"To ask a stupid question"

[Boosh]

Just found this great thread from a while back.......typical example of why it's good not to delete old threads!

See Glen, you're certainly not the first to ask such questions.

I know i'm an idiot but

Boosh.

 

[Bigman]

Just found this great thread from a while back.......typical example of why it's good not to delete old threads!

See Glen, you're certainly not the first to ask such questions.

I know i'm an idiot but

Boosh.

I found that post really helpful plus entertaining. :You_Rock_

 

[AJB]

Hello mate,

I know exactly what you mean.

I love this stuff and I’m a self confessed kit junky, but for loads of reasons I vary rarely do anything with the knowledge I have, very rarely get the kit dirty and have virtual no experience of the skills I read about.

I used to be wary of asking the stupid question, but I don’t worry about it anymore. The vast majority of the users of this site are wonderful and generous people, both with their time and knowledge. And if they pitch their response a little high for you, they will always take you back to first principals.

Of course there is the odd ‘know all’ who want’s to let you know it (that’s life), but their arrogance or derision is more of a reflection of them than your ignorance is of you. Go for it and enjoy yourself, welcome to the site.

AJB

 

[Aragorn]

hhhmm ..... this all sounds familular, i must confess i've become a bit obsesed with kit myself, and made a few bad choices, still trying to decide what stove(s) to buy, but thats another thread..

the problem i have is that i have convinced myself i need all the kit before i actually get out and do it, and it can be a bit expensive when your starting from scratch, so i tend to look at ex-military. i tend to impulse buy of ebay then regret it later, typical one for me bought a "sniper" sleeping bag (liked the idea of arms, don't like being confined) when it arrived it didn't look as if it was very well insulated, so back on to ebay.... i know i'll get one of them german tank suits and use the lining inside the bag, didn't consider how bulky this would all be, and for a little extra money i could have bought a nanok -20 still bag might be ok for hammoking in summer and might still get the nanok at the end of the year.
i seem to have rattled on a bit the point i was trying to make is that your not alone m8t

 

[Oakleaf]

Really been said by everyone already, but thought putting another name to the list would help assure you.

One of those perverse things - the fact that you even thought of and posed the topic in the first place is a pretty good indication you dont have a problem!

Everyone starts from scratch and the wisest people never stop learning. If you have a question, its not stupid to you - and ditto an opinion you may have. Its the ones that know they know everything and know everyone else is bursting to hear their views that are any kind of problem!

Secondly, you say you have passion for the subject - thats great. I'll swap the passionate for the complacent any day.

Think your foundations are spot on - try to to worry about it beyond that.

But do keep in mind we're all just a bit odd here....

 

[firebreather]

i ask stupid questions all the time. thats because they are not stupid to me at the time of asking and if i didnt ask then i would never know if it was stupid or not. At least i know i ask some pretty annoying questions , probably all of which have been answered before but not for me. i learn best by asking my own questions in my way and usually i get a lot more stuff back that i did not expect and thats cool .
Some times i ask questions i already know the answer to but just need to check my own answers. Also if it works for you then pass it on, as my granny used to say "there is always more than one way to skin a cat". No on way is better than another just what works for you. One of the best things about any knowlegde or skill is sharing it with others so they too can share in the joy of learning it.
I recently have wanted to start sharpening my own knives and did not know where to start, so i read and read and read all the great posts and forums but i still did not quite get it ( cause im an ididot!!!) so i got in touch with some guys off here and went for a brew and a natter and found out loads of info that i didnt know i was looking for and thats the beauty of asking a question.
Im not going to post the guys name up here as i dont want him to be inundated with requests for help but you know who you are and :You_Rock_ my eternal thanks and my knife will always be sharp now.
So fire away we all start somewhere and bring different skills to the table.
Im still new to all this and will be asking questions that have been answered before and when i do im apologising for it now. After walking the hills and camping for years its time to get rid of most of my kit and get stuff and knowledge that works.
cheers Greg.

 

[Burnt Ash]

There is such a thing as a stupid question. It's the question that implies 'I'm a lazy git who is quite unprepared to do even a modicum of research for myself'. There are those who are quite happy for others to do all the spadework for them: whose demands on others to spoonfeed them, to blow their noses and wipe their arses is quite blatant.

