Thanks for the tip on my neck. Using the hand towel or wash cloth definitely help stretch the skin more.
However, I think I've found my main problem. Once my skin was more flat and easier to shave, I actually suffered the worst razor burn since starting using a DE. The blade was a fresh Israeli and I made a point to use less pressure. Still, my neck burned most of the day. It was bad enough that I took a day off from shaving to let myself heal up a bit.
I shaved again today, this time concentrating on my blade angle more so than anything else (though keeping pressure in mind). I intentionally exaggerated how shallow the angle was. So much that I think the blade didn't even touch my skin much at all for one pass (not sure if I removed stubble on that one, but I doubt it).
In the end, it was a good shave. Still stragglers on my neck that I think I'll only get with an against-the-grain pass that I'm not willing to do until my with-the-grain consistently doesn't cause razor burn. Still, for about thirty minutes after the shave, my neck was burning. I applied a second helping of Neutrogena Razor Defense and that seemed to help, but it still burned for a while after that. Once the burning stopped, though, it didn't return and I feel great with no irritation or visible signs of burning (the difference was marked enough that many people commented that my neck looked better, which I appreciated and didn't appreciate at the same time

).
Any tips on relieving that immediate post shave burning? I can live with it if it goes away, I guess, but it seems to me that pain isn't a good thing in this endeavour and shows that something is being done wrong or something should be done to eliminate it somehow.
Reading around here, it looks like alum blocks may be the ticket as well as a more astringent aftershave (i.e. witch hazel). Am I on the right track there?
On another note, I'm enjoying the Israeli blades. They're nice a sharp for me, but somehow feel softer on my skin, if that makes any sense to anyone here. I'm going to have to go back to a Derby and Gillette a few times to see which of those three I like best. I'm saving the Feather for after I feel like I've got this better mastered.
Thanks again!
Robert