Weekend Open Thread: Dude, Where’s my Plane? Edition

H. Clay Aalders
Weekend Open Thread
·31 Comments··138 views

Hey there Ladies and Gentlemen, it is Weekend Open Thread time, and since we missed last week, we are loaded for bear this week. Plus, the lost F-35 fighter jet was the perfect memeable event – inherently amusing, the pilot was unharmed, and you can make fun of government incompetence. A trifecta of meme-motivation.

 

I want to apologize again for not getting to the open thread last week. The visit to Rosecraft and the football game were defintely a major part of it, but I was also not in much of a mood to be funny. Last week I had to let my lacrosse team know that we would not be able to play in the end of season tournament. Numbers are always a challenge in Fall-ball, since we lose a ton of girls to soccer and volleyball. We had a girl make State in cross-country, which is awesome, but she ended up doing so well that she dragged her team to qualify, which costs us an 8th grade midfielder who hadn’t qualified as an individual, but did as a member of the team.

We lost a couple of girls to church retreats.  I like a good Underdog story, but God vs. Middle School rec-league lacrosse is a heavy lift. And the list goes on…

It was pretty disheartening, and I needed a break. But my heart breaks for the girls who have worked so hard for 2 months and don’t get to play at the end.

The Air Force actually put out a bulletin asking for help.

Which was slightly better than this…

 

It took 28 hours for the Air Force to find it.

My kids always found him first.

 

Stealthy.

Seems legit…

$5.50 for shipping is a good deal.

Ambulance chasers will have a hard time keeping up.

Don’t eat the fish.

Absolutely not.

Of course, we all know what really happened…

At any rate, it was a tough week for Jets.

Not as gruesome as Nick Chubb’s knee injury.

Stole that from Bill Tyce. Seemed like a good segue to the Events Calendar, since he was using it to tell folks he would be at the Lehigh Valley show this weekend…

(As always, ignore the dates in the previews. They come from Year 1 of the calendar.

Lehigh Valley Knife Show

He will be twice as happy next weekend…

Lost Pines Knife Show

Lost Pines is a newer show, but it has been growing like crazy. Put on by the folks at ToThePointSharpening, it sounds like a fun event.

Bowie’s Memorial Hammer-In

Not super far from us, I imagine Mark will be there.

There are a few other current event memes…

We try to stay mostly political, but when you find David Hogg and the NRA both calling out the NM Governor for her tyrannical behavior, I feel safe in sharing these…

The Second Amendment guarantees the First.

That isn’t how any of this works.

I guess smelling it is better than drinking potpourri.

Or eating it in solid form.

Is there anything that can’t be pumpkin spiced?

Apparently not.

Moving on to our weekly drawing…

When we last convened, Girod and Rick K. needed to pick their CRKT knives of choice. Girod chose the Hootenany (3rd down on right) and Rick chose the Montosa (top right). Which means that Del gets the next pick, since I drew him from the comments on the pseudo-thread last week. Thank you all for holding down the fort.

I highly recommend that Del chose the Minimalist. I think that would be the easiest to get through customs. The Shenanigan is assisted open, and the M16 is large and scary. But your call. Next week’s winner gets their pick of the remaining knives.

Usual rules apply. 5 comments or replies are your entries and I will draw at random next week. First time commenters count double, and if you are new to the blog your comments will be held in moderation until I can approve them.

Good luck everyone.

Now, onto the rest of this weeks memes. This was my favorite…

Rock was truly a dynasty.

That would be the pleasant version.

A masterpiece of architecture.

Makes sense to me.

They would if they could.

There is an underground tunnel to Hershey, PA.

I would totally do that to my daughter.

Because I am a dad.

You get dad jokes instead of a whoopin.

Stayin’ Alive.

Indeed they would.

English rocks.

Me with dumplings.

“I got a very positive attitude about this.”

I don’t think that is real. True. But not real.

Of course.

 

Everyday is bring your knife to work day. I didn’t want to wait until next March to share this one.

Related…

Bad idea.

He is not normal. But he would kick Elon’s butt on a mat. I know of the people he trains BJJ with, and he apparently takes it quite seriously.

 

Its a Swingline…

Releated…

I’d rather have a sword.