This is quite different from the honest and earnest tyro on the path to knowledge who might (and almost certainly will) ask a naive question from time-to-time. Indeed, the sort of person who might be worried about asking 'a stupid question'.

Ask away GlenM. I'm sure your questions won't be stupid ones.

Burnt Ash

 

[British Red]

Heck GlenM I ask daft questions all the time!

There are tonnes of things I haven't got a clue about in Bushcraft, some I consider myself vaguely competent on and one or two that I'm fairly experienced at. I've been into outdoorsy stuff for a number of decades, but theres whole skill areas I have hardly touched. I can shoot and make my own cartridges but I haven't got a clue about fishing. I brew wild wines and mead but I'm clueless about fungi. My firecraft is competent by my cordage is non existant.

Actually thats one of the things I like best - theres always something knew to learn, So ask away and if I can answer I will - if you promise to do the same for me when I ask!

Red

 

[demographic]

Bear in mind the fact that this is an internet forum, you ask a question and 100 people may read it, 90 might not have the foggiest notion what your on about and just not reply at all.

10 people might have an idea (but bear in mind that those might be a different ten people each time though) and give a reasonable response and out of those ten perhaps five will give an answer thats spot on.

Does that mean those five are really clever?
Some of them are...

But not always, you just might have stumbled on to their area of expertise and not know how many other people just avoided answering the question as they knew nowt about it.

What I am saying is that its not like a real time conversation with just one person, don't feel like everyone knows everything cos most of us (well me anyway ) have a lot to learn.
In fact, if I had nothing to learn I would be bored stupid.

 

[Singeblister]

That's what were here for Greg , and I always listen to the way others do things as you might learn something new you didn't know .
I recently learned how to eat fire that was good

 

[Wayland]

Even the best people on here, and I'm a long way from being one of them , have weak points.

For example, I have a reasonable working knowledge of ancient technology and crafts from my work. I've also got a lot of photographic experience.

As a result I'm quite well known. That doesn't mean I don't learn something every day from this site.

Areas I could ask some very stupid questions in are plant, tree and funghi identification, I barely know a beech from a birch, I'm hopeless, I grew up around moorlands.

I've also just bought a canoe and have a whole list of stupid questions about that.

Enjoy your newness while you can.

As you get more knowledgeable it actually becomes more difficult to admit you don't know it all and ask a simple question.

I think It's the difference beween knowledge and wisdom....

 

[Shibari.surfer]

Nothing much to add thats not already been said in this thread but I am constantly impressed by spirit of this site :You_Rock_ -if thats not too hippy;-) Everyone seems willing to share their knoledge or point people in the right direction. Gotta be a good thing.

like many on here have said, NEVER be afraid to ask. You may not always get the answer you want -but if you dont ask you dont get any answer at all.

I'm guessing that youre not too far from me, send us a pm if you wanna meet up with a fellow for a brew sometime

 

[Jodie]

I think everyone likes these threads as they're like an amnesty for all those
burning questions you might have, but feel too embarrassed to ask. Usually
I can get around this by using the search facility (although only recently
learned there was an 'advanced' bit to it!) or by using Google to search
BCUK (by adding site:bushcraftuk.com/community to the search string).

But whenever I've asked a question here I've always had a nice helpful
response either in-thread or via PM.

Last weekend I asked a pretty stupid question though. We'd just been to
the Butterfly Farm at Stratford (was with my two year old niece) and my
friend decided to buy a compass* from the gift shop. I heard myself asking
if it was a fridge magnet until he pointed out that having a magnet attached...
well I'm sure you can work it out

*No, as predicted it isn't very accurate I think I'll buy him a proper one.

 

[mrganderson]

Hi Glen

Never fear my friend. as Gaz and Mick are here to help. We can boldly go where no quick witted person has been before. Confidence is all you need my friend and we have more than is safe for two the two of us. Please log on to the link below and you will see how 2 men went out into the wilds armed with just a Ray Mears handbook. a few tools and half a brain between them.

we have since return as the self declared "Kings of the Bush"

http://www.youtube.com/user/GazmickTV

To be respected as a experienced Bushrafter you need to follow the three golden rules.

1, Wear a Big Hat

2. Get yourself a Big Knife

3. Always dress in Khaki.

Regards Gaz Anderson