Now I understand the sign that advised visitors not to touch or "wear" any of the objects in the Cranberry museum.

 

The sign says workers wore these platform boots in the cranberry bogs when the berries were ripening so as not to damage the maturing fruit.

Understand, there is no Right or Wrong. There is only "right" for you, according to your desires.

 

Personally, I really like the older woman look, but one who still endeavors to be a bit stylish. I believe I could live my entire life that way, if I had that option.

Second full day in Valencia, and a day of culture planned, or at least visits to several churches.

 

Which counts as culture, right?

 

We laid in bed to half seven, then leapt out, had showers and after dressing went down for breakfast. Breakfast was fruit, cold cuts, fresh rolls and cakes all with lashings of coffee, was good.

 

Traffic outside the hotel is mad in the morning, with it trying to get on the main roads alongside and over the long park, we walked over to the other side and flagged a taxi down to take us to San Nicolás de Bari, or close to it, though walking would not have taken much longer than the taxi ride. We think we got the driver to understand our required destination, and he drove off, weaving in and out of the other cars and buses.

 

He dropped us in a narrow alleyway lined with old shops covered in graffiti, not sure it it was art or just rundown. But with Maps on the mobile, we walked the three minutes to the church, and found out it opened at half ten. We had 90 minutes to kill.

 

Down the street was a coffee shop, so we had another coffee and watched the world go by from our small table on the street. We then sat on a bench nearer the church as time crept to half ten and the opening of the church.

 

St Nicholas is an ancient church, but had something of a Baroque makeover in the 18th century, and the walls, ceilings and everywhere covered in paintings, fresos and statues. As a whole it is remarkable, and the work is of a very high standard indeed. As is the way here, it seems, the church was lined with side chapels with statues or triptychs.

 

A short walk away is the Cathedral, a large a sprawling complex meaning that in the search for the entrance I found another Basilica conjoined to it, so we went it and found a small square church by with the underside of the dowm gloriously painted.

 

We sat for a wile in the cool before moving on, but crowds at the entrance to the cathedral meant we thought we would return on Friday, early, to beat the crowds. It was half eleven, and in trying somewhere to shady to sit, I find two more churches which to visit, the second a service began at midday. We did stay for ten minutes, but left in a break in play, and went back outside.

 

But being after midday, it meant bars and restaurants were open, and on a side street we fond a small place that did cold beer and were happy to make us a bowl of Valencian paella, made with chicken and rabbit. Paella takes at least half an hour to make, so we sat, talked and drank cold beers untel the tin pan full of rice, herbs, vegetables and meat was brought.

 

Once we had eaten, it being two in the afternoon, we walked back to the hotel for a siesta. Going was hard, but we walked on the shady side of the streets, and in 20 minutes we were back in our room, but it had yet to be serviced. When the maid came at three, we went and sat in the shade in the small park in the centre of the boulevard outside the hotel, watching people and traffic coming and going.

 

We sat in the room, writing and listening to podcasts until it was half six, and the heat of the day had left, to walk back to the centre for arts, so we could take shots of the complex once the sun set at quarter to nine.

 

In fact, the hour we took to ambe there on Wednesday could be done is close to 20 minutes if you don't stop every 20 yards to take photos. Who knew?

 

The paths and tracks were packed with people doing exercise, taking their dogs or children out for a walk, or just out.

 

Like us.

 

Once we reached the complex, crowds had thinned as all was closed to visitors, so it was just a hardy band of photographers and tourists waiting for the sun to set. We had 90 minutes to wait, so we walked up to the far end of the site, where the zoo was, and in there is another fine building, but it could not be seen from the road or paths, but the walk did increase our step could to over 16,000!

 

As the sun set, lights came on, so we walked back to the taxi rank, taking dozens, if not hundreds of shots, as the light changed minute by minute, and lights came on, illuminating and highlighting the shapes of the buildings.

 

Half nine, it was dark, and it took ten minutes for a taxi to come by that we could flag down, he whizzed us back to the hotel, and a walk over the road to the Irish bar where most of the city were inside watching the various games ebig shown. I got us a drink and we took them to sit on the cool pavement tables, watching the traffic and beautiful people passing by. Some were on their way out to paint the town, we were pooped, so went back to the hotel.

 

----------------------------------------------------

 

The space occupied by the parish church of San Nicolás has been considered sacred practically since the Roman foundation of the city. Apparently in this area a temple was already dedicated to pagan divinities and was a burial place outside the city walls, according to Roman custom.

 

Historical documents state that the first building was built in the time of King James I, who donated the place to the Dominicans who accompanied him. Years later the Dominicans founded the Convent of Santo Domingo (current Captaincy General building) and the temple was directly linked to the diocese of Valencia and the secular clergy. It was erected as a parish around 1242 and is included in the first twelve Christian parishes of the city of Valencia after the restoration of the Diocese in the year 1238.

 

It is the Dominicans who dedicate this new Parish to San Nicolás Obispo, patron saint of the Order, since its founder, Santo Domingo de Guzmán, was writing the Constitutions of the Order of Preachers at that time in the Convent of San Nicolás de Bologna.

 

Later, an altar was dedicated to San Pedro Mártir in this Parish. A miracle occurred in it that saved the life of a newborn, so the devotion in Valencia for this saint grew until San Pedro Mártir ended up being co-owner of the Parish. And although the church maintains, and as such they appear on its High Altar, the ownership of San Nicolás de Bari and San Pedro Mártir, the church is popularly known as San Nicolás.

 

Later, in the middle of the Golden Age, San Nicolás will be linked to relevant figures of this century such as the writer Jaume Roig, administrator of the parish; and Alfonso de Borja, future Pope Calixto III. It is the century in which San Nicolás is fully transformed into a Gothic building and is enlarged towards the feet.

 

Centuries later, it will experience the great Baroque transformation that results in the architectural adaptation of the building and its redecoration with the excellent fresco paintings that decorate it and that we can currently appreciate in all its splendor.

 

In the 19th century, the environment of the parish changed substantially, since the Plaza de San Nicolás was opened within the Interior Reform carried out by the Valencia City Council. The neo-Gothic south façade that opens onto the square stands out from this period.

 

During the Civil War of 1936-1939, San Nicolás suffered serious damage: the chapels were destroyed and the temple looted and turned into a warehouse. After this sad episode, the Parish was declared a National Historic-Artistic Monument in 1981.

 

And in the 21st century the architectural and pictorial restoration of the Parish began under the patronage of the Hortensia Herrero Foundation, whose magnificent result allows us to contemplate the Parish in all its splendor.

 

The primitive church built after the reconquest began its transformation towards Gothic between 1419 and 1455. In this last date the temple was enlarged towards the feet, occupying the place where the parish cemetery or fossar was located . The ribbed vault was also built in the central nave.

 

It is a church with a single nave with six sections, side chapels between the buttresses (six on each side although two of them are occupied by the side entrance doors) and a polygonal presbytery facing east.

 

Between 1690 and 1693 the Gothic interior is covered with Baroque decoration in the style of the time, a reform attributed to Juan Bautista Pérez Castiel. On the architectural reform, the fresco paintings designed by Antonio Palomino and executed by his disciple Dionís Vidal in 1700, who covered the Gothic vaults, pillars and walls with scenes from the life of San Nicolás de Bari and San Pedro Mártir, together with with allegories of the Virtues in risky foreshortenings.

 

www.sannicolasvalencia.com/historia/

to understand how unique this is, we live in an upscale suburban town with manicured lawns and the proverbial white picket fences. for months (maybe years) now, this poor barn progressively sagged, until it recently succumbed to the laws of gravity.

 

i am swapping out the pearl for this pic for the B&WW group's theme of broken-- cause it fits so much better!! altho i really liked the pearl ~grin~

112 pics in 2012 #109

ODC crooked (yep, i definitely think it is!!)

#TP155 -- yep, it qualifies as old

 

as usual, i am undecided about using this for cliche saturday

.........OR the one of the clothespins at preschool???

www.flickr.com/photos/muffett68/7075052919

“Some people don't understand the promises they're making when they make them," I said.

"Right, of course. But you keep the promise anyway. That's what love is. Love is keeping the promise anyway !!!!! ”

This light, it understand what you have yet to. It has seen the pages you never will. The ones scribbled by unrelenting confusion, smeared by hands over still-wet ink, splotched by tears, scrunched into unreadable folds.

Oh, but it has also seen dreams... Of travels, of moments, of goals, of somedays.

And these dreams, dear one, are what call me onward.

Pioneering geologist and founder member of the Royal Geographical Society.

 

We understand how our world was formed through the work of pioneering geologists like Murchison. There’s even a crater on the moon named after him!

 

Roderick was born in Ross-shire in Scotland, went to school in Durham and then to a military college. He served in the army for eight years, travelled in Italy with his wife for two, then returned to settle in County Durham.

 

There he met the inventor Sir Humphrey Davy, who introduced him to the new science of geology. It was to become his life’s passion. He studied the geology of the south of England, the south of France and the Alps, all the while reporting back to the Geological Society of London.

 

Roderick’s research into the ages and formation of the layers of rock in the Welsh borders resulted in his hugely influential book, The Silurian System, in 1839. He then helped establish the structures and events of the Devonian geological period in the south west of England. He went on to classify rocks in Russia and, towards the end of his life, studied the geology of Highland Scotland.

 

Roderick was a founder member of the Royal Geographical Society, and was its president four times. He was knighted for his work in 1846, and awarded a host of prizes and accolades for a lifetime of geological research and discovery. There are also towns, rivers and islands around the world named after him – and a crater on the moon.

 

Brompton Cemetery, Fulham Road, London

1. What name do you go by?

 

Vanessa Kusah

    

2. How do you identify ethnically?

 

If I had to describe my self ethnically on an application form for example it would be either Black African or Black Caribbean. However, as my parentage is Ghanaian and Sierra Leonean on my mums’ side and Jamaican on my dad’s side and I myself identify as British. However, in the UK it seems still unfeasible for a black person to define themselves simply as British. I would prefer to identify as Afro-British. British from African descent and heritage.

  

3. To what extent does your ethnic identity influence your character, if at all?

 

I feel that I am variedly influenced by my cultural heritage but mainly from my mother’s side, especially my grandmothers to whom I am incredibly close. However, I find it difficult to say that my African and Caribbean roots are a strong reflection of my character, something I at times despise. However, as I feel that all my intrinsic experiences combine and seem best to define my character. The fact that I am a woman, young and black all combine to me being the person that I am. However, my life experiences more than anything define who am I and how I decide

      

3. Describe a particular incident where you have encountered racism. Keep in mind the definition of racism that I am using is broad. Therefore a racist incident is not necessarily something that should shock and disgust readers but also perhaps something that is very subtle and not overtly racist, but had an impact of making you feel different; bothered e.g. someone touching your hair, being questioned about your ethnicity, etc…

 

I do feel there are several instances I could talk about here. I feel that overtly racist instances are unimportant in my case as although shocking, it never phased me as any time I have encountered blatant racism, I have sort of laughed and assumed ignorance and lack of understanding and therefore have not felt deeply offended or hurt. However, there was a period at school when I was about 14 when I decided that I didn’t want to chemically straighten my hair anymore, even to the surprise of my mum. I think I was just spurred by a period of awakening where I spent a lot of time reading and understanding the history and struggle of people in the African Diaspora. It suddenly occurred to me that what I assumed to be the norm and acceptable wasn’t and just felt happier not having to conform. You could say it was a small act of cultural rebellion, however it was just something I felt I had to do in order to be happy to be me, the real me. After months of braiding my hair in an attempt to grow out the chemicals I finally had a full head of natural afro hair. It was actually daunting and something that I was highly self-conscious to begin with. The response also didn’t help. It was as if I had shaved my hair off completely. It seemed absolutely absurd. Within days of my new look, I was called into the headmistress’s office and told that my hair had to be tied back as it was not in line with the schools code of conduct. I was shocked. I argued that other girls were allowed to wear their hair down without any such questioning. She then went on to say that it looked untidy and that I couldn’t represent her school in my uniform with my hair like that. I remember saying that I though this was unfair, she just said to me: Life’s not fair. I went back to my form class in tears and my class tutor took me outside. He said to me that he would talk to her for me as he felt that it was ridiculous too. He also said that my hair was beautiful and I shouldn’t let anyone tell me otherwise. That will stay with me always. It wasn’t just about my hair, it was about me and all other aspects of my life where I was put down for being different, my rebellious nature and inquisitiveness didn’t help at the time but now I am happy that I have never just gone with whets is normal for THEM, but what is normal for ME.

    

5. How do you feel your oppression as a woman of colour differs from a white woman's experience?

I think that in many respects the struggle of a woman of colour is unique to any social struggle. It sometimes dawns on me that I am susceptible to a few of the words isms. I feel that my experience as a woman is influenced by me being a woman of colour. If someone were trying to describe me to a friend, I wouldn’t just be a woman or black I would be both. Two of the worlds most oppressed and subordinated groups of people. In terms of experience I feel that being a woman of colour means that my experience is altogether different of a white woman’s experience purely because of the combination of experiences from being a woman and black.

        

6. Do you feel comfortable identifying as a woman of colour?

 

Definitely. However, I do realise that it more a political statement rather than just a descriptive phrase used to classify me. I feel that to identify as a woman of colour not only gives me a sense of belonging as opposed to alienation, it also joins in solidarity the vastly different women of colour from all over the world who have a shared although distinctly unique common struggle. This unites all women of colour, those from Asia, Africa, Europe and South America, it allows a sense of pride, something that is difficult to find by oneself.

   

7.Do you feel there is a problem in homogenising women as one oppressed entity and not acknowledging that women's oppression differs depending on your race, class, disability, sexuality?

 

I do. It is extremely important to understand that all women of different backgrounds have different circumstances and the common underlying factor that unites us: is our sex. I feel that this needs to be addressed and not assumed that all women share the same issues. I feel that all issues factors of discrimination as stated in the question need to be dealt with on an individual basis and then in relation to us women.

         

8. If yes, do you think the term woman of colour could mobilise a new radical political agenda, where we understand our experiences as different from other women?

 

Yes, as it is highly idealistic to think that one half of the world share the same united struggle. Yes as women there are shared challenges but even this stand out as separate struggles in themselves. I think that a holistic way to advance the situation of women is to be able to see and understand the unique strands of the struggle and therefore enable us to become a stronger, more united front to challenge the paternalist and masculine structure of the world: more appropriately the western world.

My officemate has this on the back of his sweater. One of our students asked if we could understand it. I had to admit that while I understand the notation, my physics knowledge is not enough to understand the underlying meaning of this equation. (I believe it is the Schrödinger Equation.)

To understand in advance more about the significance of this memorial site and the adjacent museum as well as what they symbolise, a brief overview of the island of Cyprus’ history is required.

 

When the Ottoman empire took control in 1461 of what we today know as Greece, the Greeks preserved their culture through the Orthodox church.

 

When the Ottomans arrived in Cyprus in 1571, they freed the Orthodox church from centuries of Latin control. Over the years, the Greek influence and the control that the Orthodox church had was gradually strengthened, to such an extent that there was eventually little difference between religious activities and political activities.

 

In 1832, after a long and bitter war, Greece was granted independence from the Ottomans.

 

Although there had been conflict in Cyprus, the island was not part of the agreement – however when the British arrived in 1878, there were hopes that they would grant Cyprus Enosis, in other words, union with Greece.

 

However, that was not to be the case and from the 1930’s a gradual escalation of civil unrest was seen, largely instigated by the church. In 1955, EOKA was formed as a terrorist organisation with the sole aim of getting the British out and absorbing the island into Greece.

 

Unfortunately, little thought was made of what the Turkish Cypriots living peacefully on the island would think of this. EOKA violence escalated against not only the British, but against anybody that did not support Enosis. Attacks against Turkish villages became more common, and in 1958, Turkish Cypriots formed the TMT in an attempt to counter EOKA.

 

In 1959, the London and Zurich agreements laid the foundations for the independence of Cyprus, however Greek Cypriots saw this as a steppingstone to Enosis, and in 1963, a secret plan was drawn up which discarded the 1960 constitution.

 

As part of this plan, Turkish Cypriots were gradually displaced from their villages and placed in enclaves. In December of 1963, systematic violence against Turkish Cypriots erupted, and this was to continue for several years, and gradually separated the island into Greek and Turkish community areas.

 

In 1974, a Greek sponsored coup overthrew Archbishop Makarios with the intention of forcing Enosis onto the island.

 

To prevent this, under the order of late Prime Minister Bülent Ecevit, Turkey invoked its rights to intervene under the Treaty of Guarantee, and on 20 July 1974 launched what is known as the 1st Peace Operation.

 

“We are actually going to the island for peace, not for war, and not just for the Turkish Cypriots but for the Greek Cypriots as well,” Mr Ecevit told reporters at the time.

 

This operation came five days after a Greek junta-engineered coup saw EOKA terrorist Nicos Sampson installed as the island’s leader. Scores of Greek Cypriots were killed by fellow Greek Cypriots during the violence.

 

Sampson would later say in an interview with a Greek newspaper, printed in 1981, that had Turkey not intervened “I would not only have proclaimed Enosis, I would have annihilated the Turks in Cyprus”.

 

A ceasefire was agreed at 4pm on 22 July 1974, leaving the Turkish Army in control of a stretch of land including the main road between Kyrenia and Nicosia.

 

However attacks on the Turkish Cypriot population continued and the precarious situation of its own troops prompted Turkey to launch the second phase of its operation in August of the same year, eventually extending the safe haven for Turkish Cypriots to today’s boundaries.

 

These Peace Operations confirmed an already divided island into Greek Cyprus and Turkish Cyprus, and it declared its independence on 15 November 1983 as the Turkish Republic of North Cyprus.

 

The momentous Karaoglanoglu Memorial was built in memory of soldiers who gave their lives during the Peace Operations of 1974, and takes it name after the regiment Commander Colonel Halil İbrahim Karaoğlanoğlu, one of the first officers to die in the first hours of the Operation.

 

The story of the conflict is represented here in words and pictures as a factual presentation, and the displays are in English as well as Turkish. English speaking National servicemen from the Turkish Army are also on hand to guide visitors through the various parts of the memorial.

 

The two striking columns that greet visitors at the entrance symbolise the door to Turkey. Further in, a small military graveyard holding the remains of some of the casualties, including that of Colonel Karaoglanoglu, the most senior officer to be killed in the operation, and whose name was also given to the nearby village in his memory.

 

The group of statues symbolise the Republic of Turkey and Turkish Republic of North Cyprus, built on four columns, representing the four-day duration of the first Peace Operation.

 

The Peace & Freedom Museum next to the memorial consists of an indoor and outdoor area. The open air consists of a display of vehicles and arms left by the fleeing Greek soldiers, while indoors there is a display of photographs of the military action, artillery as well as possessions and uniforms of some of the Operation martyrs.

 

A short distance from the museum is the momentous Peace & Freedom Icon at the actual point of the landings of the Turkish Peace Operation.

 

An easily accessible main road stop on your NCY visit and 15-minute drive from Kyrenia Town Centre, it is recommended to spend an hour to take in all the remarkable facts and take plentiful photos – a sombre yet very interesting experience for most and children tend to enjoy viewing the old tanks and vehicles at the outdoor museum.

 

Karavas (Greek: Καραβάς; Turkish: Alsancak) is a town in the north of the Cyprus island. It is under the de facto control of Northern Cyprus. As of 2011, the town has a population of 6,597.

 

The name Karavas comes from the Greek karávi (καράβι), meaning "ship". The name Alsancak comes from the two turkish words Al, meaning "Red" and 'Sancak meaning "flag".

 

Prior to the Turkish invasion in 1974, Karavas had a Greek population of approximately 2200. Karavas was captured by the Turkish Army before the second Turkish invasion of Cyprus after July 20, 1974. The city was attacked on August 6, during the so-called armistice. All Greek Cypriot inhabitants were forced out of Karavas by Turkish military forces and have become refugees, living in Cyprus and abroad. Following the population exchange assisted by the United Nations where the Turkish Cypriots forced from their villages in the South were transported to the safety of the North, today the village is home mostly to those Turkish Cypriots displaced from their original village Mandria in the Paphos region left in the south of the island.

 

The Turkish Cypriot municipality Alsancak was founded in 1974.

 

"Pente Mili" is one of the most beautiful beaches in Karavas.

 

The Cyprus Treasure, an impressive collection of silver vessels, dishes, spoons and jewelry, was found here in 1902 and 1917. It can be found in the British Museum in London, Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City and the Cyprus Museum in Nicosia.

 

Notable people

Karavas is the birthplace of the Cypriot-American organic chemist K. C. Nicolaou.

 

Karavas is twinned with:

Turkey Bornova, İzmir, Turkey (since 2011)

Turkey Gazipaşa, Antalya, Turkey (since 2015)

 

Northern Cyprus, officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), is a de facto state that comprises the northeastern portion of the island of Cyprus. It is recognised only by Turkey, and its territory is considered by all other states to be part of the Republic of Cyprus.

 

Northern Cyprus extends from the tip of the Karpass Peninsula in the northeast to Morphou Bay, Cape Kormakitis and its westernmost point, the Kokkina exclave in the west. Its southernmost point is the village of Louroujina. A buffer zone under the control of the United Nations stretches between Northern Cyprus and the rest of the island and divides Nicosia, the island's largest city and capital of both sides.

 

A coup d'état in 1974, performed as part of an attempt to annex the island to Greece, prompted the Turkish invasion of Cyprus. This resulted in the eviction of much of the north's Greek Cypriot population, the flight of Turkish Cypriots from the south, and the partitioning of the island, leading to a unilateral declaration of independence by the north in 1983. Due to its lack of recognition, Northern Cyprus is heavily dependent on Turkey for economic, political and military support.

 

Attempts to reach a solution to the Cyprus dispute have been unsuccessful. The Turkish Army maintains a large force in Northern Cyprus with the support and approval of the TRNC government, while the Republic of Cyprus, the European Union as a whole, and the international community regard it as an occupation force. This military presence has been denounced in several United Nations Security Council resolutions.

 

Northern Cyprus is a semi-presidential, democratic republic with a cultural heritage incorporating various influences and an economy that is dominated by the services sector. The economy has seen growth through the 2000s and 2010s, with the GNP per capita more than tripling in the 2000s, but is held back by an international embargo due to the official closure of the ports in Northern Cyprus by the Republic of Cyprus. The official language is Turkish, with a distinct local dialect being spoken. The vast majority of the population consists of Sunni Muslims, while religious attitudes are mostly moderate and secular. Northern Cyprus is an observer state of ECO and OIC under the name "Turkish Cypriot State", PACE under the name "Turkish Cypriot Community", and Organization of Turkic States with its own name.

