There is much to be said for contentment and painlessness, for these bearable and submissive days, on which neither pain nor pleasure is audible, but pass by whispering and on tip-toe. But the worst of it is that it is just this contentment that I cannot endure. After a short time it fills me with irrepressible hatred an nausea. In desperation I have to escape and throw myself on the road to pleasure, or, if that cannot be, on the road to pain. When I have neither pleasure nor pain and have been breathing for a while the lukewarm insipid air of these so-called good and tolerable days, I feel so bad in my childish soul that I smash my moldering lyre of thanksgiving in the face of the slumbering god of contentment and would rather feel the very devil burn in me than this warmth of a well-heated room... For what I always hated and detested and cursed above all things was this contentment, this healthiness and comfort, this carefully preserved optimism of the middle classes, this fat and prosperous brood of mediocrity.

(Hermann Hesse)

Model: Maria

All rights reserved

This was part of my Gay Pride week coverage. Hope yours was a Happy Pride Week!

From an NOWPUBLIC ezine article I recently published: "Sexual fetishism, Abu Ghraib and the razor's edge of liberty......." members.nowpublic.com/sexual_fetishism_abu_ghraib_and_raz...

When I walked through the Folsom Street East XI fetishist street festival entrance, I paid and noticed the well-built leathered-up guy taking my money looking at me with a small knowing smile.

As he gave me a pink stick-on label he said: "I suppose you were waiting for me to ask you where you'd like me to 'stick this'"..... That got a smile out of me, that's for sure :~)> I didn't know what to expect but it turned out to be a painless experience.....in fact, a special "New York City kind of moment".....

The event was sponsored by the Gay Male S&M Activists (GMSMA) organization which bills itself as the world's largest organization of men seriously interested in safe, sane, and consensual s/m. gmsma.org/ The festival itself raised monies for various charititable activities including the prevention of homophobic based violence/hate crimes.

While what I saw was not my particular idea of eroticized fun, I did have platonic fun taking photos...... Any arousal I might have experienced was born out of a curiosity about how we humans manage to create and maintain a sense of community around just about anything.....

I felt like a tourist and, in my mind, somewhat complicit. I found myself looking about trying to pick-out the (more or less) obvious posuers from what might be the scary "hard-core" types. As I did this, I free associated to recent events.

I didn't see see any anti-Bush references to torture in the Abu Ghraib prison incident, but those CNN scenes did flash before me.

I mused whether, in this context, such blatant references could possibly be considered in "bad taste" or a show of solidarity with torture? The folks here were clearly having fun and on this New York City Sunday afternoon no one was being threatened or hurt. Liberty is such a razor's edge...... When, if ever, does an alternative lifestyle become complicit with human psychic abuse?

I wondered: what is it about police work or the context of war that incites "normal" heterosexual men to endulge in homoeroticized power plays in the name of fighting crime and or terror? What is the existential phenomenon behind eroticizing death and suffering?

Sooo many questions........ So-ooo, here's what the Wikipedia oracle had to say about sexual fetishism........

The basic idea of sexual fetishism is sexual arousal and satisfaction through an inanimate object, the fetish. The concrete definitions are not only differing but even contradictory:

In psychology, fetishism is a paraphilia, a sexual psychological disorder.

The diagnosis of fetishism is justified only if the additional criteria of paraphilia are fulfilled, above all only if the affected person suffers or harms other people.

According to the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD), fetishism is the fixation on an inanimate object, while according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), fetishism is the fixation on an inanimate object or a body part.

In common speech, any fixation on a singular inanimate object, body part, body feature or sexual practice is called fetishism.

For more of my photos see: www.flickr.com/photos/artedelares/sets/72157600464007609/

A Cloud Passing

Casting Shadow

On A Paneless Widow

may both Be Zen and Not Zen

At once together separate alone crowded

singular plural divided union

one whole none present and gone

unattached belonging stateless hidden contracted compressed forgotten unremembered all hollow husk no seed

Only Zen if you wish to make it Zen.

I do find that focusing on photography is a way to manage pain and open windows like these can be paneless as subjects to see and to photograph on the ways towards painless destinations.

I could ask what is a window and what is a window frame and does a pane now fit into many answers of what makes a window. Empty windows and open windows, old, missing, sparse, defunct, deteriorated, eroding, former windows and potential windows all have forms and fashion to frame their definition.

Temple Kirk just outside Edinburgh in Scotland has land ownership links to The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, also known as Templar Knights, and then later on to The Order of Knights of the Hospital.

PHH Sykes ©2020

phhsykes@gmail.com

Hey everyone,

My dad passed away this festive season.

He died with my brother, sister and mother at his side in a superb care home in the Scottish Borders, peacefully and painlessly (so I'm told). A kiss was given to him during my absence, a gift I will forever treasure.

My dad had dementia for quite some time, this image is the last time I saw him before a fairly steep health decline, this was Christmas Day 2015 (when my family and I last had the chance to visit Scotland).

This is also the last photo I took of him, my Pentax K-50 and figuring out how to use his vintage Pentax-A 50/1.7 lens (which my son now uses). Photography was still a bit new to me at this time.

