César Manrique Foundation is headquartered in a spectacular dwelling designed by César Manrique himself upon his return from New York City, when he decided to locate permanently at Lanzarote. This was his home for the 20 years running from 1968 to 1988, the longest he ever lived in a single place. It is sited in the midst of a lava coulee formed during the violent eruptions that rocked the island between 1730 and 1736. This 3 000 square metre building engages in constant dialogue with the natural surrounds on its 30 000-square metre lot and beyond: here, volcano and architecture blend in mutual respect.

The upper storey draws its inspiration from Lanzarote’s traditional architecture, enhanced with modern functional elements such as wide windows, large rooms and overhead lighting.

The lower storey is built around five natural volcanic bubbles interconnected by tunnels excavated in the lava. They constitute a surprisingly habitable setting and an exemplary intervention in a natural space. The swimming pool, the small ballroom, the oven, the barbeque… are also open to visitors, all surrounded by abundant plant life and the island’s ubiquitous basalt. The room located just before the exit is the painter’s former studio, today converted into an exhibition hall for paintings.

The landscaping around the house plays on the fascinating contrast between the inorganic black lava, volcanic ash and “socos” (low wind screens) on the one hand and fruit trees and other plants on the other.

Natural ice in the Netherlands is a rare occurrence. In fact, some winters there's no natural ice at all. Maybe that explains why the Dutch love to skate outdoors. They hardly ever get the chance! But when a cold wave hits, and the interconnected maze of canals, rivers and lakes freeze over, it's a spontaneous celebration, a national holiday. Businesses close their doors and everyone goes skating.

The Alblasserwaard tour starts in the town of Kinderdijk, a tourist mecca famous for its windmills. (Molentocht means windmill tour.) The Krimpenerwaard is one of the oldest polders in Holland, dotted with ancient villages, and you can skate through nine of them in a day. (Negendorpentocht means Nine Villages Tour.) You can read about the area's history in this Krimpenerwaard site.

Aside from the scenery, the joys of Dutch skating are the companionship of other skaters, and the delicious food served up along the canals. With so many skaters on the ice, you're guaranteed to find someone who skates at your speed, and gets hungry or thirsty with the same regularity.

I hope you like this shot. well I have enjoy myself with making photo's

I don't know what's going on here ... and I didn't want to ask.

I just kept walking, and snapped the photo fairly surreptitiously as I walked...

**********************

As I’ve mentioned in a couple of recent Tumblr blog postings, I’m working on an exercise for a new class that I’ve started taking at the International Center of Photography (ICP) in the fall of 2015.( You can see the earlier Tumblr postings here and here.)

In addition to taking a bunch of photos (see the other Tumblr postings for details and descriptions of what the photos are supposed to illustrate), we also have the task of editing our images down to a maximum of 10 “presentation images” that we will share with the ICP class next week. When our instructor, Joanne Dugan, asked me last week if I anticipated having any problems with this aspect of the assignment, I shrugged and said, “No, I do this all the time …”

Well, yes and no: I do do a lot of editing/winnowing of my photos before deciding which ones should be shared with anyone else. But I had forgotten that I also do a lot of cropping, color-adjustment, tweaking, and general post-processing before I upload my photos to Flickr, Facebook, or even Instagram. For this particular ICP exercise, we were also told not to crop the photos, and not to do any post-processing. That makes things a lot more difficult …

On the other hand, part of the exercise is to assemble and share a maximum of ten photos that collectively tell a “story” of some kind – and to “tell” that story with anywhere from a word, to a sentence, to a paragraph for each of the photos. That makes things a lot easier … after all, if a photo has to be presented in isolation, then it truly stands alone. And it is intended to be viewed without any accompanying text, then it really stands alone. There’s nothing wrong with that; indeed, one might argue that that’s the whole point of photography: a picture should “tell” a story all by itself, without any extraneous verbiage to “explain” what might not be obvious to the viewer.

But not very many things exist in complete isolation of the rest of the universe, especially in today’s interconnected world. I suppose some people would debate that point quite vigorously; and some people might argue that a photograph of a person, place, or thing should be able to “stand alone” without anything else. I certainly have seen photos that fall into this category, and I suppose I’ve taken a few like that, too. Or, maybe if I never intended my photos to be considered in complete isolation from one another, perhaps that’s how some people prefer to look at them …

But for me, that’s a pretty rare phenomenon. Almost always, I find myself telling a story. The photographs obviously present one “dimension” of the story, in a visual form; and I’ve been trying to remind myself lately that videos can present can present one, and sometimes two, additional dimensions (motion and sound) that can add enormously to the viewer’s understanding and appreciation of the underlying story.

But even if one uses only traditional photos, I find that it’s almost impossible for me to crate (or make, or take) one photo by itself; invariably, I take dozens, if not hundreds or even thousands, which collectively tell a story. It may be a story about someplace I’ve been, or some event in which I’ve participated, or some individual (or group of individuals) that I want the viewer to know and appreciate in more detail than would be possible to communicate in a single photo.

And then there are the words … maybe it’s because I spend part of my time as a writer and teacher that I find it almost impossible not to augment my photos with words. Lots of words. Indeed, sometimes far too many words; and sometimes clumsy words, or the wrong words. And I do realize that there are times when the situation would be improved if I would just shut up, and let the photograph do all of the communication. But for better or worse, I guess I’m a photojournalist.

With that in mind, I began the process of editing the photos for my recent ICP assignment. Here’s what I found:

1. It’s not as easy as one might think, when you start with a large number. I began winnowing the original images when I had 2,700 (after 9 days of shooting), and I still had 5 days of shooting left).

2. It’s much more difficult than I had imagined, given the constraints of my ICP class: no cropping, no post-processing, and a maximum of only 10 images. I’ve worked within those constraints for the final images that I’m submitting to the ICP class; but for these Flickr uploads, I’ve ended up with 40-45 images – and they have been heavily cropped, tilted, color-corrected, noise-dusted, and tweaked in various other ways. C’est la vie…

3. Using the collection of photos to “tell a story” is both easier and harder than I thought it would be. I’m including these background notes in all of the photos that get uploaded to Flickr … because I’ve learned (form past experience) that some visitor will zoom in on just one particular photo, without necessarily looking at all of them, and/or without seeing the overall notes for the entire album. And I don’t think I’ll find it difficult to write a few sentences to provide the background details for each photo … but whether they “flow” and create one overall, coherent “story” remains to be seen.

4. Aside from a narrative “story,” there are some “themes” that I noticed throughout this entire two-week exercise. The most significant one was exactly what I had anticipated: patterns. If you are lucky enough to sit in the same spot at the same time, day after day, you see the same rhythms, the same people, the same repetitions of life’s little actions and emotions. Many people have the opportunity to see these patterns, because they do follow the same schedule, day after day, on their way to their job or their school. But some of us have irregular routines, and any, most of us don’t pay any attention. If you slow down, and pay attention, you’ll see the patterns.

But sometimes the pattern involves uniqueness – i.e. strange and unusual people or events that seem to happen only once. But I have to keep reminding myself that my visits have lasted only two weeks; if I was here for a month, or a full season, or perhaps an entire year – then perhaps I would see these strange incidents repeating themselves

5. Another theme – which I did not anticipate, but was delighted to see – was the pervasive sense of affection and caring between and among everyone on the street. Mostly it was apparent in the interactions between parents and children; but sometimes it was between dog-owners and the dogs they were walking; sometimes it was between friends who happened to be walking along together; and sometimes it was between complete strangers and me, as the strangers would smile and nod and say “hello” if they noticed I was watching them. It was a great experience.

