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miX, THE hotel, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada.
Notes: That's not a broken keyboard I have, it's the way this hotel and this restaurant chooses to present itself. I mean, I'm here for food, not pornography.
This restaurant, on the top floor (64th) has a "nightclub" (called "X"), whose THUMPING THROBBING music can be felt in the dining room. Rather unbecoming of a one Michelin star restaurant (with Alain Ducasse's name on it), methinks.
Read the review at the ulterior epicure.
An attempt was made to wait a few microseconds for the expansion of the object to become more pronounced. More floral tones, in a rustic glass bell jar add a distinctive homey feel... that is quickly ruined by the interestingly unbecoming shape of the debris!
The Web Master at Allah Ho Akbar .Net might choke after he reads this , but than being a Web Master and getting entangled in ones own net is an occupational hazard.One can delete a file, at the click of a mouse, but deleting Shia or Shiasm with hyperbolic hallucinations is a difficult task,even Yazid with his powerful army got entangled in his own net vanquished by one Man who now is synonymous with Humanity.. Imam Hussain , such is the power beyond the click of a mouse, in its simplicity we call it Shah Ast Hussain..
The carrier of this powerful message is a new born Shia child, I have seen , that the Shia Child when born has his hand on his chest as though he is ready to do Matam , oops fuck taqqaiya what am I saying, yes the Shia child lets out a wail which is his war cry audibly reverberating as Ya Hussain.
When the Shia Child is growing , he is aware of his mission in life, Maksade Hussain.
Right from the beginning he or she rattles off ..
Allah Ek
Panjetan Panch
Imam Bara
Masoom Choudah
Khuda ke Nur se Paida Hue Hain
Panchon Tan
Mohomed , Asto Ali
Fatima Hassan Hussain
Yes for a Shia Child everything is important , but everything is complete without the benevolence of Ahle Bait.The Shia child carried in his mothers waist without any training imitates his mother beating his chest, he is a fast learner, no indoctrination needed, this is more effective than just parroting the Holy Koran, he sees his mother weep, he knows Pain, he felt the pain during birth, he relives this pain , the pain of being a follower of Imam Hussain.
I am mesmerized by the Shia child, this is not a brain washing, this is not a enforced toilet training this comes with the territory of being born a Shia.
Yes the Shia child is special.
I learnt this during Athvi in Lucknow , watching little kids with Alams marching to Kazmain with a confidence unbecoming of a child.
A Shia child is an Adult..
I saw the Shia children at Mr Shabeeb Rizvis house and till date I can never forget the glint of redeeming hope in the eyes of Little Mohomed son of sports journalist Ehtesham Hassans son..I was drowning he saved me..with all your hate , venom , you cannot corrupt our Shia kids , they are the Faith of our sect..It takes a Shia mother to produce a Shia kid, no mean task..
I take my hats off to Shia mothers..
This little kid in the picture had come with his mother to the Matam at my mother in laws House Imambada , he saw me , he came to see me , yes we were both kindred soul, I was taking the strength of my Shiasm from him...
Once go to Hyderabad on Ashura Day at the Bargah you will know what it means keeping our Faith alive..yes we inflict wounds on our bodies, we mark ourselves, we do everything you despise us for, but honestly we dont teach our kids to cut off heads of Kafirs, we dont teach our kids to place bombs in trains, we dont teach our kids to lob grenades while heads are bowed in prayers to Allah.We teach our kids nothing , they bring their values intact, we are a race that was created to mourn for Imam Hussain, we Indian Shias are a race born as a gift of God to appease the love of Imamam Hussain for a land called Hindustan he, said I know in Hindustan there are no Mussalmans but yes there are Insans..meaning human beings.
I am not a Mullah, I do not have the arsenal of Koranic verses , but yes I have one thing that is Truth .. I was born a Shia I shall die a Shia..I have pledged my body to a Medical research.. somebody might see with my eyes, or my organs...or what is left of them.
I do not seek Paradise..you can add this to my heresy..of being a Rafidi Shia...
A state of Mind that goes beyond Matter.
We have to be up before dawn to wash and get dressed, so to get in the jeeps before six, to get access to the park, all so that we miss the heat of the day for at least one safari per day.
It was cool and dawn just beginning to break as we walked from our hut to reception, there we are all allocated our vehicle with driver. Once at the park gate, we collect a trained guide, and show our passports that have to match the permits we have each day.
As we entered the park, the sun rose and we could see its blood red face through the trees. We stopped to take shots.
At the first lake we stopped and saw a Crested snake eagle, then further along, the guide shouted to stop, and right beside the roadway was a sleep Nightjar, blending in with the rocks around it.
We drove through the park, taking half an hour to reach the inner gate, then another half hour to reach a watering hole, where on the far side, a mother tiger was guarding her two nearly year-old cubs. They lay in the sun, half playing before going to sleep, and we all moved away.
Our guide knew of some out of the way places, so thanks to him we saw a fine White-throated kingfisher, and I spotted a wild boar, rummaging in the leaf litter. A pure white Paradise flycatcher delighted us, as it showed well in a tree above the main road, and later on I saw a Mongoose fleeing into the undergrowth, its black-tipped tail flowing behind.
We stopped for a late breakfast at ten, then went to check on one final spot before returning to the main gate to drop the guide off, then back to camp with an hour to kill before lunch.
Lunch was buffet curries, all different from each other and the day before, but most containing lots of vegetables, so all good.
Back into the jeep at two, in the full heat of the day. Something like 41 or so degrees, hotter than it has ever got back home by several degrees. And once moving, the breeze would have cooked roast chicken in half an hour or so it seemed.
A fairly uneventful safari, there was rumour of more tigers at the same watering hole as the morning, so we set course for there.
As did all the other jeeps, from our party and others like us, as well as day trips, there must have been 25 vehicles, all jostling for space. It was pretty unbecoming to be frank, and I would have said we gave up.
And left.
But, a pair of tigers came, but lay down over the crest of a rise, so out of view, sometimes the back of the male’s ears were just visible.
Jeeps were three and four deep, and those at the back like us stood little chance of seeing anything, so two wardens arrived and insisted that the ones in front get out and let others, like us have a chance.
So we got to the front, both tigers had by this time escaped into the long grass, and again I wondered why we were wasting time, waiting.
The female broke cover, and ambled down the bank from the grass, down to the edge of the lake, then into it, to get to the small island the other side. Light was perfect, as the tigress began to stalk a family of barking deer the other side of the lake.
Step by step it went right, slowly and with deliberate steps, onto a line of rocks sticking out of the water. Remembering Xavier’s shots of the Arctic fox from Svalbard, I zoomed out slightly to get the tigress’s reflection. It was perfect.
The light, the tiger, the reflection, using the jeep as a tripod meant the shots were blur-free.
The tigress stretched, doing kitty yoga like the mogs back home, and then continued inching towards the deer. They knew she was there, and also knew that in the event of an attack, they had a 50 yard head start, and the tiger would be running through water too.
Our time ran out before the tableaux could be completed, but pretty sure all deer got away and the tigers went hungry.
We made our way back, taking an hour at 25mp/h to get to the gates to drop the guide off, then finding the town jammed because of a bad parker on the 90 degree bend. Horns sounded, and the bolshiest drivers got through first, ours was second, then hammering through the gloaming without lights back to the camp where supper of yet more curry was waiting.
We all celebrated with large bottles of cold beer.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Bengal tiger is a population of the Panthera tigris tigris subspecies and the nominate tiger subspecies. It ranks among the largest wild cats alive today. It is estimated to have been present in the Indian subcontinent since the Late Pleistocene for about 12,000 to 16,500 years. Its historical range covered the Indus River valley until the early 19th century, almost all of India, western Pakistan, southern Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan and southwestern China. Today, it inhabits India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, and southwestern China. It is threatened by poaching, habitat loss and habitat fragmentation.
As of 2022, the Bengal tiger population was estimated at 3,167–3,682 individuals in India, 316–355 individuals in Nepal, 131 individuals in Bhutan and around 114 individuals in Bangladesh.
Felis tigris was the scientific name used by Carl Linnaeus in 1758 for the tiger.[1] It was subordinated to the genus Panthera by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1929. Bengal is the traditional type locality of the species and the nominate subspecies Panthera tigris tigris.[2]
The validity of several tiger subspecies in continental Asia was questioned in 1999. Morphologically, tigers from different regions vary little, and gene flow between populations in those regions is considered to have been possible during the Pleistocene. Therefore, it was proposed to recognise only two subspecies as valid, namely P. t. tigris in mainland Asia, and P. t. sondaica in the Greater Sunda Islands and possibly in Sundaland.[3] The nominate subspecies P. t. tigris constitutes two clades: the northern clade comprises the Siberian and Caspian tiger populations, and the southern clade all remaining continental tiger populations.[4] The extinct and living tiger populations in continental Asia have been subsumed to P. t. tigris since the revision of felid taxonomy in 2017.
The Bengal tiger's coat is yellow to light orange, with stripes ranging from dark brown to black; the belly and the interior parts of the limbs are white, and the tail is orange with black rings. The white tiger is a recessive mutant, which is reported in the wild from time to time in Assam, Bengal, Bihar and especially in the former State of Rewa. However, it is not an occurrence of albinism. In fact, there is only one fully authenticated case of a true albino tiger, and none of black tigers, with the possible exception of one dead specimen examined in Chittagong in 1846.[9] Fourteen Bengal tiger skins in the collection of the Natural History Museum, London have 21–29 stripes.[3] Another recessive mutant is the golden tiger that has a pale golden fur with red-brown stripes.[10] The mutants are very rare in nature.[11]
The greatest skull length of a tiger is 351 mm (13.8 in) in males and 293 mm (11.5 in) in females.[12] It has exceptionally stout teeth. Its canines are 7.5 to 10 cm (3.0 to 3.9 in) long and thus the longest among all cats.[
The Bengal tiger ranks among the biggest wild cats alive today.[14] Males and female Bengal tigers in Panna Tiger Reserve reach a head-to-body length of 183–211 cm (72–83 in) and 164–193 cm (65–76 in) respectively, including a tail about 85–110 cm (33–43 in) long. Total length ranges from 283 to 311 cm (111 to 122 in) for male tigers and 255–285 cm (100–112 in) for female tigers.[15] They typically range from 90–110 cm (35–43 in) in shoulder height.
In the 20th century, Indian censuses of wild tigers relied on the individual identification of footprints known as pug marks – a method that has been criticised as deficient and inaccurate. Camera traps are now being used in many sites.[35]
Good tiger habitats in subtropical and temperate forests include the Tiger Conservation Units (TCUs) Manas-Namdapha. TCUs in tropical dry forest include Hazaribag Wildlife Sanctuary, Nagarjunsagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve, Kanha-Indravati corridor, Orissa dry forests, Panna National Park, Melghat Tiger Reserve and Ratapani Tiger Reserve. The TCUs in tropical moist deciduous forest are probably some of the most productive habitats for tigers and their prey, and include Kaziranga-Meghalaya, Kanha-Pench, Simlipal and Indravati Tiger Reserves. The TCUs in tropical moist evergreen forests represent the less common tiger habitats, being largely limited to the upland areas and wetter parts of the Western Ghats, and include the tiger reserves of Periyar, Kalakad-Mundathurai, Bandipur and Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary.
We have to be up before dawn to wash and get dressed, so to get in the jeeps before six, to get access to the park, all so that we miss the heat of the day for at least one safari per day.
It was cool and dawn just beginning to break as we walked from our hut to reception, there we are all allocated our vehicle with driver. Once at the park gate, we collect a trained guide, and show our passports that have to match the permits we have each day.
As we entered the park, the sun rose and we could see its blood red face through the trees. We stopped to take shots.
At the first lake we stopped and saw a Crested snake eagle, then further along, the guide shouted to stop, and right beside the roadway was a sleep Nightjar, blending in with the rocks around it.
We drove through the park, taking half an hour to reach the inner gate, then another half hour to reach a watering hole, where on the far side, a mother tiger was guarding her two nearly year-old cubs. They lay in the sun, half playing before going to sleep, and we all moved away.
Our guide knew of some out of the way places, so thanks to him we saw a fine White-throated kingfisher, and I spotted a wild boar, rummaging in the leaf litter. A pure white Paradise flycatcher delighted us, as it showed well in a tree above the main road, and later on I saw a Mongoose fleeing into the undergrowth, its black-tipped tail flowing behind.
We stopped for a late breakfast at ten, then went to check on one final spot before returning to the main gate to drop the guide off, then back to camp with an hour to kill before lunch.
Lunch was buffet curries, all different from each other and the day before, but most containing lots of vegetables, so all good.
Back into the jeep at two, in the full heat of the day. Something like 41 or so degrees, hotter than it has ever got back home by several degrees. And once moving, the breeze would have cooked roast chicken in half an hour or so it seemed.
A fairly uneventful safari, there was rumour of more tigers at the same watering hole as the morning, so we set course for there.
As did all the other jeeps, from our party and others like us, as well as day trips, there must have been 25 vehicles, all jostling for space. It was pretty unbecoming to be frank, and I would have said we gave up.
And left.
But, a pair of tigers came, but lay down over the crest of a rise, so out of view, sometimes the back of the male’s ears were just visible.
Jeeps were three and four deep, and those at the back like us stood little chance of seeing anything, so two wardens arrived and insisted that the ones in front get out and let others, like us have a chance.
So we got to the front, both tigers had by this time escaped into the long grass, and again I wondered why we were wasting time, waiting.
The female broke cover, and ambled down the bank from the grass, down to the edge of the lake, then into it, to get to the small island the other side. Light was perfect, as the tigress began to stalk a family of barking deer the other side of the lake.
Step by step it went right, slowly and with deliberate steps, onto a line of rocks sticking out of the water. Remembering Xavier’s shots of the Arctic fox from Svalbard, I zoomed out slightly to get the tigress’s reflection. It was perfect.
The light, the tiger, the reflection, using the jeep as a tripod meant the shots were blur-free.
The tigress stretched, doing kitty yoga like the mogs back home, and then continued inching towards the deer. They knew she was there, and also knew that in the event of an attack, they had a 50 yard head start, and the tiger would be running through water too.
Our time ran out before the tableaux could be completed, but pretty sure all deer got away and the tigers went hungry.
We made our way back, taking an hour at 25mp/h to get to the gates to drop the guide off, then finding the town jammed because of a bad parker on the 90 degree bend. Horns sounded, and the bolshiest drivers got through first, ours was second, then hammering through the gloaming without lights back to the camp where supper of yet more curry was waiting.
We all celebrated with large bottles of cold beer.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Bengal tiger is a population of the Panthera tigris tigris subspecies and the nominate tiger subspecies. It ranks among the largest wild cats alive today. It is estimated to have been present in the Indian subcontinent since the Late Pleistocene for about 12,000 to 16,500 years. Its historical range covered the Indus River valley until the early 19th century, almost all of India, western Pakistan, southern Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan and southwestern China. Today, it inhabits India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, and southwestern China. It is threatened by poaching, habitat loss and habitat fragmentation.
