# Avatar and Identity



## DitmasPork (Sep 28, 2020)

Hey @josemartinlopez, your new avatar caught my attention.

I assume humor was part of the intent. However, IMO you're no longer a 'noob'—considering the knowledge you've acquired and knives collected.

Your avatar got me asking—at what point does a person become a serious kitchen knife collector? To me it can be quite simple, a person becomes a serious knife once they have collected a number of knives that exceeds kitchen requirements. Doesn't matter if this takes place over a decade or a month. What I do for a living is sell art to collectors; someone can be deemed a 'serious collector' after buying just a couple of pieces.

@josemartinlopez has graduated from 'noob' to 'serious collector.'

To the subject of my post, I'm fascinated by what KKFers use as their avatars—sometimes an intentional projection of an ideal, fantasy, humor, statement, etc.

My avatar, a pic of a, ancient Hawaiian poi pounder, linked with cultural identity of where I'm from.

Interested in why people selected the avatar they've used.


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## Twigg (Sep 28, 2020)

Mine is a picture of a Turkish Orange Eggplant that I grew. I selected it as my avatar because I love to garden and raise a variety of heirloom vegetables every year. I am always curious as to what some of the old noncommercialized veggies taste like. Here is a picture I lifted from Baker Creek's website to show a closeup. For me, it is the food. The knives make the whole experience a lot more pleasing, but are only a part of it.


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## DitmasPork (Sep 28, 2020)

Twigg said:


> Mine is a picture of a Turkish Orange Eggplant that I grew. I selected it as my avatar because I love to garden and raise a variety of heirloom vegetables every year. I am always curious as to what some of the old noncommercialized veggies taste like. Here is a close up picture I lifted from Baker Creek's website to show a closeup. For me, it is the food. The knives make the whole experience a lot more pleasing, but are only a part of it.
> 
> View attachment 96565


Whao! I just assumed it was a tomato in your palm. How to they differ—besides coloration—to Thai Eggplants, which are a similar shape, and can be eaten raw?


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## josemartinlopez (Sep 28, 2020)

DitmasPork said:


> However, IMO you're no longer a 'noob'—considering the knowledge you've acquired and knives collected.


Haha, thanks, you are kind to someone who owns no knives and has even less knowledge!

I started that blog I told you about to give my impressions of knives in a more orderly manner. Bluehost just suspended the account over some ID issue and I'll let you know when it's back.


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## Twigg (Sep 28, 2020)

These can be eaten raw when young because they lack bitterness. Once they get too big/old, the get really seedy. Overall, they are best for stuffing. They are wonderful in a caponata too. My favorite all around eggplant is the Aswad Eggplant. It is great for just about any use, no soaking to pull bitterness as it is naturally sweet.


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## DitmasPork (Sep 28, 2020)

Twigg said:


> These can be eaten raw when young because they lack bitterness. Once they get too big/old, the get really seedy. Overall, they are best for stuffing. They are wonderful in a caponata too. My favorite all around eggplant is the Aswad Eggplant. It is great for just about any use, no soaking to pull bitterness as it is naturally sweet.


Dude! I need to find them, will try some of the Russian markets in my area that tend to carry a lot of Turkish foods and ingredients. What I love about Asian eggplants is there's no need to salt or soak.


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## josemartinlopez (Sep 28, 2020)

DitmasPork said:


> What I love about Asian eggplants is there's no need to salt or soak.


That is indeed one of life's little blessings. I loved practicing on Asian eggplants to improve knife skills.


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## DitmasPork (Sep 28, 2020)

josemartinlopez said:


> Haha, thanks, you are kind to someone who owns no knives and has even less knowledge!
> 
> I started that blog I told you about to give my impressions of knives in a more orderly manner. Bluehost just suspended the account over some ID issue and I'll let you know when it's back.


"...owns no knives..."??? I thought you owned quite a few purchased recently? You had a Jiro up for trade.


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## josemartinlopez (Sep 28, 2020)

Who am I to question the mods as to what knives I own!


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## ian (Sep 28, 2020)

If you want this to be a thread about avatars, you might want to just title it “Avatar and Identity” so people don’t assume it’s yet another thread all about JML.


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## Twigg (Sep 28, 2020)

DitmasPork said:


> Dude! I need to find them, will try some of the Russian markets in my area that tend to carry a lot of Turkish foods and ingredients. What I love about Asian eggplants is there's no need to salt or soak.


Keep an eye out for these as well:
1) Rosa Bianca (Italian, no bitterness)
2) Mitoyo (Great all around Japanese variety)
3) Japanese White Eggplant (About the size of a goose egg, great for use chopped up)

I have grown these three plus the Turkish and Aswad mentioned above. The Aswad is an Middle Eastern variety.


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## ExistentialHero (Sep 28, 2020)

Mine is just my goofy head. No secret messages or hidden depths.


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## ian (Sep 28, 2020)

My avatar is a picture that I had a computer generate of the “Farey graph“, see the image at the top of the page here.

It comes up in my work a fair amount. The image was drawn for this paper.


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## ian (Sep 28, 2020)

Looking forward to seeing your thoughts in your blog, @josemartinlopez.


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## Twigg (Sep 28, 2020)

ian said:


> My avatar is a picture that I had a computer generate of the “Farey graph“, see the image at the top of the page here.
> 
> It comes up in my work a fair amount. The image was drawn for this paper.


That is interesting, thanks for sharing! The most complex I ever had to do was Queuing Theory, which pales in comparison.


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## DitmasPork (Sep 28, 2020)

ExistentialHero said:


> Mine is just my goofy head. No secret messages or hidden depths.


Your's does speaks of a specific historical context, the mask wearing covid times; also the mask material reveals your interest in a particular knife maker; thumbs up an expression of optimism.

Interestingly, I use a somewhat similar avatar on another platform, albeit not as happy looking.


