I don't clearly remember the circumstances but do recall it was late Fall when the light of day fades within a heartbeat. There were perhaps four or five of us standing around outside some big-box business and one of the ladies was bent over examining a plant. I remember her asking my wife what it was and Sweet Wife said she couldn't read the label in the dark.
Without so much as a second thought I reach and withdrew my Surefire and hit the button allowing my wife to the read the tag on the rosebush.
Then, "Where in the heck did that come from?" My wife, "Oh, Stephen carries all kinds of stuff, his pockets are full of junk."
Sadly, she was correct, I do carry a bunch of stuff. Many years ago a friend of mine asked why I always wear boots and dress just so and why in the world do I carry this or that. I replied that I wanted to be ready to help myself in case of any natural or man-made emergency. Sounds silly but it's the truth. I will not be caught with my pants down, so to speak.
A couple of days later this same man came into my shop and whipped out his newly purchased pocket knife. All proud and stuff.....and said he was following my lead. I smiled and said that's great, keep it up. As he was leaving he yelled back, "Hey, where can I find a folding saw?"
There are limits.
It isn't that big of a deal. As you are aware I do carry a handgun, with a spare magazine of ammo. I try and keep things simple. There is the Surefire flashlight, my knife, emergency cash along with my normal pocket money (change in a leather drawstring bag) bandanna, my notebook, and a few other odds and ends plus my Blackberry. It takes a while for me to change my pants.
Hey, you never know when that folding saw will come in handy....as Martha Stewart said, "It's a good thing."
Okay, let me hear from you....what do you hump? Oh, if I fail to mention the notebook pictured above, my niece will shoot me. She bought it for me in Paris a couple of years ago and I love it...thank you Hannah.
