u/ginopono's SOTDs for challenge 'Lather Games 2024'

2024-06-01 - Let's Get it Started in Here

• Lather: A A Shaving - The Hunt
• Razor: Schick Injector #RUSTYBUTTRUSTY
• Brush: Qshave Pure Badger #WEDONTNEEDNOSTINKINGBADGERS
• Post Shave: Lothur - Oregon
• Fragrance: INeKE - Idyllwild

Pack it up, boys and ladies! You're reading the first post of this year's Games' winner! Seriously, give up now. That way, I can half-ass this thing and still come out on top!

I'm not really planning on exerting much effort this time around, but I still find myself starting this June with several new tubs of soap that I don't need, because I'll be damned if I'm not going to fill the calendar! What's that? No, you're the one with a problem!

Side note: Did you know that June is Men's Mental Health Awareness Month? Just want to put that out there, because certain members of this sub think it's a funny little joke to shit on people who try to support men's mental health.

Bonjour, Lather Games: With three new sponsors this year, none of which I've previously tried, it just came down to a roll of a three-sided die. Or whichever one I didn't pick for a different day. I don't know; roll a two-sided die. Either way, A A Shaving is new to me.

Challenge Accepted: Purchased shortly after last year's Games, this razor sat in a drawer for about 9 months, like some backward gestation before the end of my injector virginity... "Injector virginity." Um... Huh.

Anyway, it took me no more than a handful of seconds to work out the angle at which to hold it, but I do not like that the head has nearly no mass at all; I prefer a more massive head. Um.... Huh.

Side note: That's a pretty sweet patina. I'm not sure why there's been such an emphasis on rust for patinas (patinae?), much less the emphasis on green coloration; I have the impression that there was a chain of false transitivity somewhere. You can have a non-green patina on clean, rust-free metal. But, if you insist, it's literally rusty, too.

Unifying theme: Wooded West-coast Locales
Oregon and Idyllwild are obviously named after such locations, and The Hunt is inspired by the woods of Cascadia. Incidentally, I was literally planning on relocating to the PNW this summer, but I'm going to remain for a while longer here in the Wasteland of Fire and Death, where it has already been summer for several months and will be for many more.

But I digress.

#FOF
Anyway, the scent of pine is dominant in The Hunt, with what I take to be ozone imparting a welcome, damp airiness. Leather, moss, and musk keep it grounded, even dark.

Oregon presents a brighter green, perhaps—I suspect—from a greater prominence of citrus notes. It represents a rather stark contrast to The Hunt's depth.

Idyllwild is also lighter than The Hunt, but is also more generally woody, rather than being so pine-heavy. Idyllwild includes a smokiness that balances well with its lightness, which makes me realize that Oregon doesn't seem to ground its own aggressive brightness.

#photocontest Birds
I have mixed feelings about this contest. On the one hand, the photos are one of my favorite parts of the Games. On the other hand, I was so insistent on hitting all of the themes in last year's contest that I feel my photos suffered for it. So I'm still doing this, but I'm not hunting for all the things (no pun intended), especially if I think I have an otherwise good photo. This one just happens to have a bird.

2024-06-02 - Where has all the rum gone?!

• Lather: Zingari Man - The Navigator
• Razor: Bambaw Sea Green #RAINBOW
• Brush: Moar Boar #SUBBRUSH #OLDWORLD
• Post Shave: Captain's Choice - Venture
• Fragrance: ALT. Fragrance - The Scent of Beach

Ahoy, Lather Games!: Nothing is more nautically-themed than Navigator.

Unifying Theme: Seafaring/Coastal
I feel like this is probably a self-evident extension of the day's theme. The whole brand of Captain's Choice fits. The Scent of Beach, while not strictly nautical, fits with the seafaring theme. Consider the following from the description of The Navigator:

Sandy-footed step by sandy-footed step, a man walks along the sun-warmed wooden planks of a dock.

I'm not going to insult you with a lengthy explanation; you get it.

#photocontest Water-faring vessels
I said I wasn't going to strive for all the photo things, but I'm also not going to avoid them. That's a Jolly Roger on the right side of the photo, so that could work for pirates. Meanwhile, there's also obviously the bow and figurehead of a ship on the soap label, not to mention the stern of the ship being eaten by Santa Claus on the left. So I rolled a two-sided die and I'm going with the ships for water vehicles.

Paleontology Day:
In past years, I've never known what to say for this particular challenge. However, considering u/Priusaurus' journey last year, I knew immediately what to do today: I wrapped that Jolly Roger around my neck and went to Pei Wei.

Side note: I recently discovered that shemaghs are not only excellent for keeping the sun off your neck, but are surprisingly cooling. Which is good, because we keep getting these "extreme heat" alerts/warnings, which are entirely redundant. Like yeah, we know; why don't you shut the hell up, Alexa, and let me know about the two or three days in January when there isn't an extreme heat warning.

But I digress.

As with last year, it was opening-time on Sunday at Pei Wei, but there was no one else there this time. I got my food, settled down, and proceeded to shave.

Wait, today's shave was back in my own den? You're god damn right. Shaving in public has been done. It's old hat. Nobody wants to be the guy who shaves outside of a mom-and-pop Thai restaurant, scaring away all of the customers just because you don't want to be outdone by some guy who shaved in a Pei Wei while he was under the influence of drugs. I mean, drugs that you can get at any Starbucks because that's literally their whole business, but still!

Maybe—just maybe—I can once again serve as an inspiration for the most dedicated players, but this time toward sanity. You don't have to do this, u/Priusaurus. Dial it back, for your own sake. We're worried about you. Really.

Either that, or step it up. You don't just have to out-do everyone else, you have you out-do yourself from last year, and I gotta say, you've got a long way to go...

#FOF
Navigator purports to be a woody aquatic scent. What really stands out to me, which I've not been able to figure out, is that it smells like salty sea air—or enough like it that this desert-dweller doesn't know the difference. I smell those sandy-footed steps.

I do wish that Venture and Scent of Beach were a better pairing with Navigator, but they both trace back to Aventus. Venture is a straight dupe, I believe, and I dare assume the name is even a nod to Aventus. In a way, they do work well, evoking fruit cocktails on a tropical island. I find Venture to be too fruity, however, like my head turned into a big ol' pineapple and I just want to cut it off.

Scent of Beach is actually a dupe of a scent called The Scent of Peace, which itself took inspiration from Aventus. Today, Scent of Beach picks up where Venture left off, and somehow turns the dial up even further. It's more well-rounded than Venture (not the highest of bars, granted), but it is loud. The Vice City motif suits it well. I guess that's not a huge departure from the coastal theme, but man, I really miss the sandyfooted steps on the dock right about now, but General Tso distracts from it all pretty well.

2024-06-03 - Soylent Green

• Lather: Stirling Soap Co. - Glacial Electric Sheep
• Razor: Clix E-Z Flo #RUSTYBUTTRUSTY
• Brush: Yaqi Metal Timberwolf
• Post Shave: Stirling Soap Co. - D-503
• Post Shave: Alum, definitely not Osma
• Fragrance: Imaginary Authors - Telegrama

Where's the Beef: Mutton
Side note: Check out this rust-free patina. No rusty butts here!

Unifying Theme: Literature
The title of the novel is Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?. Dude, people aren't even said to dream of sheep. You're thinking of "counting sheep"; the dreaming part comes later. You should know better than that, Dick.
::ahem::
Philip K. Dick, of course.

Speaking of dystopian-future novels that I've never read, D-503 is the name of the protagonist of Мы (We) by Yevgeny Zamyatin.

I wish I could have kept the dystopian-future thing going, but I had to widen the scope to literature in general, which is fine because I make the rules! Even if Imaginary Authors almost feels like cheating, the aethetic of Telegrama seems at least vaguely appropriate.

#photocontest
Steampunk is an aesthetic genre that answers the question, "What if technology was only hot water and clocks and we dressed up all horny about it?" (paraphrased from u/BennyFeldman @1:25)
I didn't think I was going to have an opportunity to organically incorporate this into any photo during the Games, but I think it happens to fit, also vaguely, with the dystopian-future element of much of my setup today, so that works out. Serendipitous!

#FOF
Are you familiar with mosquito-repellent candles? I am not. If you're unfamiliar with Electric Sheep, it's worth noting that Stirling has a WARNING on the product page imploring people to try a sample before a full tub. I'm pretty sure I dove straight into the latter when I bought this.

I don't know what the fuss is about. It's strong, but refreshing. Like Lemon Pledge, maybe? I don't know what Lemon Pledge smells like. It's intense, and the Glacial menthol kicks the entensity levels up to Awesome. "Not for the faint of heart," indeed.

A dupe of Legend by Mont Blanc, D-503 transitions smoothly, perhaps thanks to its citrus notes, although those same citrus notes are the reason (maybe along with the purported 'dried fruit') that I opted to target the D-503 soap that I had in order to use it up and get it off my shelf. It's not that I don't like it—quite the contrary; tonka and light florals effectively mute the citrus—but it's not a contender for being among my favorites.

