"Carl's Lounge" (Off-Topic Discussion, Traditional Knife "Tales & Vignettes")

Hello Porchenburgers,

I wanted to share that I was burglarized this past weekend. Unfortunately they made off with tens of thousands of dollars worth of stuff (the problem with collecting things that can be seen as portable wealth, is that people can port your stuff away). The big dollar items were mostly firearms, and the ATF is investigating, so I am holding on to hope for recovery. Especially since we found out that we missed the fine print in our insurance that lost/stolen firearms reimbursement is capped at $3,000 (which covers 10-15% of replacement cost). But the Porch relevant part of the burglary is that they stole my swords and four of my knives. None of the swords are particularly valuable, they were just wall hangers. The knives they took are harder to replace though. Please pardon the non-traditional character of most of them, I just wanted to as folks to keep an eye out if they see them up for sale anywhere.

Stolen Firearms Flyer 11 14 2024.jpg

Be safe out there. And here's a reminder to try to limit knowledge of where you keep your portable wealth. They had to break into the back door of my garage, into a lockbox, and then into my gun cabinet. I/the police/the ATF all figure that someone had to know where my stuff was to pull off the burglary. We've been remodeling our house, and there have been a lot of crews working over the last several months. As far as I know, only one crew ever saw me actually take a firearm into the garage. But it feels like that may have been one too many. But maybe it was someone else poking around. Maybe someone said something to a druggy friend. Who knows? It will make it hard to trust folks in the future.

I've already upgraded my physical security, and will be doing more going forward. But you can only make yourself so hard of a target. Anonymity is the best defense, and I clearly was not as anonymous as I had thought.
 
Hello Porchenburgers,

I wanted to share that I was burglarized this past weekend. Unfortunately they made off with tens of thousands of dollars worth of stuff (the problem with collecting things that can be seen as portable wealth, is that people can port your stuff away). The big dollar items were mostly firearms, and the ATF is investigating, so I am holding on to hope for recovery. Especially since we found out that we missed the fine print in our insurance that lost/stolen firearms reimbursement is capped at $3,000 (which covers 10-15% of replacement cost). But the Porch relevant part of the burglary is that they stole my swords and four of my knives. None of the swords are particularly valuable, they were just wall hangers. The knives they took are harder to replace though. Please pardon the non-traditional character of most of them, I just wanted to as folks to keep an eye out if they see them up for sale anywhere.

View attachment 2712052

Be safe out there. And here's a reminder to try to limit knowledge of where you keep your portable wealth. They had to break into the back door of my garage, into a lockbox, and then into my gun cabinet. I/the police/the ATF all figure that someone had to know where my stuff was to pull off the burglary. We've been remodeling our house, and there have been a lot of crews working over the last several months. As far as I know, only one crew ever saw me actually take a firearm into the garage. But it feels like that may have been one too many. But maybe it was someone else poking around. Maybe someone said something to a druggy friend. Who knows? It will make it hard to trust folks in the future.

I've already upgraded my physical security, and will be doing more going forward. But you can only make yourself so hard of a target. Anonymity is the best defense, and I clearly was not as anonymous as I had thought.
I hope you get some satisfaction!! That absolutely stinks!!!:mad:
I second everything that Frank can't say here!!🤬
 
Hello Porchenburgers,

I wanted to share that I was burglarized this past weekend. Unfortunately they made off with tens of thousands of dollars worth of stuff (the problem with collecting things that can be seen as portable wealth, is that people can port your stuff away). The big dollar items were mostly firearms, and the ATF is investigating, so I am holding on to hope for recovery. Especially since we found out that we missed the fine print in our insurance that lost/stolen firearms reimbursement is capped at $3,000 (which covers 10-15% of replacement cost). But the Porch relevant part of the burglary is that they stole my swords and four of my knives. None of the swords are particularly valuable, they were just wall hangers. The knives they took are harder to replace though. Please pardon the non-traditional character of most of them, I just wanted to as folks to keep an eye out if they see them up for sale anywhere.

View attachment 2712052

Be safe out there. And here's a reminder to try to limit knowledge of where you keep your portable wealth. They had to break into the back door of my garage, into a lockbox, and then into my gun cabinet. I/the police/the ATF all figure that someone had to know where my stuff was to pull off the burglary. We've been remodeling our house, and there have been a lot of crews working over the last several months. As far as I know, only one crew ever saw me actually take a firearm into the garage. But it feels like that may have been one too many. But maybe it was someone else poking around. Maybe someone said something to a druggy friend. Who knows? It will make it hard to trust folks in the future.

I've already upgraded my physical security, and will be doing more going forward. But you can only make yourself so hard of a target. Anonymity is the best defense, and I clearly was not as anonymous as I had thought.
Really sorry to hear this buddy 😕 I got burgled in 1994, while on holiday, and they basically cleaned my house out ☹️ I really hope you get your stuff back 👍
 
. We've been remodeling our house, and there have been a lot of crews working over the last several months.

I'm sorry to hear this badness.
Now I'm no Hemlock Holmes...Hell, I'm not even Marshall McCloud....but having experienced something moderately similar in tbe past...Those tradies would be where the Cops should be starting.
 
Tribute to a Girl Scout

My wife was a Girl Scout right up through graduation from High School in 1965. She loved the outdoors and Scouting, and after the kids were grown she and I spent many happy hours together hiking and canoeing.

