Intriguing Iain. That has livened me up up on a dark Tuesday morning. Bravo!Sotd - Saturday the 13th and today - the 15th of October -
Razor - Megress - (1.5)
blade - Aussie Spoiler - (9 and 10)
brush - Simpsons Chubby One best
soap - Salters Lavender tallow hard soap
post - witch hazel
a/s - Quorum
balm - Barts Lavender lotion
scent - Quorum edt.
Result - great - so good I did it twice.
A first for me I think - identical set up - for two shaves. Everything just worked so goddam well together. A big thank you to @Paul L - I think it was you? - sorry if it was someone else - for the heads up on the Quorum gift set of the aftershave and edt - for a very reasonable £14.99 in Savers. It is funny they didn't have any in ECI earlier this year in Spain - where the bloody stuff is made - but my other half found the last remaining one for me in the benighted town of Wishaw in North Lanarkshire. Nothing leaves there - not even darkness. Go figure. I love them - well seventies - scent and packaging - I can almost hear the Sweeney theme tune as I apply them - the desire to buy a sheepskin jacket - grow a comb-over - okay - it isn't Creed or Dior - but at the price it doesn't have to be - a nice clean - fresh linen - antiseptic - English - sort of lavender. Fair enough - the sillage is limited - and it is pretty ephemeral - but who cares - it is nice to wear for me. The Salters tallow lavender is well up there in the best value - and performing soaps - in my opinion. Give it a go. The Spoilers march on. Great shaves - enjoy yours one and all - have a good week gentlemen. Yours - I.
Oh - 'The Case of the Poisoned Priest' - part the first -
Baker Street - 1891 -
Watson is shaving - a moment of quiet contemplation - any man might reasonably expect - but - even at his ablutions - he cannot ignore - Wagner's 'Gotterdammerung' - being played manically by his companion in the adjoining room - starting in the middle of the night - on an violin - of Cremona origin. He hadn't even reached the end of the first act yet. Trying for the stoutest of hearts.
‘Dear God - why did I move back into this madhouse?' - he asks his reflection.
Resuming to his lodging with the world's most eminent consulting detective - but six weeks after burying his beloved Mary - not being able to brook - the now empty - silent - domestic spaces they shared during a happy marriage.
Suddenly Holmes stops his demented scraping - blissful silence. The bathroom door crashes open behind the doctor -
‘Watson - Watson - ha ha - we have been summoned! The end of the dry season - I had almost lost faith in the malevolence of our fellow men - ha ha - dress quickly my friend - I shall do likewise - we must away - there is a telegram on the table - read it. Breakfast will be taken later.'
It read - ‘Holmes - come soonest - a foul deed on hallowed ground. Help required. Westminster Cathedral. Insp. Athelney Jones.'
No matter how grisly this might be - a welcome relief from Wagner.
A shaft of light illuminates the high altar - two uniformed officers and Jones are looking over the body between them.
‘Inspector - I received your missive - with great delight - what - who - do we have?'
A heavily corpulent man is slumped forward - face down - his richly ornamented robes indicate his calling instantly - the crossed keys of St Peter - detailed in gold brocade - his rank.
‘Until this morning - he was discovered about eight thirty - Holmes - the Papal legate - the apostolic nuncio to the Court of St James - otherwise - Monsignor Alejandro Arroyo y Lopez - as was.'
‘Felled my dear Athelney - in the posture of prayer - how fitting a way to meet your maker? Ha ha. May we turn him over - to see what more we can learn? Lend a hand.'
Four of them struggle to manoeuvre the dead weight - when achieved - the priest's face is picked out by the god beam - gasps from the constables. A terrible countenance - caught in a final silent scream. Lips and protruding tongue - stained purple. Almost his last act was to cry - tears of blood - now congealed on the cheeks. A sheet of fine hand-woven paper is pinned to the front of his cassock - G.P.L.E.A.I.S - printed in a delicate cursive script.
‘First impression doctor?'
‘Poisoned - I would say.'
‘I concur - Inspector - I shall report to you in 36 hours - good day gentlemen. Come Watson. We have seen all we can see here.'
A horse drawn cab - returning to Baker Street -
‘Holmes - who is the murderer? You are onto something - what was his motive?'
‘Not him Watson - her.'
To be continued.
Sotd - Saturday the 13th and today - the 15th of October -
Razor - Megress - (1.5)
blade - Aussie Spoiler - (9 and 10)
brush - Simpsons Chubby One best
soap - Salters Lavender tallow hard soap
post - witch hazel
a/s - Quorum
balm - Barts Lavender lotion
scent - Quorum edt.
Result - great - so good I did it twice.