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## Hz_zzzzzz (Sep 28, 2020)

Makes me wonder what my avatar is. oh wait. I don't have one.

Edit: just uploaded an avatar pic. Isn't my puppy handsome? It's nice to see him whenever I post.


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## DitmasPork (Sep 28, 2020)

Hz_zzzzzz said:


> Makes me wonder what my avatar is. oh wait. I don't have one.


I just assumed you were a minimalist, perhaps a designer, devotee of Helvetica typeface.


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## ian (Sep 28, 2020)

DitmasPork said:


> I just assumed you were a minimalist, perhaps a designer, devotee of Helvetica typeface.



Lot of those around here. Guess knife people are pretty geeky...


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## AT5760 (Sep 28, 2020)

Our puppy, Jolene. She has almost doubled in size since that picture was taken about three weeks ago. No "deeper meaning." I love dogs and figured it was time to actually put up some type of avatar.


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## ExistentialHero (Sep 28, 2020)

ian said:


> My avatar is a picture that I had a computer generate of the “Farey graph“, see the image at the top of the page here.
> 
> It comes up in my work a fair amount. The image was drawn for this paper.



Nice! One of the great regrets of my math career is that I never got to draw a really cool picture for a paper. (Managed to sneak in a few epic commutative diagrams, but they'd hardly fit in an avatar...)


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## parbaked (Sep 28, 2020)

My avatar is a pumpkin sculpture by Yayoi Kusama.
It's installed on a beach on Naoshima Island in Japan's Seto Inland Sea...one of my favorite places anywhere.


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## josemartinlopez (Sep 28, 2020)

Your avatar made me smile the first time I saw it, but I didn't realize it was that specific Kusama. One of my friends is a huge Kusama collector.


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## M1k3 (Sep 28, 2020)

ian said:


> My avatar is a picture that I had a computer generate of the “Farey graph“, see the image at the top of the page here.
> 
> It comes up in my work a fair amount. The image was drawn for this paper.


Whoah! I thought it was some kind of Missile Command type game. Even cooler.


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## Jaszer13 (Sep 28, 2020)

In true Japanese culture: One never stops learning.


My Avatar is my grail set of knives.


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## RDalman (Sep 28, 2020)

I have my mask on in my avatar, to remind everyone of how much I like to smell my own farts daily. (It has air intake just above my exhaust)


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## Corradobrit1 (Sep 28, 2020)

parbaked said:


> My avatar is a pumpkin sculpture by Yayoi Kusama.
> It's installed on a beach on Naoshima Island on Japan's Seto Inland Sea...one of my favorite places anywhere.
> View attachment 96582


Is that iron sand for Tamahagane steel?

My avatar is pretty self explanatory. Scrat loves acorns ..... and Porsche


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## ian (Sep 28, 2020)

Jaszer13 said:


> In true Japanese culture: One never stops learning.
> 
> 
> My Avatar is my grail set of knives.



Dalstrong? Kamikoto? Can't tell.


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## spaceconvoy (Sep 28, 2020)

I liek burger


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## childermass (Sep 28, 2020)

Mine is the upside down bird on this linoleum print I did a few years ago:


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## Matus (Sep 28, 2020)

DitmasPork said:


> @josemartinlopez has graduated from 'noob' to '*noob* collector.'



Fixed it for you


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## daveb (Sep 28, 2020)

Yo Matus - I didn't think Germans did funny?


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## juice (Sep 28, 2020)

DitmasPork said:


> graduated from 'noob' to 'serious collector.'


This is a false dichotomy type of reasoning.



DitmasPork said:


> Interested in why people selected the avatar they've used.


Mine is just my standard gravatar.



ian said:


> If you want this to be a thread about avatars, you might want to just title it “Avatar and Identity” so people don’t assume it’s yet another thread all about JML.


This. I almost didn't click on it because of the second half of the title.


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## ian (Sep 28, 2020)

juice said:


> This. I almost didn't click on it because of the second half of the title.



Yea, it’s kinda frustrating, because this is such a nice topic!


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## Matus (Sep 28, 2020)

Fixed the thread title for you guys ...


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## Matus (Sep 28, 2020)

My avatar are tips of an 80mm Yoshikane petty that Maksim used to sell a long time ago and a Tanaka 210 WA R2 gyuto (my very first gyuto). Both are long gone. And for some reason it always looks crazy unsharp. Maybe the time for a new avatar has come ...


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## juice (Sep 28, 2020)

ian said:


> Yea, it’s kinda frustrating, because this is such a nice topic!


Exactly!



Matus said:


> Fixed the thread title for you guys ...


Hey, mods are good for something!


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## Matus (Sep 28, 2020)

@juice - going to have a glass of wine - I feel like I deserve it


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## DitmasPork (Sep 28, 2020)

juice said:


> This is a false dichotomy type of reasoning.



Guess the point I'm making with 'serious collector,' is 'serious' means anyone willing to spend the money to build a good collection. Knowledge, experience, length of time as a collector aren't always requisites to being a serious collector. Someone could blow 15k in a day and become a 'serious collector.' Doesn't make them an authority or expert—but, could certainly be considered a 'serious collector.'

I'll never be a serious collector, I'm too broke too much of the time.


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## ma_sha1 (Sep 28, 2020)

My avatar stands for maturity .

It’s awarded to me by the forum. No you can’t have one, you have to earn it!


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## Twigg (Sep 28, 2020)

ma_sha1 said:


> My avatar stands for maturity


Sounds legit to me.


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## juice (Sep 28, 2020)

DitmasPork said:


> Guess the point I'm making with 'serious collector,' is 'serious' means anyone willing to spend the money to build a good collection. Knowledge, experience, length of time as a collector aren't always requisites to being a serious collector. Someone could blow 15k in a day and become a 'serious collector.' Doesn't make them an authority or expert—but, could certainly be considered a 'serious collector.'


