Close quarters expert Harper Barron has manifested symptoms of belligerent behavior, perhaps due to an error in her programming or a faulty Hero Core. Reports from her teammates state that her enjoyment of fighting has lead to failures in completing missions, as she prioritizes violence over successfully capturing villains and protecting citizens.

 

Her current location is unknown, but anonymous witnesses have reported seeing her in the Gladiator Arena of planet Bolawoo III.

 

Further psychological examinations are necessary in order to accurately estimate how dangerous she is. She is equipped with a lightweight body armor and a Quaza-Powered Ram Gauntlet, engaging at a distance is strongly advised.

 

Great Mask of Intangibility by @galva_nize_

Gauntlet weapon inspired by @ems_mocs ' Tony Stone and Arcane's Atlas Gauntlets

“Okay, I have the sheriff here to check on a wanted elf. So, you all line up!”

“Ma’am, none of these match the description according to this flyer. They can all go back to work.”

“Okay. All you Dwarfs...you’re working the coal mine. Santa is going to need that for some children’s stockings.”

“Don’t you even think about throwing that snowball at her!”

“You, Maurice. You and Jill Ellyn will be on mail duty.”

“What will we have to do?”

“You get to process all the letters children sent and prioritize them.”

“Don’t worry, Jill Ellyn. I did that last year. It’s easy.”

  

In June 2020, after experiencing a devastating spring due to COVID, New York State announced that certain businesses could begin partially opening again. New York City’s response included a program called Open Restaurants, which allowed restaurants to use sidewalks and parking spaces for outdoor, socially distant dining. Owners quickly built temporary enclosures in the streets in front of their businesses to try and recover from months of shutdown. Small stretches of Brooklyn in early 2021 display the variety and feel of these enclosures. Hopefully, the Open Restaurants initiative will help these businesses to survive and may even lead to a more permanent reorienting of streets to prioritize people over cars.

015

FORTUNE Brainstorm Health 2023

Wednesday, April 26th, 2023

Los Angeles, CA, USA

 

7:30-8:45 AM

CONCURRENT BREAKFASTS SESSIONS

BREAKING DOWN BARRIERS TO CANCER CARE IN UNDERSERVED POPULATIONS

Hosted by City of Hope

Cancer is the second-leading cause of death for both men and women across the U.S., but it doesn’t affect everyone equally. Many cancer patients face insurmountable barriers to the leading-edge treatments, support, and technologies most likely to save their lives. Geography, common industry interventions—such as narrow networks—and social determinants of health all play a role in obstructing access to specialized care and life-saving experts. Hear from champions of health equity on how they are democratizing cancer care by creating new systems that prioritize patient survival, quality of life, and a return to normalcy by providing vulnerable populations with better access to education, screening, and treatment.

 

Helmy Eltoukhy, Co-founder and Co-CEO, Guardant

Dr. Folasade May, Co-Leader, Stand Up To Cancer Colorectal Cancer Health Equity Dream Team, University of California, Los Angeles

Anand Parikh, Co-founder and CEO, Faeth Therapeutics

Robert Stone, Chief Executive Officer, City of Hope

Carla Tardif, Chief Executive Officer, Family Reach

Moderator: Clifton Leaf, FORTUNE

 

Photograph by Stuart Isett/Fortune

Visitors can take their time to enjoy an elevated view of New Youk City from High Line an elevated railway line owned by the City of New York, today a 1.45-mile-long linear public park maintained, operated, and programmed by Friends of the High Line, in partnership with the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation, on Tuesday, September 15, 2015. High Line was opened in 1934 and moved goods to and from Manhattan’s largest industrial district until 1980. The third and final phase officially opened to the public on September 21, 2014. The High Line's green roof system with drip irrigation is designed to allow the planting beds to retain as much water as possible; because many of the plants are drought-tolerant, they need little supplemental watering. When supplemental watering is needed, hand watering is used so as to tailor the amount of water to the needs of individual species and weather conditions, and to conserve water. High Line is independently funded from U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service (USFS). Urban forestry and green spaces are priority areas for USFS. With 80 percent* of the nation's population in urban areas, there are strong environmental, social, and economic cases to be made for the conservation of green spaces to guide growth and revitalize city centers and older suburbs. Urban forests broadly include urban parks, street trees, landscaped boulevards, public gardens, river and coastal promenades, greenways, river corridors, wetlands, nature preserves, natural areas, shelter belts of trees and working trees at industrial brownfield sites. Urban forests are dynamic ecosystems that provide needed environmental services by cleaning air and water helping to control storm water, and conserving energy. They add form, structure, beauty and breathing room to urban design, reduce noise, separate incompatible uses, provide places to recreate, strengthen social cohesion, leverage community revitalization, and add economic value to our communities. Urban forests, through planned connections of green spaces, form the green infrastructure system on which communities depend. Green infrastructure works at multiple scales from the neighborhood to the metro area up to the regional landscape. This natural life support system sustains clean air and water, biodiversity, habitat, nesting and travel corridors for wildlife, and connects people to nature. Urban forests, through planned connections of green spaces, form the green infrastructure system on which communities depend. Urban and Community Forestry (UCF) is a cooperative program of the US Forest Service that focuses on the stewardship of urban natural resources. UCF provides technical, financial, research and educational services to local government, non-profit organizations community groups, educational institutions, and tribal governments. The program is delivered through its legislative partners, the state forestry agencies in 59 states and US territories. Forest Service cooperative programs are currently being redesigned to make more effective use of federal resources. Programs will be focused on issues and landscapes of national importance and prioritized through state and regional assessments. Over the next five years an increasing percentage of funding will be focused on landscape scale projects. Three national themes provide a framework for this work: conserve working forest landscapes; protect forests from harm; and enhance benefits associated with trees and forests. More information and upcoming webinars on December 9, 2015 | 1:00pm-2:15pm ET; January 13, 2016 | 1:00pm-2:15pm ET; and February 10, 2016 | 1:00pm-2:15pm ET can be seen at *http://www.fs.fed.us/ucf/program.shtml. USDA Photo By Lance Cheung.

Taken for my book project, This Is Us, Together.

 

I remember how impressed I was with the way Sangeeta and Rox were able to talk about their relationship, how open they were about the way they prioritized communication, openness about feelings and emotional needs.

 

It was myself, the two of them, and our mutual friend Blaise...I remember Blaise and I constantly looking at each other during the interview, astounded at how much better these two were at relationships than either of us.

 

Learned a lot, that day.

 

Trying out Liz's techniques from the Prioritizing Line Tea Break sketches in lesson 3. I think I like the watercolor pencil plus watercolor paint technique the best. I feel so comfortable sketching with the pencils and there are so many options for softening the edges. #edgesteacup

In June 2020, after experiencing a devastating spring due to COVID, New York State announced that certain businesses could begin partially opening again. New York City’s response included a program called Open Restaurants, which allowed restaurants to use sidewalks and parking spaces for outdoor, socially distant dining. Owners quickly built temporary enclosures in the streets in front of their businesses to try and recover from months of shutdown. Small stretches of Brooklyn in early 2021 display the variety and feel of these enclosures. Hopefully, the Open Restaurants initiative will help these businesses to survive and may even lead to a more permanent reorienting of streets to prioritize people over cars.

The Hill’s Kim Dixon, Cynthia Zagieboylo, President and CEO, National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Patrick Geraghty, CEO, GuideWell and Florida Blue, Liz Fowler, Vice President, Global Health Policy, Johnson & Johnson, and Pamela Sutton-Wallace, Chief Executive Officer, University of Virginia Medical Center participate in a panel discussion during a policy briefing entitled “Prioritizing Patients: A Discussion on Outcomes-Based Care” sponsored by The Value Collaborative, PhRMA, and The Hill at the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, June 13, 2017.

In June 2020, after experiencing a devastating spring due to COVID, New York State announced that certain businesses could begin partially opening again. New York City’s response included a program called Open Restaurants, which allowed restaurants to use sidewalks and parking spaces for outdoor, socially distant dining. Owners quickly built temporary enclosures in the streets in front of their businesses to try and recover from months of shutdown. Small stretches of Brooklyn in early 2021 display the variety and feel of these enclosures. Hopefully, the Open Restaurants initiative will help these businesses to survive and may even lead to a more permanent reorienting of streets to prioritize people over cars.

Canadians are often known for several positive characteristics, including:

1.Politeness and Courtesy – They have a reputation for being polite, saying “sorry” often, and treating others with respect.

2.Friendliness – Canadians are generally warm and welcoming to both locals and visitors.

3.Diversity and Inclusivity – Canada is multicultural, and its people embrace diversity in ethnicity, culture, and perspectives.

4.Tolerance and Open-Mindedness – Canadians tend to value human rights, equality, and progressive social policies.

5.Community-Oriented – Many Canadians are involved in their communities and prioritize social well-being.

6.Love for Nature and the Outdoors – With stunning landscapes, Canadians often appreciate and respect nature, engaging in outdoor activities like hiking, camping, and skiing.

7.Sense of Humor – They have a dry, self-deprecating, and sometimes quirky sense of humor.

8.Humble and Modest – Canadians tend to downplay achievements and avoid arrogance.

9.Hardworking and Resourceful – Whether in cities or remote regions, Canadians have a strong work ethic.

10.Peacefulness – They are generally non-confrontational and support diplomacy over aggression.

 

Thanks ChatGPT (prompt: tell me about Canadians)!

Well not quite, but less than minutes for sure. The sun was dropping quietly quite quickly as we contemplated what angle might produce the desired effect, i.e., the sweetness of glint. It was not to be. She beat us, and our actor was late in arriving. An empty, dime-a-dozen grainer. Hung up at Ritzville, not yet lined further as heaven’s all-seeing eye was leaving our composition and closing in on the horizon as swiftly as we re-composed hoping we could still capitalize on what the scene had left to offer. Tossing a few teeth-chattering expletives into the brisk wind our intel reveals the earthworm is at Essig (Vinegar in German, no doubt an archaic family name) and then at West Tokio some four miles away, still! With no possibility of glint-action, we re-position and stage traverse BNSF's high-density Spokane-Pasco main where trains jump from one siding to the next between long segments of double track to make way for prioritized traffic. Alas, in the not-too-far distance a headlight – just like the many thousands I’ve seen and waited for in my half-century – appears. Bending a rising, long-sweeping curve just beyond the defunct corrugated elevator, the stretch of rolling steel bombs down a slight decline as we record its progress: packing up even before the head-end thunders by at track-speed though this iron road conveyor belt is already signaled into the next hole for one of numerous meets on its trek towards Spokane. And, while it wasn’t what we had envisioned, the capture produced the handsome result nonetheless: I think! (© 29Oct17)

