Joben

I love it! Here is my favorite interior room sofar. It's a very complete village. Including gardens and a graveyard. Here my pet troll attempts to read a tombstone. There is some neat new equipment to be had. A nice stop to sit and take a meal. Unique artwork abounds. The interiors are constructed with care and hints of character backstory. Sometimes they are surprises. For example, this bedroom does not belong to the person you would expect.

Sarah Brightman - Fleurs Du Mal http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5pIC2MIelQ This song sends chills down my spine. In a good way.

I'm moved into the new place now. Finally got around to hooking my computer back up today. The new room I've got it in kicks butt. ...Working on balancing the surround sound system now. Hopefully as RL stuff calms down I'll soon be back to work in the testing guild and modding a bit.

maybe since it's the only package he has it's somehow confusing the OnStart logic?

Woho mad props for having functional swords. A good sword is a thing of beauty. I think I once spent about 15 minutes just staring at some authentic katana at a museum just marveling at the workmanship and artistic lines. Ahhh good old USMC Ka-Bar I don't have one of the standard model, but I do have one of the variants....only good pic i have is a group shot... That's the short tanto model with synthetic handle. The top guard kept piching my hand in almost every grip, so i ground it down. Improved the knife's usability about 300% Also appearing, Mora Clipper, ESEE H.E.S.T. and Izula I've also got a vintage Cataraugus 225Q This knife is WWII era, but was never distributed as widely as the more famous Ka-Bar. Apologies for the crappy pics. It's not in usable condition sadly, the end cap is loose and the leather washers that make up the handle are crumbly. It doesn't have any great collectors value, so i hope to get it re-handled someday. That thing is a beast, built like the proverbial tank, it's in the 'sharpened prybar' class, and has obviously seen some rough use in it's day. There are chips on the spine like someone pounded it through something with a rock. But it seems to have shrugged off outright abuse.

Ahh yes. That handle is hickory if i recall, a traditional wood for hafted tools/weapons. That type of pattern is done by wrapping it a pattern with natural cordage, or strips of cloth, generally soaked in some inflammable liquid. You then set it alight and let it burn for a minute or two before putting it out. This was my first attempt, so it's a bit messy, but I like the effect, and I'll give it another shot if/when i break that handle. 9 inch cutting edge. OAL is aprox 14 inches, and blade thickness at the spine is aprox 0.2 inch --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ok, on to Every Day Carry (EDC) blades. That is ones that are helpful for everyday tasks and are small enough to be conveniently carried. Two of the Outdoors Blades also appear in this list because they're such versatile designs. Across the top: Izula, this time in thinner sheath for pocket carry. Then: Byrd Crossbill, Victorinox Tinker, Victorinox One Hand Trekker, Leatherman Juice XE6, CRKT Minimalist, Boker Subclaw. The Crossbill and Subclaw are both hawkbill blade designs. This blade type has major advantages in several types of cutting since it bites and catches the work instead of letting it slip off. The Subclaw has a 1.5 inch AUS-8 blade, the Crossbill is 3 inches, in a roughly equivilent steel that has way too long a name to remember. This is the Minimalist, I wear it around my neck. Two basic tools, blade, and light (Photon Microlight) available 24/7. It's a tiny knife but the ergos are good and it's very usable. These are my Swiss Army Knives. My father gave me the red one almost 18 years ago. It's the Tinker model, and is an excellent knife. Mine is getting a bit worn, and I'm sentimental about it, so the Trekker was purchased to put it into semi-retirement lest i do it damage someday. In keeping with my outdoor interests it's a bit beefier, and exchanges the small blade for a saw, but is otherwise identical. Both of these knives are well thought out, the tool selections are nearly perfect for their intended purposes. This is a a Leatherman Juice XE6. The Juice series of tools is their medium pocket-sized line, between the 'keychain' ones and the full size ones like the Wave. It packs an amazing array of functional tools into it's small frame. (Though lol it sits at the bottom of your pocket like a brick).

