Artwork, poetry and fiction used to be the exclusive domain of humankind. Now, you can now find many AI programs online that will create just about anything you can think of - from 3D rendered models to descriptive text - with just a few inputted prompts.

Rather than worry if this is going to put me out of a job I thought a collaboration was in order so used an AI called ChatPGT to write me a nostalgic four line poem about walking in the cherry blossom and this is what it came up with:

I walk beneath the cherry blossom trees

Memories of you come back to me

Each petal falling like a tear

As I remember our springtime years

With that as inspiration I then went on to create the accompanying artwork of a girl walking through the blossom and, bingo, we have one unsolicited collaboration with a computer program. The future is, at least, interesting.

She's been created on classy A2 Somerset paper using stencils, spraypaint, dymo, letter stamps and some computer derived poetry. Drop us a line if this futuristic artwork needs to adorn your gaff or she'll be making her way to our new website in due course (www.id-iom.com/)

Cheers

id-iom

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - May 18 - Joni Rubin and Claire Wiebe attend CommonSpirit's Humankindness Gala 2023 on May 18th 2023 at San Francisco in San Francisco, CA (Photo - Drew Altizer)

A cactus-shaped piece which seems to balance church and humankind.

--

(Adapted from the description at RoadsideAmerica.com)

In 1932, in the heart of the Great Depression, Centerville native Ben Hartman began what would become a decade-long project: an impossibly large and complex sculpture garden made entirely of small stones, in his backyard.

Hartman's Rock Garden began small, as do many instances of Dementia Concretia -- Ben just wanted to build a little stone and concrete fish pond in his yard. He liked the finished product, and decided that he wasn't finished after all. He scavenged stone from a nearby construction site, broke it with his hammer, added bits of mirror and pottery -- and began building little stone houses, cathedrals, and parapets with religious statuary in the side and back yards of his wood-frame home. He kept building for seven years. He had the corner lot, so his work was easy to see.

Ben built a replica of Philadelphia's Independence Hall, a White House, a Mount Vernon (Ohioans can't get enough of mini-Mt. Vernons -- we saw another in Lima). A large castle with a drawbridge and moat is composed of 14,000 stones; a "Tree of Life" has over 20,000.

Ben stopped building in 1939. We suspect that he ran out of space, materials, maybe energy -- but certainly not ideas. He used something like a quarter of a million stones to create Hartman's Rock Garden.

Although Ben died in 1944, his property was maintained by his wife Mary for many years, and even won the Community Beautification Award four times in the 60's. The garden is now owned by Hartman's son, Ben Jr., and did not appear to be any longer upkept or maintained...pieces were falling apart, and weeds grew throughout (though this may just be a season growth).

Between the buildings (aside from the overgrowth) are little scenes -- a mix of history, religion, and Depression-era pop culture. Lawn statues of the Holy Family share space with garden gnomes. Small hand-written signs help visitors to distinguish one tableau from the next: Custer's Last Stand, Daniel in the Lion's Den, Noah's Ark, and "Foot path to Pece" (Peace).

"The sad part of war" is rendered with little army men, fallen or missing limbs, and accompanied by angels. Meanwhile, a healthier army prepares to storm the castle...

Ben built a depiction of the Oregon Trail, a Nativity scene, a cup and saucer. Scenes of boxer Joe Louis and the Dionne Quintuplets -- a media sensation of Canadian multiple births -- suggest what occupied the popular imagination in the 1930s.

Our favorite hand-lettered sign:

"Behold thy mother and don't forget your Dad."

*MEANT TO BE VIEWED FULL SIZE*

zanizaila.deviantart.com/art/Wake-up-269785466

A simple picture with the Earth and quotes from the film "HOME". (Which I heartily encourage everyone to watch!)

Humankind and our planet has faced a crisis point, and scientists tell us we only have a few years left to reverse this trend, to change our livestyles, the way we think and behave, before it is too late.

"Too late" would mean things like world starvation, severe lack of drinking water, thousands of more species going extinct, extreme pollution, the poles melting, gas such as carbon dioxide and methane seeping into the atmosphere, and the rainforests, the lungs of the Earth, nearly gone.

But it is up to us what happens next, up to us to make changes.

Everyone can make a difference.

Be the change you want to see in the world.

That's said often, but *how* exactly can us ordinary people make changes to our world?

Well, I have a few suggestions.

Don't buy products made out of wood from rainforests.

Don't buy products produced in countries with major deforestation, such as the cattle ranches, soy bean and eukalyptys plantations in places like Brazil and Borneo.

Don't eat as much meat. Not only is the slaughter industry today beyond appalling, but it takes much more resources from the Earth to produce meat than grain. I won't say go vegan, but people today eat *too much* meat.

Don't waste your resources. Don't throw everything away because "I can just get a new one".

Buy second-hand stuff rather than brand new products as much as you can.

In other words, recycle more.

Support organizations such as WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature), WPT (World Parrot Trust) and other organizations on the mission to save endangered species.

Drive less, walk and use your bike more. Both you and the planet will be better off for it!

Stop reproducing like bunnies. Overpopulation is the key and root to everything bad we humans have done to the planet, ourselves, and the other inhabitans of the planet.

Look up sustainable living, don't buy meat and fish from the large companies, and the same goes for all other products - make as much as you can yourself, or get it from small-scale companies, or small farms (when it comes to food).

Look up intentional communities and ecovillages. There are thousands of them around the world, and more ones are forming all the time. There are bigger ones and smaller ones, more and less technological, vegetarian and omnivorous, closer to and farther from civilization, with different goals (more or less environmental, political, or simply going back to a simpler, better lifestyle). There is one for almost everyone.

What am I going to do?

Of course, I can not ask of anyone to do all or even many of the things on the list above. I am probably never going to do them all myself, but I can strive to do as much good as possible, to have as little impact as possible.

I am no longer buying meat from slaughtered animals, so I don't encourage the slaughter industry, nor do I put a strain on all that grain produced to feed livestock.

Instead, the only meat coming into my home will be from wild or semi-wild animals like moose and reindeer.

I never buy fish. (Mostly because I don't like it.) But if I did, I would make sure it didn't come from the big companies emptying the oceans, but rather fished nearby. (Or I'd fish it myself. It's not that hard.)

I only buy eggs from small-scale farmers who let their chickens spend time outside. "Free-range" means thousands of birds cramped into one big chicken-factory, free-range *with access to being outside* is the best for the animals.

I make sure (to the best of my abilities) I don't buy anything with palm oil.

I don't own a car, and rarely go to places by car at all. My feet are there for walking, and if possible, biking. For longer trips, I use the bus or train.

I will not reproduce. Ever. My plan is to get sterilised when I'm old enough to make a mature decision, then, if I ever change my mind, I will adopt a child instead of creating more lives into an already overpopulated world.

I will join an intentional community/ecovillage. In fact, I've been helping on creating one since fall 2010. It will hopefully be a reality in a few years time and then I will live out the rest of my days, feeding myself from my own land and resources.

Links to various sites, organizations and videos:

HOME: www.homethemovie.org/en

Earthlings: www.earthlings.com/

WWF: www.wwf.org/

WPT: www.parrots.org/

Bite-Back: www.bite-back.com/

Global Ecovillage Network: gen.ecovillage.org/

Intentional Communities Directory: directory.ic.org/

The world of ecovillages (video): www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkdqqpkDVyQ

O.U.R Ecovillage (video): www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXVLNUHqjeA

Finding an Ecovillage (video): www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjbbUXMuvqk

The Blue Moon Tribe: bluemoontribe.org/

And always remember...

No one can do everything, but everyone can do something!

I claim no copyright on this, as the picture of the Earth is not mine (but I have permission to use it), and the text is from the film HOME, which is also free of copyright. Do with this as you please.

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - May 18 - Lada McGinn and Tom McGinn attend CommonSpirit's Humankindness Gala 2023 on May 18th 2023 at San Francisco in San Francisco, CA (Photo - Devlin Shand for Drew Altizer Photography)

from Damanhur Spiritual EcoCommunity, on.fb.me/ZOdPzQ

One of the best fire shows in a very long time by:

Haury Thomas, Barbara Wildmann, the Purple Pixies & the Earth Dragons.

