View allAll Photos Tagged Declarative
"In Hawaii, every sunset is a painting, and every wave is a song."
-- Unknown
-- Technical Information (or Nerdy Stuff) --
‧ Camera - Nikon D7200 (handheld)
‧ Lens – Nikkor 18-300mm Zoom
‧ ISO – 500
‧ Aperture – f/4.2
‧ Exposure – 1/2500 second
‧ Focal Length – 30mm
The original RAW file was processed with Adobe Camera Raw and final adjustments were made with Photoshop CS6.
"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~Jeremiah 29:11
The best way to view my photostream is through Flickriver with the following link: www.flickriver.com/photos/photojourney57/
Hereby, I declare that the northern lights season has started for the winter 2012-2013 :)
Last night .
I declare February LOVE, romance and beauty month.
For PEACE, always..
The meaning of mandala comes from Sanskrit meaning "circle."
Even though it may be dominated by squares or triangles, a mandala has a concentric structure. Mandalas offer balancing visual elements, symbolising unity and harmony.
The goal of the mandala is to serve as a tool on our spiritual journey as it symbolises cosmic and psychic order.
The Hindus were one of the first people to use a mandala as a spiritual tool, but the mandalas most individuals are familiar with, are ones made by Buddhists.
These duo-toned roses are small and dainty and non-fragrant.
Thank you and have a peaceful day, M, (*_*)
For more of my other work or if you want to purchase, visit here: www.indigo2photography.com
IT IS STRICTLY FORBIDDEN (BY LAW!!!) TO USE ANY OF MY image or TEXT on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit permission. © All rights reserved
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Thank you ALL my friends for faves,comments,notes & lovely support.:))
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He would declare and could himself believe
That the birds there in all the garden round
From having heard the daylong voice of Eve
Had added to their own an oversound,
Her tone of meaning but without the words.
Admittedly an eloquence so soft
Could only have had an influence on birds
When call or laughter carried it aloft.
Be that as may be, she was in their song.
Moreover her voice upon their voices crossed
Had now persisted in the woods so long
That probably it never would be lost.
Never again would birds' song be the same.
And to do that to birds was why she came.
Never Again Would Bird's Song Be the Same
by Robert Frost
A lone Plains Bison (Bison bison) bull in a restored prairie. Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge, Adams County, Colorado.
Just 40 years ago the land beneath this bison's feet was one of the most polluted sites in the west. Contaminated from decades of use as an arsenal that manufactured and destroyed chemical weapons including napalm, mustard gas, white phosphorus, and more. The land, water, and air were all impacted. Red flags were raised when local wildlife, including tens of thousands of ducks were found dead in the vicinity of the arsenal.
By the mid-1980's, these operations ceased and remediation became the focus of the site, and it was soon declared a Superfund Site. In 1986, Bald Eagles, then an Endangered Species, were discovered utilizing the site. That spurred an effort to declare the site a National Wildlife Refuge, and a few years later, land that once served to manufacture weapons of war now provided sanctuary for an abundance of wildlife.
In 2007, plains bison were reintroduced to the refuge, where they thrived in the restored shortgrass prairies. In 2015 and 2016, black-footed ferrets were reintroduced adjacent to the refuge's expansive prairie dog towns. Today, it is one of only a handful of sites with a free-ranging population of these critically endangered members of the weasel family.
Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge is a true success story, and well worth a visit the next time you find yourself in the Denver area.
another just because.........
the ironic thing is that this was parked next to a church.
my favorite of the lot..... "i express my individuality through mass-produced bumper stickers."
Beluga 4 stands on the cargo pan at Birmingham Airport. It had declared an emergency while en route from Madrid to Chester. It was still waiting at the airport four days later.
Aircraft: Airbus A300-600ST Super Transporter F-GSTD/4
Location: Birmingham International Airport, UK (BHX/EGBB).
I hereby declare the 2024 insect season open, hopefully it will be a good one:
Apis mellifera
Honey Bee
Honigbiene
Honningbi
flying at Crocus
Exposure time (= flash duration): 50 µs = 1/20.000 s
Except for ISO, the EXIF data are incorrect, because the equipment used is not Canon-compatible:
www.flickr.com/photos/99927961@N06/19667784774/in/photoli...
Die EXIF-Daten sind falsch, bis auf den ISO-Wert, weil das Zubehör nicht Canon-kompatibel ist:
www.flickr.com/photos/99927961@N06/19667784774/in/photoli...
I declare February LOVE, romance and beauty month.
Good Vibrations by The Beach Boys. for the music lovers.
Vibrating hearts? LOL
More fun from my studio.
FOR MORE: magdaindigo.blogspot.com/2007/04/at-all-times-love.html
Hope this makes you smile and have a wonderful day and thanx for your visit, so very much appreciated, Magda, (*_*)
For more of my other work visit here: www.indigo2photography.com
IT IS STRICTLY FORBIDDEN (BY LAW!!!) TO USE ANY OF MY image or TEXT on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit permission. © All rights reserved
The Leon County Courthouse & Jail have both architectural and historical significance. The courthouse & old jail are simple yet dignified expressions with Classical lines; the 1918 jail (seen in the photo above) displays Medieval military architectural elements. All are located on the Centerville public square which has been the center of governmental activities since the founding of the town.
Late in 1885, the courthouse at that time burned and a resolution was introduced to build a new courthouse on the same plan as the old. Several years later the county judge and four county commissioners determined to build a new jail. Facilities for the detention of criminals up to this time had never been satisfactory. The orders which had authorized a new jail in 1873 culminated in the purchase of a store building from V.H. McAnnally for $2,500. This served as a temporary jail which was entirely also unsatisfactory.
Finally in 1893, a contract for the construction of a new jail was awarded to contractors Robb and Wilson for $3,850 and shortly there after the old temporary jail was sold at public auction. Early in 1894 it was completed and a new fence was set up around the building. In 1906, new cells furnished by the Southern Structural Steel Company were installed, and various repairs were made. Since this jail still proved inadequate, a second jail was built near the courthouse and the earlier jail. In 1918, the Southern Structural Steel Company of San Antonio was contracted to build a new jail, according to plans they furnished. The building was completed and accepted that year. The style of the 1918 jail symbolized strength. Incorporated into the design are corner towers and crenellations — representations of Medieval military architectural features.
Although the building is no longer used for detention, it is still sound and serves county functions such as the office of the county surveyor and others. And, for its political & governmental history and its architecture, the jail (along with the county courthouse) were added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 12, 1977. All of the information above was found on the original documents that can be viewed here:
catalog.archives.gov/id/40972831
Three bracketed photos were taken with a handheld Nikon D7200 and combined with Photomatix Pro to create this HDR image. Additional adjustments were made in Photoshop CS6.