 

Several distinct periods of Cypriot intercommunal violence involving the two main ethnic communities, Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, marked mid-20th century Cyprus. These included the Cyprus Emergency of 1955–59 during British rule, the post-independence Cyprus crisis of 1963–64, and the Cyprus crisis of 1967. Hostilities culminated in the 1974 de facto division of the island along the Green Line following the Turkish invasion of Cyprus. The region has been relatively peaceful since then, but the Cyprus dispute has continued, with various attempts to solve it diplomatically having been generally unsuccessful.

 

Cyprus, an island lying in the eastern Mediterranean, hosted a population of Greeks and Turks (four-fifths and one-fifth, respectively), who lived under British rule in the late nineteenth-century and the first half of the twentieth-century. Christian Orthodox Church of Cyprus played a prominent political role among the Greek Cypriot community, a privilege that it acquired during the Ottoman Empire with the employment of the millet system, which gave the archbishop an unofficial ethnarch status.

 

The repeated rejections by the British of Greek Cypriot demands for enosis, union with Greece, led to armed resistance, organised by the National Organization of Cypriot Struggle, or EOKA. EOKA, led by the Greek-Cypriot commander George Grivas, systematically targeted British colonial authorities. One of the effects of EOKA's campaign was to alter the Turkish position from demanding full reincorporation into Turkey to a demand for taksim (partition). EOKA's mission and activities caused a "Cretan syndrome" (see Turkish Resistance Organisation) within the Turkish Cypriot community, as its members feared that they would be forced to leave the island in such a case as had been the case with Cretan Turks. As such, they preferred the continuation of British colonial rule and then taksim, the division of the island. Due to the Turkish Cypriots' support for the British, EOKA's leader, Georgios Grivas, declared them to be enemies. The fact that the Turks were a minority was, according to Nihat Erim, to be addressed by the transfer of thousands of Turks from mainland Turkey so that Greek Cypriots would cease to be the majority. When Erim visited Cyprus as the Turkish representative, he was advised by Field Marshal Sir John Harding, the then Governor of Cyprus, that Turkey should send educated Turks to settle in Cyprus.

 

Turkey actively promoted the idea that on the island of Cyprus two distinctive communities existed, and sidestepped its former claim that "the people of Cyprus were all Turkish subjects". In doing so, Turkey's aim to have self-determination of two to-be equal communities in effect led to de jure partition of the island.[citation needed] This could be justified to the international community against the will of the majority Greek population of the island. Dr. Fazil Küçük in 1954 had already proposed Cyprus be divided in two at the 35° parallel.

 

Lindley Dan, from Notre Dame University, spotted the roots of intercommunal violence to different visions among the two communities of Cyprus (enosis for Greek Cypriots, taksim for Turkish Cypriots). Also, Lindlay wrote that "the merging of church, schools/education, and politics in divisive and nationalistic ways" had played a crucial role in creation of havoc in Cyprus' history. Attalides Michael also pointed to the opposing nationalisms as the cause of the Cyprus problem.

 

By the mid-1950's, the "Cyprus is Turkish" party, movement, and slogan gained force in both Cyprus and Turkey. In a 1954 editorial, Turkish Cypriot leader Dr. Fazil Kuchuk expressed the sentiment that the Turkish youth had grown up with the idea that "as soon as Great Britain leaves the island, it will be taken over by the Turks", and that "Turkey cannot tolerate otherwise". This perspective contributed to the willingness of Turkish Cypriots to align themselves with the British, who started recruiting Turkish Cypriots into the police force that patrolled Cyprus to fight EOKA, a Greek Cypriot nationalist organisation that sought to rid the island of British rule.

 

EOKA targeted colonial authorities, including police, but Georgios Grivas, the leader of EOKA, did not initially wish to open up a new front by fighting Turkish Cypriots and reassured them that EOKA would not harm their people. In 1956, some Turkish Cypriot policemen were killed by EOKA members and this provoked some intercommunal violence in the spring and summer, but these attacks on policemen were not motivated by the fact that they were Turkish Cypriots.

 

However, in January 1957, Grivas changed his policy as his forces in the mountains became increasingly pressured by the British Crown forces. In order to divert the attention of the Crown forces, EOKA members started to target Turkish Cypriot policemen intentionally in the towns, so that Turkish Cypriots would riot against the Greek Cypriots and the security forces would have to be diverted to the towns to restore order. The killing of a Turkish Cypriot policeman on 19 January, when a power station was bombed, and the injury of three others, provoked three days of intercommunal violence in Nicosia. The two communities targeted each other in reprisals, at least one Greek Cypriot was killed and the British Army was deployed in the streets. Greek Cypriot stores were burned and their neighbourhoods attacked. Following the events, the Greek Cypriot leadership spread the propaganda that the riots had merely been an act of Turkish Cypriot aggression. Such events created chaos and drove the communities apart both in Cyprus and in Turkey.

 

On 22 October 1957 Sir Hugh Mackintosh Foot replaced Sir John Harding as the British Governor of Cyprus. Foot suggested five to seven years of self-government before any final decision. His plan rejected both enosis and taksim. The Turkish Cypriot response to this plan was a series of anti-British demonstrations in Nicosia on 27 and 28 January 1958 rejecting the proposed plan because the plan did not include partition. The British then withdrew the plan.

 

In 1957, Black Gang, a Turkish Cypriot pro-taksim paramilitary organisation, was formed to patrol a Turkish Cypriot enclave, the Tahtakale district of Nicosia, against activities of EOKA. The organisation later attempted to grow into a national scale, but failed to gain public support.

 

By 1958, signs of dissatisfaction with the British increased on both sides, with a group of Turkish Cypriots forming Volkan (later renamed to the Turkish Resistance Organisation) paramilitary group to promote partition and the annexation of Cyprus to Turkey as dictated by the Menderes plan. Volkan initially consisted of roughly 100 members, with the stated aim of raising awareness in Turkey of the Cyprus issue and courting military training and support for Turkish Cypriot fighters from the Turkish government.

 

In June 1958, the British Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, was expected to propose a plan to resolve the Cyprus issue. In light of the new development, the Turks rioted in Nicosia to promote the idea that Greek and Turkish Cypriots could not live together and therefore any plan that did not include partition would not be viable. This violence was soon followed by bombing, Greek Cypriot deaths and looting of Greek Cypriot-owned shops and houses. Greek and Turkish Cypriots started to flee mixed population villages where they were a minority in search of safety. This was effectively the beginning of the segregation of the two communities. On 7 June 1958, a bomb exploded at the entrance of the Turkish Embassy in Cyprus. Following the bombing, Turkish Cypriots looted Greek Cypriot properties. On 26 June 1984, the Turkish Cypriot leader, Rauf Denktaş, admitted on British channel ITV that the bomb was placed by the Turks themselves in order to create tension. On 9 January 1995, Rauf Denktaş repeated his claim to the famous Turkish newspaper Milliyet in Turkey.

 

The crisis reached a climax on 12 June 1958, when eight Greeks, out of an armed group of thirty five arrested by soldiers of the Royal Horse Guards on suspicion of preparing an attack on the Turkish quarter of Skylloura, were killed in a suspected attack by Turkish Cypriot locals, near the village of Geunyeli, having been ordered to walk back to their village of Kondemenos.

 

After the EOKA campaign had begun, the British government successfully began to turn the Cyprus issue from a British colonial problem into a Greek-Turkish issue. British diplomacy exerted backstage influence on the Adnan Menderes government, with the aim of making Turkey active in Cyprus. For the British, the attempt had a twofold objective. The EOKA campaign would be silenced as quickly as possible, and Turkish Cypriots would not side with Greek Cypriots against the British colonial claims over the island, which would thus remain under the British. The Turkish Cypriot leadership visited Menderes to discuss the Cyprus issue. When asked how the Turkish Cypriots should respond to the Greek Cypriot claim of enosis, Menderes replied: "You should go to the British foreign minister and request the status quo be prolonged, Cyprus to remain as a British colony". When the Turkish Cypriots visited the British Foreign Secretary and requested for Cyprus to remain a colony, he replied: "You should not be asking for colonialism at this day and age, you should be asking for Cyprus be returned to Turkey, its former owner".

 

As Turkish Cypriots began to look to Turkey for protection, Greek Cypriots soon understood that enosis was extremely unlikely. The Greek Cypriot leader, Archbishop Makarios III, now set independence for the island as his objective.

 

Britain resolved to solve the dispute by creating an independent Cyprus. In 1959, all involved parties signed the Zurich Agreements: Britain, Turkey, Greece, and the Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders, Makarios and Dr. Fazil Kucuk, respectively. The new constitution drew heavily on the ethnic composition of the island. The President would be a Greek Cypriot, and the Vice-President a Turkish Cypriot with an equal veto. The contribution to the public service would be set at a ratio of 70:30, and the Supreme Court would consist of an equal number of judges from both communities as well as an independent judge who was not Greek, Turkish or British. The Zurich Agreements were supplemented by a number of treaties. The Treaty of Guarantee stated that secession or union with any state was forbidden, and that Greece, Turkey and Britain would be given guarantor status to intervene if that was violated. The Treaty of Alliance allowed for two small Greek and Turkish military contingents to be stationed on the island, and the Treaty of Establishment gave Britain sovereignty over two bases in Akrotiri and Dhekelia.

 

On 15 August 1960, the Colony of Cyprus became fully independent as the Republic of Cyprus. The new republic remained within the Commonwealth of Nations.

 

The new constitution brought dissatisfaction to Greek Cypriots, who felt it to be highly unjust for them for historical, demographic and contributional reasons. Although 80% of the island's population were Greek Cypriots and these indigenous people had lived on the island for thousands of years and paid 94% of taxes, the new constitution was giving the 17% of the population that was Turkish Cypriots, who paid 6% of taxes, around 30% of government jobs and 40% of national security jobs.

 

Within three years tensions between the two communities in administrative affairs began to show. In particular disputes over separate municipalities and taxation created a deadlock in government. A constitutional court ruled in 1963 Makarios had failed to uphold article 173 of the constitution which called for the establishment of separate municipalities for Turkish Cypriots. Makarios subsequently declared his intention to ignore the judgement, resulting in the West German judge resigning from his position. Makarios proposed thirteen amendments to the constitution, which would have had the effect of resolving most of the issues in the Greek Cypriot favour. Under the proposals, the President and Vice-President would lose their veto, the separate municipalities as sought after by the Turkish Cypriots would be abandoned, the need for separate majorities by both communities in passing legislation would be discarded and the civil service contribution would be set at actual population ratios (82:18) instead of the slightly higher figure for Turkish Cypriots.

 

The intention behind the amendments has long been called into question. The Akritas plan, written in the height of the constitutional dispute by the Greek Cypriot interior minister Polycarpos Georkadjis, called for the removal of undesirable elements of the constitution so as to allow power-sharing to work. The plan envisaged a swift retaliatory attack on Turkish Cypriot strongholds should Turkish Cypriots resort to violence to resist the measures, stating "In the event of a planned or staged Turkish attack, it is imperative to overcome it by force in the shortest possible time, because if we succeed in gaining command of the situation (in one or two days), no outside, intervention would be either justified or possible." Whether Makarios's proposals were part of the Akritas plan is unclear, however it remains that sentiment towards enosis had not completely disappeared with independence. Makarios described independence as "a step on the road to enosis".[31] Preparations for conflict were not entirely absent from Turkish Cypriots either, with right wing elements still believing taksim (partition) the best safeguard against enosis.

 

Greek Cypriots however believe the amendments were a necessity stemming from a perceived attempt by Turkish Cypriots to frustrate the working of government. Turkish Cypriots saw it as a means to reduce their status within the state from one of co-founder to that of minority, seeing it as a first step towards enosis. The security situation deteriorated rapidly.

 

Main articles: Bloody Christmas (1963) and Battle of Tillyria

An armed conflict was triggered after December 21, 1963, a period remembered by Turkish Cypriots as Bloody Christmas, when a Greek Cypriot policemen that had been called to help deal with a taxi driver refusing officers already on the scene access to check the identification documents of his customers, took out his gun upon arrival and shot and killed the taxi driver and his partner. Eric Solsten summarised the events as follows: "a Greek Cypriot police patrol, ostensibly checking identification documents, stopped a Turkish Cypriot couple on the edge of the Turkish quarter. A hostile crowd gathered, shots were fired, and two Turkish Cypriots were killed."

 

In the morning after the shooting, crowds gathered in protest in Northern Nicosia, likely encouraged by the TMT, without incident. On the evening of the 22nd, gunfire broke out, communication lines to the Turkish neighbourhoods were cut, and the Greek Cypriot police occupied the nearby airport. On the 23rd, a ceasefire was negotiated, but did not hold. Fighting, including automatic weapons fire, between Greek and Turkish Cypriots and militias increased in Nicosia and Larnaca. A force of Greek Cypriot irregulars led by Nikos Sampson entered the Nicosia suburb of Omorphita and engaged in heavy firing on armed, as well as by some accounts unarmed, Turkish Cypriots. The Omorphita clash has been described by Turkish Cypriots as a massacre, while this view has generally not been acknowledged by Greek Cypriots.

 

Further ceasefires were arranged between the two sides, but also failed. By Christmas Eve, the 24th, Britain, Greece, and Turkey had joined talks, with all sides calling for a truce. On Christmas day, Turkish fighter jets overflew Nicosia in a show of support. Finally it was agreed to allow a force of 2,700 British soldiers to help enforce a ceasefire. In the next days, a "buffer zone" was created in Nicosia, and a British officer marked a line on a map with green ink, separating the two sides of the city, which was the beginning of the "Green Line". Fighting continued across the island for the next several weeks.

 

In total 364 Turkish Cypriots and 174 Greek Cypriots were killed during the violence. 25,000 Turkish Cypriots from 103-109 villages fled and were displaced into enclaves and thousands of Turkish Cypriot houses were ransacked or completely destroyed.

 

Contemporary newspapers also reported on the forceful exodus of the Turkish Cypriots from their homes. According to The Times in 1964, threats, shootings and attempts of arson were committed against the Turkish Cypriots to force them out of their homes. The Daily Express wrote that "25,000 Turks have already been forced to leave their homes". The Guardian reported a massacre of Turks at Limassol on 16 February 1964.

 

Turkey had by now readied its fleet and its fighter jets appeared over Nicosia. Turkey was dissuaded from direct involvement by the creation of a United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) in 1964. Despite the negotiated ceasefire in Nicosia, attacks on the Turkish Cypriot persisted, particularly in Limassol. Concerned about the possibility of a Turkish invasion, Makarios undertook the creation of a Greek Cypriot conscript-based army called the "National Guard". A general from Greece took charge of the army, whilst a further 20,000 well-equipped officers and men were smuggled from Greece into Cyprus. Turkey threatened to intervene once more, but was prevented by a strongly worded letter from the American President Lyndon B. Johnson, anxious to avoid a conflict between NATO allies Greece and Turkey at the height of the Cold War.

 

Turkish Cypriots had by now established an important bridgehead at Kokkina, provided with arms, volunteers and materials from Turkey and abroad. Seeing this incursion of foreign weapons and troops as a major threat, the Cypriot government invited George Grivas to return from Greece as commander of the Greek troops on the island and launch a major attack on the bridgehead. Turkey retaliated by dispatching its fighter jets to bomb Greek positions, causing Makarios to threaten an attack on every Turkish Cypriot village on the island if the bombings did not cease. The conflict had now drawn in Greece and Turkey, with both countries amassing troops on their Thracian borders. Efforts at mediation by Dean Acheson, a former U.S. Secretary of State, and UN-appointed mediator Galo Plaza had failed, all the while the division of the two communities becoming more apparent. Greek Cypriot forces were estimated at some 30,000, including the National Guard and the large contingent from Greece. Defending the Turkish Cypriot enclaves was a force of approximately 5,000 irregulars, led by a Turkish colonel, but lacking the equipment and organisation of the Greek forces.

 

The Secretary-General of the United Nations in 1964, U Thant, reported the damage during the conflicts:

 

UNFICYP carried out a detailed survey of all damage to properties throughout the island during the disturbances; it shows that in 109 villages, most of them Turkish-Cypriot or mixed villages, 527 houses have been destroyed while 2,000 others have suffered damage from looting.

 

The situation worsened in 1967, when a military junta overthrew the democratically elected government of Greece, and began applying pressure on Makarios to achieve enosis. Makarios, not wishing to become part of a military dictatorship or trigger a Turkish invasion, began to distance himself from the goal of enosis. This caused tensions with the junta in Greece as well as George Grivas in Cyprus. Grivas's control over the National Guard and Greek contingent was seen as a threat to Makarios's position, who now feared a possible coup.[citation needed] The National Guard and Cyprus Police began patrolling the Turkish Cypriot enclaves of Ayios Theodoros and Kophinou, and on November 15 engaged in heavy fighting with the Turkish Cypriots.

 

By the time of his withdrawal 26 Turkish Cypriots had been killed. Turkey replied with an ultimatum demanding that Grivas be removed from the island, that the troops smuggled from Greece in excess of the limits of the Treaty of Alliance be removed, and that the economic blockades on the Turkish Cypriot enclaves be lifted. Grivas was recalled by the Athens Junta and the 12,000 Greek troops were withdrawn. Makarios now attempted to consolidate his position by reducing the number of National Guard troops, and by creating a paramilitary force loyal to Cypriot independence. In 1968, acknowledging that enosis was now all but impossible, Makarios stated, "A solution by necessity must be sought within the limits of what is feasible which does not always coincide with the limits of what is desirable."

 

After 1967 tensions between the Greek and Turkish Cypriots subsided. Instead, the main source of tension on the island came from factions within the Greek Cypriot community. Although Makarios had effectively abandoned enosis in favour of an 'attainable solution', many others continued to believe that the only legitimate political aspiration for Greek Cypriots was union with Greece.

 

On his arrival, Grivas began by establishing a nationalist paramilitary group known as the National Organization of Cypriot Fighters (Ethniki Organosis Kyprion Agoniston B or EOKA-B), drawing comparisons with the EOKA struggle for enosis under the British colonial administration of the 1950s.

 

The military junta in Athens saw Makarios as an obstacle. Makarios's failure to disband the National Guard, whose officer class was dominated by mainland Greeks, had meant the junta had practical control over the Cypriot military establishment, leaving Makarios isolated and a vulnerable target.

 

During the first Turkish invasion, Turkish troops invaded Cyprus territory on 20 July 1974, invoking its rights under the Treaty of Guarantee. This expansion of Turkish-occupied zone violated International Law as well as the Charter of the United Nations. Turkish troops managed to capture 3% of the island which was accompanied by the burning of the Turkish Cypriot quarter, as well as the raping and killing of women and children. A temporary cease-fire followed which was mitigated by the UN Security Council. Subsequently, the Greek military Junta collapsed on July 23, 1974, and peace talks commenced in which a democratic government was installed. The Resolution 353 was broken after Turkey attacked a second time and managed to get a hold of 37% of Cyprus territory. The Island of Cyprus was appointed a Buffer Zone by the United Nations, which divided the island into two zones through the 'Green Line' and put an end to the Turkish invasion. Although Turkey announced that the occupied areas of Cyprus to be called the Federated Turkish State in 1975, it is not legitimised on a worldwide political scale. The United Nations called for the international recognition of independence for the Republic of Cyprus in the Security Council Resolution 367.

 

In the years after the Turkish invasion of northern Cyprus one can observe a history of failed talks between the two parties. The 1983 declaration of the independent Turkish Republic of Cyprus resulted in a rise of inter-communal tensions and made it increasingly hard to find mutual understanding. With Cyprus' interest of a possible EU membership and a new UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan in 1997 new hopes arose for a fresh start. International involvement from sides of the US and UK, wanting a solution to the Cyprus dispute prior to the EU accession led to political pressures for new talks. The believe that an accession without a solution would threaten Greek-Turkish relations and acknowledge the partition of the island would direct the coming negotiations.

 

Over the course of two years a concrete plan, the Annan plan was formulated. In 2004 the fifth version agreed upon from both sides and with the endorsement of Turkey, US, UK and EU then was presented to the public and was given a referendum in both Cypriot communities to assure the legitimisation of the resolution. The Turkish Cypriots voted with 65% for the plan, however the Greek Cypriots voted with a 76% majority against. The Annan plan contained multiple important topics. Firstly it established a confederation of two separate states called the United Cyprus Republic. Both communities would have autonomous states combined under one unified government. The members of parliament would be chosen according to the percentage in population numbers to ensure a just involvement from both communities. The paper proposed a demilitarisation of the island over the next years. Furthermore it agreed upon a number of 45000 Turkish settlers that could remain on the island. These settlers became a very important issue concerning peace talks. Originally the Turkish government encouraged Turks to settle in Cyprus providing transfer and property, to establish a counterpart to the Greek Cypriot population due to their 1 to 5 minority. With the economic situation many Turkish-Cypriot decided to leave the island, however their departure is made up by incoming Turkish settlers leaving the population ratio between Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots stable. However all these points where criticised and as seen in the vote rejected mainly by the Greek Cypriots. These name the dissolution of the „Republic of Cyprus", economic consequences of a reunion and the remaining Turkish settlers as reason. Many claim that the plan was indeed drawing more from Turkish-Cypriot demands then Greek-Cypriot interests. Taking in consideration that the US wanted to keep Turkey as a strategic partner in future Middle Eastern conflicts.

 

A week after the failed referendum the Republic of Cyprus joined the EU. In multiple instances the EU tried to promote trade with Northern Cyprus but without internationally recognised ports this spiked a grand debate. Both side endure their intention of negotiations, however without the prospect of any new compromises or agreements the UN is unwilling to start the process again. Since 2004 negotiations took place in numbers but without any results, both sides are strongly holding on to their position without an agreeable solution in sight that would suit both parties.

OCF-2019

Problem Solving Using the Why Tree by xtremelean.us

 

* This presentation is on problem solving using the why tree and is designed to teach a standardized approach for your people at all levels of the organization. Good problem solving skills within your company will cause your business to thrive while making everyone's life easier in the process.

* While problem solving does not have to be difficult, there are many that like to make it sound that way.

* People are not born as natural problem solvers and you don't need a college degree to learn to be a good problem solver either.

* Good problem solving skills can be taught and that is what I am going to do. My goal is to teach you a simple standardized approach that can be used in your business or personal life. You can also use this training video to teach others at your business. When completed, you will fully understand and be ready to use the concepts taught here.

* When we become good at problem solving, we start eliminating the problems that cause our head to spin once and for all. Our life becomes much easier and we suddenly have more time and less frustration. You are probably watching this video because that is exactly the direction you want to go in your life.

* Let's first discuss what a problem is or is not.

* A problem is the difference between actual conditions and the desired conditions and you don't know how to solve it.

* Let's put this in simpler terms.

* Let's change desired condition with "Want" and change actual condition with "Have"

* So the difference between what we have and what we want is the problem.

* And it's only a problem if you don't already know what the solution is.

