But still behind.

Yes, the focus is off a touch...but I like the pose and the perch. Was so excited

to see this beautiful hawk in this great light that I guess it was a little hand-held shake,

as well. Give it your best shot...do it to the best of your ability...and never look back.

Red-shouldered Hawk ~ Florida Wetlands

****************************************************************************************************

The Red-shouldered Hawk is a medium-sized hawk. Its breeding range spans eastern North America and along the coast of California to northeastern-central Mexico. Red-shouldered Hawks are permanent residents throughout most of their range, though northern birds do migrate, mostly to central Mexico. The main conservation threat to the widespread species is deforestation.

Adults have brownish heads, reddish chests, and pale bellies with reddish bars. Their tails, which are quite long, are marked with narrow white bars. Red "shoulders" are visible when the birds are perched. These hawks' upper parts are dark with pale spots and they have long yellow legs. Western birds may appear more red, while Florida birds are generally paler. The wings of adults are more heavily barred on the upper side. Juvenile Red-shouldered Hawks are most likely to be confused with juvenile Broad-winged Hawks, but can be distinguished by their long tails, crescent-like wing markings, and a more flapping, Accipiter-like flight style. In direct comparison, it is typically larger and longer proportioned than the Broad-wing, though is slightly smaller and more slender than most other common North American Buteos. This bird is sometimes also confused with the widespread Red-tailed Hawk. That species is larger and bulkier, with more even-sized, broad wings and is paler underneath, with a reddish tail often apparent. The Red-tail is also more likely to soar steadily, with wings in a slight dihedral.

Prior to 1900, the Red-shouldered Hawk was one of the most common North American raptors. Population densities have decreased precipitously due to the clearing of mature forests (principally the wet hardwood forest they prefer) since that time. The changing of habitats has led to a general population increase of the Red-tailed Hawk, an occasional predator of its cousin. Additionally affecting the Red-shouldered Hawk was the greater availability of firearms in the early 1900s, leading to unchecked hunting of this and all other raptor species until conservation laws took effect in the latter half of the 20th century. Local forest regrowth and the ban of hunting has allowed Red-shouldered Hawk populations to become more stable again and the species is not currently considered conservation dependent. In Florida, the Red-shouldered Hawk is perhaps the most commonly seen and heard raptor species. However, human activity, including logging, poisoning from insecticides and industrial pollutants, continue to loom as threats to the species.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-shouldered_Hawk

After a relaxing evening in a jacuzzi, I left Gold Beach with the intention to cross into California. My destination was Crescent City. But my plan was altered when I ran into Francois and Marco from Quebec in the afternoon. I met them back in North Bend, OR. Francois had blown a flat and had a mechanical failure. He broke 3 spokes from his rear wheel. I did my best to true it to allow him to soldier into Brookings. I stayed with the group until they made it, since I was the only one with bike tools. A very nice day riding with new acquaintences, ending with one last night in Oregon.

i searched.. but couldn't find a title hehe. so any suggestions are not allowed but welcomed! :D

my nephew "Bader". named after my father. God bless them mortal souls! :)

i've been singing this song for a while now. me like! :)

but everything is gonna be alright.

Not one but two Venus in furs wishing you happy halloween

They were very still, and had that vacant look you see in manniquins, but then....they moved!

but that's the thing -- it really was green like that.

I'm pretty sure this is my favourite pic from excursion one to the south coast. It was mostly a fact-finding mission, but imagine going outside your front door and seeing this on the way down to your stream.

The house and grounds are just perfect for entertaining, you not only have one lounge, but a second with a bar area and enough space to hold an informal ball.The gardens are really easy to maintain - a gardener will be on hand to help keep them up to scratch! You will also witness the abundant wildlife that visits, rabbits are often seen on the lawns together with the wide variety of birds that fly in and out, perching on the wonderful selection of trees and shrubs. Children would just love running around the grounds and it is completely safe as the property is totally enclosed with an electronic gate giving access to the huge driveway which could park at least 10 cars and then there is also a double garage. A summer house is set to the rear of the garden with a side brick built bar be que area, perfect for those not to distant summer nights! Do not take our word for it, if you want peace and tranquility, but an easy commute then please do not delay in arranging a viewing of this substantial property, you will not be disappointed!The property comprises:Timber entrance door toENTRANCE HALLWAYTraditional tiled flooring, central heating radiator and stairs to the first floor.LOUNGEUpvc double glazed window, two central heating radiators, feature fire surround with open hearth, feature exposed stonework and two glass fronted display units. TV aerial point. Decorative ceiling and cornice. Double doors to the CONSERVATORYA good size conservatory overlooking the gardens. Being of Upvc construction with tiled floor, three wall lights and access to the lounge, kitchen and gardens. The conservatory suite will be left in this room for your convenience.KITCHENUpvc double glazed windows, full range of fitted wall and base units with co ordinating worksurface and tiled splashbacks. One and a half bowl sink and drainer unit, four ring gas hob and eye level double electric oven and grill. There is a built in dishwasher and washing machine as well as a larder fridge. Tiled floor. Feature beamed ceiling and spotlights.DINING ROOMUpvc double glazed windows, central heating radiator, decorative ceiling and cornice, circular table and chairs. Steps down toFAMILY LOUNGEA room bursting with medieval style charactor and with exposed stonework and beams to the ceiling. Upvc double glazed windows to the front and side door giving access to the second drive. There are three central heating radiators, a bar area and downstair w.c. A small room off the lounge houses the central heating and hot water boiler and there is space for a tumble dryer if required. Access to the cellars.FIRST FLOORBEDROOM 1A large double room with Upvc double glazed window, central heating radiator and a full range of fitted wardrobes and dressing table. Double bed if required. BEDROOM 2Another generous room with a range of quality fitted wardrobes and dawers, central heating radiator and Upvc double glazed window.BEDROOM 3With a rear facing UPvc double glazed window and views over the gardens, a good size room with central heating radiator, fitted wardrobes and decorative ceiling and cornice.BEDROOM 4A large single room which would make an ideal nursery or office with a front facing window overlooking open countryside.BATHROOMRear obscure Upvc double glazed window. White bathroom suite comprising hand wash basin set within a vanity unit with storage space to either side and mirror, Low level flush w.c. and bidet, cast iron bath and shower cubicle with overhead shower and side jets. Spotlights to the ceiling and tiling to the walls. Heated towel rail/radiator.ANNEXEA self contained unit to the side of the main house with Upvc double glazed windows and gas central heating.Comprising a kitchen, with plumbing for automatic washing machine, lounge, double bedroom and bathroom with three piece white bathroom suite and shower.OUTSIDEThe property is situated on Jinny Moor Lane and is the only house on the road. It is enclosed to the front with a stone wall and wrought iron electronic gates to the main drive and single gate to the house. There is a second wrought iron gate to a smaller parking area/drive.This imposing home has a double garage included in the Let which has a side entrance and double electronic roller doors, power and light. To the side of the garage is a grassed paddock style area which could be fenced off and be used for horses.The gardens to the rear have a wide variety of trees and shrubs, a summer house with bar be que to the side, patio area, greenhouse and potting shed.

See My entire photostream at:

www.flickr.com/photos/spookykittencouture

View my items for sale, or convo me for a custom item:

www.spookykitten.com

www.crickit.net

I custom draft patterns for fit and style, and can base your design on a photograph, sketch, or combine multiple inspiration ideas into one great garment!

Please feel free to contact me at either site above, I usually respond within 24 hours.

Some frequently asked questions:

Yes, I do international shipping orders

yes, I source/find/purchase/provide the materials for your garment, unless you have some that you would like used

Yes, I make items in ALL sizes. Every single one. I can custom design something no matter what your height/weight/bra-size etc. I even have experience working with non-average figures including loss of appendages (arms, legs, etc.) and accommodating a severe disability/unusual shape.

Yes, i respond to everyone. I will always reply! (if you don't hear from me, i either didn't get the message, or am on a freak internet break)

Yes, I can do rush orders, please convo as soon as you can about planning

Yes, i can do payment plans for larger projects, convo me

Yes, I am a real person in California USA, I am not an assembly line/sweatshop/slavedriver. Me and my family work on every item start to finish.

Yes, I love Project Runway, but no, i don't want to be on it!

Yes, I love the odd/strange/weird projects, but I also love the impeccably simple bridal gown as well.

No, I do not have a minimum. Small projects are welcome.

Yes, I help with the total package. I can help you find the accessories you need to complete the look, and all the underpinnings and other garments you may need to get the right shape for the garment. I like to make sure you are happy with the end result as much as I am.

If you have a question not on here, please feel free to convo me at the above sites.

Thanks for viewing!

too tired to layer today. wished i'd stayed in bed.

dress (h&m), tights (hue), shoes (nine west) all remixed (but this time the navy tights were on purpose).

bracelet: f21

this is not my arm...but the mecha is from me ;)

A VH rear but a CH front...

