What do I carry?

Well, then the earth was young and dinosaurs roamed freely - sorry, when I was a teenager - my parents gave me a SAK. A 'Champ' or 'Camper', I don't remember. It had two blades, scissors, can opener, bottle opener, corkscrew and awl. (That knife, when combined with a Buck 'Folding Hunter' (4" blade), got me through many outdoors trips with the Scouts - including 2 trips to Philmont.) To me, my SAK was the Nirvana of Knives.

My trusty SAK soldiered on in my pocket all through college. To prove the point that "preparedness" covers more than just survival, my trusty SAK even saved a date. The girlfriend invited me out one weekend for a picnic lunch on the levee. All was perfect - secluded clearing overlooking the mighty Mississippi, big cozy blanket, wonderful eats, a bottle of Italian wine. And no corkscrew. She wanted to pack up and head home. I reached into my pocket, produced the SAK, deployed the corkscrew and… saved the day. She was VERY appreciative. (Nudge, nudge, wink, wink.) <img src="images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" /> MY SAK did it all. We were inseparable.

Then, I graduated. A large SAK just didn't fit comfortably in the pocket of office attire, so I bought a SAK 'Classic' for my key ring, and relegated my old friend to the front pocket of my daypack. For me, it was almost like sending grand-pa to the home. I missed that reassuring weight in my pocket. But, the arrangement worked well - I had in my pocket the tools I needed day-to-day (mostly the scissors and the tweezers), and everything else I thought I would ever need was in my daypack. It worked well for 15 years.

Then I discovered 'Equipped to Survive'. <img src="images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

After one evening's wandering through ETS, my trusted old friend seemed so, so…. limited. "What?" I cried, "No locking blades? No serrated blades? No saw? No phillips screwdriver? No…. PLIERS?? We gotta talk, old friend." I had never heard of a 'Leatherman Wave' before, now I had to have one. Bad. My wife thought I was moonbat nuts. $70 bucks for a knife? No way. (BTW - word of advice for all you guys out there. NEVER, EVER try to rationalize the cost of a knife by comparing it with what she would spend for a pair of shoes. Just trust me on this one.) To keep domestic tranquillity, I kept my old SAK in my briefcase (moved up from the daypack), and got a Buck "Minitool" to replace my SAK 'Classic'. It worked OK, but the pliers were too small (how I got this far in life without pliers on me, I'll never know.) Then, I got a Leatherman 'Micra' as a gift. Its scissors and tweezers were superior to the Buck, so on the key ring it went. (During this period, I actually took to carrying a pair of Sears Craftsman pliers in my briefcase. Sad, isn't it?).

I never got the 'Wave', because I discovered the Leatherman 'Juice/Squirt' series. It allowed me to keep the 'two-tool' approach (one on person, one in my daytimer/briefcase) that had worked so well for me in the past, with practically no duplication of tools. (I don't need two scissors, thank you.) So after many years of being my constant companion, my SAK was finally relegated to the "Drawer of Misfit Tools" in my drafting table, and replaced by a 'Juice Kf4'. The 'Micra' was later dumped for a 'Squirt S4'.

That is where I am today. While my functional tool needs have been met, I am still not satisfied somehow. I want my old SAK back with me. Each time I see it, a flood of memories returns - the nick from this incident, the scratch from that. My story in a 3 1/2-inch package. When I look at my shiny Kf4, I see a tool. If it gets lost, buy another one.

I know, I know. When the chips are down, there is no room for sentimentality. I am better prepared now. But…..

Oh, yes - and I blame all of this on Doug. <img src="images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

…..CLIFF