In the Swiss Alps near the Italian border is a small valley town called Lostallo. For the 5th summer in a row Shankra festival made this place its home for a goa-psytrance festival.

Video from 2017 youtu.be/sGJAhJp605k

Downloads on Flickr are free for fiends & followers but do tell the people where you got the picture.

Subject: A walking work of art, Gregory Da Silva is more than an odd spectacle...

Contact : Gregory da silva Cape Town South Africa Cellphone: 0737507923

Email: eggman@galmail.co.za

A walking work of art, Gregory Da Silva is more than an odd spectacle - he is a symbol of Africa's many diverse cultures...

A Symbol of African Unity

In the first heady years of the African Union, the world's eyes are increasingly turned to the continent from which humankind first appeared. Beneath the seemingly impenetrable mask of violence portrayed in popular media, lies a living and thriving cultural climate which Des Warde finds well depicted by West African street artist Gregory Da Silva.

The outfit always turns heads, and each day it boasts a new feature, a new symbol of an African culture or practice.

His headdress weighs up to twenty five kilograms, his body is armoured with artifacts and his face painted with tribal patterns and an undying smile. Each day, Gregory Da Silva presents the city centre with a new display of his symbolic art.

Gregory's voice is lively and he repeatedly offers phrases and words in French. Born in Benin, West Africa, 1979, he was trained in computer science at university, but went on to found a theatre group in Benin called 'Voice of Spirit' or 'Voix de l'Esprit' which performed politically motivated as well as comic and poetic theatre at the Benin National Library.

After receiving an invitation to perform at the MASA - Market for African Performing Arts - Festival in the Ivory Coast in 2003, where he represented his country, Benin, for a week before flying to South Africa. He sold his creations at the V&A Waterfront and began to grace the streets of Cape Town with his unique form of art. It was so unique it initially led the bemused Cape Town police to put him in the back of their car and call their superiors for advice! Naturally they were advised them to let him go and Gregory now enjoys a good relationship with the city authorities...

My attention is soon turned to his artifact-laden tunic which Gregory says is about "all African tradition, all African culture[s]" and he goes on to explain some of the more prominent objects displayed.

"Everything must be life,

everything must shine, and be positive"

First, he points out the clusters of sea shells hanging around his neck, saying that in Africa these shells were "old money" and once used as currency. He explains the eggs on his head dress as being symbolic of life and says "everything must be life, everything must shine, [and] be positive". Next his hands grab the arcane black bottle near his waist to explain that in his culture, the Sangoma people would place "good spirits" in a bottle, with which they would "heal sick people [they] passed while walking on the roads".

The broken shards of mirror found on his chest bear similar spiritual significance, and are often worn by Voodoo people in Africa and are said to be a kind of window into the spiritual world, and a "way to talk to [their] ancestor[s]".

Gregory says his main inspiration or motivation is to "make people laugh" and "make people happy" and to represent different African cultures. He says he always thinks "how we can put all of Africa together to make [it] one", adding that "not one country can be forgotten".

When he is travelling in Africa, be it in Senegal, Cameroon, Mali or the Congo, the local people invariably look at him and say "ahh, that is our culture" as they see something of their own represented. "All Africa is in my clothes" he says, drawing attention again to his peerless suit.

When not walking St. Georges Mall or Green Market Square, Gregory features at the Grahamstown festival, the Hermanus Whale Festival, has been hired to receive guests at hotels and airports, and has also appeared on SABC 2 and E-TV News.

He is very popular with tourists, especially those from Italy, England, America and Germany, who frequently ask why he does not come over and do his thing in their own country. But he says his focus is on Africa. Pictures of him certainly do get back to their countries though, as Gregory says everyday "hundreds" of pictures are taken of himself, usually posing with the tourists.

Asked about his dreams and ambitions, Gregory (or the "Egg Man" or "Ei man" as he is also known) says that this year he is planning on starting an art school, which is part of his 'Project For Africa' for this year. He wants to impart creative knowledge to South African youth, giving them the power to create beautiful things and also to support themselves, all part of his ultimate venerable ambition to "[bring] Africa together to make one".

Indeed, and good luck to him.

Egg On His Face But He's Happy

Gregory da silva, A Symbol of African Unity

Who is that Guy with all the Eggs on his head that you see at all the bestest Festivals in South Africa ? His name is gregory da Silva - An Artist Comedian, Storyteller, dancer from Benin West Africa. Gregory da Silva ( Egg Man ) was born in Benin West Africa, Voodoo Country. He speaks French and English and is staying in Cape Town South Africa. Gregory da silva has appeared at many Festivals in Africa and is presently staying in Cape Town South Africa. Gregory has appeared at many Festivals in Africa :

The Masa Festival 2003 ( market for African Performing Arts) in Ivory coast West Africa,

The grahamstown Festival South African National Art Festival,

The Hermanus Whales festival,

The Darling festival, The Gariep Kimberley Festival, Innibos Film Festival Nelspruit Mpumanlanga,

Moorresberg farm Shows,

The Biltong Castle Larger Festival in Somerset East South africa,

The Stellenbosch Street Festival,

The Simonstown Penguin Festival South Africa. He performs every day in Market square Cape Town and adds an air of rio - style festivity wherever he performs. Many Tourrists from Germany, England, America, Italy, France, Belguim call Gregory : The Egg man, or Chicken Man. Very famous in Africa.

AFRICAN EXTRAVAGANZA : The National Arts Festival had its usual colourful start in Grahamstown South Africa. Here Gregory da Silva from Benin, West Africa, wears headgear adorned with African artifacts. Gregory da Silva has becomes an Institution at the National Art festival Grahamstown. Picture by ALAN EASON

A festival favourite for many years, the ubiquitous "Eggman" was back at the 2006 National Arts Festival, making an appearance at the Village Green (CuePix/daylin paul)

Subject: A walking work of art, Gregory Da Silva is more than an odd spectacle...

To Invite Gregory da silva,The Famous Egg man, to your Events or Festivals, please Contact : Cellphone: 0737507923

Email: eggman@galmail.co.za

A walking work of art, Gregory Da Silva is more than an odd spectacle - he is a symbol of Africa's many diverse cultures...

A Symbol of African Unity

In the first heady years of the African Union, the world's eyes are increasingly turned to the continent from which humankind first appeared. Beneath the seemingly impenetrable mask of violence portrayed in popular media, lies a living and thriving cultural climate which Des Warde finds well depicted by West African street artist Gregory Da Silva.

The outfit always turns heads, and each day it boasts a new feature, a new symbol of an African culture or practice.

His headdress weighs up to twenty five kilograms, his body is armoured with artifacts and his face painted with tribal patterns and an undying smile. Each day, Gregory Da Silva presents the city centre with a new display of his symbolic art.

Gregory's voice is lively and he repeatedly offers phrases and words in French. Born in Benin, West Africa, 1979, he was trained in computer science at university, but went on to found a theatre group in Benin called 'Voice of Spirit' or 'Voix de l'Esprit' which performed politically motivated as well as comic and poetic theatre at the Benin National Library.

After receiving an invitation to perform at the MASA - Market for African Performing Arts - Festival in the Ivory Coast in 2003, where he represented his country, Benin, for a week before flying to South Africa. He sold his creations at the V&A Waterfront and began to grace the streets of Cape Town with his unique form of art. It was so unique it initially led the bemused Cape Town police to put him in the back of their car and call their superiors for advice! Naturally they were advised them to let him go and Gregory now enjoys a good relationship with the city authorities...

My attention is soon turned to his artifact-laden tunic which Gregory says is about "all African tradition, all African culture[s]" and he goes on to explain some of the more prominent objects displayed.

"Everything must be life,

everything must shine, and be positive"

First, he points out the clusters of sea shells hanging around his neck, saying that in Africa these shells were "old money" and once used as currency. He explains the eggs on his head dress as being symbolic of life and says "everything must be life, everything must shine, [and] be positive". Next his hands grab the arcane black bottle near his waist to explain that in his culture, the Sangoma people would place "good spirits" in a bottle, with which they would "heal sick people [they] passed while walking on the roads".

The broken shards of mirror found on his chest bear similar spiritual significance, and are often worn by Voodoo people in Africa and are said to be a kind of window into the spiritual world, and a "way to talk to [their] ancestor[s]".

