Monday, January 25, 2021

Random blog post on Shaving...

It's been getting more and more difficult for a man to get a good shave in the last year. 

While watching an ASMR video where the video creator is pretending to give me a shave and a haircut, I suddenly remembered that I needed to get some new shave cream/gel/soap/whatever. The cheap generic Edge knockoff that I get from Dollar Tree is no longer acceptable. Why? Because I saw the words 'Made In China' on the can's label a few days ago. I am making it a point NOT to buy anything made in China, if it can possibly be helped. I don't want to put money into the pockets of evil Communist slave drivers with a penchant for genocide. Also, it's not doing a good job with helping the razor glide across my face anymore, which means that it has that typical 'Made in China' quality. UNACCEPTABLE!!!

Anyway...

First, there was Gillette insulting all of their male customers in January of 2020 with that stupid ad accusing us all of 'toxic masculinity'. That caused millions of men (myself included) to switch brands and make them lose 8 BILLION DOLLARS in a single month. (I'm pretty sure this is also when most folks first heard the phrase 'Get Woke, Go Broke'.) And now, there's this shit with my shave gel... Whisky Tango Foxtrot?

I tried several different options while continuing to use up all the Gillette Fusion razors that I had in stock. (Those things are freakin' expensive!) I was going to try Dollar Shave Club, but then I found out they supported that terror group Black Lives Matter. So, fuck them. They don't deserve my business, either. If you plan to sell me something, keep your shit opinions on social issues to yourself.

So, I decided to take a chance on a brand called Harry's, which had been getting a lot of good reviews and press coverage online. (Not to mention sponsoring numerous YouTube personalities...) 

Damned good razor system.
Haven't tried the shave gel, though.

I discovered that they worked just as well as the Gillette Fusion razors that I'd been using since 2009, if not better. They also cost half as much. And they're made in Germany instead of some Communist shithole. Ladies and Gentlemen, we have a winner.

As for the recent need to get a new brand of shaving cream/gel/soap/whatever, I had to do a quick web search to confirm a vague memory. I remember seeing cans of the classic Barbasol brand of shaving cream in the local Dollar Tree. I'm also pretty sure I remembered seeing 'Made in the USA' on the can. Well, according to their website, it looks like that was correct. 

The American Classic

Looks like Barbasol also has their own razor blade system, but I don't need that stuff. I like the Harry's blades and the lower costs associated with that brand of razor. It's been a long time since I used shaving cream instead of gel. However, I do like the idea of an American classic still made here in America that I can get for a single dollar from Dollar Tree. I'll give them a shot. Also, why have I not tried them before? They need to hire new people for their marketing department... 

While out running errands on January 17th, I stopped by the Dollar Tree to pick up some supplies, including the can of Barbasol. I saw the same brand of knockoff Edge gel. This time though, the can said 'Made In Turkey' on the label. I guess this brand got a LOT of negative feedback about their product being made in a Commie shithole. Not particularly interested in doing business with a country led by a snake-in-the-grass bastard like Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, though. 

Also saw that the cheap brand of Aftershave that I once tried from this store is now blue instead of green and using a different bottle. However, it's still made in Communist China. Therefore, I still need to get myself a new brand. Barbasol does have an Aftershave of their own. I wonder if it's any good...

Anyway, I bought several more shaving products to test. All are American-made, considered classics now and inexpensive compared to their competition. There's 2 forms of after shave, Aqua Velva and Skin Bracer. Also picked up some Lectric Shave to help make things easier for my electric razor. Using that in conjunction with the manual razor helps keep my blades lasting longer.

Will these products make the grade?

RESULTS

I tried the Barbasol when shaving in the shower on the morning of January 20th. The razor glide was incredibly smooth. My face was as smooth as a baby's bottom with very little need to go back over various areas. My face stayed smooth all day and well into the night. We have a winner.

Why have I not tried this amazing product before?

