See Part 1 in my archives Peepz. And if you're in a hurry, you may want to read this later, or in bits...it's bloody long. It's a work in progress...

 

"The Diamond Ring"

 

As my gaze scanned the small, crowded bus depot in Adelaide that December morning, I had all but given up trying to find a lift with anybody from the bus, as I hadn't met anybody on the truck stops we'd made along the way. The ticket counter wasn't open yet, so I decided that I should just wait there until it opened, and figure out what to do next after that. In the meantime I could put out some feelers and try and sense whether anybody else there looked like they might be headed for the eclipse. At that point I was still convinced I should try to get on a connecting bus to Ceduna, where most of the eclipse watchers would be, but I was sure that the tickets were sold out. I hadn't ruled out hitching on the road, but hoped it wouldn't come to that. I was also a little dubious about the weather. It was seven thirty in the morning, and the clouds formed a thick blanket of grey above the city.

 

The day before, I'd checked the weather forecasts to see what the outlook was like and it was sketchy. There was going to be cloud cover in most of the places along the path of totality, but the forecast said that the clouds should clear to just a scattering by mid or late afternoon. It might have prevented me from going at another time, but because I felt so driven to go I trusted that wherever I ended up would be the right place, with the right people and the right conditions. Still, I couldn't help having a slight sense of trepidation over whether all my efforts would end up in travelling over a thousand miles to watch a total eclipse of a total eclipse.

 

So with all that and more whirring around my skull, I let my eyes skim the crowd while my otherware kicked in at the non-local levels, and before I knew it I couldn't help but notice these two guys who were standing in one of the aisles a few feet away from me. It was their wooden case that first caught my attention and it got me pretty excited when it looked liked it was just the right size for a telescope. When I looked for who might own it, I scoped them. They looked a little fatigued, but ready for action.

 

The tall one that looked like Tom Selleck was dressed in loose khaki shorts with cargo pockets, a matching polo shirt, chunky white socks and brown suede walking boots. Short blondish-brown hair peeked out from beneath a baseball cap that made his rugged features look slightly boyish, but he looked to me to be around forty. Standing next to him was a guy of similar age, who looked like your classic computer programmer or science genius. He was more slightly built, had a pale complexion and black rimmed glasses. He was wearing a black leather jacket over his knitted jumper and polo shirt (which was underneath and neatly tucked in to his jeans), a black belt and some well-worn brown leather shoes.

I was totally loving their look. I had to meet them.

 

I approached them and asked if they were going to see the eclipse.

I think they might have been a bit surprised to have been approached but they smiled and said yes. I found out that their names were Gerard and Alan, then they told me that they'd been on the same bus from Melbourne I'd been travelling on. I had been all the way up the front in seat 1D behind the driver, and hadn't seen them behind me in seats 11C and D.

 

I told them that I was going to try to get to Ceduna. They glanced at each other making me feel uneasy and they said that the weather forecast didn't look so good there. It was much better where they were going, the Wirraminna Rail Siding, in the desert, but first they had to go to Port Augusta where they would be picking up their car.

 

It became instantly apparent that going to the desert over the coast was a way better idea given the weather, so I figured that the best thing for me should be to try to get to Woomera with them (which is where I thought the Wirraminna Rail Siding was). I imagined this really cute country town where there would be balloons and streamers in the streets and lots of bakeries. I thought that we'd get there, mingle with the others who'd gathered, and then I could find accommodation and another lift back to Adelaide the next day. I asked that if I could get Port Augusta, would they let me hitch with them to Woomera? We all decided to have breakfast together and see.

 

As soon as we sat down they were pulling out all these crazy maps and charts that they'd downloaded off the net, one with a pencil line drawn by hand marking the path of totality. Others had bright highlighted sections where they'd made other notes. They had made all the calculations for latitude and longitude, timing down to the second, were a wealth of astronomical knowledge and they told me all about the amazing capabilities of the camera gear they'd brought. They were prepared for everything. I could not believe my luck. They even had spare eclipse glasses! They were able to tell me everything I needed to know and I really hoped it could all happen so that I could travel with them.

 

After breakfast I noticed that the ticket counter was about to open and I watched as about twenty people formed two queues in front of the two nearest windows. A third window had also opened but no-one seemed to want to go there and at first I stood at the end of one of them then figured it wouldn't hurt to ask, so I went over to the third window. When I asked if that was the right ticket counter for a bus ticket to Port Augusta I was told it was and got my ticket in about 30 seconds, beating everybody. It was a completely full bus, confirming to me again just how much we make our own luck.

 

The guys agreed to let me join them in Port Augusta and I felt this wave of gratitude leave my body and travel out into the cosmos. As I looked at them hanging out together with their impressive assortment of camera gear, tripods, bags and telescope, with their open, friendly faces, smart casual clothing and a tendency toward geekishness, they looked like my very own Batman and Robin. I smiled inwardly. My prayers HAD been answered! I DID find the right people to travel with right there on the bus!

 

It was a moment I'll never forget.

 

After that I found a pay phone and rang Bimbo Deluxe, a bar I had a residency at, and left a message letting them know I wouldn't be coming in for my set that night.

 

We got on the next bus, me alone behind the driver in 1A again, and them just a few seats behind. I spent a bit of time visualising a bright blue, cloudless sky for the eclipse, and reminding myself to be in the moment, trusting as much as possible that life would take me where I needed to go, as the frequencies of gratitude for all that had occurred up until then filled me and flowed outwards from me. All the seeds sown by reading the CWG series which had tied up so many loose ends for me in my esoteric studies, were beginning to sprout and I wanted to breathe as much life into them as possible. I wanted to see how they might grow, as I did. I thought about Time. Then I slept deeply.

 

"Alan and Gerard spent the trip working out the orbital distance of the Moon and the rotation of the Earth in order to finally understand the path taken by the Moon during the eclipse and the speed at which it travelled. This was facilitated by the calculator in the mobile phone. Alan also worked out how photo exposures and bracketing points using full and ½ stops."

 

This is what Gerard wrote about what he and Alan did on the bus to Port Augusta, in his own account of our travels called "Eclipse 2002". He has even named the subtitles in Chapter 1, which will give you a greater idea of what's to come.

 

Subtitle 1: Alan's, Gerard's and Liz's Big Time-Warp Adventure

Subtitle 2: Port Augusta or Bust!

Subtitle 3: The Kangaroo Did It

 

I believe all time is happening in one eternal now. Especially since studying the Maya's supreme understandings of cosmic timing cycles and mathematics. Whenever I begin to worry about anything "in the future", I ask myself, "Am I OK, in this moment?", and the answer is always yes, so it's a good way for me to quell my fears and anxieties, and to trust life more. I really started this practice on a regular basis during this trip. And I was more than ok, as I was soon to see..

 

When we arrived at Port Augusta, the sky had cleared and a few tufts of white dotted the sky, which was a relief, and a beautiful gleaming silver sedan met us at the terminal. It belonged to Gerard, and I asked how even though he lived in Melbourne, his car was quite conveniently waiting for us in Port Augusta, at the bus terminal. After we piled into the car I heard the first of many stories during that trip that would change me forever.

 

The guys had so much gear it was hard to believe they'd carried it all by themselves and for a few moments I had my doubts that we would fit everything of theirs into the car, let alone have room for me or my scant belongings. After some tricky packing though, a space was made available for me to squeeze into in the back seat, behind Alan who was in the passenger seat, and with Gerard expertly handling the wheel, we set off for last minute supplies.

 

The whole transition from the bus to the car couldn't have been timed more perfectly or executed with more ease. It was a good sign, but once we got in the car I really knew that the gods had smiled down on me. They could've had a big old pick up truck for all I knew, but instead I was able to relax in the luxury of black leather seats and enjoy the views from air conditioned comfort, gaze out at the sky through the sunroof and tinted windows and tell the outside temperature from a LED display in the wood dash. To top it all off, I had just met the two coolest, smartest straight guys I'd met in ages, and we were about to embark on a truly amazing adventure together. I was happy and grateful to be alive.

 

We stopped in Pt Augusta's main shopping drag for some lunch, supplies and fuel for the trip. After some bad cafe food Alan and I headed off to the supermarket while Gerard attended to some other business and we quickly dashed around picking up water, bags of fruit, nibbles, and chocolate (for me). I asked Alan if they'd like to have something to eat later, maybe for a picnic? This seemed like a good idea to him (I don't know if the guys, for all their planning, had considered the necessity for food at all), and I picked out a roast chicken and some salads. I completely forgot to buy a disposable camera in Adelaide so I tried finding one there only to discover they were sold out. There was a Woolies a block down too (also sold out of cameras), but I quickly purchased a cotton blanket as I had nothing warm with me, and hoped it would come in handy, seeing I already had my pillow and I had no idea where I was sleeping that night. All I knew was that the eclipse was in less than four and a half hours and when we met up with Gerard a short time later, it was agreed that there was no time to spare, so we, and the fully-laden car, swung back onto the road and headed for the outback. Alan had a collection of maps in the glove box that he would refer to from time to time as Gerard brought us up to a comfortable cruising speed of 130 kph. ETA was going to be 17:45 at our desired spot.

 

They were both great story tellers, although you could see that Alan's more outgoing personality was more suited to it, but Gerard certainly didn't seem concerned, and I realized later that even though Gerard had heard Alan tell most of his stories several times before, he obviously still liked to hear them, and he often helped coax a story out of Alan's memory banks by reminding him of some of the funny details.

 

I began to hear about how they had been driving through the South Australian countryside a month earlier, taking photos and generally enjoying a break from work for a few days when they had hit a kangaroo when it suddenly jumped out in front of the car and stopped them all in their tracks. Gerard's car had been in the shop at Port Augusta getting extensive repairs done ever since, and as the eclipse was occurring at the same time they could collect the car, they decided (at the last minute too) to come and get it and see the eclipse at the same time. At the end of their story we all fell silent for a moment as it dawned on us that their encounter with the kangaroo had actually created the conditions for us to meet as we did. The kangaroo was pivotal to the whole story and we knew it. I silently thanked the kangaroo for it's role in all this, and for the ripples that that moment created when it lost its life that night, as I marvelled at the way our lives had intersected.