Another upgrade doll. Usually I get one or zero, but this time two went into the preorders. Lets see how Baroness fared this time.

Make-up & Hairstyle - Ocean Drive is one of my favorite Agneses. Just a few days before the upgrades were revealed I was undressing my OD and wondered how I would love to add a blonde with pale skin to my collection. So, yes, I am very, very happy with this one. Just look at her, she looks fresh, classic beauty. Her hair is not platinum so no worries that it will become yellowish with time. And while I thought she has the same hairstyle as Optic Verve, I think it is different. I altered hair on my doll just a bit, to make her look more sexy. The doll herself is perfection! 10+/10

Outfit & Accessories - As it goes, you can never have everything in one doll. Yes, the dress does nothing for me in person. The lace on top cheapens the look, so off it went. The lower part of the dress is nice, too bad the upper part is not in.... Gardenia color! The plus is that it closes with a zipper. I love her clutch, rose sandals are gorgeous (I cut ties on mine). And jewelry is very nice. 8/10

Production Issues & Quality - except the upper part of the dress, everyting else on this doll looks rich and of high quality. 9.5/10

Overall - So happy she showed up with matching head and body, gorgeous face and hair. Accessories are a plus, and I guess you can find a purpose for the sad dress. I have a feeling she will become a very sought after doll. 10/10

But you don't know what it's like

I've done things you've only dreamed about

More than once or twice

Something sweet and something strong

Seems like love no longer can turn me on

Like the girls in suits and those pretty boys

model: Alba.G

make.up: Gil

Ahhh ~ I was suppose to upload this last night but I was very tired. Amanda didn't get much attention here but in real, she's been out and around me since a long time :)

I appreciate this girl so much. I donno what is with me and Fairy Land. I seem to have a really bad luck with them .. It happened again ! I wanted to order a real puki and FL asked me for $100 for premium shipping O_O ~ OAO;;;

All I know is my country is in Zone #3 on all the Korean websites so my shipping should be like #40 max . I had a communication back and forth with them basically with them claiming I am mistaken and I *assume* my country should be there but it is wrong and if I want the doll , I need to pay $100 for shipping .. I asked them politely to check and I told them I dealed with other korean companies and the Zone #3 shipping was always for my country, but in all my emails they return to me with direct answer : this is your shipping , this is your zone, you want doll = pay this O_o;; .. *3 mails to them trying to tell them no it is not*

SO the next thing I did was screenshot of my transaction on every Korean company I dealed with like ~ Luts, Lati, Soom *only 1 of each company* and was like : WELL ~ you are wrong, because until last week when I bought this from Korea, my country was still in the Zone #3, so can you please check now?! your calculator must be wrong. *pissed answer from Choco!!! :O but that person who replays to me WOULDN'T doubt his believes*

FL didn't say anything for 2 days then just sent me an invoice with correct price. I truly feel I deal with machines :(

I don't know is it me = wrong or they are not in the mood when they read my messages. I became to feel it is that they read my country and assume I am a noob or a preemie and know nothing because I don't understand why they behave like that?! I truly was OFF by the end of the conversation and after getting the true invoice so I am not even sure if I want a real puki now :'(..

splendidly lined up at Sandtoft 24/05/2009

Ightfield is a village to the south east of Whitchurch in Shropshire but the church is not easy to find. From the village centre you have to go north along the Burleydam road and turn left up Church Street. The church stands on the northern edge of the village on a small rise and is approached through a stone wall gate with a lantern atop an iron arch. The view of the church is very impressive, especially on a bright sunny day.

Christian Worship is thought to have been held on or around the site for over a thousand years and the village itself is mentioned as 'Istefelt' in the Doomsday Book although some records suggest the original name to have been 'Ihtfeld', derived from from the Old English 'iht meaning 'creature' and 'feld' meaning 'field'.

Built in the 15th century and renovated in the 19th, you enter the church through the south porch into the nave with the tower on your left and to the west. It has a north isle and was designed in a perpendicular Gothic style with crenellated parapets, multi-stepped buttresses and decorative finials. It is constructed in grey ashlar stone and has steeply pitched roofs covered in plain clay tiles. It features gargoyles but I avoided those following my last experience at Kinnerley Church.

Services are usually held at 09:30hrs on a Sunday.

I could not find any information about the windows or any of the features within the church. However, I did find this on the internet from the AMICA Benefice......

“........Welcome to the homepage for St John’s Church, Ightfield. A Cathedral Welcome (Courtesy of Coventry Cathedral). We extend a special welcome to those who are single, married, divorced, widowed, straight, gay, questioning, well-heeled or down at heel. We especially welcome wailing babies and excited toddlers.

We welcome you whether you can sing like Pavarotti or just growl quietly to yourself. You’re welcome here if you’re ‘just browsing,’ just woken up or just got out of prison. We don’t care if you’re more Christian than the Archbishop of Canterbury or haven’t been to church since Christmas ten years ago.

We extend a special welcome to those who are over 60 but not grown up yet, and to teenagers who are growing up too fast. We welcome keep-fit mums, football dads, starving artists, tree-huggers, latte-sippers, vegetarians, junk-food eaters. We welcome those who are in recovery or still addicted. We welcome you if you’re having problems, are down in the dumps or don’t like ‘organised religion.’

We offer a welcome to those who think the earth is flat, work too hard, don’t work, can’t spell, or are here because granny is visiting and wanted to come to the church.....”.

What a refreshingly welcome sense of humour !!

All Saints, Scottow, Norfolk

Scottow is a village on the busy Norwich to Cromer road, but its church is far off, and there is no straight line between the two. All Saints sits in a pleasing old estate village of largely 19th century housing, shoehorned into the edge of the former RAF Coltishall airbase. To get from the village to the church, you need to go around the perimeter. A farm track heads off into woods, and then you are on the estate, with its gorgeous old hall, its stable block surmounted by a clock turret, and cottages scattered about farm spaces. The church is tightly hemmed in by its graveyard, and difficult to photograph, for this is a big church.

The great two-storey 15th century porch is slapped hard on to the nave, a green man looking down from the vaulting. The south aisle stretches eastwards from it, a rood stair turret showing that the screen stretched right across the church. Inside, there is no chancel arch, just an arch-braced rood beam and a clerestory that runs to within one bay of the length of the church. This is a late rebuilding, right on the eve of the Reformation, more of the effect of a vast long hall than the usual two-cell forms of the big Norfolk churches.

The interior is full of character, and yet curiously gloomy given how large the windows are and how they are full of clear glass. But some if this might be put down to the overwhelmingly 17th century nature of the internal furnishings, from the delightful dolphins twisting on the font cover to quite the most baroque organ case. In fact, it would not surprise me to discover that it is not an organ case at all, but wall panelling from another building brought here and bolted on. As you look around you can't escape the impression that that much of the Jacobean character of the church might have been installed later than that period by a collector. Coming here on a sunny Saturday afternoon in late June 2019 I was surprised to discover the church full of incense, the sunlight shining through it from the south windows.

There are no less than ten hatchments lining the walls high above the east end, frowning down on all the dark woodwork. There are medieval survivals, part of a St Christopher still bestrides the north arcade, the fish circling the Saints feet rather glumly, and no wonder, for a sea monster is gobbling them up on the right hand side. A post-reformation 'goodly text' can be seen further west along the same wall. In the south aisle there is a chalice brass, for a Priest during this church's Catholic days. And, most precious of all, a perfect medieval altar mensa preserved in a case in the chancel as a memorial.

CofE ministers get uppity, and sometimes with good cause, when their churches are treated as museums. But, in addition to their everyday uses, that is exactly what most of them are. Scottow is more museum-like than most, but I tend to think of all churches as folk museums, giving us a touchstone back down the generations. Scottow does that too, but it is rather more than that, for it is a building of interesting artefacts, of curiosa, a place to look and touch, and to feel the presence of the past resonating.

One final curiosity. The church has two sets of royal arms. This is not in itself that unusual, but they are both unusual forms. One, in the south aisle, is a vast set for William and Mary. The other, above the south doorway is to Elizabeth II, date 1953, and looking remarkably old, considering that the good lady was still on the throne.

But you can shoot it full of holes.

On the Road to Holgaville Tour of Southern Merlin

........but they were way too fast for him!!!

Thank you John for Nosey and the rest of your huge "meager" package!!!!!! We were just about out the door for the Zoo when the postie popped up!!! So some new friends joined us on our day to the Zoo.....hee hee hee!!!

a couple of cute ones for you. thanks very much for all your comments, i love reading them , good or bad, funny or sad. thanks very much!!!!

© C JONES

St Mary, Worstead, Norfolk

Worstead is always a good place to start a Norfolk church-exploring bike ride. The little station sits a mile or so to the west of the village, which is large enough to feel as if it might have intended to have become a town once, but didn't. One this warm day at the end of August 2019 there was nobody about, just a fat cat lazily rolling in the village square. The sun was cutting the haze, the sky wide and blue. It was like being in France.

