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Have you contemplated your home star recently? Featured here, a Sun partially eclipsed on the top left by the Moon is also seen eclipsed by earthlings contemplating the eclipse below. The spectacular menagerie of silhouettes was taken in 2012 from the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area near Page, Arizona, USA, where park rangers and astronomers expounded on the unusual event to interested gatherers. Also faintly visible on the Sun's disk, just to the lower right of the dark Moon's disk, is a group of sunspots. Although a partial solar eclipse by the Moon is indeed a good chance to contemplate the Sun, a great chance -- and one that is significantly more rare -- will occur next week when the Sun undergoes a partial eclipse by the planet Mercury. via NASA ift.tt/26H6BBR
BOX DATE: 2004
MANUFACTURER: Mattel
DOLLS IN PACK: Mary-Kate, Ashley
BODY TYPE: 2001; pink painted panties; bend & snap legs; thinner legs & feet; flat feet
HEAD MOLD: 2002 Dual Ent Grp "Teen Mary-Kate"
***The doll on the right is wearing 2003 Getting There Fashions At the Airport #B2797.
PERSONAL FUN FACT: I always contemplated buying this set in stores, but when they came out, I was starting to drift away from dolls. I remember on one occasion I almost cracked and asked Dad for this set while at Toys 'R' Us. Not getting the New York Minute set was one of the doll related decisions I always regretted. I stalked the pair on eBay when I first got back into dolls, in 2011, but with no avail. I also routinely checked for it online over the years, hoping to catch a reasonable deal. I think that this set appeals to many collectors as it is Mary-Kate's first appearance with brown hair (although she has a lot of blonde in it too). For me, I was drawn to Mary-Kate for several reasons--number one, the brown hair. Number two, she was wearing a super cool outfit, one that I would totally have worn myself. And number three, the dolls based on the films were always my favorite to collect, even if I didn't care for the movie itself. I admit that New York Minute is one of my least favorite Mary-Kate and Ashley productions--there is a lot of pointless towel wearing and cheesy scenes in the film. I prefer their lower budget movies that had less action (although equally as corny). Of course, New York Minute is strangely one of the most memorable films, even if it is one of my least favorites. Of all the Mary-Kate and Ashley dolls I was missing, this set was the one I wanted most. One Sunday in 2013, my dream finally came true. Colleen and I were perusing tables at the local flea market, hunting for new dolls. I spotted Mary-Kate (the doll on the right) on a table, wearing Barbie clothes, for just $1. I almost left Ashley behind, but fortunately doubled back for her when I realized who she must be. Okay, so even though Mary-Kate is kind of the token doll from this set, what with her hair color and awesome outfit, Ashley is honestly prettier in my opinion. I was super grateful to finally have a set of these dolls, even if they weren't perfect. Mary-Kate was childhood desire that finally materialized nearly ten years later.
As I mentioned before, I did stalk this set continuously over the years. While I didn't hunt for it as often as say American Girl Caroline's Work Dress, Mary-Kate and Ashley dolls were one of the few things I checked eBay for every so often. Although I saw very little of the New York Minute pack in stores, it is one of the most common to find online...not for a reasonable price though. In March of 2021, I randomly thought I'd check Mary-Kate and Ashley stuff out on eBay. I happened to catch a streak of luck. I first found an excellent deal on my School Style Giftset, then I found a few fashion packs, and finally a lot with the New York Minute dolls was listed. What appealed to me (and my sister) about this particular listing was the fact that it had the boxed New York Minute dolls AND three boxed fashions. I had a gut feeling that these were MY dolls. Nobody bid on the listing for nearly a week, despite the fact that there were nine people watching. Since the bid was ending on a Tuesday afternoon when I'd be out work/driving Colleen to her second job, I wasn't sure how I'd win this set. Since the seller had a "make offer" button (it wasn't a "Buy It Now" scenario), we decided to go for it. The seller waited until the last hour before the offer expired and then accepted it. Apparently they were hoping someone would bid. But everyone watching probably thought they weren't going to have any competition and were waiting till the last minute. We had offered made an offer that was about $25 more than the set bid price. I figured if nine people watched and bid, it could easily have increased the bid to close to $25 on the day the listing ended. I was surprised nobody else had the same thought we did to make an offer...considering people paid $150 plus ALONE for a boxed set of these dolls (and that happened rather often). This formerly boxed Mary-Kate, on the left, is even prettier than my used doll. Maybe it works in her favor that she has her original outfit. But her face paint is so gorgeously done! I would still love to find an original outfit for my used lady someday too.
I see so many people using Instagram these days, with so many (and I'm hesitant to say it) ... really bad pictures. So I finally installed the app tonight and played around with it. It definitely can be a cool tool, but I think it really takes some thought and effort into how the filters and effects benefit or improve the photo you're sharing, and in many cases, they don't. I scoured my pics for a bit until I put together this frame, which brings out the contrast of my black pup with the blue blanket, while blurring out the rest of the shot to give her an eye-catching sharpness. It's not really my type of thing, but this one did turn out pretty well.
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"Oh life, it's bigger, It's bigger than you and you are not me. The
lengths that I will go to, the distance in your eyes. Oh no, I've
said too much, I've said enough. That's me in the corner, That's
me in the spotlight, Losing my religion" - REM
Watching the snow monkeys at the Jigokudani monkey park near Nagano was fascinating. They seem so human, often lost in thought - I guess that's a big part of their appeal.
Random shot of Thing One while she was out in the yard and I had the long lens on unsuccessfully trying and catch the finches that have been visiting the bird feeders. Played a bit with some cross-processing for a change, too, since it seemed to fit the shot.
Nikon D7000 w/Sigma 150-600mm @ 550mm, 1/750s @ Æ’/6.3, ISO400. Color finishing in Adobe Lightroom and Nik Viveza.
Thousands of years ago. This spot that l am standing was under a sheet of ice one to two miles thick. After thousands of years. The planet warmed. The Glaciers receded ( thank heavens Greta Thurmberg wasn't around.....How dare they) . Anyways. What was left were the Great lakes. And the surface before being plains likes became what is is now. Rolling hills and carved rock.
Millions of years from now who knows what it will look like. And a billion after that. The sun will Nova and everything on earth will be gone or charred. A barren rock orbiting a tiny collapsed star. No moon, no anything.
I think about all this when I'm alone looking over the Big Pond.
And l say to myself. Thank you Lord for letting me experience the world now. How glorious it is. And there are things l can't control. Only observe. And years from now I'll be gone. And someone else will be standing on this same ground thinking the same thing. So the thought will be there. Just not the body. Just like the Indian who stood here hundreds of years ago.
What's all this mean. Life is short. Don't wait until it's almost over to discover that which was under your nose the whole time.
"Thinking with a feather
Moving it round the surface
It contemplates with me
Flowing, helping me make decisions
Lines carved deep within the metal
Waiting for the ink to be pushed into them
They will tell my story forever to be seen
Will someone read my story the way i drew it?
or will they bring their own visions to mine creating a merger of lives?"
- My Subconcious Thoughts