I think you may be right Jackknife. There is a lot of retro styling going on for just the reasons you mentioned. A lot of people are getting tired of cookie cutter products. When you can't tell if a new sedan is a Ford, Chevy, or Toyota because they all look alike, people start to realize that a little individualism isn't a bad thing. Then the marketing people go and cookie cutter the retro thing until people keep trying to get into the wrong PT cruiser among the many at the parking lot.
Good points too about the Cowboy Action Shooting. Straight forward and clear cut in what you are trying to do. Plus, for a little while you get to be something you wanted to be inside. The nice thing is you don't get terminated if you aren't as good as you would like to think you are. You just don't win. Unfortunately, this has also become a game for people with disposable income. By the time you buy the guns, gear, and leather, the average person is topping $2k, plus ammo for each shoot. Kind of like comparing trap to sporting clays. For the cost of a round of sporting clays you could shoot 4 or so rounds of trap. But, at least people are trying to reconnect with a simpler set of times. Though no time period is ever simple. It was just open enough of a country in the past that you could live your life and not see much of the complications going on in other places.
I've seen a resurgence in people rediscovering and taking to cast iron cooking with a furvor. Heck, I've only recently redisovered it. My first wife did such a good job ruining cast iron that I couldn't bear to bring in anything else for her to screw up. Suddenly, the original non-stick cookwear is popular again as people experience just how great the stuff cooks. Another pleasure they get is that it reminds them of the kitchens of their childhood when the kitchen was often a social spot as much as a place to fix and eat food. We had an heirloom dining set in a room on the farm, but it was for family holidays like Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Easter. The kitchen was the center of activity.
Just so I don't delude anyone, I have enjoyed fancy coffees and teas. I even used to have a, gasp, French press coffee maker. It did make great coffee in a hands on process. You actually had to be there and be part of the process. Not a bad thing. Since I'm the only one in the house that drinks coffee, these days I will often just nuke a pyrex measuring cup of water and toss in some south of the border made columbian instant. It's cheap and tastes like coffee much more than the fancy labels do. I am eyeing either a stainless perculator or a granite wear one with a stainless basket. I refuse to do aluminum in any cookwear except maybe a pressure canner (NOT cooker).
Besides listening to old country, bluegrass, folk, celtic, and other older music, (another gasp) I actually listen to hard rock like Seether and Disturbed. Shocks the youngins to no end when they find that out. That's fun! Hey, I grew up with Ray Price and Led Zepplin. I enjoyed both. I'm even starting to get into Frank Sinatra, Bobbie Darrin, and some swing.
Now the worst part. I have a Kershaw Ken Onion assisted opening locker. It is all black and even has a black coated, stainless blade.
And, I love it. I can't legally carry a lockback in San Antonio, which is a real shame and an insult to Jim Bowie. I also dont let it bother me if I want to carry it. I could probably get by with nothing more than this knife. Actually I did as it was my EDC for over a year and proved itself time and again to be just a great knife that cut well, sharpened well, held an edge, and operated as an extenstion of me. Not everything new is bad. Now I'm carrying a Case Sod Buster Jr in the yellow handle and CV steel. I will add in a small SAK now and then. I like having a can opener. I may end up with a stockman which was my EDC years ago as it is just a great user pattern. But I have to admit, even with only one blade, I'm loving the Sodbuster for a carry knife. In spite of the success I've been having with the stainless blade in the Kershaw, I still much prefer carbon steel. Carbon steel is still very hard to beat for a knife blade. In passing I would mention that I am quite fond of a good, old fashioned, forged tomahawk for camp and woods running. Another old design that just works way out porportion for its size and weight. Kinda like a .30-40 Krag or a 6.5X55mm Swede round.
I even have a Glock 22 .40 S&W. It doesn't give me the pleasure of a good old Smith revolver or an old Colt 1911A1. It's purpose is that of a tool. Just a basic, reliable, easy to maintain, rugged tool. A tool that also lets me have an auto that lets me shoot it like a double action revolver. Point, pull, perforate the target/attacker. For that I appreciate and respect it. Very matter of fact. I don't sit and polish it, admiring the handwork and fitting like I do a good steel firearm. If I didn't have it to use for armed security work I would probably have a Ruger Security Six or an older Model 19 S&W, and either a Marlin or a Winchester lever in .357 Mag. I used to shoot .44 and .45, but I've scaled back to .357 for a nice all around redneck combat combo that lets you shoot mag loads for social work or medium game at close ranges, yet slip over to light loads for bunnies and smaller things. If I still lived in Alaska or somewhere like that then I would be .44 all the way as I used to be.
I hope I haven't destroyed anyone's faith. I can enjoy modern things (I'm on this computer enough), I just choose to relate more to and identify more with traditional things and would be quite happy living a slowed down, rustic lifestyle. That world I find peace in. Urban neighborhoods with neat, lush lawns and every plant trimmed neatly make me feel uncomfortable. Those monoculture lawns are just unnatural and wouldn't exist wihtout artificial feeding and weeding. My apologies if I offended anyone of the Hank Hill Lawn Afficianados. Those landscapes just scare me. My idea of a good lawn will get me in trouble with the neighbors.
We are still free to make the choice for going back to the things that are part of our heritage. As the moderns start to feel the empty drifting sensation that is their life, little by little they try out some of these old things. With the interest comes a desire to learn more. With learning comes an understanding of where these things come from, what parts they played in peoples lives, and the rewards of a simpler, more personally involved life starts to become apparent. Perhaps, this is some hope for the future. As people become disillusioned with a plastic, throw-away world, the will look back to move forward and get more living out of life instead of stuff.
Sure, I have and enjoy modern things, but if made to choose, or given a choice (read that an opportunity) between the modern stuff and going traditional, guys, I'm on that time machine with you! We can take my old man's teepee with us.
Oh, and Pickupman, yep, I'm in Castroville (damn outsider neo yuppie scum are trying to Disneyland it up and ruin it.). I graduated from Hondo in 75. I came back in 96 and married my high school sweetheart who is from Castroville. Her Daddy still speaks Alsatian with the other old timers here. Drop me a line when you're coming through and we'll get some coffee at Sammy's. I'm just up the road from there. Unless I get luckey and can get out into what is left of the rural county,
), but the Stockman is still one of my favorite patterns due to it's utility: three blades that I can customize to different uses. To wit:
