Thoughts on the untimely death and quiet resurgence of manly rituals

[Domminigan]

When I was very young my Granddad told me something to the effect of
"All the improvements and technology advancements we make in life are just so we can pack more things in to our time we have. There will never be enough time for everything we want to do, no matter how fast we can do each thing. If you do something too fast, you miss out on feeling it. That's fine for some things, but not for others. Don't cheapen your life by skipping what you like to do."

Mom is fairly sure he was talking about me reading books too quickly.
It took quite a time for me to get it. I was probably 12 when I read a quote from someone, I think in the 1700's who noted that people were in such a greater hurry than they were when he was young. that stuck to me and I recalled what my Granddad had said. He had since passed but what he said really changed how I did things.

 

[Reevers]

Bump for 2018 and anyone who hasn’t stumbled across this thread before.

 

[gwsmallwood]

Not sure if I'd seen this one before, but definitely true, and something good for all of us to consider as we move into the new year.

 

[Hannah's Dad]

a few weeks ago, i found myself in the position of trying to explain my newfound interest in traditional wet shaving to a friend of mine. he's a thoroughly modern fellow and he uses modern shaving tools because, well...it's what modern guys do.

as i described the process to him, the paraphernalia, the pleasure, the advantages....one item provoked the strongest reaction. he was dismayed and appalled that i took 20 minutes to shave in the morning and that's really when it hit me. when you look at the rise of technology and the death of manly rituals, inevitably the clock is to blame. we have sacrificed a whole host of pleasures on the altar of time and we are ultimately the poorer for it.

the pipe gives way to the cigarette. the ocean liner gives way to the airplane. the restaurant becomes the drive-through and the conversation becomes the text message...and all because we, as men, continue to believe that if we could just save a bit more time in our day we'd be able to really get to the things we wanted to do. ironically, in the pursuit of having enough time to do what we want we are forced to dilute or discard the very things we wanted in the first place...and so our vitality dwindles away with every tick of the relentless clock.

perhaps that is why in some sense we're all here at B&B. we want to recapture a forgotten pleasure. we want to revel in the luxury of choosing what we do with our morning routine and most of all, we want to remember the simple joy of not taking the quickest or most expedient road, but the sweet meandering path of our own curiosity.

this weekend as i was rushing through a morning shave i thought about all of this. i took a breath, and remembered that there was nothing on the agenda that couldn't wait just a few minutes more. in the moment of that realization, i became once again the master of the clock instead of its servant and my little daily ritual took on an added sweetness that hadn't been there just a moment before.

i wish for everyone here a similar moment of timeless indulgence. in the day to day flow of obligation and expectation, i encourage you to find a moment to ignore the demands of the clock and take pleasure in this mutual interest we all share. gentlemen, i wish for you all a truly excellent shave.

I am not too proud (or manly) to admit that this brought a tear or two to my eyes. Bravo.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

Some things are worth spending time on. Some things aren't.

I'd rather chuck my laundry in an automatic washing machine and walk off and do something else, than break sweat hand washing. Yet I'd rather tie my own bow tie, than wear a clip on, and my shoes will have been proudly polished by hand.

I'd rather go online to find something out than wade through a library or spend ages trying to find someone who knows in real life, but if I read a novel it's got to be a proper paper book, not some electronic device.

I'd rather write a novel on a word processor, than with pen and ink.

Sometimes I'd rather have a pipe, sometimes a cigarette, and sometimes a pinch of snuff.

I'd rather lather with brush and soap and shave with a traditional razor, but don't want to be stuck with the care and maintenance that straights call for on a daily
basis - even though I do want to restore one and learn to use it. Occasionally is enough for me.

There are things that I am happy to allow to drift into the annuls of history without mourning, but other things that I am proud to say I do, despite them having been shunned by the masses in the sake of ease and convenience.

 

[CCS]

This thread was just linked in another topic and boy, does this deserve a necro bump. The OP made some wonderful points and the notion of shaving being a manly ritual sits very well with my own views but heretofore unrealized as to what shaving is to me. Not a hobby but a daily ritual (which I've been doing for over 50 years).

