My daughter's teacher

[Randydb]

Yes sir ya are! The wife, who's pretty darn handy her own self was born in '72 !

Not to worry, ol Chief Greybeard there (its what they call me), not too far behind ya, class of '78.

Just doing a bit of math here Dave...your wife born in 72....you grad 78. Your wife was 6 yrs old when you graduated! I'm guessing you weren't high school sweethearts

 

[Horsewright]

Just doing a bit of math here Dave...your wife born in 72....you grad 78. Your wife was 6 yrs old when you graduated! I'm guessing you weren't high school sweethearts

Yep ya got that right!

 

[Busto]

Just doing a bit of math here Dave...your wife born in 72....you grad 78. Your wife was 6 yrs old when you graduated! I'm guessing you weren't high school sweethearts

Yep ya got that right!

Wait a Minute....How many times did you do the 6th grade Dave???? Just sayin' coming from a Ranching community there were a couple neighbors kids that had to do multiple do-overs just to get out of Ranch work 14 yr old 6 Graders!!!

 

[Howard1]

Everyone i have ever told about my knife making thought it was the coolest thing. I mostly make culinary knives and introduce it as such so perhaps that is why the response is so positive. My children grew up in a house that was devoted to martial arts. i had a target set up in the backyard for years for throwing knives and hawks. I taught tens of kids how to throw. Never heard a word from their parents.
Not to get too political, but that fear of weapons terrifies me. People just want to believe that bad things only happen to others, who typically deserve it, and it is others responsibility to protect them. Unfortunate.

 

[Rancho5]

Three adult children here, all very functioning. Both boys are Eagle Scouts and my daughter is a brown belt in Karate. Anyway, they were all raised with knives and knew how to use them. Without my knowledge (they told me recently) they all carried in high school. They told me “we were discreet and told no one, and we had protection in case things went real sideways. And if they went real sideways, like active shooter sideways, a kid with a knife would have been the least of their concerns. Plus, if they expelled us, we’d just take the GED and go to college earlier”. Had I known I would’ve put a stop to it ASAP. Still, in the deepest recesses..somewhere...I’m kind of proud of them.

PS: My daughter and husband are expecting their 1st child and she still carries. She’s a bombshell, brown-belt nurse with a Recon 1 in her back pocket.

 

[Mitchell Knives]

Not all reactions to people learning that I make knives have been positive.

Most of the guys find it fascinating, while the women don't really care.

A few left-leaning weirdos have been outraged.

I once tried to donate one of my custom fixed blades to a cancer research fund raising auction.

They refused to accept it and told me that they don't auction weapons.

NC is apparently getting worse.

 

[Randydb]

Not all reactions to people learning that I make knives have been positive.

Most of the guys find it fascinating, while the women don't really care.

A few left-leaning weirdos have been outraged.

I once tried to donate one of my custom fixed blades to a cancer research fund raising auction.

They refused to accept it and told me that they don't auction weapons.

NC is apparently getting worse.

I have found these negative reactions have very little to do with political leanings left or right. The district leaders and principal who wanted to expel my student for forgetting a camp knife in his back pack and turning it in were all very conservative right leaning people. I've met a range of people from both sides who like and dislike that our students use and carry knives. Not for defence at all...but as a tool.
It seems to me that negative reactions come more when people are ridgid and ultra "rule bound," and from people who don't have experience with knives as tools. Usually, once they see how it works in real life they are relatively fine with it all.

 

[Horsewright]

Wait a Minute....How many times did you do the 6th grade Dave???? Just sayin' coming from a Ranching community there were a couple neighbors kids that had to do multiple do-overs just to get out of Ranch work 14 yr old 6 Graders!!!

Just once, but two different countries....(here and Scotland) does that count, ya know with the time change and jet lag and everything?

 

[Randydb]

I did grade 1 twice. Dave, living in farm country and Scotland, do you have a Scottish accent or a country drawl? I lived in the USA until I was 11 and then moved to Canada. My Canadian friends tell me I talk like and American and my US friends tell me I speak like a Canadian. Maybe Im United Stanadian?

 

[Cushing H.]

I have found these negative reactions have very little to do with political leanings left or right. The district .......ll.

I actually find it strange that there should be such a reaction at all. How many homes out there Throughout the world have food prep knives, utility knives, axes, fishing knives, and (fewer, but still prominent) hunting knives. Definitely kitchen knives in almost every home. And apparently FIF is extremely popular. Why on earth such a reaction? Its not like, the guy that built a nuclear reactor in his backyard. And the vast amount of the time the product is a work of art....

 

[Busto]

Just once, but two different countries....(here and Scotland) does that count, ya know with the time change and jet lag and everything?

