Raphael Misson

I was born six months late, but I am one of the twins. (Brig said so.)

Wait...Jack and Brig and Mae have birthdays all within a short period? Is Jack one of the twins too? Happy Birthday Jack!

Oh...that makes sense! HB editress. Editrix?

HB, M.J.

That's right! I even go "swimming" in mine! So's I've got ye all beat... It seems to me you tripped at PiP... I'm actually afraid to get my Patrick Hand original wet...although I've been told it won't hurt it.

+ Now, let's see a pic of you wearing it. Sterling and I wear ours all the time. Having a big hat and regularly using a big hat are two different animals - you've got to be used to handling your wind-gathering potential flying saucer!

I see your hat...and I'll raise you one. (My hat's bigger than yours?)

Sure!! I'll take care of those implants for ya'... I'll bet it's just like popping a bottle cap...Snap-ping! Zip! Tinkle, tinkle, tinkle...

Absolutely. It is a great learning experience. I was just noting that she'd fit right in either way or even half way in between. Being a completest myself, I understand the urge to do something as correctly as my wallet will allow when something catches my interest. I'll bet you'll like Willie Wobble and his group, Abigail.

Now this might throw a monkey wrench into our alleged understanding of the surgeon's chest. There's a BRN naval apothecary chest (which serves most of the functions described above of the surgeon's chest) that looks square and...well, pretty much like Clowes' surgical chest. Except this one was built between 1840 - 1870 based on the maker - according to the research done by the seller. Since eBay is so transitory, I've copied the photos to my website - let me post them, followed by the relevant bits about the chest (the size is very interesting). (Below, the drawer with one of the tins is open) (Below, the drawer, with the tins and "secret compartment cover" removed) "...a wooden box, probably mahogany, a Navy apothecary box and with 2 early medical bottles included (found in box). The silver tag attached to the box reads, "W & H Hutchinson...Sheffield...Surgical Instruments Makers to the Royal Navy." There are also some hand-written marks on the tag. Size of the box is 7-3/8 x 7-3/8 x 7-3/4". It is really a square box with some shrinkage accounting for the difference in measurement. The brass handle on top of the box opens to what looks to be the original velvet liner on top and 14 separate compartments where the apothecary bottles would be placed. The 2 bottles in the box were obviously here originally as they fit perfectly into 2 of the compartments. Then there is a handle low on the front of the box which opens to a small drawer with two tin boxes that can be removed. In this lower drawer there is also a "hidden compartment" where perhaps the opium was kept. I do not know what the secondary woods are. A couple of the drawers below have somewhat of a reddish wash that may have been the result of chemicals or medicines kept within these. The hinges that attach the lid to the box appear to be replacements, but fit perfectly between the wood "slides" on the back. The bottom of the box still shows much of the grungy buildup of finish and wax. It is in 4 slats of wood and all the nails used to construct the box are square nails. " Another eBayer has noted that "This is not a surgical instrument box. It is a naval physician/surgeon's Apothecary chest." (Which could also easily be referred to as a Medicine Chest, it would seem to me.) "My research shows this maker, Hutchinson, was in business between 1840-1870 era, so this box would have been made during that time. The company was one of the major producers of medical/surgical instruments and boxes. " The auction is here. (It's too far out of period to be of interest to me.) Now, from what I see here, I draw some conclusions that may or may not be correct. First, the medicine chest or apothecary chest has been around for a long time (Clowes being around in the mid/late 14th century and this box coming from the 19th.) Since this is a naval chest, the BRN apparently had them made in this configuration. However, it is definitely smaller than what Woodall is referring to. It also appears much smaller than Clowes' chest - probably because medicine was much better understood by the mid-nineteenth century and required fewer ingredients. (Woodall specifies over 250 separate ingredients!) Hmph. I am being called out to dinner. I have an idea there were three boxes for medical items. The medicine chest containing some tools but mostly medicine, a surgical tool chest of some sort containing the majority of the surgical tools and the "plaster" box. I think there may also have been pocket kits containing scalpels, lancets, needles and the like. I will post more as I think I have figured it out.

Kentucky has cool caves. Scads of them. Key West has no caves - probably since the place is made of coral and the highest point is 16 feet above sea level. As has been noted, if you decided to go fantasy pirate (and many do), you could wear your stars and tats and whatnot. That's one of the great things about PiP (well, I think it is).

There were two last year, both members of the forum. One is Greg of Weeping Heart Trading Company and the other is Sutler John of...Sutler John's. There was also a cool journal-making store. You can see photos of some of the vendor on this web page of my surgeon's journal.

No. I think we already woad that horse as far as it (or anyone else on the board) can stand.

