Engraving Of Pocahontas

I have been very busy this week tracking down ancestors on my mothers side of the family.  It is my understanding that this engraving of Pocahontas is the only portrait she ever posed for.  There are other portraits of her that were made using this one as reference.  There are artifacts in relation to her, and her father Powhatan scattered throughout the United States and England where she died.  It is clear from this portrait that she was "colonized" by this time.  It is difficult to find where the mythical Pocahontas and the real woman converge as most of what is written about her comes from the accounts of Captain John Smith.

Demonstration

I had a great time doing demos on how I make my feathers last Saturday at the spring flint knapping event at Flint Ridge State Park.  The weather was hot, but I was able to work from 10:30-4:30 in spite of the heat.  I made and sold 4 feathers and one beaded necklace making the day profitable.  7 of my feathers are paid for and in the Flint Ridge Gift Shop so I have reached one of my goals.  The people who I met were friendly folk and it is my hope to return in the fall for an even bigger flint knapping weekend.

Powhatan Tribe

 Here is a drawing of Chief Powhatan, who was the father of Pocahontas (both my great grandparents).  I will be thinking of these ancestors when I attend The Selma Walker Memorial Pow Wow at The Great Circle Mound in Newark.  Last year when I went to the Pow Wow I didn't know about this ancestry, so it will be much more meaningful this year. 

This Weekend

I have been busy in the studio getting ready for the big weekend out at Flint Ridge Flint Knapping Festival.  I won't be vending with the flint knappers, but rather I will be doing demos on Native American jewelry and beading at the table near the gift shop (in case you want to look me up).  The festival started today, but I won't be there till Saturday.  I will have some of my equipment with me and my display cases with most of my work to show.  If f9olks want me to make a feather for them on the spot, I will be able to do that for them, and of course I have some feathers already in the gift shop.  Hopefully the festival will be well attended and I can set up some future sales and commissions.  The museum and gift shop were built on top of an actual flint pit (workshop).  The library is closed on Monday so I may not be posting a blog until Tuesday morning.  I have been kept from my daily blog by a bad heater hose and an over heating truck.    Keep your fingers crossed for me dearest readership as I really need to make some sales this week.  Come out and see me on Saturday if you are in the area.

Grandma Sue's Mariage To Russel O'Flaherty

Grandma "Sue" Virginia McKee talks about her marriage to my Grandpa Russ.  Grandpa Russ was born Russel Bolen O'Flaherty, and his fathers name was Henry Bolen O'Flaherty, his fathers name was George O'Flaherty who married Laura Bell Bolen who is a grand daughter of Pocahantis and she was the daughter of Chief Powhata.  Grandma didn't know this at the time I filmed this and neither did I.