That's fair. I guess I wouldn't use "serious" (with money as the only criteria) but I can see why you did.



DitmasPork said:


> I'll never be a serious collector, I'm too broke too much of the time.


I'll never be any kind of collector!



ma_sha1 said:


> My avatar stands for maturity


I thought it was "mashups"


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## Jaszer13 (Sep 28, 2020)

ian said:


> Dalstrong? Kamikoto? Can't tell.




Only the finest... Kamikoto. One day... one can only dream.


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## DitmasPork (Sep 28, 2020)

juice said:


> That's fair. I guess I wouldn't use "serious" (with money as the only criteria) but I can see why you did.



With the collectors I deal with—the desire to collect is the first requirement, money the second.


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## WildBoar (Sep 28, 2020)

Twigg said:


> These can be eaten raw when young because they lack bitterness.


Wow, just like people! Man do they get bitter as they get older!

For the life of me I don't know how to connect my avatar with my user name.


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## ian (Sep 28, 2020)

Twigg said:


> These can be eaten raw when young





WildBoar said:


> Wow, just like people!



Not bringing my son to the next ECG, that’s for sure.


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## juice (Sep 28, 2020)

WildBoar said:


> For the life of me I don't know how to connect my avatar with my user name.


OK, so I guess this is my ADHD being way too literal again, but I thought it was a running wild boar  but I presume that's actually what it is and I missed the joke...


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## SeattleBen (Sep 28, 2020)

That's me showing that you can take the cook out of the kitchen but you can't take the cook's posture away. That looks like my first sink bridge, which weighed about 15 pounds. It was two pieces of back to back shallow unistrut in stainless which I saved from the scrap bin at work. Bolted it together with a few angle brackets to hold it in place over the sink or a hotel pan. I've since upgraded to some 2x4 and am forever teasing myself that I'll replicate the box that Evan had made out of cypress.

Thank you @DitmasPork you never fail to be a highlight here. This is a really great thread that you've started.


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## Kippington (Sep 28, 2020)

DitmasPork said:


> My avatar, a pic of a, ancient Hawaiian poi pounder, linked with cultural identity of where I'm from.


Judging by avatars alone, I thought you were the antithesis of @dafox
_________________________

My avatar is a small bird that travels everywhere with me.


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## Twigg (Sep 28, 2020)

@Kippington
Thanks for sharing the video! That was awesome and my kids enjoyed it too!!! They have a question for you. How do you keep him from pooping on stuff?

They also want to know how old the bird is and what its favorite food is.

Thanks!


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## Corradobrit1 (Sep 28, 2020)

Who needs dogs. Pfft that parrot is a true chick magnet redefining mans best friend. What a cool bird. 

Curious if that species has those social tendencies or were they learned from an early age.


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## ma_sha1 (Sep 28, 2020)

Kippington said:


> Judging by avatars alone, I thought you were the antithesis of @dafox
> _________________________
> 
> My avatar is a small bird that travels everywhere with me.




Kipp, what an amazing video, I bet it’s a chick magnet too!

If I had this bird, my slap-inducing pick-up line “Wanna pet my bird?” would totally be working!


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## dafox (Sep 28, 2020)

My avatar is a vigil lamp, I try to keep my knife hobby in balance with my spiritual life.


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## Kippington (Sep 28, 2020)

Twigg said:


> @Kippington
> Thanks for sharing the video! That was awesome and my kids enjoyed it too!!! They have a question for you. How do you keep him from pooping on stuff?


It took me years to potty train him - or I should say - it took me years to understand how small parrots think and behave.
They're naturally more toilet trained than people think, it takes a short time to tweak their behaviour.

The thing to understand is: People can't easily relate to how often parrots need to go, because nature didn't have to worry about keeping us lightweight for flying.
Birds won't want to poop in places they like to be (e.g you generally never find poop where they sleep, or on your shoulder if they like you). Small parrots can hold it in for about 10-15 minutes, depending on how recently they last had something to eat or drink. If you give them the chance to poop somewhere they don't particularly like or have no connection to, they'll do it there. If you don't give them any chance, they'll do it where-ever they stand.


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## Corradobrit1 (Sep 28, 2020)

ma_sha1 said:


> If I had this bird, my slap-inducing pick-up line “Wanna pet my bird?” would totally be working!


Doing it all wrong. Try "Wanna gyuto my Nakiri?"


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## ma_sha1 (Sep 28, 2020)

Kippington said:


> Small parrots can hold it in for about 10-15 minutes, depending on how recently they last had something to eat or drink.



Ok, I am out, I thought my puppy does business 3-4 times a day was bad, can’t imagine managing 50 times a day


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## Kippington (Sep 28, 2020)

Twigg said:


> @KippingtonThey also want to know how old the bird is and what its favorite food is.


He was 8 years old in the video, and his favourite food is noodles!


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## Corradobrit1 (Sep 28, 2020)

Kippington said:


> He was 8 years old in the video, and his favourite food is noodles!


Cos they resemble worms?


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## Twigg (Sep 28, 2020)

Thank you @Kippington 
My kids were excited that you responded so quickly!


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## Kippington (Sep 28, 2020)

Corradobrit1 said:


> Cos they resemble worms?


No, because noodles are delicious!


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## cotedupy (Sep 28, 2020)

Mine is probably fairly self-explanatory, it's a bottle of Foillard's Cote du Py.

The Cote du Py is a climat, or lieux-dit, in Villie-Morgon in Beaujolais.


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## Corradobrit1 (Sep 28, 2020)

cotedupy said:


> Mine is probably fairly self-explanatory, it's a bottle of Foillard's Cote du Py.
> 
> The Cote du Py is a climat, or lieux-dit, in Villie-Morgon in Beaujolais.


