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"Treat the earth well: it was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children. We do not inherit the earth from our Ancestors, we borrow it from our Children. " - Tribe Unknown

 

This trail is open year-round and is beautiful to visit anytime.

www.alltrails.com/trail/us/illinois/horseshoe-mound--2

 

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Slovakia, Highland; former historical Hungary /Felvidék.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Felvid%c3%a9k

Historic centre of the town with castle and churches

The first written reference to the town dates back to 1328, when it was granted royal town privileges by King Charles I of Hungary (I. Károly Róbert). The town's mint was already in existence at the time of the granting of royal privileges. Starting in 1335 the mint produced golden florins and later the famous "Kremnica (Körmöcbánya) ducats", which were used as an international means of payment as a result of their consistently high purity of gold. It was the most important mint, and later the only one, in the Kingdom of Hungary, in Czechoslovakia and nowadays in Slovakia; the prosperity brought to the town led to it being given the nickname "Golden Kremnica (Körmöcbánya)". Bánya=mine in Hungarian.

hu.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%c3%b6rm%c3%b6cb%c3%a1nya#Nevezete...

hu.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%c3%b6rm%c3%b6cb%c3%a1nyai_p%c3%a9...

----------------------------- JESUS ✝️ SAVES-------------------------------

 

SALVATION THROUGH FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST - ALONE!

 

12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."

 

❤️❤️ IT'S ALL JESUS AND NONE OF OURSELVES! ❤️❤️

 

16 I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the SALVATION of everyone WHO BELIEVES: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 17 For in the gospel a RIGHTEOUSNESS FROM GOD IS REVEALED, a righteousness that is by FAITH FROM FIRST TO LAST, just as it is written: "THE RIGHTEOUS WILL LIVE BY FAITH." (Romans 1:16-17)

 

16 KNOW that a man is NOT justified by observing the law, but by FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be JUSTIFIED BY FAITH in CHRIST and NOT by observing the law, BECAUSE BY OBSERVING THE LAW NO ONE WILL BE JUSTIFIED. (Galatians 2:16)

 

1. Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2. BY THIS GOSPEL YOU ARE SAVED, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.

 

3. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4. that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5. and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. 6. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8. and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.

 

9. For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them--yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 11. Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed. (1 Corinthians 15:1-11)

 

7. Therefore Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. 8. All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9. I am the gate; whoever enters through me WILL BE SAVED. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. 10. The thief comes only to STEAL and KILL and DESTROY; I have come that they may have LIFE, and have it to the FULL. (John 10:7-10)

 

1 Brothers, my heart's desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. 2 For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. 3 Since they did not know the righteousness that comes from God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God's righteousness. 4 Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.

 

5 Moses describes in this way the righteousness that is by the law: "The man who does these things will live by them." 6 But the righteousness that is by faith says: "Do not say in your heart, 'Who will ascend into heaven?'" (that is, to bring Christ down) 7 "or 'Who will descend into the deep?'" (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But what does it say? "The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart," that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming: 9 That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. 11 As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame." 12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile--the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13 for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." (Romans 10:1-13)

 

Jesus came to bring spiritual LIFE to the spiritually dead and set the captives FREE! FREE from RELIGION, ERROR and outright LIES, so WE might serve THE LIVING GOD! In SPIRIT and in TRUTH!

 

So you'll KNOW, and not think you're to bad for God to love. The Christian LIFE isn't about how good WE are, because NONE of us are! It's about how GOOD JESUS IS! Because JESUS LOVES US, so much he died in our place and took the punishment for all of our sins on himself. The wages of sin is DEATH, and Jesus took the death WE so richly deserved for us and died in our place. The good news is, there's no more punishment for sin left. WE, you and I were all born forgive as a result of the crucifixion of God himself on the cross that took away the sins of the whole world. All we have to do is believe it, and put your Faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ. That my friends is REAL UNCONDITIONAL LOVE! YOU ARE LOVED. ❤️ ✝️ ❤️

 

For the best Biblical teaching in the last 2 centuries! Please listen to and down load these FREE audio files that were created with YOU in mind. It's ALL FREE, if you like it, please share it with others. ❤️

 

archive.org/details/PeopleToPeopleByBobGeorgeFREE-ARCHIVE...

 

www.revealedinchrist.com

 

CLICK ON THE LETTER "L" TO ENLARGE.

 

My THANK'S to all my Flickr friends who've favored and/or commented on my photos, I very much appreciate you're kindness! ❤️

 

© All Rights reserved no publication or copying without permission from the author.

Jacob's ladder (Polemonium) was given its common name because the arrangement of its leaves is somewhat ladder-like. However, it's Jacob's ladders' flowers that are the real attraction. Polemonium caeruleum and its cultivars send up clusters of flowers atop long stems in late spring to early summer. The bright blue varieties are among the most popular, blooming in clear tones of blue and bluish-purple, offset by yellow centres.

 

Jacob's ladder is a hardy perennial plant. It is upright and clump-forming, but it will spread by seed. Most Jacob's ladder plants have bell-shaped flowers in shades of purple and lavender, but there are also white, pink, and yellow varieties available. The compound leaves are composed of rows of narrow, pinnate leaflets. The branches grow from a basal rosette and arch and sway as they grow tall.

Texas Calendar Girls

6695 was completed at Armstrong Whitworth’s Newcastle works in October 1928 and was given works number 983. 6695 was originally deployed to Tyseley and then in April 1929 to Leamington hauling outer suburban passenger services In September 1934, 6695 was transferred to freight work at Oxley near Wolverhampton and then to Wolverhampton Stafford Road in February 1938 but returned to Oxley in January 1939.

 

It was later withdrawn from service in July 1964, after completing more than 620,000 miles, and sold to Woodham’s Scrapyard at Barry Island in South Wales. The locomotive left the Barry scrapyard in May 1979 following its purchase by the 56XX Tank Group (From 1995 called the 6695 Locomotive Group) and was then dismantled at Swanage. By 2006 the restoration work was completed at Herston Works. In 2015 it was damaged whilst being transported on a low-loader and subsequently dismantled and prepared for a full overhaul. The overhaul has since started on the West Somerset Railway with the locomotive expected to steam again in 2018 or 2019.

 

During 2017 discussions between the locomotive owners (the 6695 Locomotive Group) and the Swanage Railway resulted in an agreement for 6695 to stay on the West Somerset Railway for a 25 year period following the completion of the overhaul at Williton.In July 2022 the locomotive had a fire lit in its boiler in July 2022 with the hope that it would be in traffic in September of that year.

 

The locomotive was returned to steam in September 2022 and an official launch into traffic was planned for 2023.