Meme Flashback…

I still love that one.

I shouldn’t have laughed at that.

Plausible.

I am not lovin’ it.

That said, I believe that Sir Mick is almost the same age as our President. I wonder how he does it…

His contractor was Amelia Bedelia.

You get what you ask for.

Why do I read that in Dan Eastland’s voice.

Stay away from them. “It” is contagious.

 

Wise move.

Sounds perfect.

Bring cash.

Get off my lawn.

But come back next week for another exciting Weekend Open Thread.

Have a good weekend everyone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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H. Clay Aalders

H. Clay Aalders is a lifelong edged tool user. He spent the past 20 years as a woodworker and fishing guide in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Idaho, and Tennessee. While guiding in Idaho, Clay worked part-time writing for a local newspaper, and upon moving to Tennessee began writing for the blog The Truth About Knives - spending his last 5 years there as Managing Editor. His background is in fixed-blade hunting and bushcraft knives, but has jumped into the world of vintage slipjoint collecting with both feet since coming to work at Knife Magazine. Clay’s primary role is as Digital Editor, curating and creating new content for our website and blog, as well as maintaining the Knife Magazine social media accounts (FB/IG: @theknifemag, Twitter: @knifemagazine). He is also a contributor and Associate Editor of the print magazine.

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31 Responses

  1. ima leave that jet alone. that stuff just seems like a distraction from what’s really goin’ on.
    i guess we found roger’s achilles tendon. he been whoopin’ bear ass longtime. “i still own you” was true but unnecessary.
    chinese place at wentworth and archer has lamb and coriander dumplings fifteen for ten dollars. and fried pigs ears.
    best wasp spray is capsicum dog repellent, required to carry as base ppe for nine years… never sprayed one dog (whacked a bunch of mean ones). they pour out of nest dying and the oily residue prevents them from ever returning.
    waiting for wifey saturday required blasting almost entire descendants “somery” album. on the way back from wheeling the next day she bolted at main and dodge, i don’t remember why, she doesn’t really need a reason. eventually found my house (keys), van keys and phone, but the front right tire still went flat again. slow leak. eh, la.
    bubbles is truly a bad ass. “do you remember blowing bubbles as a kid? he says hi.”
    champs elysees, there is (ten minute?) video of a guy lapping that french bypass at over 100mph. details are sketchy, but a french film director borrowed some new tech in the form of a gimbal mounted camera hood mounted and had an f1 driver (maybe) maneuver his car (possibly a ferrari, i’ve read the sound was dubbed from a mercedes… you don’t see any vehicle aspects) around the circuit. i’ve a dvd of it and i never “tire” of watching it. the description lists “using pedestrians as apexes” and is not wrong. oh, it’s called “rendevous.”
    amelia bedelia, “draw the drapes.” not bad but nothing comes close to “go dog go.”
    if you get thai food the way “they” eat it you’ll need to pour icewater down your backside while screamimg “come on ice cream!” seriously though, try the “tiger cry” appetizer. you’ll thank me.

    Reply

  2. Good morning y’all!

    Up and ready at 3am for a new week of mystery and wonder….or is that just the coffee talking?

    Lol seriously though I genuinely appreciate Henry and the rest of you. Looking forward to checking out the new knife!

    The past two weeks have been not just a whirlwind of controversy, incompetence, and willful stupidity for our nation…

    .the memes wouldn’t be funny if there wasn’t a bittersweet note of terrifying truth to them…

    But that energy and momentum seems to have conspired to completely upend my personal and work relationships as well. The UAW insanity has a direct effect on me as all of our work is for the big three and Toyota. The last 3 years since COVID and Biden has been one big nonstop slow motion train wreck.

    So I apologize for not responding earlier. Been blindsided by one “challenge” after another both professionally and personally everyday lately. I haven’t been online much. Just trying to keep the ship stable in stormy waters and make it out the other side.

    On a more positive note I was able to spend the day Saturday with an old coworker and his family on their family farm that has been in their family since the 1830’s. I showed up to find 4 generations waiting for me. 91 years to under a year old. Really enjoyed evaluating and recording their family artifact collection that had been collected on the farm in the early 1900’s and passed down to them all. I do love knives and tools. Especially 10,500 year old ones…and what I love even more is educating others about what they are and why they are important.