As of 2022, the Bengal tiger population was estimated at 3,167–3,682 individuals in India, 316–355 individuals in Nepal, 131 individuals in Bhutan and around 114 individuals in Bangladesh.
Felis tigris was the scientific name used by Carl Linnaeus in 1758 for the tiger.[1] It was subordinated to the genus Panthera by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1929. Bengal is the traditional type locality of the species and the nominate subspecies Panthera tigris tigris.[2]
The validity of several tiger subspecies in continental Asia was questioned in 1999. Morphologically, tigers from different regions vary little, and gene flow between populations in those regions is considered to have been possible during the Pleistocene. Therefore, it was proposed to recognise only two subspecies as valid, namely P. t. tigris in mainland Asia, and P. t. sondaica in the Greater Sunda Islands and possibly in Sundaland.[3] The nominate subspecies P. t. tigris constitutes two clades: the northern clade comprises the Siberian and Caspian tiger populations, and the southern clade all remaining continental tiger populations.[4] The extinct and living tiger populations in continental Asia have been subsumed to P. t. tigris since the revision of felid taxonomy in 2017.
The Bengal tiger's coat is yellow to light orange, with stripes ranging from dark brown to black; the belly and the interior parts of the limbs are white, and the tail is orange with black rings. The white tiger is a recessive mutant, which is reported in the wild from time to time in Assam, Bengal, Bihar and especially in the former State of Rewa. However, it is not an occurrence of albinism. In fact, there is only one fully authenticated case of a true albino tiger, and none of black tigers, with the possible exception of one dead specimen examined in Chittagong in 1846.[9] Fourteen Bengal tiger skins in the collection of the Natural History Museum, London have 21–29 stripes.[3] Another recessive mutant is the golden tiger that has a pale golden fur with red-brown stripes.[10] The mutants are very rare in nature.[11]
The greatest skull length of a tiger is 351 mm (13.8 in) in males and 293 mm (11.5 in) in females.[12] It has exceptionally stout teeth. Its canines are 7.5 to 10 cm (3.0 to 3.9 in) long and thus the longest among all cats.[
The Bengal tiger ranks among the biggest wild cats alive today.[14] Males and female Bengal tigers in Panna Tiger Reserve reach a head-to-body length of 183–211 cm (72–83 in) and 164–193 cm (65–76 in) respectively, including a tail about 85–110 cm (33–43 in) long. Total length ranges from 283 to 311 cm (111 to 122 in) for male tigers and 255–285 cm (100–112 in) for female tigers.[15] They typically range from 90–110 cm (35–43 in) in shoulder height.
In the 20th century, Indian censuses of wild tigers relied on the individual identification of footprints known as pug marks – a method that has been criticised as deficient and inaccurate. Camera traps are now being used in many sites.[35]
Good tiger habitats in subtropical and temperate forests include the Tiger Conservation Units (TCUs) Manas-Namdapha. TCUs in tropical dry forest include Hazaribag Wildlife Sanctuary, Nagarjunsagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve, Kanha-Indravati corridor, Orissa dry forests, Panna National Park, Melghat Tiger Reserve and Ratapani Tiger Reserve. The TCUs in tropical moist deciduous forest are probably some of the most productive habitats for tigers and their prey, and include Kaziranga-Meghalaya, Kanha-Pench, Simlipal and Indravati Tiger Reserves. The TCUs in tropical moist evergreen forests represent the less common tiger habitats, being largely limited to the upland areas and wetter parts of the Western Ghats, and include the tiger reserves of Periyar, Kalakad-Mundathurai, Bandipur and Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary.
The Broadway Cinema (capacity 150) is part of the Villa Marina Entertainment Complex in Douglas, Isle of Man.
The building, first known as the Kursaal, was commissioned by Douglas Corporation and was the subject of an architectural competition assessed by Professor Adshead of Liverpool University, opening in 1913. The Kursaal name was dropped at the start of the First World War and the main auditorium rechristened The Royal Hall.
The main auditorium was originally designed for orchestral concerts, but was also intended as a multi-use space. It has an octagonal footprint, the auditorium being 30.46m (100ft) in diameter and 20.1m (66ft) up to the central pinnacled lantern, which provides light for the daytime activities. One side of the octagon contains the comparatively small stage and the stage house adjunct. There is a small apron stage downstage of the proscenium arch which is formed by a wide plaster moulding, with upper corners gently curving - but not at all fussy. The plasterwork in the auditorium is generally restrained, if a little uncertain. There are Edwardian echoes but no definite suggestion of a new style - rather more a dilution of a previous age.
The main stalls area is a flat sprung maple ballroom floor with removable seats, six rows around the periphery of the dance floor. Above these six rows is a balcony supported at intervals along the perimeter by broad plain columns. This has six further rows of seats around seven sides of the octagon. Behind these upper six rows the auditorium wall is punctured at regular intervals by large arched openings, some containing doorways, others simply with handrails opening onto an upper ambulatory, in the true traditions of the Kursaal style. The coffered ceiling rises on all eight sides of the octagon to the central pinnacled lantern, detailed with cornices and dog-tooth ornamentation.
The Marina Gardens were not completed until 1931, long after the Villa Marina had opened. The landscape architect for this scheme, which linked the Villa Marina and the Gaiety Theatre, was F Prentice Mawson of Thomas H Mawson & Sons of Lancaster. Later accretions include notably, the ‘Garden Room’ in the 1970s which is wholly out of keeping with the general character of the Villa Marina.
Externally it has the appearance of a small continental permanent circus building, with a wigwam-like appearance, rendered and pebble-dashed in a most unbecoming manner. The small stage house forms a small rectangular box which abutts abruptly onto the Harris Promenade.
It is an important survivor of its genre now a rare form of seaside architecture.
In 2004 the Villa was partly rebuilt and splendidly restored. The entrance was moved to face the gardens, and the Colonnade walkways and fountains restored. The interior has been rearranged for conferencing, and a cinema introduced. The Royal Hall has been faithfully restored and technically upgraded by Manx architect Ian Brown. [Theatres Trust]
Unashamed, the Uglydolls unite with the Unikitties. They are the ultimate but unappreciated. Their undesigned utopia would start with an uninspired uproar. Upon that, the unmanly union would utter unimportant and unadorned unity. But, they urgently uncover the umpteenth Unikitty: Queasy Unikitty, Dessert Unikitty, Dinosaur Unikitty, Rainbow Unikitty, Lego 2 Movie Unikitty, Angry Unikitty, Shades Unikitty, Camouflage Unikitty, and Sleepy Unikitty. Their ululation was unbecoming, but the unicorns unlocked their universe. Their unlikely unmatching uniforms uplift the unbelieving underwriter. Unfortunately, Uglydog’s uncle is an umpire for the underdogs. How unbearable!
Feb 21 U
February Alphabet Fun Month: 2019 Edition
miX, THE hotel
Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada. (July, 2009)
Notes: This restaurant, on the top floor (64th) has a "nightclub" (called "X"), whose THUMPING THROBBING music can be felt in the dining room. Rather unbecoming of a one Michelin star restaurant (with Alain Ducasse's name on it), methinks.
Read the review at the ulterior epicure.
Once I arrived in China, I noticed that to fully understand the complex dynamics of Chinese culture, one must lose the common misconceptions of the world's most populated country and approach the nation with an open mind. These perspectives, while sometimes true, are often caused by a combination of distance and ignorance from Western minds. Growing up in a family that emphasizes manners; saying "please" and "thank you", not staring or pointing, and the overall western version of polite behavior in public, led me to see everyone's behavior as the worldwide norm for demeanor towards others. Upon arrival I was confused and relatively disgusted at the lack of civility in the streets. Everywhere you go, the sounds of people hocking loogies and spitting on the ground surround you, and I have been sprayed more than once while walking on the sidewalk. I was thoroughly confused about this and still am, as there really isn't any explanation as to why they do this constantly, and it's not just men. I've searched for the answer on the internet and asked around, and the only conclusion I've come to is that Chinese people just don't care. They don't really care what other people think of their hygiene, while their "face" or level of respect and deference from others plays a huge role of their lives. It's very confusing as to how similar those to things are, yet they are considered oppositely important. While on the topic of manners, it's very odd never hearing the terms "please", "thank you", "bless you", "you're welcome", or their Chinese translations. I can understand why "bless you" isn't said, especially because I know how Americans came to saying that, but it's very uncomfortable when you say 谢谢（Thank You) and they just stare back in silence. When Chinese people do speak, it's always sounds like they're shouting angrily at each other and about to get in a fight. I've always heard that the myth was that Americans were loud, and I always pictured Chinese people to be really quiet. Then I sat down at the dinner table tonight and got my eardrums blown out.
Chinese people are also guilty of having mainstream misconceptions of other countries as well, especially America. During one of the first days I was here, I was talking to some boy in my class and he said, "I think is so crazy that all of the Americans that come to China are so skinny." After I finished laughing, I explained that while many Americans are fat, the rate of obesity is much lower than average in Massachusetts, and that there are barely any overweight kids in my grade. He seemed to understand what I was trying to say, but the whole point may have been lost in translation. Another common misconception I've noticed is that Americans are very serious and austere all the time. Many students here call the Americans crazy, funny, or loud, now that they've spent time with us. They seemed to have believed that we were quiet and did our work, and when we arrived I heard numerous remarks about how different our behavior was than expected. Whether these misconceptions are caused by arrogance or span of space between the countries, they can cause unbecoming preconceptions, and biased views towards each other. Hopefully exchange trips like this one can help to open the minds of the assuming and improve the connection between the two very different cultures.
In his video/print portrait installation, Computers Dream of Porn, Simon Menner is inspired by the discussions about morality, privacy, ownership and authorship that the sudden widespread use of AI “deepfake porn” programs triggered. Given the high level of artificiality of TV and movie stars, and considering the fact that many of them are famous not for who they are, but for the roles they play; Menner finds the notion that a fictionalized recreation an algorithm produces might be less “real” and therefore immoral, quite interesting. Iconic, and uncanny in their hybrid state, the presented portraits are extracted from the videos, and do or do not show the persons depicted.
Presented at the Un_Becoming exhibition at SomoS, Berlin.
This was not fun. 4 days of weather unbecoming of a sierra summer trip.
Little to no soil limits these higher elevation marvels. What is interesting, to me, is the minimal amount of organic material.
Voigtlander 12mm f/5.6 Asph III VM
We have to be up before dawn to wash and get dressed, so to get in the jeeps before six, to get access to the park, all so that we miss the heat of the day for at least one safari per day.
It was cool and dawn just beginning to break as we walked from our hut to reception, there we are all allocated our vehicle with driver. Once at the park gate, we collect a trained guide, and show our passports that have to match the permits we have each day.
As we entered the park, the sun rose and we could see its blood red face through the trees. We stopped to take shots.
At the first lake we stopped and saw a Crested snake eagle, then further along, the guide shouted to stop, and right beside the roadway was a sleep Nightjar, blending in with the rocks around it.
We drove through the park, taking half an hour to reach the inner gate, then another half hour to reach a watering hole, where on the far side, a mother tiger was guarding her two nearly year-old cubs. They lay in the sun, half playing before going to sleep, and we all moved away.
Our guide knew of some out of the way places, so thanks to him we saw a fine White-throated kingfisher, and I spotted a wild boar, rummaging in the leaf litter. A pure white Paradise flycatcher delighted us, as it showed well in a tree above the main road, and later on I saw a Mongoose fleeing into the undergrowth, its black-tipped tail flowing behind.
We stopped for a late breakfast at ten, then went to check on one final spot before returning to the main gate to drop the guide off, then back to camp with an hour to kill before lunch.
Lunch was buffet curries, all different from each other and the day before, but most containing lots of vegetables, so all good.
Back into the jeep at two, in the full heat of the day. Something like 41 or so degrees, hotter than it has ever got back home by several degrees. And once moving, the breeze would have cooked roast chicken in half an hour or so it seemed.
A fairly uneventful safari, there was rumour of more tigers at the same watering hole as the morning, so we set course for there.
As did all the other jeeps, from our party and others like us, as well as day trips, there must have been 25 vehicles, all jostling for space. It was pretty unbecoming to be frank, and I would have said we gave up.
And left.
But, a pair of tigers came, but lay down over the crest of a rise, so out of view, sometimes the back of the male’s ears were just visible.
Jeeps were three and four deep, and those at the back like us stood little chance of seeing anything, so two wardens arrived and insisted that the ones in front get out and let others, like us have a chance.
So we got to the front, both tigers had by this time escaped into the long grass, and again I wondered why we were wasting time, waiting.
The female broke cover, and ambled down the bank from the grass, down to the edge of the lake, then into it, to get to the small island the other side. Light was perfect, as the tigress began to stalk a family of barking deer the other side of the lake.
Step by step it went right, slowly and with deliberate steps, onto a line of rocks sticking out of the water. Remembering Xavier’s shots of the Arctic fox from Svalbard, I zoomed out slightly to get the tigress’s reflection. It was perfect.
The light, the tiger, the reflection, using the jeep as a tripod meant the shots were blur-free.
The tigress stretched, doing kitty yoga like the mogs back home, and then continued inching towards the deer. They knew she was there, and also knew that in the event of an attack, they had a 50 yard head start, and the tiger would be running through water too.
Our time ran out before the tableaux could be completed, but pretty sure all deer got away and the tigers went hungry.
We made our way back, taking an hour at 25mp/h to get to the gates to drop the guide off, then finding the town jammed because of a bad parker on the 90 degree bend. Horns sounded, and the bolshiest drivers got through first, ours was second, then hammering through the gloaming without lights back to the camp where supper of yet more curry was waiting.
We all celebrated with large bottles of cold beer.
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The Bengal tiger is a population of the Panthera tigris tigris subspecies and the nominate tiger subspecies. It ranks among the largest wild cats alive today. It is estimated to have been present in the Indian subcontinent since the Late Pleistocene for about 12,000 to 16,500 years. Its historical range covered the Indus River valley until the early 19th century, almost all of India, western Pakistan, southern Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan and southwestern China. Today, it inhabits India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, and southwestern China. It is threatened by poaching, habitat loss and habitat fragmentation.
As of 2022, the Bengal tiger population was estimated at 3,167–3,682 individuals in India, 316–355 individuals in Nepal, 131 individuals in Bhutan and around 114 individuals in Bangladesh.
Felis tigris was the scientific name used by Carl Linnaeus in 1758 for the tiger.[1] It was subordinated to the genus Panthera by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1929. Bengal is the traditional type locality of the species and the nominate subspecies Panthera tigris tigris.[2]
The validity of several tiger subspecies in continental Asia was questioned in 1999. Morphologically, tigers from different regions vary little, and gene flow between populations in those regions is considered to have been possible during the Pleistocene. Therefore, it was proposed to recognise only two subspecies as valid, namely P. t. tigris in mainland Asia, and P. t. sondaica in the Greater Sunda Islands and possibly in Sundaland.[3] The nominate subspecies P. t. tigris constitutes two clades: the northern clade comprises the Siberian and Caspian tiger populations, and the southern clade all remaining continental tiger populations.[4] The extinct and living tiger populations in continental Asia have been subsumed to P. t. tigris since the revision of felid taxonomy in 2017.
