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00:00My name's Mike Rowe, and this is my job.
00:07I explore the country looking for people who aren't afraid to get dirty.
00:11There it goes.
00:13Runaway dinosaur.
00:14Hard-working men and women who earn an honest living.
00:17Oh, look, we have a prize.
00:19Doing the kinds of jobs that make civilized life possible for the rest of us.
00:23Just what you guys had in mind when you invited us here?
00:26Something like that.
00:29Now, get ready.
00:32To get dirty.
00:38Coming up at a barbershop in Mobile, Alabama.
00:41Come on in, Troy.
00:43Our cameraman discovers that getting a bad haircut from me...
00:46Oh, I turn it off.
00:47...is the least of his worries.
00:49I'd be very careful.
00:51No, no, no.
00:52Now, is it natural for him to be bleeding like that?
00:55You don't have a tourniquet, do you?
00:56Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha.
00:59And later, you run the tipper?
01:00Yes, sir.
01:01I do some trash talking.
01:03So, after the trash is dumped then, the first job is to, like, spread it out a little bit, right?
01:08Yeah.
01:08The final resting place of your garbage is a little slice of heaven.
01:12We're looking for, uh, waste.
01:14I got news for you, man.
01:15There's waste everywhere.
01:20Oh, God.
01:33Today, we're at a strip mall in Mobile, Alabama, searching for a barbershop where our cameraman, Troy, can get a
01:38decent haircut.
01:39And maybe a shave, too.
01:42I mean, it is, it's just a model of simplicity.
01:46You know, the sign says exactly what's going on.
01:48And the barber pole, I mean, it's, it's not the most elaborate one I've ever seen, but all the colors
01:56are in play, and it's hanging there.
02:00Yeah.
02:01Here in Mobile, if you're in the market for a stylish trim, there's only one place to go.
02:06Local legend Johnny Sullivan's Barbershop, which has been in business for over 39 years.
02:11And at 20 bucks for a haircut, 15 for a trim, and 20 for a shave, you can't beat it.
02:16How you doing, Mr. Mike? Johnny Sullivan.
02:18Johnny, how are you?
02:19My pleasure.
02:19We just want to stop by my, one of my camera guys hadn't shaved in a month of Sundays.
02:23You can do the shaves as well?
02:24Yeah, I'm going to shave.
02:25All right.
02:26We could, you could teach me how to shave?
02:28If you want to.
02:29I mean, I don't have 39 years.
02:30I have about four minutes.
02:31Okay.
02:31I'm quick, Sonny.
02:32Well, what do you think, Dave?
02:33Do you think we're actually in the show at this point?
02:34We very well could be.
02:36I mean, it sounds like we are.
02:37Note the camera.
02:38There have been some cutbacks on our production.
02:39I know, I know.
02:40Difficult times.
02:41What pawn shop to get that out of?
02:43I don't know, but we had, it was a lease with an option on.
02:45We have to have it back at noon.
02:47Let's get one thing struck.
02:48All right.
02:48This is my domain.
02:49I'm pissing every corner in this place.
02:52A barber who pees in every corner.
02:54Yeah.
02:55It's my domain.
02:57Few people mark their domain quite like Johnny.
03:00His walls are covered in all manner of knick-knack and tidbits of interesting information.
03:05I got a sign.
03:06I need to read this sign.
03:08You can pee in the woods.
03:09You can pee in the golf.
03:10You can pee off your back porch.
03:12You can pee in your pool, but don't pee on the floor.
03:16Good advice.
03:17Well, let's take a look at your drawers.
03:18I wear briefs.
03:19So this is?
03:20Combs and brushes and stuff like that.
03:21This is your average barber accoutrements?
03:24Yeah, all your stuff.
03:24And there's your barber side there.
03:26What is barber side exactly?
03:28Put your implements in there, your combs and stuff, and then it just infects them.
03:31Is it necessary to have all these different types of combs?
03:36For me it is.
03:37Why?
03:38Where would you use that?
03:39This is a comb of women's long hair.
03:40This is basically your flat top comb.
03:42This is more of your hard taper comb.
03:44This is pretty long hair cutting comb.
03:46These scissors are shears as they call them.
03:48What's the difference between scissors and shears?
03:52I would say scissors are used for cutting cloth.
03:55Shears are cutting hair.
03:57Now these particular shears have disposable blades.
04:01Dope.
04:01Look at that.
04:02And they're very, very sharp.
04:04Hair really dulls.
04:06It'll dull your blade fast.
04:07Oh, man, just unbelievable.
04:09And these right here are called the 4420s or thinners or blenders that they use.
04:13Thinners or blenders are 4420s.
04:15Now these right here are called the Filipino shears.
04:18Why are these Filipino shears?
04:19Well, they're big and the Filipinos use them in the Philippines.
04:21Well, there you go.
04:22There you go.
04:23There you go.
04:23Then you have your oil.
04:24You want all your blades.
04:26Keep them nice and all.
04:27They won't clog up.
04:27Then pull the patron's hair.
04:29No, they hate that.
04:30This is Gary Crumbly.
04:32Hey, Gary.
04:32How's it going?
04:33Is this your regularly scheduled hair appointment?
04:36It comes and goes.
04:37All right.
04:38Got that last time.
04:39My wife hates it.
04:40Gary, you don't mind us shooting you, do you?
04:42No outstanding warrants or anything?
04:44No.
04:44No.
04:44All right.
04:46What I'm doing here now, I'm just doing a little perimeter work before we do actually
04:50the clipper cutting.
04:51Perimeter work.
04:52Yeah, going around the ears and make sure it's all smooth.
04:54Now, let me tell you what, back in the old days, they'll cut it like this.
04:58Way down like that.
05:00Mm-hmm.
05:00Then it'll look like your wife did it or your girlfriend did it.
05:03Right.
05:03Or somebody got mad at you.
05:04Right, right, right.
05:05I learned this from watching a Vidal Sassoon film.
05:10Paid 50 bucks to watch him cut it.
05:11When?
05:13In 1975 in Anchorage, Alaska.
05:15I wasn't the only one there.
