SOTD by u/Priusaurus

Aug 9, 2021 – Austere August. Day 9.

• Prep: Hot Shower
• Brush: Zenith - B16 24mm Boar
• Razor: GEM Micromatic Open Comb Gen 2
• Blade: GEM PTFE (9)
• Lather: Stirling Soap Co. – Sheep
• Post Shave: Zingari Man – Unscented - Aftershave Balm
• Music: Ruth B. - Lost Boy

Another day, another shave. Austere August is like the Groundhog Day of shaving. The same thing, every single day. The Lather Games flew by for me, and AA seems be to going on forever. As an adult, I’ve come to learn how my brain operates and part of that is knowing my brain craves constant stimulation, it needs variety. I am always trying and researching new things. Austere August challenges my brain to use one tool for each task, even though I have a variety of tools available. My fellow neurodivergents out there know the struggle that I’m talking about. But not all heroes wear capes, and I think that fact that I'm narrowing my focus on 1 razor, 1 new brush, 1 unscented soap, and 1 unscented aftershave is heroic to say the least! That's partially the reason why I’ve putting effort into the music selection. I need SOMETHING to change every day!

The MMOC continues to shave great for me. No complaints at all. No nicks/cuts and a smooth shave again today. The blade is holding up great as well. After every shave, I dry it off and strop it on my arm, so hopefully that keeps it going nicely.

The brush break in is also progressing. I still got a faint animal smell today, but it seems like the brush isn’t requiring as much soap to build a lather as it did at the start.

For my #sidetracked music selection, I’m changing it up and going with Ruth B. I’m such a sucker for music that is just a piano and singer. There’s something raw about it that gets me. There’s no hiding for the performer. There’s no back-up for the artist or distractions for the listener. I love that. Canadian singer Ruth Berhe, goes by “Ruth B.” (very creative) and got her start when Vine was a thing (it was like a primitive TikTok, but limited to 6 second clips), singing 6 seconds covers of songs. She posted a short clip of her singing a line she made up about Peter Pan, her followers told her she should make it a full song, so she did. And she posted this song on her personal YouTube in January of 2015, then 6 months later Columbia Records signed her to a record deal. It’s just that easy, boys and girls. This single, “Lost Boy” went 4x RIAA Platinum and was a huge hit, worldwide in 2015. The music that Ruth B. has come out with since “Lost Boy” has been far more produced and has more of a Pop sound, which is unfortunate, in my humble opinion. From my outsider perspective, the record company took someone that wrote a great, unique, and popular song and has been trying to turn her into a Pop-Star, instead of letting her create the music that made them want to sign her in the first place. And that’s a damn shame.

Tags: #unscented #rawhoggin #GEMsOfWisdom