The second time that I used Barbasol for my shave, my face was dry. So, the skin was not as relaxed/moisturized as when I'm in the shower. The blade didn't glide quite as easily as it did the first time. However, it was still a LOT easier than any other shave product that I can remember using at any time in my life. I also used a lot less of the product than I typically would with the gel. It also takes a lot more time for the whiskers to grow back too. Looks like I can now go for more than 3 days without having to shave, just to get rid of a lot of itchy stubble. So, Barbasol is saving me money by both being cheaper and by needing a lot less of it to get the job done. Why did I not try this product 20+ years ago when I first started shaving my face? I can only imagine how much money I could have saved myself...

Anyway, I was so happy with the product that I picked up a 2nd, larger can that day, along with the previously mentioned pre-shave and after-shave stuff.

As for the after shave and Lectric Shave...

Shaving with the Lectric Shave actually did make the electric razor glide over my face a LOT easier. The closeness of the shave was slightly better too. It also prevented the redness and irritation that often happens to my poor neck after using that electric razor, even with the brand new blades that I just installed a few days ago.

The two different brands of aftershave both worked well with regard to tightening the pores of my skin. Both of them smelled nice to me. The smell of the Skin Bracer was not quite as strong as I remembered from childhood when my grandfather used that product. I've also heard that the formula has been altered and that it's not as potent now. I don't know if that's true, but I do know that the stuff serves its purpose and at a low price. 

The smell of the Aqua Velva was slightly stronger and I think I like that one better. It's also more noticeable to me after putting it on my face. I think I'll save the Aqua Velva for special occasions and when stepping out on the town. And since virtually EVERYTHING is still shut down because of the Commie Cough, that means that I might not be using much of that product in the foreseeable future. Not sure how I feel about that one.

All of them turned out to be good.

It's amazing... Products that have been around for over a century, are made in America and all dirt cheap... And only now am I coming around to using them. How did that happen? I know why I started using the Edge gel when I was a teenager. That's what my father used. It worked well for years. Then, I started using a generic equivalent because I like being cheap. And now, continuing to be cheap, I am using products that are now marginalized as 'old man's aftershave' or something similar. That doesn't bother me in the slightest. My grandfather's generation survived the Great Depression and World War Two. They made America the Super Power it is now. Clearly, they did a lot of things right. We shouldn't be so quick to dismiss things that are associated with them and their time.

Furthermore, when I picked up the aftershave products from a local Wal-Mart on the 20th, there was a 7 oz. can of the shaving gel that Harry's (the company that makes my razors) wants to sell. That can sold for six bucks. A 5 oz. can of Barbasol sells for ONE Dollar in any store across America. And the 10 oz. can of Barbasol on that same Wal-Mart shelf was $1.47. Not hard to guess why I'm going cheap on this product, huh? The fact that this product is American made and FAR more effective than everything else tried is a really nice bonus.

Barbasol, Skin Bracer, Aqua Velva & Lectric Shave really should advertise more. Preferably with a more effective kind of ad that the current generation of young men might actually see, like sponsoring Youtubers. That's how I first heard about Harry's razors. It would also be a welcome change from constantly seeing these Youtubers being sponsored almost exclusively by that cell phone game RAID: Shadow Legends.

- Lord Publius


Saturday, January 9, 2021

Good (and often harsh) advice for men living in today's world...

This one is going to be VERY blunt. These pieces of advice will be posted in no particular order. Many of them will deal with the fairer sex. They are not always going to be nice. Women will hate them, but I don't care. If some members of the sisterhood hadn't been misbehaving, I wouldn't have to give men the kind of advice about them listed below. 

Clark Gable didn't put up with any THOT bullshit.

I take no pleasure in having to write any of these things. It saddens me that the world has devolved to this point. As I wrote this, I was reminded of an observation that an old female friend once made about me 'wanting to marry someone like Donna Reed.' The name was familiar, but I couldn't place it at the time. I looked up that name later and discovered that she was the actress that portrayed George Bailey's wife in the Frank Capra classic 'It's a Wonderful Life'.

My friend was talking about the character rather than the actual person, but the message was clear. She thought I wanted a doting housewife. That's not 100% accurate. Like every man, I would definitely want a woman that was as loving and loyal as that character was, but I don't expect her to be a housewife. Even if I were a multi-millionaire, I wouldn't ask her to be a homemaker against her will. Some people derive a lot of satisfaction from having a job they enjoy. However, that is beyond the scope of today's blog topic. I'm also not interested in discussing my personal life.