Gregory says his main inspiration or motivation is to "make people laugh" and "make people happy" and to represent different African cultures. He says he always thinks "how we can put all of Africa together to make [it] one", adding that "not one country can be forgotten".

When he is travelling in Africa, be it in Senegal, Cameroon, Mali or the Congo, the local people invariably look at him and say "ahh, that is our culture" as they see something of their own represented. "All Africa is in my clothes" he says, drawing attention again to his peerless suit.

When not walking St. Georges Mall or Green Market Square, Gregory features at the Grahamstown festival, the Hermanus Whale Festival, has been hired to receive guests at hotels and airports, and has also appeared on SABC 2 and E-TV News.

He is very popular with tourists, especially those from Italy, England, America and Germany, who frequently ask why he does not come over and do his thing in their own country. But he says his focus is on Africa. Pictures of him certainly do get back to their countries though, as Gregory says everyday "hundreds" of pictures are taken of himself, usually posing with the tourists.

Asked about his dreams and ambitions, Gregory (or the "Egg Man" or "Ei man" as he is also known) says that this year he is planning on starting an art school, which is part of his 'Project For Africa' for this year. He wants to impart creative knowledge to South African youth, giving them the power to create beautiful things and also to support themselves, all part of his ultimate venerable ambition to "[bring] Africa together to make one".

Indeed, and good luck to him.

Egg On His Face But He's Happy

Gregory da silva, A Symbol of African Unity

Who is that Guy with all the Eggs on his head that you see at all the bestest Festivals in South Africa ? His name is gregory da Silva - An Artist Comedian, Storyteller, dancer from Benin West Africa. Gregory da Silva ( Egg Man ) was born in Benin West Africa, Voodoo Country. He speaks French and English and is staying in Cape Town South Africa. Gregory da silva has appeared at many Festivals in Africa and is presently staying in Cape Town South Africa. Gregory has appeared at many Festivals in Africa :

The Masa Festival 2003 ( market for African Performing Arts) in Ivory coast West Africa,

The grahamstown Festival South African National Art Festival,

The Hermanus Whales festival,

The Darling festival, The Gariep Kimberley Festival, Innibos Film Festival Nelspruit Mpumanlanga,

Moorresberg farm Shows,

The Biltong Castle Larger Festival in Somerset East South africa,

The Stellenbosch Street Festival,

The Simonstown Penguin Festival South Africa. He performs every day in Market square Cape Town and adds an air of rio - style festivity wherever he performs. Many Tourrists from Germany, England, America, Italy, France, Belguim call Gregory : The Egg man, or Chicken Man. Very famous in Africa.

AFRICAN EXTRAVAGANZA : The National Arts Festival had its usual colourful start in Grahamstown South Africa. Here Gregory da Silva from Benin, West Africa, wears headgear adorned with African artifacts. Gregory da Silva has becomes an Institution at the National Art festival Grahamstown. Picture by ALAN EASON

A festival favourite for many years, the ubiquitous "Eggman" was back at the 2006 National Arts Festival, making an appearance at the Village Green (CuePix/daylin paul)

Temples of Humankind, Damanhur, Italy

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - May 18 - Peter Banko and Elizabeth Banko attend CommonSpirit's Humankindness Gala 2023 on May 18th 2023 at San Francisco in San Francisco, CA (Photo - Drew Altizer Photography)

[Translated from the German language by Katja Leyendecker source "Die letzten Kinder von Schewenborn" - a children's book about the aftermath of a nuclear catastrophe]

- - - - - -

In the beginning God created heaven and earth. But a few million years later, humankind was intelligent enough to say “Who needs God? I can do this by myself. I take charge of my own future.”

And so they did.

And the last seven days of earth had begun.

On the morning of the first day humankind decided to be free and good, beautiful and happy. Not just this mere copy of a God - but special and individual. And because they needed to believe in something, they believed in freedom and luck, and the stock exchange, and technological progress, and safety and security. And for their safety and security they had surrounded themselves with rocket-propelled grenades and nuclear warheads.

It was on the second day that all the fish died in the polluted streams, the birds died from chemical powders that was originally intended to kill the caterpillars, the rabbits died from the roads’ lead fumes, the pet dogs died from the red colour they had put in meat, the sardines died in the ocean’s oil spills and the waste that was deposited at the bottom of the sea floor; for the waste was radio-active.

On the third day, the grass died in the fields and meadows, and the leaves died and fell off the trees, the moss died on the rocks and mountains, and the flowers in the gardens: humankind was making the weather now and distributed the rain using a complicated formula. It only was a silly little mistake in the computer system, that distributed the rain. Once they rectified the error, the barges and ships lay dry on the bottom of the river.

On the forth day three out of the four billion people died. Some of diseases, that human kind had created in the laboratories (someone had not close a vial properly). No medicine would help: humankind had immunised themselves by using skin creams and eating meat (both rich in chemicals and pharmaceuticals). Some died of hunger, as others had hidden the key to the food storage silos. But all of them blamed God. God, who owed humankind their happiness. Wasn’t it a Kind God after all?

On the fifth day the remaining people pressed the red button because they felt in danger. Fire engulfed their planet, the mountains burnt, the oceans went up in steam, and the concrete corpses in the cities stood black and smoking. And the angels in heaven saw how the blue planet turned red, then into a dirty brown, and eventually ash-grey. And they interrupted their heavenly signing for ten minutes.

On the sixth day the lights went out: smoke and ash clouds covered the sun, moon and stars. And the last cockroach that had managed to survive in the rocket launcher died from the heat, which it could not take.

On the seventh day there was silence. At last. The planet earth was barren and empty, and it was dark with fissures and crevasses that had opened up on earth’s dry, burnt surface. And the spirits of humankind roamed the chaos like lost ghosts. But deep underground, in hell, thrilling stories were told of the humankind that decided to take charge of their own future. And the laughter rose up higher and higher, so high that the angels in heaven could hear it.

الله , محمد , علي , حسن , حسين , اهل البيت , شيعة آل محمد , Ya Mahdi, Ya Hussein Ya Muhammad , Muhammad ibn Hasan al-Mahdī , the ultimate savior of humankind, the final Imām of the Twelve Imams, the Awaited Mahdi, the Twelfth Imam, Islam, Muslim, Major Occultation, Al-Muntadhir, Al-Qa'im, Sahab az-Zaman, Imam az-Zaman, Wali al-'Asr, Al-Hujjah, the Proof of Allah's justice, the Leader of the Age, the Rising one, صاحب الزمان, ولي العصر, المنتظر, القائم, الحجة بن الحسن

Subject: A walking work of art, Gregory Da Silva is more than an odd spectacle...

To Invite Gregory da silva,The Famous Egg man, to your Events or Festivals, please Contact : Cellphone: 0737507923

Email: eggman@galmail.co.za

A walking work of art, Gregory Da Silva is more than an odd spectacle - he is a symbol of Africa's many diverse cultures...

A Symbol of African Unity

In the first heady years of the African Union, the world's eyes are increasingly turned to the continent from which humankind first appeared. Beneath the seemingly impenetrable mask of violence portrayed in popular media, lies a living and thriving cultural climate which Des Warde finds well depicted by West African street artist Gregory Da Silva.

The outfit always turns heads, and each day it boasts a new feature, a new symbol of an African culture or practice.

His headdress weighs up to twenty five kilograms, his body is armoured with artifacts and his face painted with tribal patterns and an undying smile. Each day, Gregory Da Silva presents the city centre with a new display of his symbolic art.

Gregory's voice is lively and he repeatedly offers phrases and words in French. Born in Benin, West Africa, 1979, he was trained in computer science at university, but went on to found a theatre group in Benin called 'Voice of Spirit' or 'Voix de l'Esprit' which performed politically motivated as well as comic and poetic theatre at the Benin National Library.

After receiving an invitation to perform at the MASA - Market for African Performing Arts - Festival in the Ivory Coast in 2003, where he represented his country, Benin, for a week before flying to South Africa. He sold his creations at the V&A Waterfront and began to grace the streets of Cape Town with his unique form of art. It was so unique it initially led the bemused Cape Town police to put him in the back of their car and call their superiors for advice! Naturally they were advised them to let him go and Gregory now enjoys a good relationship with the city authorities...