Swords are cool for sure, but I like stuff I can actually find a a USE for. This is a Ka-Bar Becker BK9. 9 Inches of good old 1095 High Carbon Steel. As tough as the day is long and literally razor sharp. Note the wear on the powder coating... One casual chop...Splitting firewood and felling small trees are easily possible with a tool like this if you know the proper techniques. The kit that rides in the storage pocket on the sheath: Ceramic sharpening rod Firesteel Jute twine and a bit of fatwood for kindling The little BK13 (for kindling prep and as a striker for the steel) Clip on LED light. [edit] Oh and that's a snag free lanyard design. With the cord lock all the way in there is no loop to catch on anything when the knife is sheathed. With it out you have a large loop that can be wrapped around your hand for extra retention. If you wrap it as shown above dropping the knife will cause it to swing AWAY from your body instead of into your leg.

*cough* Ka-Bar "Hobo"

...I generally save if for the second... But no seriously...I like blades, and I like using them. So here is a little photo essay about some of mine. I hope you find it interesting. This set of tools is for Outdoor stuff. I generally have one or two of these when messing about in the woods. A good cutting tool is invaluable if one has need to process wood for a fire, or any other reason. So yes...you could call these "Survival Knives" if you really want to, though IMHO that word is getting a bit overused. Victorinox One Hand Trekker, ESEE Izula w/ Micarta handle scales, ESEE-3, Mora 511, Florian Folding Saw. Here they are opened/unsheathed, and joining them is a Cold Steel Trail 'Hawk. In slightly different order this time, just to confused you, the knives are: ESEE Izula w/ Micarta handle scales, Victorinox One Hand Trekker, Mora 511, ESEE-3 Lets take a look at the swiss army knife and Izula. These are very nice, and small enough that they can be carried more or less anywhere. They both make wonderful pocketknives for everyday tasks. The Swiss Army Knife type is well proven and reliable, and packs a number of very useful tools into a small package. Of particular interest here is the saw, which is very nice. Saws are a very efficient way to cut tough materials without expending undue energy. Tasks which might put undue strain on the fairly lightly constructed folding SAK can be handled by the Izula. It is quite thick for it's size and very strong. The company that makes the Izula, and the orange handled knife above is a division of Randall's Adventure and Training (R.A.T.) who among other things teach Survival, Escape and Evasion classes the the military in the jungles of South American. This is reflected in the brand name of their knives "Escuela de Supervivencia [school of Survival], Escape and Evasion" (ESEE). This particular RC-3 is a numbered limited edition model made for the "Rat Pack" fan club on Bladeforums.com This is also the largest knife i routinely carry, because my home state frowns on anything with more than 4" of cutting edge unless you're hunting/fishing....philistines. Here it is in a standard or 'hammer' grip. It's designed with a large finger choil in front of the ricasso, so you can 'choke up on' the knife to get more control for detail work. The red handled knife with the shiny blade, Mora 511, is a shockingly cheap ($9) knife that is amazingly useful and well designed. It hails from Sweden, and features a good carbon steel blade with what is known as a Scandinavian Grind. That is to say it is ground on a flat stone with that one bevel going all the way to the edge. This very thing (~30 degree) smooth edge makes it an amazing knife for wood working. Tissue thin curls of wood can be easily produced by even a novice. Ahhh yes...the tomahawk. This was purchased largely because I wanted a chopping tool, and as I said my state's law frown upon large knives. LOL I'm sure a tomahawk could get you in trouble if you did anything nefarious with it, but axes are not specifically listed as forbidden weapons, and therefore, in an appropriate context should be fine. I have not had it long, but am quickly coming to appreciate it as an extremely versatile tool with almost limitless possibilities. I carved the traction rings in the handle, and burned in the tiger stripe pattern myself. ...So there you go...a few of my favorite things. What'cha got to say about that?

Hi folks. ... my participation has been spotty in the last few months for various reasons. lol I'm not even sure I can remember them all, but they were there honest! This may continue due to the fact that I'm moving soon. We'll have access to the new place on Friday.