Raging Grannies International

raginggrannies.org/

 

~~~~~~~~~~~

"Enough is Enough!"

Anti-UCP Rally

Edmonton, AB

 

From the event organizers:

"We're here to unite concerned citizens of Alberta in a movement against the current government, the United Conservative Party (UCP), because Enough is Enough.

We believe the UCP has let us down across various fronts, failing to prioritize the needs of everyday Albertans. Whether it's healthcare, electricity pricing, forest management, climate change, education, housing, the cost of living, renewables, or any other issue affecting our province, we share a common frustration: our government isn't working for us.

It's time for change. It's time for a government that truly represents the interests of all Albertans, present, and future. Join us as we mobilize and demand accountability. This is democracy in action.

Enough is Enough! Together, let's make our voices heard and build a better future for Alberta."

When I first made two shots of my 2017 New Years Day meal, it was originally just a photo about my traditional Texas meal of black eyed peas and sweet potatoes, and maybe it would include some wisdom for the upcoming year. However, upon looking at both photo attempts, it was impossible to hide my anxiety. I fear for my life and everything I hold dear. The 2016 election results that were announced in the wee hours of 11/9 were far more shocking than the events of 9/11 in the once hopeful and futuristic year of 2001.

 

In the short term, Human Rights are most at risk. While Trump doesn't seem to have animosity toward LGBT people, many of his supporters do, and he will empower them to set back our social progress and civil liberties. The Republican crooks that run the Texas state government already said they plan to pass "bathroom bills" that would make it almost impossible for trans-women like me to work and go out in public. If they can deny transgender people the right to pee in the appropriate restroom, they can bring back UNLEADED “Whites Only” water fountains and restrict Black people to use the “Colored” water fountain (which may turn out to be LEADED as in Flint, MI). If and when LGBT Civil Rights are halted or rolled back by "bathroom bills" and other means, you can bet racial segregation will be re-imposed. ALL attacks on Civil Rights must be opposed as a unified effort by all progressive parties. We must all stick together because nobody is truly free unless we are all free.

 

Already, police officers can stop, harass, search, and MURDER People of Color and get away with it: who's next on their approved hit list? Perhaps they will add senior, white, 6'3" tall, transsexual women who happen to be environmentalists and transit/train advocates. Anyone who sees me up close and listens to what I have to say will guess what I am and what I stand for, but presently I am in less danger of being spotted (and possibly gunned down) as an Enemy of the Fascist Corporate State when I am walking a block away than my Black sisters and brothers simply going about their business.. Of course the Surveillance State empowered by laws passed after 9/11 might be snooping on my emails, listening to my phone conversations, scrutinizing my purchases, and tracking my car or transit movements – if they feel like it and take the time. On one hand Trump supports “stop and frisk” police tactics, opposes Net Neutrality, harasses the free press, yet he doesn’t trust our intelligence agencies on international affairs. One thing is certain, unless we are all blown up as a result of one of Trump's temper tantrums, white men as the majority demographic class in the US will shrink into a minority within a few decades and lose their undeserved power. That is why the rednecks are scarred.

 

In the mid-term, I fear a possible war caused by the misunderstandings of someone who doesn't know a damn thing about such matters but always insists on getting his way, promoting his name, and cheating his customers, workers, and wives. Unlike the CHICKENHAWK Trump who beats the war drum but was too cowardly to serve in the military, I served in US Army during 1971-99 and participated in border patrols, nuclear alerts, anti-terrorist sweeps, and certain armed interventions that managed to stay out of public view. Overall, the world is far less dangerous than it was in the Cold War because nuclear and conventional arms levels among the major powers have been cut by more than half, and those forces are usually not deployed along hostile borders nor kept on the same kind of hair trigger alert as in the old days. Other than raw nationalism and personality clashes, there are no major ideological differences between the major powers. International terrorism (mostly by poorly-equipped, non-national groups) is the major source of armed conflict, but that is nothing new and did not start in September 2001. The biggest risk of war is due to miscalculation by an erratic, egotistical President who does not regularly attend intelligence briefings and may very well be in financial debt to Russian banksters.

 

Even more likely is worsening economic inequality in the US and environmental disasters caused by a Climate Change denier President and his top advisers. In the long term, complete environmental collapse due to Climate Change is almost certain unless we stop playing around and start making major changes. In response to Global Warming and other environmental problems, we need a massive World War II sized industrial effort to change our energy use from dependence on fossil fuels to renewable sources like solar and wind; our transportation to prioritize walking, biking, urban mass transit, and both intercity passenger and freight rail service powered by electricity rather than continued dependence on cars and trucks; sub-urban sprawl superseded by walkable, human-scaled, multi-use urban communities; and industrial factory farming replaced by organic farming. As a desirable secondary benefit, this will create lots of jobs, but the primary benefit is the creation of infrastructure to support cleaner and more sustainable energy use, transportation, and both urban and rural land use.

 

Politics As Usual has all but destroyed our democracy, and Business As Usual will destroy any environment capable of supporting human civilization. The situation is not hopeless, but we can no longer delay in taking major remedial action. In my lifetime, Presidents Carter and Clinton largely wasted time needed to remediate the wasteful and destructive environmental effects of human civilization, Presidents Reagan and both Bushes actively impeded progress, and President Obama was largely thwarted in his efforts due to racists in Congress and many state legislatures that could not bear to see a Black President succeed in doing anything productive. Sea levels are rising along the Texas Gulf Coast, our western aquifers are drying up, our mountain glaciers are melting away and reducing their water output downstream, and our seasonal weather has gotten more extreme. Will the incoming President Trump do anything to remedy the situation other than have “golden showers” with Russian prostitutes? Or will Amerika's new Fuhrer serve to legitimize the Rape Culture and environmental rape and to perpetuate White Male Privilege above all others?

  

I am at last happy to announce to you all my LEGO A-4E Skyhawk MOC – in John S. McCain III’s livery. If anyone reading has been following me for a long time – first off, I thank you sincerely for your support – some may remember the A-4E I built quite some time ago now, also in John McCain’s livery. This one is pretty much a ground up rebuild of my initial Skyhawk and is for the most part entirely a novel design.

The model itself, in terms of features, has retractable landing gear, space for a minifigure in the cockpit (BARELY), and deployable airbrakes. Due to the construction of the wing and the standards I wanted to prioritize for looks, I did not incorporate working flaps or leading edge slats like I had initially planned. However, like I said, my priority if in doubt was nailing the look and accuracy of the model on display – and I feel I have approximated that to the best of my current abilities… though I know I can always improve! Let me know your thoughts though!

 

My "Best lenses" for the Leica M11 deliberately prioritized high optical performance lenses capable of tackling the high quality 60 MP sensor. So by definition, they did not include any lens that were more oriented to style or rendering.

 

The optically best 50mm lenses for the M system are the Cosina Voigtlander 50mm F2 APO Lanthar and the Leica 50mm F2 APO Summicron-M. But the Leica 50mm F1.4 Summilux-M is a classic that is a "must own", if you can afford both an f/2 and an f/1.4 lens.

 

Until the M11, the 50 Lux was my most used M lens. It now ranks # 6 on my list based purely on optical performance for the M11, but in terms of frequency of use, this lens will continue to be either # 1 or # 2 for me. Because most of the time, I am not taking photos to make 4 feet x 6 feet prints.

 

The important thing about this lens is, at the plane of focus, in the central 50-60% of the frame, it is very sharp, and it will show well even on a 60 MP sensor. I have used this lens for years with my Sony A7R II, III and IV cameras, as well as the Leica M10 Monochrom, and it has always delivered superb results. So this lens will deliver stunning sharpness, but also creamy bokeh and "the Leica Look".

 

The alternatives are the Leica 50mm f/0.95 Noctilux-M, the Voigtlander 50mm f/1.2 Nokton, and a new Voigtlander 50mm f/1 Nokton that was announced a couple of months ago, and has not started shipping yet. There are also other "super fast" lenses from Mitakon Zhongyi, 7 Artisans, etc.

 

If you enjoy the images you get from these lenses mentioned above, that's fine, but my recommendation is, save yourself a lot of money and buy a used Leica M9 or M240 for a fraction of what an M11 costs. But if you are planning to buy an M11, then don't waste a millisecond with these other lenses.

 

There is only one fast 50mm lens that matters for the M11, and that is the Leica 50/1.4 Summilux-M.

 

Facebook | Twitter | Blog

 

Tap tap tap; the sound of my keyboard keys clicking away. Fixing this, coding that, Facebook, Google, Flickr, Twitter. The standard barrage of Internet candy that bombards my tender sponge of a brain on a daily basis. My brain nearly at capacity from the constant influx of data. I swear uninteresting and unimportant information must go in and be directly escorted out the backdoor. Or perhaps its like a busy ER, if you're not of serious nature of gravely injured, you wait. I can only imagine, things like "nurishment or urination being made to wait in an endless line while things like 'new comments, emails and of course "new nude pictures of megan fox" get right in with no wait. My head is defiantly one interesting yet unorganized, Un prioritized place.

 

Day 194 was near the top of my list this hot and humid yet totally typical Thursday night. I had dreamt of an interesting idea and upon being jolted awake by a phone call I nearly forgot it. I, of course take a few deep breaths and practice my "i'm not sleeping" voice before finally picking up. Hello, this is Michael. "hello, this is so and so from po-i-didn't-hear-that magazine" "i'm sorry what magazine?" The second time I understood that he said Poder Magazine and we got right into talking. Seems a few more of my pictures will be printed in a magazine and they were calling to get a high res file. I crawled out of bed and sat at my desk only to not see my computer. "damn, my computer is missing" "did I catch you at a bad time?" shit, he knows I'm half asleep. "no I just forgot where I last used my computer, ah there it is"

 

We shot the shit while I found the files, he loved my work and talked about his work. I got him the files and made sure the credit line read right. From this point I was most defiantly up, now to start my day.

 

The rest of it was pretty standard and really of no comedic use so i'll just hit the fast forward button a bit.

 

Ok, its now 8pm and my nephew Rylan is sitting on the couch. I look at him and that 40 watt half burnt out lightbulb starts to flicker in my head. Thats it, I'll use him! I run grab my camera and my speed light and quickly setup to grab a shot of him on the couch. He immediately grabs a pillow and covers his face. Great, this may be more work than I thought. Moments later that peice of shit light bulb flicked on fully and after being momentarily blinded with creative light, I run and get Shawn's "this stupid thing wont work" computer. He had recently, in a fit of rage, put a screw driver through the whole thing after the mother board fried. I told him it was stupid to ruin it, but he wasn't listening.

 

I figured since the thing was fried and stabbed, why not use it and depict nearly every young parents nightmare. I've got no kids and still fear this. Before I start, I make sure Mr. 3 year old understands the difference between a broken computer and a good computer. With his infinite 3 year wisdom, he looks up, shakes his head and says yes. (being skeptical of a toddlers comprehension of broke and not broke, i will not be leaving my laptop out!) So... I set him up on the floor and we both start popping keys off. I stick the screw driver through the front after having second thoughts about putting it in his hands. Instead I hand him a glass of water and say "ok, now when I say, I want you to pour this all over the computer" I could tell he was confused. He looked at me with inquisitive eyes almost like he was trying to figure out wether or not this was some sick test that uncle Mikey was giving him. I told him it was ok, positioned the glass in his hand at the right height and quickly backed up and gave him the go ahead.

 

He was timid at first so I walked back over and reassured him again that it was ok because it was a broken computer. Again, I back up and gave him the ok. This time he poured the whole thing and I captured a single shot. I checked the preview… "perfect" Rylan had nailed it!

 

A quick clean up and I was off to edit.

 

Post Production:

 

I started playing with the Vanishing point tool in Photoshop during the Day 190 edit. I had yet to figure it out so today I decided to try again. I laid a grid out on the floor and dropped the granite look alike texture in. It laid it out with the perspective of the floor and worked perfect! I then masked out every other tile to give a checkerboard look. This worked great, So good that I also used it for my signature. I will try to master the vanishing point tool in the near future. It's a great way to duplicate perspective and help achieve a more accurate 3d look in composites.

 

I feel I need to add a conclusion of some sorts but don't know what to say. Perhaps I'll just say something like this. The day started out good, and we each learn new things, for when the turkey is dry, the guests are unhappy. Happy holidays and don't forget to always wear clean underwear. - Michael

 

Lighting:

 

AB800 Beauty Dish 3:00 1/4 power

Nikon SB-25 with lumaquest softbox III, 24 mm zoom, 1/8 power

 

Triggered via Cyber Syncs

I'm bad news for a young photographer wants to hang out, it's all "when I was young" this and "if I'd started at your age" that.

 

Probably why teaching workshops suits me so well. I love talking about...pontificating about photography. Dunno what started it, I wasn't always this way, someone gets me started, I'll go on forever.

 

Happened while shooting Lisa, happened the week before when a co-worker asked me about my project.

 

I'm working on talking less. Arguing less. Giving other people more space in a conversation, trying to figure out when to prioritize, see if it's really Necessary to be arguing about something.

 

Bit of a challenge. It's...there's room for growth. But it pays off when I see something I wouldn't have ordinarily, hear something I probably would've talked over, when I notice I'm calm instead of all fired up over some bit of nothing.

 

Figured I've been working for awhile now at being a better photographer, I should probably put some work in being a better human.

Stephen J. Ubl, President and CEO, PhRMA speaks to Marilyn Serafini, Health Care Policy Consultant during a policy briefing entitled “Prioritizing Patients: A Discussion on Outcomes-Based Care” sponsored by The Value Collaborative, PhRMA, and The Hill at the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, June 13, 2017.

I forgot to mention that for the 2nd half of the year for Biscuits' weekly photo I'll be using 1 lens a month.

July was the 100mm f/2.8 macro.

 

This is the last week, and I prioritized getting a close-up especially of his "flowery" configuration of spots around his left eye, he added the extra "look" to complete the image :-)

Close quarters expert Harper Barron has manifested symptoms of belligerent behavior, perhaps due to an error in her programming or a faulty Hero Core. Reports from her teammates state that her enjoyment of fighting has lead to failures in completing missions, as she prioritizes violence over successfully capturing villains and protecting citizens.

 

Her current location is unknown, but anonymous witnesses have reported seeing her in the Gladiator Arena of planet Bolawoo III.

 

Further psychological examinations are necessary in order to accurately estimate how dangerous she is. She is equipped with a lightweight body armor and a Quaza-Powered Ram Gauntlet, engaging at a distance is strongly advised.

 

Great Mask of Intangibility by @galva_nize_

Gauntlet weapon inspired by @ems_mocs ' Tony Stone and Arcane's Atlas Gauntlets

by geekcreative ift.tt/1ZYu7Wa

Lake Thoreau

 

Spectrum is the sixth sculpture by the South Lakes STEAM Team, made up of five wooden interlocking rectangular prisms of different sizes and colors. After two years of creating sculptures with strong conceptual origins that featured minimalist color palettes, STEAM decided to change direction and create a sculpture that prioritized an exploration of aesthetic elements over a representation of a tangible theme.