I share this news with you because... I regret not taking enough photographs (especially during my holiday visits to extended family overseas). Please, take your camera and photograph your loved ones, get your confidence up and snap them whenever. You never know when the last picture you take of them is the last picture you take of them.

As sad as this was for our family there is release and relief. He is without distress now and that provides us all with a great sense of peace.

I feel like embracing life stronger than ever, life is too short and I shall honor him the best way I know how, by being a good husband, father to my kids and of course as a photographer.

Happy New Year everyone, let us all look after each other as we step into 2022.

Back working & thankfully quite painless unlike last time.

The family of Bromeliaceae is outrageous... its colors and shapes beyond reason and logic. Over the top!

If a painter truly reproduced their colors on a canvas, viewers would accuse him or her of extremism, of taking poetic license.

Bromeliads are easy to grow, requiring nothing more than a little water in their center cup. I prop them up wherever I can. Yes, prop up because they don't need soil except to keep their center upright and full. The nectar of many of this family is quite fragrant and attracts many hummingbirds with their high tech sounds and seemingly wingless flight... wings beating faster than the eye can see!

Bromeliads... easy to grow but not painless to plant and tend, requiring thick pants and heavy gloves to prevent painful flesh tears from their hooked serrated edges. Everything has a downside and Bromeliads are well worth it! I celebrate their glories each day. Bromeliaceae's most familiar member is Pineapple.

Aechmea bracteate

Biscayne Park FL

www.susanfordcollins.com

Maybe only VanGogh had a perfect record because he was only out to improve. When he hit his stride they were works no longer separate from his soul. He went from honestly trying to completely achieving. I'd be happy enough with the lesser. The pain, his ear, the isolation, all part of the legend. Our painless, consumer ideas don't produce greatness, just special effects.

M*A*S*H is an American television series developed by Larry Gelbart, adapted from the 1970 feature film MASH.

Suicide Is Painless (Mash theme)

Tokina 28-70mm f2.8 ATX PRO-SV

[ 0.003 sec (1/400) | f/6.3 | FLen 32 mm | ISO 200 ]

This was conceived as an experimental photograph more than anything else. It was our second-to-last day in South Padre, and I had decided to head across the causeway to explore Port Isabel about an hour before sunrise. The fog was incredibly dense, so thick that I was afraid to venture into unexplored territory while driving, so I parked as soon as possible and stayed very near the water among the docks to wait for more light.

I was almost completely blind, making the clear sounds of the ocean jarring in contrast. It was one of the most peaceful, surrealistic, ominous mornings of my life, as if I were being smothered painlessly in the warm morning air of paradise.

Out in the darkness, somewhere in the subdued lapping of the waves and distant gull calls, were these five pilings, which resembled five smudges of blackness amid the dim glow of the fog. So I set up my camera on my tripod, focused as well as I could, and opened the shutter for four minutes. This is what ended up with–four seagulls perched, patiently awaiting a brighter shade of gray.

Explored! #2

If you wanna see it Larger...

Nothing really worthy of noting about work. Took some time at lunch to go to the park and play with my lensbaby and then again afterwork... nothing really great from that though.

So, now that we're all official and have a due date and all... our pregnancy just seems real all of the sudden.

I'm just nervous about a lot of things right now... not in a bad way really... but just in general. Kind of like... butterflies in my stomach.

Tonight a friend of a Tam's Mom called and said that she had seen my photo from last night and that we better tell her Mom. Tam's Mom and my Dad have both said that we shouldn't have another child... for whatever reason. But I told my parents last night... Tam was a little afraid to tell her mom. But she finally got it over with and it was pretty painless.

So here we go... care to follow us on our journey?

Strobist Info: Alien Bees B800 through a large softbox directly in front and above subject.

Model: Varaderobiker Blackburn

Photographer: Falbala Fairey

Credits:

2 of the newest Releases out of the House of Mea Culpa for male and female and I am very happy to show my first blogpost with my hubby Vara on my Blog.

falbalafaireyfashionblog.wordpress.com/2011/10/28/50-hall...

First off sorry I've been a bit inactive here

Secondly

Clayface: for the first characters reimagining I chose clayface

Backstory: basil karlo had the same origin we all remember, what's clearly different is what he does with this power he takes the form of other people and even makes up villains like killer moth and eraser that batman think are new villains but secretly are just clayface. Also clayface became an even bigger threat after he learned the true identity of batman. Sometimes he even takes the form of batman in order for the gcpd to go after bats while he gets away with another crime

Two-face

Backstory: after suffering burns during a campaign speech, Harvey dent realized the only way to eliminate crime for good is to do what batman never could kill them, he uses a coin to choose whether the victim will have a painless or slow death.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Hoping it will be fast and painless until it's time to chill. :)

I think this is false advertising! Any dentist named I. Yankum can't be painless. Saw this admittedly fake dentistry sign at Six Flags Fiesta Texas over the weekend. I was there chaperoning a band trip and took the opportunity to take a few shots.

