didn't. Sometimes his comments could have seemed racist, but in time I realized that he simply wanted minorities, especially blacks, to "play by society's rules".
I could fill a whole book with stories of this unique person. But I know this, haircuts won't be the same. I'll be stuck going to the "assembly line" shop in Camp Hill, now they do a good job and charge a good price. But the place has no soul!
I guess all I can say is "Hail and Farewell" Buzz. The world is a less interesting place without you.
Together Again ¶ 8:59 PM
On Christmas Eve, I paid a visit to a high school classmate of my Dad's who was also the unoffical "Family Barber". This was a man who had basically cut my hair since I had hair. We talked about the usual stuff; sports, music, and a bit of other stuff. He showed me pic of himself in a group that included future NFL Hall Of Famer Joe Namath. As I left he wished me a "Merry Christmas."
Little did I know that would be the last haircut I would ever get from him. He passed away Tuesday.
"Buzz", as we all called him, was one of those people that the more you got to know him, the more amazed you were at him. In addition to being an excellent barber, and veritable encyclopedia of sports and musical knowledge, he also could seem to pull all sorts of facts out of head. One of other memories of him will be when he used the word 'narcissist' to describe the Pittsburgh Steelers Quarterback. I don't know whether I was more amazed that he could pronounce the word, or that he could use it properly.
Of course, if you dared open your mouth in his shop, you were inviting a challenge. You'd better be able to back up whatever you said. I think that I may have learned how to discuss and debate a bit in the "Big Chair". And I could catch him off guard with being able to answer his challenges in many cases, answer his trivia questions, and even "turn a phrase".
This ability to talk also lead Buzz into the booth for High School football and basketball games, where his freewheeling style was a refreshing complement to the dry facts. When he once compared my high school alma mater's gymnasium to a maze, you knew what he meant. Of course, he also had a habit of "loosing" my dad at football games.
He also had an opinion on EVERYTHING, and had no shame in expressing them. He would tell you what he liked (Football, Baseball, Basketball (save the NBA), Celine Dion), and didn't. Sometimes his comments could have seemed racist, but in time I realized that he simply wanted minorities, especially blacks, to "play by society's rules".
I could fill a whole book with stories of this unique person. But I know this, haircuts won't be the same. I'll be stuck going to the "assembly line" shop in Camp Hill, now they do a good job and charge a good price. But the place has no soul!
I guess all I can say is "Hail and Farewell" Buzz. The world is a less interesting place without you.
Everywhere I go.
Every smile I see.
I'll know you are there,
smiling down at me.
Together Again ¶ 8:59 PM
