Friday, June 13, 2008

Me First

Today brought a relief from the heat and a list of firsts for this new life in Asheville. First on the list of firsts was my first haircut here. I was a little nervous about this. As most of you know, I have curly hair and have been on the receiving end of many a clueless stylist. Trust me, it's no fun having big, frizzy Bozo hair. Alan, my hair guru in Los Angeles, did such a competent job, I was considering holding off on the haircut until my first visit back to Los Angeles. But we're going to a ball on Saturday night, so I felt I was overdue for a little trim. I was sent to a salon downtown and met with a really sweet (and young) hair stylist. The result was not so bad. While taming my unruly locks, she told me stories about life in Asheville, the arts scene and the jack-o-lantern skills I would need to acquire to take part in my neighborhood's annual Halloween event.

Next, it was off to the comic book store. I've been searching for a friendly place where I can get my weekly stash of comic books. Of course, nothing could replace House of Secrets in Burbank, but Pastimes in Asheville comes pretty close. If you've ever seen the Comic Book Guy on The Simpsons, you have a pretty good idea of the characters one encounters at comic book stores. Luckily, the proprietor of Pastimes was delightful and extremely helpful. I'm setting up an account, so I won't miss a single issue of Thor or Wonder Woman. So you can all rest a little easier now, knowing I'm getting my fix.

In the evening, we met friends at a local pub for cocktails and pitchers of tater tots. Really. Then it was off to see our first Asheville drag show. I don't know if anyone has ever used the word homespun to describe a drag show, but there was a fun, down-to-earth quality to it that was thoroughly enjoyable. The writing was crisp, the jokes hilarious and the music choices delightful. You just can't beat a drag queen crooning "Memory" while doing her best impersonation of a cat. Plus, the bartender made a really tasty cosmo, which is my litmus test for any bar or venue.

So I guess what all of this suggests is that we're slowly, but surely being absorbed into daily life in Asheville. I'm particularly looking forward to the aforementioned ball. I've never been to a ball. But I do like saying the word a lot. I intend to slip into full Cinderella mode as I get ready for said ball. Hopefully, my fairy godmother will show up and perform a little magic on my wardrobe. Or maybe turn Henry into a horse-drawn carriage or stretch limo.

So as my day of firsts ends, I realize we're also coming up on our first month here. Time flies, even in relaxing, slow-moving Asheville.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Chance, I have enjoyed your blog. It reminds me of when you and Joanna were in Jr. High and would take turns writing your giant novels. After reading your comments about rednecks, I would like to quote Jeff Foxworthy, redneck expert and connoisseur, "Being a redneck just means having a glorious lack of sophistication." Kinda clueless, like me and your mom. Sure there are bigoted and violent rednecks, just like there are bigoted and violent people in every segment of society. Jeff was on the View one morning and he told about the Wayans brothers calling him and asking he if minded if they wrote a book about "You might be ghetto if . . . ." He told them he didn't mind, but they should run some of their ideas by him because he thought some things they thought might be ghetto might actually be redneck. The one he told about was "If your mamma has never had her foot all the way inside a shoe, you might be ghetto." Jeff told them "no, that's redneck, too." So I think that if you take the time to get know most people, they are all a mixture of lots of things, unsually not just one dimension. I guess it all comes down to my belief in Anne Frank's quote. "I believe that people are really good at heart." mostly. Sharon

Chance said...

Hi Sharon! It's nice to see a name from home pop up here. I've actually had that Anne Frank quote in mind a lot lately. It's easy to expect the worst of people, so I keep reminding myself to look for the good.

Cassidy Jane said...

Pssst. I live in Asheville and have fried my naturally curly hair... I'm really vain about my hair and would like to know where you got yours cut... I'm in desperate need of a very good trim. Also... price?