Everett Immigrant from Tonga's Face Adorned With Patriotic Images


He grew up poor in an island hut on Tonga, where they see the sunrise before the rest of the world. He stowed away on a boat from American Samoa to California, and later got his green card in 1976. He was drawn by stories of opportunity and images of money as abundant as suburban grass clippings. But it takes hard work to live here, he says, and that's a lesson he shares with his children and grandchildren. He spends his days cutting and packaging crab and salmon at a seafood warehouse. He pumps iron every other day, his 58-year-old body a carefully maintained canvas filled with provocative words, phrases and pictures. To share his love of country, he first painted his house red and white, and later added a blue shingle roof. Streamers and little flags are everywhere. When a flag fades, he replaces it. When neighborhood kids yank off his patriotic holiday lights, he restrings them.

Head to toe, Bloomfield has more than 100 tattoos, including the flags of 20 countries. Most were done by hand by his wife of 17 years, Dora. On his spine is a familiar yellow ribbon: "Support Our Troops." He (last summer) wrote President Bush, thanking him for his economic stimulus check, but also asking how the government might help keep people from losing their homes during these tough times. When people complain about feeling poor, Bloomfield says the government has food and shelter for those in need. He remembers the hut in Tonga and said he knows real poverty. He's proud to work to pay his bills. If the president asked him to fight in Iraq, he would.


Great picture at the link ...

http://silencedmajority.blogs.com/silen ... toons.html