I found her old Kutmaster Girl Scout knife a few years ago, complete with the lanyard she made for it. My first thought was to clean it up and sharpen it, but she started to develop Alzheimer’s about that time and I forgot about the knife. The Alzheimer’s gradually got worse but I was able to keep caring for her at home. After she reached the point that I couldn’t leave her alone I took her with me everywhere I went, and if anything we actually became closer than ever. She had forgotten much of our earlier life together, but she never forgot me. I’ll be forever grateful for the time we had together.

She passed away earlier this month, just two weeks after our 57th wedding anniversary. I’m grateful she didn’t have to go through the terrible late stages of Alzheimer’s, but I miss her terribly. I find what I miss most of all is the little ordinary day-to-day things I did with her, like walks in the neighborhood and shopping at the grocery store.

I found her knife again the other day. Now I’m so glad I left it just the way it was when she was using it. It’s so much more now than just a knife. I’ll eventually pass it on to one of our children (or maybe one of our great-grandchildren.)

VlnCwAA.jpg


Hope this wasn’t too personal. Putting it into words seems to help somehow.
 
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Tribute to a Girl Scout

My wife was a Girl Scout right up through graduation from High School in 1965. She loved the outdoors and Scouting, and after the kids were grown she and I spent many happy hours together hiking and canoeing.

I found her old Kutmaster Girl Scout knife a few years ago, complete with the lanyard she had made for it. My first thought was to clean it up and sharpen it, but she started to develop Alzheimer’s about that time and I forgot about the knife. The Alzheimer’s gradually got worse but I was able to keep caring for her at home. After she reached the point that I couldn’t leave her alone I took her with me everywhere I went, and if anything we actually became closer than ever. She had forgotten much of our earlier life together, but she never forgot me. I’ll be forever grateful for the time we had together.

She passed away earlier this month, just two weeks after our 57th wedding anniversary. I’m grateful she didn’t have to go through the terrible late stages of Alzheimer’s, but I miss her terribly. I find what I miss most of all is the little ordinary day-to-day things I did with her, like walks in the neighborhood and shopping at the grocery store.

I found her knife again the other day. Now I’m so glad I left it just the way it was when she was using it. It’s so much more now than just a knife. I’ll eventually pass it on to one of our children (or maybe one of our great-grandchildren.)

VlnCwAA.jpg


Hope this wasn’t too personal. Putting it into words seems to help somehow.
Sorry for your loss my friend.
Hope that knife brings fond memories.
 
Hope this wasn’t too personal. Putting it into words seems to help somehow.
That was indeed very personal, but also very touching, and I am very glad that you decided to share.

I have to confess to crying when reading your post (and while typing this). I lost my brother last April, my father this May, and my mother just passed away in late September.

My father kept his wits until just a couple of years before the end, and remained cheerful and pleasant even during his short, steep decline. He remained in his home, with my mother, until just 5 months before his death, and his last illness was mercifully brief. He died while being held by me, my wife, and my daughter.

My mother, however, spent the last ten or more years of her life in a heartbreaking descent into dementia, and I was with her at the end. I can only imagine what you are going through, but if it helps at all, I believe you should indeed find solace in not having had to see her experience the terminal stages of such a devastating condition.

My wife and I spent the last couple of years looking after my parents’ affairs, and with us too it’s all the little activities related to their care (and the daily visits) we miss most.

Because of all this, I am now very attuned to this sort of thing. Whenever I see an elder couple where one party is clearly the caretaker of the other, my heart just breaks - it’s a special type of bond born of decades love, and you are blessed to have been one of those able to bear that responsibility with kindness.
 
Tribute to a Girl Scout

My wife was a Girl Scout right up through graduation from High School in 1965. She loved the outdoors and Scouting, and after the kids were grown she and I spent many happy hours together hiking and canoeing.

I found her old Kutmaster Girl Scout knife a few years ago, complete with the lanyard she had made for it. My first thought was to clean it up and sharpen it, but she started to develop Alzheimer’s about that time and I forgot about the knife. The Alzheimer’s gradually got worse but I was able to keep caring for her at home. After she reached the point that I couldn’t leave her alone I took her with me everywhere I went, and if anything we actually became closer than ever. She had forgotten much of our earlier life together, but she never forgot me. I’ll be forever grateful for the time we had together.

She passed away earlier this month, just two weeks after our 57th wedding anniversary. I’m grateful she didn’t have to go through the terrible late stages of Alzheimer’s, but I miss her terribly. I find what I miss most of all is the little ordinary day-to-day things I did with her, like walks in the neighborhood and shopping at the grocery store.

I found her knife again the other day. Now I’m so glad I left it just the way it was when she was using it. It’s so much more now than just a knife. I’ll eventually pass it on to one of our children (or maybe one of our great-grandchildren.)

VlnCwAA.jpg


Hope this wasn’t too personal. Putting it into words seems to help somehow.
Sorry for your loss. You were blessed to have 57 years with your love. I'm glad for you that she always knew who you were. My paternal grandmother and my father both had dementia. When Grandma passed, she didn't know who she was and couldn't feed herself. Dad was confused but always knew who I was and who he was, even if he wasn't sure what decade it was. I too was grateful for that.
 
I'm so sorry you've lost your life partner!! If talking to us helps, we are here for you, and I am sure I speak for everyone!! I hope you have joyful memories!!
Charlie
Charlie -

Thank you for your kind comments. It's so nice to have such a wonderful support group here on the Porch! And yes, I have many joyful memories to hold on to.

Jim
 
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