My Harris has died, suddenly, quickly and painlessly, at the age of 12 years. His life was full of fun, friends and family and we will all miss him very much.

~Savina~

There's a rainbow in the sky all the time don't be blind

There's a rainbow in the sky all the time don't be blind don't be blind

Said you I'm living in my fantasy

But is you who are blinded from reality

The material world mean so much to you

You just can't get what I'm telling you

There's a rainbow in the sky all the time don't be blind don't be blind

Cause in a town called sorrow there was joy

Yes and there I met the painless tear

Freed he expressed emotions that egos fear

My life is full of colors yeah my mind is clear

There's a rainbow in the sky rainbow in the sky

Found I mercy in every sunrise

I am born again from the womb of the night

All I have I have left behind

Minds' eye eyes eye a light will shine

There's a rainbow in the sky all the time don't be blind don't be blind

Rainbow in the sky rainbow in the sky.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=4SzMueXs_FU

Think from a place of LOVE, always!!

~Namaste~

Selfportrait

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SOUNDTRACK: www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8hxB-SgjbM

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A bit of a fun shot. The rains came !!!.as predicted too, It started raining with a fine drizzle around 8.30 am and just got more and more heavy. then came the thunder and lightening so my field buddies decided they needed to get in on the shower time as well. They sure enjoyed the soaking as I took some images from the safety of my lounge door.

Then I had to go out in it, My dentist is a twenty minuet walk away and during that walk the lightening flashed the clouds went bang and down came the rains as my dentist beckoned me to the big chair, at least that visit was painless unlike the suggestion of having a crown done in the future.

We had an amazing sky last night preceding the change to wet conditions the clouds really lit up. I quickly grabbed the camera and tripod and shuffled off down the road. There is a large digger working on a archeological dig there so that came in very handy. It may well have been the sunset of the summer last night and so glad I had an eye open to the sky and a wander to the field. Images to come in due course .

Todays Macro Monday theme is "In Between" and I thought about the gaps at the back of a fountain pen nib.

I'm pretty computer literate, I can hack my way through all sorts of programming languages and tend to learn software applications fairly painlessly, but I still have a bit of an obsession in writing in fountain pen.

I find it steadies my thought process down and gives me thinking time. I even take great care in finding specific inks to write in.

Ranging from British Racing Green when I want to be patriotic through to my everyday ink that I have imported from Japan just because it writes smoothly and I love the colour.

I also think my pens will make a nice gift for my children when I'm too old to use them. They're my everyday pens so they've seen their share of action but I think if you have something beautifully made then it's to be used not stored and hidden away.

My first find of a Saddleback caterpillar for the season wasn't painless...this one popped me good yesterday with some of its toxic spines...the fiery sting lasts about 20 minutes, but thankfully, I'm not prone to adverse reactions, while some people have severe allergic symptoms!

I love these amazing Saddlebacks and their otherworldly appearance, though...even in the caterpillar hunting realm, the old saying 'no pain, no gain' sometimes applies! LOL

I'm back state-side as of a few hours ago. The trip was pretty painless aside from customs (longest lines on Earth! I thought O'hare was bad! haha) At least the last agent I had to go through was super nice. I also had the best plane meal ever - chicken tikka masala! It was delish. Amazing :D

I've started on my giant candy stockpile that I brought back with me. The first to go was a Milka 'Happy Cow' bar. I don't like milk or white chocolate, but I love that bar. Only once every year or two though :)

I wonder if they think I'm kidding when, on my customs form, I list Gummy Bears $15, Chocolate $15, along with 2 books haha. "Any fruits, nuts, or dairy products?" No, sir! Only diabetes.

Hope you all have a lovely week!! :D

Photo taken at the Easter markets in Praha [Staroměstské náměstí]. The title is from Love Actually. I love that scene -->

Jamie: [in English] It's my favorite time of day, driving you.

Aurélia: [in Portuguese] It's the saddest part of my day, leaving you.

:)

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For print inquiries, please Email Me :-)

Be a fan on f a c e b o o k*

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And the beat goes on, and the beat goes on…. Mint SLR 670X Ming Edition (I Type), Polaroid Color Film Retinex edition.

MAGE:

Body: eBODY - REBORN

Head: LeLUTKA Avalon

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

Thanks to my SPONSOR: CORDEWA STORE

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Factbook: www.facebook.com/CordewaStore/?ref=bookmarks

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Primfeed: www.primfeed.com/cordewa-store

Thanks to my SPONSOR: Hexed

Hexed - Painless Hairbase EvoX Unisex

Exclusive @ Sabbath Event - Open 21May

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Dining at the Ritz we'll meet at nine precisely

(One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine o'clock)

He will pay the bill, I'll taste the wine

Driving back in style in my saloon will do quite nicely

Just take me back to yours that will be fine

(Come on and get it)

A fun advert to promo GRAVES' and myself DJing over at Rouge Hall this past Feb!~

We had a blast and this shoot was a treat to collaborate with. My sincerest thank you to GRAVES for allowing me the pleasure of sharing the stage with him