Not all of the following advice is from my own experience. A smart man learns from his mistakes. A wise man learns from the mistakes of other men. I am well known for being a wise man. Much of what you'll read here is based on what I have seen happening to friends, family, co-workers, business partners and just about anyone else I've ever met. And that actually leads us into the first piece of advice...

0.) Be observant of what goes on around you.

The best way to avoid making mistakes is to watch what others do and learn from the mistakes they have made. That is also one of the secrets behind my genius. People think it's the Asperger's or the high I.Q., but that isn't the case. There's lots of Aspies and High I.Q. people that are complete dumbasses. For example, Leftist college professors.

If not for skills training & research projects,
most colleges & universities would be utterly worthless.

1.) Don't let people make their problems your problem. You can't fix other people.

Self-explanatory.

2.) JOB = Just Over Broke. Sooner or later (preferably sooner), entrepreneurship of some kind should be in your future. 

Even if it's just selling old junk on eBay, that is still extra cash in your pocket. I am looking into doing this right now. I've got all kinds of old stuff I'd like to unload.

I'll never do this again.

3.) THINK BIG.

Because even in these tough times, America is too big for small dreams.

I think Elon Musk is a little nuts, but you can't argue with his success.

4.) Don't waste time on (or get into long-term relationships) with attention-seeking women.

You'll never be able to give them enough. They will eventually look for that attention elsewhere. Then, you'll have to deal with a bad break-up, divorce, custody battles and many other horrors. It's best to not even start that dreadful process with these nutcases.

If you take nothing else away from this blog,
be sure to remember this one important point.

5.) There are no short cuts in life. So work smart or you will work hard. There are no other options.

Self-explanatory.

6.) Stop ignoring red flags in life, especially with women and your health.

Self-explanatory. 

Seriously though, if you notice small problems with people in your life (especially wives and girlfriends), investigate that ASAP. You may find a few much larger issues that will make you want to get away from her. It's important to catch those things early before wedding rings and children get involved. Keeping that in mind may have saved my life in more ways than I know...

What the Hell was I thinking
with some of them hoes?

7.) Avoid women with Daddy Issues, especially strippers & single moms.

Women that take their clothes off for a living are just a few short steps away from some form of prostitution and/or sexual exploitation. You don't need that mess in your life.

Be gone, THOT!!!

As for single mothers... Well, just remember that she is SINGLE. Why did a man give her a baby and then leave her? Maybe the guy was an asshole that didn't care about taking care of his responsibilities in life. Maybe that poor gal was a rape victim. If so, those women deserve pity and emotional support from a friend. Probably still not a good idea to date them, though. It's a virtual guarantee that they won't be right in the head. Most single moms had a very poor relationship with their father. That will carry over to virtually any other relationship that she has with a man. After all, women learn how to deal with men through their relationship with dear ol' Dad. If Dad failed them, they are virtually guaranteed to be damaged goods.

All this being said, you shouldn't immediately jump to conclusions. If that mother is single because of divorce, find out why she got divorced. The divorce may not be her fault. She might have divorced her ex-husband because he was unfaithful and/or abusive. In that case, she did the only thing that she could do. Those single mothers might be worth dating, if you want. Living in this sad, fallen world, I think we all know at least one woman who had to divorce a husband for being unfaithful, abusive or some other kind of bum. Don't be immediately dismissive and/or prejudicial against these women.

There's also a VERY good chance that she was both promiscuous and irresponsible. If that's the case, then she is NOT the one you want. Broads that spent time riding the cock carousel can't wait to find a way to get back on it again... Assuming that it's still safe for her to do so... And that they even care about their health or the health of their partners...

RUN AWAY from this, gentlemen.

If that kid exists for other reasons (especially divorce), then you probably need to RUN AWAY as fast as you can. If the man that married them and gave them children couldn't stand to be around her anymore, chances are good you'll end up feeling the same way. That, or this woman is one of those predatory types that decided she was 'unhappy' with her marriage and then used the family court to take away everything in her ex-husband's life: money, house, car(s), businesses, even the right to see his own kids. I have seen this happen to some dear old friends and 1 or 2 family members. Don't put yourself through that mess. Avoid these women. No good will come from being associated with them.

