The hot air blowing on my neck helps to warm the chilly bathroom as I go through my morning routine. I’ve been slowly moving from super short hair to a modified bob so it takes a little longer to tame the mane. When I spy white roots of my otherwise golden brown hair peeking out at me I’m extremely thankful that I have an appointment in the morning to see my long time hairdresser and friend, Kenny. As Kenny says, those roots are kicking it! I remember spying my first grey hair while I was still in high school. I promptly pulled it out thinking, what the heck! I’m still a teenager!

I love to sleep in a cool house so we turn the thermostat down at night. This makes for pleasant snoozing weather, but it takes a while to take the chill off in the morning, thus the chilly bathroom. My husband laughs at me when I snuggle under the covers with a fan blowing on my face, but I’ve slept this way since I was a youngster. Now that I’m 60 I have been coloring my hair for quite a few years. It can be a pain sometimes and expensive to keep up, but a fresh color and haircut always makes me feel good. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that Kenny is such a nice and funny guy as well as a top stylist.

The next day my appointment was early so I jumped up, brushed my teeth, ran a brush through my hair, and was out the door while a light frost still covered the ground. When I walked into the salon I was greeted with a cheery good morning and a smile. Uplifting music rang through the speakers, and before long Kenny got on with the business of working his magic.

We laughed and cut up while waiting for the color to process. Soon our cell phones were out sharing cute photos of our families. We talk about all the taboo subjects; you know the ones. Religion, politics, family problems, nothing is off the table because over the years Kenny has become more than a hairdresser. He is simply my friend.

About halfway through the styling process Kenny said, “Jan, watch me dry this. Don’t dry the bottom part with the round brush; just let it fall naturally. I saw you the other day, and you styled it wrong. I made a note to tell you because I didn’t want people to think I was responsible for what I saw!”

We laughed, and I watched his technique. Now I’m getting the hang of styling it, and I appreciate his input. That’s the way I like things; just say what you need to say. I was so glad that he took the time to help me figure out this new do and how to manage it. Kenny was kidding around as usual, but he was genuine about taking pride in his work and wanting me to know how to style his creation! No political correctness with Kenny; he just tells it like it is!

Jan Penton Miller can be reached at lilsisjan@yahoo.com.