 

And here it is now on the Great Central Railway working a freight service past Rabbits Bridge heading for Loughbouorgh Central.

The keepers must have given him somefing good smelling on that hay, eh? Such a widldle cutie!

givesotheystay.org

The street was given its name because of the residences of three chaplains and a bell-ringer built there during the 16th century. The four small buildings were demolished in 1708 to make room for the parsonage which is still present. Because the parsons of the German Church ("Tyska kyrkan") were housed near the street, the southern part of it was called Tyska Prästgatan ("The German Priest's Street") from the mid-18th to the mid-19th century while the northern part was called Svenska Prästgatan ("The Swedish Priest's Street"). The name revision of 1885, led to the name Prästgatan being used for the street's northern and southern extensions as well.

 

Before this, the north part of the street Storkyrkobrinken was known as Helvetesgränd ("Alley of Hell"), just like the surrounding area north and west of the cathedral Storkyrkan was referred to as Helvetet (Hell), a name subject to scholarly disputes. Professor Nils Ahnlund (1889–1957), interpreted it as referring to the area north of a church in popular beliefs being known as "latus plagæ damnatæ" ("the northern side of the damned") and therefore a place of disgrace suitable for suicides and criminals, a theory only corroborated by the location of the city executioner in the area. This theory was however questioned in several essays by the historian Lizzie Carlsson, who instead concluded that during the Middle Ages Helvetet was used all over Sweden for farmyards as well as other structures with a northern location. A theory, she argues, is confirmed by the fact that the "kingdom of the dead" in norse folklore is located to the north. While the presence of more distinguished residences in the Helvetet neighbourhood can be explained by the overcrowded conditions within the city walls, the name during medieval times did not have the pejorative meaning it has today, thus making the hypothesis credible.

Given up...

 

Fast das gleiche Bild, jedoch ist der Augenausdruck ein anderer...

 

Similar the same picture, but the expression of the eyes is different...

 

View on black

Looking for Crawdad's.

 

----------------------------- JESUS ✝️ SAVES-------------------------------

 

SALVATION THROUGH FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST - ALONE!

 

12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."

 

❤️❤️ IT'S ALL JESUS AND NONE OF OURSELVES! ❤️❤️

 

16 I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the SALVATION of everyone WHO BELIEVES: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 17 For in the gospel a RIGHTEOUSNESS FROM GOD IS REVEALED, a righteousness that is by FAITH FROM FIRST TO LAST, just as it is written: "THE RIGHTEOUS WILL LIVE BY FAITH." (Romans 1:16-17)

 

16 KNOW that a man is NOT justified by observing the law, but by FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be JUSTIFIED BY FAITH in CHRIST and NOT by observing the law, BECAUSE BY OBSERVING THE LAW NO ONE WILL BE JUSTIFIED. (Galatians 2:16)

 

1. Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2. BY THIS GOSPEL YOU ARE SAVED, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.

 

3. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4. that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5. and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. 6. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8. and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.

 

9. For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them--yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 11. Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed. (1 Corinthians 15:1-11)

 

7. Therefore Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. 8. All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9. I am the gate; whoever enters through me WILL BE SAVED. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. 10. The thief comes only to STEAL and KILL and DESTROY; I have come that they may have LIFE, and have it to the FULL. (John 10:7-10)

 

1 Brothers, my heart's desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. 2 For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. 3 Since they did not know the righteousness that comes from God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God's righteousness. 4 Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.

 

5 Moses describes in this way the righteousness that is by the law: "The man who does these things will live by them." 6 But the righteousness that is by faith says: "Do not say in your heart, 'Who will ascend into heaven?'" (that is, to bring Christ down) 7 "or 'Who will descend into the deep?'" (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But what does it say? "The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart," that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming: 9 That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. 11 As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame." 12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile--the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13 for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." (Romans 10:1-13)

 

Jesus came to bring spiritual LIFE to the spiritually dead and set the captives FREE! FREE from RELIGION, ERROR and outright LIES, so WE might serve THE LIVING GOD! In SPIRIT and in TRUTH!

 

So you'll KNOW, and not think you're to bad for God to love. The Christian LIFE isn't about how good WE are, because NONE of us are! It's about how GOOD JESUS IS! Because JESUS LOVES US, so much he died in our place and took the punishment for all of our sins on himself. The wages of sin is DEATH, and Jesus took the death WE so richly deserved for us and died in our place. The good news is, there's no more punishment for sin left. WE, you and I were all born forgive as a result of the crucifixion of God himself on the cross that took away the sins of the whole world. All we have to do is believe it, and put your Faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ. That my friends is REAL UNCONDITIONAL LOVE! YOU ARE LOVED. ❤️ ✝️ ❤️

 

For the best Biblical teaching in the last 2 centuries! Please listen to and down load these FREE audio files that were created with YOU in mind. It's ALL FREE, if you like it, please share it with others. ❤️

 

archive.org/details/PeopleToPeopleByBobGeorgeFREE-ARCHIVE...

 

www.revealedinchrist.com

 

CLICK ON THE LETTER "L" TO ENLARGE.

 

My THANK'S to all Flickr friends who fave and/or commented on my photos, I very much appreciate it! ❤️

 

© All Rights reserved no publication or copying without permission from the author.

Lake Wanaka in New Zealand is famous for one very particular tree... So here's a picture of different one smile emoticon

I took this shot on our trip last year. We based ourselves in Wanaka for a few days and had been out being tourists on this day. The weather became grotty late on and we had given up the idea of taking any sunset photos, so we meandered back to town in the rain to find somewhere to have dinner.

Just as we pulled into town and hit the main street, this incredible pink glow burst through a gap in the clouds and illuminated the sky.

So we quickly pulled off the road and scrambled (in the rain) to find any semblance of a composition, before squeezing off a couple of shots during the back-end of the sky-show. Then moments later the skies were dark and grey again.

Definitely a big case of "photographers panic" and probably the shortest photoshoot I've ever done.

I'm not 100% happy with the composition of my shot, but looking back now at least it's a nice reminder of the incredible sky we briefly witnessed.

Cheers

Steve

Shetland has now got a large wind farm, with turbines marching across the hillside. These have only been installed in the last few years. Given how windy the islands are and the UK in general doesn't quite have the rabid anti-windfarm lobby that occurs here I didn't hear much about protesting this. However, I am sure there would be some. Unlike, Iceland where geothermal energy is useful for both heating and electricity generation and is readily available.

This is an AI overview of the Viking Wind Farm "The primary wind turbine farm in the Shetland Islands is the Viking Wind Farm, a 443MW project with 103 turbines, which recently achieved full operational capacity, becoming the UK's most productive wind farm. It harnesses the islands' strong wind resources to generate enough electricity for approximately 500,000 homes and helps support the UK's net-zero targets. Other projects include the Energy Isles Wind Farm, an 18-turbine development on the island of Yell with a capacity of 126MW.

