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The Ajuda National Palace, a neoclassical building from the first half of the 19th century, was built upon plans drawn by the architects Francisco José Fabri (1761-1817) and José da Costa e Silva (1741-1819). It became a royal residence on king Luís I (1861-1889) accession to the throne and it remained as such until the end of the Monarchy, in 1910.
From 1862, when the king married Maria Pia Princess of Savoy, onto the end of his reign, the ever-unfinished palace was brought into life. Its decorative interiors suffered great changes from the beginning. Joaquim Possidónio da Silva (1806-1896), the royal architect, was in charge of the works. He renewed the room’s distribution and decoration according to the 19th century modern standards, where comfort and hygiene were vital. New rooms were created: the winter garden, the Saxe and the Chinese rooms, a dining room for the family daily meals and bathrooms with all the recent amenities, such as cold and hot running water. For fifty years the palace was the stage to a whole lot of events: princes were born and christened – Carlos (1863-1908) and Afonso (1865-1920) –, the State Counsel gathered here, balls, banquets and court ceremonies took place.
In 1910, when the Republic was instated, the consequent exile of the royal family brought a closure period upon the palace. It opened to the public as a Museum since 1968. It still holds its decorative artworks in place in a lively and truthful to its origins display. On the ground floor, from the Music Room onwards, the private apartments can be found, while State Rooms occupy the upper floor. As a museum, it gathers important collections of decorative arts from the 18th and 19th centuries: gold and silver works, textiles, furniture and ceramics as well as paintings, sculptures and photographs. The most important State ceremonies held by the President of the Republic still take place here.
.Over-the-top
.Simple/Safe
.Using too much effects
.Creative
.Resourceful
.Inspirational(using other photo form other editors)
.Realistic
.Non realistic
.Versatile
.One note
Michael Replogle, Managing Director for Policy and Founder of the Institute for Transportation & Development Policy, puts a questionsto the panel of experts at the plenary on "Urban and Regional Mobility: Who Pays?" during the International Transport Forum 2013 Summit, 24 May 2013, Leipzig, Germany
"Question Mark" is a new sculpture created by Rosario Marquardt and Roberto Behar and funded through a gift from the Madison Public Library Foundation. Photo by library staff.
Here's a Fun Flickr Project
It's taken a day or two for me to get it accomplished but it was indeed fun.
1. Answer each of the questions below (Mine is filled out with my answers).
2. Type in each of your answers in flickrs search box
3. Pick a relevant photo off the first page of results and copy the URL.
4. When you have all 12 go the fd's Flickr Toys and make a mosaic of your answers :)
Questions:
1. What is your first name? N---- L--
www.flickr.com/photos/matt21cdog-pics/2406447784/
2. What is your favorite food? Pizza - Today at least
www.flickr.com/photos/valpopando/224392010/
3. What high school did you go to? Rogers High School - AR
www.flickr.com/photos/veronicau/2245040003/
4. What is your favorite color? midnight blue
www.flickr.com/photos/stebbifridu/344716127/
5. Who is your celebrity crush? Brad Pitt - many moons ago
www.flickr.com/photos/juliedermansky/2088754245/
6. Favorite drink? Water
www.flickr.com/photos/nickwheeleroz/2427307028/
7. Dream vacation? Tour of Ireland
www.flickr.com/photos/janskiii/232146444/
8. Favorite dessert? Strawberry Shortcake
www.flickr.com/photos/daffodilious/550733870/
9. What you want to be when you grow up? A Teacher
www.flickr.com/photos/mtbl/2235304851/
10. What do you love most in life? Messiah Yeshua
www.flickr.com/photos/kros/87257690/
11. One Word to describe you. Here
www.flickr.com/photos/krmuir/127061080/
12. Your Flickr name. Nanny With A Camera - I cheated a bit onthis one but I thought only kids that I do or have cared for would do.
www.flickr.com/photos/nannywithacamera/2567795193/in/set-...
Used as the illustration to the poem, "Lovelorn Poets in Western Massachusetts:
Everyday Questions…" at www.lovelornpoets.com/2011/08/08/lovelorn-poets-in-wester...
The is a photograph from a set of photographs of the 15th running of the Fields of Athenry 10KM took place on Monday, St. Stephen's Day, December 26th 2016 at 11:00 in Athenry, Co. Galway, Ireland. Just under 1,200 participants finished the race today under the Medieval Arch in the town. The weather, for a change, was almost perfect for road running. While there was a stiff breeze into the face of runners for the first 4KM the conditions turned very pleasant and favourable for the final 6KM of the race with the winter sun also appearing.
This is one of the leading 10KM road races in Ireland. It is hard to believe that the race is "only" fifteen years old. It's superb organisation, atmosphere, and great race history gives it the characteristic of a race that is many years older. The credit for this goes to the wonderful athletics club in Athenry AC and the team of volunteers. The attention to every detail in the race which this year attracted over 1,200 participants means that the race has earned it's stripes as one of the leading road races in Ireland.
The race started at the Railway station and then took in a loop of the famous fields of Athenry where it turns left and begins it's return to the town, passing the soccer club, over the railway lines, and finishing under the medival arch in Athenry town for a fittingly atmospheric finish to the race. Race HQ is in the Presentation College in Athenry. Post race showers, prize giving ceremony, and refreshments were provided in the College after the race.
We have a very extensive set of photographs from this year's event. The link to the full set of photographs on this Flickr photostream is here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/peterm7/albums/72157676673218051. There are some photographs of the race start and photographs of the race finish from the 1st across the line until the 50 minutes finish time.
Some useful Internet links
The Athenry AC Website: www.athenryac.com
The Athenry AC Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/athenryac?fref=ts (Requires Facebook Login)
The official website for the Fields of Athenry 10KM 2016 Website: www.athenry10k.com (This also provides access to the complete archive of results for the entire series of Fields of Athenry races)
The Finish of the 10km under the Medieval Arch on Google Streetview: goo.gl/maps/O2Sv1
Our Flickr set from the Fields of Athenry 2015: www.flickr.com/photos/peterm7/sets/72157649881213766
Our Flickr set from the Fields of Athenry 2013: www.flickr.com/photos/peterm7/sets/72157639022727644/
Our Flickr set from the Fields of Athenry 2012: www.flickr.com/photos/peterm7/sets/72157632343684441/
Our Flickr set from the Fields of Athenry 2011: www.flickr.com/photos/peterm7/sets/72157628575384797/
Edenhill77 also posts photographs from road race events in Galway to Flickr: www.flickr.com/photos/edenhill77/sets/
Garmin Connect GPS trace of the 10KM Race Route: connect.garmin.com/player/61755378
Wikipedia Page on 'The Field's of Athenry' en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fields_of_Athenry
The defacto definitive version of the famous song as sung by Paddy Reilly:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9InnXP64To
The fields of Athenry as sung by the fans of the Republic of Ireland soccer team at Euro 2012 against Spain: www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdZqpYX9eNk
USING OUR PHOTOGRAPHS - A QUICK GUIDE AND ANSWERS TO YOUR QUESTIONS
Can I use these photographs directly from Flickr on my social media account(s)?
Yes - of course you can! Flickr provides several ways to share this and other photographs in this Flickr set. You can share directly to: email, Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Tumblr, LiveJournal, and Wordpress and Blogger blog sites. Your mobile, tablet, or desktop device will also offer you several different options for sharing this photo page on your social media outlets.
BUT..... Wait there a minute....
We take these photographs as a hobby and as a contribution to the running community in Ireland. We do not charge for our photographs. Our only "cost" is that we request that if you are using these images: (1) on social media sites such as Facebook, Tumblr, Pinterest, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter,LinkedIn, Google+, VK.com, Vine, Meetup, Tagged, Ask.fm,etc or (2) other websites, blogs, web multimedia, commercial/promotional material that you must provide a link back to our Flickr page to attribute us or acknowledge us as the original photographers.
This also extends to the use of these images for Facebook profile pictures. In these cases please make a separate wall or blog post with a link to our Flickr page. If you do not know how this should be done for Facebook or other social media please email us and we will be happy to help suggest how to link to us.
I want to download these pictures to my computer or device?
You can download this photographic image here directly to your computer or device. This version is the low resolution web-quality image. How to download will vary slight from device to device and from browser to browser. Have a look for a down-arrow symbol or the link to 'View/Download' all sizes. When you click on either of these you will be presented with the option to download the image. Remember just doing a right-click and "save target as" will not work on Flickr.
I want get full resolution, print-quality, copies of these photographs?
If you just need these photographs for online usage then they can be used directly once you respect their Creative Commons license and provide a link back to our Flickr set if you use them. For offline usage and printing all of the photographs posted here on this Flickr set are available free, at no cost, at full image resolution.
Please email petermooney78 AT gmail DOT com with the links to the photographs you would like to obtain a full resolution copy of. We also ask race organisers, media, etc to ask for permission before use of our images for flyers, posters, etc. We reserve the right to refuse a request.
In summary please remember when requesting photographs from us - If you are using the photographs online all we ask is for you to provide a link back to our Flickr set or Flickr pages. You will find the link above clearly outlined in the description text which accompanies this photograph. Taking these photographs and preparing them for online posting takes a significant effort and time. We are not posting photographs to Flickr for commercial reasons. If you really like what we do please spread the link around your social media, send us an email, leave a comment beside the photographs, send us a Flickr email, etc. If you are using the photographs in newspapers or magazines we ask that you mention where the original photograph came from.
I would like to contribute something for your photograph(s)?
Many people offer payment for our photographs. As stated above we do not charge for these photographs. We take these photographs as our contribution to the running community in Ireland. If you feel that the photograph(s) you request are good enough that you would consider paying for their purchase from other photographic providers or in other circumstances we would suggest that you can provide a donation to any of the great charities in Ireland who do work for Cancer Care or Cancer Research in Ireland.
Let's get a bit technical: We use Creative Commons Licensing for these photographs
We use the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License for all our photographs here in this photograph set. What does this mean in reality?
The explaination is very simple.
Attribution- anyone using our photographs gives us an appropriate credit for it. This ensures that people aren't taking our photographs and passing them off as their own. This usually just mean putting a link to our photographs somewhere on your website, blog, or Facebook where other people can see it.
ShareAlike – anyone can use these photographs, and make changes if they like, or incorporate them into a bigger project, but they must make those changes available back to the community under the same terms.
Above all what Creative Commons aims to do is to encourage creative sharing. See some examples of Creative Commons photographs on Flickr: www.flickr.com/creativecommons/
I ran in the race - but my photograph doesn't appear here in your Flickr set! What gives?
As mentioned above we take these photographs as a hobby and as a voluntary contribution to the running community in Ireland. Very often we have actually ran in the same race and then switched to photographer mode after we finished the race. Consequently, we feel that we have no obligations to capture a photograph of every participant in the race. However, we do try our very best to capture as many participants as possible. But this is sometimes not possible for a variety of reasons:
►You were hidden behind another participant as you passed our camera
►Weather or lighting conditions meant that we had some photographs with blurry content which we did not upload to our Flickr set
►There were too many people - some races attract thousands of participants and as amateur photographs we cannot hope to capture photographs of everyone
►We simply missed you - sorry about that - we did our best!
You can email us petermooney78 AT gmail DOT com to enquire if we have a photograph of you which didn't make the final Flickr selection for the race. But we cannot promise that there will be photograph there. As alternatives we advise you to contact the race organisers to enquire if there were (1) other photographs taking photographs at the race event or if (2) there were professional commercial sports photographers taking photographs which might have some photographs of you available for purchase. You might find some links for further information above.
Don't like your photograph here?
That's OK! We understand!
If, for any reason, you are not happy or comfortable with your picture appearing here in this photoset on Flickr then please email us at petermooney78 AT gmail DOT com and we will remove it as soon as possible. We give careful consideration to each photograph before uploading.
I want to tell people about these great photographs!
Great! Thank you! The best link to spread the word around is probably http://www.flickr.com/peterm7/sets
The questions were difficult, because I wanted to answer honestly. Was it nice? Yes. Were we going to get married? No. Would we see each other again? I hoped so. Did I love him? I paused a bit too long over that one. Yes, definitely, but perhaps not the way she imagined. I was finding it hard to work it out myself. He was special, the right special, and she'd know about that one day.
www.twitter.com/Memoire2cite -😊
Quartiers Sud-Est, c'était un 13 octobre 1955.. « Le chantier de Beaulieu – Le Rond-Point (1ère tranche) sera terminé le 30 juin 1956 très exactement »,La Tribune du centre & du Sud-Est, le 26 juin 1956 - LOIRE (42) - - Après la seconde guerre mondiale, un immense chantier s'ouvre en France dans le but de loger massivement une population démunie, les réalisations des HLM en France et la lutte contre l'habitat indigne insalubre , le film parle de St-Etienne entre autre avec les Cités du soleil 1958 de Jean-Claude Sée : www.dailymotion.com/video/xgj74q .
Jusqu'au milieu des années 1970, cette période dite des « Trente Glorieuses l'après guerre et montre la plupart des grandes réalisations de 1945 à 1960. A travers les exemples de la région parisienne et de quelques grandes villes françaises sont posé les problèmes de la diversité architecturale, de l'esthétique et de l'harmonie entre le passé et l'avenir. Les images montrent les grands ensembles de Beaulieu, la Marandiniére, à Saint-Etienne, la cité le Haut du Lièvre à Nancy, des cités à Sarcelles, Asnières, Bron-Parilly, Epinay, Pantin, Bobigny, la cité radieuse de Le Corbusier à Marseille, le front de mer à Royan, la video de l'Année 1962, une réalisation de Philippe Brunet içi www.dailymotion.com/video/xgj2zz » fut le terrain de nombreuses expérimentations architecturales et urbanistiques, fondées notamment sur les idées émises plus tôt dans le siècle par le Mouvement moderne.
Aujourd'hui, ces ensembles bâtis sont au cœur d'une autre actualité, liée à leur adaptation à l'évolution des modes de vie de notre société contemporaine. Cette question qui se posa dès la fin des années 1970 apparaît sous un jour nouveau, avec les premières démolitions dans les années 1980 et, plus récemment, le vaste programme de réhabilitation mis en place dans le cadre de la loi Solidarité et Renouvellement Urbain.
Après Les Grands Ensembles. Une histoire qui continue…, ce nouvel ouvrage, fruit de la collaboration entre l'École Nationale Supérieure d'Architecture de Saint-Étienne et l'Université Jean Monnet, apporte un éclairage nouveau sur cet héritage bâti, mettant au jour simultanément la question de son vécu et celle des acteurs engagés dans son édification. En réunissant quinze auteurs spécialistes de ce domaine, il s'agit de regrouper autant de points de vue, pour comprendre la diversité et la complexité des enjeux liés à la postérité de ce bâti. - « Petite enquête sur Beaulieu – Le Rond-Point », La Tribune du centre et du sud-est, 13 octobre 1955 et « Le chantier de Beaulieu – Le Rond-Point (1ère tranche) sera terminé le 30 juin 1956 très exactement »,La Tribune du centre & du sud-est, 26 juin 1956 -
«St-Etienne, la place des grands ensembles dans l’histoire de l’habitat social français »
Saint-Étienne/Beaulieu, au sud-est de l’agglomération, sur le versant sud de la colline de Beaulieu, en forte pente et d’aspect semi-rural, la cité de Beaulieu est mise à l’étude dès 1950. Elle débute en 1953 et comprend 1 221 logements, un groupe scolaire et 35 boutiques. Des parrains prestigieux et l’élite de l’architecture sté- phanoise sont mobilisés pour ce premier grand ensemble local.
Tantôt les bâtiments suivent le dessin de la courbe de niveau 600, devenue rue Le Corbusier, tantôt ils s’installent perpendi-culairement à la pente, reliés à la rue par des passerelles ou de grands escaliers. A l’implantation exemplaire des bâtiments répond une maîtrise raffinée du végétal d’accompagnement, décliné selon les modes habituels aux squares urbains, avec une virtuosité étonnante dus aux talents de l’ingénieur des Services techniques de la ville, Jean Marc, associé à l’équipe de concep-tion dès l’origine de l’opération.
Le vocabulaire de l’art des jardins s’adapte au grand ensemble : les espaces sont découpés à partir des courbes de niveau et des allées, et caractérisés par un système de haies et de contre-haies (haies étagées doubles ou triples) constituées de troènes com-muns ou dorés, prunus, berbéris et buffets de laurier, et sont plantés d arbres rythmés et colorés (érables négundo et acacias), ou parfois fastigiés (la gamme d’arbres est d’ailleurs peu riche), selon un dessin géométrique et des alternances de couleurs. Ces espaces verts ne sont réalisés qu’à partir de 1964, après avoir été longtemps laissés en prairies fauchées. Cet état de fait, dû au départ à l’étirement des financements des projets d’espaces exté-rieurs, s’inscrivait aussi dans la logique de conception de notre ingénieur, qui pensait « qu’il était nécessaire de laisser vivre un groupe d’habitations avant de planter » – afin de reprendre notamment les chemins tracés par l’usage.
Cette réalisation révèle le décalage entre les réflexions et les savoir-faire architecturaux et paysagers et exprime quelques traits caractéristiques de la pratique paysagiste. Le festonnage des haies qui jalonne les espaces extérieurs rejoint celui des collines boca- gères surplombant les bâtiments. Il rappelle le site environnant et inspirera plus tard l’AUA et Alexandre Chemetoff pour la réhabilitation du quartier de Montreynaud.
Relevons que, sans l’action concertée des services de la ville et de l’office d’HLM, qui finança entièrement la réalisation des espaces verts, rien n’aurait été fait à cette époque, compte tenu du désintérêt pour cet aspect du projet des principaux responsables du chantier. « D’ailleurs, à cette époque, les architectes ne jouaient pas au paysagiste… », queleques superbes videos du Ministere de la Cohésion et des Territoires içi : .Naissance d'une banlieue mort d'un village 2000 www.dailymotion.com/video/x1a98iz
Réalisateur : Sidney Jézéquel Production : Les Films Roger Leenhardt Sujet : la commune de Goussainville (95) --------
Quatre murs et un toit 1953 www.dailymotion.com/video/xk6xui Scenario et réalisation Pierre Jallaud MRU (ministère de la reconstruction et de l'urbanisme) ----------------
Le Bonheur est dans le béton www.dailymotion.com/video/x413amo - 2015 Documentaire réalisé par Lorenz Findeisen produit par Les Films du Tambour de Soie ---------------------
Beaulieu par son constructeur la Cimaise :" Entre les années 50 et 60, et suite à la seconde guerre mondiale, la municipalité stéphanoise a vu sa population passée d’un peu moins de 180 000 habitants en 1950 à plus de 200 000 habitants dix ans plus tard en 1960. Cette forte augmentation de la population pouvait s’expliquer par le fort taux de natalité de cette époque (baby-boom), mais aussi par l’afflux de travailleurs de la classe ouvrière venus dans la grande cité stéphanoise pour trouver un travail. De ce fait, la construction d’un logement sain pour chaque ouvrier était devenue une priorité absolue pour les élus qui considéraient à raison que cela était une condition vitale dans le cadre de ce grand développement. Pour ce faire, la ville a lancé dans les années 50 une vaste opération de construction de barres d’habitation dans la zone de Beaulieu, destinée à fournir un logement à une population grandissante.
