Everything simpler?

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Napalm, thank you for your contribution to this thread, you are definleiy living a busy life, and I applaud your decision to follow it as you can. I like how you said easier as opposed to simpler as you get older, we all are getting older. :thumbsup:

Maybe better words or a better idea than "simpler" would be "slow down." Where life seems a little slower, a little less complicated (although that does not mean less busy :p), where people know each other in the community, and family and friends can spare a little time to help each other out or listen. I am not saying we should all move to Mayberry, or live in a Norman Rockwell drawing but maybe it is small town America, a sense of community.

Edited: Dsalazar has a good point, technology can be useful to also create those moments and places we can go and obtain the knifes we like. It has its place, used wisely, but I think we all can benefit from putting down the electronic devices for a little while. :D

Thanks everyone who is contributing to this thread, please keep the ideas coming. My simple knives I have been using is my Alox SA and my Opinel #6. My Manly Wasp has also been there, not traditional, but still a slip joint. Maybe I need to get my Case Sodbuster Jr out or my AG Russell Cowboy.
 
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“Getting back to basics” is usually just a way of grounding one’s self. It can often be a healthy exercise to pare things down to what seems like an acceptable minimum.

For a telling bit of perspective: If you really want to get down to bare bones, you’d be knapping rocks and not browsing catalogs of mass-produced budget tools.

Yes, a Mora and an Opinel will probably cut the thing as well as you need them to. People go camping with worse equipment all the time and make it back just fine. Yeah, you could probably make it through life just fine without any more than 1/2 of a pair of cheap scissors.

I say all that to say: So what?

You don’t become a knife hobbyist because of an unflinchingly pragmatic perspective; something about them is interesting to you. Mechanical precision, cutting efficiency, self-defense theorycrafting, material sciences - whatever. Doesn’t matter.

Some aspect of cutting tools is your jam. Just own it and enjoy your niche.
 
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Comeuppance, trust me, I have lots of all kinds of knives, maybe too many, so I guess the thought of grounding myself seems appealing.
 
After living all over the US for work, I enjoy spending ALOT of time in the woods these days.
I've "retired" to a very rural spot a few miles from where I was raised.

Every year around Thanksgiving our extended family spends a week several miles deep in the Altamaha river swamp so that we can unplug our kids and show them the beauty of nature and how enjoyable the simple side of life can be.

We hunt, fish, shoot, explore, cook over a fire, tell stories of past swamp trips and simpler times.
My family has been doing this for over 70 years.
It gives the young ones perspective, and life skills you can't get anywhere else.
SVwCpDM.jpg
 
After being in the Army and getting to visit a lot of other places (especially deserts). If we didn’t have it on the tank we just did without or made something else work. Not a lot of comforts in an Abrams tank.
You did learn to appreciate the simplest of things. A letter from home, a fresh T- Ration, a new box of MREs. COLD WATER. Pretty basic.
 
TRfromMT said:
I think the key is contentment rather than simplicity, per se. I find I need to focus on the good things I do have, more, and on the things I do not, less. This seems to help with the sense that simpler times have been lost.
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Well said.
 
Simple and primitive don't have to go hand in hand.

This year my knife exploration will be going back to simpler. It will be about Case, GEC, French and Italian slip joints and so on. I've been carrying a Case Mini Copperlock for a couple weeks now. Before that a Buck canoe. After several years of carrying a Spyderco Manix 2 LW and other similar knives, it at first was a little odd. Not in the performance in any way, but my hand just kept reaching for the familiar feel of that knife clipped in the corner of my pocket. And it wasn't there. But, that subsided, and those little gems did all the EDC cutting tasks my other knives had been doing and they did them just fine.

I am not a super steel guy. More power to those that are, but a ~3" folding pocket knife for my EDC tasks just doesn't require crazy steels and uber strong locks. I like steels that like my Arkansas stones. :) I put my own edge on The Case (still needs a little work) and it is holding up just fine. I just about always touch up my knives before I notice any difference in steel types (yes I've tested) so I just don't need to spend the money on those blades. It's actually quite liberating when you realize you don't need those things. Again, if a person wants them, that's great and I think it's cool the options are there, I just don't fall into that camp.

And heck, at least with Case, I can buy around three of them for the price of one Paramilitary 2. :)
 
I think many as we get a little older think about "simplier times" ... that means different things to different people I think ...

