September 2018 30 Day Rule/Focus Pix & Discussion

Thank you so much!

 

Question for you experienced members. Do you switch hands based on the side of the face you're shaving? I tend to use only my right hand but that might be making it more difficult to get certain angles.

 

I am lefthanded, forcing me to be ambidextrous in many of life's tasks. I have tried shaving both ways -- shaving each side of the face with that hand or using my dominant left hand only. Both work but I find I prefer left hand only.

 

Only when using a straight razor.

 

I'm just sitting here faceturbating, and I notice that the MMOC really gets close without any effort... The sides of my mouth, my big chin, under the nose... Effortlessly smooth! Fantastic piece of kit!

 

I use the one hand too!

 

Being left handed forces you to become somewhat ambidextrous. Everything is designed for right handers, unless it's a clumsy thing like a door knob that has to be used from both sides. I can use either hand for a DE or SE, but do 7/8's of my shave with my left. There's an ATG (S to N) stroke on my right cheek near the jaw that works better with my right hand. With a straight or shavette closer to 50/50.

 

Interestingly for you (two of life's rejects), I was informed today - at a visit to a synagogue - that there is a belief that the first person to write Hebrew may well have been a left hander. This is perhaps the reason for reading from right to left, as opposed to left to right!

 

September 26

B2 Mongoose with Dr. Bomber handle
Feather Super Professional (3)
Kent BK4 Silvertip
Le Père Lucien - unscented
Alum, Thayers Lavender witch hazel, Trumper Coral Skin Food, and unrefined shea butter

I completed two passes on two days of growth with the Mongoose for a close, comfortable shave. The only problem is the red dots that appear on my jaw line and neck a few minutes after the shave is complete. So, a change in plans is in order. I'll finish this blade out and move to my New LC for OCtober. I'll see if my experience on blood thinner medication is better with a DE.

Here are photos of my razors, minus a few, and my fountain pens. I've whittled the razor collection down over the past couple of years to the ones I want to keep and use.

Birth year adjustable razors (one Fatboy and one Slim are birth quarter), a NEW LC given to my by @Rufus T. and sent off to Delta Echo for a spa treatment, and a sweet little NEW SC that I purchased NOS:


My Bride's birth quarter SS, my Sister's birth quarter SS, a beautiful Red Tip given to me by @Douglas Carey, a Weber, a Trac II handle (used mostly for travel), a 2013 Muhle R41 head on a Mongoose Big Bomber SS handle, and a Parker SRX shavette:


Here are some of my everyday pens and three fountain pens. The first fountain pen (third from the left) is a restored Eversharp Symphony fountain pen from the 1950's. It is a lever-filler. It draws up ink from a bottle and stores it in a sac inside the pen barrel. It belonged to my Bride's dear uncle. It has an extra fine gold nib and writes pretty well for an almost 70-year-old pen.

The next one is a TWSBI Diamond 580AL Rose, a piston filler, inked up with Diamine Midnight Blue ink. It has a clear body with rose colored aluminum internal parts, so you can see the ink sloshing around inside the barrel. It has a fine nib, but it produces a smooth medium line.

The last one is Pilot Custom Heritage 823, a vacuum filler, inked up with Noodler's Bernanke Black ink. It has an amber colored clear body with a fine nib. This is another smooth writer.

If you want to talk about rabbit holes, let's talk about fountain pens, inks, notebooks, and writing paper.



Have a fantastic evening!

 

However, I always switch hands when I'm using a shavette.

 

Thanks @Spock. Finally hit the milestone 20 lbs today.

 

I’m wiped out. Two days of meeting with our Sales Reps from all over the country and get them on the same page understanding and executing the same strategy is an excercise similar to herding cats. Grilled out for all 6 of said cats last night and entertained them all until 10 PM last night at my house.
This morning I was too tired to focus for the straight, so did a quick shave with the fat boy using a random blade that had been in it for God knows how long. No worries, I’m so used to the feel and the angle of the fat boy that I could pretty much shave with a broken off piece of a rusty prison shiv in a fat boy and still walk away with a smooth clean shave.

Now, is it bedtime yet?

 

Great job, Randy!

 

Wow, you've had a busy and productive week, Randy. It's hard to beat a Fatboy shave. Rest well tonight.

 

Thanks, Charlie!

 

Great job, Randy!

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

 

Thanks James

 

Meanwhile, the Romans considered the left to be linked to evil, for some reason I can't now remember. But it lingers on today in Latin's descendant languages, such as the English word "sinister" from the Latin "sinistra" meaning left...

 

Nice razors, Charlie. And congratulations on keeping the fountain pens to three (uhmmm, that's assuming you did. I rather suspect you're just displaying three...).

Let's NOT discuss the fountain pens and accessories rabbithole -- I bought my first fountain pen when I was 9 and by the time I was out of highschool, my search for fountain pens that wrote well for a lefthander (many dig into the paper and clog instead because of the nib direction) had me so far down that rabbithole, I will never see daylight again. Especially when I then got interested in writing implement history, vintage fountain pens, and then vintage mechanical pencils and straight pens...

 

Great photo Jason. It took me for ever to figure out how to use a Gem right under my nose. I go from right to left on one pass and then left to right on the next.

Great shot Pete.

I hope you and your wife are feeling better soon.

Wonderful shave John.

Your travel setups are first rate Brian.

James you have made excellent progress in mastering the beast in such a short period of time. Bravo.

I found the key was to focus on the technique and the results followed. In the beginning my shaves were not as close as the ones with a cart. Now the shaves are as close or closer.

Congrats on such a wonderful collection Charlie.

Congrats Randy.

Shave Fu out.