The Bengal tiger's coat is yellow to light orange, with stripes ranging from dark brown to black; the belly and the interior parts of the limbs are white, and the tail is orange with black rings. The white tiger is a recessive mutant, which is reported in the wild from time to time in Assam, Bengal, Bihar and especially in the former State of Rewa. However, it is not an occurrence of albinism. In fact, there is only one fully authenticated case of a true albino tiger, and none of black tigers, with the possible exception of one dead specimen examined in Chittagong in 1846.[9] Fourteen Bengal tiger skins in the collection of the Natural History Museum, London have 21–29 stripes.[3] Another recessive mutant is the golden tiger that has a pale golden fur with red-brown stripes.[10] The mutants are very rare in nature.[11]
The greatest skull length of a tiger is 351 mm (13.8 in) in males and 293 mm (11.5 in) in females.[12] It has exceptionally stout teeth. Its canines are 7.5 to 10 cm (3.0 to 3.9 in) long and thus the longest among all cats.[
The Bengal tiger ranks among the biggest wild cats alive today.[14] Males and female Bengal tigers in Panna Tiger Reserve reach a head-to-body length of 183–211 cm (72–83 in) and 164–193 cm (65–76 in) respectively, including a tail about 85–110 cm (33–43 in) long. Total length ranges from 283 to 311 cm (111 to 122 in) for male tigers and 255–285 cm (100–112 in) for female tigers.[15] They typically range from 90–110 cm (35–43 in) in shoulder height.
In the 20th century, Indian censuses of wild tigers relied on the individual identification of footprints known as pug marks – a method that has been criticised as deficient and inaccurate. Camera traps are now being used in many sites.[35]
Good tiger habitats in subtropical and temperate forests include the Tiger Conservation Units (TCUs) Manas-Namdapha. TCUs in tropical dry forest include Hazaribag Wildlife Sanctuary, Nagarjunsagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve, Kanha-Indravati corridor, Orissa dry forests, Panna National Park, Melghat Tiger Reserve and Ratapani Tiger Reserve. The TCUs in tropical moist deciduous forest are probably some of the most productive habitats for tigers and their prey, and include Kaziranga-Meghalaya, Kanha-Pench, Simlipal and Indravati Tiger Reserves. The TCUs in tropical moist evergreen forests represent the less common tiger habitats, being largely limited to the upland areas and wetter parts of the Western Ghats, and include the tiger reserves of Periyar, Kalakad-Mundathurai, Bandipur and Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary.
11/17/09 Incarnation Church, Glendale, CA 830am 1) 2 macc 6.18-31: 19 But preferring a glorious death to a life of defilement, he spat out the meat, and went forward of his own accord to the instrument of torture, 20 as men ought to do who have the courage to reject the food which it is unlawful to taste even for love of life. 21 Those in charge of that unlawful ritual meal took the man aside privately, because of their long acquaintance with him, and urged him to bring meat of his own providing, such as he could legitimately eat, and to pretend to be eating some of the meat of the sacrifice prescribed by the king 22 in this way he would escape the death penalty, and be treated kindly because of their old friendship with him 23 But he made up his mind in a noble manner, worthy of his years, the dignity of his advanced age, the merited distinction of his gray hair, and of the admirable life he had lived from childhood; and so he declared that above all he would be loyal to the holy laws given by God. He told them to send him at once to the abode of the dead, explaining 24"At our age it would be unbecoming to make such a pretense; many young men would think the ninety-year-old Eleazar had gone over to an alien religion. 25 Should I thus dissimulate for the sake of a brief moment of life, they would be led astray by me, while I would bring shame and dishonor on my old age. 26 Even if, for the time being, I avoid the punishment of men, I shall never, whether alive or dead, escape the hands of the, hether alive or dead, escape the hands of the Almighty. 27 Therefore, by manfully giving up my life now, I will prove myself worthy of my old age, 28 and I will leave to the young a noble example of how to die willingly and generously for the revered and holy laws." He spoke thus, and went immediately to the instrument of torture 29 Those who shortly before had been kindly disposed, now became hostile toward him because what he had said seemed to them utter madness. 30 When he was about to die under the blows, he groaned and said: "The Lord in his holy knowledge knows full well that, although I could have escaped death, I am not only enduring terrible pain in my body from this scourging, but also suffering it with joy in my soul because of my devotion to him." 31 This is how he died, leaving in his death a model of courage and an unforgettable example of virtue not only for the young but for the whole nation. 2) Luke 19.1-10: Luke 19 1 Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. 2 Now behold Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. Now behold there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich. 3 And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could and he was rich. And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature. 4 So he ran So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was going to pass that way. 5 And when Jesus came to the place, He going to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, He going to pass that way. looked up and saw him,[ a] and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make looked up and saw him, and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make looked up and saw him, and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” 6 So So haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” So he made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully. 7 But But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, “He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner.” 8 Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, I give Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.” 9 And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham; 10 for the Son of Man has because he also is a son of Abraham; for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Message (not perfectly verbatim, but generally): "pass thru Jericho, guide says 'Thats the sycamore tree that zaccheus climbed", Jericho like Palm springs..in midst of town, zaccheus, zaccheus was small, both physically & even as a person, a tax collector who has extorted people. Jesus says, "Today I intend to come into your house" Zaccheus oes repent & says he will pay back whomever he defrauded. When we ourselves look into the face of the Lord our life can only be converted. In celeb of daily mass we seek that transformation. How wonderful to hear..."
On Sunday the 26th of July service 34 was operating on several of Lothian's new fleet of buses in 2009. How nice to see one of the new Gemini 2's here on the 34 as this route is so often dominated by those wobbly wardrobes....eh I mean Dennis Trident vehicles (oops!)....they actually don't look too bad in the dark!
While many of the new arrivals to Edinburgh are now branded to particular routes numbers 926 to 936 appear like the standard Wright Eclipse Gemini design, except that these also have greater room for buggies, prams and wheelchairs near to the
door.
I feel the Gemini design has a classic look which, in time
will be much admired everywhere. The two large oval-type windows at the front are separated by the destination panel and although these are operated electronically it's good to see Lothian have preserved the look of the former canvas roller blinds of olden days. I suspect that few passengers awaiting a bus may even recognise the difference, but compare this to the neon-electric screens of other companies up and down the land which (in my view) are very unbecoming and lack character.
The rear of the Eclipse Gemini bus design forms a straight vertical drop from the top and this creates a taller, more upright posture to the bus architecture.
Here, the highly attractive 931 lays-over at Ocean Terminal before crossing town and out to Heriot-Watt University, on the Riccarton campus.
63/68
Clara and Elise exchange weary glances as the train gently rocks beneath them. Their gloves rest neatly in their laps, fingers lightly intertwined in frustration. The list of rules seems endless, but they know each one by heart. Aunt Matilde’s standards are absolute, and breaking even a single one would lead to scolding—or worse.
Matilde’s Strict Dress and Behavior Code
Clothing Rules
Shirts must be crisp, perfectly white, and fully buttoned – Always fastened to the top, collars stiff and tight around the neck. Sleeves must be long, with cuffs buttoned snugly at the wrists.
Skirts must be structured and conservative – At least knee-length, preferably pleated or fitted. No casual fabrics or loose silhouettes. Must be properly ironed before wearing.
Blazers or cardigans are required in public – No exceptions. Jackets must be tailored; cardigans must be buttoned neatly without gaps.
Stockings must be worn at all times – Sheer, nude, or black, without runs, snags, or wrinkles. Bare legs are strictly forbidden.
High heels are mandatory – Black or nude pumps, minimum three inches in height. Walking gracefully is expected—no rushing or stomping.
Gloves must be worn when outdoors or in formal settings – Black leather or fabric, removed only when necessary.
Underwear must be structured and supportive – Tight-fitting shapewear is required to maintain a perfect silhouette. Corsets or waist cinchers may be required for special occasions.
Bras must be underwired and padded for structure – No soft cups, bralettes, or casual wear. Straps must never be visible.
Panties must be high-waisted and seamless – No visible lines, no lace or patterns. Only neutral colors are allowed.
Makeup & Grooming Rules
Makeup must be flawless and elegant – Foundation for perfect skin, subtle eyeshadow, precisely applied eyeliner, and always red or deep pink lipstick.
Eyebrows must be neatly shaped and filled in – No over-plucking or unkempt brows allowed.
Hair must always be styled properly – No loose, unbrushed hair. Either curled, styled into waves, or pinned back neatly.
Nails must be well-manicured and painted – Only classic shades such as nude, red, or French manicure. No chipped polish.
Perfume is required – A subtle, sophisticated scent, never overpowering but always noticeable.
Behavior & Etiquette Rules
Posture must always be perfect – Back straight, shoulders pulled back, chin slightly lifted. Slouching is unacceptable.
Legs must be crossed properly – Either at the knees or ankles, depending on the situation. No casual sitting positions.
Walking must be graceful – Small, controlled steps with no rushing or unladylike movements.
Speaking must be refined – No slang, no loud voices, and certainly no interrupting others. Speech must be articulate and well-paced.
Smiling is encouraged, but only when appropriate – No excessive grinning or laughing too loudly in public. Composure is key.
No fidgeting or adjusting clothing in public – Any discomfort must be endured silently until a private moment allows for readjustment.
Food must be eaten delicately – Small bites, no rushing, and no messy foods. Cutlery must be handled with precision.
Hands must remain neatly placed on the lap or at the sides when sitting – No leaning on tables, no elbows resting on surfaces.
Thank-yous and pleasantries are mandatory – Proper etiquette in every social interaction is expected at all times.
No expressing discomfort or fatigue – Complaining about the restrictive clothing, painful shoes, or long days is not permitted.
Elise sighs, looking down at her perfectly manicured hands. “I think we just listed half of my daily suffering.”
Clara swallows, feeling the firm press of her corset beneath her blouse. “And yet, we have no choice but to follow every single one.”
The train rattles on, and outside, the world moves freely—comfortably. But inside their carefully maintained appearance, Clara and Elise remain prisoners of elegance.
A Desperate Plea to Aunt Matilde
Clara and Elise stood stiffly in the grand sitting room of Aunt Matilde’s townhouse, their hands clasped in front of them, their posture unwavering despite the unbearable heat pressing against their layered clothing. The morning sun streamed in through the tall windows, casting golden light across the polished wooden floors, but instead of feeling warm and inviting, the air in the room was thick with tension.
Matilde sat before them in her perfectly tailored suit, her high-collared blouse as immaculate as ever. A cup of tea rested on the table beside her, untouched. She studied the two young women with a sharp, knowing gaze, already sensing the plea they were about to make.
Clara took a steadying breath. “Aunt Matilde,” she began, careful to keep her voice respectful, “Elise and I wanted to ask if we could make just a small adjustment to our attire today. It’s—” she hesitated, feeling the weight of Matilde’s cool stare, “—it’s very warm outside, and we thought perhaps—”
Elise, emboldened by Clara’s start, stepped in. “Perhaps we could just unbutton the top button of our blouses? Just for today? It would help us breathe more easily.”
Matilde set her teacup down with an audible clink and raised a single, disapproving eyebrow. “Unbutton your collars?” she repeated, her voice calm but laced with unmistakable disapproval.
Clara nodded quickly. “Yes, Aunt Matilde. Just the top button.” She swallowed, feeling the constriction of the fabric around her throat. “It’s a stifling summer day, and we’ll be walking quite a bit.”
Matilde exhaled slowly, as if the very notion exhausted her. “Clara, Elise,” she said, her tone measured, “there is a reason your collars are buttoned. A lady does not adjust her clothing merely for comfort. Elegance requires discipline, and discipline means enduring slight discomforts without complaint.”
Elise’s gloved hands clenched at her sides. “But Aunt Matilde, it’s not a slight discomfort—it’s suffocating! We can barely move our necks properly, and the heat—”
Matilde’s expression darkened. “You will not whine, Elise.”
Elise fell silent, pressing her painted lips together.
Clara tried again, shifting to another request. “Perhaps, then, we could at least take off our gloves? Just while we’re outside? Our hands get so warm, and it’s not as if we need them for anything formal today.”
Matilde sighed, shaking her head slightly. “Your gloves remain on.”
“But—” Elise tried again, but Matilde cut her off with a firm look.
“A proper lady does not go about with bare hands in public like some careless girl,” Matilde stated. “Your gloves complete your ensemble. You will wear them.”
Clara felt a sting of frustration but bit her tongue. She had expected resistance, but she was determined to try again. “What about our stockings?” she asked carefully. “It’s a dreadful day for heavy layers, Aunt Matilde, and no one will see—”
“Absolutely not,” Matilde interjected, her tone leaving no room for argument. “Stockings are non-negotiable. A lady’s legs must never be bare, regardless of the weather.”
Elise groaned softly, unable to hold back her exasperation. “But they’re unbearable! We’re already wearing long skirts. No one will see our bare legs!”
Matilde’s eyes narrowed. “And that, my dear, is exactly why no one should suspect that you are improperly dressed underneath. Your attire is a reflection of your standards, even in ways that are not immediately visible.”
Clara’s patience was wearing thin, but she forced herself to remain composed. “Aunt Matilde… we understand your rules, truly. We respect them. But just for today, given the circumstances—”
Matilde folded her arms across her chest. “Given the circumstances?” she echoed. “The circumstances being a warm summer’s day? Do you think women of refinement abandon their dignity just because the temperature rises?”
Elise muttered under her breath, “We wouldn’t be abandoning dignity. We’d just be a little less miserable.”
Matilde’s expression tightened. “Excuse me, young lady?”
Elise paled. “Nothing, Aunt Matilde.”
Matilde let the silence stretch before sighing. “I expected better from both of you. This conversation is unbecoming.” She took another sip of her tea before continuing, “If you wish to be taken seriously as proper young women, you must show resilience, not weakness. You will wear your gloves, your stockings, your buttoned blouses, and you will do so without further protest.”
Clara’s fingers twitched in frustration, but she knew pushing any further would only make things worse. She hesitated, then, almost fearing the answer, dared to ask one final question.
“Aunt Matilde… may we… would it be possible to wear trousers, instead of skirts?”
Matilde’s teacup stopped halfway to her lips. The very suggestion hung in the air like a forbidden curse. She placed the cup down slowly and fixed both girls with an icy glare.
“Trousers?” she repeated, as though testing the word on her tongue.
Elise straightened her posture but remained defiant. “Yes, Aunt Matilde. We don’t even own any, but we could buy a pair. Just for once. Just to see what it’s like.”
Matilde’s nostrils flared. “Absolutely not. The very idea is absurd.”
“But why?” Clara pressed. “Men wear them every day. They can walk freely, sit comfortably, and move without restriction. It’s unfair that we—”
Matilde cut her off with a sharp glance. “Men and women are not the same, Clara. And you will not dress like a man. I will not have my nieces traipsing about in such vulgar attire.”
Elise let out an incredulous laugh. “Vulgar? Trousers are vulgar?”
Matilde’s voice was razor-sharp. “On women, yes.”
Clara’s heart sank. They had lost.