05:17Oh, it's not just you and Vidal and Vidal or whatever.
05:19All right.
05:19No, there was a whole bunch of us there.
05:20But I learned then about angles.
05:22It's all 90 degree angles.
05:23Now, what I'm doing here is called clipper over comb.
05:26Clipper over comb.
05:27Yeah.
05:27Yeah, we're not putting a guard on him.
05:29We're just trimming it up.
05:30Last time, he wanted a real short military haircut, and I cut it a little bit too short.
05:36Now, did he tell you you cut it too short last time, or did you just know it?
05:38Yeah, yeah.
05:38And he says, give me a military cut.
05:41Johnny, and I said, all right.
05:43And he said, damn, that's too short.
05:44And I said, well, you said short.
05:46Well, actually, he said military.
05:47Yeah.
05:48So, I've seen the razor over comb technique, which is what you're still doing.
05:52Yes, sir.
05:52Yeah, we go in and finish this up.
05:54So, it all goes into wrist action.
05:57That's what's called that ganglion cyst right there, sir.
06:00You got a ganglion cyst in your cutting wrist?
06:01Yeah, right there.
06:02I got one over here.
06:03It ain't...
06:04I used to call them Bible cysts.
06:06Why is that?
06:07Because back in the old days, they would take a Bible and burst it.
06:11Wow.
06:11True story.
06:12Why would they use a Bible?
06:14They didn't know anything else to do.
06:15There's something heavy enough to burst it, I guess.
06:18We're not going to mess with the top.
06:20You want to cut down a little bit?
06:21No.
06:22I cut this short last time, Rob.
06:24But you told me to, remember?
06:26Okay.
06:26Well, he said military.
06:28So, you've probably seen some fairly horrible things, just in terms of hygiene.
06:33Yep.
06:33I'm going to tell you.
06:34Right?
06:35It's funny you should ask.
06:37Part of my job.
06:38It really came up to the barbers and the beauticians back in those days to educate people that their
06:44hair needs to be clean.
06:47So, if you've got all these sebaceous glands up there and all that stuff.
06:50And it can stink, too.
06:52Yeah.
06:53Especially when you get seborrhea.
06:55Seborrhea and psoriasis.
06:56And I've seen seborrhea get this high off the scalp.
06:58Come on.
06:59Yeah.
07:00Tell me what seborrhea is exactly from a...
07:02The sebaceous glands get clogged through dirt and oil.
07:06If you don't cleanse the glands, the pustule you're talking about will go up and will go
07:12back down.
07:12And it can't be released through the gland.
07:14Like ingrown?
07:16Ingrown and then it just forms and forms.
07:17Then you have a pimple.
07:19Yeah.
07:19Then it becomes seborrhea.
07:21Psoriasis is usually on the elbows.
07:23What about eczema?
07:24Eczema, now, that's a warm, moist place.
07:27Growing.
07:28Right.
07:28Yeah.
07:29What does hair in my poem mean?
07:31It means you've been having a lot of fun with a citizen robot catalog.
07:34See that young man sitting over there?
07:35He's the one I'm going to get to do number two guard, too.
07:37Number two?
07:38Yeah.
07:39Well, that's a whole other story.
07:40Let me say hello officially.
07:41I didn't get your name.
07:42Matt Burch.
07:43Matt?
07:43M-A-T-T.
07:45Yes, sir.
07:47Sit on down here.
07:47Sit down and take a break.
07:49Take a load off.
07:50I'm going to go ahead and put the cape around him.
07:52And what are we going to do?
07:53You're like a superhero, Matt.
07:54I'm going to give you the clippers here.
07:56And I'm going to put a number two guard on.
07:58I've got it indicated by purple, so I won't get confused.
08:01How many guards they make?
08:02One all the way up to eighth, and they've got one and a half and all that.
08:05So the lower the guard, the longer the cut or the shorter the cut?
08:08The longer the guard, the longer the hair.
08:09This is what they refer to as nothing.
08:12Nothing.
08:12That's buzz cut.
08:13Yeah, that's buzz cut.
08:14All right.
08:14What you want to do is kind of comb it through here to get some of the knots out of
08:19it or
08:19tangles or anything.
08:21Why is your hair knotted, Matt?
08:22When's the last time you washed it?
08:23Uh, today.
08:24Today, good.
08:25All right.
08:25It's a very, very simple cut.
08:27Uh-huh.
08:27What you do, you take your little finger here and you kind of pull that back.
08:30You want to get the guard in his ear.
08:33And just start doing like this.
08:36Let the hair fall.
08:37So how short do you want this, Matt?
08:39I mean, this is...
08:40Number two guard.
08:41That's it?
08:41Yeah.
08:42And that's basically it.
08:43Matt, are you tempted at all just to keep that front like it is, nice and long like
08:47everything else?
08:48I mean, it's a look, right?
08:49Yes, sir.
08:49Just hold it just like this.
08:50Just put your thumb right there where the little indentation is.
08:53Uh-huh.
08:53Put your thumb right there and just go over like this.
08:56Just put it flush to the skin.
08:57Uh-huh.
08:58All right.
08:59I'll just come at it from back here like so.
09:02There you go.
09:04Put a little pressure on it.
09:05It ain't gonna hurt him.
09:06Does it feel like I know what I'm doing, Matt?
09:07I mean, you're looking good.
09:08You look like a...
09:09A barber.
09:09Yeah.
09:10Yeah, that's what I'm shooting for.
09:11A cool ball.
09:11See the difference?
09:13You're doing fine.
09:14Fine?
09:14Not great.
09:15Too bad for you, Matt.
09:16So you got the thing?
09:17Makes them go up in the air, makes them come down?
09:19Yeah, right here.
09:19You put it right there.
09:21This used to be my favorite part of getting a haircut as a kid.
09:24Oh, yeah.
09:24There you go.
09:25There we go.
09:26Same thing with the front?
09:27Just pull it back and just go with it.
09:29Meow.
09:30I don't think I need to come.
09:32All right.
09:32I'll just go home and take a break.
09:34Brave boy.
09:35And beer.
09:36It took me years to figure that technique again.
