(more details later, as time permits)

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As I have noted in several earlier Flickr albums, as long as I continue going to the same NYC dentist, you can count on two or three sets of photos of Bryant Park each year. The reason is simple: my dentist is located in mid-town Manhattan, about a block from the park — and when I'm done, I'm always tempted to walk over and see how the park looks. Consequently, I've collected almost a dozen separate sets of Bryant Park photos, which you can see summarized here on Flickr. (At least one or two of those other sets will provide you with the historical details of the park; or you can look it up here on Wikipedia.)

In mid-June of 2015, I took another stroll through the park, not having been there for almost two years. I wandered mostly around the periphery of the park, looking for interesting scenes to capture with the Sony RX-1R camera whose results I'm showing in this album, and also a Sony RX-10 camera whose results you'll see in a separate album in a couple days. I locked the camera into a wide-angle setting and a fixed f/8 aperture, and I just pointed the camera in the general direction of an interesting scene, and pushed the shutter button. Of the several hundred shots that I took during these strolls, there were a handful that seemed worthy of uploading; that's what you'll be seeing in this set and the next one. All of this took roughly an hour, at the end of which I put away my camera, and headed back uptown, content that my teeth would survive for another several months...

Il Duomo di S. Andrea

L’inconfondibile architettura del Duomo di Amalfi si erge, splendida ed elegantissima al termine di una maestosa scalinata di 62 scalini, sovrastando l’omonima piazza al cui centro è collocata la settecentesca fontana di S. Andrea o del Popolo.

Le sue forme compendiano gli stili arabo e normanno e ciò conferisce all’architettura un aspetto singolare ed un fascino particolare.

Il Duomo

Dedicato a S. Andrea in virtù di un miracolo avvenuto il 27 giugno del 1544, il Duomo di Amalfi è costituito da 2 basiliche: la basilica del Crocifisso, molto antica, risalente al VI sec. e la basilica maggiore di S. Andrea risalente al IX. Ampliato e ricostruito nell’XI sec., è nel XIII che, dopo la traslazione di S. Andrea il Duomo subì una notevole trasformazione nella forma arabo-normanna. Vennero così ingranditi il transetto e la cripta, fu costruito l’arco trionfale sorretto da due grandi colonne ed aperto il muro di separazione tra le due basiliche con la conseguente creazione di un’unica grande basilica a cinque navate.

La fontana di Sant'Andrea, in stile barocco, è stata costruita nel 1760 di fronte al duomo e poi spostata sul lato della piazza. Una fontana più antica è andata distrutta durante una terribile mareggiata che inghiottì buona parte degli antichi arsenali.

Il Motto di Amalfi :

Descendit ex patribvs romanorvm

La façade de Brissac est de style Louis XIII. Elle fut élevée au début du XVIIe siècle, mais elle est restée inachevée. Elle est encadrée par deux tours médiévales, qui sont les derniers vestiges d’un château plus ancien, construit au XVe siècle par Pierre de Brézé, ministre de Louis XI. Ce contraste, de style et d’époque, est tout à fait fortuit, en voici l’explication: Pendant les guerres de religion, les armées catholiques et protestantes se disputèrent le château, qui fut même assiégé un temps par Henri IV. Cette longue période de troubles laissa le château fortement endommagé et inhabitable, jusqu’en 1600 année qui marque le début de la reconstruction. Le premier duc de Brissac confia les travaux à son architecte Jacques Corbineau et ensemble, ils décidèrent d’élever un vaste château-palais en lieu et place de l’ancienne forteresse. Les ouvriers se mirent à l’œuvre en démolissant l’ancien édifice au fur et à mesure qu’ils construisaient le nouveau. Mais la mort du premier duc en 1621 a pour conséquence l’arrêt brutal et définitif du chantier qui ne sera jamais achevé par ses successeurs. Les deux tours vouées à la démolition subsistèrent, tandis que l’aile droite ne sera jamais construite et voilà pourquoi la porte d’entrée n’est pas au centre de la façade. Le grand-père de l’actuel propriétaire usait d’une formule pour résumer l’histoire de sa demeure, il disait : Brissac est « un château neuf à demi-construit dans un château vieux à demi-détruit ».

The facade of Brissac is Louis XIII style. It was raised at the beginning of the 17th century, but it remained unfinished. It is framed by two medieval towers, which are the last vestiges of an older castle, built in the 15th century by Pierre de Breze, minister of Louis XI. This contrast, of style and period, is quite fortuitous, here is the explanation: During the wars of religion, the catholic and Protestant armies disputed the castle, which was even besieged a time by Henri IV. This long period of unrest left the castle heavily damaged and uninhabitable, until the year 1600 marked the beginning of the reconstruction. The first Duke of Brissac entrusted the works to his architect Jacques Corbineau and together they decided to build a vast castle-palace instead of the old fortress. The workers set to work demolishing the old building as they built the new building. But the death of the first duke in 1621 resulted in a sudden and definitive stoppage of the construction site that will never be completed by his successors. The two towers dedicated to demolition remained, while the right wing will never be built and that is why the front door is not in the center of the facade. The grandfather of the current owner used a formula to summarize the history of his home, he said: Brissac is "a new castle half-built in a half-destroyed old castle."

I was thinking about why I love photographing flowers so much. I guess it's partly because their beauty is so ephemeral. Then I read Guy Tal's excellent blog (a photographer who writes quite eloquently) discussing the transience of things. I won't even try to summarize what he wrote. Instead, I recommend that you read it:

guytal.com/wordpress/2013/08/08/the-painful-part/

The Chicago Botanic Garden has a number of lovely waterlilies. I loved the simple lines and soft colors of this lotus.

The White Pine Lodge summarizes the current state of the community of White Pine, Michigan - deteriorating. Plants are pushing through the black top, an old pile of staked logs is starting to rot, and the lodge building is crumbling. It's been almost 12 years since the copper refinery operated, and ever since, makes the community a lonely UP outpost in a rather scenic setting.

While deploring the dramatic impact of rapid climate change on sea levels, extreme weather events, deteriorating ecosystems and the loss of biodiversity, the Church is also witness to how climate change is affecting vulnerable communities and peoples, greatly to their disadvantage. Pope Francis draws our attention to the irreparable impact of unrestrained climate change in many developing countries across the world. Moreover, in his address to the United Nations the Pope said the misuse and destruction of the environment are also accompanied by a relentless process of exclusion.The building and maintenance of a sustainable common home requires courageous and imaginative political leadership. Legal frameworks are required which clearly establish boundaries and ensure the protection of the ecosystem.Reliable scientific evidence suggests that accelerated climate change is the result of

unrestrained human activity, working to a particular model of progress and development,and that excessive reliance on fossil fuels is primarily responsible. The Pope and Catholic

Bishops from five continents, sensitive to the damage caused, appeal for a drastic reductionin the emission of carbon dioxide and other toxic gases.

www.comece.eu/dl/lKupJKJOnOKJqx4kJK/APPEAL_TO_COP_21_Engl...

ABOARD THE PAPAL PLANE FROM BANGUI While Pope Francis has expressed hope that world leaders meeting in Paris for discussions on confronting climate change will find solutions to the problem, he has also said the inaction on the issue up to now is approaching global suicide."Every year, the problems are more grave," the pontiff told the press Monday, adding that politicians have so far "done little" to address the situation.Recounting a meeting he had participated in that focused on what kind of world we are leaving our children, the pope said someone there had asked: "But are you sure that there will be children of this generation?But he added: "I am sure that almost all who are in Paris … have this awareness and want to do something.". Buy it today!"I have trust; I have trust that these [leaders] will do something," the pope continued. "Because I would say I am sure they have the good will to do it. And I wish that it will be so, and I pray for this."

Francis was speaking Monday in a nearly hour-long press conference aboard the papal plane traveling back to Rome from Africa, where the pope visited Kenya, Uganda, and the Central African Republic from Nov. 25-30.The pope was answering a question about the ongoing U.N. Climate Conference, which is bringing together hundreds of world leaders in Paris through early December to discuss solutions to climate change.During the press conference, the pontiff spoke on a wide range of topics -- giving some of his most memorable moments of his Africa tour, speaking about the role of journalism in uncovering corruption, and revealing more details about his expected trip to Mexico in February.

Francis also faced a question about the church's teaching prohibiting use of artificial contraception from a journalist who asked if the church should consider changing its stance on the issue -- particularly on the use of condoms -- given the continuing spread of HIV/AIDS in Africa."The question seems too small to me," the pontiff responded. "It seems to me also like a partial question.""The morality of the church is found on this point, I think, in front of a perplexity," he said. "Fifth or Sixth commandment? Defend life, or that sexual relations be open to life? This is not the problem. The problem is bigger.""This question makes me think of what they asked Jesus one time: 'Tell me, master, is it licit to heal on the Sabbath?'" Francis continued."Malnutrition, exploitation of persons, slave work, lack of drinking water," he said. "These are the problems.""I do not like to descend into reflections that are so casuistic when people are dying," he continued. "I would say to not think if it is licit or not licit to heal on the Sabbath. I say to humanity: Make justice, and when all are healed, when there is not injustice in this world, we can speak of the Sabbath."Francis also spoke out strongly again against religious fundamentalism, saying that fundamentalism exists in all religions and should be combatted with efforts at friendship. He said he prefers not to speak of having tolerance for other religious, but "living together,friendship.""Fundamentalism is a sickness that is in all religions," said the pontiff. "We Catholics have some -- and not some, many -- who believe in the absolute truth and go ahead dirtying the other with calumny, with disinformation, and doing evil.""They do evil," said the pope. "I say this because it is my church.""We have to combat it," he said. "Religious fundamentalism is not religious, because it lacks God. It is idolatry, like the idolatry of money."On a similar line, Francis also defended Islam, saying that Muslims have many constructive values."I even have the experience of friendship -- it is a strong word, friendship -- with a Muslim," said the pontiff. "We can speak. His values are mine. He prays. I pray.""You cannot cancel out a religion because there are some groups, or many groups in a certain point of history, of fundamentalists," said the pope, adding that Christians have to ask forgiveness for the many times wars have been perpetrated in the name of their faith."Like everything, there are religious people with values and those without," he said. "But how many wars … have Christians made? The sacking of Rome was not done by Muslims, eh?"In summarizing the most moving moments of his trip to Africa -- which saw the pontiff visit slums and refugee camps, celebrate several open-air Masses to crowds in the hundreds of thousands, and speak to the U.N. offices in Nairobi -- Francis spoke most about the suffering faced by many on the continent.But he has also emphasized the kind and joyous welcome he felt in each of the three nations he visited."For me, Africa was a surprise," said the pope. "I thought God surprises, but Africa also surprises.""They have a very great sense of welcoming," he said. "I saw in the three countries that they have this sense of welcoming because they feel happy to be visited."Speaking of his feelings after visiting Nairobi's Kangemi slum, which has little to no infrastructure and houses about 100,000 people in makeshift shacks on the city's outskirts, Francis said he felt a "great pain" in being there.He also spoke about visiting a children's hospital in the Central African Republic, where a doctor told him they do not have tools and instruments necessary to care for their patients."There are many malnourished children, many," Francis said. "And the doctor said that most of them will die because they have strong malaria and are malnourished."He then spoke again about his frequent exhortation against the "idolatry of money.""Idolatry is when a man, a woman loses their identity card of being a child of God and prefers to look for a God of their own measure," said the pontiff. "If humanity doesn't change, miseries, tragedies, wars, the children that die of hunger, of injustice, will continue.""This is not communism," he said. "This is truth. The truth, it is not easy to see it."Francis also said that Africa has been abused by many countries of the world."Africa is a victim; Africa was always exploited by other powers," said the pope. "There are powers that only search to take the great riches of Africa -- it is perhaps the richest continent -- but do not think of helping the continent grow.""Africa is a martyr, a martyr of exploitation throughout history," he said.Asked about the role of journalism in confronting corruption in government, and even at the Vatican, Francis said journalists must be professional and avoid three particular sins."It is important they be truly professional, that news does not come to be manipulated," said the pope. "For me it is important because the denouncing of injustice, of corruption is a good work."The three sins he said journalists should avoid are disinformation, calumny, and defamation.Regarding his expected trip to Mexico in February, Francis said he plans to visit three or four cities and that the main criteria of the voyage is to visit cities never before visited by popes.He said he will go to Mexico City to visit the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe; to the southern state of Chiapas on the Guatemalan border; and to Morelia, a city in the center of the country that has experienced much drug violence.The pope also said he is "quasi-sure" that the last city on the trip will be Ciudad Juarez on the U.S. border.Asked if he might make another trip to Africa, Francis laughed."I don't know," he said. "I am old! The trips are a heavy weight."Pope Franics COP21Climate change.