Matilde picked up her tea again, signaling that the discussion was over. “You are both intelligent young women. I expect you to understand that propriety is not about convenience. It is about grace, discipline, and respectability.”
Clara and Elise exchanged a silent look. There was no winning this argument. No loosening of their collars, no relief from their gloves, no escape from the stockings that clung to their legs like a second skin.
Defeated, they murmured their acceptance, curtsied stiffly, and turned to leave the room. As they walked away, Matilde’s voice followed them, firm and unwavering.
“Now, go freshen up and reapply your lipstick. You both look fatigued, and that is not an acceptable appearance for a lady.”
The door closed behind them. Elise exhaled sharply, pressing her forehead against the wall. “I give up.”
Clara sighed, adjusting her suffocating collar. “So do I.”
And with that, they resigned themselves to yet another day of perfect, polished, and utterly uncomfortable elegance.
A Day of Elegance and Endurance
The sun was already high in the sky when Clara and Elise stepped out onto the bustling streets of New York. The city hummed with life—cars honked, pedestrians weaved through the sidewalks, and a warm breeze drifted between the towering buildings. But while the world around them moved freely, Clara and Elise felt anything but free.
Clara adjusted the cuffs of her crisp white blouse, the fabric pulled taut against her shoulders, refusing to give even as she tried to loosen it. The high collar, fastened all the way up, pressed against her throat, and though she tried to ignore it, the sensation of being constricted was ever-present. Elise, beside her, tugged at the fingers of her leather gloves, but even the small gesture was futile. The gloves were to stay on, just as their stockings, skirts, and perfectly buttoned blouses were non-negotiable.
"Where shall we go first?" Clara asked, forcing cheer into her voice.
Elise exhaled slowly, already feeling the sweat forming beneath her clothing. "Does it even matter? We could be strolling through paradise, and I'd still feel like I'm being suffocated by my own outfit."
Clara chuckled, though there was little amusement in it. "At least we look elegant," she offered.
Elise rolled her eyes. "Yes, we look like the epitome of refinement. But I’d trade all this elegance for just a moment of comfort."
A Walk Through the Park—A Struggle in Elegance
They decided to start their day in Central Park, hoping that the shade of the trees might bring some respite. But walking proved to be an ordeal. Their fitted skirts restricted their steps, forcing them into small, deliberate strides. Their high heels clicked against the pavement, adding an air of sophistication but punishing their feet with every step.
Elise let out a sigh of frustration. "I swear, if I trip on this ridiculous skirt one more time, I’ll scream."
Clara cast a sideways glance at her. "Careful, Aunt Matilde might sense your improper thoughts from across the city."
Elise scoffed, flexing her gloved fingers. "Oh yes, and she’d probably send a telegram ordering us to sit properly and compose ourselves immediately."
They found a bench beneath a large oak tree, hoping to rest, but even sitting was uncomfortable. Their skirts remained tight around their legs, and the stockings ensured that no cool air reached their skin. Clara shifted slightly, trying to find a more relaxed position, but her high collar made her posture rigid no matter what.
She sighed. "Even resting is exhausting in this outfit."
Elise reached up to unbutton the top of her blouse instinctively, but her gloved fingers struggled against the small, rigid buttons. Clara immediately grabbed her wrist. "Don’t. If Aunt Matilde somehow finds out, we’ll never hear the end of it."
Elise groaned in frustration but relented. "You know what I hate most?" she asked. "The fact that we could so easily find relief. If we could just loosen something—our collars, our gloves, anything—we'd be fine. But no, we must suffer for elegance."
Clara sighed, adjusting the stiff fabric of her blouse. "Aunt Matilde would say suffering builds character."
"Well, I’d rather be characterless and comfortable," Elise muttered.
Lunch in a Café—A Battle Against the Heat
By the time they reached a charming little café for lunch, the midday sun was merciless. The heat pressed against them, yet their clothing allowed for no relief. Their blouses, though pristine and starched, clung to their skin beneath the layers. Their stockings made their legs feel like they were trapped in an oven.
The moment they entered the café, the rush of cool, air-conditioned air was both a blessing and a cruel reminder of how unbearably hot they were. Elise sat down gingerly, careful not to wrinkle her skirt, while Clara tried once again to shift in her seat to find even the smallest amount of comfort.
The waiter arrived, smiling politely. "What can I get for you ladies?"
Clara forced a pleasant smile. "Just iced tea for me, please."
Elise, however, had other concerns. "Excuse me, sir, would it be terribly improper if we removed our gloves while we eat?" She held up her hands, fingers barely moving within the tight leather.
The waiter blinked, clearly caught off guard by such a formal question. "I… I don’t see why not?"
Elise’s eyes lit up in hope, but just as she was about to pull off her gloves, Clara placed a warning hand over hers. "Elise," she whispered, voice firm.
Elise groaned. "Clara, we’re inside, we’re sitting down, and he said it’s fine—"
"But Aunt Matilde wouldn't," Clara reminded her.
Elise exhaled sharply, her head tilting back in frustration. "You know what? I don’t even care anymore. Let the world judge me!"
Just as she slipped her fingers beneath the leather to pull off the gloves, the door to the café swung open.
A familiar, chilling voice cut through the air.
"Elise. Clara."
The girls froze. Slowly, they turned to see Aunt Matilde standing in the doorway, her posture as imposing as ever.
Elise’s hands dropped instantly, the gloves staying in place.
Clara, heart racing, quickly straightened her already-perfect posture.
Matilde strode toward them, her heels clicking in a way that sent shivers down their spines. She didn’t need to say anything. Her piercing gaze swept over them, noting every wrinkle, every sign of improper conduct.
"Not even a full day," she murmured disapprovingly, "and already you contemplate compromise?"
Elise clenched her jaw. "We were just trying to find some relief."
Matilde’s lips pressed together in disapproval. "Relief? And is dignity such a burden to you that you would abandon it so easily?"
Clara hurried to diffuse the tension. "Aunt Matilde, it’s just a warm day, and—"
"Enough," Matilde said coolly. "You will endure, as any proper lady should." She lifted her chin. "Now, sit up straight, adjust your gloves properly, and remember who you are."
Elise closed her eyes briefly, then opened them, defeated. "Yes, Aunt Matilde."
The rest of the meal passed in silence. The girls sipped their iced tea, their gloves remaining on, their collars pressing against their throats, their stockings ensuring their legs felt anything but free.
Evening—Resigned to Elegance
By the time the day ended, Clara and Elise collapsed onto the couch in their apartment. Their feet ached, their clothing felt like a prison, and yet… they had endured.
Elise let out a breath. "You know, I hate to admit it… but I suppose Aunt Matilde would be proud."
Clara smirked, unbuttoning her collar the second they were alone. "Proud or not, I’m sleeping in a nightgown so loose it might as well be a sheet."
Elise chuckled, slipping off her gloves at last. "Same. But you know… we did look stunning today."
Clara nodded. "We did. Even if we suffered for it."
And with that, they bid farewell to another day of restrained elegance, knowing that tomorrow would bring another battle between refinement and comfort.
11/17/09 Incarnation Church, Glendale, CA 830am 1) 2 macc 6.18-31: 19 But preferring a glorious death to a life of defilement, he spat out the meat, and went forward of his own accord to the instrument of torture, 20 as men ought to do who have the courage to reject the food which it is unlawful to taste even for love of life. 21 Those in charge of that unlawful ritual meal took the man aside privately, because of their long acquaintance with him, and urged him to bring meat of his own providing, such as he could legitimately eat, and to pretend to be eating some of the meat of the sacrifice prescribed by the king 22 in this way he would escape the death penalty, and be treated kindly because of their old friendship with him 23 But he made up his mind in a noble manner, worthy of his years, the dignity of his advanced age, the merited distinction of his gray hair, and of the admirable life he had lived from childhood; and so he declared that above all he would be loyal to the holy laws given by God. He told them to send him at once to the abode of the dead, explaining 24"At our age it would be unbecoming to make such a pretense; many young men would think the ninety-year-old Eleazar had gone over to an alien religion. 25 Should I thus dissimulate for the sake of a brief moment of life, they would be led astray by me, while I would bring shame and dishonor on my old age. 26 Even if, for the time being, I avoid the punishment of men, I shall never, whether alive or dead, escape the hands of the, hether alive or dead, escape the hands of the Almighty. 27 Therefore, by manfully giving up my life now, I will prove myself worthy of my old age, 28 and I will leave to the young a noble example of how to die willingly and generously for the revered and holy laws." He spoke thus, and went immediately to the instrument of torture 29 Those who shortly before had been kindly disposed, now became hostile toward him because what he had said seemed to them utter madness. 30 When he was about to die under the blows, he groaned and said: "The Lord in his holy knowledge knows full well that, although I could have escaped death, I am not only enduring terrible pain in my body from this scourging, but also suffering it with joy in my soul because of my devotion to him." 31 This is how he died, leaving in his death a model of courage and an unforgettable example of virtue not only for the young but for the whole nation. 2) Luke 19.1-10: Luke 19 1 Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. 2 Now behold Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. Now behold there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich. 3 And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could and he was rich. And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature. 4 So he ran So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was going to pass that way. 5 And when Jesus came to the place, He going to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, He going to pass that way. looked up and saw him,[ a] and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make looked up and saw him, and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make looked up and saw him, and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” 6 So So haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” So he made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully. 7 But But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, “He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner.” 8 Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, I give Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.” 9 And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham; 10 for the Son of Man has because he also is a son of Abraham; for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Message (not perfectly verbatim, but generally): "pass thru Jericho, guide says 'Thats the sycamore tree that zaccheus climbed", Jericho like Palm springs..in midst of town, zaccheus, zaccheus was small, both physically & even as a person, a tax collector who has extorted people. Jesus says, "Today I intend to come into your house" Zaccheus oes repent & says he will pay back whomever he defrauded. When we ourselves look into the face of the Lord our life can only be converted. In celeb of daily mass we seek that transformation. How wonderful to hear..."
The companies stationed at this Red Hook firehouse, Engine 279 and Ladder 131, have long referred to themselves as the Happy Hookers (Red Hook, hook and ladder — get it?). But the FDNY ordered them to drop the name in 2005, part of a department-wide push to clean up company nicknames following a pair of ugly incidents — a sex scandal and a firehouse brawl — involving companies nicknamed Animal House and Southern Comfort, respectively. (Other "unbecoming" company nicknames called out by a 2005 Department of Investigation report: the Nut House, the Harlem Zoo, 90 Proof, Clown College, and First at the Bush.)
Despite the FDNY's demands, the Happy Hookers refused to remove their nickname from their firehouse door. The name remained there (photo) until 2008, when the FDNY reportedly sent someone out to paint over it. It was long gone by the time I first walked by in 2012; not knowing the companies' nickname, I was puzzled by the accompanying image of two suggestively posed firefighters that remained (and still remains) on the door.
I don't know if the FDNY has loosened up in recent years or if the firehouse just decided to defy the higher-ups once again, but, as you can see, the Happy Hookers name is now prominently painted on the street in front of the firehouse, and it also appears on a pair of plaques honoring the 2013 centennials of Engine 279 and Ladder 131.
(Also visible above, near the middle of the photo, is 9/11 memorial #73.)
I love geeks, truly, deeply, madly. Sure, studs are fun to look at, but how many of them go on to the NFL? Not very many. A geek, on the other hand, has the skills to pay the bills. That's right. 1001011000011101 ladies.
See this picture in action on my blog:
www.coleandjosephine.blogspot.com
Watercolor on cold press paper, 5" x 7"
© All Rights Reserved - Black Diamond Images
As we turned off Wyoming State Hwy 89 onto Wyoming State Hwy 239 we soon came to the very small border town of Freedom. As we turned the corner onto State Line Road we simultaneously turned onto Idaho State Hwy 34. We stopped here to photograph what appears to be a new LDS Church. The original Church building a one room cabin was built here in 1889. It was used until 1901 when a larger building 60 feet by 30 feet with a stage on one end took its place. In 1914 a recreation hall was added with the hall being used for drama performances, Basketball and dances. The dances were strictly supervised by the LDS Church and the years of the evolution from square dancing to latin to rock dancing saw many people ejected from the dance hall for conduct unbecoming.
The area served by this church's wards is known as the Star Valley with the area first occupied by Latter Day Saints (Morman) settlers, originally from Charles Utah, in June 1879. They were fleeing problems they were having with the authorities in Utah over their polygamous activities. They could escape police in Idaho simply by crossing the border into Wyoming.
The town of Freedom is interesting in that its main street is known as State Line Road, straddling the borders of both Wyoming and Idaho.
The name of the town caused issues in 1922 when it was found there was another town in Idaho by that name. The locals solved the issue by moving the post office into Wyoming but other issues related to the fact that the town was in 3 counties, Caribou and Bonnville in Idaho and in Lincoln in Wyoming.
Life was tough here in the Star Valley with winter temperatures dropping to as low as minus 50 degrees Fahrenheit. At an altitude of 1761 metres the town is often clothed in 5 feet of snow in winter. Children went to school on sleighs with wood heaters installed on them. When the weather was amenable, saddle horses conveyed them to school.
Freedom is since 1978 the home of Freedom Arms, a gun manufacturer with the factory built on the Wyoming side of the border.