09:38It was all about the comfort of the patron.
09:39Is it?
09:40Yeah.
09:40I thought it had to do with the money.
09:42Well, it's got something to do with it, too.
09:45So, I get the sense you do a lot of talking while you're working.
09:48Oh, yeah.
09:48That's what a lot of people come to the barbershop.
09:50They don't come in there and just sit there and stare at you.
09:52They want to listen to you.
09:53So, it's like performance.
09:54I mean, you're on.
09:55Yeah, you're on.
09:56You're on stage.
09:57How many people fall asleep in your chair?
09:58Oh, you'd be surprised.
09:59Quite a few.
10:00But now I'm usually doing this.
10:01Hey, man.
10:02Let go.
10:03I think it'd be borderline insulting if you're looking at yourself as a performer.
10:05You're in the middle of a story and, you know, your guy starts sleeping.
10:09I'm a little disappointed with that right there.
10:12That's unfortunate.
10:14That might be some scissor work.
10:16Coming up.
10:17Is this the best haircut you ever had?
10:19You bet, Mike.
10:20It's true.
10:21You can pick your friends and you can pick your nose.
10:23But you can't pick your friend's nose unless you're a barber.
10:29And later, I take an action-packed joy ride through a state-of-the-art landfill.
10:35Man, I think I just ran over a goose-down pillow.
10:45Johnny, what do you do with these little tufts of hair?
10:47You want to take this trimmer.
10:50Uh-huh.
10:51Say.
10:52Oh, that little, that's like a mosquito.
10:54That gets in my ear when I'm in the chair.
10:55It always gives me the grief.
10:56I'm going to show you how to do this.
10:57All right.
10:58I'm going to take my thumb and forefaring.
11:00I'm going to pull a zero.
11:01Yeah.
11:01I'm going to do right over the top of the ear.
11:04Just very like that.
11:05Not no white sidewalls.
11:07No.
11:07But just right in here.
11:09I'm going to turn it like that.
11:10Uh-huh.
11:10And come back and get the other one.
11:12And I'm going to get this little hair that's kind of low here.
11:15Just come out just like that.
11:17Uh-huh.
11:17And then you get a perfect art.
11:19Now taper is a thing.
11:21It's a style of cutting that just, it's an art form.
11:24Like this.
11:25You take your clipper.
11:26Clipper over a cone.
11:27Uh-huh.
11:28And you do like this.
11:29And you come up gradually.
11:32And that's called tapering.
11:34You can try if you like.
11:35But very gingerly, just tilt the cone back.
11:38Like so?
11:39We just keep doing it.
11:40Okay.
11:45We probably shouldn't be making the face I'm making right now, man.
11:48I do apologize.
11:49I think he might have made this whole taper thing up, to be honest with you.
11:52That looks good, man.
11:53Yeah?
11:54Oh, yeah.
11:54You're doing real good.
11:55You can ask him how he's doing and all that.
11:57How you doing, Matt?
11:58Good.
11:58Fantastic.
12:02You're supposed to do that.
12:04But, you know when you're in a hurry, though.
12:06Oh, right.
12:06You know those three stooges that go, boop, boop, boop, boop, boop.
12:10Yeah, that looks great.
12:11Okay, Mike, you did real good, bud.
12:13Oh, wait a second.
12:14You check it out.
12:15I'm checking it out.
12:16Look at that sideburn there.
12:17Okay.
12:19I'm looking at this sideburn here.
12:22I'm feeling like this sideburn's a little shorter.
12:28There you go.
12:29Hey, you can thank me later.
12:30You were this close to walking out of here looking like a jackass.
12:34A little talcum powder.
12:35Get the hair off of his forehead and then off his neck.
12:38All right.
12:39This is talcum powder?
12:40Yeah, this is talcum powder.
12:41How's talcum powder different than, say, baby powder?
12:44It's the same thing.
12:45It's just different fragrances.
12:47It's coming from the rock talcum.
12:49Talcum.
12:50Yeah.
12:50You crush it down and make powder and dissolve more.
12:52That's right.
12:54There you go.
12:54Yeah.
12:55You ask him does he want a little neck massage.
12:57Say, Matt, are you in the market for like a little neck massage or something like that?
13:01Would you?
13:01You take your fingers like that and put it in just like that.
13:04What is this thing called?
13:05Vibrator.
13:06It's not like any I've seen before.
13:07No.
13:09So you just...
13:10Are you turning on right now?
13:11Well, of course you turn it on.
13:11But I just want it before I fire it up.
13:13It's just like that?
13:14Yeah, just like that.
13:15And you put a little pressure around his nape of his neck right there.
13:17Right there.
13:18There you go.
13:18I like that.
13:20That's it?
13:21I ain't moving around a little bit.
13:23You talk to him.
13:24That's not real.
13:25Well, I mean, it's not a date.
13:26But he's paying you money, though.
13:30That's, again, not a date.
13:32How's it going, sailor?
13:33You liking the pressure?
13:34Feel good.
13:35Good pressure for you.
13:36Good.
13:38You like that, Matt?
13:39Yes, you do.
13:41I was cutting the girl's hair one day and I was doing it on her neck and she said,
13:44stop, stop, stop.
13:45And I said, what's the matter?
13:46Am I hurting?
13:46And she said, I want to know if that thing brings home a paycheck.
13:49I'm going to marry it.
13:51Saw that one coming.
13:54Well, that's enough.
13:55Don't get too used to it.
13:56Yeah, you don't want to spoil it.
13:58You don't want to spoil it.
14:03Hey, things alive.
14:05Hello.
14:05You got memorabilia.
14:07Is this you back in that?
14:08Yeah.
14:08Back in that?
14:09Yeah, that's me right there.
14:09I was 21.
14:11How long you over there?
14:12Well, that was my second tour.
14:14All together, 21 months.
14:16That's my wife right here back in the 70s now.
14:19That's you and your wife?
14:19That's me when I was a color hairstylist.
14:21Warren Beatty had a better shampoo.
14:24If the patron don't agree with you, you just make him agree with you.
14:28Was this the best haircut you ever had?
14:30You've had my fabulous cut.