A step up from Aussie Chateau Chunder


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## Luftmensch (Sep 28, 2020)

WildBoar said:


> For the life of me I don't know how to connect my avatar with my user name.



Oh? I got the impression you weren't domesticated and were rather uninteresting and tedious.


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## Hassanbensober (Sep 28, 2020)

My avatar has been my Instagram handle since 2013 followed me here. Hassanbensober was a stooge heavy played by Vernon Dent in one of my favorite films. My Dad never let us watch anything current when we were kids every Sunday morning we watched stooges our gang or laurel and hardy and westerns every other day. One of the very few things we can get together on everyone else in my family can’t stand it. I actually have not used alcohol myself since 2015 so it’s a little ironic nowadays.


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## cotedupy (Sep 28, 2020)

Corradobrit1 said:


> A step up from Aussie Chateau Chunder



Ha! Indeed.

It's a bit sad the lasting reputational damage that bulk Aussie wine did in international markets. For my money it's actually probably the most exciting wine producing country after France and Italy.


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## Corradobrit1 (Sep 28, 2020)




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## juice (Sep 28, 2020)

Not quite PC, that


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## Luftmensch (Sep 28, 2020)

DitmasPork said:


> To the subject of my post, I'm fascinated by what KKFers use as their avatars—sometimes an intentional projection of an ideal, fantasy, humor, statement, etc.



We all have to choose a name when we join the forum. I chose 'Luftmensch'. Literally: air + man. The wiki description biases the description towards the 'intellectual'. I think that is too narrow a description. To me it is more analogous to the English phrase "having your head in the clouds". That is; to be a dreamer; to be absent minded or disconnected and unfocused; not practical.

Ironically, I dont think I am a Luftmensch! Perhaps I envy the prospect of being disconnected from the practicalities of life and just drifting through it!?

I chose the picture to match. It is a modified version of Magritte's famous The Son of Man. At its most simple: I like surrealism, I like hats and I like clouds. Slightly more complex, I modified it to remove the apple and face. It is now more like his work The Pilgrim. This fits better with the "head in the clouds" theme and doubles as a representation of my tendency to remain as anonymous as I can on the internet.





DitmasPork said:


> at what point does a person become a serious kitchen knife collector?



_Collector_. If you are actively buying knives beyond your _needs_, you are a collector. Lets face it, kitchen knives are tools! Two will fulfil a majority of home tasks.

_Serious_. This is where you open up the definition to ambiguity and personal bias. A person who has 'collected' every cheapo knife might be considered serious due to the size and effort of their collection. They might also be dismissed because no knife exceeds $50. Is a serious collector one who deeply understands the field? Or one who simply buys the most expensive items they can find?

To me, the more interesting people are those who have accrued lots of knowledge. They might own relatively 'poor' collections but have lots more to discuss and share! Perhaps they are in the trade, are craftsmen, have lots of experience or are broadly read. Simply owning a _serious collection_, does imply knowledge. The least interesting to me are _serious_ BNIB, draw-queen collectors. So what? If you cant share any interesting knowledge, it is just bragging! Fortunately, in this community, there is a large intersection between 'serious collectors' and knowledgeable people. Indeed, if you actually use your collection, you will gain knowledge!


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## Corradobrit1 (Sep 28, 2020)

juice said:


> Not quite PC, that


What part? Seemed pretty tame by MPFC standards


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## juice (Sep 29, 2020)

Corradobrit1 said:


> What part? Seemed pretty tame by MPFC standards


The "bouquet like an Aborigine's armpit" bit, right at the end, partly chopped off  

I love some parts of MP (mostly Holy Grail, Life of Brian and Meaning of Life more than MPFS), but they were a creature of their times, eh, Mrs Niggerbaiter?


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## Corradobrit1 (Sep 29, 2020)

juice said:


> The "bouquet like an Aborigine's armpit" bit, right at the end, partly chopped off
> 
> I love some parts of MP (mostly Holy Grail, Life of Brian and Meaning of Life more than MPFS), but they were a creature of their times, eh, Mrs Niggerbaiter?


I saw The Dambuster movie from the 50's a few days ago. Wing commander Guy Gibson's dog had a colorful name.


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## Byphy (Sep 29, 2020)

Mine is the result of a recent YT rabbit-hole binge


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## MowgFace (Sep 29, 2020)

Mowgli has been my nickname since college. His eyes reflect the state of mine on occasion.


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## M1k3 (Sep 29, 2020)

'Mike' was taken.
My avatar changes. Deal with it. Or don't.


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## Dhoff (Sep 29, 2020)

M1k3 said:


> 'Mike' was taken.
> My avatar changes. Deal with it. Or don't.



I can't deal with it, every time I have to rediscover who you are. You will find me rocking softly back and forth in the corner clutching my knees one day.

On topic. I'm very likely one of the worst home cooks around, but I love food thus the omnomivore.

Though not overweight I'm pretty confident I can out-eat almost every person when it comes to good cooking or even better cakes!! My favorite day time meal was in one period 3 cakerolls of about 300g a piece. I miss the times I could eat that without gaining the same amount of weight xD


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## birdsfan (Sep 29, 2020)

My username comes from my love of cooking poultry

And my avatar is just some broken down old cook who probably would enjoy some sharp knives to make his job easier, cause Lord knows a cooks day can be hard sometimes.


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## cotedupy (Sep 29, 2020)

birdsfan said:


> My username comes from my love of cooking poultry



Just make sure it doesn't dry out during overtime... 

(Sorry mate. I couldn't resist!)


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## Twigg (Sep 29, 2020)

cotedupy said:


> Ha! Indeed.
> 
> It's a bit sad the lasting reputational damage that bulk Aussie wine did in international markets. For my money it's actually probably the most exciting wine producing country after France and Italy.


That is true. I thought that Aussies only drank shiraz and ate lamb for the longest time thanks to Yellow Tail.