Worstead church is absolutely enormous, and hemmed in by the walls of a tight little graveyard. Like the church at Salle, and at Southwold in Suffolk, St Mary was all built in one go, pretty much. This happened in the late 14th century. As at Salle, it is reflective of a large number of bequests from different people over a short period rather than anyone fabulously rich doing it on their own, and the money, of course, came from wool. Worstead is still recognised as the name of a fabric today.

I said it was pretty much built at one go, but there was still plenty of money about in the 15th century to raise the clerestory and install a hammerbeam roof. This seems to have been such an ambitious project that flying buttresses had to be installed on top of the aisles to hold the top of the nave up, an expedient measure that has left the building both interesting and beautiful. It was my third visit of the summer, and once again I stepped out of the sunlight into the slight chill of a vast open space.

Even if you don't easily warm to big churches and prefer the little ones, St Mary is so pretty inside that it is hard not to love it. This is partly helped by the removal of all pews and benches from the aisles. Those that remain in the body of the church are lovely 18th century box pews, quite out of keeping with the medieval nature of the rest of the building, but quirky and oddly delightful. The great tower arch is elegant, and is thrown into relief by the towering font cover. The ringing gallery under the tower is dated 1501, and is reminiscent of the one not so very far off at Cawston. The 19th Century tower screen below it is a perfect foil for the medieval details to the east. The paintings in the dado depict Christian virtues and are apparently copies of windows by Sir Joshua Reynolds at New College, Oxford.

Worstead is famous for its roodscreen, but perhaps this is more because of its height, elegance and completeness than its historicity. The figures on the dado have been repainted sumptuously, but not always with an eye to authenticity. Most, though not all, depict disciples, and yet several are replicated on the unrepainted aisle screens, suggesting that they may once have been different figures to the ones we see now. From north to south they appear to be a dreadfully repainted Christ the Man of Sorrows, a similarly poor St Paul, St James the Less, St Philip, St Simon, St Jude, St Matthew, St John, St Andrew, St Peter, St James, St Thomas, St Bartholomew, a figure labelled St Jerome who looks very much as if he was originally St Matthias, and then the two oddest figures, St William of Norwich holding three nails and then a figure crucified, arms tied to the spans. This is be the infamous St Uncumber, also known as St Wilgefortis, the bearded lady of early medieval mythology. Later, she was crucified, probably upside down. Across the top rail, a dedicatory inscription winds, mysterious and beautiful.

The aisles extend either side of the chancel. Each has its own small screen with just four figures. The four figures at the entrance to the north side are St Peter, St Paul, St John the Baptist and St John the Evangelist. Three of these are also on the rood screen, suggesting that either the images there are wholly Victorian, or these aisle screens came originally from elsewhere. The south aisle chapel is simpler. The screen features another St Bartholomew, another St Philip, St Lawrence and a bishop, probably St Thomas of Canterbury.

But this church is in any case a building to wander around in, a place to enjoy for its great beauty as much as to interrogate for its medieval authenticity. As you turn corners, vistas open up. The view from the font to the south door, for example, or that back to the west from the chancel. All perfect, all stunning.

But with a Chinese twist!

Well it has finally happened... I made my first "The Office: cake. This is one of my favourite shows. So when my cousin suggested it as a theme for his cake I was so excited. I made Michael, Jim, Pam and Dwight out of gumpaste. I wanted to make everyone but after 3 hours my motivation started lacking a bit.

So check our cake out! everything is office related. We also covered 3 sides with quotes. So look through the pictures and see if you can find your favourite quote!

This is a photograph from the 5th annual Craughwell 10 Mile Road Race which took place in Craughwell Village, Co. Galway, Ireland on Sunday 23rd March 2014 at 13:00. The 'Craughwell 10' has grown quickly to become not just one of Connaught's best known and attended road races but one of Ireland's best road races. Rather uniquely for road races in Ireland today the Craughwell 10 Mile road race offers a fully traffic free route for participants. The fast primarily flat course brings participants on the network of rural country roads to the west of Craughwell village. This year's event attracted a record number of over 650 participants building on the 600+ finishers from last year's race (results available below).

Reading on a Smartphone or tablet? Don't forget to scroll down further to read more about this race and see important Internet links to other information about the race! You can also find out how to access and download these photographs.

Results are available on RedTagTiming's website www.redtagtiming.com who provided the chip timing for the event.

Our photographs from the Craughwell 10 2014 are available on our Flickr photostream at: www.flickr.com/photos/peterm7/sets/72157642744431035/

You are also likely to find photographs from the race from edenhill77 at www.flickr.com/photos/edenhill77/sets/

The organisation team of Craughwell AC and a huge team of volunteers from the local community deserve great praise and congratulations on the excellent work that they put into making the Craughwell 10 such an outstanding success. A race of this size is a mammoth undertaking and it's flawless organisation is a tribute to the volunteer work behind the scenes.

Route Description

The race starts in Craughwell Village and then heads west on country roads. The route takes a right turn after 1KM and heads north towards Caheradine. The route then takes a left and heads west again towards the N18. After 4 miles the race takes another left (goo.gl/maps/khTi4) heading south. Just before 6 miles another left turn brings the race back towards Craughwell village. This leaves the runners with a straight run to the finish area from here and the finish in the Primary School. There was a stiff cold breeze at different parts of the course but for the most part there was good stretches of tail winds also. There were water stations at two points in the course.

The AAI County Galway 10 mile Road Race Championships took place in conjunction with the race today which ensured that there was great competition amongst Co. Galway based clubs at all categories.

The spread of refreshments after the race was incredible. Every taste was catered for. The organisers were thoughtful enough to include a wide range of gluten free goodies for participants after the race.

Useful Web Links

Where is Craughwell? (OpenStreetMap): www.openstreetmap.org/?mlat=53.2261&mlon=-8.7331&...

Where is Craughwell? (Google Maps): goo.gl/maps/vfIia

Craughwell 10 Mile - Race Headquarters at the National School (Google StreetView) goo.gl/maps/nTr5F

Craughwell 10 Mile Route on MapMyRun: www.mapmyrun.com/sc/victoria-english-river/craughwell-10-...

Craughwell 10 Mile Route on Garmin Connect: connect.garmin.com/jsPlayer/27008273

Craughwell 10 Mile Facebook Event Page www.facebook.com/events/1426933890856519/?ref=22 (requires Facebook logon and access)

Craughwell 10 Mile 2014: Results www.redtagtiming.com/results/Craughwell10_2014.pdf

Results from previous years.

2013: Results: www.redtagtiming.com/results/Craughwell10_2013.pdf

2012: www.redtagtiming.com/results/Craughwell_10Mile_2012.pdf

Photographs from previous years by edenhill77

2012: www.flickr.com/photos/edenhill77/sets/72157629283834474/

2012: www.flickr.com/photos/edenhill77/sets/72157629267117098/

2011 www.flickr.com/photos/edenhill77/sets/72157626365451542/

2011: www.flickr.com/photos/edenhill77/sets/72157626387107196/

We use Creative Commons Licensing for these photographs

We use the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License for all our photographs here in this photograph set. What does this mean in reality?

The explaination is very simple.

Attribution- anyone using our photographs gives us an appropriate credit for it. This ensures that people aren't taking our photographs and passing them off as their own. This usually just mean putting a link to our photographs somewhere on your website, blog, or Facebook where other people can see it.

ShareAlike – anyone can use these photographs, and make changes if they like, or incorporate them into a bigger project, but they must make those changes available back to the community under the same terms.

Creative Commons aims to encourage creative sharing. See some examples of Creative Commons photographs on Flickr: www.flickr.com/creativecommons/

Can I use these photographs directly from Flickr on my social media account(s)?

Yes - of course you can! Flickr provides several ways to share this and other photographs in this Flickr set. You can share to: email, Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Tumblr, LiveJournal, and Wordpress and Blogger blog sites. Your mobile, tablet, or desktop device will also offer you several different options for sharing this photo page on your social media outlets.

We take these photographs as a hobby and as a contribution to the running community in Ireland. Our only "cost" is our request that if you are using these images: (1) on social media sites such as Facebook, Tumblr, Pinterest, Twitter,LinkedIn, Google+, etc or (2) other websites, blogs, web multimedia, commercial/promotional material that you must provide a link back to our Flickr page to attribute us.

This also extends the use of these images for Facebook profile pictures. In these cases please make a separate wall or blog post with a link to our Flickr page. If you do not know how this should be done for Facebook or other social media please email us and we will be happy to help suggest how to link to us.

How can I download these pictures to my computer or device?

You can download the photographic image here direct to your computer or device. This version is the low resolution web-quality image. How to download will vary slight from device to device and from browser to browser. However - look for a symbol with three dots 'ooo' or the link to 'View/Download' all sizes. When you click on either of these you will be presented with the option to download the image. Remember just doing a right-click and "save target as" will not work on Flickr.

How can I get full resolution, print-quality, copies of these photographs?

