Who are you?
Jeff Laub, Co-Founder of Blind Barber, a speakeasy cum old-school barber shop on the Lower East Side.
Sneaks and a Snapback
About 5-10 minutes prior to my daily 7:45am alarm going off, my pup Moose (a handsome Chug), normally starts huffing and puffing at the edge of bed to let me know it is time to pee. So, we wake up, throw on our sneaks and a snapback and go for a stroll around Bushwick. On the way back I'll snag 2 coffees from our coffee spot AP Cafe and head back to the apartment to get ready for the day. (Note: there was a time where following our walk that I would go for a jog, but those days have come and gone).
Hey Mom
After I get back to the apartment, Moose and I (gracefully) wake up my girlfriend Gabi, persuading her with some wagging tails and iced coffee. Following that I'll sit down, turn on Sports Center, crank out some emails and then hop in the shower. That brings me to about 10am, where I'm out the door and off to the L train to head in to Blind Barber to get after the day.
That Was Work, This Is Now
I haven't worked in 3 years (since starting Blind Barber). Prior to that I was at a stuffy law firm putting really important paper in really important folders. That was work. What I do now is meet up with my talented colleagues and creative friends and create experiences that we believe our clientele would want to have when interacting with Blind Barber. I guess my "job" is to create the experience that a guest or guy would have when interacting with anything Blind Barber, whether that be the product line, the spaces, or our online voice, etc.
Catching Up
I always have headphones in, it's my way of creating a little soundtrack to my day as I stroll to work and around the city. The day's playlist ranges from J.Cole and Kendrick Lamar to Townes Van Zandt or The National. All depends on the day. Every day I spend at least 30 minutes once I get to work reading to catch up on whats going on, so I'll check CNN.com, ESPN.com, Hypebeast, Gothamist and Pitchfork.
Stoop Watcher
I'm a big people watcher, so you can normally find me kicking back on the barber bench outside the shop just taking in all that is going on in the city in front of us. We have a great location, right across from Tompkins Square park, so there is always something to look at.
Dog Park Dayz
Sundays are the day where you can not find me. Normally, my lady and I will wake up around 11am, go grab some coffee and then bring Moose to the dog park near our apartment and just chill there for an hour or two. It's the best place to just unwind and turn off.
On the weekends we are glued to the couch (especially in the winter) and catching up on all our shows: Breaking Bad, Newsroom, Dexter and then we'll throw in a movie here and there. There is not much more going on after that.
Other Weekend Things?
What else do I do on a Sunday? Nothing. Maybe, just maybe, get up and head to the basketball court to shoot around. Weekends are my free days and since I spend so much of my time running around all over the place and working crazy hours, the days that I have off, I really like to kick it with my girl and my pup and just take it easy.
Ideal Week-Ender
With takeout in bed.