Welcome, only fools would not be timid about the first straight shave. Don't let it worry you. Just do not move the blade sideways, even near your face. Bad way to learn you have a depth perception problem. You can ignore the linen side for now. I too, use it to clean the edge after a shave. The blade must be kept clean and dry. I have applied wax to mine to heat the blade up prior to stropping on leather but can't tell you that it is truely effective. I also recommend the barber hones from Tilly and a 2 sided paddle strop from Tony, those are inexpensive ways to get high quality products to start with. I would put .5 on one side. If he is selling pre-pasted strops now that would be a really great bargain. I would suggest that for the money an already honed razor from a group member might be a good option too.