Wednesday, September 19

Leo ...the Reverse Skinhead

Well, what a shock we got, when we went to collect our little Leo. He was almost completely bald! No tail feathers at all. And he acted almost guilty, as if he was ashamed of his nakedness. The groomer had a tough old time trying to complete his feet. I bear the scars from his frantic scrabbling as we tried to hold him still, so she could finish off his paws. Here he is on our bed, with one of his beloved soft toys. He was very subdued when he came home, yesterday. He lay next to me for a time on the sofa, & even let me cover him with a blanket.

He spent the whole night on our bed, & I suppose he was a bit cold with all his woolly coat gone.

Here he is, out in the sun this morning, waiting for Gom to come out. He sits beside him while he eats his brekky in the sun.
As you can see, he looks a very reduced hound! And we can see the legacy of his little black poodle mother, in the dark spots on his skin. Hopefully, as his wool grows back, he will let me brush him, & keep him from becoming so tangled.
And this was his sister yesterday, missing him & his boisterous ways.

When our kids were young, we used to go for evening strolls into the heart of the city, since we lived on the edge of the city centre. I remember seeing young lads with mohawk haircuts, & some of them had those huge spikes they used to glue into peaks.
Our son was fascinated, & could not take his eyes off these young men. I told him, "If you ever come home with a mohawk I will cry!" He was only about 10 then.
Well, you guessed it, some years later, when he went off flatting with his girlfriend, he came home one weekend, complete with mohawk haircut. I admit, I was quite appalled, but I didn't cry. I didn't really like it, but felt it was not a crime compared to what some young chaps were doing.
Then, the next weekend he came home, he had attempted to dye it, so it was black, with bleached sides, which had turned green & blue. Very peculiar. We took our daughter to the Airport, she was 'leaving home' for her first time. Going to another country. I was full of tears, & trepidation.
Our son came to farewell his sister, complete with multicoloured, multilevelled hair. Little boys stared in fascination, much the same way he had done when he was young. Gom put his arm around his shoulder, & said "Never mind Son. You may look funny, but I still love you!"
He was teased mercilessly at his work, apparently, & an elderly woman who worked in the office, asked what on earth his parents thought about his hair. He, being cheeky & flippant, replied his mother thought it lovely, & she had got a mohawk too!
We had occasion to take a paper to his work, & I wondered why this woman had rushed out of the office, & blatantly stared at me! She couldn't believe we were such a normal, conventional looking couple.
I always did try to encourage my children to be 'their own person', and not blindly follow the herd. Of course, I had not envisioned mohawks to be in the 'think for yourself' range of what they might choose to do. Nor had I thought about them dying their hair... well not the sons anyway.
Those phases have all long passed, & I recently asked SB if he was glad he had got his mohawk when he was young. He told me wasn't & couldn't believe he had been so stupid! I told him not to regret it, because if he hadn't he might have spent the rest of his life wishing he had! He also could not quite believe he had dyed his hair, I think.
****
I have a large cold sore on my lower lip. It is the same site it always develops. I always get miserable & feel most unwell, when I get a breakout. I have not had one for a few years now, so that may explain why I felt so tired. I hadn't realised it was developing, so missed the crucial first hours with the Zovirax.
****
Gom is fussing about in the kitchen, so I might go away & just rest. With my one skin bodied hound, & one shaggy little girl, who will have to have her wool cut shortly.
Bob Dylan, Beyond the Horizon.

18 comments:

Linda G. said...

Poor Leo...but I'm sure he'll soon get used to it and feel all free and cool for sumer.
I had to laugh about your son's mohawk. I heard it through the grape vine that my Grandson who lives in another state has one..a spiked up job. His parents haven't breathed a word to me...lol
no matter.. he's a great kid however he wears his hair!

~Bren~ said...

I think you can understand how Leo must be feeling if you think back you a recent haircut you received...LOL

Anonymous said...

He looks like a completely different dog! Are you sure you picked up the right one?

caramaena said...

Yes, he does look totally different. Hopefully it will be easier to manage when it gets a bit longer too.

Ugh at the cold sore. I hate them. Hope it goes soon.

