Seeing

Head down, in the zone, Carla still manages to keep the conversation flowing in such a fun and exuberant manner, making her clients feel comfortable and at ease. She has created her little nail salon from an old shipping container which has been restored in the shabby chic style. She has taken such care in the details, from the antique iron door latch to the crystal chandelier, the netted curtains braided to frame the massage bed and the wooden jigsaw stag’s head on the wall.

A comfy green couch with plush cushions sits opposite a set of restored double doors with etched glass windows, which let the warm sunlight filter into the room. A tall coat rack stands next to the couch, with colourful bags hanging in place of hats and coats.

Carla and the client ahead of me (Rochelle) are chatting about the client’s ex-husband and his poor treatment of their son. Carla handles this conversation like a champion, making Rochelle feel comfortable and able to open up about how the situation made her feel.

Before long we’re all laughing again. Carla is an absolute scream, a laugh a minute. She offered me a coffee but I declined telling her that I was heading for a cafe to sit and watch and write about what I see, for today’s prompt. She asked me about the other assignments and it dawned on me that I could have used her for the “most interesting person you’ve met this year” post. I told her about it and she was horrified that I didn’t think of her 🙂

We discussed the other assignments and when I told her the story of the random letter, we spent the next fifteen minutes extending the story into an epic take of love and betrayal, murder and  intrigue, horror and yapping dogs. It was hysterical!

It’s the people who you meet each day that make your day special.

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Today’s Writing101 prompt :  Go to a local café, park, or public place and write a piece inspired by something you see. Get detailed: leave no nuance behind. And for a twist :  write an adverb-free post.

I wrote the post up and then went back to remove adverbs and realised that I do tend to use them, usually to indicate an extreme – completely, totally… It was an interesting exercise which will make me more considerate of them in future.

I had originally planned to go to a cafe, but sitting there in the nail salon, watching and listening to how animated Carla is, I knew that she is what I wanted to SEE today and then write about. I did however make it to that cafe – here’s the proof that I was there and that I still write drafts with paper and pencil 🙂

Just a note – the photo of the stag’s head is actually mine, not Carla’s, we obviously have the same quirky tastes!

x desleyjane