"For I know the plans I have for you", declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~Jeremiah 29:11
The best way to view my photostream is through Flickriver with the following link: www.flickriver.com/photos/photojourney57/
The New Eggner Ferry Bridge is a steel tied-arch bridge over Lake Barkley/Cumberland River on US Highway 68 near Canton, KY. It was constructed (completed) in 2016 at a length of nearly 3,500 ft and has 58 ft clear to the water below. This bridge design is unique to the state of Kentucky and includes four 11-foot travel lanes & an eight-foot pedestrian and cycling path. The construction of the causeway and a new bridge over a lagoon on the west side of Kentucky Lake began by Jim Smith Contracting of Grand Rivers with work on the new Eggner’s Ferry Bridge being done by Johnson Brothers Construction of Fort Worth, Texas. Total cost of the new bridge was $133 million and continues to connect the outer land masses to the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area.
Three bracketed photos were taken with a handheld Nikon D7200 and combined with Photomatix Pro to create this HDR image. Additional adjustments were made in Photoshop CS6.
"For I know the plans I have for you", declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~Jeremiah 29:11
The best way to view my photostream is through Flickriver with the link below:
I'm declaring that winter is officially over. I want spring-time and warm weather!
Oh yeah, this is a juvenile Ruby-throated Hummingbird photo that I ran across in my pile of photos to look at and do something with.
Taken in New Jersey, USA
© Steve Byland 2007 all rights reserved
Unauthorized use or reproduction for any reason is prohibited
Unity in Diversity
Although we are all parts and parcels of the same Supreme Lord, we have divided up this Earth, declaring, “This is my country! This is your country!”
Even though we are all individuals, we all depend upon the same sun and we all breathe the same air. This is the principle of unity in diversity. Unity refers to the fact that we are all parts and parcels of the same Supreme Lord , the father of all; and diversity refers to our eternal individual natures. Because this is the eternal reality, we will only find peace and happiness in this reality. Unity in diversity will have no meaning if people have no faith in the Supreme God, or love for Him and all living entities.
The West End Church of Christ Silver Point (WECCSP) is located in unincorporated Silver Point, Tennessee (Putnam County) approximately thirteen miles west of the county seat of Cookeville. The brick church building was constructed in 1915; this building replaced the original frame building that was constructed in 1909. Architect P.H. Black designed the building for the African American community to use as a church and school. The gable front building has brick walls with a central entrance and flanking windows. The side elevations feature sets of paired windows set in arched openings. It stands in a largely rural area and is a typical example of an unadorned country church featuring folk vernacular church architecture that is common in the Upper Cumberland African American community.
The church was founded in 1909 by George Phillip (G.P.) Bowser, a prominent preacher and advocate for African American education in the Church of Christ. It is one of the few buildings remaining in Tennessee that represents the efforts of Bowser to provide educational opportunities for the African American population. From its inception, Bowser envisioned that the property would serve the religious and educational needs of the community. Furthermore, the property represents an attempt by African American leaders in the Church of Christ to establish a Christian school for African Americans in the Upper Cumberland region. The church exemplifies the ideals of the African American community of its time, ideals related to educational and spiritual attainment, and a sense of social solidarity and empowerment. Through its educational efforts, the church trained generations of African American leaders, the results of which are still evident in the area today.
In 1918, Bowser resigned due to frustrations in seeking on-going funding for the school. Despite initial contributions from prominent Church of Christ members, Bowser found it difficult to obtain continuing support for the school from Church of Christ leadership. Even with these setbacks, the school he had founded at Silver Point remained in operation until 1959, after which time African American children from throughout Putnam County were bused to schools in Cookeville and Algood. The church has remained in operation to the present time.
Given its significance to the socio-cultural history of the Upper Cumberland, its role in the African American community of the region, and its connection to prominent African American Church of Christ leaders, the West End Church of Christ Silver Point is worthy of inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) where it was listed on December 13, 2007. All of the information above (and many more details) was found on the original documents submitted for listing consideration that can be viewed here:
npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/AssetDetail/495e4dd9-4729-4d2b-af2...
Three bracketed photos were taken with a handheld Nikon D7200 and combined with Photomatix Pro to create this HDR image. Additional adjustments were made in Photoshop CS6.
"For I know the plans I have for you", declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~Jeremiah 29:11
The best way to view my photostream is through Flickriver with the following link: www.flickriver.com/photos/photojourney57/
A couple times a year, the Phoenix Desert Botanical Garden declares a Dog Day so Jasper got to go and meet other dogs and get lots of treats. He really seemed to enjoy it. Here he's posed against the Donor's Wall. $4 per dog which goes to the Humane Society, so winners all around.
Just across the Wolf River from the Sgt. Alvin C. York State Park Visitor Center is a red two-story gristmill known as the York Mill. Constructed by James Conley and William Rankin in 1880, this water powered gristmill was used for grinding corn to make cornmeal and served the region for several generations. Decorated World War I soldier, Sgt. York, purchased the gristmill in the early 1940s and operated it until the early 1950s.
The York Mill, located at a bend in the Wolf River just downstream (and across the street) from the York house. The mill consists of a two-story frame millhouse mounted atop pillars of stacked rocks. A milldam diverted water through a millrace, where it turned the mill's large turbine (when operational, the turbine was almost completely submerged). After the state purchased the mill in 1967, a new roof and a coat of paint were added. The mill is no longer operational.
The York farm and mill were added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) as part of the larger Sergeant York Historic Area in 1973. The York farm was also designated a National Historic Landmark (NHL) on May 11, 1976.
Three bracketed photos were taken with a handheld Nikon D7200 and combined with Photomatix Pro to create this HDR image. Additional adjustments were made in Photoshop CS6.
"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~Jeremiah 29:11
Today the We’re Here! Group joins up and speaks up with
But you know, you can’t fight City Hall.
Near the parking area for the visitor's center of Fort Loudoun State Historical Park is this great view of Tellico Lake and these beautiful Autumn colors. Technically a reservoir, it was created by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) in 1979 upon the completion of Tellico Dam. The dam impounds the Little Tennessee River and the lower Tellico River. The lake (or reservoir) is approximately 16,000 acres in surface area and provides 357 miles of shoreline.
Tellico Reservoir was the last major reservoir created by the TVA, in part due to the snail darter controversy. The completion of Tellico Dam was nearly halted by a landmark decision by the Supreme Court regarding the Endangered Species Act. After Congress specifically exempted Tellico Dam from the Endangered Species Act, the work was finished and Tellico Reservoir created.
Three bracketed photos were taken with a handheld Nikon D7200 and combined with Photomatix Pro to create this HDR image. Additional adjustments were made in Photoshop CS6.
"For I know the plans I have for you", declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~Jeremiah 29:11
Zephaniah 3:8 “Just you wait!” declares the LORD. “The day will come when I stand up as a prosecutor, for I am determined to assemble the nations and to gather the kingdoms, in order to pour out my indignation upon them all of my fierce anger. All the earth will be consumed by the fire of my jealousy.”
Chinese scientists develop AI ‘prosecutor’ that can press its own charges:
www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3160997/chinese-s...