My attention is soon turned to his artifact-laden tunic which Gregory says is about "all African tradition, all African culture[s]" and he goes on to explain some of the more prominent objects displayed.

"Everything must be life,

everything must shine, and be positive"

First, he points out the clusters of sea shells hanging around his neck, saying that in Africa these shells were "old money" and once used as currency. He explains the eggs on his head dress as being symbolic of life and says "everything must be life, everything must shine, [and] be positive". Next his hands grab the arcane black bottle near his waist to explain that in his culture, the Sangoma people would place "good spirits" in a bottle, with which they would "heal sick people [they] passed while walking on the roads".

The broken shards of mirror found on his chest bear similar spiritual significance, and are often worn by Voodoo people in Africa and are said to be a kind of window into the spiritual world, and a "way to talk to [their] ancestor[s]".

Gregory says his main inspiration or motivation is to "make people laugh" and "make people happy" and to represent different African cultures. He says he always thinks "how we can put all of Africa together to make [it] one", adding that "not one country can be forgotten".

When he is travelling in Africa, be it in Senegal, Cameroon, Mali or the Congo, the local people invariably look at him and say "ahh, that is our culture" as they see something of their own represented. "All Africa is in my clothes" he says, drawing attention again to his peerless suit.

When not walking St. Georges Mall or Green Market Square, Gregory features at the Grahamstown festival, the Hermanus Whale Festival, has been hired to receive guests at hotels and airports, and has also appeared on SABC 2 and E-TV News.

He is very popular with tourists, especially those from Italy, England, America and Germany, who frequently ask why he does not come over and do his thing in their own country. But he says his focus is on Africa. Pictures of him certainly do get back to their countries though, as Gregory says everyday "hundreds" of pictures are taken of himself, usually posing with the tourists.

Asked about his dreams and ambitions, Gregory (or the "Egg Man" or "Ei man" as he is also known) says that this year he is planning on starting an art school, which is part of his 'Project For Africa' for this year. He wants to impart creative knowledge to South African youth, giving them the power to create beautiful things and also to support themselves, all part of his ultimate venerable ambition to "[bring] Africa together to make one".

Indeed, and good luck to him.

Egg On His Face But He's Happy

Gregory da silva, A Symbol of African Unity

Who is that Guy with all the Eggs on his head that you see at all the bestest Festivals in South Africa ? His name is gregory da Silva - An Artist Comedian, Storyteller, dancer from Benin West Africa. Gregory da Silva ( Egg Man ) was born in Benin West Africa, Voodoo Country. He speaks French and English and is staying in Cape Town South Africa. Gregory da silva has appeared at many Festivals in Africa and is presently staying in Cape Town South Africa. Gregory has appeared at many Festivals in Africa :

The Masa Festival 2003 ( market for African Performing Arts) in Ivory coast West Africa,

The grahamstown Festival South African National Art Festival,

The Hermanus Whales festival,

The Darling festival, The Gariep Kimberley Festival, Innibos Film Festival Nelspruit Mpumanlanga,

Moorresberg farm Shows,

The Biltong Castle Larger Festival in Somerset East South africa,

The Stellenbosch Street Festival,

The Simonstown Penguin Festival South Africa. He performs every day in Market square Cape Town and adds an air of rio - style festivity wherever he performs. Many Tourrists from Germany, England, America, Italy, France, Belguim call Gregory : The Egg man, or Chicken Man. Very famous in Africa.

AFRICAN EXTRAVAGANZA : The National Arts Festival had its usual colourful start in Grahamstown South Africa. Here Gregory da Silva from Benin, West Africa, wears headgear adorned with African artifacts. Gregory da Silva has becomes an Institution at the National Art festival Grahamstown. Picture by ALAN EASON

A festival favourite for many years, the ubiquitous "Eggman" was back at the 2006 National Arts Festival, making an appearance at the Village Green (CuePix/daylin paul)

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - May 18 - Bob Wiebe and Claire Wiebe attend CommonSpirit's Humankindness Gala 2023 on May 18th 2023 at San Francisco in San Francisco, CA (Photo - Natalie Shrik for Drew Altizer Photography)

Butterflies have fascinated humankind for millennia, and have been interpreted in a variety of ways, from omens of love to personifications of the soul. Yet, the delicate beauty of iridescent butterfly wings belies their intricate structure and functionality as the perfect foil for predators.

Structural colors are created by an optical effect (such as interference, refraction, or diffraction) rather than by a pigment. They arise from the arrangement of physical structures interacting with light to produce a particular color.

Structural color is responsible for the colors of the feathers of many birds (including the blue jay, hummingbirds and pheasants), as well as certain butterfly wings and beetle shells. Variations in the spacing of the pattern often gives rise to an iridescent effect, as seen in peacock feathers, soap bubbles, films of oil, and mother-of-pearl, because the reflected color depends upon the angle of view.

More....

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from Damanhur Spiritual EcoCommunity, on.fb.me/15EePtX

Conceived as a participatory environment that reframes the conceptual relationship between humankind and structure, Pole Dance is an interconnected system of poles and bungees whose equilibrium is open to human action and environmental factors. Throughout the courtyard, groups of 25-foot-tall poles on 12 x 12-foot grids connected by bungee cords whose elasticity cause the poles to gently sway, create a steady ripple throughout the courtyard space. Each grid contains a number of playful activators, such as hammocks, pulls, misters, and rain collecting plants. An open net covering the entire scope of the grid system provides shelter and stabilize the movement of the poles, preventing them from exceeding a predetermined maximum pivot. A generous series of multi-colored balls move above the net offering mutable shade and the appearance of a communal game. Dropping down at two points, the net surrounds a pool and a sandpit.

Pole Dance includes an audio device that measures the motion of eight of the fiberglass poles and converts it to sound, which is audible in the courtyard and streamed live in 3d on poledance.so-il.org. In the passive state, movement is generated by wind moving the poles or net structure. As the audience begins to interact with elements of the structure by pushing, pulling, or shaking the poles or moving the balls or the net, modulated tones are generated, which have been specifically composed to blend with the sonic environment and bring harmony to the soundscape in and around MoMA PS1.

In other words; Weird for the sake of Weird.

Subject: A walking work of art, Gregory Da Silva is more than an odd spectacle...

To Invite Gregory da silva,The Famous Egg man, to your Events or Festivals, please Contact : Cellphone: 0737507923

Email: eggman@galmail.co.za

A walking work of art, Gregory Da Silva is more than an odd spectacle - he is a symbol of Africa's many diverse cultures...

A Symbol of African Unity

In the first heady years of the African Union, the world's eyes are increasingly turned to the continent from which humankind first appeared. Beneath the seemingly impenetrable mask of violence portrayed in popular media, lies a living and thriving cultural climate which Des Warde finds well depicted by West African street artist Gregory Da Silva.

The outfit always turns heads, and each day it boasts a new feature, a new symbol of an African culture or practice.

His headdress weighs up to twenty five kilograms, his body is armoured with artifacts and his face painted with tribal patterns and an undying smile. Each day, Gregory Da Silva presents the city centre with a new display of his symbolic art.

Gregory's voice is lively and he repeatedly offers phrases and words in French. Born in Benin, West Africa, 1979, he was trained in computer science at university, but went on to found a theatre group in Benin called 'Voice of Spirit' or 'Voix de l'Esprit' which performed politically motivated as well as comic and poetic theatre at the Benin National Library.

After receiving an invitation to perform at the MASA - Market for African Performing Arts - Festival in the Ivory Coast in 2003, where he represented his country, Benin, for a week before flying to South Africa. He sold his creations at the V&A Waterfront and began to grace the streets of Cape Town with his unique form of art. It was so unique it initially led the bemused Cape Town police to put him in the back of their car and call their superiors for advice! Naturally they were advised them to let him go and Gregory now enjoys a good relationship with the city authorities...

My attention is soon turned to his artifact-laden tunic which Gregory says is about "all African tradition, all African culture[s]" and he goes on to explain some of the more prominent objects displayed.

