Can you hear my skin?!

There are days when my skin is not a surface but a sound system. It creaks, scrapes, whispers, protests. It announces itself before I do. I don’t walk into a room so much as arrive with background noise. This is not poetic exaggeration; it is an acoustical reality. My skin has opinions about weather, neglect, soap, and time. It expresses them audibly. When people talk about listening to their body, I assume they mean metaphorically. In my case, the instruction feels literal. You don’t need mindfulness to notice when your face sounds like it’s being opened against its will. You just need a quiet room and a mirror that reflects both the damage and the shame. Dry skin does not suffer silently. It documents its suffering with sound.

Why do scratchy people often make you so uncomfortable?

There is a particular kind of discomfort that arrives before you can justify it. Nothing has happened. No line has been crossed. The person is not rude, not loud, not obviously hostile. And yet your shoulders tighten. The room feels slightly noisier. Conversation develops a grain. You find yourself aware of your own breathing, your own posture, as if something in the air has turned faintly abrasive. You tell yourself to relax. You tell yourself you’re being unfair. The discomfort persists anyway. It’s the feeling that comes from being near someone who is, for lack of a better word, scratchy. Not dangerous. Not offensive. Just… irritating in a way that refuses explanation. What unsettles most people is not the irritation itself, but the moral confusion that follows it. Why should someone’s presence make your body flinch when your values tell you it shouldn’t? Why does a reaction arrive so quickly, so physically, and so stubbornly resist reason? The problem is that we’re taught to distrust sensations that don’t come with clear evidence. But social discomfort rarely waits for permission. It shows up early, uninvited, and insists on being felt before it can be understood.

Why John Cena is not impressive as a maturing pro-wrestler?

I was just seeing the latest Summerslam match, which had Roman Reigns compete with John Cena. Though there was nothing too impressive or outright dislikeable about the match, I must say that Cena is not balancing the maturing act too well. Many former and recent superstars from the WWE have run the seasoned course a lot better. However, John Cena seems to be struggling. His 16-time World Champion credentials stand, and he still has the physical strength, but largely, he seems a bit lost, and this is why:

1. The boyhood charm is not working anymore

When John Cena started, one thing that caught everybody's attention was his boyish, cute looks. He seemed a bit undercooked and too much of a collegiate wrestler for many, rather than being a serious pro-wrestling contender. However, as things progressed, the same look became a bit of a signature for Cena. Even when he completed a decade in the industry, the clean-shaven face and the short, cropped hair looked the part. Cena seemed blessed with a sort of anti-aging gene - this is what many people had to say, and yes, his chiseled physique only strengthened this image. However, now that Cena is clearly a senior in the industry, the hair is thinning, and the boyish charm is not radiating. The hip-hop mad looks are not delivering. In fact, he seems to be oscillating in a state of confused identities. I compare him to Michael J Fox and Tom Cruise - two more faces that refused to age for the longest time, but when aging did start showing up, it just did not blend into their persona. Cena seems to be going through something similar. The white sneakers and the Bermuda-like ring attire seem to contradict that; along with Triple H, he is perhaps the most experienced ex-champion right now.

Debating How Men Should Look: Why BIG guys will always be macho & better for many?

Photo by Filip Mroz on Unsplash

It is basic human psychology, mixed with some social impressions and anthropological conclusions, that clearly dictate a fact—bigger, stronger physiques will never lose out to the athletic, more toned body types as far as men are concerned. The way we perceive the sense of security, the feeling of being protected, that extra edge that you need to believe that this can help you flourish…this is the aura of bigness. It makes people believe that things are sheltered, taken care of, or protected against possible mishaps. It cannot be described in words. It cannot be recreated in an assembly-line production setting. Ask a gym regular who seems to have gone crazy with the bench presses or a grizzly middle-aged man trying to find that last straw of energy to eke out another deadlift – their reasons can be very similar! I have personally experienced more self-confidence when I have been squatting hard or when deadlifts begin to yield results. That feeling of filling out your old Tee with more muscle mass across your chest or the back and legs is more than narcissism...it gives you a definite high!

@Rugby Players: doesn’t it hurt to wear it so tight? For that matter, T20 stars too!

I have had this question run randomly through my head earlier too. This was when watching one of the many T20 leagues in Australia. For some reason, it seemed that cricketing gear had become too tight for 20-something people to fit-in while everyone seemed so muscular, as if biceps are responsible for bowling quick. 

