I was less nervous than the last time for my third visit to Platinum Boyz. The doughnuts and the smiles have given me the hope and spirit to come back for more.
This time, however, was not less surprising than the previous ones. The barber shop was slow. There were five barbers but three clients. I only greeted the ones I know: Sean and James, who were pleased to see me. A black female barber was done with a client who left right away. This woman looked young, probably under 25. Jon, the old barber who refused to answer any question in my first visit stepped outside. I did not attempt to talk to him. I did not even look at him to give him space and time, hoping he will come to me at some point.
"Why is it so slow today?" I asked Sean. "Because it's the Basketball All-stars game weekend in Orlando and people travel," he responded. That gave me the perfect excuse to initiate conversation.
"Do you guys like basketball? What sport is the most popular in the United States Baseball, Basketball or Football?" I asked. They were all engaged in the topic. A teenager, whose tattoos give him a tough appearance, answered, "Basketball.... But every body is going to answer the one they like the most." Sean added, "Basketball because more people play Basketball in the streets."
Another barber, who was working on a client and I had not met yet answered, "Football is more popular that Basketball. Check the Superbowl." His client agreed with him. I took advantage and introduced my self. "My name is Kat," he said. I finally got to know my first contact, the mysterious guy I never met. I was surprised he was so young. He remembered we spoke on the phone and kindly apologized for not being present in my first visit as we arranged.
I redirected to the conversation. "I like Football but I don't understand it. I have to switch the channel after five minutes," I said. They were more than willing to help me. All of the sudden I had three of them explaining me the rules from the yard marking of the field to the scoring system. The client receiving service actually downloaded to his phone a clip on the beginning of a game to show me how it works. For several minutes I kept asking and they kept explaining, accompanied by some jokes and comments here and there. I got the names of the two clients, Carl and Jeff.
It was time for more interesting questions. "Why is it that there are not many black players in Baseball major leagues?' I questioned. Carl, the client receiving service, answered, "I used to liked baseball when I was a kid; but, I never had the chance to play it. The schools I went to didn't have a Baseball field and my mom couldn't pay for it." And Sean added, "Few years ago, they put the rule that all natives have to play at least one year in college before they get into major league. There are not many black guys in college that play baseball. That's not fair. Players from other countries can go straight to major leagues; it makes no sense." Kat continued, "If there is no black stars black people don't watch Baseball. Who are they going to follow?"
This time, Bubble and Muhammad were not in the shop so my chances to materialize their stories are in hold. However, this visit was more than wonderful. I solidified my connections in Platinum Boyz. This hour I spent there was not field work. It was leisure time. I related to people I do not have the chance to get in contact with every day. I learned from them, and more importantly, I started to enjoy spending time in this place.
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