SYLMAR - On June 14-16, 2021 the Los Angeles Fire Department organized a multi-agency brush fire exercise near Veterans Memorial Park in Sylmar.

 

Participants included Fire Departments from the cities of Burbank, Glendale, Los Angeles, Pasadena, the County of Los Angeles and Angeles National Forest, as these agencies frequently respond together along and near their jurisdictional borders in what are known as Mutual Threat Zones (MTZs).

 

Training sessions took place on three separate days to assure each platoon (duty shift) of firefighters had an opportunity to participate in operational training that prioritized interoperability of communications and tactics on a large multi-agency incident..

 

© Photo by Rick McClure

 

LAFD Event: 061421-MTZ Brush Training

 

Connect with us: LAFD.ORG | News | Facebook | Instagram | Reddit | Twitter: @LAFD @LAFDtalk

PEARL HARBOR (Dec. 23, 2020) Electronics Technician (Nuclear) 2nd Class Matthew Dines, from Janesville, Wisconsin, assigned to the Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS Jefferson City (SSN 759), receives the COVID-19 vaccine at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Dec. 23, 2020. Naval Health Clinic was one of the facilities selected to receive the vaccine in a phased and coordinated strategy, prioritizing the vaccine for eligible personnel to protect their health, families and communities. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Jaimar Carson Bondurant)

In the first half of 2023 I made many F1 machines with Lego, some of them are already posted to Flickr, but this is one of the remaining.

Mclaren MP4/8, driven by Ayrton Senna in 1993 won 5 races, including victory in the Monaco and his home, Brazil.

The technique used for this is basically same as MP4/4 I 've already introduced.

I prioritized its size than giving small details.

In June 2020, after experiencing a devastating spring due to COVID, New York State announced that certain businesses could begin partially opening again. New York City’s response included a program called Open Restaurants, which allowed restaurants to use sidewalks and parking spaces for outdoor, socially distant dining. Owners quickly built temporary enclosures in the streets in front of their businesses to try and recover from months of shutdown. Small stretches of Brooklyn in early 2021 display the variety and feel of these enclosures. Hopefully, the Open Restaurants initiative will help these businesses to survive and may even lead to a more permanent reorienting of streets to prioritize people over cars.

In June 2020, after experiencing a devastating spring due to COVID, New York State announced that certain businesses could begin partially opening again. New York City’s response included a program called Open Restaurants, which allowed restaurants to use sidewalks and parking spaces for outdoor, socially distant dining. Owners quickly built temporary enclosures in the streets in front of their businesses to try and recover from months of shutdown. Small stretches of Brooklyn in early 2021 display the variety and feel of these enclosures. Hopefully, the Open Restaurants initiative will help these businesses to survive and may even lead to a more permanent reorienting of streets to prioritize people over cars.

Canyonlands National Park is an American national park located in southeastern Utah near the town of Moab. The park preserves a colorful landscape eroded into numerous canyons, mesas, and buttes by the Colorado River, the Green River, and their respective tributaries. Legislation creating the park was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson on September 12, 1964.

 

The park is divided into four districts: the Island in the Sky, the Needles, the Maze, and the combined rivers—the Green and Colorado—which carved two large canyons into the Colorado Plateau. While these areas share a primitive desert atmosphere, each retains its own character. Author Edward Abbey, a frequent visitor, described the Canyonlands as "the most weird, wonderful, magical place on earth—there is nothing else like it anywhere."

 

In the early 1950s, Bates Wilson, then superintendent of Arches National Monument, began exploring the area to the south and west of Moab, Utah. After seeing what is now known as the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Wilson began advocating for the establishment of a new national park that would include the Needles. Additional explorations by Wilson and others expanded the areas proposed for inclusion into the new national park to include the confluence of Green and Colorado rivers, the Maze District, and Horseshoe Canyon.

 

In 1961, Secretary of the Interior Stewart Udall was scheduled to address a conference at Grand Canyon National Park. On his flight to the conference, he flew over the Confluence (where the Colorado and Green rivers meet). The view apparently sparked Udall's interest in Wilson's proposal for a new national park in that area and Udall began promoting the establishment of Canyonlands National Park.

 

Utah Senator Frank Moss first introduced legislation into Congress to create Canyonlands National Park. His legislation attempted to satisfy both nature preservationists' and commercial developers' interests. Over the next four years, his proposal was struck down, debated, revised, and reintroduced to Congress many times before being passed and signed into creation.

 

In September, 1964, after several years of debate, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed Pub.L. 88–590, which established Canyonlands National Park as a new national park. Bates Wilson became the first superintendent of the new park and is often referred to as the "Father of Canyonlands."

 

The Colorado River and Green River combine within the park, dividing it into three districts called the Island in the Sky, the Needles, and the Maze. The Colorado River flows through Cataract Canyon below its confluence with the Green River.

 

The Island in the Sky district is a broad and level mesa in the northern section of the park, between the Colorado and Green rivers. The district has many viewpoints overlooking the White Rim, a sandstone bench 1,200 feet (370 m) below the Island, and the rivers, which are another 1,000 feet (300 m) below the White Rim.

 

The Needles district is located south of the Island in the Sky, on the east side of the Colorado River. The district is named for the red and white banded rock pinnacles which are a major feature of the area. Various other naturally sculpted rock formations are also within this district, including grabens, potholes, and arches. Unlike Arches National Park, where many arches are accessible by short to moderate hikes, most of the arches in the Needles district lie in backcountry canyons, requiring long hikes or four-wheel drive trips to reach them.

 

The Ancestral Puebloans inhabited this area and some of their stone and mud dwellings are well-preserved, although the items and tools they used were mostly removed by looters. The Ancestral Puebloans also created rock art in the form of petroglyphs, most notably on Newspaper Rock along the Needles access road.

 

The Maze district is located west of the Colorado and Green rivers. The Maze is the least accessible section of the park, and one of the most remote and inaccessible areas of the United States.

 

A geographically detached section of the park located north of the Maze district, Horseshoe Canyon contains panels of rock art made by hunter-gatherers from the Late Archaic Period (2000-1000 BC) pre-dating the Ancestral Puebloans. Originally called Barrier Canyon, Horseshoe's artifacts, dwellings, pictographs, and murals are some of the oldest in America. The images depicting horses date from after 1540 AD, when the Spanish reintroduced horses to America.

 

Since the 1950s, scientists have been studying an area of 200 acres (81 ha) completely surrounded by cliffs. The cliffs have prevented cattle from ever grazing on the area's 62 acres (25 ha) of grassland. According to the scientists, the site may contain the largest undisturbed grassland in the Four Corners region. Studies have continued biannually since the mid-1990s. The area has been closed to the public since 1993 to maintain the nearly pristine environment.

 

Mammals that roam this park include black bears, coyotes, skunks, bats, elk, foxes, bobcats, badgers, ring-tailed cats, pronghorns, desert bighorn sheep, and cougars. Desert cottontails, kangaroo rats and mule deer are commonly seen by visitors.

 

At least 273 species of birds inhabit the park. A variety of hawks and eagles are found, including the Cooper's hawk, the northern goshawk, the sharp-shinned hawk, the red-tailed hawk, the golden and bald eagles, the rough-legged hawk, the Swainson's hawk, and the northern harrier. Several species of owls are found, including the great horned owl, the northern saw-whet owl, the western screech owl, and the Mexican spotted owl. Grebes, woodpeckers, ravens, herons, flycatchers, crows, bluebirds, wrens, warblers, blackbirds, orioles, goldfinches, swallows, sparrows, ducks, quail, grouse, pheasants, hummingbirds, falcons, gulls, and ospreys are some of the other birds that can be found.

 

Several reptiles can be found, including eleven species of lizards and eight species of snake (including the midget faded rattlesnake). The common kingsnake and prairie rattlesnake have been reported in the park, but not confirmed by the National Park Service.

 

The park is home to six confirmed amphibian species, including the red-spotted toad, Woodhouse's toad, American bullfrog, northern leopard frog, Great Basin spadefoot toad, and tiger salamander. The canyon tree frog was reported to be in the park in 2000, but was not confirmed during a study in 2004.

 

Canyonlands National Park contains a wide variety of plant life, including 11 cactus species,[34] 20 moss species, liverworts, grasses and wildflowers. Varieties of trees include netleaf hackberry, Russian olive, Utah juniper, pinyon pine, tamarisk, and Fremont's cottonwood. Shrubs include Mormon tea, blackbrush, four-wing saltbush, cliffrose, littleleaf mountain mahogany, and snakeweed

 

Cryptobiotic soil is the foundation of life in Canyonlands, providing nitrogen fixation and moisture for plant seeds. One footprint can destroy decades of growth.

 

According to the Köppen climate classification system, Canyonlands National Park has a cold semi-arid climate ("BSk"). The plant hardiness zones at the Island in the Sky and Needles District Visitor Centers are 7a with an average annual extreme minimum air temperature of 4.0 °F (-15.6 °C) and 2.9 °F (-16.2 °C), respectively.

 

The National Weather Service has maintained two cooperative weather stations in the park since June 1965. Official data documents the desert climate with less than 10 inches (250 millimetres) of annual rainfall, as well as hot, mostly dry summers and cold, occasionally wet winters. Snowfall is generally light during the winter.

 

The station in The Neck region reports an average January temperature of 29.6 °F and an average July temperature of 79.3 °F. Average July temperatures range from a high of 90.8 °F (32.7 °C) to a low of 67.9 °F (19.9 °C). There are an average of 45.7 days with highs of 90 °F (32 °C) or higher and an average of 117.3 days with lows of 32 °F (0 °C) or lower. The highest recorded temperature was 105 °F (41 °C) on July 15, 2005, and the lowest recorded temperature was −13 °F (−25 °C) on February 6, 1989. Average annual precipitation is 9.33 inches (237 mm). There are an average of 59 days with measurable precipitation. The wettest year was 1984, with 13.66 in (347 mm), and the driest year was 1989, with 4.63 in (118 mm). The most precipitation in one month was 5.19 in (132 mm) in October 2006. The most precipitation in 24 hours was 1.76 in (45 mm) on April 9, 1978. Average annual snowfall is 22.8 in (58 cm). The most snowfall in one year was 47.4 in (120 cm) in 1975, and the most snowfall in one month was 27.0 in (69 cm) in January 1978.

 

The station in The Needles region reports an average January temperature of 29.7 °F and an average July temperature of 79.1 °F.[44] Average July temperatures range from a high of 95.4 °F (35.2 °C) to a low of 62.4 °F (16.9 °C). There are an average of 75.4 days with highs of 90 °F (32 °C) or higher and an average of 143.6 days with lows of 32 °F (0 °C) or lower. The highest recorded temperature was 107 °F (42 °C) on July 13, 1971, and the lowest recorded temperature was −16 °F (−27 °C) on January 16, 1971. Average annual precipitation is 8.49 in (216 mm). There are an average of 56 days with measurable precipitation. The wettest year was 1969, with 11.19 in (284 mm), and the driest year was 1989, with 4.25 in (108 mm). The most precipitation in one month was 4.43 in (113 mm) in October 1972. The most precipitation in 24 hours was 1.56 in (40 mm) on September 17, 1999. Average annual snowfall is 14.4 in (37 cm). The most snowfall in one year was 39.3 in (100 cm) in 1975, and the most snowfall in one month was 24.0 in (61 cm) in March 1985.

 

National parks in the Western US are more affected by climate change than the country as a whole, and the National Park Service has begun research into how exactly this will effect the ecosystem of Canyonlands National Park and the surrounding areas and ways to protect the park for the future. The mean annual temperature of Canyonlands National Park increased by 2.6 °F (1.4 °C) from 1916 to 2018. It is predicted that if current warming trends continue, the average highs in the park during the summer will be over 100 °F (40 °C) by 2100. In addition to warming, the region has begun to see more severe and frequent droughts which causes native grass cover to decrease and a lower flow of the Colorado River. The flows of the Upper Colorado Basin have decreased by 300,000 acre⋅ft (370,000,000 m3) per year, which has led to a decreased amount of sediment carried by the river and rockier rapids which are more frequently impassable to rafters. The area has also begun to see an earlier spring, which will lead to changes in the timing of leaves and flowers blooming and migrational patterns of wildlife that could lead to food shortages for the wildlife, as well as a longer fire season.

 

The National Park Service is currently closely monitoring the impacts of climate change in Canyonlands National Park in order to create management strategies that will best help conserve the park's landscapes and ecosystems for the long term. Although the National Park Service's original goal was to preserve landscapes as they were before European colonization, they have now switched to a more adaptive management strategy with the ultimate goal of conserving the biodiversity of the park. The NPS is collaborating with other organizations including the US Geological Survey, local indigenous tribes, and nearby universities in order to create a management plan for the national park. Right now, there is a focus on research into which native plants will be most resistant to climate change so that the park can decide on what to prioritize in conservation efforts. The Canyonlands Natural History Association has been giving money to the US Geological Survey to fund this and other climate related research. They gave $30,000 in 2019 and $61,000 in 2020.

 

A subsiding basin and nearby uplifting mountain range (the Uncompahgre) existed in the area in Pennsylvanian time. Seawater trapped in the subsiding basin created thick evaporite deposits by Mid Pennsylvanian. This, along with eroded material from the nearby mountain range, became the Paradox Formation, itself a part of the Hermosa Group. Paradox salt beds started to flow later in the Pennsylvanian and probably continued to move until the end of the Jurassic. Some scientists believe Upheaval Dome was created from Paradox salt bed movement, creating a salt dome, but more modern studies show that the meteorite theory is more likely to be correct.

 

A warm shallow sea again flooded the region near the end of the Pennsylvanian. Fossil-rich limestones, sandstones, and shales of the gray-colored Honaker Trail Formation resulted. A period of erosion then ensued, creating a break in the geologic record called an unconformity. Early in the Permian an advancing sea laid down the Halgaito Shale. Coastal lowlands later returned to the area, forming the Elephant Canyon Formation.

 

Large alluvial fans filled the basin where it met the Uncompahgre Mountains, creating the Cutler red beds of iron-rich arkose sandstone. Underwater sand bars and sand dunes on the coast inter-fingered with the red beds and later became the white-colored cliff-forming Cedar Mesa Sandstone. Brightly colored oxidized muds were then deposited, forming the Organ Rock Shale. Coastal sand dunes and marine sand bars once again became dominant, creating the White Rim Sandstone.

 

A second unconformity was created after the Permian sea retreated. Flood plains on an expansive lowland covered the eroded surface and mud built up in tidal flats, creating the Moenkopi Formation. Erosion returned, forming a third unconformity. The Chinle Formation was then laid down on top of this eroded surface.

 

Increasingly dry climates dominated the Triassic. Therefore, sand in the form of sand dunes invaded and became the Wingate Sandstone. For a time climatic conditions became wetter and streams cut channels through the sand dunes, forming the Kayenta Formation. Arid conditions returned to the region with a vengeance; a large desert spread over much of western North America and later became the Navajo Sandstone. A fourth unconformity was created by a period of erosion.

 

Mud flats returned, forming the Carmel Formation, and the Entrada Sandstone was laid down next. A long period of erosion stripped away most of the San Rafael Group in the area, along with any formations that may have been laid down in the Cretaceous period.

 

