I went in for a hair cut today, and something very common happened that happens everyday in every country in the world: the hairdressers began talking to me. While this may seem polite at first, it quickly gets annoying (thankfully my hairdresser is rather good). There are 10 reasons for this, and I’m sure that you have thought about some of them yourself.

1. It is my life – The most common question I am asked is: what are you going to do with your life? I haven’t decided yet. And if I had, I wouldn’t be sharing my goals and dreams with a complete stranger, no matter how good their cutting skills were.

2. This is not a social outing – If I wanted a conversation I would approach a complete stranger, and would not be paying them. And if I was paying them I would expect a drink in return (barman are great at solving problems).

3. They have a job to do – They are getting paid to cut hair, and not to have a social life, although that seems to be a perk to the job nowadays.

4. It’s dangerous – The tool of their trade is a pair of scissors, and if they are distracted by a riveting conversation, well, who knows what could happen.

5. Shoddy job – Again, a distraction is taking place, and whether this results in half an ear gone, or a bad haircut, you know that your money has been wasted.

6. It’s damn annoying – Hairdressers ask the most repetitive, dull, and boring questions. The conversations revolve around what might happen, what has happened, and what the star signs have predicted.

7. Shallow – I am not calling hairdressers themselves shallow, merely the conversations. If, pray to God, a conversation turns political or some other serious direction, then the most common and pathetic opinions are voiced, and usually not by the customer.

8. Unachievable – When I have a chat with someone, I don’t have a pair of scissors hovering above my head. But at a hairdressers, I do, and because of that I don’t want to move my head around too much.

9. Uncomfortable – Talking about your own life is plain annoying, but talking about someone else’s is disturbing. I hate to say it, but I don’t care about your eating habits, or your weight problems.

10. Someone else – The only thing worse than having a hairdresser talking to you while they are cutting your hair, is when they are talking to someone else. One hair cut I had was with an apprentice, who spent most of your time talking to your boyfriend. Not the most comfortable position to be in.

As you can see, I have put a lot (a little) of thought into this list, and by now my rage has subsided. However, I am sure that it will return the next time I go to a hairdressers, for the chit-chat is inevitable.