 

Whatever green countryside there was around Pt Augusta soon made way for flat, dry earth covered in clumps of long grasses, low bushes and small trees as we sped towards Woomera. We passed a few old run down towns that looked like the only public outlet was the petrol station, and I wondered how people out there spent their time, and how children, if any, could cope with the sheer barrenness and isolation. Then we passed Pimba. It was so third world I was totally taken aback. I felt like I'd stepped into an alternate reality, into another version of Australia, one I would never want to dream into reality, but it already was. It was quite a sight. We all unanimously agreed that it was a "hole" of gargantuan proportions, a "standard reference hole" at that, as we passed the shabby weatherboard houses that all seemed to be just barely standing, with each and every backyard sporting massive piles of rubbish and broken down, rusting machinery. I thought I'd seen bad, after all, some of my poor Filipino relatives used to live in houses where to get there, you'd have to walk on wooden planks to avoid the mud, streams and little fishes everywhere, but this was BAD.

 

I could see why the area we were fast approaching was home to a detention centre for illegal immigrants, a former nuclear missile testing ground and hot spot for UFO sightings. There was nothing. For miles around, nothing. Just red earth, a bit of scrub, and the wind and sky. I must admit as well as watching for the clouds to clear up even more, I was constantly on the lookout for any unusual aerial phenomena as I'd thoroughly done my research and the probability for a sighting was in my estimation, high.

 

While we drove to our destination we all got to know each other a bit better which was easy as we all seemed to like one another. At first I was a little unsure about whether Alan was actually happy about me being in tow, as the two of them had conferred briefly before deciding to let me come, and I'd picked up on a vibe. I couldn't blame him if it he wasn't all too pleased, as my coming along had interfered with their plans and well, "guy time". I soon put those thoughts to rest though as it as it soon became apparent to all of us that that the extra pair of hands I now afforded them, might've actually come in quite handy.

 

We went over a few things about the way the guys wanted to set up their gear, and what we would do when totality arrived. Then they started describing to me how they would like me to help change a solar filter on "the Lens", this massive super-telephoto thing. They explained that When Gerard said "totality", I had to take the filter off and to put it in a special Tupperware container that they had brought with them. I was like, "Oh my God, are these guys for real? We're actually practicing a DRILL for taking photos!". Say what you will, I thought they were unreal.

 

I know that sort of daggy technical stuff about photography and math and astronomy that we talked a lot about is pretty boring for most people but I frickin love it! And I didn't even need a camera after all! It was almost too much, too good.

 

When we passed Woomera it dawned on me that we weren't going to stop there, and that I'd gotten my wires slightly crossed. But as we drove past it, I thanked my lucky stars I wasn't going. The town looked horrible, with a big vintage fighter plane mounted on a big metal brace near the "Welcome to Woomera" sign near the town's entrance, to show off our so-called military "might", right(?), and the selfish misuse-use of our country's resources by stupid white guys who are all dead now anyway. I didn't see one person anywhere. The whole town looked deserted and felt like a museum you'd never go want to go visit. It didn't look like anywhere I could find accommodation at either, that's for sure. The Wirraminna Rail Siding was another 73 km on from Woomera, as I quickly learned, as the guys handed me the map and asked me to calculate the distance.

 

When I realised that I had no plan of action for after the eclipse, or anywhere to stay, and that I was in the middle of nowhere, I decided to just go with the flow, and didn't worry too much about it, and drew comfort from the fact that at least I'd had the foresight to bring dinner.

 

When we started getting close, the energy in the car changed from quiet expectation to a more intense, hair prickling kind of anticipation. I'd been chatting quite animatedly with the guys from the back seat the whole way there, but now I was nearly bouncing up and down like a child with excitement as we passed the parked cars, then bus loads of Japanese tourists, four-wheel drives and camper vans. The Japanese tourists had lined up all their shiny camera gear in front of their respective buses and had about 30-50 telescopes per bus pointed at the Sun. We kept driving though, for another couple of k's, headed for as close to the centre line of the path of totality as possible. When they explained this to me, I nearly exploded with glee, although I didn't really grasp the enormity of this fact until the moment of the eclipse itself.

 

The sky had finally cleared to just a bit of late afternoon haze, and the temperature was up around 27 degrees, a far cry from the sombre 11 degrees that morning in Adelaide. I was being taken to a spot on the earth that would be precisely in line with the Moon and the Sun as the eclipse took place. I thought back to the day before when all of this had been just a dream. I knew I was experiencing life at a much a higher frequency than the one I normally did, and things that would normally take a lot longer to materialize, seemed to be taking form almost instantly.

 

We finally saw a place where we could park. There were a few people dotted around the brush nearby. Some guy was hanging out at his ute with his sheepdog about 30 metres away. He looked liked a local with his cut-off sleeves and messy shoulder length hair. There were a couple with a tent next to their car some distance away too, as well as a tourist bus parked on the other side of the road behind us. Although there were really only a few others in the close vicinity, the air still felt tantalisingly pregnant with expectation.

 

We began unpacking the car and setting up all the gear. Alan had cut some sheets of polystyrene back in Melbourne to make a viewing box and we set about putting it together. The tripods were set up and the telescope came out of it's handsome handmade box. Gerard took care of setting up his two cameras and the Super Lens and soon everything was done. He found himself afterward, aching for somewhere to relieve himself and decided the only gentlemanly thing to do was drive the car down the road a couple of k's and find somewhere totally private. I think he had to go quite a way though as he was gone for quite a few minutes...

 

I had mentioned to Alan and Gerard earlier that I was interested in UFO's and I was secretly hoping I might get to see one fly past as the only other time was a long time ago, and it was pretty far away. I kept my eyes peeled to the skies, which by now were absolutely clear of any haze and a vivid, bright blue. YAY.

 

During the 1991 eclipse in Mexico City, tens of thousands of spectators saw a huge metallic disc sitting stationary as it slowly spun in the air and emitted a reddish glow. It was captured by 17 different cameras at the time and you can get the videos online if you do a search. Anyway, it was in the air above the city for 30 minutes before, during, and after the eclipse. But that is something I have learned since.

 

We did the practice run of the drill for when totality struck, when Alan would have me change the solar filter on the camera lens. Gerard was supposed to alert us when totality came, which only lasted 32 seconds, by saying "Totality". I would quickly remove the filter and say "Off", and put it into the special Tupperware container, heh. When totality was nearly over I was to put the filter back on and say "On" and he would continue snapping. It was a pretty funny and well, beyond cute for me. We laughed a lot while we were practicing too, so you can see they don't take themselves too seriously. Along with their brain power, personalities, preparedness and 5 star transport, it was everything that worked for this li'l diva. It was so hard to believe how amazing this was all turning out, but I kept reminding myself to accept it, because it was exactly what I'd set out to create. I was ticking off all the things on my checklist of requirements effortlessly. They were the perfect eclipse companions.

 

It was getting close to the time when "first touch" was going to occur and both Alan and Gerard started getting really anxious and a bit fidgety. They made last minute checks of their gear, which turned out to be good thing, as Gerard realised that one of the lenses on his camera wasn't right and changed it. They checked their watches, which had been synchronised to the second (NO! Really? Yes...REALLY), and I got some of the prepared polystyrene board so Alan could project the Sun's image onto it from the telescope's eyepiece while they both took pictures. The wind was up and it was becoming increasingly difficult to hold it so that it was straight, but I managed, and they were able to capture all the crucial moments without too much trouble in the end, but how the hell they'd planned to do all that on their own, I have no idea. There was only about an hour to go until totality and I wondered when the sky would begin to grow dark.

 

We occupied our time by switching from eclipse glasses to looking through the Super-Lens and watching the projector board. After 40 minutes or so I noticed that the desert was beginning to look darker and redder. It was so beautiful with the contrast in colours so much more pronounced all around us. Then it became darker and darker very quickly. The soil, the rocks, the trees, everything now looked like a deep blood red. We looked at each other and knew that this is what we'd all come so far to see. The hairs began to stand on end on the backs of our necks. The Moon's disc was almost all the way across the Sun, and we couldn't wait for the last of it to be covered. As Alan was focussing through the camera, Gerard and I put the glasses on and watched. We grew more and more animated as the last couple of minutes ticked by, talking about how it was going to be great. They'd told me earlier that when the Sun was in totality, it was ok to remove the glasses due to the rays being blocked, which I didn't know, so now I was really hanging out for when I could look at the Eclipse with my naked eyes.

 

"All is ready. The sky is clear of any obstruction, the gear is set-up and as good as it can be. 14.5cm telescope, low power eyepiece and reflective board, Nikon 1200mm lens on a cinematographic tripod with a Nikon F100 behind it loaded with several feet of Fuji's finest 400 ASA film ready to go. All the planning has been for this moment. Researching the websites for eclipse locations, photographic exposure tables, rain and cloud-cover forecasts; the planning, the buying, the hiring, the building, the packing and the travelling have come down to this moment, which finds Alan, Gerard and Liz at the side of the Stuart Highway A87 halfway between Pimba and Glendambo in South Australia on Wednesday Dec 4 2002, at 19:40 and 43 seconds local summer time."

 

More from "Eclipse 2002".