------------------ Bâtir mieux plus vite et moins cher 1975 l'industrialisation du bâtiment et ses innovations : la préfabrication en usine, le coffrage glissant... www.dailymotion.com/video/xyjudq --------------
BEAULIEU une barre d’habitation innovante
A l’époque, avec une majorité d’architectes, les appartements modernes construits possédaient des cloisons lourdes empêchant toute modification interne ainsi que des espaces de renvoi sombres et non ventilés ressemblant à des alcôves.
Mais à l’inverse, pour certains architectes précurseurs de la région à l’image d’Yves et Henri Gouyon, la modernité reflétait le gout de la clarté, de l’air, et du soleil, avec de larges horizons. Ainsi, ces derniers donnaient la priorité non pas aux façades qu’ils considéraient comme de simples élévations du plan, mais aux cellules d’habitations et à leur orientation. Dans cette optique, le bâtiment proposé par Henri Gouyon, qui était donc un partisan de l’espace ouvert moderne, supprimait les circulations et profitait de ce gain de place pour aménager de nouveaux espaces de vie communes. De plus, dans ces cellules d’habitations, les architectes ont tirés profit au maximum de la double orientation des appartements (ces derniers étaient traversant) avec par exemple l’accolement de balcons. Conception et réalisation d’un quartier entier. Pour le projet de Beaulieu, l’on confia la conception ainsi que la réalisation des interventions aux agences Henri et Yves Gouyon puis Yves Gouyon et associés. Ainsi, dés le milieu des années 50, des études concernant Beaulieu II – La Marandinière furent conduites, suivis de la construction du bâtiment entre 1957 et 1959. S’en suivit Beaulieu III – Montchovet entre 1962 et 1964, surnommé la « Muraille de Chine la plus grande barre d'Europe avec 540 appartements à sa livraison mi 1964, les chantiers de l'OPAC devenu Métropole-Habitat, www.ina.fr/video/LY00001263522 », qui comprenait entre autres, une barre de type HLM haute de 10 à 17 mètres et longue de 270 mètres, avec 560 logements. Suites à ces constructions, l’urbanisation des vallées et collines du sud-est de Saint-Etienne continua jusque dans les années 70 avec les séries de la Métare I, II, et III. Au total, ce sont plus de 8 000 logements, pour l’essentiel de type HLM, qui ont été construits durant cette période. Ces constructions ont également contribué à la création du parc de l’Europe et d’un boulevard circulaire qui servait de jonction entre les différents édifices et le centre-ville de la cité stéphanoise.
Un projet pharaonique
Le centre commercial fut un projet d’une dimension sans précédent pour la ville, plus grand centre commercial intra-urbain de la région Loire-Auvergne, avec 100 magasins, 1500 places de stationnement, 90 000 m² de surface, et sur 3 niveaux (4 niveaux avec la terrasse). Le 2 octobre 1979, CENTRE DEUX ouvre ses portes pour la première fois, et constitue une renaissance et un véritable tournant pour la ville. L’avis de l’architecte
De toutes les constructions de cette époque, Beaulieu est un des ensembles construits qui se porte le mieux si l’on en croit les nombreuses enquêtes menées auprès de la population de ces logements, dont certains l’occupe pratiquement depuis le début. Les arbres atteignent désormais le haut des immeubles, et la rue Le Corbusier adjacente a pris les allures « d’une banlieue des années 30 » avec un niveau d’urbanisme parfaitement acceptable. En conclusion, on peut parler pour cette construction d’un véritable savoir faire architectural et en quelques sortes d’art urbain. Ce projet a été récompensé par un prix d’urbanisme, mettant en valeur le travail en amont du projet. www.cimaise-architectes.com/realisations/divers/construct... cité HLM labellisée Patrimoine du XXeme siecle -"Il faut bien le dire, avant même d’être livré, Beaulieu est l' un des grands-ensembles, parmis 6 autres qui fasçinait en 1954..En effet c'etait le début de la longue & grande histoire des chantiers de l'Office Public de l'Aménagement et de la Construction* içi, ou à Montreynaud, Solaure, Monthieu etc
( l'OPAC l'office public de logements sociaux, devenu plus tard Métropole-Habitat, est la plus importante au niveau National, c'est la plus grosse boite d'HLM). Bref, les habituels promeneurs du coin genre les "Bois du Four (la Metare, le nom ançien, qui par ailleurs appartenait a Mme de Métarie une veuve riche qui légua son domaine soit "la Métare" à la ville, pour un Franc symbolique à l'epoque et aux CHU anciennement les HCL Hospiçes Civils de la Ville comme à Lyon... (on notera qu il y a des tas de logements en centre ville propriété du CHU)..
se rendant le dimanche
dans le Pilat ou à Rochetaillée et sur les collines* alentours (on en a 7 comme a Rome) font un léger détour par le chantier. Ils constatent
alors de visu cet avancement des travaux que la presse qualifie de « belle prouesse ». Le rythme est en effet rapide : « un étage par semaine » pour certaines barres, comme le raconte un témoin. Les « grandes maisons », soient les immeubles de hauteur et nombre de logements importants (IGH), étant alors encore rares dans la
ville, les Stéphanois n’y sont pas habitués@ les H.L.M. Beaulieu est la 1ere cité Stéphanoise de toutes,. Les barres de dix-sept et quatorze niveaux gises respectivement rues Gomy Herriot et de Vlaminck, ainsi que la tour de 22 niveaux au 33 rue Le-Corbusier,
surprennent donc encore pire pour la plus grande barre d'Europe qui arrvera 7 ans plus tard, la Muraille qui mettront certains certaines à la renverse , le gigantisme à l'état brut, du lourd.... La référence qui vient à l’esprit de beaucoup ajoute à la fascination : l’Amérique. « C’est New-York ! c'est tres joile, tres vert... », se rappelle avoir pensé un habitant de la première harre...Mais plus que les immeubles, ce sont surtout les logements qui emportent l’adhésion des « heureux locataires », comme aime à les appeler la presse tout court. La satisfaction procurée aux habitants par l’hygiène et le confort des logements des Grands-Ensembles soit les quartiers NEUF est une information connue, les études de sciences humaines sur le sujet abondent. Aussi, pour le cas de Beaulieu devenu un cas d'Ecole idem pour Montchovet (Beaulieu3) et les transformations de la Marandiniere (Beaulieu2)...
Les entretiens réalisés avec des locataires n’apportent pas sur ce point-ci d’éléments nouveaux :
les premiers motifs de satisfaction invoqués sont, comme pour bien d’autres Grands-Ensembles Français,
l’eau courante, le chauffage central dont sont pourvus les immeubles les plus hauts, les WC
intérieurs et salles de bain, l’ensoleillement et la luminosité permis par l’orientation, la
hauteur et la disposition des immeubles, les placards et les tout aussi pratiques balcons à
parois séchoirs permettant de faire sécher le linge, hiver compris.
Entretien avec François Tomas, géographe, spécialiste de l'aménagement urbain, et enseignant à l'université et à l'école d'architecture de Saint-Etienne. Il est notamment l'auteur des Grands Ensembles, une histoire qui continue (Publications de l'université de Saint-Etienne, 2003). Cet intellectuel a également mis la main à la pâte. Entre 1977 et 1983, il fut adjoint à l'urbanisme du maire communiste de l'époque, Joseph Sanguedolce. Engagé au PC de 1974 à 1985, il a, depuis, rejoint le Parti socialiste «comme militant de base»
Quelle est l'ampleur des destructions provoquées par la Seconde Guerre mondiale à Saint-Etienne?
La ville subit un important bombardement des Alliés le 26 mai 1944. Celui-ci vise les usines qu'utilisaient les Allemands dans la région pour leur effort de guerre et les noeuds de communication ferroviaire. Comme prévu, la gare de Châteaucreux, les usines de Marais et le tunnel de Tardy sont touchés. Mais les bombes, larguées trop rapidement, atteignent aussi les quartiers du Soleil et de Tardy - notamment les écoles - ainsi que l'église Saint-François, emplie de fidèles. Au total, le bilan est lourd: un millier de morts, 1 500 blessés, 22 000 sinistrés; 800 immeubles ont été plus ou moins détruits.
Que prévoit-on pour la reconstruction?
Pas grand-chose. A la différence de la refonte spectaculaire du Havre, par exemple, on se contente ici de bâtir de petits immeubles, plus modernes bien sûr, mais sans réelle innovation architecturale ou urbanistique.
Est-il vrai que Saint-Etienne, après guerre, traîne une réputation de «capitale des taudis»?
C'est exact, et celle-ci n'est pas usurpée. En 1946, 7% seulement des logements sont jugés «confortables», et 17%, «acceptables»; 56% sont médiocres, et 20% peuvent véritablement être qualifiés de taudis: 1 logement sur 5 n'a pas d'eau à l'évier, les deux tiers ne disposent pas de WC, et 95%, de salle d'eau. Mais le problème n'a pas été créé par la guerre. Depuis la fin du XIXe siècle, Saint-Etienne a beaucoup grandi, mais très peu construit. Résultat: la ville a vieilli sur elle-même et se trouve après guerre dans une situation désastreuse, que les bombardements ont simplement aggravée.
C'est alors qu'Alexandre de Fraissinette, maire élu en 1947, fixe le logement comme l'une de ses priorités.
Oui. Et ce ne sera pas un vain mot. Rendez-vous compte: on passe de 114 logements construits en 1948 à 531 en 1951, 1 085 en 1954, 1 694 en 1957 et même 2 932 en 1959! L'effort est gigantesque. Mais le changement est aussi qualitatif. A la fin des années 1940 et au début des années 1950, la France va connaître une rupture architecturale avec l'apparition des premiers grands ensembles. Saint-Etienne sera l'une des villes symboles de cette rupture.
Comment cette nouvelle architecture est-elle accueillie?
Très favorablement par les classes moyennes, beaucoup moins par les classes populaires.
Cela paraît paradoxal, pour du logement social!
Le paradoxe n'est qu'apparent. On l'a oublié aujourd'hui, mais les premiers grands ensembles sont réservés aux familles de moins de trois enfants ayant des revenus corrects, autrement dit aux classes moyennes. Alors que, depuis la guerre, celles-ci devaient se contenter d'une ou de deux pièces mal équipées, elles se voient soudain proposer des logements spacieux, avec de la verdure, de la lumière, une salle d'eau, des WC, le chauffage central. Cela leur paraît merveilleux! Les pauvres, eux, continuent de s'entasser dans de petits appartements sans confort, quand ce ne sont pas des taudis, en particulier à Tarentaize et à Beaubrun, ou des bidonvilles, du côté de Méons, près des puits de mine et des usines sidérurgiques. Ce n'est que plus tard, à partir des années 1970, que les grands ensembles seront prioritairement réservés aux pauvres et aux familles immigrées. Mais, dans les années 1950, les grands ensembles sont encore synonymes de progrès social. Et même au-delà. On est persuadé que ce nouvel habitat va entraîner le recul de la maladie, de la délinquance, voire de la mésentente entre les époux! Il existe ainsi une «commission du bonheur ou des grands ensembles»!
On croit rêver...
C'était l'ambiance de l'époque, avec ses utopies et ses excès. Pour les architectes, si l'un des repoussoirs est le taudis de centre-ville, l'autre est le petit pavillon de banlieue, symbole à leurs yeux de l'individualisme petit-bourgeois, avec ses gaspillages de terrain, son absence d'horizon et son coût pour la communauté...
Quels sont les quartiers typiques de cette période, à Saint-Etienne?
Le premier est constitué par le très bel ensemble de la place du Maréchal-Foch. Il s'agit d'une étape intermédiaire entre l'îlot traditionnel (des immeubles accolés, formant un pâté de maisons) et sa suppression totale. Du côté de la Grand-Rue, plusieurs immeubles constituent encore des semi-îlots. Mais, à l'ouest, deux immeubles sont déjà totalement indépendants: ils sont construits au milieu de la verdure. Et cela, c'est très nouveau. Jusqu'à présent, tous les immeubles érigés à Saint-Etienne, y compris les plus hauts, étaient accolés à d'autres édifices. Cela reste encore, cinquante ans plus tard, l'un des quartiers chics de Saint-Etienne.
L'autre grande opération de l'époque, c'est Beaulieu I.
Evidemment. On est, cette fois, face à un grand ensemble «pur». Le chantier commence en 1953 - il y a juste cinquante ans - et s'achève en 1955. Ce nouveau quartier de 1 264 logements est remarquablement conçu. Non seulement il respecte la topographie des lieux, mais aussi il joue avec elle: les bâtiments sont implantés soit parallèlement, soit perpendiculairement aux courbes de niveau, ce qui met en valeur la colline tout en préservant son sommet. Pour rompre l'anonymat, les entrées, les façades et les balcons sont individualisés. Les logements sont de qualité, et les espaces verts, confiés aux services de la ville, tout simplement magnifiques. Beaulieu produit d'ailleurs un effet prodigieux sur ses premiers habitants.
Son implantation n'est pas non plus le fait du hasard...
En effet. Compte tenu des préoccupations hygiénistes de l'époque, le conseil municipal a choisi ce site «loin des zones minières et industrielles, à l'abri des poussières et des fumées, au climat salubre». Il souligne qu'il ne sera «jamais exploité par les houillères, car son sous-sol est stérile» et qu'il est également «bien relié à Saint-Etienne par le cours Fauriel, la seule avenue large de la ville». C'est véritablement le contre-modèle du taudis. Il a d'ailleurs, lui également, remarquablement bien vieilli.
Etes-vous aussi enthousiaste pour les projets qui ont suivi Beaulieu I?
Hélas!... Beaulieu II-La Marandinière (1957-1959), Beaulieu III-Montchovet (1962-1964), avec la fameuse «muraille de Chine», Beaulieu IV-la Palle (1967-1970) et la Métare (1962-1974), représentant à eux tous quelque 6 000 logements, constituent - à l'exception de la Métare, qui ne comprend que des appartements en copropriété - des échecs complets. Et tragiques.
Pourquoi cette différence?
Beaulieu I a bénéficié d'une accumulation de partis pris judicieux qui n'ont pas été appliqués par la suite. Outre la qualité de son architecture et de ses espaces verts, on a évité le zonage bête et méchant, qui allait s'imposer plus tard: les zones commerciales, d'un côté; les tours et les barres d'habitation, d'un deuxième; les emplois, d'un troisième. Enfin, Beaulieu I, réservé presque exclusivement aux classes moyennes, n'a pas connu le processus de dégradation que l'on constatera ailleurs, et dont la destruction de la «muraille de Chine» constituera le symbole.
Qui ont été les grands aménageurs de cette époque?
Parmi les politiques: le maire, Alexandre de Fraissinette (modéré), et son premier adjoint, qui lui succédera à sa mort, le radical Michel Durafour. Parmi les architectes: Edouard Hur et Henri Gouyon, concepteurs de Beaulieu I. Et, bien sûr, l'Etat, qui reste très présent. C'est lui qui, de manière générale, garde la haute main sur l'urbanisme. Beaulieu constitue une opération nationale, décidée de Paris. Cependant, ce qui est remarquable, c'est que, pour Beaulieu I, l'Etat va accepter de composer.
Dans quels domaines?
Le ministère de la Reconstruction souhaitait, ici comme ailleurs, que l'opération fût entièrement industrialisée. Autrement dit, que l'on adaptât au bâtiment les méthodes de l'automobile. Les constructions devaient se faire en préfabriqué, et l'on devait se contenter de les monter sur place. Mais, à Saint-Etienne, les architectes, soutenus par le maire, s'opposent à cette directive. Parce qu'ils sont expérimentés, et reconnus, ils vont obtenir gain de cause. Et heureusement.
Y a-t-il eu des projets, conçus à cette époque, qui n'ont pas vu le jour?
A la fin des années 1950, l'Etat fait appel à de grands architectes pour remodeler les villes. A Saint-Etienne, c'est Dufau, distingué par le prix de Rome, qui est choisi. Il présente un projet radical: raser les 70 îlots qui se trouvent à l'est de la Grand-Rue, entre la place du Peuple et Bellevue, et les remplacer par autant de tours et de barres! Son projet, finalement, ne sera appliqué qu'en partie. Au sud, jusqu'à Bellevue, presque tout est démoli, beaucoup de tours et de barres sont construites. Au nord, les démolitions sont également presque systématiques, mais, cette fois, les nouveaux immeubles reproduisent la forme traditionnelle de l'îlot. On détruit également une partie du quartier derrière la grande poste, ainsi que l'ancienne caserne de Tréfilerie et la prison de Bizillon.
Le futur Centre-Deux...
C'est cela. Au départ, l'opération se nomme «prison-Tréfilerie», mais les promoteurs, qui ont le sens du commerce, préfèrent la rebaptiser. Ce quartier est conçu comme un centre d'affaires à l'américaine, type la Défense, à Paris, ou la Part-Dieu, à Lyon. On explique aux élus que, s'ils veulent que Saint-Etienne devienne une grande ville, ils doivent la doter d'un centre d'affaires, avec des immeubles atteignant 100 ou 150 mètres de hauteur, comme aux Etats-Unis! Le projet est lancé (en 1969), mais il sera peu à peu amendé, pour tenir compte de la réalité économique, de la montée des oppositions et de l'évolution des mentalités.
Comment l'économie stéphanoise se porte-t-elle alors?
La ville croit encore à l'avenir de la mine et des industries traditionnelles. Cela se comprend: le plan Monnet pour la relance de l'économie française s'appuie sur l'énergie, les transports, les industries lourdes... Bref, tous les points forts de Saint-Etienne, mais ce sera un cadeau empoisonné, car, bercée par cette illusion, la cité s'endort. Quand elle se décidera à moderniser ses structures industrielles, ce sera toujours avec quelques années de retard. Au fond, c'est dans les années 1950 que l'on commet les erreurs qui conduiront, plus tard, au démantèlement des industries locales.
Le secteur tertiaire a-t-il déjà commencé son essor?
Pas encore. Dans les années 1950, Saint-Etienne reste une ville très fortement industrielle. La tertiarisation, avec l'enseignement supérieur, la transformation de l'hôpital en centre hospitalier régional et universitaire et l'essor de Casino, avec les supermarchés et les hypermarchés, ne commencera véritablement que dans les années 1960.
Culturellement, la ville est aussi très active...