Telegrama deviates sharply from D-503, coming in firing on all cylinders with powder and linen, falling away to a firm assertion of vanilla. It's a very clean scent that, in retrospect, actually makes for a pretty excellent pairing with the sharp cleanness of Sheep. Serendipitous!

I suspect it would also tightly intermingle with Maggard's Barbershop and such soaps that use that scent mix. But I digress.

OnionMiOsma Day:
I've noticed a tendency in jobs that I've had, in which I inherited some task—a report or the like—and I later discover that the person I inherited it from hadn't developed a good understanding of it. Not only did that person not know the "why," but it later turns out that the exec or whoever who originally asked for it never really even cared that much about it, not then and especially not now.

I'm convinced that this challenge is the same. Alum is handy stuff, but no one really gives a shit about Osma. For example, consider this pristine block of Osma. I'll never need it, because the giant, chemically-identical rocks of the stuff that I got for a fraction of the price of that tiny block will last me forever.

OP sacrifices brand new block of OSMA in order to prove a point.

2024-06-04 - Shave

• Lather: Cella - Milano Crema Da Barba
• Razor: The Goodfellas' Smile - Kamisori Shavette #KAMISORI
• Brush: Vielong Horse #HORSESASS #COMPOSITE #TOLL
• Post Shave: Captain's Choice - Italia
• Fragrance: Giorgio Armani - Acqua di Gio

KISS: Almond

Base War Stories:

We all like to compare bases and such but we’re just splitting hairs as most of them give good to great shaves.
— u/cowzilla3

You only remember the bad bases, e.g. Badger Balm Shave Soap. But I digress.

Unifying Theme: Italy

#FOF
Cella smells like almond.
Italia smells like Cella.
Acqua di Gio smells like Stirling's Dunshire.

#photocontest B&W

2024-06-05 - Brick, mortar, pestle, artillery...

• Lather: Proraso - Menthol and Eucalyptus
• Razor: Baili BR179 / Rockwell R1 / CVS Goodline Grooming Safety Razor
• Brush: Moar Boar #OLDWORLD #SUBBROOSH
• Post Shave: Stetson - Original, After Shave
• Fragrance: Stetson - Original, Cologne

Drugstore Day:
It's a good thing that Proraso occasionally shows up in those low-end department stores—e.g. TJMaxx, Ross, Marshalls—because I won't deign to use actual canned goop or even the sorry excuse for shave soap that is Badger Balm. I imagine it'll vary by locale, but I don't think I've ever been in one of those stores that isn't just a step away from a bin store. Speaking of, have you been in a bin store? The ones that have literal piles of Amazon returns that people just tear through, haphazardly throwing unwanted items over their shoulder into a sea of unattended children? Well, when I describe it like that, it just sounds like Ross.

But I digress.

Unifying Theme: Drugstore Day

The razor, though I got it as a winter-holiday giveaway from Rockwell, is the same as "Goodline" from CVS, where Stetson may also be found.

#FOF
I'm pretty over Proraso Green. I haven't even used it all that much. I'm sure it's a perfectly fine smell, but I've come to the conclusion that it's not a scent that I would ever want or choose to smell like; rather, it's something I might expect from an industrial solvent.

Stetson is a fougère, whatever that means to you. I won't pretend it evokes imagery of a roping livestock on a Texas savanna or whatever, but I will say that, despite its classification and purported associated floral top notes, I mostly get amber with a slight woodiness out of it.

Reverse Lather Routine:
I have a track-record of maligning face-lathering. I'm not going to beat that dead horse, though, partly because there's not much left of the horse, but also—in the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson—because "a foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds".

You see, I now have considered information that I previously hadn't: At the time that I developed my negative opinion of face-lathering, that opinion was influenced by the brush that I was using at the time, i.e. for the first Raw Hoggin'. Later, when using the Moar Boar, I found that it did a much better job than my first boar, but only when face-lathering. The Moar Boar sucks at bowl-lathering; because it's so huge and lather-hungry, it can't afford to sacrifice any to a bowl's surface. So I went with the Moar Boar today, and it didn't suck.

I am learning, though, that I do not much care for natural brushes in general. Synthetic brushes are analogous to automatic transmissions in cars. Time was when manual transmissions were standard and were referred to as such. Not only that, but the performance of automatics couldn't hold a candle to "standard." Except that stopped being true longer ago than almost anyone reading this has been alive. Today, automatics are better in every way. The same is true of synthetic versus natural brushes.

#photocontest Trash
Man, all the Trash photos have been really... well, trashy. I guess that's the point. Today's photo is kind of a throwaway, anyway (pun intended), so I figured I might as well.

I acknowledge I did a similar thing the other day, and I'm not trying to make a whole thing out of it, but that Badger soap is literally garbage that I've inexplicably been keeping in a drawer for far too long.

2024-06-06 - Pretzels!

• Lather: Gentleman's Nod - Musashi
• Post Shave: Gentleman's Nod - Musashi
• Fragrance: Imaginary Authors - Fox in the Flowerbed
• Razor: Nameless Straight 3/4" #STR8SNOB
• Brush: West Coast Shaving - Lantern Brush, Silvertip, Ivory

Thirsty Thursday:
Musashi is one of Gentleman's Nod's Origin series, which are scents built around a single note or accord. While it does say "jasmine tea" right on the label, but I wanted to be sure that jasmine tea was indeed the accord that Musashi was built around. So I asked Gentleman's Nod, who said:

You are correct, it was Jasmine green tea.

Unifying Theme: Jasmine

#FOF
Yeah, yeah, it's so boring to use the same scent for both the later and post-shave, but it was for the benefit of two days' photos. Obviously, then, that couldn't be helped.

Musashi has yuzu floating on top, which I could do without, but I've been told that "scents need top notes," and I dare say that I'm gonna trust u/hawns on that one.

There's a woodiness to it that brings to mind my grad school days of yore, when I used to stop into a caffeinery for a green tea on my way to teaching an early class. A girl working there often remarked that it smelled to her like a cup of grass or hay. I didn't agree, but I could see why she said that. But I digress.

Despite the fact that jasmine is indisputably prominently featured in Musashi, I don't get much of it. Enter Fox in the Flowerbed. To no one's surprise, it is definitely floral, and opens up strong with a beautiful jasmine that emodies jasmine tea perfectly. Perfectly. It smells more like Jasmine Green Tea than Musashi. I fucking love it. Alas, the jasmine fades off soon, then there remains as a mellow hint of something I can't quite put my finger on, but it's subtle.

WetTubing Appreciation Day:

"WetTubing"...
Wet tuber...
Wet... tube?👀

Here you go: my shaving video
If you don't want to watch all of that, just skip to the end. Or don't watch it at all, because this is the real one, which I still don't recommend you watch all of. Nothing I wanted to do with it worked out. I'm not going to give it all away, because I'm still holding out hope for the hat-based challenge that we almost had a couple years ago but hasn't been done. The hat didn't work well while trying to negotiate the straight, anyway.

Speaking of the razor, it satisfies the tag, but it is a truly crappy straight, not to suggest that I have remotely-extensive experience with them—quite the contrary.

However, my personal, subjective experience obviously represents categorical fact. This Truth was recently called into question, compelling my mother—my dear, sweet mother—to swiftly propel herself off of the Cliffs of Dover yesterday, plummeting headlong into the Bering Strait, which separates Bablyon from Uppsala, to her watery demise. Not one half of a fortnight later, her remains washed up on the shores of Patagonia, where she was indicted into secular sainthood and celebrated in a festival of seven years. She was immortalized into a mile-high statue that remains to this day.

Behold! Let it thus be known that because I do not get a good shave out of this crappy, photogenic razor, that all straight razors are garbage and no one should use them! They are antiquated and inferior to DE razors in every way! It is spoken!

#photocontest
I had to use that razor today, though, because it worked too well with the photo. Obviously, then, it couldn't be helped.

As for #photocontest, this photo fell together too well to be needlessly ruined by throwing in some random junk. Is it a winner? Probably not, but it's too good to be sullied.
I'm taking the gimme: Air. There's so much air in this photo it's downright loony.

2024-06-07 - I Want Vetiver

• Lather: Saponifico Varesino - Desert Vetiver
• Post Shave: Saponifico Varesino - Desert Vetiver
• Fragrance: Saponifico Varesino - Desert Vetiver
• Razor: Wolfman Razors - Guerrilla (2023)
• Brush: Yaqi Metal Timberwolf

Unifying Theme: Hat Trick

Vetiver You Want:
Ah, vetiver. What are you and how do we pronounce you? /ˈvɛtɪvəɹ/, surely. I have the impression, though probably unsubstantiated, that /vɛˈtaɪvəɹ/ or /vɛˈtivəɹ/ aren't uncommon. Or perhaps you could opt to be more faithful to the original French, with /vɛtiˈve/, although that's straight-up ludicrous because vetiver is an English word in its own right, even if it is a borrowed one.

It reminds me of a time when someone tried to insist that the plural of ninja should be ninja because Japanese doesn't have grammatical plural. Like, that's great, dumbass, but ninja is also an English word, and guess which language actually does have grammatical plural?

But I digress.