 

Then Gerard yelled out "Totality!" and exactly what happened next is rather hazy. I know that at some point filters must have been changed and photos were taken, but what I do remember is Gerard saying, "Liz, you should take the glasses off". I turned my back to the sun, whipped them off my face and when I jumped back to look at the sky, my jaw fell. It was so incredible. Oh my God, OH MY GOD, the COLOURS!" And then I was suddenly going "Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!" at the top of my voice and started pogo-ing up and down on the spot like an African Masai tribesman, not caring at all what Alan and Gerard must have thought about my rather vociferous, ebullient display. It was just so stunningly beautiful. Think of Jodie Foster's face in Contact when she travelled through the wormhole and saw the galactic core for the first time. Ok? Awesome. That was me. That was ME!!!!!

 

It was so ineffable, so untranslatable, so profound, to watch the perfect circle of the Moon's disc finally moving into place, and exactly covering the Sun's. The resulting diffuse flares of intensely-hued colours that began around the white-hot corona, and radiated trails that filled the entire dome of the sky overhead and as far as one could see. They formed in streaks of rich fire-orange, electrically charged gold, plasma-perking purples, reds of all shades, the deepest royal blues and St Germaine's violet flame. Small fiery orbs of intense orange, called Bailey's Beads, gathered and bubbled around the edges of the Moon's jagged mountain peaks and looked like liquid mercury. Stars became visible for those few moments, as did the planet Mercury, which hung like a small jewel in the sky beneath the Sun.

 

Nothing can prepare you for that moment. No photo can ever do it justice, no words can completely convey all the emotions that you experience or what your eyes actually see. It is like looking into the Eye of God.

 

Physically being a part of that alignment makes you understand just how synchronised this universe is. As I watched the Moon gliding over the Sun, as our planet turned, I felt like I was a both a witness to and a part of a great cosmic clock, and I was watching as the cogs were sliding perfectly into place. It stirred something so deep and ancient within me, my enduring connection to the Sun, and I knew that I could never be the same again. Looking back I realise that the rays of light I was exposing myself to were in fact carriers of particular frequencies that open usually inactive codes within our DNA, often referred to as "junk". What a crock. It's not junk, it's programs and codes that help re-install our Otherware, and we all have it in our DNA.

 

All across the desert, from all the different groups of people scattered around us and beyond our line of sight came cries out to the sky like mine. People cheered, hooted, honked, laughed, screamed, clapped, cried. Dogs howled. Their voices were carried by the outback winds high up into the air where they met and playfully merged with the sounds of others that had come from further away, then they dropped back down to earshot where my ears would catch them, and I could feel their wonder too. We all knew we were part of something infinitely greater than us, that we were seeing something incomparable, that we were part of some vast intelligence that permeates and synchronises the entire Cosmos.

 

The guys were similarly affected and started exclaiming things, which again are hazy. What is clear, is how we all just looked at each other at one point, and with crazed smiles across our faces, spontaneously hugged all at once, laughing. Then they both paced around our site afterwards saying things like, "No one can ever take this away from us. We can say WE WERE HERE", and "We saw it!" We really saw it!" and, "We can never say "Awesome" about anything else again!" I thought statements like these, especially from Gerard, were rather brave, as I couldn't imagine him having outbursts like this very often, and we all went "Yeah!" quite loudly in agreement...and laughing that excited laugh that is almost the same as the one you do when you drink too much red cordial.

 

I thought a lot about the unbelievable relationships of proportional size and distance that it takes to actually create a total solar or lunar eclipse from our vantage point on earth. It is not a coincidence that the sun is 400 times bigger than our Moon, or that it also happens to be 400 times further away from the Moon than the Moon is to Earth. Unsurprisingly, I've wanted to learn a lot about sacred geometry since then and from what the astronomers are saying about the layout of the Universe, it seems nothing has been placed anywhere by accident.

 

At the end of 32 seconds, after the Moon began to move again, the first rays of light emerged again and for the briefest time, we were treated to the dazzling "diamond ring" effect that results. It's what most of the eclipse watchers as their favourite moment and I now know why. We took more photos and continued to watch through the cameras or the on the projector board for at least another half an hour. The Sun had only been 14 degrees above the horizon when totality had occurred so the Sun set quickly as the last whiskers of the pinks and oranges of sunset trailed across the sky. We packed up and left there, as I continued to watch the sky out of the car's back window, for as long as any traces of light remained. By 9:15 they'd all disappeared, having been devoured by the by the encroaching darkness, and we were plunged into night once again.

 

Then I realised I could start looking for UFOs so I spent the next twenty minutes scouring the skies some more.

 

We were all still pretty high from the eclipse experience, but by that time we had settled into our own reveries and the car was silent. We decided to drive down the road a little further until we found a spot to stay at for the night. The guys figured they'd just sleep in the car, and that was fine by me. I was SO glad I'd bought that blanket, let me tell you, as it can get nippy out there in the desert, even in summer. We'd passed some lovely salt lakes on our way there during the day, but hadn't had time to stop so we decided to try and find one to make camp at. Gerard found a great spot down a dip off the road beside one of these giant salt lakes that was quietly shimmering as it reflected the starlight. As there was no moon or cloud, the stars lit up with sparkles over the black canvas of the sky. It had been awhile since I'd been out to the country and I'd forgotten just how many stars there were up there, but it was great to be reminded. I breathed in deeply and imprinted all I could about that moment into my DNA. The Milky Way was looking particularly milky, and when I remembered we had a telescope with us I nearly lost it. I completely forgot all about stargazing that day, which for me is unusual. I'd wanted to bring my own telescope but knew it wasn't practical, and I hardly thought I would get the chance for sky watching without having my own transport.

 

It was becoming more and more evident that our meeting was no accident. Every single thing that I had visualized was coming true, and I felt totally in the zone. The best part was that I could get an astronomy lesson too, something I hadn't even thought remotely possible when I left for Adelaide the night before. I'd only just begun studying backyard astronomy on my own for a few months at that stage, so I really appreciated the opportunity to learn some more from people who actually knew their stuff.

 

We set up a rug to sit on, a buffet was laid out on the boot of the car, and we had a fabulous starlight picnic, then Alan got to work putting the telescope back together. He'd not only painstakingly constructed the box for it, he's also done several clever modifications to the telescope itself. It was incredibly smooth to manoeuvrer and the viewfinder was mounted in such a way that made it permanently aligned to the eyepiece. Not bad compared to my clumsy thing, which was big and had a great lens, but needed constant adjusting.

 

Gerard had a red-light torch for perusing the star map, and between them both they had all the star maps you could wish for, including a current one. I'd brought my Mighty Bright light as well so we consulted the maps for awhile under the open hood of the boot, deciding finally that we should definitely try to get a rare glimpse of the Andromeda galaxy, which was going to be low on the horizon, but still visible for a little while from where we were. It's the closest spiral galaxy to ours, and part of our local system of stars, but it's still 2.2 million light years away!

 

So we began. We looked at binary star systems including Sirius A and B, the Great Square of Pegasus, found Andromeda (it looked amazing, though tiny - but who cares, I saw it with my own eyes), some pretty star clusters, a wild nebula in the Orion constellation, and loads more. We had a ball. I was completely enthralled. Alan turned to me after awhile and asked whether there was anything I would like to see, and I faltered for a minute. I tried to pull a star's name, a constellation, anything from my rather limited astronomical knowledge that I'd like to view. Then I remembered! It slipped off my tongue so easily like it was something I said all the time: "I'd like to see The Pleiades please". With a quick look at the sky map, he and Gerard quickly turned the scope into position and aimed. When Alan told me I could take a look, I put my eye up to the lens. I could not have been less prepared for the reaction that I had next. It all happened in the instant when the photons of light, carried across space for my eyes to see, entered my retina. I was greeted by the most gorgeous display of hundreds of shining points of light, like diamonds on black velvet, in a beautiful cluster formation, with the seven main stars of the constellation contained within my field of view. It was breathtakingly beautiful and I gasped audibly. Within nano-seconds every part of my being, down to my DNA, was resounding with the recollection that the stars I was looking at, were HOME. Yes home. H-O-M-E. What!?@!

 

Tears had welled up in my eyes and I just wanted to cry it was so beautiful, but I had to catch myself in front of the guys, as I didn't want to come across as a complete lunatic. I didn't even know what to think myself. I had to process this. It was happening so fast. So I composed myself and said something like, "Wow. That is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen." (twice in one day, shit, what was happening to me?), and I found it very hard to tear myself away from the telescope after that .

 

We did however move away for awhile, and we all sat around chatting some more, and telling more stories. I didn't speak about what had just happened to me. I just sat with it and tried to make some sense out of it. I really knew very little about them, except that they were also known as the Seven Sisters and were a favourite for stargazers. The Pleiades weren't a part of my research or knowledge base at all. I don't even know how I even remembered the name. Whatever was unfolding though, I knew one thing was undeniable. I must be going insane. NO, just jerkin with ya, sorry, anyway, it was undeniable.

 

Everything in me knew that I was somehow deeply connected to this star system, but how? I resolved to do some investigating when I got home. But that night in the Australian Outback, in my planetary home, I knew that I had remembered another home, a galactic home, and that it was just as real. It thrilled me to the core. I was beginning to remember who I was!

 

Gerard retired early that night, and went to sleep in the driver's seat fully reclined, while Alan and I told a few more stories. I'd asked him earlier in the car if he'd ever seen any UFO's and had hinted at something but didn't really want to discuss it much. But when we were alone I asked him to tell me again and he did, reluctantly at first, but then much more engagingly, as he began describing some unusual sightings he'd had growing up on the coast in New Zealand.

 

These were not some pissy two second glances at a tiny little light in the sky type of sightings, his were skilfully detailed, varied, and in one case he watched some craft over a few hours. He eventually worked out that there must have been a flight path near his home because he would regularly see them all following the same course. Commercial and Air Force planes would also fly past but whenever he would ring Air Traffic Control at any of the Air Force bases or airports, he would be told that it was one of their regular flights, just a bit off schedule. Then he would say, "NO, I saw Flight Number so and so depart on time, this was something else," which always fucked them up. I heard some pretty amazing stuff and realised there was more to this funny computer guy cum action hero, than I thought. It didn't surprise me in the least that we could have something like that in common. I've always been attracted to people that, despite appearances, upon scratching their surface, you find that there's a whole lot more going on with them than you knew.

