Greymouth, NOVA ZELANDA 2023

 

History House Museum is a collection of photographic and archival records and historical objects relating to Grey District on the West Coast of New Zealand. The museum opened in the former Grey County Council Chambers in 1996, but the building was deemed unsafe in the event of an earthquake and forced to close in 2017. A new home for the collection is being sought

 

History House Museum was housed in the former Grey County Council Chambers at 27 Gresson Street, Greymouth. The Grey County Council was formed in 1877, and built the Grey County Council Chambers in 1924. In 1989 the building was vacated when the County Council amalgamated with the boroughs of Greymouth and Runanga and the Greymouth Harbour Board to form the Grey District Council.

 

The project to turn the empty building into a history museum was instigated by former deputy mayor Kevin Brown, Mayor of Grey Ron Hibbs, and Kevin Beams of Grey District Council. Kevin Brown recruited volunteers from the Lions, family, and local community to fit out the building and assemble a collection. The museum opened in 1996, with Brown as manager. When Brown was elected Mayor in 1998, volunteer Bob Naisbitt took over the running of the museum, along with assistant historian Margaret Mort. By 2013 Margaret Mort and Karen Prendergast were running the History House.

 

Volunteers Jack Flood and George Gardner apply a paint job to the Standard Austin-Western Grader outside History House Museum. The Grey County Council purchased the grader in 1920 for £225.

In February 2017 a seismic assessment of the Grey County Council Chambers found it was at only 10 per cent of the new building standard (NBS), well below the 34 per cent required for a public building; the standards had been revised following the 2010–2011 Christchurch earthquakes. The cost to strengthen the building would be $142,000, and it is in a flood zone. The museum was closed and the archives moved to the Grey District Library. Several options were pursued: eventually incorporating the museum into a "Discovery Centre", disbanding the collection, or moving to another space – the former Dick Smith premises at 130 Mackay Street at a cost of $50,000/year – in conjunction with an iSite visitor centre.

 

The location of the museum (at the other end of town from the railway station where most tourists arrived) and the lack of signage were blamed for the low visitor numbers: about 6–8 people a day.[3][8] The Greymouth iSite manager Phil Barnett claimed tourists were simply not interested in its collections.

 

In any event the Protected Objects Act and Public Records Act required the collection to be catalogued before moving, at a cost of over $100,000. One consultant suggested the bulk of the collection was not "of sufficient merit" to be archived. The archives at the museum also needed to be properly stored; the Council Chambers are unsuitable and in a flood zone. There is no regional archive on the West Coast, although Shantytown near Greymouth had offered to host one.

 

James Tunnicliffe cleaning the gold-mining Kershaw Pump outside History House Museum

After a stocktake of the collection, items relevant to other West Coast districts were sent to the Hokitika Museum and Coaltown Museum. The museum operated from a pop-up space in the former Dick Smith premises, operating Wednesday to Sunday afternoons from 20 December 2017. The space had to close in July 2018 but had 1200 visitors in the first month and 9000 visitors in total, compared to the 1200 visitors a year at its former home.

 

In September 2018, the Council budgeted $140,000 to strengthen the Gresson Street building, but resolved to move the museum to a new discovery centre combining a library and museum some time in the future. The cost to reopen History House was estimated at $455,000, and just to make the building safe would be $170,000: even strengthened the former Council building would still have problems with climate control, fire safety, and storage. The former manager Kevin Brown took back his extensive photograph collection in protest at the lack of progress in strengthening the building. In 2020 the building was emptied and the collection moved into two climate-controlled shipping containers at a cost of $90,000.

 

Wikipedia

♫

I can't relate to desperation

My 'give a fucks' are on vacation

♫ - Espresso - Sabrina Carpenter

 

🐝･ﾟ ･ﾟ·:｡･ﾟﾟ･ﾟ ･ﾟ·:｡･ﾟﾟ･ ꜱᴘᴏɴꜱᴏʀᴇᴅ･ﾟ ･ﾟ·:｡･ﾟﾟ･ﾟ ･ﾟ·:｡･ﾟﾟ･🍯

 

Top - Loki - Angie Heart Top - Available @ ACCESS (April)

 

Skirt - Loki - Valerie Bow Skirt

 

🐝･ﾟ ･ﾟ·:｡･ﾟﾟ･ﾟ ･ﾟ·:｡･ﾟﾟ･ᴄʀᴇᴅɪᴛꜱ ʜᴇʀᴇ･ﾟ ･ﾟ·:｡･ﾟﾟ･ﾟ ･ﾟ·:｡･ﾟﾟ･🍯

Kilmainham Gaol (Irish: Príosún Chill Mhaighneann) is a former prison in Kilmainham, Dublin, Ireland. It is now a museum run by the Office of Public Works, an agency of the Government of Ireland. Many Irish revolutionaries, including the leaders of the 1916 Easter Rising, were imprisoned and executed in the prison by the orders of the UK Government.When it was first built in 1796, Kilmainham Gaol was called the "New Gaol" to distinguish it from the old prison it was intended to replace – a noisome dungeon, just a few hundred metres from the present site. It was officially called the County of Dublin Gaol, and was originally run by the Grand Jury for County Dublin.

Originally, public hangings took place at the front of the prison. However, from the 1820s onward very few hangings, public or private, took place at Kilmainham. A small hanging cell was built in the prison in 1891. It is located on the first floor, between the west wing and the east wing.

There was no segregation of prisoners; men, women and children were incarcerated up to 5 in each cell, with only a single candle for light and heat. Most of their time was spent in the cold and the dark, and each candle had to last for two weeks. Its cells were roughly 28 square metres in area.

Children were sometimes arrested for petty theft, the youngest said to be a seven-year-old child, while many of the adult prisoners were transported to Australia.

At Kilmainham, the poor conditions in which women prisoners were kept provided the spur for the next stage of development. As early as 1809, in his report, the Inspector had observed that male prisoners were supplied with iron bedsteads while females "lay on straw on the flags in the cells and common halls". Half a century later there was little improvement. The women's section, located in the west wing, remained overcrowded. In an attempt to relieve the overcrowding, 30 female cells were added to the Gaol in 1840. These improvements had not been made long before the Great Famine occurred, and Kilmainham was overwhelmed with the increase of prisoners.

Kilmainham Gaol was decommissioned as a prison by the Irish Free State government in 1924. Seen principally as a site of oppression and suffering, there was at this time no declared interest in its preservation as a monument to the struggle for national independence. The jail's potential function as a location of national memory was also undercut and complicated by the fact that the first four Republican prisoners executed by the Free State government during the Irish Civil War were shot in the prison yard.

The Irish Prison Board contemplated reopening it as a prison during the 1920s but all such plans were finally abandoned in 1929. In 1936 the government considered the demolition of the prison but the price of this undertaking was seen as prohibitive. Republican interest in the site began to develop from the late 1930s, most notably with the proposal by the National Graves Association, a Republican organisation, to preserve the site as both a museum and memorial to the 1916 Easter Rising. This proposal received no objections from the Commissioners of Public Works, who costed it at £600, and negotiations were entered into with the Department of Education about the possibility of relocating artefacts relating to the 1916 Rising housed in the National Museum to a new museum at the Kilmainham Gaol site. The Department of Education rejected this proposal seeing the site as unsuitable for this purpose and suggested instead that paintings of nationalist leaders could be installed in appropriate prison cells. However, with the advent of the Emergency the proposal was shelved for the duration of the war.