GeoFatBoy Special:
Alright, so a single against-the-grain pass. ~~Vetiver~~ Whatever, an initial ATG pass doesn't bother me. I'm honestly a little surprised that so many of you are so bothered, but I can't speak for you. Obviously. I don't have your skin! Yet.

I would like to take this moment to address the razor, which surely helped for an annoyance-free ATG pass. This beautiful razor was a contribution from Wolfman Razors in support of our 2023 Lather Games, and I was the lucky recipient. There was a little bit of a debacle because I originally asked for a larger gap than worked for me. I'd like to also call out u/Priusaurus, who was encouraging while I sorted it out. Wolfman was more than happy to swap out the razor head, and it has been my daily razor since.

#FOF
I haven't used Desert Vetiver much since I got it, partly because I have so much other soap I need to use up, and partly because it has—in my mind—a kind of "special occasion" vibe to it. Maybe because it's not what you'd call "cheap," but both the lather and scent are nothing short of luxurious.

I originally didn't get a whole lot of vetiver out of it—am I an idiot? No (well...), but I had a few raw-er vetiver scents serving as a baseline (e.g. Varen, Hallows, Dirtyver), whereas Desert Vetiver is more complex. While Dirtyver revels in being unadulterated, in-your-face vetiver (not that there's anything wrong with that), Desert Vetiver wraps it up in a way that is appropriate to respectable society (that sounds more denigrating to vetiver than I intended).

There's a heart of vetiver that intermingles with amber, surrounded by a cushion of subtle florals and pepper. Lavender is clearly there, but I hesitate to mention it because I don't want to bring attention to it; it doesn't even bring attention to itself. I like this, because I'm pretty fed up with lavender, but I appreciate this.

On a related but separate topic, I'm just going to willfully disregard the likelihood that it was a joke, and am instead just looking forward to the licorice/anise + vetiver scent that u/c_bubbles is cooking up after u/tonality's recommendation.

#photocontest Cactus
I know what you're thinking:

"Hey, u/ginopono, why are you using a stylized depiction of that desert? Couldn't you just, you know, go outside and take a picture of the real thing?"

No.

No, I'm not going outside during the season that is literally called "Don't Step into the Sun or You'll Die"! Why do you think the picture doesn't even have the sun? There might be a day or two in January when it's safe, but for now, I'm staying where the sun can't get to me.

2024-06-08 - Maple Mayhem

• Lather: Maggard Razors - Tobacco and Leather
• Post Shave: St. James of London - Tonka & Tobacco Flower
• Fragrance: Chatillon Lux - Unconditional Surrender
• Razor: Maggard Razors - MR18+V3 #ZAMAC
• Brush: Maggard Razors - Black Resin Handle Tuxedo

Unifying Theme: Samples! Also, tobacco!

Mad Braggard Day:
Credit where it's due: that is some excellent wordplay.

I don't think I've had much in the way of big, stupid Maggard orders. I have, on the other hand, stupidly made multiple orders, doubling/tripling/etc. shipping while making changes to my planned calendar for previous Lather Games. Yes, Maggard will combine them when possible, but that assumes you don't wait until it ships before placing the next order. I've found that that becomes less necessary when you a) have done the Lather Games thrice before and b) are not bothering to max out your Lather Games score anymore.

What I really don't want to know, though, is how much I've spent at Stirling. It's been... a lot. I've been known to place orders after every marketing email. I've gotten better, but I still make semi-regular orders because I use their bath soap and shampoo daily. It'll take me a really long time to get through all the bath soap that I have, but I'll be dead before I get through the shave soap. Without counting, Stirling easily comprises a third of my shave soap. Uh.... I guess you're welcome, Rod.

I've found that I have a habit of—after finding a thing that I like—buying ludicrous and unnecessary numbers of the thing. Shemaghs like one in an earlier photo have been a recent example (those do have a real practical purpose, though, not unlike shave stuff). Also, stuff for pew-pew hole goes in far paper fun, but I hesitate to go into that because worms are going to be all over your kitchen after opening that can.

But I digress.

#FOF
Tobacco and Leather, like other soaps with the Maggard label, is a pre-mix scent poured into Through the Fine Fire Craft soap. That's just to say that it's Maggard only by name.
It was one of the first tobacco scents I tried, and I wasn't particularly floored by it because it smells... sweet. I think that the sweetness comes from the leather part of the scent. All in all, there's an artificiality to the scent.

Tonka & Tobacco Flower is obviously meant to be floral. I haven't smelled this before this morning, and I'm very pleasantly surprised. I also now realize that I don't think I know what tonka smells like.

Unconditional Surrender has a more recognizable tobacco and subtle leather intermingled with light wood for a rich, satisfying finish.
u/hawns Is this one no longer in the lineup?

#photocontest Wood
There was a strong chance that I was going to forego a theme today (that day will definitely come), but then I realized that leaves are essentially the tips of wood.
What I personally enjoy about this is that I could use the Wood category as a throwaway by just setting up the photo on a wood table. Instead, I actually made a conscious effort to completely obscure the surface of said wood table with those wood-tips.

2024-06-09 - Bit O' Honey

• Lather: Chicago Grooming Co. - No. 11
• Post Shave: Stirling Soap Co. - Deton-8
• Fragrance: Chatillon Lux - 1904
• Razor: Henson AL13 Medium #CNC
• Brush: Omega 343178 Synthetic #FAUXFUR

Unifying Theme: Numbers

Shave and a Haircut:
Ah, barbershop: The category of scents that has no defining characteristics other than that someone decided to slap that label on it.

Surprise Quiz:
I figured it would be either an array of personal questions (e.g. What was your first soap?) or some version of the bot-driven quiz in the Discord. Lo and behold the latter.

Considering that I don't strive to have an encyclop(a)edic knowledge of scent notes (who does?), there's a freakin' S in Limes and Bergamot, and my cat was yelling at me the whole time only to shut up when there were some 23 seconds on the timer, which happened to also be the very moment I hit the 'give up' button, 5/32 doesn't seem half bad.

I've never seen that hosting page before, but it... leaves a lot to be desired, doesn't it? It's not uncommon for one of my browser or ad-blocker or DNS filter to break some sites, so I thought it might have been the case here. Nope, it was actually working as intended.

#FOF
On to the scents. This started off seeming like the most asinine combination, thanks to the fact that each one is only related by name. Practically, though, it worked out.

No. 11 is one of those "clean laundry" barbershop scents, providing a backdrop for the scents to follow. This is convenient, because Deton-8 drops a bomb of spice (one might even say a Spicebomb) on top of it. Kaboom! I expected a bit of a conflict between Deton-8 and the coffee-forward 1904, but it's a lot less jarring than mixing 1904 with the spices of General Tso. Instead, it's a calming resolution, like settling down under the rafters of a cozy a coffee shop while the memory of spice lingers on.

I should really start frequenting coffee shops again, especially with going back to grad school in a couple months; being in public provides a certain amount of pressure to be productive. Plus, it's a challenge—to say the least—to focus when this cat just won't shut the hell up. No, Artemis, we're not going outside. It's hot.

But I digress.

#photocontest Fil the Frame
Hot damn, that's terrible. I had nothing else for this one, though, and it does help to highlight all those arabic numerals.

2024-06-10 - You got BaM in my HoM

• Lather: House of Mammoth - Smash
• Post Shave: Floïd - The Genuine
• Fragrance: Imaginary Authors - Sundrunk
• Razor: Wolfman Razors - Guerrilla
• Brush: Yaqi Metal Timberwolf

Happy Together:
A collaboration between Billiam F. Tourist and Jammin' Mammoth

Unifying Theme: Orange you glad?

#FOF
There's something to be said for pairings/trio-ings based on things that are completely independent from scent. I orginally planned an all-HoM day, but bailed on that idea only once I took the tub of ~~Crash~~ Smash out for today's shave. I think it's safe to say I would never have tried this otherwise.

Every recipe I've found for a bourbon smash primarily has bourbon, lemon, and mint. I guess Smash has neither lemon nor mint, but it's not my place to question the creative decisions of ol' Billy Tays.

Smash is... fruity. I maintain that nobody has ever enjoyed eating a piece of fruit. Smash smells as though you were wafting the aromas of a neat bourbon, and then [Chris Ballew](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Presidents_of_the_United_States_of_America_(band)) barged in, tied you to the wall, stuck a funnel in your mouth, and force-fed you nothing but cans of peaches until you were ~~twenty-~~ ~~thirty-~~ forty-six and a half years old.

The Genuine, in a bizarre interlude, dumps a barrel of powder on your head before Sundrunk shoves your face into a rhubarb pie as your desperate efforts for air are your final memory before your flailing limbs fall limply for the last time.

Song Day:
I was honestly going to do the ridiculous rhubarb one up there because it references beards and barbers, but I'm gonna go with one that happened to play during my shower/shave this morning: MSMR - Flagpole Sitta I first heard this song because I had been playing a lot of MSMR, but I just now discovered that MSMR is no more, this being their final huzzah. Huh. That bums be out. Oh well, they have other projects going on and that's okay, too! With that considered, MSMR was... a temporary collaboration. As, I guess, is any band.