    Hope you all have a great week and things calm down for all of us…peace!

    Reply

      1. I think “Henry” is “Clay”. (H. Clay Aalders). Re “Rick”, that is the author of the comment, “Rick Kozlowski”. We are not being “Rick-rolled”. Some of you know that my given name is “Ricky”. My Mom’s grandmother listened to “Ricky Nelson” on the radio . . . “Ozzie & Harriet” (pre-TV, late ’40s). So, “Rick” Kozlowski, are you a “Ricky”?

        Reply

        1. Lol depending on who you talk to yes I am still a Ricky. Archaeology is my passion. Teaching those who will listen is important.

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    2. Politics aside, “Rick”, having an opportunity to see four generations of knives and tools would make my day! You and I may be kindred spirits. I appreciate your passionate comment regarding knives and tools, “I love educating others about what they are and why they are important.” Bill Moran said as much during his lifetime and his legacy remains strong through our “William F. Moran Museum & Foundation”.

      Reply

      1. 4 generations of the descendants of the family that homesteaded there in the 1830’s. The Native American artifacts were collected on the property sometime in the late 1800’s to 1930’s and then passed down through the family since. It was a pleasure to be able to document and record them, and educate them all about their age and the people who made them. Almost everything in the collection dates to transitional paleo to early archaic. 11,000-8,000 years old. These were the first people back here in northeastern Illinois after the end of the Younger Dryas and the land had healed enough to allow people to survive here. 10,000 years ago northern Illinois looked like the Canadian Tundra far north bear near the tree line. Very cold and very different than today. In our area they were following the caribou and stag moose herds. Buffalo did not repopulate the area until around 8,000 years ago. Looks like a really cool museum just not the kind of artifacts I was talking about

        Reply

  4. Brian – we need more on that bee story, sounds hilarious!
    Hock(no’e’)y – NFHs are the absolute worst, might I suggest judicious use of a few well placed claymores? It seems only fair at this stage
    Del – you should have seen the trove of blades in my Jeep last year crossing into Alberta, “no weapons, officer”, even my Brother was surprised at the large machete!
    Clay – you do the world a great service, thanks. The rock, paper, scissors time line was the stand out

    Reply

    1. Alberta is our free land Stuart. My buds there, well your brother knows many like them.

      And those are “Tools” as defined by necessities for camping, etc.

      We have stores here full off those cheap, mild steel looking hatchets, axes, swords, spears, sharpened stars, and so much more.

      A guy I taught to make knives was a local character. He lived in a motel like apartment complex. Had a milling machine in his living room and the skills to go with it. Nitro, as he liked to be called had a rat bike Harley. Rode it around the city with a Samurai sword draped over his shoulder. Neither cops nor robbers bothered my friend. In turn he bothered no one.

      He passed away a few years ago, he made the most beautiful and scary looking fighter with a tooled leather sheath, complete with my name on it.

      I have had autos sent here no problem, but it just takes that one time to go South I guess. My 2 daughters and my wife all carry DAs, me too!

      Say hi to your brother! Those AB folks know how to live!

      Reply

      1. Alberta – the land where you can see you dog run away for 2 days. It’s an interesting place, but the rural farming base is being eroded, bit by bit. I appreciate that characters like “Nitro’ (cool name) exist in this world, the last stalwarts against creeping mediocrity.
        The machete was partly a response to camping in grizzly country unarmed, though I did add a can of bear spray to spice things up. I figured I’d be chomped either way, but it would be way more dignified if they found my body (parts) next to a big old machete than my light blue Kabar Dozzier.

        Reply

        1. I always feel comfortable with the camp knife along. Nitro was amazing, will try and get a pic to Clay of the knife he made me.

          You are right about the farms, my bud in Rocky just auctioned most of his farm equipment, couple sections sold last year. Get my email from Clay, next summer if you head to AB will go for a bike ride and meet you for lunch. I’m just under 6 hours to Calgary.

          Reply

          1. Stuart, What type of machete do you have? I’ve got a camp knife- a 14” bolo with the tip also sharpened on top. Great yard tool, but I think it would just make a grizzly angry!