 

Alan declared he was sleeping outside on the rug, and I stayed up late into the night, just me, the telescope, and the stars. I finally had to go to bed when I looked directly up at the sky overhead a couple hours later, and the black void turned into a flat plasma screen and the stars became eyes, and they were all looking at, Me. That was the limit.

 

I was able to lie down quite comfortably in the back seat if I lay on my side in the Toblerone-shaped wedge that had formed under the reclined seats from the front. I adjusted my pillow, put the blanket over me and slept like a baby.

 

I found out later that the salt lake we were led to is named, quite appropriately, Lake Hart. Heart....geddit? Can you believe it? I actually couldn't. The gods have such a sense of humour.

 

Since then a lot has happened, and my kin in the Pleiades are now a big part of my life. They have taught me so much. I'll write a lot more about them in later posts, trust me.

 

And for the next two and a half days Gerard, Alan and myself ended up staying together. I gave them several opportunities to ditch me, but we were really having a lot of fun, and they would always invite me to stay on. We were well matched intellectually, but we all had quite different worldviews, so it was nice challenge for us to be mutually respectful of each other's ideas while trying to challenge one another as coherently as possible. We spent much time on the road exchanging ideas, trying on stuff for size, or sometimes throwing them in the 'too hard" basket. If Alan slept then Gerard and I would talk about stuff and vice versa. They both worked as computer technicians, which is how they met, and pretty early on it became obvious to me that some of my ideas about reality were pretty hard for them to hear. They were always open-minded enough to let me speak though, and they'd bounce things off me. We talked sporadically about some of the ideas in the CWG books that were relevant to that moment, or about a particular insight I'd had, or how you might apply some of the ideas to your daily living, and it sparked much interest and debate. I found out about a year later that Alan and Gerard had both decided to give the books a read a few months after our trip, which was brilliant.

 

It was always reciprocally enlightening, being in their company. They were an absolute mine of information about all sorts of things and we never ran out of topics to discuss. And it wasn't long before I threw away my return bus ticket and we leisurely drove me around some of the most beautiful South Australian countryside on a very scenic route back to Melbourne. We went through quaint little towns that they'd found on previous jaunts, and I saw the constantly changing landscape from high lookouts and wide open roads.

 

I've experimented with stretching time ever since I first discovered that when you fall in love, you can make a kiss last an eternity. You can also make a boring flight pass more quickly if you get good at it, or create an atmosphere at a party where a deep, lengthy, important conversation that seems to last for hours, passes in only twenty minutes. I've always liked bending and stretching time to suit my needs and on that trip it happened constantly, but it felt out of our hands for the most part, like we were caught in a strange time-warp so we just surrendered to it. "Is that the time?" was something we ended up saying more times than I can remember. And the best part was, it wasn't just me saying it, we all were.

 

We "parked" out the next night in a back street of a village. We got there quite late at night, and parked the car at what appeared to be a dead end street, with no neighbours to annoy. The next morning, we were mildly shocked to discover that we'd parked only a short distance away from the municipal dump! A few curious Jersey cows had congregated at the fence beside the car as well, and from beneath thick eyelashes, they were casually eyeing its sleeping inhabitants. The next night we were in the Barossa Valley, slightly more prepared, and we woke up to a gorgeous view of a hillside covered in rows and rows of lush green grapevines and blue sunny skies.

 

Once we got back to Victoria, we made for the Grampians, where time seemed to bend and take on a mind of its own again. No matter how we tried to stick to a schedule, or drive faster it just seemed to take a really long time to get back to the City. We saw wild deer in the mountains though, which I loved, and we used the drive to delve a little deeper into our exchanges. My cheeks welcomed the break too as they'd begun to ache a little due to all the laughing I'd done over the last few days, and especially that last day. Alan had let loose with some of his real life death-defying adventures at around lunchtime and he had me crying with laughter a few times. He really is Batman if all that stuff is true, and he told them like it was. So at around dusk, the tone changed slightly and I got to hear about a poltergeist that he'd lived with for over a year, and some other pretty far-out stuff that had happened to him. Gerard spent some time wanting to discuss the Akashic Field, so I fielded questions from both of them about that for awhile. We talked about reincarnation, dimensions of reality co-existing in the same space without knowing about each other, consciousness, the astral world, the Noetic Sciences Institute, a whole lot of stuff that I really love and it was a nice way to leave things.

 

We'd gone from being complete strangers to all being deeply transformed in some way by our meeting, in three and a half days. We'd trusted in our flexibility in each moment, and stretched ourselves beyond our normal comfort zones, creating or participating in large and small miracles, so it seemed, at every turn. We used our brains, which came as a great joy to me as I don't get to talk quantum physics with many of my disco friends. It's not their fault I know...but it was a nice change. I also knew that I'd helped to open up their perspective in many ways, as they did for me, in HUGE ways. My heart knew that I had been drawn to them because their soul's urge for change, and expansion, had already begun, by nudging them into unconsciously creating the conditions for me to enter their lives. I'd definitely sent out a call for them too, for the same reasons. The difference was that they had no idea I was coming along. I, on the other hand, had been certain that I would find them.

 

We finally made it back to Melbourne sometime around 9 pm that night. It was a lot later than we all thought we'd be back by, and we'd all been together non-stop for 3 and a half days. On our way home, I told them where I lived and it turned out that Alan lived just around the corner from me! It was nice, as dropping me off didn't pose any inconvenience at all. We swapped numbers and said our farewells amidst bear hugs and kisses goodbye. It was good to be home, back to my bed, but I could've kept going for at least another day if I'd had to. They dropped me off right to my front door.

 

We all knew it was meant to be, and it was.

We've all kept in touch too, Batman, Robin and I.

 

I'm forever in their debt for everything they shared with me, for their kindness and generosity and for behaving like perfect gentlemen the entire time. Men like these are really rare... but if you are one them, you should try going to an eclipse!

© Leanne Boulton, All Rights Reserved

 

Street candid taken in Glasgow, Scotland on a very blustery and showery day. I had been scouting out the best means of portraying the wind and this shot fell nicely into my lap when I saw her crossing the road with her hair flailing around in the gusts. Given the square format treatment and there was some tricky post processing involved to balance her pale complexion and blonde hair into the scene.

Returning from the Newtown Festival, I spotted Miss M with her bright green hair and star tattoos. I asked her if I could take her portrait and am grateful that she obliged. She was in a rush so I only took a few, but I was able to place her where I thought the light would be most effective against her fair complexion.

 

I showed her the portrait and she smiled and have since sent it to her. Thank you Miss M, if you see this I think you are great!

 

Posed Street Portrait of a Stranger

 

Newtown

 

November, 2018

Talking Stacey (Barbie's British friend!) has arrived on the scene, joining the other ‘Talkers’ for a very chatty party in the 1968 ‘World of Barbie’ house! I have other Talking Staceys in blonde and Titian, but this is my latest and mintiest… just love her perfect complexion! ‘Fancy Dancy’ from 1968/69 looks like it was made for her!

I can walk the runway with the best of them. Just look at this svelte figure, and this flawless complexion. Why I'm so bright eyed and bushy tailed I put all the others to shame.

I know because every time I'm here there's paparazzi taking my picture! I can here the click of the camera right now!

A series of images from a walk up to Angle Tarn in the English Lake District National Park on a late winter’s day in 2023 after a surprise, late snowfall.

 

The Dude seeks to improve his complexion.

Not a day for having parties and rejoice, but for remembering and reflecting.

 

👀 www.youtube.com/watch?v=x59kS2AOrGM

 

Luanes World

maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Slice%20of%20Heaven/231/24...

 

Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?

Thou art more lovely and more temperate.

Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,

And summer’s lease hath all too short a date.

Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,

And often is his gold complexion dimmed,

And every fair from fair sometime declines,

By chance or nature’s changing course untrimmed;

But thy eternal summer shall not fade,

Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest;

Nor shall Death brag thou wand’rest in his shade,

When in eternal lines to time thou grow’st:

So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,

So long lives this and this gives life to thee.

(W. Shakespeare - sonnet 18)

Did some minor mesh adjustments to the face as well as some new hair with diff eye colors/textures. Thanks to EK suggesting to use Fair Skin Complexion's wet specular for the face. Mixed it with the goosebump specular as well as added special normalmaps for my breton. Pretty happy with the new look. :)

After photographing the morning launch of several hundred hot-air balloons, I departed from the grassy field and walked along Main Street, the giant pedestrian lane lined with vendors of food and event memorabilia. Eventually, I reached the children’s amusement zone. Along the way, I took some candid street photos. Then I encountered this subject and her friend; my stranger No.78.

 

This is Chelsea, my 79/100 strangers. She is 27 y/o and described herself as, "Intelligent. Likable. Funny." It was Chelsea's eye contact that triggered my approach for a voluntary stranger portrait (flic.kr/p/BbB9H2).

 

When I considered the two women, I was curious if they were sisters or just BFFs. They shared an obvious affinity: I noticed it with their similarly chosen dark plum lipstick shade and the similarity of their elongated oval-shaped faces. Chelsea confirmed theirs was friendship.

 

As with my earlier effort with Cassandra, I wanted a nip of context along with some sky for the portrait background. The blue sky didn't overpower her complexion and I was pleased with the outcome.

 

To view strangers I have photographed and to read the stories from the encounters, visit my submission to the 100 Strangers Flickr Group: flic.kr/s/aHsk9s8ZQb .

 

Images from all participants in the project can be viewed here: 100 Strangers Flickr Group page.

