Lucky Nails

Just came here with two friends, and we were very disappointed. The guy who did my mani/​pedi was good, but my companions had very bad service. Also, the equipment was old and mended with duct tape in many places, it was dirty, and one of my friends killed a cockroach. They really need to do some facilities upgrades and take credit cards. The only reason we came here was because they were the only nail place open on a Sunday. We won’t be returning.

I tried all the other places and noone does my nails like they do. Not even the nail place that sells wine! If you have to get your clients buzzed to do their nails you’re doing it wrong. Here they simply do their jobs and fo it well.

I went in nice and early in the morning (it can’t be said that «it had been a long day»). A tech, Henry, told me to come over to his station for my acrylic fill-​in (again — just in case anyone is wondering, «well, maybe he didn’t want to see anyone just then,» HE told ME to come over).
And it all went downhill from there.
First, before I even opened my mouth, Henry started berating me for going so long without getting my nails done. I’m not referring to playful banter — he was all but yelling at me. The venom in his voice was palpable. He was saying things like, «You can’t just do what you want; you MUST get fills on time,» and even, «You can’t just come in here and expect me to fill in your nails when you wait so long!» Actually, yes I can… that’s EXACTLY what I expect.
(Not that I ever explained myself to him… that’s really none of his business, but I do want to make it known that I wasn’t just being lazy; first of all, I’m a very busy woman who works from home, and my husband and I work overnights. Also, I’ve been in a wheelchair since I was 14 and due to a rare, congenital eye disease, I cannot drive. So, unless I have an event or a photo shoot, I’m not going to add extra stress and pain to my life, and take a bus JUST to get a fill when I’ve been up all night! And unequivocally NOT because a nail tech named Henry «commanded» me to do so.)
He tried to tell me that I must’ve gone «at least a month and a half,» and when I smiled and said, «Sure seems like it!» with a little laugh and a comment on how the autumn is flying by, he seemed genuinely outraged. He told me, NO, that it was an ACTUAL month and a half, probably 2 months since I last got a fill, and that’s «unacceptable.» I was still trying to be somewhat diplomatic at this point, but I informed him of the actual length of time since my last fill. He told me I was wrong. I will not expound upon how angry I was, but with no one else available, I was stuck.
To add LITERAL insult to ACTUAL injury, he hurt me. I was bleeding by the time he had only prepped the 3^rd nail. I informed him he was injuring me; he told me, «No I’m not. You’re ok.» When I pointed to the blood, he just sighed impatiently, slammed his hands down, and looked at me as if to say, «Can I finish?» When I kept flinching and saying «OW!» he got more irritated.
The work itself is atrocious. One had so much acrylic on my cuticle and finger that I requested to use HIS file, and while he was watching, I fixed my own nail. Unfortunately, I cannot fix the fact that he sealed some of the old DARK PINK nail polish INSIDE the area he filled! It’s hideous.
After he slapped on the acrylic, he began the grinding-​down. I had tried to tell him several times about my special circumstances, but not only had I been cut off each time, but I was also incredibly rattled. I managed to check his work after two fingers, and FINALLY said to Henry, «Excuse me, could you please make the tips thicker? They’re too thin; they’ll break off and chip in my wheelchair. And, for the rest of my nails, can you PLEASE not grind them down as much?»
I don’t know how much he heard of my requests, because he had already started yelling at me. YELLING. He was hollering that that he was going to charge me more for every single nail; that you CAN’T make nails thicker. When I kept repeating that I NEEDED them thicker because of my wheelchair, he said, «NO! NOBODY MAKES THEM THICK! IF YOU MAKE THEM THICK, THEY’LL BREAK!» I told him that I’ve been getting my nails done for YEARS, and that I know best… and NO, they will break UNLESS they’re thicker. Plus, I had just gotten my nails done QUITE thickly… THREE AND A HALF WEEKS AGO, IN THE VERY SAME SALON WHERE WE WERE NOW SITTING. Then he tried to tell me that making them thick causes fungus. (?!) My husband and I just looked at him like he was an… well, an idiot. So, he changed his tack. He went back to yelling that he would charge me for making them thick.
I replied to him, «Sir, I just want a little more acrylic on TWO NAILS. And, as for the rest of them, just don’t grind them down as much… that’s ALL! No one else… and I mean NO ONE… has EVER wanted to charge me for fixing something!»
He just kept yelling like a mad man. I’ve NEVER seen ANYTHING like this at a nail salon. Finally, I got tired of it. Of him, his insults, his demeaning attitude, his weird belief that he can order me around, and just to shut him up, I said, «You know what? Just finish them. I don’t care. Don’t make them any thicker. Don’t fix them. I. JUST. DON’T CARE. Because I’ve tried NUMEROUS times to tell you, but you’ve cut me off each time, but whatever. Let’s just get this done. I want to leave this place, quite frankly. This whole experience has been positively ridiculous and insulting on every level.»
A few moments later, when he was quiet, I added, «Honestly, it’s not like you’ve done a very good job, anyway. And you know it.»
He didn’t disagree.