Supreme Royal Circle of the Friends of the World

In my Waymarking adventures I’ve come across this on tombstones at predominantly African-American cemeteries.

According to one website (http://www.herroncenter.org/stones.htm):

The Supreme Royal Circle of Friends of the World was founded in 1909 in Forest City Arkansas by Dr. Richard A. Williams. This fraternal organization for black men had as its primary goal promoting the moral, physical, intellectual, and material welfare of its members.

The success of the Royal Circle was partly due to blacks' mistrust of government and white owned banks. The Royal Circle of Friends offered great returns for small investments, with the support of friends, neighbors, churches, and respected black business leaders.
The fee for joining the Royal Circle, including a medical examination, was $2.50. Members then paid $1 per quarter, which paid $300 to the beneficiary after the member's death.
For years to come, in rural black cemeteries loyalty to the Royal Circle of Friends was indicated by the distinctive headstones that displayed the organization's symbol of the majestic lion and letters RCF.

 

It’s neat the things you find when you have adventures.

God Bless Our Troops……….

Sometimes you see a sticker and just have to take a picture.

And it reminds me of this:

While interviewing a US Army Special Forces soldier in Afghanistan, a Reuters News reporter asked the soldier what he felt when killing Al Qaeda with a sniper rifle.
The soldier thought for a moment and replied, "Recoil."

I hope the dog is inside.

A Trip to Houston & Salutes

Sandy and I took a vacation and went to The Woodlands, Tx last week to visit her Aunt Ethel.  I know it says Houston, but when you travel it’s like telling folks you live in Memphis when we actually live in Cordova.

It was about a 600 miles, two tanks of gas, nine hours, and that one just one-way.  We got to see a lot of scenery throughout Arkansas and Texas.  Most of it looked like Tennessee.

Driving across Texas we went traversed through many small towns with populations under 1,000 and I couldn’t help but be reminded of  Hee-Haw and the salutes they used to do on that show to all the small towns.  All at once as we were coming up to one of these hamlets and saw the town name with the number, I said the town name and “SSSSAAAAAAALLLUUUUTTTTE!!!!!

Sandy immediately know where I was coming from and joined right in.  So here’s a salute to a few of those small towns:

Seven Oaks     population 131

Burke                population 315

Appleby          population 444

Garrison         population 844

 

SALUTE!

Murphy's Laws of Combat

Murphy's Laws of Combat

Today at work I was helping a contractor install one of the multitude of new systems at our new base. The installation was going easier than expected and somewhere along the way Murphy's Laws of Combat came to mind, especially the one, "If your attack is going well, then it's an ambush." Paraphrased to the communications world, "if the install is going too good, there's an option the contractor won't mention until you contact the help desk - after the system blows up."

Enjoy the laws.

Dave

1. If the enemy is in range, so are you.
2. Incoming fire has the right of way.
3. Don't look conspicuous, it draws fire.
4. There is always a way, and it usually doesn't work.
5. The problem with the easy way out is that it has already been mined.
6. Try to look unimportant, they may be low on ammo.
7. Professionals are predictable, it's the amateurs that are dangerous.
8. The enemy invariably attacks on two occasions:
   a. when you're ready for them.
   b. when you're not ready for them.
9. Teamwork is essential, it gives them someone else to shoot at.
10. If you can't remember, then the claymore IS pointed at you.
11. The enemy diversion you have been ignoring will be the main attack.
12. A "sucking chest wound" is nature's way of telling you to slow down.
13. If your attack is going well, then it's an ambush.
14. Never draw fire, it irritates everyone around you.
15. Anything you do can get you shot, including nothing.
16. If you build yourself a bunker that's tough for the enemy to get into quickly, then you won't be able to get out of it quickly either.
17. Never share a foxhole with anyone braver than yourself.
18. If you're short of everything but the enemy, you're in a combat zone.
19. When you've secured the area, don't forget to tell the enemy.
20. Never forget that your weapon is made by the lowest bidder.
21. Friendly fire isn't.
22. If the sergeant can see you, so can the enemy.
23. Never stand when you can sit, never sit when you can lie down, never stay awake when you can sleep.
24. The most dangerous thing in the world is a second lieutenant with a map and a compass.
25. There is no such thing as an atheist in a foxhole.
26. A grenade with a seven second fuse will always burn down in four seconds.
27. Remember, a retreating enemy is probably just falling back and regrouping.
28. If at first you don't succeed call in an air-strike.
29. Exceptions prove the rule, and destroy the battle plan.
30. Everything always works in your HQ, everything always fails in the colonel's HQ.
31. The enemy never watches until you make a mistake.
32. One enemy soldier is never enough, but two is entirely too many.
33. A clean (and dry) set of BDU's is a magnet for mud and rain.
34. Whenever you have plenty of ammo, you never miss. Whenever you are low on ammo, you can't hit the broad side of a barn.
35. The more a weapon costs, the farther you will have to send it away to be repaired.
36. Field experience is something you don't get until just after you need it.
37. Interchangeable parts aren't.
38. No matter which way you have to march, its always uphill.
39. If enough data is collected, a board of inquiry can prove ANYTHING.
40. For every action, there is an equal and opposite criticism. (in boot camp)
41. The one item you need is always in short supply.
42. The worse the weather, the more you are required to be out in it.
43. The complexity of a weapon is inversely proportional to the IQ of the weapon's operator.
44. Airstrikes always overshoot the target, artillery always falls short.
45. When reviewing the radio frequencies that you just wrote down, the most important ones are always illegible.
46. Those who hesitate under fire usually do not end up KIA or WIA.
47. The tough part about being an officer is that the troops don't know what they want, but they know for certain what they DON'T want.
48. To steal information from a person is called plagiarism. To steal information from the enemy is called gathering intelligence.
49. The weapon that usually jams when you need it the most is the M60.
50. The perfect officer for the job will transfer in the day after that billet is filled by someone else.
51. When you have sufficient supplies & ammo, the enemy takes 2 weeks to attack. When you are low on supplies & ammo the enemy decides to attack that night.
52. The newest and least experienced soldier will usually win the Congressional Medal Of Honor.
53. A Purple Heart just goes to prove that were you smart enough to think of a plan, stupid enough to try it, and lucky enough to survive.
54. Murphy was a grunt.
    

Ministry of Silly Walks

One of my favorite Monty Python skits.




My favorite line "With government backing I could make it very silly."

Concerts

I decided I wanted to make a list of all the bands I've seen in concert. The basis for the list was that they at least had to have put out an album. Otherwise, there would be too many to remember or name. I'm quite sure that I've left some out. I just can't remember some of the opening bands. Several of these artists I've seen multiple times.

Here's the list:

____________________________________________
Aaron Tippin
AC/DC
Aerosmith
Big Ass Truck
Billy Squire
Black Crowes
Bon Jovi
Bryan Adams
Cheap Trick
Clint Black
Dwight Yoakam
Europe
Fastway
Garth Brooks
George Strait
Hank Williams, Jr
Iron Maiden
Journey
Judas Priest
Keith Whitley
Little Texas
Metallica
Mic Harrison
Motley Crue
Oak Ridge Boys
Patty Loveless
Poison
Queensryche
Quireboys
Randy Travis
Ratt
Saxon
Scorpions
Skid Row
Superdrag
Ted Nugent
The Police
Thunder
Twisted Sister
Van Halen
Vixen
V-Roys
Whitesnake

BHS Homecoming - 16 Jan 09

Here are just a few picture to preview.