On Nothing Much
| Bart Scardina Jr.
World's Most Famous Bowl Cuts
What I Got for Bowl Cuts - Punahou School
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Bowl Cut I grew up in a family of modest means but great hopes, and for years my mother cut my hair. In Asian families, a suitable education is everything, and my parents economized in many ways so that the kids could have the very best schooling. I didn’t look so swell sometimes, but I learned a lot. Creature of Habit Since then, off-and-on for the better part of the last 26 years, I’ve been getting my hair cut at Bart’s Barber Shop in Laurel, Maryland. Even when I lived in North Carolina and Southern California, I would sometimes find my way back to Bart’s for a trim. Bart’s Barber Shop Bart’s Barber Shop is one of 55 storefronts that make up Laurel Shopping Center, which is located just South of where U.S. Highway 1 crosses State Route 198 in the northernmost part of Prince George’s County. The present proprietor of Bart’s is Bart Scardina Jr. However, the barbershop is not named for him, but rather for his father, Bart Sr., who was a truly noble soul. Many years have gone by since Bart Sr. passed away, but his photograph reigns over the clippery and his spirit and values still infuse it. Bart’s has been in business continuously for 53 years, and so little that matters has changed in that time. Oh sure, the barber shop moved a few doors down and expanded several years ago when the outdoor shopping plaza underwent major renovations. And the cost of a haircut has risen from $5 to $12 over the last quarter-century. The staff has also become younger and more ethnically diverse – the number of Asian haircutters now vastly outnumbers their Caucasian counterparts. But what I love about Bart’s has remained constant over time – real barbers, sharp scissors, confident snips, honest value, current magazines worth reading, and lollipops for the young ones. No fuss, no weird scalp rubs, no playing with your hair. And here’s the best part. Every haircut ends the same way – warmed shaving cream is slicked on the nape of your neck and snicked off with a keenly honed razor. Aahhhhhhhhh. What a sensual and comforting feeling. This must be why gentlemen of old would snag a weekly cut and shave when it only set you back a couple bits. Who wouldn’t? It’s enough to lift a day’s weight off one’s shoulders for a while. Mmmhhhhhhhh. Besides the long-timers, locals, and military personnel from nearby Fort Meade, Bart’s is quite popular among area teens and twenty-somethings who come to get their hair sheared in the current styles. And Bart’s provides. One Who is Rich in the Land Bart is short for Bartholomew, which is Aramaic for son of the furrows, or one who is rich in the land. I think that Bart Jr. is indeed rich in the land. I don’t know how profitable the barbershop is, but I do know that Bart’s abounds in neighbors who come in for a groom and a chat. Friendships form in 15-minute periods over the grace of time. And you leave looking better than you arrived. Where else can you say that about?
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Brian
Lam On Nothing Much is a periodic feature of this website that considers life about us. I wish to thank those of you who are reading these postings and sending me notes of encouragement, gentle criticism, or otherwise. |
