TOM was born into a large Italian, working-class family in Norristown, Pennsylvania in the 1950s. His mother used to have her hair done once a week on Fridays, escaping from housework and her six sons. The hair salon was a place of relaxation and renewal. She returned home redolent of hair spray and didn’t wash her hair herself before the next Friday.
I wonder now if his mother’s happiness after those visits inspired Tom to become a hairdresser himself, much to the dismay of his father, who was in construction. Tom went ahead because it was something he loved to do. He opened a salon with his wife, also a hairdresser, a little over 30 years ago, and I have been going there since not longer after it opened.
Tom is gregarious, likable, devoted to his clients and to his family, well known on the local baseball field and at church. His salon business has thrived over the years, which is not surprising because he is really good at hair. Many people in town have sat in his chair. It’s a middle class clientele, including children, women, and men, with plenty of old ladies, some like his mother who get into a weekly routine.
Today was the first day I saw Tom since February. His business was shut down for 14 weeks. On the day after Gov. Tom Wolf announced the state was closing “non-essential” businesses, the local police, as if to underscore the dictatorial nature of the decree and as if Tom, a middle class business owner, was a potential criminal, called him at home to make sure he was not opening.
When his wife phoned me yesterday to remind me of my appointment, she left a message, “Don’t forget to wear a mask!” she said.
Blasted! I thought about it and called back. I really can’t wear a mask, I said apologetically, and would have to cancel my appointment. I didn’t feel like causing any waves (no pun intended). His wife said, “Oh no, don’t worry about it. That’s fine. Come on in.”
So I went without a mask. “You’re going to look a lot better after this,” Tom said. It’s true, I badly needed a tune-up.
Tom, who was wearing a mask himself, sprayed the plastic robe with a bleach mixture. He only has one of his customers in the shop at a time, as ordered by the government, and so is working at 50 percent capacity. Tom is a very mainstream kind of guy, so I expected to avoid the outrageousness of what had happened to him and other small businesses. I was eager to catch up on his personal life though; we always spend the whole time gabbing. (more…)