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## Corradobrit1 (Sep 29, 2020)

Twigg said:


> That is true. I that that Aussies only drank shiraz and ate lamb for the longest time thanks to Yellow Tail.


I saw a doc on the BBC a few nights ago about the Aussie wine industry and how they conquered the world. The story of Chardonnay and how a couple of 'entrepreneurs' jumped the fence at Penfolds and stole some cuttings when the direct approach failed was fascinating. The rest is history as they say. Yellowtail is a beast of an operation.


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## birdsfan (Sep 29, 2020)

cotedupy said:


> Just make sure it doesn't dry out during overtime...


Ya got my number. If it keeps getting worse this season, my avatar may change to that same broken down old cook with a bag over his head!


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## DitmasPork (Sep 29, 2020)

Luftmensch said:


> _Collector_. If you are actively buying knives beyond your _needs_, you are a collector. Lets face it, kitchen knives are tools! Two will fulfil a majority of home tasks.
> 
> _Serious_. This is where you open up the definition to ambiguity and personal bias. A person who has 'collected' every cheapo knife might be considered serious due to the size and effort of their collection. They might also be dismissed because no knife exceeds $50. Is a serious collector one who deeply understands the field? Or one who simply buys the most expensive items they can find?
> 
> To me, the more interesting people are those who have accrued lots of knowledge. They might own relatively 'poor' collections but have lots more to discuss and share! Perhaps they are in the trade, are craftsmen, have lots of experience or are broadly read. Simply owning a _serious collection_, does imply knowledge. The least interesting to me are _serious_ BNIB, draw-queen collectors. So what? If you cant share any interesting knowledge, it is just bragging! Fortunately, in this community, there is a large intersection between 'serious collectors' and knowledgeable people. Indeed, if you actually use your collection, you will gain knowledge!



Compelling points you make, nicely written BTW!

Quite simply, a 'collector' is someone who collects a specific type of things—numbers of pieces, prices, type, are what define the collection.

There're different price stratas of knife collecting, I know people that are quite serious about their collection of Globals and Shuns; and those that possess immense pride with acquisitions of Shigs and Katos.

Yes, the term 'serious' is very subjective and takes into account intent/objective and current state of collection. Numbers don't matter—my Global/Shun collector friend has amassed nearly 20 knives; a more affluent friend has around 6 Katos—both collections could justifiably be considered 'serious.'

Every knife collector enters into it from a point. Some can shape a formidable collection rather quickly with enough money and desire; while others might take years to reach the same type of collection. Obviously, knowledge on collecting kitchen knives can be gained with experience. However, if one is studious, observant, asks the right questions, can become a shrewd and savvy kitchen knife collector in a month—it's not rocket science to understand knife valuation, and market trends. Threads on KKF give a lot of info on a particular knife's hype, performance, value, etc.

Kitchen knives are inherently a tool, it's not 'art' and should never be considered art, fine handmade knives are a 'craft.' That said, usage of what's collected isn't essential for a collector—tru that insights can be gained from using knives, but not a requisite for a collection to have value and respect. A collector friend has an enviable collection of Katos, that he's worked very hard over years to acquire—he certainly knows a lot about the knives and the Kato market, but doesn't use the Katos at all to cook with.

Interestingly, there are knives, that because of their price point, are likely to be out of reach of most pro cooks, and too precious to be regularly utilized in a pro environment. Case in point is Maumasi, gorgeous knives indeed, but the chef that exposes the $3–5k beauts to the rigors of a bustling kitchen is a rare bird—a knife aimed at the higher strata of the market, targeting the affluent collector.

There are many respected violin collectors that aren't musicians; and a pro chef shouldn't ever be a food critic because of both viewpoint biases and conflict of interests.

Personally, I'm quite serious about my knife collection; use all of my knives in the kitchen; $300–$700 is my current comfort zone. To me, they're just tools, usually can't justify paying any more than that.


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## valgard (Sep 29, 2020)

Mine is just one of my favourite manga characters ever, and it's from my favourite series (One Piece). I also thought it was weirdly appropriate since the character starts out trying to use as many swords as possible thinking it will work best before settling with "only" three. I haven't gotten over the initial phase.


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## lowercasebill (Sep 29, 2020)

Mine is the same as when i was on the BGE forum. I'd smoke just about anything that went on the egg. I ran across this picture done by a famous pin-up artist. Seem appropriate at the time.


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## ma_sha1 (Sep 29, 2020)

Avatar 2 by end of next year, can’t wait!


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## Corradobrit1 (Sep 29, 2020)

ma_sha1 said:


> Avatar 2 by end of next year, can’t wait!


Avatar 3 is almost in the can.


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## CiderBear (Sep 29, 2020)

Mine is from this


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## Bodine (Sep 29, 2020)

Just changed mine from me surfing 50 years ago, to me fishing 10 years ago.


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## ian (Sep 29, 2020)

Bodine said:


> Just changed mine from me surfing 50 years ago, to me fishing 10 years ago.



Wow. If you're at least 70 years old, could you let me know your diet and exercise regime?


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## DitmasPork (Sep 29, 2020)

Bodine said:


> Just changed mine from me surfing 50 years ago, to me fishing 10 years ago.


You a Floridian surfer? Hmmm, 50 years ago, did you know Jeff Crawford? I surfed in Hawaii, back when Gerry Lopez owned Pipeline.


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## Hanmak17 (Sep 29, 2020)

RDalman said:


> I have my mask on in my avatar, to remind everyone of how much I like to smell my own farts daily. (It has air intake just above my exhaust)


I've heard this will cure Covid

Mines just a pic of a run of the mill bolster


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## Bodine (Sep 29, 2020)

Ian, I am 68, 2 beers and a big glass of wine a day, eat what I want when I want.
Ditmas, I did not know Jeff C, but a few of my friends went to Hawaii, Chris Lundy and Bruce Hansel. Bruce was in the pipe masters tourney a couple of times, he has lived in Bali for 30 years where he still shapes every day. They called him "Bagger" because he got so many waves at Pipe. They were part of the underground crew.
Chris was an artist and surfer, he airbrushed boards for Cort Gion. Sadly he is gone now.