 

[KenM]

Thanks for bumping it. The OP pretty much sums it up. Strangely, something that popped into my head as I read it was that I need to start taking an afternoon walk. We have some really nice walking paths nearby, maybe wearing a nice Irish hat and sporting a stylish cane .

 

[ctr]

Mostly the slower pace of things, the simplicity of it, and the quality. These are to be cherished.

 

[tjsgarden]

Be sure and read post #1!

 

[AimlessWanderer]

Some things are worth spending time on. Some things aren't.

I'd rather chuck my laundry in an automatic washing machine and walk off and do something else, than break sweat hand washing. Yet I'd rather tie my own bow tie, than wear a clip on, and my shoes will have been proudly polished by hand.

I'd rather go online to find something out than wade through a library or spend ages trying to find someone who knows in real life, but if I read a novel it's got to be a proper paper book, not some electronic device.

I'd rather write a novel on a word processor, than with pen and ink.

Sometimes I'd rather have a pipe, sometimes a cigarette, and sometimes a pinch of snuff.

I'd rather lather with brush and soap and shave with a traditional razor, but don't want to be stuck with the care and maintenance that straights call for on a daily
basis - even though I do want to restore one and learn to use it. Occasionally is enough for me.

There are things that I am happy to allow to drift into the annuls of history without mourning, but other things that I am proud to say I do, despite them having been shunned by the masses in the sake of ease and convenience.

I was surprised to see this thread pop up, as I didn't remember posting in it. Nearly five years later, my opinions remain exactly the same... and I did try using a straight, then promptly went back to the convenience and ease of double edge razors.

 

[CCS]

Be sure and read post #1!

That was my point in pulling this thread out of the ashes of B&B history. His post was terrific and made me realize what shaving actually is to me.

 

[GoodOutcome]

Read through the thread. There is much wisdom to be had here.

 

[J Schultz]

It's more true now than it was in 2008 when the thread was started. Great things to ponder here.

 

[euro]

Eloquently said, man!

You are absolutely right about "shortcuts" made to everyday things as well as the Death of Manly Rituals.

Last week I was in Charleston, SC for a wedding and a couple of friends of mine (A male and a female) were in my hotel room hangin' out. Well, I decided to pull out some clothes and proceeded to iron them and my two friends were looking at me like I was crazy!
They said,"Don't you send yer stuff to the dry cleaners?!?!". I told them that I iron my clothes myself and that I actually enjoy it. "A zen thing", I told'em.
I gave them a quick lesson (I am 38 and they are both in thier late 20's) on the satisfaction of not only doing something for yourself, but The Lost Art of Manliness.
My guy buddy laughed and scoffed, but my female friend understood and said that many of the guys she has dated were shortcutters and wished guys didn't always take the quick route.
Actually, she was pretty impressed! Especially when I pulled out my '59 Fatboy!

It's good to know that we here at the Badger and Blade are keeping the torch lit.

It's even worse when I see some dude acting macho (mostly security guards) while his shirt or slacks are completely messed up because he didn't iron them. If your iron has a steam function you can better use the steam to "iron" them. Just keep the iron like 2 cm above the fabric and push the steam button less chance of damaging the fabric plus it's much easier especially when you're trying to iron the sleeves of a shirt.

Nowadays there are lots of people that enjoy traffic jams when they go to work in the morning. They have a little peace and quiet in their car. Makes sense, they hurry their shave, their breakfast and other manly rituals, but we still need our rest.

Usually those are the married guys. I have married friends who have kids they're always busy and tired, they never have time for something else. I don't have any kids but I really can't understand how kids can take so much time as if you have to keep an eye on your kid 24/7. My best friend has 2 young boys, they're annoying as f. Loud, fight all the time, don't want to sleep etc. He doesn't discipline them nor does his wife. He gets really emotional when someone tells him that he needs to discipline his kids. If I tried any of that crap with my parents, especially my dad heh I would get slapped.

I really believe that people got so freaking lazy, seriously ordering your groceries online from the store that's 4 streets around the corner...