119 thunders westward along Houghton Lake bathing in summer evening light at Drefal as the sounds of rumbling GEs echo off the rugged northern Ontario landscape. The calm waters of the Hogsback Channel (frame right) link Houghton Lake with a series of other interconnected lakes and streams including Biscotasi Lake to the north, Mishap Lake to the south and Indian Lake to the west where paddlers can explore remote campsites and even make their way to the West Branch of the Spanish River eventually if ambitious enough - MP 52 Nemegos Sub.

One of a pair, dug into the clifftop, protected by rearward facing pillboxes and interconnected by subterranean tunnels, living quarters and ammunition stores.

These formed part of the coastal defence network and housed a pair of ex WW1 Naval guns, and were mostly camouflaged as big haystacks.

Explore #24

In the winter season, the storks leave continental Europe and travel south to Africa where the weather is much warmer.

In my country, Spain, we coexisted with the Islam for 8 centuries. The Spanish language is deeply influenced by Arabic and some of our customs, specially in Andalusia still remain interconnected and can be seen clearly in everyday life.

I found beautiful this mix of migrated storks and islamic art in some Roman Empire ruins in Chella, south of Rabat. This gives you an idea of the extension of that empire, back in the day.

Coral Reefs (récifs coralliens) :

Le Florida Reef Tract est la troisième plus grande barrière de corail du monde, s'étendant sur 360 miles le long de la côte sud-est de la Floride. De nombreux facteurs de stress entraînent le déclin de ce récif, notamment des conditions d'eau de plus en plus chaudes et acides, la mort d'espèces symbiotiques clés et la maladie de perte de tissus coralliens pierreux (SCTLD). Bien que la cause du SCTLD soit encore inconnue, il s'étend maintenant sur presque tout le récif et a touché 22 espèces de coraux durs, dont beaucoup souffrent d'une mortalité complète. Afin de sauver le Florida Reef Tract, des actions immédiates, multidimensionnelles et innovantes doivent être mises en œuvre. Le programme de conservation des coraux de l’aquarium de Floride s’attaque efficacement à la crise des coraux en concentrant ses efforts sur plusieurs stratégies interconnectées conçues pour: protéger les espèces qui approchent ou sont menacées d’extinction dans la nature; augmenter les taux de reproduction des coraux, faire progresser la santé des coraux et restaurer le Florida Reef Tract. L'Aquarium de Floride en 2019, a pu induire la ponte de plusieurs espèces de corail atlantique en laboratoire ! Ces avancées révolutionnaires, mondialement reconnues, facilitent la capacité à accroître la diversité génétique de la progéniture corallienne, à mener des recherches vitales sur la santé pour améliorer les techniques de soins et d'élevage des coraux et donc à augmenter les taux de propagation des coraux.

Coral Reefs - The Florida Aquarium :

The Florida Reef Tract is the third largest barrier reef in the world, stretching 360 miles along the southeast coast of Florida. Many stressors are causing the reef to decline, including increasingly hot and acidic water conditions, the death of key symbiotic species, and stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD). Although the cause of SCTLD is still unknown, it now spans almost the entire reef and has affected 22 species of hard coral, many of which suffer complete mortality. In order to save the Florida Reef Tract, immediate, multidimensional and innovative actions must be implemented. The Florida aquarium coral conservation program is effectively addressing the coral crisis by focusing its efforts on several interconnected strategies designed to: protect species that are approaching or threatened with extinction in the wild; increase coral reproduction rates, advance coral health and restore the Florida Reef Tract. The Florida Aquarium in 2019 was able to induce the laying of several species of Atlantic coral in the laboratory! These revolutionary advances, recognized worldwide, facilitate the ability to increase the genetic diversity of coral offspring, to conduct vital health research to improve techniques for caring for and growing corals, and therefore increasing the rates of spread of corals.

Tonlé Sap (literally large river (tonle); fresh, not salty (sap), commonly translated to "Great Lake") refers to a seasonally inundated freshwater lake, the Tonlé Sap Lake and an attached river, the 120 km (75 mi) long Tonlé Sap River, that connects the lake to the Mekong.

They form the central part of a complex hydrological system, situated in the 12,876 km2 (4,971 sq mi) Cambodian floodplain covered with a mosaic of natural and agricultural habitats that the Mekong replenishes with water and sediments annually. The central plain formation is the result of millions of years of Mekong alluvial deposition and discharge. From a geological perspective, the Tonlé Sap Lake and Tonlé Sap River are a current freeze-frame representation of the slowly, but ever shifting Lower Mekong Basin. Annual fluctuation of the Mekong's water volume, supplemented by the Asian Monsoon regime causes the unique flow reversal of the Tonle Sap River.

The Tonlé Sap Lake occupies a geological depression (the lowest lying area) of the vast alluvial and lacustrine floodplain in the Lower Mekong Basin, which had been induced by the collision of the Indian Plate with the Eurasian Plate. The lake's size, length and water volume varies considerably over the course of a year from an area of around 2,500 km2 (965 sq mi), a volume of 1 km3 (0 cu mi) and a length of 160 km (99 mi) at the end of the dry season in late April to an area of up to 16,000 km2 (6,178 sq mi), a volume of 80 km3 (19 cu mi) and a length of 250 km (160 mi) as the Mekong maximum and the peak of the South-West monsoon's precipitation culminate in September and early October.

As one of the world’s most varied and productive ecosystems the region has always been of central importance for Cambodia's food provision. It proved capable to maintain the Angkorean civilization, the largest pre-industrial settlement complex in world history. Either directly or indirectly it affects the livelihood of large numbers of a predominantly rural population to this day. With regards to a growing and migrating population, ineffective administration and widespread indifference towards environmental issues the lake and its surrounding ecosystem is coming under increasing pressure from over-exploitation and habitat degradation, fragmentation and loss. All Mekong riparian states have either announced or already implemented plans to increasingly exploit the river's hydroelectric potential. A succession of international facilities that dam the river's mainstream is likely to be the gravest danger yet for the entire Tonle Sap eco-region.

The largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia, that contains an exceptional large variety of interconnected eco-regions with a high degree of biodiversity is a biodiversity hotspot and was designated as a UNESCO biosphere reserve in 1997.

"What is man without the beasts? If all the beasts were gone, man would die from a great loneliness of spirit. For whatever happens to the beasts soon happens to man. All things are interconnected ... This we know. The earth does not belong to man, man belongs to the earth."

- - - the Indian Chief, Seattle, 1851

© all rights reserved by B℮n

The Netherlands is a small country of 16 million people, but it boasts a quarter of a million competitive speedskaters, and millions more who skate for fun. What's the story? Natural ice in the Netherlands is a rare occurrence. In fact, some winters there's no natural ice at all. Maybe that explains why the Dutch love to skate outdoors. They hardly ever get the chance! But when a cold wave hits, and the interconnected maze of canals, rivers and lakes freeze over, it's a spontaneous celebration, a national holiday. Infinite sea of ice is perfect for ice skating journeys. Ice skating is not only a Dutch sport, it also underwrites the history, art and culture of the Netherlands. Perhaps most importantly a good freeze provides the Dutch a chance to discover the wilderness and an outdoor challenge within their own landscape. The Netherlands are a long distance skater's dream. Hundreds of kilometres of potential routes can carry the skater to the heart of a wild landscape. Today after 4 years we we could ice skating on the Gouwsea. Ice skating can be done from Monnickendam - Nes - and back. Infinite sea of ice is perfect for ice skating journeys. Besides ice skating Dutch also love Ice yachting. This is the sport of sailing and racing iceboats and is very popular in the Netherlands. Ice boats are racing at a speed of 100 km an hour over the ice of the Gouwsea but today day there was no wind.