Growing up in the country in a very rural area and small towns around ... (the school I went to through elementary classes only graduated 12 seniors from the class I would have been in if we had not moved) ...

so to me that means simplier times were actually harder work at times ... but there is something very rewarding about sitting down at the end of the day ... knowing you grew or raised or hunted the meal you just ate ...

is was a time neighbors popped by to visit regularly ... and your nearest neighbor might be a couple miles or more away ... these days many have never spoken to the people across the street ...

I know I'm in a minority most likely but I'd much prefer to go back to no cell phones or computers and cut out the "noise" ... and have the community we had in those days and you always had friends (and strangers) you could count on if ever you and yours needed anything.

I do have a computer ... obviously ... and it is useful for some things ... I have a cell phone but if it weren't for my parents as they got older ... and wanting them to be able to reach me anytime they needed I still wouldn't have a cell phone.

But TRfromMT TRfromMT kind of hit it right on the head ... it's more about finding contentment in what you have and counting the blessings you have ...

but there is some truth to the world has changed alot and there were much simplier times ... I've always been told I was born 100 years too late ... it's probably true as I'd give up both my trucks before my horses ... and I don't mind working harder and getting dirty ... it's still a good feeling at the end of a long day to know you did that.
 
JJ_Colt45 said:
I think many as we get a little older think about "simplier times" ... that means different things to different people I think ...

Growing up in the country in a very rural area and small towns around ... (the school I went to through elementary classes only graduated 12 seniors from the class I would have been in if we had not moved) ...

so to me that means simplier times were actually harder work at times ... but there is something very rewarding about sitting down at the end of the day ... knowing you grew or raised or hunted the meal you just ate ...

is was a time neighbors popped by to visit regularly ... and your nearest neighbor might be a couple miles or more away ... these days many have never spoken to the people across the street ...

I know I'm in a minority most likely but I'd much prefer to go back to no cell phones or computers and cut out the "noise" ... and have the community we had in those days and you always had friends (and strangers) you could count on if ever you and yours needed anything.

I do have a computer ... obviously ... and it is useful for some things ... I have a cell phone but if it weren't for my parents as they got older ... and wanting them to be able to reach me anytime they needed I still wouldn't have a cell phone.

But TRfromMT TRfromMT kind of hit it right on the head ... it's more about finding contentment in what you have and counting the blessings you have ...

but there is some truth to the world has changed alot and there were much simplier times ... I've always been told I was born 100 years too late ... it's probably true as I'd give up both my trucks before my horses ... and I don't mind working harder and getting dirty ... it's still a good feeling at the end of a long day to know you did that.
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My senior class had 23 students :).

Simple doesn't equal easy, just like freedom doesn't equal safe.

A little effort doesn't hurt anyone and can teach responsibility and self reliance.
Our children need to understand that, and I do my best to instill good values in mine.
That said, simple doesn't have to mean hard. Work smarter, not harder.

I don't have a computer. Every post is from my $10 Andriod phone.
I had an iPhone..sold it and bought a Ruger.
;)
I prefer simple carbon over super steels and don't own a single safe queen. Guns or knives.
I prefer rural to City Life.
These days I worry more about rattlesnakes than muggers on my daily walks.
I can still count on my neighbors, and even strangers who live in my town.
 
T.L.E. Sharp said:
Thursday:
Make kids lunches
Take kids to school
Go to bank
Go to work
Make dr appointment on lunch break
Go back to work
Pick kids up from school
Make dinner
Go over homework with kids
Finish tomorrow morning's spreadsheet
Watch Ellen with the wife
Sharpen a knife
Do the dishes
Put Frontline on the dogs
Feed the dogs
Start a load of laundry
Watch some nonsense on tv
Move laundry to dryer
More tv nonsense
Fold laundry
Go to bed

Saturday:
Load camping gear into car
Drive to lake
Unload camping gear
Pop up tents
Go fishing
Gather wood
Make fire
Hot dogs for dinner(or fish if you're lucky)
Roast marshmallows with kids
Tell ghost stories
Catch fireflies
Have a drink with the wife after kids go to bed
Look at the stars

Kind of a no brainer. I know which day I'd prefer to have.
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Crap. I forgot to put Frontline on the dogs yesterday. Thanks for the reminder!
 
Our power went out in an ice storm this morning. I have to say, I much prefer the simplicity of turning on the gas logs to procuring and burning wood.

I think this is the greatest time ever to be alive, at least in the first world. We can choose our way to contentment with greater ease than any of our ancestors. My cell phone sits idle (99.999% of the time), unless I need to call someone. My physical exercise is in climate controlled environments, and I don't exercise to get to them, or anywhere else I go. Medicines and doctors galore for almost any ailment. Get the lowest price on stuff - Bing it. Since I am lucky enough to be retired, my computer is for entertainment only. How 'bought blowing through all the TV commercials?