________________________________________

✦ Get the look ✦

K✦TO

________________________________________

✦ Maitreya + Flat Sculpt

✦ [AUG] - Katy Head

✦ AP Handy Paws

✦ [RoS] - BOM Katy Heart Nose

✦ DURA - B102 Hair

✦ [Dope + Mercy] - Painless Earring

✦ ✧AR✧ - Ears + Face Piercing // Katty Cat

✦ [MUL] - Katy Bridge Piercing (Custom)

✦ Vibing - Layla Collar

✦ ^^Swallow^^ - Key of Love

✦ -Pixicat- - Yara Top

✦ Eliavah ~ - Corazon Garter

✦ The Secret Store - Lois Fitted Pants (Coal)

✦ *Tentacio* - Kylie Harness Flowers

✦ :::ChicChica::: - Wine Glass

x GRAVES x

________________________________________

x Belleza Jake Sculpt

x [AUG] - Espen Head

x [ DAVID HEATHER ] - Espe Shirt/Trousers

x [ AMIAS ] - Chain ( Steel )

x [ BLUPR/NT ] - Serpentine Slatt Rolex

x [ DUCKIE ] - Signet Ring

x [ PHEDORA ] - Carter Loafers

Sometimes it almost seems a crime to chop up the vegetables!

I have always liked Roger McGough's poem, which I hope he won't mind my quoting from here.

"Vegetarians by Roger McGough

Vegetarians are cruel, unthinking people.

Everybody knows that a carrot screams when grated.

That a peach bleeds when torn apart.

Do you believe an orange insensitive

to thumbs gouging out its flesh?

That tomatoes spill their brains painlessly?

Potatoes, skinned alive and boiled,

the soil’s little lobsters.

Don’t tell me it doesn’t hurt

when peas are ripped from the scrotum,

the hide flayed off sprouts,

cabbage shredded, onions beheaded." :-)

Monkeys are common to be spotted in the streets of Rishikesh. This image was captured during my stay at Into The Unknown Hostel near Laxhman Jhula, Rishikesh. It was ironic, because the painting below the fencing ‘Monkey Crossing’, was painted the same day I captured this image.

涼しい風吹く

青空の匂い

今日はダラッと過ごしてみようか3

風鈴がチリン

ひまわりの黄色

私には関係ないと

思って居たんだ

________________________________________

✦ Get the look ✦

✦Featuring✦

✦.STOIC. - Artist Tablet & Stylus

✦THIS IS WRONG - Colors Shine Body Tattoo

✦Maitreya Flat Sculpt

✦[AUGUST] - Katy Cat Head

✦.::Fortunata::. - Bengal Cat Mod (Snow)

✦Dura Hair - B102

✦✧AR✧ - Katy Ear Piercings

✦[Dope + Mercy] - Painless Earrings

✦Think Pink - Sunglasses

✦Vibing - Emma Choker (upper)

✦MIAU - Custom Bridge Piercing (gold)

✦^^Swallow^^ - Key of Love Necklace

✦[APPETITE] - Heni Top

✦[ bubble ] - Stars Hips Dermals

✦Bunk. - Nipple Ring (ball)

✦Vibing - Suckit Piercing

✦Mug - Skye Shorts

✦Décor✦

✦Dust Bunny - Dreamy Outing Set, Moss Rug

✦8f8 - For a Moment... Serenity collection, Magic Moments - Broken Record (The Look of Love)

✦[Cat-Noodle] - Savory Salmon Rice Burger

✦Hive x Taikou - Specialty Boba Tea

✦Coffee Paws - Crafted Drinks

✦Lagom - Nommy Floor Pillow (Egg)

Tennis has always been a really fun pastime for me, spending summers with friends at school courts and running to grab something refreshing right after a long game.

I hope that someday everyone can have that fun combination of laughter and exhaustion out in the sun.

✦ Get the look ✦

✦ Belleza Jake + SG Tygr Head

✦ Custom Skin by BEWITCHED

✦ Hair by DURA - B96

✦ :: Wicked Pup :: Round Bar x 3

✦ ArchiveFaction Async Earring - Sphere

✦ ArchiveFaction Async Earring - Spur

✦ [Dope + Mercy] - Painless Earring

✦ ArchiveFaction - Scissor Chain Necklace

✦ KAI Joggers INOX

✦ [IGNITION] Black Top by BEWITCHED

✦ [Dope + Mercy] - Insane Shoes

✦ SINCHI - Tennis Racket and Ball

KAMAARA - MoodSwings (Prod. Amertume) - youtu.be/ngEn7fup6Fs

Mind in the mud, heart in the dust

Haven't felt a thing since the last time that I fucked

Talkin’ like you average‚ sayin' you a bad bitch

Baby we gon' find out‚ lie down on this mattress

bitch I’m fuckin' mad‚ maybe 'cause I'm sad

All of these emotions I don't know which one to grab

I can't seem to be, everything you need

Colors changing baby crazy deep inside my mood ring, yeah

Think I'm having mood swings‚ yeah

Think I'm having mood swings, yeah

Think I’m having mood swings, yeah

Think I’m having mood swings‚ yeah

Life's a bitch, ain’t it?