A first for me I think - identical set up - for two shaves. Everything just worked so goddam well together. A big thank you to @Paul L - I think it was you? - sorry if it was someone else - for the heads up on the Quorum gift set of the aftershave and edt - for a very reasonable £14.99 in Savers. It is funny they didn't have any in ECI earlier this year in Spain - where the bloody stuff is made - but my other half found the last remaining one for me in the benighted town of Wishaw in North Lanarkshire. Nothing leaves there - not even darkness. Go figure. I love them - well seventies - scent and packaging - I can almost hear the Sweeney theme tune as I apply them - the desire to buy a sheepskin jacket - grow a comb-over - okay - it isn't Creed or Dior - but at the price it doesn't have to be - a nice clean - fresh linen - antiseptic - English - sort of lavender. Fair enough - the sillage is limited - and it is pretty ephemeral - but who cares - it is nice to wear for me. The Salters tallow lavender is well up there in the best value - and performing soaps - in my opinion. Give it a go. The Spoilers march on. Great shaves - enjoy yours one and all - have a good week gentlemen. Yours - I.
Oh - 'The Case of the Poisoned Priest' - part the first -
Baker Street - 1891 -
Watson is shaving - a moment of quiet contemplation - any man might reasonably expect - but - even at his ablutions - he cannot ignore - Wagner's 'Gotterdammerung' - being played manically by his companion in the adjoining room - starting in the middle of the night - on an violin - of Cremona origin. He hadn't even reached the end of the first act yet. Trying for the stoutest of hearts.
‘Dear God - why did I move back into this madhouse?' - he asks his reflection.
Resuming to his lodging with the world's most eminent consulting detective - but six weeks after burying his beloved Mary - not being able to brook - the now empty - silent - domestic spaces they shared during a happy marriage.
Suddenly Holmes stops his demented scraping - blissful silence. The bathroom door crashes open behind the doctor -
‘Watson - Watson - ha ha - we have been summoned! The end of the dry season - I had almost lost faith in the malevolence of our fellow men - ha ha - dress quickly my friend - I shall do likewise - we must away - there is a telegram on the table - read it. Breakfast will be taken later.'
It read - ‘Holmes - come soonest - a foul deed on hallowed ground. Help required. Westminster Cathedral. Insp. Athelney Jones.'
No matter how grisly this might be - a welcome relief from Wagner.
A shaft of light illuminates the high altar - two uniformed officers and Jones are looking over the body between them.
‘Inspector - I received your missive - with great delight - what - who - do we have?'
A heavily corpulent man is slumped forward - face down - his richly ornamented robes indicate his calling instantly - the crossed keys of St Peter - detailed in gold brocade - his rank.
‘Until this morning - he was discovered about eight thirty - Holmes - the Papal legate - the apostolic nuncio to the Court of St James - otherwise - Monsignor Alejandro Arroyo y Lopez - as was.'
‘Felled my dear Athelney - in the posture of prayer - how fitting a way to meet your maker? Ha ha. May we turn him over - to see what more we can learn? Lend a hand.'
Four of them struggle to manoeuvre the dead weight - when achieved - the priest's face is picked out by the god beam - gasps from the constables. A terrible countenance - caught in a final silent scream. Lips and protruding tongue - stained purple. Almost his last act was to cry - tears of blood - now congealed on the cheeks. A sheet of fine hand-woven paper is pinned to the front of his cassock - G.P.L.E.A.I.S - printed in a delicate cursive script.
‘First impression doctor?'
‘Poisoned - I would say.'
‘I concur - Inspector - I shall report to you in 36 hours - good day gentlemen. Come Watson. We have seen all we can see here.'
A horse drawn cab - returning to Baker Street -
‘Holmes - who is the murderer? You are onto something - what was his motive?'
‘Not him Watson - her.'
To be continued.
Very good, Kevin!Pre: Warm water splash
Brush: Simpson Duke 3 BB
Soap: OSP Fougere
Razor: Karve CB with D Plate
Blade: Polsilver Åódź
Post: Warm then cold water rinse, OSP Fougere ASL
View attachment 38925
Image my dismay on Saturday morning when I discovered my KCB had been abducted, razornapped no less.
The ransom note demanded the princely sum, (not a King's ransom) of £19.61 if I ever wanted to see my beautiful razor.
The local Constabulary informed me that this sort of thing was far more common than the public could ever imagine and that my razor was only the tip of the iceberg. The very same gang are also targeting high-end watches, fountain pens and even items of jewellery.
Sadly as they're overworked and understaffed the Constable advised me to pay up if I wanted a swift solution to my quandary, at this point he scratched his head and said,
"This is a nationwide problem, the gang have offices, (making quotation marks in the air and shaking his head at this word), the length and breadth of the country."
So off I trotted to the nearest Royal Mail delivery office and duly paid the Queens ransom for the safe release of the KCB.
Happy Shaving one and all.