An architectural survey commissioned by the Office of Public Works after World War II revealed that the prison was in a ruinous condition. With the Department of Education still intransigent to the site's conversion to a nationalist museum and with no other apparent function for the building, the Commissioners of Public Works proposed only the prison yard and those cell blocks deemed to be of national importance should be preserved and that the rest of the site should be demolished. This proposal was not acted upon.

In 1953 the Department of the Taoiseach, as part of a scheme to generate employment, re-considered the proposal of the National Graves Association to restore the prison and establish a museum at the site. However, no advance was made and the material condition of the prison continued to deteriorate.

From the late 1950s, a grassroots movement for the preservation of Kilmainham Gaol began to develop. Provoked by reports that the Office of Public Works was accepting tenders for the demolition of the building, Lorcan C.G. Leonard, a young engineer from the north side of Dublin, along with a small number of like-minded nationalists, formed the Kilmainham Gaol Restoration Society in 1958. In order to offset any potential division among its members, the society agreed that they should not address any of the events connected with the Civil War period in relation to the restoration project. Instead, a narrative of the unified national struggle was to be articulated. A scheme was then devised that the prison should be restored and a museum built using voluntary labour and donated materials.

With momentum for the project growing, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions informed the society that they would not oppose their plan and the Building Trades Council gave it their support. It is also likely that Dublin Corporation, which had shown an interest in the preservation of the prison, supported the proposal. At this time the Irish government was coming under increasing pressure from the National Graves Association and the Old IRA Literary and Debating Society to take action to preserve the site. Thus, when the society submitted their plan in late 1958 the government looked favourably on a proposal that would achieve this goal without occasioning any significant financial commitment from the state.

In February 1960 the society's detailed plan for the restoration project, which notably also envisioned the site's development as a tourist attraction, received the approval of the notoriously parsimonious Department of Finance. The formal handing over of prison keys to a board of trustees, composed of five members nominated by the society and two by the government, occurred in May 1960. The trustees were charged a nominal rent of one penny rent per annum to extend for a period of five years at which point it was envisaged that the restored prison would be permanently transferred to the trustees' custodial care.

Commencing with a workforce of sixty volunteers in May 1960, the society set about clearing the overgrown vegetation, trees, fallen masonry and bird droppings from the site. By 1962 the symbolically important prison yard where the leaders of the 1916 Rising were executed had been cleared of rubble and weeds and the restoration of the Victorian section of the prison was nearing completion. It opened to the public on 10 April 1966. The final restoration of the site was completed in 1971 when Kilmainham Gaol chapel was re-opened to the public having been reroofed and re-floored and with its altar reconstructed. The Magill family acted as residential caretakers, in particular, Joe Magill who worked on the restoration of the gaol from the start until the Gaol was handed over to the Office of Public works.

It now houses a museum on the history of Irish nationalism and offers guided tours of the building. An art gallery on the top floor exhibits paintings, sculptures and jewellery of prisoners incarcerated in prisons all over contemporary Ireland.

Kilmainham Gaol is one of the biggest unoccupied prisons in Europe. Now empty of prisoners, it is filled with history.

In 2013, Kilmainham courthouse located beside the prison, which had remained in operation as a seat of the Dublin District court until 2008 was handed over to the OPW for refurbishment as part of a broader redevelopment of the Gaol and the surrounding Kilmainham Plaza in advance of the 100th anniversary of the 1916 Rising. The courthouse opened in 2015 as the attached visitor's centre for the Gaol.

[polski opis niżej]

 

The title relates to the previous photo. The event from which this picture comes, was the first one organized by Pomeranian Railfans Society with the old Ganz-MÁVAG's SN61-183. The journey took one day and covered some used and unused railway lines in North-Western Poland. Here, the diesel motor car in Złocieniec, before depart to Grotniki Drawskie. October 28, 2000.

 

Złocieniec is a knot point station built in 1877 and originally named Falkenburg, with the suffix (Pommern) added later. It used to have a steam locomotive depot for three locomotives to serve the two railway lines 210 (Chojnice - Runowo Pomorskie) and 410 (Grotniki Drawskie - Choszczno), which meet here, with the latter originally running from Grzmiąca, 61 kilometers further.

 

Photo by Jarek / Chester

 

Tytuł nawiązuje do poprzedniego zdjęcia. To natomiast pochodzi z pierwszej imprezy zorganizowanej przez Pomorskie Towarzystwo Miłośników Kolei Żelaznych z udziałem szczecińskiego SN61-183 (ex-189). Jako że to była pierwsza impreza, potrwała "tylko" jeden dzień i obejmowała linie w woj. zachodniopomorskim. Na fotce "ganz" w Złocieńcu, przed odjazdem do Grotnik Drawskich. 29 października 2000 r.

Fot. Jarek / Chester

For more details, please follow the link: mirajes.blogspot.com/2018/09/cant-relate.html

This work relates to an analogy made by Glabush between paintings and individuals: "there is no starting point within the painting and it appears all at once, similar to the way we perceive a person. A person has a history and is the product of embodied memory and experience, and imagination. But when we seek to really see a persona we perceive a totality not a collection of parts."

The legend of Saint Sigfrid of Sweden relates how Sigfrid, a missionary from England, chose Växjö as the site to build a cathedral. He was said to also have been buried in the cathedral that he founded. While the legend is largely unreliable as a historical source, it is probable that a wooden church was built on the same site as the current cathedral in the 11th century, during the Christianization of Scandinavia. Coins from the 11th century have been found during excavations within the church, and a preserved Christian runestone from the same century (Rundata number Sm 10), today located next to the choir wall, may be further indication of the early presence of a wooden church on the site. (Wikipedia)

The title relates in a free manner on Genesis 8:7

(“At the end of forty days Noah opened the window of the ark that he had made and released a raven. The bird flew back and forth until the floodwaters on the earth had dried up.” )

 

Facade of a shopping mall at Cracow, Poland. (Galeria Krakowska). It is an inner city shopping mall located directly at the main station of Kraków. It is a project of the german company ECE - a vast center with 60.000 square meters shopping area. It opened 2006. Architecture is not remarkable at all. But the facade with its light emitting glass cylinders is interesting - at least for photographers.

I cannot relate the story behind this little scene, all I can do is to relate the circumstance.

I was enjoying my early morning walk to fetch the morning newspapers when this odd picture leapt into my vision. It was much too early for the site workers to have started their days work though.

The late and still great Daniel Johnston didn't always know how to go about relating to people face to face but he did know how to ask the most important question.

 

We're in a really high panicked time where the coronavirus and information about the coronavirus is evolving every hour or faster. With schools closing and some restaurants and businesses, panic buying, and people told that they should be working from home if at all possible, these are dire times.

