I don't want to be mean, but I have this line in my head and I need to say it: Zen Spa and Nails forces you to be Zen because they are so slow. You have to try really hard not to get impatient. My manicurist, sweet as she was, was going so slowly that I couldn't even watch. I closed my eyes, tried to slow my brain, and let my thoughts wander. ZSN is a new place in the Bull's Head shopping center that does waxes, chair massages, and mani/pedis. The good news: it was relaxing. ZSN is pretty and quiet, and the staff is nice. I got lots of massage time, and my nails turned out fabulous. I kicked off my girly day by getting the glorious blue nails I'd been fantasizing about.The other three women there were not having any zen, and they didn't try to hide it:
Woman 1: How long will a manicure and pedicure take?
--Manicurist (in friendly voice): Twenty minutes?
W1: Really twenty minutes?
--Uh- (manicurist is confused)
W1: I mean, is it really only twenty minutes? Because I have to pick up my daughter at dance class at 12:30, and I can't be late.
--Ah yes, just twenty minutes.
W1 pauses, seeming irritated: OK, fine. I'll get a manicure pedicure.
Twenty minutes later... as my nails are still being groomed and trimmed, she's just finishing her mani and hasn't started on the pedi.
W1: You know what? Is this going to be done soon?
--Yes. Just a few more minutes.
W2: Because, I have to go pick up my daughter. It's just next door. I'll be right back. (She bolts out the door.)
Woman 2 walks in and asks for a pedicure.
--Manicure, too?
W2: No. I never get manicures.
--OK, right this way. (Man in apron comes over.)
W2: Oh. (Total dismay) Are you going to do it? (Man smiles and nods.) Ah- could I have a woman do it?
--Yes, yes. (Man is embarrassed.)
W2: It just makes me feel weird.
(I am all about sticking up for oneself, but this woman could have done it a lot more nicely.)
Woman 3 walks in.
--Manicure?
W3: Yes, but is Patricia here?
--Oh, sorry, she's in with a client. Someone else can help you?
W3: No, it has to be Patricia. Should I stay, or should I come back? How long will she be?
--Uh... 40 minutes.
W3: Forty minutes?
--Yes, 40 minutes- maybe, 1:15? 1:30?
W3: 1:15?
--Yes.
W3: 1:15 or 1:30? When should I come back? (All of this in impatient tone of voice.)
--Ah, 1:30, yes, 1:30.
CALM DOWN, PEOPLE!!! What are you doing in Zen spa with all of your bad energy?
I got the blue nails because I love things that are unusual, and I like to stand out. I need a bright world. This pink shirt is another way I announce to the world, "I am a freakin' happy person!" My other girly activities today were reading gossip magazines at Borders, tutoring French for an hour and a half, watching Friday Night Lights, Ugly Betty and Grey's Anatomy, and eating vegetables.