14:33All right.
14:34Don't forget your waiters and waitresses.
14:38You were great.
14:39There's the small matter of writing.
14:44Always awkward.
14:45No, this one's on us.
14:45This one's on the house.
14:47Now it was Troy's turn to sit in the chair and allow me to practice my newly acquired barbering
14:51skills.
14:53All right.
14:53The first thing you need to do is do like this.
14:57I do like to get all the hair off of.
14:59Because back in the old days, things would cling to the hair.
15:02Like what?
15:02Like bugs and stuff.
15:03Back in the old days.
15:05Not laughing weak.
15:06Hey.
15:07Hey.
15:08All right.
15:09That's enough.
15:09This is how you're supposed to do it.
15:11Mm-hmm.
15:11You do like this.
15:12You know, grab the money.
15:14Patron.
15:14Just like this.
15:15Did you say patient or patron?
15:16Patron.
15:17Then you come back and you do like this.
15:20It's like a matador, only with a green cape.
15:22Make it look real fresh.
15:24One smooth move.
15:24Here you go.
15:26There you go.
15:27There you go.
15:28Just like so.
15:29You want to do a five with a 90 degree angle.
15:31Just like that.
15:32And then I'll show you how to blend it in with a clipper over comb.
15:35Hell yeah.
15:36No, okay.
15:37I'll do a five 90 degree angle.
15:39So it's basically, it's that.
15:41You're just talking just like that.
15:43Oh.
15:44No, no.
15:44I'll turn it on.
15:45Yeah.
15:45Oh, I'm sorry.
15:46It's just traditional.
15:47I was just practicing.
15:48That's going to take a long time.
15:49Yeah.
15:50You know.
15:53All right.
15:54Now this time you want to use your comb.
15:56I do?
15:57Yeah.
15:57Because you don't want to go all the way up.
15:59You want to go right about here.
16:00But not like that.
16:02You want to do a 90 degree angle just like that.
16:04Let me show you.
16:04Yeah.
16:06After you do this.
16:07Oh, yeah.
16:08It'll make a real high-pitched sound.
16:09Remember the ear?
16:09I do remember.
16:10Fleshy things.
16:11Hang off the side of his head.
16:12Do that 90 degree angle.
16:14Now you can do like that.
16:16And just calm it down.
16:17We can see what you're doing.
16:17Uh-huh.
16:18Okay.
16:19This thing just comes up just like that.
16:20And I'll calm it down so I can see what I'm doing.
16:23I'm impressed.
16:25You're using that finger real good with that ear.
16:26Oh, yeah.
16:27Troy likes the finger.
16:28Yeah.
16:29He likes it.
16:30Not for some blending.
16:31Right.
16:34Not so fast.
16:35Troy likes this.
16:36Sorry.
16:37That's about gentle.
16:38You like that?
16:38Yeah, that's good.
16:39Now you're going up.
16:41Now you're going up.
16:42That's good.
16:43Up.
16:44Yes, you are.
16:46If you can incorporate that with the vibrator, I believe you can double your rates immediately.
16:52Take this.
16:52Brush the hair off his neck down.
16:54Gently, gently.
16:55Gentle is not in Troy's vocabulary.
16:58This is horse hair, so that's why.
17:00Yeah?
17:00What's this?
17:06Medieval barbers took on a variety of duties, including dentistry and surgery, that inspired
17:11the original red and white barber's pole.
17:13The top of the pole represents where a patient would grip to increase blood flow during blood
17:18letting, while the white and red spirals represent the bloody bandages.
17:27Now the beard, you want it shaved off completely?
17:31Yeah.
17:32All right.
17:32What you want to do is take your clippers and just go...
17:35Just like that?
17:36Yeah.
17:37Like that.
17:38But be careful.
17:39Don't jab him.
17:40No.
17:40Like that movement?
17:41Not so much of that.
17:42Don't do that.
17:43With this.
17:44Keep it right down flush with the skin.
17:47All right.
17:50There you go.
17:52A little bit closer.
17:53Hey.
17:55A little gray there, huh?
17:56No, man.
17:57That was gray a while ago now.
17:58It's just pure white.
18:00I'm sure this isn't hurting anything, is it?
18:01Not yet.
18:02All right.
18:03This is very Sweeney Todd.
18:06Being the barber.
18:07Mobile.
18:11You want to leave it?
18:12I want to leave your Van Dyke.
18:14I don't know.
18:14What do you recommend, Johnny?
18:15That looks good.
18:17Yeah, looks good.
18:17You shave around that and leave this and trim it up, get it real good and tight in there.
18:21Trim that down by number three or number two and it'll look good.
18:25Just tidy this up a little bit right here.
18:28Just get it real, real close as you can so that way it'd be less resistant.
18:33All right.
18:34Now, ask him if he wants the hairs out of his nose.
18:37You want the hairs out of your nose, Trim?
18:39You know, I really do, man.
18:39You asked him to do this.
18:41Yeah.
18:42There you go.
18:42Just do it right here.
18:43Very, very gently.
18:45Don't jab him.
18:47And turn that way.
18:50And there you go.
18:52This is supposed to do it.
18:57Okay.
18:58All right.
18:59You going to do this?
19:00Sure.
19:00All right.
19:01This razor, we're going to do this.
19:02Uh-huh.
19:03We're going to take that blade out.
19:04So be very, very careful with this for obvious reasons.
19:14It's so sharp.
19:17Give me another towel and heat that up out there real, real hot on that hot water.
19:20And just twist it down and bring it back.
19:22Hot as I can stand it.
19:23Yeah.
19:24Right.
19:25Hotter is better.
19:26I thought it was all about folding it up some special way.
19:33All right.
19:34Put it around him.
19:39I lather him up.
19:43There you go.
19:47There you go.
19:48You're looking good.
19:49Be careful.
19:50That's at the extent of the instruction.
19:52I was looking for something a bit more precise.
19:54All right.
19:55What you do is, now you put your finger there.
19:56Your ring finger just like that.
19:58Mm-hmm.
19:59All right.
19:59You come over like that.
20:00Now, remember now, it's very short.
20:02Yeah.