ncronline.org/news/vatican/francis-world-close-suicide-ov...

The Herald has arrived to proclaim the Void's edict: The end draws near, and it is closer than you may think.

[Combat in the Ruins - Stuart Chatwood (Darkest Dungeon)]

~

Heavily inspired by the 'Cultist Priest' enemy from the game 'Darkest Dungeon'.

I just remember watching a playthrough and almost leaping out of my chair when those cloaked dudes turn out to not be dudes at all (though given the other enemies in there, I totally should have seen it coming).

Entry to the Quarter-Final round of the 2017 Bio-Cup.

Leonid and I decided on 'something dark/creepy/edgy' as our theme - though that might not be my forte, it was totally the most fun option, and I just had to go with that.

EDIT: 'Cultist Priest' doesn't really show up when you search it, so here's the part of that playthrough (which actually does a pretty good job of just summarizing the game quintessentially).

Sitting by themselves off to one side of a vacant farm place is an old, empty barn, a deteriorating milk-house and an upright silo with silo pipes still attached. On the other side of the silo is a metal silage chute, the bane of many young farm lads and lasses over the years who are still picking pieces of silage out of their eyes and hair from the times they threw silage down the chute and the updraft brought it back.

In my years now that are often filled with the memories of a lifestyle I once lived under silent protest, the events and family surrounding me on the farm as I grew up are often recalled and think I would like to try a few of those events one more time.

It is difficult to summarize the experience of growing up on the farm but this photo touches on a trio of labor mainstays on the farm that many former farm kids can remember.

The open haymow speaks of arduous task of baling hay, normally on the hottest and most humid days of the summer. The twice-daily chore of milking cows is aptly represented by the milk-house while many of us can remember when we were young the loud excitement surrounding the day or two of filling the silo.

On our farm we didn’t milk enough cows to warrant a separate location for storing milk but baling hay and silo filling were days that imprinted a work ethic into my soul.

Most farmers did not have their own equipment to fill a silo so the filling was done by a hired crew who made rounds of area farmers in the fall to provide the service. In my earliest days, dad had a one row corn binder that would cut corn stalks off, bind them with twine and deposit them on the ground.

Usually young men with strong backs and weak minds were enlisted to trail behind the binder with a tractor-pulled hay-rack upon which the bundles were picked up and tossed to someone on the rack to stack. When the rack was full, it was pulled into the barnyard and up to the conveyor that transported the stalks into a power-takeoff powered grinder that then blew the silage up the long pipes.

Those days were part of the farm social scene as well. Tall tales were exchanged while coffee, lemonade and sandwiches were shared outside around 10 a.m. and again at the large dining room table a couple of hours later where perspiring housewives and their helpers carried large platters of fried chicken from a hot kitchen to the men.

When I was about 7 years old I had the first of my many times of trouble involving adults. We had a neighbor farmer who did not have a great reputation as a good farmer. In the twisted mind of a young fella I decided he needed a lesson. I snuck up behind him as he was putting sheaves of cornstalks on the silo-filling conveyor. When he was bent over and busy, I deposited a glass of cold water in one of his bib overall pockets.

If you ever wondered if it was possible to hear over the loud whine of a silo filling machine, I can attest to the fact you could. His shout of anger focused the attention of everyone working in the barnyard.

(Photographed near Dalbo, MN)

I try to be sensible when outside, but sometimes I can't resist wearing a shorter hemline. It was a fun winter, I was out and about more than ever in my life. I could show so many more pictures, but instead will put together a video to summarize things.

The Lions Gate bridge seen from Prospect Point in Stanley Park Vancouver BC connects Vancouver to the north shore. On the lower left is the Lions Gate primary sewage treatment plant. To the right of the bridge is land belonging to the Tsleil-Waututh Nation.

THE LIONS GATE BRIDGE:

The Lions Gate Bridge, opened in 1938, officially known as the First Narrows Bridge, is a suspension bridge that crosses the first narrows of Burrard Inlet and connects the City of Vancouver, British Columbia, to the North Shore municipalities of the District of North Vancouver, the City of North Vancouver, and West Vancouver. The term "Lions Gate" refers to The Lions, a pair of mountain peaks north of Vancouver. Northbound traffic on the bridge heads in their general direction.

The total length of the bridge including the north viaduct is 1,823 metres (5,890 feet). The length including approach spans is 1,517.3 m (4,978 ft), the main span alone is 473 m (1,550 ft), the tower height is 111 m (364 ft), and it has a ship's clearance of 61 m (200 ft). Prospect Point in Stanley Park offered a good high south end to the bridge, but the low flat delta land to the north required construction of the extensive North Viaduct.

The bridge has three reversible lanes, the use of which is indicated by signals. The centre lane changes direction to accommodate for traffic patterns. The traffic volume on the bridge is 60,000 - 70,000 vehicles per day. Trucks exceeding 13 tonnes (14.3 tons) are prohibited, as are vehicles using studded tires. The bridge forms part of Highways 99 and 1A.

On March 24, 2005, the Lions Gate Bridge was designated a National Historic Site of Canada.

History

Starting about 1890, bridge builders saw that a bridge across the first narrows was becoming a possibility. There were a number who argued against its construction, as many felt it would ruin Stanley Park or cause problems for the busy seaport or that it would take toll revenue away from the Second Narrows Bridge. However, many others saw it as necessary in order to open up development on the North Shore and it was felt that these problems could be overcome. The decision was put to the electorate of Vancouver in 1927, but the first plebiscite was defeated and the idea was put to rest for a short while.

Alfred James Towle Taylor, who had been part of this proposal and still owned the provincial franchise to build the bridge, did not have the finances to purchase the necessary large sections of property in North Vancouver and West Vancouver. However, he was able to convince the Guinness family (of the Irish beer fame) to invest in the land on the north shore of Burrard Inlet. They purchased 4,700 acres (16 km²) of West Vancouver mountainside through a syndicate called British Pacific Properties Ltd.

On December 13, 1933, a second plebiscite was held and this time, it was passed by a 2 to 1 margin. After considerable further negotiations with the federal government, approval was finally granted, with the requirement that Vancouver materials and workmen be used as much as possible to provide employment during the Great Depression.

The bridge was designed by the Montreal firm Monsarrat and Pratley, which was later responsible for the Angus L. Macdonald Bridge in Halifax, Nova Scotia using a similar design. Other companies involved in the construction of the bridge include: Swan Wooster Engineering, Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas, Rowan Williams Davies & Irwin Inc., Canron Western Constructors, Dominion Bridge Company, American Bridge Company.

Construction began on March 31, 1937. After one and a half years and a cost of $5,873,837.17 (CAD), it opened to traffic on November 14, 1938. On May 29, 1939, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth presided over the official opening during a royal visit to Canada. A toll of 25 cents was charged for each car. On January 20, 1955, the Guinness family sold the bridge to the province for $5,959,060, and in 1963, the tolls were dropped. The newly constructed bridge differed from the current configuration of the bridge as it originally had only two lanes. Yet, as had been foreseen, West Vancouver’s population boomed as a result of the new connection. Thus, to accommodate the increased population, the lanes were divided into three with the middle lane acting as a passing lane. Another difference with the original configuration was that in an effort to recover the expenditure it cost to build the bridge, the Guinness family had toll booths installed. The toll booths remained on the bridge until 1963, at which time the bridge was purchased by the provincial government for the same price that it took to build it. Changes were made shortly after the takeover, as the tolls were removed and the overhead lane controls were added. The Guinnesses’ last involvement with the bridge happened in 1986, when they added lights to the bridge as an Expo '86 gift.

In 1975, the deteriorating north viaduct was replaced with a lighter, wider, and stronger steel deck with wider lanes. This was carried out in sections using a series of short closures of the bridge; each time, one old section was lowered from the bridge and its replacement was put into place.

LIONS GATE SEWAGE PLANT:

Metro Vancouver is required to build a new secondary treatment plant for the North Shore by 2020, to comply with regulations and standards adopted by federal and provincial environment ministers.

The existing Lions Gate Wastewater Treatment Plant is one of two remaining primary treatment plants in the region. New federal and provincial standards require all primary treatment plants be upgraded to secondary treatment. To meet these requirements, and to fulfill the commitment made in Metro Vancouver’s Integrated Liquid Waste and Resource Management Plan, Metro Vancouver will build the new secondary treatment plant at a site approximately two kilometres east of the existing treatment plant.