Be gone, THOT!!!

Also, some women will try to trap a guy with an 'unplanned' pregnancy. That guy doesn't need to be you. I consider myself fortunate to have avoided these women. I refuse to conceive and/or have children out of wedlock. That's as embarrassing as it is careless and irresponsible. Like Don Corleone said in The Godfather, 'Women and children can be careless, but NOT men.

Hell, I once knew a chick that tried to trick a friend of mine into getting engaged when he was drunk. Yes, sadly, there are women out there that are this desperate and this much of a basket case. And yes, that friend of mine got rid of that girl very soon after this event.

Good advice that EVERY father
should give to their sons.

8.) Exercise. Use lots of weights in the routine. Optimize your endocrine system so you'll have strength well into your old age.

Self-explanatory. Also, see #6.

Running is good for cardio, but there are other ways of getting that kind of workout. If you suck at running, don't waste time doing it and hurt yourself. This one I did learn from my own experience. It made my time in the Army much worse than it would have otherwise been and was one of many reasons why I left. I loathe going for a run and refuse to do it ever again.

9.) Never allow the wife or the state to decide how things go in your married family life. 

Get air-tight pre-nups and keep control over your finances. Joint bank accounts are bullshit. Women can't be trusted in these areas. Don't believe me? Just look at the statistics for divorce, child custody and alimony payments. While not every woman looks to screw a guy over using the family courts, a staggering number of them do. Never assume that you know for certain that a woman wouldn't do that to you. As capricious as women can be sometimes, all of that could change in an instant. Oftentimes for seemingly no reason at all.

That, or the divorce lawyer might talk them into it so they can possibly increase their fee. Remember, ANY lawyer that doesn't work for you is a soulless bastard who is against you. Even if they do work for you, that lawyer is still likely to be a soulless bastard.

And apparently, at least a few of them are honest about it...

10.) Love people and use money. Never compromise or settle.

You'll always lose money chasing women. (Especially if that THOT is only interested in you because of your money.) You'll never lose women chasing excellence. Quality is always superior to quantity.

Yet another good reason why lottery winners need to be careful...

11.) Make Fuck YOU money and surround yourself with excellence.

There's 3 levels of money in the world:

Level 1 - Fuck Me money (i.e. 'Ah, fuck me, I gotta go work a crappy job to pay the bills.')

Level 2 - Fuck You money (i.e. You're financially secure, most likely your own boss and rarely need to care about anyone's opinions anymore.)

Level 3 - Fuck the World money (i.e. Folks with no major expenses anymore, multi-millionaires, billionaires, royalty, people with their own private planes and private islands.)

Level 3 may not be possible to attain. Level 2 is, if you're smart about managing your money. When you have this kind of money, the entire world is going to be kissing your ass trying to get you to part with that cash. Use that to your advantage to pick and choose who you have in your life. Rule of thumb should be that anyone who is only interested in you for your money should NOT be in your life.

And THOTs have NONE of these things. Don't waste time on them.

12.) Live a purposeful life by setting goals and achieving them.

For example, my immediate goals are finishing this second college degree that I'm working on right now and opening my own business. I am well on my way to accomplishing these goals, unless something truly catastrophic happens.

The long-term goals for the next few years are to wipe out what's left of my credit card debt (I got rid of half of it in the year 2020) and pay off my car. Those goals will be happening within 2 or 3 years, unless something truly catastrophic happens.

The life goals that take more than 2 or 3 years involve paying off my house and acquiring enough cash to retire. That will probably happen earlier than most folks because of the government checks I'll get for life as a disabled veteran. Once the house is paid for, that check should be more than enough to cover monthly living expenses. Good thing that check is in my life because I doubt that social security will exist by the time I turn 65. 

SMART Goals

13.) Generally speaking, it's not a good idea to date single mothers. 

Self-explanatory. Also, see Numbers 4, 6 & 7.