 

Definitely the scariest thing about this pandemic is that it seems now there are a high number of people who are asymptomatic in their 20s and 30s especially who are spreading this virus for others who are older and/or immunosuppressed. This is very different from what we were told initially, which was that if we weren't symptomatic, we were just find to carry on about our normal lives. So, if you can, please self quarantine even if you don't have symptoms.

 

www.cnn.com/2020/03/14/health/coronavirus-asymptomatic-sp...

 

In a time of self quarantine, we must ask ourselves how we will evolve as human creatures who happen to be social beings. I've always thought of Flickr as a space where I was lucky enough to see photos from around the world in a glance each day. I think we owe it to each other as artists and as humans to share with each other how we are spending this time of self quarantine and to comfort each other. I want to hear from you. I want to comfort you. I want to laugh with you. I want to cry with you.

 

I want to make sure you're ok. Hi, how are you?

  

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

  

Here's the Daniel Johnson Hi, How Are You mural in Austin, Texas in 2007:

 

www.flickr.com/photos/kirstiecat/474075873/in/album-72157...

 

The above photograph was taken in Philly in a much different time and space of reality and is myself with my partner, musician, painter, cat lover, drawer, and organic chemist, Cinchel.

From the rock, during a short period of time around May, "the rock cries !!!" and small amounts of water are dropped from small holes on the rock and collected by the inhabitants with spoons, which are used to treat eye diseases. Thatâs the reason this place is called "Penedo da Fonte Santa", wich means "The holy rock fountain"

The scientific explanation relates to water retained within the rock and with the first heat days (May) undergoes evaporation and falls by gravity at the lowest point of the rock.

The model in the picture, wears a traditional Portuguese cape called "Capucha", used for many years by rural inhabitants, has a protection against bad weather.

It relates to 18th Century. As of the time of transfer to the museum, the house was the oldest in the village and belonged to Oros family. The house has two premises: house and mudroom. It is one of the most ancient types of house planning in Zakarpattia. Walls of the house are constructed with wide oak cut blocks. Its high four-sloping roof is covered with straw.

This house is the oldest Zakarpattia house in our museum. It displays specific features of national building in valley of Tereblia-river and the middle reaches of Tysa River. The house’s area is 35.4 square meters.

Look at the exterior of the hut:

flic.kr/p/2kDTGCM

 

Характерною ознакою житла лемків (етнографічної групи українського народу), як і бойків, були білий та синій кольори.

 

Хата із с. Теребля, Тячівського району Закарпатської області

 

Датується XVIII ст. На час перенесення до музею хата була найстарішою в селі і належала родині Оросів. Хата дводільна: хата, сіни – є одним із давніх варіантів планування житла на Закарпатті. Стіни хати складені з широких дубових колених брусів. Високий чотирисхилий дах вкритий соломою.

Це найстаріша хата Закарпаття в експозиції нашого музею. Вона розкриває особливості народного будівництва у долині ріки Теребля та середньої течії річки Тиси. Площа хати — 35, 4 кв.м.

 

Орос Ярослав (родина з Тячівського району) - журналіст, відомий у літературі як ідеолог українського арійства:

 

“Ментально і культурно українці належать до західної цивілізації. Сучасний конфлікт із Росією — насправді цивілізаційний конфлікт. Війна на Донбасі — це війна між західною цивілізацією та азійською, виразником якої є сучасна Росія. Захоплюючись мужністю у відстоюванні європейських цінностей під час Революції гідності, сучасний французький філософ Бернар-Анрі Леві сказав: «Я французький громадянин, я — європейський федераліст, але сьогодні на Майдані, який нагадав Європі про її першочергові покликання, я також українець».

Фактично Леві у такий спосіб потрактував ідею Освальда Шпенґлера про старіння європейської культури («Присмерк Європи»). Україна, Литва, Польща — надія старої Європи, її свіжа енергія. У питанні європейських цінностей і свободи ми готові воювати і покласти за це життя, а Західна Європа до цього вже не готова.

 

Вона занадто розбещена комфортом і достатком. Ідея арійства допоможе нам бути сильнішими, сміливішими, енергійнішими — компенсувати покірність, століттями нав’язувану російським православ’ям. Арійство не заперечує християнську любов чи мораль, а повертає до першо¬джерел. Сучасне українське суспільство хоче бути цивілізованим, культурно й економічно конкурентним. І арійство — та духовна сила, що допоможе нам такими стати.”

/Урядовий кур’єр, 9 листопада 2024./

Of or relating to the pleasant aspects of the countryside and country life

  

GhostWorks Texture Competition #42

 

Texture with thanks to Skeletal Mess

 

View On Black

There is a theory about stripes relating to sex workers and street entertainers. As you may also know, stripes have always been somewhat transgressive and associated with prisoners.

 

Additionally, it has been said that the 13th-century Carmelites who arrived in Paris from Palestine in two-tone cloaks so offended decorum that Pope Boniface VIII banned all religious orders from slipping into anything stripy.

 

But as you examine this very sexy YoU By GeMyles Arabella Robe, Bra & Panties Set, you will find yourself thinking about how stripes beautifully enhance the contours of a woman’s body - concluding in your mind that there is also something to these speculations about their sensual yet naughty vibe.

 

I paired this Arabella Set with YoU By GeMyles' Carlyne Boots which Color Hud works flawlessly with color-matching that of the Arabella Set.

 

Fits: Belleza genX Classic (+ curvy), Maitreya Lara (+ Petite + Mounds), Inithium Kupra, Legacy (+ Perky + Nerido), and Inithium Kupra mesh bodies.

 

Both the Arabella Set and the Carlyne Boots are exclusively available at the SWANK Fall into Autumn Event for November.

 

Swank Event Landmark:

maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Swank%20Events/128/124/39

 

Re-worked, seen at Gythion Bay, Greece April 2019

 

Dimitrios (Greek Δημήτριος) is a Greek shipwreck famous due to its picturesque location on an easily accessible sandy beach near Gythio, Greece.

Dimitrios (previously named Klintholm), a small, 67-metre (220 ft) cargo ship of 965 gross register tons cargo capacity built in Denmark in 1950, was registered in the Prefecture of Piraeus, registration no. 2707. The ship belonged 76.75% to the Molaris Brothers (Greek: Αφοί Μόλαρη) and 23.25% to the Matsinos Brothers (Greek Αφοί Ματσινού). Dimitrios has been stranded on the beach at Valtaki (Greek Βαλτάκι) in today's Evrotas municipality in the prefecture of Laconia, Greece, since 23 December 1981.

 

There are many rumors about the ship's origins and how it got stranded on the beach. Most relate that the ship was used to smuggle cigarettes between Turkey and Italy. She was seized by the port authorities of Gythio and then deliberately released from the port and left to be dragged by the sea to the beach at Valtaki, about 5 kilometres (2.7 nmi; 3.1 mi) from the port of Gythio. She was then set on fire to hide the evidence of cigarette smuggling. Another, less common rumor speaks of a ghost ship of unknown origins.