Created with ChatGPT and Kling 3.0

 

Image Prompt - 16:9, 64K, ultra-photorealistic cinematic fine-art photograph. Charly2, a solitary female vampire, walks directly towards the camera along a rain-darkened Gothic street beneath an impossible orchard of glowing crimson blossoms at night. Preserve Charly2's canonical facial identity, delicate oval-heart face, long dark brunette hair and porcelain complexion. Her eyes glow vivid blood-red, with clearly visible crimson irises and dark pupils. Her mouth is OPEN in a fierce, seductive vampire expression, revealing EXACTLY TWO elongated, razor-sharp upper canine fangs in anatomically correct positions. She wears an exquisite black-cherry and velvet-carmine Gothic corset gown with flowing lace sleeves and a sweeping dark skirt. Scarlet petals swirl violently around her, with large foreground petals softly blurred by genuine optical depth of field. Wet cobblestones reflect pools of scarlet light; antique lanterns illuminate wrought-iron fences, while distant Gothic architecture dissolves into rose-coloured mist beneath an immense blood-red moon. Poetic palette: Black Cherry, Scarlet Bloom, Velvet Carmine, Wet Coal, Rose Smoke, Petal Fire. Extreme chiaroscuro, tenebrism, cinematic volumetric moonlight, physically accurate wet surfaces, authentic skin pores, natural hair strands, razor-sharp facial detail, realistic HDR exposure. Phase One XF IQ4 150MP, Schneider Kreuznach 80mm lens, f/5.6, ISO 400, 1/250 sec. Genuine photographic colour science, atmospheric depth, dramatic composition. NO illustration, CGI, 3D rendering, artificial skin, extra figures, text or watermark.

 

Pic and Prompt and Animation by Adrian

Created with ChatGPT

 

Prompt - Leo Prompt: 16:9, 64K ultra-photorealistic CAS2 autumn photograph. Adrian and Charly3 walk hand-in-hand toward camera along a leaf-covered country lane, turning their heads naturally toward each other. Adrian: canonical identity—strong symmetrical masculine face, broad forehead, thick dark brows, deep-set almond brown eyes, straight defined nose, angular jaw, subtle cleft chin, warm olive complexion, natural stubble, thick shoulder-length almost-black wavy hair. Charly3: canonical identity—compact soft oval-heart face, very large pale icy blue-grey/aqua almond eyes with dark limbal rings, refined petite nose, full rose-pink lips, softly rounded high cheekbones, delicate tapered jaw, small rounded chin, fair warm peach-ivory complexion, extremely long dense warm chestnut-auburn S-wave hair. Adrian wears charcoal tailored overcoat, burgundy knit, black trousers and boots; Charly3 wears camel tailored coat, elegant cream knitted midi dress and brown ankle boots. Correct natural 8-head adult proportions. Rustic stone cottage and weathered white picket fences beside the lane, mossy boulders and dense woodland blazing copper, amber, crimson and gold. Low late-afternoon sunlight streams through the canopy, creating luminous rim light, long shadows and glowing leaves. Phase One XF IQ4 150MP, 80mm lens, f/4, ISO 100, 1/250 sec, genuine HDR exposure blending, true optical depth, authentic skin pores, individual hair strands, fabric weave and botanical detail. Cinematic photographic colour science, crisp microcontrast, subtle atmospheric haze. ZERO painting, illustration, CGI or cartoon appearance.

 

Pic and Prompt by Adrian

“Every new day is another chance to change your life.”

————-————-————-——— —-————-———-————-———-

+ Zooby Details +

♦️Zooby Baby Jules – Animesh

♦️ BF. Katie Skin (Come in 2 Complexion / Access Via Zooby Texture Hud)

 

————-————-————-——— —-————-———-————-———-

+ Adult Details +

♦️Head: Letluka – Evolution Bento Head (Update Lelutka EvoX)

♦️Body: Signature– Gianni v4.9

 

♦️Hair:Unorthodox– Volume Hair & Hairbase Mesh/Flexy[Evo X]

 

♦️Eyebrow : [MTS] – Benjamin Eyebrow

♦️Beard : Unorthodox– Kash Beardbase Noir [Evo X ]

Whole seat-ers

Her booty bigger than a Prius

Hella thick, she get it from her mother

Yellow bones and complexion is butter

Dime piece, two nickels

Nipples pokin' out like missiles

He don't make it rain he make it trickle

Me I'm a hustler I make it triple

She a bad one, look at the way she switchin', the way she walk

I don't care if it's real, I don't care if it's bought

I don't discriminate darling you see I'm far from a racist I like 'em Latin, Caucasian, and Black, Arab, and Asian

How you get rid of the baby weight pretty girl your booty bodacious you've been doing your lunges, and crunches, and planks, all of the basics

Tight jeans you can see her camel toe

Slap that ass like I'm fittin' to domino

 

Nothing but an outfit and an OMY pose (Candace 1) <3

My Portfolio links Instagram | Behance | Facebook

 

Its worth a life time Experience to be part of Flower petals Holi at this Temple in Vrindavan.

 

Holi, the Festival of Colours has been celebrated in India since thousands of years and is now also celebrated by various communities of South Asia including non-Hindu communities.

 

While Holi is celebrated in almost every part of India, Holi in Braj is especially famous. Braj is a historical region which covers the area of Mathura, Vrindavan,Barsana,Nandgaon and some nearby areas. Holi here attacts tourists and pilgrims from all over the world because of it’s special customs and traditions. Mathura is the birth-place of Lord Krishna and Vrindavan is the place where he grew up in his childhood.

 

When Krishna was young, he cribbed to his mother about Radha (his friend) being fair while Krishna himself was dark complexioned. His mother (Yashoda) suggested him to colour Radha with colors in a playful manner. Over the years, Krishna from his village Nandgaon used to go to Barsana (Radha’s village) to color Radha and other Gopis. They also used to playfully beat him with sticks. And hence the tradition evolved.

 

www.landvphotography.it

Facebook: www.facebook.com/landvphotography

I think one of the main reasons I was so enchanted by the Generation Girl line as a kid, was the fact that the dolls came with SO much!!! At least, it seemed that way to my younger self. The second looks weren't quite as fabulous as the dolls' main ones, showcased in the other photograph. My favorites were Chelsie and Nichelle's alternate outfits. Nichelle's was so fancy and the white/silver combo was stunning on her dark complexion. I have to say that this mini dress looks way better on my adult purchased Nichelle, with the larger afro variation. Her hair is such a statement on its own. Plus, it masked how shabby this dress actually is for the photo. This outfit was my childhood one--I have yet to find another. Let's just say it is literally falling apart! Chelsie's spare ensemble was practical--denim capris and a tank top. These pieces were some of my most used during play, especially since Chelsie and Tori both shared the same slimmer body mold. She didn't come with any sort of alternate footwear, but these combat boots matched well with both her getups. The other outfits were of equal caliber in my opinion. Ana came with a swimsuit, which was a tad gaudy, but very useful. Tori's extra dress was super stylish, but also ridiculously short. So it was VERY revealing for casual play. I often put her jeans beneath it while Colleen and I were playing with our dolls, so her butt didn't show. Barbie's theater ensemble was so iconic to me, that it didn't matter that the skirt was completely sheer. Even though it isn't all that practical, some of my spare pieces have come in handy over the years (my Solo in the Spotlight repro looks fabulous in it). The only doll whose alternate attire was a complete let down was Lara's. Seriously, a paint smock?!!! That's all you could think of Mattel?!!! I would say that Lara came with more plastic accessories, and that's why she got ripped off in the outfit department. But I really don't feel that she came with any more than the others. Chelsie came with a large microphone and guitar. Nichelle came with makeup and a directors chair. Tori and Ana had oodles of sporty gear, and Barbie had a plethora of film equipment. But I was consoled by the fact that Lara's main outfit was my favorite, as were her plastic accessories. I always made my "main" doll in a game be artistic. Plus, her knit purse, grey pants, sweater, and tank were all so versatile that I got loads of use out of them!

The color mix of her ginger hair and complexion and the necklace had me ask for a picture.

Although I keep having the nagging feeling the portrait would've been better out of direct sunlight.

It was getting excruciating every weekend now. Even though we were playing a relegation struggler in Sunderland, I got a feeling that United would come undone. And I was proven right again.

 

What was devastating was the manner of the loss. We were hardly in the tie. We conceded first but managed to equalise. Came the second half, the complexion of the game changed when Big Sam Allerdyce somehow managed to suss out our tactics.

 

Sunderland played with a higher line and United just couldn't keep hold of the pace. We were behind again, deservedly so in the final 10 minutes. Added to that, we lost Darwin through dislocated shoulder.

 

It looked like the rumour mill would be churning double quick with the latest loss. A lot would be written about the arrival of Mourinho and at the rate we were going, that might just be a relief.

 

Certainly not looking forward to the next game ....

 

Blogged here.

A snow covered scene from up on Dartmoor. I spent a pleasant afternoon with the dog just walking and taking in the stunning scenery which takes on a new complexion when it's covered in snow.

There's something satisfying about being protected from the elements and trudging through virgin snow and taking in the good things in life ..................... certainly beat working for the day anyway,lol..

 

paul_fenn's photos on Flickriver

  

Please do not use my images in any way shape or form without obtaining my written consent.

 

All my images are: © All Rights Reserved

  

Created with ChatGPT

 

Prompt - 16:9, ultra-photorealistic medium-format photograph, MANDATORY ARISA IDENTITY LOCK with exact facial geometry from the avatar guide: small heart-shaped face, porcelain complexion, very large almond-shaped dark brown eyes, delicate straight nose, naturally full lips, soft charcoal-brown brows, signature beauty mark beneath the lower lip slightly right of centre, extremely long black wavy hair, youthful ethereal expression. Arisa kneels in a moonlit meadow gazing tenderly into the golden eyes of a mysterious black cat. Thousands of glowing fireflies drift naturally through realistic grasses, wildflowers and daisies beneath a brilliant harvest moon. Elegant ribbons of natural luminous mist weave gently between ancient trees. In the distance stands a secluded Japanese temple softly illuminated by warm lantern light against blue mountain silhouettes. Physically accurate moonlight, realistic lantern illumination, genuine photographic colour science, authentic botanical realism, natural atmospheric perspective, real optical depth of field, true skin pores, realistic hair strands, IMAX documentary still, Netflix live-action fantasy, National Geographic-quality photography, magical yet completely photographic, no illustration, no CGI, no painterly textures.