20:02So you want to do it like this.
20:04When you come to the cheek area, take your thumb and just kind of hold the tongue.
20:09And then come down like that.
20:11That's the area that worries me.
20:12You can see the blood pulsing through his jugular.
20:16Now, there's actually 13 moves to a good shave.
20:19Now, is it natural for him to be bleeding like that?
20:21Yeah.
20:21That's just the way it goes.
20:22That's just the way it goes.
20:23That's the way it goes.
20:23That brand new blade you got in mind.
20:25Mm.
20:26Oh, yeah.
20:28I'm going to sting just a minute.
20:29Well, sure it's going to sting.
20:30Wait, what is that?
20:31That's a septic pencil.
20:32A septic pencil.
20:33I know.
20:33I know those.
20:34I cut myself shaving all the time.
20:36Oh, it's going to hurt.
20:36Oh, yeah.
20:37That's going to hurt.
20:37Sure it's going to hurt.
20:39We'll get it cleaned up.
20:40No, you'll run out of blood eventually.
20:42All right.
20:42I'm going to let you do the next.
20:43Of course, when learning how to use a straight razor, where better to start than on the throat of a
20:48good friend.
20:51Oh, it's so sharp in that sound.
20:53It's the sound.
20:54I really feel like it's just going to slice him wide open.
20:57Right.
20:57I feel like if I was going that way.
21:00I don't know, man.
21:01I don't know, Troy.
21:06I just...
21:07What would I do?
21:08How would I do it?
21:09I'd be right in there, Roger.
21:11Don't get on your head.
21:12That's how I'd do it.
21:12I'd pull it down like that.
21:14Yeah.
21:15Maybe even like that.
21:16Of course, I'd bleed to death, too.
21:17All right.
21:19There you go.
21:20Here, let's make this as comfortable as everybody can do.
21:22Oh, yeah.
21:23There.
21:24That's...
21:25Oh, God.
21:25Oh, no, no, no.
21:27This is...
21:29This is for your extra super special customers.
21:32Yeah, super special.
21:33How much is this going to cost me?
21:34How much you got, Sailor?
21:35Yeah.
21:36What you want to do is come like this.
21:43Let me try that.
21:44Happy?
21:45Good looking.
21:46I mean, look, I couldn't be more careful.
21:48I know I'm going to cut him wide open.
21:49I just...
21:49You want to do this right here?
21:51Right there?
21:52Sure.
21:53Put a little moisture on that.
21:55A little moisture.
21:56Yeah, moisture him up.
22:00I feel it grabbing at his skin.
22:02I just...
22:02I know.
22:03I know.
22:03You've got different angles you need to go.
22:06That's a pretty good smooth cut right down now.
22:09Might get another towel and get it damp there a little bit.
22:11A little damp towel, yeah.
22:12Yeah.
22:12Let me do that for you.
22:13Yeah.
22:17Hey, did you have my blood?
22:18No.
22:19No, we killed a goat earlier.
22:21Now, if you would, go back and wet it down again.
22:28I do apologize about that.
22:33Okay.
22:34I wrapped him around his nose and his face, just like we said before.
22:39There you go.
22:41All right.
22:46Okay.
22:48Now, what you want to do...
22:52Now, come back and pat him on the cheeks and everything.
22:54Not on the neck today, though.
23:03So, Troy, you happy?
23:05Yeah.
23:07Johnny was an education.
23:09My pleasure.
23:10Troy was awkward and weird.
23:13Expected nothing less.
23:14You want any of this for your collection?
23:16That pillow you told me you were making out of real human hair?
23:18Yeah.
23:20Coming up, I spend a relaxing day in the countryside with some of my favorite things.
23:25Bulldozers, trucks, and garbage.
23:29I'll be able to operate some of the machines with you?
23:31Sure.
23:31Yeah, you're the man.
23:32No, I'm a guy.
23:33You're the man.
23:34I'm just passing through.
23:35You're the man.
23:36You're the man.
23:39You're the man.
23:41You're the man.
23:42You're the man.
23:43You're the man.
23:43You're the man.
23:44About 30 miles north of Sacramento, California, nestled in the rolling hills and farmland,
23:49you'll find a lonely teddy bear that may have fallen off a truck that was headed here.
23:56The Ostrom Road landfill may look trashy, but it's no dump.
24:00It is a state-of-the-art facility that protects underlying soil from seepage with a nine-layer,
24:06high-tech barrier and generates electrical power from decomposing trash.
24:10Quite simply, this place is one of the best landfills in the world.
24:15This is Bill Wood.
24:16This is his son, Mike Wood.
24:18That's Tony.
24:19And that's Phil.
24:20Is it fair to say that you basically are handling the trash of, what, like a million people or so?
24:26Yeah, around that.
24:27How long have you been at it?
24:2815 years.
24:29I've been working for the company for 26.
24:32When are you done?
24:33Uh, August 31st.
24:37Like in a...
24:37Well, right now, a month.
24:39You'll be retired by the time this goes on the air.
24:41Probably.
24:42Congratulations.
24:44And you've got a big day today, too.
24:45Yes.
24:46Me and my wife's 25th wedding ever.
24:48Many happy returns.
24:49And his, too.
24:50Yep.
24:51Wait a minute, you've been married 25 years?
24:5225 years.
24:53Today?
24:53Same day, yeah.
24:54Married the same woman.
24:54This is just crazy.
24:55Married the same woman.
24:56Now we've got a show.
24:58Phil, you got anything interesting to add?
25:00No.
25:01Just another day for you.
25:02Another day for me.
25:03All right.
25:03Well, just another day for me, too, here at not the dump, but the landfill.
25:07The landfill.
25:08So, Mike, everything I'm looking at, I mean, is there trash under all this dirt?
25:13You're standing on trash, yeah.
25:14I'm standing on trash now.
25:15In fact, what is this?
25:16Probably a piece of a mattress.
25:17So it's kind of sticking up here?
25:19We'll tie into here.
25:20Take care of it.
25:20Okay, good.
25:21I don't want to get sidetracked.
25:22Can you explain this visual aid that I was provided with?