 

However, according to a book written by the Honorary Chief of the Hellenic Coast Guard, Vice Admiral Christos Ntounis (1935–2010), Ta Navagia stis Ellinikes thalasses (translated as The shipwrecks of the Greek seas) there is more to be said about the true history of the ship.

 

In Ta Navagia stis Ellinikes thalasses (Volume B 1950–2000), Ntounis writes that the ship made an emergency docking at Gythio on 4 December 1980 because her captain needed access to a hospital due to a serious illness. However, after the ship's docking, financial problems arose with the crew, as did various engine problems, coupled with insurance measures imposed by various lenders. The crew was then fired and the task of safeguarding the ship was assigned to Georgios Daniil and Vasilis Parigoris.

 

The ship was docked at Gythio until June 1981, when she was declared unsafe due to wear on the docking ropes and starboard list due to water entering her hull. The port authorities asked for her to be moved to an anchorage outside the port for safety reasons, but the owners did not respond until November 1981. The book states that "at approximately 12:30 p.m. on the 9th of November 1981 the ship was swept about 2 [nautical?] miles [2.3 miles; 3.7 km] away due to severe weather conditions and it was temporary anchored". But the temporary anchorage did not last for long, as the ship was swept away again and finally stranded at its current location on the beach at Valtaki on 23 December 1981. The ship was then simply abandoned there and no attempts were made to recover her.

 

(Wikipedia)

 

Abandoned Mill. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

 

An abandoned mill sits on a steep slope high in the Panamint Mountains.

 

For someone like me, the first instinct is to think of Death Valley National Park as being mostly-wilderness, and then to associate that with the idea that it is a place of little or no human presence. In truth there’s virtually no place in the world without some human presence… and there are many examples in this park. They range from the evidence of long-ago native populations and their descendants who still live in the park to the rather astonishing number of sites related to mining. No matter where you go in this park., you are bound to see these things.

 

In the latter category is the site of Skidoo, where there was once a real town and lots of mining and ore refining… in just about the most unlikely location imaginable. It was high in the desert mountains, far from any current paved roads. The ruins of the water-powered ( an astounding story too long to relate here) mill sit on a steep hillside, overlooking a remarkable expanse of rugged desert terrain that extends to the distant peaks of the Sierra Nevada.

 

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Going through my photos, found this attempt of a selfie with Neowise. Might be not the best quality photo, but it has something to say for me.

Firstly, it's kind of a once in a lifetime selfie :)

Secondly, the Plough (7 brightest stars of Ursa Major - the Great Bear constellation) can be seen very clearly together with the position of Neowise relating to the Plough. Also it can be seen that Neowise was not near as bright as the Plough, but more of the same brightness as other stars of Ursa Major - like the two stars to the left and down from Neowise. On the night of 21 July, those stars would be lambda Ursae Majoris and mu Ursae Majoris - they are supposed to represent the right hind paw of the Great Bear constellation. (I know it requires a lot of imagination to actually see the Bear, I never could manage that lol)

 

Samyang 12mm/2.0

 

One of my primary goals when I shoot these birds to to try and shoot them as low as possible, as if I were another skimmer looking in. Of course I'm quite a distance from them so it's not obtrusive. Here my camera was resting right on the sand. Hopefully it creates a more intimate and relatable image.

Timing in photography can make a huge difference in the appeal or action captured.

I was fortunate to capture this ducks behavior at the right time as it seemed to be responding in a less than friendly manner to the other duck nearby! - I love the other duck's indifference to the verbal attack too!!! :-)

I'm sure we could relate to this kind of behavior and probably substitute the ducks for people!! :-)

Hope you like it!

Thanks for any comments, views or favorites - greatly appreciated!!

Have a tremendous day and week folks!

Sea Princess Scenic Nature, Seals & Fjord Cruise tour out of Northeast Harbor Maine is a great way to see Nature and spectacular views of Mount Desert Island.

A feeling likely every single one of us can relate to right now! I am definitely feeling a bit antsy, particularly wanting to get back out and head out for multiple days exploring and photographing our wonderful natural world. However, looks like I need to content myself with the digital form only for now (together with some walks around the neighborhood). This was from a visit to Boardman Tree Farm in Oregon a few years ago. It was a popular stop for photographers in the fall to shoot the rows of aspen, but sadly it was sold and the last trees harvested and converted to farmland.

 

This particular crop was from a much larger pano I took (9 or 10 frames wide I think). I was just experimenting, and when I got it on the computer some of the most interesting symmetries got lost in the wider angle but cropping it down made it more pleasing and also made the "bars" at the end of this row visible. I thought that was an interesting little detail.

 

It has in fact been a delight for me to spend time with my family in recent weeks, and I feel in some ways like it's made up for at least a little bit of the time I missed traveling for the job when the girls were younger. I am realizing just how disruptive the constant business travel was, not just to me but to our whole family. We have a practice now of stating what we appreciate and are grateful for at dinner each night which I think has been helpful. I am extremely grateful for such a loving and wonderful family. They have kept a fantastic sense of humor and a warm and cooperative spirit in a time when it's easy to let anxiety consume one's emotions. I hope everyone is able to find some light and color in their lives right now.

 

Stay safe!

I chose this name as the definition relates to regions beyond our earth/celestial and heavenly and it also happens to be the soundtrack that was used in the video I created (music by Stelladrone) see here on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=7MKCZJYChmE

 

Captured using a QHY600 60 Megapixel Full Frame Monochrome CMOS camera mounted on the Takahashi 130 FSQ that we have the honor of beta testing for QHYCCD.

This setup is available immediately for people wanting to subscribe to Grand Mesa Observatory's system 1.

grandmesaobservatory.com/equipment-rentals.

 

Some of the objects visible include NGC4438-NGC4435 are known as The Eyes Galaxies and are among the most prominently featured Galaxies in this image lying at a distance of around 52 Million Light Years from us. 3 galaxies from the messier catalogue M87, M86 and M84, 52 galaxies from the NGC-IC catalogues, but you have to zoom in to see the over 600 distant galaxies from the PGC catalogue.

View in High Resolution

Astrobin: www.astrobin.com/m3s2ui/

Captured bin 2x2 over 2 nights in April 2021 for a total acquisition time of 14 hours.

Technical Details

Captured and processed by: Terry Hancock

Location: GrandMesaObservatory.com Purdy Mesa, Colorado

Dates of Capture April 3rd and 8th 2021

LUM 216 min 108 x 120 sec

RED 210 min 105 x 120 sec

GREEN 218 min 109 x 120 sec

BLUE 198 min 99 x 120 sec

Filters by Chroma

Camera: QHY600 Monochrome CMOS Photographic version

Gain 60, Offset 76 in Read Mode Photographic 16 bit, bin 2x2

Calibrated with Dark, Bias and Flat Frames

Optics: Walter Holloway's Takahashi FSQ 130 APO Refractor @ F5

Mount: Paramount ME

Image Scale:2.39 arcsec/pix

Image Scale: 2x2 = 2.38 arcsec/pix

Field of View: 3d 7' 41.0" x 2d 3' 5.3 (127.3 x 190.1 arcmin)

Image Acquisition software Maxim DL6, Pre Processing in Pixinsight and Post Processing in Photoshop CC

 

RELATES TO LEEDS TOTW: STAIRS (John Fotohouse Jan 2009)

 

Alas, she will never resemble my dear departed friend.

www.flickr.com/photos/jamesw-bell/292288524/

 

Though she looked quite interesting with these lights and shadows!