 

Pic and Prompt by Adrian

Capturada en el castillo de Piñar: Granada

  

Se trata de un bóvido de menor tamaño que un ciervo y de complexión fuerte y robusta. El macho tiene una cornamienta grande, sin ramificar, que se desvía ligeramente hacia atrás. En la hembra es pequeña y delgada.

Su pelaje, de color pardo grisáceo por el dorso y blanco por el vientre, varía a lo largo del año.

 

El hocico es algo más corto que en la cabra doméstica. Su color de pelo varía desde el gris parduzco al pardo claro.

 

La presencia de barba en los machos, su mayor corpulencia y la gran extensión de manchas negras, les diferencia de las hembras.

 

Los machos miden, entre cabeza y cuerpo, 1,25 m y pesan de 50 a 58 kg. Las hembras miden 1 m y pesan de 30 a 36 kg.

 

La cabra montés habita en bosques y matorrales de alta y media montaña.

 

Sus poblaciones se distribuyen en Sierra de Gredos (Ávila), Puertos de Tortosa-Beceite (Cataluña), sierra madrileña y sierras del sur y este (Sierra Nevada, sierras malagueñas, Cazorla, Segura, etc.).

 

Es una especie polígama. La época de celo es entre noviembre y enero. Es entonces cuando se reúnen machos y hembras. Los machos se comportan agresivamente entre sí y luchan por las hembras. Se alzan sobre las patas traseras, entrechocando las cuernas al caer. El vencedor se hace con un pequeño harén que abandona después de las cópulas.

 

La gestación dura unos 5 meses, y la época de parto es entre abril y julio. Tienen entre una y dos crías, a las que amamanta hasta los seis meses de edad. Posteriormente, si la cría es un macho, abandona a la madre y se une a los otros machos.

 

Es una especie de hábitos diurnos en invierno, y se va haciendo nocturna en el verano. Tímida y tranquila, tiene un gran olfato y oído. Está dotada para andar entre rocas y saltar por paredes casi verticales o incluso hielo.

 

Muy gregario, forma grupos numerosos bien de hembras y crías o bien de machos. Aunque no migra, realiza largos viajes erráticos durante el invierno.

 

Entre los enemigos destacan los perros asilvestrados y los lobos, aunque éstos últimos actualmente ocupan áreas bastante alejadas de los territorios de las cabras montesas.

 

Devora indiscriminadamente cualquier materia vegetal, como hierbas, líquenes, cortezas, brotes y frutos. Con frecuencia lamen la sal que los pastores suministran al ganado.

   

Maiko (apprentice geisha) Tondaya Yachiyo of Osaka.

 

“All the girls of the [Tondaya] geisha house are not only beautiful in their figure and complexion, but also very graceful in their action and behaviour.”

 

From “The Story of the Geisha Girl” by Taizo Fujimoto, first published in 1917.

 

Near the 'Grave of the Yellow Men' at Kilbaha, Co Clare, Ireland - July 2020.

[Note: In the 1700s a ship foundered in this bay and 9 sailors from it were drowned. Because of their complexion they were known as the yellow men. It is likely they came from the Iberian peninsula (Spain or Portugal) rather than anywhere in the Far East.]

 

Noon 45W Pinhole Camera. Fomapan 100 4x5 inch film.

Hermine <3

 

For Tiina :)

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Prompt 1 - 16:9 64K ultra-photorealistic Netflix cinematic movie still featuring ADRIAN with his mandatory locked facial identity: strong symmetrical masculine face, broad forehead, thick straight dark eyebrows, deep-set almond dark-brown eyes, straight defined nose, full masculine lips, sharp angular jaw with subtle cleft chin, warm olive complexion, natural stubble, medium-long almost-black dark-brown wavy hair swept naturally back with loose strands. Adrian stands completely human in a relaxed natural pose beside a moonlit mountain lake, hands casually in pockets, wearing a slightly rumpled open-collar white cotton shirt with rolled sleeves and fitted dark trousers. Preserve the dramatic I Wolf location: enormous luminous full moon behind turbulent clouds, jagged snow-dusted mountain peaks, dense ancient pine forest, magnificent waterfall plunging into the reflective lake, wet rocks, drifting mist and silver moonlight shimmering across the water. Genuine live-action photography, realistic skin pores, individual hair strands, authentic cotton weave, physically accurate water and wet-rock reflections, cinematic blue-black nighttime colour grade, subtle film grain, natural lens rendering, volumetric mist, true optical depth, realistic HDR exposure, dramatic moonlit rim lighting, premium Netflix supernatural-horror film still, ULTRA SHARP ULTRA CRISP DETAIL, absolutely no illustration, painting, digital art or CGI appearance, no text, logos, signatures or watermark.

 

Prompt 2 - 16:9 64K ultra-photorealistic cinematic dark-fantasy photograph of ADRIAN in the final terrifying stage of transforming into a colossal werewolf beneath an enormous full moon. Preserve Adrian’s locked masculine identity beneath the transformation: powerful angular facial structure, dark brown eyes, strong jaw and long wet dark-brown hair. His massively muscular torso is covered with emerging coarse black fur, rain-slick skin, veins, scratches and torn remnants of clothing. His face remains recognizably Adrian yet violently lupine: elongated muzzle beginning to form, pointed ears, blazing amber eyes and mouth opened in a ferocious howl revealing enormous realistic canine fangs. Both arms terminate in huge anatomically convincing wolf-like hands with five articulated fingers and long curved black claws. He stands beside a moonlit mountain river surrounded by ancient pine forest, jagged peaks and a distant waterfall. Colossal moon illuminating turbulent clouds, silver-blue rim light, wet reflections, drifting mist, deep cinematic shadows, physically realistic skin, fur, water and fabric, extreme atmospheric depth, IMAX horror-film still, ULTRA SHARP ULTRA CRISP DETAIL, no text, logos, signatures or watermark.

 

Pics, Prompts and Animation by Adrian

Gad, two passes in one day to shoot the very tree with the terrible sense of location, location, location. This is the third of my rock-splitting ponderosa shots. The day is changing complexion and that warrants another shot. The sky is starting to look ominous. I am still avoiding that summons from The Donald, Inc. with this series. But then, The Don, gropester in charge, gives such wonderful gifts that keep on grifting. Ah, there is so little reality left for reality media, it is almost unreal! What a concept, pay only lawyers to bash labor and small contractors; rip suckers for fake university educations; buy pageants for new groping territory! Sounds like the perfect scams especially for the premier narcissist. What? Once groped, permanently quiet, really? Was he a scholar of the Bill Cosby school but uses different drugs? I think it is a bad thought to challenge Hillary with drug tests. We knew that he would never debate Bernie; chickens are always uncomfortable around someone named Sanders. Think it through before opening the pie hole, more bad advice probably. Whoosh, I am starting to feel really sorry for the damage done to his own family. It will be interesting how this will play out as he continually emboldens his gropees who come out of what he thought was permanent obscurity. I'm waiting for the final and ultimate explosion. Should be bonkers!

 

Rentless onward as stated by the late great Walt Kelly. Everyone wants to be in pictures! Here is another shot that I refuse to pump for effect and probably don't need to anyway. Here we are again on the Peak to Peak Highway bypass above Peaceful Valley and Cave Creek. We usually pause to snap the dwarf, stunted ponderosa pine atop the rock. I've shot it before, myself. The sky cooperated with some outrageous skies to aid in defining the tree that could eventually split the rock, Time and Pressure. Time and pressure! And that, of course, will be it's own destruction if it hasn't sunk roots to actual ground.

 

eDDie and I headed back north on Peak to Peak Scenic highway. We retraced our path back north and ended up at Estes for a roll down the canyon. We always hope for good skies when foraging but this is a bit much. They say the bear, like clouds, came over the mountain to see what he could see. There are laws against feeding wildlife up here and I sincerely hope the wildlife concurs.

 

eDDie usually stops at his rock of aegis on our way past and this stop gave us wonderful skies if a complex light range. I shot for the bright sky. We tightened our hiking boots and had already packed mass quantities of captures on our cards. Ahh, why not another foray?

 

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What's amazing to me here is that there is no real "skin retouch " here .......just a little contrast reduction , what an amazing complexion ....

.MILA. - ARIA skin

 

Two faces, one aesthetic soul: ARIA skin by .MILA. reveals its versatility between the intense allure of amber complexion, deep gaze, and golden details, and the ethereal freshness of pale skin, dotted with freckles and framed by shiny copper. Digital elegance that captures every light and emotion.

 

.MILA. - ARIA skin: tone 07 and 04 (worn on Camila LeLUTKA head).

 

Ty Mila Vanila for your fantastic work. ❤️

 

Now at Dubai Event:

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Inworld Mainstore:

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Other outfit details on my BLOG:

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"She was the king's prized daughter, the most breathtaking and sought-after bride in the five kingdoms. Her father knew well her worth, as her hand could permanently unite his family with any other he desired. She was a guarantee of unimaginable power and wealth for all his posterity, if and only if her flawlessness remained untainted.

  

Not willing to risk marring such a valuable commodity, the king took to extreme measures. He had his daughter wrapped tightly in enchanted silk. This magical cloth was perfectly transparent yet magically resistant to any and all impairments. She was locked in the spire of the inner keep, a sheltered room without a single window for fear of light tarnishing her incomparably fair complexion. There she spent each day and night, her food and drink brought in and out, awaiting the day when her matrimonial sale would be completed.