And just think: the Image of the Beast will be able to put people to death. But let me guess, that could never happen, that’s nothing but conspiracy! Just like the Mark of the Beast: nobody could possibly be microchipped because that’s nothing but fiction. How can you understand anything when you are fed feedback loops of misinformation and propaganda? You are trapped in a bubble and don’t even know it. But don’t worry they’ll condition you to accept all that’s coming. You will embrace it. But those who love the truth will seek it out and find it.
The Chicago Transit Authority (or the "L") is a rapid transit system serving the city of Chicago, Illinois. It began operation in June 1892 making it the second oldest rapid transit system in America. Eight lines and 143 stations make up the entire "L" system which gets its nickname from a shortened version of 'elevated' since most of the lines within the city are elevated above the rest of the streets. These particular lines are south of the city looking north toward the Chicago skyline.
This photo was taken in 2013 during my previous Project 365…please visit my album for this “REMASTERED” Project 365 as I revisit each day of 2013 for additional photos to share!!
Three bracketed photos were taken with a handheld Nikon D5200 and combined with Photomatix Pro to create this HDR image. Additional adjustments were made in Photoshop CS6.
"For I know the plans I have for you", declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~Jeremiah 29:11
The best way to view my photostream is through Flickriver with the following link: www.flickriver.com/photos/photojourney57/
Je déclare ma saison printanière officiellement commencée... malgré le 10 cm de neige annoncée... /
I declare my spring season officially begun ... despite the 10 cm of snow announced ...
Baie-du-Fèbvre, Québec, Canada
Declare a drought in England and this is what happens. They should have called it weeks ago and our gardens and rivers wouldn't be suffering now ; )
This is a view of a tabletop and parasol, though it looks very abstract because of the rain.
110/122 pictures in 2022: viewed through a window
In 2013, as I was working through my 365 Project, this was the first time that I was in a position to take a photograph every single day and I immediately found it more difficult than it sounds. On days 6 through 10, which would be the first full week of the year that I would have gone back to work, I was struggling to get pics on days where I worked all day and it was dark (or close to it) when I got off and headed home. So...the next few pics will be taken from other days in January when I was able to photograph more places and/or things...like this great morning in Winter when everything is frozen/frosted over and the sun just begins to peak over the mountain horizon...beautiful time for having a camera!!
This photo was taken in 2013 during my previous Project 365…please visit my album for this “REMASTERED” Project 365 as I revisit each day of 2013 for additional photos to share!!
Three bracketed photos were taken with a handheld Nikon D5000 and combined with Photomatix Pro to create this HDR image. Additional adjustments were made in Photoshop CS6.
"For I know the plans I have for you", declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~Jeremiah 29:11
The best way to view my photostream is through Flickriver with the link below:
The Park Theater was originally completed in 1939, where it quickly became the centerpiece of culture and downtown entertainment in McMinnville. It hosted concerts, weddings, graduations, plays, and many other types of events. However, in 1947 that was temporarily put to an end when a fire caused it to require extensive renovations. Over the next 30 years or so, the theater remained an important part of our community, but was eventually forced to shut down for economic reasons in 1986. The Park lay vacant for several years until it was acquired by the City of McMinnville and restored to its current glory and reopened in 2015 (this photograph was taken in 2013 prior to the restoration). Architects, designers, and other professionals worked hard to recreate the historical aesthetic and classic marquee, along with some more modern updates to support visitors and performers alike with improved acoustics, lighting, seating, and more. Today, the theatre has beautiful sloped epoxy floors with 378 theater style seats on the main floor and 181 theater style seats in the balcony. It offer a variety of acts throughout the year...musical (all genres), theatrical, comedy, dance and children's programs.
This photo was taken in 2013 during my previous Project 365…please visit my album for this “REMASTERED” Project 365 as I revisit each day of 2013 for additional photos to share!!
Three bracketed photos were taken with a handheld Nikon D5200 and combined with Photomatix Pro to create this HDR image. Additional adjustments were made in Photoshop CS6.
"For I know the plans I have for you", declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~Jeremiah 29:11
The best way to view my photostream is through Flickriver with the following link: www.flickriver.com/photos/photojourney57/
The Stearman (Boeing) Model 75 is a biplane, of which 10,346 were built in the United States during the 1930's and 1940's as a military trainer aircraft. Stearman became a subsidiary of Boeing in 1934. Widely known as the “Stearman”, “Boeing-Stearman” or “Kaydet”, it served as a Primary Trainer (PT) for the USAAF, as a basic trainer for the USN (as the NS1 & N2S), and with the RCAF as the “Kaydet” throughout World War II. After World War II, thousands of surplus aircraft were sold on the civil market. In the immediate post-war years they became popular as crop dusters and as sports planes.
-- Technical Specifications --
‧ Crew: 2
‧ Length: 24 ft 9 in
‧ Wings: Single-bay unequal-span staggered biplane
‧ Wingspan: 32 ft 2 in
‧ Height: 9 ft 8 in
‧ Wing area: 298 sq ft
‧ Empty weight: 1,931 lbs
‧ Max takeoff weight: 2,635 lbs
‧ Fuel capacity: 46 US gal
‧ Powerplant: One 220-hp Lycoming R-680 nine-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engine
‧ Propellers: 2-bladed fixed-pitch propeller
‧ Maximum speed: 124 mph
‧ Cruise speed: 96 mph
‧ Landing speed: 52 mph
‧ Range: 505 miles
‧ Service ceiling: 13,200 ft
‧ Time to altitude: 10,000 ft in 17 minutes 18 seconds
‧ Wing loading: 9.9 lb/sq ft
Three bracketed photos were taken with a handheld Nikon D7200 and combined with Photomatix Pro to create this HDR image. Additional adjustments were made in Photoshop CS6.
"For I know the plans I have for you", declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~Jeremiah 29:11
The best way to view my photostream is through Flickriver with the following link: www.flickriver.com/photos/photojourney57/
The Judge declares your charge.
The Jury sees your guilt.
The Executioner delivers your punishment.
Built for Bio-cup 2022 R2
Theme: Numbers
Sub-theme: Three
Pictures of the three individually to come... but here is a preview for the judges: Here
I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN A COMPULSIVE DRAWER. I would declare war on every blank area left on notebooks, desks, chalk-boards and school walls. My teachers never appreciated this, but I did win recognition among the other kids. But I was independent and pretty much a loner. I rarely communicated verbally, but I never failed to communicate by using my favourite language: images.
Luckily for me, it was my grandparents who practically raised me, instilling in me all the values I retain to this day. But even though my grandparents offered material and emotional support, I felt abandoned. It was a pain that was muted and sometimes battered into submission, but it invariably came to surface. Plus I sensed that there was something else, a much more disturbing truth that lay at the core of the adult world. Being much too young to identify it, it remained a frustrated inarticulate feeling. But there was something clearly evident in my drawings that expressed those feelings. My talent for drawing, my attention to detail, and above all, my grotesque sense of humor were obvious in the drawings.