But I digress.

It's a fantastic, refreshing cover that I feel gives a more serious tone to a serious song that had nonetheless been altogether too goofy. I do remember when the original came out, and I remember the later viral videos. It was everywhere, which was terrible because it was overplayed.

#photocontest Animal
Namely, the noble ~~otter~~ mammoth on the label there.
Today's photo was originally going to be even more boring than this, but once I decided last-minute to do the orange-color thing, I figured I should slap a #photocontest theme on it, even if it is the one I was going to use tomorrow.

Oh, I only just noticed that the name Sundrunk is quite fitting to the boozy basis of Smash. Neato.

2024-06-11 - Purple Haze

• Lather: Eleven Shaving - Clary Sage & Violet
• Post Shave: Noble Otter - 茉莉綠茶 (Jasmine Green Tea)
• Fragrance: Stirling Soap Co. - Triumph
• Razor: Micromatic Open Comb (MMOC) #FLIPTOP #STAINLESSLESS
• Brush: Summer Break Soaps #FRANKENBRUSH

April Showers:
The very concept of spring is a lie being sold to you. It doesn't exist. There is only the torment of the sun and its ceaseless barrage of death. Simply step outside and see the wasteland of despair laid out before you. Appreciate it well; in mere moments, your desiccated ashes will be blown away into nothingness.

Unifying Theme: Color Coordinated

Color Coordinated:
It's well-established that a color-coordinated setup need not be monochrome. In fact, you can have a color-coordinated setup with exactly zero matching colors; you just need to deliberately navigate the colorspace. For example, purple and green are complementary, a fact that the Joker took full advantage of. There's a number of websites with handy tools to play with how this works. That one even has a feature to simulate colorblindness.

I'm admittedly playing it a little safe, as each color featured in my setup is represented in the aftershave label, which conveniently already has a tidy triad with purple, green, and a tie-in to the razor with the gold.
Speaking of the razor: stainlessless. Also, the purple frankenbrush is SBS with a timberwolf from Maggard.

I decided that I wanted to more fully incorporate the color scheme into the shave itself, fully decking myself out in purple and green, literally from head to toe (the camera doesn't want to capture the green of the pants). Side note: I do not recommend trying to perform fine motor functions with your hands all wrapped up in cloth. Trying to grip the thin handle gets unpleasant fast.

But I digress.

#FOF

Eleven's Clary Sage & Violet is a refreshing departure from the ocean of lavender scents out there (I am so done with lavender). It provides a floral scent that's not... well, that's not lavender. Meanwhile, the sage provides a grassiness that keeps it from being too floral.

茉莉綠茶 is the second jasmine green tea soap that I nabbed as soon as I discovered it existed. While lavender is dead to me, I love me some jasmine. The jasmine is much more prominent here than in the other such soap, Musashi. It's worth noting that the aftershave of 茉莉綠茶 doesn't seem to deliver grapefruit as strongly as the 茉莉綠茶 soap; I favor the aftershave in this regard.

Triumph follows seamlessly, likely thanks to the common jasmine notes, into a classically masculine aquatic to lead into the day, which will, of course, involve remaining under shelter from the relentless sun.

#photocontest Grass
Grass doesn't actually exist, either. Spring is a lie. Grass is a lie. This was a Triumph.

2024-06-12 - CASH RULES ALL PEOPLE

• Lather: St. James of London - Cedarwood & Clarysage (cream)
• Post Shave: St. James of London - Cedarwood & Clarysage (gel)
• Fragrance: Nicor - Royal Ebony
• Razor: Wolfman Razors - Guerrilla
• Brush: West Coast Shaving - Two Tone Synthetic 26mm

---

#photocontest MONEY

MAIN POINT OF SELLING BELGIAN FIVE SEVEN PISTOL IS EXTREME PRICE OF WEAPON AND CARTRIDGE.
BELGIAN FIVE SEVEN IS WEAPON OF MAN WHO WEARS EXPENSIVE ITALIAN FASCIST SUIT OF HAND SEWING, DRIVE HUGE EXPENSIVE NAZI MERCEDES OF A.M.G. SHOP, SAIL ON MASSIVE YACHT TO GREEK ISLANDS. I THINK YOU GET PICTURE. BELGIAN FIVE SEVEN IS WEAPON THAT SAYS IS NO SUCH THING AS CONCERN OF MONEY.
FOR MAN WITHOUT EXPENSIVE SUIT, BIG BLACK MERCEDES, AND MASSIVE YACHT, BELGIAN FIVE SEVEN IS FOR PRETENDING OF BE RICH LIKE BLACK GANGSTER OF AMERICAN CITY WITH GOLD CHAINS OF LOW QUALITY AND JEWELS OF COLORED GLASS. WHEN YOU EXPLAIN USE OF BELGIAN FIVE SEVEN PISTOL IS ONLY FOR SHOOT MAN WITH BULLET VEST WITH CARTRIDGE ILLEGAL TO CIVILIAN, THIS MAN HAS NUCLEAR RAGE. WHOLE IDENTITY OF THIS MAN IS SPENT IN PRETEND PISTOL SHOWS HE IS RICH. IS VERY AMUSE.
FOR REST OF WORLD THERE IS 9 MILLIMETERS OF LUGER WHICH IS SAME WOUND FOR COST LESS.

C.R.E.A.M.:
EVERY BREATHING DAY I WISH SUFFERING ON INVENTOR OF SHAVE CREAM. CREAM IS SHAVING FOR LAZY MAN WITHOUT DEXTROUS SKILL OF HANDS AND BRUSH.

SMELLS ARE ALIKE: SUBSTANCE IS ALL WRONG (BUT MAYBE ALL WOOD)
CREAM FOR LAZYMAN AND INSANE LUNATIC MAKES FRAGRANCE IN WAX.

DEN TOUR DAY:
ДОБРЫЙ ДЕНЬ, MY DEN! XA!
LOOK WITH YOUR BALL-EYES GIVEN BY MOTHER: DEN AND TRIPLE SHAVE AS THROUGH MY OWN EYES!

I LEARN VIDEO EDITING IN OPEN SOURCE BUT THEN BIONIC EYES RECORDED NO SOUND. JOKES AND TUTCHEV POEM LOST BUT VIDEO SHORTER. DJUDGES ARE SPARED.

I HAVE BOXED SWEDISH MORNING CABINET FOR MOVING TO LAND WITHOUT DEATH OF SUN.
LOOK AT КОШКА ARTEMIS! I DIGRESS!

GOOD LUCK WITH GAMES! ИГРАЕМ LIKE RED-HAIRED CHESS ORPHAN.

#FOF

CREAM SMELLS EXACTLY AS WRITTEN ON FLIMSY PAPER ENVELOPE: LIGHT WOOD AND CLARYSAGE, I RECALL FROM YESTERDAY'S ELEVEN WITH VIOLATE. PAPER ENVELOPE IS FOR UNKILLED HANDS THAT ARE INCAPABLE OF USING CIVILIZED SOAP TO CRUSH LIKE CAVEMAN FOR UNFATHOMED SLIME OF POSTSHAVE

WAX FRAGRANCE FROM WEB CHINESE STORE SELLING TRASH TO PEASANTS.
IT SMELLS LIKE BROWN.

2024-06-13 - Ozymandias

• Lather: Phoenix and Beau - Right-handed Giant
• Post Shave: Fabergé - Brut
• Fragrance: Murphy and McNeil - Green Man
• Razor: Bambaw Sea Green
• Brush: Yaqui Metal Timberwolf

Dupelgänger: Right-handed Giant is a dupe of Brut

Unifying Theme: Fougères, if you're boring.
Otherwise, a tale of a fallen, green, brutish giant.

Draw a Soap Label:
In past years (definitely last year, at least), there's been a complaint that players have only reproduced the existing label design for their soap. The intent, reportedly, was for players to create a new design instead.

However, because the wording of the challenge is unchanged, the only reasonable conclusion is that the intent of today's challenge reflects the prevailing interpretation, i.e. to draw the soap label as it exists rather than to design something new.
You have yourselves to blame for that, djudges.

I defy that decision! I have chosen to defy the intent of this challenge, and instead put my own twist on the design of Right-Handed Giant!

I don't know who or what the giant in question is supposed to be, but my brain is insistent—perhaps wrongly—that it's based on some mythological entity. I know that Green Man is supposed to be. I've taken the apparent despair from the original label, and tried to depict what I imagine him to be. Why the despair? Why right-handed? Here, once great, our fallen hero struggles to keep from rescinding into nothingness, the desperate fist of his right hand straining with what remains of his once-brutish strength as he slips away.

But I digress.

#FOF
Brut is nothing to write home about. Right-handed Giant, on the other hand, I think is an improvement over its predecessor. It has a layer of light top-notes hovering over a smooth, somewhat muted mossiness. What came to my mind is if you took Stirling's Varen and turned down the saturation dial. I like it quite a lot.
Brut is, again, nothing exceptional, and I felt unfortunate that it followed the more-pleasing Giant.
The green of Green Man leans more toward the lighter notes than the grassy core, but only slightly. Even so, the departure makes me think that this shave progressed backwards, getting further away from the part of the fougères that I appreciate most.

