More Than Just a Haircut

It has been fifteen years since I had my hair cut by Jack... and he apparently moved to this new location eight years ago on Drought Road in West Kelowna. I wondered if he would remember me.

I could not believe how many TV's were set up and all running in this barber shop. Later Jack told me there were a dozen... and everyone of them were donated. He tells everyone he would make room for flat screen, but that hasn't happened yet.

When it was my turn next I walked up to him and said, "It's good to see you again, Jack" and we shook hands. He replied, "It is good to see you too, Sherwin." He said he didn't recognize me with my beard... but once I spoke, he immediately remembered my voice.

Sitting in the barber chair he told me that they have a sense of humour here...

and he asked if I had ever seen a urinal used for a candy bowl? ...or a bidet as a water fountain?

I had to try it out, and it works just great!  Quite a novelty!

Sitting in the barberchair I saw this calendar of the year with all the colourful symbols. "What's that about," I asked.

Jack said he has been marking up the calendar for several years with all the sports events as well as customer's birthdays and anniversaries. He said it is quite a job to do as he really isn't into sports that much.  But he enjoys doing it for the customers.

I asked him about all the taxidermy in his barbershop. Where did it come from?

 Jack said it has all been donated... and they now have more than 20 stuffed birds and animals.

He pointed to this owl and said, "This bird was given to me for a haircut." It is amazing!

The walls are covered with photos of every sort... lots of memorabilia and antique cars!  All of them belonging to customers of Razorback Barbers.

He pointed to this 1949 Ford convertible. One of his customers owns this car... and it's likely worth close to half a million dollars.  It wins every competition he enters... and he turned down an offer of $450k.

Another customer brought in this photo he took of Jay Leno. with this pick-up. Everyone knows Jay Leno loves antique cars.

He had the identical pick-up and they sit on the wall one above the other.

What a great pick-up truck!

Then Jack told me the story about a customer who gave him this original oil painting. As a young man he fell into bad company and got caught doing a bank robbery. Being a small man, he was afraid that in jail he would get picked on and be beaten up, so right away he sized up his fellow inmates and picked a fight with the biggest, meanest guy... and he won! After that the word got around and they all left him alone.  It was in jail that he took an interest in painting... and made several paintings. After he had served his jail time he studied at the Banff School of Fine Arts.

I didn't ask Jack, but wondered since if this was a self-portrait. It is signed W. A. Chamberlain.

There was an amazing number of wood carvings here... and the quality of the work was amazing.

Rick Weibe has done all of them while waiting for his haircut. On the far right above is Jack, the barber... Scissors and comb in hand.

Rick has an amazing talent... it's all in the little details.

An interesting project to carve in wood. There is over 20 woodcarvings here...

There is even one of Chubby Checker and Fats Domino... on stage at the Razorbacks... on top of the TV's.

Another customer who loves to work with stone made this table of granite and inscribed the Razorback logo in the top.  Beautiful work.

This customer of Jack's does stunt flying... and he has an interesting website.

Roger Savoie is a regular customer. He has played in four Grey cups and had a great career with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. He thinks these guys are the best barbers in the world!

And I agree with Roger.  Like I said in the beginning, when you come here you get more than a haircut!

I came back a couple of days after the haircut just to take photos of this experience to do this blog... and Shirley took a shot of me with Jack.

The walls are pretty full of incredible memorabilia... but there is always room for just one more!

I couldn't get all the photos on this blog post... or all the taxidermy... or all the wood carvings, etc. So, you will have to come in and check it for yourself.  You will leave here with more than a haircut.

"There is no place like this place anywhere near this place, so this must be the place!"

I had painted this saying at the request of my dad on an old 8-gallon milk can for him.  It stood in his yard full of antique farm equipment on his farm in Westbank. All the old equipment is gone... the farm is gone... but I still have that old milk can... a little faded but a lot of memories.