"Everything must be life,

everything must shine, and be positive"

First, he points out the clusters of sea shells hanging around his neck, saying that in Africa these shells were "old money" and once used as currency. He explains the eggs on his head dress as being symbolic of life and says "everything must be life, everything must shine, [and] be positive". Next his hands grab the arcane black bottle near his waist to explain that in his culture, the Sangoma people would place "good spirits" in a bottle, with which they would "heal sick people [they] passed while walking on the roads".

The broken shards of mirror found on his chest bear similar spiritual significance, and are often worn by Voodoo people in Africa and are said to be a kind of window into the spiritual world, and a "way to talk to [their] ancestor[s]".

Gregory says his main inspiration or motivation is to "make people laugh" and "make people happy" and to represent different African cultures. He says he always thinks "how we can put all of Africa together to make [it] one", adding that "not one country can be forgotten".

When he is travelling in Africa, be it in Senegal, Cameroon, Mali or the Congo, the local people invariably look at him and say "ahh, that is our culture" as they see something of their own represented. "All Africa is in my clothes" he says, drawing attention again to his peerless suit.

When not walking St. Georges Mall or Green Market Square, Gregory features at the Grahamstown festival, the Hermanus Whale Festival, has been hired to receive guests at hotels and airports, and has also appeared on SABC 2 and E-TV News.

He is very popular with tourists, especially those from Italy, England, America and Germany, who frequently ask why he does not come over and do his thing in their own country. But he says his focus is on Africa. Pictures of him certainly do get back to their countries though, as Gregory says everyday "hundreds" of pictures are taken of himself, usually posing with the tourists.

Asked about his dreams and ambitions, Gregory (or the "Egg Man" or "Ei man" as he is also known) says that this year he is planning on starting an art school, which is part of his 'Project For Africa' for this year. He wants to impart creative knowledge to South African youth, giving them the power to create beautiful things and also to support themselves, all part of his ultimate venerable ambition to "[bring] Africa together to make one".

Indeed, and good luck to him.

Egg On His Face But He's Happy

Gregory da silva, A Symbol of African Unity

Who is that Guy with all the Eggs on his head that you see at all the bestest Festivals in South Africa ? His name is gregory da Silva - An Artist Comedian, Storyteller, dancer from Benin West Africa. Gregory da Silva ( Egg Man ) was born in Benin West Africa, Voodoo Country. He speaks French and English and is staying in Cape Town South Africa. Gregory da silva has appeared at many Festivals in Africa and is presently staying in Cape Town South Africa. Gregory has appeared at many Festivals in Africa :

The Masa Festival 2003 ( market for African Performing Arts) in Ivory coast West Africa,

The grahamstown Festival South African National Art Festival,

The Hermanus Whales festival,

The Darling festival, The Gariep Kimberley Festival, Innibos Film Festival Nelspruit Mpumanlanga,

Moorresberg farm Shows,

The Biltong Castle Larger Festival in Somerset East South africa,

The Stellenbosch Street Festival,

The Simonstown Penguin Festival South Africa. He performs every day in Market square Cape Town and adds an air of rio - style festivity wherever he performs. Many Tourrists from Germany, England, America, Italy, France, Belguim call Gregory : The Egg man, or Chicken Man. Very famous in Africa.

AFRICAN EXTRAVAGANZA : The National Arts Festival had its usual colourful start in Grahamstown South Africa. Here Gregory da Silva from Benin, West Africa, wears headgear adorned with African artifacts. Gregory da Silva has becomes an Institution at the National Art festival Grahamstown. Picture by ALAN EASON

A festival favourite for many years, the ubiquitous "Eggman" was back at the 2006 National Arts Festival, making an appearance at the Village Green (CuePix/daylin paul)

The Maropeng museum was filled with a lot of exhibits, including this one. I don't remember what the lights were for, I just thought they were cool. View this photo on my blog here.

Subject: A walking work of art, Gregory Da Silva is more than an odd spectacle...

Contact : Gregory da silva Cape Town South Africa Cellphone: 0737507923

Email: eggman@galmail.co.za

A walking work of art, Gregory Da Silva is more than an odd spectacle - he is a symbol of Africa's many diverse cultures...

A Symbol of African Unity

In the first heady years of the African Union, the world's eyes are increasingly turned to the continent from which humankind first appeared. Beneath the seemingly impenetrable mask of violence portrayed in popular media, lies a living and thriving cultural climate which Des Warde finds well depicted by West African street artist Gregory Da Silva.

The outfit always turns heads, and each day it boasts a new feature, a new symbol of an African culture or practice.

His headdress weighs up to twenty five kilograms, his body is armoured with artifacts and his face painted with tribal patterns and an undying smile. Each day, Gregory Da Silva presents the city centre with a new display of his symbolic art.

Gregory's voice is lively and he repeatedly offers phrases and words in French. Born in Benin, West Africa, 1979, he was trained in computer science at university, but went on to found a theatre group in Benin called 'Voice of Spirit' or 'Voix de l'Esprit' which performed politically motivated as well as comic and poetic theatre at the Benin National Library.

After receiving an invitation to perform at the MASA - Market for African Performing Arts - Festival in the Ivory Coast in 2003, where he represented his country, Benin, for a week before flying to South Africa. He sold his creations at the V&A Waterfront and began to grace the streets of Cape Town with his unique form of art. It was so unique it initially led the bemused Cape Town police to put him in the back of their car and call their superiors for advice! Naturally they were advised them to let him go and Gregory now enjoys a good relationship with the city authorities...

My attention is soon turned to his artifact-laden tunic which Gregory says is about "all African tradition, all African culture[s]" and he goes on to explain some of the more prominent objects displayed.

"Everything must be life,

everything must shine, and be positive"

First, he points out the clusters of sea shells hanging around his neck, saying that in Africa these shells were "old money" and once used as currency. He explains the eggs on his head dress as being symbolic of life and says "everything must be life, everything must shine, [and] be positive". Next his hands grab the arcane black bottle near his waist to explain that in his culture, the Sangoma people would place "good spirits" in a bottle, with which they would "heal sick people [they] passed while walking on the roads".

The broken shards of mirror found on his chest bear similar spiritual significance, and are often worn by Voodoo people in Africa and are said to be a kind of window into the spiritual world, and a "way to talk to [their] ancestor[s]".

Gregory says his main inspiration or motivation is to "make people laugh" and "make people happy" and to represent different African cultures. He says he always thinks "how we can put all of Africa together to make [it] one", adding that "not one country can be forgotten".

When he is travelling in Africa, be it in Senegal, Cameroon, Mali or the Congo, the local people invariably look at him and say "ahh, that is our culture" as they see something of their own represented. "All Africa is in my clothes" he says, drawing attention again to his peerless suit.

When not walking St. Georges Mall or Green Market Square, Gregory features at the Grahamstown festival, the Hermanus Whale Festival, has been hired to receive guests at hotels and airports, and has also appeared on SABC 2 and E-TV News.

He is very popular with tourists, especially those from Italy, England, America and Germany, who frequently ask why he does not come over and do his thing in their own country. But he says his focus is on Africa. Pictures of him certainly do get back to their countries though, as Gregory says everyday "hundreds" of pictures are taken of himself, usually posing with the tourists.

Asked about his dreams and ambitions, Gregory (or the "Egg Man" or "Ei man" as he is also known) says that this year he is planning on starting an art school, which is part of his 'Project For Africa' for this year. He wants to impart creative knowledge to South African youth, giving them the power to create beautiful things and also to support themselves, all part of his ultimate venerable ambition to "[bring] Africa together to make one".

Indeed, and good luck to him.

Egg On His Face But He's Happy

Gregory da silva, A Symbol of African Unity

Who is that Guy with all the Eggs on his head that you see at all the bestest Festivals in South Africa ? His name is gregory da Silva - An Artist Comedian, Storyteller, dancer from Benin West Africa. Gregory da Silva ( Egg Man ) was born in Benin West Africa, Voodoo Country. He speaks French and English and is staying in Cape Town South Africa. Gregory da silva has appeared at many Festivals in Africa and is presently staying in Cape Town South Africa. Gregory has appeared at many Festivals in Africa :

The Masa Festival 2003 ( market for African Performing Arts) in Ivory coast West Africa,

The grahamstown Festival South African National Art Festival,

The Hermanus Whales festival,

The Darling festival, The Gariep Kimberley Festival, Innibos Film Festival Nelspruit Mpumanlanga,

Moorresberg farm Shows,

The Biltong Castle Larger Festival in Somerset East South africa,

The Stellenbosch Street Festival,

The Simonstown Penguin Festival South Africa. He performs every day in Market square Cape Town and adds an air of rio - style festivity wherever he performs. Many Tourrists from Germany, England, America, Italy, France, Belguim call Gregory : The Egg man, or Chicken Man. Very famous in Africa.