Viking Wind Farm

Capacity: 443 megawatts (MW).

Turbines: 103 turbines.

Output: Can power the equivalent of nearly half a million homes annually.

Significance: Expected to be the UK's most productive onshore wind farm and play a vital role in the country's decarbonization goals.

Status: All turbines were installed by August 2023, and it is now fully operational.

Other Projects

Energy Isles Wind Farm: An 18-turbine development on the island of Yell, with an installed capacity of about 126MW, capable of powering around 157,000 homes.

Shetland's Renewable Energy Future

Onshore and Offshore Potential: Shetland possesses significant wind resources, with plans for further wind farms and the development of tidal and green hydrogen projects, such as the Orion project.

Grid Connection: The construction of the Viking wind farm includes a new undersea cable to export the additional power to the Scottish mainland and beyond, helping to stabilize the grid and connect Shetland to the national grid.

Community Benefits: These projects are designed to retain the benefits of the renewable energy sector within the Shetland community and help reduce reliance on diesel and natural gas. " www.vikingenergy.co.uk/

Sometimes the gift you are given is not what you were expecting and that can be a good thing. When Don and I went to Merced Wildlife Refuge last week we expected to be photographing birds. And we did, but we also had the opportunity to observe and photograph a coyote family. We first saw a single coyote eating a rabbit. We immediately stopped the car and went into action. I photographed out the car window while Don slowly got out of the far side of the car and took his shots using the car as a blind. We were silent and in awe as we watched. Then a second coyote appeared, and then two more. They greeted each and frolicked a bit before fading away into the brush. In all, we had 9 minutes with them. It's one of the very best wildlife experiences I have ever had!

This shows a sunset as seen from the shore of Lake Wassookeag in the Central Maine Highlands. (image 34A9876 #sunset #maine #lake #nature) Please also visit: acadiamagic.com.

 

NOTE: All images are Copyrighted by Greg A. Hartford. No rights to use are given or implied to the viewer. All rights of ownership and use remain with the copyright owner.

Another frame of this spectacular scene that all came together for me, and that I'll forever be grateful for given that it can never be repeated. This one was a treat as a local resident stepped out in front of the train, but no fear, she was never in danger given that the train was moving at a crawl.

 

This scene had changed greatly in the 16 months since I last photographed it and more changes were rapidly looming on the horizon. Since my last visit in May 2023 the new loop track had been completed which obviated the need to cut inbound loaded trains into pieces to dump. The land clearing and excavation undertaken to build the loop and the new road overpass opened up a much wider view than was previously possible. In addition, to the benefit to photographers the local whitetail population seems to love CN's project as it created several large sloping meadows behind me around the loop, and in fact I saw a dozen more besides this doe.

 

The town, harbor, and the mighty Lake Superior are all shrouded in a thick marine layer of fog, but the cloud line cuts like a knife's edge through the yard bathing the train in some of the most epic storm light I've ever seen. A Two Harbors Yard crew on board a U793 train of loaded taconite pellets from Cleveland-Cliffs Minorca Mine which is crawling through the dump building at the prescribed 0.3 may behind a brace of classic GE C40-8s, CN 2000, 2007, and 2020. The trio were built as CNW 8501, 8507, and 8521 in Jun and Jul 1989 respectively for hauling coal out of the Powder River Basin. Later renumbered and repainted as UP 9023, 9030, and 9043 they were part of a large group retired by UP more than 24 years ago. They then served as Citirail lease units for a time until CN purchased the entire fleet between 2010-2012, and later modified a portion of those with straight air for Iron Range ore train service which has explained their unexpected longevity.

 

Alas after an entire second full career in heavy haul unit train service their time has come to an end as CN has modified 22 (I believe) rebuilt AC446Ms with straight air and has replaced all of these (and the EMDs on the Missabe Sub side) in 2 for 3 replacement schede on all ore trains. According to a good friend and local CN employee the end would come in a bit over a month on October 26th when the last pellet train ran down the Iron Range Sub behind a three pack of Dash-8s.

 

For even more history and info check out this first post if you missed it: flic.kr/p/2qxRQEq

 

Two Harbors, Minnesota

Friday September 13, 2024

another nice unusual one we were given

Day 24 (v 16.0) - flying low

©All photographs on this site are copyright: ©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams) 2011 – 2021 & GETTY IMAGES ®

  

No license is given nor granted in respect of the use of any copyrighted material on this site other than with the express written agreement of ©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams). No image may be used as source material for paintings, drawings, sculptures, or any other art form without permission and/or compensation to ©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams)

  

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I would like to say a huge and heartfelt 'THANK YOU' to GETTY IMAGES, and the 42.310+ Million visitors to my FLICKR site.

  

***** Selected for sale in the GETTY IMAGES COLLECTION on Monday 23rd May 2022

  

CREATIVE RF gty.im/1397013864 MOMENT ROYALTY FREE COLLECTION**

  

This photograph became my 5,580th frame to be selected for sale in the Getty Images collection and I am very grateful to them for this wonderful opportunity.

  

©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams)

  

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**** This frame was chosen on Tuesday 24th May 2022 to appear on FLICKR EXPLORE (Highest Ranking: #240. This is my 214th photograph to be selected.

 

I am really thrilled to have a frame picked and most grateful to every one of the 42.328+ Million people who have visited, favorited and commented on this and all of my other photographs here on my FLICKR site. *****

  

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Photograph taken at an altitude of Seven metres at 11:36am on Thursday May 12th 2022 off the Mall and Horse Guards Road within the grounds of St James's Park in Central London, one of the Royal parks of London situated in South West London.

  

THE EASTERN GRAY/EASTERN GREY SQUIRREL (SCIURUS CAROLINENSIS)

  

By Paul Williams

  

The Grey (or Gray) squirrel, you either love 'em or you hate 'em. Cute and fluffy little funsters or destructive critters who ruin trees, kill bird chicks and trees and damage our homes... oh and it's their fault we lost our native Red squirrels as well!

  

OK

  

I get it and I see both sides of the story of course. For my part, I am a nature, wildlife and landscape photographer who prefers the company of animals and natural beauty to fellow humans who are systematically plundering Mother Earth's resources and killing off her beautiful creatures at an alarming rate! I believe there is a natural order of things, creatures kill other creatures to survive, they adapt to situations and when mankind encroaches on their territory to make a fast buck, those animals sometimes adapt to survive and the order changes. That is the balance of nature which is ever changing and affected by us..... the dumbest of the great apes. Some species are driven out by others, some may be destined to become extinct, the fittest will survive, and sometime a species will need intervention and help from mankind in order to survive... usually as a direct consequence of mankind's own actions in destroying the animal kingdom's natural habitat of course.