25:25Well, Mike, this is the steps we have to take to prepare for the landfill.
25:30All the dirt behind us out in the new cut area, that is subgrade.
25:36It gets staked out by engineers, and it's all prepared.
25:42Next step, they come in and put down a liner.
25:45That's this part right here.
25:47Uh-huh.
25:48And then, like a geonet, it goes on top of that liner.
25:51So your geomembrane protects the liner?
25:53It protects the liner.
25:55And the liner goes on top of the subgrade?
25:57Yes, sir.
25:59And then, two foot of compacted clay, and it has to be compacted 90%.
26:0790% compacted clay goes on top of the liner.
26:09Two foot.
26:10Two foot.
26:10All right.
26:11And then, we put down another liner, the second liner on top of that.
26:15Uh-huh.
26:16And then, we put a foot of pea gravel.
26:19Well, you say pea gravel.
26:21On this show, it could mean...
26:22No, it probably doesn't mean that.
26:24I know what you're saying.
26:25You know what I'm saying.
26:26All right.
26:26All right, so above the pea gravel, what do you got?
26:28Another poo liner?
26:29Yeah, this 3H pea gravel gets put down a foot thick.
26:32Then we got another felt that goes on top of that.
26:35So any moisture stuff can go down through the pea gravel.
26:38Oh, this is complicated, man.
26:39I thought we just dumped the trash in a hole and put some dirt over it.
26:42No, no, no, no, no.
26:43Then we have to put one foot of operations layer.
26:46That's just dirt.
26:47Why don't we just call it dirt?
26:49Well, you can call it dirt.
26:50So the goal is you don't want anything in the refuse to go down into the ground.
26:54Correct.
26:54Ultimately, into what, like groundwater?
26:56Right.
26:56Groundwater.
26:56This should protect the groundwater.
26:58Okay.
26:59So the idea, then, is we're right under this dirt is this stuff.
27:04Correct.
27:05How much dirt's on top of this?
27:07Usually, we put a foot on top.
27:09Like, we put dirt on each time we cover at night and put a foot.
27:13This is all a long way of saying that a landfill is not a hole in the land where you
27:16dump crap.
27:17No, sir.
27:18Okay.
27:18So today, then, I'll be able to operate some of the machines with you?
27:22Sure.
27:22Yeah, you're the man.
27:23No, I'm a guy.
27:25You're the man.
27:26I'm just passing through.
27:27But it'd be great if we could start with the next load.
27:29This looks like a load that's coming in now.
27:31Yep.
27:31And that's going to be...
27:32Up on the tipper.
27:33Up on the tipper.
27:34The tipper.
27:35I wonder what that does.
27:37Man, that's a big truck.
27:38And they just backed that right in here with, like, no inches to spare.
27:42Yeah.
27:43That'll be interesting.
27:44What are you doing?
27:45Mike.
27:45Mike.
27:46This is Lori.
27:47You run the tipper?
27:48Yes, sir.
27:49You work for tips?
27:50All tips.
27:52First thing you do is you turn the power on.
27:54This way?
27:55Yep.
27:56Then you start the engine.
27:59All right?
27:59Yep.
27:59Then you put it on high idle.
28:01And you just pull this down.
28:03And this tips it?
28:04And it tips it up.
28:05You don't want...
28:05You're just going to go all the way up to the...
28:07You got three rams.
28:09When you get to the third ram, you only want to go about a quarter of the way or you'll
28:13be like that.
28:15All right.
28:15Well, you'll tug three rams.
28:16Oh, you'll see.
28:17I'll show you when it goes up.
28:18All right.
28:25When we first back up, we unlock, you know, the back door.
28:28So the back door's unlocked.
28:30Yep.
28:30Okay.
28:31Keep going.
28:32How many of these do you tip a day, you reckon?
28:35I do five loads a day.
28:38Every truckload of trash weighs in at about 24 and a half tons.
28:47And then you go all the way down without stopping.
28:49Right now.
28:50All right.
28:53I'm sure to hope my guys don't get smashed.
29:04After we lower it, we always go back and check to get all the excess garbage off.
29:09Go inside?
29:10Shovel it out?
29:11No, no, no.
29:12You never go inside.
29:13You'd like to get hurt.
29:16So I'm a tipper.
29:17So far, so good?
29:18So far, so good.
29:19All right.
29:20Dave tells me that Lori drives a truck, too.
29:23Tipping the load, just a small part of her job.
29:26Well, wait a minute.
29:27I didn't understand that.
29:28You drove the truck?
29:29Yes, sir.
29:30I was very unclear.
29:31I thought you just stood in here waiting for the trucks to come and did the thing.
29:35But you drive this.
29:36I drive this.
29:37Can you teach me how to drive this?
29:38Matter of seconds.
29:39Matter of seconds.
29:40You can do it.
29:41She's sweet.
29:42If I can do it, anybody can do it.
29:44We'll see about that.
29:45Coming up, a confident teacher.
29:48Slowly let off the clutch and you'll start going backwards.
29:51And a sassy student.
29:52You got any spit?
29:54That's it?
29:55That's good.
29:55You don't want to drive it.
29:56Don't drive it.
29:56Don't dry it off.
29:57I don't want to dry it off.
29:58I just like to watch you spit.
30:07Here at the Ostrom Road landfill, I'm about to get a lesson in truck driving.
30:11First, though, I need to pull the tail of a pig.
30:15You got to get the pig tail, the primary and the secondary airline.
30:19What did you call it?
30:20The pig tail?
30:21The pig tail?
30:21Right here.
30:23That's the lights.
30:26All right.
30:27So that runs power to the lights to the back.
30:29To the lights.
30:30You got the blue.
30:31If you don't get the blue wet, a lot of times you ain't going to get it on there, so
30:35you
30:35got to spit on it.
30:36Spit on the blue?
30:37Spit on the rubber.
30:38And tell me where.
30:39Because both rubbers, both the rubbers have to connect.
30:44So if you spit on that, it's going to be a smooth lock.
30:46You got to bring it all the way to the top.
30:47Spit on the rubber.
30:48Spit on the rubber.
30:51All the way up.
