I love my beard. I'd feel naked without it. However on an overnighter in the recent snow it came in handy in a way I couldn't have predicted. I'd set up a camp planning on having a nice large open fire in front of my tarp but with night setting in quickly I decided it was time to use a lighter rather than a firesteel. After gathering enough wood to last through the night the light was failing fast so with pretty numb hands I laid the fire and fumbled out my blowtorch lighter. 'click'. No flame. 'click click'. Still no flame. I dug out my headtorch and was able to see the jet had blocked. I tried blowing it out by lung power, still nothing. Personally I don't carry canned air or a 'pricker' type tool in my pockets so I was trying to motivate myself to head out into the dark in search of semi dry tinder when I remebered a trick I'd worked out years ago when the jet of my cheapo gas cartidge stove had blocked. I ran my fingers through my beard until a loose hair fell out. I snipped the end off leaving a wiry strand of hair a few inches long that was significantly more wiry than head hair, an organic jet pricker! Ten seconds later the fire was lit and I had yet another reason to be grateful I decided to grow my lovely, warm beard 