The Lion’s Gate wastewater treatment plant treated 32 billion litres of wastewater in 2012. Located in West Vancouver at 101 Bridge Road, the plant provides primary treatment to wastewater from about 180,000 residents in the District of West Vancouver, the City of North Vancouver, and the District of North Vancouver. Once treated, wastewater is discharged into the Burrard Inlet.

The existing Lions Gate Wastewater Treatment Plant opened in 1961. While its capacity has been expanded several times since it opened, the plant is one of two primary treatment plants remaining in the region. New federal and provincial standards require all primary treatment plants be upgraded to secondary treatment. To meet these requirements, Metro Vancouver will build a new secondary treatment plant , at a site approximately two kilometres east of the existing treatment plant.

The wastewater treatment plant is regulated through an Operational Certificate issued by the BC Ministry of Environment. The treated wastewater that is discharged from the plant is required to meet standards for biochemical oxygen demand and total suspended solids. Discharged wastewater from the plant must not exceed 130 mg/L for both biochemical oxygen demand and total suspended solids. The plant’s daily average was 90 mg/L for biochemical oxygen demand and 54 mg/L for total suspended solids in 2012.

Recovering resources from wastewater:

The treatment plant uses anaerobic digestion to break down organic materials from wastewater to produce about 2150 bulk tonnes of biosolids every year. The anaerobic digestion process also produces methane gas, which is used to generate heat for use in the plant’s operations and in gas-fired pumps to pump the wastewater.

Construction of the new facility, expected to be completed by 2020, will enhance environmental protection and fulfill the commitment made in Metro Vancouver’s Integrated Liquid Waste and Resource Management Plan.

PROJECT UPDATE - November 2013 INDICATIVE DESIGN

The Project Definition Phase is almost complete with the development of a recommended Indicative Design. The Project Definition Phase has been guided by an Integrative Design Process (IDP) that brings together technical experts, community interests, and decision makers. In early 2013, design ideas and concepts were screened and three build scenarios prepared. These scenarios have been reviewed throughout 2013. The Indicative Design combines the best components from the three build scenarios and will define the scope of work for the new plant.

The Metro Vancouver Utilities Committee recommended that the Metro Vancouver Board endorse the Indicative Design, as summarized in the “Lions Gate Secondary Wastewater Treatment Plant Indicative Design Summary Report”, on November 5. The Indicative Design was endorsed by the Metro Vancouver Board on November 15, 2013.

TSLEIL-WAUTUTH NATION

Pronounced: tSLAY-wah-tooth.

Translates to: "The People of the Inlet".

The Tsleil-Waututh Nation, formerly known as the Burrard Indian Band or Burrard Band, is a First Nations government in the Canadian Province of British Columbia. The Tsleil-Waututh are Coast Salish people who speak the Downriver dialect of the Halkomelem language, and are closely related to but politically separate from the nearby Nation of the Sḵwxwú7mesh (Squamish) and Musqueam First Nations.

The Tsleil-waututh Nation is a member government of the Naut'sa mawt Tribal Council, which includes other governments on the upper Sunshine Coast, southeastern Vancouver Island and the Tsawwassen band on the other side of the Vancouver metropolis from the Tsleil-waututh.

Numbering about 500 people, the Tsleil-Waututh are among the most progressive First Nations in British Columbia.

The most famous member of the Tsleil-Waututh was Chief Dan George, an actor and native rights advocate best known for his role as Old Lodge Skins in Little Big Man and for another role as Old Antoine in the CBCtelevision series Cariboo Cowboy (based on books by Paul St. Pierre). His descendants still figure prominently in band government and culture. The band is also known for its war canoe racing team, Takaya (wolves). The band operates a war-canoe tour/experience known as Takaya Tours.

Like the pre-Socratic philosopher Heraclitus, Buddhism is skeptical about solid essences; everything is in flux. As Teresa of Jesus (Teresa of Avila, whom Merton admired) succinctly put it, “todo se pasa.” I think Merton’s fascination with Buddhism might be summarized by the paradoxical phrase “changing stability,” because Thomas Merton was quintessentially two things: a person who changed and a monk. Writing in The Sign of Jonas Merton quipped, “I am the impression that will change.” 5 It is exactly as Dom Armand Veilleux, OCSO, observed: Merton was “a monk on a spiritual journey, a man in a continual process of growth, whose field of consciousness was always both deepening and opening up to new horizons.”

-Thomas Merton’s encounter with Buddhism and beyond: his interreligious dialogue, inter-monastic exchanges, and their legacy / Jaechan Anselmo Park, OSB.

View On Black

El petit municipi de l'Estany, situat al nord-oest del Bages i en ple altiplà del Moianès, ocupa un indret frescal que es caracteritza per la seva alçada i per una pluviositat més gran que la resta de la comarca. A la població, situada a 870 m., s'hi accedeix sobretot per la carretera que s'enfila cap al nord de Moià. Després d'una àrea de grans pagesies disperses entre boscos i conreus, molt aviat s'entra en un pla ben aprofitat on destaca la població de l'Estany. El nucli de l'Estany, arrecerat al nord per un serrat, s'alça a la vora d'on hi havia un antic estany, dessecat l'any 1570 per ordre de l'abat Carles de Cardona per tal d'escórrer les aigües i evitar així els focus d'epidèmies que comportava. L'estany encara es torna a omplir en època de grans pluges. Les cases són de pedra i constitueixen un bon exemple de poble rural, gairebé muntanyenc. Els visitants van a l'Estany atrets pel seu bon clima i per l'extraordinari monestir romànic de Santa Maria, amb la seva església restaurada, un claustre magnífic amb 72 capitells de temes bíblics, heràldics i florístics, i un petit museu annex on es resumeix la història del cenobi. Altres indrets destacables del municipi són el Puig Rodó i el Puig de la Caritat, i la diversitat de fonts naturals que hi ha. Les festes i tradicions més notables són la Festa Major (8 de setembre), la Fira (8 de desembre) i el Pessebre Vivent.

El pequeño municipio de l'Estany, situado al noroeste del Bages y en pleno altiplano del Moianès, ocupa un lugar fresco que se caracteriza por su altura y por una pluviosidad mayor que el resto de la comarca. En la población, situada a 870 m., se accede sobre todo por la carretera que sube hacia el norte de Moià. Después de un área de grandes campesinas dispersas entre bosques y cultivos, muy pronto se entra en un plan bien aprovechado donde destaca la población de l'Estany. El núcleo de l'Estany, protegido al norte por una loma, se alza a orillas de donde había un antiguo lago, desecado en 1570 por orden del abad Carles de Cardona para escurrir las aguas y evitar así los focos de epidemias que comportaba. El lago aún se vuelve a llenar en época de grandes lluvias. Las casas son de piedra y constituyen un buen ejemplo de pueblo rural, casi montañoso. Los visitantes al Lago atraídos por su buen clima y por el extraordinario monasterio románico de Santa María, con su iglesia restaurada, un claustro magnífico con 72 capiteles de temas bíblicos, heráldicos y florísticos, y un pequeño museo anexo donde se resume la historia del cenobio. Otros lugares destacables del municipio son el Puig Rodó y el Puig de la Caridad, y la diversidad de fuentes naturales que hay. Las fiestas y tradiciones más notables son la Fiesta Mayor (8 de septiembre), la Feria (8 de diciembre) y el Pesebre Viviente.

The small town of Lake, located northwest of Bages and full Moianès plateau, occupies a cool place that is characterized by its height and a higher rainfall than the rest of the region. In the town, located 870 m above is accessed by the road that climbs north of Moia. After a large area of scattered peasant between forests and crops, soon entered into a plan which highlights the best advantage of the lake population. The core of the lake, sheltered on the north by a serrated stands at the edge where there was an ancient lake dried up in 1570 by order of Abbot Charles Cardona to drain water and prevent outbreaks of epidemics entailed. The lake is still refills at times of heavy rainfall. The houses are stone and are a good example of rural village, almost mountainous. The visitors were attracted to the lake for its good climate and the extraordinary Romanesque monastery of Santa Maria, with its restored church, a magnificent cloister with 72 capitals of biblical themes, floristic and arms, and a small museum in which there are summarizes the history of the monastery. Other notable places are the town's Round Puig and Puig de la Caridad, and diversity of natural resources there. The festivities and traditions most notably the Festival (September 8), Fair (December 8) and the Living Nativity.

平成最後の夜桜を個人的にまとめてみました。

「御殿山」は洗練されていました。

あまり知られてはいませんがレベルの高い夜桜のスポットです。隣接する東京マリオットホテルの庭も含め巧みな演出がアートな世界を作り出しています。個人的にはこのまま有名にならない事を期待しています。

I summarized the night cherry blossoms of the last Heisei year personally.

"Gotenyama" was sophisticated.

This is not well known. However, it is a spot of night cherry blossoms with high level.

The garden of Tokyo Marriott Hotel connected with "Gotenyama" creates an art world by skillfully directing.

Personally, I expect that here will not be famous.

Life-Skills my Dad Taught Me:

▪️How to tie my shoes.

▪️How to speak Yiddish.

▪️How to solder.

▪️How to make Gunpowder.

▪️How to hold a 10x Jewelers Loupe to my eye & look at a Diamond.

▪️How to carve a Pinewood-Derby-Race-Car & weight it to glide faster.

▪️How to find & open a “Concretion” fossil from The Peabody Coal Mines

▪️How to hammer a nail.

▪️How to alert a Cashier if they give you incorrect Change back.

▪️How to tie a Windsor-knot.(half and Full Windsor knot)

▪️How to make melted-cheese-on-Toast-in-a-broiler.

▪️How to get FOUR slices from a bagel.

▪️How to properly /+ expertly Parallel Park a Car.

▪️How to look for diamonds that had fallen out of his pants cuffs onto the bedroom carpet.

▪️

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said,

people will forget what you did, but people will never forget

how you made them feel.”

Maya Angelou

One's life - is not summarized by a tally of those who show up to attend a Funeral, or

sign a Guest Book online,

but- I certainly "know"- that my Dad- the one who showed me so many things,

taught me so many life lessons,

would have wanted,

the "Love"- he put out in the Universe-

to be reciprocated-

by the simple act,

of taking minute to compose

your thoughts, prayers and feelings about

a kinda guy - that-

they don't make, anymore-

Edward Kramer.

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A living fossil

This tree was once one of the most widespread tree species in the Northern hemisphere (during the Tertiary period). Fossils have been found across the northern hemisphere, including Greenland and Spitzbergen, dating from when the continents were further south, and close together sharing a common flora.