#photocontest Eyes
Even the giant is kind of horrified at the others.

Player gives great background on his re-interpretation of the Right Handed Giant Label

2024-06-14 - Stack 'Em to the Heavens!

• Lather: Summer Break Soaps - Rope Swing
• Post Shave: Stirling Soap Co. - Island Man (Glacial)
• Fragrance: Bath & Body Works - Mountain Frost
• Razor: Phantom Blue Slant
• Brush: Summer Break Soaps

Frigid Friday: Rope Swing features the synthetic cooling ingredient WS-23.

Unifying Theme: Coldth.
You know, like slow + -th → sloth, warm + -th → warmth, and cold + -th → coldth
Rope Swing has WS-23, Island Man has menthol, and Mountain Frost has 'frost' right in the name!

Bonus: Everything is in the same neighborhood of blue, transitioning smoothly from Kyle's vaguely green pen to the deep blue purple of his brush.

#photocontest Water

I think this is what was intended from the description:

[...] the Platonic solid associated with water is the icosahedron which is formed from twenty equilateral trianges.

Stacking Day: I can write a song called "Stack 'Em to the Heavens!"

Nothing is flat. The tiny, ancient tube of rubber cement that I found has long since dried out.
Twice times, those glass bottles fell from horrific heights onto the hard concrete floor below.
How many people have literally destroyed stuff by attempting this?

Okay, the razor handle and soap container are mostly flat; I can take advantage of that. Not bad.

The (fuller) bottle is heavier, though, making it more top-heavy, but I can take it one step further.

#FOF
Rope Swing never fails to surprise me with how nice it is. It's grassy and woody, with whatever other elements purport to make something aqautic, which is such a vaguely-defined mystery that I've begun to question whether the perfumers themselves have any idea until they find one in their cauldron. But I digress.

This glacial Island Man aftershave made my eyes burn, which doesn't tend to happen, but not before delivering the absolute fruitiness that is its scent. I can appreciate this a lot more than other fruity flavors, but I just don't care for fruit. I can see it being fitting for a warm—not hot—day... The problem is, that that only ever happens once or twice in the heart of winter, when there are more appropriate scents.

Mountain Frost might just be my absolute favorite scent ever, but it doesn't exist anymore and I couldn't tell you what it smells like (seems like maybe it's aquatic) other than what it says on the ~~tin~~ bottle, i.e. mountain frost.

2024-06-15 - One must imagine their lather wet

• Lather: Mickey Lee Soapworks - Grand Havana
• Post Shave: Summer Break Soaps - Valedictorian
• Fragrance: House of Mammoth - Tobacconist
• Razor: Rockwell 6S #ADJUSTABLE
• Brush: Yaqi Metal Timberwolf

Unifying Theme: Tobacco

Near Death Experience: Who else spent their May working down a tub so that they would have something clear and indisputable for today's theme? Who else did that with unobtanium?!
Soap is meant to be used, and just about all of my soap is nearly full. Grand Havana is one of my oldest, though, so it may have already been the right soap for today, I still thought I'd make sure it was unambiguous.

Water Day: What better way to appreciate said unobtanium than by depriving it of its effective function?

It's like they used to say 'round here: "If your lather ain't nearly drippin`, then maybe you should add more water to it, but be mindful that water quality isn't the same everywhere and that that necessarily affects qualities and consistency of the lather."

#FOF
I feel like Grand Havana might be more on the floral side of tobaccos. Honestly, it's not my favorite, and I hesitate to say whether it would be in my top 10 of tobacco scents, not to say I've ranked them. Meanwhile, Valedictorian may be in the top 5. It's not pure tobacco, but the tobacco is indeed the star. There's almost a sweetness to it that makes me think it's what Kaw's Merchant of Tobacco could only hope to be, but then the tobacco comes back reminding me that that's what this scent is all about.

Tobacconist is, of course, number 1, nearly perfect with its nearly pure humidor experience.

#photocontest Earth
I imagine some people have already used random ground-stones from the wilds. I won't, because the air outside is made of death, and I have no desire for an encounter with death. I happened to already have these perfectly round stones, not entirely unlike that which we see here pushed up the hill by Happy Sisyphus.

This is actually relevant to today. Many of us are already familiar with Sisyphus and his eternal torment of pushing a boulder up a hill, only for it to roll back down again, rinse/repeat (it's not unlike the very process of shaving).

Only slightly fewer of us, especially on reddit, may be familiar with Albert Camus' take on the meaningless toil of Sisyphus, positing that "one must imagine Sisyphus happy."

Fewer still, I suspect, are aware of how he wound up with this tidily applicable punishment:
He imprisoned Death.

Death showed up to take Sispyphus away in chains, but Sisyphus was like, "Man, those lousy chains sure suck donkey dick," but Death put them on himself to prove him wrong like, "No, see, even I can't get out of these chains; they're pretty sweet." So Sispyhus kicked Death into his basement and Death couldn't escape because chains.

With Death trapped, no one could die, and everyone lived ~~happily ever after~~ literally forever.
The End

2024-06-16 - Smooth

• Lather: Maurer & Wirtz - Tabac (1845)
• Post Shave: Lucky Tiger - Aspen (1935)
• Fragrance: Creed - Aventus (1760!)
• Razor: Gilette Tech (1964, this razor)
• Brush: West Coast Shaving Two Tone (meh)

Unifying Theme: Older than me, and you can bet I was born after 1935.

Leg Day: Some of you guys are really opposed to this prospect. What kind of misogynistic, toxically-masculine ideas did your fathers instill into you?

Whatever. Leg-shaving is awesome and I don't know why it's been 11 months since I last did it. At least it makes the super airy feeling feel more exceptional. I very well may go back over them tomorrow, because I did not get as close as I would have liked.

(E: In my zeal, I overlooked the before/after part of the challenge, but it is—strictly speaking—in the video, even if it's not very clear. It went well, though I was reminded that that little ledge, being against the shower wall, is quite restrictive when doing the left leg. It occurs to me I would do well to stretch more; I figure I'd be a bit more flexible if I did this regularly.)

I think there's really something to using longer-handled razors for leg-shaves. Last year, I chose my longest one, because it's often said that that's useful. Today, I went with the Tech because of the day's theme even though it's shorter, plus I thought the Tech head would be mild enough, considering that I have a Travel Tech reserved for shaving the, uh... But I digress. Yeah, a longer handle would probably have been good.

#FOF
The biggest problem I had with today's shave was with the fact that my nose was full of Tabac the whole time. I thought I was going to choke to death on powder. Lucky Tiger leans pretty heavily into powderiness, too, and of course I used a fair amount of that in order to get coverage.
You'd think that Creed would offer some relief, but I've come to determine that I do not care for Aventus, to the point that I'm kind of baffled that it has the reputation that it does. It's just so damn fruity, but still doesn't overcome the diaper-bag stench of Tabac.

2024-06-17 - Vegan

• Lather: Catie's Bubbles - Irish Coffee
• Post Shave: Epsilon - Scottish Spirit
• Fragrance: American Crew - American Crew
• Razor: Weishi Butterfly
• Brush: West Coast Shaving - Two-Tone

Vegan Day: Hey, neato, I'm using today's sponsor! Have I ever done that before? Probably!

Unifying Theme: National Nouns

Knee-Lather Day: I have done the knee-lather thing once. Today, I shaved my face while using a suribachi bowl.

I didn't opt out of the challenge, mind you. No, I'm following it to the letter, because anyone and everyone who completed yesterday's challenge is a leg-shaver, and therefore should lather on their shoulder today. I didn't write the rules, guys.

Even so, I did give my legs another pass. I learned that there's much more to be learned than you can even become aware needs to be learned if you only do an annual leg-shave. I might have also learned that my legs don't like Feathers, but that would need further testing.

I'm not sure how long I'll keep this up, but that's not to suggest I'm going to just give up. I will say, though, that if I were intent on keeping my legs bare, I would look into permanent laser hair removal. Kind of like how I'm looking into having someone shoot lasers into my eyeballs. A notable difference there is that I'll still have the option of putting metal frames on my face, but who among regular-leg-shavers would want to maintain the option of hairy legs?

But I digress. Post-leg-shave shoulder.

#FOF Irish Coffee has gotten a lot of use over the Games, thanks to beverage and/or explicitly-coffee-focused days. It does smell like coffee (arguably more so than others), and the whisk(e)y element imparts a sweetness that reminds me—this morning, anyway, as I'm not sure I've has this thought before—of Stirling's Iced Coffee. Even so, it blends seamlessly into Scottish Spirit, which I have previously only experienced in the presence of General Tso.

American Crew is pretty unremarkable. Fragrantica says it has prominent "aromatic" notes. Oh, good. Much like I like my food to taste like "flavor" and my music to be "auditory!" I'm sure it has a specific meaning in this context, but c'mon, people.

