009 Real Miners

I am a miner, but am I a Real Miner? My partner is a "Real Miner." Just ask him, he will tell you! I thought we were all real miners, what is the difference? You work in a mine, you're a real miner, right? The Oxford Dictionary describes a miner as anyone who works in a mine. There is no definition for a "Real Miner." When I met my partner, an underground miner, he started calling me a Gravel Scratcher. I am a miner, but am I a real miner? In my view we are all real miners, working long hours away from family and friends, in dangerous conditions with uncertain times ahead. It doesn't matter who does what or what we call each other, but not everyone agrees!