Bergman Wrench Set

Bergman Wrench Set, originally uploaded by Noel C. Hankamer.

I finally put my set of Bergman Queen City wrenches in a display box. These were made by the Bergman Tool Co. in Buffalo, N.Y. Patented in about 1912. I believe these five are all the curved ones they produced.

Grad and Dad

Grad and Dad, originally uploaded by Noel C. Hankamer.

Our son Patrick graduated from ITT with Honors- First in Class! Here he is with his proud father. Photo by Chris Farmer.

Good Money Chasing Bad

Good Money Chasing Bad, originally uploaded by Noel C. Hankamer.

Sometimes I remember to buy Lotto tickets. I never seem to win anything though!

Santa Fe Collectibles

Santa Fe Collectibles, originally uploaded by Noel C. Hankamer.

I have a dozen or so of these Santa Fe RR shop rags with the safety saying on them- "Wipe Out Axy Dent on the Santa Fe".
One of my forum members saw the picture of Axy Dent, and sent me some safety buttons he had. Two say "Safety Committeeman", and "On guard against "Axy Dent", with the little guy in the center.

J J Hankamer

J J Hankamer, originally uploaded by Noel C. Hankamer.

In 1970 or 1971, I took a photo of my father in his recliner. This was his custom in the late evening, to sit and read or watch television.
I put the photo together with his letterhead and made a wooden plaque for him. This plaque has been on my wall or a shelf since he died.

B&W Hibiscus

B&W Hibiscus, originally uploaded by Noel C. Hankamer.

Beautiful in color, but in my opinion also beautiful when shot in black and white.

Daddy's Cedar

Daddy's Cedar, originally uploaded by Noel C. Hankamer.

My mother and I went up to Arkansas in 1971 a few weeks after my father died, to visit the cabin they had built there. She and I dug up a small cedar to bring home for a Christmas Tree. My father had brought home a tree every Christmas for each of us five children and planted them in our front yard. Three of them survive to this day, and this tree for daddy has survived, but never grew right. It has had plenty of problems and has been struck by lightning. It is so bad that now I am going to have to remove it. I will save a lot of the wood for projects and mementos.

B&W Wheel

B&W Wheel, originally uploaded by Noel C. Hankamer.

Here is a B&W shot of the front wheel of my BMW motorcycle. Can you tell I was bored?

Simi Knife Replica

Simi Knife Replica, originally uploaded by Noel C. Hankamer.

A friend is a knife maker and I asked him last year to make me a replica of a Simi Knife as carried by Maasai Moran in East Africa. I had one on my backpack on my way home from East Africa in 1969, but lost the knife in Yugoslavia, somewhere between the border with Greece and Zagreb.
He made me this one, shown here displayed with some Maasai mementos I brought home.The cloth is a Kitambi, worn when lounging around, it is wrapped on you like a sarong. This is one that I wore for several years while in the Peace Corps. Also shown are a snuff pouch made from grass to be worn as a necklace, a beaded wrist band, and a beaded necklace that was worn by young Maasai girls. I traded a dollar pocket watch for it.

Knife and sheath made by Thunder Forge
rm-250@cox.net

Shaw Alligator Wrench

Shaw Alligator Wrench, originally uploaded by Noel C. Hankamer.

Shaw Propeller Co. of Boston made these alligator wrenches patented in 1910. They came in several sizes and I have a few of them. This one is only 4" long, and may have been a salesman's sample. It was gifted to me by a member of my Tool Talk forum.

Crawfish!

Crawfish!, originally uploaded by Noel C. Hankamer.

Saturday we went to the Liverpool Volunteer Fire Department Crawfish Boil and auction. Mudbugs were great and the auction was a success, though I did spend a bit of money bidding in the auction! All for a good cause, of course.

Bottle Brush Bush

Bottle Brush Bush, originally uploaded by Noel C. Hankamer.

I saw this in passing this morning, just had to turn around and shoot it. It is a Bottle Brush Bush ( Callistemon ), over 8' tall and beautiful. I am told hummingbirds love this plant. I saw several honeybees around it.