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Interesting question my dad asked me
I was out for dinner to celebrate me buying an apartment and at one point during the evening my dad suddenly dropped a rather serious question on my (rather drunk) ass. I figured that I’d share it here as it really stood out to me. We were pretty much just talking about random stuff when all of a sudden he turned to me and asked me the following:
Should I be worried about you? You own several swords, daggers, knifes. You go on holiday and fire automatic rifles for fun and you read these crazy mythology books and recently I saw you reading a book about serial killers. Are you going to be the next shooter or something? Because if they then ask me “Did you see it coming?” … I’m not sure what to answer.
That question definitely caught me off-guard a bit and I didn’t realize that it was meant rather seriously, hence I jokingly said “That’s up to you to decide, I’ll see the van with the people with the white suit coming”. But then I noticed the look on his face and explained that I merely like swords and guns and that I’m interested in psychology and want to know how those people think and act.
I also said “Well, if you do send people after me, I know I will have no problem with any psych-evaluation as I know I’m stable and not crazy.” But I can’t help but feel weirdly about even having to answer that question. What’s your take on this? Are my interests really so suspicious, or is he really exaggerating?
Darksword Armory viking sword and dagger
Today I received my other set of weapons in the mail. Not that it’s really a set, but it’s a sword and dagger regardless. If you aren’t sure what I’m referring to with “other”, see these posts. So I finally got the right sword and another dagger I fancied at a discount. I have to say that Eyal(owner/blacksmith) from Darksword Armory is a stand up guy. Good quality blades and good support, there’s a reason why he/they have a good reputation, do check them out! 
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I really do fancy these blades, they feel pretty good in the hand, though the sword’s on the heavy side of things. But that’s what their swords are known for, that and their extreme durability.
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- My swords now on the standard
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- Viking Sword 2
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- Viking Sword 1
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- My swords now side by side
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- Henry V Dagger 3
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- Henry V Dagger 2
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- Henry V Dagger 1
after photos.
Thoughts on Swords and Swordsmen
I’ve finally finished reading Swords and Swordsmen, a book by Mike Loades. I’ve mentioned him before on this blog as he’s made some documentaries that are interesting, informative and that he supplements with his own experience. As such, I ended up buying and reading his book. Judging by the name of the book, it is about (famous) people and their swords. But it’s not only that, it tells the stories about parts of their lives, the culture and happenings of that age. As such it’s not nearly as focused as it may initially seem.
The book starts off in the early ages of the Celts and then gradually moves on through time to the Egyptians, Romans/Greeks, Vikings and eventually ends up at the start of world war 1. At all points he focuses on important people and the lives they lived. What kind of relationship they had with the sword themselves and how it was looked upon by the culture at the time. Due to this approach you learn a decent deal about the cultures and I very much like this as it’s of interest to me.
The books go into a pretty good amount of detail to tell you about swordfighting techniques, mostly by referring to fencing manuals written by certain masters. There is also a focus on how the swords transformed and changed over time and why certain types of swords were preferred at that time. This of course has everything to do with the advancements of armor as it was a never-ending arms race between offense and defense.
If you’re interested in swords at all, I can very much advise this book as it’s a very good read (coming from someone who normally doesn’t read a lot!). The passion and (hands-on) knowledge of the author comes through well. The book will teach you about how swords were handled and what part they served, you’ll probably learn a lot of new terms, I know I did.