We holdin' hands and we walk alone

sh*t makes me anxious

Like misfits, bein' stuck at home

This shit is painless

Skin deep to the fuckin' bone, I’m not complainin'

I'm just sayin', shit's gettin' old

Goin' berserk

fucking bitches, he has sour patch kids friends in the dirt

Can't love me now when I'm gettin' rich, so kick him to the curb

See you never, don't write me letters

Blood on my shirt

And It's only gettin' worse

Wait, wait

Mind in the mud, heart in the dust

Haven't felt a thing since the last time that I fucked

Talkin' like you average, sayin' you a bad bitch

Baby we gon' find out, lie down on this mattress

bitch I'm fuckin' mad, maybe 'cause I'm sad

All of these emotions I don't know which one to grab

I can't seem to be, everything you need

Colors changing baby crazy deep inside my mood ring, yeah

Think I'm having mood swings, yeah

Think I'm having mood swings, yeah

Think I'm having mood swings, yeah

Think I'm having mood swings, yeah

Our hearts are full of sadness

and wish there was more that we could do

But you are in a far better place

at peace and painless too

We long for the better days

When you were happy and full of life

so much fun so many ways

Much better you made our lives

Our hearts forever broken

But tears will slowly dry away

Our memories keep us hopeful

We'll meet again someday

Emmett, your gentle souls at rest

And free to jump and play

And we hope we passed the test

That we made the best decision for you that day

By D Mellon

RIP my special friend

7/4/05 - 9/12/16

Sock spent Saturday afternoon soaking up the sun in various places around the living room and I figured why not gran a quick shot of him in the natural lighting.

Luckily he was cooperative and it was quick and painless.

Hope everyone has had a good day.

Click "L" for a larger view.

A heavily vandalised operating theatre inside a disused hospital with 3 Brandon Medical Galaxy Ultra operating lights.

The former North Staffordshire Royal Infirmary

I envy because of the heart.

I glutton because of the heart.

I covet because of the heart.

I am prideful because of the heart.

I sloth because of the heart.

I rage because of the heart.

Because of the heart,

I lust for everything about you.

Kicking off this round of Abnormality Blogs with a trip down the rabbit hole~ Things get a whole lot curiouser and curiouser from here >:3

________________________________________

Abnormality Event: HEARTBREAKERS opens February 7th - 28th

✦ Get the look ✦

✦Featuring✦ - Available @ Abnormality Event

✦Fortunata - Toygur Mod - Sealpoint

✦[TEETH] - Astral Eyes - Haunted

✦BO(SEWIC)HT - Crystal Tears

✦ Maitreya + Flat Sculpt

✦ *barberyumyum* - S20 Neon Hair

✦ [Dope + Mercy] - Painless Earring

✦ ✧AR✧ - Ears + Face Piercing // Katy Cat

✦ [MUL] - Custom Bridge Piercings

✦ ::Static:: - Heart of the Void / Black Hole / Space Cavity

✦ MIAU - Katy Septum Ring [Sun]

✦ LuluB! - Ava Aura (Holo)

✦ - Watercolor - - Henna

✦ Afterparty - Crystal Heart

Day 2452 Y6D260

www.youtube.com/watch?v=jukv9Q1eR2g

She was not surprised she saw it coming she was prepared for it. Her heart was a void for what it seemed like an eon. As the beats grew weaker and faint. Slowly thumping in her chest till their was no more. Nothing but silence rustled in the air.Utter darkness lurked around. Seconds would tick by. The death was painless.

Their was a flicker then a spark. That spark exploded rushing through her veins. Turning what was once her flesh into nothing more then ashes. The fire grew stronger and stronger. Her soul grew stronger. She would break out of the petrified ash reaching for the sky. She was reborn. You need to die for the phoenix to rise.

Shot for Iron Photographer 255

1 - a body part

2 - something used in cooking

3 - double exposure

Squeaking in at the last minute for our joint monthly project but the fact I managed to take this photo earlier today makes me so happy. A month ago, I really wasn't certain Flynn & Barney would ever be able to go outside for any kind of "walk" together.

We got Barney a buggy last week because although it's very important he moves & tries to practice walking as much as possible... there's a limit to how long I can hold his back end up, before my arms & back give up! I wasn't sure how he'd take to it but he actually seemed to immediately understand what - & who - the buggy was for, he asks to go in it & settles nicely (although we do have to zip the front up once we're moving, or he'll occasionally try to jump out - regardless of currently only having 2 working legs!).

Today was the first time Flynn's come out with Barney in the buggy. I had been rather nervous about if Flynn would worry about the weirdness of his "brother" being inside, or that he'd dislike the noise of the wheels etc. It turns out, Flynn was so overjoyed to be finally going OUT for a "walk" with Barney again, he didn't care! It was quite sweet - these two don't seem overly affectionate but Flynn was clearly delighted when he saw Barney would be accompanying us. They were both barking about how much fun it was as we went down the road! We didn't go far at all today but hopefully we can go a little further in future.