By the age of eight, whatever I had lodged in the back of my mind came forward in a blurry approximation in art. It was art that rescued me. Many of the drawings had an underlying dark tone. The drawings gave my incoherent inner world some form of expression and substance, however crudely rendered. Grown-ups had a profound effect on my artistic development, but not in a way they would have approved. I began to observe and to judge people, making evaluations about their nature and characters. This, too, found its way in my drawings. One could see from the progression of drawings a groping and developing maturity. It was a discovery and odyssey of self.
A teacher observed one of my drawings, and obviously dismayed, he asked: “What is the matter Victor?”
I answered: “What is the matter with everybody else?”
A conscious awareness of the adult world came into sharper focus: my overall impression of adults was that they were bogus liars and hypocrites, saying not what they thought, but rather what they believed would serve some particular purpose, some hidden agenda. Everybody came armed with two faces. It seemed to me that the world thrived on bullshit, hypocrisy and lies. I noted a desperate whoring after status, an irrational and pathetic desire to “beat the Jones” followed up by saccharine sentimentality by mealy-mouthed charlatans—and all of it showcased to the people they themselves loathed. Lies, backstabbing, deception, two-faces, malice and hypocrisy was the currency of exchange in the adult world. And so I took a profound disliking to most people I came across. I could sense the spiritual emptiness and viciousness within them. I wanted to like and admire people but I rarely came across anyone who was worthy of it. The only noted exceptions were my grandparents.
I HAD TURNED SIXTEEN JUST A FEW MONTHS before the holidays. Christmas brought distant relatives and immediate family together at the Pross household. For me, people were bad enough on their own but it became worse when they assembled together under the same roof. It was on such occasions that fully demonstrated the insanity and phoniness of these people. I would scan the large living room absorbing the adults sitting on the couches and chairs, each one looking anxious and distant. They were tipsy on day-long benders of Bloody Caesars, making efforts to appear jovial. There was a constant display of smiley backslapping and “Merry Christmases” by people who maligned one another the moment backs were turned. There was an unvarying spectacle of petty bickering over trivia and the sudden surfacing of years-long resentments best forgotten. All the forms of human flaws and ugliness to be found in the world---a world which insists on being imperfect—were on display before the eyes of the juvenile artist.
To lighten the mood, somebody put a dance song on. I watched with keen interest as glasses were overturned by dancing feet and the coffee table was moved out of the way to make room. A frenzy of stimulation bubbled in the room and everyone’s voice rose imperceptibly in pitch. As far as I was concerned, it was a circus.
Each relative represented an unsavory social stereotype or archetype of one kind or another. They were caricatures. From the town’s busy body gossip-monger tyrant--to the dour spinster forever spouting on about “God’s wrath”--to the town’s fast-talking used car salesman who dressed like a big city pimp---to every other stereotype imaginable. It was all there. This was no less true when it came to Uncle Bernard, better known as “Bernie.” Sitting near the Christmas tree, I was observing him closely. He was the jet-set wannabe playboy type. He sported a dyed perm that looked as if had come straight off a Styrofoam head from 1973. Assuming himself a lady-killer, he actually had all the charm of a toupee made of straw dipped in black ink. With each attempt at a pickup he was invariably shot down. “Lesbian!” he would bellow at women who rejected him.
Sitting next to Bernie was my mother, Terry. She was immersed in conversation, laughing with a forced hilarity, her drink spilling over. There was something that troubled me about my mother. She was a woman who was so utterly self-absorbed, forever preoccupied with what others thought. My mother’s sense of personal value was crucially dependent on the image of herself as a glamorous beauty. At the age of thirty-eight, she was wont to ask for reassurances of her looks. “Do you think I have nice legs? I use to be a Go-Go dance, you know?” and “When was the last time you saw a woman as gorgeous as me—and at my age?” With each passing year she began to perceive every wrinkle on her face as a metaphysical menace. Taking aging as a threat to her identity, she plunged into a series of sexual relationships with men fifteen years her junior demanding fresh admiration to assuage her hollowness.
My mother’s constant need for validation annoyed me. I was nevertheless fascinated with human behavior. What I perceived in my mother was a definite narcissism, only I didn’t have the word for it at the age of sixteen. Spurred by mother’s conceit, I decided to try an experiment. I played upon her vanity by offering her a lavish compliment, just to see her reaction. My motive wasn’t flattery for flattery’s sake, it was a psychological experiment.
I tapped my mother on the shoulder, interrupting her conversation.
“Mom?”
My mother turned to me, clearly annoyed, her expression a fusion of wonder and irritation.
“Victor dear, can’t you see I’m talking to this nice gentleman?”
“But mom, I need to tell you something.”
“Yes, yes, what is it?”
“I just wanted to say that…you look just like Marilyn Monroe.”
My mother took a deep intake of breathe. She clapped her hands in appreciation and snuggled her darling son into her arms. “Did you hear that?” she demanded of the guests. The room fell to a hushed silence. “What is it, Terry?” asked a guest. “My boy said I look like Marilyn Monroe. That’s my boy! Oh, he knows a good looking chick when he sees one!” My mother then let out an exuberant laugh, which itself was enough to draw attention. After a few more brandy-laced eggnogs, my mother became more of an embarrassment. She made damn well sure to tell new arrivals at the party what her son had said about her. It was a compliment that was warmly recalled by her for years to come. I had always regretted my causal flattery.
I appreciated the art of caricature more so than ever before. I enjoyed the spectacle of observing the reaction of anyone I nailed in a drawing. When people observed a grotesque drawing I had rendered of them—in dead-on accuracy---they would dissolve in self-consciousness. This had a clinical kind of fascination to me. Although one can be disconcerted at witnessing an open incision, I got some amazing glimpses of their guts. What came out of it was a deeply ingrained self-doubt. I knew my art had the power to reach people. “You are a sick guy, Pross,” said one of my displeased subjects. “How is it that I’m sick,” I responded, amazed by this sudden psychological evaluation. “The drawing portrays how you are—not me.”
Observing my mania for drawing, my grandfather decided to have a heart-to-heart chat with me. He entered my room as I sat at my desk, which was littered with sketchpads of drawings and half-ass watercolors.
Grandfather picked up a sketch pad flipping through it. “You have a real talent there, my boy,” he said. A firm hand rested on my shoulder. “It would be a shame if that went to waste”
I smiled and lowered my head.
“There are a lot of people who always dump on me for drawing, granddaddy.”
He smiled. “When it comes to insults, consider the source---and also try to consider what you think may be their motivation.”
My grandfather put an encouraging arm around me, playfully mussing up my hair.
He pulled up a nearby chair and sat down next to me.
“Now listen to me,” he said with a pinch of gravity, “you have a talent, son—a very evident and rare talent, but you can’t expect it to do all the work for you. You have to hone and develop that talent. If you want to be an artist, it takes practice, practice, practice. It is about hard work. It’s not enough to have talent alone. You need to have a hunger. You understand?”
I smiled. “I need to be a hungry artist?”
“I’m serious, son.”
“I know. So am I”
“Good. That’s right, a hungry artist.”
“I am. It’s like a compulsion. I feel so good when I’m drawing. It lifts me up. I need to express what I have going on inside of me. I suppose that is a hunger.”