* Let me give you a simple illustration of what a problem is. Barney here wants a female companion, but he does not have one, and he doesn't know exactly what to do about it. That is Barneys problem. That seems pretty straightforward doesn't it?

* The biggest type of problem people face is when something suddenly goes wrong.

* Captain Jack here is flying 300 passengers across the continent when all of a sudden, the plane starts to go down.

* In this case, the pilot WANTS to have full control of the plane again.

* But what he has is a plane that is going down and he doesn't know what happened or what to do about it.

* Does the pilot have a problem? 100% affirmative.

* Everyone has problems in their life at one time or another, so we all have the responsibility and opportunity to solve problems many times in our lives. It is absolutely best when we solve a problem so it never ever returns again. When you solve problems this way, your life becomes easier.

* When it comes to problem solving, some people just start shooting from the hip. This can be a very costly, time consuming, and frustrating approach. Preferable to this would be to take some aim at our target. After all, if we take the time to aim carefully at our target we increase the chance of hitting the bulls eye.

* Let's use a hypothetical problem that everyone can relate to. You arrived to work late.

* By the way, always clearly define the problem in as few words as possible, while also making sure everyone can understand what the problem is.

* And the reason we arrived to work late is because our car would not start.

* Many people put a lot of emphasis on root cause analysis, which is finding out what exactly what caused the car not to start.

* This is a fish bone diagram which is another tool that can be used for determining the root cause of a problem.

* And while sometimes finding the root cause is important, finding the best solution that will prevent the problem from reoccurring is THE most important objective.

* In this case, let's say you were at the end of your ropes with this piece of junk anyway and had decided you were going to buy a new car.

* Do you really care what exactly caused your old car not to start? Not really.

* Will the new car be a proper solution to your problem and get you to work reliably for many years to come? Absolutely

* My point is, solutions are more important than causes and in my opinion, outweigh them greatly.

* All right, let's do a reality check. You have a crap car, you were late to work because it would not start, and you have no money to buy a new car.

* You now need to know what caused your car not to start so you will not be able to fix it.

* The Why Tree method is the focus of this presentation, but it relies on knowing the 5-Why root cause analysis method. The 5-Why method for determining root cause is one of the simplest methods to learn and to complete. You start with a clear problem statement, then ask why the problem happened and write the answer down. If that answer did not identify the root cause, continue asking why until it does.

* Let's go through an example.

* For example our problem is we woke up late.

* We would then ask "why did we wake up late?"

* The alarm did not go off.

* "why did the alarm not go off?"

* Because the time reset on the alarm clock?

* Why did the time reset on the alarm clock?

* Because the power went out.

* Why did the power go out?

* Because of the severe thunderstorms.

* Why were there severe thunderstorms?

* We don't know.

* Notice that solutions are out of our control when the power went out? We do not have control over the power or the weather. So the line of questioning should stop when we do not have any control over the cause.

* One of the problems with the 5-Why root cause analysis is it only allows for one line of questioning. Based on the answers you give, you can get off the trail to solutions very quickly.

* Let's back up and change the answer to "why did the time reset on the clock?" to:

* Because the clock lost power

* Then why did the clock lose power?

* Because the alarm clock did not have the backup battery installed.

* Why was the backup battery not installed?

* Because we did not have one at the time.

* Take notice that the answers you give will dramatically change the outcome. You must also ensure the answers are accurate or once again you will be on a wild goose chase.

* We now have a root cause that we have control over and an easy solution to the problem. Having a backup battery installed in the alarm clock allows it to continue working in the event of a power outage. This solution is very simple and effective with a very low cost. It is easy to implement and has no negative consequences.

* While you now have a good solution to this problem, let's not forget that batteries do not last forever. You will need to check the batteries in the alarm clock on a regular basis if your want to eliminate this particular problem forever.

* Even though this approach is called 5-Why, 5 is just a rule of thumb for the number of times to ask why. It could be more or less though depending on the problem. When you no longer know the answer to the question that is a good place to stop. Speculation will rarely serve you well.

* While the 5-Why root cause analysis is a good and simple tool, I find the Why Tree diagram is a much better tool for brainstorming multiple possible causes of the problem. Discovering multiple causes of the problem allows you to develop multiple potential solutions to the problem. You would use the same 5-why approach but the tree diagram allows you to list multiple potential causes to each why. There is no limit to the size or shape of your Why Tree. Let me share an example of using the Why Tree.

* Let's use a real life problem I experienced recently. We put in a new lawn at our house and it wasn't very long before I noticed the grass was dying is some areas. I was upset and wanted to know why and the solution to the problem.

* It did not take long to put two and two together. The dog peeing on the lawn was causing it to die. The reason I want to share this example with you is to show you there are almost always several solutions to any given problem.

* While you may have multiple solutions for any given problem, and even though all of the solutions may solve the problem, there are costs or consequences to consider. Your job in good problem solving is to come up with:

A: The simplest

B: Most effective solution

C: At the lowest cost

D: That is the easiest to implement

E: With no negative consequences.

 

* The description of my problem is very simple "my grass is dying in small sections". So the 1st question why is the grass dying? Because the dog is peeing on the grass, why is the dog peeing on the grass? Because he is not trained to go elsewhere.

* I must confess, when I first saw that the dog peeing on the grass was causing it to die, I jumped to my first solution and that was a well planned hunting accident where the dog had more to worry about than the bird.

* But that solution would end up in divorce court. Although this solution would be simple, 100% effective, relatively low cost, and easy to implement, the consequences of this solution would make it a very poor choice.

* Then I thought how can I train the dog to stay off the nice new lawn?

* Someone suggested setting up an electric fence and I thought that would be a perfect solution. So off to the pet store I went only to discover these fences aren't cheap. Although this solution would be very effective and there were no negative consequences I could foresee, the cost was high and not simple to install or implement. Still the best solution I have found up to this point.

* I realized I needed to dig deeper to find more causes and therefore more solutions so I asked myself again, "why is the grass dying?"

* Because of the dog pee. I don't have any control over the natural functions of the dog so there is no solution there.

* Why is the dog pee causing the grass to die?

* I had to do some research on the internet, but quickly found my answer. Because dog pee has high levels of Nitrogen.

* Why are there high levels of Nitrogen in the dog pee?

* I also found the answers on the internet that it could be related to their diet

* Or they are not drinking enough water.

* I investigated changing the diet for my dog and found that over the lifetime of the dog, you will probably spend more than the electric fence. I also found out there are health risks for the dog with this diet. I found this solution to be simple, but the effectiveness in my mind was questionable. The cost was again high and the negative consequences of the health of the dog were not exciting. Bordering again on the divorce court thing.

* The dog not drinking enough water was another cause looking for a solution.

* I also thought I could probably teach my dog to read before I could get her to drink more water. So while this solution may be effective at a low cost with no negative consequences, I did not feel this would be simple or easy to implement at all.

* We might not be able to get the dog to drink more water which would dilute the Nitrogen, but maybe we can dilute the Nitrogen another way. What if we adjusted the sprinklers to come on more frequently in the area the dog goes potty? Here is an extremely simple and easy to implement solution that should be totally effective with no cost or negative consequences. Guess what solution I chose to solve my problem?

* There is a simple way to cross check the solution you have chosen. Just read your Why Tree in reverse order and substitute the question why with the word because. Let's try this.

* We are going to adjust the sprinklers to come on more frequently because we need to dilute the high levels of Nitrogen because of the dog pee, because the dog pee is killing the grass. Make sure when you do the cross check that your solution makes sense all the way down the line.

* Root cause analysis is definitely a team effort. After all, two heads are better than one. Choose your team members wisely and keep the team size to a manageable group however.

* Don't worry about the repeatability of this problem solving process. In my mind, problem solving is a very creative process.

* If you give the same problem to three different teams, depending on the creativity of each team, you will most likely end up with three different solutions to the problem. This is absolutely normal. Just be creative and focus on the best solution to the problem you face and implement it.

* If this process does not give you a solution that is clearly correct, you may need to use a different problem solving tool.

* In the future, I will be posting videos on all of the problem solving tools including, Pareto charts, flow charts, fishbone diagrams, brainstorming tools, mind maps, failure mode and effects analysis, and TRIZ. So stay tuned.

 

This is the end of the presentation, but the beginning of your journey towards realizing the benefits of good problem solving at your own company. We have many years experience in the tools of Six Sigma with problem solving skills at the forefront. Let us know how we can help you.

If you need help in training or implementing problem solving, visit us at www.xtremelean.us

Thanks to the Nailbourne project, I now understand how the communities and landscape fots in along its length, though that a bubbling noisy stream can just vanish then appear miles away is very difficult to get your head round. The Nailbourne only fully flows in very wet years, but when it does, the beds that are dry now can be several feet deep.

 

But downstream of Littlebourne, where the Nailbourne becomes the Little Stour, it is wider, about six feet wide, clogged with reeds and weeds, but also was used to power to large mills. They both stand, one between Littlebourne and Wickhambreaux, and the other in Wickhambreaux itself, though is now just a house But is a large white clapboard building, with a large wheel.

 

These days, the village looks very prosperous, all grand houses or cottage conversions.

 

From here, the Little Stour makes its way over the marshes which centuries ago was the Wantsum Channel, so Wickhambreaux was almost a seaside town.

 

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The interior of this very pretty church is dominated by nineteenth-century work. The whole of the chancel and baptistry is lined with dark brown encaustic tiles, hiding a straightforward fourteenth-century church. The east window is an early example of American Art Nouveau in England, and dominates the entire building. It was designed by Baron Arild Rosenkrantz in 1896. Above the window are stencilled paintings of angels ascending, which can also be seen in the nave, whilst the roof there has a charming star-spangled sky. At the south-west corner is a vestry - screened off by an eighteenth-century screen which may have formed part of the refitting of the chancel paid for by Mary Young. Her monument in the chancel records that 'infirm from her youth she protracted life to the 68th year of her age'. She left £100 for wainscotting and ornamenting the chancel. The interior viewed from the east gives an unusual appearance as the aisles flank the tower (see also Sandhurst).

 

www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Wickhambreaux

 

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WICKHAM BREAUS

LIES adjoining to Littleborne north-eastward, being usally called Wickham Brook. It is likewise called Wickham by Wingham, to distinguish it from the two other parishes of the same name in this county. In Domesday it is written Wicheham, a name derived from its situation near the banks of the river, which runs close to it. There is only one borough in it, viz. the borough of Wickham, which comprehends the whole parish.

 

Wickham is a low, flat, and unpleasant situation, and lying so near the marshes cannot but be unhealthy, the land throughout it is in general good and sertile, especially near the village, where the fields are very large and level ground. The village, in number about twenty houses, stands at the south-east boundary of the parish, built round a green, over which the road leads to Ickham, having the church and court-lodge on one side, and the parsonage, a handsome brick house, on the other. At the further end of the green, the Lesser Stour crosses the road, and turns a corn-mill belonging to the manor, beyond it is only one house, called the Stone-house, being built of squared stones and slints in chequers, and by the arched windows and door-ways seems of some antiquity. The parish stretches a good distance northward, as far as Groveferry, the house of which is within it, and the greater Stour river, over a level of about 500 acres of marsh land, which extend from the river into a sinus, with a ridge of upland on each side, to within a quarter of a mile of the village. North eastward from which is the Saperton, formerly the property of the Beakes's, who resided here as early as king Henry the VIIIth.'s reign; it was sold by them to the Furneses, whence it came by marriage, with Copthall, in this parish, to the St. John's, viscounts Bolingbroke, who have lately sold it, but one of the family of Beake, many of whom lie buried in this church, now occupies it. A little beyond this is Newnham, once accounted a manor, formerly belonging to the Ropers, lords Teynham, afterwards to the Bartholomews, then to Joseph Brooke, esq. of Rochester, and now to his devisee the Rev. John Kenward Shaw Brooke, of Town-Malling.—Hence among the marshes is the hamlet of Grove, through which the road leads across them to the right over the lesser Stour, to Wingham, Ash, and the eastern parts of Kent, and to the left by Grove-ferry over the Greater Stour, to the northern part of the country and the Isle of Thanet. There is no other wood in the parish excepting Trendley park. There is no fair.

 

At the time of taking the survey of Domesday, in the year 1080, this place was part of those possessions with which that king had enriched his half-brother Odo, the great bishop of Baieux. Accordingly it is thus entered in that record, under the general title of his lands:

 

In Donamesford hundred, the bishop himself holds in demesne Wicheham. It was taxed at four sulings. The arable land is eleven carucates. In demesne there are two carucates, and thirty-six villeins, with thirty-two cottagers having nine carucates. There is a church, and one priest who gives forty shillings per annum. There is one park, and two mills of fifty shillings, and two saltpits of thirtytwo pence, and three fisheries of four shillings, and thirtytwo acres of meadow. Pasture for three hundred sheep and for thirty-one beasts. Wood for the pannage of eighty bogs. In the time of king Edward the Confessor it was worth twenty-five pounds, when he received it twenty pounds, now thirty pounds. There belong to this manor in Canterbury three plats of land paying six shillings and eight pence. Alured Biga held it of king Edward. Moreover there belongs to this manor half a suling of free land, which Sired held of Alured Biga, and Goisfrid, son of Badland, now holds it of the bishop of Baieux, and it is and was worth separately sixty shillings.

 

Four years afterwards the bishop was disgraced, and all his possessions were consiscated to the crown, of which this manor appears afterwards to have been held by the Cliffords. Walter, son of Walter de Clifford, possessed it in the reign of king John, and with Agnes de Cundy, his wife, was a good benefactor to St. Augustine's abbey, and that of St. Radigund. (fn. 1) By the marriage of Margaret, daughter and heir of Walter Clifford, with John de Brewse, it passed into that name, and William de Brewse, or de Braiosa, as they were written in Latin, was possessed of it in the 42d year of king Henry III. His descendant William de Brewse, lord of the honour of Brembre, in Sussex, and of Gower, in Wales, as he stiled himself, whose ancestor came into England with the Conqueror, who gave him the castle of Brember, and whose descendant afterwards, by the marriage with Bertha, daughter and one of the coheirs of Milo, earl of Hereford, became possessed of the castles of Brecknock and Gower likewife, and bore for his arms, Azure, a lion rampant, between twelve cross-croslets, or; though I find by the pedigrees of this family, that his ancestors bore Azure, three bars vaire, argent, and gules. He was several times summoned to parliament in king Edward I.'s reign, as was his son of the same name, both in that and Edward II.'s reign, and died possessed of this manor in the 19th year of the latter. Very soon after which it appears, with the church appendant to it, to have come into the possession of Edmund of Woodstock, earl of Kent, half brother to king Edward II. (fn. 2) After which it descended to his brother John Plantagenet, likewife earl of Kent, it being then held of the king in sergeantry. He died anno 26 Edward III. upon which Joane his sister, commonly called the Fair Maid of Kent, wife of Sir Thomas Holand, became his heir, who in her right not only possessed this manor, but became earl of Kent likewise. She afterwards married Edward the black prince, and died in the 9th year of king Richard II. being succeeded in this manor then held in capite, by Thomas Holand, earl of Kent, her son by her first husband, whose two sons, Thomas and Edward, both earls of Kent, and the former created Duke of Surry, in turn succeeded to it, and the latter dying anno 9 Henry IV. his five sisters became his coheirs, and on a partition made between them, Edmund, earl of March, son of Eleanor, late countess of March, the eldest of them became entitled to this manor in his mother's right, being the last earl of March of this family, for he died s. p. in the 3d year of king Henry VI. being then possessed of it. The year after which, Joane, wife of Sir John Gray, appears by the escheat rolls to have been entitled to it; not long after which it became the property of the family of Tibetot, or Tiptoft, as they were usually called, in whom it continued down to John Tiptost, earl of Worcester, who was attainted and beheaded in 1471, anno 10 Edward IV. king Henry being then restored to the crown. He lest an infant son Edward, who, though he was afterwards restored in blood by king Edward IV. yet I do not find that he was ever reinstated in the possession of this manor, which remained in the crown till the reign of king Henry VIII. who granted it, with the advowson of the church, to Sir Matthew Browne, of Beechworth-castle, who in the 22d year of it, passed it away to Lucy, widow of his uncle Sir Anthony Browne, standard-bearer of England, whose grandson Anthony was, anno I and 2 of Philip and Mary, created viscount Montague, and died possessed of this manor anno 34 Elizabeth, and by his will devised it to his eldest son by his second wife, Sir George Browne, who was of Wickham Breaus, and his grandson Sir George Browne, K. B. leaving two daughters his coheirs, Winifrid, married to Basil Brooks, esq. of Salop, and Eleanor, to Henry Farmer, esq. of Oxfordshire, they joined in the sale of it, at the latter end of Charles II.'s reign, to Sir H. Palmer, bart. of Wingham, who died possessed of it in 1706, s. p. and by his will devised it to his nephew Sir Thomas Palmer, bart. who died in 1723, and by his will gave it to his natural son Herbert Palmer, esq. who married Bethia, one of the daughters of Sir Thomas D'Aeth, bart. of Knowlton, who died in 1760, s. p., having devised this manor, with the advowson of the church appendant, to his widow. She afterwards married John Cosnan, esq. who in her right became possessed of it, and died in 1778, s. p. leaving her furviving, upon which she again became entitled to the possession of it, and continued owner of it till her death in 1797, on which it came to her nephew Sir Narborough D'Aeth, bart. of Knowlton, the present owner of it. A court leet and court baron is held for this manor.

 

Trendley park, now accounted a manor of itself, is situated at the north-west boundary of this parish, being entirely separated from the rest of it by that of Littleborne intervening. It was part of the possessions of Odo, bishop of Baieux, and is noticed in the survey of Domesday, in the description of the manor of Wickham above recited, in which it is mentioned as being then a park; and it should seem that at least part of it was then accounted as appurtenant to that manor; though in the description of the manor of Littleborne, in the same survey, which then belonged to the abbey of St. Augustine, it appears that the bishop had lands belonging to that manor too lying within his park here. Of this manor the bishop of Baieux has in his park as much land as is worth sixty shillings, says the record. In part of the recompence for which, the bishop seems to have given the abbot the manor of Garwinton, in Littleborne, and other land within the manor of Leeds, as may be seen by the entries of both these manors in the same record. Soon after which there was another exchange of land made between the bishop and archbishop Lanfranc, for some which lay within his park of Wikeham. What is remarkable in this instrument is, that it is given in two languages, in Saxon and Latin, but neither is a translation of the other, for both are originals, as was a frequent custom of that time. Appendant to it is the bishop's seal in wax, representing him on one side on horseback, with his sword and spurs, as an earl, and on the other habited as a bishop, with his pastoral staff; being perhaps the only seal of Odo at this time extant. (fn. 3) By all which it appears, that this park is much more antient than that of Woodstock, which has been accounted the first inclosed park in England. How long it continued an inclosed park, I have no where found; but in the beginning of king Henry VI.'s reign it was not so, as appears by the escheat-rolls of the 3d year of it, after the death of Edmund, earl of March, at which time there were two hundred acres of wood in it. He was lord of the manor of Wickham, and Trendley park was chiefly at that time certainly appurtenant to it, and continued so whilst in the possession of the same owners, which it did most probably till the attainder of John Tiptost, earl of Worcester, in the 10th year of king Edward IV. when they both came into the hands of the crown, and though king Henry VIII. afterwards granted the manor of Wickham to Sir Matthew Browne, yet I do not find that Trendley park was granted with it. From which time it has had separate owners. For some time it has been the property of the family of Denne, who continue at this time the owners of it. It lies in an unpleasant, lonely part of the parish, facing Westbere, and consists of three hundred acres of woodland, and a house called the Park-house. There is a high road through the middle of it from Stodmarsh to Canterbury market, which in king Edward II.'s reign, was attempted to be shut up, but the sheriff, with the posse comitatus, was ordered to open it again, as being an antient and allowed high road.

 

Charities.

Andrew Holness, of Seton, in Ickham, by will in 1554, gave to the poor 2s. in money and bread, to be distributed yearly; the churchwardens to take so much yearly out of his lands in Ickham and Wickham, except his house and garden at Seton, in case his executors did not give the same yearly.

 

Henry Sloyden, of Wickham Breaus, by will in 1568, gave for the use of the poor and Littleborne, in equal portions, a piece of land containing six acres and a half in the latter parish, called Church-close, which is distributed twice a year by the respective minister and churchwardens, and is of the annual produce of 4l.

 

John Smith, rector of this parish, by deed in 1656, gave a school-room, and a house and garden for a schoolmaster, in this parish, for teaching the children of it. The master to be chosen from one of his relations in preference, if any such could be found, is vested in the rector and churchwardens of this parish.

 

Sir Henry Palmer, of Bekesborne, by his will in 1611, gave the sum of 10s. to each of the several parishes of Wickham, Stodmarsh, Littleborne, and five others therein mentioned, to be paid into the hands of the minister and churchwardens yearly, out of his manor and lands of Well-court, at Michaelmas, towards the relief of the poor of each of them.

 

Thomas Belke, D. D. rector of this parish, by will in 1712, gave 501. for the putting out of five poor children of this parish apprentices.

 

There are about thirty poor constantly relieved, and casually seventy.

 

This parish is within the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of Bridge.

 

¶The church, which is dedicated to St. Andrew, consists of three isles and one chancel, having at the west end a square tower, in which hang six bells. The church is not large, but is handsome and neat. In the middle isle are several memorials for the Beakes, of Saperton. In the south isle for the Larkins, who lived at Grove, in this parish. In the east window are remains of good painted glass, viz. the arms of Edward the black price and of Mortimer, quartered with Burgh, and a representation of Herod's daughter beheading John the Baptist. In the chancel, on the pavement, is the figure of a priest in brass, and inscription, for Henry Welde, rector, obt. 1420. A gravestone, and monument for Alexander Young, B D. rector of this parish, who rebuilt this parsonage-house, and repaired that of Eastchurch, of which he was vicar likewife, at the expence of 2000l. obt. March 21, 1755. A memorial for John Smith, rector, obt. Oct. 28, 1658. In the church-yard are many headstones, and a tombstone for the family of Beake. In the windows of this church there were formerly many different shields of arms, long since demolished.

 

This church was always an appendage to the manor, and continues so at this time, Sir Narborough D' Aeth, bart. owner of the manor of Wickham, being the present patron of it.

 

There was antiently both a rectory and vicarage in this church, which continued till the year 1322, when on a vacancy of the latter, Richard de Newcastle, the rector, petitioned archbishop Walter Reynolds, that they might be consolidated, which was granted, and they have continued in that state to the present time. (fn. 4)

 

This rectory is valued in the king's books at 29l. 12s. 6d. and the yearly tenths at 2l. 19s. 3d. In 1588 it was valued at 250l. communicants one hundred and sixty-three. In 1640 the same. There are eighteen acres of glebe-land.

 

The marsh-lands in this parish, within Wickham and Preston valleys, pay a modus of two-pence an acre, and those within Newnham 1½d. only, in lieu of all tithes.