2024-06-18 - RIP

• Lather: Dr. Jon's - Black Label
• Post Shave: Barrister and Mann - Hallows
• Fragrance: Guy Laroche - Drakkar Noir
• Razor: West Coast Shaving - Midnight 78B
• Brush: Maggard Razors - Synthetic Tuxedo

RIP in Pieces:
I hadn't fully decided on what to use today, but Dr. Jon's took it. Not much more than a year ago, Dr. Jon's was apparently killed by Volvo. Volvo please fix.

Unifying Theme: Black Labels
What do we have here? Hmm... Black Label has vaguely yellow lettering, an aesthetic that would make it perfect for tomorrow... but it's also literally called "Black Label."

So, too, do Hallows and Drakkar Noir. Plus, the latter is literally called "Noir." The skull of Hallows is appropriate to the day's theme, too. Finally, a black brush and a black razor called "Midnight."

# photocontest Darkness
Because black.

# FOF
I affirm that winging it is a pretty good way of putting these things together.

I knew that Black Label is a tobacco scent, possibly of the floral variety, but definitely with some added fruitiness (strawberry, if memory serves) that may give it the impression of being the floral kind of tobacco.

I hadn't anticipated that the dark, mossy character of Hallows would be such an excellent complement to Black Label. I also didn't consider that the "fern" notes of Drakkar Noir, being a fougère, would transition so well from the oakmoss and vetiver of Hallows, while rounding back to the lightness of Black Label.

Wicked Edge:
This challenge needs to be retired. You can acheive whatever it is you're going for here with a private room, a closed door, and a sock.

In the spirit of celebrating r/wicked_edge instead of mocking them, I put up a PIF especially for our new Games players who came to this sub from r/wicked_edge.

I was one such player a few years ago, for an iteration of the Games that was overflowing with exclusion. After seeing that, I honestly don't know what compelled me to come back the following year, but I think it had something to do with the judges acknowledging that past negativity and making an earnest effort to correct it.

But I digress.

Player sums up this Judge's feelings about Wicked Edge Day.

2024-06-19 - Juneteenth

• Lather: Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! Black Label
• Post Shave: Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! Black Label
• Fragrance: Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! Black Label
• Razor: Gillette - Old Type
• Brush: Maggard Razors - Synthetic Tuxedo

Juneteenth: Oh!

Unifying Theme: Triumvirate.

# photocontest Time
Black Watch and a black watch. Wildly clever, I know.

Meme Day:
Nobody actually likes these memes, do they? Do any of you?

It's a bit like hiking; everyone claims to love it and, "OMG I love hiking and being outside in nature and the outdoors and my head's just going to float off into the sky like a balloon!"

And then they go outside, and then find that that's where the sun is, and then they slowly scrape themselves across the rocks, desperately clinging to life until they're just carrion.

But I digress.

I literally wrote that before noticing tomorrow's challenge. Side note: I don't remember who it was who used that video before, but I totally copied you. If that's not in the spirit of Meme Day, I don't know what is.

Anyway, taking a r/trippinthroughtime spin on things, check out this thing I spent an inordinate amount of time on.

This was the first version, but it's hard to get worse because meme.

# FOF
Black Watch is a pretty good scent. The trouble is that my mind can't get past the "plum." I can but wonder what a world with 3 Scots would be like, because that evidently was another version of what wound up becoming Black Watch.

2024-06-20 - High and Low

• Lather: Talent Soap Factory - Abyss
• Post Shave: Moon Shaving - Astoria
• Fragrance: Imaginary Authors - Every Storm a Serenade
• Razor: Gillette - Travel Tech
• Brush: Maggard Razors - Synthetic Tuxedo

Sunny Days

Unifying Theme: Aquatics

#photocontest Bucket
You can't say that photo doesn't feature a bucket.

Old_Hiker Day: This whole thing is relevant, I promise.

The first part is about work and about taking control of one's direction in life. I concede, in advance, that the course of action that I'm taking is a luxury that isn't available to everyone.

At this juncture, I want to just reference a couple things, but only by vaguely pointing at them, otherwise it'll become a whole drawn-out thing, and no one wants that:

1. Albert Camus' famous "One must imagine Sisyphus happy," which I also mentioned a bit the other day.

2. Friederich Nietzsche's Will to Power. Despite his reputation, Nietzsche was hugely optimistic, as was his philosophy. He advocated taking control of one's own life: casting aside one's burdenful existence, baring your claws, defeating what prevents you from being you, finally becoming free to play! That's what Zarathustra said, anyway.

Anyone? No? Alright, I digress.

Those are lofty ideas, certainly easier said than done—not the least because pursuing such things is frankly a luxury that not everyone has.

Later today, I'm going to be on the phone with my past employer, reinstating remote access for me because I'm going to continue doing a small amount of work for them on a contractual basis, just to fill some of my off-hours. It was an enjoyable job. I liked it—for the most part. It was nonetheless constraining such that it limited my options for growth.

Earlier this year, I became aware of an online graduate program at my alma mater, one that unites my past graduate career in Linguistics with the programmy path that I later found myself on. I got it into my head that I would apply/enroll in the program, quit my job so that I can unilaterally focus on school, and get the fuck out of this bullshit hellscape of a climate I live in.

I wasn't happy with the direction—or lack thereof—that my life had, so I chose to take control and change it.

As for the goal of freeing myself from barren wasteland that exists in an impossible location inches from the surface of the sun: I postponed that part. I decided that relocating right now would require a lot of mental energy that I need to reserve.

Anyway, I resolved even before the Games even started that I would not shave under the impossible sun of this climate.

So I didn't.
I headed upwards by some thousands of feet: Saguaros to pines.

#FOF
Check out this horribly unflattering—but not altogether long—clip of my ramblings. I did that because I knew I wasn't going to remember anything that I had been muttering to myself. Talking to a camera for the sake of a recording feels wildly unnatural, by the way.

Some of us are a little bit more bold than to censor our own faces, u/Priusaurus. I don't blame you; I'd be embarrassed if I were you, too. 😜

What I didn't mention is that Abyss is easily my favorite scent now. It starts cucumber-heavy, which is beautiful and which yields to rich watery notes once the cucumber mellows out. What's Aaron's u/? That dude needs to keep making this scent forever. On top of that, it lathers like a dream. Why is there no Abyss aftershave?!

I almost want to empty my den and keep nothing but Abyss and Every Storm a Serenade.

Almost.

Edit: He said it's pretty much retired now, so I straight up panic-bought some more. Grab it while you can! If there's none left, tell him you want more!

2024-06-21 - Anapestic Trimeter

• Lather: Wholly Kaw - Fougère Bouquet
• Post Shave: Stirling Soap Co. - Varen
• Fragrance: Stirling Soap Co. - Varen
• Razor: Wolfman Razors - Guerrilla
• Brush: Yaqi Metal Timberwolf

Unifying Theme: Fougères

Limerick (u/Enndeegee) Day:

Those initials foretell so much malice.
Is he excessively raising a chalice?
Be that as it may,
You see what's at stake:
It's to compensate for a wee phallus.

Would I say all these things, but in prose?
No, I wouldn't, but really, who knows?
Don't take heed in these words;
Consider them turds!
It's all I could think to compose.

I don't know how to write one of these.
And I wouldn't, if I did what I please.
Priusaurus may win
And I say, "Let him!"
Because he's spending the Games on his knees. 👀
^^u/Priusaurus

In these poems I can't take any pride;
I know that they seem rather snide.
I can't help but be sad;
The Games drive players mad!
And the dino's been broken by pride.

Truth be told, I don't know what he's done.
Something 'bout mowing? A thing with a bun?
The djudges aren't bosses,
So just cut your losses;
No one cares if you're not number one.

Just in case this is something you don't know
And I say this to all, plus the dino:
Relinquish the Games—
It's not worth the pains—
And let the victor be u/ginopono

#FOF
Feats of Fragrance, I've failed you this year.
'Cause I fucked the tag's format, I fear.
But it's all for the best
And I say this in jest:
I've no praise I can say for fougères.

That's not how you pronounce fougères.
Yeah, I know; just get out of my hair.
An approximate rhyme
When words don't fall in line?
Whatever; That's totally fair.

#photocontest Humor
I can joke when it's all on the fly.
But a humourous photo? Why try?
So I took a webcomic
Lest I seem catatonic—
Except puns make me just want to die.

I might hope that I've not made a mess
I wish you, one and all, great success!
Good luck in the Games
Reject any shame
I'll stop there, though, because I digress.

Epic limmericking

Epic limmericking

2024-06-22 - Sound and Light

• Lather: Declaration Grooming - Son et Lumière
• Post Shave: Declaration Grooming - Son et Lumière
• Fragrance: Declaration Grooming - Son et Lumière
• Razor: Wolfman Razors - Guerrilla
• Brush: Yaqi Metal Timberwolf

Spooky Season: Many autumn-themed scents don't do much for me, so I was pleased as pepperspray when I saw the description for this scent:

[...] Son et Lumiere is a drizzly autumn walk through a (clean) city.

Unifying Theme: Doin' the triple

Halloween:
I expect a number of carved onions today, possibly with the Toyota emblem carved into them.

Alright, so there's this thing I picked up at a Goodwill a couple years ago for a Games photo. It's a pumpkin and I figure I can carve it with this razor.