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## juice (Sep 29, 2020)

Corradobrit1 said:


> The story of Chardonnay and how a couple of 'entrepreneurs' jumped the fence at Penfolds and stole some cuttings when the direct approach failed was fascinating.


Founded by criminals, inhabited by criminals. #Straya



DitmasPork said:


> asks the right questions


And if they stumble on some of the right questions, listen to the answers.


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## DitmasPork (Sep 29, 2020)

Bodine said:


> Ian, I am 68, 2 beers and a big glass of wine a day, eat what I want when I want.
> Ditmas, I did not know Jeff C, but a few of my friends went to Hawaii, Chris Lundy and Bruce Hansel. Bruce was in the pipe masters tourney a couple of times, he has lived in Bali for 30 years where he still shapes every day. They called him "Bagger" because he got so many waves at Pipe. They were part of the underground crew.
> Chris was an artist and surfer, he airbrushed boards for Cort Gion. Sadly he is gone now.


Cool! Yeah, Jeff Crawford shook the surfing world when he won the Pipeline Masters in the 70s, no one thought a Floridian could ever win it, since East Coast surf wasn't highly regarded in those days.


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## DitmasPork (Sep 29, 2020)

juice said:


> Founded by criminals, inhabited by criminals. #Straya
> 
> 
> And if they stumble on some of the right questions, listen to the answers.


Yes, listening as important as speaking.


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## ModRQC (Sep 29, 2020)

I don't need all the knives I have - like not at all - and I gathered quite a few in not even one year, yet do not consider myself a collector. I use all of them, even the VG-10 Takayuki, and worked on pretty much all of them - some more than once, some very extensively. Curiosity and want/need are driving me - and yes I use need, not to justify buying so many, but because I really needed to try that profile, that maker, that steel. There was no other way than buying them to know how they suited me. Right now I'm much more interested in sharpening.

This has been going on for a while, and as stupid as it might seem, it's driven the "need" part to try other knives, since all of mine are sharp and otherwise brought to my liking, and I love the perspective of another project, another feeling, another surprise, another anything. I'm not interested in selling most of them - I should based on that need to try operation, but as I look at them and tell myself "Oh come on you need to sell a few" I cannot bring myself to do so: they all have something I love, and they all have been worked on enough that their intrinsic value to me is far beyond what you guys would pay - understandable too that you wouldn't.

The Takayuki can go, though...

As for the Avatar, I don't remember the guy's name but he's drawn a subjective picture of many mental disorders: this one is for depressive disorder, and represents something I sure should be afflicted of, yet always managed to escape with sheer will.

The ID means "Modder Quebec" and has followed me for a while. As with knives, all of my passions have truly taken hold when I started to "mod" things to my liking: movie analysis and discovering a unique sense to a movie, computers and building my own, trying a lot of different parts and looking at their effects on performance, overclocking, and even creating a guide to mod Kepler 2.0 Bios back when energy consumption was limiting Nvidia graphics performance, chess and building my own guide to opening history as related to chess history, and now... knives. As a cultural phenomenon we people from Quebec are known to be good folks, culturally happy, welcoming, and very open-minded, yet we have that history of being regressive, not very inclined to push things forward, to change a situation, to shape the world to our image. Well I am progressive, and very inclined to do all of this.


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## ian (Sep 29, 2020)

I wish you the best of luck shaping your future knives to your image! 

Btw, I found this cool knife block online.


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## ModRQC (Sep 29, 2020)

A bit macabre...


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## Carl Kotte (Sep 29, 2020)

Not much to say really. I just look this way.


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## podzap (Sep 29, 2020)

Carl Kotte said:


> Not much to say really. I just look this way.



Same here.


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## copacetic (Sep 29, 2020)

Likewise. I wander through life thinking "What the ...?"

Actually the avatar was from the side of a barn not far from Le Mans, I spotted it after going to the 24 Hours one year.


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## ian (Sep 29, 2020)

ModRQC said:


> A bit macabre...



True. It was inspired by your post since I was looking for a human shaped knife (a knife in your image) but I’m so glad I found it. May have to order one if I can find a vendor.


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## Dendrobatez (Sep 29, 2020)

I like my car.


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## ModRQC (Sep 29, 2020)

ian said:


> True. It was inspired by your post since I was looking for a human shaped knife (a knife in your image) but I’m so glad I found it. May have to order one if I can find a vendor.



I’m surprised of this coming from you. If « your image » to you is related to what you see in the mirror - or to such extents your clothes car house - then you sure lack of depth my friend.


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## daveb (Sep 29, 2020)

ian said:


> View attachment 96802



Targeted to divorced wimin.


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## ian (Sep 29, 2020)

ian said:


> True. It was inspired by your post since I was looking for a human shaped knife (a knife in your image)





ModRQC said:


> I’m surprised of this coming from you. If « your image » to you is related to what you see in the mirror - or to such extents your clothes car house - then you sure lack of depth my friend.



I looked online first for a knife shaped like an overwhelming desire for a just, compassionate, verdant and sustainable world, but came up empty, strangely...


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## ModRQC (Sep 29, 2020)

Ok so not finding it you aimed for something to deface the meaning of my post? I see...


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## BillHanna (Sep 29, 2020)

I think it was more in the spirit of fun, than to be rude?


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## juice (Sep 29, 2020)

BillHanna said:


> I think it was more in the spirit of fun, than to be rude?


Seemed pretty clear, yes.