  

I adore these little fellas and at almost sixty years old, I never grew up knowing red squirrels at all. I've seen reds in Scotland and black squirrels in Stanley Park on Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada, but in my beloved home country of England I have always known and loved the cute little Greys. They visit my garden and give me hours, days, weeks of happiness and wonderful photographic opportunities, and I see them in Parks and forests all around me, so it's time to offer up an insight into the Grey squirrel, much loved, much hated... a sort of Marmite rodent if you will.

  

WHAT EXACTLY IS A SQUIRREL?

  

The word 'Squirrel', was first recorded in 1327 and hails from the Anglo-Norman word 'Esquirel', from old French 'Escurel', which was a reflex for the Latin word 'Sciurus'.The Eastern gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) is also known as the Eastern Grey squirrel or simply grey squirrel depending on the region of the world it is found. It is a tree squirrel, of the squirrel family Sciuridae including over one hundred arboreal species native to all continents of the world other than Antarctica and Oceania. Tree squirrels live mostly in trees, apart from the flying squirrel. The best known genus is Sciurus, containing most of the bushy tailed squirrels which are found in Europe, North America, temperate Asia as well as central and south America.

  

The scientific classification for the Eastern Grey is:

 

KINGDOM: ANIMALIA PHYLUM: CHORDATA CLASS: MAMMALIA ORDER: RODENTIA FAMILY: SCIURIDAE GENUS: SCIURUS SUBGENUS: SCIURUS SPECIES: SCIURUS CAROLINENSIS

  

They were first noted by German naturalist, botanist, entomologist, herpetologist, and malacologist - Johann Friedrich Gmelin in 1788.

  

A mammal and rodent, predominantly herbivorous they are none the less an omnivore with a life span of between two and ten years. They can grow to 70cm in length and weigh up to 8kg. There are more than two hundred and sixty species of worldwide squirrel, the smallest being the African pygmy squirrel at just 10cm in length, whereas the Indian giant squirrel is three feet long! The oldest fossil of a squirrel, Hesperopetes, dates back to the late Eocene epoch period Chadronian period of 40-35 million years ago. The tree squirrels rotate their ankles by 180 degrees, so that the hind paws pointy backwards gripping tree bark which enables them to descend a tree headfirst.

  

Originally native to Eastern and Midwestern United States of America, they were first introduced into the United Kingdom in 1876 in Henbury Park, Macclesfield in Cheshire when Victorian banker Thomas V. Brocklehurst released a pair of Greys that he brought back from a business trip to America after their attraction as pets had waned. Victorians had a penchant for collecting exotic animals and birds of the world, but trends came and went and subsequently animals were simply discarded into the wilderness. There are early records of greys released near Denbighshire in north Wales from private collections. Later introduced to several regions in the UK, they quickly settled and spread, colonizing an area of three hundred miles in a quarter of a century between Argyll and Stirlingshire in Scotland.

  

Introductions of the Greys between 1902 and 1929 (the year of the last recorded introduction), included: Regent’s Park in London, Berkshire, Northamptonshire, Oxfordshire, Oxfordshire, Devon, Warwickshire, Nottinghamshire, Suffolk and Hampshire. Grey Squirrels spread into Gloucestershire and eastern Wiltshire with animals coming directly from the United States or from Woburn. One hundred greys were released in Richmond Park in Surrey in 1902, Ninety one into Regent’s Park between 1905 and 1907 and a further ten New Jersey imported greys were introduced into Woburn Park in Bedfordshire.

  

Predators include hawks, weasels, raccoons, bobcats, foxes, domestic and feral cats, snakes, owls, and dogs, African harrier-hawks in Africa and... oh yes, Mankind pretty much everywhere who despise, mistreat, cull or eat it .

  

FACTS, MYTHS AND THAT POXY PARAPOX!

  

The massive decline in native red squirrels blamed upon the spread of the invasive greys has always been perhaps a little harsh as reds were already in a steep decline due to loss of habitat and disease and thus the greys simply took over the areas where the reds were dwindling. It's also a fact that reds were also seen as a plague, branded as pests who killed birds and damaged trees and the culling of reds almost brought them to the brink of extinction. Licenses to kill reds could still be obtained up until the seventies!

  

Reds suffered at the hands of mankind thanks to a combination of agricultural deforestation also linked with war and fuel needs which caused extinction in Southern Scotland and Ireland by the early eighteenth century, way before greys had been introduced. Harsh winters killed off the less hardy red population in the early nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

  

Greys are more adept at finding food and adapting to locations and environments, but also carry the squirrel poxvirus (SQPV) which although not particularly harmful to them, is a serious infection for the reds.

  

Parapox in red squirrels causes swollen lesions around the mouth, eyes, ears and nose also the front paws and sometimes genitals and skin ulcers and kills a red within fifteen days. There is no definitive correlation between the spread of the virus and the spread of the Greys, it actually arrived in several areas before the greys began to colonize there. An epidemic virus was observed in Red squirrels from at least 1900 with isolation attempts failing, and the first case of Parapox in the UK was in 1980 in the county of Norfolk. Greys cannot transmit the virus to reds via saliva or faeces, but reds can between each other from bodily secretions and at animal feeders in gardens. The transmission from greys to reds is though to come from parasites. Eight to ten per cent of reds survive the virus, and there is some evidence that reds are slowly building an evolved resistance.

  

Greys are seen as pests to forest land, stripping bark from trees during May and June, and are also capable of destroying household bins, water pipes, causing roof damage not to mention taking eggs and killing young chicks of ground nesting and songbird populations. They also take from bird feeders and there is a whole industry for creating squirrel proof feeders these days.

  

THE CULLING OF GREY SQUIRRELS

  

Grey squirrels have limited legal protection and can be legally controlled all year round by a variety of methods including shooting and trapping. Methods of trapping and killing include Drey poking and shooting, Tunnel trapping using spring traps set in accordance with BASC’s trapping pest mammals code of practice. They can also be shot using a shotgun or powerful air rifle or up until September 30th 2014 poisoned by Warfarin (Now outlawed).

  

Whilst professional trapping and extermination is hopefully done as humanely as possible, there have been cases, many of them where cost savings have been gained by battering the squirrels to death! Grey squirrels are trapped in ghastly metal contraptions for hours and hours, wearing themselves out frantically trying to escape by gnawing at the metals bars. They bite the floor and scratch at them with their claws and do not get a moments peace or rest through absolute fear. Once the traps are retrieved, each squirrel, terrified will be thrown into a sack and smacked on the head countless times with a blunt instrument. When a mother is slaughtered, her babies who are totally dependent on her, will die a slow death of thirst and starvation.

