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I found this thing and thought it was interesting. The main part of the plant is actually growing out of the wall several inches below the grate.
After leaving its berth at the ABT Terminal at the Leopold Dock, the 2016 built vessel is seen here lining up to enter the Berendrecht lock as it heads out to sea and onwards to the German port of Brünsbuttel.
The vessel is assisted on the bow by the Port of Antwerp Authority tug nr. 22
A huge tangled gift from the sea on the Blast Beach this morning - and me with no knife to rescue any of it! Shame on me. Maybe it will still be there tomorrow? Maybe I will remember my knife? Maybe the moment will have passed :-(
Gullfoss (translated to ‘Golden Falls’) is one of Iceland’s most iconic and beloved waterfalls, found in the Hvítá river canyon in Southwest Iceland.
The water in Hvítá river travels from the glacier Langjökull, before cascading 32 meters (105 feet) down Gullfoss’ two stages in a dramatic display of nature’s raw power. This incredible site is seen by most visitors, as it is on the Golden Circle sightseeing route.
In the early days of the last century, Gullfoss was at the center of a controversy regarding foreign investors and their desire to profit off Iceland’s nature. In the year 1907, an English businessman, Howell, sought to utilize the waterfall’s energy and harbored ambitions to use its energy to fuel a hydroelectric plant.
At the time, Gullfoss was owned by a farmer named Tómas Tómasson. Tómas declined Howell’s offer to purchase the land, stating famously “I will not sell my friend!” He would, however, go on to lease Howell the land without the knowledge of a loophole that would allow him to proceed with his plans.
It was Tómas’ daughter, Sigríður Tómasdóttir, who would lead the charge to stop Howell’s ambitions. Having grown up on her father’s sheep farm where she helped pave the first road to Gullfoss, she sought to get the contract nullified, hurriedly saving her own money to hire a lawyer.
The ensuing legal battle was an uphill struggle; the case continued for years, forcing Sigríður to travel many times by foot to Reykjavík, a distance of over 100 kilometers (62 miles). Circumstances became so difficult that Sigríður threatened to throw herself into the waterfall if any construction began.
Her tenacity, however, resulted in success. In 1929, Howell withdrew from the lease, unable to keep up with the costs and difficulties of his plan. The waterfall thus fell back into the hands of the Icelandic people.
Today, Sigríður is recognized for her perseverance in protecting Gullfoss and is often hailed as Iceland’s first environmentalist.
I'm in the middle of nowhere. The train station is a 30 minute hike away, if you walk fast. Looking back, I see skyscrapers in the far distance, seeming no taller than the nearby orange trees. I had just made the 30 mile bike ride from Tokyo to Middle of Nowhere, Saitama, Japan. Here, giant letters loomed before me: 聖天宮. In Japanese, it’s read as Seitenkyū. However, the Chinese reading is more appropriate here: Xien Ten Gong. The Holy Celestial Palace. I had arrived at Japan’s largest Daoist temple. Bluntly, it's shocking that this place exists, let alone in this strange, out-of-the-way location. To use a Wyoming analogy, it's akin to driving 30 miles east of Cheyenne on I-80, taking the exit at Burns, Wyoming (population 301), stopping to the Antelope Truck Stop to refuel, and discovering an authentic Sikh Indian restaurant inside. And yet, improbable as it is, both these places exist. To appreciate the long odds Daoism had to survive, it's necessary to briefly discuss Daoism history. In the mid-17th century, the Ming Dynasty fell. Chinese intellectuals in the 17th century partially laid the blame on Daoism. The government, in addition to reemphasizing Confucian teachings, actively rejected Daosim. Following centuries of religious persecution, only a single copy of the Daozang, the core Daoist religious canon, had survived. It was against this backdrop that the Cultural Revolution began in the 1960s, damaging and destroying many of the surviving temples and sites. The government forced many of the remaining Daoist clergy to disavow their religion, then sent them to labor camps. In short, recent Daoism history is one of struggle and strife, with few opportunities to spread. And now, here in Japan, a thousand miles from Daoism’s ancestral homeland, stands one of their largest temples in Asia, defiantly holding firm despite centuries of oppression. Now, when I think of my own struggles when studying abroad—trying to speak a foreign language I don’t fully understand, adjusting to cultural norms completely alien to my own, struggling to complete even the basic paperwork to move into my new home—I think of this temple. I consider that they faced the same kinds of struggles, but also life-or-death struggles that completely surpass what I face as a student studying abroad. They survived the centuries of persecution, a civil war, and relocation to multiple different countries. When I feel like my own spirit is flagging in the face of my challenges abroad, it reminds me of how strong the human spirit really is. It’s a reminder how much the human spirit can endure. And sometimes, I need that reminder. They built this temple against all odds. It’s a testament to their resilience, fortitude, and audacity. And it’s absolutely beautiful.