For those in the 52 WfDs group - my dear old Barney, who was in the group for a few years, before Flynn joined us, suffered from a spinal stroke at the end of May. It was a huge shock - the poor lad suddenly became paralysed in both his back legs. It's painless & he should hopefully regain some/most of his former mobility (the degree of recovery varies a lot between dogs) but it usually takes many weeks, or months to see significant improvement. Esp considering Barney's age (14.5yrs), he's doing so well. Initially both back legs were completely limp, unable to support any weight at all & lacking all feeling. A little over a month later, Barney's very, very nearly able to stand up unassisted & is getting close to doing a hobbled-y "walk" on grass - albeit with me supporting his back end. He's trying very hard!

Out of darkness, lion heart pumpin’, pumpin’, pumpin’ pumpin’

Into white light, all things runnin’, runnin’, runnin’ runnin’

Who have I been, who am I becomin’? 'comin', 'comin', 'comin', 'comin'

Deep breaths for a young man learnin’, learnin’, learnin’, learnin’

Take a walk with the cedars hummin’, cityscape, pink sunset stunnin’

Every empty space is fittin’, every fire kindle burnin’

Said, I am no master, I know nothin' (I am no master, I know nothin'

I am no master, I know nothin' (I am no master, I know nothin')

But I am a servant and I know somethin’, yeah

I am no master, I know nothin', definitely still young

Built on hunger so fuckin’ stubborn a lot of self-work undone

I am a witness, uh-huh uh-huh

The life of one who carries all of his secrets in his music, music, music, music oh oh

More pages, more words to my story

More grace, more meaning unfoldin’

More grace, more meaning unfoldin’

More grace, more meaning unfoldin’

Take a drive, green fog, cascadia

Feel the warmth in my cold heart, radiant

Two shakes and I’m feelin’ weightless

Heart aches but it's actually painless

Take a vow in the Pele moonlight, moonlight, moonlight, moonlight, moonlight

Take a look at myself through my third eye, third eye, third eye, third eye, third eye)

Everything’s already alright, always alright, always alright

Painless homage to Robert Capa

M*A*S*H was filmed in the Malibu Hills, by the way.

For my halloween photo, this year, I’m continuing my quest to perfect the 'alchemist's laboratory' type of shot. These type of shots take a fair bit of setup, the sheer number of items that need placing takes ages! The actual photography was surprisingly painless, except for the day's so dark there wasn't a huge amount of daylight to work with.

Talking Heads / Crosseyed and Painless...

www.youtube.com/watch?v=z92avHmgDRA

Leaving Manhattan

There are very few painless moments in life !

so many people on this planet live their lives in pain

The Buddha taught many things, but the basic concepts in Buddhism can be summed up by the Four Noble Truths

The first truth is that life is suffering i.e., life includes pain, getting old, disease, and ultimately death. We also endure psychological suffering like loneliness frustration, fear, embarrassment, disappointment and anger. This is an irrefutable fact that cannot be denied. It is realistic rather than pessimistic because pessimism is expecting things to be bad.

Hospital siquiatriqua 28

( Mental hospital 28 )

named such because it is 28 KM from the capital SANTO DOMINGO a city i know very very intimately for decades.

Photography’s new conscience

linktr.ee/GlennLosack

linktr.ee/GlennLosack

glosack.wixsite.com/tbws

Полуночники

♫ Bohren Und Der Club Of Gore – Painless Steel

Many thanks for your visits, faves and comments. Cheers.

Eastern Brown Snake

Pseudonaja textilis

Alternative name/s: Common Brown Snake

Similar species: Other members of the genus Pseudonaja

Size Range: Average around 1.5m (total length). The largest specimen reliably measured and recorded had a total length of 6 feet, 7 1/4 inches (= 2013 mm). There is some suggestion that snakes in the northern part of the range are larger than those in the southern part. Broad-scale clearing of land for agriculture, while disastrous for many native creatures, has proved a boon for the Eastern Brown Snake, and their numbers have proliferated thanks to the ready supply of rodents that followed. Despite the free pest control they offer to farmers and landholders, brown snakes are still widely seen as dangerous pests themselves.

Identification: A medium sized snake, with a slender to moderate build and a smallish head barely distinct from the neck. Body colour may be almost any shade of brown, ranging from near black to light tan, chestnut or burnt-orange. The head colour of dark individuals may be slightly paler than the rest of the body, but otherwise the dorsal colour is fairly uniform (a very few scattered dark scales may be present). Hatchlings have a prominent dark patch on the top of the head and across the nape, and some hatchlings also have dark bands down the entire length of the body. These markings fade as they mature, however in some populations the bands are retained into adulthood. Ventral surface is cream, yellow or orange, and blotched with pinkish-orange, brown or grey. Body scales are smooth and slightly glossy. Eyes are medium size and shadowed by an obvious brow-ridge. The iris is usually orange thickly rimmed with black, and the pupil is round. Midbody scales in 17 rows, ventrals 185-235, anal scale divided, subcaudals divided (rarely a few single anterior scales). The Eastern Brown Snake is easily confused with other members of the Pseudonajagenus that overlap its distribution, and close inspection is generally required to distinguish them. Pseudonaja textilis is separable from the Speckled Brown Snake (P. guttata), Western Brown Snake (P. mengdeni) and Northern Brown Snake (P. nuchalis) by its flesh pink (as opposed to predominately black) mouth colouration, and from the Peninsula Brown Snake (P. inframacula) by its blotched ventral surface (versus an entirely dark brown or grey venter). P. textilis may also be distinguished from the Strap-snouted Brown Snake (P. aspidorhyncha) by its smaller, more rounded rostral scale (as opposed to an elongate, squared-off rostral). Unrelated species similar to the Eastern Brown include the Mulga Snake (Pseudechis australis) and Taipan (Oxyuranus scutellatus).