The Laramide orogeny started to uplift the Rocky Mountains 70 million years ago and with it, the Canyonlands region. Erosion intensified and when the Colorado River Canyon reached the salt beds of the Paradox Formation the overlying strata extended toward the river canyon, forming features such as The Grabens. Increased precipitation during the ice ages of the Pleistocene quickened the rate of canyon excavation along with other erosion. Similar types of erosion are ongoing, but occur at a slower rate.

 

Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It borders Colorado to its east, Wyoming to its northeast, Idaho to its north, Arizona to its south, and Nevada to its west. Utah also touches a corner of New Mexico in the southeast. Of the fifty U.S. states, Utah is the 13th-largest by area; with a population over three million, it is the 30th-most-populous and 11th-least-densely populated. Urban development is mostly concentrated in two areas: the Wasatch Front in the north-central part of the state, which is home to roughly two-thirds of the population and includes the capital city, Salt Lake City; and Washington County in the southwest, with more than 180,000 residents. Most of the western half of Utah lies in the Great Basin.

 

Utah has been inhabited for thousands of years by various indigenous groups such as the ancient Puebloans, Navajo, and Ute. The Spanish were the first Europeans to arrive in the mid-16th century, though the region's difficult geography and harsh climate made it a peripheral part of New Spain and later Mexico. Even while it was Mexican territory, many of Utah's earliest settlers were American, particularly Mormons fleeing marginalization and persecution from the United States via the Mormon Trail. Following the Mexican–American War in 1848, the region was annexed by the U.S., becoming part of the Utah Territory, which included what is now Colorado and Nevada. Disputes between the dominant Mormon community and the federal government delayed Utah's admission as a state; only after the outlawing of polygamy was it admitted in 1896 as the 45th.

 

People from Utah are known as Utahns. Slightly over half of all Utahns are Mormons, the vast majority of whom are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), which has its world headquarters in Salt Lake City; Utah is the only state where a majority of the population belongs to a single church. A 2023 paper challenged this perception (claiming only 42% of Utahns are Mormons) however most statistics still show a majority of Utah residents belong to the LDS church; estimates from the LDS church suggests 60.68% of Utah's population belongs to the church whilst some sources put the number as high as 68%. The paper replied that membership count done by the LDS Church is too high for several reasons. The LDS Church greatly influences Utahn culture, politics, and daily life, though since the 1990s the state has become more religiously diverse as well as secular.

 

Utah has a highly diversified economy, with major sectors including transportation, education, information technology and research, government services, mining, multi-level marketing, and tourism. Utah has been one of the fastest growing states since 2000, with the 2020 U.S. census confirming the fastest population growth in the nation since 2010. St. George was the fastest-growing metropolitan area in the United States from 2000 to 2005. Utah ranks among the overall best states in metrics such as healthcare, governance, education, and infrastructure. It has the 12th-highest median average income and the least income inequality of any U.S. state. Over time and influenced by climate change, droughts in Utah have been increasing in frequency and severity, putting a further strain on Utah's water security and impacting the state's economy.

 

The History of Utah is an examination of the human history and social activity within the state of Utah located in the western United States.

 

Archaeological evidence dates the earliest habitation of humans in Utah to about 10,000 to 12,000 years ago. Paleolithic people lived near the Great Basin's swamps and marshes, which had an abundance of fish, birds, and small game animals. Big game, including bison, mammoths and ground sloths, also were attracted to these water sources. Over the centuries, the mega-fauna died, this population was replaced by the Desert Archaic people, who sheltered in caves near the Great Salt Lake. Relying more on gathering than the previous Utah residents, their diet was mainly composed of cattails and other salt tolerant plants such as pickleweed, burro weed and sedge. Red meat appears to have been more of a luxury, although these people used nets and the atlatl to hunt water fowl, ducks, small animals and antelope. Artifacts include nets woven with plant fibers and rabbit skin, woven sandals, gaming sticks, and animal figures made from split-twigs. About 3,500 years ago, lake levels rose and the population of Desert Archaic people appears to have dramatically decreased. The Great Basin may have been almost unoccupied for 1,000 years.

 

The Fremont culture, named from sites near the Fremont River in Utah, lived in what is now north and western Utah and parts of Nevada, Idaho and Colorado from approximately 600 to 1300 AD. These people lived in areas close to water sources that had been previously occupied by the Desert Archaic people, and may have had some relationship with them. However, their use of new technologies define them as a distinct people. Fremont technologies include:

 

use of the bow and arrow while hunting,

building pithouse shelters,

growing maize and probably beans and squash,

building above ground granaries of adobe or stone,

creating and decorating low-fired pottery ware,

producing art, including jewelry and rock art such as petroglyphs and pictographs.

 

The ancient Puebloan culture, also known as the Anasazi, occupied territory adjacent to the Fremont. The ancestral Puebloan culture centered on the present-day Four Corners area of the Southwest United States, including the San Juan River region of Utah. Archaeologists debate when this distinct culture emerged, but cultural development seems to date from about the common era, about 500 years before the Fremont appeared. It is generally accepted that the cultural peak of these people was around the 1200 CE. Ancient Puebloan culture is known for well constructed pithouses and more elaborate adobe and masonry dwellings. They were excellent craftsmen, producing turquoise jewelry and fine pottery. The Puebloan culture was based on agriculture, and the people created and cultivated fields of maize, beans, and squash and domesticated turkeys. They designed and produced elaborate field terracing and irrigation systems. They also built structures, some known as kivas, apparently designed solely for cultural and religious rituals.

 

These two later cultures were roughly contemporaneous, and appear to have established trading relationships. They also shared enough cultural traits that archaeologists believe the cultures may have common roots in the early American Southwest. However, each remained culturally distinct throughout most of their existence. These two well established cultures appear to have been severely impacted by climatic change and perhaps by the incursion of new people in about 1200 CE. Over the next two centuries, the Fremont and ancient Pueblo people may have moved into the American southwest, finding new homes and farmlands in the river drainages of Arizona, New Mexico and northern Mexico.

 

In about 1200, Shoshonean speaking peoples entered Utah territory from the west. They may have originated in southern California and moved into the desert environment due to population pressure along the coast. They were an upland people with a hunting and gathering lifestyle utilizing roots and seeds, including the pinyon nut. They were also skillful fishermen, created pottery and raised some crops. When they first arrived in Utah, they lived as small family groups with little tribal organization. Four main Shoshonean peoples inhabited Utah country. The Shoshone in the north and northeast, the Gosiutes in the northwest, the Utes in the central and eastern parts of the region and the Southern Paiutes in the southwest. Initially, there seems to have been very little conflict between these groups.

 

In the early 16th century, the San Juan River basin in Utah's southeast also saw a new people, the Díne or Navajo, part of a greater group of plains Athabaskan speakers moved into the Southwest from the Great Plains. In addition to the Navajo, this language group contained people that were later known as Apaches, including the Lipan, Jicarilla, and Mescalero Apaches.

 

Athabaskans were a hunting people who initially followed the bison, and were identified in 16th-century Spanish accounts as "dog nomads". The Athabaskans expanded their range throughout the 17th century, occupying areas the Pueblo peoples had abandoned during prior centuries. The Spanish first specifically mention the "Apachu de Nabajo" (Navaho) in the 1620s, referring to the people in the Chama valley region east of the San Juan River, and north west of Santa Fe. By the 1640s, the term Navaho was applied to these same people. Although the Navajo newcomers established a generally peaceful trading and cultural exchange with the some modern Pueblo peoples to the south, they experienced intermittent warfare with the Shoshonean peoples, particularly the Utes in eastern Utah and western Colorado.

 

At the time of European expansion, beginning with Spanish explorers traveling from Mexico, five distinct native peoples occupied territory within the Utah area: the Northern Shoshone, the Goshute, the Ute, the Paiute and the Navajo.

 

The Spanish explorer Francisco Vázquez de Coronado may have crossed into what is now southern Utah in 1540, when he was seeking the legendary Cíbola.

 

A group led by two Spanish Catholic priests—sometimes called the Domínguez–Escalante expedition—left Santa Fe in 1776, hoping to find a route to the California coast. The expedition traveled as far north as Utah Lake and encountered the native residents. All of what is now Utah was claimed by the Spanish Empire from the 1500s to 1821 as part of New Spain (later as the province Alta California); and subsequently claimed by Mexico from 1821 to 1848. However, Spain and Mexico had little permanent presence in, or control of, the region.

 

Fur trappers (also known as mountain men) including Jim Bridger, explored some regions of Utah in the early 19th century. The city of Provo was named for one such man, Étienne Provost, who visited the area in 1825. The city of Ogden, Utah is named for a brigade leader of the Hudson's Bay Company, Peter Skene Ogden who trapped in the Weber Valley. In 1846, a year before the arrival of members from the Church of Jesus Christ of latter-day Saints, the ill-fated Donner Party crossed through the Salt Lake valley late in the season, deciding not to stay the winter there but to continue forward to California, and beyond.

 

Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commonly known as Mormon pioneers, first came to the Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847. At the time, the U.S. had already captured the Mexican territories of Alta California and New Mexico in the Mexican–American War and planned to keep them, but those territories, including the future state of Utah, officially became United States territory upon the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, February 2, 1848. The treaty was ratified by the United States Senate on March 10, 1848.

 

Upon arrival in the Salt Lake Valley, the Mormon pioneers found no permanent settlement of Indians. Other areas along the Wasatch Range were occupied at the time of settlement by the Northwestern Shoshone and adjacent areas by other bands of Shoshone such as the Gosiute. The Northwestern Shoshone lived in the valleys on the eastern shore of Great Salt Lake and in adjacent mountain valleys. Some years after arriving in the Salt Lake Valley Mormons, who went on to colonize many other areas of what is now Utah, were petitioned by Indians for recompense for land taken. The response of Heber C. Kimball, first counselor to Brigham Young, was that the land belonged to "our Father in Heaven and we expect to plow and plant it." A 1945 Supreme Court decision found that the land had been treated by the United States as public domain; no aboriginal title by the Northwestern Shoshone had been recognized by the United States or extinguished by treaty with the United States.

 

Upon arriving in the Salt Lake Valley, the Mormons had to make a place to live. They created irrigation systems, laid out farms, built houses, churches, and schools. Access to water was crucially important. Almost immediately, Brigham Young set out to identify and claim additional community sites. While it was difficult to find large areas in the Great Basin where water sources were dependable and growing seasons long enough to raise vitally important subsistence crops, satellite communities began to be formed.

 

Shortly after the first company arrived in the Salt Lake Valley in 1847, the community of Bountiful was settled to the north. In 1848, settlers moved into lands purchased from trapper Miles Goodyear in present-day Ogden. In 1849, Tooele and Provo were founded. Also that year, at the invitation of Ute chief Wakara, settlers moved into the Sanpete Valley in central Utah to establish the community of Manti. Fillmore, Utah, intended to be the capital of the new territory, was established in 1851. In 1855, missionary efforts aimed at western native cultures led to outposts in Fort Lemhi, Idaho, Las Vegas, Nevada and Elk Mountain in east-central Utah.

 

The experiences of returning members of the Mormon Battalion were also important in establishing new communities. On their journey west, the Mormon soldiers had identified dependable rivers and fertile river valleys in Colorado, Arizona and southern California. In addition, as the men traveled to rejoin their families in the Salt Lake Valley, they moved through southern Nevada and the eastern segments of southern Utah. Jefferson Hunt, a senior Mormon officer of the Battalion, actively searched for settlement sites, minerals, and other resources. His report encouraged 1851 settlement efforts in Iron County, near present-day Cedar City. These southern explorations eventually led to Mormon settlements in St. George, Utah, Las Vegas and San Bernardino, California, as well as communities in southern Arizona.

 

Prior to establishment of the Oregon and California trails and Mormon settlement, Indians native to the Salt Lake Valley and adjacent areas lived by hunting buffalo and other game, but also gathered grass seed from the bountiful grass of the area as well as roots such as those of the Indian Camas. By the time of settlement, indeed before 1840, the buffalo were gone from the valley, but hunting by settlers and grazing of cattle severely impacted the Indians in the area, and as settlement expanded into nearby river valleys and oases, indigenous tribes experienced increasing difficulty in gathering sufficient food. Brigham Young's counsel was to feed the hungry tribes, and that was done, but it was often not enough. These tensions formed the background to the Bear River massacre committed by California Militia stationed in Salt Lake City during the Civil War. The site of the massacre is just inside Preston, Idaho, but was generally thought to be within Utah at the time.

 

Statehood was petitioned for in 1849-50 using the name Deseret. The proposed State of Deseret would have been quite large, encompassing all of what is now Utah, and portions of Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, Wyoming, Arizona, Oregon, New Mexico and California. The name of Deseret was favored by the LDS leader Brigham Young as a symbol of industry and was derived from a reference in the Book of Mormon. The petition was rejected by Congress and Utah did not become a state until 1896, following the Utah Constitutional Convention of 1895.

 

In 1850, the Utah Territory was created with the Compromise of 1850, and Fillmore (named after President Fillmore) was designated the capital. In 1856, Salt Lake City replaced Fillmore as the territorial capital.

 

The first group of pioneers brought African slaves with them, making Utah the only place in the western United States to have African slavery. Three slaves, Green Flake, Hark Lay, and Oscar Crosby, came west with this first group in 1847. The settlers also began to purchase Indian slaves in the well-established Indian slave trade, as well as enslaving Indian prisoners of war. In 1850, 26 slaves were counted in Salt Lake County. Slavery didn't become officially recognized until 1852, when the Act in Relation to Service and the Act for the relief of Indian Slaves and Prisoners were passed. Slavery was repealed on June 19, 1862, when Congress prohibited slavery in all US territories.

 

Disputes between the Mormon inhabitants and the federal government intensified after the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' practice of polygamy became known. The polygamous practices of the Mormons, which were made public in 1854, would be one of the major reasons Utah was denied statehood until almost 50 years after the Mormons had entered the area.

 

After news of their polygamous practices spread, the members of the LDS Church were quickly viewed by some as un-American and rebellious. In 1857, after news of a possible rebellion spread, President James Buchanan sent troops on the Utah expedition to quell the growing unrest and to replace Brigham Young as territorial governor with Alfred Cumming. The expedition was also known as the Utah War.

 