It's probably not even a good idea to have one for a 'friend with benefits', either. If you are going to do that, be sure to use protection. You don't want to be the father of her next 'unexpected but not unwelcome' child. Flush that protection down the toilet after you've 'done the deed' too. Some women take used rubbers and the seed they contain to get themselves pregnant. Single moms looking for a husband are prime candidates for that kind of horrid behavior. Don't take any unnecessary risks.

Are you sure that you want the kid
messing with your phone?

Also, make sure she understands that you're not interested in being a step dad to the children she already has, either. Trust me, it's more trouble than it's worth. More often than not, you'll be expected to be the kid's meal ticket, but you won't be allowed to assume the fatherly role and raise/discipline them. That's a pretty rotten deal.

14.) There will always be critics. Screw these haters. They are just jealous that you're doing better than them.

See #11 & 12.

Trust me, you won't have to try hard. :P

15.) As a man, you have 100% responsibility and often 0% authority. Whether it's your fault or not, you will still likely get the blame for other people's stupidity in life. Therefore, reduce your risk of this wherever possible.

It doesn't matter if they're co-workers/subordinates at work (especially stupid Privates in the military) or irresponsible women. (See #4, 6, 7 & 13) Therefore, be sure to surround yourself with people who will NOT cause you to be responsible for their misdeeds. If they're at an adult age, they should also be acting the part. It doesn't matter if they think you're being anti-social or an asshole. That's better than being stuck dealing with their bullshit. (See #1)

Yet another good reason why I left the Army...

16.) Give ZERO fucks to things/people that are not worthy of said fucks. What other people think is, in general, not your concern. 

See #14.

Me using math to explain the principle
of ZERO FUCKS to some people...
(2021, Colorized.)

17.) Go into things with a winner's mentality. Being unsure of yourself is a sure way to fail.

Self-explanatory. And don't let life distract you from your goals.

Sometimes, you have to make sacrifices in life
to accomplish your goals... ;)

18.) Be careful associating with women that have lots of tattoos. (Or tats that are difficult to cover up in public.)

There was a time when tattoos on women was considered low class and/or something only done by prostitutes, especially the lower back tattoo. (AKA Tramp Stamp or Slag Tag.) While tats have become a lot more fashionable since the 1990s, this old rule of thumb often still applies. She might have thought she was being rebellious by getting inked. Or, maybe she just thought it would look pretty, which is totally subjective. However, what is actual objective fact is that she was engaging in cliché behavior and probably making herself a friend to this fallen world. Be very careful here, gentlemen. This is definitely one of those red flags that were mentioned earlier.

Also, if you see a woman with the phrase 'follow your heart' tattooed anywhere on her body, walk away. That is a woman that makes decisions based on emotion rather than logic. Her decisions are likely to be very selfish and VERY harmful to herself and others. Avoid these people.

Just one of many fine pieces of good life advice that you'll find in Scripture.

19.) Have strict standards for people. If they don't meet them, don't associate with them. 

See #1, 4, 6, 7, 9, 10, 13, 14, 15, 16 & 18.

For the man who enjoys only the finest
(and often craziest) poontang in the world... ;)

20.) Never assume that any relationship will be perfect. They never are.

And don't assume that God brought them into your life for some reason. There's no way you can know if that's the case or not. Even if he did, it may not be for the reason you think. After all, he might have sent her your way just to show you what NOT to pursue in a mate. If God did send that little red-haired girl my way back in 2010-11, it might have been for this very reason. (And maybe a few others...)

Been there, done that, felt really foolish about it afterward...

21.) Remember the 3 F's: Feeding, Financing and Fooling around.

If someone doesn't feed you, finance you or fool around with you, their opinion most likely doesn't matter. Especially if it's a woman who doesn't like what she sees in this blog post. That is more than likely a woman you don't want to associate with anyway. (See #14 & 16.)

Following this advice may not get you many friends in life, but it will get you the right ones. That is what is most important. True happiness/satisfaction for men comes from a sense of accomplishment and success in pursuit of our goals, not necessarily from lots of interpersonal relationships. 

Best of luck to you, Gents. I hope this helps you out.

- Lord Publius