Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Beads



The other day I was walking along the beach and began to notice bead like objects in the sand. So, I began picking them up and discovered that they were actually bits of coral and shell that time , sans and surf action had turned into natural beads.I collected a large bag of them and and will give them to my friend Mam in Thailand. She enjoys this type of natural beauty and simplicity.

I began to wonder about beads in history and how long they have been around. I was surprised to see that they have been around in various forms for over 80,000 years.

See below a short article I found on the net at ; http://www.mckenzieglassworks.com/history_of_beads.htm

you might find it interesting. If not Im sure you can easily locate more info elsewhere.

Tomahawk - scouts out!

A VERY SHORT HISTORY OF BEADS AND THEIR SYMBOLOGY

by Michelle McKenzie copyright 2006



Beads have been significant for many cultures for eons. They've been used as money and worn as talismans

and amulets to bring wisdom and fortune to the wearer. Found dating back 38,000 years, beads have

been made from pebbles, shells, teeth, claws, clay, glass and more. Glass became an important

material in beadmaking with its discovery, around 3400 years ago.

The word bead comes from the Anglo Saxon words bidden (to pray) and bede (prayer.) Prayer beads are known world-wide, and help the user recite prayers and keep track of the sequence and number of the prayers. Worry beads, also common around the world, help with decision-making, and keep the hands busy. Beads continue to be used as talismans to protect the wearer against evil, and as amulets to bring wisdom and fortune.

Used for prayers, protection, worries, money or adornment, beads have been important to us for a very long time. The history of beads is long and rich, and if you would care to read more, a list is offered at the end of this to assist you further in your studies.

Glass was discovered about 3,400 years ago, and since then has become a very important material for the bead-maker, user and wearer. Lampwork beads are made using a “lamp” (flame) as a heat source for melting the glass. Now lampworkers use torches to heat the glass to a molten state and gather it on a steel rod. Canes of glass are blended, melted and coaxed into the many colors, shapes and designs seen today.


SYMBOLOGY

There are a number of symbols used the world over in beads and other objects, and it’s useful to know the meanings of these. Symbolism, too, entails a huge body of work, and books on this subject are listed here as well. Below are a few that will be useful for this workshop.


bullet Spiral – a symbol of being, knowing or becoming.
bullet Circle – totality, perfection, unity, eternity. A symbol of completeness that can include ideas of permanence and dynamism.
bullet Eye – occult 3rd eye, or eye of the heart can mean spiritual perception. Sometimes an eye is painted on an object to protect against the evil eye. Blue is a favorite color for these.
bullet Dots – are also called eye beads and were used to protect against the evil eye.
bullet White – purity, innocence, truth, sacred or devine
bullet Black – loss, absence
bullet Red – life, strength, vitality, physical nature
bullet Yellow – intellect, mind
bullet Green – harmony, sympathy, higher mental plane
bullet Blue – inspiration, devotion, the spiritual nature


Suggested reading for further study:
bullet Beads; an Exploration of Bead Traditions Around the World. Janet Coles. Simon & Schuster. ISBN:068483462
bullet The Universal Bead. Joan Erikson. Norton. ISBN:0393310051
bullet Dictionary of Symbols. Jack Tresidder. Chronicle. ISBN:081181470X
bullet The Complete Book of Amulets & Talismans. Megene Gonzalez-Wippler. Llewellyn Publications. ISBN:087542287X

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Tuba palm Wine by Trailhawk



Was missing the Phillipines today. Christmas in the PI IS USUALLY A GREAT TIME. My good friend Trailhawk AKA Jing. posted this about making "Tuba" palm wine in his FB page.

Thought you might enjoy it.

Tomahawk - scouts out!


Jing Lavilles de EgurrolaCamp Red

Foreign-based bushmen, look at this picture. It is a coconut tree with a cut-out bottle of Sprite attached upside down to the heart of the coconut. The heart is lopped off and the sap goes collected into the plastic bottle. What you don't know about the collected liquid is, it becomes what we call coconut wine or coconut juice or simply in our vernacular "tuba". Tuba when stale becomes "bahal" and when fermented becomes "bahalina". Tuba, bahal or bahalina is our poor man's version of wine. The bahal when it becomes more stale becomes coconut vinegar.

Merry Christmas from Kuwait






Tomahawk saying hello and Merry Christmas to all of my friends out there in Cyber space.

See you on the trail.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

Thursday, December 22, 2011

Cat Eye Light


I just wanted to throw this out there. While on my last job I found this Cat Eye Light on top of my wall locker. Apparently some knuckle head put it up there and forgot about it. Good for me though. "Finders keepers Loser weepers" as the old saying goes.

Ordinarily I would not use this type of light or even think about it. Normally I use a Sure fire light, or a Head lamp of some type. But, Being a "free" light I decided to give it a try and save the batteries in my other lights for later use.

