Joe's Excellent Adventure

My son, Joe, chose to get a full time job after a few terms of college left him frustrated. He worked at Safeway for a couple of years, then for a huge local building supply company.

Discovering that full-time work at entry-level wages would not pay the bills when he had a wife and kids - one day - he decided to go back to college. He gave his two week's notice, then began to look for a flexible part-time job to help with tuition.

The freedom he felt that Friday, on his last day of work, went to his head. Literally. No more dress codes, no more hair-cut restrictions, no more workin' for the man. Joe went to a friend's house and convinced him to shave his (Joe's) head, except for a centerline strip a couple of inches wide from brow to nape - a Mohawk.

Now Joe has a round head, deep cheek-dimples on either side of his smile, and large brown eyes. He's my (6'1") baby boy! When he came walking up the sidewalk toward the front door, grinning his huge white grin, with this this this thing on his head, I about had a stroke, which pleased him to no end, of course.

Cassie and Caroline hooped and hollered, and petted his fuzzy little Mohawk. I began to laugh in a few minutes, once I got sort of used to the idea of a critter on my son's head. "It's only for the weekend. I just wanted to have some fun, and to go to the mall to see if people look at me differently." (They did.)

Joe's best friend worked at a small, locally-owned market which was in need of a stock boy, immediately. A glowing report from this friend, listing Joe's work experience, honesty, work ethic, and straight-laced personality, inspired the boss to set up an appointment for an interview with Joe the following Monday.

Perfect! Flexible hours, low-stress job, piece of cake.

Monday rolled around and Joe headed in for his interview, wearing a baseball cap to hide his Mohawk, with plans to shave off his new pet afterwards.

The boss LOVED Joe! (Who wouldn't?) She said, "You're hired! Here's the paperwork, sit here and fill it out."

He did.

His new boss said happily, "I'll get your time clock set up for you today so you can get to work now."

"Wha...?" Joe was confused. "Isn't this just an interview?" he thought, nervously tugging on the bill of his cap.

"First rule: no hats," Karen, the boss, said matter-of-factly.

"Huh? I thought I was just supposed to fill out paperwork today?" Joe asked, beginning to panic now, knowing what was under his hat. Like I said, straight-laced.

"I need you for the 10 - 4 shift today, so, take off the hat and you can get started," she kindly smiled.

Oh boy. Panic seized Joe, but, he's an honest, smart kid, so he told her, "Well, uh, you see, I have a BAD haircut."

"Ah, that's okay. Take off the hat and let's see," Karen said in a friendly tone, eyes now curiously on the hat.

Joe turned red red red, as he slowly removed his cap, and grinned sheepishly at Karen. She simply shrugged, saying, "Heh, it's not so bad," and walked away, leaving him to stock shelves for the next six hours, on his first day of work, with a Mohawk for all the customers to see.

Funny thing, no one teased him. A couple of teenagers and two little kids told him his hair was 'cool'. Joe and I learned a valuable lesson that day: loosen up, man.

We HAVE both loosened up since the Mohawk entered our lives.

Rock the Mohawk!

(Joe worked at the mart for three years, quickly working his way up to checker, and all-around valuable employee. The market was sold the fall that Joe began Gutenberg. He quit to devote his time to his studies, but the market, and the friends he made there, will always hold a warm spot in his heart.)