tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post115976605628790822..comments2024-02-15T23:41:36.425-08:00Comments on SIMPLY WAIT: MANICUREPatry Francishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10961915797919017179noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1160014990047471202006-10-04T19:23:00.000-07:002006-10-04T19:23:00.000-07:00sara: I think you followed the same trajectory I d...sara: I think you followed the same trajectory I did. I went into the nail salon consumed with my fashion insecurities, and left realizing it wasn't the nail polish that mattered; it was the touch of the manicurist.Patry Francishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10961915797919017179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1159980641579418382006-10-04T09:50:00.001-07:002006-10-04T09:50:00.001-07:00colleen: Sometimes I think we look our best when w...colleen: Sometimes I think we look our best when we don't try; we're just ourselves.Patry Francishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10961915797919017179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1159980610615366842006-10-04T09:50:00.000-07:002006-10-04T09:50:00.000-07:00Dammit, Patry! You reeled me into what I thought ...Dammit, Patry! You reeled me into what I thought was going to be just a funny, frivolous little tale about clothes and shoes, and then you punched me in the heart!<BR/><BR/>(That's a compliment, by the way. Nicely done. The end really did make me clutch my chest...and wonder.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1159926183437850012006-10-03T18:43:00.000-07:002006-10-03T18:43:00.000-07:00You sound like me getting ready for my son's weddi...You sound like me getting ready for my son's wedding. A big new role. When I try to look good, it's the hardest too. <BR/><BR/>I'm so glad she waved.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1159921130149541562006-10-03T17:18:00.000-07:002006-10-03T17:18:00.000-07:00dave: I never pictured you as a nail painter, but ...dave: I never pictured you as a nail painter, but the way your camera and your poetry speak, I imagined you as something of a quiet type. Goes to show we don't always know our blog friends as well as we think we do. <BR/><BR/>lorna: I'm expecting the pedi next week at your place. Deal?Patry Francishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10961915797919017179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1159913160823218042006-10-03T15:06:00.000-07:002006-10-03T15:06:00.000-07:00a post equal to a manicure in its ability to sooth...a post equal to a manicure in its ability to soothe; I should have requested the pedi tooLornahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08976144449873569523noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1159901384097454852006-10-03T11:49:00.000-07:002006-10-03T11:49:00.000-07:00floots: "distant intimacy"--something like what we...floots: "distant intimacy"--something like what we have here on the net.<BR/><BR/>rob: Thank you, and nice to see you here.Patry Francishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10961915797919017179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1159901327510529062006-10-03T11:48:00.000-07:002006-10-03T11:48:00.000-07:00Thanks for this post. Quiet people are such a myst...Thanks for this post. Quiet people are such a mystery to me. (Well, so's nail-painting, but never mind that.)Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02596390440496594901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1159900919423561652006-10-03T11:41:00.000-07:002006-10-03T11:41:00.000-07:00Wonderfully written story. Loved it.Wonderfully written story. Loved it.Rob Gregory Brownehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11952008139132652259noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1159900778934370982006-10-03T11:39:00.000-07:002006-10-03T11:39:00.000-07:00really enjoyed thisthose moments of contactthat di...really enjoyed this<BR/>those moments of contact<BR/>that distant intimacy<BR/>can be so important<BR/>thank youflootshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01530734765701940680noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1159895121377060082006-10-03T10:05:00.000-07:002006-10-03T10:05:00.000-07:00r: Yeah, I suppose it was, though I did sense this...r: Yeah, I suppose it was, though I did sense this was a strong young woman.<BR/><BR/>marilyn: Call it the writer's curse.<BR/><BR/>Chuck: To answer your (not frivolous at all) questions:<BR/>1. If I ever got a manicure again, I would want her to do it--because the hand massage was so wonderful. But for now my nails are happily short and unvarnished.<BR/>2. If I went again, maybe she would smile--but probably not. She seemed to find a way of existing in her job that worked for her.<BR/>3. Not sullen or intimidated. Just detached.<BR/>4. Throughout the manicure, I kept trying to make human contact with her in subtle ways, smiling, attempting eye contact and conversation--all to no avail. The wave, I think, was an acknowledgment that she'd heard me and seen me after all.<BR/><BR/>dale: I was actually thinking of you when I wrote about how healing the hand massage felt, and how much it communicated when we were silent.<BR/><BR/>karen: That is a gift. I have a dental hygienist like that. Everyone wants to go to her because her talk is so interesting that you ALMOST forget what she's doing to your mouth. <BR/><BR/>curmudgeon: Oh yes, I know the feeling of invisibility well--and sometimes, I'm guilty of it myself. I work mostly weddings (or should I say workED) and at times, I pay attention to the people, their story, the emotions of the day. However, by the end of wedding season, I often tune out and go through the motions--undoubtedly, my loss.