My Odd Sock

Saluting the "Spork"

With a “snap” of its elastic band, My Odd Sock proudly salutes…the “Spork.”

The Spork is the ingenious combination of the spoon and the fork.

Revolutionizing the picnic world, the Spork turned eating potato salad into an art form.

Backpackers also rejoiced in the Spork, as now the tremendous burden of carrying both a spoon AND a fork, could be replaced with one simple utensil.

With its clever design, the Spork is equally adept, whether eating spumonti, spaghetti or sponge cake.

One might believe the idea of a spoon with fork-like tines would be a modern day marvel.  But actually, spork-like utensils have been manufactured since the late 19th Century.

Patents date back as far as 1874. 

(Wait, isn’t that the same as the “late 19th Century?”)

Throughout the years, many would try to improve the Spork’s simple design.

A combination spoon, fork and knife, closely resembling the Spork, was invented by Samuel Francis.

While in 1908, Harry McCoy came up with the “cutting spoon.”

A battle ensued as what to name  this new instrument. 

Should it be called a “Sporfe”…a “Knoork”…or a “Forspooife?”

The weak should look away.

Whatever the name, critics believe this “cutting spoon” should have been labeled as dangerous.

Tragically, both Francis & McCoy suffered painful, bloody deaths from their own hands by stupidly putting sharpened implements into their mouth!

(Dude needs a shave!)

And so ends our salute to this much forgotten and often scoffed piece of cutlery.

With a colorful history and a long resume of convenience, the “Spork” will always find a home in the silverware drawer of My Odd Sock.