30:53Now pull down.
30:55See, and it's not connected.
30:56It's not even.
30:56You're going to lose air going down the highway.
30:58This has to totally match up.
31:00How do I do that?
31:02You want me to do it?
31:02No.
31:03Show you the first one?
31:03Okay, you do this.
31:05Okay.
31:05So after you spit on it, you got to bring this.
31:08So you know this is matching.
31:09Uh-huh.
31:09And you hold one hand here, and you can pull this down, and you know that this is connected.
31:12All right.
31:13That goes here?
31:14Same way?
31:15Same way.
31:17I'm out of spit.
31:18Howard, do you want to do it?
31:18You got any spit?
31:19I got some spit.
31:20Spit with me.
31:21That's it?
31:22That's good.
31:23You don't want to dry it.
31:24Don't dry it off.
31:24I don't want to dry it off.
31:26I just like to watch you spit.
31:29There you go.
31:30There you go.
31:31Now we got to hook the fifth wheel to the trailer.
31:33This is complicated.
31:34If you release the brake, you're going to fly forward.
31:37So you have to go...
31:39Have to go backwards.
31:40You go forward at all, you rip all these airlines off.
31:43And that's very bad.
31:44Yeah, you want to connect it.
31:45I don't want to do that.
31:47But I would like to back it up.
31:48So will you be in there with me?
31:49I'll go in there with you.
31:50Okay.
31:51I'll stand right in the middle.
31:54Hold the brake down all the way.
31:55Put the clutch in and put it in reverse.
31:57You'll hear the alarm sound.
31:58Hear it?
31:59Yeah.
31:59Okay, now you hit your yellow primary brake.
32:02Track your brakes.
32:03Turn them off.
32:03And don't let off the brake.
32:05Slowly let off the clutch.
32:07And you'll start going backwards.
32:10A little more.
32:11Nope.
32:11Let off the clutch some more.
32:13Okay, the brake a little bit.
32:14There you go.
32:15Keep going until you hear a click.
32:21Okay.
32:22All right.
32:23Then you get out and I'll show you what you check.
32:24I'm going to take my foot off this brake now.
32:26It's good now.
32:26Promise?
32:27Yep.
32:30And this is called the fifth wheel.
32:31That's called the fifth wheel plate.
32:32And that affixes this to the axle, basically.
32:36Connects this to this to the axle.
32:36All right.
32:37So are we ready to pull this out now?
32:38We're ready to pull forward.
32:39Hot dog.
32:40Okay.
32:41Let off the clutch a little bit.
32:42Start going forward.
32:44Start moving forward.
32:45I don't think I took the brakes off.
32:46Oh, you're supposed to do that first.
32:48I know, but once I take the brakes off, I feel like we're committed.
32:52Yeah, you are.
32:53So you got to keep your foot there.
32:54Push back.
32:54And I got commitment issues.
32:55Push both of them in.
32:56Yellow and red.
32:57But at the same time.
32:59There you go.
32:59Now as you're moving forward.
33:01Uh-huh.
33:03Up the clutch a little bit.
33:03Let go of the brake.
33:04Start letting go of the brake.
33:05You'll start going forward.
33:06Uh-huh.
33:07Yeah, don't hit the brakes hard.
33:08Okay.
33:09And as you're going down, it's going to go right into gear.
33:12Don't put on the brakes.
33:13I'm trying, but this whole putting it in gear thing is very confusing.
33:18Further in.
33:19Hold on tight.
33:20Hold on tight, Barski.
33:21You got to just let it go or it's not going to go any care.
33:24There you go.
33:25Now you just go, and as you clear your back trailer, then you go off.
33:28What am I clear?
33:30Right now.
33:31And you move over to there.
33:32You can see the other track.
33:34Yep.
33:34Now you're trucking.
33:35Now we're trucking.
33:36Holy smokes.
33:37Matt, how long did it take you to get your license for this thing?
33:38It took me two months and that was 15 years ago.
33:45So if I wanted to practice backing up, I could go right up here and straighten out
33:48and then back up?
33:49Yeah.
33:50All right.
33:50Let's do that.
33:57Good?
33:58Yeah.
34:03Before attempting to back a gigantic truck up in a tiny ramp, it might be good to watch
34:09how it's done first.
34:10Yeah.
34:10See, he pulled up and lined up.
34:12Yeah.
34:12And it's got to be exact.
34:14He's been doing it a long time, so he's really good at it.
34:16Yeah.
34:17So he jacked it and chased it kind of in.
34:20That's just nothing short of incredible.
34:22Yeah.
34:22Because it's an exact fit.
34:23You can't be off because otherwise your tires are going to go off the rail and then you'll
34:26see the bar that holds the trailer on when you get up there, that'll get, you'll hit
34:29it.
34:29I just don't, I mean, jeez, you're threading a needle with a sausage for real.
34:33Yeah.
34:34And once you get it down, it's easy though.
34:35You probably won't even look it.
34:37Amazing.
34:38First time I got behind the wheel of a big truck, I think I was 12 or 13.
34:43My parents had a trucking company.
34:45They put blocks on the pedals so I could reach them.
34:47So you were driving?
34:48I didn't want to drive every time.
34:49Like an 18-wheeler?
34:50Since you were 13.
34:52That's pretty cool.
34:55And as he's coming down, the next driver's already starting to back up.
34:58That's us.
34:59Just like that.
35:03All right.
35:03That should be up, that should be down.
35:06Okay, now if you straighten it up.
35:08Don't know how.
35:10Turn your wheel this way.
35:11This way?
35:12And now go the other way.
35:15Straighten up?
35:16Straighten up.
35:16Just like go forward again?
35:17Yup.
35:17And just stay on these other tracks.
35:19These tracks?
35:20Yeah.
35:21That gives you an idea where they were.
35:26All right, so the test is you want to be able to back up obviously in a straight line.
35:30But in this case, I look up there, there's no clearance at all on either side.
35:34No, not.
35:39Bring your wheel this way a little bit.
35:40Right.
35:41Now the other way.
35:43All the way a little bit more.
35:44Okay, bring it to the right.
