What have I got myself into? Supplies are now coming in the mail almost daily. Have I tried these blades yet? How many days have I been on this blade? How many did the last one last? Which brush does this cream like the best? Tonight I sat down and started a shaving journal. A JOURNAL for crying out loud! I am not a "journal" person. The only other thing I've journaled in my whole life is reloading ammunition! (Don't want start a political disscussion here - let's just say you want to be reeeeeally sure what it was you put in those things) My wife thinks I'm losing it. I tell her other guys my age are suddenly buying red sports cars. Yeah, I'm collecting razor blades and shaving cream. Should I do what I really want, and switch to collecting old bass guitars and even older motorcycles? Yes, after 27 years of marraige, I suddenly want a shelf in the bathroom. Is that so weird? OK, it is that weird, but can I have it anyway?
I've been thinking about moving my den and a sink to the garage. I love the smell of lawnmowers and RazoRock in the morning. You bring up a good point that I think many men, including myself, go thru with wetshaving. The way I see it and the way I hear other men talk about it, our wives may be a little spooked by what they're seeing; their husbands changing and transforming and at a later time in their lives. My sweet bride doesn't say much concerning my new hobby. I do get good whiffs of her reactions though. Wife: "Hey, Hun. What's in the box (on the dolly)?" Me: "Shaving stuff." Wife: "Oh. Soap?" Me: "Yeah, it's a new soap made by an artisan soap maker in Maryland. It's supposed to be very slick". Wife: <Nods her head and then starts to say something, but stops just short. Kinda the look I got from my Mom when I was 8 and I told her that I was going to invent a time machine when I grew up> My teenage boys though think it's hilarious. "Hey, Dad's taking pictures of his shaving crap again. HaHaHa". It's official guys. We really can't win.
Yeah, I recognise that. On the one hand my lovely spouse is happy I have found a new hobby. She even has cleared a whole shelf in the cabinet in the bathroom for my stuff. But on the other hand when someting is delivered she - and my two teenage daughters - comment; what is it now again? I think it depends on the time of the day. My youngest daughter (15) told me she thinks it's cute that I'm sp 'into shaving'. Oh well, can we ever understand women? But I wouldn't miss them for all the world!
If there's any truth to the saying, "It takes one to know one," then, no, you're not weird. Fortunately my wife has no problem with my hobby. She's even pointed out a few razors and brushes to me when we go antiquing. One thing she does say, though, is that I'm not allowed to have a mid-life crisis! Just for the record, we'll celebrate 30 years in April and I'll be 50 in May.
The great part of classic wet shaving is the endless choices one has. I love shopping for items both vintage and new. It is a great hobby lots of fun too.My wife does not mind at all. She has gotten used to me going into the antique store looking for goodies. Besides all that we have a great forum to hang out in, great people that share our hobby with.
I have to try really hard every day not to say anything about shaving around my wife. I know it would just drive her nuts, that's why I've got you guys! Aw shucks. I too want my own shelf in the bathroom, right now I have a box. I suppose it is a weird hobby, but you could be in to worse things.
I don't have a written journal, per se, but I do have an online Google spreadsheet that I've created to help me evaluate different blades in my sample packs, and eventually help me evaluate any shaving variable I wish. Must be the engineer in me to want to put it to numbers. Regarding how my wives look at my shaving hobby, my ace in the hole is the fact that it was my wife who gave me my first kit, outfitting me with a 38C, soap, blades and a mug last Christmas. When ever she starts shaking her head or rolling her eyes, I just say, "But dear, YOU got me into this!". I've told her it was one of the best, and most useful, Christmas presents she's ever given me. My wife is playing this hand very well. For years she's wanted to redo our master bathroom. I saw no need. Now she's telling me how much nicer it would be to store all my shaving paraphernalia with a new vanity, medicine cabinet, etc. And it's working. We just bought two new mirrored cabinets from Ikea a couple of weeks ago. Guys, let me leave you with this. If you have a smart phone, download one of the bar code scanner apps, such as "Google Shopper" for android. The next time you get any comments from your wife about how much you're spending on shaving, say nothing. Just start picking up some of her various creams, lotions, wrinkle removers, makeup, or whatever and start scanning the barcodes. It won't take many items to exceed what you just spent on that last shipment of soaps, ASBs and blades. Then again, maybe you don't want to know what she spends on that stuff.
this made me bust out laughing .. love it! My wife isn't suprised at all with my new hobby - I'm a jump right in with both feet kinda person when it comes to hobbies. I collect frisbees, and she won't let me put them on the walls; she already OK'd my plan to restore a couple of old spoon racks to display my future collection of razors in my den (still havent determined which bathroom I'm getting to convert but the 'go ahead' is there LOL). I think she approves of this one more so cuz it makes me smell nice and I don't tear her face up with my stubble anymore.
The journal makes sense to me. I keep a very simple one, just to keep track of what brands of blades I have tried and how I like them.