All USA Trip 2018 Images HERE
Read more about the following new books at Pesky LibraryThing
Graceling ... Kristin Cashore
Fire ... Kristen Cashore
Bitterblue ... Kristen Cashore
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo ... Stieg Larsson
The Girl Who Played with Fire ... Stieg Larsson
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest ... Stieg Larsson
The Fifth Season ... N. K. Jemisin
The Obelisk Gate ... N. K. Jemisin
The Stone Sky ... N. K. Jemisin
The Glass Sentence ... S. E. Grove
The Golden Specific ... S. E. Grove
The Crimson Skew ... S. E. Grove
Oryx and Crake ... Margaret Atwood
The Year of the Flood ... Margaret Atwood
MaddAddam ... Margaret Atwood
The Magicians ... Lev Grossman
The Magician King ... Lev Grossman
The Magician's Land ... Lev Grossman
The 5th Wave ... Rick Yancey
The Infinite Sea ... Rick Yancey
The Last Star ... Rick Yancey
A Brief History of Montmaray ... Michelle Cooper
The FitzOsbornes in Exile ... Michelle Cooper
The FitzOsbornes at War ... Michelle Cooper
Hunger Games ... Suzanne Collins
Catching Fire ... Suzanne Collins
Mockingjay ... Suzanne Collins
Divergent ... Veronica Roth
Insurgent ... Veronica Roth
Allegiant ... Veronica Roth
A Darker Shade of Magic ... V. E. Schwab
A Gathering of Shadows ... V. E. Schwab
A Conjuring of Light ... V. E. Schwab
The Knife of Never Letting Go ... Patrick Ness
The Ask and the Answer ... Patrick Ness
Monsters of Men ... Patrick Ness
I Hunt Killers ... Barry Lyga
Game ... Barry Lyga
Blood of My Blood ... Barry Lyga
The Amulet of Samarkand ... Jonathan Stroud
The Golem's Eye ... Jonathan Stroud
Ptolemy's Gate ... Jonathan Stroud
Legend ... Marie Lu
Prodigy ... Marie Lu
Champion ... Marie Lu
A Discovery of Witches ... Deborah Harkness
Shadow of Night ... Deborah Harkness
The Book of Life ... Deborah Harkness
Matched ... Ally Condie
Crossed ... Ally Condie
Reached ... Ally Condie
The Queen of the Tearling ... Erika Johansen
Invasion of the Tearling ... Erika Johansen
Fate of the Tearling ... Erika Johansen
The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer ... Michelle Hodkin
The Evolution of Mara Dyer ... Michelle Hodkin
The Retribution of Mara Dyer ... Michelle Hodkin
Read more about the following new books at Pesky LibraryThing
Graceling ... Kristin Cashore
Fire ... Kristen Cashore
Bitterblue ... Kristen Cashore
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo ... Stieg Larsson
The Girl Who Played with Fire ... Stieg Larsson
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest ... Stieg Larsson
The Fifth Season ... N. K. Jemisin
The Obelisk Gate ... N. K. Jemisin
The Stone Sky ... N. K. Jemisin
The Glass Sentence ... S. E. Grove
The Golden Specific ... S. E. Grove
The Crimson Skew ... S. E. Grove
Oryx and Crake ... Margaret Atwood
The Year of the Flood ... Margaret Atwood
MaddAddam ... Margaret Atwood
The Magicians ... Lev Grossman
The Magician King ... Lev Grossman
The Magician's Land ... Lev Grossman
The 5th Wave ... Rick Yancey
The Infinite Sea ... Rick Yancey
The Last Star ... Rick Yancey
A Brief History of Montmaray ... Michelle Cooper
The FitzOsbornes in Exile ... Michelle Cooper
The FitzOsbornes at War ... Michelle Cooper
Hunger Games ... Suzanne Collins
Catching Fire ... Suzanne Collins
Mockingjay ... Suzanne Collins
Divergent ... Veronica Roth
Insurgent ... Veronica Roth
Allegiant ... Veronica Roth
A Darker Shade of Magic ... V. E. Schwab
A Gathering of Shadows ... V. E. Schwab
A Conjuring of Light ... V. E. Schwab
The Knife of Never Letting Go ... Patrick Ness
The Ask and the Answer ... Patrick Ness
Monsters of Men ... Patrick Ness
I Hunt Killers ... Barry Lyga
Game ... Barry Lyga
Blood of My Blood ... Barry Lyga
The Amulet of Samarkand ... Jonathan Stroud
The Golem's Eye ... Jonathan Stroud
Ptolemy's Gate ... Jonathan Stroud
Legend ... Marie Lu
Prodigy ... Marie Lu
Champion ... Marie Lu
A Discovery of Witches ... Deborah Harkness
Shadow of Night ... Deborah Harkness
The Book of Life ... Deborah Harkness
Matched ... Ally Condie
Crossed ... Ally Condie
Reached ... Ally Condie
The Queen of the Tearling ... Erika Johansen
Invasion of the Tearling ... Erika Johansen
Fate of the Tearling ... Erika Johansen
The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer ... Michelle Hodkin
The Evolution of Mara Dyer ... Michelle Hodkin
The Retribution of Mara Dyer ... Michelle Hodkin
Romanian postcard by Casa Filmului Acin, no. C.P.C.S. 43033.
English actor Michael York (1942) is the athletic star of several Shakespeare adaptations and three popular Musketeer films. His blond, blue-eyed boyish looks and plummy accent incarnated a traditionally English public-school manliness in such classic films as Joseph Losey's Accident (1967) and Cabaret (1972).
Michael York, OBE was born Michael Hugh Johnson in 1942, in Fulmer, Buckinghamshire. He is the son of Florence Edith May (née Chown), a musician; and Joseph Gwynne Johnson, a executive with Marks & Spencer department stores. At age three, Michael broke his nose when he jumped off the roof of a coal house while trying to fly. During his teenage years, York was educated at Bromley Grammar School for Boys, Hurstpierpoint College and University College, Oxford. He began his career in a 1956 production of The Yellow Jacket. In 1959 he made his West End début with a small part in a production of Hamlet. York was a member of National Youth Theatre in London's East End and on international tour. He also performed with the Oxford University Dramatic Society and the University College Players. In 1964, he graduated from the University of Oxford with a degree in English. After some time with the Dundee Repertory Theatre, where he played in Brendan Behan's The Hostage, York joined National Theatre under Laurence Olivier where he worked with Franco Zeffirelli during the 1965 staging of Much Ado About Nothing. Following his role on British TV as Jolyon (Jolly) in The Forsyte Saga (1967), York made his film debut as Lucentio in William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew (Franco Zeffirelli, 1967), starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. He also appeared in Accident (Joseph Losey, 1967), Harold Pinter's dramatic film adaptation of the 1965 novel by Nicholas Mosley. At the 1967 Cannes Film Festival the film won the award for Grand Prix Spécial du Jury. Then York was cast as Tybalt Capulet in Zeffirelli’s innovative Romeo and Juliet (Franco Zeffirelli, 1968). He starred in The Guru (James Ivory, 1969) as a rock star who wants to learn to play the sitar, and he played an amoral bisexual drifter in the black comedy Something for Everyone (Harold Prince, 1970) with Angela Lansbury.
Michael York starred in the British World War I action-drama Zeppelin (Étienne Périer, 1971), which depicts a fictitious German attempt to raid on Great Britain in a giant Zeppelin to steal the Magna Carta from its hiding place in one of Scotland's castles. He then portrayed the bisexual Brian Roberts in Bob Fosse's film version of Cabaret (1972) opposite Liza Minelli. Cabaret opened to glowing reviews and strong box office, eventually taking in more than $20 million. The film won eight Oscars and seven British Academy Film Awards. York then starred as D'Artagnan in Alexandre Dumas’ The Three Musketeers (Richard Lester, 1973), and he made his Broadway début in the original production of Tennessee Williams's Out Cry. One year later the sequel to The Three Musketeers was released (roughly covering events in the second half of the book) titled The Four Musketeers (Richard Lester, 1974). Fifteen years later, most of the cast and crew joined together in a third film titled The Return of the Musketeers (Richard Lester, 1989), based on the Alexandre Dumas novel Twenty Years After. York was among the ensemble cast of the British mystery film Murder on the Orient Express (Sidney Lumet, 1974), based on the 1934 novel by Agatha Christie. It was another box-office hit. He played a young officer in India in the British drama Conduct Unbecoming (Michael Anderson, 1975), and the title character in the American science fiction film Logan's Run (Michael Anderson, 1976). The following year, he starred opposite Burt Lancaster in The Island of Dr. Moreau (Don Taylor, 1977), based on H. G. Wells novel of the same name. He also reunited with Zeffirelli as John the Baptist in the TV mini-series Jesus of Nazareth (Franco Zeffirelli, 1977), starring Robert Powell as Jesus, and he played Marty Feldman’s twin brother in the American historical comedy The Last Remake of Beau Geste (Marty Feldman, 1977). His next films, Fedora (Billy Wilder, 1978), the English spy thriller The Riddle of the Sands (Tony Maylam, 1979) and the Canadian spy caper Final Assignment (Paul Almond, 1980) were all box office flops and York started to work more and more for television.
In the following decades, Michael York enjoyed a busy and varied career in television and on the stage. On television he starred in such TV films as The Master of Ballantrae (Douglas Hickox, 1984), Sword of Gideon (Michael Anderson, 1986), and The Lady and the Highwayman (John Hough, 1989), and he appeared in two episodes of the series Road to Avonlea (1991). His Broadway theatre credits include Bent (1980), The Crucible (1992), Someone Who'll Watch Over Me (1993) and the ill-fated musical The Little Prince and the Aviator (1982), which closed during previews. He also has made many sound recordings as a reader, including Harper Audio's production of C. S. Lewis' The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. He kept returning to the cinema. Remarkable was the French-British drama Success Is the Best Revenge (Jerzy Skolimowski, 1984), which was entered into the 1984 Cannes Film Festival. He appeared in the Dutch costume drama Eline Vere (Harry Kümel, 1991). He played Basil Exposition in Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (Jay Roach, 1997) and its two sequels. He was also in the action-adventure The Omega Code (Robert Marcarelli, 1999) with Casper Van Dien. On TV, he appeared as Mason Fairbanks, Homer Simpson's possible father in an 2006 episode of The Simpsons, and played the character Bernard Fremont (inspired by real life serial killer Charles Sobhraj) in the Law & Order: Criminal Intent episode Slither (2006). In 2009, he lent his voice to Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and in 2016, he returned to The Simpsons as Dr. Budgie. In the cinema he was seen in the remarkable Polish film Młyn i krzyż/The Mill and the Cross (Lech Majewski, 2011), starring Rutger Hauer. His autobiography (1993) was issued as Accidentally on Purpose in the U.S. and Travelling Player in Britain. He also co-wrote a book with Adrian Brine called 'A Shakesperean actor prepares. York was awarded the OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the 1996 Queen's Birthday Honours List for his services to drama. Michael York is married to photographer Patricia McCallum. They met in 1967 when she was assigned to photograph him, and they married in 1968. His stepson is Star Wars producer Rick McCallum. In 2013, York announced he was suffering from the rare disease amyloidosis ( a blood disorder). Doctors initially thought he had bone cancer, and in 2012, he had undergone a stem cell transplant, which can alleviate symptoms.
Sources: Andrew Spicer (Encyclopedia of British Film), Ed Stephan (IMDb), Wikipedia and IMDb.
All experience is an arch wherethro' gleams that untravell'd world'
Tennyson apparently - Ulysses:
It little profits that an idle king,
By this still hearth, among these barren crags,
Match'd with an aged wife, I mete and dole
Unequal laws unto a savage race,
That hoard, and sleep, and feed, and know not me.
I cannot rest from travel: I will drink
Life to the lees: all times I have enjoyed
Greatly, have suffered greatly, both with those
That loved me, and alone; on shore, and when
Through scudding drifts the rainy Hyades
Vexed the dim sea: I am become a name;
For always roaming with a hungry heart
Much have I seen and known; cities of men
And manners, climates, councils, governments,
Myself not least, but honoured of them all;
And drunk delight of battle with my peers;
Far on the ringing plains of windy Troy.
I am part of all that I have met;
Yet all experience is an arch wherethrough
Gleams that untravelled world, whose margin fades
For ever and for ever when I move.
How dull it is to pause, to make an end,
To rust unburnished, not to shine in use!
As though to breath were life. Life piled on life
Were all too little, and of one to me
Little remains: but every hour is saved
From that eternal silence, something more,
A bringer of new things; and vile it were
For some three suns to store and hoard myself,
And this grey spirit yearning in desire
To follow knowledge like a sinking star,
Beyond the utmost bound of human thought.
This is my son, mine own Telemachus,
To whom I leave the sceptre and the isle —
Well-loved of me, discerning to fulfil
This labour, by slow prudence to make mild
A rugged people, and through soft degrees
Subdue them to the useful and the good.
Most blameless is he, centred in the sphere
Of common duties, decent not to fail
In offices of tenderness, and pay
Meet adoration to my household gods,
When I am gone. He works his work, I mine.
There lies the port; the vessel puffs her sail:
There gloom the dark broad seas. My mariners,
Souls that have toil'd, and wrought, and thought with me —
That ever with a frolic welcome took
The thunder and the sunshine, and opposed
Free hearts, free foreheads — you and I are old;
Old age hath yet his honour and his toil;
Death closes all: but something ere the end,
Some work of noble note, may yet be done,
Not unbecoming men that strove with Gods.
The lights begin to twinkle from the rocks:
The long day wanes: the slow moon climbs: the deep
Moans round with many voices. Come, my friends,
'Tis not too late to seek a newer world.
Push off, and sitting well in order smite
The sounding furrows; for my purpose holds
To sail beyond the sunset, and the baths
Of all the western stars, until I die.
It may be that the gulfs will wash us down:
It may be we shall touch the Happy Isles,
And see the great Achilles, whom we knew
Tho' much is taken, much abides; and though
We are not now that strength which in old days
Moved earth and heaven; that which we are, we are;
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.
Text from Victorian Web, commentary at Spark Notes
Read more about the following new books at Pesky LibraryThing
Graceling ... Kristin Cashore
Fire ... Kristen Cashore
Bitterblue ... Kristen Cashore
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo ... Stieg Larsson
The Girl Who Played with Fire ... Stieg Larsson
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest ... Stieg Larsson
The Fifth Season ... N. K. Jemisin
The Obelisk Gate ... N. K. Jemisin
The Stone Sky ... N. K. Jemisin
The Glass Sentence ... S. E. Grove
The Golden Specific ... S. E. Grove
The Crimson Skew ... S. E. Grove
Oryx and Crake ... Margaret Atwood
The Year of the Flood ... Margaret Atwood
MaddAddam ... Margaret Atwood
The Magicians ... Lev Grossman
The Magician King ... Lev Grossman
The Magician's Land ... Lev Grossman
The 5th Wave ... Rick Yancey
The Infinite Sea ... Rick Yancey
The Last Star ... Rick Yancey
A Brief History of Montmaray ... Michelle Cooper
The FitzOsbornes in Exile ... Michelle Cooper
The FitzOsbornes at War ... Michelle Cooper
Hunger Games ... Suzanne Collins
Catching Fire ... Suzanne Collins
Mockingjay ... Suzanne Collins
Divergent ... Veronica Roth
Insurgent ... Veronica Roth
Allegiant ... Veronica Roth
A Darker Shade of Magic ... V. E. Schwab
A Gathering of Shadows ... V. E. Schwab
A Conjuring of Light ... V. E. Schwab
The Knife of Never Letting Go ... Patrick Ness
The Ask and the Answer ... Patrick Ness
Monsters of Men ... Patrick Ness
I Hunt Killers ... Barry Lyga
Game ... Barry Lyga
Blood of My Blood ... Barry Lyga
The Amulet of Samarkand ... Jonathan Stroud
The Golem's Eye ... Jonathan Stroud
Ptolemy's Gate ... Jonathan Stroud
Legend ... Marie Lu
Prodigy ... Marie Lu
Champion ... Marie Lu
A Discovery of Witches ... Deborah Harkness
Shadow of Night ... Deborah Harkness
The Book of Life ... Deborah Harkness
Matched ... Ally Condie
Crossed ... Ally Condie
Reached ... Ally Condie
The Queen of the Tearling ... Erika Johansen
Invasion of the Tearling ... Erika Johansen
Fate of the Tearling ... Erika Johansen
The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer ... Michelle Hodkin
The Evolution of Mara Dyer ... Michelle Hodkin
The Retribution of Mara Dyer ... Michelle Hodkin
Chapter 1 - In which, we are introduced to Winnie-the-Pooh, a jar of honey and the stories begin…
As you were!!! That’s a story about a different bear entirely. This story is about a Jersey Shore Bear. You see, ever since Jersey Shore Fightin’ Texas Aggie Ring found New Bear, he didn’t like the bowtie (or is it bear tie?) that New Bear was wearing.