Fairlie - www.feetonforeignlands.com said...

He does look very...um...tidy.

smilnsigh said...

So-called *cold sore*...

Yeah, that virus lies dormant in the spine area, till it wants to come out and 'raise cain' again. Not a nice little virus. :-(

Mari-Nanci

Joni said...

He may be embarrassed now but just think how lovely that hair will be as it grows in. Soft and silky! It is easy to cut a little too much with that fine hair too.

I gasp when I see the 80's hairstyle (high bangs) that I wore. Good grief!

His Office, My Studio said...

Leo is so cute! My dogs from when I was a kid came back from the groomers with not so pretty fur cuts too.

Lone Grey Squirrel said...

I truly enjoy reading your narratives about life.

ancient one said...

How could you be sure you got Leo back? He really looks so different.

Hair is such a big deal to all of us. I wonder why? My boys cannot believe they wore their hair long but we have the pictures to prove it. LOL

That cold sore probably does explain a lot about how you were feeling. I hate them. Very rarely have them, but seems like everytime I say that, I get one. (Gotta' knock on some wood.)

Hope you soon feel better!!

Anonymous said...

Meggie, as usual, I LOVE your post ! We had a cute Bichon dog, several years ago? We had adopted her, after her owners divorced, and she had stayed quite a few weeks all alone, only fed once a day.... I gave her a good bath and she was adorable (always tiptoeing behind me and sooo sweet!).... but her hair, OMG her hair ! We finally had to get her a good cut.... so good that we hardly recognized her : she looked like a white sausage ! LOL
And your mohawk story is reminding me about my sons, too. Such a wise philosophy of yours, and GOM !
(I had told my eldest : "if you come home one day, like this, I'll pack and live at the hotel!" LOL
Souvenirs.......
XOXOXOXOXOXOXO
NADINE

molly said...

Leo looks like fixit probably feels! We've had our share of weird a strange haircuts around here too!

Sheila said...

Leo probably feels quite naked, poor little chap. He'll soon get used to it.
Tell him next time he can have a mohawk instead, and see if he likes the idea.
My son used to have his favourite baseball team's name cut into the back of his hair, and coloured it blue during the playoffs. He's super conservative now, and would have a fit if one of his boys did that.
I've considered taking them to the barber and getting it done, they'd love it...hehe!

My float said...

Poor little puppy. He looks so cold and shivery.

I laughed at the story of the mohawk. WHen I was 18 (a very young 18) I wore a very short skirt with black heels which was a look at the time. But my parents? Nearly died on the spot. Very amusing. Now of course I think I must have looked like the neighbourhood hooker!

Aunty Evil said...

Poor Leo. You'd better keep him out of the cold air today!

Ali Honey said...

Ouch sorry about the lip!

I think hilarious haircuts are pretty harmless.....they grow out if wanted and don't usually leave scars like some modern adornments. I prefer that to unwashed lank yukky hairthat the owner doesn't take a pride in! My elder son still has long curly hair; my younger son has worn his #1 for many years. Such different guys! I even like bald on men with otherwise thin hair.

Unknown said...

Poor Leo. I can remember being marched to the hair stylist by my mother and coming home with a haircut that I didn't want and HATING it. But it will grow and he'll be happier.

Hair and kids--that's a battle I never chose to fight. We never had dyed Mohawks but Will went through a black phase that looked horrible. It was his hair though, and then it grew out and was gone. Thank goodness.

Tracey said...

Hi Meggie! Have been so busy, haven't looked in on you for a while. Thanks for your input on salmagundi. Took my elderly aunt and husband (a wonderful GOM), from England, to the seaside flat last night, hoping for lovely spring weather, and a huge fog rolled in. 'It's like London in winter,' said my poor shivering aunt (who had expected better of a South African spring). And the weather did affect our moods... Also took the Wobbly Dog and someone on the beach shouted at me about her ('There's something wrong with your dog! Get it to a vet!') and felt very affronted (she has a brain lesion that makes her... well, wobble). I've never really been a dog person but I love my little stray with a strange possessive protectiveness... Sending hugs to you xxx