Waterland in the winter is a real skater’s paradise. As temperatures plunge across Europe, many are cursing the cold. But not in the Netherlands. Many are hoping for further frigid conditions. Photo taken of a Dutch skaters on the vast frozen Gouwsea. A historical moment since crossing the Gouwsea by skates is such a rare occurrence. Today I skate in Monnickendam, such a beautiful sea of ice to enjoy.

Op 22 januari 2017 een eerste schaatstocht gemaakt in Monnickendam. Het ijs is prachtig op de Gouwzee. Bij Volendam ligt het nog open. Eindelijk weer een dag waarin Waterlanders de ijzers konden onderbinden. De Gouwzee is voor een groot gedeelte dichtbevroren. Het is vier winters geleden dat dit voor het laatst gebeurde. Het blijft een bijzonder tafereel. De eerste schaatsers gaan het ijs op en schaatsen van Monnickendam naar de Nes. Een groot ijsoppervlakte tussen Monickendam en Marken is nog niet overal betrouwbaar. Een oneindig mooi gezicht op deze ijszee anno 2017. Het was genieten. De Gouwzee ligt er prachtig bij en de adem komt in kleine grijze pufjes uit mijn mond. Handen op de rug. Rustig ademen. Ik geniet van het geluid van de ijzers over het ijs en het prachtige uitzicht over de eindeloze ijsmassa. Het ijs is geweldig hier. Ik stop nog even voor het maken van foto. Het levert een prachtig plaatje op. Zwanen en de grijsbruine gans met forse oranje snavel en roze poten zijn hier heel veel te zien in Waterland.

The bronze statue of Zlatorog, the magical stag.

Lake Jasna consists of two interconnected artificial lakes at the confluence of the Velika Pišnica and Mala Pišnica streams.

Photo by Russell Eck

www.instagram.com/russelleck

The spiral arms of the galaxy NGC 7038 wind languidly across this image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. NGC 7038 lies around 220 million light-years from Earth in the southern constellation Indus. This image portrays an especially rich and detailed view of a spiral galaxy, and exposes a huge number of distant stars and galaxies around it. That’s because it’s made from a combined 15 hours worth of Hubble time focused on NGC 7038 and collecting light. So much data indicates that this is a valuable target, and indeed, NGC 7038 has been particularly helpful to astronomers measuring distances at vast cosmic scales.

The distances to astronomical objects are determined using an interconnected chain of measurement techniques called the Cosmic Distance Ladder. Each rung in the ladder is calibrated by earlier steps, based on measurements of objects closer to us. This makes the accuracy of distances at the largest scales dependent on how accurately distances to nearby objects can be determined. Hubble inspected NGC 7038 with its Wide Field Camera 3 to calibrate two of the most common distance measurement techniques: type 1A supernovae and Cepheid variables.

One of Hubble's original science goals was to accurately establish distances to night-sky objects, and over its three decades of operation Hubble’s increasingly precise distance measurements have contributed to one of the most intriguing unsolved problems in astronomy. Distance measurements are used to derive a quantity known as the Hubble constant, which captures how fast the Universe is expanding. As astronomer’s measurements of the Hubble constant have become more precise, their value has become increasingly inconsistent with the value of the Hubble Constant derived from observations of the Big Bang’s afterglow. Astronomers have been unable to explain the mismatch between the two values of the Hubble constant, which suggests that a new discovery in cosmology is waiting to be made.

Credits: ESA/Hubble & NASA, D. Jones; CC BY 4.0

Windansea Beach, San Diego, CA. A wide variety of organisms, including bacteria, protists, algae, plants, fungi and animals, live in the sea. The sea is the interconnected system of all the Earth's oceanic waters, including the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, Southern and Arctic Oceans.

Europe, Greece, Athens, Marousi suburb, OAKA Olympic Esplanade, OTE phone booths (slightly cut from all sides)

Shown again here is the Esplanade that gives access to the main Olympic facilities of 2004 in Athens (Santiago Calatrava, 2004). It's an array of 99 interconnected metal parabolic arches. I have no idea if there is a bio( skeleton) metaphor going on like in most of C’s work.

Most OAKA facilities were, by the way, already created in 1980-1982 for the European Athletics Championship and enlarged or embellished. In the BG is the Velodrome. Almost entirely devoid of people it was a fascinating but also a somewhat eerie place to visit.

An other capture of the Esplanade from within is: here

A capture of the renovated Olympic stadium (Calatrava) is: here.

A capture of the roof (Calatrava) of the velodrome is: here

A capture of the Olympic Indoor Hall is: here

The soundtrack: good ol’ Barrelhouse (after 45 years still in the same line-up, with the LaPorte brothers on guitar) – Callin’ Albert (Collins).

This is number 35 of the Athens/Piraeus album and and 949 of Minimalism / explicit Graphism.

Valle de los Ingenios, also named Valley de los Ingenios or Valley of the Sugar Mills, is a series of three interconnected valleys about 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) outside of Trinidad, Cuba. The three valleys, San Luis, Santa Rosa and Meyer, were a centre for sugar production from the late 18th century until the late 19th century. At the peak of the industry in Cuba there were over fifty cane sugar mills in operation in the three valleys with over 30,000 slaves working in the mills and the sugar cane plantations that surrounded them.

In 1988, Valle de los Ingenios and neighbouring Trinidad were declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Although most of the sugar mills are in ruins, intact structures endure at some sites, including Guachinango, where the plantation house remains, and the plantation of Manaca Iznaga, where the owner's house, a tower and some barracones, the original slave quarters, still stand. Although the barracones are now used as housing and are in poor repair, the house (which has been converted into a restaurant) and the "Iznaga Tower" are well maintained. The 45 metre (147 ft) tower was constructed sometime in 1816 by the owner, Alejo Maria Iznaga y Borrell. According to experts, the bell that formerly hung on top of the tower announced the beginning and the end of the work day for the slaves, as well as the times for prayers to the Holy Virgin in the morning, midday and afternoon. It was also used to sound an alarm in case of fire or slave escape. The height and magnificence of the tower served to display Iznaga's power over his slaves and his stature in the sugar industry and local society; at one time it was the tallest structure in Cuba. A recognised landmark of the region, the Iznaga Tower testifies to the area's flourishing material culture in the Spanish colonial period. The large bell now rests at the foot of the tower.

From Wikipedia

© all rights reserved by B℮n

Please take your time... to View it large on black

The Netherlands is a small country of 16 million people, but it boasts a quarter of a million competitive speedskaters, and millions more who skate for fun. What's the story? Natural ice in the Netherlands is a rare occurrence. In fact, some winters there's no natural ice at all. Maybe that explains why the Dutch love to skate outdoors. They hardly ever get the chance! But when a cold wave hits, and the interconnected maze of canals, rivers and lakes freeze over, it's a spontaneous celebration, a national holiday. Infinite sea of ice is perfect for ice skating journeys. Ice skating is not only a Dutch sport, it also underwrites the history, art and culture of the Netherlands. Perhaps most importantly a good freeze provides the Dutch a chance to discover the wilderness and an outdoor challenge within their own landscape. The Netherlands are a long distance skater's dream. Hundreds of kilometres of potential routes can carry the skater to the heart of a wild landscape. Today same as last year we could ice skating on the Gouwsea. Ice skating can be done from Monnickendam - Nes - Marken and from Marken back. Infinite sea of ice is perfect for ice skating journeys. Besides ice skating Dutch also love Ice yachting. This is the sport of sailing and racing iceboats and is very popular in the Netherlands. Ice boats are racing at a speed of 100 km an hour over the ice of the Gouwsea.