I paused for a moment. My grandfather looked at me, his clear blue eyes beaming. His smile conveyed immense admiration…and hope. “I love you, grandson.”
I couldn’t express in words the feeling that I felt so abundantly. The love and admiration I felt for this man was great, but I couldn’t bring myself to tell him so for some reason. And so I simply smiled and look downward, hoping that this motion expressed what should have said with words.
Not everyone responded with agitation to the drawings of this teenage caricature artist. Sam Ferguson, the owner of the diner I frequented at the time, was blessed with a robust sense of humor. As he observed one of my renderings, he laughed with his whole body, his heavy-set frame shook like a bowl of Jell-O resting on the clothes dryer in final spin. “You are a crazy son of a bitch!” Gus hollowed. “How do you think of this stuff?” In the drawing, I had Gus lurched over a hot stove stirring the day’s soup special with beads of sweat dripping into the pot. In the background, one can see an unsuspecting customer slurping the broth, bellowing, ‘Gus, I love the extra flavor you added!’
“Come here, my boy,” Gus said, sliding a hamburger and fries over to me. “Here’s your payment for a job well done.”
“You’re paying me for that drawing…by feeding me?”
Gus looked astonished that I was astonished. “Of course! A man should be paid for his work. That drawing is hanging on my wall, and it gives me a great deal of pleasure.”
“It does.”
“You are very talented. Hey, I want to frame it and hang it up on my office wall. How much do you want for it?”
“You just paid me,” I answered, biting into the hamburger.
“No, not that, that’s a token payment, I’m talking about really paying you. That is a work of art we’re talking about!”
“I don’t know…”
“Here,” Gus said, taking my hand and slipping a hundred dollar bill into it.
“Hey man, are you serious—a hundred bucks!”
“Too little?”
“No, this is cool. Thanks Gus!”
“One day you are going to be a famous artist. People will be paying you a lot more than a measly hundred bucks. Hey, don’t think that I’m cheating you…I’m not a rich guy.”
“Come on, Gus, I know that. This is so cool, man. If only my grandfather could see this.”
I realized that I could temper my art with light-hearted humor, the gentle good wit that my grandfather imparted in me—along with the acerbic wit characteristic of Barry McConnell. It was here that this artist punk learned that caricature has both a dark and light face to it. I also learned that the caricatures I drew, and the people who inspired them, were not confined to the community where I lived. They circled the globe. It was to the wider culture that my focus turned. I had so much to learn and so much to express.
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**above photo is of my mother--Terry, my oldest brother--Robert, and Kevin (with his arm around me).
THE SIXTH EXTINCTION
Exerpts by Niles Eldredge
There is little doubt left in the minds of professional biologists that Earth is currently faced with a mounting loss of species that threatens to rival the five great mass extinctions of the geological past. As long ago as 1993, Harvard biologist E.O. Wilson estimated that Earth is currently losing something on the order of 30,000 species per year — which breaks down to the even more daunting statistic of some three species per hour. Some biologists have begun to feel that this biodiversity crisis — this “Sixth Extinction” — is even more severe, and more imminent, than Wilson had supposed.
Extinction in the past
The major global biotic turnovers were all caused by physical events that lay outside the normal climatic and other physical disturbances which species, and entire ecosystems, experience and survive. What caused them?
The previous mass extinctions were due to natural causes.
First major extinction (c. 440 mya): Climate change (relatively severe and sudden global cooling) seems to have been at work at the first of these-the end-Ordovician mass extinction that caused such pronounced change in marine life (little or no life existed on land at that time). 25% of families lost (a family may consist of a few to thousands of species).
Second major extinction (c. 370 mya): The next such event, near the end of the Devonian Period, may or may not have been the result of global climate change. 19% of families lost.
Third major Extinction (c. 245 mya): Scenarios explaining what happened at the greatest mass extinction event of them all (so far, at least!) at the end of the Permian Period have been complex amalgams of climate change perhaps rooted in plate tectonics movements. Very recently, however, evidence suggests that a bolide impact similar to the end-Cretaceous event may have been the cause. 54% of families lost.
Fourth major extinction (c. 210 mya): The event at the end of the Triassic Period, shortly after dinosaurs and mammals had first evolved, also remains difficult to pin down in terms of precise causes. 23% of families lost.
Fifth major extinction (c. 65 mya): Most famous, perhaps, was the most recent of these events at the end-Cretaceous. It wiped out the remaining terrestrial dinosaurs and marine ammonites, as well as many other species across the phylogenetic spectrum, in all habitats sampled from the fossil record. Consensus has emerged in the past decade that this event was caused by one (possibly multiple) collisions between Earth and an extraterrestrial bolide (probably cometary). Some geologists, however, point to the great volcanic event that produced the Deccan traps of India as part of the chain of physical events that disrupted ecosystems so severely that many species on land and sea rapidly succumbed to extinction. 17% of families lost.
How is The Sixth Extinction different from previous events?
The current mass extinction is caused by humans.
At first glance, the physically caused extinction events of the past might seem to have little or nothing to tell us about the current Sixth Extinction, which is a patently human-caused event. For there is little doubt that humans are the direct cause of ecosystem stress and species destruction in the modern world through such activities as:
-transformation of the landscape
-overexploitation of species
-pollution
-the introduction of alien species
And, because Homo sapiens is clearly a species of animal (however behaviorally and ecologically peculiar an animal), the Sixth Extinction would seem to be the first recorded global extinction event that has a biotic, rather than a physical, cause.
We are bringing about massive changes in the environment.
Yet, upon further reflection, human impact on the planet is a direct analogue of the Cretaceous cometary collision. Sixty-five million years ago that extraterrestrial impact — through its sheer explosive power, followed immediately by its injections of so much debris into the upper reaches of the atmosphere that global temperatures plummeted and, most critically, photosynthesis was severely inhibited — wreaked havoc on the living systems of Earth. That is precisely what human beings are doing to the planet right now: humans are causing vast physical changes on the planet.
What is the Sixth Extinction?
We can divide the Sixth Extinction into two discrete phases:
-Phase One began when the first modern humans began to disperse to different parts of the world about 100,000 years ago.
-Phase Two began about 10,000 years ago when humans turned to agriculture.
Humans began disrupting the environment as soon as they appeared on Earth.
The first phase began shortly after Homo sapiens evolved in Africa and the anatomically modern humans began migrating out of Africa and spreading throughout the world. Humans reached the middle east 90,000 years ago. They were in Europe starting around 40,000 years ago. Neanderthals, who had long lived in Europe, survived our arrival for less than 10,000 years, but then abruptly disappeared — victims, according to many paleoanthropologists, of our arrival through outright warfare or the more subtle, though potentially no less devastating effects, of being on the losing side of ecological competition.
Everywhere, shortly after modern humans arrived, many (especially, though by no means exclusively, the larger) native species typically became extinct. Humans were like bulls in a China shop:
-They disrupted ecosystems by overhunting game species, which never experienced contact with humans before.
