No, not that kind of normalcy. I would like to speak about the kind of normalcy that George Burns talks about to John Denver in the movie "Oh, God". Burns' character tells Denver's character that when you do not feel normal, just do something normal. I am just three days on this side of double bypass surgery. I stepped up to the sink with Wade and Butcher in hand and shaved on my second day home. I can't tell you how good that wave of normalcy felt after my time in the hospital. I had thought about that shave for 6 whole days and much of many nights. It grounded me and put me in the place where healing begins. Many of you are familiar with the concept of the "happy place", but for those of you who are not or would like to hear my definition, it's a place I go in my mind to escape all but the most inescapable of things that might be happening to me at that moment. Kind of a mental mat slapping by a wrestler who does not want to feel the pain of the other wrestler trying to twist his arm off. I have many "happy places" I might use for these times, but as of the last year or so, straight razors have occupied such a huge place in my life that when it came time for my surgery I immediately headed for my shaving "happy place" to be away from all of the prodding and poking that attends these things. I mentally got out my stuff and proceeded with my routine paying as close attention in fantasy as in reality. I must have shaved a dozen times over the ensuing hospital visit. I have to tell you that I never felt a needle (although more than once I peeked out of my "happy place" to overhear something that sounded like " I can't find a vein, we'll have to do it again" and things like this). My surgery did not go with flying colors and I spent some time on different machines under the influences of some of modern medicine's most powerful drugs, but let me tell you, as soon as I had a lucid thought or was in any way aware of my surroundings I was right back in my "happy place", mentally shaving away my cares and woe. And it worked...quite well. A lot of you fellas know what I'm talking about here, but this is for you fellas who have heretofore been lucky enough to avoid the need of a "happy place". If you should ever need a "mental taxi" to speed you away from the pains that life gives us to bear, I highly recommend that you get out your gear and start that "happy place" shave of which I speak. And don't forget the "happy place is designer friendly...my shaves are all of the most intense lemon-lime and the face in my mirror bears a striking resemblance to Robert Redford. I'm on the mend now, and in a few short months I'll be back to my old ways and habits (with dietary changes of course) but I know that if life throws me another set of painful curves, I'll have the "stuff" to bear through it. I'll miss those baby butt smooth "happy place" shaves for now. I guess I'll just have to be satisfied with plain 'ol reality. How cool is that?