Waterland in the winter is a real skater’s paradise. As temperatures plunge across Europe, many are cursing the cold. But not in the Netherlands. Many are hoping for further frigid conditions. Photo taken of speedskaters and an Infinite line of Dutch skaters on the vast frozen Gouwsea. A historical moment since crossing the Gouwsea by skates is such a rare occurrence. Today I skate from Monnickendam - Nes - Marken - Nes and back to Monnickendam a trip of 16km, such a beautiful sea of ice to enjoy.

Op 25 januari 2013 een schaatstocht gemaakt rond de Gouwzee van Monnickendam - Nes - Marken - Monnickendam. Bij Volendam lag dit keer te veel sneeuw en onbegaanbaar. Eindelijk weer een dag waarin Waterlanders de ijzers konden onderbinden. De Gouwzee helemaal dichtbevroren en dit is nu al vier van de drie laatste winters gebeurd. Maar het blijft een historische ijstocht. Vele honderden schaatsenrijders zoeken vandaag de bevroren oppervlakte van de Gouwzee op voor een schaatstocht langs alle havens. Mensen kunnen een rondje Gouwzee schaatsen. Een groot ijsoppervlakte tussen Monickendam en Marken met prima ijs. Een oneindig mooi gezicht op deze ijszee anno 2013. Het was genieten. De weilanden zijn hier wit, de Gouwzee totaal bevroren en de adem komt in kleine grijze pufjes uit mijn mond. Handen op de rug. Rustig ademen. Ik geniet van het geluid van de ijzers over het ijs en het prachtige uitzicht over de besneeuwde landschap. Het ijs is geweldig hier. Ik stop nog even voor het maken van foto. Vele schaatsers genieten hier van het mooie ijs. Met minimale inspanning kan je hier wel 50km/uur schaatsen. Het levert een prachtig plaatje op.

ABOUT BRICKELL CITY CENTRE

Brickell City Centre has transformed the heart of downtown Miami. An achievement in innovation and artistry, the mixed-use space is comprised of two residential towers, two mid-rise office buildings and the EAST, Miami Hotel above a supercharged fashion and culinary experience.

SHOP

Four levels of luxury, premium and world-class dining and entertainment are interconnected over three city blocks and anchored by a 107,000 square foot Saks Fifth Avenue and luxury VIP Cinema Experience from CMX.

EAT + DRINK

Sushi, steaks, farm-to-table, vegan, sweet or caffeinated, BCC has you covered.

Credit for the data above is given to the following website:

www.brickellcitycentre.com/about-us/overview

© All Rights Reserved - you may not use this image in any form without my prior permission.

Million sweets (Millions are the tiny tasty chewy sweets in Strawberry, Bubblegum, Cola, Blackcurrant, Raspberry, Orange, Lemon and Apple flavours.) in the shape of Ying & Yang - In Chinese philosophy, yin and yang (also yin-yang or yin yang, yīnyáng "dark—bright") describe how seemingly opposite or contrary forces may actually be complementary, interconnected, and interdependent in the natural world, and how they may give rise to each other as they interrelate to one another.

This too was a pattern, though I saw it repeated more often with bicycles than skateboards.

But regardless of the mode of transportation, there are so many things in this picture that are "wrong" in the sense of looking like a form of death-wish. Note that the kid is skateboarding down the middle of the street, where he could be easily hit by a car. He is listening to his smartphone while wearing earphones, so he can't hear anything around him. He is smoking, which is deadly in and of itself. He's not wearing cushions or pads on his knees or elbows, which means that any fall will cause significant injuries.

And while he appears to be motionless momentarily, I can tell you that he waited only long enough for the two black SUVs to zoom past (as they had every right to do, since they had the traffic light in their favor) before he raced across the intersection -- against the traffic light.

Note: I chose this as my "photo of the day" for Oct 24, 2015.

**********************

As I’ve mentioned in a couple of recent Tumblr blog postings, I’m working on an exercise for a new class that I’ve started taking at the International Center of Photography (ICP) in the fall of 2015.( You can see the earlier Tumblr postings here and here.)

In addition to taking a bunch of photos (see the other Tumblr postings for details and descriptions of what the photos are supposed to illustrate), we also have the task of editing our images down to a maximum of 10 “presentation images” that we will share with the ICP class next week. When our instructor, Joanne Dugan, asked me last week if I anticipated having any problems with this aspect of the assignment, I shrugged and said, “No, I do this all the time …”

Well, yes and no: I do do a lot of editing/winnowing of my photos before deciding which ones should be shared with anyone else. But I had forgotten that I also do a lot of cropping, color-adjustment, tweaking, and general post-processing before I upload my photos to Flickr, Facebook, or even Instagram. For this particular ICP exercise, we were also told not to crop the photos, and not to do any post-processing. That makes things a lot more difficult …

On the other hand, part of the exercise is to assemble and share a maximum of ten photos that collectively tell a “story” of some kind – and to “tell” that story with anywhere from a word, to a sentence, to a paragraph for each of the photos. That makes things a lot easier … after all, if a photo has to be presented in isolation, then it truly stands alone. And it is intended to be viewed without any accompanying text, then it really stands alone. There’s nothing wrong with that; indeed, one might argue that that’s the whole point of photography: a picture should “tell” a story all by itself, without any extraneous verbiage to “explain” what might not be obvious to the viewer.

But not very many things exist in complete isolation of the rest of the universe, especially in today’s interconnected world. I suppose some people would debate that point quite vigorously; and some people might argue that a photograph of a person, place, or thing should be able to “stand alone” without anything else. I certainly have seen photos that fall into this category, and I suppose I’ve taken a few like that, too. Or, maybe if I never intended my photos to be considered in complete isolation from one another, perhaps that’s how some people prefer to look at them …

But for me, that’s a pretty rare phenomenon. Almost always, I find myself telling a story. The photographs obviously present one “dimension” of the story, in a visual form; and I’ve been trying to remind myself lately that videos can present can present one, and sometimes two, additional dimensions (motion and sound) that can add enormously to the viewer’s understanding and appreciation of the underlying story.

But even if one uses only traditional photos, I find that it’s almost impossible for me to crate (or make, or take) one photo by itself; invariably, I take dozens, if not hundreds or even thousands, which collectively tell a story. It may be a story about someplace I’ve been, or some event in which I’ve participated, or some individual (or group of individuals) that I want the viewer to know and appreciate in more detail than would be possible to communicate in a single photo.

And then there are the words … maybe it’s because I spend part of my time as a writer and teacher that I find it almost impossible not to augment my photos with words. Lots of words. Indeed, sometimes far too many words; and sometimes clumsy words, or the wrong words. And I do realize that there are times when the situation would be improved if I would just shut up, and let the photograph do all of the communication. But for better or worse, I guess I’m a photojournalist.

With that in mind, I began the process of editing the photos for my recent ICP assignment. Here’s what I found:

1. It’s not as easy as one might think, when you start with a large number. I began winnowing the original images when I had 2,700 (after 9 days of shooting), and I still had 5 days of shooting left).

