Classic Rant #754 (June 11, 2012): A Close Shave

I am one of those people who really should shave each and every day, maybe twice a day, to keep my beard off my face.

I don't shave so often, but even after shaving, it doesn't take long for me to feel the hair pop up on my face again.

I also have sensitive skin, so a blade is pretty much out. I used one when I was younger, but it ripped up my face so much that I decided to go with an electric shaver, and for pretty much the past 40 years, that is what I've used when I shave.

As happens every few years, I need a new razor, so I went to the store to get one (not the one shown). After paying about $40 for one, getting it home, and preparing to use it, I found that one part of the razor--which had been standard for years--isn't anymore.

The sideburn trimmer on the back of the electric razor is gone. I didn't even realize this until I started to shave, and tried to pop it up from the back when I was ready to cut by sideburns.

The companies that make these types of razors are pushing trimmers now, smaller electric razors that are more maneuverable on your face.

By using a trimmer, not only can you easily trim your sideburns, you can do the same for your mustache and your beard. And, in this day and age of real vanity, I guess men can use these trimmers to trim hair on other parts of their bodies too.

But again, getting a trimmer is another expense, and after spending what I did for the least expensive razor  I could find, I now see that at least on this razor, the trimmer has been relegated to an extra that doesn't come with these models.

I mean, it really isn't a big deal--I used the regular razor to trim my sideburns. But it's almost akin to a new car not coming with a side-view mirror. You can drive the car, but it sure makes it easier to have one.

The same thing with the trimmer.

I almost believe that this is one of the those things that is happening to things we took for granted, with companies trying to push up sales of certain items over others.

Have you been to the dentist lately? In the old days, you had a cavity, it was taken care of, and that was the end of that.

Today, each tooth has four sides, and cavities--and prices--are taken care of that way. Thus, if you have a cavity that infiltrates more than one side, your price escalates.

Airline passengers are being told that if they want a window or an aisle seat, they have to pay extra, and, of course, the extra charge for baggage has been going on for years now.

In the supermarket, we can still get our favorite grocery items, but they have all been downsized. Have you seen a Yodel lately? They are like half the size that they used to be.

So the consumer is getting hit on every side. We have to take it because that is the way it is, and as consumers, we really don't have much of a comeback.

So here I am, with an electric razor without a sideburn trimmer, something that was standard for years and years. And by the way, this razor comes from a major manufacturer of these things, not some non-brand that you've never heard of.

It's not a total loss. The rest of the razor works just fine, so I will learn to live without this device.

But it just goes to show you the extent that manufacturers are going to to cut corners in hopes of boosting their bottom line.

Sad, real sad.