 

www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol9/pp158-166

www.lookingglasscreamery.com/

 

Nikon F100 Nikon AF Nikkor 28-105mm 1:3.5-4.5D Delta 100@200 LegacyPro Eco Pro 1:1 03/30/2024

Not because you need it…. But because someone else needs you everyday. "

 

Get well soon Parvin ♣ and AJL in Chicago.

 

May you soon be in the 'pink of health' again.

  

For all the ladies on flickr, as we celebrate International Women's Day, may you always remember how amazing you all are.

 

ONE FLAW IN WOMEN

 

By the time the Lord made woman, he was into his sixth day of working overtime. An angel appeared and said, "Why are you spending so much time on this one?"

 

And the Lord answered, "Have you seen my spec sheet on her? She has to be completely washable, but not plastic, have over 200 movable parts, all replaceable and able to run on diet coke and leftovers, have a lap that can hold four children at one time, have a kiss that can cure anything from a scraped knee to a broken heart -and she will do everything with only two hands."

 

The angel was astounded at the requirements. "Only two hands!? No way! And that's just on the standard model? That 's too much work for one day. Wait until tomorrow to finish.

 

"But I won't," the Lord protested. "I am so close to finishing this creation that is so close to my own heart. She already heals herself when she is sick AND can work 18 hour days."

 

The angel moved closer and touched the woman. "But you have made her so soft, Lord."

 

"She is soft," the Lord agreed, "but I have also made her tough. You have no idea what she can endure or accomplish."

 

"Will she be able to think?", asked the angel.

 

The Lord replied, "Not only will she be able to think, she will be able to reason and negotiate."

 

The angel then noticed something, and reaching out, touched the woman's cheek. "Oops, it looks like you have a leak in this model. I told you that you were trying to put too much into this one."

 

"That's not a leak," the Lord corrected, " that's a tear!"

 

"What's the tear for?" the angel asked.

 

The Lord said, "The tear is her way of expressing her joy, her sorrow, her pain, her disappointment, her love, her loneliness, her grief, and her pride."

 

The angel was impressed. "You are a genius, Lord. You thought of everything! Woman is truly amazing."

 

And she is!

 

Women have strengths that amaze men.

 

They bear hardships and they carry burdens, but they hold happiness, love and joy. They smile when they want to scream.

 

They sing when they want to cry.

 

They cry when they are happy and laugh when they are nervous.

 

They fight for what they believe in.

 

They stand up to injustice.

 

They don't take "no" for an answer when they believe there is a better solution. They go without so their family can have.

 

They go to the doctor with a frightened friend.

 

They love unconditionally.

 

They cry when their children excel and cheer when their friends get awards.

 

They are happy when they hear about a birth or a wedding.

 

Their hearts break when a friend dies.

 

They grieve at the loss of a family member, yet they are strong when they think there is no strength left.

 

They know that a hug and a kiss can heal a broken heart.

 

Women come in all shapes, sizes and colors.They'll drive, fly, walk, run or e-mail you to show how much they care about you. The heart of a woman is what makes the world keep turning. They bring joy, hope and love. They have compassion and ideals. They give moral support to their family and friends.Women have vital things to say and everything to give.

 

HOWEVER, IF THERE IS ONE FLAW IN WOMEN,

 

IT IS THAT THEY FORGET THEIR WORTH.

 

~unknown

  

View On Black

13/3/2015 a group of artists exhibited NOW about the NOW as warm up for

COPENHAGEN ULTRACONTEMPORARY BIENNALE

main : copenhagenbiennale.org/

www.facebook.com/CopenhagenBiennale

www.emergencyrooms.org/formats.html

www.emergencyrooms.org/

www.emergencyrooms.org/biennalist.html

 

meanwhile contemporary art will be shown by

  

Collage by "Biennalist " / Biennalist make efforts to understand Biennale motivations

and why they try to have a political attitude often in opposition with their intentions

www.emergencyrooms.org/biennalist.html

 

--- a presentation of COPENHAGEN ULTRACONTEMPORARY BIENNALE will be done at the Venice Biennale 2015 ---

 

check date and place here www.facebook.com/CopenhagenBiennale

COPENHAGEN ULTRACONTEMPORARY BIENNALE

main : copenhagenbiennale.org/

www.facebook.com/CopenhagenBiennale

www.emergencyrooms.org/formats.html

www.emergencyrooms.org/

  

meanwhile contemporary art will be shown by

 

ABBOUD, Jumana Emil .ABDESSEMED, Adel .ABONNENC, Mathieu Kleyebe

ABOUNADDARA.ACHOUR, Boris ADKINS, Terry AFIF, Saâdane

AKERMAN, Chantal AKOMFRAH, John AKPOKIERE, Karo

AL SOLH, Mounira ALGÜN RINGBORG, Meriç ALLORA, Jennifer & CALZADILLA, Guillermo

ATAMAN, Kutlug BAJEVIC, Maja BALLESTEROS, Ernesto

BALOJI, Sammy BARBA, Rosa

BASELITZ, Georg BASUALDO, Eduardo BAUER, Petra

BESHTY, Walead BHABHA, Huma BOLTANSKI, Christian

BONVICINI, Monica BOYCE, Sonia

BOYD, Daniel BREY, Ricardo BROODTHAERS, Marcel BRUGUERA, Tania

BURGA, Teresa CALHOUN, Keith & McCORMICK, Chandra CAO, Fei

CHAMEKH, Nidhal CHERNYSHEVA, Olga CHUNG, Tiffany

COOPERATIVA CRÁTER INVERTIDO CREATIVE TIME SUMMIT

DAMIANI, Elena DELLER, Jeremy DJORDAJDZE, Thea DUMAS, Marlene

E-FLUX JOURNAL EDWARDS, Melvin EFFLATOUN, Inji EHMANN, Antje & FAROCKI, Harun

EICHHORN, Maria EVANS, Walker FAROCKI, Harun FLOYD, Emily

FRIEDL, Peter FUSCO, Coco FUSINATO, Marco

GAINES, Charles GALLAGHER, Ellen GALLARDO, Ana GARCIA, Dora

GATES, Theaster GENZKEN, Isa GLUKLYA GOMES, Sônia GROSSE, Katharina

GULF LABOR GURSKY, Andreas HAACKE, Hans

HADJITHOMAS, Joana & JOREIGE, Khalil HARRY, Newell HASSAN, Kay

HIRSCHHORN, Thomas HÖLLER, Carsten HOLT, Nancy & SMITHSON, Robert

IM, Heung Soon INVISIBLE BORDERS: Trans-African Photographers ISHIDA, Tetsuya

JI, Dachun JULIEN, Isaac K., Hiwa KAMBALU, Samson KIM, Ayoung

KLUGE, Alexander KNGWARREYE, Emily Kame LAGOMARSINO, Runo LEBER, Sonia & CHESWORTH, David

LIGON, Glenn MABUNDA, Gonçalo MADHUSUDHANAN MAHAMA, Ibrahim

MALJKOVIC, David MAN, Victor MANSARAY, Abu Bakarr MARKER, Chris

MARSHALL, Kerry James MARTEN, Helen MAURI, Fabio McQUEEN, Steve

MOHAIEMEN, Naeem MORAN, Jason MÜLLER, Ivana MUNROE, Lavar MURILLO, Oscar

MUTU, Wangechi NAM, Hwayeon NAUMAN, Bruce NDIAYE, Cheikh NICOLAI, Olaf

OFILI, Chris OGBOH, Emeka PARRENO, Philippe PASCALI, Pino PIPER, Adrian

PONIFASIO, Lemi QIU, Zhijie RAISSNIA, Raha RAQS MEDIA COLLECTIVE

(NARULA, Monica; BAGCHI, Jeebesh; SENGUPTA, Shuddhabrata) REYNAUD-DEWAR, Lili

RIDNYI, Mykola ROBERTS, Liisa ROTTENBERG, Mika SCHÖNFELDT, Joachim SELMANI, Massinissa

SENGHOR, Fatou Kand SHETTY, Prasad & GUPTE, Rupal SIBONY, Gedi

SIMMONS, Gary SIMON, Taryn SIMPSON, Lorna SMITHSON, Robert SUBOTZKY, Mikhael

SUHAIL, Mariam SZE, Sarah THE PROPELLER GROUPthe TOMORROW

TIRAVANIJA, Rirkrit TOGUO, Barthélémy XU, Bing YOUNIS, Ala

  

ALBANIA

Albanian Trilogy: A Series of Devious Stratagems

Armando Lulaj

Commissioner: Ministry of Culture. Curator: Marco Scotini. Deputy Curator: Andris Brinkmanis. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale

ANDORRA

Inner Landscapes

Roqué, Joan Xandri

Commissioner: Henry Périer. Deputy Commissioner: Joana Baygual, Sebastià Petit, Francesc Rodríguez

Curator: Paolo de Grandis, Josep M. Ubach. Venue: Spiazzi, Castello 3865

ANGOLA

On Ways of Travelling

António Ole, Binelde Hyrcan, Délio Jasse, Francisco Vidal, Nelo Teixeira

Commissioner: Ministry of Culture, Rita Guedes Tavares. Curator: António Ole. Deputy Curator: Antonia Gaeta. Venue: Conservatorio Benedetto Marcello - Palazzo Pisani, San Marco 2810

ARGENTINA

The Uprising of Form

Juan Carlos Diste´fano

Commissioner: Magdalena Faillace. Curator: Mari´a Teresa Constantin. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale – Sale d’Armi

ARMENIA, Republic of

Armenity / Haiyutioun

Haig Aivazian, Lebanon; Nigol Bezjian, Syria/USA; Anna Boghiguian Egypt/Canada; Hera Büyüktasçiyan, Turkey; Silvina Der-Meguerditchian, Argentina/Germany; Rene Gabri & Ayreen Anastas, Iran/Palestine/USA; Mekhitar Garabedian, Belgium; Aikaterini Gegisian, Greece; Yervant Gianikian & Angela Ricci Lucchi, Italy; Aram Jibilian, USA; Nina Katchadourian, USA/Finland; Melik Ohanian, France; Mikayel Ohanjanyan, Armenia/Italy; Rosana Palazyan, Brazil; Sarkis, Turkey/France; Hrair Sarkissian, Syria/UK

Commissioner: Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Armenia. Deputy Commissioner: Art for the World, Mekhitarist Congregation of San Lazzaro Island, Embassy of the Republic of Armenia in Italy, Vartan Karapetian. Curator: Adelina Cüberyan von Fürstenberg. Venue: Monastery and Island of San Lazzaro degli Armeni

AUSTRALIA

Fiona Hall: Wrong Way Time

Fiona Hall

Commissioner: Simon Mordant AM. Deputy Commissioner: Charles Green. Curator: Linda Michael. Scientific Committee: Simon Mordant AM, Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev, Max Delany, Rachel Kent, Danie Mellor, Suhanya Raffel, Leigh Robb. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

AUSTRIA

Heimo Zobernig

Commissioner: Yilmaz Dziewior. Curator: Yilmaz Dziewior. Scientific Committee: Friends of the Venice Biennale. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

AZERBAIJAN, Republic of

Beyond the Line

Ashraf Murad, Javad Mirjavadov, Tofik Javadov, Rasim Babayev, Fazil Najafov, Huseyn Hagverdi, Shamil Najafzada

Commissioner: Heydar Aliyev Foundation. Curators: de Pury de Pury, Emin Mammadov. Venue: Palazzo Lezze, Campo S.Stefano, San Marco 2949

Vita Vitale

Edward Burtynsky, Mircea Cantor, Loris Cecchini, Gordon Cheung, Khalil Chishtee, Tony Cragg, Laura Ford, Noemie Goudal, Siobhán Hapaska, Paul Huxley, IDEA laboratory and Leyla Aliyeva, Chris Jordan with Rebecca Clark and Helena S.Eitel, Tania Kovats, Aida Mahmudova, Sayyora Muin, Jacco Olivier, Julian Opie, Julian Perry, Mike Perry, Bas Princen, Stephanie Quayle, Ugo Rondinone, Graham Stevens, Diana Thater, Andy Warhol, Bill Woodrow, Erwin Wurm, Rose Wylie

Commissioner: Heydar Aliyev Foundation. Curators: Artwise: Susie Allen, Laura Culpan, Dea Vanagan. Venue: Ca’ Garzoni, San Marco 3416

BELARUS, Republic of

War Witness Archive

Konstantin Selikhanov

Commissioner: Natallia Sharanhovich. Deputy Commissioners: Alena Vasileuskaya, Kamilia Yanushkevich. Curators: Aleksei Shinkarenko, Olga Rybchinskaya. Scientific Committee: Dmitry Korol, Daria Amelkovich, Julia Kondratyuk, Sergei Jeihala, Sheena Macfarlane, Yuliya Heisik, Hanna Samarskaya, Taras Kaliahin, Aliaksandr Stasevich. Venue: Riva San Biagio, Castello 2145

BELGIUM

Personnes et les autres

Vincent Meessen and Guests, Mathieu K. Abonnenc, Sammy Baloji, James Beckett, Elisabetta Benassi, Patrick Bernier & Olive Martin, Tamar Guimara~es & Kasper Akhøj, Maryam Jafri, Adam Pendleton

Commissioner: Wallonia-Brussels Federation and Wallonia-Brussels International. Curator: Katerina Gregos. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

COSTA RICA

"Costa Rica, Paese di pace, invita a un linguaggio universale d'intesa tra i popoli".

Andrea Prandi, Beatrice Gallori, Beth Parin, Biagio Schembari, Carla Castaldo, Celestina Avanzini, Cesare Berlingeri, Erminio Tansini, Fabio Capitanio, Fausto Beretti, Giovan Battista Pedrazzini, Giovanni Lamberti, Giovanni Tenga, Iana Zanoskar, Jim Prescott, Leonardo Beccegato, Liliana Scocco, Lucia Bolzano, Marcela Vicuna, Marco Bellagamba, Marco Lodola, Maria Gioia dell’Aglio, Mario Bernardinello, Massimo Meucci, Nacha Piattini, Omar Ronda, Renzo Eusebi, Tita Patti, Romina Power, Rubens Fogacci, Silvio di Pietro, Stefano Sichel, Tino Stefanoni, Ufemia Ritz, Ugo Borlenghi, Umberto Mariani, Venere Chillemi, Jacqueline Gallicot Madar, Massimo Onnis, Fedora Spinelli

Commissioner: Ileana Ordonez Chacon. Curator: Gregorio Rossi. Venue: Palazzo Bollani

CROATIA

Studies on Shivering: The Third Degree

Damir Ocko

Commissioner: Ministry of Culture. Curator: Marc Bembekoff. Venue: Palazzo Pisani, S. Marina

CUBA

El artista entre la individualidad y el contexto

Lida Abdul, Celia-Yunior, Grethell Rasúa, Giuseppe Stampone, LinYilin, Luis Edgardo Gómez Armenteros, Olga Chernysheva, Susana Pilar Delahante Matienzo

Commissioner: Miria Vicini. Curators: Jorge Fernández Torres, Giacomo Zaza. Venue: San Servolo Island

CYPRUS, Republic of

Two Days After Forever

Christodoulos Panayiotou

Commissioner: Louli Michaelidou. Deputy Commissioner: Angela Skordi. Curator: Omar Kholeif. Deputy Curator: Daniella Rose King. Venue: Palazzo Malipiero, Sestiere San Marco 3079

CZECH Republic and SLOVAK Republic

Apotheosis

Jirí David

Commissioner: Adam Budak. Deputy Commissioner: Barbara Holomkova. Curator: Katarina Rusnakova. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

ECUADOR

Gold Water: Apocalyptic Black Mirrors

Maria Veronica Leon Veintemilla in collaboration with Lucia Vallarino Peet

Commissioner: Andrea Gonzàlez Sanchez. Deputy Commissioner: PDG Arte Communications. Curator: Ileana Cornea. Deputy Curator: Maria Veronica Leon Veintemilla. Venue: Istituto Santa Maria della Pietà, Castello 3701

ESTONIA

NSFW. From the Abyss of History

Jaanus Samma

Commissioner: Maria Arusoo. Curator: Eugenio Viola. Venue: Palazzo Malipiero, campo San Samuele, San Marco 3199

EGYPT

CAN YOU SEE

Ahmed Abdel Fatah, Gamal Elkheshen, Maher Dawoud

Commissioner: Hany Al Ashkar. Curator: Ministry of Culture. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

FINLAND (Pavilion Alvar Aalto)

Hours, Years, Aeons

IC-98

Commissioner: Frame Visual Art Finland, Raija Koli. Curator: Taru Elfving. Deputy Curator: Anna Virtanen. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

FRANCE

revolutions

Céleste Boursier-Mougenot

Commissioner: Institut français, with Ministère de la Culture et de la Communication. Curator: Emma Lavigne. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

GEORGIA

Crawling Border

Rusudan Gobejishvili Khizanishvili, Irakli Bluishvili, Dimitri Chikvaidze, Joseph Sabia

Commissioner: Ana Riaboshenko. Curator: Nia Mgaloblishvili. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale – Sale d’Armi

GERMANY

Fabrik

Jasmina Metwaly / Philip Rizk, Olaf Nicolai, Hito Steyerl, Tobias Zielony

Commissioner: ifa (Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen) on behalf of the Federal Foreign Office. Deputy Commissioner: Elke aus dem Moore, Nina Hülsmeier. Curator: Florian Ebner. Deputy Curator: Tanja Milewsky, Ilina Koralova. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

GREAT BRITAIN

Sarah Lucas

Commissioner: Emma Dexter. Curator: Richard Riley. Deputy Curator: Katrina Schwarz. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

GRENADA *

Present Nearness

Oliver Benoit, Maria McClafferty, Asher Mains, Francesco Bosso and Carmine Ciccarini, Guiseppe Linardi

Commissioner: Ministry of Culture. Deputy Commissioner: Susan Mains. Curator: Susan Mains. Deputy Curator: Francesco Elisei. Venue: Opera don Orione Artigianelli, Sala Tiziano, Fondamenta delle Zattere ai Gesuati, Dorsoduro 919

GREECE

Why Look at Animals? AGRIMIKÁ.

Maria Papadimitriou

Commissioner: Hellenic Ministry of Culture, Education and Religious Affairs. Curator: Gabi Scardi. Deputy Curator: Alexios Papazacharias. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

BRAZIL

So much that it doesn't fit here

Antonio Manuel, André Komatsu, Berna Reale

Commissioner: Luis Terepins. Curator: Luiz Camillo Osorio. Deputy Curator: Cauê Alves. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

CANADA

Canadassimo

BGL

Commissioner: National Gallery of Canada, Marc Mayer. Deputy Commissioner: National Gallery of Canada, Yves Théoret. Curator: Marie Fraser. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

CHILE

Poéticas de la disidencia | Poetics of dissent: Paz Errázuriz - Lotty Rosenfeld

Paz Errázuriz, Lotty Rosenfeld

Commissioner: Antonio Arèvalo. Deputy Commissioner: Juan Pablo Vergara Undurraga. Curator: Nelly Richard. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale - Artiglierie

CHINA, People’s Republic of

Other Future

LIU Jiakun, LU Yang, TAN Dun, WEN Hui/Living Dance Studio, WU Wenguang/Caochangdi Work Station

Commissioner: China Arts and Entertainment Group, CAEG. Deputy Commissioners: Zhang Yu, Yan Dong. Curator: Beijing Contemporary Art Foundation. Scientific Committee: Fan Di’an, Zhang Zikang, Zhu Di, Gao Shiming, Zhu Qingsheng, Pu Tong, Shang Hui. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale – Giardino delle Vergini

GUATEMALA

Sweet Death

Emma Anticoli Borza, Sabrina Bertolelli, Mariadolores Castellanos, Max Leiva, Pier Domenico Magri, Adriana Montalto, Elmar Rojas (Elmar René Rojas Azurdia), Paolo Schmidlin, Mónica Serra, Elsie Wunderlich, Collettivo La Grande Bouffe

Commissioner: Daniele Radini Tedeschi. Curators: Stefania Pieralice, Carlo Marraffa, Elsie Wunderlich. Deputy Curators: Luciano Carini, Simone Pieralice. Venue: Officina delle Zattere, Dorsoduro 947, Fondamenta Nani

HOLY SEE

Commissioner: Em.mo Card. Gianfranco Ravasi, Presidente del Pontificio Consiglio della Cultura. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale – Sale d’Armi

HUNGARY

Sustainable Identities

Szilárd Cseke

Commissioner: Monika Balatoni. Deputy Commissioner: István Puskás, Sándor Fodor, Anna Karády. Curator: Kinga German. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

ICELAND

Christoph Büchel

Commissioner: Björg Stefánsdóttir. Curator: Nína Magnúsdóttir. Venue: to be confirmed

INDONESIA, Republic of

Komodo Voyage

Heri Dono

Commissioner: Sapta Nirwandar. Deputy Commissioner: Soedarmadji JH Damais. Curator: Carla Bianpoen, Restu Imansari Kusumaningrum. Scientific Committee: Franco Laera, Asmudjo Jono Irianto, Watie Moerany, Elisabetta di Mambro. Venue: Venue: Arsenale

IRAN

Iranian Highlights

Samira Alikhanzaradeh, Mahmoud Bakhshi Moakhar, Jamshid Bayrami, Mohammed Ehsai

The Great Game

Lida Abdul, Bani Abidi, Adel Abidin, Amin Agheai, Ghodratollah Agheli, Shahriar Ahmadi, Parastou Ahovan, Farhad Ahrarnia, Rashad Alakbarov, Nazgol Ansarinia, Reza Aramesh, Alireza Astaneh, Sonia Balassanian, Mahmoud Bakhshi, Moakhar Wafaa Bilal, Mehdi Farhadian, Monir Farmanfarmaian, Shadi Ghadirian, Babak Golkar, Shilpa Gupta, Ghasem Hajizadeh, Shamsia Hassani, Sahand Hesamiyan, Sitara Ibrahimova, Pouran Jinchi, Amar Kanwar, Babak Kazemi, Ryas Komu, Ahmad Morshedloo, Farhad Moshiri, Mehrdad Mohebali, Huma Mulji, Azad Nanakeli, Jamal Penjweny, Imran Qureshi, Sara Rahbar, Rashid Rana, T.V. Santhosh, Walid Siti, Mohsen Taasha Wahidi, Mitra Tabrizian, Parviz Tanavoli, Newsha Tavakolian, Sadegh Tirafkan, Hema Upadhyay, Saira Wasim

Commissioner: Majid Mollanooruzi. Deputy Commissioners: Marco Meneguzzo, Mazdak Faiznia. Curators: Marco Meneguzzo, Mazdak Faiznia. Venue: Calle San Giovanni 1074/B, Cannaregio