In 1941 Shigeru Miki of Japan was reclassifying fossil remains that had been incorrectly classified as Sequoia and Taxodium[1]. Due to its resemblance to the North American coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens), he named the tree species Metasequoia, which means "almost a sequoia, sequoia-ish". Botanists think this species is the ancestor of the present day coast redwood. To summarize: at that time, the tree was only known as an fossil tree species, extinct for millions of years.

In late autumn of 1947, T. Kan, a Chinese forester of Beijing National Central University, found three strange deciduous trees he had never seen before and during an expedition that followed, a lot of the trees were apparently still alive in a remote area in Southwest China[1].

In 1948 it was discovered that the species belonged to the already described fossil genus Metasequoia and, in an effort to preserve the tree species from logging, it was immediatly spread along arboreta everywhere in the world.

More info: www.monumentaltrees.com/en/trees/dawnredwood/dawnredwood/

Shanghai most beautiful skyline with the iconic 'Oriental Pearl Tower' in view.

Here, assume. While vacation, If the Almighty One plan an ever unexpected joke on u during your most dying to visit holiday trip, at the best of the best time of the day during a mesmerizing, unforgettable sunset/sunrise to allow u with just one single click, only once, just "one click" n the camera would mulfunction. How would u prepare to handle this.....??

For me, I'll assure such incident with sheer confident n gather all my accumulated skill , knowledge to strike on the most essential factor call "+elements" to summarize my final end result without regret. reserved the best framing for the ever best moment of light to fall. When u miss it..... then to bad to wait for the second or third good light to befall.

Best View at 100% Large. Editor and interested buyer are advice to click instant View In Large here : EASY VIEW OF MY SLIDE SHOW Or View in Black. Enjoy my photostream

You may also be interested not to miss out some of my exclusive Travel Set assign recently「Seoul Beautifully Attracted」 or China Set「China through My Lens」

Please also consider reading "My Most Interesting Facts" below:-

|[ How I met Photography ] | [ Me & My Prospect Profile ]|

Due to copyright issue, I cannot afford to offer any free image when request. Pls kindly consult my sole permission to purchase n use any of my images.You can email me at : men4r@yahoo.com.

Please also note that all the contents in this photostream is copyrighted and protected under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and the Copyright Act of Singapore. Any illegal usage of my sole images without permission will face monetary prosecution or undertake infringement liability!

This is it. One year and two months later I’m finally finished.

I’ve had this idea in my head since the beginning of February, when the possibility of finishing actually started to become real. Before venturing up to Mount Laguna to take this photo and the previous one, Andrew and I stopped by the store so I could pick out a bouquet of roses. My very first self-portrait of this project is of me holding a dead rose with a pessimistic description underneath it about how love and relationships are overrated. I wanted to incorporate that into this photo but with an entirely different feeling…optimism and hope.

This may not be the best piece I’ve ever created, but it was the most difficult to shoot. After taking my photo for day 364, we back-tracked down the mountain road to where we first saw snow. We thought it would be smart to confide in Siri for directions to a snowy place near a hotel lodge. She told us to turn on Boiling Springs Road, which was soon to become our personal hell hole for the next five hours.

The weather report said it was sunny and beautiful and that we would be ok without chains. We turned on to the little road and quickly realized that it was a big mistake. The road was slick with ice and muddy where the snow had melted. My Toyota Corolla didn’t stand a chance. We got stuck after driving for five minutes and had to dig the tires out to keep going. We managed to get out of that bad spot only to get stuck again driving up a muddy slope. This time the car wasn’t moving. We spent the next hour trying to get the car to move until I broke down and called AAA. I didn’t want it all to be for nothing, so while we were waiting for AAA, I got my stuff together and we went to scout out a place to shoot.

I found this untouched snowy clearing and starting setting up. As soon as I starting unpacking the tripod, a truck with two firefighters in it came zooming down the road. Thinking they were going to get my car, I sent Andrew running after them. The sun was fading fast so instead of going with him, I put on my dress and took off my shoes to start shooting. The pain was agonizing and my feet turned into bricks when they hit the snow. It hurt so bad I wanted to cry.

The firemen and Andrew got my car unstuck and he drove past me waving. The car got stuck again half a mile down the road and I had to walk to go meet them. Turns out AAA doesn’t cover you if you don’t have chains on your tires and they wanted to charge me $100 to pull the car out. Luckily the two firemen (who just happened to be going for a drive that day) offered to help us. I waited back at the fire station while the three of them got my car. Finally, at 8 at night we were able to go home.

I’ve imagined what this moment would feel like since I started my 365 project last January. Before that even, back when I was following the 365s of the photographers who inspired me to start my own. I never completed the 365 I started in the summer of 2011…it became too much for me and I dropped out at around 30 days. I entered 2012 with the New Year’s resolution to finish what I had started. While most started a 366 last year to honor the leap year, I started a 365 on January 2nd (due to alcohol-induced sickness from the night before…AKA hang over from hell).

The first week or so is always so exciting…I remember that feeling well. I started off taking a photo of anything and everything, just for the sake of taking a picture everyday. I’m not exactly sure when I decided to devote my project to purely self-portraits, but from that point on, I became more serious about what I was doing. At first, the thought of taking pictures of myself in public was absolutely terrifying. When I did venture outside, I made sure to scout out the most secluded locations possible. If someone so much as looked at me while I was shooting, I would immediately pack up my bag and take off. I didn’t have the slightest idea of what I was doing.

I holed myself up in my room for hours each day, shooting, uploading and then editing. I wasn’t satisfied until my photo was up on Flickr before I went to bed. I sacrificed time I could have spent on homework or with friends in favor of this project. I was embarrassed to tell anyone about what I was doing…for a while the only people I confided in were souls I had never met in person- my Flickr family. I’ve been both praised and ridiculed for this project. I lost myself in it, but found myself again in the process. There was so much to lose and also so much to gain.

As the days dragged on, I became more comfortable going outside in the open. I got over what people were thinking about me and just went for it. The bigger the risk, the bigger the pay off and the better my photos turned out. Eventually, setting up for shoots became as routine to me as brushing my teeth. I brought my camera and tripod with me everywhere, never wanting to miss the opportunity to shoot in a new location or to run out of light. I became borderline obsessed with catching the sunset, which is NOT easy to do everyday between school, work, maintaining a social life and dealing with whatever else life throws at you.

So how do you summarize a year in words? Within the past year, I completed two semesters of college, attended my sister’s graduation, quit my barista job, became the photo editor of the newspaper, bought a new camera, got an internship, moved into a new house, traveled to Mexico twice, witnessed hundreds of sunsets, lost old friends, met new friends, turned 21, went skydiving, celebrated my grandparent’s 60th wedding anniversary in November and then attended my grandpa’s funeral in February, got the worst sunburn of my life, came down with the flu, laughed, smiled, cried, sobbed, had my heart broken and fell in love. But that’s just surface stuff. The truth is you can’t remember everything. Memories escape you faster than you can hold on to them. It’s easy to remember milestones in your life, but what about all the seemingly insignificant moments that happen on ordinary days? I had a fiery determination to try and capture these moments in photos. Memories come rushing back to me when I look at these pictures. I can remember where I was, who I was with, how I took the picture, how I edited it, (parts) of what I did that day and how I felt.

I owe the biggest thank you to all of my friends, family and all of you here who pushed me to finish this. I’m not trying to sound cliché, but I couldn’t have done it without your support. I owe the biggest thank you of all to Andrew who has believed in me from the beginning, even when I didn’t believe in myself. I’ve been working on this project since I first met him last March. It’s sort of surreal for both of us for it to finally be over. He never judged me. He was always willing to drive with me to scout out new locations and was always patient with me when things didn’t turn out as planned. I never would have finished this without him.

I’m so excited to finally put this behind me, but it’s a bittersweet feeling. I know now more than ever that photography is something I wouldn’t mind doing for the rest of my life. A week and a half later and I still get anxiety watching the sun go down without my camera….

Time for the next chapter…I’m ready.

I'll be posting behind the scenes and print giveaway information in a couple days on my Facebook page. :)

Please like and share!

Hey, the government is beyond human control, so at least let's have some fun with it :-) Dave Barry

hybrid flowering cherry, j c raulston arboretum, ncsu, raleigh, north carolina

The increase of population spurs technological progress and creates that anxiety which sets us against our environment as an enemy; while technology both facilitates increase of population and reinforces our arrogance, or "hubris," vis-à-vis the natural environment.

The attached diagram illustrates the interconnections. It will be noted that in this diagram each corner is clockwise, denoting that each is by itself a self-promoting (or, as the scientists say,"auto catalytic") phenomenon: the bigger the population, the faster it grows; the more technology we have, the faster the rate of new invention; and the more we believe in our "power" over an enemy environment, the more "power" we seem to have and the more spiteful the environment seems to be.

(for the diagram see: www.colorado.edu/AmStudies/lewis/ecology/sick.htm )

... The ideas which dominate our civilization at the present time date in their most virulent form from the

Industrial Revolution. They may be summarized as:

(a) It's us against the environment.

(b) It's us against other men.

(c) It's the 'individual (or the individual company, or the individual nation) that matters.

(d) We can have unilateral control over the environment and must strive for that control.

(e) We live within an infinitely expanding "frontier."

(f) Economic determinism is common sense.

(g) Technology will do it for us.

We submit that these ideas are simply proved false by the great but ultimately destructive achievements of our technology in the last 150 years. Likewise they appear to be false under modern ecological theory. The creature that wins against its environment destroys itself.

Gregory Bateson, "The Roots of Ecological Crisis" (1972)..YES 1972 !!!!!

Kombucha (also tea mushroom, tea fungus, or Manchurian mushroom when referring to the culture; botanical name Medusomyces gisevii[1]) is a fermented, slightly alcoholic, lightly effervescent, sweetened black or green tea drink commonly intended as a functional beverage for its supposed health benefits. Sometimes the beverage is called kombucha tea to distinguish it from the culture of bacteria and yeast.[2] Juice, spices, or other flavorings are often added to enhance the taste of the beverage. The exact origins of kombucha are not known.[3] It is thought to have originated in Manchuria where the drink is traditionally consumed, or in Russia and Eastern Europe.[4] Kombucha is now homebrewed globally, and also bottled and sold commercially by various companies.

Many people drink kombucha for its purported health benefits. Research has been conducted using biological assays in vitro.[40] Other studies have been in vivo using rats. There have not been any human trials conducted to assess its possible biological effects, and the purported health benefits resulting from its biological activities have not been demonstrated in humans.

In 2000, a scientific review was done, which summarized the range of claimed health benefits: "It has been claimed that Kombucha teas cure asthma, cataracts, diabetes, diarrhea, gout, herpes, insomnia and rheumatism. They are purported to shrink the prostate and expand the libido, reverse grey hair, remove wrinkles, relieve haemorrhoids, lower hypertension, prevent cancer, and promote general well-being. They are believed to stimulate the immune system, and have become popular among people who are HIV positive or have AIDS".

