20 years ago I was working in a warehouse carrying a one hand opening, pocket clipped Buck with a half serrated blade. It was my every day user and when I wore through the ATS-34 blade Buck replaced it with a new one. It was the most practical tool for me at the time and it was used dozens and dozens of times daily, I even had a diamond hone at my work station to sharpen it frequently. It was just a tool...
I had some traditional knives, Old Timer stockmans and trappers, Camillus hunters, a Laguiole, and a couple Opinels. But back then I didn't really care what genre of knife I was interested in, it was whatever caught my eye from catalogs or magazine ads, or whatever displays I saw in stores. Also some examples of stuff from the AG Russell catalog like his one hand knife in all stainless. This forum opened my eyes to all kinds of new things, and I garnered a fondness toward traditional knives and an appreciation for them.
I've always admired the Kukri knives but never have pulled the trigger or really had enough knowledge to know which ones were the real deal... that said, your generous GAW looks to be a beautiful example, good on you , and congrats for your 20 year contribution to BF. I enjoy reading your posts and have always seen you as a valuable contributor with a keen eye for cutlery and a level head.
As I am mostly a lurker these days, I will take a bow on this, just wanted to chime in and say, cheers!