My Frothy Face

This post originally appeared on my other blog, A Loss for Words.

So, as you may have noticed, I flit from interest to interest, picking them up and putting them down faster than a fruitfly farts. It's a fact of life for me, and my wife is certainly learning all about it. I admit it fully, it's no secret. But sometimes, things come along and just say "I'm going to be a part of your life, ya dig?" And one of those things has come along.

Wetshaving.


Wetshaving, you say? What, pray tell, is that? It sounds vaguely...naughty.

Wetshaving is good old-fashioned brush-and-bowl shaving. With real metal razors and no hissing cans of goo. It's staring down the barrel of a loaded razor blade and saying "I ain't afraid o' you." It's being a man.

Yeah, that's right, I said it. We don't have many coming-of-age rituals anymore. There's nothing that really happens and lets people know "You are an adult" now. And I feel I missed out on something. My dad never taught me to shave (my dad never really taught me shit) and looking at what shaving really is, I feel I missed out. I always treated it as a "get it done and try not to hurt yourself too much" kind of thing, which is why I had a beard for nearly ten years. Now I know, with some practice and the right tutelage, shaving can actually be GOOD for you.

It's not just the fact that traditional creams and shaving soaps are easier on your skin, better smelling, and much more economical than all the plastic, science lab stuff that people use to shave these days. It's the fact that, with a little skill and patience, the heretofore lamentable task of daily shaving can become an enjoyable ritual, a time to relax and forget your cares, and take some time for yourself. I look forward to the time when shaving becomes something I actually anticipate with pleasure, instead of dread. And someday, if I have a son, I look forward to the day when I can hand him a razor and say, "Ok boy, this is how you do it."

There are some masculine rituals that are, in fact, good things. And this is one of them.

If you're a guy, and you think shaving sucks, and you wish it could be better, do yourself a favor. Go to Shave My Face, or Corey's ShaveBlog, or watch Mantic59's YouTube videos (links are also on the left, in the sidebar) and find a better way.