Rorschach’s House O’ Spyders

I kinda had to. The BaliYo is a new pen by Spyderco. It allows you to perform flip tricks and do something with your hands without needing a real balisong knife.

Its cool, bigger than I imagined. The flipping is NOT easy for me based on my previous balisong experience. The DVD is nice for showing the tricks, normal speed then slow motion.

Here’s the retail packaging. Neato and very toy-like (which is a great approach.) I was bummed about getting the RWB color (wanted gray) but after using it a bit I’m glad I got the multicolor version.

Pros:

• flips well
• very fun
• nice weight
• rugged, takes drops well
• writes with Fisher quality (actually it seems a bit better then my old bullet for some reason)
• DVD included

Cons:

• clip makes writing awkward
• the music on the DVD is maddening
• white pen barrel means visible ink marks on the tip
• might impair my bali knife skills (?)

I’d like to see a metal version, but that would definitely be seen as more threatening. I like substantial pens.

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But I was on vacation and passed a certified Case store. I have always wanted a “stacked washer” fixed blade, and this little guy was cheap and cool. Like my other case blades, I’m not even sure what I’m going to do with it. Letter opener? Eccentric’s steak knife? Oh well, its neat.

The snap on the sheath is TIGHT. If I was good at making kydex rigs I might consider doing one for this… but seriously, like I’m ever going to wear a fixed blade smaller than a Military.

Comically, the box it came in is HUGE.

I really must stop buying fixed blades.

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I’m not a daily smoker, but I do enjoy an occasional cigar a few times a month. A good friend once told me: “Cigars are a hot weather activity” and he was right. Now in the heart of summer, I find myself drifting out to the back screen porch at the end of the day for a bit of meditation with a hand rolled robusto.

I used to be a “wooden match and cedar splint” guy, but that’s a real hassle outdoors, time consuming, (and pretentious?) Several years ago I bought what has become my favorite lighter of all time: the Blazer microtorch. Small, easy to use, ignites easily, large fuel tank, and rugged (this thing has traveled the globe with me.)

The one thing lacking in the blazer is character. Enter the Zippo. I love the idea of Zippos. The authentic Zippo click of the lid. But traditional Zippos have issues I cannot overcome (I still own 2 of them anyway): the naphtha fuel is smelly and can impart a bad flavor into a cigar, and the fuel tends to dry out if the lighter is used infrequently. (I imagine if you smoked cigarettes it would be no big deal given frequency of use.) Still, I love traditional zippos and use them for candles, camping, lighting incense, etc.

Enter the Zippo Blu. The combination of the best of both worlds? Perhaps. I cheerfully bought the zippo Blu hoping it would retire my veteran Blazer torch, but alas it will likely end up living side by side with the torch for now. The Blu is what I like to call a rev 1.0 product.

Pros:

• Size and shape are appealing, variety of designs available
• Butane torch (no bad flavor, high heat)
• Zippo CLICK (the main feature)
• Flint spark wheel looks and feels right

From left to right: Blazer MicroTorch -> Traditional Zippo -> Zippo Blu

Cons:

• Fuel seems to deplete faster than my blazer
• the lid hinge is chintzy and does not align easily with a one-handed close. not acceptable for a $40 lighter
• Flint doesn’t always light the jet
• The jet does not extend high enough above the wind screen making lighting of a larger cigar awkward
• Gas switch does not have a hard cutoff like the Blazer

The moral of the story: if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it (my Blazer is my platonic ideal cigar lighter.) The Blu shows promise and I hope they fix the bugs to make it as solid as the classic Zippos.

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This one is both exciting and mundane. Because of the amount of travel I do in a year (around 35~40%) I would say the Dragonfly gets more carry than any other model in my collection. The blade is small and legal in most jurisdictions I travel to, and the FRN clip is friendly and light.

I was intrigued by a white design because I wonder if it will be more NKP friendly. We shall see. Inadvertently now I own more dragonfly’s than any other model: 2 black FRN, 1 white FRN, 1 SS, and 1 Santa Fe beauty.