  

There is an argument for the control of Greys on many grounds but also a counter argument that Culling does not work, and has not on countless times where, once a population of greys have been culled, the nearest group will move back in and claim the land. The university of Bristol concluded that there was little evidence that culling greys to save red squirrels was effective, and that perhaps finding a way of boosting red squirrel immunity to the poxvirus or planting areas of yew trees where reds are known to thrive and spending money on research into positive moves might be a better option.

  

In Ireland, the re-introduction of the Pine marten, a species made extinct originally by the very same land owners who also wish to do the same to the grey squirrel, has seen the rapid demise of the grey and the reintroction of the native reds. Red squirrels are smaller and more nimble than their grey counterparts, and as such can get to the very ends of tree branches where neither the pine martins, nor more importantly the heavier greys can, thus surviving and thriving. As a result in Ireland, the grey squirrel population has crashed in approximately 9,000 km2 of its former range and the reds has become common once more after a thirty year absence... oh and Pine Martens are protected again!

  

In Scotland, Pine Martens exist in areas where Red squirrels thrive, and greys do not. So perhaps there is a lesson here, as in England where there are no pine martens, the greys are prolific breeders. So there is an argument against the barbarity of shooting and poisoning greys, and if, as so many believe, the greys MUST be controlled, how about a more humane and natural method that nature intended.. with re-introduction of predators. Just a thought!

  

So a few facts and figures on the greys and to wrap up, from a purely personal perspective I love these little guys, as I do almost every creature in nature other than those eight legged beasties that shall not be named and for which I have a deep and powerful phobia that borders on paranoia!

  

I could no more harm an animal deliberately than eat a McDonald's McRib (Once saw how they are made and let me just say... eeeuuuuuwwwww!!).

  

They are small, cute, cuddly, furry, they photograph beautifully, have great personality and make me smile. They trust me enough to take food from my hand in parks, and I can't bare the though of ugly, hairy land owners sticking a shotgun in their face and blowing them away! I appreciate they can be a pest, a problem, a menace, that their PR managers might have a bit of a problem winning you over when they flay small chicks alive on your lawn or decimate the songbird population by stealing their eggs.... and perhaps there is a need to keep the population under control and try and re-establish the red population.....

  

Yep I get that....

  

I just hope we can solve the problem more humanely to create a peaceful coexistence of the reds and greys in different areas. A man can dream can't he.

  

Paul Williams June 18th 2021

©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams).

 

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Nikon D850 Focal length 150mm Shutter speed: 1/640s Aperture f/6.3 ISO160 Hand held with Tamron VR Vibration reduction enabled on setting 1. Image area FX (36 x 24) NEF RAW L (8256 x 5504). (14 bit uncompressed file) Focus mode AF-C focus. AF-C Priority Selection: Release. Nikon Back button focusing enabled AF-Area mode: 3D-Tracking Exposure mode: Manual mode Metering mode: Matrix metering White balance on: Auto1, 0, 0 (4770K). Colour space: RGB. High ISO NR: ON (Low) Active D-Lighting: Auto Vignette control: Normal Picture control: (SD) Standard with sharpening +3 and clarity +1.00

  

Tamron SP 150-600mm F/5-6.3 Di VC USD G2. Nikon GP-1 GPS module. Lee SW150 MKII filter holder. Lee SW150 95mm screw in adapter ring. Lee SW150 circular polariser glass filter.Lee SW150 Filters field pouch. Hoodman HEYENRG round eyepiece oversized eyecup.Mcoplus professional MB-D850 multi function battery grip 6960.Two Nikon EN-EL15a batteries (Priority to battery in Battery grip). Black Rapid Curve Breathe strap. My Memory 128GB Class 10 SDXC 80MB/s card. Lowepro Flipside 400 AW camera bag.

  

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LATITUDE: N 51d 30m 11.41s

LONGITUDE: W 0d 7m 59.86s

ALTITUDE: 6.0m

  

RAW (TIFF) FILE: 130.00MB NEF: 90.9MB

PROCESSED (JPeg) FILE: 42.20MB

      

PROCESSING POWER:

  

Nikon D850 Firmware versions C 1.10 (9/05/2019) LD Distortion Data 2.018 (18/02/20) LF 1.00

  

HP 110-352na Desktop PC with AMD Quad-Core A6-5200 APU 64Bit processor. Radeon HD8400 graphics. 8 GB DDR3 Memory with 1TB Data storage. 64-bit Windows 10. Verbatim USB 2.0 1TB desktop hard drive. WD My Passport Ultra 1tb USB3 Portable hard drive. Nikon ViewNX-1 64bit Version 1.4.1 (18/02/2020). Nikon Capture NX-D 64bit Version 1.6.2 (18/02/2020). Nikon Picture Control Utility 2 (Version 2.4.5 (18/02/2020). Nikon Transfer 2 Version 2.13.5. Adobe photoshop Elements 8 Version 8.0 64bit.

   

Given how much time we spend in the routine it’s good to escape for a while.

 

more here: goo.gl/frU8W2

My wife has given her consent to my using this image of one of her Rheumatoid Arthritis treatments for this week's 'Handle With Care' theme.

 

Technical: this image started out as a focus stack of 15 images of the syringe on a mirror with a black background taken at f/10.0 (now that I know the sweet spot after last week's brilliant challenge!) and processed in Helicon Focus. The resulting image was then transferred to Photoshop for extensive dust-spot removal (on the mirror, not my sensor!). Back in Lightroom I applied sharpening to the whole image and a graduated filter to tone down the reflection. Finally, a radial 4-stop filter ensured the surrounding black areas were fully black!

 

Happy Macro Monday to everyone.

Given I didn't intend for the BG to get blown out as badly as it did, I still think this turned out really well :D

 

----------------------------- JESUS ✝️ SAVES-------------------------------

 

SALVATION THROUGH FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST - ALONE!

 

12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."

 

❤️❤️ IT'S ALL JESUS AND NONE OF OURSELVES! ❤️❤️

 

16 I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the SALVATION of everyone WHO BELIEVES: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 17 For in the gospel a RIGHTEOUSNESS FROM GOD IS REVEALED, a righteousness that is by FAITH FROM FIRST TO LAST, just as it is written: "THE RIGHTEOUS WILL LIVE BY FAITH." (Romans 1:16-17)

 

16 KNOW that a man is NOT justified by observing the law, but by FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be JUSTIFIED BY FAITH in CHRIST and NOT by observing the law, BECAUSE BY OBSERVING THE LAW NO ONE WILL BE JUSTIFIED. (Galatians 2:16)

 

1. Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2. BY THIS GOSPEL YOU ARE SAVED, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.