Explore Dec 16, 2015 #66

 

In 1943 Dutch artist M. C. Escher created a reptile lithograph that depicts a desk on which there is a drawing of a pattern of reptiles. The reptiles come to life and crawl around the desk, over the objects on it and eventually re-enter the drawing.

 

Escher would love the colors and patterns here! The Common Agama, Red-headed Rock Agama, or Rainbow Agama (Agama agama) is a species of lizard from the Agamidae family, found in most of Subsaharan Africa.

 

It can often be seen in the heat of the day. In the breeding season, the males develop dramatically colorful markings, the head and neck and tail turning bright orange, and the body dark blue. Outside of the breeding season, the male is a plain brown. The females and juveniles are always more cryptically marked. This lizard can be found climbing rocks and walls. Its primary source of food is insects.

 

The males are territorial, claiming small to medium patches of land which they defend against other mature males. Juveniles and females reside within the territories unchallenged. The mature males become agitated when confronting each other; nodding vigorously, arching, skipping sideways, and clashing tails. The loser is chased out of the territory.

 

Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Miami FL

www.susanfordcollins.com

Jumping Spider with the Raynox DCR250

 

I love jumping spiders, and most commonly capture images of them using my Nikon D610 & Sigma 150mm macro however, lately i have wanted to get images with the spiders a little bit closer but had reached the limits of my macro lens (approx 1:1 magnification). As a result I decided to try the Raynox DCR250 super macro conversion lens which acts as a magnifier for your camera lens. This was my first attempt at capturing an image of a VERY hyperactive jumping spider. The spider was not harmed in the taking of the photo, and I managed to capture about 4 - 5 shots which was focus stacked using Helicon Focus before being processed with Topaz Sharpen, and being more comprehensively edited in Luminar 4 (using AI Structure, and AI Enhance).

 

There are a few issues with the photo, mainly relating to; 1. How quickly the spider was moving, 2. Depth of field, and 3. Reflections from the lens. The EXIF / shot data was 1/800 sec, f/5.6, ISO 640. LOTS more practice is needed to get used to the tiny depth of field and moving animals (I do microscopy so depth of field is not a major issue, just the movement of the spider creates additional challenges).

 

 

<--For those that are interested, All the Socials -->

Instagram: Trav.Hale,

Twitter: @TravisHale,

Facebook: TravHale

500px: TravisHale,

Flickr: TravisH1984,

Web: www.travishale.com

Can you relate? I got up early because I wanted to photograph some places in town at sunrise. Hoping for warm light and strong shadows.

Almost all the sites I visited had changed into construction sites though and I really got in a bad mood.

I decided to go on since I was there anyway and time can be precious.

Then I saw the light on this window. Diffused by the tree. It's shadows casted on the wall. It instantly changed my mood. I started to photograph other things than planned and got home with a really nice set of photos. You have got to stay open minded.

 

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Olympus E-300, Zuiko Digital 40–150mm F3.5–4.5

I could probably best relate to this as the equivalent of giving your little brother an unplugged video game remote and acting like he's the one who's good at the game.

 

Probably in an event to keep me more engaged in the US rail scene than I was at the time (looking back 2 months later makes me realise how none of this can be recreated back home), the R'bauers assigned me to choose somewhere for this coal train we were pretty sure was close by.

 

A quick geeze at Sun Seeker and Google Maps, trying to pinpoint where the late afternoon shadows won't have covered the BNSF Fallbridge Sub. Came to the conclusion that John Day Dam Road may be the best bet.

 

Up a hill and only a few minutes later, I could see the microscopic coal wagons at Towal moving. An excited shout to the R'bauers, and this bad boy rolls by a few minutes later.

 

Specifically, a coal train from Spring Creek mine in Montana to the Centralia Power Plant in Washington. From what Lewis' notes lead me to believe, this power station is scheduled for closure later in the year.

 

6117-9361-6038-6550(r) BNSF C SCMCEC 021 east of Maryhill 22-4-25

His Golden Touch

 

One day, as Ovid relates in Metamorphoses XI, Dionysus found that his old schoolmaster and foster father, the satyr Silenus, was missing. The old satyr had been drinking wine and wandered away drunk, to be found by some Phrygian peasants who carried him to their king, Midas (alternatively, Silenus passed out in Midas' rose garden). Midas recognized him and treated him hospitably, entertaining him for ten days and nights with politeness, while Silenus delighted Midas and his friends with stories and songs. On the eleventh day, he brought Silenus back to Dionysus in Lydia. Dionysus offered Midas his choice of whatever reward he wished for. Midas asked that whatever he might touch should be changed into gold.

 

Midas rejoiced in his new power, which he hastened to put to the test. He touched an oak twig and a stone; both turned to gold. Overjoyed, as soon as he got home, he touched every rose in the rose garden, and all became gold. He ordered the servants to set a feast on the table. Upon discovering how even the food and drink turned into gold in his hands, he regretted his wish and cursed it. Claudian states in his In Rufinem: "So Midas, king of Lydia, swelled at first with pride when he found he could transform everything he touched to gold; but when he beheld his food grow rigid and his drink harden into golden ice then he understood that this gift was a bane and in his loathing for gold, cursed his prayer."

Come by The Lost Unicorn Gallery today at noon and travel through time with Hilaire Beaumont! When I first discovered Hilaire's work a while back I was awestruck by his depiction of periods from the past, specifically his 18th to 19th century scenes. Once a major roleplayer for many years, Hilaire has managed to encompass the roleplaying aspect into most all his pieces. Every picture tells a story and most people can either relate to the scene, are familiar with it or just purely enjoy it. The poses and costumes he uses as well as overall composition, lighting and color all come into play when Hilaire creates one of his amazing scenes. He has made several new, never posted works especially for the show!

 

Master Lysios (ML) will be singing some classic rock tunes for us during the event!

 

Come dressed as a character from the past (or future!) and stop by this must see event!

 

maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Lost%20Unicorn%20Gallery/1...

 

**artwork by Hilaire Beaumont

  

Another Image relating to History. This is a statue of Queen Victoria holding her regalia. In the background is an example from the centre of Birmingham of the sort of buildings of visual power that she managed to lead over decades.

 

This video “MIX 9” is another selection of images, both graphic, design and Photographic. The idea is to show the range of styles and techniques from right across my wide range of styles. It is followed in my Photostream by individual images taken from the video, but shown as single images at full size. These will appear on my photostream spread over the following week.

