A renovation tale of a 1916 building

131 1st Street North, Small Town USA

The first buzz Cut

Everyone seems to be curious about what is going on at the old barber shop. First, it's getting a buzz cut (torn apart) so it can get put back together. The building went up in 1916 and was intended to be a barber shop from the start. The upstairs is said to have originally been a doctor and dentist office. The last barber, Sylvester Seymour started shaving stubble (say that fast 4 times) and giving flat tops back in the '40s. Sy cut hair for 68 years. His wife passed away in 2009 and at 91 years old Sy went into the nursing home and died a year after his wife. He was still cutting hair up till a couple years before that. After having scissors in his hands for 68 of his 91 years he could probably cut hair blindfolded. Talk to anyone and they have a story about getting their hair cut by Sy. Did he cut many new little boys hair when he was in his 80's? A few, but he did continue to have regular customers who have been sitting in his chair for as long as they can remember. You can probably pick them out walking around town, they are the old guys with long hair now that Sy is no longer in business to trim them up. As for a close razor shave, he probably quit lathering faces in his 70's for safety reasons since shaving a face is more dangerous to do blindfolded.




THE KELVINATOR


The Kelvinator ....... this stove is tougher than the Terminator, Govenator, and Arnold all rolled into one.  It needs a good shine, but when all is said and done this old dinosaur should still be cooking in the finished apartment.  It's worn in a few places like most people in their 50's, but new stoves don't have the charm of the oldies and the Kelvinator's vintage look alone makes it worth the spit to shine it up.  Everything is suppose to work and the owners manual might even turn up.  Arnold eat your heart out, the chrome on the Terminator should look so good.