Unapologetic

[cheye1]

Nail Salon Experience

I’ve lived in Harrisonburg for a short time but have been visiting this area for about 12 years. Throughout this time, I have been a patron to the same nail salon and have not strayed. Until Today. Its a new year and I wanted to try something new and close by to my house. The nail salon I went to today is 7 minutes away from my house while the one I usually go to is 20 minutes away. 

Closer is better, right? Wrong. 

I showed up at the nail salon a few minutes past 10am (They open at 10) and they already had 5 people in line for pedicures.  I was excited because if everyone was waiting on this salon, theres a reason, right? 

There was a hispanic couple, and 2 mom and daughter pairs, who were both white, and then there was me. While I was greeted and sat down prior to the last pair, I was last to be served. I tried to not to think too much about it, but I absolutely noticed. Then, the woman started filling up the tub with barely warm water, and when I told her to add hot water, she kept apologizing, but did not heat up the water. She rushed through my pedicure and gave little to no care to her service while everyone around me was getting A++ service. (The mom/daughter pair asked for normal pedicures while I asked for gel, which is a 10 dollar difference in price.) Everyone was getting massages and having their heels cheese grated, and I received none of that. She did do a great job painting my nails, but only after she picked the skin around my nails dry. 

While I was the last one to be served, I was the first one finished with my pedicure AND eyebrow wax. (The eyebrow wax was even WORSE) I paid for the services and even left a tip. The tip was not as much as I would usually leave, but it was a tip. Also working in the service industry, I couldn’t not leave her a tip, its against my nature. Even so, I felt so devalued and gross after leaving the salon.  This was supposed to be a self validating experience for me as I hit a personal benchmark that I was celebrating. 

This experience kicked up a lot of negative thoughts for me: Was the woman new or did she see a Black woman and expected no tip so she didn’t care about her services? I can only assume because I was the only Black person in the salon and everyone else was enjoying their time while I had to sit through a terrible experience. The area I live in is very diverse with many different family makeups and ethnic backgrounds. Even so, I’ve talked to a few Black women who have worked in spaces with different people who are not white, and still experience anti Blackness. 

It makes me so sad, but it definitely confirmed that I had a good thing going at my old salon and thats where I’m going to stay!

[cheye1]

Trip to Davis, WV

This weekend was the first (semi) large trip of the year! Inspired by the 52 hike challenge I found on Instagram, I felt that Mac and I needed to go do something new! So on Saturday, we packed some snacks, put the dog in the car and headed to West Virginia to visit the Black Water Falls State Park. 

Davis, WV is roughly 2 hours from where I live in Harrisonburg, Va with my son and dog. The trip was easy and there was literally no traffic. (We were the only ones on the highway for several minute stretches of time.) The scenery of the mountains and mountain homes kept us alert for the majority of the ride. Our devices didn’t work so it was easy to suck up the WV radio media, which was a lot more diverse and fun than we thought it would be. 

Arrival at the state park was cake! The walk down to the Falls was quick and beautiful. The boardwalk was so nice and while there were a lot of people, it didn’t seem crowded. (The bathrooms were also really nice and well kept, which is important after driving 2 hours). After walking to the Falls, we got back in the car and headed to the lodge, which is where the trailhead for our larger hike was located. This trail simple to follow for a novice like myself.  Even so, there were some large rocks, fallen branches and roots that made the trek just a little spicy. The hike was said to be over 4 miles long, and we didn’t make it fully around the loop. (The lack of people and service on the trail made Mac more anxious than I would have hoped.) It was easy to find a short cut to get us back to the car. 

As a new solo(ish) hiker, I need to do a lot better in preparing to do new things. I was prepared for the 30 degree weather, but I was not prepared for snow or mud.  We DID NOT have the right footwear. I didn’t look at the place prior to hopping in the car, so I was unaware of how close everyone would be while walking on the boardwalk, which was not the best choice for my 2 year old, vocal dog, Stewie. I hope to make the trip again once its warmer outside and maybe I will be lucky enough to talk Mac into an overnight stay at the lodge. 

After the hike, we got pizza to go from Sirianni’s. Their pizza was delicious, their service was amazing and I give them bonus points for the Black Lives Matter sticker in their window. We also visited the Wandering Caravan, which was too friggin lovely and I had to stop myself from buying one of everything. Before leaving, I ordered a matcha from Trailhead coffee. The space was small and intimate and the baristas were really nice.  While I only bought the matcha and some benets(which were fudgin’ amazing) they sell different flavored hot chocolate bombs-- They even have boozy bombs for the adults. I will DEFINITELY go back catch a show, eat and spend more money.  I think I might’ve even met a friend. :D

https://www.facebook.com/TheSiriannisPizzaCafe/

http://www.thewanderingcaravan.com/

https://www.facebook.com/Trailheadcoffeeshop/

(photos will be added at a later date.)