I just bought a shave ready razor in the classified section a couple nights ago and at this very moment bought a new Illinois #127 strop off eBay. The straight razor has already been shipped, so it's likely to arrive here before the strop. So my question is, being eager to finally give straight razing a try, can I go ahead and shave once my razor arrives or should I wait for the strop to arrive too so I can strop before and after using my shave ready razor?

And for a bonus question, should I leave my facial hair to continue growing out until everything arrives or should I manage my facial hair to stay a little low for the big shave?