  

Her solitude and protective garment led her to feel estranged from servants and kin alike. She took her only solace in the roses her maid brought her from the royal garden. She delicately wrapped them in the same enchanted silk she wore, gently encasing each petal. They became her hope and comfort, sharing her burden and partaking in her lonesome plight." -M.D. Walter

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...more previews of shots to come of this beauty!

This is Christianna Milogianaki who runs Christiannas Restautant in Chania, the second city of Crete. The cooking is done by her mother and Christianna does the serving and everything else. The food is fabulous - real Greek food at its very best, and great value to boot.. Don't take my word for it - just look at the reviews on TripAdvisor here www.tripadvisor.ie/ShowUserReviews-g189415-d3684987-r1643...

Christianna's is locarted along the sea front but east of the main port area, about 5 minutes walk along the front and at the 'far' end of the row of reataurants located there.

Christiana has perfect English so there are no communication issues as she can explain everything about their Greek cousine. My suggestion is to go with her suggestions!

The other thing is that you never know who you might meet there - I met a professional photographer who told me he takes photographs of pretty ladies - producing a Pirelli Calendar being one of the things on his CV!

was number one on explore!!

 

lila is a kindergarten beauty....check out her gorgeous eyes in the large view!!

for everyone who wonders or asks, lila is not wearing makeup - those thick eyelashes and peachy complexion are au naturel! she is wearing marykate and ashley lipgloss on her naturally rosy lips. she is a kindergartener in every sense of the word....she just happens to be beautiful!!

Even though Barbie has had many different looks over her time, many see the image of Barbie indelibly linked to that late 70’s American beauty ideal of cascading blonde hair, blue eyes, a snub nose and a wide toothy grin (which pretty much appeared on all the TV shows and fashion magazine covers of the day, in the form of Cheryl Ladd, Farrah Fawcett, Cheryl Tiegs, Christie Brinkley, Nancy Donahue, Kelly Emberg and Patti Hansen) … and of course, she had that ‘peaches and cream’ (Caucasian!) complexion. But fashion wasn’t just showing the one blonde/blue-eyed ideal back then. Some of my favourite models from that era were non-Caucasian, like Iman, Dalma, Pat Cleveland, Beverly Johnson, Anna Bayle, Peggy Dillard, Marie Helvin, Katoucha and a host of others. When the ‘Dolls Of The World’ collection was released around that time, Barbie finally started appearing in different ethnicities, as with ‘Oriental’ Barbie in 1980… the first doll to have a dedicated Asian facial sculpt that was used for many dolls afterward. I find this gal is particularly striking, especially with that beautifully soft, hazy, early 80’s makeup! (Get her for that alone!!!) I also love the illustration of her on the side of the box that you can see here. (NRFB ones are still very reasonably priced, so she’s great when your funds are low and you are itching to get something!) Her outfit is also quite beautiful and also very much of the fashion of the time, which thanks to YSL et al, was going through a very ‘Chinoiserie’ moment back then. (My mother had a brocade jacket very much like hers back in 1980!)The social media peanut gallery would cry ‘Cultural Appropriation!’ in a fit of rage nowadays, but we must remember it was a different time back then. I substituted the clear ‘diamond’ jewellery she originally wore with a spare set of Fashion Photo Barbie’s ‘ruby’ and gold jewellery I had as I think it went better with her outfit.

 

Another doll that appeared at that time was the first ‘Black’ Barbie…. Of course, Barbie had many African American friends before then (and even a ‘relative’ in now highly sought after ‘Black Francie’ from 1967/68,) but this was the first time Barbie herself represented African American beauty. Her hair is very easy to style, (I flicked it back to get those very 70’s ‘wings’ just by brushing the hair around my finger… the hair pick/comb she comes with also works very well to fluff up that ‘do!) And you can change her earrings from that red sculpted stud to the long spiral drops, or to the hoops you see here. I love her outfit, too… very ‘Disco’! Even though she uses the Caucasian Steffie sculpt, (as some other AA dolls did before her, like the various Caras and Christies) her makeup is also very softly and warmly coloured and quite beautiful,(much softer than in the repros I have seen) … and she has the double ‘reflector’ dots in her eyes which reminds me of the old Avedon-lensed American Vogue covers from back then. Even though I love these gals’ original outfits, I can’t wait to dress them up in some of the fashions of that time, as I think they will look smashing in practically everything! (And yes… I am already on the hunt! :P )

 

Okay, I’m a man. I know I’m a man and I’m not unhappy with my male life and yet I have this desire to spend time as a woman. There are many men who like to dress as women and I’m certainly one of them. Why do I do it? Well, I’m sure that’s the question may cross-dressers will have asked themselves. I can’t really answer the question clearly myself but there are things I know for certain. For certain, I like on occasion, to try and be feminine. The idea of being perceived as a female is something I really like. As a teenager I was very keen on being a convincing girl. I loved the idea of being seen as a female and being called she and her, it felt so good.

 

I also know I really love make-up. I love to apply make-up to my face and experiment with it and I really love wearing it for long periods of time. I also love the thrill of being a man and daring to pluck my eyebrows in favour of looking more female. I love shaving my legs, chest and arms and get quite a thrill and sense of elation in doing this and having smooth legs and arms. I do not like having a hairy chest so I’m always delighted and thrilled to shave it all off.

 

I also love the feminine shape and I like adjusting my physicality as much as possible to look female though I do require physical extras such as breast forms and hip shapers. I also really love to tuck away my male genitals and have the freedom and delight of wearing proper female underwear. By this point having been plucked, shaved and added my body shaping garments and dressed in female underwear I do feel the man beginning to slip away and something else being set free within me on an emotional level.

 

Sitting I front of a mirror and beginning to paint on my make-up is always a moment of intense excitement and freedom. I realise at this stage I love to become a woman and I want nothing male to exist within me. As I brush mascara onto my lashes, soften my eyeliner which I’ve drawn on, see my complexion smoothed out by the foundation make-up I get a real thrill of delight painting and glossing my lips with creamy ;lipstick. By this stage I cannot get my wig on fast enough! Putting on the wig totally takes me to a whole new place both in terms of joy, excitement and adventure, I feel I’m no longer a man.

 

By this stage being a woman feels so right that I enjoy putting on my tights (pantyhose), getting into a dress and finally stepping into my high heels. I then enjoy a period of painting my nails, adding ear rings and jewellery and the final flourish of dabbing on perfume. I have ceased to be man, I am now the woman I like to become.

 

All kinds of fantasy scenarios kick off in my head at this point, I find myself wanting to simply head out for a cffe in a cafe, visit a gallery, meet up with female friends, maybe even catch the eye of a man who thinks I am a woman. I often wonder how it would be to go out for dinner as a woman or be the woman alongside a man.

 

I have often said I am not homosexual, and if I’m totally honest, I do not find men attractive yet the desire within me to make it as a woman in the real world does wonder if I was next to a man would I pass as a woman? I have no idea!

 

There are aspects to me that also play into my reasons for crossdressing as a woman. I always liked female impersonators of old who were performers that created convincing illusions of actually being women and performing as women on stage. The audience knew they were actually men but there feminine illusions were so good it was a marvel to believe they were men so good did they look as women. I loved it! I too wanted to try this as a career. Entertainers such as Dany la Rue and Stanley Baxter made playing female characters mainstream and took female impersonation out of the club scene to wide audiences that enjoyed how they played female characters. I was in awe a man could do this and be so confident to have a job that involved dressing up as a woman and wearing make-up, amazing dresses and shoes and be widely accepted.

 

Part of me still has the suppressed performer burning within me and I would love to walk out on stage as a convincing looking woman one day and act as if I was female. Another part of me does want to be a woman completely. I think I am definitely a man who is part transsexual but also with a love of crossdressing as a woman. The transformation process is always fun and exciting yet emotionally I do cross a threshold once I am in my make-up, wig and wearing female clothing, I definitely cease feeling I’m male. I like it! I do though, get a thrill from the knowledge I’m a man pretending to be female. I will happily cast off all my masculine side to embrace this pursuit of passing convincingly as a woman. That’s why I think I need to behave like a woman when seen next to men. I see as part acting (which I enjoy), part freeing the female I desire to be and part dare I actually do this when I’m not attracted to men. I think playing the part convincingly is an exciting performance challenge. Can I really behave and come across as an heterosexual female? I have no idea!

 

I do want to be perceived as a woman when I dress as one so I need to definitely work on my behaviour and mannerisms and emotional reactions. It’s a daring adventure I’m excited to ry and see how well. Do. I think as a woman I am actually a lesbian as I adore women and definitely find them attractive. I also wish I was one of them. I enjoy how emotionally liberated I become when I dress as a woman. I feel nicer within myself, I feel I cry easily as a woman, I’m more caring, softer, more tactile and generally just a lot happier.

 

At some point the illusion has to end, I have to remove my make-up, take off my wig, take off my female clothing and return to being a man. It can be difficult doing this as returning to the male after time as my female persona is quote an emotional shift. The point comes though where the woman slipway and the man rises to the surface again. I find myself smiling and happy for long periods after each period I spent as a woman. The sheer joy and delight and undeniable thrill of knowing I became a woman, albeit briefly, is an experience that is hard to quell.