2. It’s much more difficult than I had imagined, given the constraints of my ICP class: no cropping, no post-processing, and a maximum of only 10 images. I’ve worked within those constraints for the final images that I’m submitting to the ICP class; but for these Flickr uploads, I’ve ended up with 40-45 images – and they have been heavily cropped, tilted, color-corrected, noise-dusted, and tweaked in various other ways. C’est la vie…

3. Using the collection of photos to “tell a story” is both easier and harder than I thought it would be. I’m including these background notes in all of the photos that get uploaded to Flickr … because I’ve learned (form past experience) that some visitor will zoom in on just one particular photo, without necessarily looking at all of them, and/or without seeing the overall notes for the entire album. And I don’t think I’ll find it difficult to write a few sentences to provide the background details for each photo … but whether they “flow” and create one overall, coherent “story” remains to be seen.

4. Aside from a narrative “story,” there are some “themes” that I noticed throughout this entire two-week exercise. The most significant one was exactly what I had anticipated: patterns. If you are lucky enough to sit in the same spot at the same time, day after day, you see the same rhythms, the same people, the same repetitions of life’s little actions and emotions. Many people have the opportunity to see these patterns, because they do follow the same schedule, day after day, on their way to their job or their school. But some of us have irregular routines, and any, most of us don’t pay any attention. If you slow down, and pay attention, you’ll see the patterns.

But sometimes the pattern involves uniqueness – i.e. strange and unusual people or events that seem to happen only once. But I have to keep reminding myself that my visits have lasted only two weeks; if I was here for a month, or a full season, or perhaps an entire year – then perhaps I would see these strange incidents repeating themselves

5. Another theme – which I did not anticipate, but was delighted to see – was the pervasive sense of affection and caring between and among everyone on the street. Mostly it was apparent in the interactions between parents and children; but sometimes it was between dog-owners and the dogs they were walking; sometimes it was between friends who happened to be walking along together; and sometimes it was between complete strangers and me, as the strangers would smile and nod and say “hello” if they noticed I was watching them. It was a great experience.

The signs of Nature's force is everywhere. Here is where a combination of high water and stormy weather eroded the hillside from under the interconnected roots of the shoreline trees.

Taken at Bronte Bluffs park in Oakville, and post processed in Lightroom / Luminar 4.

Bracket Fungi produce shelf- or bracket-shaped or occasionally circular fruiting bodies called conks that lie in a close planar grouping of separate or interconnected horizontal rows.They are mainly found on trees (living and dead) and coarse woody debris, and may resemble mushrooms

Explored!

Be sure to view Large for details, especially the little lone leaf...

**Cosmic consciousness is the concept that the universe exists as an interconnected network of consciousness, with each conscious being linked to every other. -wikipedia**

We are all connected-even if it's a simple as having the same sky and earth we look at with wonder and awe, capture with our cameras, add our own creative twist and share it with the world here on Flickr. This is taken just next to the Medicine Wheel on sacred Native American ground. The sky is always genius and powerful here...

I'm so grateful for all of you wonderful souls who take the time to enjoy my posts and leave a comment. It warms my heart, inspires me to no end and makes my day that much more enjoyable.

Happy Monday!

Thanks to Shadowhouse for the texture

Excerpt from digital.yorku.ca:

Hall's sculpture Leaves of Light is an intriguing glasswork that incorporates natural daylight into its structure and stores it using photovoltaic cells. Then at dusk, the whole installation comes alive as it glows, backlit from within the work's text and design elements that are etched and painted on the several layers of glass that make up the work.

Leaves of Light consists of one glass panel with painted imagery, four interconnected solar panels and an interior layer of light-emitting diodes (LEDs). The embedded, custom-designed, blue-grey solar cells were made in Germany and are a perfect match for the innovative, sculptural facade of the building itself. The sculpture's design elements consist of text from a poem by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe about ginkgo biloba trees and images of the tree's leaves.

Plitvice Lakes National Park, Croatia.

Plitvice Lakes National Park is Croatia’s best-known national park, listed on the UNESCO List of World Heritage sites. It is a popular visiting destination all year round, and must-see for every visitor to Croatia.

Well known for its system of cascading lakes - whereby sixteen lovely lakes are interconnected by cascades and waterfalls. The park is simply beautiful. The main focus of park's beauty are sixteen lakes, divided into two parts - Gornja jezera (Upper lakes) and Donja Jezera (Lower Lakes), as well as numerous waterfalls and cascades.

For video, please visit youtu.be/6p-MI7efeCw

A fisheye shot of one of the spiral stairs in the Damian Hirst commissioned Newport Street Gallery in London.

This years RIBA Stirling Prize has been announced and I'm pleased to say it's gone to this Caruso St John designed Gallery. It's rather tucked away near Waterloo Station, the 'wrong' side of the river, but it's well worth a visit.

Click here to see more shots of this years winner as well as other winners and shortlisted buildings from previous years : www.flickr.com/photos/darrellg/albums/72157634329899070

From the RIBA Press Release : "Newport Street Gallery has won the coveted 2016 RIBA Stirling Prize for the UK’s best new building. Now in its 21st year, the RIBA Stirling Prize sponsored by Almacantar, is the UK’s most prestigious architecture prize.

This is the first time Caruso St John architects have won the RIBA Stirling Prize; they were shortlisted for the award for Brick House, west London in 2006 and New Art Gallery Walsall in 2000.

Newport Street Gallery involved the conversion and transformation of a street facing a railway line in Vauxhall, south London, into a free public gallery for artist Damien Hirst's private art collection. Three listed Victorian industrial buildings, formerly carpentry and scenery painting workshops for West End theatres, have been remodelled and flanked at either end by entirely new buildings; one with a striking, spiky saw-tooth roof.

The new additions have a specially-created hard pale red brick finish to closely reference the original buildings, while a huge LED panel on the railway facade encourages passing train commuters to visit. The ground and upper floors within the interconnected five buildings are continuous, with new spiral staircases on their side, to create flexible spaces able to accommodate everything from individual works to larger shows."

My Website : Twitter : Facebook : Instagram

© D.Godliman

During one of the hottest days in Portugal, we went for a stroll in Mafra, to keep away from scorching Sun. We happened to come across this door with some famous Portuguese tiles, and its colour took me to grab my camera and shoot.

Hope you enjoy it! ;)

For my video; youtu.be/edQJsGn35Po,

Lynnmour, District of North Vancouver, British Columbia,

Canada.

The Park & Tilford Gardens is a 1.5-acre (6,100 m2) (originally 3-acre (12,000 m2)) botanic garden situated in the City of North Vancouver, British Columbia. The complex, established in 1969 as a community project of Canadian Park & Tilford Distilleries Ltd., consists of eight separate but interconnected areas. The original gardens were designed by Harry J. Webb of Justice & Webb Landscape Architects.

The main building of Nezu shrine is a honden (本殿 main hall) in the Ishi-no-ma-zukuri style, a complex Shinto shrine structure in which the haiden, or worship hall, the heiden, or offertory hall, and the honden, are all interconnected under the same roof.

The whole structure dates from 1706.

All three parts of the building (honden, haiden and heiden) are separately designated as an Important Cultural Property.[

César Manrique Foundation is headquartered in a spectacular dwelling designed by César Manrique himself upon his return from New York City, when he decided to locate permanently at Lanzarote. This was his home for the 20 years running from 1968 to 1988, the longest he ever lived in a single place. It is sited in the midst of a lava coulee formed during the violent eruptions that rocked the island between 1730 and 1736. This 3 000 square metre building engages in constant dialogue with the natural surrounds on its 30 000-square metre lot and beyond: here, volcano and architecture blend in mutual respect.