A gnarled trunk still clinging to a rock wall is a sign of persistence in the face of difficult situations.
I wonder how many storms have thrown wind, rain, waves, snow and ice against this tenacious trunk; how many days of blazing sun have heated that rock face; how many Canadian winters have brought unimaginable cold to those branches...and yet a few leaves show that there is life still remaining in that ancient tree growing from a sheer rock face.
The extraordinary Tenacity of Bolton is a 55ft yacht - ketch - that was originally built as part of a GCSE project by Bolton School to celebrate the millennium, but taking 9 years to complete before finally setting sail from Glasson Basin, Lancaster, in 2007. For the full story see here:
www.boltonschool.org/senior-boys/extra-curricular-activit...
(Bolton School is an independent day school in Bolton, Greater Manchester, and first noted in existance in 1516. It comprises a co-educational nursery, co-educational infant school (ages 5–7), single sex junior schools (ages 7–11) and single sex senior schools including sixth forms (ages 11–18). With almost 5,000 pupils, it is one of the largest independent day schools in the country.)
In September 2014, the "Tenacity of Bolton" was gifted to the Tall Ships Youth Trust to be operated by the Trust, with Bolton School pupils continuing to make use to the ketch The Trust, formerly the Sail Training Association, based in Portsmouth and Liverpool, is a charity registered with the Charity Commission. It was founded in 1956 and is dedicated to the personal development of young people aged 16 to 25 through the crewing of ocean-going yachts
The extraordinary Tenacity of Bolton is a 55ft yacht - ketch - that was originally built as part of a GCSE project by Bolton School to celebrate the millennium, but taking 9 years to complete before finally setting sail from Glasson Basin, Lancaster, in 2007. For the full story see here:
www.boltonschool.org/senior-boys/extra-curricular-activit...
(Bolton School is an independent day school in Bolton, Greater Manchester, and first noted in existance in 1516. It comprises a co-educational nursery, co-educational infant school (ages 5–7), single sex junior schools (ages 7–11) and single sex senior schools including sixth forms (ages 11–18). With almost 5,000 pupils, it is one of the largest independent day schools in the country.)
In September 2014, the "Tenacity of Bolton" was gifted to the Tall Ships Youth Trust to be operated by the Trust, with Bolton School pupils continuing to make use to the ketch The Trust, formerly the Sail Training Association, based in Portsmouth and Liverpool, is a charity registered with the Charity Commission. It was founded in 1956 and is dedicated to the personal development of young people aged 16 to 25 through the crewing of ocean-going yachts
tenacity - a trait that is truly a mixed 'blessing'
it doesn't know any better or how to be any different
so it hangs on .... blindly
never realising it will be unseen or ripped out
perhaps it is better to be ignorant of your fate
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quote at teardrop's link:
I like it when a flower or a little tuft of grass grows through a crack in the concrete. It's so fuckin' heroic. ~ George Carlin
What does it feel like to stand on a wobbly ladder, out of breath from the high altitude above what seems like an endlessly deep crevice on Mount Everest?
Bonita Norris is the youngest person to summit Everest and ski to the North Pole. Her tenacity, determination and bravery in pursuing her dream of going from novice climber to standing on top of Mt Everest in only two years, at the age of 22, is truly inspiring.
Bonita's talk was heartwarming, authentic and humorous. She told of the lessons she learnt which included, “trusting marginal gains, learning to push past the point of giving up, and always asking one simple question”.
She is the author of The Girl Who Climbed Everest: Lessons learned facing up to the world's toughest mountains.