 

There are more examples of these Mixes on my portfolio website :-

 

pleech96.wixsite.com/portfolio

 

Tales of history relate that Dinajpur derived its name from Raja Dinaj or Dinaraj, founder of the Dinajpur Rajbari. But others say that after usurping the Ilyas Shahi rule, the famous Raja Ganesh of the early 15th century was the real founder of this house for a brief period. At the end of the 17th century Srimanta Dutta Chaudhury became the zamindar of Dinajpur and after him, his sister's son Sukhdeva Ghosh inherited the property as Srimanta's son had a premature death. Sukhdeva's son Prannath Ray became famous and powerful and began the construction of the famous Kantanagar Nava-Ratna Temple, now known as the Kantajir Mandir, one of the most precious heritage structures.

 

It is difficult to conceive what the main palace block looked like when it was young and bold. Wild leaves and veins have wrapped the building like octopus tendrils while the skeleton and naked brick structures give a horrid look as the ageing plaster is almost worn out of the walls. In different parts of the building, structural girders are exposed while there is no roof above. Still from his historical study and the remaining ruins, Dr Nazimuddin Ahmed gave a vivid description of the structures in one of his publications published in 1986.

 

"The imposing façade of the two-storey palace, facing east has a broad frontage of about 150 feet. The central part carrying a 10 feet wide verandah above is projected prominently. The front projection has a series of elegant Ionic columns in pairs with round shafts on the upper floor.

 

"The parapet is plain except for a curved plaque-wall in the centre, bearing in relief, two elephants standing face to face and holding a crown. Above and below it are some indistinct English letters. On either side of the balcony a broad spiral masonry staircase leads up to the upper storey. The roof of the 15 feet wide balcony collapsed.

 

"Immediately behind the balcony a large hall (50"X20") originally flagged with white marble stone and flanked by two 10" wide verandahs on the east and west is roofed over with massive iron girders. The lofty 25 feet high roof is in a highly disintegrating condition. On its north there is another smaller (30"X 20") hall and on the south a broad corridor leads to the inner quadrangle of residential quarters."

 

If the bricks could paint or write the tales of the Rajbari and its inhabitants, what a book could have been written! But with the silent walls, the palace has now grown old and inexpressive. It has faced not only the cruelty of time but also the ravages of nature like the 1897 earthquake that had left it badly damaged. Although the palace was largely rebuilt by Maharaja Sir Girijanath Ray Bahadur, time has not spared it from its claws. It is up to us now whether we would at least let the ruins remain and let our future generations see them and let their imagination flow back to the past and touch our heritage.

 

other pictures from the set Dinajpur Rajbari .... Discovering the hidden glory

  

I think most anyone can relate to a desire to talk to someone we no longer can. For whatever reason, whether it be for estrangement or death, there are some people we wish we could talk to but can't. These are conversations unfinished, ties untethered, connections lost. Sometimes those manifest into conversations we have with ourselves, because that is the only cathartic closure or resolution there is. The morning at dawn when I shot this, I thought of how connected I feel to my grandfather when I'm out alone in nature. How I feel I am sort of with him when I'm surrounded by trees, as if his memory is tied somehow to the tall oaks, redbuds and pines of our Oklahoma landscape. In Native American lore, they believe that when a loved one dies a red fern grows in its place as a symbol of eternity, and the kind of love that transcends time.

Relate all the objects and tell an interesting story or a quote or a kavithai.....

Await and Awaken©

 

Relate within the same letter of life's law

As easy as a first breath of cherishment galore

Howsoever the day may have begun,

It's course in your hands may still be spun

That door remains open till the day is done

To welcome with opportune resolve life's home run

 

Call it emotional topiary, your garden, your space

No overnight fantasticism can over-emphasise apace

The quality of being the mirror before sightseeing seen,

Sets the beautified scene so miraculously serene

Renewable, inexhaustible, when finally found it's never lost

That is the feeling of being warmed at the touch of a Sun thawing frost

 

Two worlds away unite within the same second

As much as the first owes the last over which it is reckoned

Birthdays split the differences as we all move through time at the same pace

Every range of clock face imaginable and none a disgrace

It tells of antiquity within the presence of valour

And speaks a charmed silence which awaits and awakens within flowing candour.

 

by anglia24

10h45: 24/01/2009

©2009 anglia24

112 pictures in 2012, #29 Leap Day (any shot to be taken on, or relating to 29th Februari2012)

 

Explore, Highest position: #132 on Wednesday, March 7, 2012

I am reposting this message and creation from my December 2019 post

 

Although this was written in 2019 I knew something big was going to take place on earth in the months ahead.

 

It is as relevant today as it was back in 2019 because it relates to today in 2021

 

I underestimated the severity of this message. In saying this I was extremely unsettled for many months and prayed as I knew something was going to happen but I did not know exactly what.

I had endured many months of suffering knowing. Through this process things became crystal clear to me and with that an understanding of the higher picture and ultimately a sense of surrendering to 'what is' and a sense of Peace and Calm came with this, along with so much gratitude for being guided and shown. A blessing and a curse

 

To add to this, many souls have sacrificed themselves - knowingly and unknowingly to wake up humanity.

We can never know the soul agreement that each of us has made when we birthed into this world.

 

I am eternally grateful to the many souls who have endured hell on earth, lost their lives to awaken the masses to the reality of this world.

 

There are many people at this time on earth who are struggling with all that is happening in our world.

 

I was guided with this message and design back in 2019 - it started many months before it was completed by December of that year.

 

I hope that this message will bring some understanding and comfort to anyone who is struggling right now.

 

Despite her name Black Winged Goddess, she does bring a message of Hope and Unity to humanity.

 

We are living in times of great destruction of the world as we know it, earth changes, fires, floods, earthquakes.

 

Here alone in Australia we sit in horror at the extent of the fires rampage across the country. Unprecedented fires and weather in the history of our existence (well what is on record)

 

Whilst horrific - the earth we live on has always been full of cyclic changes.

 

Ancient cities have been discovered under the sea, we are naive to think that the world as we know it will remain the same.

 

What continents exist now may no longer exist. What coastline exists now is slowly being swallowed up by the ocean.

 

Volcanic eruptions are changing the face of the planet as are earthquakes - the list is long.

We cannot stop the force of Mother Nature. We live on a planet that has always endured such destruction.

 

We have pole shifts taking place - all kinds of catastrophic events happening across the Globe. We are but a spit in the ocean to the wide Galaxies that we know of. Yet we think we are precious in some way.

 

I cannot help but wonder why I was so drawn to create this "Black Winged Goddess" let alone give her the name of Black Winged Goddess. But I was drawn, my soul was pushing me for weeks with a "slight vision" of what I needed to create. It now makes total sense to me why I was so drawn to create The Black Winged Goddess, given the state of our world and humanity.

 

My soul as always when I listen guides me with powerful messages and reminds me to just 'be' to accept 'what is'.

 

We may not like the current state of our world, but it is what it is and all we can do is stay strong within ourselves and hold the power of 'love' in our hearts despite seeing so much being played out on the planet.

 

Kali (Hindu) - was known as a deity of the Fearsome Demon destroying Goddess who represents death and rebirth - so her name means "Black One".