The upper storey draws its inspiration from Lanzarote’s traditional architecture, enhanced with modern functional elements such as wide windows, large rooms and overhead lighting.

The lower storey is built around five natural volcanic bubbles interconnected by tunnels excavated in the lava. They constitute a surprisingly habitable setting and an exemplary intervention in a natural space. The swimming pool, the small ballroom, the oven, the barbeque… are also open to visitors, all surrounded by abundant plant life and the island’s ubiquitous basalt. The room located just before the exit is the painter’s former studio, today converted into an exhibition hall for paintings.

The landscaping around the house plays on the fascinating contrast between the inorganic black lava, volcanic ash and “socos” (low wind screens) on the one hand and fruit trees and other plants on the other.

The open, geometric design of the Hayden Ellis building at Cardiff University. Finally managed to visit it when the sun was out!

EXPLORE Aug. 6, 2012 # 367

*☼ Holiday time ♥ Happy August, dear friends ☼*

This National Park -an UNESCO World Heritage Site- is world famous for its lakes arranged in cascades. Currently, 16 lakes can be seen from the surface. These lakes are a result of the confluence of several small rivers and subterranean karst rivers. The lakes are all interconnected and follow the water flow. They are separated by natural dams of travertine, which is deposited by the action of moss, algae, and bacteria. The particularly sensitive travertine barriers are the result of an interplay between water, air and plants. The encrusted plants and bacteria accumulate on top of each other, forming travertine barriers which grow at the rate of about 1 cm per year.

Through different climatic influences and the large difference in elevation within the protected area, a multifaceted flora and fauna has been created. The national park area is home to many endemic species. Those species that prevailed at the lakes before the arrival of man still exist.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plitvice_Lakes_National_Park

The Navigli are a system of navigable and interconnected canals around Milan.

LED Festival 2010

Nikon D5000 35mm f/1.8G

EXIF: 25 sec • f/10 • 35 mm • ISO 160

RAW file edited with Camera Raw 5.5

Explore: #84 28-12-2010

Front Page: 29-12-2010

Characters: Colonies are composed of blunt-ended irregular columns. Corallites have thin, highly perforated walls of interconnected rods and spines. Polyps are up to 100 millimeters long and 20 millimeters diameter when fully extended. Color: Oral discs and tentacle tips are white, the rest of the polyps are brown or greenish-brown. Similar species: This is the largest Alveopora. A. allingi has similar skeletal structures and A. catalai has similar polyps. Habitat: Protected turbid environments. Abundance: Common and conspicuous at the Houtman Abrohlhos Islands, south-west Australia, uncommon elsewhere.

Description:

Colonies are composed of irregular blunt ended branches with large tan or greenish tan polyps that can reach up to 4″ long. The oral discs and 12 tentacle tips are a lighter tan or white in color. A similar Genus Goniopora is sometime confused with Alveopora, but it can be differentiated by the fact that it has 24 tentacles rather than 12. While not brightly colored, Alveopora can have an elegant look to it.

Natural Environment:

Typically found in low to moderate current areas such as lagoons. Sometimes associated with turbid water conditions.

Nuweiba, Gulf of Aqaba, Egypt.

Triquetra - A very common representation of the symbol is with a circle that goes through the three interconnected loops of the triquetra. The circle emphasizes the unity of the whole combination of three forces. It is also said to symbolize God's love around the Holy Trinity.

Interconnected

(now I´m online)

The Harley-Davidson Museum is a North American museum near downtown, Milwaukee, Wisconsin celebrating the more than 100-year history of Harley-Davidson motorcycles. The 130,000-square-foot (12,000 m²) three building complex on 20 acres (81,000 m²) along the Menomonee River bank contains more than 450 Harley-Davidson motorcycles and hundreds of thousands of artifacts from the Harley-Davidson Motor Company's 110-year history. The museum attracts an estimated 300,000 visitors annually. The museum opened to the public on July 12, 2008, on a 20 acres (81,000 m²) site in the Menomonee Valley. The museum was built in an historically industrial area of Milwaukee. Prior to Harley-Davidson's purchase of the land from the city, the site was formerly used by the Milwaukee Department of Public Works, Lakeshore Sand Company, and Morton Salt. A 4 feet (1.2 m) layer of imported soil was added to combat the contaminated soil. New vegetation was planted to restore the landscape to its riparian state. In late February 2006, designs for the museum were unveiled. The designs were created by James Biber, a partner at Pentagram, his team, and Michael Zweck-Bonner, an associate at Pentagram. Abbott Miller, a partner at Pentagram, designed the museum's permanent exhibitions. The firm designed the museum over a period of eight years. On June 1, 2006, Harley-Davidson began the construction of the $75 million complex with a groundbreaking ceremony that included legendary Harley-Davidson dirt track motorcycle racer, Scott Parker, breaking ground by doing a burnout with a Harley-Davidson XL883R Sportster, instead of with the traditional golden shovel. The site includes parking spaces for 1,000 motorcycles and 500 cars. The Museum's facade also features a 17-foot (5.2 m)-tall, steel Harley-Davidson sign. The museum’s galleries permanent exhibitions, spread throughout two floors, in addition to temporary exhibits and the motor company’s archives. The complex also includes a restaurant, café, retail shop, and special event spaces. Also on display are historic Harley-Davidson items that tell the company's story and history, such as photographs, posters, advertisements, clothes, trophies, video footage of vintage and contemporary motorcycling, and interactive exhibits, including 10 motorcycles that visitors can sit on.

The Motorcycle Gallery

On the museum’s upper level, a procession of motorcycles is displayed down the center of the main hall, running the length of the building, with galleries on either side.

The Harley-Davidson Journey

Along the east side of the upstairs galleries, a series of interconnected galleries exhibit the Harley-Davidson's chronological history. The galleries relate the company's history from its origins in a 10x15-foot wooden shack to its current status as the top U.S. motorcycle manufacturer, producing more than 330,000 bikes each year. The centerpiece of the gallery is "Serial Number One", the oldest known Harley-Davidson in existence, which is encased in glass. The glass enclosure sits within a floor-embedded, illuminated outline of the backyard shed the motor company was founded in.

The Engine Room

The museum's second floor galleries begin with the Engine Room. A Knucklehead engine is displayed disassembled into several pieces. The Engine Room also features several interactive touch screen elements that show how Harley motors, including Panhead and Shovelhead motors work.

Clubs and Competition

The Clubs and Competition gallery includes displays and information about Harley-Davidson's racing history. The gallery includes a section of a replica wooden board track, suspended in the air at a 45-degree incline. The wooden track features vintage video footage of actual board track races, and attached 1920s-era Harley-Davidson racing motorcycles; the bikes that raced on board tracks at 100 miles -per-hour. Fatalities were common, which led to the banning of wooden board tracks for motorcycle racing.

Tank Gallery

The museum's upper floor exhibits also include the Gas Tank Gallery, formerly part of the Harley-Davidson 100th Anniversary Open Road Tour. The exhibit displays 100 of Harley-Davidson's most memorable tank graphics, spanning 70 years, selected by the company's styling department and reproduced on "Fat Bob" tanks.

