Good late afternoon gentlemen, I know we talked about this before but this is what happened.So someone asked me why I shaved my beard off today. And to be honest I never really cared about having to shave everyday and trying to get that close feeling after a shave. Now I don’t know about some of you, but when I shave if I can rub me hand across my face or head ( yes I’m bald if you have not noticed) and I can feel stubble, it bothers me I will keep shaving till I have a smooth face and head, I want a nice clean shave 🪒. So it was always a chore shaving. Then finding the right shaving cartridges which l was a five blade person to get that closeness. That was expensive having to shave head and face and going through so many to keep that smooth shave. But when I started watching men talk about safety razors and I remember my grandfather using them, and then seeing the amount of money I could save on blades I was like “okay I’ll bite and try it.” Gentlemen it was scary because I never used one before and the thought of slicing my face or head. But I tell you the experience that I felt using the old fashioned soap dish, the brush , putting the safety razor together. And the shear pleasure of relaxing and taking my time. Yes I had to allow more time shaving but it was so peaceful. And man! The closeness of the shave, the cold compress after the shave, then applying some menthol Witch Hazel, then some aftershave lotion! Now it’s something I look forward to every morning as part of my routine. Listening to some motivational speaker or a Christian message, or maybe some jazz music, but that time every morning just starts my day off in the right direction. And my wife loves the feel of my face and head after a shave. So when asked that question, it was like “ I just love an old fashioned proper shave every morning. Gentlemen when we take the time to enjoy the little things some of which we take for granted it makes a difference in your life. If you have not considered a safety razor shave or not sure about one. Next time you go to the barber get a proper shave, they probably will use a straight razor, but it is the same satisfaction you get with a safety razor at home. Who knows one day I might venture and try a straight razor at home.

Wife and I were on our usual thrift shop circuit a couple of days ago, with low expectations, as I hadn’t found much lately. As usual, I went straight to the men’s long sleeve shirts. My habit is to go fast, looking at labels and fabric. The very first shirt I looked at said “Prada”. What!? I’m just learning clothing brands, but even I knew that was worth investigating. After research on my phone, I was convinced it wasn’t a fake and it was my size. Grab it! Next was a (several, actually) Ermenegildo Zegna. More serious Googling! Wow! Still my size. Several with French cuffs. Virtually all in really good shape. A couple were a little large….discipline, Mitch, discipline! Other expensive shirts kept appearing. $14.00 each, and with a senior discount, we got 30% off! I walked out with 12 dress shirts and a tan Brooks Brothers sport coat. We decided to go back and get the rest yesterday, also at a further discount. I have ended up with around twenty extremely nice dress shirts, almost all like new for about the retail cost of one shirt. Now the dose of reality…the Prada shirt has four wrong buttons. I was hoping to eBay it to pay for the rest, but I’ll work something out. Also, a few of the others are “Comfort Fit” which means they are going to have to be tailored. I’ll have my seamstress do that, as my sewing skills are not to that level yet. That was a conscious choice I made, so I’m ok with it. I have done some background investigation and I think I know who/why all of these shirts ended up at a thrift store. But for now, I’m enjoying styles and fabrics in a broad selection of dress shirts far beyond my imagination! Now I need to thrift some nice dress pants!