Elle est même, à ce moment-là, l'un des hauts lieux de la création culturelle en France, notamment dans les domaines théâtral et artistique. Maurice Allemand fait du musée de Saint-Etienne l'un des plus grands musées d'art moderne en France. Et Jean Dasté propose au public le théâtre moderne. Ce bouillonnement est dû, notamment, à Alexandre de Fraissinette. Comme, après lui, Michel Durafour, il est persuadé que l'avenir de la cité est dans la modernité. Il considère donc qu'elle doit être déclinée dans tous ses aspects: économique, urbanistique et culturel.
La population comprend-elle cette volonté?
Oui et non. Dans les années 1950, il existe un certain consensus, car tout le monde partage la vision d'un avenir meilleur. Mais, en réalité, Fraissinette, et surtout Durafour, sont très décalés. Dans leur obsession d'une ville «blanche», ils refusent en bloc le passé, dont on a heureusement découvert depuis lors les richesses. Ils rêvent d'une ville qui n'existe pas, peuplée d'habitants qui ne ressemblent pas aux Stéphanois réels... C'est d'ailleurs ce qui, plus tard, provoquera la chute de Michel Durafour. -------------- www.mam-st-etienne.fr/index.php?rubrique=30&expositio...
Pour une architecture différente 1975 Réalisation : ministère de l'Équipement , <a href="https://www.dailymotion.com/video/xgj3ex" la ville de St-Etienne & les Quartiers Sud-Est Aujourd'hui, en Françe :
Proposer de nouveaux logements dans une démarche environnementale forte. Dans la poursuite des opérations engagées depuis 2001 (démolition de la Muraille de Chine en 2000, implantation du CHPL, de l ’AIMV en 2005), une qualité résidentielle s'affirme progressivement au sein des quartiers Sud-Est, grâce à une nouvelle offre d'habitat variée (en forme comme en type de produits). Le dynamisme du quartier s'appuie sur l'accueil et le développement de services, d'activités économiques et d'équipements d'agglomération (centre nautique, Nouveau Théâtre de Beaulieu...) et de proximité (salles de sport, travaux dans les écoles). Les atouts paysagers du site sont pleinement exploités dans une démarche environnementale forte. L'aménagement des espaces libres et la requalification des axes structurants et de desserte renforcent les liaisons internes aux quartiers et les ouvrent sur l'ensemble de la ville. Beaulieu, un patrimoine de qualité, valorisé et adapté à ses occupants
40 logement ont été adaptés au vieillissement de leur occupants (bacs à douche, volets électriques, aménagement des ascenseurs, …). L'amélioration des espaces extérieurs, résidentiels ou publics (rue K.Marx, square Renoir, allée Clémenceau) viendra rendre plus conviviaux ces lieux de vie partagés. Petite Marandinière : une cité jardin qui se rénove en gardant son caractère Sur la Petite Marandinière, 320 logements de Métropole Habitat ont été rénovés. Les bâtiments ont été transformés pour arriver à 32 logements, avec création de T3, T4, et T5 en tenant compte de la rénovation thermique et du confort des logements. 54 logements ont été construits, répartis en 6 bâtiments à l'architecture contemporaine et fonctionnelle (surfaces généreuses, double ou triple orientation, terrasse ou loggia). En parallèle, les espaces publics ont été réaménagés dans une démarche environnementale durable et innovante : résidentialisation et embellissement des espaces extérieurs, traitement paysager d'ensemble, requalification des voiries et des circulations douces adaptées aux usages, gestion optimisée du stationnement et des eaux pluviales...Une nouvelle mixité pour le quartier : les maisons de ville "Jardins Sembat" 22 maisons de ville (du T3 au T5) ont été construites à l’angle de la rue Marcel Sembat et du boulevard de Fraissinette. Conçu et développé par l'équipe XXL-Civita-Spirit, ce projet se caractérise par la qualité de la construction (matériaux durables, aménagement soigné des espaces extérieurs…) et par la mise en valeur paysagère du site, ouvert sur les collines du Pilat. 3 types de maisons ont été proposées en location libre : maisons jumelées le long du boulevard de Fraissinette, maisons en pente en fond de parcelle adossée au talus, maisons patio au cœur de l’îlot. Un nouveau centre nautique sur le secteur Loti Souhaité par les habitants, exemplaire d’une démarche participative de coproduction, le centre nautique Yves Naime a été ouvert à l'été 2013, en remplacement de l'ancienne piscine de la Marandinière. Ce centre nautique comprend un bassin sportif (25m, 6 lignes d'eau), un bassin destiné aux activités ludiques (bains bouillonnants, aquagym...), une pataugoire et des plages extérieures.Grande Marandinière : un secteur d'habitat en développement . Après la démolition de la barre Sisley et celle en cours de la barre Féguide, c'est un nouveau quartier qui se dessine sur ce secteur. La reconfiguration de la rue Sisley en voie de promenade avec des vues en belvédère et l'aménagement d'une « coulée verte » ont profondément modifié le paysage urbain du secteur. Ce nouvel environnement a permis à Métropole Habitat de réaliser un programme immobilier de 27 logements locatifs. Dans ce bâtiment collectif moderne et fonctionnel, chaque logement comporte un espace extérieur privatif, balcon ou terrasse. Au rez-de-chaussée, des locaux d'activités (centre social espace-loisirs) ou de services sont déployés le long de la nouvelle rue Sisley. La Palle : des résidentialisations de qualité
La résidentialisation des immeubles du boulevard de la Palle apporte aux habitants de nouvelles terrasses privatives en rez-de-chaussée, des espaces en cœur d’îlots plus agréables, et de nouveaux parcours piétonniers avec aires de jeux. Elle s’accompagne de la réhabilitation des immeubles (réfection des façades, changement des garde-corps…). Des opérations de résidentialisation ont été menées immeuble par immeuble de 2006 à 2009. Elles permettent de définir les limites entre les parties publiques ouvertes à tous, et les parties privées. Des petits jardins privatifs sont ainsi aménagés pour chaque logement de rez-de-chaussée.
Le Pont Aven : du logement social à haute performance environnementale
Développé par Métropole Habitat, le Pont-Aven est un exemple en matière de construction écologique. Il accueille 20 logements sociaux du T2 au T5. L’ensemble de la conception du bâtiment intègre des critères environnementaux : parois extérieures en brique mono-mur, eau chaude solaire, chauffage collectif au gaz naturel, ventilation intérieure à double flux pour une meilleure circulation de l’air, équipements électriques et sanitaires économes en énergie. La toiture végétalisée permet quant à elle une meilleure conservation de la fraîcheur en été, les auvents du toit protègent les fenêtres du soleil et les eaux de pluie seront récupérées pour arroser les espaces extérieurs…Résultat : une diminution des rejets en CO2 et une baisse significative des charges de chauffage pour les locataires.
Favoriser l'accessibilité et les relations inter-quartiers Le réaménagement du boulevard de la Palle a favorisé une meilleure desserte du quartier en transports en commun. Une station de taxis, des pistes cyclables et des pelouses ont été aménagées le long du boulevard, sécurisant ainsi la traversée piétonne entre les terrasses Roinat et le centre hospitalier. A l'intérieur du quartier, la trame piétonnière a été développée dans le principe d'une continuité paysagère entre les différents secteurs. Initiée avec l’aménagement des terrasses Roinat, une coulée verte, nouveau poumon vert du quartier, facilitant la circulation des piétons et des cyclistes, relie désormais le boulevard de la Palle, et plus loin le bois d'Avaize, au Parc de l'Europe. - Après la seconde guerre mondiale, un immense chantier s'ouvre en France dans le but de loger massivement une population démunie, les réalisations des HLM en France et la lutte contre l'habitat indigne insalubre , le film parle de St-Etienne entre autre avec les Cités du soleil 1958 de Jean-Claude Sée : www.dailymotion.com/video/xgj74q .
Jusqu'au milieu des années 1970, cette période dite des « Trente Glorieuses l'après guerre et montre la plupart des grandes réalisations de 1945 à 1960. A travers les exemples de la région parisienne et de quelques grandes villes françaises sont posé les problèmes de la diversité architecturale, de l'esthétique et de l'harmonie entre le passé et l'avenir. Les images montrent les grands ensembles de Beaulieu, la Marandiniére, à Saint-Etienne, la cité le Haut du Lièvre à Nancy, des cités à Sarcelles, Asnières, Bron-Parilly, Epinay, Pantin, Bobigny, la cité radieuse de Le Corbusier à Marseille, le front de mer à Royan, la video de l'Année 1962, une réalisation de Philippe Brunet içi www.dailymotion.com/video/xgj2zz » fut le terrain de nombreuses expérimentations architecturales et urbanistiques, fondées notamment sur les idées émises plus tôt dans le siècle par le Mouvement moderne.
Aujourd'hui, ces ensembles bâtis sont au cœur d'une autre actualité, liée à leur adaptation à l'évolution des modes de vie de notre société contemporaine. Cette question qui se posa dès la fin des années 1970 apparaît sous un jour nouveau, avec les premières démolitions dans les années 1980 et, plus récemment, le vaste programme de réhabilitation mis en place dans le cadre de la loi Solidarité et Renouvellement Urbain.
Après Les Grands Ensembles. Une histoire qui continue…, ce nouvel ouvrage, fruit de la collaboration entre l'École Nationale Supérieure d'Architecture de Saint-Étienne et l'Université Jean Monnet, apporte un éclairage nouveau sur cet héritage bâti, mettant au jour simultanément la question de son vécu et celle des acteurs engagés dans son édification. En réunissant quinze auteurs spécialistes de ce domaine, il s'agit de regrouper autant de points de vue, pour comprendre la diversité et la complexité des enjeux liés à la postérité de ce bâti. - « Petite enquête sur Beaulieu – Le Rond-Point », La Tribune du centre et du sud-est, 13 octobre 1955 et « Le chantier de Beaulieu – Le Rond-Point (1ère tranche) sera terminé le 30 juin 1956 très exactement »,La Tribune du centre & du sud-est, 26 juin 1956 -
«St-Etienne, la place des grands ensembles dans l’histoire de l’habitat social français »
Saint-Étienne/Beaulieu, au sud-est de l’agglomération, sur le versant sud de la colline de Beaulieu, en forte pente et d’aspect semi-rural, la cité de Beaulieu est mise à l’étude dès 1950. Elle débute en 1953 et comprend 1 221 logements, un groupe scolaire et 35 boutiques. Des parrains prestigieux et l’élite de l’architecture sté- phanoise sont mobilisés pour ce premier grand ensemble local.
Tantôt les bâtiments suivent le dessin de la courbe de niveau 600, devenue rue Le Corbusier, tantôt ils s’installent perpendi-culairement à la pente, reliés à la rue par des passerelles ou de grands escaliers. A l’implantation exemplaire des bâtiments répond une maîtrise raffinée du végétal d’accompagnement, décliné selon les modes habituels aux squares urbains, avec une virtuosité étonnante dus aux talents de l’ingénieur des Services techniques de la ville, Jean Marc, associé à l’équipe de concep-tion dès l’origine de l’opération.
Le vocabulaire de l’art des jardins s’adapte au grand ensemble : les espaces sont découpés à partir des courbes de niveau et des allées, et caractérisés par un système de haies et de contre-haies (haies étagées doubles ou triples) constituées de troènes com-muns ou dorés, prunus, berbéris et buffets de laurier, et sont plantés d arbres rythmés et colorés (érables négundo et acacias), ou parfois fastigiés (la gamme d’arbres est d’ailleurs peu riche), selon un dessin géométrique et des alternances de couleurs. Ces espaces verts ne sont réalisés qu’à partir de 1964, après avoir été longtemps laissés en prairies fauchées. Cet état de fait, dû au départ à l’étirement des financements des projets d’espaces exté-rieurs, s’inscrivait aussi dans la logique de conception de notre ingénieur, qui pensait « qu’il était nécessaire de laisser vivre un groupe d’habitations avant de planter » – afin de reprendre notamment les chemins tracés par l’usage.
Cette réalisation révèle le décalage entre les réflexions et les savoir-faire architecturaux et paysagers et exprime quelques traits caractéristiques de la pratique paysagiste. Le festonnage des haies qui jalonne les espaces extérieurs rejoint celui des collines boca- gères surplombant les bâtiments. Il rappelle le site environnant et inspirera plus tard l’AUA et Alexandre Chemetoff pour la réhabilitation du quartier de Montreynaud.
Relevons que, sans l’action concertée des services de la ville et de l’office d’HLM, qui finança entièrement la réalisation des espaces verts, rien n’aurait été fait à cette époque, compte tenu du désintérêt pour cet aspect du projet des principaux responsables du chantier. « D’ailleurs, à cette époque, les architectes ne jouaient pas au paysagiste… », queleques superbes videos du Ministere de la Cohésion et des Territoires içi : .Naissance d'une banlieue mort d'un village 2000 www.dailymotion.com/video/x1a98iz
Réalisateur : Sidney Jézéquel Production : Les Films Roger Leenhardt Sujet : la commune de Goussainville (95) --------
Quatre murs et un toit 1953 www.dailymotion.com/video/xk6xui Scenario et réalisation Pierre Jallaud MRU (ministère de la reconstruction et de l'urbanisme) ----------------Le Bonheur est dans le béton www.dailymotion.com/video/x413amo - 2015 Documentaire réalisé par Lorenz Findeisen produit par Les Films du Tambour de Soie ---------------------Beaulieu par son constructeur la Cimaise :" Entre les années 50 et 60, et suite à la seconde guerre mondiale, la municipalité stéphanoise a vu sa population passée d’un peu moins de 180 000 habitants en 1950 à plus de 200 000 habitants dix ans plus tard en 1960. Cette forte augmentation de la population pouvait s’expliquer par le fort taux de natalité de cette époque (baby-boom), mais aussi par l’afflux de travailleurs de la classe ouvrière venus dans la grande cité stéphanoise pour trouver un travail. De ce fait, la construction d’un logement sain pour chaque ouvrier était devenue une priorité absolue pour les élus qui considéraient à raison que cela était une condition vitale dans le cadre de ce grand développement. Pour ce faire, la ville a lancé dans les années 50 une vaste opération de construction de barres d’habitation dans la zone de Beaulieu, destinée à fournir un logement à une population grandissante.
------------------ Bâtir mieux plus vite et moins cher 1975 l'industrialisation du bâtiment et ses innovations : la préfabrication en usine, le coffrage glissant... www.dailymotion.com/video/xyjudq ---------
BEAULIEU une barre d’habitation innovante
A l’époque, avec une majorité d’architectes, les appartements modernes construits possédaient des cloisons lourdes empêchant toute modification interne ainsi que des espaces de renvoi sombres et non ventilés ressemblant à des alcôves.
Mais à l’inverse, pour certains architectes précurseurs de la région à l’image d’Yves et Henri Gouyon, la modernité reflétait le gout de la clarté, de l’air, et du soleil, avec de larges horizons. Ainsi, ces derniers donnaient la priorité non pas aux façades qu’ils considéraient comme de simples élévations du plan, mais aux cellules d’habitations et à leur orientation. Dans cette optique, le bâtiment proposé par Henri Gouyon, qui était donc un partisan de l’espace ouvert moderne, supprimait les circulations et profitait de ce gain de place pour aménager de nouveaux espaces de vie communes. De plus, dans ces cellules d’habitations, les architectes ont tirés profit au maximum de la double orientation des appartements (ces derniers étaient traversant) avec par exemple l’accolement de balcons. Conception et réalisation d’un quartier entier. Pour le projet de Beaulieu, l’on confia la conception ainsi que la réalisation des interventions aux agences Henri et Yves Gouyon puis Yves Gouyon et associés. Ainsi, dés le milieu des années 50, des études concernant Beaulieu II – La Marandinière furent conduites, suivis de la construction du bâtiment entre 1957 et 1959. S’en suivit Beaulieu III – Montchovet entre 1962 et 1964, surnommé la « Muraille de Chine la plus grande barre d'Europe avec 540 appartements à sa livraison mi 1964, les chantiers de l'OPAC devenu Métropole-Habitat, www.ina.fr/video/LY00001263522 », qui comprenait entre autres, une barre de type HLM haute de 10 à 17 mètres et longue de 270 mètres, avec 560 logements. Suites à ces constructions, l’urbanisation des vallées et collines du sud-est de Saint-Etienne continua jusque dans les années 70 avec les séries de la Métare I, II, et III. Au total, ce sont plus de 8 000 logements, pour l’essentiel de type HLM, qui ont été construits durant cette période. Ces constructions ont également contribué à la création du parc de l’Europe et d’un boulevard circulaire qui servait de jonction entre les différents édifices et le centre-ville de la cité stéphanoise.