Custom Culture

The Custom Culture gallery covers Harley-Davidson's impact on American and global culture. The centerpiece of the Custom Culture Gallery is "King Kong", a 13-foot (4.0 m)-long, two-engine Harley-Davidson motorcycle customized by Felix Predko. The exhibit also features exact replicas of the customized Harley-Davidson bikes ridden by Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper in the 1969 American movie, "Easy Rider", including Fonda's "Captain America" chopper and Hopper's "Billy Bike". Two of each of the two choppers were created, and one "Captain America" was destroyed in the film's production.

Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harley-Davidson_Museum

Masouleh is a small mountain village in Caspian Iran. Masouleh architecture is unique. The buildings have been built into the mountain and are interconnected. Courtyards and roofs both serve as pedestrian areas similar to streets. Masouleh does not allow any motor vehicles to enter, due to its unique layout. It is the only village in Iran with such a prohibition. However, the small streets and many stairs simply also wouldn't make it possible for vehicles to enter.The spectacular architecture of Masouleh is well-known as "The yard of the above building is the roof of the below building".Yellow clay coats the exterior of most buildings in Masouleh. This allows for better visibility in the fog.

IF EVERYTHING IS INTERCONNECTED, WHY DO I FEEL SO SEPARATE?

The Renaissance Center (aka GM Renaissance Center) is a group of seven interconnected skyscrapers in downtown Detroit, on the shore of the Detroit River. The complex is owned by General Motors, which uses it as its world headquarters. The central tower, the Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center with its curved glass-clad facade, is the second tallest all-hotel skyscraper in the Western Hemisphere. It has been the tallest building in Michigan since it was erected in 1977. The principal architect was John Portman.

Wow... I... I don't know where to start....

This was a beautiful film. I can't think of any other way to say it. James Mangold has written a story that was incredibly moving and well thought out. There was a very clear direction to be taken for The Wolverine's final film, and he nailed it on the head.

This movie hit extremely close to home for me. This story of a generational gap between Father, Son, and Child is something that's not commonly addressed in everyday film or TV, even more so in the Superhero Genre.

I'm absolutely floored by how well this movie respected it's predecessors, while still maintaining a sense of individuality. LOGAN was the perfect way to finally end the X-Men saga that started with Jackman and Stewart so long ago. In a way, this whole film was comprised of many little things that interconnected and left plenty of room for story, with little to no need for unnecessary exposition. I'm really proud at how intelligent the audience was expected to be.

Something that really struck a chord with me though, was the dynamic developed among Charles, Logan, and Laura. Particularly how strong the desire Xaiver has to teach Laura about the beauties of the world, and wanting to provide a positive outlook on life, while simultaneously having a pessimistic father figure like Logan. I see myself in X23's position. In fact I see myself in all three of these characters, which is a rarity for me. I understood the confusions that X23 had about civility and manners and why things are the way things are. I felt pain and depression for Charles, just wanting what's best for the people around him because of his own past mistakes and pains. I especially felt empathy for Logan. Being the only one (barely) capable to keep the “family” together. Having a sort of weight bared down from the past wrongs in his life, while struggling to find peace.

Which inevitably he does.

Or that's how I'd like to see it.

It's strange. Because it's a sad ending... but it's a happy one too. There's a sense of accomplishment and pride, making it through this journey with him. Like... it's been seventeen years since we first met this guy (for me anyway), and we've gone though all these hardships with him, the good (X2, DOFP) and the bad (Origins, X3, etc). And Logan's finally found a belonging and purpose. He loved.... and I think he finally saw that.

Part of me is glad that it's over. Part of me is somber for what's to come and what has been.

I don't know if that was the goal for this film but that's what I walked away with.

I'm also really proud at how well this handled people struggling with PTSD, Suicide, and Mental Illness. LOGAN particularly shows us that despite our failings and our minds breaking down as we get older, there's always someone (even if it's only just one person) standing there willing to hold out a hand.

Charles burial was very moving for me. People deal with grief in many different ways, and Hugh Jackman held an incredible performance showing how a person struggling with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder would handle a loss. They go down fighting. They're angry and scared and they don't want to admit their pain.

My own father has had episodes like this. ...I've had episodes like this.

And speaking from experience, having someone to care for you after event's like this is hard. Excepting help from people who care about you is really really hard....

And I know that even though this is just a movie, it gives me a sense of outward perspective on times like this in my own life. It's a good slap in the face like “Hey! Stop it! Your life isn't nearly as bad as Wolverine's!”

In a way, I needed a movie like this.

There's been a lot of talk about how this R rating was gonna hurt the film. I feel that the intelligence and depth at it's core needed a rating like this. I don't think this film could've held the same kind of impact that it did. You couldn't have moments like Logan's episode be as raw as they were without the cursing, so to speak.

Additionally there wasn't the need for hand-holding or overbearing narratives. You couldn't get the film you did if you constantly had to remind the audience that they're in The Future or have to show flashbacks to the Weapon X Program in the 80's. You could have a single line of dialogue for a plot point and be done with it. Anything else additionally can be used in an art form or an emotional/story derivative, which is exactly what happened! It was perfect!

Hell, the mere concept that you can create a dialogue heavy, three act, genre breaking, piece of art blows my mind!

And it was under the 20th Century Fox Banner?! Crazy! :P

I mean, what more is there to say? The cinematography was fantastic! The setting of midwestern farmlands and North Dakota forests, and the colors! Oh man what a great rustic palette!

The story was perfect for a concept like this. A bit on the nose at times, but the motivation was very clear cut and gave plenty of opportunity to expand on character. It was like reading a book, and I loved it! It wasn't some “blue light into the sky” BS, it was a real story! With real characters and real settings and just... wow! :)

I'm speechless!

James Mangold, you will forever have my heart.

***

Patreon's got an extensive look at the build, including some things out of frame and focus, plus some lighting tips, and an extra Patreon Exclusive photo, only seen there :)

P.S. In the month of Feburary my Patreon had 16 posts uploaded, where as Flickr only got 3... sayin' just sayin'...

___________________________________________

What did you think of that scene where Logan donned his alter-ego Patch? What a crazy Easter Egg Top Ten Things You May Have Missed Reaction Spoiler am'I'rite?!

Visit my Patreon to see early photography, behind the scenes images, and WIPs of upcoming projects, and we'll talk all about John Byrne!

www.patreon.com/andrewcookston

Facebook: www.facebook.com/andrewcookstonphotography/

Little Moreton Hall (NT),

NATIONAL TRUST and ENGLISH HERITAGE PROPERTIES ALBUM

www.flickr.com/photos/45676495@N05/albums/72157701116949872

Little Moreton Hall is a moated is a half-timbered manor house 4.5 miles (7.2 km) southwest of Congleton in Cheshire. The earliest parts of the house were built for the prosperous Cheshire landowner William Moreton in about 1504–08, and the remainder was constructed in stages by successive generations of the family until about 1610. The building is highly irregular, with three asymmetrical ranges forming a small, rectangular cobbled courtyard. The house's top-heavy appearance, is due to the Long Gallery that runs the length of the south range's upper floor. The house remained in the possession of the Moreton family for almost 450 years, until ownership was transferred to the National Trust in 1938 s a designated Grade I listed building

Little Moreton Hall first appears in the historical record in 1271, but the present building dates from the early 16th century, the earliest part of the house dates from 1504 and 1508 for William Moreton (died 1526), it comprises the Great Hall and the northern part of the east wing. The east range was extended to the south in about 1508 to provide additional living quarters, as well as housing the Chapel and the Withdrawing Room. In 1546 William Moreton's son, also called William (c. 1510–63), replaced the original west wing with a new range housing service rooms on the ground floor as well as a porch, gallery, and three interconnected rooms on the first floor, In 1559 William had a new floor inserted at gallery level in the Great Hall, he south wing was added in about 1560–62 by William Moreton II's son John (1541–98) It includes the Gatehouse and a third storey containing a 68-foot (21 m) Long Gallery.