If you just need these photographs for online usage then they can be used directly once you respect their Creative Commons license and provide a link back to our Flickr set if you use them. For offline usage and printing all of the photographs posted here on this Flickr set are available free, at no cost, at full image resolution.

Please email petermooney78 AT gmail DOT com with the links to the photographs you would like to obtain a full resolution copy of. We also ask race organisers, media, etc to ask for permission before use of our images for flyers, posters, etc. We reserve the right to refuse a request.

In summary please remember when requesting photographs from us - If you are using the photographs online all we ask is for you to provide a link back to our Flickr set or Flickr pages. You will find the link above clearly outlined in the description text which accompanies this photograph. Taking these photographs and preparing them for online posting does take a significant effort and time. We are not posting photographs to Flickr for commercial reasons. If you really like what we do please spread the link around your social media, send us an email, leave a comment beside the photographs, send us a Flickr email, etc. If you are using the photographs in newspapers or magazines we ask that you mention where the original photograph came from.

I would like to contribute something for your photograph(s)?

Many people offer payment for our photographs. As stated above we do not charge for these photographs. We take these photographs as our contribution to the running community in Ireland. If you feel that the photograph(s) you request are good enough that you would consider paying for their purchase from other photographic providers or in other circumstances we would suggest that you can provide a donation to any of the great charities in Ireland who do work for Cancer Care or Cancer Research in Ireland.

I ran in the race - but my photograph doesn't appear here in your Flickr set! What gives?

As mentioned above we take these photographs as a hobby and as a voluntary contribution to the running community in Ireland. Very often we have actually ran in the same race and then switched to photographer mode after we finished the race. Consequently, we feel that we have no obligations to capture a photograph of every participant in the race. However, we do try our very best to capture as many participants as possible. But this is sometimes not possible for a variety of reasons:

     ►You were hidden behind another participant as you passed our camera

     ►Weather or lighting conditions meant that we had some photographs with blurry content which we did not upload to our Flickr set

     ►There were too many people - some races attract thousands of participants and as amateur photographs we cannot hope to capture photographs of everyone

     ►We simply missed you - sorry about that - we did our best!

You can email us petermooney78 AT gmail DOT com to enquire if we have a photograph of you which didn't make the final Flickr selection for the race. But we cannot promise that there will be photograph there. As alternatives we advise you to contact the race organisers to enquire if there were (1) other photographs taking photographs at the race event or if (2) there were professional commercial sports photographers taking photographs which might have some photographs of you available for purchase. You might find some links for further information above.

Don't like your photograph here?

That's OK! We understand!

If, for any reason, you are not happy or comfortable with your picture appearing here in this photoset on Flickr then please email us at petermooney78 AT gmail DOT com and we will remove it as soon as possible. We give careful consideration to each photograph before uploading.

I want to tell people about these great photographs!

Great! Thank you! The best link to spread the word around is probably http://www.flickr.com/peterm7/sets

This is a companion piece (in a similar location) to "Shoreline grasses" but without as many clouds and with better ripples - not the rotgut wine. This is probably my last gasp of my "Water Works Series, A Photo Set" for this autumn and frankly, December is almost upon us. The Photo Set is filling rapidly. On this day, I chose to wander around pond #1 backward to seek interesting water shots not yet discovered. This is another shot with another less-than-ordinary title that just popped into my head, If something pops, I am bound to use it. When I see water that looks like this, I enjoice but I suspect this round is the last of the burnt orange reflections.

The color here is past prime on the foliage, so on this day, I was looking for anything I could shoot. I found it by shooting the water and not the foliage. I am down at the Golden Ponds Park and Recreation Area in Frogmont once again probably because it is so easy but I find you MUST stop and chat with people as you follow the paths. This time I looped Pond #1 because I hadn't shot there before because of the unfortunate power lines over it but then I have covered it pretty well. This is far from the worst place to visit because you can exercise both sole and soul. I saw this reflection in the water and I couldn't resist. I tried to compose it without a lot of detritus in the frame and had to do little clean up.

I enjoyed the fact that there was a breeze today that I could use for an advantage. I like the natural saturations that can easily be found if I am willing to look for them. I guess that I have yet to use up the possible "Water Works" shots that I have taken. I'll move on again as I get hung up by the changing seasons.

I take my camera down there because it is a pretty, open area and I decided it was closer and less cluttered than McIntosh farm. I saw the sky and I figured to make my trip out there pay off and I took pictures in several spots. I decided this sky reflection was also engaging so I had to pause here and postpone my search for a moment.

Anything to avoid work and Photoshop lessons I give to photographers who are eager to learn the techniques with a burning desire.

It chucked it down 2 minutes after I took this.

He is a real killer, because some months ago he bit a zoo keeper who just died. But in this picture he looks really friendly, but he knows about his power.

Anchorage, Alaska

I actually pulled an all-nighter on this piece. I just wasn’t sleepy but also, I was just getting into putting this thing together. The momentum was rolling and I didn't want to stop.

This mech is made for mid to long range battle, Gatling gun on one arm and a sniper rifle on the other. It uses energy “bullets” so it has cooling systems built around it. The feet look really small in the profile shot and I was debating if I wanted to beef them up but decided not too. It had to be nimble and with clunky feet, it would have a hard time getting footing on craggy surfaces. There are 4 boosters that tuck away facing forward round the body. It can be used to repel close range combatants or help gain some distance from the target. When using the Sniper rifle, the boosters can face the opposite direction and compensate for the kickback the heavy rifle produces.

This was a fun mecha piece, especially since it has been years since I’ve played with my LEGO bricks. I used a laser pointer to illuminate the “eye” in some of the shots. I do have a light brick but I didn’t incorporate it in the design. Many next time in another piece.

the charm of Paris

Le charme de Paris

St John the Baptist, Aymerton, Norfolk

2011 was at the time the second warmest year on record, but it was not the summer that particularly contributed to that statistic. For do you remember April, spring days heavy with the merciless sun, the temperature well into the eighties before the middle of the month, day after day? And then, a damp, humid May boiled the countryside into an outrageous green, the hedgerows swelling into the narrow lanes, the ground elder and angelica luminous in their sprawling, not a patch of bare ground to be seen anywhere. An old man in a village pub near Holt told me it was like 1940, the first spring of the Second World War.

Summer was mild in comparison, but then the hot days came back until, in early October of all months, the temperature soared up to the eighties again. How could I resist taking my new bike up into the north Norfolk lanes? I was in my element, with the promise of more rides to come. But in fact the weather would break within a week, and by the time the clocks went back the trees were bare and dripping with damp, the fields silvery with the rime of the first frosts.

I was cycling from Cromer to Norwich, and one of my first goals was St John the Baptist, Aylmerton. There were just two churches left in north Norfolk that I had yet to see inside, and this was one of them. I first came here in the summer of 2005, and I was a bit disappointed to find it the only locked church of eighteen that I visited that day. There wasn't even a keyholder notice. I complained about this, as you'd expect. I received a charming e-mail message from Professor Michael Balls, who was then the churchwarden of Aylmerton (and, for your interest in passing, also the father of the then-newly elected Labour MP Edward Balls), apologising that I had found the church locked, and explaining that they had just suffered a serious and expensive act of vandalism involving the water supply to the church. Since then, the church has been opened every day.

You climb the steep path from the road to this neat, trim little round-towered church in its pretty village stretched along the road just to the south of Sheringham. The top part of the tower was rebuilt in the first decade of the 20th century, when the east window glass was also put in place. There were some busy restorations in the 1860s and 1870s, and the font is an unfortunate replacement of this time, and the interior has much of the feel of the Anglo-catholic sentiments of the late 19th and early 20th Century. But much that is medieval survives, including a delicate sedilia and piscina.

There are the bones of a rood screen, and the pulpit is an elegant wineglass. Both altars are rather curious, that in the chancel made up of strapwork and the one in the south aisle with a roundel of a Flemish madonna and child set in an art deco reredos, for all the world like an ecclesiological wireless set. Also art deco is the war memorial, set oddly in the side of the organ.

On my first visit I had only been able to explore the graveyard.There are a couple of interesting 18th century headstones, including one with a skull, a coffin and a snake biting its tail, the symbol of eternity. A 19th century gravestone is for an honest inoffensive friend - Honest is good, but I'm not sure that I'd want to go through eternity with the tag inoffensive - you can imagine all the other souls in purgatory nudging each other, pointing and saying "look, you see him? He's inoffensive..." Not far off, a modern headstone has an elegant scallop shell of St James set into it.

Leaving the village, I headed south towards Aylmerton Cross, a restored medieval preaching cross standing at the junction with the road from Metton to Gresham. A rough track going off here shows that it was once a crossroads, and the old track points, intriguingly, across the fields to the holy shrine of Walsingham.

I couldn't get to the same place as yesterday as the water has risen.

My house is about 500m back from here but luckily on a small hill.

But this is how I prefer to spend a few free minutes on a brisk sunny Sunday afternoon.

