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Sometimes, it's just the little things
When I was but a lad, I spent lots of time at various relatives' houses due to frequent domestic unrest. Most frequently, this was at my paternal grandparents' house.
While there, one of the things I loved the most was to clean my grandfather's electric shaver. It was an old (even in the '60s) Philco/Norelco with two floating rotary heads (I don't think foil-type shavers had been invented at the time). When I was there I once watched him shave and then meticulously clean the stubble out with a brush. It involved some amount of disassembly-- two small, spring-loaded metal doors opened into the chamber where the cuttings were held, and you could blow them out. But you also could disassemble the rotary blade assemblies, and do a better job of it.
He would leave the razor uncleaned when I was there. And when he got home I would show him how clean I had gotten it, and explain how I had improved on what he had taught me so it would be even cleaner. In retrospect, he no doubt saw in me the same mechanical curiosity that my he and my father had. It's one of my most cherished memories of my grandfather.
My father preferred the "wet method" of shave cream and safety razor. So when I began shaving, I went with the same. The one Christmas I asked for and got my own electric shaver. It was nearly the identical model to my grandfathers' old one (which, BTW, had been replaced by the much more modern three-rotary-head model), except it was black instead of that old grey and beige plastic that everything seemed to be made from during my early childhood. Alas, I was cursed with my grandfather's tough beard, but my mom's sensitive skin, and I got terrible irritation from the thing. No amount of Lectric Shave could soothe the problem. I retreated to the old standby of foam and blade.
Fast-forward 25 or 30 years (with a 13-year break when I had a beard), I hear that much progress has been made. So I tried one of these new-fangled foil machines that has a stand that cleans and sanitizes. Supposedly (according to Consumer Reports, anyway) it's the best of the electrics. They say a wet razor is the closest, but this is as close as you'll get with an electric.
I've been for some reason increasingly unhappy with the wet method-- especially since getting rid of the beard. My face suddenly seems to have a lot of acreage, and age isn't making the job and easier. I find the reason I kept the beard isn't because I liked it, but I hated shaving. So I shelled out the bucks for this new Braun 360 things and gave it a go.
Day one was iffy. I had about a week's worth of growth, meaning my beard was probably longer than my hair. Still, it did an admirable job, but I was quite irritated. The hair was so long, id wasn't always hitting the foil the way it should have. So the next day, I shaved wet-- hoping for the last time. The next day, I shaved using the new device and my life hasn't been the same since. I actually look forward to shaving. Well, more the the fact that I get a great shave with minimal effort and no irritation (even less than with the wet blade). And the auto cleaning/charging station is kinda sci-fi to my newly-awakened 6 year-old self. Definitely diggable.
One caveat to the women reading this blog. According to CR, women universally hated all the models of electric they tested because of irritation problems. Sorry.
Thus ends one of the most useless writing projects I have ever felt the urge to make public.
I need to get out more. Seriously.
While there, one of the things I loved the most was to clean my grandfather's electric shaver. It was an old (even in the '60s) Philco/Norelco with two floating rotary heads (I don't think foil-type shavers had been invented at the time). When I was there I once watched him shave and then meticulously clean the stubble out with a brush. It involved some amount of disassembly-- two small, spring-loaded metal doors opened into the chamber where the cuttings were held, and you could blow them out. But you also could disassemble the rotary blade assemblies, and do a better job of it.
He would leave the razor uncleaned when I was there. And when he got home I would show him how clean I had gotten it, and explain how I had improved on what he had taught me so it would be even cleaner. In retrospect, he no doubt saw in me the same mechanical curiosity that my he and my father had. It's one of my most cherished memories of my grandfather.
My father preferred the "wet method" of shave cream and safety razor. So when I began shaving, I went with the same. The one Christmas I asked for and got my own electric shaver. It was nearly the identical model to my grandfathers' old one (which, BTW, had been replaced by the much more modern three-rotary-head model), except it was black instead of that old grey and beige plastic that everything seemed to be made from during my early childhood. Alas, I was cursed with my grandfather's tough beard, but my mom's sensitive skin, and I got terrible irritation from the thing. No amount of Lectric Shave could soothe the problem. I retreated to the old standby of foam and blade.
Fast-forward 25 or 30 years (with a 13-year break when I had a beard), I hear that much progress has been made. So I tried one of these new-fangled foil machines that has a stand that cleans and sanitizes. Supposedly (according to Consumer Reports, anyway) it's the best of the electrics. They say a wet razor is the closest, but this is as close as you'll get with an electric.
I've been for some reason increasingly unhappy with the wet method-- especially since getting rid of the beard. My face suddenly seems to have a lot of acreage, and age isn't making the job and easier. I find the reason I kept the beard isn't because I liked it, but I hated shaving. So I shelled out the bucks for this new Braun 360 things and gave it a go.
Day one was iffy. I had about a week's worth of growth, meaning my beard was probably longer than my hair. Still, it did an admirable job, but I was quite irritated. The hair was so long, id wasn't always hitting the foil the way it should have. So the next day, I shaved wet-- hoping for the last time. The next day, I shaved using the new device and my life hasn't been the same since. I actually look forward to shaving. Well, more the the fact that I get a great shave with minimal effort and no irritation (even less than with the wet blade). And the auto cleaning/charging station is kinda sci-fi to my newly-awakened 6 year-old self. Definitely diggable.
One caveat to the women reading this blog. According to CR, women universally hated all the models of electric they tested because of irritation problems. Sorry.
Thus ends one of the most useless writing projects I have ever felt the urge to make public.
I need to get out more. Seriously.