As fear of invasion grew, Mormon settlers had convinced some Paiute Indians to aid in a Mormon-led attack on 120 immigrants from Arkansas under the guise of Indian aggression. The murder of these settlers became known as the Mountain Meadows massacre. The Mormon leadership had adopted a defensive posture that led to a ban on the selling of grain to outsiders in preparation for an impending war. This chafed pioneers traveling through the region, who were unable to purchase badly needed supplies. A disagreement between some of the Arkansas pioneers and the Mormons in Cedar City led to the secret planning of the massacre by a few Mormon leaders in the area. Some scholars debate the involvement of Brigham Young. Only one man, John D. Lee, was ever convicted of the murders, and he was executed at the massacre site.

 

Express riders had brought the news 1,000 miles from the Missouri River settlements to Salt Lake City within about two weeks of the army's beginning to march west. Fearing the worst as 2,500 troops (roughly 1/3rd of the army then) led by General Albert Sidney Johnston started west, Brigham Young ordered all residents of Salt Lake City and neighboring communities to prepare their homes for burning and evacuate southward to Utah Valley and southern Utah. Young also sent out a few units of the Nauvoo Legion (numbering roughly 8,000–10,000), to delay the army's advance. The majority he sent into the mountains to prepare defenses or south to prepare for a scorched earth retreat. Although some army wagon supply trains were captured and burned and herds of army horses and cattle run off no serious fighting occurred. Starting late and short on supplies, the United States Army camped during the bitter winter of 1857–58 near a burned out Fort Bridger in Wyoming. Through the negotiations between emissary Thomas L. Kane, Young, Cumming and Johnston, control of Utah territory was peacefully transferred to Cumming, who entered an eerily vacant Salt Lake City in the spring of 1858. By agreement with Young, Johnston established the army at Fort Floyd 40 miles away from Salt Lake City, to the southwest.

 

Salt Lake City was the last link of the First Transcontinental Telegraph, between Carson City, Nevada and Omaha, Nebraska completed in October 1861. Brigham Young, who had helped expedite construction, was among the first to send a message, along with Abraham Lincoln and other officials. Soon after the telegraph line was completed, the Deseret Telegraph Company built the Deseret line connecting the settlements in the territory with Salt Lake City and, by extension, the rest of the United States.

 

Because of the American Civil War, federal troops were pulled out of Utah Territory (and their fort auctioned off), leaving the territorial government in federal hands without army backing until General Patrick E. Connor arrived with the 3rd Regiment of California Volunteers in 1862. While in Utah, Connor and his troops soon became discontent with this assignment wanting to head to Virginia where the "real" fighting and glory was occurring. Connor established Fort Douglas just three miles (5 km) east of Salt Lake City and encouraged his bored and often idle soldiers to go out and explore for mineral deposits to bring more non-Mormons into the state. Minerals were discovered in Tooele County, and some miners began to come to the territory. Conner also solved the Shoshone Indian problem in Cache Valley Utah by luring the Shoshone into a midwinter confrontation on January 29, 1863. The armed conflict quickly turned into a rout, discipline among the soldiers broke down, and the Battle of Bear River is today usually referred to by historians as the Bear River Massacre. Between 200 and 400 Shoshone men, women and children were killed, as were 27 soldiers, with over 50 more soldiers wounded or suffering from frostbite.

 

Beginning in 1865, Utah's Black Hawk War developed into the deadliest conflict in the territory's history. Chief Antonga Black Hawk died in 1870, but fights continued to break out until additional federal troops were sent in to suppress the Ghost Dance of 1872. The war is unique among Indian Wars because it was a three-way conflict, with mounted Timpanogos Utes led by Antonga Black Hawk fighting federal and Utah local militia.

 

On May 10, 1869, the First transcontinental railroad was completed at Promontory Summit, north of the Great Salt Lake. The railroad brought increasing numbers of people into the state, and several influential businessmen made fortunes in the territory.

 

Main article: Latter Day Saint polygamy in the late-19th century

During the 1870s and 1880s, federal laws were passed and federal marshals assigned to enforce the laws against polygamy. In the 1890 Manifesto, the LDS Church leadership dropped its approval of polygamy citing divine revelation. When Utah applied for statehood again in 1895, it was accepted. Statehood was officially granted on January 4, 1896.

 

The Mormon issue made the situation for women the topic of nationwide controversy. In 1870 the Utah Territory, controlled by Mormons, gave women the right to vote. However, in 1887, Congress disenfranchised Utah women with the Edmunds–Tucker Act. In 1867–96, eastern activists promoted women's suffrage in Utah as an experiment, and as a way to eliminate polygamy. They were Presbyterians and other Protestants convinced that Mormonism was a non-Christian cult that grossly mistreated women. The Mormons promoted woman suffrage to counter the negative image of downtrodden Mormon women. With the 1890 Manifesto clearing the way for statehood, in 1895 Utah adopted a constitution restoring the right of women's suffrage. Congress admitted Utah as a state with that constitution in 1896.

 

Though less numerous than other intermountain states at the time, several lynching murders for alleged misdeeds occurred in Utah territory at the hand of vigilantes. Those documented include the following, with their ethnicity or national origin noted in parentheses if it was provided in the source:

 

William Torrington in Carson City (then a part of Utah territory), 1859

Thomas Coleman (Black man) in Salt Lake City, 1866

3 unidentified men at Wahsatch, winter of 1868

A Black man in Uintah, 1869

Charles A. Benson in Logan, 1873

Ah Sing (Chinese man) in Corinne, 1874

Thomas Forrest in St. George, 1880

William Harvey (Black man) in Salt Lake City, 1883

John Murphy in Park City, 1883

George Segal (Japanese man) in Ogden, 1884

Joseph Fisher in Eureka, 1886

Robert Marshall (Black man) in Castle Gate, 1925

Other lynchings in Utah territory include multiple instances of mass murder of Native American children, women, and men by White settlers including the Battle Creek massacre (1849), Provo River Massacre (1850), Nephi massacre (1853), and Circleville Massacre (1866).

 

Beginning in the early 20th century, with the establishment of such national parks as Bryce Canyon National Park and Zion National Park, Utah began to become known for its natural beauty. Southern Utah became a popular filming spot for arid, rugged scenes, and such natural landmarks as Delicate Arch and "the Mittens" of Monument Valley are instantly recognizable to most national residents. During the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, with the construction of the Interstate highway system, accessibility to the southern scenic areas was made easier.

 

Beginning in 1939, with the establishment of Alta Ski Area, Utah has become world-renowned for its skiing. The dry, powdery snow of the Wasatch Range is considered some of the best skiing in the world. Salt Lake City won the bid for the 2002 Winter Olympics in 1995, and this has served as a great boost to the economy. The ski resorts have increased in popularity, and many of the Olympic venues scattered across the Wasatch Front continue to be used for sporting events. This also spurred the development of the light-rail system in the Salt Lake Valley, known as TRAX, and the re-construction of the freeway system around the city.

 

During the late 20th century, the state grew quickly. In the 1970s, growth was phenomenal in the suburbs. Sandy was one of the fastest-growing cities in the country at that time, and West Valley City is the state's 2nd most populous city. Today, many areas of Utah are seeing phenomenal growth. Northern Davis, southern and western Salt Lake, Summit, eastern Tooele, Utah, Wasatch, and Washington counties are all growing very quickly. Transportation and urbanization are major issues in politics as development consumes agricultural land and wilderness areas.

 

In 2012, the State of Utah passed the Utah Transfer of Public Lands Act in an attempt to gain control over a substantial portion of federal land in the state from the federal government, based on language in the Utah Enabling Act of 1894. The State does not intend to use force or assert control by limiting access in an attempt to control the disputed lands, but does intend to use a multi-step process of education, negotiation, legislation, and if necessary, litigation as part of its multi-year effort to gain state or private control over the lands after 2014.

 

Utah families, like most Americans everywhere, did their utmost to assist in the war effort. Tires, meat, butter, sugar, fats, oils, coffee, shoes, boots, gasoline, canned fruits, vegetables, and soups were rationed on a national basis. The school day was shortened and bus routes were reduced to limit the number of resources used stateside and increase what could be sent to soldiers.

 

Geneva Steel was built to increase the steel production for America during World War II. President Franklin D. Roosevelt had proposed opening a steel mill in Utah in 1936, but the idea was shelved after a couple of months. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States entered the war and the steel plant was put into progress. In April 1944, Geneva shipped its first order, which consisted of over 600 tons of steel plate. Geneva Steel also brought thousands of job opportunities to Utah. The positions were hard to fill as many of Utah's men were overseas fighting. Women began working, filling 25 percent of the jobs.

 

As a result of Utah's and Geneva Steels contribution during the war, several Liberty Ships were named in honor of Utah including the USS Joseph Smith, USS Brigham Young, USS Provo, and the USS Peter Skene Ogden.

 

One of the sectors of the beachhead of Normandy Landings was codenamed Utah Beach, and the amphibious landings at the beach were undertaken by United States Army troops.

 

It is estimated that 1,450 soldiers from Utah were killed in the war.

When things aren't going right,

I trust you to make me smile,

And when things are looking cloudy,

You make things seem better for a little while.

 

You take away the rain,

And cover my troubles with rainbows,

You fill the sky with stars,

Just until the rain goes.

 

- Because nothing lasts forever

  

Photo taken by the fantastic Johnny Doome.

 

 

Things seem so busy and hectic lately, and me of all people find it the hardest to prioritize! I keep having to remind myself to stop and think of things that I need to do... And washing my hair is right at the top of that list!

 

I also need to find time to finish endless portraits that I have begun, tidy my floordrobe that is getting bigger and bigger rather quickly (I can never find what i'm looking for!), and I really do need to find time to convince myself to stop eating too many crisps!

 

I guess I just have to take things one day at a time and try to remember that there really are more important things than washing my hair.

 

For example, a severe need for a Career Guidance Shrink is definately of high importance!

  

Jerrycharlotte

 

Follow me on: Facebook | DeviantART | WordPress Blog

East Nowhere, Nebraska, 1985

Walking home from school, with my first trophy ever. For winning the fourth grade science fair. Not even a black eye can take away this smile. Even though it hurts to keep it open. Yeah, the other kids didn't take my win that well. Dad's gonna be really mad though. Assuming he's even awake.

 

I make my way up the driveway, and up the steps of the porch. I open the door, shortly after.

 

"Dad!! Look at wh- ---- " I cheer, entering the front door, but he just looks up at me, with anger in his eyes. There's a bottle of something, in his hand. Whether it was beer, whiskey, vodka, or rum, I couldn't tell.

 

"Henry! What the hell happened to you?" he yells.

 

"Huh? Oh, that's nothing dad. I uh just tripped. Did you see? I won!" I reply, trying to change the subject at the last moment. Mom's about to speak up, but dad interrupts her before she gets even a word in.

 

"Tripped? You expect me to believe that?! For a 'smart kid', you sure can't think of an excuse to save your life." He mocks, slurring his words throughout.

 

"Alright Brad, that's enough." Mom shoots him a glare, but dad keeps going.

 

"No, Doris, it's not. The kid needs to stop letting the other kids beat the tar out of him. He's always too busy thinking of his next invention, instead of focusing on what's in front of him." I cover my ears, and head to my room.

 

"What a surprise! Henry runs to his bedroom like the coward he is. " This causes my mom to fight back, which she often was too scared to do. "Now that's enough outta you! "

 

I can't help but cry, as I'm sitting on my bed, with my parents fighting once again. This isn't the first time, and it won't be the last. Covering my ears did nothing to stop my father's voice from entering the room, full of hatred and vitriol.

 

A minute later, my grandma enters the room, with a bag of frozen peas in her hand. I just nod, as she sits down beside me.

 

"You okay kiddo?" She asks, handing me the bag. I only shake my head in response.

 

"I just want them to be proud of me for once.." I place the bag on my eye, hoping to ease the throbbing pain. Grandma places her hand on my shoulder, and continues talking.

 

"I have no doubts that they are proud of you Henry. They both love you very much. It's just harder for your dad to show it." She says with a sigh, before continuing "Your dad, is rather stubborn. It's either his way or the highway. Been that way ever since he was your age, unfortunately. Always for the practicality of something, over creativity and imagination. But your dad doesn't always know what's best for you. Especially when he's drinking."

 

"As for what I think... I think you're a brilliant young boy, who can do anything he sets his mind to. I believe great things are in store for you Henry, and that you will change the world for the better, in your own little way. I will always be there, cheering you on. I love you, forever and always. Now let's see this trophy you won!" She says with a smile.

 

------------------------------------------------

Unfortunately, it would only be a few weeks later, that my grandma, Angela Pym, would pass away, from a heart attack. I was at school at the time of her passing, so I never had the chance to say goodbye. Which I still regret, to this day. But her words would always stay with me. I would stay true to myself, and not give up on my quirky inventions.

 

Mom would get a divorce soon after, taking me with her. We'd move, and she'd get multiple jobs to pay for the rest of my schooling. Haven't seen my dad since the move and everyone's better for it. The rest of my school years would pass fairly quickly, with me graduating from high school. After highschool came years of studying at Grayburn College, specifically in biochemistry. But much like my father, the professor's there discouraged the use of my imagination. They tried telling me I wouldn't make anything that would impact the world. I remember telling myself then, that I would prove them all wrong.

 

It was also during this time, that I would meet Maria Trovaya. The love of my life. There was instant chemistry, and it wasn't long before we started dating. Every now and then I did struggle, as I prioritized my schooling over our relationship, which led to our fair share of fights. Every relationship has its ups and downs. We would power through each hurdle, becoming better people for it. After years of dating, we'd get married, and go to Hungary for our honeymoon. Even me spouting off facts about butterfly genomes didn't scare her away, which is very surprising. We were happy. Of course, that happiness didn't last. Seems to be a recurring theme in my life. I'd come back to our hotel room, to find Maria's dead body. Blood was everywhere, and there was nothing I could do. She was gone, just like that. Once again, someone I truly cared about, died, and I did nothing to stop it. Why would this keep happening to me? That night would haunt me for years to come.

 

I would pour myself into my work, looking for anything I could. Unfortunately that wouldn't stop me from having nightmares every night. But I kept searching for something that could save others nonetheless. I would not let what happened to Maria to happen to anyone else. Vernon Van Dyne, a scientist who gave a guest lecture at my college once, reached out, wanting me to join his company, Biotek. Biotek at the time was just a start up company. But Vernon was a world-renowned scientist, and he was asking me, to join his team. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity, so it was a no brainer. After college, I would accept his offer, and join Biotek.

 

It was at Biotek where I would meet, and strike up a friendship with Elihas Starr. Another scientist on Vernon's team. Though others at the company would often mock Elihas, giving him the nickname "Egghead", due to the 'strange' shape of his head. Elihas would act as though none of that got to him, but I could tell that it did. I would stand up for him on a several occasions, which only strengthened our friendship. Did they really have nothing better to do? Apparently not. Elihas had his quirks, sure. But he's a brilliant scientist, and he cares. He cares so much about his family, that he often works late, and overtime, just to make sure his wife Catherine, and his daughter Ava, are taken care of.

 