IRAQ

Commissioner: Ruya Foundation for Contemporary Culture in Iraq (RUYA). Deputy Commissioner: Nuova Icona - Associazione Culturale per le Arti. Curator: Philippe Van Cauteren. Venue: Ca' Dandolo, San Polo 2879

IRELAND

Adventure: Capital

Sean Lynch

Commissioner: Mike Fitzpatrick. Curator: Woodrow Kernohan. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale - Artiglierie

ISRAEL

Tsibi Geva | Archeology of the Present

Tsibi Geva

Commissioner: Arad Turgem, Michael Gov. Curator: Hadas Maor. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

 

ITALY

Ministero dei Beni e delle attività culturali e del turismo - Direzione Generale Arte e Architettura Contemporanee e Periferie Urbane. Commissioner: Federica Galloni. Curator: Vincenzo Trione. Venue: Padiglione Italia, Tese delle Vergini at Arsenale

 

JAPAN

The Key in the Hand

Chiharu Shiota

Commissioner: The Japan Foundation. Deputy Commissioner: Yukihiro Ohira, Manako Kawata and Haruka Nakajima. Curator: Hitoshi Nakano. Venue : Pavilion at Giardini

 

KENYA

Creating Identities

Yvonne Apiyo Braendle-Amolo, Qin Feng, Shi Jinsong, Armando Tanzini, Li Zhanyang, Lan Zheng Hui, Li Gang, Double Fly Art Center

Commissioner: Paola Poponi. Curator: Sandro Orlandi Stagl. Deputy Curator: Ding Xuefeng. Venue: San Servolo Island

 

KOREA, Republic of

The Ways of Folding Space & Flying

MOON Kyungwon & JEON Joonho

Commissioner: Sook-Kyung Lee. Curator: Sook-Kyung Lee. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

 

KOSOVO, Republic of

Speculating on the blue

Flaka Haliti

Commissioner: Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports. Curator: Nicolaus Schafhausen. Deputy Curator: Katharina Schendl. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale - Artiglierie

 

LATVIA

Armpit

Katrina Neiburga, Andris Eglitis

Commissioner: Solvita Krese (Latvian Centre for Contemporary Art). Deputy Commissioner: Kitija Vasiljeva. Curator: Kaspars Vanags. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale

 

LITHUANIA

Museum

Dainius Liškevicius

Commissioner: Vytautas Michelkevicius. Deputy Commissioner: Rasa Antanaviciute. Curator: Vytautas Michelkevicius. Venue: Palazzo Zenobio, Fondamenta del Soccorso 2569, Dorsoduro

 

LUXEMBOURG, Grand Duchy of

Paradiso Lussemburgo

Filip Markiewicz

Commissioner: Ministry of Culture. Deputy Commissioner: MUDAM Luxembourg. Curator: Paul Ardenne. Venue: Cà Del Duca, Corte del Duca Sforza, San Marco 3052

 

MACEDONIA, Former Yugoslavian Republic of

We are all in this alone

Hristina Ivanoska and Yane Calovski

Commissioner: Maja Nedelkoska Brzanova, National Gallery of Macedonia. Deputy Commissioner: Olivija Stoilkova. Curator: Basak Senova. Deputy Curator: Maja Cankulovska Mihajlovska. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale - Sale d’Armi

 

MAURITIUS *

From One Citizen You Gather an Idea

Sultana Haukim, Nirmal Hurry, Alix Le Juge, Olga Jürgenson, Helge Leiberg, Krishna Luchoomun, Neermala Luckeenarain, Kavinash Thomoo, Bik Van Der Pol, Laure Prouvost, Vitaly Pushnitsky, Römer + Römer

Commissioner: pARTage. Curators: Alfredo Cramerotti, Olga Jürgenson. Venue: Palazzo Flangini - Canareggio 252

 

MEXICO

Possesing Nature

Tania Candiani, Luis Felipe Ortega

Commissioner: Tomaso Radaelli. Deputy Commissioner: Magdalena Zavala Bonachea. Curator: Karla Jasso. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale – Sale d’Armi

 

MONGOLIA *

Other Home

Enkhbold Togmidshiirev, Unen Enkh

Commissioner: Gantuya Badamgarav, MCASA. Curator: Uranchimeg Tsultemin. Scientific Committee: David A Ross, Boldbaatar Chultemin. Venue: European Cultural Centre - Palazzo Mora

 

MONTENEGRO

,,Ti ricordi Sjecaš li se You Remember "

Aleksandar Duravcevic

Commissioner/Curator: Anastazija Miranovic. Deputy Commissioner: Danica Bogojevic. Venue: Palazzo Malipiero (piano terra), San Marco 3078-3079/A, Ramo Malipiero

 

MOZAMBIQUE, Republic of *

Theme: Coexistence of Tradition and Modernity in Contemporary Mozambique

Mozambique Artists

Commissioner: Joel Matias Libombo. Deputy Commissioner: Gilberto Paulino Cossa. Curator: Comissariado-Geral para a Expo Milano 2015. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale

 

NETHERLANDS, The

herman de vries - to be all ways to be

herman de vries

Commissioner: Mondriaan Fund. Curators: Colin Huizing, Cees de Boer. Venue: Pavilion ar Giardini

 

NEW ZEALAND

Secret Power

Simon Denny

Commissioner: Heather Galbraith. Curator: Robert Leonard. Venue: Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana, Marco Polo Airport

 

NORDIC PAVILION (NORWAY)

Camille Norment

Commissioner: OCA, Office for Contemporary Art Norway. Curator: Katya García-Antón. Deputy Curator: Antonio Cataldo. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

 

PERU

Misplaced Ruins

Gilda Mantilla and Raimond Chaves

Commissioner: Armando Andrade de Lucio. Curator: Max Hernández-Calvo. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale – Sale d’Armi

 

PHILIPPINES

Tie a String Around the World

Manuel Conde, Carlos Francisco, Manny Montelibano, Jose Tence Ruiz

Commissioner: National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA), Felipe M. de Leon Jr. Curator: Patrick D. Flores. Venue: European Cultural Centre - Palazzo Mora

 

POLAND

Halka/Haiti. 18°48’05”N 72°23’01”W

C.T. Jasper, Joanna Malinowska

Commissioner: Hanna Wróblewska. Deputy Commissioner: Joanna Wasko. Curator: Magdalena Moskalewicz. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

 

PORTUGAL

I Will Be Your Mirror / poems and problems

João Louro

Commissioner/Curator: María de Corral. Venue: Palazzo Loredan, campo S. Stefano

 

ROMANIA

Adrian Ghenie: Darwin’s Room

Adrian Ghenie

Commissioner: Monica Morariu. Deputy Commissioner: Alexandru Damian. Curator: Mihai Pop. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

 

Inventing the Truth. On Fiction and Reality

Michele Bressan, Carmen Dobre-Hametner, Alex Mirutziu, Lea Rasovszky, Stefan Sava, Larisa Sitar

Commissioner: Monica Morariu. Deputy Commissioner: Alexandru Damian. Curator: Diana Marincu. Deputy Curators: Ephemair Association (Suzana Dan and Silvia Rogozea). Venue: New Gallery of the Romanian Institute for Culture and Humanistic Research in Venice

 

RUSSIA

The Green Pavilion

Irina Nakhova

Commissioner: Stella Kesaeva. Curator: Margarita Tupitsyn. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

 

SERBIA

United Dead Nations

Ivan Grubanov

Commissioner: Lidija Merenik. Deputy Commissioner: Ana Bogdanovic. Curator: Lidija Merenik. Deputy Curator: Ana Bogdanovic. Scientific Committee: Jovan Despotovic. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

 

SAN MARINO

Repubblica di San Marino “ Friendship Project “ China

Xu De Qi, Liu Dawei, Liu Ruo Wang, Ma Yuan, Li Lei, Zhang Hong Mei, Eleonora Mazza, Giuliano Giulianelli, Giancarlo Frisoni, Tony Margiotta, Elisa Monaldi, Valentina Pazzini

Commissioner: Istituti Culturali della Repubblica di San Marino. Curator: Vincenzo Sanfo. Venue: TBC

 

SEYCHELLES, Republic of *

A Clockwork Sunset

George Camille, Léon Wilma Loïs Radegonde

Commissioner: Seychelles Art Projects Foundation. Curators: Sarah J. McDonald, Victor Schaub Wong. Venue: European Cultural Centre - Palazzo Mora

 

SINGAPORE

Sea State

Charles Lim Yi Yong

Commissioner: Paul Tan, National Arts Council, Singapore. Curator: Shabbir Hussain Mustafa. Scientific Committee: Eugene Tan, Kathy Lai, Ahmad Bin Mashadi, June Yap, Emi Eu, Susie Lingham, Charles Merewether, Randy Chan. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale – Sale d’Armi

 

SLOVENIA, Republic of

UTTER / The violent necessity for the embodied presence of hope

JAŠA

Commissioner: Simona Vidmar. Deputy Commissioner: Jure Kirbiš. Curators: Michele Drascek and Aurora Fonda. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale - Artiglierie

 

SPAIN

Los Sujetos (The Subjects)

Pepo Salazar, Cabello/Carceller, Francesc Ruiz, + Salvador Dalí

Commissioner: Ministerio Asuntos Exteriores. Gobierno de España. Curator: Marti Manen. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

 

SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC

Origini della civiltà

Narine Ali, Ehsan Alar, Felipe Cardeña, Fouad Dahdouh, Aldo Damioli, Svitlana Grebenyuk, Mauro Reggio, Liu Shuishi, Nass ouh Zaghlouleh, Andrea Zucchi, Helidon Xhixha

Commissioner: Christian Maretti. Curator: Duccio Trombadori. Venue: Redentore – Giudecca, San Servolo Island

 

SWEDEN

Excavation of the Image: Imprint, Shadow, Spectre, Thought

Lina Selander

Commissioner: Ann-Sofi Noring. Curator: Lena Essling. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale

 

SWITZERLAND

Our Product

Pamela Rosenkranz

Commissioner: Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia, Sandi Paucic and Marianne Burki. Deputy-Commissioner: Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia, Rachele Giudici Legittimo. Curator: Susanne Pfeffer. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

 

THAILAND

Earth, Air, Fire & Water

Kamol Tassananchalee

Commissioner: Chai Nakhonchai, Office of Contemporary Art and Culture (OCAC), Ministry of Culture. Curator: Richard David Garst. Deputy Curator: Pongdej Chaiyakut. Venue: Paradiso Gallerie, Giardini della Biennale, Castello 1260

 

TURKEY

Respiro

Sarkis

Commissioner: Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts. Curator: Defne Ayas. Deputy Curator: Ozge Ersoy. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale – Sale d’Armi

 

TUVALU

Crossing the Tide

Vincent J.F. Huang

Commissioner: Taukelina Finikaso. Deputy Commissioner: Temate Melitiana. Curator: Thomas J. Berghuis. Scientific Committee: Andrea Bonifacio. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale

 

UKRAINE

Hope!

Yevgenia Belorusets, Nikita Kadan, Zhanna Kadyrova, Mykola Ridnyi & SerhiyZhadan, Anna Zvyagintseva, Open Group, Artem Volokitin

Commissioner: Ministry of Culture. Curator: Björn Geldhof. Venue: Riva dei Sette Martiri

 

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

1980 – Today: Exhibitions in the United Arab Emirates

Abdullah Al Saadi, Abdul Qader Al Rais, Abdulraheem Salim, Abdulrahman Zainal, Ahmed Al Ansari, Ahmed Sharif, Hassan Sharif, Mohamed Yousif, Mohammed Abdullah Bulhiah, Mohammed Al Qassab, Mohammed Kazem, Moosa Al Halyan, Najat Meky, Obaid Suroor, Salem Jawhar

Commissioner: Salama bint Hamdan Al Nahyan Foundation. Curator: Hoor Al Qasimi. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale – Sale d'Armi

 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Joan Jonas: They Come to Us Without a Word

Joan Jonas

Commissioner: Paul C. Ha. Deputy Commissioner: MIT List Visual Arts Center. Curators: Ute Meta Bauer, Paul C. Ha. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

 

URUGUAY

Global Myopia II (Pencil & Paper)

Marco Maggi

Commissioner: Ricardo Pascale. Curator: Patricia Bentancour. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

 

VENEZUELA, Bolivarian Republic of

Te doy mi palabra (I give you my word)

Argelia Bravo, Félix Molina (Flix)

Commissioner: Oscar Sotillo Meneses. Deputy Commissioner: Reinaldo Landaeta Díaz. Curator: Oscar Sotillo Meneses. Deputy Curator: Morella Jurado. Scientific Committee: Carlos Pou Ruan. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini

 

ZIMBABWE, Republic of

Pixels of Ubuntu/Unhu: - Exploring the social and cultural identities of the 21st century.

Chikonzero Chazunguza, Masimba Hwati, Gareth Nyandoro

Commissioner: Doreen Sibanda. Curator: Raphael Chikukwa. Deputy Curator: Tafadzwa Gwetai. Scientific Committee: Saki Mafundikwa, Biggie Samwanda, Fabian Kangai, Reverend Paul Damasane, Nontsikelelo Mutiti, Stephen Garan'anga, Dominic Benhura. Venue: Santa Maria della Pieta

 

ITALO-LATIN AMERICAN INSTITUTE

Voces Indígenas

Commissioner: Sylvia Irrazábal. Curator: Alfons Hug. Deputy Curator: Alberto Saraiva. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale

ARGENTINA

Sofia Medici and Laura Kalauz

PLURINATIONAL STATE OF BOLIVIA

Sonia Falcone and José Laura Yapita

BRAZIL

Adriana Barreto

Paulo Nazareth

CHILE

Rainer Krause

COLOMBIA

León David Cobo,

María Cristina Rincón and Claudia Rodríguez

COSTA RICA

Priscilla Monge

ECUADOR

Fabiano Kueva

EL SALVADOR

Mauricio Kabistan

GUATEMALA

Sandra Monterroso

HAITI

Barbara Prézeau Stephenson

HONDURAS

Leonardo González

PANAMA

Humberto Vélez

NICARAGUA

Raúl Quintanilla

PARAGUAY

Erika Meza

Javier López

PERU

José Huamán Turpo

URUGUAY

Gustavo Tabares

 

Ellen Slegers

  

001 Inverso Mundus. AES+F

Magazzino del Sale n. 5, Dorsoduro, 265 (Fondamenta delle Zattere ai Saloni); Palazzo Nani Mocenigo, Dorsoduro, 960

May 9th – October 31st

Organization: VITRARIA Glass + A Museum

www.vitraria.com

www.inversomundus.com

 

Catalonia in Venice: Singularity

Cantieri Navali, Castello, 40 (Calle Quintavalle)

May 9th - November 22nd

Organization: Institut Ramon Llull

www.llull.cat

venezia2015.llull.cat

 

Conversion. Recycle Group

Chiesa di Sant’Antonin, Castello (Campo Sant’Antonin)

May 6th - October 31st

Organization: Moscow Museum of Modern Art

www.mmoma.ru/

 

Dansaekhwa

Palazzo Contarini-Polignac, Dorsoduro, 874 (Accademia)

May 7th – August 15th

Organization: The Boghossian Foundation

www.villaempain.com

 

Dispossession

Palazzo Donà Brusa, Campo San Polo, 2177

May 9th - November 22nd

Organization: European Capital of Culture Wroclaw 2016

wroclaw2016.pl/biennale/

 

EM15 presents Doug Fishbone’s Leisure Land Golf

Arsenale Docks, Castello, 40A, 40B, 41C

May 6th - July 26th

Organization: EM15

www.em15venice.co.uk

 

Eredità e Sperimentazione

Grand Hotel Hungaria & Ausonia, Viale Santa Maria Elisabetta, 28, Lido di Venezia

May 9th - November 22nd

Organization: Istituto Nazionale di BioArchitettura - Sezione di Padova

www.bioarchitettura.it

 

Frontiers Reimagined

Palazzo Grimani, Castello, 4858 (Ramo Grimani)

May 9th - November 22nd

Organization: Tagore Foundation International; Polo museale del Veneto

www.frontiersreimagined.org

 

Glasstress 2015 Gotika

Istituto Veneto di Scienze Lettere ed Arti, Palazzo Cavalli Franchetti, San Marco, 2847 (Campo Santo Stefano); Chiesa di Santa Maria della Visitazione, Centro Culturale Don Orione Artigianelli, Dorsoduro, 919 (Zattere); Fondazione Berengo, Campiello della Pescheria, 15, Murano;

May 9th — November 22nd

Organization: The State Hermitage Museum

www.hermitagemuseum.org

 

Graham Fagen: Scotland + Venice 2015

Palazzo Fontana, Cannaregio, 3829 (Strada Nova)

May 9th - November 22nd

Organization: Scotland + Venice

www.scotlandandvenice.com

 

Grisha Bruskin. An Archaeologist’s Collection

Former Chiesa di Santa Caterina, Cannaregio, 4941-4942

May 6th – November 22nd

Organization: Centro Studi sulle Arti della Russia (CSAR), Università Ca’ Foscari Venezia

www.unive.it/csar

 

Helen Sear, ... The Rest Is Smoke

Santa Maria Ausiliatrice, Castello, 450 (Fondamenta San Gioacchin)

May 9th - November 22nd

Organization: Cymru yn Fenis/Wales in Venice

www.walesinvenice.org.uk

 

Highway to Hell

Palazzo Michiel, Cannaregio, 4391/A (Strada Nova)

May 9th - November 22nd

Organization: Hubei Museum of Art

www.hbmoa.com

 

Humanistic Nature and Society (Shan-Shui) – An Insight into the Future

Palazzo Faccanon, San Marco, 5016 (Mercerie)

May 7th – August 4th

Organization: Shanghai Himalayas Museum

www.himalayasmuseum.org

 

In the Eye of the Thunderstorm: Effervescent Practices from the Arab World & South Asia

Dorsoduro, 417 (Zattere)

May 6th - November 15th

Organization: ArsCulture

www.arsculture.org/

www.eyeofthunderstorm.com

 

Italia Docet | Laboratorium- Artists, Participants, Testimonials and Activated Spectators

Palazzo Barbarigo Minotto, San Marco, 2504 (Fondamenta Duodo o Barbarigo)

May 9th – June 30th; September 11st – October 31st

Organization: Italian Art Motherboard Foundation (i-AM Foundation)

www.i-amfoundation.org

www.venicebiennale-italiadocet.org

 

Jaume Plensa: Together

Basilica di San Giorgio Maggiore, Isola di San Giorgio Maggiore

May 6th – November 22nd

Organization: Abbazia di San Giorgio Maggiore Benedicti Claustra Onlus

www.praglia.it

 

Jenny Holzer "War Paintings"

Museo Correr, San Marco, 52 (Piazza San Marco)

May 6th – November 22nd

Organization: The Written Art Foundation; Museo Correr, Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia

www.writtenartfoundation.com

correr.visitmuve.it

 

Jump into the Unknown

Palazzo Loredan dell’Ambasciatore, Dorsoduro, 1261-1262

May 9th – June 18th

Organization: Nine Dragon Heads

9dh-venice.com

 

Learn from Masters

Palazzo Bembo, San Marco, 4793 (Riva del Carbon)

May 9th – November 22nd

Organization: Pan Tianshou Foundation

pantianshou.caa.edu.cn/foundation_en

 

My East is Your West

Palazzo Benzon, San Marco, 3927

May 6th – October 31st

Organization: The Gujral Foundation

www.gujralfoundation.org

   

Ornamentalism. The Purvitis Prize

Arsenale Nord, Tesa 99

May 9th – November 22nd

Organization: The Secretariat of the Latvian Presidency of the Council of the European Union in 2015

www.purvisabalva.lv/en/ornamentalism

 

Path and Adventure

Arsenale, Castello, 2126/A (Campo della Tana)

May 9th – November 22nd

Organization: The Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau; The Macao Museum of Art; The Cultural Affairs Bureau

www.iacm.gov.mo

www.mam.gov.mo

www.icm.gov.mo

 

Patricia Cronin: Shrine for Girls, Venice

Chiesa di San Gallo, San Marco, 1103 (Campo San Gallo)

May 9th – November 22nd

Organization: Brooklyn Rail Curatorial Projects

curatorialprojects.brooklynrail.org

 

Roberto Sebastian Matta. Sculture

Giardino di Palazzo Soranzo Cappello, Soprintendenza BAP per le Province di Venezia, Belluno, Padova e Treviso, Santa Croce, 770 (Fondamenta Rio Marin)

May 9th – November 22nd

Organization: Fondazione Echaurren Salaris

www.fondazioneechaurrensalaris.it

www.maggioregam.com/56Biennale_Matta

 

Salon Suisse: S.O.S. Dada - The World Is A Mess

Palazzo Trevisan degli Ulivi, Dorsoduro, 810 (Campo Sant'Agnese)

May 9th; June 4th - 6th; September 10th - 12th; October 15th - 17th; November 19th – 21st

Organization: Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia

www.prohelvetia.ch

www.biennials.ch

 

Sean Scully: Land Sea

Palazzo Falier, San Marco, 2906

May 9th – November 22nd

Organization: Fondazione Volume!

www.fondazionevolume.com

 

Sepphoris. Alessandro Valeri

Molino Stucky, interior atrium, Giudecca, 812

May 9th – November 22nd

Organization: Assessorato alla Cultura del Comune di Narni(TR); a Sidereal Space of Art; Satellite Berlin

www.sepphorisproject.org

 

Tesla Revisited

Palazzo Nani Mocenigo, Dorsoduro, 960

May 9th – October 18th

Organization: VITRARIA Glass + A Museum

www.vitraria.com/

 

The Bridges of Graffiti

Arterminal c/o Terminal San Basilio, Dorsoduro (Fondamenta Zattere al Ponte Lungo)

May 9th - November 22nd

Organization: Associazione Culturale Inossidabile

www.inossidabileac.com

 

The Dialogue of Fire. Ceramic and Glass Masters from Barcelona to Venice

Palazzo Tiepolo Passi, San Polo, 2774

May 6th - November 22nd

Organization: Fundaciò Artigas; ArsCulture

www.fundacio-artigas.com/

www.arsculture.org/

www.dialogueoffire.org

 

The Question of Beings

Istituto Santa Maria della Pietà, Castello, 3701

May 9th - November 22nd

Organization: Museum of Contemporary Art, Taipei (MoCA, Taipei)

www.mocataipei.org.tw

 

The Revenge of the Common Place

Università Ca' Foscari, Ca' Bernardo, Dorsoduro, 3199 (Calle Bernardo)

May 9th – September 30th

Organization: Vrije Universiteit Brussel (Free University Brussels-VUB)

www.vub.ac.be/

 

The Silver Lining. Contemporary Art from Liechtenstein and other Microstates

Palazzo Trevisan degli Ulivi, Dorsoduro, 810 (Campo Sant'Agnese)