Another Famous Ancestor

I inherited a book from my mothers estate in 1995 called The Hanover Story.  I had always heard that we had a Native American ancestor, but no one in my family has ever been able to confirm that.  As far as I know I am the only one in my family interested in genealogy which is surprising to me as our heritage is rich with famous ancestors such as Oscar Wilde and Grace O'Mally!  Friday night I got around to reading The Hanover Story and within the pages I discovered that my great great grandmother Laura Bell Bolen was a granddaughter of Colonel Robert Boling who married one of Pocahontas's grand daughters Jane Rolfe.  Colonel Boling changed the spelling of his name after his exile from England according to the book.  After all these years to find out that I am a grand daughter of Pocahontas was quite a shock and I confess I had difficulty sleeping after that.  And here it was right under my nose all along written in a book that I already had in my possession!
  On Saturday morning I took my feathers to Flint Ridge gift shop where I sold 2 feathers and the gift shop ordered two more plus a bead necklace.  I will be out at Flint Ridge for a flint knapping festival this coming weekend to do a demonstration on how I make my feathers and there is a possibility that I will sell more of them before the weekend is over.  I have always felt my feathers belonged at Flint Ridge as I grew up a few miles from there.  There is also a Pow Wow at The Circle Mound this weekend and I intend on trying to sell the rest of my feathers there if the opportunity arises.  It is called The Selma Walker Memorial Pow Wow.  I was honored to know Selma and I hope now that my Native American ancestry has been confirmed, I will be able to wholeheartedly participate in the activities.  Maybe I will be able to sit in on a drum circle if it is an open drum circle!  This painting is of Pocahontas saving Captain John Smith from being executed by her father Powhatan who was the chief.  So he is my ancestor as well, and I look forward to finding out more about him.
  Both my grandpa Russel and his father Henry had Bolen as their middle name to preserve the matriarchal line.  I have no idea if they knew they were grandchildren of the famous Indian princess.  I had been stuck on Laura Bell's origins for two summers and now can begin filling in the missing links on the O'Flaherty chart.  My living grandmother remembers her, but didn't know where she came from.  Now I know that the Bolen's came from Virginia when the Civil War was being fought basically out on their front lawn!  Laura Bell Bolen O'Flaherty is buried in the Hanover cemetery just a few miles from Flint Ridge.  Perhaps on my way home from Flint Ridge this weekend I will try to find her grave marker.

Rare Cross

I don't make many crosses as I am not a christian and work in other traditions most of my time.  But here is an old piece I did in the late 90's for a friend who commissioned the work.  His whole family is represented in the gem stones (birthstones).  I am guessing I may have made 2 or 3 crosses in my time span as a silversmith.  This one was Celtic style and my favorite of all.  This one came back to me briefly for cleaning and polishing.  I will be showing it this weekend before giving it back to the rightful owner.  It is so nice to be revisited by old friends and old jewelry!

Local Food Pantry

Syd and I scored yesterday at our local food pantry.  They gave me a whole chicken that I can cook for both of us, and an assortment of other items that I can make into meals.  The food pantry network is something that I have donated to for years and I don't feel too proud to use it when I run out of food stamps.  What I don't use (tomato soup and stew) I will donate to the food pantry in Columbus the next time we have drum practice.

Historic Clock

While visiting the local food pantry this morning I noticed an old historic relic from Newark's history in the waiting room.  H. L. Art is still in operation, buying gold these days.  I am guessing this old clock is from the 1950's and may have been located where the Wendy's fast food joint is located now.  I look forward to finding more old treasures from Newark's past tucked here and there during my journeys around town.

Bow Tie Metal Quilt

I started cutting out my metal squares this week for the Bow Tie Metal Quilt project.  These squares are 3"/3".  There is a brass, steel, and copper square to begin with.  The paper pattern is up top and will be used as a template to make the bow ties.  I will be seeking out more metal for both the panels and the bow ties.  I have a little texture going, and now I will be looking for color.

Chime Master

Somehow I missed this guy at the Renaissance Festival.  I have an interest in old bells and their uses.  My friend Tom P. told me about this guy!

Saw Mill Parts

I visited my friend Tom P. on my way to Flint Ridge this weekend.  I used to work for Tom's uncle Lee.  Uncle Lee designed and made all sorts of things.  Here is part of a saw mill that he made that is still operational.  This cut off saw works by hooking up one end to part of a tractor to spin the blade by pully.  The front board moves into the saw by sliding the log.  There is still many trees left on the property that could be cut to make the log cabin that Tom is planning.  What he doesn't use to make the cabin can be used for firewood.  There is no waste on Tom's land and I love visiting there.  Even after years of hearing tales about Uncle Lee there is always more to learn, and the home made tools and equipment still in tact to be admired and used.  There is a flint knapping festival this coming weekend and I hope to sell some feathers and have some cash in my pocket by next week.  I am even toying with doing a demo right along with the knappers. 

