Suspense and Tragedy

I am afraid I will have to combine my S and T post into one. And the outlook for the rest of the week is dim. I have contracted malaria and degue fever (not easy to do at the same time) along with a case of rum. To make matters worse, during my few moments of coherentness I was kidnapped by descendants of renegade pirates on the far end of Roatan. I was able to steal access to their computers to send this message but as I am under complete duress and sedation, the week ahead is challenging. Shhh, I have to go, they are coming....


Pray I survive these conditions...

Best

C

Roatan

One of the small bay islands of Honduras is the idyllic get-away of Roatan. Located about 35 miles off the coast of Honduras. And on a small island off of Roatan sits the amazing Coco View Resort. Click the link and check it out. Visually awesome. Today I am there...for a week.

Coco View Resort and reef

Be jealous or envious, Nancy, will you please tell everyone which they should be? :)

I will have Wi-fi there so I will still be in touch somewhat. But mostly I will be sunning and relaxing. Of course a sordid tale of debauchery will be forth coming along with pictures (not of the debauchery though) when I get back.

I think it's envy!

Mahalo!

Quandary

The dictionary defines quandary as:

~ A situation or circumstance that presents problems difficult to solve; predicament, dilemma

There is nothing that defines this word more than the situation surrounding gun control. I was listening to a news broadcast a couple days ago on the Today Show. They were talking about two bills in the Senate. One was a  gun control oriented piece regarding primarily tougher background checks for gun sales. And the other was legislation regarding immigration. Marco Rubio was the one-man band behind the immigration reform.   Neither has much of a chance of passing was the basic consensus. The gun control related bill in the words of the analyst, "stood no chance at all" of even getting out of the Senate. Too many Senators that will be coming up for mid-term elections have no intention of stirring up that kettle of fish back home in their state.   I tell you the incident and tragedy at Sandy Hook school should never be forgotten. The horrific deaths of children in any fashion saddens us all. But I am about to be genuinely irritated if there continues to be this ongoing opening of the wound that seems to never end. These parents who lost children in that massacre need something to do that seems to help the healing. I get it. What does not need to be happening is the continual parading of these grief-stricken good people and surviving children in every available venue to promote the cause of gun control. That is despicable action for the leaders of our country and our law makers. Despicable.   As proven most recently (and has always been true no matter what you believe) is that people kill people. Period. It cannot be any other way. Other than in the movies, possibly, can guns, knives, bombs, and even computers (WOPR) "come alive" and act on their own. It takes human action to create tragedy. The planes that flew into the Trade Center and Pentagon did not decide that morning to revolt against American Airlines and America in general. It took deranged committed zealots to use what you and I take for granted, as weapons of murderous intent.   A week ago at a small college in Houston, TX a 21-year old student went on a rampage with a knife and stabbed 14 people. Two are listed in critical condition, four are listed as fair.    Just yesterday two bombs exploded in Boston, MA during the running of the Boston Marathon injuring several people and killing 3, including a young boy.   Somebody convince me that any gun control legislation of any kind would have prevented these incidents. Please don't try.   Our combined quandary as law-abiding American citizens is how we can prevent ALL these types of tragedies. The sad answer is...we can't. We can do the best we can, but when you can buy all the knives and tannerite online that you want, what can you really legislate?   So I say quit torturing these people from Sandy Hook, they have been through enough and need to begin to heal. Quit trying to become a savior by initiating stupid, ineffective "gun control" laws in the name of doing something about it. See an earlier post on this subject HERE. We need to take the best precautions possible. If this is arming pilots, so be it. If it is patrolled hallways in schools, so be it. Deterrent and Difficulty are the two best weapons the good guys have in this homeland war. Because lets assume for the moment the next "school attacking crazy" out there is unable to get a gun because of some law we feel good about...are you more or less enraged when he blows up the entire school? And you already know he IS out there somewhere. April is the month of Oklahoma City (McVeigh), Columbine (Harris & Klebold), Waco (Koresh). All very different atrocities. With different methods of dealing death. Two of these had more death that Columbine with very little caused by gun fire. Gun control is of little to no use. Only Pollyanna believes it is. Ironically Earth Day and the underground celebration of 4/20 or 4:20 how ever you like it, also occur in April. So we have something positive to look forward to. The month however is not over yet...that North Korean nutjob is said to be planning something on 4/20 to harsh all of our buzzes. Be aware and be safe, people. Res Ipsa Loquitor