I won’t sing the full praises of the design here but there’s a reason why its one of my favorite utility blades.

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While at the HQ last month I picked up another (likely) drawer queen which I lusted after during initial release, the Schempp Kris. I love the hybridization risks that Spyderco is willing to take on product (the dyad, kiwi, volpe, all come to mind) and the Kris is a cool compromise between Spyderco functionality and the Kris extravagant heritage (not an easy task!)

They had several left at SFO and I examined several for tiny differences in the action. I selected my favorite, smoothness but with a very solid lockup and no catch on the release. (again for this model I really don’t like or need the Boye dent)

The fit and finish is top notch (as expected), the micarta nicely smooth, the seams joining the stainless steel invisible.

The blade is an reference of exquisite factory sharpening, I don’t want to dull this one and have to recreate the fine work.

One of my favorite features is the way Ed incorporated a “hilt” or hand guard but at the same time the piece has a functional choil for more control. Well done.

Overall the knife feels substantial in the hand but the balance is good given the long blade.
A lovely addition to the House.

Next on deck: Kitchen goodness.

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I have pretty much been a “squishy” guy my whole life. I like eating and drinking, was never an athlete due to kidney removal surgery at 7 whence doctors told me “absolutely no contact sports, even basketball” and sent me even more into the realm of sedentary video games and computers. I have tried every diet along the way, and while many of them work, I have lost and gained lots of weight over the years. All along my real goal was body fat loss. Even the most radical of diets (medifast) got my weight down but the starvation mode kept my body fat high.

Thanks to a drop dead simple program called P90X I am getting closer to my true goal (which is 9% body fat, regardless of weight.) Thought I would post some before and after shots. I am in NO way affiliated with P90X, just thought I would share what worked for me. Honestly, I think if I did different forms of exercise 6 days a week for about an hour a day it would have similar results.

A few years ago: weight:205 lbs, waist:38, body fat:26%, cholesterol:255

Today: weight:169 lbs, waist:32 (loose), body fat:14%, cholesterol (no statins or drugs) 186
(even when I was a skinny high schooler my cholesterol was higher than this, so its remarkable given my heredity)

Some notes: I do watch what I eat but God knows I am no angel. I have the stray fries, beer, and dessert on a regular basis.

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Ottawa, originally uploaded by Rorschach.

OK actually this was taken in Ottawa but fireworks are fireworks, eh?

I recently spent some vacation time near Denver for family reasons and had a quick half hour to slip away to Golden. It was a dash visit to be sure but still well worth it! You might remember my first pilgrimage was to the SFO when it was a standalone retail shoppe, now its back at the mother ship and a lot more meaningful to visit.

View from the front of the building looking out into the foothills.

This must be the place.

LARGE American flag. Perfect.

There were more visitors in the outlet than I imagined there might be, but the haul was good: Kris (discontinued and discounted!), Yin (KX06S), new style hat, and a free sign.

Reviews to follow.
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First Fenix. I put this off a while as I cannot imagine WHY the HELL I need another flashlight, but some residual paypal funds had been languishing and I thought why not?

Pros:

• pretty inexpensive for what you get
• CREE goodness
• multiple settings including low, high, and strobe
• the HIGH is most impressive for a AAA light
• only slightly larger than my beloved ARC AAA (but much brighter)
• split ring stand up flat end!

Cons:

• Hard anodizing seems… thin. I am not sure how rugged its going to be over time and pocket carry
• The pocket clip that comes with it is ridiculously chintzy and lame, unusable
• the ghey-skull-paracord-lanyard is my own terrible creation, do not blame Fenix for this one

I am going to twitter my EDC when I can remember it. Trying a new widget on the right ->

http://twitter.com/Rorschach_EDC

Yes, this may be, perhaps, the most boring twittter feed ever. Knife-navel gazing.

Twitter is so flaky though I am not sure how long this will last.

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