Saturday, September 24, 2011

My Key Rings


Speaking of key rings, I have two because a friend had to pay a couple of hundred dollars to have her ignition switch replaced. The mechanic said it broke due to the weight of all her keys hanging from it. We each immediately got a second key ring to hold our other keys.

On my car key ring, I have the car key, gas cap key, car top carrier key, store discount tags, Fox 40 Mini whistle, LED flashlight, and a luminous Suunto Clipper compass using the webbed nylon fob from an el cheapo compass that failed during my 2006 road trip and was replaced by the Clipper.

On my other key ring, I have my other keys, ResQMe, another LED flashlight, another Fox 40 Mini whistle, Swiss Army Classic knife, P-51 can opener, Ekco Pocket Boy folding can punch with bottle cap lifter and Chapstick in a Leashables holder.

For those times when I ride in somebody else's car and leave my own car keys at home, I moved the luminous Brunton 9041 key ring compass on my traveler's key ring to my second key ring to help keep me and whoever's driving headed in the right direction when I don't need my traveler's key ring.

Seriously, it's happened twice before. Once, a van-load of us were going to Dallas on a day trip when my internal sense of direction said we were going in the wrong direction. The driver and I proceeded to get into an argument which was settled by a sign that said, "Fort Worth," with an arrow pointing straight ahead.

The other time was at night. Again, my internal sense of direction said we'd gone off. It was a lot easier convincing that driver to pull over under the light of a convenience store and gas station where we checked the map...and turned around. At the time, not only did I not have a compass, I didn't even have a little flashlight.

Although neither situation was dangerous, both were a waste of time and gas, the first much more than the second. If anybody had a compass, the waste could have been avoided.

You live. Hopefully, you learn.

[Edited on 1/1/12 to add Pocket Boy and because I moved the Brunton Glow Mate to my second key ring.]


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