Un projet pharaonique
Le centre commercial fut un projet d’une dimension sans précédent pour la ville, plus grand centre commercial intra-urbain de la région Loire-Auvergne, avec 100 magasins, 1500 places de stationnement, 90 000 m² de surface, et sur 3 niveaux (4 niveaux avec la terrasse). Le 2 octobre 1979, CENTRE DEUX ouvre ses portes pour la première fois, et constitue une renaissance et un véritable tournant pour la ville. L’avis de l’architecte
De toutes les constructions de cette époque, Beaulieu est un des ensembles construits qui se porte le mieux si l’on en croit les nombreuses enquêtes menées auprès de la population de ces logements, dont certains l’occupe pratiquement depuis le début. Les arbres atteignent désormais le haut des immeubles, et la rue Le Corbusier adjacente a pris les allures « d’une banlieue des années 30 » avec un niveau d’urbanisme parfaitement acceptable. En conclusion, on peut parler pour cette construction d’un véritable savoir faire architectural et en quelques sortes d’art urbain. Ce projet a été récompensé par un prix d’urbanisme, mettant en valeur le travail en amont du projet. www.cimaise-architectes.com/realisations/divers/construct... cité HLM labellisée Patrimoine du XXeme siecle -"Il faut bien le dire, avant même d’être livré, Beaulieu est l' un des grands-ensembles, parmis 6 autres qui fasçinait en 1954..En effet c'etait le début de la longue & grande histoire des chantiers de l'Office Public de l'Aménagement et de la Construction* içi, ou à Montreynaud, Solaure, Monthieu etc
( l'OPAC l'office public de logements sociaux, devenu plus tard Métropole-Habitat, est la plus importante au niveau National, c'est la plus grosse boite d'HLM). Bref, les habituels promeneurs du coin genre les "Bois du Four (la Metare, le nom ançien, qui par ailleurs appartenait a Mme de Métarie une veuve riche qui légua son domaine soit "la Métare" à la ville, pour un Franc symbolique à l'epoque et aux CHU anciennement les HCL Hospiçes Civils de la Ville comme à Lyon... (on notera qu il y a des tas de logements en centre ville propriété du CHU)..se rendant le dimanche
dans le Pilat ou à Rochetaillée et sur les collines* alentours (on en a 7 comme a Rome) font un léger détour par le chantier. Ils constatent alors de visu cet avancement des travaux que la presse qualifie de « belle prouesse ». Le rythme est en effet rapide : « un étage par semaine » pour certaines barres, comme le raconte un témoin. Les « grandes maisons », soient les immeubles de hauteur et nombre de logements importants (IGH), étant alors encore rares dans la
ville, les Stéphanois n’y sont pas habitués@ les H.L.M. Beaulieu est la 1ere cité Stéphanoise de toutes,. Les barres de dix-sept et quatorze niveaux gises respectivement rues Gomy Herriot et de Vlaminck, ainsi que la tour de 22 niveaux au 33 rue Le-Corbusier,surprennent donc encore pire pour la plus grande barre d'Europe qui arrvera 7 ans plus tard, la Muraille qui mettront certains certaines à la renverse , le gigantisme à l'état brut, du lourd.... La référence qui vient à l’esprit de beaucoup ajoute à la fascination : l’Amérique. « C’est New-York ! c'est tres joile, tres vert... », se rappelle avoir pensé un habitant de la première harre...Mais plus que les immeubles, ce sont surtout les logements qui emportent l’adhésion des « heureux locataires », comme aime à les appeler la presse tout court. La satisfaction procurée aux habitants par l’hygiène et le confort des logements des Grands-Ensembles soit les quartiers NEUF est une information connue, les études de sciences humaines sur le sujet abondent. Aussi, pour le cas de Beaulieu devenu un cas d'Ecole idem pour Montchovet (Beaulieu3) et les transformations de la Marandiniere (Beaulieu2)...Les entretiens réalisés avec des locataires n’apportent pas sur ce point-ci d’éléments nouveaux :les premiers motifs de satisfaction invoqués sont, comme pour bien d’autres Grands-Ensembles Français,
l’eau courante, le chauffage central dont sont pourvus les immeubles les plus hauts, les WC intérieurs et salles de bain, l’ensoleillement et la luminosité permis par l’orientation, la hauteur et la disposition des immeubles, les placards et les tout aussi pratiques balcons à parois séchoirs permettant de faire sécher le linge, hiver compris. Entretien avec François Tomas, géographe, spécialiste de l'aménagement urbain, et enseignant à l'université et à l'école d'architecture de Saint-Etienne. Il est notamment l'auteur des Grands Ensembles, une histoire qui continue (Publications de l'université de Saint-Etienne, 2003). Cet intellectuel a également mis la main à la pâte. Entre 1977 et 1983, il fut adjoint à l'urbanisme du maire communiste de l'époque, Joseph Sanguedolce. Engagé au PC de 1974 à 1985, il a, depuis, rejoint le Parti socialiste «comme militant de base»
L"apres guerre...Que prévoit-on pour la reconstruction? Pas grand-chose. A la différence de la refonte spectaculaire du Havre, par exemple, on se contente ici de bâtir de petits immeubles, plus modernes bien sûr, mais sans réelle innovation architecturale ou urbanistique.
Est-il vrai que Saint-Etienne, après guerre, traîne une réputation de «capitale des taudis»?
C'est exact, et celle-ci n'est pas usurpée. En 1946, 7% seulement des logements sont jugés «confortables», et 17%, «acceptables»; 56% sont médiocres, et 20% peuvent véritablement être qualifiés de taudis: 1 logement sur 5 n'a pas d'eau à l'évier, les deux tiers ne disposent pas de WC, et 95%, de salle d'eau. Mais le problème n'a pas été créé par la guerre. Depuis la fin du XIXe siècle, Saint-Etienne a beaucoup grandi, mais très peu construit. Résultat: la ville a vieilli sur elle-même et se trouve après guerre dans une situation désastreuse, que les bombardements ont simplement aggravée. C'est alors qu'Alexandre de Fraissinette, maire élu en 1947, fixe le logement comme l'une de ses priorités.
Oui. Et ce ne sera pas un vain mot. Rendez-vous compte: on passe de 114 logements construits en 1948 à 531 en 1951, 1 085 en 1954, 1 694 en 1957 et même 2 932 en 1959! L'effort est gigantesque. Mais le changement est aussi qualitatif. A la fin des années 1940 et au début des années 1950, la France va connaître une rupture architecturale avec l'apparition des premiers grands ensembles. Saint-Etienne sera l'une des villes symboles de cette rupture. Comment cette nouvelle architecture est-elle accueillie? Très favorablement par les classes moyennes, beaucoup moins par les classes populaires. Cela paraît paradoxal, pour du logement social!
Le paradoxe n'est qu'apparent. On l'a oublié aujourd'hui, mais les premiers grands ensembles sont réservés aux familles de moins de trois enfants ayant des revenus corrects, autrement dit aux classes moyennes. Alors que, depuis la guerre, celles-ci devaient se contenter d'une ou de deux pièces mal équipées, elles se voient soudain proposer des logements spacieux, avec de la verdure, de la lumière, une salle d'eau, des WC, le chauffage central. Cela leur paraît merveilleux! Les pauvres, eux, continuent de s'entasser dans de petits appartements sans confort, quand ce ne sont pas des taudis, en particulier à Tarentaize et à Beaubrun, ou des bidonvilles, du côté de Méons, près des puits de mine et des usines sidérurgiques. Ce n'est que plus tard, à partir des années 1970, que les grands ensembles seront prioritairement réservés aux pauvres et aux familles immigrées. Mais, dans les années 1950, les grands ensembles sont encore synonymes de progrès social. Et même au-delà. On est persuadé que ce nouvel habitat va entraîner le recul de la maladie, de la délinquance, voire de la mésentente entre les époux! Il existe ainsi une «commission du bonheur ou des grands ensembles»! On croit rêver...
C'était l'ambiance de l'époque, avec ses utopies et ses excès. Pour les architectes, si l'un des repoussoirs est le taudis de centre-ville, l'autre est le petit pavillon de banlieue, symbole à leurs yeux de l'individualisme petit-bourgeois, avec ses gaspillages de terrain, son absence d'horizon et son coût pour la communauté... Quels sont les quartiers typiques de cette période, à Saint-Etienne? Le premier est constitué par le très bel ensemble de la place du Maréchal-Foch. Il s'agit d'une étape intermédiaire entre l'îlot traditionnel (des immeubles accolés, formant un pâté de maisons) et sa suppression totale. Du côté de la Grand-Rue, plusieurs immeubles constituent encore des semi-îlots. Mais, à l'ouest, deux immeubles sont déjà totalement indépendants: ils sont construits au milieu de la verdure. Et cela, c'est très nouveau. Jusqu'à présent, tous les immeubles érigés à Saint-Etienne, y compris les plus hauts, étaient accolés à d'autres édifices. Cela reste encore, cinquante ans plus tard, l'un des quartiers chics de Saint-Etienne. L'autre grande opération de l'époque, c'est Beaulieu I. Evidemment. On est, cette fois, face à un grand ensemble «pur». Le chantier commence en 1953 - il y a juste cinquante ans - et s'achève en 1955. Ce nouveau quartier de 1 264 logements est remarquablement conçu. Non seulement il respecte la topographie des lieux, mais aussi il joue avec elle: les bâtiments sont implantés soit parallèlement, soit perpendiculairement aux courbes de niveau, ce qui met en valeur la colline tout en préservant son sommet. Pour rompre l'anonymat, les entrées, les façades et les balcons sont individualisés. Les logements sont de qualité, et les espaces verts, confiés aux services de la ville, tout simplement magnifiques. Beaulieu produit d'ailleurs un effet prodigieux sur ses premiers habitants. Son implantation n'est pas non plus le fait du hasard... En effet. Compte tenu des préoccupations hygiénistes de l'époque, le conseil municipal a choisi ce site «loin des zones minières et industrielles, à l'abri des poussières et des fumées, au climat salubre». Il souligne qu'il ne sera «jamais exploité par les houillères, car son sous-sol est stérile» et qu'il est également «bien relié à Saint-Etienne par le cours Fauriel, la seule avenue large de la ville». C'est véritablement le contre-modèle du taudis. Il a d'ailleurs, lui également, remarquablement bien vieilli.
Etes-vous aussi enthousiaste pour les projets qui ont suivi Beaulieu I? Hélas!... Beaulieu II-La Marandinière (1957-1959), Beaulieu III-Montchovet (1962-1964), avec la fameuse «muraille de Chine», Beaulieu IV-la Palle (1967-1970) et la Métare (1962-1974), représentant à eux tous quelque 6 000 logements, constituent - à l'exception de la Métare, qui ne comprend que des appartements en copropriété - des échecs complets. Et tragiques. Pourquoi cette différence?
Beaulieu I a bénéficié d'une accumulation de partis pris judicieux qui n'ont pas été appliqués par la suite. Outre la qualité de son architecture et de ses espaces verts, on a évité le zonage bête et méchant, qui allait s'imposer plus tard: les zones commerciales, d'un côté; les tours et les barres d'habitation, d'un deuxième; les emplois, d'un troisième. Enfin, Beaulieu I, réservé presque exclusivement aux classes moyennes, n'a pas connu le processus de dégradation que l'on constatera ailleurs, et dont la destruction de la «muraille de Chine» constituera le symbole. Qui ont été les grands aménageurs de cette époque? Parmi les politiques: le maire, Alexandre de Fraissinette (modéré), et son premier adjoint, qui lui succédera à sa mort, le radical Michel Durafour. Parmi les architectes: Edouard Hur et Henri Gouyon, concepteurs de Beaulieu I. Et, bien sûr, l'Etat, qui reste très présent. C'est lui qui, de manière générale, garde la haute main sur l'urbanisme. Beaulieu constitue une opération nationale, décidée de Paris. Cependant, ce qui est remarquable, c'est que, pour Beaulieu I, l'Etat va accepter de composer.
Dans quels domaines? Le ministère de la Reconstruction souhaitait, ici comme ailleurs, que l'opération fût entièrement industrialisée. Autrement dit, que l'on adaptât au bâtiment les méthodes de l'automobile. Les constructions devaient se faire en préfabriqué, et l'on devait se contenter de les monter sur place. Mais, à Saint-Etienne, les architectes, soutenus par le maire, s'opposent à cette directive. Parce qu'ils sont expérimentés, et reconnus, ils vont obtenir gain de cause. Et heureusement. Y a-t-il eu des projets, conçus à cette époque, qui n'ont pas vu le jour? A la fin des années 1950, l'Etat fait appel à de grands architectes pour remodeler les villes. A Saint-Etienne, c'est Dufau, distingué par le prix de Rome, qui est choisi. Il présente un projet radical: raser les 70 îlots qui se trouvent à l'est de la Grand-Rue, entre la place du Peuple et Bellevue, et les remplacer par autant de tours et de barres! Son projet, finalement, ne sera appliqué qu'en partie. Au sud, jusqu'à Bellevue, presque tout est démoli, beaucoup de tours et de barres sont construites. Au nord, les démolitions sont également presque systématiques, mais, cette fois, les nouveaux immeubles reproduisent la forme traditionnelle de l'îlot. On détruit également une partie du quartier derrière la grande poste, ainsi que l'ancienne caserne de Tréfilerie et la prison de Bizillon. Le futur Centre-Deux...
C'est cela. Au départ, l'opération se nomme «prison-Tréfilerie», mais les promoteurs, qui ont le sens du commerce, préfèrent la rebaptiser. Ce quartier est conçu comme un centre d'affaires à l'américaine, type la Défense, à Paris, ou la Part-Dieu, à Lyon. On explique aux élus que, s'ils veulent que Saint-Etienne devienne une grande ville, ils doivent la doter d'un centre d'affaires, avec des immeubles atteignant 100 ou 150 mètres de hauteur, comme aux Etats-Unis! Le projet est lancé (en 1969), mais il sera peu à peu amendé, pour tenir compte de la réalité économique, de la montée des oppositions et de l'évolution des mentalités. Comment l'économie stéphanoise se porte-t-elle alors? La ville croit encore à l'avenir de la mine et des industries traditionnelles. Cela se comprend: le plan Monnet pour la relance de l'économie française s'appuie sur l'énergie, les transports, les industries lourdes... Bref, tous les points forts de Saint-Etienne, mais ce sera un cadeau empoisonné, car, bercée par cette illusion, la cité s'endort. Quand elle se décidera à moderniser ses structures industrielles, ce sera toujours avec quelques années de retard. Au fond, c'est dans les années 1950 que l'on commet les erreurs qui conduiront, plus tard, au démantèlement des industries locales. Le secteur tertiaire a-t-il déjà commencé son essor? Pas encore. Dans les années 1950, Saint-Etienne reste une ville très fortement industrielle. La tertiarisation, avec l'enseignement supérieur, la transformation de l'hôpital en centre hospitalier régional et universitaire et l'essor de Casino, avec les supermarchés et les hypermarchés, ne commencera véritablement que dans les années 1960. Culturellement, la ville est aussi très active... Elle est même, à ce moment-là, l'un des hauts lieux de la création culturelle en France, notamment dans les domaines théâtral et artistique. Maurice Allemand fait du musée de Saint-Etienne l'un des plus grands musées d'art moderne en France. Et Jean Dasté propose au public le théâtre moderne. Ce bouillonnement est dû, notamment, à Alexandre de Fraissinette. Comme, après lui, Michel Durafour, il est persuadé que l'avenir de la cité est dans la modernité. Il considère donc qu'elle doit être déclinée dans tous ses aspects: économique, urbanistique et culturel. La population comprend-elle cette volonté? Oui et non. Dans les années 1950, il existe un certain consensus, car tout le monde partage la vision d'un avenir meilleur. Mais, en réalité, Fraissinette, et surtout Durafour, sont très décalés. Dans leur obsession d'une ville «blanche», ils refusent en bloc le passé, dont on a heureusement découvert depuis lors les richesses. Ils rêvent d'une ville qui n'existe pas, peuplée d'habitants qui ne ressemblent pas aux Stéphanois réels... C'est d'ailleurs ce qui, plus tard, provoquera la chute de Michel Durafour. ------------ Pour une architecture différente 1975 Réalisation : ministère de l'Équipement , www.dailymotion.com/video/xgj3ex -
With racy questions and candid answers Would You Tap That is a fun interview section on CampusJunkie.com
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BONES: Brennan (Emily Deschanel, L) questions high school students Alyssa (Kayla Ewell, R) and Becca (guest star Monique Coleman, C) when the body of one of their friends is found in a mound of salt in a city de-icing truck in the BONES episode "The Salt in the Wounds" airing Thursday, March 19 (8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. ©2009 Fox Broadcasting Co. Cr: Mark Lipson/FOX
The Chancellor Jeremy Hunt speaks to the media about interest rate increases. Photo by Zara Farrar / HM Treasury
Question Mark. Aus der Serie „Satzzeichen“ 2014
Rotierende Skulptur aus Lianen Findling, fluoriszierendes Klebeband, schwarze Totenkopf Büchse und Schwarz Licht
Skulptur, Objekt, Video, Installation, Fotografie
Markus Wintersberger 2014
"Question Mark" is a new sculpture created by Rosario Marquardt and Roberto Behar and funded through a gift from the Madison Public Library Foundation. Photo by library staff.
I really need your opinions guys, I'm debating whether to make a FNTM or not. Help me guys out. Feel free to comment your opinions!
Question: When do four images make a Tripytch?
Answer: when they are made into a Panorama which is then devided into the individual panels of a Triptych! Large On Black
Yesterday, myself, Marian (abstract_effects), Rob (Rob Hudson) and Sandeah (Sandeah Lynch) went for a little adventure to the Mid-Wales Asylum in Talgarth.
When we got there, Sandeha managed to persuade the site-manager to let us take pictures around the outside of the site.
Had we have not listened to the site manager and actually gone in, this might have been one of the shots I might have taken ;P
See My entire photostream at:
www.flickr.com/photos/spookykittencouture
View my items for sale, or convo me for a custom item:
I custom draft patterns for fit and style, and can base your design on a photograph, sketch, or combine multiple inspiration ideas into one great garment!
Please feel free to contact me at either site above, I usually respond within 24 hours.
Some frequently asked questions:
Yes, I do international shipping orders
yes, I source/find/purchase/provide the materials for your garment, unless you have some that you would like used
Yes, I make items in ALL sizes. Every single one. I can custom design something no matter what your height/weight/bra-size etc. I even have experience working with non-average figures including loss of appendages (arms, legs, etc.) and accommodating a severe disability/unusual shape.
Yes, i respond to everyone. I will always reply! (if you don't hear from me, i either didn't get the message, or am on a freak internet break)
Yes, I can do rush orders, please convo as soon as you can about planning
Yes, i can do payment plans for larger projects, convo me
Yes, I am a real person in California USA, I am not an assembly line/sweatshop/slavedriver. Me and my family work on every item start to finish.
Yes, I love Project Runway, but no, i don't want to be on it!
Yes, I love the odd/strange/weird projects, but I also love the impeccably simple bridal gown as well.
No, I do not have a minimum. Small projects are welcome.
Yes, I help with the total package. I can help you find the accessories you need to complete the look, and all the underpinnings and other garments you may need to get the right shape for the garment. I like to make sure you are happy with the end result as much as I am.
If you have a question not on here, please feel free to convo me at the above sites.
Thanks for viewing!
Fonte dell'immagine: La Chiesa di Dio Onnipotente
Condizioni d'Uso: Avviso legale e condizioni per l’uso
Perché non sei disposto a essere un complemento?
Coloro che vengono conquistati sono complementi, e solo dopo essere stati perfezionati diventano persone modello e campioni dell’opera degli ultimi giorni. Prima di essere resi completi, sono complementi, strumenti, e anche oggetti per il servizio. Coloro che sono stati completamente conquistati da Dio sono la cristallizzazione e anche i modelli e i campioni del Suo piano di gestione. Proprio queste poche e umili qualifiche personali mostrano molte storie divertenti. Quelli di voi che hanno poca fede discuteranno sempre su una qualifica insignificante, fino a diventare rossi in viso e, a volte, permetteranno addirittura a questo titolo di influire sulla nostra relazione. Sebbene si tratti solo di una piccola qualifica, nel vostro pensiero, nella vostra fede, non si tratta solamente di un piccolo appellativo, ma di una questione importante che riguarda il vostro destino. Pertanto, coloro che non sono sensibili spesso soffriranno una grande perdita a causa di una piccolezza come questa. È come essere attenti alle piccole spese ma prodighi in quelle grandi: ve ne andrete via e non tornerete a causa di un piccolo appellativo. Questo perché considerate la vita come non importante e attribuite troppo valore alla chiamata che ricevete. Così, nella vostra vita spirituale, e anche in quella pratica, spesso, a causa delle vostre nozioni riguardanti il prestigio, creerete molte storie contorte e bizzarre. Forse non lo ammetterete, ma vi dirò che queste persone esistono veramente nella vostra vita concreta. Semplicemente, non siete stati rivelati uno per uno. Questi generi di cose sono successe in ognuna delle vostre vite. Se non lo credi, dai semplicemente uno sguardo alla vignetta riportata qui sotto, tratta dalla vita di una sorella (o di un fratello). È possibile che il protagonista sia tu, o forse qualcuno con cui hai familiarità nella tua vita. Se non Mi sbaglio, questa vignetta raffigura un’esperienza che hai avuto, e nella descrizione non manca nulla, non sono omessi né un singolo pensiero né una singola idea, ma in questa storia tutto è registrato completamente. Se non ci credi, prova a dare uno sguardo.