          2. Del (Ay!)- that’s a long ride for lunch! But it would be a nice idea, for sure we will back up in the BC Rockies soon to do more touring and will swing by and say ‘Hi’.
            Mark (R)- the blade is probably worse than useless against a Grizz for sure, but I sleep better inside the tent with something, even if its my brave dreams of defending my Lass with edged tools (not. gonna. happen).
            Hock(no’e’)y – I get it, seek peace, but oh my, every once in a while it would be so much fun to go clickety clack!
            Bry(withaYgodammit)an – sorry about that ‘i’

          3. Mark – sorry, I missed part 2: I have both Tramotina and Ontario flavored machetes. The Tramotina is actually the better of the two for yard work as it is thinner and more swishy, though it looks less menacing. It was Canada, so I obviously had the Ontario. I typically camp with a bow saw and good size axe and hatchet too, so I was well armed to clear the brush from my Brother’s long drive.

    2. StuartB: I am a man at peace. My “underwater warrior” days were somewhat eventful last century. I espouse the “Golden Rule” to the best of my ability. I try to abide by the Commandments. Samson used the jawbone of an ass to smite the Philistines. David slew Goliath with a sling (or KO’d him); and, Moses drowned the Pharoah’s soldiers . . . I love the Old Testament!!

      “Do Unto Others As You Would Have Them Do Unto You.” Gospel of Matthew 7:12

      Putting that into context, I reckon that my immoral and faith-ignorant “NFH” require some non-lethal “Do” . . .

      Reply

  5. Clay your meme game is strong my brother. I haven’t laughed that hard since you were running at me and Barret yelling “f$#@ing bees!”. Kudos my friend. Especially for all f-35 cracks. Well done. Oh and that gone in 60 seconds was priceless!

    B

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  6. “WASP” spray . . . keeps the albino English non-Pope’rs at bay.
    “Walmart butt-crack pear with tramp stamp” . . . I’d eat it.
    “F35 on auto-pilot flew on approximately 20 minutes . . . why did it crash? Perhaps, the “AI” was not trained to land properly. “Maverick” would not have ejected!

    . . . , “These are a few of my favorite memes!” (“Sound of Music”, 1965)

    Del: Congrats on getting “RNG’d”. Did anyone notice that Clay’s acquaintances did not participate on this two-weekend WOT? Hmm-mm-mm, . . . in the knife industry, it’s called a “one-off”.

    “One-Offs”: I am “Hocky” (No “e” between “k and y”). Have a go, we need you.

    On a personal note, I was charged on August 2, 2023 with “Wanton Trespass on Private Property” by my “neighbors from Hades” (NFH). These “NFH’s” have resided in the house behind me for the past two years. I have lived in my home for 27 years, raised six sons with my wife of 40 years; and, I spend a good amount of time outside. Prior to these people, I had three different neighbors live on that property with zero problems. Over the past two years, I have been to district court on “peace orders”: One was mine; Two were theirs. I have kept in mind the Commandment, No. 9 . . . “Do Not Bear False Witness Against Your Neighbor”. Basically, “Do Not Lie”.

    Yesterday, I received a letter from the State’s Attorney telling me that the “charge” against me was “Dismissed”. I half-expected the “BS” claim by the “NFH’s” to be dismissed and that a 50% chance existed that I would be in court on October 17th. I was going to represent myself in court because a defense attorney would have cost me $2-6K. That is a significant amount of knife money! All joking aside, I wanted my ‘day in court’ to expose the daily harassment of my family by these “NFH’s”.

    I am staying in my home. I do not expect the “NFH’s” to stop their invasion of my privacy by 24-hour surveillance cameras; their use of under-age kids to take cellphone video of my family and friends on my property; or, displaying vulgar signs along our shared property line. (Note: In Maryland, surveillance is not illegal. Vulgar signs are not illegal as long as they are visible to the public.)

    I reckon I can put this event in the “Win” column. I plan to plant a couple of strategically placed trees soon. A few shrubs, too. Going to modify my back yard garden fence to effectively shield the view of the prying eyes. Thinking about getting some black snakes . . . rodent control.

    Thanks for listening, Hocky.

    Reply

    1. Gee Hocky!!!

      Be careful with those neighbors.

