Marvil's book

I mentioned this book in an early blog post. The title and author are self-evident. I actually have two copies of this (shown), one with dust jacket and one without. The book was a limited edition of 1000 copies for the Pilots Association members, so to have two under one roof is pretty neat, I think. This book is a gold mine for researching the maritime history of the Delaware Bay, although it's a bit dated. It was published back in 1965, so a lot of the more recent changes to the watershed are not reflected.

It's Fossil Friday #6

Another find from the C&D Canal area, this is a scallop shell (barely visible on the bottom of the formation) with some "mega barnacle" shells on top. The size of the barnacles is such that a U.S. penny would easily fit into the shell one....

Assortment of nails?

Sort of. These are all from known or probable shipwrecks on the Delmarva Peninsula. The two on the upper left are from a known wreck, which I cannot name, located somewhere in Maryland. The big treenail (pronounced "trun-el") on the bottom is from an old wooden coal barge on the beach south of Woodland Beach, Delaware. The other three are from wrecks or probable sections of wrecks in and around Lewes, Delaware. The one on the far right is a "cut nail". You are not likely to find these in your local hardware conglomerate...it came from the same location as this and this.

Kalimba 1

I love musical instruments, and I have made and played many. One of my favorite portable instruments is the m'bira, kalimba, or "thumb piano", a plucked idiophone most often associated with Africa. Virtuoso players such as Stella Chiweshe can make these sing in an ethereal, trance-inducing polyrhythm.

This one is a commercially available facsimile that only scratches the surface of this wonderful class of instruments. This one is nice becasue it fits in my breifcase or backpack, and can be played quietly on a train, hotel room, or park without disturbing anyone.

Smith and Wesson 625

A formidable beast, chambering .45 ACP ammo in what are known as "full moon clips" (lower left). These function as a speed loader, enabling a fast, 6-chamber reload. I used to be able to toss a moon clip of full metal jacket round nose into the chamber from a foot away. Reloads are FAST. I mean FAST.

Caribbean Death Otter

Oh - I'd be quite remiss if I didn't post my Caribbean Death Otter. He's mean, he's fierce, and he can carry massive amounts of ordnance upstream to the target(s) of your choice. This otter has been there: The Bay of Pigs in 1961, The Battle of Bình Gia in 1965, Beirut 1975, Kabul in 1989, Baghdad in 1993, Somalia in 1998, New York City in 2001, etc. I cannot divulge his current whereabouts...


...but let's just say that Venezuelan crude is about to get much much cheaper and Iran is going to discover the internet.

Just kidding (to the NSA spooks reading this). This guy was a poor old river otter taxidermied way back in the late 1950's, and resided in the hallowed halls of the Delaware Division of Fish and Wildlife for many years, up until someone decided that dead, stuffed animals did not resonate with the image that the Department wanted to convey. Another trash can rescue ensued...

Secret mask?

Or Seacret Mask? This is a face I painted on a palm frond base that I obtained from Seacrets in Ocean City, Maryland. I used to go there way back when it truly was a secret, and the only ways in were for (locals) who walked or came in by boat. No highway signs, adverts, bus sponsorships, hotels, wet T-shirt contests, metal detectors, etc. like they have today (OK, there was the odd wet T-shirt contest).

Anyway, I noted that there is something suggestive of a face in these things, so I took a stab at decorating one. It's vaguely Maori looking, although my painting pattern started out pretty randomly...