Peyote

Lophophora williamsii ~ Peyote

Peyote. Father to the psychoactive alkaloid known commonly as mescaline. A popular past time in the '70's was "eating peyote". Hunter Thompson's references to mescaline and ingesting mescaline are numerous throughout his works. Mescaline could be referred to as "organic LSD".

Peyote is a small spineless cactus that grows commonly in south Texas and throughout Mexico. The dried peyote plant resembles a "button" and caused the term "peyote button" to be coined. This is how I knew them in the '70's.

Peyote Buttons

"In consciousness dwells the wondrous,
with it man attains the realm beyond the material,
and the Peyote tells us,
where to find it."
Antonin Artaud, The Tarahumars (1947)

As you will recall from my very first post, Artaud was also featured in a quote. The man apparently was a very deep thinker...and possibly on mescaline as he was thinking.

“Peyote is reported to trigger states of “deep introspection and insight” that have been described as being of a metaphysical or spiritual nature. At time, these can be accompanied by rich visual or auditory effect.”

Wikipedia

Peyote has been used for well over 5000 years in Native American ceremonies, for things similar to a vision quest, as well as for medicinal purposes ranging from toothache and childbirth pain to skin diseases and diabetes. The peyote extract (peyocactin) also has proven to contain strong anti-microbial agents. Study results:

"Peyocactin proved effective against 18 strains of penicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, several other bacteria, and a fungus."

Another reference Hunter makes in various writings involve his time in San Francisco during what is known as the Beat Generation. He was friends with at least two authors who frequently used mescaline to inspire their creativity.

You may have heard of Ken Kesey. He wrote the book One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest while working at a psychiatric ward. He admits to choking down 8 peyote buttons and was inspired to write the narration of the first three pages while in his mescaline heightened state.

Allan Ginsberg was also a friend of Hunters and credited a peyote-induced state for some of his writing in the controversial poem, "Howl". Written in 1954, this poem was actually put on trial for obscenity and banned or confiscated at book stores. A judge eventually ruled it was not obscenity. I have linked to the poem and also put it on a page at the top of the blog. It is very interesting and lengthy...literally one. long. sentence. Read and you be the judge.

Peyote has been exempt as any kind of drug or controlled substance for Native Americans for use in ceremonial activites. To the extent that they may enter, "No" on an armed forces application about whether or not they have ever used illegal drugs...truthfully.

The DEA has classified peyote as a Schedule I controlled substance but with the allowed uses for Native American religious ceremonies and other grey areas, it seems a little unclear of the legality of growing, transporting, etc. this tiny little cactus.

I think Hunter Thompson liked his mescaline and did much of his writing in various states of mescaline influence.

Any experience with peyote or mescaline? Has anyone seen the film Altered States with John Hurt?
One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest?

~Veritas Aequitas~

The Owl Farm

Owl Farm. Hunter Thompson's "fortified compound" as it were and self-proclaimed. A part of a larger ranch that had been sub-divided into smaller parcels. Owl Farm was still a rather large property. Nestled in the mountains of Colorado and as Hunter liked to refer to it at "8000 feet".

The original ranch was some rather large piece of land and owned by a lady named Margaret Arlian. She made cheese, wine and, brandy. Sometime in the later '40's or early '50's she sold the ranch to Otis Smallwood and his family. After some period of time they were gone and Al and Alma Barbier moved in. During the time the Barbier's owned the ranch, the main house burned down. This gave them the opportunity to build a home in the style they wanted...a log cabin as it were. As well as a dairy barn. That same house is the one still there today with the famous Kitchen where Hunter would hold court until all hours of the night. They sold eggs and milk and then became the first to subdivide property, before zoning was even heard of in rural Colorado. In the early '60's they sold what was left of the ranch to the Sandersens. The Sandersen's son Billy, who was killed in Vietnam, was buried on the ranch property.

