In the summer of 2003 I felt like it was time to experience factory work. My dad had worked in manufacturing for 33 years, and I somehow felt obligated to gain first hand perspective – maybe talk factory jargon with dad. I don’t know. I started a job at a local factory that manufactures air rifles, paint ball guns, and lead pellets. The hours were Monday through Thursday, from 6 am to 4:30 pm. The three-day weekend made the workers happy. The temperature inside the factory was about 95 degrees, and since we worked with lead we were not supposed to wear shorts or have drinks with us on the production floor. The managers typically disregarded these safety measures. The disregard made the workers happy.
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Extraordinary things often enter your life in unexpected ways. Call it a chance encounter, a coincidence, an accident. Call it luck. These things, however they enter your life, can have a profound impact on how you think about the world. They can impact how you behave. One particularly extraordinary thing in my life warrants a story.
Priorities Change.
In the summer of 2017, my wife and I were busy figuring out all the flowery details of our Maine barn wedding. The property we had rented for the ceremony and reception was absolutely stunning. A beautiful manicured yard, a picturesque garden and apple orchard, a rustic yet charming barn, and a backdrop comprised of a serene New England forest. The only problem was that the barn was just that – an empty barn. No seating, no wedding décor, nothing really. It provided us with a blank canvas to carefully reflect our personal style, to make it our own.
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Anthony Bourdain suggested I buy a Global brand knife and use it for life. So I did.
I’m not exactly sure why I trusted Anthony Bourdain’s recommendation. Perhaps, I thought to myself, Global was a sponsor of Bourdain and he was getting paid good money to hawk their products. But maybe not. I’ve read several of his books and watched pretty much all of his food-themed tv shows. He didn’t seem like the type of guy to throw out an opinion lightly. I enjoyed his dry sense of humor, admired his willingness to take risks, and for some reason unknown to me, I tend to trust people who are generally cynical. Cynical people don’t lie. So, my wife and I bought a Global knife, a whole set in fact.
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