 

3. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4. that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5. and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. 6. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8. and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.

 

9. For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them--yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 11. Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed. (1 Corinthians 15:1-11)

 

7. Therefore Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. 8. All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9. I am the gate; whoever enters through me WILL BE SAVED. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. 10. The thief comes only to STEAL and KILL and DESTROY; I have come that they may have LIFE, and have it to the FULL. (John 10:7-10)

 

1 Brothers, my heart's desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. 2 For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. 3 Since they did not know the righteousness that comes from God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God's righteousness. 4 Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.

 

5 Moses describes in this way the righteousness that is by the law: "The man who does these things will live by them." 6 But the righteousness that is by faith says: "Do not say in your heart, 'Who will ascend into heaven?'" (that is, to bring Christ down) 7 "or 'Who will descend into the deep?'" (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But what does it say? "The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart," that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming: 9 That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. 11 As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame." 12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile--the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13 for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." (Romans 10:1-13)

 

Jesus came to bring spiritual LIFE to the spiritually dead and set the captives FREE! FREE from RELIGION, ERROR and outright LIES, so WE might serve THE LIVING GOD! In SPIRIT and in TRUTH!

 

So you'll KNOW, and not think you're to bad for God to love. The Christian LIFE isn't about how good WE are, because NONE of us are! It's about how GOOD JESUS IS! Because JESUS LOVES US, so much he died in our place and took the punishment for all of our sins on himself. The wages of sin is DEATH, and Jesus took the death WE so richly deserved for us and died in our place. The good news is, there's no more punishment for sin left. WE, you and I were all born forgive as a result of the crucifixion of God himself on the cross that took away the sins of the whole world. All we have to do is believe it, and put your Faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ. That my friends is REAL UNCONDITIONAL LOVE! YOU ARE LOVED. ❤️ ✝️ ❤️

 

For the best Biblical teaching in the last 2 centuries! Please listen to and down load these FREE audio files that were created with YOU in mind. It's ALL FREE, if you like it, please share it with others. ❤️

 

archive.org/details/PeopleToPeopleByBobGeorgeFREE-ARCHIVE...

 

www.revealedinchrist.com

 

CLICK ON THE LETTER "L" TO ENLARGE.

 

My THANK'S to all my Flickr friends who've favored and/or commented on my photos, I very much appreciate you're kindness! ❤️

 

© All Rights reserved no publication or copying without permission from the author.

Well Christmas has taken it's toll on me and given me very little time over the past week! :( however, with the little time I did manage to get I have been getting to know my Off Camera Flash and trying to perfect the art of "Stop Action" photography, I completed all my theory in my lunch hours last week and was desperate to put it to the test, I had an hour with the birds today and this is the result...I'm getting there! :)

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Canon 70D | f/11 | 1/200 sec | ISO-320 | Canon 430 EX II | Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 L IS USM

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As you can see from the settings used, its the Flash that stops the action, Not a fast shutter speed as you would normally need in bright daylight, a couple of key points to remember when using this technique (unless you have specialised gear) is that you need low ambient light and a low flash setting (below 1/2 power on the 430 EX), this coupled with the above settings will create a nice dark background which illuminates only the bird and stops the action in its tracks, I had the camera on a tripod and the flash gun was positioned a few feet away at about 90 degrees to the camera, using three wireless remotes enabled me to trigger the flash and camera from a reasonable distance...and that is about it! :) hope some of you find the info useful or of interest, if so then please leave a comment to let me know :)

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If you have a minute please do stop by my My Photography Facebook Page Click Here to Visit and give us a Like or grab the link below...

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www.facebook.com/NickUdyPhotography/

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Please respect my wishes and do Not post Icons, Links or Awards on my photo stream a comment will suffice and be very much appreciated.

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Thanks to those who look and take the time to comment, it's much appreciated, I realise we all have different tastes and opinions so critique/constructive criticism or Ideas are very welcomed.

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Note: I only upload a minimal size and minimal quality image.

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

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Appropriately enough given the date, the devil's fingers fungi (Clathrus archeri) are beginning to emerge in numbers in the New Forest. Judging from the hundreds of 'eggs' I saw today there will be an incredible show of them in a week or two.

Given the time and location this was most likely taken with a Pentax *istDS with Pentax 18-55 lens.

March 25, 2013

Seoul, South Korea

I'm sure, given the opportunity, Dusty (one of our house rabbits) would not have ventured out in the very high winds today, but I thought it was fitting to upload this shot of her `enjoying' a more gentle breeze in the garden earlier in the year.

The strong winds here are set to stop about now, but are to be followed by snow for the next couple of days. I'm looking forward to that, but only because I work from home, so wouldn't have to commute through it.

This beautiful Malachite Butterfly was classified and given its scientific name by Carolus Linnaeus (1758) and Jacob Hübner (1761-1826; in 1823); as far as I can gather, Hübner devised 'Siproeta' for what Linnaeus called 'Papilio stelenes'. It's curious that these men get the credit for classifying our Malachite Green Wonder.

Well before their work, intrepid Maria Sibylla Merian (1647-1717), fine artist and excellent naturalist, had traveled to Surinam specifically as she herself writes 'om naauwkeuriger onderzoekinge te doen' - to do more precise research than possible in Europe - especially on exotic plants and insects. She published her magnificent results back in Holland in 1705. One of the first detailed descriptions and paintings in her wonderful Metamorphosis insectorum surinamensium is of a Pineapple and a Malachite in its various stages of development. Engagingly Merian writes about finding a caterpilar on that Pineapple in early May 1700; by May 10 it had transformed itself into a pupa and by the 18th it emerged as a Butterfly. She lovingly illustrates each of these stages. She's far more readable than the stark one-line Latin prose of either Linnaeus or Hübner. It must be said though that Linnaeus at least refers to her ('Merian. surin. 2.t.2') in the abbreviated shorthand which is his habit even if modern authors don't.

As for the Pineapple, Merian writes that 'the taste of this fruit is as if one mixes grapes, apricots, red berries, apples and pears, which can then all be relished at the same time'.

PS I have no idea how Hübner came up with 'Siproeta'. The best guess I have is that there may be by way of C[S]iproeta some connection to the Greek Κύπρος, for the isle of Cyprus perhaps for its copper ore deposits. Copper oxide is, of course, green, which would fit Malachite well! Likely far-fetched, though.

Oh, yes... as an afterthought, our Malachite's food plant here in the Butterfly House of the Amsterdam Zoo is Lantana camara, Tickberry, that pantropical pestweed! The photo doesn't show the color of its flower but it's white and yellow.