 

We can never truly comprehend or understand the power of mother nature - we have abused her for centuries, taken her for granted and she is a living breathing consciousness so powerful that we dare not go up against here.

 

In recent years we have seen the influence of the feminine energy on earth which for eons has been dominated by the male energy.

So it makes complete sense to me that we are witness to so much destruction on the planet.

 

We are witness to the destruction of our societies as we know it, breakdown of families, law, politics.

 

So much of humanity is at war with the 'system', the injustices, and the lack of balance within our society. The homeless, the abused, the forgotten souls, the mental health issues that seem to have become rampant, the rise of Corporate wealth while humanity is trapped in slavery. We have learnt nothing as a humanity over the past how many hundred years?

 

In order for rebirth, for new growth, a culling needs to take place - hence the energy of the Black Winged Goddess she is both the Destroyer and the Giver of New Life.

 

We have elected to be here at this time on the planet - despite the suffering we witness or endure - I know at a higher level it is absolutely necessary for real change to take place.

 

Our world is a very different place to the one we have known - and whilst we have believed we have had a safe and reasonable planet in which to live, the reality is much Evil has existed and people have been brainwashed to the point of being zombies. There has been so much suppression imposed upon humanity even to the extreme of vaccinations and fluoride to our water supply. All of these chemicals act as suppressants to our brain! It has been a deliberate agenda of the existing power on earth. Their agenda has always been to rule, control and suppress the populous.

 

Humanity is awakening and with this will be uproar, dis - ease, a culling if you like. It is time for humanity to step out of fear and into their true power which is within each and every one of us.

 

New growth, new beginnings but not before the dismantling of the old - it has to be this way.

 

These times we are living through were written in history.

 

So I have created "The Black Winged Goddess" she is available in different styles, inside a Dome with beautiful etched glass or stand alone. She will rotate or can be static.

 

She is available on MP in the Stand Alone version (rotating) or can be seen in world at my store.

 

****This POST IS NOT to promote my MP. I will not put my MP link here for this reason. If anyone does not have the money and would like a version of her please send me a notecard in world with your full name and I will happily send one to you. This is NOT about promoting my MP it is about assisting humanity at this time***.

 

I hope you enjoy and embrace 'The "Black Winged Goddess' and rather be in fear of her - understand she brings 'New Life" but first the old has to die for the new to be born.

 

How appropriate for a New Year of 2020 fast approaching.

 

Interestingly and unconsciously I created 4 of these Black Winged Goddesses.

 

The year 2020 equates to the number 4 in Numerology.

 

The #4 represents a Universal energy. (see below for a deeper understanding of the #4)

 

The # 2 - Is the most feminine and often underestimated when it comes to power and strength. She is always gentle, tactful, diplomatic, forgiving and understanding. She likes to keep peace and likes to avoid confrontation. # 2 is the survivor and extremely resilient force. Her shape looks as though she is bent back on a knee with head bowed in humility and service. However when enough pressure is applied to the # 2 energy. Some would perceive her as weak and powerless due to this servitude shape. However never underestimate the power behind #2 because she represents the power (double) #1 who is the all powerful warrior who will shake and destroy no matter what. So #2 brings the balance but never underestimate the power of 2 Energy.

 

The #4 Energy in more detail

 

The 4 is without a doubt masculine, reflecting strength and stability. His chief characteristics are dependability, productivity, punctuality and obedience. He is trustworthy, patient, conventional and a traditionalist.

 

Tend to be rule followers. 4 is the area of sciences, upholding the law (such as Government and the military). The #4 represents Disciplined, systematic, Dependable, Strong. Loyal

 

Four is the basis of all solid objects. Four points are used in constructing the simplest solid and thus four is the number symbolizing the way of construction. In many religions, four is seen as the number for earth, and representing the four elements, Air Earth, Water and Fire.

At its extreme 4's can tend to overreact to violence.

 

So 2020 seems to have more challenges ahead and I suspect we will be seeing more uprising across the planet (#2 energy) with totalitarianism (#4 energy) being played out like never before. Perhaps more of what the world has witnessed in Hong Kong this year.

 

It is as if the two energies Masculine & Feminine are battling against one another. But at the same time, I cannot help but feel and acknowledge UNITY - and this is what I will remain focused upon during the year ahead. We must stand united. We are after all 'one humanity'

 

We are without doubt living in very challenging times.

May peace be with you!

Copyright December 2019 Chant Lyric

 

Please share with anyone who you believe may take some comfort during these days - not because I want awards, in fact I do not want awards. This is for humanity and was given to me through the Grace of God

This post is NOT about promoting my MP - she is available there for anyone who wants to purchase her. For anyone who truly feels drawn to her and the strength and comfort she brings to me, and do not have the money to purchase her. Please contact me in world with a notecard, give me your full name and I will happily send her free of charge to you.

 

My original posts can be seen here www.flickr.com/photos/58903384@N04/49251189433/in/datepos...

www.flickr.com/photos/58903384@N04/49251186488/in/photost...

   

Blythe a Day - How to Sell a Haunted House (Bewitched) - 10/1/25

 

For Sale in Spookytown: Classic Haunted Beauty

 

About the Property:

Beautiful classic 4 bed 3 bath tri-level in coveted Spookytown. Original fireplaces and staircases. Hard wood flooring throughout. Old creaky windows, attic ghosts, furnace, updated electrical and much more!

 

Features:

Actual clawfoot tubs

2 ghosts

Secret staircase & door

Creaky floors

Large windows

Attic bats

Real skeletons in the closets

 

Call Drusilla, our expert relator, for a private tour.

 

House photo I took on a fall drive and recolored

Daunting Drusilla Blythe

 

Wat Phnom ("Mountain Pagoda") is a Buddhist temple (wat) located in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. It was built in 1372, and stands 27 metres (88.5 ft) above the ground. It is the tallest religious structure in the city. The pagoda was given the name of Wat Preah Chedey Borapaut. Wat Phnom is the central point of Phnom Penh.

 

Legend relates that a wealthy widow called Penh (commonly referred to as Daun Penh – Grandmother Penh – in Khmer) found a large koki tree in the river. Inside the tree she found four bronze statues of the Buddha. Penh constructed a small shrine on an artificial hill made by the people living in the village to protect the sacred statues. Eventually this became a sacred site and sanctuary where people would make blessings and pray.

 

Then it came to the year of the snake 1437 suggests King Ponhea Yat ordered His Excellency Decho Srei to raise the mount even higher when he finished building the new Royal Palace in the new city he then named Krong Chaktomok Mongkol or simply known as Phnom Penh. The prominent stupa immediately west of the sanctuary contains the ashes of the king and his royal family.

 

Wat Phnom is the center of celebration during Khmer New Year, and Pchum Ben.

 

Wat Phnom appeared on the Travel Channel documentary, 1,000 Places to See Before You Die. It also served as the Pit Stop for the 4th Leg of The Amazing Race 15.

Another shot from the Mahonie Loop Road (S99) around Punda.