I found that I actually like this "Cat Eye" light. The beam is similar to my Sure Fire and this one has a strobe mode which is kinda cool. Ill never use a strobe for anything but at least I have the option now.

According to the "Cat Eye" website I apparently have model HL-AU230. Ok, cool.For those of you interested in checking out this type of light for possible use you can visit their website at ;

http://www.cateye.com/en/products/detail/HL-AU230/

I would recommend this light for all of you adventurers out there.

See you on the trail.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Why I dislike military contractors


Time to drag this one out of moth balls, and as they say "A picture says a thousand words" the one I posted with this article says a million. - Tomahawk

I received an email from a good friend of mine who happens to be south African , he sent me a write up done by someone about the Military contractors one might find in the middle east and Afghanistan.

Having worked as a contractor in Qatar, Kuwait(twice!),Kosovo,Darfur, afghanistan and the Philippines, I can tell you that 95% of all the contractors I met were 100% assholes and dumb shits.

There are always those guys in pseudo authority positions that have this need to make the job harder then it has to be. Why? I don't know! Knuckleheads I suppose.

Over the years, I have met many Vietnam era Green Berets and Navy seals who were all great guys to work with or hang out with .

This new breed of special operator is a different animal all together, I have not met any army or navy SF types that I like . The USMC force recon guys Tho, are all - to the man, almost a pleasure to work with.

My most enjoyable contract was in Darfur Africa, Perhaps because it was because I was the only American working there, I had retired , professionals from South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Canada as my peers. I like 100% of those guys.

anyhoo, Enough rambling. here is a cut and paste of the write up from

V Man;

So I got bored today and felt inspired. Here are my tips for new contractors:

Shave your head and grow facial hair. Bonus points for a scraggly Taliban beard. Lets’ face it, when Abdul is lining up that RPG with your vehicle, and he sees that bad assed beard, he will tremble in fear and put down his weapons. This is a proven fact. Also, it will help you blend in with the locals. Because all the locals are 6 foot 2, 250 pounds, speak English, and wear body armor.

Buy Gucci kit. I know your company may issue you armor, but it’s probably crap. UN style blue vests are the corporate rage. Don’t go buy that crappy airsoft knockoff crap from China. Buy quality American made kit. Even if your company issues you good stuff, buy your own. It’s just cooler that way. Make sure to fit as many pouches and magazines on it as you can. Get molle pouches with molle on them so you can attach other molle pouches to them. The more the better. If you can’t fit in the door of your truck, cut the strap so the door opens wider. Can’t fit behind the wheel? Take out the seat and sit on ammo cans. That’s hard core.

Get tattoos. I’m talking a lot of them. All over your arms and neck. Make sure they have skulls, tribal emblems, guns, Chinese characters, and barbed wire, in them. That makes them cool, which in turn makes you cool, and scary. Abdul sees that dark black ink all over you and shits his man jams. No way he’s going to fight that force. Huge crosses are always cool. Show everyone how devout of a Christian you are. Don’t put too much thought into the design, just pick something out of the book. Save that brainpower for the gym.

Steroids. Eat that shit for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Don’t worry about piss tests. Get some pencil necked admin geek to piss for you. Twenty bucks is a ton of cash for those TCN’s and you know they are clean for steroids.

Baseball cap. You need one and only one. Never change it or wash it. It needs to be sweat stained and covered with grime. Frayed edges and cool patches help. If you don’t have one, just grind a new one in the dirt for a while. Give it that “been there done that” look. The well gunner should be able to smell it when you’re driving.

Morale patches. If you suck and can’t cover all the available Velcro on your kit with pouches, cover it with morale patches. There should be at least on offensive word on each one. Skulls, religious references, and brand name knock offs, are always popular. Nothing says “professional” like a “Hey Fuck Face” patch.

Go to Thailand. Nothing says “I’m a winner” like paying a 16 year old for pussy. Better yet, get a Thai girlfriend. Support her, her husband, and her kids. Pay their rent and put braces on the crumb-snatchers. That way you always have a place to crash in country.

Go to the gym. Every chance you get. Wear muscle shirts to show off your tribal tat covered guns. Grunt loudly so everyone knows how hard you are working. If it sounds like a porno, you’re doing it right. Stare at yourself in the mirror and check out that ass. Remember, when your boss sees how much effort you’re putting into the gym, you will definitely get that team lead position.

Buy a new house. Your wife and her future husband need a good place to raise your kids. Make sure that the payments are at least 25% of your monthly paycheck.

Buy a new car and motorcycle. Don’t pussy out and get a Corolla. Get an F-350 Supercab four wheel drive with the biggest Diesel they offer. Get a Harley. Anything but a Sportster will work. I don’t care if you never rode before, you need a Harley. Keep them in the garage of that McMansion that you bought so your wife’s boyfriend can borrow them.

