Howdy folks! I'm James, 38 and a single dad. (Sheesh, that sounds like a singles ad
) I worked various factory and other jobs over the years, but finally decided the punching-a-clock thing was driving me crazy... now I'm struggling to make ends meet with knife-related work and assorted part-time stuff... I'm not a wealthy man but I'm having a darn good time and get to spend a lot of time with my daughter. I spent a lot of years rocking the local bars playing lead guitar, but have kind of left the rock'n'roll scene behind. Gettin' too old for that lifestyle!
I'm not ashamed to admit that I once got myself in trouble for growing a certain plant for my own use... it's a matter of public record so I see no reason to hide it. I served my time and haven't had so much as a speeding ticket ever since... thirteen years this month. The experience taught me to stand up and take responsibility for my own mistakes, and to never be intimidated by anyone. Once you've heard the iron doors clang shut behind you, there's not much else that can spook ya.
I've been fascinated with knives of almost all kinds since I can remember. I started out drawing and building model cars (Dad was a bit of a hot-rodder, "hand me that 9/16 socket, son... ") and built my first kit knife at the age of 16... soon I degenerated into abusing and eventually customizing/building guitars... always have to be doing something with my hands. Even when I'm sitting around watching football, I'm fiddling with some project or picking guitar during commercials.
My mom was a published poet and short-story writer who taught me the joy of reading and writing. Everyone on both sides of my family was creative in some way and to this day, I just don't understand people who don't have some kind of hobby to keep their minds and hands occupied.
Dad taught me to fish and camp... he was too much of a softie to hunt (by his own admission... he just couldn't bear to kill anything as pretty as a deer). As a boy I spent a good amount of time with my maternal uncle/godfather Larry at his cabin up north, on the same land grandma's family first homesteaded when they came over from Germany. I still remember reading his Field&Stream and Outdoor Life mags and especially his copy of "Mountain Man"... the book that the film "Jeremiah Johnson" was based on. He had (probably still does) a knife we would call a "bushcraft" style, that grampa made from an old file in his younger days... I think it was a Boy Scouts or 4H project. That got me hooked on the whole idea of making knives. Next thing you know, I was wearing out my library card...
The other side of the family was Norwegian so of course I've always been fascinated with Viking arms and armor. (German/Norski... naw, I'm not stubborn
)
All the men in my family were carpenters or mechanics or musicians, and storytellers and outdoorsmen. All the women were crafty, too; I blame them for the fact that I can't sit still and usually yap too much. It's in my genes!