-And perhaps they spread microbial disease-causing organisms as well.
The fossil record attests to human destruction of ecosystems:
-Wherever early humans migrated, other species became extinct.
-Humans arrived in large numbers in North America roughly 12,500 years ago-and sites revealing the butchering of mammoths, mastodons and extinct buffalo are well documented throughout the continent. The demise of the bulk of the La Brea tar pit Pleistocene fauna coincided with our arrival.
-The Caribbean lost several of its larger species when humans arrived some 8000 years ago.
-Extinction struck elements of the Australian megafauna much earlier-when humans arrived some 40,000 years ago. Madagascar-something of an anomaly, as humans only arrived there two thousand years ago-also fits the pattern well: the larger species (elephant birds, a species of hippo, plus larger lemurs) rapidly disappeared soon after humans arrived.
Indeed, only in places where earlier hominid species had lived (Africa, of course, but also most of Europe and Asia) did the fauna, already adapted to hominid presence, survive the first wave of the Sixth Extinction pretty much intact. The rest of the world’s species, which had never before encountered hominids in their local ecosystems, were as naively unwary as all but the most recently arrived species (such as Vermilion Flycatchers) of the Galapagos Islands remain to this day.
Why does the Sixth Extinction continue?
The invention of agriculture accelerated the pace of the Sixth Extinction.
Phase two of the Sixth Extinction began around 10,000 years ago with the invention of agriculture-perhaps first in the Natufian culture of the Middle East. Agriculture appears to have been invented several different times in various different places, and has, in the intervening years, spread around the entire globe.
Agriculture represents the single most profound ecological change in the entire 3.5 billion-year history of life. With its invention:
-Humans did not have to interact with other species for survival, and so could manipulate other species for their own use
-Humans did not have to adhere to the ecosystem’s carrying capacity, and so could overpopulate
-Humans do not live with nature but outside it.
Homo sapiens became the first species to stop living inside local ecosystems. All other species, including our ancestral hominid ancestors, all pre-agricultural humans, and remnant hunter-gatherer societies still extant exist as semi-isolated populations playing specific roles (i.e., have “niches”) in local ecosystems. This is not so with post-agricultural revolution humans, who in effect have stepped outside local ecosystems. Indeed, to develop agriculture is essentially to declare war on ecosystems - converting land to produce one or two food crops, with all other native plant species all now classified as unwanted “weeds” — and all but a few domesticated species of animals now considered as pests.
The total number of organisms within a species is limited by many factors-most crucial of which is the “carrying capacity” of the local ecosystem: given the energetic needs and energy-procuring adaptations of a given species, there are only so many squirrels, oak trees and hawks that can inhabit a given stretch of habitat. Agriculture had the effect of removing the natural local-ecosystem upper limit of the size of human populations. Though crops still fail regularly, and famine and disease still stalk the land, there is no doubt that agriculture in the main has had an enormous impact on human population size:
-Earth can’t sustain the trend in human population growth. It is reaching its limit in carrying capacity.
-Estimates vary, but range between 1 and 10 million people on earth 10,000 years ago.
-There are now over 6 billion people.
-The numbers continue to increase logarithmically — so that there will be 8 billion by 2020.
-There is presumably an upper limit to the carrying capacity of humans on earth — of the numbers that agriculture can support — and that number is usually estimated at between 13-15 billion, though some people think the ultimate numbers might be much higher.
This explosion of human population, especially in the post-Industrial Revolution years of the past two centuries, coupled with the unequal distribution and consumption of wealth on the planet, is the underlying cause of the Sixth Extinction. There is a vicious cycle:
-Overpopulation, invasive species, and overexploitation are fueling the extinction.
-More lands are cleared and more efficient production techniques (most recently engendered largely through genetic engineering) to feed the growing number of humans — and in response, the human population continues to expand.
-Higher fossil energy use is helping agriculture spread, further modifying the environment.
-Humans continue to fish (12 of the 13 major fisheries on the planet are now considered severely depleted) and harvest timber for building materials and just plain fuel, pollution, and soil erosion from agriculture creates dead zones in fisheries (as in the Gulf of Mexico)
-While the human Diaspora has meant the spread, as well, of alien species that more often than not thrive at the detriment of native species. For example, invasive species have contributed to 42% of all threatened and endangered species in the U.S.
Can conservation measures stop the Sixth Extinction?
Only 10% of the world’s species survived the third mass extinction. Will any survive this one?
The world’s ecosystems have been plunged into chaos, with some conservation biologists thinking that no system, not even the vast oceans, remains untouched by human presence. Conservation measures, sustainable development, and, ultimately, stabilization of human population numbers and consumption patterns seem to offer some hope that the Sixth Extinction will not develop to the extent of the third global extinction, some 245 mya, when 90% of the world’s species were lost.
Though it is true that life, so incredibly resilient, has always recovered (though after long lags) after major extinction spasms, it is only after whatever has caused the extinction event has dissipated. That cause, in the case of the Sixth Extinction, is ourselves — Homo sapiens. This means we can continue on the path to our own extinction, or, preferably, we modify our behavior toward the global ecosystem of which we are still very much a part. The latter must happen before the Sixth Extinction can be declared over, and life can once again rebound.
© 2005, American Institute of Biological Sciences. Educators have permission to reprint articles for classroom use; other users, please contact editor@actionbioscience.org for reprint permission. See reprint policy.
Paleontologist Dr. Niles Eldredge is the Curator-in-Chief of the permanent exhibition “Hall of Biodiversity” at the American Museum of Natural History and adjunct professor at the City University of New York. He has devoted his career to examining evolutionary theory through the fossil record, publishing his views in more than 160 scientific articles, reviews, and books. Life in the Balance: Humanity and the Biodiversity Crisisis his most recent book.
www.gc.cuny.edu/directories/faculty/E.htm
Articles and Resources on The Sixth Extinction
Consequences of the Sixth Extinction
The article “How Will Sixth Extinction Affect Evolution of Species?,” on our site, describes how the current loss of biodiversity will affect evolution in the long run.
www.actionbioscience.org/newfrontiers/myers_knoll.html
BioScience Article
“Global Conservation of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services.”
Habitat destruction has driven much of the current biodiversity extinction crisis, and it compromises the essential benefits, or ecosystem services that humans derive from functioning ecosystems. Securing both species and ecosystem services might be accomplished with common solutions. Yet it is unknown whether these two major conservation objectives coincide broadly enough worldwide to enable global strategies for both goals to gain synergy. In this November 2007, BioScience article, Will Turner and his colleagues assess the concordance between these two objectives, explore how the concordance varies across different regions, and examine the global potential for safeguarding biodiversity and ecosystem services simultaneously. Read the abstract, or log in to purchase the full article.
caliber.ucpress.net/doi/abs/10.1641/B571009
Biodiversity in the next millennium
American Museum of Natural History’s nationwide survey (undated) “reveals biodiversity crisis — the fastest mass extinction in Earth’s history.”
cbc.amnh.org/crisis/mncntnt.html
National Geographic
A 2/99 article about the Sixth Extinction, with views from several leading scientists.
www.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/9902/fngm/index.html
Extinction through time
Find out about cycles of life and death and extinction patterns through time.
www.carleton.ca/Museum/extinction/tablecont.html
Is Humanity Suicidal?