AFRICAN EXTRAVAGANZA : The National Arts Festival had its usual colourful start in Grahamstown South Africa. Here Gregory da Silva from Benin, West Africa, wears headgear adorned with African artifacts. Gregory da Silva has becomes an Institution at the National Art festival Grahamstown. Picture by ALAN EASON

A festival favourite for many years, the ubiquitous "Eggman" was back at the 2006 National Arts Festival, making an appearance at the Village Green (CuePix/daylin paul)

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - May 16 - Nicole Dean, Suzanne Dean, and Caretha Coleman attend Dignity Health Foundation's Humankindness Gala at City Hall in San Francisco, CA. (Photo - Arthur Kobin for Drew Altizer Photography)

…a fall here could be dangerous, if not fatal. These are pieces of shale that have been placed very carefully.

The shot is actually a bit of an optical illusion. The stones are sitting horizontally, and make up the face portion of a wall on the outside of a building. The complete wall was approximately 20 feet high by 40 or 50 feet wide. It was quite a spectacle when I rounded the side of a building, and was faced with this.

To thwart children, and drunk adults from climbing the wall, there was a pool of water that ran along the length of the base. But I think I could have scaled it, and I was not even that drunk :)

This photo was taken with a Zuiko 9-18 mm lens at 9 mm. The shale was actually parallel throughout, I stood very close in an attempt to give maximum distortion to the photo.

Taken at The Cradle of Humankind Museum, Maropeng, South Africa.

The serpent is one of the oldest and most widespread mythological symbols. Snakes have been associated with some of the oldest rituals known to humankind and represent dual expression of good and evil.

“Not allowing [women and girls] to fulfil their potential through education, decent job opportunities and essential health services, is to disregard the potential of half of humankind.” -- Toomas Hendrik Ilves, President of Estonia, at the UN General Assembly 2013

To read the full speech, click here.

Photo: Dana Smillie/World Bank

…after a long walk, with the threat of heavy rain, you get to spend a good hour or two slipping and sliding, crouching and crawling along one of the oldest tunnels dug by humankind. That mud is sticky…very sticky and I’ll defy anyone to go down there and not come out covered!

It’s normal to spend a good couple of hours cleaning your camera equipment once you have been down here!

Went with a good friend Jim who, as a postman, you would have thought a long walk would have been no bother…jeez…the moaning !

All pictures copyright to www.mckenzie.photos

The full history....

The idea of a fixed link across the English Channel was first put forward in the early part of the 19th Century but concerns over national security stalled attempts to progress it.

But an Anglo-French protocol was established in 1876 for a railway tunnel under the Channel. South Eastern Railway Chairman Sir Edward Watkin and French Suez Canal contractor Alexandre Lavalley conducted exploratory works on either side of the water, coming together in 1882 under the umbrella of the Submarine Railway Company.

In 1880, No.1 shaft was sunk and a 7-foot diameter pilot tunnel begun below Abbot's Cliff, between Dover and Folkestone, 10 feet above high water level. The driving force was Captain Thomas English's rotary boring machine - 33 feet in length and powered by compressed air - which was capable of cutting 5/16" for every rotation of its cutting head, at a rate of two revolutions per minute and almost half-a-mile per month. It was though hoped that this performance could be improved over time.

In February 1881, with about 800 feet driven and the machine proven, work was refocused at a site further along the coast, accessed via the 160-foot No.2 shaft at Shakespeare Cliff. Here another pilot tunnel was started under the foreshore, progressing through lower grey chalk towards a meeting with the French pilot tunnel - which was extending from Sangatte - 11 miles out to sea. This phase of the work was expected to be complete by 1886. Machinery was being developed which would then have enlarged the heading to 14 feet in diameter before a 2-foot thick concrete lining was inserted. The approach railways would fall on a gradient of 1:80 before reaching a depth of 150 feet below the sea bed. Operational ventilation would be provided by the compressed-air locomotives used to haul the trains.

But 1882 saw the government call a halt, worried about the military implications of a land-link to Europe. Sir Edward's well-reasoned reassurances fell on deaf ears with 2,040 yards of the Shakespeare Cliff heading driven, another 897 yards at Abbot's Cliff and 1,825 yards on the French side of the Channel. Both shafts were later backfilled.

When the idea of a tunnel was revisited in both 1974 and 1988, various remedial works were carried out on the 1880s workings as a result of the new alignments potentially intersecting with them. This work discovered a number of roof falls and broken timber supports. A concrete bulkhead was installed 890 yards into the No.2 heading, effectively entombing the boring machine.

Access to the original heading has been maintained as it meets one of the drainage adits driven from the base of the cliff under the coastal railway. This joins the 1880 tunnel 70 metres from the surface, after passing beneath Shakespeare Cliff Tunnel where it has been reinforced with concrete arches. Adjacent to the junction is a timber-lined passage leading to the base of the shaft where the boring machine would have been assembled.

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - May 10 - Atmosphere at Humankindness Gala 2018 on May 10th 2018 at San Francisco City Hall in San Francisco, CA (Photo - Devlin Shand for Drew Altizer Photography)

from Damanhur Spiritual EcoCommunity, on.fb.me/Yheibr

Auryn Piers decides not to push the subject at this point, sighing as Tarin insists on moving about. She locates and fills a glass full of water before sitting it on the table in front of her. “Well, hopefully you got it all outta your system.” She was, of course, referring to the drinking.

Tarin Perian looks at the water and then picks it up and takes a swallow. "There's some...gatorjuice crap in the fridge....I think." She rests her forehead in her hand. "Everything fucking hurts...even numb, it hurts.."

Auryn Piers: “Drink the water.” The command was a softly-spoken one as she settles into the nearby chair. Despite humankind’s efforts when it came to hydration, nothing quite beat good ol’ H2O.

Tarin Perian works on getting the water down already starting to sober up. "Hate this..." she mumbles and then slides a hand over to Auryn. "I'm glad you're here."

Auryn Piers offers a weak smile as she allows her hand to be taken. “Well, you’re definitely a girl that needs looking after.” The words are offered in half jest as brows are comically lifted.

Tarin Perian finishes the glass of water and pushes it aside. "Now..can I have some of th'juice?" She grins at Auryn and her smile flickers and fades. "I'm sorry. I am. But...it was so scary...and it all happened so fast..."

Auryn Piers: “Yeah.” She collects the glass before rising, sliding her hand from beneath the other. “I really am sorry you had a rough time of it.” She tosses the statement over her shoulder while finding and then filling the container with the desired beverage. She returns to the table and places it neatly before Tarin. “Musta shook you up pretty bad.” She reclaims her seat while casting a concerned glance in the woman’s direction.

Tarin Perian drinks about a third of the glass as soon as it's set down, then closes her eyes and leans back. 'Better...thanks for this. I mean it. And yeah...I can't say much about it, but...basically, someone that was...well..family...was so very -not-. And it got messy..and...when it was all done...everyone had somewhere to be...someone to be with..."

Auryn Piers: “Bad stuff happens fast. Then again, so does the good stuff.” She lifts slender shoulders into a shrug. “That’s life, I guess.” Fingers absently trace the table’s surface as she listens, head adopting a shallow cant as green eyes remain upon the other’s features. She finds herself unsure of what to say, lips forming a thin line as she considers. “No matter what happens or doesn’t happen with us, you have a friend in me, okay? You need someone after something bad like that? Gimme a call.”

Tarin Perian glances over at Auryn and then back down at the table. "Sounds a lot like I'd just be using you when the bad shit happened. Then again, in this place...that's been about once every couple of weeks on an average."

Auryn Piers: “Eh. Different people mean different things to each other. A friendship is a friendship, right? ‘Sides, I’m sure you’d do the same for me.” She begins to fidget, weight shifting within the chair.