Well that certainly Changes the picture...You should have been "Double" promoted with that better Scottish education!!! Much better than the "No Child Left Behind" program...Grading on a Curve is one thing, but doesn't help a child in the long run just to move them along

 

[coldsteelburns]

I actually find it strange that there should be such a reaction at all. How many homes out there Throughout the world have food prep knives, utility knives, axes, fishing knives, and (fewer, but still prominent) hunting knives. Definitely kitchen knives in almost every home. And apparently FIF is extremely popular. Why on earth such a reaction? Its not like, the guy that built a nuclear reactor in his backyard. And the vast amount of the time the product is a work of art....

It's because many people are governed merely by their emotions more often than their ability to reason or use logic, making them more likely to fall prey to propaganda and lies. It's a big part of why the world seems to be coming undone even faster these days. To be fair, I'm not saying I'm immune to having ever spoken or acted out based upon my emotions, but it's something I always strive to keep in check, regardless of the source or cause of the feelings. But yea, a healthy amount of self-reflection and even critique seems to be lacking quite a bit in society. Just my 2 cents.



~Paul
My Youtube Channel
... (Some older vids of some of the older knives I made)

 

[Horsewright]

Well that certainly Changes the picture...You should have been "Double" promoted with that better Scottish education!!! Much better than the "No Child Left Behind" program...Grading on a Curve is one thing, but doesn't help a child in the long run just to move them along

Ha, closer than you know! So I was there in Scotland for 18 months with my whole family in 72' and 73'. My father was working on his PhD at St Andrews. I really enjoyed it so went back in 76' for my junior year in HS. My father was a lifelong Rotary Club member. He didn't like the club there in St Andrews, so he made the 9 mile drive, over the hill, to a little fishing village, Anstruther every week. One of his friends from the club there was the Rector at the local secondary school, Waid Academy. My father had arranged for me to stay with the Rector and his family for the year. My father was in Edinburgh waiting for me. He'd been on a sabbatical for the summer, at New College, in Edinburgh. I was about an hour out of LAX heading to Heathrow as there were no direct flights to Scotland at the time. I was sitting next to the Earl and Countess of somewhere or other, I forget now. They had come over to visit Yosemite and had been disappointed in the falls as it was a dry year. The Captain came over the com and said we were having a minor technical difficulty and would be returning to LAX. He turns the plane and puts the hammer down and we're landing in about 15 minutes. Fire engines line the runway and start racing alongside as we land. BOOM BOOM BOOM as we land and then we come to a stop, the slides come out, we slide on down and into waiting buses that haul us over to a hanger with a bunch of folding chairs. Looking back from the bus, I can see that most of the tires on the 747 had exploded. My father a Lt in the RAF and a Capt in the US Army Air Corp in WW2, later explained that the reason the tires exploded is that the plane was never designed to land loaded with fuel. Dude in a dark suit standing in front of us sitting in the chairs. He whips out a badge and does the Maggarit 5 O thing (ok really he was FBI) and says we have info of a bomb on board the plane, does anyone know anything about it? Instant pandemonium and chaos, whaling and gnashing of teeth, breaking open the duty free and guzzling etc. Meanwhile the Earl, still sitting next to me, says: "Now, young man, would you please explain to me again how Bridal Veil Falls looks in a good year." He and the Countess where not concerned in the slightest, my good man. They put us up in the Capt's Lounge in the airport with an open ticket (I ordered a French dip, just 17, coudn't get no beer, brah). Bout 12 hours later another 747 shows up from Heathrow, they clean it up quick and load us on and away we go. Meanwhile, my dad waiting for me in Edinburg, can't get any info other than there has been a delay. So he waits and eventually I show up. Meanwhile from me leaving Calif and getting there the Rector's father had passed. His mother came to live with them and they no longer had the spare room. The Rector had spoken with the next door neighbor, the local Church of Scotland minister and I would be staying there, at the manse. So I sat my Highers (for all our UK friends) there at Waid Academy and received four Scottish Certificates of Education (SCEs). I have an SCE in English, History, Modern Studies and in Art. Came home and went and saw the councilor at the local HS. He took a look at the exams I sat (one of the questions on the history exam was "why were more people killed in the Great War then in other wars prior?" They expected 4 or 5 pages of written answer per question, the exam took all day, per subject) and said you'd be wasting your time doing your senior year here, you should just go to college. So I did. Two college degrees but no HS diploma, thats me. Kinda funny cause my brothers were over for the weekend. Both of my younger brothers followed in my footsteps and went to Scotland for their junior year. One went to the Waid too and he was telling me it had just changed and we got to looking it up. We were sure disappointed. Went from this stately place:

To this monstrosity:

Heck it looks like the mall from Stranger Things!

Oh well, sigh. Anstruther was kinda a sucky place to hang out for a year. Not!