Habitat: Eastern Brown Snakes can be found across a wide range of habitats (excluding rainforest and alpine regions), however they seem to prefer open landscapes such as woodlands, scrublands, and savannah grasslands. In arid inland areas they inhabit watercourses and swampy areas that receive at least some seasonal flooding. The species can be particularly abundant in rural areas that have been heavily modified for agricultural purposes, and is also frequently encountered on the suburban periphery of many large towns and cities. When inactive they shelter beneath fallen logs and large rocks, within deep soil cracks, and in animal burrows, and will readily utilize man-made cover, e.g. sheets of iron, building material, etc.. In the southern part of its range at least, Eastern Browns are known to share the same shelter site over winter, but whether the snakes are mutually attracted to each other at this time, or simply find the same shelter site independently of each other is unknown.

Distribution: The species is widespread throughout eastern Australia, from northern Queensland to South Australia, with isolated population occurring in central and western Northern Territory. Pseudonaja cf. textilis also occurs in southern and eastern New Guinea. The New Guinean populations were once thought to have been introduced by human activity, however genetic evidence suggests the species reached New Guinea from northern Queensland (far eastern populations) and Arnhem Land (southern populations) during the Pleistocene.

Seasonality: Along a standard transect in central southern New South Wales, Eastern Brown Snakes were encountered at the highest rate in spring, followed by autumn and summer/winter. They can be found active on mild winter days and have been observed basking in air temperatures as low as 14º C. Males usually become active earlier in the season than do females (in spring, most road-killed snakes are males).

Feeding and diet: In the wild, Eastern Brown Snakes eat a variety of vertebrates, including frogs, reptiles and reptile eggs, birds and mammals, particularly introduced rats and mice. Smaller snakes, up to a snout-vent length of about 70 mm, eat proportionally more ectothermic prey, such as lizards, while larger snakes tend to consume more warm-blooded prey. In captivity, they are known to be cannibalistic, especially so in over-crowded conditions, and may prey on snakes of almost similar size, e.g. a 165cm specimen once consumed a 150cm cagemate. Occasionally these snakes may attack prey that is too large for them to swallow, e.g. a wild Eastern Brown was observed to grab and then attempt to ingest (unsuccessfully) a large Eastern Bearded Dragon (Pogona barbata) (the dragon survived the attack, which raises the question of whether this potential prey species may be resistant to the snakeâs venom). Brown snakes hunt by actively looking for prey and searching in likely hiding places. They have good eyesight and once prey is detected they will give chase and subdue the prey using both venom and constriction. Eastern Browns are mainly diurnal hunters however during very hot weather they may delay foraging until late in the afternoon / early evening.

Breeding behaviours: Breeding activity for Eastern Brown Snakes begins in mid to late spring. In the wild, males have been observed engaging in ritual combat for access to receptive females. The combating snakes intertwine tightly and wrestle for up to half an hour or more, with each snake trying to push down and overpower the other. Females start to develop yolking follicles between early and late spring (mid-September to end of November), and have oviducal eggs from mid-spring to early summer (late October to late January). In captivity, mating has been observed in mid-spring (early October), with copulation lasting for at least 4 hours. Females may have the ability to store sperm for several weeks after mating, with one female caught on 12th November that did not lay her eggs until the following 9th January, a period of 58 days or over eight weeks. Females can lay up to 25 eggs (15 on average) in a clutch, and in captivity females have been recorded coiling around their eggs for several hours after laying, which may be seen as a low level of maternal care, or possibly just the snake recovering from the exertions of labour. Depending on the incubation temperature the eggs may take from 36 days (30ºC) to 95 days (25ºC) to hatch. Under favourable conditions females may be able to lay several clutches in one season. Eastern Browns are known to use communal nests, with one containing a large numbers of eggs found in an abandoned rabbit warren. Hatchlings may stay in the eggs for four to eight hours after slitting before poking their heads out, withdrawing back into the egg if frightened. Once fully emerged they may begin to show the characteristic threat display of the species with 15 minutes of emerging. The hatchlings vary greatly in size both within and among clutches. For example, the hatchlings of one clutch varied from 243-275 mm in snout-vent length (n = 21) and from 8.2 to 10.4 g (mean = 8.9 g) in weight (n = 15) while the hatchlings of another clutch varied from 189 to 202 mm in snout-vent length and 3.5 to 3.9g (mean = 3.8g) (n = 6) in weight. All hatchlings have bands on the head and neck but they differ strikingly with regard to the body pattern. Some are plain and some are banded, and both colour patterns are produced in the same clutch. There appears to be no correlation between colour morph and sex, and the pattern type is independent of incubation temperature. Growth rates for elapids are relatively high (compared to pythons at least), and sexual maturity may be reached in a few years, e.g. one female captive-bred Eastern Brown that hatched in early autumn mated in the mid-spring of her third activity season at 31 months of age. The life span of wild Eastern Browns is unknown, however they have been recorded to live as long as 7 years in captivity, and like other large species of elapids can probably live for at least a decade.

