If you want to talk religion or politics, don't come to Cass County's newest barber shop, The Sweat Shop Barber Shop in Linden, now open for four weeks.
New owner David R. Williams will talk sports with you, however. He's got the credentials.
He was part of a 1984, 15-0 winning football season with the Haynesville Golden Tornadoes of Haynesville, La. At 147 pounds, he played defensive cornerback and offensive wide receiver.
Add to that, in those days he could outrun almost everyone at 100 and 200 meters and the relays. In college at Southern Arkansas University, he qualified for nationals in those events.
So here he is now, moved into a corner storefront on the square in Linden, hoping to make a go at barbering.
After two years of barber school in Shreveport, Williams got his license and union membership. He can do all the cuts, men or women, although, he said, "I don't do braids or perms."
He can, however, shave you with a blade. That's something he did while getting his first six years of experience in Louisiana, where this barbering expertise is
still practiced.
"I can do it, but I'm not ready to advertise it just yet," Williams said, adding he will shave you with a special electric razor.
"All kinds of people have been coming, and Linden's welcomed me with open arms," he said. "And this is what I want people to know. All kinds of people are welcome here. This isn't just a barber shop for black people."
Williams is not unknown in Linden or Atlanta. For several years he worked in social services at Linden and Atlanta hospitals. Before that, he helped in youth work, too, and for a time in the funeral service field.
To become a barber, Williams said he practiced on his own hair.
"But I made a mess of it," he said, and so got more training. His schooling was with a Shreveport vo-tech program sponsored by the Louisiana Workforce Commission.
"At barber school, the first thing they wanted me to do was a woman's hair. I hadn't prepared for that and almost talked myself out of it," he said. But he persevered, and now is willing to do almost any hair.
"A lot of these new styles are just old styles with new names."
Today, Williams said he wants his business to be known as a place of promoting people and peace.
""There'll be no vulgar language here, no smoking. Good communication, and you'll be treated nice."