I have no idea what it's made of, but it gave the razorsaw hell and it doesn't look like I should be breathing this stuff.

That slice does make it—strictly speaking—successfully carved, but I think I can do better. Before starting, I sawed off the stem in order to better clamp it down, revealing that the thing is hollow.

I wonder.... Hey, it broke!

What is that made of? I don't know how to identify fiberglass, but it doesn't seem to be outside the realm of possibility, so I'm calling that 1 legitimately-scary carved pumpkin.

#FOF
I realize I'm out of FOF now, but I just want to say that Son et Lumière is a contender for my top 5 favorite scents, among Abyss and Tobacconist. It's a rain-smell that doesn't exist (and not just because autumn doesn't exist).

Well, it's not a rain that I'm familiar with, but that's just because I associate rain-smell with creosote. It's criminal that there aren't any scents that feature creosote. But I digress.

I will add that once, when I was wearing this in the creosote-scented rain, I had the distinct impression that I exuded the unmistakable smell of wet dog.

#photocontest I don't think I'd ever encountered he name "Bokeh Balls" before, but you'd be hard-pressed to convince me you didn't have this exact label in mind when you chose to include it in the list.

User provides judge with a new understanding of what "doing the triple" is.

2024-06-23 - You'll laugh; you'll cry; you'll hurl!

• Lather: Jordan's Shaving Soap - Black Licorice
• Post Shave: Clubman Pinaud - Gent's Gin
• Fragrance: INeKE - Jaipur Chai
• Razor: Treet TTO
• Brush: Omega 11047 Mixed (43mm x 20mm) #MISTURA #SMOLL #RUNT

Sweet Sunday:
I contend that the best way, hands-down, to approach the Games is by straight-up winging it as much as is reasonable. I start nodding off when whichever stunt clearly took planning; it's the Games equivalent of a staged tik-tok.

Do something weird that you didn't have a column for on your calendar spreadsheet! That's what's organic. That's what's fun. That's what's impressive! Sure, get your calendar in order, but even then be open to making some on-the-fly choices. Take today, for instance.

I figure I'm in the minority here, but I'm reasonably confident that I'm not alone when I say that—broadly speaking—the mere words "sugary sweet gourmand" are enough to make me vomit in a profound spectacle that makes the Belaggio look like a Pomeranian's spittle.

But I digress.

Enter Jordan with his Black Licorice; now that's a confection I can get behind!

Except I had left today's aftershave slot empty like, "Meh, Future Ginopono's got that handled no problem!" Fast-forward to Future Ginopono (now Yesterday Ginopono) who was ready to concede and use Blueberry Muffin along with other items that have "Blue" in the name—not to mention the inevitable vomit. But that's when he, thanks to all the blue, noticed Gent's Gin right in the freakin' center of my cabinet like a shining, explicity-consumable-inspired beacon, inviting me to a vomit-free kitchen-shave!

Unifying Theme: Esculents
They're all non-pie things that one ingests through their corresponding pie-hole.

Oh, and Treet because "treat!"

Kitchen:
Yup, that happened.

#FOF
Oh, am I still doing this? Apparently. What's a SOTD without at least some commentary on the scents?

Black Licorice and Gent's Gin are exactly what it says on the ~~tin~~ plastic container. They're also both notoriously divisive. In years past, I was fond of sipping on a juniper bush, and today I have a refreshing glass of strongly anise-flavored beverage in front of me.

Jaipur Chai starts rough, very much on the "sweet" side of gourmand; it seems to me it would be right at home next to one of the pastry-like scents I nearly stuck myself with today.
At this stage, it strikes me as very much like its namesake (or at least the "chai"-labeled items I've been exposed to). The vanilla comes in a bit strong here. It's not altogether awful, though, because that lady definitely knows a nose.

What's this? As the tops level out, I get a strong clove scent! Fuck, yeah! Another divisive scent, but I am a fan. The vanilla remains prominent, though, then the base cream establishes its dominance.

I think it's objectively good, but I'm not a big fan of it.

#photocontest Confection
Ugh, I think I got a cavity just by laying that out.

2024-06-24 - The gift of giving

• Lather: Barrister and Mann - Behold the Whatsis!
• Post Shave: Declaration Grooming - Nightman
• Fragrance: Summer Break Soaps - Remote Learning
• Razor: Wolfman Razors - Guerrilla
• Brush: Summer Break Soaps

Unifying Theme: Xmas Eve in June

Xmas Eve in June:
The lather and aftershave both came from u/souleater7173 as part of Onion's PIF train late last year. Thank you, yet again.

The gorgeous brush is courtesy of u/rocketk455 from his Anosmiac Torture Parade a couple years ago. This is absoutely my favorite brush that I will ever own, but it's is one of those things where I ironically don't use it as much as I might because I want to avoid any kind of wear. Meanwhile, the frag kind of counts for Xmas in June because he threw that in as a bonus when we paid for the Remote Learning soap and a/s. So I'm counting it.

Finally, I won the Wolfman in last year's Games. Thanks to them for their continued sponsorship.

Exclusives Wishlist:
I think u/stirlingsoap was long ago playng with the idea of doing one for our little, uh, Community.
To be honest, I'm not sure what kind of scent it could be. but I would be giddier than a grapefruit goulash if they continued their established pattern of name choices by naming it something along the lines of:

Dreamatorium
Kickpuncher II
Nadir
The Darkest Timeline
Greendale Seven
El Tigre Chino

Rod's probably sick of me suggesting that, but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

#FOF
Speaking of grapefruit, Whatsis! is all the grapefruit your grandmother can handle. I'm a fan of actual grapefruit. As grapefruit scents go, I've tried exactly two, and I think I prefer Noble Otter's Firefighter. Whatsis! is fine.

Moving on, I think I'm the third, maybe fourth person to have this particular bottle of Nightman and the corresponding tub of soap. I haven't used it more than a couple times because I've been focusing on other tubs, but maybe I'll pass it along to someone else to try.

That's not to say I don't like it though. I wouldn't say I dislike it. I would, however, say that it smells a bit like... gasoline? Or under the hood of a car? That's not quite it... some kind of rubber or plastic, maybe. Yeah, that's it; it's like the industrial smell of some newly-manufactured, nondescript thing right after you take it out of the package. Well, when I phrase it like that, I wouldn't expect u/souleater7173 to have liked it. I suspect it mellows into its "citrus-forward" components (oh, hey, it has that in common with Whatsis!), but I didn't give it much of a chance before Remote Learning.

Boy howdy, what a scent to follow that but Remote Learning! I actually haven't figured this one out. Doritos are definitely there, but does it also have the Mountain Dew? Is it like those jars that contain both peanut butter and jelly in the same jar? Do they still have those? That's not to say that I have an interest in that stuff, but I digress. It's definitely mostly Doritos.

#photocontest Onion
Yes, that's an actual onion. Seriously.
No, not the obvious grapefruit; that's an obvious grapefruit, which was as messy as it was disappointing. No, I mean the ~~pale, round, misshapen blob~~ onion in front (I promise I was still talking about the literal onion!).

2024-06-25 - Noble Amassment of Hats

• Lather: Noble Otter - Northern Elixir
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Santa Noir
• Fragrance: House of Mammoth - Santa Noir
• Razor: Wolfman Razors - Guerrilla
• Bru​sh: Yaqi Metal Timbewolf
• Brush: Yaqi Metal Timberwolf

Unifying Theme: Xmas in June
There were multiple occasions that I almost moved Santa Noir off of this day, but I think I'da been pretty screwed, so I didn't.

Xmas in June:
Do you guys remember when it used to get even a little bit cold during the months associated with winter? Man, some of you might even be too young to remember. That's a bummer of a thought.

Bring back that cool winter air!
— Noble Otter, Northern Elixir

Hat Day: HELL YES
I have never been more excited about an LG challenge than this!

A couple Games ago, Hat Day was reportedly just a placeholder challenge that was never intended to be used because—get this—it was deemed too ridiculous. Go ahead and read that again: Too ridiculous for the Lather Games

Clearly, though, this is the best challenge ever devised, and I'm not just saying that because I have way too fucking many hats. In fact, I procured almost all of my hats in the time since LG2023. In fact in fact, 6 of those hats arrived at my house from Poland only yesterday! It's even more bonkers when you consider that nearly all of them are completely unsuitable for warm weather! The weather is always warm!

For today's challenge, I obviously had to wear one of these hats, but I knew that wouldn't cut it.

So I shaved with ~~19~~ 16 hats... simultaneously.

#FOF
My focus today was on hats, but I'll say that the mintiness of Northern Elixir isn't a bad lead-in to Santa Noir.

#photocontest DIY
Yesterday, I put up the last of some wall-mounted shelves and stuff for Artemis, so I figured why not use one of those shelves.

So many hats

So many hats

2024-06-25 - ~~Stir-Fry-Day~~ Wildcard Wednesday

First, go ahead and check the spelling for yourself here. No blushes, razers, or flagrants this time.