A 2003 systematic review characterized kombucha as an "extreme example" of an unconventional remedy because of the disparity between implausible, wide-ranging health claims and the potential risks of the product. It concluded that the proposed, unsubstantiated therapeutic claims did not outweigh known risks, and that kombucha should not be recommended for therapeutic use, being in a class of "remedies that only seem to benefit those who sell them."

The claimed health benefits of kombucha are based only on animal studies and any potential benefits would need to be investigated via clinical trials.

View on Instagram ift.tt/2OkyaNT

WEEK#245 Challenge White on White

I always thought WHITE ON WHITE would be quite a challenge in terms of subject, lighting and post processing.

Here is my porcelain polar bear on white sheets, lit by two off-camera flashes, one reflected from the ceiling and consequently from the walls and the sheet under for overall wrap around even lighting; the other flash placed slightly behind the subject facing the wall on the left, for reflected/diffused directional lighting effect.

Can not summarize post processing because it was vey much trial and error.

Hoping to see your creative juices boiling.

Good shooting and editing

(more details later, as time permits)

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

As I have noted in several earlier Flickr albums, as long as I continue going to the same NYC dentist, you can count on two or three sets of photos of Bryant Park each year. The reason is simple: my dentist is located in mid-town Manhattan, about a block from the park — and when I'm done, I'm always tempted to walk over and see how the park looks. Consequently, I've collected almost a dozen separate sets of Bryant Park photos, which you can see summarized here on Flickr. (At least one or two of those other sets will provide you with the historical details of the park; or you can look it up here on Wikipedia.)

In mid-June of 2015, I took another stroll through the park, not having been there for almost two years. I wandered mostly around the periphery of the park, looking for interesting scenes to capture with the Sony RX-1R camera whose results I'm showing in this album, and also a Sony RX-10 camera whose results you'll see in a separate album in a couple days. I locked the camera into a wide-angle setting and a fixed f/8 aperture, and I just pointed the camera in the general direction of an interesting scene, and pushed the shutter button. Of the several hundred shots that I took during these strolls, there were a handful that seemed worthy of uploading; that's what you'll be seeing in this set and the next one. All of this took roughly an hour, at the end of which I put away my camera, and headed back uptown, content that my teeth would survive for another several months...

Note: I chose this as my "photo of the day" for Jul 19, 2015.

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

As I have noted in several earlier Flickr albums, as long as I continue going to the same NYC dentist, you can count on two or three sets of photos of Bryant Park each year. The reason is simple: my dentist is located in mid-town Manhattan, about a block from the park — and when I'm done, I'm always tempted to walk over and see how the park looks. Consequently, I've collected almost a dozen separate sets of Bryant Park photos, which you can see summarized here on Flickr. (At least one or two of those other sets will provide you with the historical details of the park; or you can look it up here on Wikipedia.)

In mid-June of 2015, I took another stroll through the park, not having been there for almost two years. I wandered mostly around the periphery of the park, looking for interesting scenes to capture with the Sony RX-1R camera whose results I'm showing in this album, and also a Sony RX-10 camera whose results you'll see in a separate album in a couple days. I locked the camera into a wide-angle setting and a fixed f/8 aperture, and I just pointed the camera in the general direction of an interesting scene, and pushed the shutter button. Of the several hundred shots that I took during these strolls, there were a handful that seemed worthy of uploading; that's what you'll be seeing in this set and the next one. All of this took roughly an hour, at the end of which I put away my camera, and headed back uptown, content that my teeth would survive for another several months...

Gautama Buddha (c. 563 BCE/480 BCE – c. 483 BCE/400 BCE), also known as Siddhārtha Gautama [sid̪ːʱɑːrt̪ʰə gəut̪əmə], Shakyamuni Buddha [ɕɑːkjəmun̪i bud̪ːʱə],[or simply the Buddha, after the title of Buddha, was an ascetic (śramaṇa) and sage, on whose teachings Buddhism was founded. He is believed to have lived and taught mostly in the eastern part of ancient India sometime between the sixth and fourth centuries BCE.

Gautama taught a Middle Way between sensual indulgence and the severe asceticism found in the śramaṇa movement common in his region. He later taught throughout other regions of eastern India such as Magadha and Kosala.

Gautama is the primary figure in Buddhism. He is recognized by Buddhists as an enlightened teacher who attained full Buddhahood, and shared his insights to help sentient beings end rebirth and suffering. Accounts of his life, discourses, and monastic rules are believed by Buddhists to have been summarized after his death and memorized by his followers. Various collections of teachings attributed to him were passed down by oral tradition and first committed to writing about 400 years later.

Living in a Jungle, Miami FL

www.susanfordcollins.com

The Major cloister - Certosa di San Martino Naples

Nel 1325 sulla sommità del colle di Sant'Erasmo, Carlo d'Angiò duca di Calabria, primogenito di Roberto d'Angiò, fece erigere il monastero dell'ordine dei certosini, il preferito della casa reale francese.

Per la realizzazione della Certosa di San Martino fu chiamato l’architetto e scultore senese Tino di Camaino, già famoso per il Duomo di Pisa, e capomaestro della corte angioina.

L’aspetto attuale della Certosa si deve al lavoro di tre architetti: Giovanni Antonio Dosio (1581) che ammorbidì la rigida immagine gotica conferendole un elegante stile rinascimentale, Cosimo Fanzago (1623) artefice della pregiata veste barocca e Nicola Tagliacozzi (1723) che riuscì a sintetizzare nel suo lavoro l’architettura, la pittura e la scultura distintiva del gusto roccocò. Nel corso del tempo lavorarono per i monaci certosini artisti molto rinomati: tra i pittori vi furono Ribera, Battistello Caracciolo, Lanfranco, Luca Giordano, tra gli scultori invece, Giuseppe Sanmartino e Domenico Vaccaro.

In 1325 on the top of the hill of Sant'Erasmo, Carlo d'Angiò, Duke of Calabria, the firstborn of Roberto d'Angiò, had the monastery of the Carthusian order erected, the favorite of the French royal house.

The Sienese architect and sculptor Tino di Camaino, already famous for the Cathedral of Pisa, and master builder of the Angevin court was called for the construction of the Certosa di San Martino.

The current aspect of the Certosa is due to the work of three architects: Giovanni Antonio Dosio (1581) who softened the rigid Gothic image giving it an elegant Renaissance style, Cosimo Fanzago (1623) who created the precious baroque vestment and Nicola Tagliacozzi (1723) who succeeded to summarize in his work the architecture, the painting and the distinctive sculpture of the Rococo taste. Over time very renowned artists worked for the Carthusian monks: among the painters there were Ribera, Battistello Caracciolo, Lanfranco, Luca Giordano, among the sculptors instead, Giuseppe Sanmartino and Domenico Vaccaro.

Enjoy this sunrise cityscape of Boston, Massachusetts, USA!

I had to make a very quick trip to the East Coast of the USA for a wedding in New Hampshire last weekend. I left Seattle very late on Friday night, arrived in Boston five hours later, and drove up to New Hampshire and Maine, as I’m trying -- if possible -- to visit all 50 states before my time on this planet is up. With NH and Maine, the tally is now at 44.

Without a doubt, my friends’ wedding presented the opportunity to revisit Boston after a seven-year intermission. During the 72 hours devoted to the wedding, 20 of those hours were spent in Boston to update my portfolio. Boston is actually a very significant city in the history of TIA International Photography since it was a photo contest in 2006 hosted by the City of Boston that inadvertently triggered TIA’s creation three years later. 400 entries submitted. 35 winners. (My image, “Aerial Grandeur of Boston”, is third from the bottom if you click the weblink). Part of the significance of this contest was that I was the only winner who was not a resident of Boston. (I was living in Washington, DC at the time). The City invited me back to Boston for a ceremony where Mayor Thomas Menino would present plaques to each winner, but mine had to be mailed to me on account of relocating to. . .where else? Seattle.

I suppose one could say my temporary stay in Boston was an overdue reunion of sorts. One of my closest friends who is very excited to see my new photos summarized it best: “I look forward to seeing how you captured Boston this time, and how it captured you.”

Every city I visit, explore, and photograph is significant to me in one way or another. No city or location is frivolous. Boston is especially important because it recognized something in my work (which was still very much a hobby back then) that still took me another three years to act upon. As a result, I will always be very grateful to the organizers and Mayor Menino for the final push to do something with my passion in life.

The Boston galleries (City Images) (Aerials) are completed and now available on my official website, which has also been overhauled, and undergoing more changes! Enjoy!

TIA INTERNATIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY / TIA Facebook / TIA Twitter / TIA Blogger

The first thing that comes to mind when trying to summarize this year is that it has been long.

That's not necessarily a bad thing, but so much happened that it's hard to think through it all at once.

Next to visiting more places abroad and locally alike, I probably also made more new friends than ever.

Some of these new friends are connected to my hobbies, so if you happen to be one of them reading these lines, take this virtual high five until we can arrange getting a beer!

Anyways... On this image, one of Eger's last few, but certainly best-looking C80s, HAE-194 is rolling in front of the OMYA limestone quarry, with the forests of the Bükk mountains dressed in some rusty, late-autumn colours.

Kotor is one of those towns that summarize European history in its own. It has been part of the First Bulgarian Empire, Serbia, the Republic of Ragusa (contemporary Dubrovnik), the Venetian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, the Habsburg Monarchy, the French Empire, the Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy, the Austrian Empire, Yugoslavia, Montenegro, and more. Especially Yugoslavia's history of predecessor and successor states is quite complicated.

Kotor, first mentioned in 168 BC, was settled during Ancient Roman times, when it was known as Acruvium, Ascrivium, or Ascruvium and was part of the Roman province of Dalmatia. Kotor (then called "Cattaro") has been fortified since the early Middle Ages, when Emperor Justinian built a fortress above Acruvium in 535, after expelling the Ostrogoths; a second town probably grew up on the heights round it, for Constantine Porphyrogenitus, in the 10th century, alludes to Lower Kotor. The city was plundered by the Saracens in 840. Cattaro was one of the more influential Dalmatian City-states of romanized Illirians throughout the Middle Ages period. Until the 11th century the Dalmatian language was spoken in Cattaro.

In 1002, the city suffered damage under occupation of the First Bulgarian Empire, and in the following year it was ceded to Serbia by the Bulgarian Tsar Samuel. However, the local population resisted the pact and, taking advantage of its alliance with the Republic of Ragusa, only submitted in 1184, while maintaining its republican institutions and its right to conclude treaties and engage in war. It was already an episcopal see, and, in the 13th century, Dominican and Franciscan monasteries were established to check the spread of Bogomilism.