“That tie is hideous.” exclaimed Aggie Ring. “It’s got all of those unattractive brown and tan stripes and is just plain unbecoming. He’s not going to get many people wanting to buy him a beer wearing that ugly bear tie.”
“Whatever shall we do?” I asked Jersey Shore Fightin’ Texas Aggie Ring.
“Don’t you worry.” said Aggie Ring. “I’m Aggie Ring damnit. I’ll take care of this right away. Just give me your credit card.”
I provided Aggie Ring with my credit card info and about 4 or 5 days later, a small package was delivered by UPS.
“That’s what I’m talkin’ about.” said Aggie Ring as he opened the package. “This tie will definitely get people to buy him beer. Hell, we might even be able to persuade some of the “fitness dancers” at the club down the road to take him up on the pole with them.”
Before I could respond, Aggie Ring yelled out, “Hey New Bear, get in here!”
New Bear came running into Aggie Ring’s office. “What is it Sir?” he excitedly asked Aggie Ring.
“Lie down.” Aggie Ring told New Bear. “I’m going to perform a little surgery to get rid of that offensive tie you’ve got sewn to your neck.”
“My tie?” cried out New Bear. “Will it hurt?”
“How the hell should I know?” asked the ring. “Damnit, I’m an Aggie Ring. Not a doctor.”
“But how will you know what you’re doing?” cried New Bear.
“I watched a show on the Animal Channel once.” said Aggie Ring. “I saw them perform surgery on a panda. How hard can surgery be?”
“Ok, if you say so.” said New Bear as he laid down on the desk and started whimpering.
“Now I’m pretty sure that this isn’t going to hurt at all.” Aggie Ring told New Bear. “I’m going to count to “five” and then clip the stitches where the tie is attached to your throat.”
Aggie Ring picked up a sharp pair of clippers and began a slow count. “One… Two… [CLIP].
“Ouch…” screamed out New Bear. “You said that you’d count to five.”
“Oh, did I?” asked Aggie Ring. “Well, it’s over now and at least you aren’t leaking stuffing all over my desk.”
“Take this old tie out and burn it.” Aggie Ring told me. “Also, get a photo of us before I put this new, maroon and white treasure of a tie on New Bear.”
After he had secured the new maroon and white Texas A&M “bear tie” on New Bear and admired his handiwork, Aggie Ring said, “If this doesn’t get people to buy him some Shiner Bock, nothing will.”
#AggieRing
When I search the name of the flower arrangement that I came across for the first time, I give a keyword a season and a place, a color or form. But I thought that this was unbecoming to the tea dealer of the downtown area.
On April 28, 2013 in Nihonbashikakigaracho.
-----
初めて出会った花の名前を検索するとき、季節や場所、色や形などをキーワードに与えます。 でもこれは下町のお茶屋さんには似つかわしくないと思いました。
2013年4月28日、日本橋蛎殻町にて。
Found this fine fellow rocking out all on his own in the panhandle after the race.
Taken with plungercam mini.
.... behaviour very unbecoming of a German Minister.
Strobist: SB28 in softbox up and camera right, SB26 in shoothrough umbrella camera left for fill (set about 2 stops down).
Marine Drive, Scarborough.
The unbecoming front of the Mitsubushi reminds me of Darth Vader's mask, or in white, one of his Storm-troopers!
One of the high/low-lights of my trip to Vegas. CES itself being the highlight, this camera, being a big, sad revelation. It's essentially a digital camera fused with a special printing back that you can print the pictures you shoot from. The camera specs are basically those of a cheap run-of-the-mill point-and-shoot. You can choose to print your mini-photos with or without decorative borders.
Why am I so against the new Polaroid digital camera?
For one, I've been exposed to the world of film photography. It's costly and time-consuming, but incredibly fun and satisfying. The validation that comes with shooting film is far greater than digital.
For another, this does not exemplify Polaroid for me. They can call it a Polaroid, but to me, it will just be a camera with a mini-printer. Polaroids are all about spontaneity and the one-of-a-kind beauty that comes from artful vignetting, muted tones and other completely uncontrollable shifts. These traits don't mean much when you can print the picture over and over again.
Also, though the Polaroid rep (and most of my family) seemed to enjoy the flowery, digitally placed border, I was not impressed. Not only is it blatantly digital, with synthetic colours completely unbecoming of low-fi film, but they're pixelated and just plain ugly. Honestly, it makes the image look like one of the four you get while sitting in a photo booth. A Japanese photo booth. On Zinc photo paper, which is basically like any other film printing paper except it's got a sticker back. And of course, we all know that Polaroids were always meant to be cheap little stickers right?
This situation brings to memory the conflicts between traditional and digital animation. One is costly, time-consuming and arguably more labour-intensive. The other, cleaner, more streamlined and controlled, with similar results. Which do most consumers in today's market gravitate towards? Digital. Don't believe me? Although traditional animation will never truly die, as it serves as the basis for most things digital, the situation many of the top Disney animators of yesteryear is pretty depressing.
Can there be no happy medium?
I know that this doesn't sound bad to some or even most people. In fact, I fully expect this new camera to be a success for Polaroid and I hope it brings the company the millions, straight from the pockets of the curious hobbyists, reviewers and digital fans they're clearly targeting. I can't blame them for trying to modernize themselves and keep up in the world of photography and neither should you. Instant film photography is a niche market in a niche market and shows no signs of heating up.
But none of that stops this from sounding like the last nail being hammered into the coffin of classic instant photography.
11/17/09 Charles Borromeo Church, (noon): Message (generally verbatim) "three great lies of satan..nobody will find out...eleazar was smart enough to see the devil working thru friends...& he refused to compromise or pretend in order to escape death...refused to eat pork & took death instead...how often in our own lives, think nobody is looking...reading maccabees before daniel, all have to do w/ being faithful...maccabeans determined to change jewish people ..make jews worship idols..one story after another...refuse to offend the Lord...reminder...we can get into difficulties..devil telling us nobody will find out...cause of emba incarnation
1st Reading: 2 Maccabee 6.18-31: 19 But preferring a glorious death to a life of defilement, he spat out the meat, and went forward of his own accord to the instrument of torture, 20 as men ought to do who have the courage to reject the food which it is unlawful to taste even for love of life. 21 Those in charge of that unlawful ritual meal took the man aside privately, because of their long acquaintance with him, and urged him to bring meat of his own providing, such as he could legitimately eat, and to pretend to be eating some of the meat of the sacrifice prescribed by the king 22 in this way he would escape the death penalty, and be treated kindly because of their old friendship with him 23 But he made up his mind in a noble manner, worthy of his years, the dignity of his advanced age, the merited distinction of his gray hair, and of the admirable life he had lived from childhood; and so he declared that above all he would be loyal to the holy laws given by God. He told them to send him at once to the abode of the dead, explaining 24"At our age it would be unbecoming to make such a pretense; many young men would think the ninety-year-old Eleazar had gone over to an alien religion. 25 Should I thus dissimulate for the sake of a brief moment of life, they would be led astray by me, while I would bring shame and dishonor on my old age. 26 Even if, for the time being, I avoid the punishment of men, I shall never, whether alive or dead, escape the hands of the Almighty. 27 Therefore, by manfully giving up my life now, I will prove myself worthy of my old age, 28 and I will leave to the young a noble example of how to die willingly and generously for the revered and holy laws." He spoke thus, and went immediately to the instrument of torture 29 Those who shortly before had been kindly disposed, now became hostile toward him because what he had said seemed to them utter madness. 30 When he was about to die under the blows, he groaned and said: "The Lord in his holy knowledge knows full well that, although I could have escaped death, I am not only enduring terrible pain in my body from this scourging, but also suffering it with joy in my soul because of my devotion to him." 31 This is how he died, leaving in his death a model of courage and an unforgettable example of virtue not only for the young but for the whole nation. Responsorial: "The Lord upholds me"; Gospel Reading: Luke 19.1-10: 1 Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. 2 Now behold Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. Now behold there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich. 3 And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could and he was rich. And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature. 4 So he ran So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was going to pass that way. 5 And when Jesus came to the place, He going to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, He going to pass that way. looked up and saw him,[ a] and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make looked up and saw him, and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make looked up and saw him, and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” 6 So So haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” So he made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully. 7 But But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, “He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner.” 8 Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, I give Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.” 9 And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham; 10 for the Son of Man has because he also is a son of Abraham; for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
11/17/09 Charles Borromeo Church, (noon): Message (generally verbatim) "three great lies of satan..nobody will find out...eleazar was smart enough to see the devil working thru friends...& he refused to compromise or pretend in order to escape death...refused to eat pork & took death instead...how often in our own lives, think nobody is looking...reading maccabees before daniel, all have to do w/ being faithful...maccabeans determined to change jewish people ..make jews worship idols..one story after another...refuse to offend the Lord...reminder...we can get into difficulties..devil telling us nobody will find out...cause of emba incarnation
1st Reading: 2 Maccabee 6.18-31: 19 But preferring a glorious death to a life of defilement, he spat out the meat, and went forward of his own accord to the instrument of torture, 20 as men ought to do who have the courage to reject the food which it is unlawful to taste even for love of life. 21 Those in charge of that unlawful ritual meal took the man aside privately, because of their long acquaintance with him, and urged him to bring meat of his own providing, such as he could legitimately eat, and to pretend to be eating some of the meat of the sacrifice prescribed by the king 22 in this way he would escape the death penalty, and be treated kindly because of their old friendship with him 23 But he made up his mind in a noble manner, worthy of his years, the dignity of his advanced age, the merited distinction of his gray hair, and of the admirable life he had lived from childhood; and so he declared that above all he would be loyal to the holy laws given by God. He told them to send him at once to the abode of the dead, explaining 24"At our age it would be unbecoming to make such a pretense; many young men would think the ninety-year-old Eleazar had gone over to an alien religion. 25 Should I thus dissimulate for the sake of a brief moment of life, they would be led astray by me, while I would bring shame and dishonor on my old age. 26 Even if, for the time being, I avoid the punishment of men, I shall never, whether alive or dead, escape the hands of the Almighty. 27 Therefore, by manfully giving up my life now, I will prove myself worthy of my old age, 28 and I will leave to the young a noble example of how to die willingly and generously for the revered and holy laws." He spoke thus, and went immediately to the instrument of torture 29 Those who shortly before had been kindly disposed, now became hostile toward him because what he had said seemed to them utter madness. 30 When he was about to die under the blows, he groaned and said: "The Lord in his holy knowledge knows full well that, although I could have escaped death, I am not only enduring terrible pain in my body from this scourging, but also suffering it with joy in my soul because of my devotion to him." 31 This is how he died, leaving in his death a model of courage and an unforgettable example of virtue not only for the young but for the whole nation. Responsorial: "The Lord upholds me"; Gospel Reading: Luke 19.1-10: 1 Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. 2 Now behold Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. Now behold there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich. 3 And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could and he was rich. And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature. 4 So he ran So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was going to pass that way. 5 And when Jesus came to the place, He going to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, He going to pass that way. looked up and saw him,[ a] and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make looked up and saw him, and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make looked up and saw him, and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” 6 So So haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” So he made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully. 7 But But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, “He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner.” 8 Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, I give Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.” 9 And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham; 10 for the Son of Man has because he also is a son of Abraham; for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
Jersey Shore Fightin’ Texas Aggie Ring was at the farmers’ market near us today to pick up some grapefruit and noticed a bin of beautiful, healthy beets. Aggie Ring loves good beets. Not so much when they’re served hot and mushy on a dinner plate, but crisp and cold when they’re on a salad bar or when they’ve been pickled.
“Boy!” Aggie Ring yelled at me. “Fetch me 8 pounds of these beets and about 3 pounds of red onions.”
“Yes Sir!” I told Aggie Ring and proceeded to get Aggie Ring what he requested.
“I have a plan. A double top secret Aggie Ring plan.” chuckled Aggie Ring as he let out his trademark “Evil Aggie Ring™” laugh.
I didn’t take any photos of the next part because it wasn’t that interesting. But, once we arrived home, Aggie Ring had me scrub the beats really well and cut off the tops and bottoms. Then, he had me put them into his tamale boiler because he didn't have a pot large enough to hold them all. He put them on the boil and covered them as he told me it would probably take at least an hour to get them fork tender.
While the beats were a boiling, Aggie Ring “sliced the hell” outta’ the red onions. He was a big boy Aggie Ring and didn’t cry even once while he was cutting the onions.
Once he was through with the red onions, Aggie Ring made a brine from fresh water, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, honey, ginger, lemon juice, and even a little vanilla.
When the beets were fork tender, Aggie Ring let them cool, peeled them, sliced them, stuffed them into one-quart Ball Jars and covered the beats with the delicious sweet brine.
“Do you think they’ll turn out as well as the batch we made two years ago? I asked Aggie Ring. (They were sweet and tasted like candy.)
“Well, I’ll let you know in a couple of weeks, but I have high hopes. Aggie Ring high hopes.” said the Ring.
Aggie Ring doesn’t like to brag because he say’s it’s unbecoming of an Aggie Ring. However, his last batch of beets was served at a fairly expensive bistro in a very trendy town here on the Jersey Shore. It just so happened we gave a number of jars to the owner for his consumption and he put them into the kitchen fridge. The next day, one of the lunch specials was a beet salad with goat cheese. The owner (and chef) came up to me a couple of day’s later and said, “One of my guys came up to me the day we had the beet salad special and told me that we were out of beets. I told him to break open the jars of Aggie Ring’s beets and use them.”
He then told me, “It was the damndest thing. I had three guests come up to me and tell me that those were the best beets they’d ever had.”
“It’s the honey and the ginger.” says Aggie Ring. “It always is.”
Oh, Aggie Ring asked me to pass on the benefit of beets: Beets are high in immune-boosting vitamin C, fiber, and essential minerals like potassium (essential for healthy nerve and muscle function) and manganese (which is good for your bones, liver, kidneys, and pancreas). Beets also contain the B vitamin folate, which helps reduce the risk of birth defects.
#AggieRing
Ulysses
by Alfred Lord Tennyson
It little profits that an idle king,
By this still hearth, among these barren crags,
Matched with an aged wife, I mete and dole
Unequal laws unto a savage race,
That hoard, and sleep, and feed, and know not me.
I cannot rest from travel: I will drink
Life to the lees: all times I have enjoyed
Greatly, have suffered greatly, both with those
That loved me, and alone; on shore, and when
Through scudding drifts the rainy Hyades
Vext the dim sea: I am become a name;
For always roaming with a hungry heart
Much have I seen and known; cities of men
And manners, climates, councils, government,
Myself not least, but honoured of them all;
And drunk delight of battle with my peers,
Far on the ringing plains of windy Troy.
I am a part of all that I have met;
Yet all experience is an arch wherethrough
Gleams that untravelled world, whose margin fades
For ever and for ever when I move.
How dull it is to pause, to make an end,
To rust unburnished, not to shine in use!
