Friends of Hank... explain yourselves

[ImHereForTheMilitary2]

Growing up, all the people I knew that carried handkerchiefs used them for one reason, and one reason only: to blow their noses in. and that isn't an urban legend, I watched it happen with my own two eyes, mid conversation without a care in the world. They would pull out a Hank, use it, then put it right back in their pocket. I found this to be truly repulsive and disgusting, so I never considered carrying one.

Not that I would feel compelled to blow my nose in it, I just didn't want people to see me with one and think I was a member of that repugnant club.

Admittedly I haven't seen a Hank nose blow since since the 80's so I figured I could revisit the concept of a Hank

So my question is this: what do you use a handkerchief for? I see a lot of people (from the edc/knife/gun culture crowd anyway) of all ages talking about Hanks these days.

You can't all be blowing your nose in them, and I'm willing to give them a fair shot and try my best to turn a repulsion into something useful if the argument is solid.

Thx in advance!

[riclaw]

Anything you'd need to wipe up or wipe down, including smartphone screens and glasses lenses. Gotta suit the tool to the task.

And yes, I use it to blow my nose.

[Naperville]

No hankies for me. I do not care for the idea. Back in the days before 1960 hankies were popular. I use toilet paper or a paper towel if at home. I may carry a paper towel in my pocket if on the road, and I toss it after I use it.

I am not a germaphobe at all, but a hanky to me is unclean. Yet, I am not that worried about being dirty. I might make 3 separate cups of tea on Monday morning and reuse the cups for days. I am not going to go into it but I used to shower 2x a day or more at least because I worked in construction and was an active person(athletics, martial arts, etc). I've heard, most Europeans shower 3x a week. Most women with long hair wash their hair 2x a week max. This is kind of corny to talk about, but some people do not have a lot of body odor. Clean your bedding frequently. Change your underwear frequently. Bathe appropriately to control your body odor, and if do not have any and live alone, do as you please.

[standy99]

It’s a Instagram EDC thing also… $20-40 each depending what print it is.

I make do with my glasses cleaner for $0 dollars

[Murphy Slaw]

Loves me some Hank...

[Cycletroll]

Uses (in no particular order):
Glass cleaner
Staunch bleeding
Tourniquet
Evaporative cooling device
Splint
Makeshift dust mask
Head cover
Bag
Etc.....

[Manixguy@1994]

Uses (in no particular order):
Glass cleaner
Staunch bleeding
Tourniquet
Evaporative cooling device
Splint
Makeshift dust mask
Head cover
Bag
Etc.....

Best reply ! MG2

[Bub360]

I work with a guy who regularly blows his nose into his hank then folds it up and pockets it, I’m with you that is straight up nasty and I never understood why someone would do that

[James Y]

I've never carried a handkerchief. I have carried a bandana before, for some of the kinds of uses Cycletroll mentioned.

But I would never blow my nose into a cloth and then put it back into my pocket. Much less allow someone else to borrow my hanky, then put it back in my pocket. I remember seeing an old movie or TV show that showed just that; a man lent a crying woman his hanky, she blew her nose into it, and he put it back in his coat pocket. IIRC, it wasn't even done for comic effect.



Jim

[Naperville]

I think the hankie was created and used during a time when most people did not have high hygiene or worry about germs.

Nonetheless I live more like a mountain-man than an athlete taking 2+ showers a day. I got out of the habit of 2+ showers a day when I went off to college...now I worry about staying awake to work through problems, and not worry about looking like a supermodel all day. I am 63 and not in the dating pool...I gave up on that 20 years ago.

[cjk]

I'm bald. My head sometimes gets sweaty. I carry a plain old white handkerchief most of the time, but I do have some green ones to match my wallet when I care to. Most of the time, I don't. I don't blow my nose in them. They may get used to wipe my brow, a screen, as an impromptu napkin when none are available, or given away to a weeping woman because that's what they're for, right?

As far as the IG EDC hanks go, I have one because I was curious about them. I've never actually used it even for a picture. I don't take many pictures.

[shunsui]

How else are you going to preserve your record sinus infection trophies ?

[Murphy Slaw]

I'm not bald but I wear a doo rag quite often because I have long hair that will go nuts if it's windy, and I also hate sweat in my eyes if I'm working outside.

But I never blow my nose in my doo rags.