Nostalgia is fun, but I wouldn't trade modern dentistry for all the black powder and pelts and cow pies you can imagine. These are the simple old days.
 
I prefer venison and fresh caught catfish to store bought meat.
I make and smoke my own sausage.

Last month power went out for a week.
Not much changed around the house.

Don't get it wrong, I prefer fuel Injection and disc brakes to carbs and drums, but alot of modern trappings are superfluous, and while they make for more convenient living, they don't make life more simple.

My friend bought a new Ram pickup with electronic tranny. 8 inches of water stalled and shorted it....it was locked in gear.
Automotive facepalm. Good thing it had a warranty.
 
I think people who want to go back to simpler times are suffering from a selective memory, or no knowledge of what going back to simple means. Maybe they're just stuck in Nostalgia mode.
Simpler times were not always as simple and easy as you might imagine.

My Aunt was born in premature in march 1922 in a rural area. No hospital or cars were around. It would have been an overnight trip by horse and wagon to a doctor. The incubator was the cook stove, open the oven lid and carefully control the heat. It was a 24/7 watch for my grandmother and the neighbor ladies. All the while the farm had to be worked.

My first car was a 1963 ford galaxy, look under the hood and you see simple. Look in the trunk and you saw a box with points, condensor, rotor, rotor cap, fan belt and duct tape, along with the tools to change it all. It was a common sight to see cars broke down on the side of the road. Back then cars were not nearly as reliable as today.

All the complexity that goes in to wash and wear, permanent press, now that makes life simple.

You want simple times back, make home and family a priority. Turn off the tech and talk to family, play with your kids. Take the time to know your neighbors. Don't keep up with the Jones's. Don't forget the family during football season. Don't buy so many toys that you or your family suffer. ETC.

If you want simple? It starts with you and it starts home, it's really that simple.
Selling all your new knives and going Opinel, Mora, Old Hickory, etc, won't make your life simple.
 
Dean51 said:
I think people who want to go back to simpler times are suffering from a selective memory, or no knowledge of what going back to simple means. Maybe they're just stuck in Nostalgia mode.
Simpler times were not always as simple and easy as you might imagine.

My Aunt was born in premature in march 1922 in a rural area. No hospital or cars were around. It would have been an overnight trip by horse and wagon to a doctor. The incubator was the cook stove, open the oven lid and carefully control the heat. It was a 24/7 watch for my grandmother and the neighbor ladies. All the while the farm had to be worked.

My first car was a 1963 ford galaxy, look under the hood and you see simple. Look in the trunk and you saw a box with points, condensor, rotor, rotor cap, fan belt and duct tape, along with the tools to change it all. It was a common sight to see cars broke down on the side of the road. Back then cars were not nearly as reliable as today.

All the complexity that goes in to wash and wear, permanent press, now that makes life simple.

You want simple times back, make home and family a priority. Turn off the tech and talk to family, play with your kids. Take the time to know your neighbors. Don't keep up with the Jones's. Don't forget the family during football season. Don't buy so many toys that you or your family suffer. ETC.

If you want simple? It starts with you and it starts home, it's really that simple.
Selling all your new knives and going Opinel, Mora, Old Hickory, etc, won't make your life simple.
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Back then, you actually COULD work on a car with basic tool, on the side of the road.
A friend and I changed a clutch on a 72 f150 with a jack, and hand toolsI had in the bed, on the side of the road.

Try that with a 2019 anything.

My 69 bronco has over 400k miles.
Engine rebuilds happen in my garage, not the dealership, and cost a few hundred in parts and take a weekend.


I still have an Old hickory kitchen knife set, and carry a Condor Kephart in the woods.

:P

People overcomplicate their lives looking for a false sense of simplicity.
 
I have always carried just the simple grandpa traditional as many may call them. A buck 303 or 301, a case trapper or stockman. I'm the last year or so I have begun carrying a modern folder as well for times when the one hand open and or larger blade come in hamdy. But I would say 98 percent of the time something like the ones I mentioned or a sak of your choice,one of the alox or tinker for me, is more than enough. I like the saying keep it simple stupid. But like most I dont
 
abcdef said:
Nostalgia is fun, but I wouldn't trade modern dentistry for all the black powder and pelts and cow pies you can imagine. These are the simple old days.
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The key is to be able to sort the good from the bad. To take the gas fireplace over the backbreaking effort of the wood, but not to present to an emergency room with suicidal thoughts because our last Instagram post garnered so few likes that our friend group has turned their backs on us.
 
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