Questa è una piccola esperienza di una “persona spirituale”.
Si preoccupò quando vide che molte cose che i fratelli e le sorelle facevano nella Chiesa non erano in linea con la volontà di Dio, e iniziò a rimproverarli: “Non avete nemmeno una coscienza! Perché state di fatto compiendo cose irragionevoli? Perché non ricercate la verità invece di fare quello che volete? … Dicendovi queste cose, sento di odiare anche me stessa. Percepisco che Dio brucia di impazienza e sotto di me sento un fuoco. Desidero davvero realizzare pienamente l’opera che Dio mi ha affidato e voglio veramente che vi innalziate attraverso il mio servizio. È solo che la mia forza attuale è così fievole. Dio ha investito così tanto tempo su di noi e ha pronunciato così tante parole, ma noi siamo ancora in questo stato. Nel mio cuore, sento sempre di dovere troppo a Dio…” (piangendo, incapace di continuare il discorso). E poi cominciò a pregare: “Oh, Dio! Ti supplico di darmi forza e di spingermi ancora più oltre; che il Tuo Spirito possa operare in me. Sono pronta a collaborare con Te. Finché, alla fine, Tu guadagni gloria, sono pronta adesso a darTi tutta me stessa, anche se ciò significasse dover deporre la mia vita. Sono pronta[a], finché possiamo offrire grandi preghiere, i fratelli e le sorelle possono cantare e danzare con gioia per lodare il Tuo santo nome, glorificarTi, manifestarTi, ed essere certi della Tua opera e anche pronti a mostrare considerazione per il Tuo fardello…”. Pregò così con fervore, e lo Spirito Santo le donò veramente il suo fardello. In quel periodo era molto gravata, e passava il giorno intero leggendo, scrivendo e ascoltando. Era impegnata fino al massimo possibile per lei. Il suo stato spirituale era eccellente e nel cuore era sempre energica e gravata. Di tanto in tanto si indeboliva e sbatteva contro il muro, ma entro breve tempo riacquistò il suo stato normale. Dopo un periodo simile, fece rapidi progressi, era in grado di acquisire una certa comprensione di molte delle parole di Dio, e inoltre imparava rapidamente gli inni; nell’insieme, il suo stato spirituale era eccellente. Quando vide che nella Chiesa molte cose non erano conformi alla volontà di Dio, iniziò a preoccuparsi e rimproverò i suoi fratelli e sorelle: “È questa la dedizione al vostro dovere? Perché non riuscite nemmeno a pagare un prezzo così piccolo? Se voi non volete farlo, lo farò io…”.
Quando aveva un fardello, più lo Spirito Santo operava, più lei si sentiva forte nella fede. Di tanto in tanto incontrava alcune difficoltà e diventava negativa, ma era in grado di superarle. Cioè, quando sperimentava l’opera dello Spirito Santo, anche se le sue condizioni erano stupende, non poteva evitare alcune difficoltà o un pizzico di debolezza. Sono cose inevitabili, ma entro breve tempo fu in grado di uscire da questi stati. Quando sperimentava la debolezza, non appena pregava si rendeva conto che la sua levatura era veramente inadeguata, ma era pronta a collaborare con Dio. Indipendentemente da ciò che Dio facesse, lei era pronta a soddisfare la Sua volontà e a obbedire a tutte le Sue disposizioni. Alcuni avevano particolari opinioni e pregiudizi nei suoi confronti. Lei riuscì a stare in disparte e a impegnarsi in modo intraprendente nella comunione con loro. È così che sono gli stati delle persone durante l’opera normale dello Spirito Santo. Dopo un certo tempo l’opera di Dio iniziò a cambiare, e le persone entrarono in un’altra fase della stessa, nella quale Dio aveva prescrizioni diverse per loro. E così ci furono nuove parole, che introdussero nuove prescrizioni per le persone: “…per voi ho solo odio, mai benedizioni. Non ho mai pensato di benedirvi, e nemmeno di rendervi completi, perché voi siete troppo ribelli. Poiché siete disonesti e subdoli, e poiché mancate di levatura e il vostro stato è abietto, non siete mai stati nel Mio campo visivo o nel Mio cuore. La Mia opera è semplicemente intesa a condannarvi; la Mia mano non è mai stata lontana da voi, e nemmeno il Mio castigo. Ho continuato a giudicarvi e maledirvi. Poiché non avete alcuna comprensione di Me, la Mia ira è sempre stata su di voi. Visto che ho sempre operato tra di voi, dovreste conoscere il Mio atteggiamento nei vostri confronti. Non è null’altro che disgusto, non esiste nessun altro atteggiamento o opinione. Voglio solo che agiate come complementi per la Mia saggezza e la Mia grande potenza. Non siete null’altro che Miei complementi, perché la mia giustizia viene rivelata attraverso la vostra ribellione. Voglio che agiate come complementi per la Mia opera, per essere le appendici della Mia opera…”. Non appena vide le parole[b] “appendici” e “complementi”, iniziò a pensare: “Come potrei seguire tutto questo? Dopo aver pagato un prezzo così grande, sono ancora un complemento. Un complemento non è semplicemente un servitore? In passato si diceva che non saremmo stati servitori, ma il popolo di Dio, eppure oggi non siamo ancora incapaci di cambiare quella situazione? Non siamo forse servitori senza vita? Per quanta sofferenza io sopporti, Dio non lo apprezzerà! Dopo che avrò smesso di essere un complemento per la grande potenza di Dio, non sarà tutto finito? …”. Più ci pensava, più era abbattuta. Venne in Chiesa, vide lo stato di fratelli e sorelle e si sentì ancora peggio: “Voi non siete a posto! Io non sono a posto! Sono negativa. Ugh! Che si può fare? Dio non ci vuole ancora. Compiendo questo tipo di opera, non c’è modo che Egli non ci consideri negativi. Non so cosa ci sia di sbagliato in me. Non voglio nemmeno pregare. A ogni modo, adesso non sono a posto e non riesco a trovare la spinta dentro di me. Ho pregato un sacco di volte ma non ci riesco, e non sono disposta a continuare così. Ecco come la penso. Dio sostiene che noi siamo complementi, e così i complementi non sono semplicemente servitori? Dio afferma che siamo complementi, non figli, e nemmeno il Suo popolo. Non siamo i Suoi figli, men che meno i Suoi figli primogeniti. Non siamo nulla, solo complementi. Con questo tipo di premessa, come potremo realizzare qualcosa di positivo? I complementi non hanno speranza, perché non hanno vita. Se fossimo i Suoi figli, il Suo popolo, avremmo speranza, e potremmo essere resi completi. I complementi possono avere la vita di Dio dentro di loro? Può Dio instillare la vita in coloro che svolgono un servizio per Lui? Lui ama coloro che hanno la Sua vita, e soltanto essi sono i Suoi Figli, il Suo popolo. Sebbene sia negativa e debole, spero che tutti voi non siate negativi. Lo so che ritirarsi ed essere negativi in questo modo non può soddisfare la volontà di Dio, ma non sono disposta a essere un complemento. Temo di esserlo. A ogni modo, ho solo tanta energia, e non posso andarmene adesso. Spero che voi tutti non impariate da me, ma che possiate guadagnare da me una qualche rivelazione. Penso che potrei anche morire! Prima di morire, vi lascerò con qualche parola conclusiva: spero che possiate agire come complementi fino alla fine; forse alla fine Dio apprezzerà i complementi…”. Quando i fratelli e le sorelle videro tutto ciò, si chiesero[c]: Come può essere così negativa? Per un paio di giorni non è forse stata bene? Perché improvvisamente è diventata così fredda? Perché non è più normale? Lei affermò: “Non dite che non sono normale. In realtà, nel mio cuore tutto è chiaro. So di non aver soddisfatto la volontà di Dio. Non è forse semplicemente perché non sono disposta ad agire come Suo complemento? Non ho fatto nient’altro di tanto grave. Forse un giorno Dio cambierà la qualifica di[d] ‘complementi’ in ‘Sue creature’, che sono utilizzate da Lui in modi importanti. C’è qualche speranza in proposito? Spero che non siate negativi o scoraggiati, che possiate continuare a seguire Dio ed essere complementi migliori. In ogni caso, io non posso andare avanti così”. Altre persone ascoltarono questo discorso e dissero[e]: “Anche se non sei a tuo agio con tutto questo, noi continueremo a seguire e non verremo condizionati dalla tua negatività”.
Dopo aver vissuto questa esperienza, per un certo periodo di tempo lei era ancora negativa sul fatto di essere un complemento, per cui le dissi: “Non hai nessuna comprensione della Mia opera, della verità interiore, dell’essenza o dei risultati previsti per le Mie parole. Non conosci gli scopi della Mia opera, o la sua saggezza. Non hai nessuna comprensione della Mia volontà. Sai solo ritirarti perché sei un complemento. Il tuo desiderio di prestigio è troppo grande! Sei un’idiota! In passato ti ho detto un sacco di cose, e anche che ti avrei perfezionata. Te lo sei scordato? Prima di parlare di complementi, non si è parlato di essere perfezionati?” “Aspetta un po’, ci penserò! Prima che si parlasse di complementi, avevi veramente detto così; era proprio così!” “Quando ho parlato di essere perfezionati, non ho forse detto che, solo dopo che le persone fossero state conquistate, sarebbero state perfezionate?” “Sì!” “Le Mie parole non erano forse sincere? Non erano dette in buona fede?” “Certo! Sei un Dio che non ha mai detto alcunché di disonesto e nessuno può avere il coraggio di negarlo. Ma i modi in cui Tu parli sono troppi”. “I Miei modi di parlare non cambiano forse in base alle fasi dell’opera? Ciò che dico non è fatto e detto sulla base dei tuoi bisogni?” “Tu operi in base ai bisogni delle persone e fornisci loro ciò di cui hanno bisogno. Non è falso!” “Quindi le parole che ti ho detto non sono state benefiche? I Miei castighi non sono forse stati per amore tuo?” “Dici ancora che è per amore mio! Sto per essere castigata a morte da Te e non voglio vivere più a lungo. Oggi dici questo, domani dici quell’altro. So che la Tua opera di perfezionamento nei miei confronti è compiuta per amor mio, ma non mi hai perfezionato. Mi hai reso un complemento e inoltre mi castighi. Non mi odi forse? Nessuno osa credere alle Tue parole, e solo adesso ho capito chiaramente che è solo per risolvere l’odio nel Tuo cuore, non per salvarmi. Prima me lo hai nascosto, dicevi che mi avresti perfezionato e che il castigo aveva quell’obiettivo. Per questo mi sono sempre sottoposta al tuo castigo; non mi sarei mai immaginata che oggi avrei avuto la qualifica di complemento. Dio, non sarebbe meglio se mi consentissi di agire come qualunque altra persona? Devi proprio farmi portare l’etichetta di complemento? Andrebbe bene se io fossi il guardiano del cielo. Corro a destra e a manca, ora le mie mani sono vuote; non ho più un soldo. Eppure persino ora mi dici che vuoi che agisca come Tuo complemento. Come potrei anche solo mostrare la mia faccia?” “In passato ho compiuto così tanta opera di castigo, e non arrivi ancora a capire? Riesci almeno a comprendere te stessa? Il castigo non è forse il giudizio delle parole? Anche la qualifica di ‘complemento’ non è forse giudizio delle parole?” “Se la mettiamo così, i complementi di cui Tu parli sono anche un metodo? Ciò serve per giudicarmi? Se è così, Ti seguirò”. “Allora, adesso, come Mi seguirai?” “SeguirTi, non ho ancora pensato a come seguirTi. Vorrei che pronunciassi una parola che non sia un metodo. Sono o non sono un complemento? Anche i complementi possono essere perfezionati? Il nome ‘complemento’ può essere cambiato? Posso rendere una risonante testimonianza essendo un complemento, e poi diventare una persona perfezionata, che è un esempio di amore per Dio e una Sua intima amica? Posso essere resa completa? Dimmi la verità!” “Non sai che le cose si evolvono continuamente, cambiano continuamente? Finché sarai disposta a obbedire essendo un complemento, sarai in grado di cambiare. Il fatto che tu sia o meno un complemento non ha niente a che fare con il tuo destino; il punto chiave è se tu puoi o non puoi essere una persona che sperimenta un cambiamento nella sua indole di vita”. “Dimmi! Puoi perfezionarmi o no?” “Se Mi segui e obbedisci fino alla fine, garantisco di poterti rendere perfetta”. “E che tipo di sofferenza dovrò sperimentare?” “Avversità, e giudizio e castigo delle parole, in modo particolare il castigo delle parole, lo stesso castigo di un complemento!” “Anche lo stesso castigo di un complemento? Ma se posso essere perfezionata da Te affrontando l’avversità, c’è speranza che tutto vada bene. Anche se si tratta solo di un brandello di speranza, è sempre meglio che essere un complemento. La qualifica di ‘complemento’ sembra così orrenda. Non sono disposta a essere un complemento!” “Cosa c’è di sbagliato in un complemento? I complementi non sono anche loro abbastanza buoni? Sono forse indegni di godere delle benedizioni? Se dico che i complementi possono godere delle benedizioni, sarai in grado di goderne. Le qualifiche delle persone non cambiano forse a causa delle Mia opera? Una semplice qualifica ti turba così tanto? Essere questo tipo di complemento è ben meritato. Sei disposta a seguirMi o no?” “Allora, Tu puoi completarmi o no? Puoi permettermi di godere delle Tue benedizioni?” “Sei disposta a seguirMi fino alla fine o no? Sei disposta a offrirti in olocausto?” “Lasciamici pensare. Un complemento può anche godere delle Tue benedizioni, e può essere reso completo. Dopo essere stata completata sarò tua grande amica, comprenderò completamente la Tua volontà, e possiederò ciò che Tu possiedi. Potrò godere ciò di cui anche Tu godi, e conoscerò quello che Tu conosci. … Dopo aver affrontato l’avversità ed essere stata resa perfetta, potrò godere delle benedizioni. Quindi, in effetti, di quali benedizioni potrò godere?” “Non ti preoccupare di quali benedizioni godrai. Anche se te lo dicessi, non saresti in grado di immaginarle. Dopo essere stata un buon complemento, sarai conquistata e diventerai un complemento di successo. Questo è un modello e un campione di chi è conquistato ma, naturalmente, potrai diventarlo solo dopo essere stata conquistata”. “Che cosa significa modello e campione?” “Si tratta di un modello e un campione per tutti i Gentili, cioè coloro che non sono stati ancora conquistati”. “Quante persone?” “Un sacco. Non stiamo parlando solo di quattro o cinquemila; saranno conquistati coloro che accettano questa qualifica in tutto il mondo”. “Quindi, non si tratta solo di cinque o dieci città!”. “Adesso non ti preoccupare di questo, non interessartene troppo. Concentrati semplicemente su come entrare proprio in questo momento! Garantisco che puoi essere resa completa”. “In quale misura? E di quali benedizioni potrò godere?”. “Perché te ne preoccupi così tanto? Garantisco che potrai essere resa completa; ti sei scordata che sono affidabile?”. “È vero che sei affidabile, ma alcuni dei tuoi metodi di parlare sono in continuo cambiamento. Oggi dici che garantisci che io possa essere resa completa, ma domani potresti dire che non è sicuro. E ad alcune persone dici ‘Garantisco che qualcuno come te non può essere reso completo’. Non so cosa succede alle Tue parole. Semplicemente, non oso crederci”. “Allora, vuoi offrirti in olocausto o no?”. “Offrire cosa?”. “Offrire il tuo futuro, le tue speranze”. “Ugh! Queste posso abbandonarle! La cosa principale è la qualifica di ‘complemento’, non la voglio proprio per niente. Se mi togli la qualifica di ‘complemento’, sono aperta a qualsiasi possibilità, potrò fare qualunque cosa. Queste non sono forse bazzecole? Potresti togliere questo appellativo?”. “Non è così facile? Se posso attribuirti questa qualifica posso anche togliertela. Ma non è ancora il momento, devi completare la tua esperienza di questa fase dell’opera, e solo dopo potrai guadagnare una nuova qualifica. Più qualcuno ti somiglia, più ha bisogno di essere un complemento. Più sei spaventata di essere un complemento, più ti etichetterò in questo modo. Una persona del tuo stampo deve essere disciplinata e trattata con rigore. Più una persona è ribelle, più sarà un servitore, e alla fine non guadagnerà nulla”. “Con questo tipo di ricerca, perché non posso abbandonare il nomignolo ‘complemento’? Ti abbiamo seguito in tutti questi anni e abbiamo sofferto non poco. Per Te abbiamo fatto questo e quello, siamo usciti con il vento e sotto la pioggia. La nostra gioventù se ne sta andando. Non ci siamo sposati e non abbiamo messo su famiglia, e quelli di noi che l’hanno fatto ne sono usciti. Ho frequentato la scuola fino alle superiori; non appena ho sentito che sei venuto, ho rinunciato all’occasione di frequentare l’università. E Tu dici che siamo complementi. Abbiamo subito tali perdite! Facciamo tutto questo, ma risulta che siamo i Tuoi complementi. Che penseranno di me i miei ex compagni di scuola e i miei coetanei? Quando mi vedono e mi chiedono della mia posizione e della mia condizione, come potrei non vergognarmi di dirglielo? All’inizio pagavo qualsiasi prezzo a causa della mia fede in Te, e gli altri si burlavano di me come fossi un’idiota; ma ho continuato a seguirTi, aspettando il tempo in cui sarebbe arrivato il mio momento di fargliela vedere, a tutti coloro che non credono. Invece, oggi mi dici che sono un complemento. Se mi avessi attribuito la più bassa delle qualifiche, se mi avessi concesso di essere un membro del Regno, sì che sarebbe bello! Anche se non potessi essere Tua discepola o Tua grande amica, sarei contenta di essere anche solo una tua seguace! Ti abbiamo seguito per tutti questi anni, abbiamo rinunciato alle nostre famiglie, ed è stato così difficile continuare a cercare fino a ora, ma abbiamo solo la qualifica di ‘complemento’! Per Te ho abbandonato tutto; ho rinunciato a tutte le ricchezze terrene. Tempo fa, qualcuno mi ha presentato a un potenziale partner. Era veramente carino e ben vestito; era figlio di un dirigente di alto livello. Allora ero interessata a lui. Ma non appena ho sentito che Dio Si era manifestato e stava compiendo la Sua opera, che Tu ci avresti condotto nel Regno e perfezionati, e che ci chiedevi di avere la determinazione di non perdere tempo nel lasciarci tutto alle spalle, quando ho sentito questo mi sono resa conto di essere totalmente priva di determinazione! Poi mi sono fatta coraggio e l’ho mollato. In seguito, lui inviò più volte doni alla mia famiglia, ma io non diedi loro nemmeno uno sguardo. In quel momento, avresti detto che ero sconvolta? Qualcosa di così bello si trasformò in nulla. Come avrei potuto non essere sconvolta? Ne fui sconvolta per diversi giorni, fino al punto di non riuscire a dormire la notte, ma alla fine lasciai comunque perdere tutto. Ogni volta che pregavo ero spinta dallo Spirito Santo, che diceva: ‘Sei disposta a sacrificare tutto per Me? Sei disposta a dedicare te stessa a Me?’