Ah yes the good old days...LOL

Quote Originally Posted by Prahston View Post
Those are beautiful! I have been really surprised at how available and cheap carving sets are as well... Makes me wonder, in this 'Push Button World' of ours, if it is somewhat a dying art.

My first experience with a straight razor was with my Dad at the local Barber Shop when I was around 6/7 or so. My Dad would get his hair cut and shaved and I'd sit there listening to all the talk I rarely/barely understood yet the guys there all around would include me with a wink or a smile as I was taking in all the sights and breathing deeply all the smells. Pretty soon it was my turn and I'd get the same treatment. I can still remember the feel of the hot lather. I'm sure he used the back of the razor or maybe a comb but it sure felt like the real deal and I mimicked my Dad's posture holding real still and letting the Barber turn my head this way and that until I was done. At the end he'd ask menif I wanted Aftershave... Of course I did! Man, I felt 9 feet tall sitting up there on that booster board being with all the other 'Men'.

I felt the same way with Carving for the Holidays... Watching My Grandpa or my Dad or one of my Uncles being handed the fork and knife andngetting the 'honor' of carving that turkey, ham or roast. I watched with absolute rapt attention the blade against the steel then the position of the fork... The first cut, steam escaping, juice running and a few seconds later the incredible smell! When it was my first time my hands wereshaking even though I'd done the same thing working at a restaurant for years before... It was different... I felt the weight of honor and tradition initially weighing heavy and then like a calm weight of a man's hands on my shoulders steadying me, patting my back in reassurance... A man's hands, calloused yet somehow soft, strong yet gentlly firm... Hands that smelled like aftershave.