But alas, unlike the John Denver song, I knew when I was coming back again....it's the obligatory plane wing shot as you leave a destination - and it was heading to much warmer climes than Seattle below, as I took a well-earned break to the 24/7 sunshine and golden beaches of Mazatlan, Mexico.

Leica M7 & 50mm Summicron

Kodak Portra 400 (new)

Scanned & processed by Panda Labs

I love to hike... But it's been a while, so for my birthday I went to the Brunssummer Hei - a famous heathland back in Limburg - where I haven't been since I was only a little boy. So, being back here was actually more like a discovery tour in my old backyard :) The day couldn't be better as it sure was the first spring day of the year: 20 C, no wind and a cloudless sky.. Especially around sunset the landscape transformed into a golden pavement. I'll be back here soon! :)

The Blue Devils celebrated Homecoming with not one, but two, pep rallies including one hosted at Pisgah Forest Elementary School. New cheerleaders were recruited specifically for the spirit-filled events!

Parade and Pep Rally processions included some new and interesting ladies in the court, and also the Project UNIFY cohort that brings mainstream and EC students together for activities, support and fellowship.

The Homecoming Court dazzled on the new turf, as did the band who played their award-winning show "Out of the Ashes" with a special saxophone solo and flamboyant flag display of a phoenix being reborn.

Students in the gym rallied for their school and their class, but in the end juniors from the Class of 2016 were victorious in bringing home the "spirit stick," as well as leading some well-known cheers from this year through one of the spark-plugs of this year's student section, Neeve Campbell.

Annie Winston brought home the crown, given to her by Brevard's Homecoming Queen 2013, Maelin Harris.

© 2014, Transylvania County Schools. All rights reserved.

but maybe tomorrow

See where this picture was taken. [?]

Class 27 no D5401 at the Northampton & Lamport Railway on 31 March 1996, the date that this railway was formally opened.

D5401 was built by the Birmingham RC & W Company in 1962 - it's first allocation was to Cricklewood (14A), but, in common with the other Class 27s, it was transferred to Scotland, where it would spend the rest of its BR career. It became 27112 under TOPS (locos used on the Glasgow-Edinburgh push-pull service retaining steam heating), and was then renumbered to 27056 in 1982 after this service was taken over by Class 47/7s.

27056 was withdrawn from Eastfield (ED) in May 1987 and moved into preservation, first at the N & LR and then to the GCR, where it is today.

we also had green beans but i didn't bother to take a photo since they looked kind of sad and stubby (they were frozen, shh.)

this is a recipe i took from giada de laurentiis. i think it was this recipe i got the inspiration from. she uses brown butter and ravioli. mine is a little different. i sautee baby bella mushrooms in a little olive oil, s+p, minced garlic and a few generous cracks from an italian herb grinder. i sprinkle parmesan cheese somewhere along the way. once the mushrooms are about halfway cooked through, i add a generous splash or two (or three or four) of balsamic vinegar and let that cook down (or pour as much as you want without regret because i cannot get enough balsamic vinegar, it's my favorite.)

meanwhile, make your pasta. any pasta will do. this is tri-color pasta with spinach and tomato noodles. add alfredo sauce to your mushrooms and heat that through, add the pasta when boiled to your liking. cook another minute or so in the mushroom sauce and serve immediately.

the green beans went along quite nicely with this dish but they were just sad looking.

dessert was a pomegranate, my favorite.

today was my brother's 23rd birthday. he made the dean's list at school and was formally accepted to Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology. he'll start in the fall. so proud of him!

1. baby bella mushrooms, 2. tri-colored pasta, 3. dessert

Created with fd's Flickr Toys

Four minutes early does Stagecoach Hants & Surrey 47542 (GX57 DJJ) pass its timing point = photo ruined.

I had hoped for a photo from the other side of the road, clearly showing the 520 coming along Shawfield Road, from where it is being withdrawn in two week's time as part of Surrey CC bus review phase 3 changes.

But this is as good as I'll get for the record.

Shawfield Road, Ash, Surrey.

The Old Windmill Tower is culturally significant as the oldest surviving European structure in Queensland, and one of only two surviving convict-built buildings in Brisbane. It is a reminder of the early difficulties encountered in establishing the small convict settlement that developed into the present city of Brisbane. The Old Windmill Tower at Spring Hill was

constructed to support the needs of the convict penal settlement established in Brisbane in 1825. Maize and wheat were being cultivated in the area but there was no efficient way of grinding the grain into meal and flour. In 1827 Captain Patrick Logan, Commandant of

Moreton Bay, proposed construction of a treadmill that would serve as both a facility to grind grain and a means of punishment for convicts who committed offences while at the settlement. The mill tower was constructed during 1828 and included two sets of millstones, one linked to a treadmill and one driven by rotating wind-sails.

Work at the treadmill was usually carried out from sunrise to sunset, with a three-hour break in the middle of the day in summer, or a two-hour break in cooler months. Sixteen men were constantly on the wheel, with another ten providing relief. The work was repetitive, exhausting and dangerous. Convict, Michael Collins, died in 1829 when he became entangled in the treadmill wheels, but the treadmill continued to be used until 1839.

For more on the history of the Old Windmill Tower

Queensland State Archives ITM1009388

Brisbane's recorded history dates from 1799, when Matthew Flinders explored Moreton Bay on an expedition from Port Jackson, although the region had long been occupied by the Yugara and Turrbal aboriginal groups. First Nations Australians lived in coastal South East Queensland (SEQ) for at least 22,000 years, with an estimated population between 6,000 and 10,000 individuals before European settlers arrived in the 1820s.

At this time the Brisbane area was inhabited by the Turrbal people, (Turrbal also being the name of the language they spoke) who knew the area that is now the central business district as Mian-jin, meaning "place shaped as a spike". Archaeological evidence suggests frequent habitation around the Brisbane River, and notably at the site now known as Musgrave Park.

The first convict jail was built in Redcliffe in 1824 and that was moved to the site of the present-day CBD in 1825. Officials believed the natural bend in the river provided an effective barrier against escape.

Read more about the Moreton Bay convict settlement in this article: blogs.archives.qld.gov.au/2021/10/05/moreton-bay-convict-...

Its suitability for fishing, farming, timbering, and other occupations, however, caused it to be opened to free settlement in 1838. Civilian occupation of the area began in 1842, and by the late 1880s Brisbane became the main site for commerce, and the capital-to-be began to develop distinct architectural features and culture.

With an abundance of sunshine and laid-back lifestyle, Brisbane quickly drew people eager to settle in its environs. The city grew steadily over the years and a turning point in its advancement was during World War II when it housed the main allied headquarters in the South Pacific for Australian and American service personnel.

The post-war population boom brought a spurt in industry and Brisbane staked a claim as the third-largest city in Australia.

Despite its rapid progress, Brisbane was often seen as lagging culturally behind Sydney and Melbourne. But two landmark events in the 1980s brought about a major change and accelerated Brisbane towards Australia’s new world city it is today.

The Commonwealth Games came to Brisbane in 1982, and this resulted in a massive injection of new infrastructure and sporting facilities. Then the eyes of the world turned to Brisbane in 1988 and thousands of visitors flocked to Expo 88. The subsequent birth of South Bank on the Expo site has resulted in a thriving cultural hub and Brisbane is more than matching it with its southern counterparts.

FIRST NATIONS HISTORY

Prior to European colonisation, the Brisbane region was occupied by Aboriginal tribes, notably clans of the Yugara, Turrbal and Quandamooka peoples. The oldest archaeological site in the Brisbane region comes from Wallen Wallen Creek on North Stradbroke Island (21,430±400 years before present), however, settlement would likely occurred well prior to this date.

The land, the river and its tributaries were the source and support of life in all its dimensions. The river's abundant supply of food included fish, shellfish, crab, and prawns. Good fishing places became campsites and the focus of group activities. The district was defined by open woodlands with rainforest in some pockets or bends of the Brisbane River.

A resource-rich area and a natural avenue for seasonal movement, Brisbane was a way station for groups travelling to ceremonies and spectacles. The region had several large (200–600 person) seasonal camps, the biggest and most important located along waterways north and south of the current city heart: Barambin or 'York's Hollow' camp (today's Victoria Park) and Woolloon-cappem (Woolloongabba/South Brisbane), also known as Kurilpa. These camping grounds continued to function well into historic times, and were the basis of European settlement in parts of Brisbane.

TOWN PLAN

Buildings were constructed for the convict settlement, generally at right angles to the river's shoreline in the direction of Queen Street, and along the shoreline south-east of today's Victoria Bridge. The outstanding surviving building is the Commissariat Store (1828-29), originally two storeys, in William Street. The street layout, however, developed from a thoroughfare from the river's edge running north-east to the prisoners' barrack near the corner of today's Queen and Albert Streets. When a town survey was done in 1840 that thoroughfare was chosen as the main street – Queen Street – and the grid pattern of square blocks moved out from the Queen Street axis. There were several versions of the town survey. The proposed streets varied in width from 20 to 28 metres but Governor Gipps, anticipating an inauspicious future for the settlement, trimmed them back to the lesser figure. Streets running parallel to Queen Street were named after British and related royalty, among them Queen Mary II, Queen Charlotte (wife of George III) and Queen Adelaide (wife of William IV). William, George, Albert and Edward Streets, running at right angles, had similar royal antecedents. Creek Street's position approximated the course of a minor stream, Wheat Creek.