The ranch was divided up some more and Hunter ended up with the parcel containing the main house and dairy barn (since turned into a guest house) on Woody Creek Rd. He then named the site Owl Farm.

Owl Farm is in the Aspen area and considered part of Pitkin County, Woody Creek, CO. This is all near the highly popular Snowmass ski resort community. John Denver's home as well as the home of Prince Bandar bin Sultan, Arabian ambassador to the US, are located in the gated community of Starwood Residential Estate. And across the road from Owl Farm is John Oate's house.

Hunter used the Owl Farm setting in many of his letters, papers, and stories as well as referencing the raising of peacocks, the terrorizing neighborhood owls, the casual walking out the door to fire off a few rounds and generally enjoying the peace and quite of this solitude. Friends and local officials were always stopping by to gather in the Kitchen and gamble on sports events, or even plan Hunter's run for Sheriff of Aspen. He did most of his serious writing here.

Entrance to Owl Farm in the winter

At some of these gatherings he would grab one of his books or papers and have one of the people attending read a passage he indicated. If they were not reading with the right tone or emotion, he would stop them and have them start over. Apparently this would be the highlight of the evening and great fun was had by all.

As mentioned in a previous post, Hunter took his own life at age 67 in the study of  Owl Farm while he was working on his latest column for ESPN called "Hey Rube". Johnny Depp saw to Hunter's greatest wish, that his ashes be shot into the sky from a tower 153' tall that was to be built on the property. At the top of the tower was Hunter's symbol that he used at least since the run for Sheriff, the double-thumbed fist clutching a peyote button. The event took place in August of 2005, right where Hunter wanted it to be... in his "big backyard".

 

Anita Thompson, his wife of two years before his death, still lives on the property. He is also survived by his first wife Sandy and their son Juan.

Hunter and Anita in happier times

Selah

Nothing

Quoth the Raven, "Nevermore"

Fin

The Monkey Fist

Picture from Wikipedia


The Monkey Fist has been around for hundreds of years. The term itself describes the knot tied as you see above (which resembles a...you guessed it, Monkey's Fist). It has been used by sailors as a way to heave a heavier line from one boat to another or from a boat to the dock. Known as a heaving line

The knot was usually tied around a stone, a marble, or a piece of heavy wood. The item used was normally determined by the size of the line used to form the knot.

Monkey Fists were used as weapons by sailors in bar fights in the 19th century and became weapons used by street gangs during the same period. Another variation use for the knot was to conceal and transport precious gems.

Now that the history lesson is over...

[I think this is a weapon that Hunter Thompson would fully approve of. After all he planned to order 200 lead-filled saps had he won his race for Sheriff in Aspen.]

As you might imagine I was watching an Apocalypse 101 reality show on TV when I saw one of the basic weapons for self-defense was...the Monkey Fist. They are light weight, cheap to buy and/or make. You can make these items if you are the crafty sort. They did some demonstrations and of course it peeked my interest because I am just wired that way.


You can do a search for "monkey fist" (DO NOT accidentally type in "monkey fisting") and find a whole host of how-to videos on how to make these and sites where you can purchase them. One site I have looked at is Paul's Outpost. The cool thing about these items is they can be used as a key chain and double as a self-defense weapon without being too obvious. It is something easy for women to use and pretty shockingly painful for an unprepared assailant.

Picture from Amazon

A Monkey Fist is made from 550 paracord and various size solid steel ball bearings. The one pictured above is a 1" diameter steel ball wrapped in the paracord "fist". The cost on Amazon is $10.99. As you could guess, getting whacked in the head with a solid steel ball would get the point across that you didn't appreciate being attacked.

Of course I had to buy one (not the key chain variety) to go along with my 26" expandable baton. Preparing for the Apocalypse one handy weapon at a time.

I do however have a key fob Fire Starter w/paracord.

Pass the word.....