When they are gone, how shall we remember them?

What a crazy week! First Bobby Brown is coming out with a tell all book. Then my barber left town without even telling me. What am I suppose to do now? A barber is more than just someone that cuts your hair. They are marriage counselors and therapists as well. I was with this guy when he use to cut hair in a rinky dink barbershop in a really bad neighborhood. The kind of neighborhood where people sell meat out of the pockets of the coats that they wore. These weren’t Japanese coats that were refrigerated by some new modern science. I’m talking about triple fat goose jackets and long leather trench coats. I never bought any of the meat but I heard the pork chops were very tasty. They also had someone that took orders for basketball jerseys. You would tell them what you wanted and miraculously the jersey would appear in the size you requested. This was not a representative of the store that walked around to each barbershop advertising goods and services. This was just some dude that would steal what you wanted and charge you less than half of what it originally costs. This was before the economy took a nose dive so I can only imagine what he does for cash now.
My barber kept saying he was going to leave but I didn’t believe him. He said a lot of stuff that was questionable so how was I to know he was serious this time. I never took any of his marriage advice because it was the kind that would either get me thrown out the house or locked up. I never did take him up on his offers to go to the club because it would either get me divorced or locked up. I remember barbers that use to cut hair when I was growing up. They were masterful hair technicians that were wise in their knowledge of the world. They were middle aged men that grew up listening to the Temptations, O’Jays, Earth Wind & Fire. I also remember back in the day when if my mother forgot the haircut money, they wouldn’t mind if she went back home to get it. The barbers I deal with now are younger and they grew up listening to Hip Hop. They have an edge to them that previous barbers didn’t have. So the advice that is given is more Ludacris than Teddy Pendergrass. Even though I never took any of my barber’s advice, I still listened to him anyway. I just shook my head, paid my money and dapped him up until the next time we’d meet. I always thought that this guy was going to get arrested, killed or die from a mysterious disease. I will eventually find someone else to cut my hair. I don’t know what my next barber will be like. I’m sure they will have some kind of advice that they want to dish out. I’m also sure they will know someone that sells “stuff” for half price. I will probably do what I always do after getting my haircut. I will shake my head, pay my money and dapp them up until the next time we meet.