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## GorillaGrunt (Sep 29, 2020)

My username is from this noise we used to make to express displeasure in the first kitchen I worked in that I’ve since brought to other places. Haven’t bothered with an avatar yet since I’m not good enough with photoshop to put Mazaki’s face onto all the gang of Agent Smiths from Matrix 2.


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## ModRQC (Sep 29, 2020)

juice said:


> Seemed pretty clear, yes.


Yep and in the vein of testing nebulate humour limits, did I use « deface »?


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## M1k3 (Sep 29, 2020)

Identity crisis's?


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## BillHanna (Sep 29, 2020)

Lost In Translation


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## FishmanDE (Sep 29, 2020)

COWABUNGA IT IS


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## ian (Sep 29, 2020)

ModRQC said:


> Ok so not finding it you aimed for something to deface the meaning of my post? I see...



Rereading the above, my apologies if the head shaped knife block thing came off as confrontational. To clarify, I was trying to make a joke about the "knife in your image" thing by posting a picture of a knife that looked like a person, then came across that image during the google search and thought it was so cool I had to share it. Sometimes my posts come off differently than I intend, though.


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## Colin (Sep 29, 2020)

My username is just my name. My picture shows the Washington Monument from my point of view at the Jefferson Memorial. I was on a guided night tour of the monuments right before covid hit.


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## WildBoar (Sep 29, 2020)




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## CiderBear (Sep 29, 2020)

Washingtonians assemble?


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## WildBoar (Sep 29, 2020)

How did you get out on that roof in Rosslyn? Looks like it is beyond any area intended to be accessible to the public.

That's the type of DC photo I have the most of.


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## rickbern (Sep 30, 2020)

Mine is from the Sesame Street book of opposites, featuring Zero Mostel. Probably published forty years ago, I used to read it to my niece. Each page features two images showing opposing concepts.

having me and a bunch of sharp objects in the same room is a sure ticket to “none”


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## DrEriksson (Sep 30, 2020)

Got a beige backdrop to my initial profile-letter avatar. @juice made a joke with @Carl Kotte about beige lions. Since I only have a reddish exotic shorthair I figured, "that'll do".


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## GorillaGrunt (Sep 30, 2020)

rickbern said:


> Mine is from the Sesame Street book of opposites, featuring Zero Mostel. Probably published forty years ago, I used to read it to my niece. Each page features two images showing opposing concepts.
> 
> having me and a bunch of sharp objects in the same room is a sure ticket to “none”
> 
> View attachment 96835



holy Moses I remember that book from when I was a kid!


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## Corradobrit1 (Sep 30, 2020)

DrEriksson said:


> Got a beige backdrop to my initial profile-letter avatar. @juice made a joke with @Carl Kotte about beige lions. Since I only have a reddish exotic shorthair I figured, "that'll do".
> 
> View attachment 96852


A face only a mother could love, Just kidding. What a cute kitty


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## DrEriksson (Sep 30, 2020)

Corradobrit1 said:


> A face only a mother could love, Just kidding. What a cute kitty



I think he's quite ugly. I've had some allergy problems with cats, but persians always worked fine. This time we tried the short-haired version and it also works for me. However, after having had flat-faced cats since 2005, I now do a double take every time I see a cat with a normal face. 

But yeah, you're correct. He's ugly. Don't tell my wife though. She gets mad when I say that.


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## lemeneid (Sep 30, 2020)

No rewards for guessing why I use b1tchface-san as my avatar


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## BillHanna (Sep 30, 2020)

lemeneid said:


> No rewards for guessing why I use b1tchface-san as my avatar


But do you have a back tattoo? Commemorative shirt? Lock of hair?


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## Corradobrit1 (Sep 30, 2020)

lemeneid said:


> No rewards for guessing why I use b1tchface-san as my avatar


I thought it was a young Arnold Schwarzenegger


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## Corradobrit1 (Sep 30, 2020)

DrEriksson said:


> I think he's quite ugly. I've had some allergy problems with cats, but persians always worked fine. This time we tried the short-haired version and it also works for me. However, after having had flat-faced cats since 2005, I now do a double take every time I see a cat with a normal face.
> 
> But yeah, you're correct. He's ugly. Don't tell my wife though. She gets mad when I say that.


Interesting. I'm a cat guy too and was fine with them in the house until I left for University. Came back for Christmas and acquired an unpleasant cat dander allergy. I'll have to look into these breeds.


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## tchan001 (Sep 30, 2020)

lemeneid said:


> No rewards for guessing why I use b1tchface-san as my avatar


It's your self portrait. You like TF so much you just had to get plastic surgery to look like him.


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## lemeneid (Sep 30, 2020)

BillHanna said:


> But do you have a back tattoo? Commemorative shirt? Lock of hair?


No but according to the email I got when I returned from my trip, TF was happy to spend "happy time" with me 

No homo


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## lemeneid (Sep 30, 2020)

tchan001 said:


> It's your self portrait. You like TF so much you just had to get plastic surgery to look like him.





Corradobrit1 said:


> I thought it was a young Arnold Schwarzenegger


According to @Marek07 he looks like the Japanese Tom Jones, and I kinda agree.
Not sure if the ladies drop their panties for him though.


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## BillHanna (Sep 30, 2020)

lemeneid said:


> No but according to the email I got when I returned from my trip, TF was happy to spend "happy time" with me
> 
> No homo


Hey man. Whatever it takes to get that perfect Denka. Maybe “happy time” will work with Shigs?


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## lemeneid (Sep 30, 2020)

BillHanna said:


> Hey man. Whatever it takes to get that perfect Denka. Maybe “happy time” will work with Shigs?


Be careful though, Tokifusa-san is getting along in age. "happy time" might actually kill him and there goes your Shig dream!


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## Dakota Day Trader (Sep 30, 2020)

Mine is because I'm a Day trader/Investor that lives in ND. The photo in my avatar is a much cleaner version of what I look at every day.


