Most days I enjoy my job.
I like what I do; I take satisfaction in being able to give a guest what
they want.
I have great coworkers and a manager who is amazing- but
there are days that make me wonder at my sanity in choosing any career that
deals with the public on a daily basis.
Long story short- Helicopter Mom brings in 3 yr old
precious snowflake for a haircut.
The kid could not sit still to save his life. Wiggling is one thing, but I swear he found
it funny to turn his head at just the moment I was trying to cut his hair.
After spending 30 minutes- and redoing the cut twice-
Helicopter Mom leaves satisfied.
Monday morning arrives with Mom calling to inform me that she
was not, in fact, satisfied about any of her precious snowflakes’ haircuts with
us and Wanted Something Done.
Her best lines:
“I thought, ‘how
hard could it be to cut a 3 yr old’s hair?’”
“I could have done a better job, and I didn’t even finish
hair school!”
“I don’t know, but maybe your “girls” need to go back and
finish their training.”
“I told her to give me her scissors so I could show her
how to do it.”
I apologized
profusely (she didn’t recognize my voice) and informed her when my manager
would be in that day- so she was welcome to bring her children by that
afternoon.
15 minutes later, she finally said she’d be in at 4pm that
day and hung up.
Lovely.
*****************
Now, my manager has been a stylist for 20+ years and has
seen everything. Been there, done that;
has the t-shirt, shot glass and commemorative lighter. After dealing with Herself, my manager was
ready for a drink or six her own self.
I do love my manager-she put Chopper Mom in her place, but
good.
She not only told her that there was nothing wrong with
any of the kids’ cuts; but pointedly informed her of the facts of life- that pro hair shears often cost upwards of
$300.00 and that it is illegal for a
professionally licensed stylist to turn their equipment over to an amateur.
Basically, to sit down and let the grownups work.
Mistakes happen –heaven knows, I’ve made plenty and I don’t consider myself
amazing when it comes to cutting hair.
Good, yes. Amazing, no.- and I can fully sympathize with an angry client
due to a mistake.
This one, however…
If your child is not yet school age (K+) and cannot sit
still for the length of time it takes to eat lunch, they are not civilized
enough to have their hair cut at a salon.
Either deal with it yourself; be willing to hold your kid
down while they scream or live with any mistakes that happen.
I honestly believed that parents like that one were
largely mythical. Even now that I’ve seen one, I wonder if it was all a
nightmare or if I'm just going mad from breathing in too much hairspray.
