Thanks for the welcome everybody!
I do have one major concern at this point: I went in to my local art of shaving a few days ago and got a basic straight razor shave (my first ever!) from their barber. Man, it tore me up! I don't mean he cut me or anything, in fact he seemed like he really knew what he was doing (although I admittedly have nothing to compare it to), and my face was definitely baby but smooth afterwards; but I was super sore and red for like 12 hours afterwards, and had quite a few little "blood spots" (i'm not sure what the term for those is, still working my way through the FAQ).
Now, he was obviously using a shavette, and I haven't used an actual blade on my face in at least a month and a half, so i'm hoping those were big factors. My concern though is that if that's how it feels after a pro shave, how bad is it going to be when I first take a razor to my face?
Has anyone else had a similar experience?