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Vivitar® Razor

The cheap Vivitar® electric razor (purchased for $9 with senior citizen discount at Ross®) has finally been laid to rest (next to the dumpster at the “old folks home” in Waikiki). A sad day.

The razor had provided over 2.5 years of service, ever since the end of tenure at the Sand Island homeless shelter. Only one of its rotary blades was still functional, but it “soldiered on.”

The razor symbolized the mendicant monk existence. With no ability to glorify it, the razor was discarded like the typical useless consumer crap. That’s the cheapness of an objectified and commodified life.

Addendum: Shaving is an important “rite of passage” that transforms into a daily ritual. The razor, before the advent of shitty plastic disposable ones, was an instrument of beauty and precision. No one else was allowed to use that razor. It was a prized possession and a symbol of transformation.