Skip to main content

All those wonderful antique curios called "magazines" in reception areas

 Really Bad Haircuts | Hair humor, Weird haircuts, Bad hair

(Not me by the way!)

This morning, I went early doors to have my local barber surgically attend to the three remaining hairs on the back of my head. This was rather than do the "mirror to the back of the head while facing the shaving mirror" thing that inevitably results in a visit to A&E to have the scissors surgically removed from my head.

The barber is a rather affable chap of Kurdish descent - he was thrown out of a 'plane over Manchester by that nice Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (who calls himself  "RTE" - does he not realise, seeing as he is a grand press oppressor, those initials are more commonly referred to in this part of the world as the Irish National broadcaster, Radio Telifis Eireann?).

Anyway, in commn with dentists, doctors and old-fashioned oak-panelled legal practices, there is an altogether grand selection of "vintage" reading material on the table in the waiting area. Magazines that would have Bargain Hunt's delightful Natasha Raskin Sharp in raptures (I find that depite having all her own teeth, no blimp lips and dressing somewhat rather conservatively, she does float my boat - however, a note to the bottle Genie - if I do find you in a junk shop, my first wish solidly remains to walk down the isle with Michelle Rodriguez!).

I grabbed the copy of National Enquirer, dated January 2015 to leap through while the barber continued with his existing customer. I really do wonder how the customer described to the barber, and the barber understood, the simply appaling haircut style he, the customer required.

Being only a short walk from home, I didn't take my phone with me, so could not photograph an article I spied (isn't it sad - could you imagine 40 years ago taking the old black bakelite base and handset, with three miles of flex trailing behind, everywhere you went, staring at it continuoisly with an inane grin on your face?). I attempted to find it online just before writing this, but to no avail.

It seems in the very large family mansion of a denizen of local industry in Arkansas, all current male family members of the three generations who live there (of which there are nine - nine Johns that is, not nine generations - now that WOULD be "American World WarII Bomber found on the Moon" material - where's Piers Morgan when you need him, eh?) are named "John". I must say that despite being extremely secular, I do agree with the Old Testament "rule" of not calling offspring the same name as their living parent.

What had happend was that an unholy row had erupted related to privacy matters. It seems that various  communications addressed to "John" around Christmas time 2014 were all being opened by the wrong John. Allegedly. Seemingly, great gnashing of teeth (real and dentures alike), tempers, smashing of furniture, fixtures, fittings and the fatal shooting of John the dad occurred in the space of an hour. Who was there to record the hour, and why they did not intervene, remains a great mystery.
 
Now I can appreciate in the non-internet age this must have always been a nightmare.

I remember, some 50 years ago, as a teenager in Dublin, when my schoolfriend Joseph (not his real name - let's have some confidentiality here) had a rather intimate love-letter opened in error by his father Joseph, there were fireworks, landslides and tornados in that household.

Mainly on account of the intimate love letter to Joseph being from Robert (not his real name), also in our class.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The "Win a Million" free scratch card newspaper inserts

One of those three-panel "Win a Million" scratchcards fell out of my newspaper this morning. Not a major or in anyway newsworthy event in itself, but I must admit my surprise. I didn't think anyone bothered with them anymore, or, to be a little more technical, I didn't think anyone was taken in by them anymore. Firstly, it actually is printed on the bottom of each panel that "Every card has a set of 3 matching symbols, 2 matching symbols and no matching symbols". Right, so you are going to 'win', half-win and not win respectively. Then, while the prize list is somewhat impressive with 1x£1m, 1x£100k, 2x£20k, 3x£10k and other things like holidays, tablet PC's city breaks all the way down to 1000 "faux" fashion watches, 1000 salon  makeovers and 1000xVIP Thames cruises. Now should I be stupid enough to spend the £1.53 a minute for the 6 minute phone call to claim my prize (that's almost a tenner, for those of you without cal...

Chancellor's letter of apology to Bob Diamond of Barclays

Thanks to my contacts at the new News International business "Phonetaps'R'Us", I was exclusively sent a copy of a letter sent to the Chief Executive of Barclays Bank, Bob Diamond, from the Chancellor yesterday. "Dear Bob Trusting you and yours are well. Listen mate. Sorry the F inancially S tupid A sses wrote to your bank yesterday to demand £290million as a fine. It's nothing personal, and just because your bank head office people are a bunch of dishonest, thieving bastards, I thought there was no reason to carry on that way and fine you. I made this clear to the FSA yesterday as soon as I heard the news. I told them that the taxpayer would have been more than happy to bail you out. And also. Look mate. Sorry you've had to give up your bonus this year. It must have come as quite a shock, and was a wonderful thing for you to volunteer to do. I only hope you've put something by from the £17million you received last year. No doubt the bank pay...

Are Camelot dim, dysfunctional, liars or just plain greedy?

There can be no denying that UK lottery operators Camelot are on to a good thing. Especially the overpaid management. They have been reaping the benefits of the franchise for years now - a franchise that in essence, has been licenced by the government to print money. However, I can't quite make up my mind whether the management of the Lotto are dim, dysfunctional, liars or just plain greedy, although the cynic in me answers the question when I consider the chief Executive of Camelot was complaining last year that the annual bonus on her not inconsiderable 7-figure salary had been reduced (conveniently forgetting her 18 year sojourn to date at Camelot has produced a pension we mere mortals can only dream about. How about the poor soldiers, CEO Dianne Thompson, who come back from the far-east minus a leg and have to legally fight for compensation that doesn't even touch what you earn less than a month? And they don't receive CBE's for their troubles either !). Irres...