Edward O. Wilson asks us why we stay on the course to our own self-destruction.
www.well.com/user/davidu/suicidal.html
A Field Guide to the Sixth Extinction
Niles Eldredge writes in 1999 about a few of the millions of plants and animals that won’t make it to the next millennium. The second link takes you to the site’s main page, entitled “Mass Extinction Underway — The World Wide Web’s most comprehensive source of information on the current mass extinction,” which provides links to numerous other resources.
www.well.com/user/davidu/fieldguide.html
www.well.com/user/davidu/extinction.html
Global Environment Outlook 3
The United Nations Environment Programme released this major report in May 2002. The report collated the thoughts of more than 1,000 contributors to assess the environmental impact of the last 30 years and outline policy ideas for the next three decades. It concluded that without action, the world may experience severe environmental problems within 30 years. The entire report can be read online or purchased online.
www.unep.org/geo/geo3/index.htm
Test your environmental knowledge
A 1999 survey showed that only one in three adult Americans had a passing understanding of the most pressing environmental issues. How do you measure up? Explanatory answers provided.
www.youthactionnet.org/quizzes/global_environment.cfm
World Atlas of Biodiversity — interactive map
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) released the firstWorld Atlas of Biodiversityin August 2002. This link takes you to their online interactive map that helps you search for data about species/land/water loss, extinction over time, and human global development. Click on the “?” for a help page that explains how to interact with this map.
stort.unep-wcmc.org/imaps/gb2002/book/viewer.htm
The Sixth Great Extinction: A Status Report
Earth Policy Institute’s 2004 update on the status of loss of biodiversity.
www.earth-policy.org/Updates/Update35.htm
Books
» The Biodiversity Crisis: Losing What Countsby The American Museum of Natural History (New Press, 2001).
» The Sixth Extinction: Patterns of of Life and the Future of Humankindby Richard Leakey and Roger Lewin (Doubleday and Company, 1996).
Get Involved
The Biodiversity Project
You can choose a way to get involved in protecting biodiversity — from educational resources to community outreach.
www.biodiversityproject.org/html/resources/introduction.htm
The Nature Conservancy
Select a state from the menu and find out how you can become an environmental volunteer in that state.
Information for Action
“This website explains the environmental problems & offers solutions to fix them. There are many valuable resources available” including lobbying info, contacts database, & news updates.
Harmony
“Harmony Foundation is all about education for the environment. We offer publications and programs… ‘Building Sustainable Societies’ offers innovative training for educators and community group leaders to support local action on important environmental issues.”
Earth Talk: Environmental advocacy for professionals
This discussion community and learning network seeks to contribute to global ecological sustainability by enabling communication connections between those working on behalf of forests, water, and climate.
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Tiger Illustration by Dorothy Lathrop from
"Fierce-Face: The story of a tiger" by Dhan Gopal Mukerji (1936)
I declare February LOVE, romance and beauty month.
A tender gesture…
A grand pas de deux is effectively a suite of dances that share a common theme, often symbolic of a love story or the partnership inherent in love, following each other’s movements.
I love the subtle tones, all the varied tones, that give the flower/petals/stems their texture, depth and form, their delectable shapes accentuated, extracted and emphasised without the colour. Don't you agree?
VIEW the NEW BOOK and movie:THE MONOCHROMES here: youtu.be/GoOj18_lEVg
I wish you all a very good day and thanx for all your kind words, time, comments and faves. Very much appreciated.
M, (*_*)
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My mother and I drove two hours to McAlester, OK, just to see this tombstone. It belongs to my great-great-great grandfather, one Uriah Alverie Keath, and my mom and I spent quite awhile looking around the ancient (and, sadly, vandalized) cemetery before I found a sandstone marker laying face down in the grass. With quite a bit of effort, I picked it up and started scraping off the layers of caked-on mud embedded deep in the faint writing on the stone. Slowly, the writing began to reveal itself, and I realized I found what we were looking for.
Uriah Alverie Keath was born in 1840 in Kansas and worked on the family farm with his father, George. When he was 21, he married the girl next door, so to speak, Miss Louisa Doty, and they had four children in quick succession. When George became ill, all of the money coming in went to take care of him during his illness, all to no avail. George died in 1863, leaving Uriah with a pile of debt and a farm that was soon on the auction block. Although he fought to keep the farm, the law was not on Uriah's side, and he and Louisa soon found themselves homeless.
I have no idea why, but Uriah decided that the Choctaw Nation in Indian Territory would be a good place to rebuild their lives, so the family loaded up their wagon with their few remaining possessions and made the long journey south into what is now McAlester in southeastern Oklahoma.
According to my great-Uncle Clyde, the family historian, "I have often wondered what would hold them (the Keath family) in a place where a white man could neither own land nor a home or building unless his wife was an Indian and then only in her name, but in reading the early history of this town it shows there was work and money there.
A railroad was being put through that part of the country about the time the war (Civil War) started and they had found much needed coal there, and the Indians who had joined the southern army were camped about the place, and the Confederate Army had supply depots there: even after the war there were 5,000 coal miners in the town or in settlements around the mines.
The many old slag piles give evidence of this form of activity; and while this was going on, Grandpa Keath owned and was operating a shingle mill a little south east of town and the proof is outstanding that he had a market for shingles."
The Keath family apparently thrived in this remote outpost filled with miners and Native Americans. Uriah's daughter (and my great-great grandmother), Ida, long afterward fondly remembered her childhood days of running and playing in the streams and hills of this untamed country with the few children in the area, both Native and white. She even learned to speak the Choctaw tongue.
Yes, life was good in McAlester, and then, suddenly, it was all over. I'm not sure how, but Uriah died in May of 1875 at the young age of 36. Realizing that her adventure on the prairie was over, Louisa contacted her father and brother, who soon arrived from Illinois to help her settle the estate, erect a stone for Uriah, who was buried in the local cemetery, and once again pack their belongings for a long journey ... this time to Illinois, where her family now lived.
Louisa never remarried and spent the rest of her days (she lived to be 77) in Illinois. But, I guess Oklahoma never got our of her children's blood because I know that at least two of the Keath kids returned. After her marriage, Ida, her husband, C.A., and their eight children moved to Lawton, OK (around the time of statehood in 1907) and tried their luck on a farm there. They had several very successful years then experienced a couple of severe droughts (one that was so bad that the family ate only sweet potatos for a season). Declaring defeat, most of the family moved back to Illinois (my great-grandmother stayed in OK and lived the rest of her days here).
Ida's brother, Charles Franklin Keath, also came back to Oklahoma and settled around Ada (in the middle of the state). I believe he, too, was a farmer, but life here was hard for him and his family. Two of his children died in quick succession, so he packed up and headed for Arkansas, where the family had more success and settled permanently.