October 24th – November 1st

Organization: Kunstmuseum Liechtenstein

www.kunstmuseum.li

www.silverlining.li

 

The Sound of Creation. Paintings + Music by Beezy Bailey and Brian Eno

Conservatorio Benedetto Marcello, Palazzo Pisani, San Marco, 2810 (Campo Santo Stefano)

May 7th - November 22nd

Organization: ArsCulture

www.arsculture.org/

 

The Union of Fire and Water

Palazzo Barbaro, San Marco, 2840

May 9th - November 22nd

Organization: YARAT Contemporary Art Organisation

www.yarat.az

www.bakuvenice2015.com

 

Thirty Light Years - Theatre of Chinese Art

Palazzo Rossini, San Marco, 4013 (Campo Manin)

May 9th - November 22nd

Organization: GAC Global Art Center Foundation; The Guangdong Museum of Art

www.globalartcenter.org

www.gdmoa.org

 

Tsang Kin-Wah: The Infinite Nothing, Hong Kong in Venice

Arsenale, Castello, 2126 (Campo della Tana)

May 9th - November 22nd

Organization: M+, West Kowloon Cultural District; Hong Kong Arts Development Council

www.westkowloon.hk/en/mplus

www.hkadc.org.hk

www.venicebiennale.hk

 

Under the Surface, Newfoundland and Labrador at Venice

Galleria Ca' Rezzonico, Dorsoduro, 2793

May 9th - November 22nd

Organization: Terra Nova Art Foundation

tnaf.ca

 

Ursula von Rydingsvard

Giardino della Marinaressa, Castello (Riva dei Sette Martiri)

May 6th - November 22nd

Organization:Yorkshire Sculpture Park

www.ysp.co.uk

 

We Must Risk Delight: Twenty Artists from Los Angeles

Magazzino del Sale n. 3, Dorsoduro, 264 (Zattere)

May 7th - November 22nd

Organization: bardoLA

www.bardoLA.org

 

Wu Tien-Chang: Never Say Goodbye

Palazzo delle Prigioni, Castello, 4209 (San Marco)

May 9th - November 22nd

Organization: Taipei Fine Arts Museum of Taiwan

www.tfam.museum

 

Xanadu

Istituto Santa Maria della Pietà, Castello, 3701

May 9th - November 22nd

Organization: Dream Amsterdam Foundation

www.dreamamsterdam.nl

www.nikunja.org/xanadu

 

Universities and Associations that have joined the project

Sotheby’s Institute of Art, London / St Lucas University College of Art & Design, Antwerp / University of Washington - College of Arts & Sciences, Seattle / Iowa State University - College of Design, Ames / Universität für angewandte Kunst, Vienna

Venice International University / Università Ca’ Foscari, Venezia / Università Ca’ Foscari, Venezia - Dipartimento di Filosofia e Beni Culturali / Università IUAV di Venezia / Università Commerciale Luigi Bocconi, Milano - Dipartimento di Marketing / Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera, Milano - Ufficio Relazioni Internazionali. Erasmus Office / Politecnico di Milano - Scuola del Design. Laurea in Design degli Interni / Università di Roma Sapienza - Facoltà di Architettura / Associazione Cinemavvenire, Roma / Università per Stranieri di Perugia / Università per Stranieri di Siena

 

Central Pavilion at the Giardini (3,000 sq.m.) to the Arsenale

Bice Curiger Massimiliano Gioni

A Parliament for a Biennale

Paolo Baratta, President of la Biennale di Venezia

Okwui Enwezor the ARENA Karl Marx’s Das Kapital

Theaster Gates Chris Rehberger Joseph Haydn Cesare Paveset David Adjaye Olaf Nicolai Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige Marsilio Editori. emergency cinema.” Abounaddara

Mathieu KleyebeCharles Gaines’Jeremy Deller Jason Moran , venedig biennale biennial

 

other Biennale :(Biennials ) :

  

Venice Biennial , Documenta Havana Biennial,Istanbul Biennial ( Istanbuli),Biennale de Lyon ,Dak'Art Berlin Biennial,Mercosul Visual Arts Biennial ,Bienal do Mercosul Porto Alegre.,Berlin Biennial ,Echigo-Tsumari Triennial .Yokohama Triennial Aichi Triennale,manifesta ,Copenhagen Biennale,Aichi Triennale

Yokohama Triennial,Echigo-Tsumari Triennial.Sharjah Biennial ,Biennale of Sydney, Liverpool , São Paulo Biennial ; Athens Biennale , Bienal do Mercosul ,Göteborg International Biennial for Contemporary Art

   

Having a little fun with processing. Those living in the metro area will understand.

To further understand where we are going in this world, we have to understand where we have been. What did we do right to get here, what did we do wrong? What exactly caused all the extinctions in the past and can we prevent it from happening again.

 

With that in mind, I traveled back in time 85 million years to visit the Cretaceous Period and get a closer look at the truth of our future.

 

First thing I noticed was all the dinosaurs were only 1 1/2 inches tall. Who knew, right? Further study revealed their bones were made of foam that expands in water, hence all the large bones we find here in the present.

 

Second thing I noticed was they were split into two political parties, The Carnocrat and the Replubivore. Neither side agreed on anything and nothing got done. Even if they did agree, they hated each other so much, they would disagree just to spite the other. Finally, the Carnocrats got so fed up, they started eating the Replubivores. The Replubivores in turn started eating poison so when they got eaten themselves, they would in turn kill the Carnocrat. And that my friends is what really happened to the dinosaurs.

 

Oh yeah, then a big rock fell from the sky and landed in the water and flooded the earth with a big wave which was why their foam bones expanded into the size they are now.

 

So I ask, in 85 million years and a few species later, have we really learned anything? Hopefully the next species to come along somewhere in the next 85 million years will get it right.

 

View in D I N O V I S I O N !

 

for

Our Daily Challenge: Brand New

 

#FlickrFriday #GettingCloser

 

Cliche Saturday HCS

--------------------------------------

 

A few weeks ago, my Mother-in-Law gave me some plastic dinosaurs for ages 3 and up. Thought I might like them. I'm so embarrassed, I do. So with today's Challenge, I opened them up

This was actually a bit embarrassing to shoot since i had to take off my shirt and show my massive biceps and chest to all the people passing by! bahahaha messif times! I had this idea for quite some time now and got down to it last night after sunset! tell me what you think! :D *for some reason this shot looks better on photoshop :S i cant understand haha*

 

farmervass.tumblr.com/ - Tumblr

I don't understand what you are

I don't understand what you want

I don't understand what you think that I am

I don't understand what you want from me

But now I have done to try to understand

 

Bye

Jonathan Livingston Seagull, written by Richard Bach, is a fable in novella form about a seagull learning about life and flight, and a homily about self-perfection.

 

The secret, Chiang says, is to "begin by knowing that you have already arrived...

 

"You've got to understand that a seagull is an unlimited idea of freedom, an image of the Great Gull." He realizes that you have to be true to yourself. "higher plane of existence".

 

"Keep working on love."

 

See him Eye to Eye

 

more info: see wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Livingston_Seagull

 

Can you tell me the title in your language?

..

I fully understand how a bee can be seduced!

vendido / sold

To understand children's roles in households and families, it's important to first examine the economic context in the area.

 

Unemployment in formal sector work is high in Lusaka. Women face particular disadvantages in securing even low-paying formal sector work. Women tend to cobble together informal labor activities, such as selling food, goods, and services to other residents.

 

The above photo is of a stand where a woman and her children sell vegetables and dry goods. Many such stands are less permanent than this one. Women put out tables in front of their houses each day or they carry goods to the market each day in George or in Lusaka's city centre. For more on this and other employment issues in George, see pages 49-50.

 

The woman who had this stand was able to construct this concrete shelter to lock her goods up at night. Her children tended the shop when she was away.

 

Photo by Jean Hunleth

  

**This photo is part of the Children as Caregivers art gallery.

Learn more about the Children as Caregivers project in Jean Hunleth's book, Children as Caregivers: The Global Fight against Tuberculosis and HIV in Zambia.

Earthly Goods also understands the importance of packaging a #GreenSuperfood in amber glass bottles, especially bottles used by Pines with special metal caps that allow the company to remove the oxygen and tightly seal the airtight containers. Without oxygen, a green product keeps its color and nutritional potency. That's because #oxidation cannot occur.

 

Besides not following proper growing and harvesting standards, oxidation is a major reason that #GreenSuperfoods in plastic containers, bags or packets lose their vibrant color. In the presence of oxygen, the color of a #GreenFood starts to become dull or even change to a grayish green or worse to yellow or brown. When a green #superfood loses color, you are receiving very little nutritional value. People who don't take shortcuts on nutrition, choose Pines, because Pines doesn't take shortcuts on growing, harvesting or packaging its #wheatgrass and #alfalfa products. Because of its quality, Pines provides much more nutrition per dollar than improperly packaged green products.

 

Earthly Goods is a family-owned business that strives to help the customer find the right product. Jeremy Bleichman, with the support of his wife, Melissa, has been doing business for over 18 years, helping people with their health care needs. When in northern Illinois or southern Wisconsin near Lake Michigan, please visit this beautiful, well-stocked store, enjoy a smoothie or juice and check out their full line of outstanding products.

 

Earthly Goods Website: www.earthly-goods.com/

 

Earthly Goods Facebook: www.facebook.com/Earthly-Goods-Health-Foods-231513941845/...

 

Pines Website: www.wheatgrass.com/

 

Pines Instagram: instagram.com/wheatgrass_people

 

Pines Facebook Page on Organic Farming and Non-GMO

www.facebook.com/PinesWheatGrass

 

Pines Twitter: twitter.com/PinesWheatGrass

 

Pines Flickr:

www.flickr.com/…/13449270@N03/sets/72157649797633419

 

Pines Tumblr: pineswheatgrass.tumblr.com/

 

The WheatGrass Girl's Twitter: twitter.com/WheatGrass76

 

The WheatGrass Girl's Facebook:

www.facebook.com/TheWheatgrassGirl

 

More tags: #GreenDuo #MightyGreens #PinesWheatGrass #alkalize #energize #stamina #endurance #athletics #marathon #triathlete #wheatgrasspowder #smoothie #plantbasednutrition #nitricoxide #organic #gmofree #detox #vegetables

I (don't) understand Cantonese

at Castelo do Queijo · Porto

via John Currin (JC - Ex RNZN) - Google+ Public Posts ift.tt/1KabNz6

 

RFA Fort Beauharnois - In Wellington, I understand

22 January 1958 deployed for duties in support of Operation Grapple on Christmas Island with 933 tons 15cwts of cargo

22 July 1958 Captain William R Parker RFA appointed as Master

22 August 1958 present at Christmas Island during atomic bomb tests

Previous name: Fort Grand Rapids, Cornish Park

Subsequent name:

Official Number: 175606

Class: CANADIAN FORT CLASS Stores Ship

Pennant No: B586 / A285

Laid down:

Builder: West Coast Ship Builders, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Launched: 31 August 1944

Into Service: 22 September 1948

Out of service: 23 April 1962 laid up at Malta

Fate: Broken up at Italy

 

Items of historic interest involving this ship: Background Data: After the outbreak of WW2, the first cargo vessels built in Canada for the War Effort were the “North Sands” type, the hulls of which conformed to original British working drawings supplied by the North Sands Shipyard of J.L.Thompson & Sons at Sunderland. Following experience gained from these ships, improved versions with a more economic operation were introduced. These were the ”Victory” and “Canadian” types. The “Victory” type was an oil burner and two water tube boilers were substituted for the original 3 Scotch boilers. Because of the then concerns about oil fuel supplies, the “Canadian” type had coal bunkers and alternate oil fuel capacity installed, but with a reversion to the original 3 Scotch boilers of the “North Sands” type. In 1943, when the shipping situation in the Pacific was becoming acute, the British Government ordered that a number of the ships of the Canadian building programme be completed as Stores Issuing Ships whose intended task would be to follow and victual naval units as part of the British Pacific Fleet Train. In all, sixteen ships were completed as Stores Issuing Ships as follows: three as Ammunition Carriers, two as Air Stores Issuing Ships, two as Naval Stores Issuing Ships and nine as refrigerated Victualling Stores Issuing Ships. All were managed by commercial companies with vast experience of Far Eastern Waters as Mercantile Fleet Auxiliaries with Merchant Navy Crews and a detachment of Stores Staff from the Victualling Division of the Admiralty under a Commander. On the refrigerated ships, the refrigerated space was in the tween decks and amounted to 111,480 cubic feet in 25 chambers. The lower holds were used for non-perishable items of stores, clothing, etc. After WW2, eight of these ships became RFA’s. They were only armed during WW2. 31 August 1944 launched as a “Victory” type by West Coast Shipbuilders Ltd, Vancouver as Yard Nr 146 named FORT GRAND RAPIDS for the Canadian Government (Park Steamship Co, Montreal, Managers)29 October 1944 completed as a refrigerated VSIS named CORNISH PARK8 November 1944 as Cornish Park sailed from Vancouver to Victoria, British Columbia12 November 1944 sailed Victoria, British Columbia arriving Los Angeles on 17 November 194417 November 1944 sailed Los Angeles independently to Balboa arriving on 29 November 194429 November 1944 sailed Cristobal independently to New York9 December 1944 sailed in convoy HX325 from New York to Southend loaded with lead and lumber arriving 23 December 194431 January 1945 as Cornish Park sailed Southend joining convoy ON282 from Liverpool to New York and then independently to Cristobal arriving 23 February 194524 February 1945 sailed Balboa independently to Antofagasta, Chile arriving 5 March 19459 March 1945 sailed Antofagasta, Chile independently to San Antonio arriving on 12 March 194523 March 1945 sailed Valpariso independently to Chanaral arriving 27 March 19452 April 1945 sailed Chanral to Antofagasta, Chile arriving on 3 April 19454 April 1945 sailed Antofagasta, Chile to Los Angeles arriving 24 April 194525 April 1945 sailed Los Angeles independently arriving Port Townsend, Washington State, USA on 1 May 19451945 sold to the Ministry of War Transport and managed by A Holt & Co, Liverpool and renamed FORT BEAUHARNOIS3 December 1945 arrived at Sydney, Australia.18 December 1945 sailed from Sydney, NSW, Australia to Manus arrived 26 December 19452 May 1946 arrived Sydney, NSW, Australia from Hong Kong3 June 1946 sailed Sydney, NSW, Australia for Hong Kong12 July 1946 arrived at Yokohama1947 placed under the management of Lyle Shipping Company, London31 March 1947 Captain W D Wilson was the ship's Master3 May 1947 sailed Hong Kong to Kure arriving 9 May 19479 May 1947 arrived at Kure, Japan and berthed alongside HMAS HOBART to supply general cargo to the warship13 May 1947 at Kure, Japan 2nd Engineer Robert M Thompson discharged dead having suffered a heart attack13 May 1947 sailed Kure to Hong Kong arriving 22 May 19475 July 1947 sailed Hong Kong to Kure arriving 11 July 194716 July 1947 sailed Kure to Yokohama arriving 18 July 19472 August 1947 sailed from Yokohama to Kure arriving 5 August 19479 August 1947 sailed Kure to Hong Kong arriving 15 August 194730 August 1947 on passage from Hong Kong to exercise area as detailed below2 September 1947 and 3 September 1947 together with FORT SANDUSKY, RN and RAN ships together with US Navy Aircraft from Okinawa took part in Exercises Adgate Two and Three within an area 31 43N 127.34E and 29.26N 128.40E5 September 1947 after exercise Adgate Three berthed at Kagoshima to replenish various ships which had taken part in the exercise13 September 1947 sailed Kure to Sasebo arriving 15 September 194720 September 1947 sailed Sasebo to Kure arriving 25 September 19474 October 1947 sailed Kure to Hong Kong arriving 9 October 194724 December 1947 sailed Hong Kong to Sydney, NSW arriving 14 January 194813 February 1948 sailed Sydney, NSW to Melbourne arriving 15 February 194825 February 1948 sailed Melbourne to Fremantle arriving 4 March 1948 to load 2,131 gallon jars of rum5 March 1948 sailed Freemantle to Singapore arriving 15 March 194819 March 1948 sailed Singapore to Colombo arriving 25 March 19481 April 1948 sailed Colombo to Aden arriving 9 April 194810 April 1948 sailed Aden to Suez arriving 15 April 194816 April 1948 arrived at Port Said sailing the same day to London30 April 1948 berthed at London with 6 passengers with Captain ? D Wilson as ship's Master14 May 1948 sailed London to Portsmouth arriving the next day1948 taken over by the Admiralty as an RFA and converted into a Store ship1 June 1948 berthed at Portsmouth Harbour1 September 1948 Captain Thomas H Card RFA appointed as Master22 September 1948 became and RFA and sailed from Portsmouth Harbour to San Fernando, Trinidad arriving 9 October 194818 October 1948 sailed San Fernando, Trinidad to Plymouth, Tobago arriving the same day24 October 1948 sailed Plymouth, Tobago to Bridgetown, Barbados arriving 25 October 19482 November 1948 sailed Bridgetown, Barbados to Castries, St. Lucia arriving the next day3 November 1948 sailed Castries, St Lucia to a port in Dominica arriving the next day8 November 1948 sailed Dominica to Nassau, Bahamas arriving 13 November 194817 November 1948 sailed Nassau, Bahamas to Bermuda arriving 21 November 194826 November 1948 at Bermuda Police Court Refrigeration Greaser Ernest Edward Henry Hicks from the ship appeared charged with larceny of magazines from another member of the crew - he was convicted and fined 5/

29 November 1948 sailed Bermuda to Antigua arriving 3 December 1948

5 December 1948 sailed Antigua to Fayal, Azores arriving 13 December 1948

14 December 1948 sailed Fayal, Azores to Spithead arriving 19 December 1948

20 December 1948 berthed at Portsmouth Harbour

14 January 1949 sailed from Portsmouth Harbour

15 February 1949 passed Lloyds Signal Station on the Lizard sailing westwards

30 March 1949 Mr Arthur L Barr RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

 

Arthur_L_Barr

Chief Engineer Officer Arthur L Barr RFA

23 April 1949 berthed at Portmouth Harbour

16 May 1949 sailed from Portsmouth Harbour

22 June 1949 Captain William B Browne OBE RFA appointed as Master

29 June 1949 passed Lloyds Signal Station on the Lizard sailing westwards

4 July 1949 passed Lloyds Signal Station on the Lizard sailing eastwards

6 July 1949 together with units of the Home Fleet and RFA BLACK RANGER commenced Exercise Verity in the Western Approaches

30 November 1949 Mr G A Calvert RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

8 December 1949 berthed at Portsmouth Harbour

9 January 1950 sailed from Portsmouth Harbour

10 January 1950 berthed at Portsmouth Harbour

20 March 1950 sailed from Portsmouth Harbour

23 May 1950 arrived at Malta from Devonport

26 May 1950 sailed Malta for Devonport

4 June 1950 berthed at Devonport from Malta

14 November 1950 berthed at Malta from Gibraltar with Prince Phillip's polo pony 'Ballarin', his car and 40 cases of personal effects as cargo. The Prince had been appointed to a shore position in the Royal Navy at Malta with his wife the then Princess Elizabeth

2 February 1951 Mr Wilfred C Shortland RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

11 May 1951 Mr George McBain RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer until 13 May 1951 when the ship was at Newport, Monmouthshire

27 July 1951 sailed Malta to Rosyth

26 February 1952 Mr Lionel W Pool RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

2 May 1952 sailed Chatham

14 May 1952 berthed at Malta

3 October 1952 in support of Operation Hurricane 1- the first British test atomic bomb explosion at Monte Bello Islands off NW Australia - along with RFA’s FORT CONSTANTINE, FORT ROSALIE (1), GOLD RANGER, WAVE KING, WAVE PRINCE, WAVE RULER (1) and WAVE SOVEREIGN.

22 December 1952 berthed at Malta having arrived from Gibraltar

15 January 1953 Mr Allan D Harris RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

4 February 1953 berthed at Chatham Dockyard

11 March 1953 sailed Malta for Gibraltar

27 July 1953 Mr Oscar Goodwin RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

10 January 1954 a De Haviland Comet aircraft call sign YOKE PETER crashed into the Tyrhennian Sea to the south of Elba with the loss of 35 lives. Between February and May that year, RFA SEA SALVOR recovered parts of the wreckage.

6 March 1954 sailed Malta with parts of the Comet aircraft (see above) for examination at the Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough

8 April 1954 berthed at Chatham Dockyard

6 May 1954 Mr George McBain RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

1 June 1954 Commodore William B Browne OBE RFA appointed Master

12 August 1954 arrived Malta with Rear Admiral Brittain as a passenger

8 March 1955 Mr Charles M Morgan RFA (Commander (E) R.N.R. (ret)) appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

21 March 1955 sailed Chatham Dockyard

16 October 1955 Captain Howard D Gausden DSO RFA appointed as Master

 

Captain Howard D Gausden

Captain Howard D Gausden DSO RFA

photo taken when as an Apprentice in 1919

 

14 April 1956 Mr J Wilson RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

15 May 1956 at 35.20N 37.50W 2nd Engineer Douglas Hermann Buckley RFA discharged dead from 2nd and 3rd degree scalds

BUCKLEY DOUGLAS HERMANN

2nd Engineer Officer Douglas H Buckley RFA

early in his career at sea

23 June 1956 arrived at Port London, Christmas Island to support Operation Grapple- the British H-bomb test in the Pacific Ocean - after a voyage via Panama and Honolulu. Served with 16 other RFA’s during the test period.

 

Port_London_Christmas_Island

 

18 November 1957 Commodore Thomas Elder CBE DSC RFA appointed as Master

29 November 1957 Mr Allan D Harris RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

22 January 1958 deployed for duties in support of Operation Grapple on Christmas Island with 933 tons 15cwts of cargo

22 July 1958 Captain William R Parker RFA appointed as Master

22 August 1958 present at Christmas Island during atomic bomb tests

22 January 1959 Arrived Leith for refit and while there suffered a fire aboard,

16 February 1959 Captain Rowland K Hill OBE RFA appointed as Master

1 May 1959 deployed for the second time for duties in support of Operation Grapple on Christmas Island with 15 tons 2.75cwts of cargo

15 July 1959 together with USS Current (ARS 22) involved in the salvaging of MV Beaverbank stranded at the English Harbour entrance to Fanning Island at 3.51N 159.22W. Salvaged by 24 July 1959.

