A Dead Rat and a String to Swing It

Today’s essay (I like the sound of that; it implies I post regularly, which we all know, I don’t) is about pockets, and what people—more specifically, boys—keep, or used to keep, in them.

This idea came about during an investigation of and rumination about what was currently in my own pockets (okay, I was bored) and prompted me to wonder if children bother putting stuff in their pockets any longer. I suspect any modern child over the age of six would simply carry a smartphone, as it serves as...