Predators: The speciesâ known predators include birds of prey and feral cats. They appear to have immunity to the venom of a would-be predator, the Mulga Snake (Pseudechis australis), as well as their own species (one snake that had been swallowed by another Eastern Brown was regurgitated an hour later, apparently not too much worse for wear). However they are not so fortunate with the effects of cane toad venom and rapidly die from ingesting them. Countless brown snakes fall victim to road vehicles every year (both accidentally and on purpose), while many others are killed on sight by landowners. Known endoparasites of Eastern Brown Snakes include cestodes (tape worms), nematodes (round worms) and pentastomids (tongue worms).

Danger to humans: Because the Eastern Brown Snake can cope and even thrive in areas of human disturbance, and its natural range happens to include some of the most populated parts of the country, this species is probably encountered more than any other type of snake. Being an alert, nervous species they often react defensively if surprised or cornered, putting on a fierce display and striking with little hesitation. However, if approached over a distance, they will usually choose to flee or else remain stationary, hoping to avoid detection. The approach distance tolerated before the snake flees is temperature dependent - snakes with a body temperature of < 24º C allow significantly closer approach than do snakes with a body temperature > 24º C. When confronted by an intruder, the Eastern Brown displays one of two forms of threat. In the mild threat, the snake raises the head and anterior part of the body slightly off and parallel to the ground, with the neck spread laterally and slightly hooked but the mouth closed. In this posture, the snake faces the threat side on. If issuing a strong threat, the snake raises the anterior part of the body well off the ground in an s-shaped coil and with the mouth slightly open, ready to strike - in this posture, the snake faces the threat more squarely. Strikes delivered from this posture are slower but more accurate that strikes delivered from other postures. The common feature of both displays is the spreading of the neck, and this behaviour precedes most bites. Observations in captivity have shown that for strikes in general, no matter what the posture, there was no correlation between strike speed and ambient temperature (18º-36 C), body mass or sex. Strike speeds ranged 0.25-1.80 m/sec (mean = 1.11 m/sec; n = 48). The lack of correlation between strike speed and temperature is unexpected in an ectotherm, and suggests that hot snakes are no quicker in their strike than a cool snake, contrary to the common perception. Relative to other similar-sized elapids the fangs of the Eastern Brown are quite small (around 3mm), as is the average venom yield (around 4mg, although the record venom yield was 67mg). However what the snake lacks in venom delivery it makes up for in potency. The venom contains powerful presynaptic neurotoxins, procoagulants, cardiotoxins and nephrotoxins, and successful envenomation can result in progressive paralysis and uncontrollable bleeding. Occasional fatalities have occurred as a result of bleeding into the brain due to coagulation disturbances (consumptive coagulopathy). As the initial bite is generally painless and often difficult to detect, anyone suspected of receiving a bite from an Eastern Brown Snake should call for medical attention without delay. This species has the unfortunate distinction of causing more deaths from snake bite than any other species of snake in Australia. Many bites have been a direct result of people trying to kill these snakes and could obviously have been avoided. Simple precautions, such as wearing long pants, thick socks and solid footware when working or exploring outdoors greatly reduces the risk of being envenomated should there be a close encounter with a startled snake.

(Source: australian.museum/learn/animals/reptiles/eastern-brown-sn...)

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© Chris Burns 2025

All rights reserved.

This image may not be copied, reproduced, distributed, republished, downloaded, displayed, posted or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying and recording without my written consent.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHhi2vVVOsQ

I know Sage had quite a few fans over here on Flickr. So I wanted to share the saddening news of her recent passing. About six months ago I had noticed she was starting to retain some water in her abdomen. I took her into the vet and after some extensive testing she was diagnosed with severe right sided congestive heart failure. There was not much we could do but to give her some medications, and try to give her the best fun and adventurous life I could. She was a little slow and deliberate and she had to take it easy, but she enjoyed life with me to the fullest and there are no regrets. Her little heart gave its last beats on 01-02-2016. She passed away very peacefully and seemingly painless as she just got tired, laid down and drifted to sleep. Its been a crushing blow to me as she was my everything, my best friend and adventure companion for 11 great years. I know that time will ease the pain and that her life will live on in my many amazing memories.

Rest in peace Sage, I'll always love you.

10-04-2004 to 01-02-2016