20 December 1959 Mr Hugh C F Sweenie RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

1960 was employed carrying stores and official passengers to the Mediterranean and Far East

8 July 1960 berthed at Malta from Chatham

6 August 1960 Captain Douglas G Cox OBE RFA appointed as Master

16 August 1960 sailed Chatham to Aden and Singapore with 8 passengers

2 November 1960 sailed Malta to Gibraltar

3 November 1960 challenged by HMS BERMUDA 'What ship where bound'

14 December 1960 sailed Chatham to Malta and Singapore with 6 passengers

23 December 1960 berthed at Malta from Chatham

20 March 1961 Captain Alfred M Uglow RFA appointed as Master until 30 March 1961

12 December 1961 Captain Douglas S Norrington OBE RD RFA (Commander RNR) appointed as Master

13 December 1961 at sea at 37.35N 09.17E Seaman 1 Sk Fakir Abdulrehman discharged dead - natural causes - heart failure - buried at sea

19 December 1961 Mr N Bothwell RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

17 February 1962 berthed Devonport from Gibraltar and Malta with an eight month old donkey as cargo. The animal had been presented by HMS PHOENICIA, Malta to HMS EXCELLENT, Whale Island as a mascot

23 April 1962 laid up at Malta transferred to the MoT for disposal

July 1962 placed on the Disposal List

23 July 1962 advertised for sale 'as lying' at Malta in The Times of this day

8 November 1962 arrived La Spezia for demolition by Cantieri Navali Santa Maria

 

Notes:

Prior to RFA service was a member of the British Pacific Fleet - hence the B pennant number

 

View full size (1600x1596)

take a minute to learn 15 things you may or may not know about old Mr R

 

1. Even Koko the Gorilla loved him

Most people have heard of Koko, the Stanford-educated gorilla who could speak about 1000 words in American Sign Language, and understand about 2000 in English. What most people don’t know, however, is that Koko was an avid Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood fan. As Esquire reported, when Fred Rogers took a trip out to meet Koko for his show, not only did she immediately wrap her arms around him and embrace him, she did what she’d always seen him do onscreen: she proceeded to take his shoes off!

 

2. He Made Thieves Think Twice

According to a TV Guide piece on him, Fred Rogers drove a plain old Impala for years. One day, however, the car was stolen from the street near the TV station. When Rogers filed a police report, the story was picked up by every newspaper, radio and media outlet around town. Amazingly, within 48 hours the car was left in the exact spot where it was taken from, with an apology on the dashboard. It read, “If we’d known it was yours, we never would have taken it.”

 

3. He Watched His Figure to the Pound!

In covering Rogers’ daily routine (waking up at 5; praying for a few hours for all of his friends and family; studying; writing, making calls and reaching out to every fan who took the time to write him; going for a morning swim; getting on a scale; then really starting his day), writer Tom Junod explained that Mr. Rogers weighed in at exactly 143 pounds every day for the last 30 years of his life. He didn’t smoke, didn’t drink, didn’t eat the flesh of any animals, and was extremely disciplined in his daily routine. And while I’m not sure if any of that was because he’d mostly grown up a chubby, single child, Junod points out that Rogers found beauty in the number 143. According to the piece, Rogers came “to see that number as a gift… because, as he says, “the number 143 means ‘I love you.’ It takes one letter to say ‘I’ and four letters to say ‘love’ and three letters to say ‘you.’ One hundred and forty-three.”

 

4. He Saved Both Public Television and the VCR

Strange but true. When the government wanted to cut Public Television funds in 1969, the relatively unknown Mister Rogers went to Washington. Almost straight out of a Capra film, his 5-6 minute testimony on how TV had the potential to give kids hope and create more productive citizens was so simple but passionate that even the most gruff politicians were charmed. While the budget should have been cut, the funding instead jumped from $9 to $22 million. Rogers also spoke to Congress, and swayed senators into voting to allow VCR’s to record television shows from the home. It was a cantankerous debate at the time, but his argument was that recording a program like his allowed working parents to sit down with their children and watch shows as a family.

 

5. He Might Have Been the Most Tolerant American Ever

Mister Rogers seems to have been almost exactly the same off-screen as he was onscreen. As an ordained Presbyterian minister, and a man of tremendous faith, Mister Rogers preached tolerance first. Whenever he was asked to castigate non-Christians or gays for their differing beliefs, he would instead face them and say, with sincerity, “God loves you just the way you are.” Often this provoked ire from fundamentalists.

 

6. He Was Genuinely Curious about Others

Mister Rogers was known as one of the toughest interviews because he’d often befriend reporters, asking them tons of questions, taking pictures of them, compiling an album for them at the end of their time together, and calling them after to check in on them and hear about their families. He wasn’t concerned with himself, and genuinely loved hearing the life stories of others. Amazingly, it wasn’t just with reporters. Once, on a fancy trip up to a PBS exec’s house, he heard the limo driver was going to wait outside for 2 hours, so he insisted the driver come in and join them (which flustered the host). On the way back, Rogers sat up front, and when he learned that they were passing the driver’s home on the way, he asked if they could stop in to meet his family. According to the driver, it was one of the best nights of his life—the house supposedly lit up when Rogers arrived, and he played jazz piano and bantered with them late into the night. Further, like with the reporters, Rogers sent him notes and kept in touch with the driver for the rest of his life.

 

7. He was Color-blind

Literally. He couldn’t see the color blue. Of course, he was also figuratively color-blind, as you probably guessed. As were his parents who took in a black foster child when Rogers was growing up.

 

8. He Could Make a Subway Car full of Strangers Sing

Once while rushing to a New York meeting, there were no cabs available, so Rogers and one of his colleagues hopped on the subway. Esquire reported that the car was filled with people, and they assumed they wouldn’t be noticed. But when the crowd spotted Rogers, they all simultaneously burst into song, chanting “It’s a wonderful day in the neighborhood.” The result made Rogers smile wide.

 

A few other things:

9. He got into TV because he hated TV. The first time he turned one on, he saw people angrily throwing pies in each other’s faces. He immediately vowed to use the medium for better than that. Over the years he covered topics as varied as why kids shouldn’t be scared of a haircut, or the bathroom drain (because you won’t fit!), to divorce and war.

 

10. He was an Ivy League Dropout. Rogers moved from Dartmouth to Rollins College to pursue his studies in music.

 

11. He composed all the songs on the show, and over 200 tunes.

 

12. He was a perfectionist, and disliked ad libbing. He felt he owed it to children to make sure every word on his show was thought out.

 

13. Michael Keaton got his start on the show as an assistant– helping puppeteer and operate the trolley.

 

14. Several characters on the show are named for his family. Queen Sara is named after Rogers’ wife, and the postman Mr. McFeely is named for his maternal grandfather who always talked to him like an adult, and reminded young Fred that he made every day special just by being himself. Sound familiar? It was the same way Mister Rogers closed every show.

 

15. The sweaters. Every one of the cardigans he wore on the show had been hand-knit by his mother.

 

-copied from www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/5943

  

It is a quote from Nicholas St. North and the Battle of the Nightmare King by William Joyce, who my friend works with at Moonbot Studios. That is half of the Moonbot logo on the right side.

White on white on white on white design. :)

 

So why don’t blacks vote Republican? The answer is simple. Black people are not crazy. Being not crazy, they understand a simple truth about conservatives: They have never stood with, or up for, black people. Never.

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.......***** All images are copyrighted by their respective authors ......

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.....item 1)... OnlineAthens ... Athens Banner-Herald ... onlineathens.com ... Pitts: 'Our' blacks vs. 'their' blacks

 

By LEONARD PITTS

Published Monday, November 7, 2011

 

onlineathens.com/opinion/2011-11-07/pitts-our-blacks-vs-t...

 

Do you think it gives Clarence Thomas a warm, fuzzy feeling to know he is one of Ann Coulter’s blacks?

 

That is how Coulter put it on Fox “News” while defending Herman Cain against sexual harassment charges that threatened to engulf his campaign last week. “Liberals,” she said, detest black conservatives, but the truth is, “our blacks are so much better than their blacks.”

 

“Our” blacks? Really?

 

Social conservative pundits tend to be astonishingly obtuse when discussing race, (See Exhibit A, above) so it is good they rarely do so. Last week was an unfortunate exception, as one of “their” blacks struggled to frame a coherent response to allegations that he harassed female colleagues in the 1990s when he headed the National Restaurant Association. Though accusations of sexual impropriety have beset a bipartisan Who’s Who of black and white politicians, the right wing came out in force to argue that people are only questioning Cain because he is a black conservative.

 

This would be the same Cain who not so long ago said racism was no longer a significant obstacle for African-Americans. This would be the same right wing that is conspicuous by its silence, its hostility or its complicity when the injustice system imposes mass incarceration on young black men, when the number of hate groups in this country spikes to more than a thousand, when the black unemployment rate stands at twice the national average, when the president is called “uppity” and “boy.”

 

But they scream in pious racial indignation when Cain is asked questions he doesn’t want to answer.

 

A “high-tech lynching” said blogger Brent Bozell.

 

“Racially stereotypical,” sniffed Rush Limbaugh.

 

“I believe the answer is yes,” said Cain himself when asked on Fox if race was the cause of his woes, adding honestly, if hilariously, that he has no evidence whatsoever to back that up.

 

If you didn’t know better, you’d think Cain was some hybrid of Emmett Till and Kunta Kinte. Nobody knows de trouble he’s seen.

 

The candidate has spoken of how he left the Democratic “plantation,” the implication being that more blacks should vote Republican. It would seem on the surface to make sense. As a 2008 Gallup Poll proved — and simple observation reiterates — African-Americans tend to be as conservative as your average Republican on some key moral issues and are more religious than the average Republican, to boot.

 

So why don’t blacks vote Republican? The answer is simple. Black people are not crazy. Being not crazy, they understand a simple truth about conservatives: They have never stood with, or up for, black people. Never.

 

Forget modern controversies like mass incarceration. Social conservatives, then based largely in the Democratic Party of the early- to mid-20th century, opposed the Voting Rights Act. They opposed the Civil Rights Act. They opposed school integration. They opposed the Montgomery Bus Boycott. They opposed a law to crack down on lynching.

 

These are the people for whom African-Americans are now supposed to vote? To make the argument is to betray a stunning contempt for the intelligence — and memory — of black voters.

 

In talking about race, conservatives have all the moral authority of a pimp talking about women’s rights. Granted, “their” blacks might disagree.

 

• Leonard Pitts Jr., winner of the 2004 Pulitzer Prize for commentary, is a columnist for the Miami Herald. His columns appear each Monday in the Banner-Herald. Send email to lpitts@miamiherald.com. Pitts chats with readers online from 1-2 p.m. Wednesdays at www.MiamiHerald.com.

 

Comments - Please Read Before Posting:

We love our readers at OnlineAthens.com, so we're giving you a soapbox. In return for giving you a place to speak your opinion, we simply ask you adhere to a few guidelines. We expect our commenters to have lively discussions, but racist, hate-filled, harassing or libelous comments will not be tolerated. Please read our Terms of Service for full guidelines. Comments are not edited and don't represent the views of the Athens Banner-Herald.

 

Our commenting Web site is AthensTalks.com

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.....item 2).... Moment of Truth Project ... momentoftruthproject.org ...

 

The era of deficit denial is over

 

ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF THE MOMENT OF TRUTH REPORT

 

momentoftruthproject.org/node/295

 

December 1, 2011 marked one year since the release of The Moment of Truth report by the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform. The report declared that the era of deficit denial is over. In the year since the report was issued, fiscal responsibility and reform has become the dominant national issue and the debate has shifted from a question of if we should reduce long-term deficits to a matter of when and how we will do so.

 

While the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction (Select Committee) failed to reach an agreement on $1.2 trillion in deficit reduction, the momentum behind enacting a bipartisan, comprehensive fiscal plan based on the framework put forward by the Fiscal Commission has continued to grow. In the wake of the Select Committee's failure, a growing number of lawmakers from across the political spectrum have voiced support for a bipartisan and comprehensive approach to solving our fiscal problems, with many of them specifically calling for reviving the Fiscal Commission's recommendations. These calls have been echoed by many editorial boards and columnists and organizations.

 

Former Fiscal Commission co-chairs and current Moment of Truth project (MOT) co-chairs Erskine Bowles and Sen. Alan Simpson remain active in the discussion on how to solve our nation's fiscal problems. They testified before the Select Committee on November 1 and have had several op-eds published in addition to speaking to audiences across the country. They continue to receive very positive reactions from audiences across the political spectrum (Sen. Simpson reports that he continues to get "more thumbs up than other digits"), providing further evidence of what the Commission wrote in The Moment of Truth preface:

 

"The American people are a long way ahead of the political system in recognizing that now is the time to act. We believe that far from penalizing leaders for making the tough choices, Americans will punish politicians for backing down -- and well they should."

 

# # #

 

Click here to read the official statement from former Fiscal Commission members Erskine Bowles, former Sen. Alan Simpson, Alice Rivlin, Dave Cote, Andy Stern, Ann Fudge, former Sen. Judd Gregg and former Rep. John Spratt.

 

Click here to see where we would we be if the Fiscal Commission's recommendations had been adopted one year ago.

 

MOT Highlights

 

... New York Times: Thomas Friedman: Go Big, Mr. Obama

 

... Des Moines Register: Editorial: It's Time to Dust Off the Bowles-Simpson Plan

 

...Fiscal Times: Super Flaw: If Only Obama Had Held Up Bowles-Simpson

 

...USA Today: Obama Missed the Boat to Cut the Debt

 

Testimony Before the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction

Click here for written testimony.

Click here for video and full transcript.

 

Bowles, Simpson Speak at the 2011 WSJ CEO Council

Click here for video.

 

Bowles, Simpson Interview with MSNBC's Chuck Todd

Click here for video.

 

Recent Op-Eds by Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson

 

Washington Post: The Super Committee's Make or Break Question -- Nov 16, 2011

 

CNN Opinion: All It Takes to Solve U.S. Debt Problem is Willpower -- Nov 15, 2011

 

Washington Post: Our Advice to the Super Committee: Go Big, Be Bold, Be Smart -- Oct 2, 2011

  

Click here to see complete list of MOT publications, event recaps and other highlights.

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I know it has such a bad quality, but I love this picture, I love his expression.

Please understand that this certificate is part of a work of appreciation that I do between my wife and me.

The photos that I choose, enter into a photographic quality analysis within the different modalities and if they are artistically fit within what is "photography".

My job is to analyze the quality of the photo, its framing, dynamics, artistic style, perspective, color balance, light compensation and mainly the edition.

The work my wife does is to analyze the effect of the visual balance and the process of psychic acceptance within the natural phenomena of consciousness.

This is to give you some kind of appreciative motivation in your photographs, "which I consider to be of great value for everyone who receives a certificate"

This critical work that we do in private and without attacking the sensitivity of people, is done between my wife and me.

We are based on an emotional motivation and of course without any kind of monetary or recognition interest.

The Critic is a "Group of appreciation and constructive criticism"

 

Por favor, entiendan que este certificado es parte de un trabajo de apreciacion que hago entre mi esposa y yo.

Las fotos que yo escojo, entran en un analisis de calidad fotografica dentro de las distintas modalidades y si son aptas artísticamente dentro de lo que es "fotografia".

Mi trabajo es analizar la calidad de la foto, su encuadre, dinámica, estilo artístico, perspectiva, balance del color, compensación de la luz y principalmente la edicion.

El trabajo que hace mi esposa es analizar el efecto del visual balance y el proceso de aceptación psíquica dentro de los fenómenos naturales de la consciencia.

Esto es para darles a ustedes algun tipo de motivación apreciativa en vuestras fotografías, "cosa que considero de gran valor para cada cual que reciba un certificado"

Este trabajo de crítica que lo hacemos en privado y sin atacar la sensibilidad de las personas, es hecho entre mi esposa y yo.

Nos basados en una motivación anímica y como es natural sin ningún tipo de interés monetario o de reconocimiento.

El Critico es un "Grupo de apreciacion y crítica constructiva"

 

_______________________________________

 

Position number three is a privileged position, which tells you that you must understand why you are there.

In many competitions of art, photographs, athletics, etc., this position reiterates that you must attend more about what possibly happened to you, and how you should improve yourself. But this position tells you that you no lost the competition, but that you are a possible chosen to be a winner of the first or second place in the near future.

_______________________________________

 

La posición número tres es una posición privilegiada, que te dice que debes de entender por que tu estas ahi.

En muchas competencias de arte, fotografías, atletismo, etc, esta posición te reitera que debes de atender mas sobre lo que posiblemente te sucedio, y como debes de mejorarte. Pero esta posición no te dice que perdiste la competencia, si no que eres un posible elegido para ser un ganador del primero o segundo lugar en un futuro próximo.

_______________________________________

Thanks to the Nailbourne project, I now understand how the communities and landscape fots in along its length, though that a bubbling noisy stream can just vanish then appear miles away is very difficult to get your head round. The Nailbourne only fully flows in very wet years, but when it does, the beds that are dry now can be several feet deep.

 

But downstream of Littlebourne, where the Nailbourne becomes the Little Stour, it is wider, about six feet wide, clogged with reeds and weeds, but also was used to power to large mills. They both stand, one between Littlebourne and Wickhambreaux, and the other in Wickhambreaux itself, though is now just a house But is a large white clapboard building, with a large wheel.

 

These days, the village looks very prosperous, all grand houses or cottage conversions.

 

From here, the Little Stour makes its way over the marshes which centuries ago was the Wantsum Channel, so Wickhambreaux was almost a seaside town.

 

------------------------------------------

 

The interior of this very pretty church is dominated by nineteenth-century work. The whole of the chancel and baptistry is lined with dark brown encaustic tiles, hiding a straightforward fourteenth-century church. The east window is an early example of American Art Nouveau in England, and dominates the entire building. It was designed by Baron Arild Rosenkrantz in 1896. Above the window are stencilled paintings of angels ascending, which can also be seen in the nave, whilst the roof there has a charming star-spangled sky. At the south-west corner is a vestry - screened off by an eighteenth-century screen which may have formed part of the refitting of the chancel paid for by Mary Young. Her monument in the chancel records that 'infirm from her youth she protracted life to the 68th year of her age'. She left £100 for wainscotting and ornamenting the chancel. The interior viewed from the east gives an unusual appearance as the aisles flank the tower (see also Sandhurst).

 

www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Wickhambreaux

 

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WICKHAM BREAUS

LIES adjoining to Littleborne north-eastward, being usally called Wickham Brook. It is likewise called Wickham by Wingham, to distinguish it from the two other parishes of the same name in this county. In Domesday it is written Wicheham, a name derived from its situation near the banks of the river, which runs close to it. There is only one borough in it, viz. the borough of Wickham, which comprehends the whole parish.

 

Wickham is a low, flat, and unpleasant situation, and lying so near the marshes cannot but be unhealthy, the land throughout it is in general good and sertile, especially near the village, where the fields are very large and level ground. The village, in number about twenty houses, stands at the south-east boundary of the parish, built round a green, over which the road leads to Ickham, having the church and court-lodge on one side, and the parsonage, a handsome brick house, on the other. At the further end of the green, the Lesser Stour crosses the road, and turns a corn-mill belonging to the manor, beyond it is only one house, called the Stone-house, being built of squared stones and slints in chequers, and by the arched windows and door-ways seems of some antiquity. The parish stretches a good distance northward, as far as Groveferry, the house of which is within it, and the greater Stour river, over a level of about 500 acres of marsh land, which extend from the river into a sinus, with a ridge of upland on each side, to within a quarter of a mile of the village. North eastward from which is the Saperton, formerly the property of the Beakes's, who resided here as early as king Henry the VIIIth.'s reign; it was sold by them to the Furneses, whence it came by marriage, with Copthall, in this parish, to the St. John's, viscounts Bolingbroke, who have lately sold it, but one of the family of Beake, many of whom lie buried in this church, now occupies it. A little beyond this is Newnham, once accounted a manor, formerly belonging to the Ropers, lords Teynham, afterwards to the Bartholomews, then to Joseph Brooke, esq. of Rochester, and now to his devisee the Rev. John Kenward Shaw Brooke, of Town-Malling.—Hence among the marshes is the hamlet of Grove, through which the road leads across them to the right over the lesser Stour, to Wingham, Ash, and the eastern parts of Kent, and to the left by Grove-ferry over the Greater Stour, to the northern part of the country and the Isle of Thanet. There is no other wood in the parish excepting Trendley park. There is no fair.

 

At the time of taking the survey of Domesday, in the year 1080, this place was part of those possessions with which that king had enriched his half-brother Odo, the great bishop of Baieux. Accordingly it is thus entered in that record, under the general title of his lands:

 

In Donamesford hundred, the bishop himself holds in demesne Wicheham. It was taxed at four sulings. The arable land is eleven carucates. In demesne there are two carucates, and thirty-six villeins, with thirty-two cottagers having nine carucates. There is a church, and one priest who gives forty shillings per annum. There is one park, and two mills of fifty shillings, and two saltpits of thirtytwo pence, and three fisheries of four shillings, and thirtytwo acres of meadow. Pasture for three hundred sheep and for thirty-one beasts. Wood for the pannage of eighty bogs. In the time of king Edward the Confessor it was worth twenty-five pounds, when he received it twenty pounds, now thirty pounds. There belong to this manor in Canterbury three plats of land paying six shillings and eight pence. Alured Biga held it of king Edward. Moreover there belongs to this manor half a suling of free land, which Sired held of Alured Biga, and Goisfrid, son of Badland, now holds it of the bishop of Baieux, and it is and was worth separately sixty shillings.