Spend all your money. You’ll get more in 28 days. Don’t save anything. It doesn’t matter that you have no retirement plan and social security will be non-existent when you are old. You can always start saving next year. This shit is tax free after all. Why should you save for tax payments?

Buy an iPod. Shit, buy three. You need one for the room, one for the gym, and one for the truck. How else are you going to jam to the greatest band in the world, Nickleback, while you are driving, lifting, and relaxing?

Bitch about the internet. It doesn’t matter that you are in some third world shithole, you have a right to be able to upload videos of yourself onto YouTube for everyone to see. Make sure to upload full videos of your daily movements. OPSEC is for pussies.

Facebook picture. If it doesn’t show your rifle, your kit, your truck, and your guns, you are doing it wrong.

Weapons accessories. Fuck policy, weapons were made to be altered. If there is open rail space, you fail. Bolt something to that. Buy a PEQ-4. It doesn’t matter if you don’t move at night, you still need it. Same goes with night vision. If you can’t afford the night vision, at least get the mount for your helmet. Vertical fore-grip is a must. Only losers use the hand guards. Plus, with all that shit bolted to the rails, you are going to need that vertical grip to hang on to. Weapon too heavy? Get your ass back to the gym.

Knives. You need lots of them. You need the biggest fucking knife you can find to strap to your kit. Make Mick Dundee piss down his leg in fear. Get another one to tape to your thigh rig. You need at least one Benchmade auto knife to clip in your pocket. When talking to people, click it open and closed repeatedly. This will get your point across no matter what it is. If you’re man enough, stick a knife in your boot and another around your neck. Listen, you really can’t have too many knives. They’re like magazines in that respect.

Cellphone. Like the internet, even though the citizens of the country you work in are still wiping their ass with small rocks, you need a cellphone that does everything. If you can’t check your email or surf porn while on venue, what good is it going outside the wire? If you can get a molle pouch to keep it on your kit, you get more bonus points. Bonus points are good for discounted pussy in Thailand.

Military Chicks. Lure them into your vehicle with promises of alcohol and big cocks. The PX is the best place to find them. Bang them hard enough so everyone in your container complex knows what’s going on. Make them walk home.

Alcohol. If your company allows alcohol, drink as much as you can as often as you can. Puke and piss in the hall. Challenge the TCN’s to gunfights and win. Break shit. Throw bottles. Make sure that the company seriously rethinks it’s alcohol policy every time you show your face. Ruin everyone else’s fun. Get so drunk you do things that while sober would be considered gay. It’s OK, you were drunk when you ate that pringle out of your TC’s ass. If your company doesn’t allow alcohol, get shitfaced anyways. Make sure to leave your empty bottles where admin will see it. Everyone loves having their room searched because you are a fucking idiot.

Saint Michael the Archangel


Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle; be our safeguard against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray.
And do you, O prince of the heavenly host, by the power of God, cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.

Tomahawk - Scouts out!

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Contractors.....A bunch of Fuck ups!


As you followers of this blog are aware I am currently in Afghanistan working as a security contractor.

Several years ago I made a promise to myself to never take another Force Protection security contract due to the Low Caliber of people associated with this type of work.

Out of Boredom and desperation I accepted my current Force protection contract as mainly something to do while waiting for my Kuwait work visa to process.

Upon arrival in Afghanistan I was reminded of why I dislike this type of work - The people it attracts.

These jokers are all cut out of the same piece of cloth. to the man they only know about Guns, Pussy, working out and tattoos.

They seem to be the largest collection of misfits and losers I have encountered to date. The only difference between these assholes and convicts is a jail sentence.

Since my arrival 3 weeks ago I have encountered nothing but hostility from my co workers,and a total disregard for any type of manners or appropriate social behavior.

Selfishness, favoritism,and Ignorance reign supreme.In my military career there was always at least one 2 faced,back stabbing shit stirrer in each unit - conversely, this place had about 5 or 6 per team.

It is a fact that out of the 100 or so people I have met and encountered while being here only about 5 have any type of manners or proper social skills. The rest are comprised of complete and total assholes, misfits, fuck ups and ignorant sons a bitches. Oddly or maybe not so, the Men from the United Kingdom who are employed here are pretty nice guys and have social skills and manners. It is only my fellow Americans that are the supreme assholes, fuck ups,wanna be navy seals, psd, wwps, bad ass operators AKA dumb asses and douche bags.

I just want to recommend to anyone thinking about applying for this type of work to think twice before throwing yourself into this type of fucked up scenario with these type of assholes. Like me you will probably regret it. I look forward to getting out of here and back to a place where people act normal and do not subscribe to a "Prison yard mentality".

This is defiantly my last rodeo with these mother fuckers.I do not want to be associated with these types of people.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

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