Daily Weapons

One of the things that Dan Inosanto taught was to classify weapons according to characteristics: long (i.e. staff-like, a broom or pool stick for examples), short, pointed, blunt, edged, flexible (e.g. a belt), throwable (sand, coins, rocks) and so on. Most of us on any given day hold car keys, pens and silverware as common objects that can be very effective "equalizers." Relating back to an earlier post about balancing awareness and paranoia, it's a good idea to remind ourselves as we come into contact with these various implements that they can be multi-purpose tools. I periodically play with smoothly switching a fork (a great nasty weapon) from eating hold to fighting hold, if that doesn't sound too soldier-of-fortune weird. In my often deserted neighborhood, when I walk out the door into the street at night, I may have my most solid car key in an appropriate grip for unlikely just-in-case possibilities. The odds are that if we are not engaged in regular knuckle-head behavior, that we will not need to face serious confrontation, but using a little energy for the insurance that we would be prepared for unwanted situations is a good idea.