Getting back to the matter at hand however. Me and Elihas, would work on various projects together under Vernon's leadership, but none were as groundbreaking as the Pym Particles. Don't look at me, I didn't choose the name.. Or maybe I did. But I realized the potential of these subatomic particles faster than Elihas did. He said it was too risky. However, being able to shrink to the size of an ant was too fascinating of an idea to me, so I went through with the experiments. The applications of this, if it works? Limitless! Sure enough, it worked, and I became the size of an ant. Looks like I'll prove everyone wrong after all. Hank Pym will change the world with these Pym Particles, and make sure no one faces the same injustice that Maria did.

Long-distance telephone exchange on Tenth Avenue, between 53rd and 54th Streets (Kahn & Jacobs, begun circa 1962, completed 1964). In terms of functional needs and alibis, this belongs to the same generation as 33 Thomas and the Williamsburg exchange; it would appear that, like those, its runs its vertical wiring through the exterior surface of the building, simplifying the planning of the interior while eliminating such trendy, flash-in-the-pan architectural features as "windows." A variety of excuses have been presented for this rather narrow-minded prioritization of technical apparatus over its operators, and most of them do contain at least a kind of truth even as they collapse into contradictions and absurdity. Yes, the building was prepared to host its operators for weeks after a nuclear attack - but would eliminating windows really be so helpful in the event of a thermonuclear assault on Manhattan? Yes, switching equipment is sensitive to changes in temperature - but by 1960, modern architecture had a number of well-regarded solutions for incorporating shading devices into a curtain wall. After Hurricane Andrew and the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, the windowless surface was suddenly described as a safeguard against natural disasters and terrorism - yeah, I dunno.

 

My extended ruminations on this topic - and so much more! - can soon be yours to enjoy in the upcoming issue of Grey Room (#61), but here on Flickr, where I let loose with more freewheeling, formalist takes on architecture, I'd just like to point out how much this building highlights the comparative elegance and "architecting" of 33 Thomas. Here on Tenth Avenue, the functionalist logic of the dense, windowless box of switching equipment is jammed without frills through the Play-Doh molding machine of the New York City zoning code, yielding a building which in its main blocks comes as close as possible to the familiar abstract diagrams of the building envelope: just a series of extruded masses filling the allowable space. The huge tower at the rear, capped with the microwave transmitter ensemble, simultaneously spoils the wedding-cake effect and reinforces by its very ungainliness the functionalist premise. (Quite accidentally, the openings at the top end up looking like a toothy cartoon face, which no doubt troubled at least one designer all the way to the grave.) I don't exactly hate this, though it's a hell of a thing to do to the streetscape. More interestingly, by its very bloody-mindedness it points up 33 Thomas's buried Beaux-Arts-plus-Mies finesse, where the same basic materials are made into something very different.

Woke up one morning last week, looked out the door through the back yard just as the light was coming up and noticed a thin layer of fog had settled about 30-40 feet above the ground. The air was mostly still but if you stared at the fog layer long enough you could see there was a gentle flow to it, coming out of the trees and across the field. My mind instantly prioritized and things like work, shower, and breakfast fell to a distant second place behind "photography".

 

What else could I do? I mean, you gotta strike while the iron is hot, right?

 

Read the rest of the story to find out what happened next.

       

My Blog | Google+ | Twitter

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based on historical facts. BEWARE!

  

Some background:

The CAC Sabre, sometimes known as the Avon Sabre or CA-27, was an Australian variant of the North American Aviation F-86F Sabre fighter aircraft. In 1951, Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation obtained a license agreement to build the F-86F Sabre. In a major departure from the North American blueprint, it was decided that the CA-27 would be powered by a license-built version of the Rolls-Royce Avon R.A.7, rather than the General Electric J47. In theory, the Avon was capable of more than double the maximum thrust and double the thrust-to-weight ratio of the US engine. This necessitated a re-design of the fuselage, as the Avon was shorter, wider and lighter than the J47.

 

To accommodate the Avon, over 60 percent of the fuselage was altered and there was a 25 percent increase in the size of the air intake. Another major revision was in replacing the F-86F's six machine guns with two 30mm ADEN cannon, while other changes were also made to the cockpit and to provide an increased fuel capacity.

 

The prototype aircraft first flew on 3 August 1953. The production aircrafts' first deliveries to the Royal Australian Air Force began in 1954. The first batch of aircraft were powered by the Avon 20 engine and were designated the Sabre Mk 30. Between 1957 and 1958 this batch had the wing slats removed and were re-designated Sabre Mk 31. These Sabres were supplemented by 20 new-built aircraft. The last batch of aircraft were designated Sabre Mk 32 and used the Avon 26 engine, of which 69 were built up to 1961.

 

Beyond these land-based versions, an indigenous version for carrier operations had been developed and built in small numbers, too, the Sea Sabre Mk 40 and 41. The roots of this aircraft, which was rather a prestigious idea than a sensible project, could be traced back to the immediate post WWII era. A review by the Australian Government's Defence Committee recommended that the post-war forces of the RAN be structured around a Task Force incorporating multiple aircraft carriers. Initial plans were for three carriers, with two active and a third in reserve, although funding cuts led to the purchase of only two carriers in June 1947: Majestic and sister ship HMS Terrible, for the combined cost of AU£2.75 million, plus stores, fuel, and ammunition. As Terrible was the closer of the two ships to completion, she was finished without modification, and was commissioned into the RAN on 16 December 1948 as HMAS Sydney. Work progressed on Majestic at a slower rate, as she was upgraded with the latest technology and equipment. To cover Majestic's absence, the Colossus-class carrier HMS Vengeance was loaned to the RAN from 13 November 1952 until 12 August 1955.

 

Labour difficulties, late delivery of equipment, additional requirements for Australian operations, and the prioritization of merchant ships over naval construction delayed the completion of Majestic. Incorporation of new systems and enhancements caused the cost of the RAN carrier acquisition program to increase to AU£8.3 million. Construction and fitting out did not finish until October 1955. As the carrier neared completion, a commissioning crew was formed in Australia and first used to return Vengeance to the United Kingdom.

The completed carrier was commissioned into the RAN as HMAS Majestic on 26 October 1955, but only two days later, the ship was renamed Melbourne and recommissioned.

 

In the meantime, the rather political decision had been made to equip Melbourne with an indigenous jet-powered aircraft, replacing the piston-driven Hawker Fury that had been successfully operated from HMAS Sydney and HMAS Vengeance, so that the "new jet age" was even more recognizable. The choice fell on the CAC Sabre, certainly inspired by North American's successful contemporary development of the navalized FJ-2 Fury from the land-based F-86 Sabre. The CAC 27 was already a proven design, and with its more powerful Avon engine it even offered a better suitability for carrier operations than the FJ-2 with its rather weak J47 engine.

 

Work on this project, which was initially simply designated Sabre Mk 40, started in 1954, just when the first CAC 27's were delivered to operative RAAF units. While the navalized Avon Sabre differed outwardly only little from its land-based brethren, many details were changed and locally developed. Therefore, there was also, beyond the general outlines, little in common with the North American FJ-2 an -3 Fury.

Externally, a completely new wing with a folding mechanism was fitted. It was based on the F-86's so-called "6-3" wing, with a leading edge that was extended 6 inches at the root and 3 inches at the tip. This modification enhanced maneuverability at the expense of a small increase in landing speed due to deletion of the leading edge slats, a detail that was later introduced on the Sabre Mk 31, too. As a side benefit, the new wing leading edges without the slat mechanisms held extra fuel. However, the Mk 40's wing was different as camber was applied to the underside of the leading edge to improve low-speed handling for carrier operations. The wings were provided with four stations outboard of the landing gear wells for up to 1000 lb external loads on the inboard stations and 500 lb on the outboard stations.

 

Slightly larger stabilizers were fitted and the landing gear was strengthened, including a longer front wheel strut. The latter necessitated an enlarged front wheel well, so that the front leg’s attachment point had to be moved forward. A ventral launch cable hook was added under the wing roots and an external massive arrester hook under the rear fuselage.

Internally, systems were protected against salt and humidity and a Rolls-Royce Avon 211 turbojet was fitted, a downrated variant of the already navalized Avon 208 from the British DH Sea Vixen, but adapted to the different CAC 27 airframe and delivering 8.000 lbf (35.5 kN) thrust – slightly more than the engines of the land-based CAC Sabres, but also without an afterburner.

 

A single Mk 40 prototype was built from a new CAC 27 airframe taken directly from the production line in early 1955 and made its maiden flight on August 20th of the same year. In order to reflect its naval nature and its ancestry, this new CAC 27 variant was officially christened “Sea Sabre”.

Even though the modified machine handled well, and the new, cambered wing proved to be effective, many minor technical flaws were discovered and delayed the aircraft's development until 1957. These included the wing folding mechanism and the respective fuel plumbing connections, the landing gear, which had to be beefed up even more for hard carrier landings and the airframe’s structural strength for catapult launches, esp. around the ventral launch hook.

 

In the meantime, work on the land-based CAC 27 progressed in parallel, too, and innovations that led to the Mk 31 and 32 were also incorporated into the naval Mk 40, leading to the Sea Sabre Mk 41, which became the effective production aircraft. These updates included, among others, a detachable (but fixed) refueling probe under the starboard wing, two more pylons for light loads located under the wing roots and the capability to carry and deploy IR-guided AIM-9 Sidewinder air-to-air missiles, what significantly increased the Mk 41's efficiency as day fighter. With all these constant changes it took until April 1958 that the Sabre Mk 41, after a second prototype had been directly built to the new standard, was finally approved and cleared for production. Upon delivery, the RAN Sea Sabres carried a standard NATO paint scheme with Extra Dark Sea Grey upper surfaces and Sky undersides.

 

In the meantime, the political enthusiasm concerning the Australian carrier fleet had waned, so that only twenty-two aircraft were ordered. The reason behind this decision was that Australia’s carrier fleet and its capacity had become severely reduced: Following the first decommissioning of HMAS Sydney in 1958, Melbourne became the only aircraft carrier in Australian service, and she was unavailable to provide air cover for the RAN for up to four months in every year; this time was required for refits, refueling, personnel leave, and non-carrier duties, such as the transportation of troops or aircraft. Although one of the largest ships to serve in the RAN, Melbourne was one of the smallest carriers to operate in the post-World War II period, so that its contribution to military actions was rather limited. To make matters worse, a decision was made in 1959 to restrict Melbourne's role to helicopter operations only, rendering any carrier-based aircraft in Australian service obsolete. However, this decision was reversed shortly before its planned 1963 implementation, but Australia’s fleet of carrier-borne fixed-wing aircraft would not grow to proportions envisioned 10 years ago.

 

Nevertheless, on 10 November 1964, an AU£212 million increase in defense spending included the purchase of new aircraft for Melbourne. The RAN planned to acquire 14 Grumman S-2E Tracker anti-submarine aircraft and to modernize Melbourne to operate these. The acquisition of 18 new fighter-bombers was suggested (either Sea Sabre Mk 41s or the American Douglas A-4 Skyhawk), too, but these were dropped from the initial plan. A separate proposal to order 10 A-4G Skyhawks, a variant of the Skyhawk designed specifically for the RAN and optimized for air defense, was approved in 1965, but the new aircraft did not fly from Melbourne until the conclusion of her refit in 1969. This move, however, precluded the production of any new and further Sea Sabre.

 

At that time, the RAN Sea Sabres received a new livery in US Navy style, with upper surfaces in Light Gull Gray with white undersides. The CAC Sea Sabres remained the main day fighter and attack aircraft for the RAN, after the vintage Sea Furies had been retired in 1962. The other contemporary RAN fighter type in service, the Sea Venom FAW.53 all-weather fighter that had replaced the Furies, already showed its obsolescence.

In 1969, the RAN purchased another ten A-4G Skyhawks, primarily in order to replace the Sea Venoms on the carriers, instead of the proposed seventh and eighth Oberon-class submarines. These were operated together with the Sea Sabres in mixed units on board of Melbourne and from land bases, e.g. from NAS Nowra in New South Wales, where a number of Sea Sabres were also allocated to 724 Squadron for operational training.

 

Around 1970, Melbourne operated a standard air group of four jet aircraft, six Trackers, and ten Wessex helicopters until 1972, when the Wessexes were replaced with ten Westland Sea King anti-submarine warfare helicopters and the number of jet fighters doubled. Even though the A-4G’s more and more took over the operational duties on board of Melbourne, the Sea Sabres were still frequently deployed on the carrier, too, until the early Eighties, when both the Skyhawks and the Sea Sabres received once more a new camouflage, this time a wraparound scheme in two shades of grey, reflecting their primary airspace defense mission.

 

The CAC 27 Mk 41s’ last carrier operations took place in 1981 in the course of Melbourne’s involvements in two major exercises, Sea Hawk and Kangaroo 81, the ship’s final missions at sea. After Melbourne was decommissioned in 1984, the Fleet Air Arm ceased fixed-wing combat aircraft operation. This was the operational end of the Sabre Mk 41, which had reached the end of their airframe lifetime, and the Sea Sabre fleet had, during its career, severely suffered from accidents and losses: upon retirement, only eight of the original twenty-two aircraft still existed in flightworthy condition, so that the aircraft were all scrapped. The younger RAN A-4Gs were eventually sold to New Zealand, where they were kept in service until 2002.

  

General characteristics:

Crew: 1

Length: 37 ft 6 in (11.43 m)

Wingspan: 37 ft 1 in (11.3 m)

Height: 14 ft 5 in (4.39 m)

Wing area: 302.3 sq ft (28.1 m²)

Empty weight: 12,000 lb (5,443 kg)

Loaded weight: 16,000 lb (7,256 kg)

Max. takeoff weight: 21,210 lb (9,621 kg)

 

Powerplant:

1× Rolls-Royce Avon 208A turbojet engine with 8,200 lbf (36.44 kN)

 

Performance:

Maximum speed: 700 mph (1,100 km/h) (605 knots)

Range: 1,153 mi, (1,000 NM, 1,850 km)

Service ceiling: 52,000 ft (15,850 m)

Rate of climb: 12,000 ft/min at sea level (61 m/s)

 

Armament:

2× 30 mm ADEN cannons with 150 rounds per gun

5,300 lb (2,400 kg) of payload on six external hardpoints;

Bombs were usually mounted on outer two pylons as the mid pair were wet-plumbed pylons for

2× 200 gallons drop tanks, while the inner pair was usually occupied by a pair of AIM-9 Sidewinder

AAMs

A wide variety of bombs could be carried with maximum standard loadout being 2x 1,000 lb bombs

or 2x Matra pods with unguided SURA missiles plus 2 drop tanks for ground attacks, or 2x AIM-9 plus

two drop tanks as day fighter

  

The kit and its assembly:

This project was initially inspired by a set of decals from an ESCI A-4G which I had bought in a lot – I wondered if I could use it for a submission to the “In the navy” group build at whatifmodelers.com in early 2020. I considered an FJ-3M in Australian colors on this basis and had stashed away a Sword kit of that aircraft for this purpose. However, I had already built an FJ variant for the GB (a kitbashed mix of an F-86D and an FJ-4B in USMC colors), and was reluctant to add another Fury.

 

This spontaneously changed after (thanks to Corona virus quarantine…) I cleaned up one of my kit hoards and found a conversion set for a 1:72 CAC 27 from JAYS Model Kits which I had bought eons ago without a concrete plan. That was the eventual trigger to spin the RAN Fury idea further – why not a navalized version of the Avon Sabre for HMAS Melbourne?

 

The result is either another kitbash or a highly modified FJ-3M from Sword. The JAYS Model Kits set comes with a THICK sprue that carries two fuselage halves and an air intake, and it also offers a vacu canopy as a thin fallback option because the set is actually intended to be used together with a Hobby Craft F-86F.

 

