Barista Monkeys

100% agree on Starbucks. It's always a last resort to me.

I've never liked coffee, but my brothers and sister prefer Dutch Bros.

kedavis (View Comment):

I’ve never liked coffee, but my brothers and sister prefer Dutch Bros.

Their cold brew is great.

Mr. Lileks, as we lived just a few blocks from you I know exactly the Great Clips and the barber you mentioned. She's been there as long as I can remember and I still try to schedule with her when I am in south Minneapolis and in need of a haircut. She cuts my hair perfectly and I enjoy lovely conversations about family. Over the 3 decades I lived at 48th & Aldrich that barber and I watched each other go gray. She reminds me of my beloved Aunt Hyacinth despite being from a vastly different ethnic groups (people are people aren't they).

Did you ever go to Bill's barber shop on Lake Street? He was right next to an infamous "Sauna." Whenever I went I made sure people knew I was going to that part of Lake Street for a hair cut! When the sauna closed down they gave their lobby furniture to Bill. Certainly he cleaned it well before placing, right. Bill was an old time barber with hot lather and straight-edge on the neck for the final. The talk was hunting, fishing and sports just like a men's barber shop should be. Twins great Shane Mack used to come there for his head shave as Bill was one of the few who really knew how to do it.

The first barber I went to was Gordie Johnson, QB Tom Brady's grandfather. I probably met Tom when he spent summers with his grandpa and they frequented Dad's drug store or when we visited our grandmothers in the local nursing home. OK, enough with the celebrity stuff.

Did you ever go the Grain Exchange Building barbershop? It was a shop very similar to a hotel barber shop. The last owner, Bob, maybe didn't need the income so much but loved talking to people. His wife was a local physician (who I knew given my medical administration job in the same system). For a few years I had an office in the Grain Exchange Building and used the good services there. He was a good barber and could discuss any number of subjects which was very fun. Most of the time he teased me about my 20 year old Toyota Corolla that I just could not stop driving (paid for, runs great, always starts, never vandalized). The shop is closed now I believe.

Finally I am meeting up with a couple of your H.S. classmates (we discussed one of them before) in mid-October.

Brian J Bergs (View Comment):

Mr. Lileks, as we lived just a few blocks from you I know exactly the Great Clips and the barber you mentioned. She’s been there as long as I can remember and I still try to schedule with her when I am in south Minneapolis and in need of a haircut. She cuts my hair perfectly and I enjoy lovely conversations about family. Over the 3 decades I lived at 48th & Aldrich that barber and I watched each other go gray. She reminds me of my beloved Aunt Hyacinth despite being from a vastly different ethnic groups (people are people aren’t they).

Hey! Small world. Yes, I'm always glad when I get her, and not someone who has limited conversational skills and an excess of metal. Never did get to those other places - they sound great.

Finally I am meeting up with a couple of your H.S. classmates (we discussed one of them before) in mid-October.

Whereabouts? DM me if you wish. Thanks!