<BR/><BR/>zhoen: Nothing wrong with long, glamourous nails. I loved them on Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's--and that cigarette holder! Ah, to die for...(I think that was my vision of how I was supposed to look in New York.) <BR/><BR/>left-handed: Even here you come with a smile! (Can you see me smiling back?)<BR/><BR/>fred: The nagging sense that the manicurist nad her co-workers were being exploited was what disturbed me most of all--and not only for idealistic reasons. Ultimately, worker exploitation has a trickle down effect. I'm almost certain she didn't keep the tip. For one thing, tips usually go into pockets, not drawers near the cash register--unless it was being pooled, which I doubt. What really convinced me was the lack of pleasure or appreciation with which she received it.Patry Francishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10961915797919017179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1159891592411909982006-10-03T09:06:00.000-07:002006-10-03T09:06:00.000-07:00Patry....I enjoyed reading your observations and j...Patry....I enjoyed reading your observations and judgements in this post. Your gut feeling about the manicurist not getting to keep all the tip may be true. There is a good deal of exploitaion of workers even in small businesses. I am happy that you waved to her. You may have made her day. Patry, I challenge you to write about that encounter from what you imagine her perspective to be. Great post!Fred Garberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06308938520063396329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1159889096440975732006-10-03T08:24:00.000-07:002006-10-03T08:24:00.000-07:00Interesting and, yes, sad...I guess I am a silly, ...Interesting and, yes, sad...I guess I am a silly, silly woman, because I always seek to make some connection with any person I meet...a smile, eye-contact, (once in a while) the middle finger, but hey. Something. Will she work her way into a book someday, the impassive manicurist?Left-handed Trees...https://www.blogger.com/profile/06057727021295729384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1159885513595739172006-10-03T07:25:00.000-07:002006-10-03T07:25:00.000-07:00Troubling.I'm going to go cut my nails.Troubling.<BR/><BR/>I'm going to go cut my nails.Zhoenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03515663141425057088noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1159885294169019322006-10-03T07:21:00.000-07:002006-10-03T07:21:00.000-07:00The manicurist may not have been able to speak tha...The manicurist may not have been able to speak that much English. But that is not the only reason for her impassivity: Surely you've noticed, when waitressing, that you are often <I>invisible</I> -- merely a cog in the food or drink delivery machinery.<BR/><BR/>Years ago, when I was in undergrad, I worked in the dorm kitchen -- usually in the back -- but occasionally in the service line. People I <I>knew</I>, some I knew well, or thought I did, couldn't see <I>me</I> behind the starched white food service shirt and beneath the paper hat. I was merely the link between the mystery meat and their dinner plate. If I called someone by name, I could see, slowly, as the haze lifted and awareness and then recognition dawned.<BR/><BR/>I was otherwise invisible to them; I can see why the manicurist would choose to be invisible to her customers in response.The Curmudgeonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14723009641287783218noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1159885015716905242006-10-03T07:16:00.000-07:002006-10-03T07:16:00.000-07:00Beautiful story, Patry. And yes, sad. I often ask ...Beautiful story, Patry. And yes, sad. I often ask questions about family close by, where you're from, etc. and just as often get funny surprised looks, but sometimes things open up and the time flies (I have a hard time sitting still for long!), but what can you do when language is a barrier? At least a smile and a wave can overcome even that.Sustenance Scouthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12980573661955592633noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1159860864028941592006-10-03T00:34:00.000-07:002006-10-03T00:34:00.000-07:00Poignant. So many missed? lost? impossible? conne...Poignant. So many missed? lost? impossible? connections.Dalehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14523194846272870013noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1159853858326265692006-10-02T22:37:00.000-07:002006-10-02T22:37:00.000-07:00Will you go back and see her again?Will she still ...Will you go back and see her again?<BR/><BR/>Will she still be there?<BR/><BR/>What if you had had to go back inside-- to get your purse, let's say...would your relationship with the 'manicurista' then have been a new and different one?<BR/><BR/>Was she sullen--or simply intimidated in the workplace setting?<BR/><BR/>Did she feel 'solidarity' with you as a fellow 'service' worker? Was this the motivation for the wave?<BR/><BR/>OR...is LIVING infinitely more subtle and nuanced than my inane<BR/>(frivolous?) questions would suggest?<BR/><BR/>Your empathic (empathetic?) nature permeates so much of your writing...maybe a current of 'pathos', too.chuckhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16710697712143652055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1159851363201345832006-10-02T21:56:00.000-07:002006-10-02T21:56:00.000-07:00I love that you stopped to wonder about her life, ...I love that you stopped to wonder about her life, to imagine for a moment what it must be like to be her.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com