Tarin Perian nods a little. "Yeah...I'd do the same for you in a heartbeat. I guess...I'm just fumbling my way. See...I never...saw relationships. Or...anything...really. I mean..I have some vague memories from when I was like..five..but after that, for the next twelve years, I lived in Facilities. Labs." She looks down at the glass, now about half empty. "I'm kinda learning as I go here. We weren't around a wide variety of people, or a large number of them."

Auryn Piers: “Yeah, I kinda figured that.” She leans backward in her chair, fingers lacing behind her neck as a swiveling of her head allows for a sideways glance. “I’ve lived on the streets and in-” She cuts off the statement, debating the wisdom of being so forthcoming. “Let’s just say I may not be all that older than you or anything but I’ve had my share of.. Uh… experiences. I don’t mean sex.. ’though there’s that. I just mean with people. I know who I am. It’s something I had to figure out for myself and that’s something you’re gunna have to do.”

Tarin Perian nods a little. "I know. And...I don't want you to think I don't...appreciate you. Or care for you. Or find you amazing. But...you're like..light years ahead of where I'm at with being sure about things. Me? Give me an arsenal to strip down and reassemble, or a tactical situation to analyze, and I'm fine..." No..no real signs of being drunk now that she's drinking the 'juice'. "...but put me in a club or a party? I panic. I don't know how to behave, or react, or..." She sighs. "I couldn't even live in a family. I had to leave."

Auryn Piers: “You’ll find your way, darlin’” A genuine smile finds her lips as she continues to indulge in the backward lounge. “People ain’t all that hard to figure out and once you been around them for awhile, you’ll start to see who you really are.” Auryn was young, yes, but did have an uncanny insight into human behavior. Most of which was born of a necessity, a tool required for survival. “Can’t really rush these things. Takes time.”

Tarin Perian tips her head and looks at her, resting one bruised cheek in her hand. "You think you've got patience enough to deal with me? That Judge guy....he's used up every last ounce of patience in his bucket, I swear."

Auryn Piers had noted her sudden lack of intoxication and inwardly puzzles but chooses not to currently address it. “Depends on whatcha mean by patience. Will I stick around and be your friend? Sure. Confused straight girl or not, you’re still worth knowing.” This is followed by a quick wink. “Will I stand around and chew on my guts while you figure stuff out?” She slowly shakes her head. “Naw, that I ain’t gunna do.”

Tarin Perian nods a little. "Guess that's fair." She drains the last of the 'juice' and leans back gingerly, closing her eyes a moment. "Hopefully, you won't think it's too big a waste of your time."

Auryn Piers: “People worth knowing ain’t ever a waste of time. Can’t be everything to everybody, right? See, I know what I want outta life.” She falls silent a moment, chest rising and falling as she issues a lingering sigh. “Ain’t had much in the way of family myself and what I’m looking for is to be good enough for someone, you know?” The question is punctuated by an arch of a single brow. “Right now, that ain’t you.” She shrugs, allowing arms to slide forward in order to fold upon the table. “Nothing to feel bad about or nothing. What is.. Is.”

Tarin Perian murmurs. "And I'm not 'straight'. I'm definitely bi." She looks at Auryn carefully. "Very definitely bi. But...I'm not going to jerk you around. You are good enough...maybe too good." She grins a little and moves slowly to get up, injuries still present if the blessed whiskey haze isn't. She puts the glass in the sink and runs water on her hands, then wets her face, twisting her hair back with a damp hand before finding a towel and drying up. "So much for numb."

Auryn Piers: “Mebbe. Mebbe not.” She also rises, watching Tarin for a moment before squaring her shoulders in quiet determination. “You seem pretty okay now. Think I’ll just be headed on my way.” She jerks her head toward the door while wearing a small smile. “Need anything else before I take off?”

Tarin Perian turns and one hand lifts...then falls. "No...the juice stuff works pretty well. I'll be fine. Thank you, though. I mean it."

Auryn Piers: “Sure. I meant it too. Anything I can ever do for you, lemme know. You have my number.” She pats her pocket in emphasis before walking toward the door, fingertips hovering over the knob as she hesitates a long moment. She sighs, tapping the metal with her knuckles before finally opening the door. “See ya, Tarin?” She cranes her neck in order to cast a glance over her shoulder.

Tarin Perian watches her go and lets out a soft breath. "Yeah...see ya, Auryn." She waits until the door is closed, then moves to flip the lock, resting her head against the cool metal and closing her eyes. It had taken all her willpower to not kiss her or touch her - but she was right. It wasn't fair. She hit the button on the coffee pot and sat down in front of the computer. Maybe some work...

Auryn Piers wears something of a grim expression as she leaves the apartment, one hand thrust deeply within her pocket. She’d done as she’d intended and put the skids on anything romantic between the two of them. Even though she’d done it early and preferably before she got too attached, it still stung. In fact, more so than she’d expected.

I took the photos in this series for Birth for Humankind, an organisation that provides free birth support and education for pregnant women in Melbourne who are experiencing financial and social hardship.

birthforhumankind.org/

You can read the story behind these photos here: medium.com/@Birth_for_HumanKIND/the-beautiful-bond-betwee...

The Damanhur, Temples Of Humankind, a gorgeous series of underground temples in northern Italy.

www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/worldnews.ht...

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - May 18 - Atmosphere at CommonSpirit's Humankindness Gala 2023 on May 18th 2023 at San Francisco in San Francisco, CA (Photo - Devlin Shand for Drew Altizer Photography)

Spotted in the checkout line at Walmart tonight. I marvel at Time's optimism about the future of humankind. Can't speak for the rest of the world, but I see such a dumbing down of American society in general that I have trouble even imagining a future world of artificial intelligence.

day 282/365

www.damanhur.org/en/art-and-creativity/temples-of-humankind

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - May 16 - Starlight Strings perfomrs at Dignity Health Foundation's Humankindness Gala at City Hall in San Francisco, CA. (Photo - Arthur Kobin for Drew Altizer Photography)

If we cannot swiftly abandon our current suicidal attempt to ensure endlessly growing consumption, and direct our efforts into energetically devising and implementing a sustainable society, humankind (and not the non-human component of biodiversity) will discover, in short order, that it is not sustainable. At least, not sustainable at the present levels of population and rates of consumption; perhaps we will discover that thinly scattered New Palaeolithic settlements can be sustained. Provided, of course, that we can remember how to make stone choppers, or catch animals that don't want to be caught, neither of which is a given.

What might help us to determine that we have established a sustainable relationship with the non-human elements of biodiversity? I suggest we should be looking for indicators like this: the wild populations of every species of non-human primates are growing, and at a rate faster than the human population, and the area of the planet occupied by healthy coral reef is constant or increasing.

The reductionist approach to our world has not only given us every scientific advance since Descartes, but has simultaneously contributed in very large measure to our present predicament. We have led ourselves sadly astray by divorcing ourselves (but only in our minds) from nature, and in divorcing our drive for technology from our understanding of its consequences on the rate of growth of the human population and of its appetites.

Nature was never different from us. But she gave us the rope on which we have hanged ourselves: abundant cheap energy in the form of coal, gas, and especially oil. We have glutted ourself on fossil fuels, pouring it into our cities, fields, and bellies as though tomorrow would never come. We have used it to fuel exponential economic growth which has now reached the end of whatever surplus the planet could provide.

It is not just that we need interdisciplinary research, which we do, but more; we must understand at a very fundamental level that "society" and "nature" are not separate. They are simply different perspectives on the same reality. A complex reality, yes, but it does not help our understanding of that reality to treat it simplistically. The world, Nature, or biodiversity will not be dominated, and we have been fooling ourselves to imagine ourselves separate. Aldous Huxley said that “facts do not cease to exist because they're ignored” and we must not use science or technology to ignore our intimate entanglement with nature.

While we need biodiversity, biodiversity does not need us.

Any targets we set to guide our behaviour must serve on a conceptual scale that goes far beyond protecting wildlife. A target must give us direction and hope. It must be of practical benefit to guide everyday behaviour. It must be something that all of us individually and collectively feel ownership for. It must be something that helps to move us swiftly away from unsustainable behaviour – perhaps by making such behaviour socially unacceptable. Finding such a target will not be easy, and will require a great deal of research, involving natural and social scientists, economists, historians, artists, philosophers and lawmakers working together in an urgent and important effort. It will not be easy to turn this great fleet of humanity from its present dangerous course, but I am not alone in believing that if we do not do so, and quickly, there is little cause for optimism about the human future.