In the 14th century, commerce in Cattaro (as the city was called until 1918) competed with that of the nearby Republic of Ragusa and of the Republic of Venice. The city was part of the Venetian Albania province of the Venetian Republic from 1420 to 1797, except for periods of Ottoman rule in 1538–1571 and 1657-1699. Four centuries of Venetian domination have given the city the typical Venetian architecture, that contributed to make Kotor a UNESCO world heritage site. In those centuries Renaissance-related literature enjoyed a huge develpment in Venetian Cattaro: the most famous writers were Bernardo Pima, Nicola Chierlo, Luca Bisanti, Alberto de Gliricis, Domenico and Vincenzo Burchia, Vin­cenzo Ceci, Antonio Zambella and Francesco Morandi.

While under Venetian rule, Cattaro was besieged by the Ottoman Empire in 1538 and 1657, endured the plague in 1572, and was nearly destroyed by earthquakes in 1563 and 1667. After the Treaty of Campo Formio in 1797, it passed to the Habsburg Monarchy. However, in 1805, it was assigned to the French Empire's client state, the Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy by the Treaty of Pressburg, although in fact held by a Russian squadron under Dmitry Senyavin. After the Russians retreated, Cattaro was united in 1806 with this Kingdom of Italy and then in 1810 with the French Empire's Illyrian Provinces. Kotor was captured by the British attack on the Bay led by Commodore John Harper in the brig sloop HMS Saracen (18 guns). To seal off Kotor in windless conditions, residents along the shore literally pulled the ship in windless conditions with ropes. Saracen's crew later hauled naval 18-pounder guns above Fort St. John, the fortress near Kotor, and were reinforced by Captain William Hoste with his ship HMS Bacchante (38 guns). The French garrison had no alternative but to surrender, which it did on 5 January 1814.

It was then restored to the Austrian Empire by the Congress of Vienna.

In World War I, Kotor was one of three main bases of the Austro-Hungarian Navy and homeport to the Austrian Fifth Fleet, consisting of pre-dreadnought battleships and light cruisers. The area was the site of some of the fiercest battles between local Montenegrin Slavs, and Austria-Hungary. After 1918, the city (called Càttaro until then) became a part of Yugoslavia and officially became known as Kotor.

Between 1941 and 1943 Italy annexed the area of Kotor (with the original venetian name "Bocche di Cattaro") to the Italian "Governorship of Dalmatia" and created a new Italian Province: the Provincia di Cattaro, with 1075 km² and 128,000 population. But after 1945 it became a part of the then Socialist Republic of Montenegro within Yugoslavia's second incarnation.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kotor

Couple days later the storm blow off the "face" exposing the two chicks, now almost ready to fledge. the parents bravely kept feeding them, which i happily recorded...only to observe the incident summarized in the next video

The park of Augustusburg Castle in Brühl, which was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List together with the buildings in 1984, represents a monument of garden art of internationally recognized standing. Castles and gardens in Germany emulated its model.

The garden artist Dominique Girard, who had probably received his training in Versailles under André Le Nôtre, designed the Brühl garden parterre from 1728 and summarized his previous findings here, which he had also designed in the gardens of Nymphenburg and Schleißheim as well as the Upper Belvedere in Vienna and ideas according to the strict standards of the theory and practice of French garden art.

The focal point of the Brühl gardens is the large, two-part broderie parterre south of the palace with a round and quatrefoil-shaped fountain basin and adjoining mirror pond. The filigree book ornaments of the decorative beds, which look like embroidery (French broderie), are bordered with rhythmically planted flower borders. The linden avenues bordering the ground floor on the sides lead to triangular hedged quarters, which in turn are designed with round halls, fountains and small salons and were intimate destinations for excursions as early as the 18th century.

From 1842, Peter Joseph Lenné designed the Brühler Park as an English landscape garden for Friedrich Wilhelm IV of Prussia, the elements of which still determine the forest area today. Here the picturesque alternation of tree areas and meadow areas dominates the basic mood. Irregularly curved paths and small streams lead to the water areas of the two island ponds.

As a technical sensation of the time, Lenné also included the Cologne-Bonn railway line, opened in 1844, in the garden design and led it directly through the island pond area over a richly decorated iron bridge.

The baroque parterre was restored between 1933 and 1937 based on the original garden plan and is now considered one of the most authentic examples of 18th-century French garden art in Europe.

Somehow, this images, taken at Selfjorden on Lofoten Islands, summarizes Norway for me. All the reasons why I want to go back there again and again ... and again.

Featured as FRONT COVER of Land of Landscapes Magazine in January 2018

Prints are now available for all of my images. Head over to the About-section of my web page to find out more!

Thanks for your visit. If you like my images, stop by at hpd-fotografy or follow me on 500px, Instagram, flickr and Facebook.

the 12 days and nights after Christmas are said to predict the 12 months of the year ahead. I summarized each of my 12 magical days with a painted sketch.

see my 12 magic night paintings from last year: www.flickr.com/photos/definite_yes/32159723205/

Für jede Rauhnacht ein Bild

Colonia Hogar Ricardo Gutierrez

En Historias de Irregularidades y abandono, la autora Diana Rossi hace referencia a cómo surgió la modalidad de las Colonias como lugar para chicos judicializados. Con la ley 10.903, por primera vez se incorporaba el concepto de “protección integral del menor”. En su momento, el entonces senador J.A. Roca, único que interviniera en la sesión de la Cámara de Senadores que trató la ley, resaltaba el objeto perseguido por el Proyecto Agote (luego ley 10.903): “corregir los males que dimanan de la infancia, y de la infancia criminal, en todo el territorio de la Nación y, especialmente, en el de la Capital Federal.” Algunos hechos puntuales –la huelga de inquilinos de 1907 y los sucesos de 1919 en la fábrica de Pedro Vasena– favorecieron el tratamiento y aprobación de su proyecto legislativo. Por aquella época, los defensores de menores estaban encargados del destino de los niños y niñas calificados de vagos o delincuentes. La cárcel compartida con los adultos era el derrotero habitual, hasta que se les encontraba colocación en alguna familia. “En 1897 fueron colocadas por órdenes judiciales 767 jóvenes mujeres junto a criminales considerados culpables”, detalla la autora.

Las colonias-escuelas y las colonias-reformatorios ubicadas cerca de las ciudades o en pleno campo serán el tipo preferido de estas casas de prevención y reforma de los menores.

La colonia Marcos Paz, que devendrá a posteriori instituto “Gutiérrez”, resume en sus características las del modelo previsto en la legislación. Si bien ya existían los institutos correccionales cuando se creó en 1904, se adoptó para él el modelo de colonia agrícola tan difundido durante el siglo anterior en Estados Unidos.

El predio en el que se situó la Colonia había pertenecido al general Francisco Bosch, cuya viuda, Laura Sáenz Valiente, vendió al ministerio de Menores. El decreto que aprueba la compra en noviembre de 1903 dispone en su art. 1º: “que la propiedad de que se trata reúne las condiciones necesarias para implantar en ella un instituto destinado a la instrucción práctica de la ganadería, agricultura y de la industria, en el cual puedan instruirse los menores que por falta de padre y de hogar o por sus malas inclinaciones necesitan de la protección del Gobierno o de una dirección especial que les inculque hábitos de trabajo y corrija su deficiencia…”

Extracto de la Revista "Furias"

TRASLATOR

Colonia Hogar Ricardo Gutierrez

In Histories of Irregularities and abandonment, the author Diana Rossi makes reference to how the modality of the Colonies arose as a place for judicialized children. With Law 10,903, the concept of "integral protection of the minor" was incorporated for the first time. At the time, the then senator J.A. Roca, the only one to intervene in the session of the Senate that dealt with the law, highlighted the object pursued by the Agote Project (later law 10,903): "correct the evils that arise from childhood, and from criminal childhood, in all the territory of the Nation and, especially, that of the Federal Capital. "Some specific events - the strike of tenants of 1907 and the events of 1919 in the factory of Pedro Vasena - favored the treatment and approval of their legislative project. At that time, the defenders of minors were in charge of the destiny of the boys and girls described as lazy or delinquent. The jail shared with the adults was the usual course, until they were placed in a family. "In 1897, 767 young women were placed by judicial orders together with criminals considered guilty," says the author.

The colonies-schools and the colonies-reformatories located near the cities or in the countryside will be the preferred type of these houses of prevention and reform of minors.

The Marcos Paz colony, which will become a posteriori "Gutiérrez" institute, summarizes in its characteristics those of the model foreseen in the legislation. Although the correctional institutes already existed when it was created in 1904, the model of agricultural colony so widespread during the previous century in the United States was adopted for him.

The estate in which the Colony was located belonged to General Francisco Bosch, whose widow, Laura Saenz Valiente, sold to the Ministry of Minors. The decree approving the purchase in November 1903 provides in its art. 1º: "that the property in question meets the necessary conditions to establish in it an institute for the practical instruction of livestock, agriculture and industry, in which minors can be instructed because of lack of father and home or because of their bad inclinations they need the protection of the Government or of a special direction that inculcates work habits and corrects their deficiency ... "

Today, February 3rd, 2025 marks the end of an era. Amtrak's Assistant Superintendent of Operations out of Boston Joe Burgess retired today after 41 years of service. Joe's career started on the Battenkill, before moving onto the D&H, then the B&M, and eventually Amtrak. Here he his posed in front of his caboose, the NYC 21052, on track 3 at Southampton St Yard in Boston. To briefly summarize Joe's leadership and personality, his retirement party had hundreds of attendees ranging from colleagues, family and friends, to fellow sailors from Joe's time in the Navy and everyone in between. Find me another railroad manager that can draw that kind of crowd! So all in all, thanks Joe for being such a great supervisor and friend, enjoy your retirement!

“Urban art is a style of art that relates to cities and city life. In that way urban art combines street art and graffiti and is often used to summarize all visual art forms arising in urban areas, being inspired by urban architecture or thematizing urban live style.

The notion of 'Urban Art' developed from street art that is primarily concerned with graffiti culture. Urban art represents a broader cross section of artists that as well as covering traditional street artists also covers artists using more traditional media but with a subject matter that deals with contemporary urban culture and political issues.”http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_art

“Wild Flowers are not weeds"

Street Art is the modern, urban wildflowers

What's the difference between Graffiti Tagging and Street Art?

