A few years ago, I bought a Klutz Book of Knots to teach myself basic knot-tying. I’m now familiar with square knots, bowlines, the clove hitch, the half hitch and a couple of others.

I have yet to use any knot in daily life other than on my shoes. Which I already knew.

So my question for today is: Are knots no longer necessary for the average person? Have Velcro, duct tape and assorted forms of clips and grips replaced them in our lives? If you don’t sail, ride a horse or camp in a tent, is there any need for a knowledge of knots in your life?

For the record, I don’t regret learning them–it’s far from the first useless skill I’ve taught myself–and I’m fascinated by them physically, the way a simple twist in a bit of string can suddenly render it immovable. I’m just wondering whether they’re still practical.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 1st, 2008 at 8:18 am and is filed under Myself, Questions. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.