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - May 18 - Lada McGinn attends CommonSpirit's Humankindness Gala 2023 on May 18th 2023 at San Francisco in San Francisco, CA (Photo - Devlin Shand for Drew Altizer Photography)

Roseate spoonbill with snowy egret. They say, "Humankind, how could you destroy the Earth? Humankind, what other choice did you have than to destroy the Earth? Humankind, now that the end of your species has come, do you have any regrets?"

I tell the birds that it is quite silly to preach to humans or request that humankind stop self-destructing because humankind has as much free will as a stone perched at the unstable edge of a cliff.

Things would have turned out differently if humankind had free will.

Temples of Humankind, 20 years Open to the World. Ventenalle 2012

After mechanical apocalypse there are 3 factions - Humankind Army, Junk Raiders and Machines Hivemind. This is unit 1 from Humankind Army. It has shield generator on right manipulator and its main purpose - shielding the attaking units.

I took the photos in this series for Birth for Humankind, an organisation that provides free birth support and education for pregnant women in Melbourne who are experiencing financial and social hardship.

birthforhumankind.org/

You can read the story behind these photos here: medium.com/@Birth_for_HumanKIND/the-beautiful-bond-betwee...

Eastbound billboard on the Santan Freeway Loop 202 for Dignity Health.

ER kindness.

Stat.

Hello humankindness

Chandler Regional Medical Center, 1955 W Frye Rd, Chandler, AZ 85224

(480) 728-3000

Mercy Gilbert Medical Center, 3555 S Val Vista Dr, Gilbert, AZ 85297

(480) 728-8000

The Dignity Health Name

We chose the name Dignity Health because the value of dignity is woven into the fabric of our culture. Our mission, vision and values were all formed out of the recognition of the inherent dignity of each person. It also represents our commitment to delivering excellent medical care to all, to advocating on behalf of the poor, and to partnering with others to improve the quality of life.

The Dignity Health Logo

The logo represents the coming together of caregivers, services, care centers, etc., to create a continuum of care. The three sections remind us of the three dimensions of our mission—healing, advocacy, and partnering. The icon surrounds a central space, symbolizing how an integrated health system honors the inherent dignity of each individual.

To learn more please visit Dignity Health at dignityhealth.org.

The Santan Freeway is in the southeast valley of Phoenix. Onsite Insite offers billboards along the Santan Freeway between I-10 and the Price Freeway Loop 101 in Chandler.

Whitby Gothic Weekend, April 2015. The title is a quote from T S Eliot.

The silent pandemic of Tuberculosis continues its ravages against humankind, with 10 million persons contracted with the disease and killed an estimated 1.4 million persons in 2019, translating to around 4,000 deaths in each day. The situation in Pakistan, that stands fifth on the list of worst affected countries globally, is equally grim where around 580,000 people estimated to have contracted the disease, out of which only 360,000 were identified in 2019 and put on treatment. The remaining 220,000 persons were missed to notification and got added to the prevalent pool of patients that go undetected and further spread the disease. We just cannot look at these facts as mere statistics and move on. That is simply not an option – neither today on World TB Day nor on any other day of the year!

We need to know that Tuberculosis is a deadly and contagious disease which mostly affects lungs but can affect almost any part of the body, and occurs mostly in low-income people. While our TB control programme initiated in the fiscal year 2000-2001 succeeded to a large extent in expanding TB care facilities across the country during its first decade, the case detection seems to have more or less stagnated during the second decade while actually being on the decline over the past two years.

The United Nations convened a first ever high-level ministerial meeting for elimination of Tuberculosis in September 2018. The world leaders made the commitment for ending the tuberculosis epidemic globally by 2030 in line with the Sustainable Development Goals and pledged to provide leadership to work together to address the social and economic determinants of the epidemic and protect and fulfil the human rights and dignity of all people. An important signatory to the declaration was Pakistan’s Foreign Minister H. E. Mr. Shah Mahmood Qureshi who stressed the importance of fighting the TB epidemic that places a heavy burden on the world’s most poor and vulnerable.

World Tuberculosis Day is Being Observed Globally today

The Stop TB Partnership moved swiftly to delineate country level targets and actions required by each government particularly in high-burden countries. Twelve days before World TB Day last year, however, the global community was struck by another massive challenge – COVID-19 was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization jolting the routine activities of the Health Sector. The COVID-19 pandemic has a significant impact on the provision of care for people with tuberculosis. Access to diagnostic testing has declined with TB notifications dropping by 17% for all forms of TB in 2020 in Pakistan with a significant drop of 40% in quarter 2 (April – June) of that year, partly because of partial lockdowns and limited human and material resources, but also because of the social stigma of having a cough or being unwell. With the pandemic having drastically reduced the TB case notification rate, urgent actions are required. Policymakers have to rise to the challenge and ensure that TB care is not affected and its preventive, diagnostic and treatment infrastructure is not disrupted due to the COVID-19 response.

‘The Clock is Ticking’ – the theme for World TB Day 2021 highlights the urgency for intensifying the efforts for ending TB by an inclusive approach involving the political leadership, parliamentarians, community leaders, TB survivors, healthcare professionals, workers, non-profit organizations, and other stakeholders. With only 21 months remaining for meeting the 2022 targets, the COVID-19 pandemic has put progress towards End-TB on hold while decelerating the progress towards attaining Universal Health Coverage. The theme also conveys that the global investment is at less than 50% of the US$13 billion per year pledged towards this end, while countries are falling extremely short of the agreed targets to find people with TB and provide them with the prevention, treatment, and care, particularly in case of children and those with drug-resistant TB. Moving forward towards TB elimination, Pakistan will need to encompass the transformation of the political declarations to End-TB by a concrete increase in the domestic governmental spending to reduce the funding gap of the National Strategic Plan, with improved surveillance systems in place to fulfil the unmet needs of people living with TB. It just cannot be business as usual. TB needs to be placed higher within health sector priorities to match its commitments made at international forums and serve poor and marginalized population segments most in need of TB care services.

So where do we go from here – essentially, we need to cast our net more broadly by rapidly scaling up services and reaching out for the marginalized and at-risk population segments by providing them with the requisite diagnosis and treatment facilities and preventive treatment to contacts of people affected by tuberculosis, and other people at risk. Our previous experience has shown that this will require the robust involvement of communities and civil society. Transcending sociocultural barriers to TB care services cannot be accomplished by the public health sector alone. We will also need to provide services that are integrated, community-based and gender-responsive, ethical, equitable and founded on the basic principles of human rights. We will also require the help of communities to ensure that preventive measures for tuberculosis are enacted at workplaces, schools, transportation systems, and other settings where people congregate.

And let us face it, we will need to mobilize adequate and sustained resources for universal access to the quality services outlined above, with the main responsibility falling on the provinces and federally administered territories such as Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Gilgit Baltistan and the Islamabad Capital Territory to bridge the funding gaps in the national/provincial tuberculosis strategic plans. Assertions of commitment alone are not effective unless backed up with concrete budgetary allocations. We also need to develop multisectoral mechanisms encompassing social safety nets to monitor progress towards ending the tuberculosis epidemic with high-level leadership while actively involving parliamentarians, local governments, academicians, private sector and other stakeholders within and beyond the health sector. End-TB efforts will also need social mobilization and mass awareness by the imaginative use of social media and other electronic media to achieve the December 2022 targets and accelerating the march toward the 2030 targets under SDG # 3 eliminating TB as a public health problem in Pakistan. To do anything less, will constitute a grave injustice to our coming generations. Meanwhile, the clock is ticking!

The writer is a senior public health specialist of Pakistan and can be reached at gnkaziumkc @gmail.com

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - May 18 - Atmosphere at CommonSpirit's Humankindness Gala 2023 on May 18th 2023 at San Francisco in San Francisco, CA (Photo - Natalie Shrik for Drew Altizer Photography)

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - May 18 - Brice Arlington and Joretta Arlington attend CommonSpirit's Humankindness Gala 2023 on May 18th 2023 at San Francisco in San Francisco, CA (Photo - Drew Altizer Photography)