The house stands on an island surrounded by a 33-foot (10 m) wide moat,] which was probably dug in the 13th or 14th century to enclose an earlier building on the site.

The fact that the House still stands defies logic. Running the entire length of the south range the Long Gallery is roofed with heavy gritstone slabs,[58] the weight of which has caused the supporting floors below to bow and buckle. the wide floorboards rising up and down like waves and the walls leaning outwards at different angles. he crossbeams between the arch-braced roof trusses were probably added in the 17th century to prevent the structure from "bursting apart" under the load.

Diolch am 73,833,230 o olygfeydd anhygoel, mae pob un yn cael ei werthfawrogi'n fawr.

Thanks for 73,833,230 amazing views, every one is greatly appreciated.

Shot 06.05.2019 at Little Moreton Hall, Congleton Ref 141-507

.

The final photo from my travel to Plitvice lakes. If you haven't been here: GO! 16 terraced azure lakes, interconnected by literally thousands of waterfalls and cascades, in the midst of a mountainous, enchanted forest. The park is surrounded by small villages with an abundance of B&B:s and restaurants.

I know why I think. It's due to a natural cycle. The ocean currents are affected and they effect the jet streams which control the weather patterns. The storm which used to come ashore over British Columbia are now doing so further south over Oregon and northern California. This because the northern jets are now further south than before. That does not mean that they won't pull artic air to the south. They will, it just depends on how the other jet streams and ocean currents are acting at that moment. It is all interconnected.

Here's a nice little view of the terminal moraine of one arm of the mighty Kaskawulsh Glacier and origin of Slim's River, which spends itself in Kluane Lake. This is an approach to the vast interconnected icefields of the Wrangell / St. Elias Icefields, ... the third largest glaciated area remaining on Earth ... The world's largest non-Polar icefield, and the reservoir of some 20 percent of the world's fresh water, outside of Greenland and Antarctica.

Shot from the window of a 3 seater Helio Courier Aeroplane we chartered from Kluane Lake to Mt. Logan.

Viewers charitable enough to visit this humble flickrstream semi-regularly will become bored to death with rivers of Glacial ice and seas of icefield vastness in coming weeks, as I post a surplus of photos taken on this (for us) mind-blowing trip.

The Harley-Davidson Museum is a North American museum near downtown, Milwaukee, Wisconsin celebrating the more than 100-year history of Harley-Davidson motorcycles. The 130,000-square-foot (12,000 m²) three building complex on 20 acres (81,000 m²) along the Menomonee River bank contains more than 450 Harley-Davidson motorcycles and hundreds of thousands of artifacts from the Harley-Davidson Motor Company's 110-year history. The museum attracts an estimated 300,000 visitors annually. The museum opened to the public on July 12, 2008, on a 20 acres (81,000 m²) site in the Menomonee Valley. The museum was built in an historically industrial area of Milwaukee. Prior to Harley-Davidson's purchase of the land from the city, the site was formerly used by the Milwaukee Department of Public Works, Lakeshore Sand Company, and Morton Salt. A 4 feet (1.2 m) layer of imported soil was added to combat the contaminated soil. New vegetation was planted to restore the landscape to its riparian state. In late February 2006, designs for the museum were unveiled. The designs were created by James Biber, a partner at Pentagram, his team, and Michael Zweck-Bonner, an associate at Pentagram. Abbott Miller, a partner at Pentagram, designed the museum's permanent exhibitions. The firm designed the museum over a period of eight years. On June 1, 2006, Harley-Davidson began the construction of the $75 million complex with a groundbreaking ceremony that included legendary Harley-Davidson dirt track motorcycle racer, Scott Parker, breaking ground by doing a burnout with a Harley-Davidson XL883R Sportster, instead of with the traditional golden shovel. The site includes parking spaces for 1,000 motorcycles and 500 cars. The Museum's facade also features a 17-foot (5.2 m)-tall, steel Harley-Davidson sign. The museum’s galleries permanent exhibitions, spread throughout two floors, in addition to temporary exhibits and the motor company’s archives. The complex also includes a restaurant, café, retail shop, and special event spaces. Also on display are historic Harley-Davidson items that tell the company's story and history, such as photographs, posters, advertisements, clothes, trophies, video footage of vintage and contemporary motorcycling, and interactive exhibits, including 10 motorcycles that visitors can sit on.

The Motorcycle Gallery

On the museum’s upper level, a procession of motorcycles is displayed down the center of the main hall, running the length of the building, with galleries on either side.

The Harley-Davidson Journey

Along the east side of the upstairs galleries, a series of interconnected galleries exhibit the Harley-Davidson's chronological history. The galleries relate the company's history from its origins in a 10x15-foot wooden shack to its current status as the top U.S. motorcycle manufacturer, producing more than 330,000 bikes each year. The centerpiece of the gallery is "Serial Number One", the oldest known Harley-Davidson in existence, which is encased in glass. The glass enclosure sits within a floor-embedded, illuminated outline of the backyard shed the motor company was founded in.

The Engine Room

The museum's second floor galleries begin with the Engine Room. A Knucklehead engine is displayed disassembled into several pieces. The Engine Room also features several interactive touch screen elements that show how Harley motors, including Panhead and Shovelhead motors work.

Clubs and Competition

The Clubs and Competition gallery includes displays and information about Harley-Davidson's racing history. The gallery includes a section of a replica wooden board track, suspended in the air at a 45-degree incline. The wooden track features vintage video footage of actual board track races, and attached 1920s-era Harley-Davidson racing motorcycles; the bikes that raced on board tracks at 100 miles -per-hour. Fatalities were common, which led to the banning of wooden board tracks for motorcycle racing.

Tank Gallery

The museum's upper floor exhibits also include the Gas Tank Gallery, formerly part of the Harley-Davidson 100th Anniversary Open Road Tour. The exhibit displays 100 of Harley-Davidson's most memorable tank graphics, spanning 70 years, selected by the company's styling department and reproduced on "Fat Bob" tanks.

Custom Culture

The Custom Culture gallery covers Harley-Davidson's impact on American and global culture. The centerpiece of the Custom Culture Gallery is "King Kong", a 13-foot (4.0 m)-long, two-engine Harley-Davidson motorcycle customized by Felix Predko. The exhibit also features exact replicas of the customized Harley-Davidson bikes ridden by Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper in the 1969 American movie, "Easy Rider", including Fonda's "Captain America" chopper and Hopper's "Billy Bike". Two of each of the two choppers were created, and one "Captain America" was destroyed in the film's production.

Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harley-Davidson_Museum

Excerpt from ontariotrails.on.ca:

Terra Cotta Lane is a great way to introduce yourself to this conservation area and is a major access route to some of our other trails. Starting near the parking area, the trail follows an old road along the eastern shore of a pond and eventually loops back to the parking area. Although this trail is a loop, there are a number of one- way arms that allow you access to the Vaughn and McGregor Spring Pond trails. This easy trail is good for nature enthusiasts of all ages. At Terra Cotta, we have created a network of interconnected hiking trails, footpaths and old roadways that will take you to different parts of the conservation area where you can experience a mosaic of natural and cultural settings.