• L​a​t​h​e​r​: Viet Huong Three Crabs Fish Sauce
• P​o​s​t​ ​S​h​a​v​e​: Emperor - Shao Hsing Cooking Wine
• F​r​a​g​r​a​n​c​e: Kilbrin - Irish Whisky
• R​a​z​o​​r: Micromatic Open Comb (MMOC)
• B​r​u​s​h​: ~~Ikea - Tillagd Fork~~ Hand

Unifying Theme:
As before, this is inspired by one of my favorite kitchen concoctions: stir-fry. I was never comfortable with how I had the fish sauce in all three software slots in last year's fakeout, so I brought in other ingredients from my stir-fry sauce—or have used in it, anyway; the whisky I've used only once in stir-fry, though I'm not sure whether it actually did anything to the flavor.

I'm frankly opposed to the idea of shaving with bizarre, non-descript, non-lather slime, and not just because I'm not a fan of the idea of shaving with this horrible fishy ooblek. My original plan was, like last year, to mix the tapioca in to thicken it up and help it stick. Do you remember ooblek, from when you were a kid? It's a non-newtonian fluid and it doesn't stick to anything. So mixing in the tapioca was never an option. I figured the MMOC would be able to handle the paste, but that's kind of moot considering the paste isn't plausible.

Side note for Clean Brush Talk:
At least when I'm using the "brush" I intended to use, I can just throw it in the dishwasher!
When using an actual brush with actual lather, I generally just give it a thorough rinse and squeeze/shake after the shave. Very rarely, I've been known to give a brush a soak in a vinegar mixture, but I don't find it all that necessary.

A discovery I've recently made on the topic of gear-cleaning is for razors: gun-cleaning solvent is fantastic! Not CLP or Hoppe's #9, though. No, just the cleaning solvent, preferably one that's odorless. I started using Shooter Lube, and I hear Clenzoil is similar in this regard. Soap gunk gone in a flash (no pun intended)!

But I digress.

#FOF Here's what you should know about fish sauce: 1) Adding a bit of it to scrambled eggs makes them incredible; 2) it stinks. Bad. Bad enough that rubbing a bunch of it around your nose-holes will make you want to vomit. The smell does not go away. Even after a shower. For a while. I'll let you know.

The cooking wine seems like it would provide relief, but that's only in contrast to the fish sauce. It's also a horrible smell. It's just wine, after all. Cheap wine (not that that makes any difference, really).

Pile on top of that irish whiskey? I have no desire to consume the stuff, and this experience... well, it reinforces that. I guess that, when cooking, it's supposed to help bring out other flavors; I think it performed similarly for the fish stench.

So no, I'm not interested in doing any of that, and you can see how today's little experiment confirms that it's horrible all around. Plus, I promised u/tsrblke that I was only going to use actual shaving products for my LG shave today.

The djudges will find that the portal agrees that this is my actual submitted shave for today:

• Lather: Wild Magnolia - Bourbon Tobacco
• Post Shave: Henri et Victoria - Cognac & Cuban Cigars
• Fragrance: Stirling Soap Co. - Haverford
• Razor: Gillette Travel Tech
• Brush: West Coast Shaving - Two-Tone Synthetic

Unifying Theme: Tobacco Pairings
That is, they're all tobacco plus another flavor (bourbon, cognac, and vanilla, respectively).

Oh, and that's my dedicated beanbag-shaving razor, which was the very purpose it fulfilled today.

#photocontest Hobbies
I'm not really thrilled about having yet another photo like this, but the topic is relevant to my ramblings for today's challenge, plus it's my most recent buy-too-much-of-a-given-thing rabbit hole, plus I just wanted to draw more attention to my real SOTD setup.

Part of the reason I don't like bringing attention to this particular hobby, such as it is, is that it's strongly associated with a particular kind of ~~person~~ douchebag. Like, just as one example that barely scratches the surface of the tip of that iceberg, you would not ~~believe~~ be surprised at the wild misogyny that's celebrated in some of those subs. Holy shit.

User prepares fantastic WCW shave but chickens out.

Tries to distract from cowardly software choice by shaving scrotum.

Djudge puzzled by voice of scrotum as it emphasises user's complete lack of balls.

2024-06-26 - Analysis Paralysis

• Lather: Southern Witchcrafts - Valley of Ashes
• Post Shave: Stirling Soap Co. - Texas on Fire
• Fragrance: Imaginary Authors - A City on Fire
• Razor: Henson AL13 Medium
• Brush: Omega 343178 Synthetic

Unifying Theme: Combustion
I was going to use Slow Explosions, which offers a little more variety in names, but my nose doesn't care for it and City on Fire fits wildly better in terms of scent.

Information Overload:
1) Coal 2) Tar 3) Bourbon 4) Tobacco 5) Bitter Citrus 6) Smoke 7) Leather 8) Motor Oil 9) Burning Rubber 10) Diesel 11) Clove 12) Birch Tar 13) Bergamot

Leftorium Challenge: Yup. I'm suprised at how much better I am at doing this, despite only doing it once year. That said, I'm still pretty inept.

The Henson is pretty much my designated Leftorium razor; I'm not sure I could cut myself with this thing if I tried! I'm not going to try to cut myself. I'm pretty sure I could cut myself with this thing if I tried.

#FOF
The order is backwards, which means we experience the effects of the blaze in reverse order. Starting with the soft ashen aroma of Valley, why do so many people say it's bad? I find it to be very nice; it's a calm, even soft scent. Surely, there is calm after everything has been burned to ashes, no?

Texas on Fire is another that people don't seem to like. To be fair, there is a Stag-isness to it. I liken it to the tar-rich smoldering embers—when the flames have died down but the fire is very much alive in the heart of the burning wood—as we slowly move backwards in time from the ash.

City on Fire is a bit more fresh, taking us futher back to when the fire was new. There's a clear wood (which is not a play on the listed "Clearwood" note) intermingling with smoke, with enough lively notes in the background that it brings to mind a small campfire in the moments just before the destruction begins to spread...

#photocontest Fire

2024-06-28 - Cheap

• Lather: Arko - Arko
  $.0399/g
• Post Shave: Williams - Aqua Velva Ice Blue
  $0.0608/mL (beating out Brut's $$0.0655/mL)
• Fragrance: Old Spice - Swagger Body Spray
  $o.151/g (previously-established as explicitly a fragrance product)
• Razor: Alshabab Razor
  $0.15 (originally included blade)
• Brush: Qshave
  $9.99

Unifying Theme: Frugal Friday

Frugal Friday: Shit's cheap, yo.

#FOF
Urinal cake puts this as a contender for the foulest-smelling—nah, there's no competing with fish sauce. Follow the urinal cake with the absolutely cheapest-smelling aftershave and then something vaguely woodsy, and I'm smelling exactly as classy as, say, the djudge who accused me of cowardice from behind a shroud of anonymity. I'd be just giddy to learn what they think I "chickened out" on.

2024-06-29 - Sandalwood

• Lather: Haslinger - Sandelholz
• Post Shave: Stirling Soap Co. - Oud Sigma
• Fragrance: Stirling Soap Co. - Oud Sigma
• Razor: Wolfman Razors - Guerrilla
• Brush: Yaqi Metal Timberwolf

Unifying Theme: Wood

Sandalwood: That's what Sandelholz means.

Do our homework: "Do our homework" has never made sense. Why not reframe this as something like "Sportsmanship" or "Fellow Player Appreciation"? Focusing on the judges detracts from that.

Then again, the judge notes lead me to believe that at least one judge has a habit of assuming ill intent behind earnest gestures of good faith, suggesting they may need all the help they can get.

I haven't been following a lot of the activity during these Games. I know u/Priusaurus had prepared a whole list of things in advance, which may or may not have been derailed by daily challenges.

I have the impression that u/tsrblke has been doing good things, although—by my own fault, not his—I couldn't tell you what, except that he probably established himself as a contender for that "Friend of the Games" before it was even announced.

Also, a nod to u/batmanbrady: I wasn't sure what to expect, what with his account being created only just before the Games. It was cool to see him with pretty good posts, and then he unwittingly triggered a whole thing by mentioning his brother-in-law.

#FOF
I'd tried exactly one solely-sandalwood scent before this, and I didn't care for it. Sandelholz succeeds in being not only inoffensive, but classically soothing.

Oud Sigma is a scent that I bought the whole trio of solely because I was overcome with excitement by the name. As scents go, it's not bad, but its overlap with Razorock's Tuscan Oud leads me to the conclusion that I do not much care for oud.

#photocontest Pirates
I nearly forgot that I meant to break out the Jolly Rogers again before the end of the month.

2024-06-30 - Smell ya later! (or not)

• Lather: Abbate y La Mantia - Garibaldi
  Italy
• Post Shave: Oaken Lab - Earth of Mankind
  Indonesia
• Fragrance: Phoenix and Beau - Spitfire
  United Kingdom
• Razor: Wolfman Razors - Guerrilla
  Canada
• Brush: Yaqi Metal Timberwolf
  China
• u/ginopono
  United States

Unifying Theme: Tobacco.

Bon Voyage:
If you don't have any knowledge of geography, then look to my photo to see the items all arranged by their relative position on a map!

If you do have any knowledge of geography, then you'll readily see that that'd have to be one really fucked up map.