Later, when I changed to other sports channels, there were some rugby matches being broadcast, and the story was very similar here, but with some major differences—the RBS is among the most loyal of rugby tournament sponsors. I was watching an RBS tournament featuring England and France. I have always adored the physique of these guys. They are built like warriors. It seems like they are pounding each other all the time or the green ground beneath them. The scars on their faces seem so genuine, almost like embellishments for the trade that employs them.

Gymming & Moisturizing: One Connection Even Cosmetic Brands Missed

Jokes apart, gym-related skincare has serious challenges like Bacne

I would like to pat myself on the back. It seems I have unearthed a need for moisturizers that is yet to be understood or advertised for by leading cosmetic brands. Let us tear into this – weightlifting takes a toll on your hands, particularly the inner palm area. Over a period, this leads to development of calluses and thick skin formation. The problem usually reported by guys can also be seen among women who indulge in regularly lifting weights. No matter how good your hand or wrist wraps are, some degree of callus formation will happen with regular gymming if it involves exercising with dumbbells, rods, weighted plates, etc. Secondly, exercising can be very dehydrating for some folks - there are many ways in which exercising takes a toll on your skin but people seem very quiet about this.

DIY Grooming Blogging: my trimmer is wiser than an electric shaver!

2017 was cruel in terms of my body reacting to certain prescription drugs and the outset of what seems like a herpetic tendency. During this time, there were repeated outbreaks in and around my mouth. Over a period, the lesions and scarring dissolved, but they also created these small, darkish grey patches around my lips. The road ahead has been difficult as I can no longer shave in the usual way. I have been asked to keep the razor away from these areas that can be very sensitive. The only way ahead was using an electric trimmer or shaver, ensuring that the growth was never shaved away completely. I had to repeatedly trim my beard, and it was getting frustrating to repeatedly visit the men’s salon. The only solution was to buy the shaving or trimming gear for myself – a long-term and definitely smart investment since I was not going to shave for many weeks now. The question was – what suited me more – the shaver or a trimmer?

What makes the electric shaver un-great for me?

I feel that anything that tries to shave close without using a blade falls badly. The close shave domain is about the blade cutting every hair out there, from the root, without nicking the surface underneath. Even if you don't reverse-shave, a bladed shave is necessary for that typically well-groomed, shaven look. The electrically powered shaver comes a close second to this option, but with a major flaw. Electrical shavers aren’t as proficient as their bladed counterparts. Secondly, they tend to pull a bit too much. I have had ingrown hairs before, along my cheekbone area, and the chances of electrical shavers putting harder on each hair is a lot more than what seems acceptable. For someone who has been punished by the Gods with a shave as stoic as Donald Trump’s ego, this is not a great option. You don't want repeated rounds with the electrically rotated blades tugging at a thick, tough-to-cut growth.

Things that make TRIMMER more suited for my SHAVING challenges:

• I can use the trimmer almost regularly, unlike the shaver, which has more of a hair-pulling action
• Trimmer is more agile in terms of being maneuvered under the nostrils
• My Philips trimmer handles my chin challenge rather well, i.e., I have a rounded-in chin that needs an efficient but no-cut blade with the need for repeated strokes
• Less power-consuming, the trimmer can be used with the shortest recharging cycles
• While shavers need a slight dose of skin-caring solutions, gels, etc., my trimmer does not irritate the skin at all
• Shavers find it difficult to scrape away the growth in my upper throat area…something that my trimmer does rather well
• There are days I find white dust after using the trimmer. This is dry, flaky skin, and it tends to fly around
• Trimmer is very safe for working around the edge of lips, nostrils, sideburns, etc.
• Not a big fan of cleaning the trimmer inside-out each time, the usual blowing works
• The most obvious reason - my trimmer gives great styling options where I can literally play around with different beard patterns...also a great way to make the morning routine more fun!!

That slight [Trim + Razor shaping] that works rather good:

I can not use the trimmer as extensively as it should be for keeping on that well-groomed look for a larger part of the working week. The issue is that my skin reacts too much when the trimmer is pressed against the skin. This is inevitable if you are going to use the trimmer regularly, as the growth is not that dense over two days. So, I use some beard-shaping as a means to boost the groomed appearance. This like the most minimal form of beard-scaping where I use a simple Presto razor in the upward, upside-down position to shape the upper, under-the-eye part of the growing beard's expanse. This is like bordering a hedge in your garden or some timely grooming that saves the day and creates a better demarcated, better groomed beard!