just don't stop while the blade is on the face
So if she's asleep, what's stopping you from knocking out a shave?
Your point number three in post 28 is one that I still have not learned after 34 years of marriage. Thank you for reminding me.
When you do start just start with some WTG passes on the flats of your cheek so that you get used to handling the razor, and you feel comfortable putting steel to face. You are wise to not start when you are rushed. Set aside a weekend to get started, then by Monday you might feel comfortable with only the WTG pass on the work week mornings. The next weekend start adding technique to be applied during the work week. You will be surprised that after a couple of weeks, you will have incorporated a full face shave going in a couple of directions.
Congrats on going through with it and having a successful shave. When I first started the shave was much tougher (more resistance) than my DE shaves (even r41 steep angle shaves). That will improve with time and experience as you begin to learn correct angles and pressure. One of the fun thing about straights for me & many others is the long learning curve when it come to the skill. Around the start of my journey ( I think around shave 8--it was right after I achieved my first Straight only BBS) I tried a SE razor from a pass around box (a GEM iirc). The shave was so smooth (so little resistance) I was blown away and it was a very close shave. But I continued on with the straight. Over time (somewhere around shave #30-40) I've had comparable shaves in terms of smoothness, but also much closer shaves and much better skin feel than hat I had with the GEM and these are becoming a regular thing. The few times I've gone back to my r41 I've found my skill with that razor has grown immessurably as well as a result of what I've learned with the straight.
My point of all this is if you enjoy the challenge of learning the skill, stick with it. Shaving with a straight isn't just about getting a blood free shave. It is learning and enjoying a skill (multiple skills actually once you start to take blade maintenance skills into consideration). You will get to a point where you are getting reliably close, comfortable, smooth shaves regularly and it will supersede DE and SE shaves. But if you don't enjoy taking the time & learning the skills, but just want a reliable close, comfortable shave there is no shame in sticking with the DE or some other tool. In the end they are all just tools that cut the hair off our faces (or our wive's backs j/k).
Hook, line, and sinker! Caught another one!!