The town survey occurred about three years after a select committee of the British Parliament had concluded that transportation had ceased to deter crime and, in any event, was tainted with inhumanity. By 1839 Moreton Bay was being transformed from a convict settlement to a free settlement, and in July 1842 the first sales of Brisbane land took place in Sydney. Nearly 60 allotments, each of 36 perches, in North and South Brisbane were offered. Twelve months later blocks in Kangaroo Point were sold. Little care was taken to reserve land or space along the river's edge for public purposes, but the government farm at the south-east end was kept and in time became the botanic gardens.

OUTER SETTLEMENTS

The scatter of urban land sales detracted from North Brisbane's role as a central place in Moreton Bay. Wharves were set up on both sides of the river, and there was an Ipswich-Cleveland 'axis' backed by rural interests which wanted the administrative centre and a port at those places. Probably it was the building of a customs house in 1849 on the river in North Brisbane which had a decisive effect: wharf interests moved, to be closer to the customs house, which in turn influenced the location of warehouses and merchandising. South Brisbane remained at a disadvantage until a permanent Victoria Bridge (1874) replaced ferry crossings.

Four years after the first land sales North and South Brisbane's populations were 614 and 346 respectively. The town was nothing much to look at: convict buildings were dilapidated, new structures had been roughly built and mainly it was the steady inflow of new inhabitants which held the best prospects for improvement. A Catholic school had been opened in 1845 and the Moreton Bay Courier weekly newspaper began publication in 1846, but it was not until the end of the decade that noticeable civic amenities emerged. Coinciding with the arrival of the Fortitude immigrants in 1849 (who were settled outside the town boundary, north of Boundary Street), an Anglican school was opened and a Wesleyan church built in Albert Street. A school of arts was established, moving into its own hall in Creek Street in 1851. Regular postal deliveries were introduced in Brisbane in 1852.

During the 1850s most Churches constructed substantial buildings: St Stephens Catholic in Elizabeth Street (1850), St Johns Anglican, William Street, Presbyterian, Ann Street (1857) and Baptist, Wharf Street (1859). There were three ferry services, to South Brisbane, Kangaroo Point and the 'middle' service from Edward Street, also to Kangaroo Point. The Brisbane Municipal Council was proclaimed, just before colonial self-government, in 1859.

There had been land sales well beyond the town boundaries, but in the early 1860s allotments were cut up for working-class cottages in Spring Hill, Petrie Terrace and Fortitude Valley. In 1861 a census recorded over 8000 people in Brisbane and another 5000 in adjoining areas. An Ipswich to Brisbane telegraph began operation and the unused convict windmill (1828) up in Wickham Terrace was converted to a signal station with a time ball.

TOWN IMPROVEMENTS

Municipal improvements were brought in with improved town lighting from the Brisbane gas works (1864) in Petrie Bight, north of the customs house, and the widely felt need for recreation space was officially recognised by a survey of Yorks Hollow (where the Fortitude migrants had been sent) for Victoria Park. Progress there was slow, with the council using the site for sewage disposal until 1886. Fires rid parts of Queen Street of time-worn commercial buildings in 1864, clearing the way for better structures built under the supervision of fire-protection bylaws. The council also found the need to divide its area into four wards, expanding it into six in 1865 (East, West, North, South, Valley and Kangaroo Point). The council also expanded to a new town hall in Queen Street (1866), by when a short-lived bridge to South Brisbane (1865-67) was in operation. The water supply ponds were hopelessly inadequate, and in 1866 a supply from Breakfast Creek, Enoggera, was turned on.

Gympie gold (1867) brought prosperity to the colony, but the rural-dominated legislature spent the money outside Brisbane, a prime example being the Darling Downs railway to Ipswich (1867) with the intent of having a port on the Bremer River. Legislative shenanigans could not stop the growth of the capital city's population (15,000 in 1871, 23,000 in 1881) nor that of the adjoining suburbs. Brisbane's 1881 population of 23,000 included South Brisbane. Ten years later, after South Brisbane had been made a separate municipality in 1887, their combined populations were 49,000. By 1891 Brisbane and suburbs had a population of over 100,000.

With population and export income from gold there came pressure for public buildings appropriate to the town's growing prosperity. The first of them was the general post office in Queen Street (1872), followed by the government printing office (1874) near the Commissariat Store in William Street. A torrent came in the 1880s, with the Queensland National Bank at the corner of Queen and Creek Streets, the Margaret Street Synagogue, Finney Isles Big Block emporium in Adelaide Street, and in 1889 the new Customs House, the Treasury Building in William Street and the Ann Street Presbyterian church. The legislature aspired to grandeur quite early, in 1868, with its Parliament House near the botanic gardens.

TRAINS AND TRAMS

The Ipswich railway line was joined to Brisbane by a bridge across the river at Chelmer and Indooroopilly in 1876. Ten years later a line to the South Coast was under construction, but the lines were at first organised with rural freight rather than suburban passengers in mind. Suburban transport services started with a horse tram out to New Farm (1885-86), and across the Victoria Bridge to West End. Electric powered trams began in 1887. Central Brisbane was crossed by a Queen Street tram, connected to termini at Newstead, West End and Logan Road at Buranda. The main shopping centre was around Queen, George and Adelaide Streets, competing with Brunswick and Wickham Streets in Fortitude Valley. The south side had shopping at Five Ways, Woolloongabba, and at South Brisbane, although the latter declined after the 1893 floods.

Northside tram lines from Red Hill, Kelvin Grove, Clayfield and Hamilton were opened during 1897-1902, coming into the city via Edward Street in most cases. By 1890 there were also suburban railway lines, to Sandgate via Nundah (1882), to Enoggera and to Cleveland (1889). Brisbane Central station (1889) brought northside travellers right into Brisbane, as before then the Sandgate line had ended at Roma Street via a cost saving line through Victoria Park. The line to Brisbane Central station also passed through busy Fortitude Valley.

With the addition of a tram line to Lutwyche and Kedron in 1913 the pressure of traffic led to the construction of a line along Adelaide Street (1915), which in turn required the Council to widen Adelaide Street by four metres between George and Creek Streets in 1922-23.

HOUSE SIZES

Since 1885 minimum house allotments had been set at 16 perches (10m x 40m). Residents could therefore look forward to more airy, spacious houses outside the city and its adjoining suburbs such as Spring Hill and Petrie Terrace. The better-off population invariably sought out the higher ridges on elevated sites overlooking the river, making Hamilton (with a tram in 1899) one of the most sought after suburbs. It was the new upper-working and middle-class suburbs, however, that showed the change most clearly.

CENTRAL CITY SHOPPING

Central Brisbane had grand department stores, Finney Isles, and Allan and Stark, but not as many as Fortitude Valley. A third one came later in George Street, near the Roma Street railway station: McDonnell and East built a low-rise emporium there in 1912. Commercial and government buildings, usually of a modest height, sometimes had a massive footprint. An exception to the prevailing height practice was the Queensland (later Commonwealth) Bank administration building of eight storeys at the corner of George and Elizabeth Streets (1920) clad with sandstone and granite. The CML building, next to the GPO, went to the legal limit of 11 storeys in 1931 and was exceeded in height only by the Brisbane City Hall tower (1930).

The changing commercial centre was thought to need a distinctive civic space and an Anzac Square was proposed in 1915. It was completed in 1930, coinciding with the City Hall and the construction of a second bridge out of the city, across the river to South Brisbane. Named after William Jolly, first Lord Mayor of the amalgamated Brisbane Metropolitan Council (1925), the bridge was opened in 1932. A third bridge was opened in 1940 from the other (eastern) end of the city across to Kangaroo Point. Neither bridge had trams, but each integrated with the metropolitan council's planned arterial road system.

The opening of the Story Bridge was followed by 20 years of building quietude in central Brisbane. The war and postwar recovery explains part of the inactivity, but central Brisbane made do with its prewar building stock during the 1950s. Suburban expansion was the focus of activity, exemplified by Allan and Stark building a drive-in shopping centre at Chermside in 1957. Another change was the removal of the wholesale food market from Roma Street to Rocklea in 1962.

After recovery from the 1961 credit squeeze, commercial pressure and interstate example succeeded in raising the building height limit. The Pearl Assurance building (1966) at Queen Street was 15 storeys and the Manufacturers Mutual Insurance building (1967), also in Queen Street, was 22 storeys. The SGIO building (1970) in Turbot Street was an even more significant structure.