 

[Busto]

Ha, closer than you know! So was there in Scotland for 18 months with my whole family in 72' and 73'. My father was working on his PhD at St Andrews. I really enjoyed it so went back in 76' for my junior year in HS. My father was a lifelong Rotary Club member. He didn't like the club there in St Andrews, so he made the 9 mile drive over the hill to Anstruther every week. One of his friends from the club was the Rector at the local secondary school Waid Academy there in Anstruther. My father had arranged for me to stay with the Rector and his family for the year. My father was in Edinburgh waiting for me. He'd been on a sabbatical for the summer, there at New College, in Edinburgh. Was about an hour out of LAX heading to Heathrow as there were no direct flights to Scotland at the time. I was sitting next to the Earl and Countess of somewhere or other, I forget now. They had come over to visit Yosemite and had been disappointed in the falls as it was a dry year. The Captain came over the com and said we were having a minor technical difficulty and would be returning to LAX. He turns the plane and puts the hammer down and we're landing in about 15 minutes. Fire engines line the runway and start racing alongside as we land. BOOM BOOM BOOM as we land and then we come to a stop, the slides come out, we slide on down, into waiting buses and they haul us over to a hanger with a bunch of folding chairs. Looking back I can see that most of the tires on the 747 had exploded. My father a LT in the RAF and a Capitan in the US Army Air Corp in WW2, later explained that the reason the tires exploded is that the plane was never designed to land loaded with fuel. Dude in a dark suit standing in front of us sitting in the chairs. He whips out a badge and does the Mcggarit 5 O thing (ok really he was FBI) and says we have info of a bomb on board the plane, does anyone know anything about it? Instant pandemonium and chaos, whaling and gnashing of teeth, breaking open the duty free and guzzling etc. Meanwhile the Earl, still sitting next to me, says: "Now, young man, would you please explain to me again how Bridal Veil Falls looks in a good year." He and the Countess where not concerned in the slightest, my good man. They put us up in the Capt's Lounge in the airport with an open ticket (ordered a French dip, just 17, coudn't get no beer, brah). Bout 12 hours later another 747 shows up from Heathrow they clean it up quick and load us on and away we go. Meanwhile, my dad waiting for me in Edinburg can get no info other than there has been a delay. So he waits and eventually I show up. Meanwhile from me leaving and getting there the Rector's father had passed. His mother came to live with them and they no longer had the spare room. The Rector had spoken with the next door neighbor the local Church of Scotland minister and I would be staying there, at the manse. So I sat my Highers (for all our UK friends) there at Waid Academy and received four Scottish Certificates of Education (SCEs). I have an SCE in English, History, Modern Studies and in Art. Came home and went and saw the councilor at the local HS. He took a look at the exams I sat (one of the questions on the history exam was "why were more people killed in the Great War then in other wars prior?" They expected 4 or 5 pages of written answer per question, the exam took all day per subject) and said you'd be wasting your time doing your senior year here, you should just go to college. So I did. Two college degrees but no HS diploma, thats me. Kinda funny cause my brothers were over for the weekend. Both of my younger brothers followed in my footsteps and went to Scotland for their junior year. One went to Waid too and he was telling me it had just changed and we got to looking it up. We were sure disappointed. Went from this stately place:

To this monstrosity:

Heck it looks like the mall from Stranger Things!

Oh well, sigh. Anstruther was kinda a sucky place to hang out for a year.

WoW...Hell of a Story there Dave! I remember Yosemite because when we were growing up before moving to the Ranch it was my Fathers favorite getaway for weekends...

So instead of Senior year of HS just double promoted to college so to speak...You basically set a Hiring Precedence by not Requiring a HS Diploma to work at your business

I don't like the Look of the NEW School way toooooooo Modern for my taste!

 

[Horsewright]

WoW...Hell of a Story there Dave! I remember Yosemite because when we were growing up before moving to the Ranch it was my Fathers favorite getaway for weekends...

So instead of Senior year of HS just double promoted to college so to speak...You basically set a Hiring Precedence by not Requiring a HS Diploma to work at your business

I don't like the Look of the NEW School way toooooooo Modern for my taste!

Yep agreed. Interesting though the kids are wearing the same uniform we did back in 76'. Black wool blazer trimmed in red piping, red and black striped tie, white, grey or black shirt, black trousers for the guys and a black or grey skirt for the girls.

 

[Busto]

I think uniform traditions are harder to break than building a new school structure. I think there is a certain amount of Pride in the uniforms (although it probably didn't seem like it at the time). I equate it to Professional Sports Teams uniforms...showing pride for your team or School.

 

[Horsewright]

I think uniform traditions are harder to break than building a new school structure. I think there is a certain amount of Pride in the uniforms (although it probably didn't seem like it at the time). I equate it to Professional Sports Teams uniforms...showing pride for your team or School.

Sure as heck don't spend a lot of time figuring out what you're gonna wear to school, thats for sure.