Thread: Greetings from Chicago

Gentlemen (and ladies),

Just wanted to reach out and introduce myself as a new memeber and a brand new Straight Shaver. This will be my first post in any forum of any kind so truthfully, I'm a noob in many senses of the word. So far, I have found the SRP to be an invaluable asset to my very slow progression to the perfect bbs shave. I thank you all.

By way of introduction: I'm the kind of guy who thinks the loss of ritual, time honored tradition and the fine art of doing things the right way has been one of the biggest deteriments to our global society. (that and reality television) Anyway, I've been shaving for years and I've always wondered about the Staright Razors. It was with two gift certificates that I finally took the plunge and got myself a brand new Straight, strop, cream and balm. yes I paid way too much for these things but that's okay. It's part of the learning curve.

I started shaving with a gillette trac II. It was what my father used. And watching him stretch and contort his face to get that cartridge to do its duty was a fascination to me. Something about it screamed of a skill that only a man would have. So with my trac II I copied. Years passed and after going through a progession of more blades and fancy handles I ended up with a fusion. I've never used shaving cream or after shaves. I just threw some conditioner on my face after a shower and shaved away. It worked beautifully. And I was convinced not using canned foams was going to prolong the life of my cartridge. Possibly. ANd I got some pretty good shaves. But I noticed that getting BBS with four blades made i nearly impossible to get a good shave the next day. I was just too beat up and my skin could not handle it. So I became a stubble guy every other day. Not so bad as a single man. But getting close to a lady with super sensitive skin made the clean shave very preferable. And thus...my new TI.

So now I"m about two weeks into the Straight Shave. I love it. The solace it offers every day. The tradition. The process and the ritual. I look forward to each and every shave. I know. Everyone says that. But I'm actually surprised at how rewarding it is. And I am shaving every day. Which is a great way to enjoy at least a small part of everyday o matter what trials I may have awaiting me.

If only I could manage to figure out how to shave my neck...So many changes in growth pattern so many hollws spots, so many angles. I can whip over the rest of my face with WTG ATG and XTG but my neck remains scrubby and embarassing. Oh well I"m sure the discovery moment will be soon ahead and as rewarding as the first successful pass I can so vividly remember.

Thanks again for all the support and I look forward beng a part of this community.

Cheers,

Cenzo

Welcome to SRP. Feel free to look around and make yourself at home. Ask any questions that arise and enjoy.

Hello Cenzo and welcome aboard.
You will find plenty of info within this forum. You got a great attitude, keep it up. Time will give you technique so be patient.
Keep having fun!!!

Welcome aboard! You definately have the right mind set. I never thought I would look forward to shaving...and then I am sad when I'm done.

Oh what a difference a day makes. doing something stupid and I slip a disk in my back. crooked of spine and home from work I attempt a ill advised shave. Hey I've got all the time in the world...
Straight razor shaving does not go well with painful standing. I guess it's time to send the blade off to get professionally honed.

Sorry to hear about the injury, but of course when doing something stupid that results in an injury, you HAVE to share the story. It's times like these that make the investment in a single edge or double edge worth it. The shave from a SE or DE is far superior to a disposable cartridge. Hope your upright on your feet soon.

Story? No story here. It's just a shame that my interest in shaving has coincided with my new appreciation for Rye whiskey. Sitting around my buddy's restaurant at closing time sipping some Templeton and explaining the manliness of the straight razor shave. (probably we were not talking about shaving but it seems that's all I can think about at the moment) Anyway, I'm a few glasses of the good juice in when I notice I'm the only one not doing anything. Three dudes cleaning up and there I am sitting on the counter drinking whiskey. So like a good friend I jump down and start doing things. It's sweeping and mopping time. Floor mats have to come up. Floor mats come up no problem floor gets swept and mopped no problem. But then when it's time to put the floor mats back I"m convinced picking up two at a time and hurling them discus style across the kitchen sounds like a good idea. The mats landed in near perfect position. My spine on the other hand landed in some sort of twisted compressed knot. Who knew?
Morning comes and while I was clear of mind and not at all groggy from the Rye, I couldn't for the life of me figure out a easy way to get out of bed. Everything hurt. And the worst part of all...I couldn't shave. Spending the day on the floor, on a yoga mat, woefully feeling the unwanted stubble making a mess out of my latest and most successful three pass shave. But alas, opportunity arises. three days growth perhaps and I'll know what kind of a straight shaver I've managed to become.
Thanks for the good wishes.

Greetings from a fellow newb. I'm in Coal City (south of Joliet). Bummer to hear about your back, hope you get through it and back on your feet quickly.
As far as spending too much on the TI, I doubt very many people will be in agreement. I would love to have one, but I currently enjoy being married.

Rob

Rob, small world. ONe of best friends lives down in Coal City. Not to sacrifice anonymity but hell, any chance you know a fairly newly wed couple who moved down there from Fox River Grove?

My neighbors are fairly newly wed, I never asked them where they moved here from.