HughesNet Class Action Lawsuit

I am happy to report that there is a class action lawsuit against HughesNet.  I am not surprised as they certainly have jerked both my sister and I around as we have been trying to get their equipment back to them since February 18th.  I do not have the particulars of the lawsuit as of yet, but I plan on adding my account and testimony to the rest of the people who have obviously been swindled by this Internet provider.  Legal aid could not help me in regard to the upcoming eviction trial as Columbus is out of their jurisdiction.  I imagine though that this whole HughesNet thing is in all the surrounding counties and can indeed be negotiated through legal aid.  I have not heard anything from the court in regards to my upcoming pre trial.  I guess Nesley's attorney isn't confident that he can win with whatever evidence he has, so they want to see my cards on the table through discovery process.  It is like my friend Eve said "they don't have a case".  It is starting to look as if she might be right.  I noticed on his motion for continuance that he is requesting for a judgement summary.  I have no idea what that actually is, but I suspect he wants to bypass the whole process!  I know I don't want that.  I am ready for trial and if we have to do a pretrial then so be it.  So while I am waiting for the eviction case to come to trial, I can certainly look into what can legally be done about that satellite system that as far as I know is still nailed down to my sisters house.   

Old Yearbook

Both my mom and dad graduated from Hanover Toboso in the 1950's.  So I am not sure why I have this old yearbook in my collection.  This will be something else to take to my grandmothers the next time I visit her.  She may know what the connection is.  This would be 10 years before I was born...I can remember my uncle in high school as I met him getting off the schoolbus.  That would have been in the 1960's after we moved back to Ohio (Hanover) from New Jersey.  The mysteries in genealogy are vast!  I think these old yearbooks sell for about $50 on Amazon so I may list this on eBay if it is not a direct connection to my family.  I can not remember how I aquired it.  It just ended up in my book collection which has become too cumbersome to move.  I am lightening my load and anything that I don't need, or can't use is going bye bye!

Unknown Quilt

This is the second quilt I showed my grandmother.  She did not know who made this quilt.  It has less damage than the one I blogged yesterday and I think I might even be able to repair it myself with a little research.  I will be going to Flint Ridge this weekend to check out the gift shop and see if my feathers are a good fit.  Keep your fingers crossed for me dearest readers!

Mothers Quilt

I visited my grandmother today and took two quilts with me for her to identify the quilter(s).  I was delighted to learn that one of them was cut out and pieced together by my mother.  Both my grandmother and mothers favorite color was/is red.  At first I didn't believe my grandma as I had never seen my mother make a quilt.  Yet, this very quilt was the one on my sister and my bed.  It has some damage...probably because one of our favorite things to do was jump on the beds like a trampoline!  My mother had six children and one miscarriage and as time went on had very little time for "projects".  Cooking, cleaning, washing, and ironing were her projects.  I remember that she did one day long projects like making candles, refinishing furniture, and she certainly had the talent and know how to make this quilt.  I wish I remembered it.  I wish I had been old enough to help her make it.  She and I didn't really have that sort of a relationship.  She probably made it in the 1950's when there were not so many of us occupying her time.  She probably worked on it alone as my mother was not in any clubs or organizations and didn't socialize much with people outside of her immediate family.  It would be hard for me to imagine her part of a quilting bee or anything like that as my grandmothers on both sides were.  They were far more social.  She worked solitary as I do on my projects.