. Tutte le volte che pensavo a queste Tue parole, mi veniva da piangere. Mi commossi e piansi amaramente più volte di quello che mi ricordi. Un anno dopo, venni a sapere che si era sposato. Non c’è bisogno di dire che ero infelice, ma comunque lasciai perdere tutto per amor Tuo. Per non parlare poi della mia alimentazione e dei miei vestiti, che non sono affatto buoni! Ho rinunciato a quel matrimonio, ho rinunciato a tutto questo, perciò non dovresti farmi agire da complemento! Rinunciai al mio matrimonio allo scopo di offrire me stessa a Te, l’evento più importante della mia vita. L’intera vita di una persona non è nient’altro che trovare un buon partner e avere una famiglia felice. Ho lasciato perdere il meglio, e ora le mie mani sono vuote e io sono completamente sola. Dove vorresti che vada? Ho sofferto da quando ho iniziato a seguirTi. Non ho vissuto una bella vita. Ho rinunciato a famiglia e carriera, e anche alle gioie della carne, e l’intero prezzo che tutti noi abbiamo pagato non è ancora sufficiente per godere delle Tue benedizioni? E ora viene fuori questa storia del ‘complemento’. Dio, hai proprio superato il limite! Guardaci: in questo mondo non abbiamo nulla su cui fare affidamento. Alcuni di noi hanno rinunciato ai loro figli, altri hanno rinunciato al lavoro, ai coniugi[f], e così via; abbiamo rinunciato a tutti i piaceri della carne. In che cos’altro dovremmo sperare? Come possiamo continuare a sopravvivere in questo mondo? I prezzi che abbiamo pagato non valgono nemmeno un centesimo? Non riesci proprio ad accorgerTene? La nostra condizione è abietta e la nostra levatura carente, lo riconosciamo, ma quando mai non abbiamo prestato attenzione a quello che Tu volevi facessimo? Ora ci stai abbandonando senza pietà, con il semplice ‘contentino’ del complemento? Il prezzo che abbiamo pagato ci è servito solo ad acquistarci la qualifica di[g] ‘complemento’? Alla fine, se le persone mi chiedono che cosa ho guadagnato dalla mia fede in Dio, posso sbattere loro in faccia la parola[h] ‘complemento’? Con che coraggio posso aprire la bocca per dire che sono un complemento? Non posso renderne conto ai miei genitori e nemmeno al mio ex potenziale partner. Ho pagato un prezzo così grande, e in cambio ho ricevuto la qualifica di complemento! Ah! Mi sento così triste!” (Si colpisce le cosce e inizia a piangere). “Se dico che ora non ti attribuirò più la qualifica di complemento ma che ti accetterò come una del Mio popolo e ti manderò a diffondere il Vangelo, se ti attribuisco la responsabilità di compiere l’opera, saresti capace di farlo? Che cosa hai veramente guadagnato da una fase dopo l’altra di quest’opera? E hai anche raccontato la tua storia, sei senza vergogna! Hai detto di aver pagato un prezzo ma di non aver guadagnato nulla. È possibile che non ti abbia detto quali sono le Mie condizioni per guadagnare una persona? Per chi è la Mia opera? Lo sai? Ti stai rattristando per vecchie pene! Puoi essere ancora considerata un essere umano? Tutte le tue sofferenze non erano forse causate dalla tua propria volontà? Ed esse non avevano lo scopo di guadagnare benedizioni? Hai adempiuto tutte le Mie prescrizioni? Desideri solo guadagnare benedizioni, non hai nessuna vergogna! Quando mai le Mie prescrizioni per te sono state vincolanti? Se sei disposta a seguirMi, devi obberdirMi in ogni cosa. Non parlare di condizioni. Dopo tutto, te l’avevo detto in anticipo che questo è un cammino di sofferenza. È pieno di dure possibilità, con poco buon auspicio. Te ne sei dimenticata? L’ho detto un sacco di volte: se sei disposta a soffrire, seguiMi, se non sei disposta, fermati. Non ti obbligo, sei libera di venire o di andare! Tuttavia, la Mia opera è fatta così, e non posso ritardare la Mia intera opera a causa della tua ribellione individuale. Tu puoi non essere disposta a obbedire, ma altri lo sono. Siete tutte persone disperate! Non ti spaventa più niente! Discuti con Me delle tue condizioni: vuoi continuare a vivere o no? Fai progetti per te stessa e ti dai da fare per la tua fama e il tuo beneficio. La Mia opera non è forse interamente per voi? Sei cieca? Prima che diventassi carne non potevi vederMi, e quelle parole sarebbero perdonabili, ma ora sono incarnato e lavoro in mezzo a voi, tuttavia non riesci ancora a vedermi? Cos’è che non capisci? Dici di aver sofferto un sacco; per questo sono diventato carne, per salvare voi, persone disperate. Ho compiuto molto lavoro, e ancora adesso ti stai lamentando: diresti che Io ho sofferto? Ciò che ho fatto non è stato forse per voi? Dispongo di questa qualifica per le persone sulla base della loro levatura attuale. Se ti definisco ‘complemento’, tu sei immediatamente un complemento. Se ti definisco ‘membro del popolo di Dio’, lo sei immediatamente. In qualsiasi modo ti definisca, tu lo sei. Non è tutto proprio come dico Io? E questa Mia sola parola ti fa così infuriare? Beh, allora scusami! Se ora non obbedisci, alla fine sarai maledetta. Allora ne sarai felice? Non presti attenzione alla via della vita, ma ti concentri solo sul tuo prestigio e sulla tua qualifica; a che cosa somiglia la tua vita? Non nego che tu abbia pagato un grosso prezzo, ma dai uno sguardo alla tua levatura e alla tua pratica, e anche adesso stai ancora discutendo delle tue condizioni. È questa la levatura che hai guadagnato per la tua determinazione? Mantieni ancora un briciolo di integrità? Hai una coscienza? Sono Io che ho fatto qualcosa di sbagliato? Le Mie prescrizioni per te erano sbagliate? Che cos’è? Ti ho chiesto di agire come complemento per pochi giorni e tu non sei disposta a farlo. Che tipo di determinazione è questa? Siete tutti deboli di volontà, siete codardi! Punire persone come te ora è un fatto naturale!”. Quando dissi queste parole, lei rimase ammutolita.
Ora, sperimentando questo tipo di opera, dovete avere una minima comprensione delle fasi dell’opera di Dio e dei Suoi metodi per trasformare le persone. Questo è il solo modo per ottenere risultati nella trasformazione. Nella vostra ricerca, avete troppe nozioni, speranze e futuri individuali. L’opera attuale serve ad affrontare la vostra brama di prestigio e i vostri desideri eccessivi. Le speranze, la brama di[i] prestigio, e le nozioni sono tutte rappresentazioni classiche dell’indole satanica. Il motivo per cui queste cose esistono nel cuore degli esseri umani è interamente perché il veleno di Satana continua sempre a corrodere i pensieri delle persone, ed esse sono sempre incapaci di affrancarsi da queste tentazioni di Satana. Vivono nel bel mezzo del peccato e tuttavia non ritengono sia peccato, ma pensano ancora: “Crediamo in Dio, per cui Egli deve elargirci benedizioni e disporre tutto per noi in modo appropriato. Crediamo in Dio, quindi dobbiamo essere superiori agli altri, e dobbiamo avere più prestigio e più futuro di chiunque altro. Poiché crediamo in Dio, Egli ci deve donare benedizioni illimitate. Altrimenti, non si tratterebbe di credere in Dio”. Per molti anni, i pensieri sui quali le persone hanno fatto affidamento per la loro sopravvivenza hanno corroso i loro cuori al punto che sono diventate perfide, codarde e spregevoli. Non solo mancano di forza di volontà e determinazione, ma sono anche diventate avide, arroganti, e cocciute. Sono totalmente mancanti di qualsiasi determinazione che trascenda il loro io, e addirittura non hanno un briciolo di coraggio per liberarsi dalle limitazioni di questi oscuri influssi. I pensieri e le vite delle persone sono marci, le loro prospettive sulla fede in Dio sono ancora insopportabilmente orribili, e persino quando parlano delle loro prospettive sulla fede in Dio, sono insopportabili da ascoltare. Le persone sono tutte codarde, incompetenti, spregevoli, e anche fragili. Non provano disgusto per le forze delle tenebre, e non provano amore per la luce e la verità; invece, fanno del loro meglio per espellerle. I vostri attuali pensieri e le vostre attuali prospettive non sono forse di questo tipo? “Poiché credo in Dio, dovrei proprio essere colmato di benedizioni e si dovrebbe garantire che il mio prestigio non diminuisca mai e che sia più elevato di quello degli increduli”. Non avete certo coltivato questo tipo di prospettiva dentro di voi per un anno o due solamente; è lì presente da molti anni. La vostra struttura mentale transazionale è ipersviluppata. Sebbene oggi siate giunti a questa fase, non siete ancora riusciti a distaccarvi dal prestigio, ma state sempre lottando per chiedere informazioni su di esso e tenerlo sotto controllo, con un profondo timore che un giorno il vostro prestigio sarà perduto e il vostro nome rovinato. Le persone non hanno mai messo da parte il loro desiderio di agiatezza. Attualmente siete giudicati in questo modo, e alla fine che grado di comprensione avrete? Direte che, sebbene il vostro prestigio non sia elevato, avete goduto dell’elevazione di Dio. Non avete prestigio perché siete di umili origini, ma lo avete a causa dell’elevazione di Dio: è ciò che Egli vi ha concesso. Oggi siete in grado di ricevere personalmente l’addestramento di Dio, il Suo castigo e il Suo giudizio. Questa è ancora di più la Sua elevazione. Siete in grado di ricevere personalmente la Sua purificazione e il Suo fuoco. Ecco il grande amore di Dio. In tutte le età, non c’è stata una sola persona che abbia ricevuto la Sua purificazione e il Suo fuoco, e nemmeno una sola persona che sia stata in grado di essere perfezionata dalle Sue parole. Dio oggi parla con voi faccia a faccia, purificandovi, rivelando la vostra ribellione interiore: questa è veramente la Sua elevazione. Che si può fare? Che siano figli di Davide o discendenti di Moab, in sintesi, le persone sono esseri creati che non hanno niente di cui vantarsi. Poiché siete creature di Dio, dovete compiete il dovere di creature. Non ci sono altre prescrizioni per voi. E tu pregherai dicendo: “Oh Dio! Che abbia prestigio o meno, ora comprendo me stesso. Se il mio prestigio è grande, è grazie alla Tua elevazione, e se è scarso, è a causa del Tuo decreto. Tutto è nelle Tue mani. Non ho nessuna scelta e nessuna lamentela. Hai decretato che nascessi in questa nazione e tra questa gente, e io dovrei solo essere completamente obbediente sotto il Tuo dominio, perché tutto avviene nell’ambito dei Tuoi decreti. Non mi concentro sul prestigio; dopo tutto, sono solo una creatura tra tante. Se mi hai mandato nell’abisso, nello stagno di fuoco e zolfo, non sono nient’altro che una creatura. Se Ti servi di me, sono una creatura. Se mi perfezioni, sono ancora una creatura. Se non mi perfezioni, Ti amerò lo stesso perché sono null’altro che una creatura. Non sono altro che una minuscola creatura plasmata dal Signore della creazione, semplicemente uno degli esseri umani creati. Sei stato Tu che mi hai creato, e ora mi hai preso di nuovo nelle Tue mani perché fossi alla Tua mercé. Sono pronto a essere il Tuo strumento e il Tuo complemento perché ogni cosa avviene secondo quanto comandi. Nessuno può cambiare questo. Tutte le cose e tutti gli eventi sono nelle Tue mani”. Quando arriverà il momento, non ti concentrerai più sul prestigio e te ne libererai. Solo allora sarai in grado di cercare con sicurezza e con coraggio, e solo allora il tuo cuore potrà essere libero da ogni vincolo. Quando le persone saranno state liberate da questo, non avranno più preoccupazioni. In questo preciso momento, quali sono le preoccupazioni della maggioranza di voi? Siete sempre ossessionati dal prestigio e alla ricerca delle vostre personali prospettive. Prendete un libro della parola di Dio e lo sfogliate, senza vedere ciò che viene detto sul destino dell’umanità; cercate, con ancora più attenzione, ma non riuscite lo stesso a trovarlo. “Com’è possibile che non ci siano prospettive? Forse Dio le ha tolte di mezzo? Non può essere! E allora perché non ce ne sono? Dio parla solo di complementi, e quindi non c’è nient’altro?”. Ora siete seguaci, e avete un po’ di comprensione di questa fase dell’opera. Tuttavia, non avete ancora messo da parte il vostro desiderio di prestigio. Quando il vostro prestigio è elevato, cercate bene, ma quando è basso, non cercate più. Avete sempre in mente le benedizioni collegate al prestigio. Perché la maggioranza delle persone non riesce a uscire dalla negatività? Non è sempre a causa di prospettive cupe? Non appena vengono pubblicati i discorsi di Dio, vi precipitate a vedere cosa sono veramente il vostro prestigio e la vostra identità. Mettete prestigio e identità al primo posto, e la visione al secondo. Al terzo, ciò in cui dovreste entrare, e al quarto la volontà attuale di Dio. Guardate prima se la qualifica di “complementi” attribuitavi da Dio è cambiata o no. Leggete ancora e ancora, e quando vedete che la qualifica “complemento” è stata rimossa, siete felici e ringraziate Dio di continuo, lodando la Sua grande potenza. Ma non appena intravedete che siete ancora complementi, siete sconvolti e subito non avete alcuno stimolo nel cuore. Più cerchi in questo modo, meno mieterai. Più grande è il desiderio personale di prestigio, più seriamente si dovrà essere trattati e più si deve affrontare un grande affinamento. Questo tipo di persone è troppo indegno! Devono essere trattate e giudicate adeguatamente, affinché possano lasciarsi tutto alle spalle. Se ricercate in questo modo fino alla fine, non mieterete nulla. Coloro che non ricercano la vita non possono essere trasformati; coloro che non hanno sete della verità non possono guadagnarla. Non ti concentri sulla ricerca della trasformazione personale e dell’ingresso; ti concentri solo sui desideri eccessivi, e sulle cose che limitano il tuo amore per Dio e ti impediscono di avvicinarti a Lui. Queste cose possono trasformarti? Ti possono portare nel Regno? Se l’oggetto della tua ricerca non è la verità, puoi trarre vantaggio da questa opportunità e tornare al mondo per avervi successo. Non vale veramente la pena di sprecare il tuo tempo in questo modo: perché torturare te stesso? Non potresti godere di ogni sorta di cose là fuori, nel fantastico mondo? Soldi, belle donne, prestigio, vanità, famiglia, figli, e così via: non sono tutti prodotti del mondo, le cose migliori di cui potresti godere? Che senso ha girovagare alla ricerca di un posto dove poter essere felici? Il Figlio dell’uomo non ha un posto dove posare il capo, per cui come potresti avere un posto dove regna il benessere? Come potrebbe Lui crearti un magnifico luogo di benessere? È possibile? A parte il Mio giudizio, oggi puoi solo ricevere insegnamenti sulla verità. Non puoi ottenere conforto da Me e nemmeno puoi guadagnarti il rifugio felice a cui pensi notte e giorno. Non ti concederò le ricchezze del mondo. Se ricerchi con sincerità, sono pronto a concederti la via della vita nella sua interezza, perché tu sia come un pesce che torna nell’acqua. Se non ricerchi con sincerità, Mi riprenderò tutto. Non sono disposto a concedere le parole della Mia bocca a coloro che sono avidi di conforto e sono proprio come porci e cani!
Note a piè di pagina:
a. Il testo originale non contiene la frase “Sono pronta”.
b. Il testo originale non contiene la frase “le parole”.
c. Il testo originale omette “si chiesero”.
d. Il testo originale omette “la qualifica di”.
e. Il testo originale omette “e dissero”.
f. Il testo originale recita “mogli”.
g. Il testo originale omette “la qualifica di”.
h. Il testo originale omette “la parola”.
i. Il testo originale non contiene la frase “la brama di”.
www.kingdomsalvation.org/it/why-arent-you-willing-to-be-a...
Colliston Primary School pupils on a visit to Dalguise in May, 1998. Question - which would go faster - a raft with four people's weight and water resistance but with them all paddling, or a much lighter one with only one paddler? Would anyone who was there that day (or any other) care to answer the question?
-2IL, compensated with a SB600 reflected into an umbrella standing on the left side, slightly underneath her face
The KOM League
Flash Report
For week of
June 19—25, 2016
Opening salvo:
Most weeks start with nothing to write about. This week was no exception. Then, someone will call or e-mail me with a question or obituary and the verbiage commences. Thus, without reader input I’d have nothing to share for everything I ever knew, for a fact or have fabricated, has already been shared in the 22- years of writing about the KOM league.
At this time I know some things that will appear in the next issue of this report for I didn’t have room to share them in this epistle. So, if you want to be mentioned in the next issue, get in touch.
Three historical photos of KOM leaguers are referenced in this report.. One had to be selected to place on the Flickr site and the one of the recently deceased Jim Allicotti was the winner: www.flickr.com/photos/60428361@N07/27654549751/
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Bad start to new week:
Early on the morning of June 12th I was copied on a Facebook message from the son of Richard and Molly McCoy. Not having access to that function I immediately went to the KOM database and pulled up the telephone number of the McCoy’s. No one answered the home phone but the call to the cellphone number had me in touch with Dick.
Immediately upon saying “Hello,” Dick knew my voice. I asked him if anything was wrong and there sure was. He said he had just gone through a traumatic experience. He had a biopsy of a large tumor under his left ear and learned that it was malignant. He will enter the hospital on June 13th for surgery. He told me on Sunday, 12th, that the procedure was first estimated to take two to three hours but due to further examination the surgery time was increased to an estimated eight hours.
A conversation ensued about life from youth to its advanced stages. Dick told me that he is nearing his 87th birthday and figured he had escaped some of the diseases that befall others. He said “I thought I was on the downhill side of that.” He mentioned that his mother lived to be 105 and figured he was on his way to equaling her longevity.
McCoy recalled that in his youth, as a Brooklyn Dodger farmhand and big league hopeful, that he thought the sun was wonderful when he could pitch a game in hot places like Ponca City and Ft. Worth. That turned out to be a major contributor to his current condition. As he spoke with his doctor he was asked if he ever chewed tobacco. McCoy said he had a little Beechnut while sitting in the dugout but was never a big user of it.
