Waving a white handkerchief!

I have a tendency to lose things. I hate that feeling of needing to pull out my wallet and finding that it’s missing. “Damn it, where did I put it now.” To avoid that feeling, I try to put my keys, wallet, change, and phone in the same place each night. I put them in a punch bowl on a counter near our front door.

The turning of the page

I laughed the other night thinking how things have changed for men over the years. If my father were to do that back in the day, he would start with his wallet. It would be the size of a brick, compared to the small money clip I use now. He would have a large chunk of cash taking up much of the wallet. Forget about credit cards. I don’t think he even owned one. There would be photos and a spare piece of paper with a phone number or two.

Next would come a change purse. He would pull out a small notebook full of things he didn’t want to forget. There would be dates of upcoming appointments. He often refinished antiques for friends of friends and customers that he had helped over the years. There would be reminders to call so-and-so and deadlines to drop off furniture.

A gentleman’s guide

There would be a pocket knife and a left over screw or nail from whatever project he was working on at the moment. Finally, he would pull out the handkerchief that he carried everywhere. We don’t carry handkerchiefs much anymore. At least, I don’t. And none of the men I know do either. I’ll pull one out if I’m sick and need one at night, but usually I can’t even find one.

Handkerchiefs declined in popularity in the 20th century thanks in large part to the introduction of disposable tissues. Disposable tissues like Kleenex were marketed as a more sanitary and offering greater convenience.

Despite all that, handkerchiefs were still common where I grew up. You had the farmers who would carry the big red and blue paisley ones everywhere. The would be hanging from their back pocket at the ready.

My father’s example

My dad’s handkerchiefs were smaller. They were blue and brown. He needed to wipe a speck from his eye? He needed to clean off a smudge on his car mirror? The handkerchief was Johnny on the spot. He carried one everywhere.

As a kid, I asked my dad one time why he carried a handkerchief. He laughed and said that he learned to carry one as a young man in case he ever came across a damsel in distress. My dad didn’t joke a whole lot, so his comment sticks out to me.

I’m thinking my dad was onto something. Maybe I need to start carrying one too.