1. Street Art is constructive, Graffiti Tagging is destructive.

2. Street Art adorns the urban landscape, Graffiti Tagging scars it and accelerates urban decay.

3. Street Art stretches your mind, Graffiti Tagging is a slap in your face.

4. Street Art is about the audience, Graffiti Tagging is about the tagger.

5. Street Art says "Have you thought about this?", Graffiti Tagging says "I tag, therefore I exist".

6. Street Art was done with a smile, Graffiti Tagging was done with a scowl.

7. Street Art takes skill, Graffiti Tagging takes balls.

8. We mourn losing Street Art and celebrate losing Graffiti Tagging.

Good Street Art is great, good Graffiti Tagging is gone!

”http://www.graffitiactionhero.org/graffiti-tag-vs-street-art.html

Additional interesting sites

www.osnatfineart.com/urban-art.jsp

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Street_art

DSC_0247 final.jpg

KCMA 03/03/19 Built 1945

Constructed as a C-46F-1-CU by Curtiss at Buffalo, NY, USA. Circa July 1945

Taken on Strength/Charge with the United States Army Air Force with s/n 44-78663.

To unknown owner with c/r N53594.

10 February 1950

Leased to Meteor Air Transport.

1 August 1960

To Riddle Airlines.

1 July 1963

To Zantop Air Transport.

16 December 1965

Involved in an incident.

Summarized NTSB narrative from report number CHI66A0059: There were no fatalities. Incident occurred at 18:55 hours. The aircraft was not damaged. Incident occurred at the Metropolitan Airport, Detroit, MI. The propellar or rotor injured a person with engine (s) idling. Report remarks include: Ground trainee struck rotating propeller.

For a complete description of the event read the NTSB Report.

21 September 1966

To Universal Airlines.

25 July 1970

To Otner Air Services.

20 February 1978

To Confederate Air Force.

6 September 1991

To American Airpower Heritage Flying Mu, Midland, TX.

In the inventory of Commemorative Air Force Airpower Museum, Midland International Airport (MAF), Midland, TX.

View the Location Dossier

11 February 1999

Certificate of airworthiness for NX53594 (C-46F, 22486) issued.

Operated by Commemorative Air Force-Southern California Wing, Camarillo Airport, Camarillo, CA.

Perhaps I should subtitle this photograph:

The Old and the New

or (just like the Rocky and Bullwinkle cartoons):

Nice Gneiss

This location is really exciting to my inner geo geek so, if you are like my daughters and wife, whose eyes start to glaze over when I start to talk about geology, just enjoy this panorama of one of the canyons emptying into the Badwater basin. But, if you would like to learn about the geology that created this vista, read on at your own peril:

This little canyon has exposed the contact between some of the oldest rocks in Death Valley (and the western United States) and some of the youngest in Death Valley. The right hand canyon wall is comprised of metamorphosed crystalline basement rock. These are very old rocks. They were formed and then put under a lot of heat and pressure and metamorphosed. The metamorphosis event has been dated to about 1.7 billion years ago so they were actually formed sometime before that. The 1.7 billion year date shows up a lot in the geology of the western U.S. That is probably because it is also accompanied by an extensive unconformity at its top that also covered much of the western U.S. So, to recap, the right hand rocks were formed and then deformed deep in the crust about 1.7 billion years ago then uplifted as part of a broad mountain building episode that covered a lot of the western U.S. The uplift caused erosion to remove any rocks that were deposited over the old metamorphosed crystalline basement rocks.

Eventually the uplift ceased and the western U.S. slowly built out the coastline in what we call a passive margin with just slow sediment deposition dominating the scene and no active uplifts. These rocks are largely carbonates (dolomites) and some pure quartz sandstones that occasionally flowed over the carbonate shallow flats and seas. These rocks are about 500 million years younger than the rocks in the right hand wall of the canyon.

I'm going to briefly summarize the next 700 million years. The western coast of the U.S. and the Death Valley area transitioned from passive deposition to active as the various Pacific plates began to spread. Compressive forces slowly began to squeeze the rocks in Death Valley and then volcanism began as the oceanic plates were stuffed under the western edge of the North American crustal plate. Some of the molten rocks erupted and some rose up into the Death Valley area but never made it to the surface.

Then about 75 million years ago something very special happened that changed this scenario. Many geologists think the Pacific plate that was being stuffed (subducted) under the North American plate somehow broke and instead of being pushed down toward the mantle, slid horizontally under the crust of the North American plate. This caused a ripple of compressive events to travel eastward across this region and then across the western U.S. all the way to the Rockies which mark the eastward boundary of the horizontal plate.

The compression that accompanied the shallow Pacific plate as it buoyantly rode under this area, folded and contorted many of the older passive margin rocks.

The deeper plate then foundered as the spreading center or mid oceanic ridge which was driving the eastward movement stopped probably because the spreading center finally began to be subducted under the North American plate.

In Death Valley, the compression stopped and a new round of volcanism began as the lower plate started to slowly sink into the mantle and melt. This sinking also began pull apart the western U.S. as the bulging area over the plate now began to sink also. We call this pulling apart extension and when the crust is extended like this faults begin to form that leave some blocks high but drop other blocks down along the fault to allow for the stretching. This faulting and movement started slowly and further east of this region - near the middle of the horizontally under-stuffed plate fragment. The high blocks and low basins caused by this stretching are called the Basin and Range province and cover the area from the high Sierras to the Big Bend in Texas.

The basin seen in the distance in this photograph is the deepest basin in this entire province and therefore, one of the youngest. The spreading started in earnest less than 4 million years ago. Spreading here allows the basins to fall faster than erosion of the surrounding blocks can fill them up. It is no accident that the highest relief in the United States is located here - Telescope Peak in the Panamint mountains on the western side of the basin is over 11,000 above sea level while Badwater Springs is almost 300 feet below sea level.

Now, back to this side canyon, the rocks on the left wall are young - deposited when the basin began to form around 4 million years ago. I am not sure of the formations that are exposed on the left but they look like the Furnace creek formation or the Artists Drive formation.

Those of you that have looked at the left hand wall enough probably have noticed the line that tilts upward at about a 30 to 40 degree angle in the middle of the wall. The line may represent a dis-conformity and may have initially been flat but tilted upward as the young sediments have slid westward and rotated over the crest of the turtleback.

What is a turtleback? A geologist named Curry first described them in 1938. He noticed three rounded (double plunging) rock outcrops on the western edge of the Black Mountains. He also described the contacts of the rocks within these rounded bulges and the overlying rocks at its edges and guessed that they very different in composition and age.

Some researchers believe that these rocks were first bulged upward during the compressional phase that I mentioned above. During the recent extension, these bulges were tilted down to east and exposed as Badwater basin sank past them. The overlying young basin fill exposed in the left wall "spilled" off of the turtle backs in fault blocks that all sole out along the back of the turtleback leaving the domed surface exposed and resembling a turtleback.

To those of you who read all the way to this point - congratulations - you far surpassed the eye glazing point!

I find this landscape beautiful and speculating on the long history that it represents, makes it that much more special to me.

S0A8948

According to Wikipedia, biochemist Robert Shapiro summarized the "primordial soup" theory of Oparin and Haldane in its "mature form" as follows:

1.The early Earth had a chemically reducing atmosphere.

2.This atmosphere, exposed to energy in various forms, produced simple organic compounds ("monomers").

3.These compounds accumulated in a "soup", which may have been concentrated at various locations (shorelines, oceanic vents etc.).

4.By further transformation, more complex organic polymers – and ultimately life – developed in the soup.

Yup - I can go with that! Happy Slider Sunday, HSS!

This pair of storks female a new nest is held in the Doñana.I would never have imagined seeing an eviction in directo.A despite appearing calm, really angry when they can be very agresivas.prueba of this is that in which one tries to "take your eyes" as we say here other. the lasted more than two hours dispute, so the graph document is long, but can be summarized in this item pictured greeting

KOPF 22/01/20 Built 1942

Constructed as a C-47A-45-DL by Douglas at Long Beach, California, USA.

Circa 1942 Taken on Strength/Charge with the United States Army Air Force with s/n 42-24105.

To Air Freight/Air Chicago Freight with c/r N51617.

To Falcon Airways with c/r N86FA.

23 October 1973

Certificate of airworthiness for N138FS (DC3C, 9967) issued.

By 10 November 1979

To Skyfreighters with c/r N103CA.

10 November 1979

Involved in an incident.

Summarized NTSB narrative from report number FTW80IA010: There were no fatalities. Incident occurred at 04:25 hours. There was minor damage. The flight departed from Kansas City, KS, with the destination Grand Prairie, TX. Suffered a bird strike while cruising. Report remarks include: Identity of birds unknown but suspected as being geese. Incident occurred at or near Grand Prairie, TX.

For a complete description of the event read the NTSB Report.

By 1987 To Skyfreighter with c/r N303SF

15 October 1999

To Four Star Aviation Inc DBA, Saint Thomas, VI with c/r N138FS.

17 January 2006

To GD Aircraft Llc, Atherton, CA.

23 October 2013

To GD Aircraft Llc, Philadelphia, PA.

14 January 2014 To Irf Associates Llc, Oxford, CT.

August 2014 Based at Missionary Flights International, Saint Lucie County International Airport, Fort Pierce, FL.

View the Location Dossier

13 October 2015 To Alen Enterprises Inc DBA, Hialeah, FL.

2 October 2018

To Alen Enterprises Inc DBA, Davie, FL.

(more details later, as time permits)

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This was one of several photos that I took with a little Sony RX-1R full-frame camera that I had rented for a few days ... I was curious to see if the full-frame format would make any noticeable difference.

It did make a difference, though not one that you would notice right away: because of the sensor and full-frame size, I had a lot more freedom in terms of cropping out all of the distractions that I did not want to include in the final picture.

On the other hand, the camera has no zoom capability: it's a wide-angle lens whether you like it or not. Perhaps more important, the LCD display screen does not swivel or tilt -- and that meant I had to actually hold the camera up to my face in order to see what the camera lens was pointing at. It didn't matter very much for these photos, since nobody was paying attention to me (a common occurrence, leading me to think that I'm actually invisible) -- but so much for "candid" photos, when people do notice me, e.g., out on a busy street. Conclusion: it's not a camera I want to buy, though I'm now tempted by the new Sony RX-100 Mark IV, which is every bit as compact as the RX-1R that I was playing with here ...

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

As I have noted in several earlier Flickr albums, as long as I continue going to the same NYC dentist, you can count on two or three sets of photos of Bryant Park each year. The reason is simple: my dentist is located in mid-town Manhattan, about a block from the park — and when I'm done, I'm always tempted to walk over and see how the park looks. Consequently, I've collected almost a dozen separate sets of Bryant Park photos, which you can see summarized here on Flickr. (At least one or two of those other sets will provide you with the historical details of the park; or you can look it up here on Wikipedia.)