It’s pretty tough talking to someone like Dick who I’ve known for over 20 years and have been affiliated with him and Molly at wedding anniversaries as well as numerous KOM reunions. Many a morning, in the past couple of decades, I’d receive a call from Dick and it was usually a conversation that went “John, I played baseball with a guy in 1951, can you tell me if he’s still alive and if so, where?” Sometimes the guy had passed on and other times a connection was made for Dick to reunite with an old teammate. I recall the first time he ever asked about finding someone and it happened to be the widow of Pepper Martin. The Martins and McCoys were great friends and Dick has as many tales about Pepper as anyone I ever met.
“Every day is a new experience,” Dick declared. He had already been on the telephone with former teammate Gene Castiglione of the Ponca City Dodgers and a fellow mounds man in the Dodger organization by the name of Jim Melton. He opined that Melton was always on the verge of making it to the big leagues, posting large win totals in the minors.
Most generally I don’t share health conditions of former players in this forum. However, there are many readers who know Dick and Molly and I figured I’d share the news so that they can be in touch with the family.
I’ll keep everyone apprised of McCoy’s condition as it unfolds.
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Death of James Vincent Allicotti—baseball player, educator and screen actor
Last week I was going through my list of living, former KOM leaguers, from whom I hadn’t heard from for some time. One name I looked up was James Vincent Allicotti who played centerfield, in the month of June of 1950 for the Miami, Okla. Eagles. He joined the team on May 28. In 1949 he played for Wausau, in the Wisconsin State as well as Ada, Okla. in the Sooner State league. Aside from Miami, he also played for Ada in a dozen games prior to showing up in Miami. I didn’t find anything but less than a week later he passed away.
Most record books don’t indicate it but Allicotti hit from the right side of the plate. He was a big guy for his era going 6’ 2” and 190 pounds while at Miami. A photo of him in his time at Miami can be seen at this site: www.flickr.com/photos/60428361@N07/27654549751/
During the 1951 season Allicotti played for Spokane, WA in the Western International. He finished his baseball career in 1952 with Yuma, AZ in the Southwest International and Magic Valley (Twin Falls area) of the Pioneer leagues in 1952.
The following is his obituary that was brought to my attention by Jack Morris on June 15.
obits.ocregister.com/obituaries/orangecounty/obituary.asp...
James Vincent Allicotti, "Jim", 85, of Anaheim, CA passed away on Sunday, June 5, 2016. He was born September 22, 1930 in Denver, CO to the late Vincent and Josephine Allicotti. He was an avid golfer and also enjoyed fishing and hunting.
He played professional baseball in the minor leagues for the late Western International Baseball League's Spokane Indians. Between baseball seasons, he was a screen extra in several Hollywood films, and returned to work as an extra for television after retiring from his teaching career.
He earned his Master’s Degree in Health Science from CSU Los Angeles; and Pupil Personnel Services (PPS) Credential from Pepperdine University. He taught Health and Driver's Education for Anaheim Union High School District for 30 years, during which time he also served part-time as a Parks & Recreation Coordinator for City of Anaheim Community Services Department.
Jim is survived by his wife, Diana Allicotti; daughters Gina Allicotti, Sharon Allicotti, Annette Addie, Lola Allicotti; and granddaughters Amanda and Haylie Addie. He is also survived by sisters, Marie Parr and Lorraine Giordano; and was preceded in death by his sister, Mamie Coleman. A Funeral Mass will be held on Wednesday, June 15, 11:00 AM at St. Anthony Claret Catholic Church, 1450 La Palma Ave. Anaheim, CA 92805. Donations in Jim's name may be made to Anaheim Public Library Foundation:
The remnants of the 1950 Miami Eagles
With the passing of James Allicotti, the 40-man Miami roster is now down to these known survivors: George Garrison, Charles Kohs, Gary Plant Hildebrand, Bob Paulausky, Richard Sassi, Charles V. Quartaro, Louis Salreno and Don Fitzgerald. There were two members of that club I never located—Orlando G. “Tex” Simpson and Charles Mann. Simpson was a pitcher from Corpus Christi, Tex. and Mann was a first baseman from Moffett, Okla. . Mann also played for the Iola Indians in 1950. Miami had three managers that year—James Dorn Oglesby, Oren Carroll “Jack” Hodge and Francis Arthur “Pug” Griffin. They are all deceased. Miami had the tragic oddity of having a manager from 1950 and 1951 who later committed suicide. Jim Oglesby took his own life in 1955 and Tommy Warren did so in 1968. Both of the suicides occurred in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
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A tough task in fate verification
Had I refrained from using a photo of the 1946 Chanute, Kansas pitching staff I would have saved myself a lot of effort. That photo carried with it an image of “Red” White. On the back of the photo “Red” was identified as Bob White. Well, there was a pitcher in the KOM league by the name of Robert White but he pitched for Miami, OK and not until 1949.
Had I used the 1946 Chanute team photo I would have identified Bob White as William D. White. After Frank Houston asked me about Mr. White and whether he ever lived in Oklahoma City I decided I had better go back to my early 1990’s records. This reference takes you to the 1946 team photo. William “Red” White is the second from the left in the back row: www.flickr.com/photos/60428361@N07/27729119415/
Chanute’s “Red” White had the full name of William Denzil White. He was born on September 2, 1923 in Arcola, MO which is in Dade County with the largest town in that county being Greenfield and the population there has been around 1,000 for decades.
By 1930, Red White’s father, William Barton White, had moved his family to Visalia, California but in 1935 the family was back in Dade County. Death records indicate Red’s mother died in Visalia in 1961 and his dad died in 1966 in Oak Grove, Mo.
William Denzil White graduated from high school (most likely, Greenfield) in 1941 and on 8/21/1942 he joined the U. S. Army. He served there until January 22, 1946 and then returned to Dade County. During the spring of 1946 he made his way to Carthage, MO where the Topeka and Chanute Owls were holding spring training. He made the team as a left-handed pitcher and “went northwest,” to Chanute, when the Carthage Cardinals returned from their spring training in Albany, Georgia. The following photo of Topeka/Chanute players was taken at the motor court just across the street (Route 66) from the Carthage ballpark. . That was one of two motels in Carthage at the time: www.flickr.com/photos/60428361@N07/27729119415/ Ballplayers stayed there while the big brass of those teams stayed at the Drake Hotel or Boots Motor Court. Boots was where Clark Gable stayed when he came to Carthage.
The 1946 season wasn’t the best for the recently discharged soldier as he went 8-15. That season Chanute was the only farm team of the Topeka Owls. In 1947 Miami took the Owl franchise and Chanute played as an independent club. White went back to Chanute for his second season in pro ball but it was not as successful or as long as his first.
Most likely, White played a lot of baseball with and against Floyd “Goat” Wooldridge., who was born at Jerico Springs, in 1928, and lived in Greenfield when he signed with the St Louis Cardinals in 1950. It wasn’t possible to track White to more than two places after his stint in the KOM. He lived in Bellflower, Calif. and died in the same place Floyd Wooldridge was born, Jerico Springs, passing away there on June 14, 1993 and is buried at the Anna-Edna Cemetery.
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A Special story—regarding a former Whiz Kid
The following only proves that by dropping every name of anyone I have ever known, in these reports, yields feedback. A reader in Kansas City sent a clipping with a post-it note attached that read “John, for some reason I seem to remember you referencing this Ben Craig information one time. Am I dreaming?” I informed the writer that he wasn’t dreaming and due to Casebolt keeping his eyes open and maintaining a sharp memory the following is being shared.
www.kansascity.com/opinion/opn-columns-blogs/steve-rose/a...
By clicking on the aforementioned URL you’ll get a photo.
For those without URL capability here is the entire article:
By Steve Rose
Those who don’t know Ben Craig may think his request to throw a portion of his ashes in the air along Metcalf Avenue in Overland Park is a bit odd.
But this 87-year-old civic leader, who has cancer and has been given three months to live, has rational reasons for this unusual request. Metcalf Avenue is the spine of Overland Park — and, by extension all of Johnson County — and that is the community that Ben Craig has poured his soul into. Aside from his family, Ben has dedicated himself to this community above all else. And he has left his indelible mark.
Ben came to Overland Park 52 years ago to become president of Metcalf Bank, a small start-up at 79th Street and Metcalf Avenue. It was also in 1964 that Ben joined the Overland Park Rotary Club, where he holds the distinction of perfect attendance over those 52 years.
Ben brings total commitment to everything, which has made him an icon. He has been involved in so many causes and achieved so many awards that a list of them is literally six pages long.
When Metcalf Avenue’s business development stretched only a few blocks south of 75th Street and the county was strictly a bedroom suburb, Ben saw a fertile community that he thought would someday be far more than simply nice homes, shops and outstanding schools. Johnson County has become a commercial hub, thanks in part to Ben.
Economic development is in Ben’s blood. He founded the Overland Park Chamber of Commerce and has led almost every business organization that exists in the county. He is the only Johnson County banker to serve as president of the Kansas Banker’s Association. You might expect that kind of business involvement from a banker. But although Ben built a thriving, sprawling bank empire, he never solicited business from those he served with or from any government. He kept banking and serving in two separate worlds.
Ben’s clear choice for his most significant life achievement is chairing the campaign committee that championed a $12.9 million bond issue to establish Johnson County Community College. The success of that campaign resulted in the community’s crown jewel, ranked as one of the finest in America. But that was just the beginning of Ben’s involvement there.
Ben was the first chairman of the JCCC Foundation, which has raised tens of millions of dollars over the years toward scholarships for those who couldn’t afford full tuition. He has stayed involved with the college. It should come as no surprise that Ben is leaving a large part of his estate to the college scholarship fund.
Ben has been behind the scenes in local politics. He was always on the lookout for good officeholders. Ben mentored hundreds of candidates over the years. Sometimes he raised funds for their campaigns.
Ben’s true joy, which lights up his face, is the Deanna Rose Farmstead in Overland Park. Not only has Ben been a longtime leader of that organization, he generously built a large, all-brick replica of an old-time bank called “Ben’s Bank” for children to learn about banking.
Throughout most of his life, Ben didn’t take the time for hobbies. But in his ’60s, he took up golf, which became a passion. A natural athlete who once played minor league baseball (on the same team as Mickey Mantle), Ben has religiously played twice a week until recently. He finally shot a hole-in-one four years ago.
Ben is a privately spiritual man. As he tells his life story, Ben assigns much of what has happened to him to his creator. He views the last few months of life as a gift, so that he has the time to get things in order and say goodbye to his family and many friends.
So, one day, if you see ashes flying through the air over Metcalf Avenue, that’s Ben. It will be symbolic. The real Ben is in every nook and cranny of the community he has spent his lifetime serving.
Steve Rose, longtime Johnson County columnist: srose@kc.rr.com
The Epilogue:
After reading Mr. Rose’s great article I shared these comments with him. “A Kansas City reader sent me your excellent article on Ben Craig. As a historian of amateur and professional baseball in Southeast Kansas, Northwest Oklahoma and Southwest Missouri I got to know Ben Craig quite well over the past two decades.
When Ben Craig and Mickey Mantle were teammates they played for Barney Barnett of Baxter Springs, Kansas. Barnett would gather the best athletes from the area each summer. From 1944--1951 Barney managed the team he called ‘The Whiz Kids.’ I've always said that the Whiz Kids turned out to be great successes in their fields of endeavor. Craig was one of the more outstanding in my opinion.
I don't wish to bore you but I witnessed Craig's dealing with a very ill wife and how he fulfilled ‘Till Death Do Us Part’ to the extreme.
One of the stories that stands out in my mind, concerning Craig, was a Baxter Springs game in 1948 with their main rival, the Alba, Missouri Aces. The Aces were blessed by having all the Boyer brothers on the team at one time or another. In 1948 Kenny was on the team and he faced Craig. Craig could throw a ball through a brick wall. In a game Craig threw one so hard Kenny couldn't get out of the way. It hit him upside the temple and he fell like he had been shot. Kenny laid on the ground for quite some time. Craig once told me that he thought he had killed him.
Kenny got over the blow to the head and before the season was over Craig was pitching against Alba once more. When it was Kenny's time to bat he stood so far away from the plate he couldn't hit anything. He just wanted to get his times at bat behind him. Craig said he always felt bad about that incident since he hadn't hit his opponent on purpose. The next year Kenny Boyer signed with the St. Louis Cardinals
Ben Craig had played part one year of professional baseball in the Sooner State league, in 1947. He then returned home and played for the Whiz Kids when Mantle joined them. At that time Ben Craig was the big strapping member of the team and Mantle was one of the runts of the outfit.”
Mr. Rose answered my e-mail and said he would print my comments and take them to Ben Craig since he doesn’t have e-mail. On the other hand, the author of the Craig article does have an e-mail. I ask readers to communicate with an author when they write a story that is even tangentially associated with the KOM league. In this case the author can be contacted at srose@kc.rr.com
Ben Craig had a great deal of influence and contact with future big league stars such as Mickey Mantle and Kenny Boyer but he also had a lot to do with the KOM League Remembered newsletter being funded and going to better homes and gardens for sixteen years. Without people like Ben Craig the KOM communication lines would have faded long before the start of the 21st century.
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Newbill influence continues
My cousin's little grandson who is 12 is in Cooperstown playing in a tournament. His team is now out but Caden hit a home run in one game and played well so he is pretty happy with his performance. Plus, he is really a basketball player. He wanted me to send him some photos of his great uncle playing ball so I did. He wanted to show all his teammates. Then today they went to the museum and went to the records department and had them pull this up. Caden wants to play catch with him and wants to know if you can play catch in heaven. I assured him that you can.
Sometimes unexpected sweet moments sneak into your day! Cindy Newbill—Kansas
Ed comment:
Caden’s great uncle is the late, great Bobby Gene Newbill who played for the 1949 Independence Yankees among other places. It must have been a huge surprise for Caden’s friends to learn his great uncle played on the same team with Mickey Mantle.
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Nothing of insignificance appears in these reports
John: I read all of your interesting reports although I know of very few of the players mentioned, having spent only a few days with Iola in 1950. You mentioned Rich Eichhorst in your latest report who was the only Southeast Missouri State basketball player to have ever played in the NBA. He led the league in scoring his senior season, 1956 I believe. I was a Senior at SEMO State at the same time and knew who he was although I never met him. I was a few years older than him, having been in the Marine Corps and playing parts of 3 years of baseball and then going to SEMO State on the GI Bill.
He, Carl (Pete) Ritter, Ray Ripplemeyer and Elmer Balzer were outstanding players for SEMO State in the early to mid-1950s. I knew Balzer as he had played some pro baseball and I believe Ripplemeyer had done so also, although I never really met him. I know Pete Ritter very well, having gone to the same high school, Advance, although I was several years older than him. Pete was probably the best basketball player to ever come out of SE Missouri with the possible exception of Win Wilfong of the Puxico HS, his small town HS having won 2 straight state championships in the days before the so called “Final four”. Wilfong played a few years in the NBA, scoring about 2000 points. He played a little baseball when he was a high schooler and was a little on the profane side. I pitched a game against the Puxico town team; we were winning, and the Puxico manager asked Wilfong if he would pinch hit. He responded “hell no, if that son of a ----- hit you, he’d kill you”, (the SOB being me). I could throw quite hard at that time and was pretty wild.
Ritter is the all-time leading basketball scorer for SEMO State and to my knowledge the only SEMO player to have had his number retired. He, like Wilfong, was only 6 ft. 2 inches but this didn’t prevent them from being great college scorers. Ritter was drafted by the St. Louis Hawks but injured his knee severely and was never able to play in the NBA. He is now the Mayor of the town of Advance.
Bill Ashcraft
Overland Park, Ks.
Ed comment:
One of the great joys in researching and looking for former KOM league came when I first located Bill Ashcraft. It turned out that he worked with the Drug Enforcement Agency with his former Iola teammate from 1950, Bernard Leroy Coulter. What turned out to come as a greater surprise was that both Coulter and Ashcraft worked for my first cousin, Ernest Hall, who was head of that agency in Kansas City. Over the years Ashcraft shared photos taken at Drug Enforcement conferences and one included that of a very young Joe Arpaio who now is a well-known sheriff in Arizona.
___________________________________________________________________________
A trivia contestant:
The answer is three young men in the stands with the lone adult... and, I see the name Del Webb, possibly who these retirement communities are named after. I will check it out. Thanks, John.
Cindy Lange—Palatine, Ill.
Ed comment:
No one reported seeing more than three young boys in the grandstand behind the photo of the 1947 Bartlesville Oilers. There were four. I’ll explain. In the center of the Bartlesville dugout was a post supported by two beams that were in a “V” configuration. A little boy is in the photo just above that “V.” If you have deleted that photo here is the access to it. www.flickr.com/photos/60428361@N07/27511893266/
___________________________________________________________________________
Comments about last report:
JOHN, WHAT A NICE FEELING E-MAIL. I REALLY ENJOYED READING IT. WALT Babcock—A resident of Cape Cod, Mass.
Another good one John –Jim Skog in Davenport, Iowa
Ed comment:
It was a bit ironic that those were the only two “atta-boys” received regarding the last report and they came within five minutes of the other. To top that Babcock is the person who introduced Skog to the existence of the Flash Reports. Skog is a former military pilot who spent his post military days flying the big birds for United Airlines. Babcock has also spent many days pretty high up himself. He doesn’t fly an airplane, drink or take drugs but he still gets pretty high once in a while over certain antics of our elected and non-elected leaders. I know that he does for I hear from him a “few” times a week.
___________________________________________________________________________
A Flash Report extra—a pigs ear
Things go on around my home other than writing Flash Reports. Early this past week I went big game hunting or better stated, the big game came to me. I awoke the morning after setting a trap the previous evening and came face-to-face with a very unhappy raccoon. That fellow is on my Flickr site but most of you wouldn’t go there to see it even if I provided the correct URL. However, my photo recipients had a lot of interest in it for they also have raccoon stories to tell. Here is where they viewed it. www.flickr.com/photos/60428361@N07/26996981274/
I surmised that instead of a trap I should get me a coon dog and a former Tennessee resident who has migrated to Florida sent this tale. “Your neighbors will love a coon dog. I had one that tracked our hogs that swam across the Tennessee River when the water was low and dams had not been built. He would track them and hold them by the ear until I came after hearing the pig squeal.”