As though to breathe were life. Life piled on life
Were all too little, and of one to me
Little remains: but every hour is saved
From that eternal silence, something more,
A bringer of new things; and vile it were
For some three suns to store and hoard myself,
And this gray spirit yearning in desire
To follow knowledge like a sinking star,
Beyond the utmost bound of human thought.
This is my son, mine own Telemachus,
To whom I leave the sceptre and the isle--
Well-loved of me, discerning to fulfil
This labour, by slow prudence to make mild
A rugged people, and through soft degrees
Subdue them to the useful and the good.
Most blameless is he, centered in the sphere
Of common duties, decent not to fail
In offices of tenderness, and pay
Meet adoration to my houseold gods,
When I am gone. He works his work, I mine.
There lies the port; the vessel puffs her sail:
There gloom the dark broad seas. My mariners,
Souls that have toiled, and wrought, and thought with me--
That ever with a frolic welcome took
The thunder and the sunshine, and opposed
Free hearts, free foreheads--you and I are old;
Old age hath yet his honour and his toil;
Death closes all: but something ere the end,
Some work of noble note, may yet be done,
Not unbecoming men that strove with Gods.
The lights begin to twinkle from the rocks:
The long day wanes: the slow moon climbs: the deep
Moans round with many voices. Come, my friends,
'tis not too late to seek a newer world.
Push off, and sitting well in order smite
The sounding furrows; for my purpose holds
To sail beyond the sunset, and the baths
Of all the western stars, until I die.
It may be that the gulfs will wash us down:
It may be we shall touch the Happy Isles,
And see the great Achilles, whom we knew.
Though much is taken, much abides; and though
We are not now that strength which in old days
Moved earth and heaven; that which we are, we are;
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.
"Cretins Corner," Museo de la Revolucion, Havana, Cuba. I didn't vote for any of those presidents, but I still found it simple-minded, insulting, and unbecoming many of the Cuban people I met.
“It is unbecoming as a prince to speak up, for you will be undone,” I warned. “The world is full of demons and the damned; but here in the ivory tower, I will keep you safe from harm.”
“Ignore the suffering outside," I told him. "They are nothing. They only want to be like you, my handsome, hollow one. As long as you do what you are told, you are perfection.”
He didn’t.
With an inner strength that I did not think he possessed, he broke the walls that had encased his heart. He tore it out of the hollow body that I had made for him, and walked away.
My prince is dead. Ungrateful, wretched thing that he was, yet I am the only one who mourns his memory. The rest have forgotten.
The prince is dead; killed by the man who took his place.
Visit this location at Baseball Bats and Superglue in Second Life
This art installation was collaboratively created by the students and professors of an Art & Science class. Artists: Ellie Bartlett, Jacklyn Brickman, Ashley Browne, Amanda Buckeye, Diva Colter, Mona Gazala, Youji Han, Saba Hashemi Shahraki, Brice Jordan, Liam Manning, Iris Meier, Brooke Stanley, Lily Thompson, Zachary Upperman, Stephen White, Taylor Woodie, and Amy Youngs.
Romanian postcard by Casa Filmului Acin. Photo: publicity still for Logan's Run (Michael Anderson, 1976).
English actor Michael York (1942) is the athletic star of several Shakespeare adaptations and three popular Musketeer films. His blond, blue-eyed boyish looks and plummy accent incarnated a traditionally English public-school manliness in such classic films as Joseph Losey's Accident (1967) and Cabaret (1972).
Michael York, OBE was born Michael Hugh Johnson in 1942, in Fulmer, Buckinghamshire. He is the son of Florence Edith May (née Chown), a musician; and Joseph Gwynne Johnson, a executive with Marks & Spencer department stores. At age three, Michael broke his nose when he jumped off the roof of a coal house while trying to fly. During his teenage years, York was educated at Bromley Grammar School for Boys, Hurstpierpoint College and University College, Oxford. He began his career in a 1956 production of The Yellow Jacket. In 1959 he made his West End début with a small part in a production of Hamlet. York was a member of National Youth Theatre in London's East End and on international tour. He also performed with the Oxford University Dramatic Society and the University College Players. In 1964, he graduated from the University of Oxford with a degree in English. After some time with the Dundee Repertory Theatre, where he played in Brendan Behan's The Hostage, York joined National Theatre under Laurence Olivier where he worked with Franco Zeffirelli during the 1965 staging of Much Ado About Nothing. Following his role on British TV as Jolyon (Jolly) in The Forsyte Saga (1967), York made his film debut as Lucentio in William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew (Franco Zeffirelli, 1967), starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. He also appeared in Accident (Joseph Losey, 1967), Harold Pinter's dramatic film adaptation of the 1965 novel by Nicholas Mosley. At the 1967 Cannes Film Festival the film won the award for Grand Prix Spécial du Jury. Then York was cast as Tybalt Capulet in Zeffirelli’s innovative Romeo and Juliet (Franco Zeffirelli, 1968). He starred in The Guru (James Ivory, 1969) as a rock star who wants to learn to play the sitar, and he played an amoral bisexual drifter in the black comedy Something for Everyone (Harold Prince, 1970) with Angela Lansbury.
Michael York starred in the British World War I action-drama Zeppelin (Étienne Périer, 1971), which depicts a fictitious German attempt to raid on Great Britain in a giant Zeppelin to steal the Magna Carta from its hiding place in one of Scotland's castles. He then portrayed the bisexual Brian Roberts in Bob Fosse's film version of Cabaret (1972) opposite Liza Minelli. Cabaret opened to glowing reviews and strong box office, eventually taking in more than $20 million. The film won eight Oscars and seven British Academy Film Awards. York then starred as D'Artagnan in Alexandre Dumas’ The Three Musketeers (Richard Lester, 1973), and he made his Broadway début in the original production of Tennessee Williams's Out Cry. One year later the sequel to The Three Musketeers was released (roughly covering events in the second half of the book) titled The Four Musketeers (Richard Lester, 1974). Fifteen years later, most of the cast and crew joined together in a third film titled The Return of the Musketeers (Richard Lester, 1989), based on the Alexandre Dumas novel Twenty Years After. York was among the ensemble cast of the British mystery film Murder on the Orient Express (Sidney Lumet, 1974), based on the 1934 novel by Agatha Christie. It was another box-office hit. He played a young officer in India in the British drama Conduct Unbecoming (Michael Anderson, 1975), and the title character in the American science fiction film Logan's Run (Michael Anderson, 1976). The following year, he starred opposite Burt Lancaster in The Island of Dr. Moreau (Don Taylor, 1977), based on H. G. Wells novel of the same name. He also reunited with Zeffirelli as John the Baptist in the TV mini-series Jesus of Nazareth (Franco Zeffirelli, 1977), starring Robert Powell as Jesus, and he played Marty Feldman’s twin brother in the American historical comedy The Last Remake of Beau Geste (Marty Feldman, 1977). His next films, Fedora (Billy Wilder, 1978), the English spy thriller The Riddle of the Sands (Tony Maylam, 1979) and the Canadian spy caper Final Assignment (Paul Almond, 1980) were all box office flops and York started to work more and more for television.
In the following decades, Michael York enjoyed a busy and varied career in television and on the stage. On television he starred in such TV films as The Master of Ballantrae (Douglas Hickox, 1984), Sword of Gideon (Michael Anderson, 1986), and The Lady and the Highwayman (John Hough, 1989), and he appeared in two episodes of the series Road to Avonlea (1991). His Broadway theatre credits include Bent (1980), The Crucible (1992), Someone Who'll Watch Over Me (1993) and the ill-fated musical The Little Prince and the Aviator (1982), which closed during previews. He also has made many sound recordings as a reader, including Harper Audio's production of C. S. Lewis' The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. He kept returning to the cinema. Remarkable was the French-British drama Success Is the Best Revenge (Jerzy Skolimowski, 1984), which was entered into the 1984 Cannes Film Festival. He appeared in the Dutch costume drama Eline Vere (Harry Kümel, 1991). He played Basil Exposition in Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (Jay Roach, 1997) and its two sequels. He was also in the action-adventure The Omega Code (Robert Marcarelli, 1999) with Casper Van Dien. On TV, he appeared as Mason Fairbanks, Homer Simpson's possible father in an 2006 episode of The Simpsons, and played the character Bernard Fremont (inspired by real life serial killer Charles Sobhraj) in the Law & Order: Criminal Intent episode Slither (2006). In 2009, he lent his voice to Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and in 2016, he returned to The Simpsons as Dr. Budgie. In the cinema he was seen in the remarkable Polish film Młyn i krzyż/The Mill and the Cross (Lech Majewski, 2011), starring Rutger Hauer. His autobiography (1993) was issued as Accidentally on Purpose in the U.S. and Travelling Player in Britain. He also co-wrote a book with Adrian Brine called 'A Shakesperean actor prepares. York was awarded the OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the 1996 Queen's Birthday Honours List for his services to drama. Michael York is married to photographer Patricia McCallum. They met in 1967 when she was assigned to photograph him, and they married in 1968. His stepson is Star Wars producer Rick McCallum. In 2013, York announced he was suffering from the rare disease amyloidosis ( a blood disorder). Doctors initially thought he had bone cancer, and in 2012, he had undergone a stem cell transplant, which can alleviate symptoms.
Sources: Andrew Spicer (Encyclopedia of British Film), Ed Stephan (IMDb), Wikipedia and IMDb.
East-German postcard by Progress Film-Verleih, Berlin, no. 115/76. Photo: Michael York in The Three Musketeers (Richard Lester, 1973).
English actor Michael York (1942) is the athletic star of several Shakespeare adaptations and three popular Musketeer films. His blond, blue-eyed boyish looks and plummy accent incarnated a traditionally English public-school manliness in such classic films as Joseph Losey's Accident (1967) and Cabaret (1972).
Michael York, OBE was born Michael Hugh Johnson in 1942, in Fulmer, Buckinghamshire. He is the son of Florence Edith May (née Chown), a musician; and Joseph Gwynne Johnson, a executive with Marks & Spencer department stores. At age three, Michael broke his nose when he jumped off the roof of a coal house while trying to fly. During his teenage years, York was educated at Bromley Grammar School for Boys, Hurstpierpoint College and University College, Oxford. He began his career in a 1956 production of The Yellow Jacket. In 1959 he made his West End début with a small part in a production of Hamlet. York was a member of National Youth Theatre in London's East End and on international tour. He also performed with the Oxford University Dramatic Society and the University College Players. In 1964, he graduated from the University of Oxford with a degree in English. After some time with the Dundee Repertory Theatre, where he played in Brendan Behan's The Hostage, York joined National Theatre under Laurence Olivier where he worked with Franco Zeffirelli during the 1965 staging of Much Ado About Nothing. Following his role on British TV as Jolyon (Jolly) in The Forsyte Saga (1967), York made his film debut as Lucentio in William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew (Franco Zeffirelli, 1967), starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. He also appeared in Accident (Joseph Losey, 1967), Harold Pinter's dramatic film adaptation of the 1965 novel by Nicholas Mosley. At the 1967 Cannes Film Festival the film won the award for Grand Prix Spécial du Jury. Then York was cast as Tybalt Capulet in Zeffirelli’s innovative Romeo and Juliet (Franco Zeffirelli, 1968). He starred in The Guru (James Ivory, 1969) as a rock star who wants to learn to play the sitar, and he played an amoral bisexual drifter in the black comedy Something for Everyone (Harold Prince, 1970) with Angela Lansbury.
Michael York starred in the British World War I action-drama Zeppelin (Étienne Périer, 1971), which depicts a fictitious German attempt to raid on Great Britain in a giant Zeppelin to steal the Magna Carta from its hiding place in one of Scotland's castles. He then portrayed the bisexual Brian Roberts in Bob Fosse's film version of Cabaret (1972) opposite Liza Minelli. Cabaret opened to glowing reviews and strong box office, eventually taking in more than $20 million. The film won eight Oscars and seven British Academy Film Awards. York then starred as D'Artagnan in Alexandre Dumas’ The Three Musketeers (Richard Lester, 1973), and he made his Broadway début in the original production of Tennessee Williams's Out Cry. One year later the sequel to The Three Musketeers was released (roughly covering events in the second half of the book) titled The Four Musketeers (Richard Lester, 1974). Fifteen years later, most of the cast and crew joined together in a third film titled The Return of the Musketeers (Richard Lester, 1989), based on the Alexandre Dumas novel Twenty Years After. York was among the ensemble cast of the British mystery film Murder on the Orient Express (Sidney Lumet, 1974), based on the 1934 novel by Agatha Christie. It was another box-office hit. He played a young officer in India in the British drama Conduct Unbecoming (Michael Anderson, 1975), and the title character in the American science fiction film Logan's Run (Michael Anderson, 1976). The following year, he starred opposite Burt Lancaster in The Island of Dr. Moreau (Don Taylor, 1977), based on H. G. Wells novel of the same name. He also reunited with Zeffirelli as John the Baptist in the TV mini-series Jesus of Nazareth (Franco Zeffirelli, 1977), starring Robert Powell as Jesus, and he played Marty Feldman’s twin brother in the American historical comedy The Last Remake of Beau Geste (Marty Feldman, 1977). His next films, Fedora (Billy Wilder, 1978), the English spy thriller The Riddle of the Sands (Tony Maylam, 1979) and the Canadian spy caper Final Assignment (Paul Almond, 1980) were all box office flops and York started to work more and more for television.
In the following decades, Michael York enjoyed a busy and varied career in television and on the stage. On television he starred in such TV films as The Master of Ballantrae (Douglas Hickox, 1984), Sword of Gideon (Michael Anderson, 1986), and The Lady and the Highwayman (John Hough, 1989), and he appeared in two episodes of the series Road to Avonlea (1991). His Broadway theatre credits include Bent (1980), The Crucible (1992), Someone Who'll Watch Over Me (1993) and the ill-fated musical The Little Prince and the Aviator (1982), which closed during previews. He also has made many sound recordings as a reader, including Harper Audio's production of C. S. Lewis' The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. He kept returning to the cinema. Remarkable was the French-British drama Success Is the Best Revenge (Jerzy Skolimowski, 1984), which was entered into the 1984 Cannes Film Festival. He appeared in the Dutch costume drama Eline Vere (Harry Kümel, 1991). He played Basil Exposition in Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (Jay Roach, 1997) and its two sequels. He was also in the action-adventure The Omega Code (Robert Marcarelli, 1999) with Casper Van Dien. On TV, he appeared as Mason Fairbanks, Homer Simpson's possible father in an 2006 episode of The Simpsons, and played the character Bernard Fremont (inspired by real life serial killer Charles Sobhraj) in the Law & Order: Criminal Intent episode Slither (2006). In 2009, he lent his voice to Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and in 2016, he returned to The Simpsons as Dr. Budgie. In the cinema he was seen in the remarkable Polish film Młyn i krzyż/The Mill and the Cross (Lech Majewski, 2011), starring Rutger Hauer. His autobiography (1993) was issued as Accidentally on Purpose in the U.S. and Travelling Player in Britain. He also co-wrote a book with Adrian Brine called 'A Shakesperean actor prepares. York was awarded the OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the 1996 Queen's Birthday Honours List for his services to drama. Michael York is married to photographer Patricia McCallum. They met in 1967 when she was assigned to photograph him, and they married in 1968. His stepson is Star Wars producer Rick McCallum. In 2013, York announced he was suffering from the rare disease amyloidosis ( a blood disorder). Doctors initially thought he had bone cancer, and in 2012, he had undergone a stem cell transplant, which can alleviate symptoms.