The Cold Moon is the name given to the full moon in December. It's called the Cold Moon because it appears during the coldest time of the year in the Northern Hemisphere when winter is starting to set in. This name comes from Native American traditions, particularly the Mohawk tribe.

this Cold Moon will be a lunar rarity because it will rise and set at its most extreme northerly points on the horizon, a phenomenon known as a major lunar standstill.

Day 13:

The House dates back 200 years and is now a part of Barbados National Trust. Our tour first visited an out house where we where given demonstrations on mixing various rum punches.

We did get to sample the various mixtures. Good job I didn't drive back to the Cruise Ship!

Any given Sunday, Paseo de La Reforma, Mexico City

  

If you like this shot please go see my ALBUM "Any given Sunday in Mexico City"

 

www.flickr.com/photos/luajr/albums/72157638501177336

I was given this Gloriosa Rothschildiana by a friend, to photograph.

Also known as Climbing Lily and Flame Lily, the Gloriosa Rothschildiana is probably best known as the Glory Lily.

This aptly named flower is strange and exotic looking, boasting 4-5 inch blooms with wavy-edged petals that face downwards in bud, but grow to reflex backwards, as though blown back by a strong wind.

Ruby red petals with yellow bases and edges look as though these flowers are on fire.

The bright green stamens and pistil are extremely prominent, with trailing sturdy stems and lush green leaves tipped with tendrils to aid in climbing.

As a native of South Africa, the Glory Lily grows fast-growing vines and can climb up to 8ft on a fence or trellis in warm weather.

 

Wishing you a beautiful day and as always, thanks for visiting, Magda (*_*)

 

For more: 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

 

"Climbing Lily", "Flame Lily", "Gloriosa Rothschildiana", "Glory Lily", red, yellow, vibrant, petals, stamens, flower, design, studio, black-background, colour, square, NikonD7000, "Magda indigo"

Recently given the nostalgic looks of the bygone ICF Shatabdi livery along with those striking thunderbolts and red band on the sides, AJJ WAP-4 with road number 22726, gleaming in the early morning sunshine, negotiates a small curve as it hurtles towards Makalidurga at around 75kmph pulling the Mysore bound Basava express from Bagalkot.

 

----------------------------- JESUS ✝️ SAVES-------------------------------

 

SALVATION THROUGH FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST - ALONE!

 

12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."

 

❤️❤️ IT'S ALL JESUS AND NONE OF OURSELVES! ❤️❤️

 

16 I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the SALVATION of everyone WHO BELIEVES: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 17 For in the gospel a RIGHTEOUSNESS FROM GOD IS REVEALED, a righteousness that is by FAITH FROM FIRST TO LAST, just as it is written: "THE RIGHTEOUS WILL LIVE BY FAITH." (Romans 1:16-17)

 

16 KNOW that a man is NOT justified by observing the law, but by FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be JUSTIFIED BY FAITH in CHRIST and NOT by observing the law, BECAUSE BY OBSERVING THE LAW NO ONE WILL BE JUSTIFIED. (Galatians 2:16)

 

1. Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2. BY THIS GOSPEL YOU ARE SAVED, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.

 

3. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4. that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5. and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. 6. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8. and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.

 

9. For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them--yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 11. Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed. (1 Corinthians 15:1-11)

 

7. Therefore Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. 8. All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9. I am the gate; whoever enters through me WILL BE SAVED. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. 10. The thief comes only to STEAL and KILL and DESTROY; I have come that they may have LIFE, and have it to the FULL. (John 10:7-10)

 

1 Brothers, my heart's desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. 2 For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. 3 Since they did not know the righteousness that comes from God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God's righteousness. 4 Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.

 

5 Moses describes in this way the righteousness that is by the law: "The man who does these things will live by them." 6 But the righteousness that is by faith says: "Do not say in your heart, 'Who will ascend into heaven?'" (that is, to bring Christ down) 7 "or 'Who will descend into the deep?'" (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But what does it say? "The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart," that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming: 9 That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. 11 As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame." 12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile--the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13 for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." (Romans 10:1-13)

 

Jesus came to bring spiritual LIFE to the spiritually dead and set the captives FREE! FREE from RELIGION, ERROR and outright LIES, so WE might serve THE LIVING GOD! In SPIRIT and in TRUTH!

 

So you'll KNOW, and not think you're to bad for God to love. The Christian LIFE isn't about how good WE are, because NONE of us are! It's about how GOOD JESUS IS! Because JESUS LOVES US, so much he died in our place and took the punishment for all of our sins on himself. The wages of sin is DEATH, and Jesus took the death WE so richly deserved for us and died in our place. The good news is, there's no more punishment for sin left. WE, you and I were all born forgive as a result of the crucifixion of God himself on the cross that took away the sins of the whole world. All we have to do is believe it, and put your Faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ. That my friends is REAL UNCONDITIONAL LOVE! YOU ARE LOVED. ❤️ ✝️ ❤️

 

For the best Biblical teaching in the last 2 centuries! Please listen to and down load these FREE audio files that were created with YOU in mind. It's ALL FREE, if you like it, please share it with others. ❤️

 

archive.org/details/PeopleToPeopleByBobGeorgeFREE-ARCHIVE...

 

www.revealedinchrist.com

 

CLICK ON THE LETTER "L" TO ENLARGE.

 

My THANK'S to all Flickr friends who fave and/or commented on my photos, I very much appreciate it! ❤️

 

© All Rights reserved no publication or copying without permission from the author.

Given that I made Game of Thrones Lanterns to go with the new House of the Dragon show, is it a surprise that I'm now doing Lord of the Rings to go with the upcoming Rings of Power show? I've already done Marvel, Star Wars, and Harry Potter, plus Game of Thrones like I mentioned, but now it's time for one more. I don't have any more planned right now - but we'll see what happens in the future!

 

Left to right:

Black Lantern (Death): Sauron

Red Lantern (Rage): The Uruk-hai

Orange Lantern (Avarice): Gollum

Yellow Lantern (Fear): The Nazgûl

Green Lantern (Will): Frodo Baggins

Blue Lantern (Hope): Samwise Gamgee

Indigo Lantern (Compassion): Aragorn

Violet Lantern (Love): Arwen

White Lantern (Life): Gandalf the White

Excerpt from insidehalton.com:

 

A White Oak tree in Burlington that is at least 300 years old has been given a heritage designation by the province.

 

The city-owned, 30-metre (100-foot) high tree has a circumference of nearly 500 centimetres (16.7 ft.) and is quite likely one of the oldest and largest Quercus alba specimens in Canada, according to the Burlington Historical Society.

