Getting back in the swing of things
Right, so.
Quite a bit has happened in the last few months, and I'd be lying if it hadn't knocked me off kilter a bit. Some major events happened and I haven't really properly given myself a break and it's just been flat out.
One of the ways that I'm able to tell how I'm going is that on occasion I will shave with an old style "safety razor". It's the type which is just a single blade (I also have a cut throat razor, but I'm much more prone to cutting my face with that one than the safety one, which I still often nick myself a little with). Normally I'll shave with a cartridge razor, it's quick, I don't cut myself and I don't usually miss anything. The safety razor though is still my preferred method, it just takes significantly longer. I'm not sure what it is about it, maybe it's just the fact that it is just a thin piece of metal which if I don't treat with respect I could potentially be feeling it for days. I don't strop or sharpen the blade or anything, so I'm not really at risk of cutting down to bone (which is apparently a really easy thing to do when you go old school), but cuts are definitely felt for some time after.
Anyway, back on track, when I'm not doing well, or giving myself enough time etc. I've noticed that I tend to shave less often and come out quite a bit scruffier, but in times where it's extended neglect, I don't do this little ritual of using the safety razor and I just shave using the cartridge to keep myself looking presentable.
Today is the first time I've used my safety since about February, and I'm already feeling a bit more at ease than I have for the past few weeks in particular. It's strange in a way, part of the reason I did it is because everything going on at the moment was kind of stressing me out, I'm not usually one to feel stressed, I'll solider though more or less anything that's thrown my way, but with COVID19, a bit of a heavy workload at work, and then the protests/riots in America, it's just a lot. But taking this moment just to cut the hair on my face with what can amount to a glorified knife, just sort of relaxed me in a way I wasn't expecting.
And just speaking about this has reminded me of this book my father told me about once, and now I need to see if I'm able to actually find it, now that it's like 15 years later and I know how to use the internet properly.