Thanks Andrew!

First of all, thanks for the prayers, guys. We, along with most Floridians, will covet them over the next few days.

Well instead of sitting here wondering if hurricane Irma is going to hit us in the mouth, I've decided to occupy my mind elsewhere and do a soap review of Mike's Natural. I did a sniff-a-thon with the scents in the box, and found that I preferred scent of Orange Cedar and Black Pepper as well as the Lime and the Vetiver. I will say that most of the Mike's soaps have an underlying smell in the base that I've smelled in other soaps (for example PAA, TSE, Dapper Dragon). It's not objectionable, and many people apparently are nose-blind to it (my wife included), but it is very noticeable to my nose. It comes off like a strong waxy/nutty fragrance that must be overpowered by a strong scent for me to enjoy the soap. Because of the strength of the fragrance it was not noticeable to me in the Orange Cedar and Black Pepper.
Regardless, the performance of the soap (as with almost all the soaps I've picked so far) was better than average. Lather, cushion, and slickness were all good. The shave felt pretty comfortable, but the AS I put on burned more than normal, so I'm not sure what to make of that. Either way, it's hard to complain about a comfortable BBS shave by any stretch. I'm gonna put this one as my top "didn't make the cut" soap so far, but if I had this in my den, I wouldn't be looking to get rid of it by any means. Another very solid soap choice.

Keepers For My Den
Barrister and Mann - unique, complex scents and rich, thick lather. Some scents can be polarizing.

Honorable Mentions
Midnight and Two - nice scents...although they could be a bit stronger, good lather... although it could be a bit thicker, good slickness when watered down, great face feel and moisturizing properties.

Didn't Make My Cut (YMMV)
Mike's Natural - a good, solid soap choice. I pick up an off scent in the base, which is not objectionable, but very distracting to me with some scents.
Martin De Candre - a solid, well respected soap, but nothing jumps out as being really outstanding to me. Also a bit pricey.
I Coloniali Mango - great scent, but discontinued, too expensive, and I had issues with lathering properly.

I hope it misses you guys as well. Be safe Randy.


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Thank you Andrew.


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First, yesterday's shave...

September 5, 2017

Razor: Schick E2
Blade: Chick
Brush: Razorock Plissoft 22
Cream: Dove Hydrate+
Post: Alum, Listerine, WH

This was probably not the best combo to choose; the Dove is not the most cushioning lather and the blade in the E2 had been there for a while. Nevertheless, a light touch and a bit of care brought home the baby and took it to visit the Dolphin.​

As for today...

No shave this morning as I was a bit pressed for time and was still pretty well shaved from yesterday.​

That's not a shiv, this is a shiv...

For those affected by floods, fires, or hurricanes, I haven't said much, but I am glad to hear things are going OK for you. Please keep us updated.

Apparently I75N out of Tampa is already gridlocked, so evac is off my gameplan. If I'm going swimming, I'd rather do it in my home than my car

Wise choice! Better safe than sorry.

Stay safe as possible, Mike.

Besides that, you better hope you have enough gas to get to Atlanta, because that's the first hotel you'll find outside the path that isn't already booked. We're hunkered down too. My house is poured concrete, and I've got a backup generator that runs on natural gas, so we're about a prepared as we can be. Still hoping it turns north somewhere other than across our front yard.

The generator that runs on natural gas is a great thing. We've got one. During Sandy we were the only house on the block with power. I was charging cell phones, laptops and storing insulin. It was wild. Stay safe.

+1

Where are you in Tampa, @entropy1049? It's been 20 years now but I lived there for about 7 years after I got out of grad. school.

I'm in the south end of Riverview, about 5 minutes from the Apollo Beach exit on I75. I'm guessing you're south-east of here?

I'm in West Palm. Used to live in Feather Sound (Pinellas just off the Howard Franklin), and used to spend lots of time in South Tampa and in Carrolwood when I was single and dating pretty girls there. (The girls in Pinellas averaged 80+, so I had to cross the bridge a lot).

I am praying for everyone in the path of the storm. Please report safe when you are able if it comes through your area.

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Will do. Having said that, nothing's going to happen here until Saturday night or Sunday morning, so it's kind of like being on green mile for the next few days.