Sources: Andrew Spicer (Encyclopedia of British Film), Ed Stephan (IMDb), Wikipedia and IMDb.
A tall Celtic Cross in grey granite makes the grave stone of - - -
Dr Elsie Maud Inglis.
Surgeon, Philathropist, Patriot,
- a leader in the movement for the Political Emancipation of Women,
- the Founder in 1914 of the Scottish Women’s Hospitals for Foreign Service.
- Founder of Scottish Women's Suffrage Federation and Scottish Women's Hospitals, alumna.
The latter fulfilling and immense effort of work behind the Western Front in Flanders and the Salonica Front in what is now Ukraine.
' Mors Janua Vitae ', or ' Death, the Gate to Everlasting Life '.
Elsie Maud Inglis was born in 1864 in India, to John Forbes David Inglis, a chief commissioner in the Indian civil service.
After a private education she enrolled in Dr Sophia Jex-Blake's newly opened Edinburgh School of Medicine for Women, then completed her training under Sir William MacEwen at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary.
She qualified as a licentiate of both the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons, Edinburgh, and the Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow in 1892.
Inglis was motivated the generally appalling standard of care and lack of specialisation in the needs of female patients, which led to her becoming politically active and playing an important role in the early years of the Scottish Federation of Women's Suffrage Societies.
After qualifying, she started work at Elizabeth Garrett Anderson's pioneering New Hospital for Women in London then went on to the Rotunda in Dublin, a leading maternity hospital.
She returned to Edinburgh in 1894 to set up a medical practice with fellow student Jessie MacGregor. She also opened a maternity hospital (The Hospice) for poor women, and a midwifery resource centre.
A philanthropist, she often waived the fees owed to her and would pay for her patients to recuperate by the seaside.
Despite her already notable achievements, it was her efforts during the First World War that brought her fame. When war broke out she suggested the creation of women's medical units on the Western Front but the War Office were not interested and she was told by an official "My good lady, go home and sit still".
Instead, she made her offer to the French Government, whose acceptance led to the setting up of an Auxiliary Hospital at Abbaye de Royaumont in 1914 and at another hospital in Villers Cotterets in 1917.
She was active in sending teams to Serbia and Russia and herself went to Serbia where her work in improving hygiene reduced the raging typhus epidemic.
In 1915 she was captured and repatriated. On her arrival back home, she began organising funds for a Scottish Women's Hospital team in Russia, which left for Odessa in 1916.
Inglis led the team initially but, in 1917, she took ill from the long working hours and appalling conditions.
She returned to England where she died the following day on 26 November, aged 53 at the Central Station Hotel, Newcastle. She is buried at Dean Cemetery, Edinburgh.
Her dedication to her cause lead to one biographer saying that she "made Florence Nightingale look like a part-time care assistant".
After her death Winston Churchill was quoted as saying that she and her medical staff would, "shine forever in history", however, even the memorial hospital in Edinburgh opened to commemorate her work has now closed down.
In 2022 there is a move to fund raise with the intention of placing a statue sculpture on Edinburgh’s Royal Mile. Many would say she deserves a plaque in St Giles High Kirk.
An unseemly row has broken out and raises its head in the media from time to time relating to the appointment of sculptor. At present the committee has offered the commission to someone who was not on the list of tenders. Which seems entirely appropriate to me if the tenders did not meet the artistic and financial objectives.
This is a great pity that the argument has been taken from within committee meetings, and is exercised in the public arena. Some very harsh things have been said.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-63349803
In that violent period in WW1 when the help of women was refused by British politicians and some military, a number of women rose to be absolute male dominance iconoclasts and thank goodness for that.
Another in the same period and in similar circumstances was Dr Elizabeth Ness MacBean Ross, who died from cholera transmitted in one the hospitals she served in, north of Salonika, in WW1, many staffed by Elise Inglis volunteers.
I have an album in her honour. She is remembered in St Duthacs Chapel in Tain, and throughout Serbia. And here - - -
www.flickr.com/photos/145548564@N04/albums/72157680072521428
In comparison the esteemed memory of Elsie Maud Inglis has some catching up to do. Pity it is being soiled with unbecoming and unnecessary rancour.
And there is now more in the news - - -
angelfishing submitted: Michelangelo Buonarroti - Cleopatra (1533) This drawing of Cleopatra by Michelangelo is a piece that has been both admired and contested by historians. It was given more attention in recent years because of the strange drawing revealed on the back of it, probably done by one of Michelangelo’s students/admirers. So who is the inept draftsman of the Cleopatra verso, the first drawing on this otherwise magnificent sheet? I would suggest Tommaso de’ Cavalieri, the young man to whom Michelangelo offered drawing lessons and who was the first owner of the Cleopatra. Michelangelo met Cavalieri in Rome toward the end of 1532. By all accounts, Cavalieri was extremely handsome, endowed with exquisite manners, physical grace, and a sensitive personality. Despite the difference in age and in social standing (Cavalieri was from a noble Roman family), the two experienced an instant mutual attraction and enjoyed a close friendship that lasted more than 30 years. And how did an old man (Michelangelo was considered old at 57) express his feelings for the admiring youth? With long, gushing letters, poetry, days spent looking at art together, and an offer to teach the young man drawing. Cavalieri tried his hand by drawing the figure on the verso. Not yet a Cleopatra, the head may have been inspired by an antique sculpture that the two friends inspected together, such as the famousSleeping Ariadne in the Belvedere Court of the Vatican. Or it may have been inspired by Giovanni Boccaccio’s Famous Women: is this Agrippina, the grieving wife of Germanicus, or the Carthaginian Queen Sofonisba just after draining the fateful cup of poison? However, Cavalieri’s halting effort fell short of its classical inspiration (the display of teeth had especially negative connotations). To demonstrate “buon disegno,” Michelangelo reversed the sheet and performed a miracle of artistic alchemy: ugliness became beauty, harrowing but unbecoming emotion became serene resignation, an indecorous head was transformed into a doomed Cleopatra. We are privileged witnesses of Michelangelo turning base matter into gold. Cavalieri kept the Cleopatra for 30 years before he was constrained to donate it to Duke Cosimo de’ Medici in 1562. In the accompanying letter, Cavalieri lamented that giving up his treasured possession was no less painful than losing a child. That’s from William E. Wallace at this article here.
We have to be up before dawn to wash and get dressed, so to get in the jeeps before six, to get access to the park, all so that we miss the heat of the day for at least one safari per day.
It was cool and dawn just beginning to break as we walked from our hut to reception, there we are all allocated our vehicle with driver. Once at the park gate, we collect a trained guide, and show our passports that have to match the permits we have each day.
As we entered the park, the sun rose and we could see its blood red face through the trees. We stopped to take shots.
At the first lake we stopped and saw a Crested snake eagle, then further along, the guide shouted to stop, and right beside the roadway was a sleep Nightjar, blending in with the rocks around it.
We drove through the park, taking half an hour to reach the inner gate, then another half hour to reach a watering hole, where on the far side, a mother tiger was guarding her two nearly year-old cubs. They lay in the sun, half playing before going to sleep, and we all moved away.
Our guide knew of some out of the way places, so thanks to him we saw a fine White-throated kingfisher, and I spotted a wild boar, rummaging in the leaf litter. A pure white Paradise flycatcher delighted us, as it showed well in a tree above the main road, and later on I saw a Mongoose fleeing into the undergrowth, its black-tipped tail flowing behind.
We stopped for a late breakfast at ten, then went to check on one final spot before returning to the main gate to drop the guide off, then back to camp with an hour to kill before lunch.
Lunch was buffet curries, all different from each other and the day before, but most containing lots of vegetables, so all good.
Back into the jeep at two, in the full heat of the day. Something like 41 or so degrees, hotter than it has ever got back home by several degrees. And once moving, the breeze would have cooked roast chicken in half an hour or so it seemed.
A fairly uneventful safari, there was rumour of more tigers at the same watering hole as the morning, so we set course for there.
As did all the other jeeps, from our party and others like us, as well as day trips, there must have been 25 vehicles, all jostling for space. It was pretty unbecoming to be frank, and I would have said we gave up.
And left.
But, a pair of tigers came, but lay down over the crest of a rise, so out of view, sometimes the back of the male’s ears were just visible.
Jeeps were three and four deep, and those at the back like us stood little chance of seeing anything, so two wardens arrived and insisted that the ones in front get out and let others, like us have a chance.
So we got to the front, both tigers had by this time escaped into the long grass, and again I wondered why we were wasting time, waiting.
The female broke cover, and ambled down the bank from the grass, down to the edge of the lake, then into it, to get to the small island the other side. Light was perfect, as the tigress began to stalk a family of barking deer the other side of the lake.
Step by step it went right, slowly and with deliberate steps, onto a line of rocks sticking out of the water. Remembering Xavier’s shots of the Arctic fox from Svalbard, I zoomed out slightly to get the tigress’s reflection. It was perfect.
The light, the tiger, the reflection, using the jeep as a tripod meant the shots were blur-free.
The tigress stretched, doing kitty yoga like the mogs back home, and then continued inching towards the deer. They knew she was there, and also knew that in the event of an attack, they had a 50 yard head start, and the tiger would be running through water too.
Our time ran out before the tableaux could be completed, but pretty sure all deer got away and the tigers went hungry.
We made our way back, taking an hour at 25mp/h to get to the gates to drop the guide off, then finding the town jammed because of a bad parker on the 90 degree bend. Horns sounded, and the bolshiest drivers got through first, ours was second, then hammering through the gloaming without lights back to the camp where supper of yet more curry was waiting.
We all celebrated with large bottles of cold beer.
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The Bengal tiger is a population of the Panthera tigris tigris subspecies and the nominate tiger subspecies. It ranks among the largest wild cats alive today. It is estimated to have been present in the Indian subcontinent since the Late Pleistocene for about 12,000 to 16,500 years. Its historical range covered the Indus River valley until the early 19th century, almost all of India, western Pakistan, southern Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan and southwestern China. Today, it inhabits India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, and southwestern China. It is threatened by poaching, habitat loss and habitat fragmentation.
As of 2022, the Bengal tiger population was estimated at 3,167–3,682 individuals in India, 316–355 individuals in Nepal, 131 individuals in Bhutan and around 114 individuals in Bangladesh.
Felis tigris was the scientific name used by Carl Linnaeus in 1758 for the tiger.[1] It was subordinated to the genus Panthera by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1929. Bengal is the traditional type locality of the species and the nominate subspecies Panthera tigris tigris.[2]
The validity of several tiger subspecies in continental Asia was questioned in 1999. Morphologically, tigers from different regions vary little, and gene flow between populations in those regions is considered to have been possible during the Pleistocene. Therefore, it was proposed to recognise only two subspecies as valid, namely P. t. tigris in mainland Asia, and P. t. sondaica in the Greater Sunda Islands and possibly in Sundaland.[3] The nominate subspecies P. t. tigris constitutes two clades: the northern clade comprises the Siberian and Caspian tiger populations, and the southern clade all remaining continental tiger populations.[4] The extinct and living tiger populations in continental Asia have been subsumed to P. t. tigris since the revision of felid taxonomy in 2017.
The Bengal tiger's coat is yellow to light orange, with stripes ranging from dark brown to black; the belly and the interior parts of the limbs are white, and the tail is orange with black rings. The white tiger is a recessive mutant, which is reported in the wild from time to time in Assam, Bengal, Bihar and especially in the former State of Rewa. However, it is not an occurrence of albinism. In fact, there is only one fully authenticated case of a true albino tiger, and none of black tigers, with the possible exception of one dead specimen examined in Chittagong in 1846.[9] Fourteen Bengal tiger skins in the collection of the Natural History Museum, London have 21–29 stripes.[3] Another recessive mutant is the golden tiger that has a pale golden fur with red-brown stripes.[10] The mutants are very rare in nature.[11]
The greatest skull length of a tiger is 351 mm (13.8 in) in males and 293 mm (11.5 in) in females.[12] It has exceptionally stout teeth. Its canines are 7.5 to 10 cm (3.0 to 3.9 in) long and thus the longest among all cats.[
The Bengal tiger ranks among the biggest wild cats alive today.[14] Males and female Bengal tigers in Panna Tiger Reserve reach a head-to-body length of 183–211 cm (72–83 in) and 164–193 cm (65–76 in) respectively, including a tail about 85–110 cm (33–43 in) long. Total length ranges from 283 to 311 cm (111 to 122 in) for male tigers and 255–285 cm (100–112 in) for female tigers.[15] They typically range from 90–110 cm (35–43 in) in shoulder height.
In the 20th century, Indian censuses of wild tigers relied on the individual identification of footprints known as pug marks – a method that has been criticised as deficient and inaccurate. Camera traps are now being used in many sites.[35]
Good tiger habitats in subtropical and temperate forests include the Tiger Conservation Units (TCUs) Manas-Namdapha. TCUs in tropical dry forest include Hazaribag Wildlife Sanctuary, Nagarjunsagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve, Kanha-Indravati corridor, Orissa dry forests, Panna National Park, Melghat Tiger Reserve and Ratapani Tiger Reserve. The TCUs in tropical moist deciduous forest are probably some of the most productive habitats for tigers and their prey, and include Kaziranga-Meghalaya, Kanha-Pench, Simlipal and Indravati Tiger Reserves. The TCUs in tropical moist evergreen forests represent the less common tiger habitats, being largely limited to the upland areas and wetter parts of the Western Ghats, and include the tiger reserves of Periyar, Kalakad-Mundathurai, Bandipur and Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary.
Rosie Daisy had been on the cruiseship from Sydney heading to the Royal wedding...last time we saw her, she had docked in Singapore, had a fling, picked up a...cabaret singer-entertainer-chimneysweep jack of all trades.
Well, seeing her like *this*, she had clearly missed the boat. LIterally.
They docked in St. Petersburg, she got friendly drinking with the local matrossi - that's local speak for the Russky sailors and...well...that alone was classed as 'conduct unbecoming a young lady'. But the real reason the Captain threw her off? Cavorting with Bert, plus the fact Bert biffed the brawling sailor mob.
She'd booked the bargain slimline Fashion Fever cabin trunk, made to take one lady only in refined elegance (with an upright sleeping berth!), and a rule of: strictly no male companions...but Bert had snuck on in Singapore. Tsk tsk. So lock, stock and trunk, she was cast off by the Captain.
Nope, Bert was sitting pretty as he'd pay his way to England putting on shows and drawing chalk paintings on deck to entertain the kids, and that left hapless Rosie Daisy, the hopeless holiday hoarder and her HUGE haul...hungry, homeless and hard done by ;-(
Now, she'd have to figure out how to get herself - and her lovely loot - to Western Europe, toot sweet, because she didn't have a rouble, dollar, centime or Euro to her name.....but, she *always* had a plan!