Lets not forget Lionel Wafer and his silver penis sheath... No, let's go ahead. (Although, having read Wafer's book, I don't recall that bit. Wafer did have his body inked like the natives, though. See the above quoted post where I cite the interesting bits.) I am of the opinion (as stated in the above linked thread) that while tattooing existed among sailors, it seems to have been rare based on the period comments made about it. And the tattoos were probably simpler designs - again based on period comments. As for earrings, that is another discussion that you can learn about in the Twill forum (in fact several times, no doubt - there are probably at least 3 or 4 threads on the topic) for which the evidence seems to kind of thin. I am not completely sure what sternum implants are, unless that is just a clever description of breast implants. Although why you would have to hide those seems mysterious. (I saw a girl I know a few weeks ago who had decided to get silver spikes all along her spine from the nape of her neck down to the base of the spine, so I am ready to accept any possibility for what a sternum implant might be..)

That would be cool, except I don't think the gibbet would hold up very well.

And here's the page for the second gibbeted pirate I made for PiP: Becky's Page. She'll be making her home at Fort Taylor in Key West starting at PiP 2009. Just now she's touring about with Michael and Kate Souris when they can fit the gibbet in their vehicle. She debuted at the Santa Maria event in Columbus in May 2009. Thanks to Michael & Kate for getting her clothing together and hauling her sorry carcass (literally!) around this year. Now I've gone from a three skeleton household to a one skeleton household. I feel the pangs of empty nest syndrome settling in... But I also have my props living in Key West. It's the closest thing to living their myself. (Ok, it's not really, but I still think it's cool. )

My dad hated grade school, but he loved college. My mom taught for decades and still teaches part time in the public schools. I've been an adult trainer for 11 years now. I very much agree with Red Sea Trade's statement and find that both my parent's experiences deal, in part with, "...seek[ing] to involve as many senses as possible." That works for kids and adults. Sjöröveren's original idea actually does that too. It gets people to stand up and explain what they've found after researching and finding a pic if possible. It involves several senses and all of the styles of learning. Seriously, read the thing James Michener wrote that I link to above - it addresses much of this. (It's only 4-5 pages long.)

I like your idea. It involves one of the most important elements of true learning - passion for the subject. So much of what we teach is taught to guidelines and squelches creativity and thus curiousity. (And this has been a problem loooong before No Child Left Behind.) I've also found that passionately sharing what you know about a topic (verbally) can make your excitement contagious. It also show the interrelationship between things that people (particularly kids) think is 'new' and the real history that brought them about. Very interesting! I wish I could contribute some idea on how to teach history at this point. Perhaps after I maunder on it a bit. History has actually never been a favorite subject of mine because my experience involved learning people/places/dates/events. Dull, dull, dull. Where's the nectar in that? Want to read a great story about teaching? Read Michener's Who is Virgil T. Fry? (Note: that link opens up a word doc on your computer, so only click it if you're ok with that.) I love that story. I love that character.

Well, Baby Lion is leaving to visit one of the little girls I sponsor in Honduras tomorrow. I will report back on the second outing of the Baby Lion World Tour for everyone who's interested. (Both of you.) Although I understand from others who have visited and her letters that Sulma is very shy and she's at that awkward pre-teen age, so I don't know if she'll be willing to pose with BL...

Thanks large, Kate!

Very cool. Mexico has such interesting architecture. Plus they have Catrinas. What can beat Catrinas? My own Lupe: I wonder which my own Lupe it is?

Not you, me! I'm the loquacious board noise maker! (I guess it does come off that way, thought, doesn't it? I should have quoted Tartan Jack's post, not yours. Sorry 'bout that!) Here's another pic from the same event that I like: I believe Silas took that one. Now that's enough shots of the loquacious board noise maker...

Back in '98 or '97 I was on an unmoderated board and I used multiple IDs to sort of, kind of, moderate the chaos. (It's a little hard to explain. I didn't get in fights with myself, I used the various IDs to subtly undermine trolls and troublemakers by building consensus against them. I guess I did such a good job that when a group invited me to join a private board, they were shocked to learn that I had six different IDs. The forum creator insisted I post on the private board using my multiple personas...that was weird. ) However, I had so much fun creating the multiple IDs that I continued to do that through four more forums - including three where I was a moderator. Here, it's for the skull, though. No since hiding when the goal is clear and well stated. See, Stynky upset the balance of the space/time continuum and my IDs that had lovingly been built up to 1000 posts got jerked back to less than 1000. So I spent the last week re-building them. And now we're back to one that I left off with at a certain point. But we're OT. Here's a pic of me in my garb that I happen to like from the 5/09 Santa Maria gig (taken with M.A. d'Dogge's camera):

Five. But not many people are aware of the fifth. (I plead the fifth on the fifth.) See, it's like this...whenever an ID gets to 1000 posts, he becomes a really cool skull. Then my work there is done and I must move on to create a new skull icon ID. All except for the fifth one.