Ryan's Journal

I went to get a haircut Saturday at a nearby, well-established barber shop, replete with a poster of Larry Bird autographed by Kevin McHale. As I sat and waited, a young woman walked in the door -- a barber shop, mind you, not a generic hair salon. While I wondered briefly what she might be doing inside, she asked me if I was waiting for a haircut.

Making conversation is nice; I replied in the affirmative. She then revealed she was a reporter working for the Globe on assignment to do a feature on Teele Square, and would I mind answering a few questions?

I had to leave her in the middle to get my haircut, but she found another customer, more obviously a regular (i.e., an older Italian man) with whom to discuss the finer points of Tony's shop. As it turns out, Tony was cutting my hair, so she eventually joined me again and talked over me as Tony explained how his father had started the business and generally agreed with what I said earlier, that folk like me walked in because we passed by, that lots of young professional folk like me made up a large body of his customers, that the area had changed over the years.

Look for my anonymous debut on March 7th. She said my haircut looked good.