So, thanks to ole Uriah, who came to Oklahoma over 20 years before the first land run (in 1889), my sons can say they are the seventh generation of their family to call this state home. That's pretty cool!
A little bit of cinematic toy photography captured with my Tron Lego and some practical effects.
Prints available via my website, www.tommilton.co.uk
The Old Post Office Building at the corner of Clinch & Market Streets in Downtown Knoxville was built circa 1869-73 of Tennessee marble in the Renaissance Revival style. Alfred B. Mullett served as supervising architect for the design & construction. The building is three stories with fairly straight-fronted walls except for the small projection defining the entrance areas. Rusticated quoins contrast with the smooth surface of the walls. First floor openings, which are arched with keystones, are joined by a string course. Second & third story windows in the projected or entrance areas are treated with a complete entablature above each; those windows on the recessed surfaces are framed only in architraves. The roof behind the heavy cornice is not visible from the street. Originally, the building housed the post office on the first floor, with courtrooms and other federal offices on the second & third floors. There is a west wing that was added in the early 20th century. However, in 1933, the post office moved to a new, larger building and this old structure began to be used as offices for the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA).
At the time of its construction in 1869-1873, this Old Post Office Building in Knoxville was considered one of the finest structures in East Tennessee and is now one of the few early buildings of distinction preserved in the city. In addition, on March 20, 1973, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). All the information above was found on the original documents submitted for listing consideration that are located here: npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/AssetDetail/a72d7c90-e49a-4a86-a08...
Three bracketed photos were taken with a handheld Nikon D7200 and combined with Photomatix Pro to create this HDR image. Additional adjustments were made in Photoshop CS6.
"For I know the plans I have for you", declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~Jeremiah 29:11
The best way to view my photostream is through Flickriver with the following link: www.flickriver.com/photos/photojourney57/
We declare, pronounce and define that the doctrine which holds that the Blessed Virgin Mary, at the first instant of her conception, by a singular privilege and grace of the Omnipotent God, in virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of mankind, was preserved immaculate from all stain of original sin, has been revealed by God, and therefore should firmly and constantly be believed by all the faithful.
—Pope Pius IX, Ineffabilis Deus, December 8, 1854
PRAYER TO THE
IMMACULATE CONCEPTION
O God, who by the Immaculate Conception
of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
did prepare a worthy dwelling place for Your Son,
we beseech You that,
as by the foreseen death of this, Your Son,
You did preserve Her from all stain,
so too You would permit us, purified through Her intercession, to come unto You.
Through the same Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, world without end.
Amen.
Escultura: Nick Lugue
Encarna: Tom Joven
Vestiduras: Plumaria Sacred Vestments
Guevarra-Garcia Family
Angeles City
--sand grit in the potato salad. "When will the fireworks START, Daddy?" the kids ask. Hundreds of pleasure boaters idle in the current, waiting for the first salvo from Ft. Vancouver, the biggest fireworks show west of the Mississippi. Meanwhile the local yokels bide their time launching some pretty impressive private pyrotechnics, freshly purchased from the roadside artillery stands at the nearby Indian Reservation (hey, don't mess with tradition!).
The Fourth on the Columbia River signals the true start of summer. And the beachfront litter remains until the fall rains wash it all away. Maybe not this year, though--we've only just slid below flood stage. There's not much beach to litter up, as yet. This year, I'm laying low. KeyLimeSteve has the watch at Float Club, so I don't need to be there. My kids are off on their own, and I have a pack of dogs (including guest dogs Kippie and Gracie)--all hating fireworks. The vet tells me that Benadryl is a good tranquilizer to take the edge off their fear (one mg. per pound, administered once every 8 hours).
The Fourth is all about declarations of freedom, and I'm declaring my new Freedom Day tradition--holing up in the cool of the basement, priming the pups with doggie downers, and heading off my Puppy Porn Film Festival with "Old Yeller" and "Benji—Off the Leash!"
When we see a potential sexual partner, our heart starts to beat harder and faster. If we are too much into it, our heart rolls downwards like a ball, noting can hold us any more," we fall in love". Our brain struggles to hold our heart form falling. Our heart wins the battle agains our brain and declares the independency. This victory will be announced as love.
Ce parc national renferme le plus vaste milieu naturel subtropical du pays2, et englobe 25 % de la région marécageuse originelle des Everglades. Visité par environ un million de personnes par an3, le parc a été déclaré réserve de biosphère en 1976 (avec le parc national de Dry Tortugas), inscrit au patrimoine mondial de l'UNESCO en 1979 et classé zone humide d'importance internationale en 1987
This national park contains the largest subtropical natural environment in the country, 2 encompassing 25% of the original Everglades marshland. Visited by about one million people per year3, the park was declared a biosphere reserve in 1976 (with the Dry Tortugas National Park), a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979 and a Wetland of International Importance in 1987.
Psalm 19:1… “The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.”
That correlates with Psalm 8:1… “LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory in the heavens.” I cannot fathom how anyone can stand amid such glory and not come away with this understanding… and that’s coming from someone who has a great understanding of the science behind this scene. Unless you want a lesson in physics, don’t test me.
I’ve been practicing stacking star images to highlight some iconic structures and landscapes here in North Carolina… it’s best to photograph the Milky Way on a moonless night, though I’ve either not been able to get to these places in a timely manner or the weather hasn’t cooperated. The mountains and the coast are likely targets with barns and rockscapes and piers and lighthouses… I have them picked out; I just need to get there!
This was taken in Death Valley in March of 2015… you couldn’t ask for a darker sky than it is there. The light on the horizon isn’t light pollution from some distant city… it’s from the first rays of light from the rising sun. That was not quite that evident as I shot this scene, though the sensitivity of the camera over the long exposures easily picked it up. By the way, the exposure time mentioned in the EXIF is an accumulation of the time for each of the nine images used in the stack. By "stack", I mean that multiple images were digitally stacked to eke out as much detail as the images would allow and also eliminate the digital noise inherent with long exposures at high ISO values. I used Sequator to stack the images and freeze the foreground for this image… color correction, sharpening, and further noise reduction was done in Adobe Camera Raw and Photoshop CC.
Sequator is a free software that can be found here: sites.google.com/site/sequatorglobal/
A good tutorial can be found here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-MCvbYj-hA&t=20s
If you have other questions about the workflow that I can help with, just let me know in the comments.
I declare February LOVE, romance and beauty month.
We NEED it!
Kissing is great! It’s known as a favourite universal act of showing love and affection.
Almost everyone receives or gives a kiss at some point in their life.
A Lingering Lip Kiss – This is a closed mouth kiss that lasts for more than 20 seconds. The tongue is not involved in this kiss. Lingering lip kisses involve the lips only.
This kiss serves as an indication of deep love.
Two small amorous roses.
VIEW and enjoy the NEW BOOK and movie:THE MONOCHROMES here: youtu.be/GoOj18_lEVg
Thanx for your time and comments, greatly appreciated, M, (*_*)
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