______________________________________________________________________________
Clips from a May 27, 1947 Iola Register sports page
It isn’t feasible to share entire pages of old newspapers but sometimes I find things that are unique or I learn something I didn’t know about members of the KOM league. I’m including four clips from a late May edition of the Iola Register. Of all the stories I don’t know which one surprised me the most. It comes down to the articles about Jim Hansen and Boyd Bartley. I suppose I spoke as much with Jim Hansen, until the time of his death, as anyone. I knew he played as a fullback for both Nebraska and Iowa during WW II but never did he tell me he played for the Chicago Bears. It would make sense for Ray “Fido” Murphy, Topeka Owls owner, was a scout of the Bears and even had Scooter McLean on his Topeka club in 1946. Murphy signed Hansen to a Topeka contract in 1946. My search of every Chicago Bear roster shows no trace of Hansen having played in a NFL game for them. McLean used to urge his baseball teammates to join the Bears for they could double in one NFL game what they could earn in a month playing Class D or C baseball. For those of you unfamiliar with salaries of the 1946 era the Class D players made between $90 and $125 a month. I have the contracts to prove it. So, playing for the Bears a guy might make as much as $250 a week.
Another surprise was that it took Boyd Bartley until late May of 1947 to get tossed from his first game as a collegiate or professional and when he did he talked his way back into the contest. Read it in this set of clips for these are all quotes from the newspaper. And, newspapers are always correct, right?
•
Time Hangs Heavy for Nick Najjar
Time—7:45.
Place—Cubs' dugout.
Nick Najjar —"Rabbit, what time is it?'
Lloyd Ayers — "Quarter of eight."
Najjar —"Tell me when it's eight, will you?"
Ayers—"Yeah."
Five minutes later: Najjar—"Rabbit, what time is it?"'
Ayers—"Ten minutes of."
Najjar—"Thanks."
Najjar to Buck Walz- “We’ll start warming up at eight.
Buck. Walz -"Okay."
At. 7:53: Najjar—"Is it eight' yet, Rabbit?"'
Ayers—"No; seven till."
Najjar—"Thanks."
At- 7:55: Najjar--"Come on Buck, let's warm up.
•
Chanute Owls of 1946 became Miami “Wise Birds” of 1947
Miami is scheduled to arrive in town today for its first invasion of the Cub den at Riverside Park. The Oklahoma ball team will appear with only one of its 1946 performers—Outfielder Loren Packard but carries a fair resemblance to the 1946 Chanute Owls, having appropriated Chanurc's sponsor, the Topeka Owls, the Chanute nickname, and two players, Jim Hansen, catcher, and Marty Debish, outfielder. And, incidentally, the Owls come to town from Chanute, where they have just accomplished a feat that may never have been performed in the KOM before—a clean sweep of Chanute at Chanute. They captured a doubleheader there Sunday and added a 12-7 victory last night. Jim "No Hit" Morris, is another individual lending distinction to the Owls.
Garnett, Kansas fans will be here tomorrow night to celebrate the no- hit game pitched by that city's contribution to KOM ball. Morris blanked Carthage 12-0 on opening day of the season. He is tentatively scheduled as the Miami pitcher tomorrow. Miami is the third place team in the KOM, 4 games back of the Cubs. Bill Davis, pitcher with the Topeka Owls last season is the Miami manager. Big Loren Packard, the Owls' clean-up hitter, was the KOM's second heaviest hitter when the latest averages were figured, having hit .379. (Ed note: The photo taken after Morris tossed the non-hitter is the only KOM league photo to ever appear in the Associated Press. Long story, I’ve shared it previously. If curious let me know and I’ll share it with you.)
•
Former Iowa and Nebraska fullback had signed with the Chicago Bears
Jim Hansen, the Chicago Bears professional football player, is the catcher who was sidelined at Chanute last fall in favor of Dave Dennis, action that caused an explosion in the Chanute- lola Shaughnessy play-off. He is currently batting .359. John Barley, business manager of the Cubs; said at noon today that tonight's game is definitely "on," unless more rain falls. (Ed note: Barley replaced Lloyd “Rabbit” Ayers as business manager, in 1947, and died the next year.)
Players are coming and going fast In the KOM league now. Independence has received three new outfielders and two pitchers. All clubs, must trim down to 15 by Friday.
•
Kicked out of game and talked his way back in
Boyd Bartley, the studious and gentlemanly young man managing the Ponca City Dodgers, has never been expelled from a ball game by an umpire, according to the Ponca City News. His career covers, the University oi Illinois, the Brooklyn Dodgers, and the Montreal Royals. He: was a near victim of Umpire (Seward) Rice of the KOM on a recent night, however, getting a pink slip but having it withdrawn when he convinced Rice there was nobody else to play his second base position. He must have studied law when a student at Illinois.
_____________________________________________________________________________
I quit
There were a number of more stories to relate and comments to share regarding previous reports but they will have to wait for another time.
As is frequently stated, “If you receive these reports and wish you didn’t, let me know.” That is one of the few things in life over which I have complete control. I make the foregoing statement for I can’t determine who is or isn’t reading the reports from the feedback, or lack of it.
The question asked "have you ever been convicted of a crime" followed by "explain why"... so I put "no" and "good lawyer."
Post a pic of yourself & answer the questions...I was tagged by Ms. Sarah / Issabella the Cat.
To friends I have tagged: please, no pressure to play along, but passing the baton seems to be part of the game. And of course I'd love to know about your body piercing plans (! See question 7, below).
Okay, onwards
1: What are you wearing?
Black cords and a long-sleeved t-shirt
2: Something about you that nobody ever knew?
Nobody? Well, here's something that only a few people knew: as a kid I was convinced that I would someday be on the Tonight Show -- for what particular talent, I wasn't sure. But that I would someday be talking to Johnny Carson, I was quite sure. Hmmmm.
3: Biggest phobias?
heights
4: How tall are you?
I like to say 5'7" but I'm not quite there...probably more like 5'6 1/2" (and shrinking)
5: Ever been in love?
Oh yes.
6: Any tattoos that you want?
I got my first tattoo when I was 18 and of course they're pretty addictive. If I had a logical spot for another one, I would love to get a wee Singer Featherweight.
7. Any piercing that you want?
Okay, so I think I'm a bit outside the target demographic for this list! I have multiple ear piercings and not really in the market for anything else.
8. Makeouts or cuddling
both
9. shoe size
8 1/2 US (about 39)
10. favourite bands
I'm way out of the loop nowadays, but was once really into (then) current music; loved Parliament and anything George Clinton touched, early Prince, Dee-lite, Al Green; also, in a different vein, Style Council, Shriekback, Matt Johnson...like many 40-somethings I'm stuck in a time warp. Mostly I listen to jazz, r & b and classical music.
11. something that you miss
Hmmm. I sometimes miss being young(er), but generally I'm pretty happy with exactly where I am.
12: Favourite song?
I don't really have one, but this week my littlest kid and I have been dancing to Sam and Dave's "Hold On, I'm Coming."
13: How old are you?
44
14: Zodiac sign?
Virgo
15: Hair Color?
Brown
16: Favourite Quote?
After my high school yearbook fiasco I am going to pass on this one.
17: Favourite singer?
Depends on when you ask me...I love crooners from the 30s, Russ Columbo, Ruth Etting, but my taste is pretty wide-ranging.
18: Favourite colour?
I love blue, purple, green and orange. And slate grey. And pink. And black. I'm apparently not very good at this game.
19: Loud music or soft?
Loud
20: Where do you go when you're sad?
Bed or a hot bath (or some combination of the two).
21: How long does it take you to shower?
About 5 minutes. I'm super quick, very low maintenance.
22: How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?
I have to get up at 5:30 a.m.on teaching days, so I get ready quite quickly...and then dawdle over tea and e-mail.
23: Ever been in a physical fight?
No.
24: Turn on?
Intelligence.
25: Turn off?
Sweat that smells like rancid butter...some people have that.
26: The reason I joined Flickr?
I think it was to start commenting on particular quilt photos, but very soon after I got involved in several VQBs.
27: Fears?
Having to identify a favourite colour, quote, or singer...!
28: Last thing that made you cry?
Realizing that all my most important parenting work with my son was now done. He has left for university. His childhood went by in a flash.
29: Last time you cried?
I teared up yesterday after shopping for wool coating with my friend Melinda.
30: Meaning behind your url:
It combines my research specialization (Folklore & history of the fairy tale) with my sewing passion.
31: Last book you read?
Abel's Island by William Steig...but I was teaching it, so maybe that doesn't count? Last novel read for pleasure only: Washington Square by Henry James.
32: Last song you listened to?
"Blame Me (Don't Blame My Heart)" by Sam and Dave
33: Last show you watched?
Hardball with Chris Matthews
34: Last person you talked to?
my 3-year-old (see photo)
35: The relationship between you and the person you last texted?
I texted with my 15-year-old daughter.
36: Favourite food?
I love the northern Chinese-style wonton soup at Mother's Dumplings, loaded with seaweed.
37: Place you want to visit?
I'd love to go to Italy again, with more time to explore and with my partner. Also Spain and Portugal....
38: Last place you were?
Guelph, Ontario...for work so maybe that doesn't count. Before that it would be Boston.
39: Do you have a crush?
Uhhh not really, not too into celebs, although I was once pretty keen on Ewan MacGregor. I'll play it safe and say my hubby.
40: Last time you kissed someone?
About 5 minutes ago. I have a 3 year-old so I get a LOT of kisses.
41: Last time you were insulted and what was it?
There was a situation at work that I can't discuss. I swallowed it and managed to get everything back on track... proud of that.
42: What colour underwear are you wearing?
Purple
43: What colour shirt are you wearing?
Navy blue
44: Are you tired?
VERY
45: Wearing any bracelets?
No
46: Last sport you played?
HA!
47: Last song you sang?
See "last song we listened to," above
48: Last prank call you remember doing?
If we're talking prank phone class, that would be 5th grade.
49: Last time you hung out with anyone?
Yesterday morning.
50: Do you consider yourself to be approachable?
I'd like to think so, but to be honest I think I'm a funny mix: very warm with some people and in some contexts and not-so-much in others.
Depeche Mode - Personal Jesus (The Stargate Mix)
Depeche Mode are an English electronic band that formed in 1980 in Basildon, Essex. The group consists of founders Dave Gahan (lead vocals, occasional songwriter since 2005), Martin Gore (guitar, keyboards, vocals, main songwriter since 1982), and Andy Fletcher (keyboards, bass guitar). Depeche Mode released their debut album Speak & Spell in 1981, bringing the band onto the British new wave scene. Original band member Vince Clarke (keyboards, guitar, main songwriter from 1980 to 1981), left the band after the release of the album, leaving the band as a trio to record A Broken Frame, released the following year. Gore took over the lead songwriting duties and, later in 1982, Alan Wilder (keyboards, drums, bass guitar, occasional songwriter) officially joined the band to fill Clarke's spot, establishing a line up that would continue for the next 13 years. Depeche Mode have been a trio again since 1995, when Wilder left.
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“The great question that has never been answered, and which I have not yet been able to answer, despite my thirty years of research into the feminine soul, is ''WHAT DOES A WOMEN WANT?''~Sigmund Freud
Question Mark. Aus der Serie „Satzzeichen“ 2014
Rotierende Skulptur aus Lianen Findling, fluoriszierendes Klebeband, schwarze Totenkopf Büchse und Schwarz Licht
Skulptur, Objekt, Video, Installation, Fotografie
Markus Wintersberger 2014
DCUniverse Resident and me as "The Question".
Taken at Aftermath III - Metropolis: New Troy, Unabated (181, 135, 3514)
New Instagram! instagram.com/45surf
New blog celebrating my philosophy of photography with tips, insights, and tutorials!
Ask me any questions! :)
Sony A7R RAW Photos of Pretty Brunette Bikini Swimsuit Model Goddess! Carl Zeiss Sony FE 55mm F1.8 ZA Sonnar T* Lens! Lightroom 5.3 ! Pretty Hazel Eyes & Silky Brown / Black Hair!
And here're a couple of HD video movies I shot of the goddess with the 4K Sony:
Enjoy! Be sure to watch in the full 1080P HD!
The epic goddess was tall, thin, fit, tan, and in wonderful shape (as you can see).
Check out my greatest hits compilation, and let me know what you think:
www.elliotmcguckenphotography.com/45surf/45SURF-Heros-Ody...
Epic Goddess Straight Out of Hero's Odyssey Mythology! Pretty Model! :) Tall, thin, fit and beautiful!
Welcome to your epic hero's odyssey! The beautiful 45surf goddess sisters hath called ye to adventure, beckoning ye to read deeply Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, whence ye shall learn of yer own exalted artistic path guided by Hero's Odyssey Mythology. I wouldn't be saying it if it hadn't happened to me.
New 500px!
500px.com/herosodysseymythology
New instagram! instagram.com/45surf
Pretty Swimsuit Bikini Model Goddess! :)
Follow me on facebook! facebook.com/elliot.mcgucken
Nikon D300 Photos of Beautfiul Sexy Hot Brunette!
She was a beauty--a gold 45 goddess for sure! A Gold 45 Goddess exalts the archetypal form of Athena--the Greek Goddess of wisdom, warfare, strategy, heroic endeavour, handicrafts and reason. A Gold 45 Goddess guards the beauty of dx4/dt=ic and embodies 45SURF's motto "Virtus, Honoris, et Actio Pro Veritas, Amor, et Bellus, (Strength, Honor, and Action for Truth, Love, and Beauty," and she stands ready to inspire and guide you along your epic, heroic journey into art and mythology. It is Athena who descends to call Telemachus to Adventure in the first book of Homer's Odyssey--to man up, find news of his true father Odysseus, and rid his home of the false suitors, and too, it is Athena who descends in the first book of Homer's Iliad, to calm the Rage of Achilles who is about to draw his sword so as to slay his commander who just seized Achilles' prize, thusly robbing Achilles of his Honor--the higher prize Achilles fought for. And now Athena descends once again, assuming the form of a Gold 45 Goddess, to inspire you along your epic journey of heroic endeavour.
ALL THE BEST on your Epic Hero's Odyssey from Johnny Ranger McCoy!
Modeling the Gold 45 Revolver Gold'N'Virtue swimsuit. :)
A laid-back,classic, socal lifestyle shoot!
May the 45surf goddesses inspire you along am artistic journey of your own making!
All 45surf Hero's Odyssey Mythology Photography is shot in the honor of Truth, Beauty, and the Light of Physicist Dr. E's Moving Dimensions Theory's dx4/dt=ic . The fourth dimension is expanding relative to the three spatial dimensions at the rate of c. Ergo relativity, time, entropy, and entanglement.
All the best on your Epic Hero's Odyssey from Johnny Ranger McCoy!
New blog celebrating my philosophy of photography with tips, insights, and tutorials!
Ask me any questions! :)
Sony A7R RAW Photos of Pretty Brunette Bikini Swimsuit Model Goddess! Carl Zeiss Sony FE 55mm F1.8 ZA Sonnar T* Lens! Lightroom 5.3 ! Pretty Hazel Eyes & Silky Brown Black Hair!
All the best on your Epic, Homeric, Heroic Odyssey into the Art of Photography from Johnny Ranger McCoy!
All 45surf Hero's Odyssey Mythology Photography is shot in the honor of Dynamic Dimensions Theory's First Law and equation: The fourth dimension is expanding relative to the three spatial dimensions at the rate of c: dx4/dt=ic.
I just saw this set of random questions on Nubi’s page. When my OCD latches onto a meme, i can't let go, so i decided to post my own answers here. Haven't done a self portrait in a while, so i uploaded without one...
1. Were you named after anyone?
Yes: El Hajj Malik El-Shabazz (a.k.a. Malcolm Little, a.k.a. Detroit Red, a.k.a. Malcolm X). Other than that, my middle name is the same as my father's.
2. When was the last time you cried?
Last week, a little boy disappeared in a grocery store around the corner from my house, right in the same aisle where his grandfather was shopping. Hours later, the police realized there were pictures on surveillance cameras of a woman walking out with the boy. The next day, he turned up at a stranger's house where the woman had appeared with him in tow.
I cried when i heard he was okay.
3. Do You Like Your Handwriting?
Yup. Used to hate it, then i deliberately practiced writing a different way. It ain't neat, but it's mine.
4. What’s your favorite lunch meat?
Anything that doesn't actually have meat in it.
5. Do you have kids?
Nope.
6. If you were another person, would you be friends with you?
LOL! If i was another person, i'd never be able to get in touch with me.
7. Do you use sarcasm a lot?
See above.
8. Do you still have your tonsils?
Yes.
9. Would you bungee jump?
The thought terrifies me. Naturally, i'd do it.
10. What’s your favorite cereal?
Smart Start
11. Do you untie your shoes when you take them off?
Usually not. Of course, most of my shoes don't have laces.
12. Do you think you are strong?
No more or less than any other human. But i think humans are strong.
13. What is your favorite ice cream?
Ben and Jerry's Cherry Garcia Frozen Yogurt. Dammit, now i want to go get some.
14. What is the first thing you notice about people?
The way they move. It's a defensive adaptation.
15. Red or pink?
Can't really see either one too well. I'm color blind.
16. What is the least favorite thing about yourself?
I get both obsessed and distracted with equal ease and frequency. It causes me to make my own life more difficult than it needs to be.
17. Who do you miss the most?
No one. Is that sad?
18. What color shoes are you wearing?
Aside from the very strange fact that i'm wearing shoes at all, and the almost equally odd fact that i'm wearing shoes with laces, they're either gray or green; i'm not sure.
19. What was the last thing you ate?
A [fake] chicken and aloo curry dish Troy made. Yummy!
20. What are you listening to right now?
The rather boring Crusoe playing on TiVo in the background. I don't think even the absolutely delicious Tongai Arnold Chirisa can save it.
21. If you were a crayon, what color would you be?
Mocha.
22. Favorite smells?
Roasting Coffee, Votivo "Tall Grass" candles, some men...
23. Who was the last person you talked to on the phone?
Model named Mike.
24. Hair color?
Dark Brown
25. Eye color?
Brown
26. Do you wear contacts?
I oughta.
27. Favorite food?
Vietnamese, Thai, Chinese, Indian.
28. Scary movies or happy endings?
Are we talking massage parlor happy endings here, 'cause i might have to go for that one...
29. Last movie you watched?
Starrbooty. Campiness maximus.
30. What color shirt are you wearing?
Grey. Definitely grey.
31. Summer or Winter?
Summer. I hate being cold.
32. Hugs or kisses?
Hugs are essential.
33. Favorite dessert?
Chocolate Silk pie.
34. What book are you reading now?
Just starting The Awakening by L.A. Banks (second in the Vampire Huntress series). Just finished Four Ways to Forgiveness by Ursula K. Le Guin.
35. What’s on your mouse-pad?
Don't have one.
36. What did you watch on TV last night?
Ugly Betty. (TiVo from earlier in the week.)
37. Favorite sound?
A beautiful, soulful, powerful human voice singing.
38. Rolling Stones or Beatles?
Neither. (But Beatles if i had to choose.)
39. What’s the farthest you have been from home?
Hard to say. Was Paris, France farther than St. Vincent & The Grenadines? Are we talking physical distance, or something else? And, most importantly, where is home?
40. Do you have a special talent?
I have many...
41. Where were you born?
Detroit, Michigan, USA