We are "accumulators" rather than collectors. It's all in the terminology. There is a distinct similarity between our pipes and our guns. We like them and we like to acquire them. We can never say we have enough or that we will not acquire another. We consume ammunition and we consume tobacco. We always seek a better shot and a better smoke. When it comes to our pipes and our guns it's a totally different story. We admire them, we clean them, we display them, we appreciate them and we get pleasure from them. I personally have enormous reserves of inner strength, however, I am weak when it comes to not smoking a new pipe or not shooting a newly acquired gun. That is a feat I shall happily never accomplish. Pipes and guns are a man's tools. Take care of them and they will take care of you. They don't wear out, they don't go out of style and they pass on from generation to generation. If you want to see pride, just look at a guy smoking his pipe and cleaning his gun. If you want to hear room note complaints just mix the manly aroma's of latakia and Hoppe's solvent. My only regret is that our founding fathers passed the second amendment and failed to include the right to enjoy a pipe while bearing arms. So on this very sad 9-11 memorial day I remember those lost both on that day and since that day, and I am smoking my finest pipe in reflection. I extend appreciation and tribute to all of the law enforcement officers and military personnel bearing arms to protect us. I am an accumulator and very comfortable about it.