      Likely you haven’t watched that, “Fear Thy Neighbors” TV program? It never ends well.

      At the same time it sucks after living there so long to have continual conflict.

      Hopefully you find a way to put this in the win column. Really feel bad for you. A fence and trees sound like a great plan. Get those knife friends over for a wall building party! ASAP

      Reply

      1. Well, Del . . . I am not a fan of walls. My “garden fence” holds bird houses and other nature friendly things. The “NFH’s” erected a 6 1/2 ft. H, 120 ft. L pressure treated fence along the property line on two sides. It effectively blocks our view of their debris-strewn property which is a good thing. I have mature shrubs and trees; and, my newly electrified work shed that obscures most of their fence line. I have a few “gaps” in my backyard which I am addressing.

        Regarding that “Fear Thy Neighbors”, I did watch a recent episode. It did not end well for either side. My “NFH” seriously lack a moral compass.

        The State’s Attorney Office (SAO) has put these people on notice with the “dismissal”. I have talked with the “SAO” and they have assured me that they will not “play these people’s game.” I am appreciative of that knowledge.

        Reply

    2. Terrible to hear that about your new neighbors Hockey. Sounds like you’ve got the right plans in the works to mitigate their downsides. I suppose you could always park an old submarine in your back yard to use as a fence.

      Reply

      1. Periscope . . . Handmade from cardboard tubes (telescopic. . .) and compact mirrors. Learned “how to” in 3rd grade. I am working on some PVC torpedo tubes. I might add a couple of ICBM tubes . . . Detente.

        Reply

        1. Periscope talk got me remembering. I got a toy one for my birthday as a kid. It was very cool when I was 6; OD green, it allowed you to see in 4 directions. We also made them around third grade in Cub Scouts out of cardboard tubes and mirrors, and again in high school when studying WWI trench warfare.
          Hocky- I’ve been thinking about your situation. I’m sorry you’re dealing with this. It sounds most unpleasant..There could be several reasons for their actions, too many to list, but it appears they 1) want to be left very alone, and 2) they want advance warning of any “intruders” and/or what might be coming at them. Paranoid is a sad way to go through life. I pity them. SAO appears to have their number.
          Make a sign to put opposite their obscene one that reads simply “Romans 13:10” and do your best to ignore them.
          I look forward to your next pawn shop report!

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  7. Thanks Mark, exactly. We don’t want Knife Magazine getting tagged for exporting dangerous goods! 🙂

    It does just take one overzealous customs agent, so I understand.

    Hoping Mark Z. can make it here next July for some Salmon and Halibut fishing, wouldn’t want him delayed at the border.

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  8. Del! Congrats on the new notverysharpletteropenerthatonlybares theslightresemblancetosomethingthatmightbutshouldn’tcauseonly themostparanoidofborderguardsonlytheslightestofmomentary
    concerns Minimalist.
    Clay- good call on picking your battles! So many great ones this week! Love the jet memes! I cried I was laughing so hard over the odd shaped pears. My wife asked why- and she just belly laughed! Too funny!
    Granddaughter has homecoming (high school senior year) this weekend. She is my eldest’s eldest. I’ve been down this road before. I know to take a ton of photos and to lock these memories in. The first “big event” of her last year at home. I’ll be in a supporting roll for grandma and mom. I’ve got boxes of Kleenex . It’ll be great!
    Have a great weekend all!

    Reply

  9. Nothing worse than losing a jet, especially one of those fighter jets! Sounds like a Vegas show, now you see it – Now you don’t!

    Don’t even think you touched the leather on that draw Clay! Who’s your Huckleberry?

    Great to see you back brother, we all know how much time and effort goes into making our WOT a blast every weekend. Nobody complaining if you miss a step here or there, with all you got going on, we are more surprised that you get to this at all!

    And too cool to get drawn, been pushing the envelope lots lately so will take the advice and happily grab the “Minimalist”.

    Have a great weekend everyone! Fall is here tomorrow and a very busy time for knife orders.

    Reply

    2. at one point i had three or four minimalist knives hanging in the kitchen closet. bowie, drop point, tanto, cleaver… i have zero idea where any of them are. they were neat but fairly useless.

      Reply

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