Tagak is a Tagalog word for heron. It is a large fish-eating wading bird with long legs, a long S-shaped neck, and a long pointed bill. In my childhood town of San Jose, I often see them in swampy area usually perched at the back of carabaos that wallow in the muddy water. We have a saying in Tagalog when we want to describe the impossible "Pag puti ng uwak, pag itim ng tagak". Roughly translated it means, "When the crow turns white, when the heron turns black".
Would you believe a carving like this sells for $20+ at Etsy?
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My mother has a place of her own. After living for a long time with my eldest brother, she finally moved out which made her sad. To cheer her up I made her a wooden birdie to decorate her shelf in the living room.
This birdie was whittled from a Weeping Willow using Mora 120.
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Which comes first, the chicken or the egg? One of the trick question I've been pondering about and seems to have no logical answer. Until modern science comes to the rescue:
"Prior to the first true chicken, there were non-chickens. The DNA changes came about in cells housed in the egg. So the egg came first. In July 2010, British scientists, using a supercomputer, claimed to have come up with the final and definitive answer."
There it is guys, the egg comes first.
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A couple of years ago we went on a long road trip to North Dakota. I was awed by the vast empty spaces of the Great Plains that stretched as far as the eye can see. The Badlands that are exposed surfaces of stone and clay that erosion has shaped into striking formations was a sight to behold and the Red River Valley which is the remnant lake bed of the ancient Lake Agassiz were a few of the most famous spots we visited. It was also there that I fist saw a bison.
The American bison and the European bison (wisent) are the largest terrestrial animals in North America and Europe. Bison are good swimmers and can cross rivers over half a mile (800 meters) wide. They are nomadic grazers and travel in herds. The bulls leave the herds of females at two or three years of age, and join a male herd, which are generally smaller than female herds.
Here is my rendition of a bison done in basswood.
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Experience is the best teacher. Generally speaking this is true, especially if we talk about survival. That is why we are always advised to practice with our gears. Go into the woods and do some dirt time. And do it as often as you can.
Some of the stuff I know about survival like making fire for one, I learned out of necessity. As far as I can remember in 1957 there was no electricity in my hometown San Jose. There were no television sets then and the sole entertainment of people at night is going to a movie theater powered by an electric generator. Not everybody have transistor radio that run on batteries, in fact you would be considered rich if you have one.
Electric stoves are non existent too. There are some people who own kerosene stove but most cook their food using firewood. There was no garbage collection system in place either so people burn their garbage instead especially the leaves raked from the backyard. In the morning and at dusk you would see in the neighborhood heaps of leaves smoking under the fruit trees so it would blossom and bear fruit.
(Photo courtesy of Low-Tech Magazine)
I learned how to make fire at an early age by just watching people do so at first and then doing it by myself later. I learned how to stack the firewood the right way so it would easily catch fire using a match and only a piece of paper as tinder. I also learned how to blow or use ihip to make the fire bloom and how to arrange 3 stone cooking fire. I became adept at these skills by repetition since it is a part of my daily chore. Only around the 60's that the town was energized.
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I've read about this Cold Steel Mini Tuff Lite in blade forums being used to carve ball in a cage or ball in a ball and wondered if it is really is capable of what was claimed it can do. My friend who is fast becoming a blade addict bought one and showed it to me. I was hooked and bought one too.
I whittled a fox out of 1" x 1" basswood and the CS Mini Tuff Lite really can carve no doubt. But whether it can do ball in a cage or ball in a ball remains to be seen. I have to try it myself because I think the width of the blade can be difficult to use on tight corners specially when freeing the ball.
Blade Length: 2"
Blade Thickness: 2.5 mm
Overall Length:5"
Steel: Japanese AUS 8A Stainless
Weight:1.7 oz
Handle:3" Long Grivory
Pocket Clip: Stainless Pocket / Belt Clip
The fox which my grandson said looks like a pig.
That's all folks! Thanks for reading.