35:46Okay, go to the other way all the way.
35:47You turn that that way?
35:49Yeah.
35:49We call it jack and chase.
35:50That's what I did when I was in school.
35:52Jack and chase.
35:52Jack, you jack it and you chase it.
35:57Terrible.
35:58I'm not straight and I don't know what to do about it.
36:00Okay, turn the wheel this way.
36:01A little bit.
36:02Just a little bit.
36:03Jack it or chase it?
36:05Jack it now.
36:06See how the trailer's going down the back?
36:08There you go.
36:09Yeah, you got way off again.
36:11I don't see it happening.
36:15Coming up.
36:15Oh, look at this chair.
36:17This is comfort personified.
36:19Down at the landfill?
36:21That makes some monster machine mayhem.
36:25Hang on.
36:26I don't know if that was smart or not.
36:27I just wanted to take it around the block once.
36:38I'm thinking we switch places.
36:40I'm going to get you backed up.
36:41I think so.
36:46Maddening.
36:47Very annoying.
36:55It's insanely complicated.
36:58I mean, left is right and right is left and fast is slow.
37:01They're ten gears and they got a little thing that you got to flip and switch.
37:05Next time you see one of these guys on the road, give me the old salute.
37:10The nice one.
37:12They're dealing with a lot.
37:19Just close.
37:22You don't even need the other mirror.
37:24You don't even care.
37:26So this whole game really comes down to how straight can you back up?
37:30Yeah.
37:31That's like the most important part of driving a truck, I guess.
37:34Yeah, that's the first thing they ask you when you get this job, can you back up a truck?
37:38If you can't back up a truck, they're not going to give you the job.
37:40I understand now why you travel with this.
37:46It's been very instructive.
37:47Yeah.
37:48You're very good at this.
37:49I'm not.
37:50It's nice to meet you though.
37:51Nice to meet you.
37:54After dropping out of trucking school, I set my sights on a more realistic goal.
38:00Operating a contraption driven by my old buddy, Tony.
38:04You operate, what's this been called?
38:05The 836 compactor, trash compactor.
38:09So after the trash is dumped then, the first job is to spread it out a little bit, right?
38:15Yes.
38:16Yes.
38:16You want to spread it at about two feet.
38:18Do you work in together with him then?
38:21He's doing his thing.
38:22He won't place it until I'm compacted.
38:25So is your job then just to smash stuff down?
38:27Yeah.
38:27Just smashed it and shaped the garbage.
38:30Is this a complicated machine to operate?
38:32No.
38:33No.
38:38Oh, look at this chair.
38:40This is comfort personified.
38:42Yeah.
38:43Take your park brake off.
38:44You can give it some gas.
38:49Actually, if you want to grab that pile right there.
38:51This pile here?
38:52Yeah, you can grab that pile and throw it up there.
38:54Swing around forward?
38:55Yeah.
39:02How far do I put the blade down?
39:04Just set it.
39:05Just get the feel of it.
39:06All right.
39:06Spread.
39:11So let more of it go into the tires?
39:13Yeah.
39:13As I go up the hill?
39:14Yeah, you just spread and feather it out.
39:16Yeah.
39:16There you go.
39:22Hang on.
39:25I don't know if that was smart or not.
39:27I just wanted to take it around the block once.
39:31Man, I think I just ran over a goose down pillow.
39:40So that's a pretty good shot of what's going on.
39:41He's pushing the dirt over top of what we are breaking down.
39:45And it's just like putting layers on a cake, I guess, right?
39:48Garbage cake.
39:51Even though it might seem like the Ostrom Road landfill is all about machines, they never
39:56forget the more human, touchy-feely side of garbage.
40:00How's it going?
40:01Good.
40:02How you doing?
40:02Good.
40:03Alan, right?
40:03It's Alan.
40:04Mike.
40:05How you doing, Mike?
40:06I'm okay.
40:07I think I've had the chance to operate most every machine here except this one.
40:11I don't want to intrude, but tell me what your task is here.
40:14I operate the scale house, and I also do the load checking.
40:19Scale house.
40:20What's that mean?
40:21Scale house.
40:22Weigh the trucks as they come in.
40:23Oh, you're just weighing everything.
40:24Scales, of course.
40:24Yeah, up front.
40:25One of my jobs is to load check, and we're looking for waste.
40:30I got news for you, man.
40:31There's waste everywhere.
40:32Prohibited waste.
40:33Oils, paints.
40:35Pants with legs still in them?
40:36Those are good.
40:38Aerosol cans, e-waste, you know, electronic waste.
40:41So e-waste like a hard drive off a computer?
40:44Right.
40:44Computers, you know, VCRs, old VCRs, radios.
40:49Tires okay?
40:50Tires are okay.
40:51How often do you find something that shouldn't be in here?
40:53Not very often.
40:55How was this thing?
40:56I have no idea.
40:58Looks like the who, and the important here's the who, or the Grinch.
41:03I'm just amazed at all the dolls, all the dull parts that wind up in a landfill.
41:07Yeah, you'd be surprised what you find.
41:09I've seen heads and limbs, torsos.
41:12There you go.
41:12Something in there?
41:13A little bit of oil in there.
41:14A little bit of oil.
41:15And so we'll toss that off to the side.
41:18Well, do your thing.
41:19How was Alan back there?
41:21He was just instructing me in the use of the only machine here at the landfill.
41:25I didn't have a chance to operate today.
41:26That's rake.
41:27Anyway, that's how a landfill sort of works.
41:30It's a layer cake full of technology, government regulation, hardworking people with a bunch
41:36of our crap on the top.
41:38Any questions?
41:40Good.
41:41Good.
41:42I'm going to say this once.
41:45Discovery.com forward slash dirty jobs.
41:50I lied.
41:52Discovery.com forward slash dirty jobs.
41:55We're now accepting your ideas for our next dirty job.
42:12Breathe, breathe.
42:13Come on.
42:15Come on.
42:15I can save this one.
42:17Breathe.
42:21Guts are coming out.
42:22Guts are out?
42:23That's what Barsky's shorts looked like at one point.
42:28About this size, as I recall.
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