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## Slim278 (Sep 30, 2020)

Kippington said:


> Judging by avatars alone, I thought you were the antithesis of @dafox
> _________________________
> 
> My avatar is a small bird that travels everywhere with me.




I , or rather my 6 year old, have one of those birds also. Very personable little birds, much more so than the parakeets I had as a child.


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## DrEriksson (Sep 30, 2020)

Corradobrit1 said:


> Interesting. I'm a cat guy too and was fine with them in the house until I left for University. Came back for Christmas and acquired an unpleasant cat dander allergy. I'll have to look into these breeds.



My doctor says that there isn’t a difference between breeds when it comes to allergies, and since I have issues with other cats and tests positive for allergy, I should be allergic to this breed as well. Doesn’t make any sense, but no red eyes or coughing so maybe it’s a nocebo effect?


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## juice (Sep 30, 2020)

Corradobrit1 said:


> I thought it was a young Arnold Schwarzenegger


Younger than whom? Moses?


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## Kippington (Sep 30, 2020)

Slim278 said:


> I , or rather my 6 year old, have one of those birds also. Very personable little birds, much more so than the parakeets I had as a child.
> View attachment 96901


Yeah they are very sociable, and quite intelligent too.


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## M1k3 (Sep 30, 2020)

That day, for no particular reason, I decided to go for a little run. So I ran to the end of the road. And when I got there, I thought maybe I’d run to the end of town. And when I got there, I thought maybe I’d just run across Greenbow County. And I figured, since I run this far, maybe I’d just run across the great state of Alabama. And that’s what I did. I ran clear across Alabama. For no particular reason I just kept on going. I ran clear to the ocean. And when I got there, I figured, since I’d gone this far, I might as well turn around, just keep on going. When I got to another ocean, I figured, since I’d gone this far, I might as well just turn back, keep right on going.

And that's the story behind TF meditating while making knives.


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## Carl Kotte (Sep 30, 2020)

M1k3 said:


> And that's the story behind TF meditating while making knives.


 
and wrooooom, suddenly out of nowhere (for the inattentive dreamer) the grinding wheel goes over the centre of the edge - and a new overgrind. ’Perfect! I might just as well continue doing another - just keep going!’


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## Marek07 (Sep 30, 2020)

lemeneid said:


> According to @Marek07 he looks like the Japanese Tom Jones, and I kinda agree.


Objection! That's libelous. I never said that! It was *you *- in a message back in July '19. You also referred to him as "_*one sexy bastard*_" in the same thread. I have the proof and it's been forwarded to my legal team as I contemplate my options.


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## Keith Sinclair (Oct 1, 2020)

DitmasPork said:


> Cool! Yeah, Jeff Crawford shook the surfing world when he won the Pipeline Masters in the 70s, no one thought a Floridian could ever win it, since East Coast surf wasn't highly regarded in those days.



Now some dude from Florida has won more world championships than anyone & could surf Pipe with the best.


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## ma_sha1 (Oct 1, 2020)

DrEriksson said:


> Got a beige backdrop to my initial profile-letter avatar. @juice made a joke with @Carl Kotte about beige lions. Since I only have a reddish exotic shorthair I figured, "that'll do".
> 
> View attachment 96852



If I can read the facial expression out loud: “WHO PUT MY KNIFE IN THE DISHWASHER?”


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## Keith Sinclair (Oct 1, 2020)




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## nakiriknaifuwaifu (Oct 1, 2020)




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## DrEriksson (Oct 1, 2020)

ma_sha1 said:


> If I can read the facial expression out loud: “WHO PUT MY KNIFE IN THE DISHWASHER?”



Yeah. Persians and exotics have that grumpy face. Just look at this picture of our first cat after a bath.


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## bahamaroot (Oct 2, 2020)

I can only dream.....


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## Twigg (Oct 2, 2020)

bahamaroot said:


> View attachment 97239
> 
> 
> I can only dream.....


This made me forget the subject of the thread. Having said that, it is an awesome post! This made my day!


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## minibatataman (Oct 2, 2020)

I love the stories behind the avatars people pick. @DitmasPork thank you for this post.
Mine is just me next to an old train though


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## Keith Sinclair (Oct 2, 2020)

That's a cool old locomotive. 

Mine is one of my oil paintings.


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## ModRQC (Oct 3, 2020)

ian said:


> Rereading the above, my apologies if the head shaped knife block thing came off as confrontational. To clarify, I was trying to make a joke about the "knife in your image" thing by posting a picture of a knife that looked like a person, then came across that image during the google search and thought it was so cool I had to share it. Sometimes my posts come off differently than I intend, though.



It was pretty funny... as was dragging the argument into defacing my post. Sorry, I'm probably much worse than you when it comes to humour... Meanwhile I found that the best thing to express your image, outside of some cool analysis I could do with your Avatar, is your undertaking of brushing up the Kitchen Knife Glossary. I can recognize your kind of input best right there. Not to suck up - that was intended for if the argument went another logical way.  A head with knives through it... it's actually pretty close to truth where I am concerned. See my Avatar!


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## ref (Oct 4, 2020)

Slow Riot for New Zero Kanada Slow Riot for New Zero Kanada - Wikipedia

I'm not sure how the forums automatically copied my window avatar but yeh.


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## kidsos (Oct 6, 2020)

ref said:


> Slow Riot for New Zero Kanada Slow Riot for New Zero Kanada - Wikipedia
> 
> I'm not sure how the forums automatically copied my window avatar but yeh.


Love that album and GYBE!


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## ref (Oct 6, 2020)

kidsos said:


> Love that album and GYBE!



I've changed my avatar now, how do you feel about this one?


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## kidsos (Oct 6, 2020)

ref said:


> I've changed my avatar now, how do you feel about this one?


It's sick too, but for me not as nice as GYBE


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