   Quilting has been on my mind lately as I have started to make a metal quilt replica...and I had just started the project when I learned that my bank cards were missing...then my medications.  That has taken up quite a lot of my time, but there is no one but me that can protect me...so that is what I have had to do instead of work on my art projects that are the love of my life!  I felt I needed to warn my grandmother that some of my family are not to be trusted in her medicine cabinet or her purse.  Even though her retirement home is under surveillance, I wouldn't trust that the meth heads wouldn't hurt her in order to get her medications and her money in spite of being on camera!  Taking in the two quilts was my way of breaking the ice, warning her, and perhaps finding some more clues to my genealogy.  I am looking forward to piecing together my own (metal) quilt replica, and am very proud to continue what is clearly a tradition in the women (ancestors) in our family.  Perhaps in my journey I will find someone who can repair my mothers quilt and I can use it once again on my bed.  If not, I am going to try to figure out a way to hang it on the wall so I can admire it next to my grandfathers lumber saw, scythe, and tree trimmer.  It would look great as a backdrop behind my cauldron.  My ancestors worked very hard and made nice things that have lasted throughout time.  They were far to busy and had too much respect for themselves to be preoccupied with altering their state of consciousness.  I have seen no evidence that they were selfish which is what drug addition basically boils down to.  Or maybe...just maybe the work in itself altered their state of consciousness! 

Sway Bar And Medication Trouble

I have been driving around for quite sometime with a broken sway bar.  A few days ago we removed the old broken one (16 years old) resulting in my truck being grounded for a few days and me not able to blog those days.  Today was repair day.  The truck steers much better...thanks Piper!  I decided to inquire as to the importance of such a thing as a sway bar (I had never heard of one) and googled the question.  Here is the short answer as to why sway bars are important.

Depends on how hard you drive. Removing it won't mean unconditional, instant death, but it will make the car tilt more when cornering and may cause or contribute to other changes to the wheel alignment.
Driving without one would mean an added risk, as you never can tell when you'd need to make a sudden turn.

Read more: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_important_is_a_sway_bar#ixzz1uOQAwGk3

In addition to the risk of driving here and there with a broken sway bar, I have been without pain medication for quite sometime.  I have a new doctor though (My Old Doc Retired) that has prescribed new and better pain meds.  If the meth heads that stole mine could have waited a couple months then they could have had (stolen) the new ones:)  I dare say they would be surprised and disappointed in themselves for jumping the gun.  Little by little I am getting things taken care of that need to be taken care of in spite of the obstacles thrown my way by the deceivers.  I am quite certain that I have had angels watching over me.  They have even come in human form lately!

Stolen Medications

In addition to the stolen bank cards, check cards, decoy wallet facebook hacking, and attempting to have me arrested... (as if this wasn't enough) I went to use my inhaler yesterday as I was having trouble breathing and found that it was missing along with my Lyrica prescription.  So this has gone way beyond just stealing my commemorative watch.  This stuff can result in hospitalization and death and the FDA has ordered additional warning labels to be put on this product.  I don't suppose meth heads really worry about that sort of stuff (hospitalization and death), but I have decided that I need to take further action as this was my medication and I would feel terrible if my sister's 19 year old joined his friend Suade Brown in the Frazeysburg cemetary, or my sister for that matter as I am fairly certain Taran couldn't get my bank cards as they were locked up in the gun safe the whole few months I lived there.  But my medications were not locked up, and so it could be either one of them that got my Symbiocort.  I contacted the county prosecutors office this morning about my missing medication, bank cards, personal property.  I told them I am willing to come in and file formal charges if it will help get these folks into rehab and off the streets.