 

Whilst I know that you should never ascribe anthromorphic characteristics to any animal it's hard not to with elephants. They care so much for, and are so protective of their offspring that it's hard not to relate to this when you have children of your own,

 

We sat and watched them for at least half an hour whilst the youngster misbehaved so much like a human child.

 

As an aside I've only just noticed that I took this shot (handheld) at 1/80 sec at 600mm. I don't think that it says as much for my ability to hold it still but more for the outstnding image stabilisation of this lens. I hired both the 200-400 F4L and this lens and whilst there is no comparison between the 2 (the 200-400L is by far the better lens) the price difference is vast and for the price this lens performs outstandingly.

 

Mahonie Loop Road (S99)

Punda Maria

Far North Kruger National Park

Limpopo

South Africa

Pick a book, any book with 233 pages or more. Look at page 233 and see if takes you anywhere new. Maybe there is a parallel you can relate to and it could inspire new creativity. You never know until you look...

 

I absolutely adore vintage books and have a lovely collection of them. I picked out some books that had green covers and randomly chose this one first. This was page 233 of Kon-Tiki by Thor Heyerdahl, the man who led the expedition. I really never knew much that about it until this, it's an amazing story!

✽

 

Aboutme

It is truly difficult to effectively relate how graceful and ethereal Manta Rays are as they perform their nightly ballet in the warm waters near Kona Hawaii. This image perhaps does the work of hundreds of adjectives in relating the emotion you feel as these massive creatures glide inches from your face.

If you would like to read more about swimming with Mantas and see more photos of this adventure, check-out my blog article: www.firefallphotography.com/swimming-manta-rays-tips-phot...

Have a great day!

 

Jeff

My Website ¦ Facebook ¦ My Blog ¦ Google+

  

Explored 9/21/13

My daughters were working in the kitchen and when I noticed this moment it seemed to tell me a story I could relate to that was beyond what I could find words to express. So I did what I knew to do—try to capture what I saw but couldn’t express with words.

  

Day 16

 

____________________________

 

As a way to cope with circumstances beyond my control, survive and work to keep fighting for life I decided to try to take at least one photo (or more) each day. I call this “a photo (or more) a day.” Practicing this form of therapeutic photography helps me work to focus on the present moment, gives me something familiar and enjoyable to focus on as I use photography skills that have become like second-nature to me and being able to view the images I capture helps me recall what I was thinking, feeling and noticing at the moment when I created the photos. More of the photos from this series can be seen on my Instagram account

 

I may not always have the energy, time or capacity to share photos from this series—especially with the very challenging circumstances my family and I are experiencing—and will do my best to continue taking a photo (or more) a day even if I’m not able to share.

 

If you would like to support my work and my family, one way you can do so is by ordering my zines:

CLOUDS

in the moment | collection 1

in the moment | collection 2

Moving Forward

 

Many thanks for your support.

Mural in Fayetteville, Georgia relating to Georgia's huge movie film industry, third in the nation.

Lomo Sprocket Rocket camera with Ilford HP5+ film.

Ruben M. Benjamin (1833-1917), an attorney known for litigation relating to railroad regulation, had this Italianate-style house built for him and his wife, Laura, upon their marriage in 1856. The builder, carpenter John L. Routt (1826-1907), would go on to serve as the first and seventh Governor of Colorado from 1876 to 1879, and 1891 to 1893. He also served as Mayor of Denver from 1883 to 1885.

 

Benjamin received his primary education at Kinderhook Academy, New York and in 1853 was graduated from Amherst College with high honors. He was principal of Hopkins Academy at Hadley, Massachusetts, one year and was a student a year later in the Harvard Law School and the next year he was a tutor at Amherst. He arrived in Bloomington in the spring of 1856. In the fall he appeared before Judge (and future Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court) David Davis at Lincoln, Illinois, for his bar exam. One of the examiners was Abraham Lincoln. He passed the test and later became a close friend of the future 16th U.S. president.

 

Benjamin was a prominent attorney who represented the people in The People vs. Chicago and Alton Railroad. That case was widely considered a benchmark ruling that allowed the government to regulate private enterprises.

 

After Benjamin "retired" from the practice of law, he devoted his time to writing textbooks that were used at many of the most prominent law schools in the country. He also served as a McLean County judge from 1877 to 1886, and served for a time as the dean of the law school faculty at Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington.

 

The Ruben M. Benjamin House is listed both by itself and as a contributing property in Bloomington's East Grove Street District. The only other home in the East Grove Street District to have this distinction is the George H. Cox House previously shown in this McLean County series.

 

The East Grove Street District includes 43 houses and apartment buildings, 25 of which are considered contributing buildings. The houses in the district were built between 1855 and 1915 for many of Bloomington's upper middle class residents. Due to a building boom between 1880 and 1900, the then-popular Queen Anne style is the most prevalent in the district. Other popular architectural styles in the district include Greek Revival homes from the 1850s, Italianate homes built between 1860 and 1880, and Arts and Crafts homes built in the 1900s. The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1987.

 

Bloomington is the seat of McLean County. It is adjacent to Normal, and is the more populous of the two principal municipalities of the Bloomington-Normal metropolitan area. Bloomington is home to State Farm Insurance, Country Financial and Beer Nuts. Illinois Wesleyan University is located here, while the neighboring twin city of Normal is home to Illinois State University and Heartland Community College. Bloomington is 135 miles (217 km) southwest of Chicago, and 162 miles (261 km) northeast of St. Louis. The estimated population of Bloomington in 2019 was 77,330, with a metro population of 191,067.

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The chapel features, on its three walls, frescoed scenes relating to the Universal Flood, the Entrance of the Animals into the Ark, the End of the Flood and Noah's Drunkenness. The compositions are characterised by outdoor visions marked by the presence of human figures and animals, both depicted on a small scale. The painter's attention seems to be focused on the description of the variety of animals and birds, without, however, failing to dwell on the more intensely dramatic scenes, such as the cases of those who drown, going as far as the cold analysis of the corpses strewn on the ground after the Flood. The stories of the Flood are linked to the fresco of the Baptism of Christ that faces them in the cloistered church, as a foreshadowing of that moment of salvation, according to what St Peter makes clear in the First Epistle (3:20-21): "God in his longsuffering waited in the days of Noah for the ark to be built, in which eight people in all found escape from the water, a figure, this one, of the Baptism that now saves us".

Historical-critical information: In these frescoes, Aurelio Luini displays an unprecedented propensity for storytelling and narration for its own sake, which results in a smug amusement directed above all at the descriptive rendering of the various animal species, rendered with an almost lenticular meticulousness. As the son of Bernardino Luini, who was active for many years in San Maurizio, Aurelio showed undisputed talent for painting, which led him to collaborate with his older brother Giovan Pietro from 1555 onwards. Here, as in other cases, Aurelio exhibits the peculiar characteristics of his painting, sustained by an exuberant expressive emphasis that is fully in line with contemporary 'Mannerism'. The naturalistic taste manifested in the frescoes of the Noah's Ark chapel also reflects the interest that Aurelio, a member of the Accademia della Val di Blenio (run by Giovan Paolo Lomazzo), had always shown in Leonardo's research.

  

L I S T E N