January 2022 30 Day Rule/Focus and Discussion. All Are Welcome!

January Injector Focus Shave #18

Razor: Schick J
Blade: sChick (9)
Brush: WCS Synthetic
Soap: Stirling Soap Co. -- Eucalyptus Mint
A/S: Proraso green

I gave my tube of Proraso cream to a new shaver, so I purchased the Stirling Eucalyptus Mint sample to compare. The Stirling soap is a much brighter and minty soap than the classic Proraso. The cooling effect of the mint is also a bit stronger than the grand Italian standard. Reminds me also of a Soap Commander Vision, another favorite of mine. I dislike menthol in soap as it reminds me of menthol cigarettes. The mint is very fresh, very cooling, and just delightful.

I am happy that I almost completely focused on injectors this month (missed 6 injector shaves). I learned much and have grown to appreciate them in a way I may not have without the discipline of a month-long focus. However, I deeply miss the DEs. I think I will take a break from focus and enjoy the spur of the moment serendipity of choosing random daily equipment. I also have over a dozen samples I have acquired in December and January, and I have not even tried half of them yet!

 

very cool.i enjoy using my 3 injectors,but my only gripe is that they get stored with blades in them.as i use them so infrequently.they may get passed along..

 

Great shave and congratulations on completing your first focus! Looking forward to your shaves next month.

 

Very nice shave Eric.

 

Excellent post Joe...I've had a Parker 34r (White Scales) shavette for over 2.5 years now and to be truthfully honest i've only attempted to used it a few times and became discouraged by it very quickly, thinking that the learning curve would be the same as a DE razor! "A stupidly naive assumption on my behalf "and reaching for a DE razor to keep me in my shaving comfort zone...It's the only razor in my den that is a Shelf/bottom draw queen,. All the rest i rotate and use. ...Anyway, after reading your post it has gave me a kick up the arse and pointed me in the right direction with encouragement to give my beautifully looking Parker 34r some attention it rightly deserves over the coming year. As i know with taking it slow, practising my technique and gaining shavette shaving confidence i will be rewarded with some sublime shaves. Thanks again Joe. Yours-Barry.

 

SOTD FRIDAY MORNING, FEBRUARY 4, 2022

Today is my birthday shave, and this is a big one for me! Eight years ago I was informed by three medical schools in Philadelphia that my rare, extremely aggressive bone cancer was inoperable. They recommended I consider hospice and get my affairs in order. Since I’d just lost my wife of 38 yrs to metastatic breast cancer two years earlier, I didn’t feel like being cooperative!

I contacted my old team medic, now a retired Professor of Rheumatology and he hooked me up with MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, TX., the oldest dedicated cancer research and treatment facility in the US. My problem was that my aggressive tumor had engulfed three ribs on my left side, the bottom lobe of my left lung and a third of my diaphragm.

As each of the docs I’d consulted in Philly explained, the cancer I had didn’t respond to chemo or radiation. The only recourse was surgery. And it wasn’t like they couldn’t excise the tumor, they just had no FDA approved means of putting me back together afterwards.

The really great thing about MD Anderson is that they aren’t generalists like most community oncologists. They’re all specialists, each headed up by a medical director with decades of experience in a particular cancer. In my case, my surgeon had specialized in my very rare bone cancer for almost three decades. They accepted me as a patient with the proviso that I agree to be a research subject for five years!

A team of four surgeons and 11 hours of surgery and the use of a non-FDA-Approved bovine nano mesh to put me back together and here I am eight years later. The date of my surgery was June 11, 2014. Two years later on June 11, 2016 I married my child bride who turned 65 yesterday.

I would like to express my gratitude to all the wonderful people I’ve met in this wonderful wet-shaving hobby we all share together. Thanks for your friendship and willingness to engage with this retired old guy missing three ribs, the bottom lobe of his left lung and a third of his diaphragm, regardless of your age, background or experience.

Anyway back to my 75th birthday shave! I selected my Iwasaki 33 11/16 for my mug shave this morning. It was advertised as shave ready, but not for this Mediterranean beard after taking the seller at his word on my first shave with it! I restored the edge on my coticule and finished it on the 9 Ball Slate and the Jasper stone. This morning’s shave was sweet! Two and a half passes and I was smooth as my great granddaughter’s behind!

I tend to prefer SE’s over DE’s, but my Eclipse Red Ring is no slouch and can definitely hold its own! This little DE is surprisingly efficient. Especially, when fitted with a new Kai blade which tends to be just a smidge wider than most DE blades and quite sharp! Two ATG passes put the baby to bed and in the process left yours truly smooth as a peach after his 75th birthday shave was completed to the Traveling Wilbury’s “Handle With Care”!

RAZOR: Iwasaki 33 11/16 (Mug), Eclipse Red Ring (Dome)
BLADE: Kai DE (Dome)
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a heavy scrub with Argan Oil
BRUSH: Rooney Ebony Pure Badger
SOAP: Mitchell’s Wool Fat
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by a rinse with Humphreys WH. Finished with Canoe Original EdT.

 

Wow! Happy birthday and congratulations to you. What an amazing and inspiring story. Wishing you many happy returns of the day!

BTW: Cool skull soaker, but the bristles are supposed to be soaked, not the handle. Just trying to be helpful.

 

The bristles??? You mean all this time and the bruises???

 

to both you & your good lady...Wishing you both many happy returns of the day. Yours-Barry.

 

Thanks, Barry! Much appreciated!