While the parts, molded in a somewhat waxy and brittle styrene, look crude on the massive sprue, the fuselage halves come with very fine recessed engravings. And once you have cleaned the parts (NOTHING for people faint at heart, a mini drill with a saw blade is highly recommended), their fit is surprisingly good. The air intake was so exact that no putty was needed to blend it with the rest of the fuselage.

 

The rest came from the Sword kit and integrating the parts into the CAC 27 fuselage went more smoothly than expected. For instance, the FJ-3M comes with a nice cockpit tub that also holds a full air intake duct. Thanks to the slightly wider fuselage of the CAC 27, it could be mounted into the new fuselage halves without problems and the intake duct almost perfectly matches the intake frame from the conversion set. The tailpipe could be easily integrated without any mods, too. The fins had to be glued directly to the fuselage – but this is the way how the Sword kit is actually constructed! Even the FJ-3M’s wings match the different fuselage perfectly. The only modifications I had to make is a slight enlargement of the ventral wing opening at the front and at the read in order to take the deeper wing element from the Sword kit, but that was an easy task. Once in place, the parts blend almost perfectly into each other, just minor PSR was necessary to hide the seams!

 

Other mods include an extended front wheel well for the longer leg from the FJ-3M and a scratched arrester hook installation, made from wire, which is on purpose different from the Y-shaped hook of the Furies.

 

For the canopy I relied on the vacu piece that came with the JAYS set. Fitting it was not easy, though, it took some PSR to blend the windscreen into the rest of the fuselage. Not perfect, but O.K. for such a solution from a conversion set.

 

The underwing pylons were taken from the Sword kit, including the early Sidewinders. I just replaced the drop tanks – the OOB tanks are very wide, and even though they might be authentic for the FJ-3, I was skeptical if they fit at all under the wings with the landing gear extended? In order to avoid trouble and for a more modern look, I replaced them outright with more slender tanks, which were to mimic A-4 tanks (USN FJ-4s frequently carried Skyhawk tanks). They actually come from a Revell F-16 kit, with modified fins. The refueling probe comes from the Sword kit.

 

A last word about the Sword kit: much light, but also much shadow. While I appreciate the fine surface engravings, the recognizably cambered wings, a detailed cockpit with a two-piece resin seat and a pretty landing gear as well as the long air intake, I wonder why the creators totally failed to provide ANY detail of the arrester hook (there is literally nothing, as if this was a land-based Sabre variant!?) or went for doubtful solutions like a front landing gear that consists of five(!) single, tiny parts? Sadism? The resin seat was also broken (despite being packed in a seperate bag), and it did not fit into the cockpit tub at all. Meh!

  

Painting and markings:

From the start I planned to give the model the late RAN A-4Gs’ unique air superiority paint scheme, which was AFAIK introduced in the late Seventies: a two-tone wraparound scheme consisting of “Light Admiralty Grey” (BS381C 697) and “Aircraft Grey” (BS 381C 693). Quite simple, but finding suitable paints was not an easy task, and I based my choice on pictures of the real aircraft (esp. from "buzz" number 880 at the Fleet Air Arm Museum, you find pics of it with very good light condition) rather than rely on (pretty doubtful if not contradictive) recommendations in various painting instructions from models or decal sets.

 

I wanted to keep things simple and settled upon Dark Gull Grey (FS 36231) and Light Blue (FS 35414), both enamel colors from Modelmaster, since both are rather dull interpretations of these tones. Esp. the Light Blue comes quite close to Light Admiralty Grey, even though it should be lighter for more contrast to the darker grey tone. But it has that subtle greenish touch of the original BS tone, and I did not want to mix the colors.

 

The pattern was adapted from the late A-4Gs’ scheme, and the colors were dulled down even more through a light black ink wash. Some post-shading with lighter tones emphasized the contrast between the two colors again. And while it is not an exact representation of the unique RAN air superiority scheme, I think that the overall impression is there.

 

The cockpit interior was painted in very dark grey, while the landing gear, its wells and the inside of the air intake became white. A red rim was painted around the front opening, and the landing gear covers received a red outline, too. The white drop tanks are a detail I took from real world RAN A-4Gs - in the early days of the air superiority scheme, the tanks were frequently still finished in the old USN style livery, hence the white body but fins and tail section already in the updated colors.

 

The decals became a fight, though. As mentioned above, the came from an ESCI kit – and, as expected, the were brittle. All decals with a clear carrier film disintegrated while soaking in water, only those with a fully printed carrier film were more or less usable. One roundel broke and had to be repaired, and the checkered fin flash was a very delicate affair that broke several times, even though I tried to save and repair it with paint. But you can unfortunately see the damage.

 

Most stencils and some replacements (e. g. the “Navy” tag) come from the Sword FJ-3. While these decals are crisply printed, their carrier film is utterly thin, so thin that applying esp. the larger decals turned out to be hazardous and complicated. Another point that did not really convince me about the Sword kit.

 

Finally, the kit was sealed with matt acrylic varnish (Italeri) and some soot stains were added around the exhaust and the gun ports with graphite.

  

In the end, this build looks, despite the troubles and the rather exotic ingredients like a relatively simple Sabre with Australian markings, just with a different Navy livery. You neither immediately recognize the FJ-3 behind it, nor the Avon Sabre’s bigger fuselage, unless you take a close and probably educated look. Very subtle, though.

The RAN air superiority scheme from the late Skyhawks suits the Sabre/Fury-thing well – I like the fact that it is a modern fighter scheme, but, thanks to the tones and the colorful other markings, not as dull and boring like many others, e. g. the contemporary USN "Ghost" scheme. Made me wonder about an early RAAF F-18 in this livery - should look very pretty, too?

s/n 0585GT

 

240 bhp, 2,953 cc single overhead camshaft V-12 engine with three Weber carburetors, four-speed all-synchromesh manual gearbox, independent front suspension with unequal-length A-arms and coil springs, live rear axle with semi-elliptic leaf springs and parallel trailing arms, and four-wheel drum brakes. Wheelbase: 2,600 mm

 

• Very first of the second series 14-louver design

• One of nine examples built

• Featured in the Hollywood Classic, The Love Bug

• Matching numbers, extensively documented, and complete with full Ferrari Classiche certification

• Received a class award at the 2011 Quail Motorsports Gathering

• Single ownership for 14 years and offered for the first time ever at auction

• Pristine example of Ferrari’s most revered berlinetta

  

The tragic accident at the 1955 24 Hours of Le Mans that claimed the lives of one driver and 79 spectators had a profound effect on the shape of racing, one that ultimately led to the creation of one of Ferrari’s most celebrated models. Racing enthusiasts and competitors alike agreed that the crash was ultimately the result of the increasingly potent powertrains of the Le Mans sports cars, and in order to prevent further disaster, new regulations would be required to veer from the path of these thinly veiled race cars, which were essentially grand prix cars packaged with two-seater bodies.

 

The following year, the FIA responded by creating new gran turismo classes that not only prioritized safety, but also re-established the concept of competitively racing a road-based production car. Ferrari, of course, was well prepared for the challenge, having just debuted its new series-production 250 GT at the Geneva Motor Show of 1956. While the coupe on display featured an elegant body that would go on to be produced in quantity by Boano, thus providing necessary homologation, the underlying chassis proved to be the basis for the competition car, or berlinetta, that Ferrari sought to enter into the FIA’s new racing classifications. Pininfarina designed a new lightweight body that was built by Scaglietti, using thin-gauge aluminum and Perspex windows and a minimally upholstered cabin. The finished car, then known officially as the 250 GT Berlinetta, was ultimately made in a sparing quantity of 77 examples that are further sub-divided by subtle differences in coachwork over the model’s four-year production run.

 

Ferrari’s hopes for competitive success were quickly realized when Olivier Gendebien and Jacques Washer co-drove the very first car, chassis number 0503 GT, to a First in Class and Fourth Overall at the Giro di Sicilia in April 1956, with a Fifth Overall (First in Class) at the Mille Miglia later that month. But the model’s defining success didn’t occur until September, during the 1956 Tour de France Automobile, a grueling 3,600 mile, week-long contest that combined six circuit races, two hill climbs, and a drag race. The Marquis Alfonso de Portago, a Spanish aristocrat and privateer racer, drove chassis number 0557 GT to a dominating victory that sealed the dynamic model’s reputation. Enzo Ferrari was so pleased with the outcome that the 250 GT Berlinetta was subsequently and internally, though never officially, referred to as the Tour de France. The moniker proved to be quite fitting, as Gendebien took First Overall at the 1957, 1958, and 1959 installments of the French race, as well as a Third Overall at the 1957 Mille Miglia, a triumph that witnessed the defeat of many more purpose-built sports racers.

 

With the introduction of a short-wheelbase 250 GT in late-1959, the outgoing platform became retrospectively labeled as the long-wheelbase version, though the original car’s designation of 250 GT LWB Berlinetta is now largely simplified with the name ‘Tour de France.’ Through its brief production run, the TdF underwent several external body modifications, ultimately resulting in four different series-produced body styles (not including a handful of Zagato-bodied cars). The alterations in appearance are most easily recognizable in the so-called sail panels, the rear ¾-panels of the c-pillar that adjoin the roof. Initially produced with no louvers at all, these panels featured 14 louvers in the second-series cars, followed by a series with just three louvers, and ending with a series that featured just one sail-panel louver. Of all of these series, the 14-louver cars are the rarest, with only nine examples produced, and are judged by many enthusiasts to be the handsomest of the group.

 

This fabulous, early Ferrari 250 GT Tour de France is the very first example constructed of the second series design that featured 14-louver sail-panels. On November 15, 1956, the stunning TdF was purchased by Tony Parravano, the Italian national and Southern California building construction magnate who is better known among 1950s racing enthusiasts for the numerous Italian sports cars that he campaigned in the area’s SCCA circuit. 0585 GT was entered for the Palm Springs road races in early April of 1957, before being disqualified because the sanctioning body did not recognize it as a production car. Changing hands among a couple of Los Angeles-based owners during the early-1960s, 0585 GT eventually came into the possession of Walt Disney Studios for use in the 1966 film The Love Bug, the celebrated Disney classic about “Herbie,” the racing VW Beetle with a soul.

 

Following its memorable Hollywood turn, this important 250 GT fell on hard times, passing through the Schaub family, of Los Angeles, before reportedly being abandoned on the side of the Hollywood freeway. Records indicate two more owners during the 1970s and 1980s. In September 1994, the car surfaced and was offered for sale in an unrestored state by David Cottingham’s DK Engineering in Watford, England. Unable to sell 0585 GT for its true value, DK, in late-1996, elected to totally restore the historically significant Tour de France, a freshening that debuted to overwhelming acclaim at Coy’s International Historic Festival at Silverstone in July 1997. The festival proved to be a perfect stage for the immaculate car, as it was sold the following October to its current owner, a well-respected Southern California-based collector who has a 40-year history of collecting and caring for some of the most recognizable and important Ferrari cars ever built.

 

Registered under license plate “MY 56 TDF,” 0585 GT was soon campaigned in a number of vintage rallies, including the Tour Auto of April 1998, as well as the Mille Miglia of the following May. The car also participated in the Tour Auto in 1999 and 2000, and placed 39th Overall at the 2000 Shell Ferrari/Maserati Historic Challenge at Le Mans. 0585 GT returned to the Tour Auto in 2001, 2002, 2004, and 2006 and was displayed at Car Classic: Freedom of Motion, the 2010 exhibition held at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. The following August, 0585 GT’s extreme quality and rarity were confirmed with the ultimate in exhibitive recognition, a class award at the 2011 Quail Motorsports Gathering in Carmel, California, where the car won “The Great Ferraris” class, honoring some of the marque’s earliest and important sports and racing cars.

 

In addition to all of these awards and racing achievements, 0585 GT has also gone under the scrutiny of the Ferrari factory’s certification program and easily received the full “Red Book” certification through Newport Beach Ferrari specialist, John Amette. For the certification process, the original gearbox was put in the car; however, the current owner has since removed it and put a more user-friendly synchromesh gearbox in the car for much better drivability purposes. It must be noted that the original unit will be supplied with the sale of this car. A full set of original tools and a jack will also be included, as well as a booklet of documentation and various trophies and awards that the car has received over the years. In preparation for the sale, 0585 GT has also just been completely detailed and sorted at well-respected Junior’s House of Color in Long Beach, California, so it will look stunning in presentation.

 

On a recent track drive in preparation for RM’s video and photography efforts, the car performed flawlessly, handling directly and powering through all of the gears with ease. As the RM specialist describes, “The four-wheel drum brakes and skinny tyres can sometimes provide a different driving experience for those familiar with later cars fitted with disk brakes and wider stances; however, it allows the pilot to become much more intimate with the driving experience and to engage the engine in a much different way, creating a completely different awareness of timing and speed…The most beautiful thing about these early TDs is what most Ferraristi will attest to, and that is the sound of the exhaust note when the car breaches 3500 rpm. As you power out of the corners, there is that point when the car just feels and sounds right! All the noises, the vibrations, and the elements of speed come together to create a symphonic harmony that is unlike anything else. Moreover, the sound is not too overpowering and is pleasurable for extended periods of time, which cannot be said for many other race-bred cars. It is the ultimate dual-purpose Ferrari!”

 

Impeccably cared for and stunningly restored, 0585 GT is a beautiful and rare example of the second series 14-louver Tour de France, one of Ferrari’s greatest sports cars of all time. This car’s next owner can look forward to continued warm receptions at the world’s finest automotive events, including rallies such as the Tour Auto and Mille Miglia, and premium exhibitive venues, such as Pebble Beach, Amelia Island, and the Palm Beach Cavallino Classic. It is a truly unique representative of one of Ferrari’s most revered models, and in many ways, it is the ultimate symbol of Ferrari’s long pursuit of dual-purpose sports cars that can be seriously campaigned as easily as they can be road driven. Given their extremely low production numbers and desirability, these cars rarely come to the market. The availability of 0585 GT after 14-years of single ownership offers an unbeatable chance to acquire one of the most storied machines to emerge from Maranello’s legendary motoring lore.

 

[Text from RM Auctions]

 

www.rmauctions.com/lots/lot.cfm?lot_id=1052658

 

This Lego miniland-scale Ferrari 250 GT LWB Berlinetta 'Tour de France' (1956 - Scaglietti), has been created for Flickr LUGNuts' 89th Build Challenge, - "Over a Million, Under a Thousand", - a challenge to build vehicles valued over one million (US) dollars, or under one thousand (US) dollars.

 

This particular vehicle was auctioned by the RM Auction house on Saturday, August 18, 2012, where it sold for $6,710,000.

 

Well finally i make it back to Flickr, have been busy since back from Vacation and deciding how to prioritize my time to get the things I want to get done including gettign back into the photo course I have let slip for too many months and other things, so am back on Flickr now, but will not be able to spend as much time on here or as frequently

However that said I will try try to keep up with and visit the good friends I have made here on Flickr and even though I havent been posting have been following your streams as and when I could

 

This Shot was taken on our vacation to England where we did a day trip to Gloucester to meet up with some good frineds, had a wonderful time with them

Here's another from my recent Minnesota trip that was on my wish list. When we were here in May we only got one train here at the 37th Avenue crossing and it wasn't the classic head on view of a train coming south under the DMIR docks, so I prioritized that this time.

 