In mid-June of 2015, I took another stroll through the park, not having been there for almost two years. I wandered mostly around the periphery of the park, looking for interesting scenes to capture with the Sony RX-1R camera whose results I'm showing in this album, and also a Sony RX-10 camera whose results you'll see in a separate album in a couple days. I locked the camera into a wide-angle setting and a fixed f/8 aperture, and I just pointed the camera in the general direction of an interesting scene, and pushed the shutter button. Of the several hundred shots that I took during these strolls, there were a handful that seemed worthy of uploading; that's what you'll be seeing in this set and the next one. All of this took roughly an hour, at the end of which I put away my camera, and headed back uptown, content that my teeth would survive for another several months...

KEFD 21/10/16 Wings Over Houston 2016

Constructed as a Harvard IIB by Noorduyn

From 20 May 1941 to 1 November 1960

Taken on Strength/Charge with the Royal Canadian Air Force with s/n 3048.

19 December 1962

Certificate of airworthiness for N9790Z (AT-6A, 3048) issued.

From 1963 to 1970 To Lloyd P. Nolen, Mercedes TX with new c/r N9790Z.

22 April 1970

Certificate of airworthiness for N9790Z (AT-6A, 3048) issued.

1972 To Confederate Air Force, Harlingen/Midland TX keeping c/r N9790Z.

Markings Applied: 41-1110

27 June 1981 Involved in an incident.

Summarized NTSB narrative from report number FTW81DPJ31: There were no fatalities. Incident occurred at 15: 00 hours. The damage was substantial. Incident occurred at the Name Of Airport - Chickasha Airport, Chickasha, OK. This was a local flight from Chickasha, OK. Dragged a wingtip, pod or float while aborting takeoff. The factors included; unfavorable wind conditions. The sky conditions were scattered. The visibility was 5 or over (unlimited)...

For a complete description of the event read the NTSB Report.

10 September 1991 To American Airpower Heritage Fly Museum, Midland, TX keeping c/r N9790Z.

In the inventory of Commemorative Air Force Airpower Museum, Midland International Airport (MAF), Midland, TX.

24 August 2015 To American Airpower Heritage Fly Museum, Dallas, TX keeping c/r N9790Z.

1 January 2019

Certificate of airworthiness for N9790Z (AT-6A, 3048) issued.

1 January 2019

To American Airpower Heritage Fly Museu, Midland, TX keeping c/r N9790Z.

22 May 2019

To American Airpower Heritage Fly Museu, Dallas, TX keeping c/r N9790Z.

Mask (noun).

1. Covering for all or part of the face as a disguise or for protection.

2. Some kind of behaviour for pretension to be, passing oneself of as, impersonating, simulating or posing as.

As long time Japanese antique collector I took masks of old Japanese theatre Noh and Kyogen for definition of this word...

The date of man's invention of masks is unknown, their use is certainly several thousands years old. It's a fact that masks in one form or another have made their appearance in every culture shows how important role they have played in a human life.

With the development of dance and true drama, masks became less primitive and more artistic. Immobility of a mask, which seems such a disadvantage when compared with the living human face, makes about it a certain air of the supernatural and fantastic, that's why masks are widely used up to the present day.

Among the people of the world who still actively use masks, the Japanese are in many ways outstanding. Let's go back to 14th century when theatre No and Kyogen begins his history and the masks of this show became one of the finest dramatic masks the world has ever seen. I try briefly summarize the characteristics of the Noh and Kyogen masks. Mask of Noh is a mask of tragedy, mask of the Kyogen is the mask of comedy. A typical present-day No performance consists of five Noh plays, divided of three comic interludes of Kyogen, both the tragic and the comic elements being heightened in effect for the best contrasting result. Good and evil in Noh drama reflects these both sides of real life...

In real life you also making choice between good and evil. Many people wearing masks covering their real personality, as a artists playing roles not really belonging to them and as final result ruining the life of themselves or others. Make a right choice between good and evil, take a right mask or even take it off, throw it away and be yourself.

All masks and pictures used for this image are from my collection.

Created for The Dictionary of Image

Better viewed large.

I was actually watching the movie The Truman Show when I thought of this. To summarize the movie if you haven't seen it, Truman has basically been living a lie his whole life, buthe hasn't known it. His life has actually beena TV show ever since he was born. When him and his wife (who is actually just acting like his wife) got married, she crossed her fingers to show that this promise of being wed wasn't real. And that's when I thought of this.

Yeaaah.

:)

View On Black

El petit municipi de l'Estany, situat al nord-oest del Bages i en ple altiplà del Moianès, ocupa un indret frescal que es caracteritza per la seva alçada i per una pluviositat més gran que la resta de la comarca. A la població, situada a 870 m., s'hi accedeix sobretot per la carretera que s'enfila cap al nord de Moià. Després d'una àrea de grans pagesies disperses entre boscos i conreus, molt aviat s'entra en un pla ben aprofitat on destaca la població de l'Estany. El nucli de l'Estany, arrecerat al nord per un serrat, s'alça a la vora d'on hi havia un antic estany, dessecat l'any 1570 per ordre de l'abat Carles de Cardona per tal d'escórrer les aigües i evitar així els focus d'epidèmies que comportava. L'estany encara es torna a omplir en època de grans pluges. Les cases són de pedra i constitueixen un bon exemple de poble rural, gairebé muntanyenc. Els visitants van a l'Estany atrets pel seu bon clima i per l'extraordinari monestir romànic de Santa Maria, amb la seva església restaurada, un claustre magnífic amb 72 capitells de temes bíblics, heràldics i florístics, i un petit museu annex on es resumeix la història del cenobi. Altres indrets destacables del municipi són el Puig Rodó i el Puig de la Caritat, i la diversitat de fonts naturals que hi ha. Les festes i tradicions més notables són la Festa Major (8 de setembre), la Fira (8 de desembre) i el Pessebre Vivent.

El pequeño municipio de l'Estany, situado al noroeste del Bages y en pleno altiplano del Moianès, ocupa un lugar fresco que se caracteriza por su altura y por una pluviosidad mayor que el resto de la comarca. En la población, situada a 870 m., se accede sobre todo por la carretera que sube hacia el norte de Moià. Después de un área de grandes campesinas dispersas entre bosques y cultivos, muy pronto se entra en un plan bien aprovechado donde destaca la población de l'Estany. El núcleo de l'Estany, protegido al norte por una loma, se alza a orillas de donde había un antiguo lago, desecado en 1570 por orden del abad Carles de Cardona para escurrir las aguas y evitar así los focos de epidemias que comportaba. El lago aún se vuelve a llenar en época de grandes lluvias. Las casas son de piedra y constituyen un buen ejemplo de pueblo rural, casi montañoso. Los visitantes al Lago atraídos por su buen clima y por el extraordinario monasterio románico de Santa María, con su iglesia restaurada, un claustro magnífico con 72 capiteles de temas bíblicos, heráldicos y florísticos, y un pequeño museo anexo donde se resume la historia del cenobio. Otros lugares destacables del municipio son el Puig Rodó y el Puig de la Caridad, y la diversidad de fuentes naturales que hay. Las fiestas y tradiciones más notables son la Fiesta Mayor (8 de septiembre), la Feria (8 de diciembre) y el Pesebre Viviente.

The small town of Lake, located northwest of Bages and full Moianès plateau, occupies a cool place that is characterized by its height and a higher rainfall than the rest of the region. In the town, located 870 m above is accessed by the road that climbs north of Moia. After a large area of scattered peasant between forests and crops, soon entered into a plan which highlights the best advantage of the lake population. The core of the lake, sheltered on the north by a serrated stands at the edge where there was an ancient lake dried up in 1570 by order of Abbot Charles Cardona to drain water and prevent outbreaks of epidemics entailed. The lake is still refills at times of heavy rainfall. The houses are stone and are a good example of rural village, almost mountainous. The visitors were attracted to the lake for its good climate and the extraordinary Romanesque monastery of Santa Maria, with its restored church, a magnificent cloister with 72 capitals of biblical themes, floristic and arms, and a small museum in which there are summarizes the history of the monastery. Other notable places are the town's Round Puig and Puig de la Caridad, and diversity of natural resources there. The festivities and traditions most notably the Festival (September 8), Fair (December 8) and the Living Nativity.

(more details later, as time permits)

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This was one of several photos that I took with a little Sony RX-1R full-frame camera that I had rented for a few days ... I was curious to see if the full-frame format would make any noticeable difference.

It did make a difference, though not one that you would notice right away: because of the sensor and full-frame size, I had a lot more freedom in terms of cropping out all of the distractions that I did not want to include in the final picture.

On the other hand, the camera has no zoom capability: it's a wide-angle lens whether you like it or not. Perhaps more important, the LCD display screen does not swivel or tilt -- and that meant I had to actually hold the camera up to my face in order to see what the camera lens was pointing at. It didn't matter very much for these photos, since nobody was paying attention to me (a common occurrence, leading me to think that I'm actually invisible) -- but so much for "candid" photos, when people do notice me, e.g., out on a busy street. Conclusion: it's not a camera I want to buy, though I'm now tempted by the new Sony RX-100 Mark IV, which is every bit as compact as the RX-1R that I was playing with here ...

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As I have noted in several earlier Flickr albums, as long as I continue going to the same NYC dentist, you can count on two or three sets of photos of Bryant Park each year. The reason is simple: my dentist is located in mid-town Manhattan, about a block from the park — and when I'm done, I'm always tempted to walk over and see how the park looks. Consequently, I've collected almost a dozen separate sets of Bryant Park photos, which you can see summarized here on Flickr. (At least one or two of those other sets will provide you with the historical details of the park; or you can look it up here on Wikipedia.)

In mid-June of 2015, I took another stroll through the park, not having been there for almost two years. I wandered mostly around the periphery of the park, looking for interesting scenes to capture with the Sony RX-1R camera whose results I'm showing in this album, and also a Sony RX-10 camera whose results you'll see in a separate album in a couple days. I locked the camera into a wide-angle setting and a fixed f/8 aperture, and I just pointed the camera in the general direction of an interesting scene, and pushed the shutter button. Of the several hundred shots that I took during these strolls, there were a handful that seemed worthy of uploading; that's what you'll be seeing in this set and the next one. All of this took roughly an hour, at the end of which I put away my camera, and headed back uptown, content that my teeth would survive for another several months...

I almost didn't take or post anything today, but I find this to so aptly summarize this week in its wet and dreary springtime feel, and so I went with it. Hope yours is a good one!

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