More HughesNet Drama

I have tried my hardest to get squared away with HughesNet since late February.  I have called them twice, launched two case numbers, written them...I just don't know what else I can do.  They want their equipment back as would be expected, but my sister claimed that she didn't have any thing other than the modem (which I took with me the day I left).  They sent me a box through UPS today that has everything needed to pack up their equipment instructions, allen wrench and even has the  return postage stickers already paid, but unless I can get hold of the equipment she has locked inside her house and the radio on the roof, I will be billed for it.  I was so hoping I would be done with the court system, but I may have to sue her through small claims court because I can not get her to do the right thing, and I am not paying for something that I don't have that is still on and in her house...And of course I am not going to let her shit on me and then just walk away either!
My court case scheduled for today was postponed to a future date by Nesley's attorney who apparently scheduled another trial in another city at the same time.  He also has finally noticed that we were scheduled for trial rather than a pretrial.  I found out that he and the court have been trying to get a hold of me through my sister's phone.  While she has been out trying to use my bank cards, hacking my facebook account and using my medications, people have been trying to reach me to let me know what is happening.  I have alerted the bank, social security administration that my sister may try using her (revoked) power of attorney to hijack my Government benefit check.  I was thankful that the social security administration does not honor power of attorney forms.  They suggested that I go back to the bank and put an alert on my account letting them know she may try to access my funds.  So even though I am not in court today, I have had to tend to the business of preventing further abuses of power from my sister.  Maybe by the time pretrial comes around I will have this business with my sister behind me, although taking her to court seems imminent.   If I could just get people to do the right thing, I could save folks time and money.  "No rest for the wicked" the saying goes.  The Flint Ridge gift shop opens this weekend and I hope to be able to connect with the curator and get my feathers in the shop before Memorial weekend as there will be lots of people visiting the park that weekend.

Decoys And Deception

One of the blogs I follow religiously is Surviving Argentina written by a guy named FerFal.  I have learned much from this man and his blog over the years and yesterday it payed off. I was a victim of a home invasion in 2002.  I was held captive in my own apartment from Friday night to Monday morning while crack head criminals were out using my debit card.  They wanted my password of course so they could access my cash so they beat me into unconsciousness, I would wake up and give them a fake password, they would leave (leaving one guard) try out the password, and come back and beat me again.  This went on for almost 3 days and I survived to write about it.  They finally gave up thinking I didn't really know my password and were only able to use my card for purchases.  On Monday morning I went to the police and took my report to the bank and my money was restored to me.  It took me two months for the bruises on my face to heal up and I am sure much of my arthritis was caused by that long weekend.  I learned from that experience and I always keep a decoy wallet with fake bank cards, a little cash on hand in case such a situation would ever arise again.  Because of my low income I generally have to live in neighborhoods were this stuff goes on pretty much 24/7.
So yesterday was the last of the month and I was out of money which is typical of any month, and I thought about my decoy wallet that had $4 in it.  Imagine my surprise when it was not in the amo box with my other survival items (Ferfals list).  The amo box was placed in my truck the night my sister tried to have me arrested.  I moved and did not bother to check the box as it had been in her gun safe and was always under lock and key before and since then.  I discovered this yesterday afternoon and went strait to the bank and had them run a check on the fake bank cards that had been in the decoy wallet.  One of the cards was an active card which surprised me as the bank had sent me two replacement cards last summer.  I had the teller deactivate that card and requested a new password anticipating that my meth head sister was going to attempt to access my bank account this morning.  I arrived at the bank 3 minutes before my money was posted and took out the money just in case somehow in
Coshocton she could convince a local banker to give her my money.  My sister has a power of attorney form that I filled out when I left Lori two summers ago, she probably knows all the secret questions as we share the same parents and upbringing, and she is hopelessly addicted to meth which means she lacks critical thinking skills.  Even though I have changed addresses and changed my power of attorney I suspect that somehow because of her reputation in Coshocton she could possibly get custody of me and my bank account as she has accessed my Facebook account posing as me and threatening suicide.  I realize that I have to watch my back, my truck, and anything else that she would try to steal.  I gave Raquel a copy of Surviving Argentina but meth heads don't have time to read.  Had she taken the time to read the book or his blog she would not have fallen for the decoy wallet trick!  I paid my rent this morning and my landlord asked me about the police presence on April 13th.  I told her about my sister, her addiction and the attempt to steal my money.  Thankfully my new landlord is a thoughtful caring person and will not hold the police coming to the house against me.  I am surrounded by friends and people who know me and will back me up when events like this happen.  I am grateful to be free of the meth heads and will continue to try to help the police bring them all to justice and recovery.  It gladdens my heart to realize that that bank card didn't work for my sister and her friends this morning.  I wonder if they got her on camera:)