A lack of building activity in central Brisbane in the 1950s did not detract from its role as a retailing destination. Central city shopping boomed while there were low postwar car ownership and strong radial public transport services. The 1953 retail census for metropolitan Brisbane showed that the city and inner suburbs (Fortitude Valley, Bowen Hills, South Brisbane etc) had 74% of total retail sales.

OFFICES AND SHOPS

Set against the decline in retailing was the growth in high-rise office and commercial buildings. By the late 1980s central Brisbane had about 1.75 million sq metres of office space, ten times the amount of retail floor space. Its share of metropolitan office space was over 70%, and fringe areas such as Spring Hill, Fortitude Valley, Milton and Woolloongabba had another 25%. The change in Brisbane's skyline was evident from across the river, an example being the view from Kangaroo Point to the Riverside Centre office building (1987) at Eagle Street. The eastern commercial end of Ann, Adelaide and Queen Streets began to resemble the closed in narrow streets of Sydney's office precinct.

In contrast to office high rise, the Queen Street retailing centre has kept many of its old buildings. The facades are partly concealed by pedestrian mall shade sails and other structures, but the shops and arcades generate plenty of activity. The most significant addition was the Myer Centre (1988) with eight cinemas and 200 other stores, bounded by Queen, Albert and Elizabeth Streets. It replaced Allan and Stark (Queen Street, opposite side) and McWhirters, Fortitude Valley, which had both been taken over by Myer several years before. When opened, the Myer Centre's retail floor area was nearly 108,000 sq m, 26% more than the largest competing regional drive-in centre, at Upper Mount Gravatt.

PARKS AND RESIDENTS

By the 1960s the growth of metropolitan population and motor traffic was putting central Brisbane's streets under strain. All three river bridges fed into the central business district, although the Centenary Bridge (1960) at Jindalee gave temporary relief. Closer in, relief came in 1969 with the widening of the Story Bridge approaches, and the opening of the fourth Victoria Bridge, often known as the Melbourne Street Bridge. The Riverside Expressway was completed in 1976, a close-in ring road along the western edge of central Brisbane, from Victoria Bridge to the new Captain Cook Bridge, and leading to the south-eastern suburbs. The Expressway decisively altered the appearance of Central Brisbane. The tram crossing had ceased to function when trams were replaced by buses, but a railway crossing came very belatedly with the Merivale Bridge, linking South Brisbane and Roma Street stations in 1978. Prior to that the lines from Beenleigh and Cleveland and the trunk standard gauge from Sydney terminated at the South Brisbane station.

Roma Street had been the site of the wholesale food market, and for decades the land had remained under-used. The central city had incrementally added open spaces to its fabric – King George Square enlarged in 1975 and the Post Office Square opened in 1984 – and in 2001-03 the largest addition, the 16 ha Roma Street Parkland was completed.

Along with Albert Park and Wickham Park, the Parkland gives inner city residents generous open space. The residential population of central Brisbane, however, changed little between 1981 and 2001. The inner city (approximately between Ann and Elizabeth Streets) had just 45 dwellings in 1981 and 689 in 2001. The resident populations for the respective years were 1174 and 976, a decrease. Apartments had replaced boarding houses and rooms. The rest of central Brisbane (including Petrie Terrace) also saw an increase in dwellings (758 to 1282) and a decrease in population (3511 to 1797). Single person apartments had increased, multi-person dwellings had decreased and some of each were not lived in full time, often being held for prospective capital gain. The boom in apartment building from 2001 has added thousands of apartments, many rented by overseas students.

The distinctive features of twenty-first century Brisbane are its increasing resemblance to other capital city office precincts, with forecourts, sub-tropical decorative plants and outdoor cafes. Queen Street's signature silver bullet trams last ran in 1969, but the street's unusual width (Andrew Petrie apparently persuaded Governor Gipps on this point) has provided for a signature shopping mall with generous outdoor seating and dining areas. Out of the central retail area elegant sandstone government and commercial buildings have survived, surely an iconic architectural form. Some buildings have removed their clerks and accountants, substituting hotel patrons, tourists and casino visitors. The historic customs house was purchased by The University of Queensland from the federal government, and includes meeting, dining and gallery space. The City Hall (1930), once the tallest building, has been dwarfed by surrounding skyscrapers, so its clock tower no longer affords a commanding view over Central Brisbane. In 2008 the Brisbane City Council agreed to underpin City Hall which was in danger of gradual sinking on inadequate foundations.

The gothic-style St Johns Anglican Cathedral, commenced in 1901-06, was finally completed in 2009. Bounded by Ann and Adelaide streets, the cathedral roof and other buildings sustained extensive damage in a storm in 2014.

Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brisbane & www.visitbrisbane.com.au/information/about-brisbane/histo... & queenslandplaces.com.au/brisbane-central

During a walk at Voice of America Park I saw this beautiful monarch butterfly eating peacefully, then this bee arrived and scared her away....

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!

Some background:

The North American FJ-4 Fury was a swept-wing carrier-capable fighter-bomber, originally developed for the United States Navy and Marine Corps. It was the final development in a lineage that included the Air Force's F-86 Sabre. The FJ-4 shared its general layout and engine with the earlier FJ-3, but featured an entirely new wing design. And it was, as a kind of final embodiment with the FJ-4B, a very different aircraft from the F-86 .

The first FJ-4 flew on 28 October 1954 and delivery began in February 1955. Of the original order for 221 FJ-4 fighters, the last 71 were modified into the FJ-4B fighter-bomber version, of which the Netherlands received 16 aircraft under the designation FJ-4B from the USA in the course of NATO support. Even though the main roles of the MLD were maritime patrol, anti-submarine warfare and search and rescue, the FJ-4B was a dedicated fighter-bomber, and these aircraft were to be used with the Dutch Navy’s Colossus-Class carrier HNLMS Karel Doorman (R81).

Compared to the lighter FJ-4 interceptor, the FJ-4B had a stronger wing with six instead of four underwing stations, a stronger landing gear and additional aerodynamic brakes under the aft fuselage. The latter made landing safer by allowing pilots to use higher thrust settings, and were also useful for dive attacks. Compared to the FJ-4, external load was doubled, and the US FJ-4Bs were capable of carrying a nuclear weapon on the inboard port station, a feature the MLD Furies lacked. The MLD aircraft were still equipped with the corresponding LABS or Low-Altitude Bombing System for accurate delivery of ordnance.

The Dutch Furies were primarily intended for anti-ship missions (toting up to five of the newly developed ASM-N-7 missiles - renamed in AGM-12B Bullpup after 1962 - plus a guidance pod) and CAS duties against coastal targets, as well as for precision strikes. In a secondary role, the FJ-4B could carry Sidewinder AAMs for interception purposes.

The MLD's FJ-4B became operational in 1956, just in time to enhance the firepower of the Karel Doorman, which just had its 24 WW-II era propeller driven Fairey Firefly strike fighters and Hawker Sea Fury fighter/anti-ship aircraft backed up with 14 TBF Avenger ASW/torpedo bombers and 10 Hawker Sea Hawk fighters (the MLD owned 22 of these) for an ASW/Strike profile. The Furies joined the carrier in late 1957 and replaced the piston-engined attack aircraft.

In 1960, during the Dutch decolonization and planned independence of Western New Guinea, a territory which was also claimed by Indonesia, the Karel Doorman set sail along with two destroyers and a modified oil tanker to 'show the flag'. In order to avoid possible problems with Indonesia's ally Egypt at the Suez Canal, the carrier instead sailed around the horn of Africa. She arrived in Fremantle, Australia, where the local seamen's union struck in sympathy with Indonesia; the crew used the propeller thrust of aircraft chained down on deck to nudge the carrier into dock without tugs! In addition to her air wing, she was ferrying twelve Hawker Hunter fighters to bolster the local Dutch defense forces, which the Karel Doorman delivered when she arrived at Hollandia, New Guinea.

During the 1960 crisis, Indonesia prepared for a military action named Operation Trikora (in the Indonesian language, "Tri Komando Rakyat" means "The Three Commands of the People"). In addition to planning for an invasion, the TNI-AU (Indonesian Air Forces) hoped to sink the Karel Doorman with Soviet-supplied Tupolev Tu-16KS-1 Badger naval bombers using AS-1 Kennel/KS-1 Kometa anti-ship missiles. This bomber-launched missile strike mission was cancelled on short notice, though, because of the implementation of the cease-fire between Indonesia and the Netherlands. This led to a Dutch withdrawal and temporary UN peacekeeping administration, followed by occupation and annexation through Indonesia. While the Dutch aircraft served actively during this conflict, flying patrols and demonstrating presence, visibly armed and in alert condition, no 'hot' sortie or casualty occured, even though one aircraft, 10-18, was lost in a start accident. The pilot ejected safely.

The MLD FJ-4Bs only served on the carrier until its overhaul in 1964, after which the carrier-borne attack role was eliminated and all aircraft were transferred to land bases (Valkenburg) or in reserve storage. The Seahawks were retired from service by the end of the 1960s after the sale of the Karel Doorman to Argentina, and the FJ-4Bs were returned to the United States, where they were re-integrated into the USMC until the end of the 1960ies, when all FJ-4 aircraft were phased out.

