New blade test: Israeli Personna

Today begins another blade test series. I have read some pretty impassioned praise for the Israeli Personna blades on the various shaving discussion boards, and I am eager to finally try them. So, for the next week, it will be the Personna in its nifty dispenser, up against the benchmark Treet Blue Special – an unfair fight perhaps since the Treet is a carbon steel blade; one might well argue a very different technology. Nevertheless, the final judgment is the quality of the shave – we’ll see.

Dogs, petfood, and the “Greek Plan”.

In light of the contaminated pet food scandal that rocked the industry earlier this year, I thought I would share some insights from my own experience with a different feeding regime.

This is Asta, my 10-year old Briard (French Shepherd). Briards are a terrific breed, with the best qualities of a German Shepherd (we’ve had two G.S.’s) and the added advantage that they don’t shed. If there is a downside it is that they are too smart - they can reputedly differentiate more than 200 words – and I swear, when you say something to a Briard, you can almost hear their brain analyzing and decision-making (“Uh, like what’s in it for me Man?”). An uncommon breed, Briards have so far been spared many of the genetic deformities due to over-breeding for specific traits (e.g. hip-dysplasia in German Shepherds) common to more popular dogs.

Asta has never been sick…not even a cold. According to our vet, her teeth still don’t require cleaning, even though we never brush them. The only intervention she has had was the removal of a small fatty cyst under the skin of her underbelly. People in the park routinely mistake her for a much younger dog….although she has started to slow down lately as she passes 70+ in human years.

We are often asked what we feed Asta, and people are usually perplexed when I tell them the Mount-Athos Plan (or Greek Plan as I also call it).