This is an interesting stretch of track because it sees trains of four different Class 1s operate on it, owner BNSF, and trains of CPKC, UP, and CN which are successors to legacy Twin Ports carriers Soo, CNW, and DMIR. Dating from 1892 the tracks here were once owned by the short Duluth Transfer Railway, a Northern Pacific subsidiary. Note the twin mileposts with the 2.51 at right being the BNSF's ex NP/DTRR mileage and the 0 at left which is the beginning of CN's ex Missabe mainline. To learn more about the NP and the Duluth Transfer check out this tremendous link: zenithcity.com/archive/historic-industry/the-northern-pac...

 

Just about to cross Merrit Creek and 37th Avenue is CPKC's morning Duluth Yard job JS12 headed from Rices Point Yard to Stinson Yard in Superior by way of BNSF's running track and the Grassy Point Draw over the Saint Louis Bay. The lone Canadian Pacific GP20C-ECO has a lengthy cut from the Port of Duluth and CN's isolated intermodal terminal that they transfer to Pokegama Yard.

 

In the background at right berthed up beside CN's ex DMIR Dock 6 taking on a load of iron ore is the American Steamship Company's American Spirit. The self unloading bulk carrier was built in 1978 by American Shipbuilding of Lorraine, OH for the National Steel Corporation, to be managed by Hanna Mining Company and was originally named the George A. Stinson. At 1004 ft long she was the 7th thousand footer on the Great Lakes and one of 13 still sailing (including one which is technically and ITB).

 

Duluth, Minnesota

Wednesday October 4, 2023

Found this nice shot of two de Havilland DH100 Vampires at Danish Airshow, back in 2018. It was the last time the Danish Airshow were hosted at Flyvestation Aalborg. Then we had that little pandemic thing and after that the war in Ukraine forced the Royal Danish Airforce to prioritize other activities. But it seems like it will return to Aalborg in 2026. I sure hope so.

...and I have a feeling I'll need more than just my rain hat.

 

Title from an old Peter Gabriel song that I love.

High Line is an elevated railway line owned by the City of New York, today it is a 1.45-mile-long linear public park maintained, operated, and programmed by Friends of the High Line, in partnership with the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation, on Tuesday, September 15, 2015. High Line was opened in 1934 and moved goods to and from Manhattan’s largest industrial district until 1980. The third and final phase officially opened to the public on September 21, 2014. The High Line's green roof system with drip irrigation is designed to allow the planting beds to retain as much water as possible; because many of the plants are drought-tolerant, they need little supplemental watering. When supplemental watering is needed, hand watering is used so as to tailor the amount of water to the needs of individual species and weather conditions, and to conserve water. High Line is independently funded from U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service (USFS). Urban forestry and green spaces are priority areas for USFS. With 80 percent* of the nation's population in urban areas, there are strong environmental, social, and economic cases to be made for the conservation of green spaces to guide growth and revitalize city centers and older suburbs. Urban forests broadly include urban parks, street trees, landscaped boulevards, public gardens, river and coastal promenades, greenways, river corridors, wetlands, nature preserves, natural areas, shelter belts of trees and working trees at industrial brownfield sites. Urban forests are dynamic ecosystems that provide needed environmental services by cleaning air and water helping to control storm water, and conserving energy. They add form, structure, beauty and breathing room to urban design, reduce noise, separate incompatible uses, provide places to recreate, strengthen social cohesion, leverage community revitalization, and add economic value to our communities. Urban forests, through planned connections of green spaces, form the green infrastructure system on which communities depend. Green infrastructure works at multiple scales from the neighborhood to the metro area up to the regional landscape. This natural life support system sustains clean air and water, biodiversity, habitat, nesting and travel corridors for wildlife, and connects people to nature. Urban forests, through planned connections of green spaces, form the green infrastructure system on which communities depend. Urban and Community Forestry (UCF) is a cooperative program of the US Forest Service that focuses on the stewardship of urban natural resources. UCF provides technical, financial, research and educational services to local government, non-profit organizations community groups, educational institutions, and tribal governments. The program is delivered through its legislative partners, the state forestry agencies in 59 states and US territories. Forest Service cooperative programs are currently being redesigned to make more effective use of federal resources. Programs will be focused on issues and landscapes of national importance and prioritized through state and regional assessments. Over the next five years an increasing percentage of funding will be focused on landscape scale projects. Three national themes provide a framework for this work: conserve working forest landscapes; protect forests from harm; and enhance benefits associated with trees and forests. More information and upcoming webinars on December 9, 2015 | 1:00pm-2:15pm ET; January 13, 2016 | 1:00pm-2:15pm ET; and February 10, 2016 | 1:00pm-2:15pm ET can be seen at *http://www.fs.fed.us/ucf/program.shtml. USDA Photo By Lance Cheung.

I had a very healthy discussion today about politics and about which law needs to be prioritized by our leaders. Yes people needs change and i am too.

 

Change that would somehow come from ourselves as well, we cant blame all to the government. In fairness to them there are numerous amount of laws that helped us like cheaper medicine and rice distribution were normalized not to mention the imported cheap ones that many families enjoyed.

 

What pissed me is the reality that the officials( not all ) goes blind with wealth that they tend to forget what it needs to be done. I am not saying that they didnt do anything but corruption is very visible already and it pains us taxpayers that even our pension plan during retirement could not even pay for our medications.

 

I have reached 199 uploads so therefore this is my 2nd to the last post already since i dont have a pro account.

 

Peace to you all and god bless Philippines.

Oostende’s promenade was once lined with grand villas and Art Nouveau buildings, reflecting its status as a luxurious seaside resort during King Leopold II's era. After World War II, most of these historic structures were demolished to make way for modern high-rise apartments. This transformation was driven by the rise of mass tourism, prioritizing functionality over preserving architectural heritage.

 

Today, the Belgian coastline, including Oostende, is heavily urbanized and often criticized for its lack of charm compared to other European coastal areas. Dense apartment blocks have replaced natural dunes and historic landmarks, permanently altering the landscape. Unlike places such as the French Riviera or Dutch coastal towns, which have preserved their historical appeal, the Belgian coast has lost much of its unique identity.

 

In this image, I aim to create beauty out of this stark reality, playing with light and shadows to transform the setting.

 

Ostend, Belgium

THIS SUNSET SERIES IS DEDICATED TO MY FRIEND DEREK KREUGER, WHO WAS THE "HARBOUR MASTER" OF KANAKA LANDING FOR MANY YEARS. HE WAS VERY PASSIONATE ABOUT HIS WORK AT THE MARINA AND ALWAYS ENCOURAGED ME TO COME DOWN TO TAKE YET ANOTHER BEAUTIFUL SUNSET SHOT AT THE HARBOUR (AND BELIEVE ME, THERE HAS BEEN MANY)!! I KNOW HE WILL BE SADLY MISSED BY HIS FAMILY AND FRIENDS, AND ALL THOSE WHO KNEW HIM. R.I.P. MY FRIEND.

  

23250 McKay Avenue

Maple Ridge, BC Canada

 

A Harbour Authority (HA) is a non-profit, locally controlled organization which operates under a head lease with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) to operate and maintain a DFO-owned public commercial fishing harbour in the best interests of the commercial fishing fleet.

 

The harbour facility consists entirely of the property and water lots under the ownership of DFO – Small Craft Harbours (SCH).

 

An HA must operate the harbour as a public facility in accordance with the terms of the head lease and must at all times prioritize the needs of the commercial fishing industry above all else.

 

Image best viewed in large screen.

 

Thank-you for your visit, and any comments or faves are always very much appreciated! ~Sonja.

Due to work, my music and photography have taken a back seat. I'm in the process of making some big life changes and prioritizing music and photography are definitely at the forefront of those changes. I'll be creating a FB page soon! Hope you're all doing well!

Full set of new old with Marie-Pier

 

new old: from unused, unexploited, forgotten RAW files from a shoot. Back then I was prioritizing film shots, so I didn't feel like processing extra similar digital versions. However with time it's fun to go back in the vault and look at your unused work from a different eye and go in there with a mindset and mood you feel right now.

After lunch on Avalon Siem Reap, the river boat made its way up the Mekong River to Cu Lao Gieng (January) Island.

 

So, more river activity shots.

 

The number of fish farms along the Mekong River is mind boggling. This one looks like a commercial set up, not a mom and pop one.

 

The impact of floating fish farms is a challenge facing the Mekong River delta because farmers use hormones and fertilizers to grow the fish faster than the normal growth rate, polluting the water, which then causes other farmers downstream to introduce even more external chemicals.

 

It is a “potential slow moving disaster” that doesn’t seem to have a viable environmental or economic solution. In developing countries like Vietnam, governments often prioritize increasing the size of the middle class and growing the economy over sustainability or environmental justice, which can account for issues like the ones facing the Mekong.

High Line volunteers Anne Heany spends an early morning hand watering drought-tolerant plants along the High Line an elevated railway line owned by the City of New York, today the High Line is a 1.45-mile-long linear public park maintained, operated, and programmed by Friends of the High Line, in partnership with the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation, on Tuesday, September 15, 2015. High Line was opened in 1934 and moved goods to and from Manhattan’s largest industrial district until 1980. The third and final phase officially opened to the public on September 21, 2014. The High Line's green roof system with drip irrigation is designed to allow the planting beds to retain as much water as possible; because many of the plants are drought-tolerant, they need little supplemental watering. When supplemental watering is needed, hand watering is used so as to tailor the amount of water to the needs of individual species and weather conditions, and to conserve water. High Line is independently funded from U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service (USFS). Urban forestry and green spaces are priority areas for USFS. With 80 percent* of the nation's population in urban areas, there are strong environmental, social, and economic cases to be made for the conservation of green spaces to guide growth and revitalize city centers and older suburbs. Urban forests broadly include urban parks, street trees, landscaped boulevards, public gardens, river and coastal promenades, greenways, river corridors, wetlands, nature preserves, natural areas, shelter belts of trees and working trees at industrial brownfield sites. Urban forests are dynamic ecosystems that provide needed environmental services by cleaning air and water helping to control storm water, and conserving energy. They add form, structure, beauty and breathing room to urban design, reduce noise, separate incompatible uses, provide places to recreate, strengthen social cohesion, leverage community revitalization, and add economic value to our communities. Urban forests, through planned connections of green spaces, form the green infrastructure system on which communities depend. Green infrastructure works at multiple scales from the neighborhood to the metro area up to the regional landscape. This natural life support system sustains clean air and water, biodiversity, habitat, nesting and travel corridors for wildlife, and connects people to nature. Urban forests, through planned connections of green spaces, form the green infrastructure system on which communities depend. Urban and Community Forestry (UCF) is a cooperative program of the US Forest Service that focuses on the stewardship of urban natural resources. UCF provides technical, financial, research and educational services to local government, non-profit organizations community groups, educational institutions, and tribal governments. The program is delivered through its legislative partners, the state forestry agencies in 59 states and US territories. Forest Service cooperative programs are currently being redesigned to make more effective use of federal resources. Programs will be focused on issues and landscapes of national importance and prioritized through state and regional assessments. Over the next five years an increasing percentage of funding will be focused on landscape scale projects. Three national themes provide a framework for this work: conserve working forest landscapes; protect forests from harm; and enhance benefits associated with trees and forests. More information and upcoming webinars on December 9, 2015 | 1:00pm-2:15pm ET; January 13, 2016 | 1:00pm-2:15pm ET; and February 10, 2016 | 1:00pm-2:15pm ET can be seen at *http://www.fs.fed.us/ucf/program.shtml. USDA Photo By Lance Cheung.

Our home is our sanctuary, a happy place we built together to escape the outside world's noise. We made a deliberate choice to prioritize calm, connection, and peace above everything else. Our home is a quiet haven where we recharge, connect gently, and find true happiness just being together in peace.

One from the archives. This is the Green Blotched Moth (Cosmodes elegans). This individual had managed to get stuck inside our house. I was able to safely relocate it outside. Happy Moth Monday everyone! I am having a really hectic time at the moment (health issues and general busyness) so apologies if I take a while to comment on photos. I am prioritizing getting my own images up as once spring really kicks in I’ll be taking even more photos and completely overwhelmed!

Prioritizing the search for meaning may be the secret to creating insightful images. Find out more about my thoughts here!

 

Click Here to listen to the weekly podcast.

moneymakerphotography.com/podcast

 

Searching for meaning is something that most of us photographers do almost by default. After all, that’s the point of creating artwork, isn’t it? To create something meaningful that resonates with the people who enjoy it. And that’s why we spend so much time talking about how to imbue our photographs with meaning. Here is perhaps another way to look at or to approach that search for meaning.

 

As I said, this is something that most of us do sort of automatically as part of the creation process—but when we’re searching for ideas or photographs to take in the field, we’re also usually searching for other things beyond meaning. We might be looking for beautiful objects or looking for things that fit a theme we happen to be working on. For some of us, at times, the objective is to search out new things that no one has ever photographed before.

 

In this way, the search for meaning almost becomes an accessory to the rest rather than the primary focus of what we’ve set out to do on a given day. Perhaps instead of searching for the next new thing, things to fit our themes, or things of particular beauty, we should focus the whole of our search on meaning alone.

 

If you think about it, the search for some of these other, more mundane factors has the potential to lead us to create art that has already been done—often exhaustively. Finding something that has never been photographed before? This is an almost impossible feat in a world where billions of photographs have been made. If we focus our search on beauty, then it’s likely that our beauty ideals will align closely with those of many others—and that will lead us to take photographs of the same things that other people found beautiful.

 

Of course, there’s nothing wrong with taking photographs of things that other people have already photographed. But I still think it valuable to approach these things with the idea of searching for meaning above all else.

 

That’s because when we are looking for meaning, we tend to apply our entire lives to what we’re seeing. One person can look at a cliff face and have fond memories of rock climbing with friends while another may remember a camping trip where they sheltered against a cliff during a storm. We all have different experiences and personal thoughts that we can apply to the world—and that’s how we give photographs a unique perspective, by creating them through our personal lens into life. You might find it worthwhile on your next photography outing to dispense with the idea of searching for particular subjects in favor of searching for things that stand out to you as meaningful. Walk through the world, and pause in those places that make you think, feel, or remember. Here is where you are likely to find the material that helps you create deep and moving photographs.