 

Located at Allview Avenue, a short street on the north shore of Burlington Bay, the White Oak was part of an historic boundary line for nearly 250 years.

 

Before 1957, it also marked the starting point of the border between Burlington and Aldershot.

 

According to the historical society’s website, “In 1789, the Allview White Oak was a surveyor’s benchmark for a treaty arranging the purchase from the Mississauga First Nation, for the British Crown, of a block of land that soon afterwards became the 3,450-acre parcel of land known as Brant’s Block.

 

Supported by City Forester Rick Lipsitt, the Burlington Horticultural Society and the Burlington Historical Society nominated the tree for the Ontario Heritage Tree Program’s heritage designation.

 

A brief ceremony celebrating the heritage tree and commemorating it with a plaque was scheduled for today (October 21, 2011) at its Allview Avenue location.

 

A relatively new program, the Ontario Heritage Tree Program helps identify and record the location of heritage trees in the province, which are assessed by age, size, appearance and cultural and historical significance.

 

According to the program’s website, “The identification of these trees will enable Trees Ontario and community-minded organizations to locate potential native seed sources of legacy trees. Collecting these seeds will ensure native stock is grown and available for future planting.”

Given that it was the Friday before Father's Day made me harken back to the days when my Dad would often marvel at the Lehigh Valley, their strong stable of ALCO and GE power and the wonderful color scheme they had. Fast forward to today, where the NS has provided us a very true rendition of what this "Fallen Flag" would look like in the present day. This one's for Dad, Happy Father's Day...I know you were with us on the chase and enjoyed the view of this Cornell Red beauty every bit as much as we did! Here 17K bounces into the hole at Sycamore, not far from Peru, IN.

Casually given, contact not required.

 

Initial meeting between Penny the 4 month old Boxer puppy and Bodhi, a friend's 14 pound, 9 month old kitten. The kitten hadn't met a dog before, and is delightfully confident...

  

This weeks Macro Monday Challenge - Trinkets.

This trinket was given to me by my husband on our 25th Anniversary vacation in Hawaii. While the charm itself is worth very little in terms of cost, it holds a lot of sentimental value to me. When I look at it, I am filled with incredible memories of Hawaii and our 25th Anniversary celebration.

Laugharne Castle given a vintage feel to the edit for Sliders Sunday. Laugharne is very well known as the famous Welsh poet Dylan Thomas lived there and wrote many of his works in his shed at above the boathouse where he lived.

Given the bad weather, I settled for the tidal pool reflection. So I scurried around searching for the perfect tidal pool. Some were too small, others too far away. I just couldn't settle on anything. Then my 7 year old son called me over to him to show me some baby fish he found, and sure enough he had found it all along :)

A very pretty flower, much nicer that the one we have in our garden, which is this one : www.flickr.com/photos/44506883@N04/47735019002/in/album-7...

 

Better viewed large and thank you for your favourites.

Saint Louis of Toulouse is a gilded bronze sculpture of Louis of Toulouse by Donatello with a marble niche all'antica on the facade of Orsanmichele, executed in 1423–1425. It is now in the refectory of the Museo di Santa Croce in Florence.

The statue was commissioned by the Parte Guelfa for their external niche at the centre of the east facade of Orsanmichele facing via de' Calzaiuoli. Their patron saint (canonized in 1317) had given up his crown for the religious life, an idea that favorably symbolized the Guelphs' believe in the Papacy. They backed the papal party against the Holy Roman Emperor in the Investiture Controversy and later conflicts.

The Saint Louis of Toulouse was Donatello's earliest bronze sculpture, that we know of, not only of this size. It measures 2.26 m high with a widest diameter of about 0.75 m and 0.85 m at the bottom. An (above) life-sized bronze statue wasn't done since late-antiquity and the knowledge was almost lost, at least in Tuscany. For the first Baptistry door (1330–1336) modeled after its sole predecessor, Bonanno Pisano's doors for Pisa Cathedral from the end of the 12th century, a hundred and fifty years later Andrea Pisano needed the help of bronze-casters from Venice, where the late-antique/byzantine tradition and the knowledge about casting bigger pieces had been preserved. At the turn of the 15th century, the second door for the Florence Baptistry then marked a new beginning. For Lorenzo Ghiberti, a trained goldsmith, it was a huge challenge, and it took him 20 years (1403–1424), before he immediately took on the commission for the third door.

But in 1412 Ghiberti also had the chance to create the first life-size bronze figure since antiquity, his Saint John the Baptist (finished by 1416). No surprise that it also was commissioned for one of the niches of Orsanmichele again by one of the most wealthiest guilds in Florence, the Arte di Calimala , who were responsible for the Baptistery and for the commission of its bronze doors to Ghiberti. Subsequently the Arte del Cambio and the Arte della Lana were evenly keen to promote their prestige and show their wealth by commissioning also bronze statues of their patron saints for the designated niches at Orsanmichele, and both asked Ghiberti to do it. The Bankers Guild even demanded explicitly that their Saint Matthew should be taller than the Baptist of the Calimala. Ghiberti executed the Saint Matthew between 1419–1422, the Saint Stephen for the Arte della Lana in 1427–1428, replacing an earlier, less prestigious marble figure of their patron saint.

Completed in 1425 the Saint Louis of Toulouse was then the third monumental bronze statue since several centuries, with Donatello also designing its niche according to Vasari, but in 1459 the niche was instead sold to the Tribunale della Mercanzia and used for their commission of the Christ and St. Thomas.

Donatello was still alive when due to political pressure the Parte Guelfa had to give up their prestigious representational space at Orsanmichele, the economical centre of Florence. The statue was instead taken to "the next best location" (Janson), Santa Croce, which their patron saint Louis of Anjou had visited and therefore the Guelphs were affiliated with. It was placed in a niche above the central portal of the facade, in which the coat of arms of the Parte Guelfa were formerly displayed. Aesthetically the niche was "a poor choice", it was too high up, but it also was too shallow for the statue. Today the statues's hollow shell is open on its back, and it is believed that parts of the drapery on the back were taken off the figure to make it fit into its new space. An indicator for this to be true is the fact that the statue doesn't sustain itself and tilts forwards so it has to be held by additional support that is not original.

When the 19th-century facade was built (in 1860) the sculpture was put into store and then into the museum. In 1943 the Orsanmichele sculptures and others were placed in secure storage for the duration of the war. After the war the Saint Louis was briefly placed in then the supposedly original niche at Orsanmichele, and it was first prooven that it was indeed Donatello's sculpture for the Guelphs.

 

Smoo in the garden…doing Smoo things.

given time, iron in moisture and oxygen, could convert entirely to rust

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