General characteristics:

Crew: 1

Length: 36 ft 4 in (11.1 m)

Wingspan: 39 ft 1 in (11.9 m)

Height: 13 ft 11 in (4.2 m)

Wing area: 338.66 ft² (31.46 m²)

Empty weight: 13,210 lb (6,000 kg)

Loaded weight: 20,130 lb (9,200 kg)

Max. take-off weight: 23,700 lb (10,750 kg)

Powerplant: 1 × Wright J65-W-16A turbojet, 7,700 lbf (34 kN)

Performance:

Maximum speed: 680 mph (1,090 km/h) at 35,000 ft (10,670 m)

Range: 2,020 mi (3,250 km) with 2× 200 gal (760 l) drop tanks and 2× AIM-9 missiles

Service ceiling: 46,800 ft (14,300 m)

Rate of climb: 7,660 ft/min (38.9 m/s)

Wing loading: 69.9 lb/ft² (341.7 kg/m²)

Thrust/weight: .325

Armament:

4× 20 mm (0.787 in) cannon

6× pylons under the wings for 3,000 lb (1,400 kg) external ordnance, including up to 6× AIM-9 Sidewinder AAMs, bombs and guided/unguided ASM, e .g. ASM-N-7 (AGM-12B Bullpup) missiles.

The kit and its assembly

Originally, this model project was inspired by a (whiffy) Dutch F3H Demon profile, designed by fellow user Darth Panda at whatifmodelers.com. I found the idea of a foreign/NATO user of one of these early carrier-borne jet fighters very inspiring – not only because of the strange design of many of these aircraft, but also since the USN and USMC had been the only real world users of many of these types.

Initially, I planned to convert a F3H accordingly. But with limited storage/display space at home I decided to apply the MLD idea to another smaller, but maybe even more exotic, type: the North American FJ-4B Fury, which was in 1962 recoded into AF-1E.

I like the beefy Sabre cousin very much. It’s one of those aircraft that received little attention, even from model kit manufacturers. In fact, in 1:72 scale there are only vintage vacu kits or the very basic Emhar kit available. Th Emhar kit, which I used here and which is a kind donation of a fellow modeler (Thanks a lot, André!), a rather rough thing with raised panel lines and much room for improvements. As a side note, there's also a FJ-4B from Revell, but it's just a 1996 re-issue with no improvements, whatsoever.

Another facet of the model: When I did legwork concerning a possible background story, I was surprised to find out that the Netherlands actually operated aircraft carriers in the 1950s, including carrier-borne, fixed-wing aircraft, even jets in the form of Hawker Sea Hawks. The real life FJ-4Bs service introduction, the naissance of NATO and the Indonesian conflict as well as the corresponding intervention of the Karel Doorman carrier all fell into a very plausible time frame – and so there’s a very good and plausible story why the MLD could actually have used the Fury fighter bomber!

The Emhar kit was not modified structurally, but saw some changes in detail. These include a scratch-built cockpit with side walls, side consoles and a new ejection seat, plus a Matchbox pilot figure, a new front wheel (from a Kangnam Yak-38, I believe), plus a lot of added blade aerials and a finer pitot.

The flaps were lowered, for a more lively look- Another new feature is the opened air intake, which features a central splitter - in fact a vertically placed piece of a Vicker Wellesley bomb container from Matchbox. At the rear end, the exhaust pipe was opened and lengthened internally.

The six weapon hardpoints were taken from the original kit, but I did not use the four Sidewinder AAMs and the rather bulky drop tanks. So, all ordnance is new: the Bullpups come from the Hasegawa air-to-ground missile set, the drop tanks are leftover pieces from a Hobby Boss F-86. They are much more 'delicate', and make the Fury look less stout and cumbersome. The guidance pod for the Bullpups (a typical FJ-4B feature with these weapons) is a WWII drop tank, shaped with the help of benchmark pictures. Certainly not perfect, but, hey - it's just a MODEL!

Painting and markings

I used mid-1950ies MLD Sea Furys and Sea Hawks as a design benchmark, but this Fury is placed just into the time frame around 1960 when the MLD introduced a new 3-digit code system. Before that, a code "6-XX" with the XX somewhere in the 70 region would have been appropriate, and I actually painted the fuselage sides a bit darker so as if the old code had recently been painted over.

Dutch MLD aircraft tended to keep their former users’ liveries, but in the FJ-4B’s case I thought that a light grey and white aircraft (USN style) with Dutch roundels would look a bit odd. So I settled for early NATO style with Extra Dark Sea Grey upper sides (Humbrol 123) and Sky from below (Testors 2049 from their Authentic Line).

I also went for an early design style with a low waterline - early Hawker Sea Furies were painted this way, and a high waterline would probably be more typical. But in the face of potential seriosu action, who knows...? Things tend to be toned down quickly, just remember the RN Harriers during the Falkland conflict. I'll admit that the aircraft looks a bit simple and dull now, but this IMHO just adds to the plausible look of this whif. I prefer such subtleties to garish designs.

The surfaces were weathered with dry-brushed lighter shades of the basic tones (mostly Humbrol 79, but also some 140 and 67, and Humbrol 90 and 166 below), including overpainted old codes in a slightly darker tone of EDSG, done with Revell 77. A light wash with black ink emphasizes edges and some details - the machine was not to look worn.

The interior was painted in medium grey (Humbrol 140), the landing gear is white (Humbrol 130), and some details like the air intake rim, the edges of the landing gear covers, the flaps or the tips of the wing fences were painted in bright red (Humbrol 174), for some contrast to the overall grey upper sides.

The MLD markings were puzzled together. The roundels come from an Xtradecal sheet for various Hawker Sea Furies, the '202' code comes, among others, from a Grumman Bearcat aftermarket sheet. The 'KON. MARINE' line is hand-made, letter by letter, from a TL Modellbau aftremarket sheet.

Most stencils and warning sign decals come from the original decal sheet, as well as from a FJ-4 Xtradecal aftermarket sheet, from F-86 kits and the scrap box. I wanted these details to provide the color to the aircraft, so that it would not look too uniform, but still without flashy decorations and like a rather utilarian military item.

finally, the model received a coat of semi-matt varnish (Tamiya Acryllic), since MLD aircraft had a pretty glossy finish. No dirt or soot stains were added - the Dutch kept their (few) shipborne aircraft very clean and tidy!

So, all in all, a simple looking aircraft, but this Dutch Fury has IMHO a certain, subtle charm - probably also because it is a rather rare and unpopular aircraft, which in itself has a certain whiffy aura.

____SINOPSIS dar click a la imagen___

Título : Gone, but not forgotten

Director: Michael D. Akers

Elenco: Aaron Orr, Matthew Montgomery, Joel Bryant, Brenda Lasker, Sandon Berg

Country / País: Estados Unidos

Año: 2003

Género: Drama, romance

Duración: 90 minutos

Idioma: inglés, subtitulos en español

Sinopsis:Gone, but not forgotten es una película de temática homosexual del año 2003, escrita y dirigida por Michael D. Akers, grabada en vídeo con muy bajo presupuesto, que ya ha pasado por más de 30 festivales de cine de temática homosexual, como el de Tennessee, Hamburgo, Sídney o Londres.

Las vidas de dos hombres se encuentran por casualidad, cuando Drew, un guardabosques de un pueblo perdido, encuentra a Mark, un hombre con amnesia, que ha sufrido un accidente al caer de unas rocas. Debido a la amnesia, en el hospital permiten a Drew que acompañe a Mark, y le ayude a recordar, mientras intentan averiguar su identidad. Pronto la relación de rescatador y rescatado evolucionará hacia una profunda amistad, que Mark no llega a comprender bien, ya que no comprende como puede vivir un futuro si no tiene pasado.

Poco a poco, Mark irá recordando su pasado, aunque cada vez le guste menos lo que recuerda, hasta el día que conozca la verdad sobre él, un pasado que no encaja con su relación con Drew. El pasado de Mark le reclama, pero ya no es la misma persona que se cayó al vacío en el bosque.

......but deceptively so, as she had less than 3 years to go before withdrawal. This was no. 112 (GKG33N) one of a batch of 10 Scania Metropolitans that Newport purchased in 1975, awaiting her next journey in June 1982.

Despite being newer, they were outlasted by their single deck sisters and none made it into the deregulated era. Scania Metropolitans and long service life didn't go together at all, but compared to some fleets, notably London Transport, I reckon 11 years with Newport was relatively good.

Compare the livery between GKG33N , the 'decker behind and YDW752K in the previous picture; apparently the Metropolitans were the only 'deckers in the fleet to receive the same style carried by the Metro-Scanias.

Metro-Scanias, Scania Metropiltans.....starting to get confused now :-)

Moving on, the 'decker behind was....de-de-de.....