a nice little article...

[Aias]

I really like the persona of the uncle in the story--sounds like people I know. It's mostly a piece on the mini-grip, but the idea of carrying a knife/edc as an expression of being a man reminds me of my grandfathers and older uncles.

http://www.mensjournal.com/gear/tools/the-customizable-pocketknife-20130715

 

[MikeH]

When I was in high school (a long time ago) in a rural area, it was just expected that you carried a knife. In fact, a male who didn't was looked at as kind of odd. Even if you didn't live on a farm, you were exposed to hunting, fishing, some farm work, gardening, etc. and needed a knife. If a female teacher asked if you had a knife, it meant that she needed to cut something and would give it back to you after using it. My high school chemistry teacher was notorious for forgetting his knife and often borrowed mine. I had kind of a reputation that mine, a Uncle Henry Stag Trapper, was always extremely sharp.

We had occasional fist fights, but I have not a single remembrance of anyone ever pulling a knife, and everyone carried one.

Dang, I remember politely listening but rolling my eyes whenever one of the old men started up about the good old days, and now I am the one doing it.