 

I do often find myself musing that it’s amazing to be aware that despite living as a man I do get be a female now and again. I am aware I am indulging myself in my own fantasies as I am not a real woman and have not lived my life as a female. I have no real idea of the realities women face in daily life. I am, as I described, merely an illusion. I am dressing up and pretending and I am, I admit, favouring the hyper feminine over the daily reality of being a female. Not all women go around in full make-up, dresses and heels all day. I know men such as me are on the whole despised by many in society and I also fear my joy of being a part time woman, well my illusion, may offend women. I have no desire to offend women but I have to acknowledge I do have a deep desire to become woman and occasional crossdressing is my only outlet to express this part of myself.

the Apricot Kernels Nonsense

 

In November, 1921, a great English physician, Sir Robert McCarrison (after whom the McCarrison Society for Nutrition and Health is named), visited the USA at the invitation of the University of Pittsburgh, to deliver the annual sixth Mellon Lecture before the Society for Biological Research.

 

The subject of his paper was “Faulty Food in Relation to Gastro-Intestinal Disorders,” and its salient points centered on the marvelous health and robustness of the Hunzas, who dwell on the northwestern border of what was then British India (now Pakistan).

 

The sturdy, mountaineer Hunzas are a light-complexioned race of people, much fairer of skin than the natives of the northern plains of India. They claim descent from three soldiers of Alexander the Great who lost their way in one of the precipitous gorges of the Himalayas. They always refer to themselves as Hunzukuts and to their land as Hunza, but ignorant modern writers insist on calling the people Hunzas.

 

Most of the people of Hunza are Ismaili Muslims, followers of His Highness the Aga Khan. The local language is Brushuski. Urdu and English are also understood by most of people.

 

The Hunza valley is one of huge glaciers and towering mountains, below which are ice-fields, boulder-strewn torrents and frozen streams.

 

The lower levels are transformed into verdant gardens in summertime. Narrow roads cling to the crumbling sides of forbidding precipices, which present sheer drops of thousands of feet, with many spots subject to dangerously recurrent bombardments of rock fragments from overhanging masses.

 

The Hunzas live on a seven-mile line at an elevation of five or six hundred feet from the bottom of a deep cleft between two towering mountain ranges. Some of the glaciers in this section of the world are among the largest known outside the Arctic region. The average height of the mountains is 20,000 feet, with some peaks, such as Rakaposhi, which dominates the whole region, soaring as high as 25,000—a spectacle of breath-taking beauty, too steep to hold snow and usually scarfed by clouds.

 

Because of the scarcity of food, supplies and transport, the region is closed to the general public and special permission is required to enter it. Travellers to the region have thus been few but those who have seen the wonder of Hunza have returned with glowing tales of the charm and buoyant health of this people.

 

Snow is a constant factor; long winters keep the entire population more or less housebound for several months at a time. Yet in summer the mercury may climb to 95 degrees in the shade.

 

For months in the winter the landscape is all one drab, monotonous, monochromatic stretch of grey houses, apricot trees, fields and walls, all are of a uniformly dingy and depressing gray, with lifeless, low-hanging clouds.

 

Then in life miraculously returns and color is reborn in the rich greens and yellows of the crops and trees. Leading the explosion of awakening, the apricot blossoms in spring stud the landscape with a riot of pastel-tinted pink and white, in vast profusion.

 

However, it’s not all about the landscape and crops; Sir Robert McCarrison and other travelers who have visited the Hunza-land, have all been particularly impressed by its atmosphere of peace and by the splendid health and amiability of its people.

 

Cancer researchSo vibrant was the health of those Hunzas with whom McCarrison came into contact that he reported never having seen a case of asthenic dyspepsia, or gastric or duodenal ulcer, of appendicitis, mucous colitis or cancer. Cases of over-sensitivity of the abdomen to nerve impressions, fatigue, anxiety or cold were completely unknown.

 

The prime physiological purpose of the abdomen, as related to the sensation of hunger, constituted their only consciousness of this part of their anatomy.

 

McCarrison concluded this part of his lecture by stating, “Indeed, their buoyant abdominal health has, since my return to the West, provided a remarkable contrast with the dyspeptic and colonic lamentations of our highly civilized communities.”

 

In fact the Hunzas are not perfect: there is one tiny aspect of ill-health. They seem to suffer from eye disorders that are due to the lack of stoves and chimneys. A fire is made in the middle of the floor and the smoke escapes from a small hole in the roof. The gathering smudge in the air is a constant irritant to their eyes.

 

McCarrison was otherwise amazed at the health and immunity record of the Hunzas, who, though surrounded on all sides by peoples afflicted with all kinds of degenerative and pestilential diseases, still did not contract any of them.

 

Travelers who have lived and worked with the Hunzas are unanimous in praising their general charm, intelligence, and physical stamina.But the Hunzas were not entirely a benign or benevolent people, by our standards. There is a paradox here.

 

In his Mellon Lecture McCarrison told us, “They (the Hunzas) are unusually fertile and long-lived, and endowed with nervous systems of notable stability.

 

Their longevity and fertility were, in the case of one of them, matters of such concern to the ruling chief that he took me to task for what he considered to be my ridiculous eagerness to prolong the lives of the ancients of his people, among whom were many of my patients.

 

The operation for senile cataract appeared to him a waste of my economic opportunities, and he tentatively suggested instead the introduction of some form of lethal chamber, designed to remove from his realms those who by reason of their age and infirmity were no longer of use to the community.”

 

But there is no questioning the physical fitness and stamina of this race of men. One writer, R. C. F. Schomberg, commented, “It is quite the usual thing for a Hunza man to walk sixty miles at one stretch, up and down the face of precipices to do his business and return direct.” This author passed through the Hunza country many times. He describes how his Hunza servant went after a stolen horse “and kept up the pursuit in drenching rain over mountains for nearly two days with bare feet.”

 

Schomberg also tells of seeing a Hunza in mid-winter make two holes in an ice pond, repeatedly dive into one and come out at the other, with as much unconcern as a polar bear.

 

Sir Aurel Stein records a trip of 200 miles made on foot by a Hunza messenger, a journey that imposed the obstacle of crossing a mountain as high as Mont Blanc. The trip was accomplished in seven days and the messenger returned fresh looking and untired, as if it had been a common, everyday occurrence. The word “tired” does not seem to exist in their lexicon.

 

In the Journal of the Royal Society of Arts for January 2, 1925, Sir Robert McCarrison wrote: “The powers of endurance of these people are extraordinary; to see a man of this race throw off his scanty garments, revealing a figure which would delight the eye of a Rodin, and plunge into a glacier-fed river in the middle of the winter, as easily as most of us would take a tepid bath, is to realize that perfection of physique and great physical endurance are attainable on the simplest of foods, provided these be of the right kind.”

 

Now we are getting down to the real message.

 

McCarrison postulated four main reasons in explanation of their fabulous health. I think it both interesting and advisable to give them all in his own words. He said:

 

1) “Infants are reared as Nature intended them to be reared–at the breast. If this source of nourishment fails, they die; and at least they are spared the future gastrointestinal miseries, which so often have their origin in the first bottle.”

McCarrison is absolutely in tune with (or rather modern holistic and food experts like me are in tune with HIM!), in saying that if anything other than Mother’s colostrum is put in the infant’s mouth at birth, disastrous food intolerances follow, as night follows day.

 

2) “The people live on the unsophisticated foods of Nature: milk, eggs, grains, fruits and vegetables. I don’t suppose that one in every thousand of them has ever seen a tinned salmon, a chocolate or a patent infant food, nor that as much sugar is imported into their country in a year as is used in a moderately sized hotel of this city in a single day.”

I’m surprised at the dairy but raw milk fans will make a lot of this. But the number one here is, without question, NO SUGAR and not the apricots!

 

No manufactured food is also crucial. Never never eat anything that doesn’t look the way Nature created it (and never never eat anything that Monsanto and similar biotech companies have had their dirty hands on).

 

3) “Their religion (Islam) prohibits alcohol, and although they do not always lead in this respect a strictly religious life, nevertheless they are eminently a tee totalling race.”

(Colonel Lorimer says that the Hunzas occasionally drink a little wine at festivals. Alcohol is not forbidden to Ismalai Mohammedans, but in Hunza the distilling of alcohol has been prohibited in recent years, since McCarrison’s time). So a little quiet wine drinking seems to be no big hazard, if everything else is in place.

 

4) “Their manner of life requires the vigorous exercise of their bodies.”

No surprise here; we know that staying active is an essential part of health and definitely does protect from cancer.ers take note.

 

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There are two large statues of the creatures that go by the name of Thotsakhirithon. One is emerald green and the other one a creamy yellow. The yaksha or the guardian of the Hindu and Buddhist lore is called a yak in Thai and is to be found in fine figurative proportions compared to say Cambodia and Java where they have a squatter, bulkier and in a kneeling down position.

 

The yakshas are very ornately covered with colored stones and paintwork and stand tall and imposing in the temple complex.

 

It was difficult to shoot straight on because of too many tourists. This shot is a part of a panorama that I had to resort to. Well the panorama is still not done. One of these days I will put it up.

  

_DSC4058 nef

  

so different...yet the same. Both models are from Africa. As children, one was forced out of that continent for her really really light complexion. The other ridiculed in North America for her dark skin.

 

sb800 camera left reflected in an umbrella, gridded sb600 camera right behind models both fired by CLS

 

www.ORANGEphotography.ca

Cecile was selling colorful handbags at the marketplace. As I passed by I saw her in her lovely red hat, which contrasted so beautiful against her dark hair and fair complexion. As soon as I picked up my camera she saw me and posed so naturally like she had been modelling all her life. I had to shoot at once. A few months later I saw her in another marketplace and other town. This time I had a longer chat with her and showed her the photo from my Iphone. She was so excited and asked for the photo. Of course we changed email addresses and she got her photo as I promised.

 

This was a brief encounter but a fine example of how we can meet total strangers and communicate with the help of a camera. This is why I love this project so much. I have an excuse (to take a photo) to talk to people and can learn much about their lives. It brings the world nearer and it is not so frightening any more.

 

My recipe for world peace is therefor: TALK TO EACH OTHER!

 

This picture is #52 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at the 100 Strangers Flickr Group page