 

Four years afterwards the bishop was disgraced, and all his possessions were consiscated to the crown, of which this manor appears afterwards to have been held by the Cliffords. Walter, son of Walter de Clifford, possessed it in the reign of king John, and with Agnes de Cundy, his wife, was a good benefactor to St. Augustine's abbey, and that of St. Radigund. (fn. 1) By the marriage of Margaret, daughter and heir of Walter Clifford, with John de Brewse, it passed into that name, and William de Brewse, or de Braiosa, as they were written in Latin, was possessed of it in the 42d year of king Henry III. His descendant William de Brewse, lord of the honour of Brembre, in Sussex, and of Gower, in Wales, as he stiled himself, whose ancestor came into England with the Conqueror, who gave him the castle of Brember, and whose descendant afterwards, by the marriage with Bertha, daughter and one of the coheirs of Milo, earl of Hereford, became possessed of the castles of Brecknock and Gower likewife, and bore for his arms, Azure, a lion rampant, between twelve cross-croslets, or; though I find by the pedigrees of this family, that his ancestors bore Azure, three bars vaire, argent, and gules. He was several times summoned to parliament in king Edward I.'s reign, as was his son of the same name, both in that and Edward II.'s reign, and died possessed of this manor in the 19th year of the latter. Very soon after which it appears, with the church appendant to it, to have come into the possession of Edmund of Woodstock, earl of Kent, half brother to king Edward II. (fn. 2) After which it descended to his brother John Plantagenet, likewife earl of Kent, it being then held of the king in sergeantry. He died anno 26 Edward III. upon which Joane his sister, commonly called the Fair Maid of Kent, wife of Sir Thomas Holand, became his heir, who in her right not only possessed this manor, but became earl of Kent likewise. She afterwards married Edward the black prince, and died in the 9th year of king Richard II. being succeeded in this manor then held in capite, by Thomas Holand, earl of Kent, her son by her first husband, whose two sons, Thomas and Edward, both earls of Kent, and the former created Duke of Surry, in turn succeeded to it, and the latter dying anno 9 Henry IV. his five sisters became his coheirs, and on a partition made between them, Edmund, earl of March, son of Eleanor, late countess of March, the eldest of them became entitled to this manor in his mother's right, being the last earl of March of this family, for he died s. p. in the 3d year of king Henry VI. being then possessed of it. The year after which, Joane, wife of Sir John Gray, appears by the escheat rolls to have been entitled to it; not long after which it became the property of the family of Tibetot, or Tiptoft, as they were usually called, in whom it continued down to John Tiptost, earl of Worcester, who was attainted and beheaded in 1471, anno 10 Edward IV. king Henry being then restored to the crown. He lest an infant son Edward, who, though he was afterwards restored in blood by king Edward IV. yet I do not find that he was ever reinstated in the possession of this manor, which remained in the crown till the reign of king Henry VIII. who granted it, with the advowson of the church, to Sir Matthew Browne, of Beechworth-castle, who in the 22d year of it, passed it away to Lucy, widow of his uncle Sir Anthony Browne, standard-bearer of England, whose grandson Anthony was, anno I and 2 of Philip and Mary, created viscount Montague, and died possessed of this manor anno 34 Elizabeth, and by his will devised it to his eldest son by his second wife, Sir George Browne, who was of Wickham Breaus, and his grandson Sir George Browne, K. B. leaving two daughters his coheirs, Winifrid, married to Basil Brooks, esq. of Salop, and Eleanor, to Henry Farmer, esq. of Oxfordshire, they joined in the sale of it, at the latter end of Charles II.'s reign, to Sir H. Palmer, bart. of Wingham, who died possessed of it in 1706, s. p. and by his will devised it to his nephew Sir Thomas Palmer, bart. who died in 1723, and by his will gave it to his natural son Herbert Palmer, esq. who married Bethia, one of the daughters of Sir Thomas D'Aeth, bart. of Knowlton, who died in 1760, s. p., having devised this manor, with the advowson of the church appendant, to his widow. She afterwards married John Cosnan, esq. who in her right became possessed of it, and died in 1778, s. p. leaving her furviving, upon which she again became entitled to the possession of it, and continued owner of it till her death in 1797, on which it came to her nephew Sir Narborough D'Aeth, bart. of Knowlton, the present owner of it. A court leet and court baron is held for this manor.

 

Trendley park, now accounted a manor of itself, is situated at the north-west boundary of this parish, being entirely separated from the rest of it by that of Littleborne intervening. It was part of the possessions of Odo, bishop of Baieux, and is noticed in the survey of Domesday, in the description of the manor of Wickham above recited, in which it is mentioned as being then a park; and it should seem that at least part of it was then accounted as appurtenant to that manor; though in the description of the manor of Littleborne, in the same survey, which then belonged to the abbey of St. Augustine, it appears that the bishop had lands belonging to that manor too lying within his park here. Of this manor the bishop of Baieux has in his park as much land as is worth sixty shillings, says the record. In part of the recompence for which, the bishop seems to have given the abbot the manor of Garwinton, in Littleborne, and other land within the manor of Leeds, as may be seen by the entries of both these manors in the same record. Soon after which there was another exchange of land made between the bishop and archbishop Lanfranc, for some which lay within his park of Wikeham. What is remarkable in this instrument is, that it is given in two languages, in Saxon and Latin, but neither is a translation of the other, for both are originals, as was a frequent custom of that time. Appendant to it is the bishop's seal in wax, representing him on one side on horseback, with his sword and spurs, as an earl, and on the other habited as a bishop, with his pastoral staff; being perhaps the only seal of Odo at this time extant. (fn. 3) By all which it appears, that this park is much more antient than that of Woodstock, which has been accounted the first inclosed park in England. How long it continued an inclosed park, I have no where found; but in the beginning of king Henry VI.'s reign it was not so, as appears by the escheat-rolls of the 3d year of it, after the death of Edmund, earl of March, at which time there were two hundred acres of wood in it. He was lord of the manor of Wickham, and Trendley park was chiefly at that time certainly appurtenant to it, and continued so whilst in the possession of the same owners, which it did most probably till the attainder of John Tiptost, earl of Worcester, in the 10th year of king Edward IV. when they both came into the hands of the crown, and though king Henry VIII. afterwards granted the manor of Wickham to Sir Matthew Browne, yet I do not find that Trendley park was granted with it. From which time it has had separate owners. For some time it has been the property of the family of Denne, who continue at this time the owners of it. It lies in an unpleasant, lonely part of the parish, facing Westbere, and consists of three hundred acres of woodland, and a house called the Park-house. There is a high road through the middle of it from Stodmarsh to Canterbury market, which in king Edward II.'s reign, was attempted to be shut up, but the sheriff, with the posse comitatus, was ordered to open it again, as being an antient and allowed high road.

 

Charities.

Andrew Holness, of Seton, in Ickham, by will in 1554, gave to the poor 2s. in money and bread, to be distributed yearly; the churchwardens to take so much yearly out of his lands in Ickham and Wickham, except his house and garden at Seton, in case his executors did not give the same yearly.

 

Henry Sloyden, of Wickham Breaus, by will in 1568, gave for the use of the poor and Littleborne, in equal portions, a piece of land containing six acres and a half in the latter parish, called Church-close, which is distributed twice a year by the respective minister and churchwardens, and is of the annual produce of 4l.

 

John Smith, rector of this parish, by deed in 1656, gave a school-room, and a house and garden for a schoolmaster, in this parish, for teaching the children of it. The master to be chosen from one of his relations in preference, if any such could be found, is vested in the rector and churchwardens of this parish.

 

Sir Henry Palmer, of Bekesborne, by his will in 1611, gave the sum of 10s. to each of the several parishes of Wickham, Stodmarsh, Littleborne, and five others therein mentioned, to be paid into the hands of the minister and churchwardens yearly, out of his manor and lands of Well-court, at Michaelmas, towards the relief of the poor of each of them.

 

Thomas Belke, D. D. rector of this parish, by will in 1712, gave 501. for the putting out of five poor children of this parish apprentices.

 

There are about thirty poor constantly relieved, and casually seventy.

 

This parish is within the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of Bridge.

 

¶The church, which is dedicated to St. Andrew, consists of three isles and one chancel, having at the west end a square tower, in which hang six bells. The church is not large, but is handsome and neat. In the middle isle are several memorials for the Beakes, of Saperton. In the south isle for the Larkins, who lived at Grove, in this parish. In the east window are remains of good painted glass, viz. the arms of Edward the black price and of Mortimer, quartered with Burgh, and a representation of Herod's daughter beheading John the Baptist. In the chancel, on the pavement, is the figure of a priest in brass, and inscription, for Henry Welde, rector, obt. 1420. A gravestone, and monument for Alexander Young, B D. rector of this parish, who rebuilt this parsonage-house, and repaired that of Eastchurch, of which he was vicar likewife, at the expence of 2000l. obt. March 21, 1755. A memorial for John Smith, rector, obt. Oct. 28, 1658. In the church-yard are many headstones, and a tombstone for the family of Beake. In the windows of this church there were formerly many different shields of arms, long since demolished.

 

This church was always an appendage to the manor, and continues so at this time, Sir Narborough D' Aeth, bart. owner of the manor of Wickham, being the present patron of it.

 

There was antiently both a rectory and vicarage in this church, which continued till the year 1322, when on a vacancy of the latter, Richard de Newcastle, the rector, petitioned archbishop Walter Reynolds, that they might be consolidated, which was granted, and they have continued in that state to the present time. (fn. 4)

 

This rectory is valued in the king's books at 29l. 12s. 6d. and the yearly tenths at 2l. 19s. 3d. In 1588 it was valued at 250l. communicants one hundred and sixty-three. In 1640 the same. There are eighteen acres of glebe-land.

 

The marsh-lands in this parish, within Wickham and Preston valleys, pay a modus of two-pence an acre, and those within Newnham 1½d. only, in lieu of all tithes.

 

www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol9/pp158-166

I could understand some of the names - "Blue Dream" and "Funhouse" sound like they'd sell and "Sweet Tooth" seems kind of obvious, but "NY Diesel" or "Skunk Berry"? They must be trying to save these for themselves!

 

Pot and me have never gotten along but when I'm in a place where something unusual and maybe newsworthy is happening, I must document it. It's a duty, both a blessing and a curse*. So there we were in Colorado, where pot is now legal. How does this work? What does a legal head shop look like? These and other burning questions needed to be answered!

 

*Hopefully not too much of a curse, they needed to scan my drivers license before they'd let me in. Now I'm in a database somewhere, if my insurance skyrockets and my credit rating goes negative, this is probably why :)

  

(my elevation here: 5,075 feet. You could probably get as high as you want :)

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Summer 2014 2nd leg: "Getting High"

 

July 2: Bear Lake to Mueller State Park.

"And I don't want the world to see me

'Cause I don't think that they'd understand

When everything's meant to be broken

I just want you to know who I am"

 

This is another image from the photography group sunrise shoot at Cronulla. Once the sun was above the horizon the light was very intense and bright making it somwhat problematic to find a good composition that wasn't blown out. I liked the way the light was falling on these rocks and the golden glow it gave them. I don't normally shoot my seascapes with buildings in the background but I think without the hill on the the left it would be unbalanced. I am currently trying to work on my composition so any feedback is more than welcome.

 

Camera: Canon EOS Kiss X4

Lens: Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM

Exposure: 1 second

Aperture: f/11

Focal Length: 10mm

Filters: Cokin P121S

a gentle reminder.

 

Ruin: 'Dirtbag, Massachusetts: A Confessional', Isaac Fitzgerald appeals, that 'New man' idea. I am going to look at him and Michael Winkler (current reading) and 'Grimmish'. In a way I feel as if I have to understand 'us', men, though I am a very queer one. That males are running on a hugely diminished Y chromosome, apparently running at 3% of its former full glory, makes us worth a look at, that eclipsing.

 

Personally, I think it's a great thing. Anyway, it's happening, so why not take a look at how my gender is dealing with it, embracing trans and all that palaver, and hormone disruptors in the environment, that wondrous gelding? I don't really have interest in the male in 'crisis', more in the 'changing' that's going on, and the 'changeling', that new type of fairy, being generated.

 

Of course I see it in our parents too, I am even thinking of a certain other 'Bill'. It's not like it all suddenly began in 1990.

 

Sapolsky (In his wondrous book 'Behave') dealt with the passive male in his study of apes, and how when the rampaging alpha males were off on the warpath, attacking each other over territories, or whatever those 'loveable rogues' like to scrap over, peace was restored in the group. The result was that many of the more aggressive males were killed off in these skirmishes, leaving the more passive, 'friendly' males in an increasingly matriarchal group. The result was a rash of mutual grooming, and an increased interest in white goods and window treatments.

 

You see, there is hope. I love this 'awful edge' we find ourselves on. I am interested in there being some 'ingenuity' that might turn everything around. It's not as if it hasn't happened before. It might also just be a matter or perspective.

 

I suspect that nature naturally generates antidotes (and anecdotes too, it might appear), and these might first start to appear in Art and Literature (both of the afore-mentioned 'dotes', as nature would have it), following that old 'in the beginning was the Word' idea.

 

I do love me some canaries. I also like the idea of nature generating both Art and Literature, and concrete, and cities, for that matter, and all sorts of hormone disrupting plastics.

 

Rack: Here’s to a rash of mutual grooming. Interesting that you are looking at the notion of manhood, even in its decline. It is in an odd place. Jan apologized to me recently for mansplaining and it took me off guard. As if his raison d’etre had been outlawed. I never mind mansplaining as long as it’s interesting. I need it. There’s so much I don’t understand or know, so I’ve always loved my brain heavy men friends feeding me tid bits. But don’t tell.

 

Ruin: My feeling is that men are in decline and that needs describing too. I wouldn't want to do that if I felt that the decline was a problem, being indifferent to it might make it easier to describe. I can describe it because I am in decline too, that age and disease thing, and I am more or less indifferent to those two too. Perhaps I don't see it as decline, but more as a natural leavening out. I almost wrote "more of a natural evening out". I could sure do with one of those. LOL as we love to say nowadays.

Currently reading 'Grimmish', about a record breaking punchbag of a man who lived his life being beaten up, and beaten into second place, in a boxing ring, breaking all records for what someone could endure. Sound familiar?

Coetzee loved it, and if it's good enough for him, who am I to question it?

 

Rack: There is that obligatory conversation one has with one’s peers about the increased phenomenon of trans youth. What amazes me is how reactionary even the most liberal of people are. Actually, it doesn’t amaze me at all, I completely understand, but I stay silent as I know I can’t understand what is happening. I do think it is part of evolution, and not just a social construct.

I had a look on Google. Sounds intriguing. Someone should option it.

 

Ruin: Anyway, this geezer self published it, and is now finding himself universally lauded and put up for all sort of literary prizes. Isaac Fitzgerald sounds interesting too, same topic, masculinity fizzling out. I like his Jewish/Irish name.

Sorry dearest. I am ranting a bit. Sad to hear about Jan apologising about perhaps mansplaining. This is a universal problem, this self censorship. I can't imagine it being helpful as far as creativity is concerned at all. He must know you well enough to know you respect him, and he respects and loves you. I guess this self-policing is becoming like a reflex reaction.

 

Rack: I think we all have a lot of fear about how our behaviour is being policed. Are we racist? Are we transphobic? Are we elitist? Are we mansplaining? As you say, it’s not helpful and it doesn’t actually assist any of the issues it purports to protect. I fear we are in a very dark corner. Some days I find this very liberating. Not all days. Reading about the US government’s attitude to climate change is frightening. Also, Republican’s attitudes towards Anthony Fauci. Horrifying. He has just resigned. Bless.

 

Ruin: See Rack, I want you to outshine me, simply because you can.

 

I am slowly working it out, what I want to say, I mean. Yes, life is startlingly brief, and made more obvious in these pandemic days. I feel like it has taken two pandemics to wake me up, somewhat. I still hesitate, still prevaricate, but sometimes I get some of it down.

 

Time does feel like it's pressing, whilst I realise that at the same time, time doesn't press at all.

 

I am getting myself to that point of writing offline completely, it's been a struggle. I am, like everyone else, somewhat addicted to 'likes'. Flickr is my only 'social media', the only one I use. It's been a lifeline for a long time, long before this account, even. The place itself does seem to be winding down generally anyway.

 

And now we have the added delights of Monkeypox. What an interesting time we are living, and declining, through.

 

I am beginning to feel plate-ready, I must admit, though there is probably time for a little garnishing.

 

It’s strange, that idea that we might blame the monkey, or the place the monkey might have come from. It’s like blaming the canary in the coalmine. It makes no sense at all.

 

A bronze paperweight in the shape of a

sitting monkey holding her young in her lap.

China, late Ming period, 17th century

Height: 5 cm

 

猴

 

青銅鎮紙

坐母猴懷中抱著一隻幼猴形的銅製鎮紙

明後期, 十七世紀

H.: 5 厘米

 

Yes, to that idea of diversity. The way I see it now is that it is just all about economy, the economising of time. I suspect its something I learnt here in Pragmaland. I am never going to have those 17 hours to put to one side, to read a book. The audiobook of ‘Shuggie Bain’ is over 17 hours. It’s good to listen to, whilst getting on with those other rote duties. It’s also an exercise in filtering. I don’t want to write something like the wonderful ‘Shuggie Bain’, I don’t want to write a Dickensian novel of hardship and eventual redemption. The romanticisation of poverty, or reveries around it, is not really a ring I want to spar in, no matter how tinged with local colour it might be. Irish poverty was very different from English poverty in the 50s and 60s, or even Scottish poverty for that matter. It’s still interesting to see that there was a strong sectarian divide there too in Scotland, that catholic versus protestant thing. I think that the time for another ‘Angela’s Ashes’ is past. I don’t want it to be that form at all. So, I am learning something just from listening. I don’t want to go anywhere near a ‘Clarissa’ either, none of that palpitating bosomy me against the shackles of propriety. That was an easy one to see off, but it did take listening to over 300 pages. It gave me ideas about form, and that’s more than enough to take from any attempt to communicate. It led me to the idea that it has to be more radical even, that the epistolary can be included but not allowed to take over.

 

Victim schmictim, as they say, enough of all that. I am more interested in the full glorious comical horror of being, and how we maneuver our way around that, how we embrace our ‘foodiness’, how branded and sore we work our way through life towards that plate, that presenting ourselves to be eaten. It’s the consciousness of it happening that makes it wonderful. It celebrates nature’s awe-inspiring cannabilism.

 

We know it, we have been over it a thousand time, millions of times even. It’s in the Upanishad that we love:

 

“I am food, I am food, I am food! I am the eater of food, I am the eater of food, I am the eater of food! I am the poet, I am the poet, I am the poet! I am the first-born of the Right. Before the Devas I was in the centre of all that is immortal. He who gives me away, he alone preserves me: him who eats food, I eat as food.”

 

It’s a big one, I know.

 

Sapolsky talks about it in that interview with Huberman. It’s interesting to see them dance around it, and it introduces, at the end, Sapolsky’s latest musings and writings, his current struggle to find the words to convey something similar. He says he is progressing slowly on this new book of his. I imagine he is, it’s a huge idea, this landscape where ‘Free-Will’ doesn’t exist. That he somehow gets there through that other landscape of Neuroscience and his research into stress amongst primates, that 35 years of studying baboons in their natural habitat, is astonishing.

 

So here we are, wandering and wondering on our personal savannahs, you and I, amusing and disturbing ourselves into skirting depression and joy, picking over the carrion of centuries to continue a description of us and everything that went before us. It’s a complete folly, and we know it, but it is also joyous, this manufactured dirt-scratching in an attempt to imbue it all with some meaning. Yes, research can be too much of a distraction, and sometimes you have to sit down and add to it all. That’s not really a ‘have to’, it’s more an instinct. It might be arrogant to think that you have something to add to the pile, but it is also a realization that we all have exactly the same yearning and ability, and all do it anyway just through living, and eventually dying. We are all describers. But then, perhaps, the artist, or writer, or would be creator, has the effrontery to think that he or she (or dare I say it?) might be able to condense a certain aspect of what it is to be, so that it becomes a sort of mirror reflecting us back on ourselves. We all, all of what is, gift to each other those signs and signifiers, constantly, anyway. They are our personal vortexes.

 

You know I love winter, and I know you do too. We both know that life goes on beneath the soil, under the dirt, that mulcher. Covid throws it all somewhat more into that darkness, that fear of the boogeyman, our ‘plateworthyness’. I know the word doesn’t exist, but knowing some Dutch, I have learnt that words can be pushed together, can be forced to say what you mean. The Dutch, in their pragmatism, do this to language. It’s both their strength and their downfall, which could, of course, be said about absolutely everything.

 

Yes, to support systems, I am happy to buttress you as you buttress me. There will be more, but this will have to suffice for now. It’s still early morning and our library is begging me to disseminate it.

 

I accidentally, some years ago, smashed this beautiful Japanese plate into hundreds of pieces. That's how the universe works. It had managed to survive for a few hundred years before we cross-pollinated and it, unfortunately, encountered my arrogance.

 

John: Truthfully, whenever I self identify as an artist, I feel slightly phoney. However, what you wrote here has the ring of truth.

" But then, perhaps, the artist, or writer, or would be creator, has the effrontery to think that he or she (or dare I say it?) might be able to condense a certain aspect of what it is to be, so that it becomes a sort of mirror reflecting us back on ourselves. We all, all of what is, gift to each other those signs and signifiers, constantly, anyway. They are our personal vortexes."

The older I get, the briefer I realise life to be.

 

Ruin: Weaving here, John, in that habit I have, and moving this forward to the latest image.

 

UnderStand.

arquitectura y espacios efimeros

 

Often we, as a society, make fun of older women who try their hardest to still encapture their youthful looks. As men get older, they look "distinguished." Not so with women. They are criticized for applying too much makeup, for coloring their hair, for trying to reach some standard of feminine beauty that males have set.

 

And I, in femme guise, try to reach those impossible goals myself.

 

What does that say about me?

When it's Valentine's Day we usually try to produce something relevant but this year we didn’t have the time or ideas to produce something - or at least something that both of us liked enough. The other half of id-iom usually delivers something sweet and heartwarming whilst I usually take a darker, bleaker look at love. This is one such piece, being rejected by the other half of id-iom because of the use of the word treacherous, which he believed wasn’t what people wanted to see on Valentine’s Day. I can’t say I disagreed but the Muse can be a harsh mistress. To alleviate the idea I thought it best to exorcise it from my mind by producing it.

 

As a Type 1 diabetic I produce little to no insulin myself and have to inject myself which means high sugar foods such as chocolate can literally be the death of me. At this point I have to admit that chocolate isn’t my confectionery of choice. I'd rather go for something like a wine gum but they just aren’t very romantic now are they.

 

Produced on A2 paper and made using paint pen, acrylic and watercolour pencil. I understand we’ve missed valentines but there might be a diabetic between you who might require it for their wall. If so get in touch or it will be on our website in due course (www.id-iom.com).

 

Cheers

 

id-iom

9.4.09

The flight arrived on time; and the twelve hours while on board passed quickly and without incident. To be sure, the quality of the Cathay Pacific service was exemplary once again.

 

Heathrow reminds me of Newark International. The décor comes straight out of the sterile 80's and is less an eyesore than an insipid background to the rhythm of human activity, such hustle and bustle, at the fore. There certainly are faces from all races present, creating a rich mosaic of humanity which is refreshing if not completely revitalizing after swimming for so long in a sea of Chinese faces in Hong Kong.

 

Internet access is sealed in England, it seems. Nothing is free; everything is egregiously monetized from the wireless hotspots down to the desktop terminals. I guess Hong Kong has spoiled me with its abundant, free access to the information superhighway.

  

11.4.09

Despite staying in a room with five other backpackers, I have been sleeping well. The mattress and pillow are firm; my earplugs keep the noise out; and the sleeping quarters are as dark as a cave when the lights are out, and only as bright as, perhaps, a dreary rainy day when on. All in all, St. Paul's is a excellent place to stay for the gregarious, adventurous, and penurious city explorer - couchsurfing may be a tenable alternative; I'll test for next time.

 

Yesterday Connie and I gorged ourselves at the borough market where there were all sorts of delectable, savory victuals. There was definitely a European flavor to the food fair: simmering sausages were to be found everywhere; and much as the meat was plentiful, and genuine, so were the dairy delicacies, in the form of myriad rounds of cheese, stacked high behind checkered tabletops. Of course, we washed these tasty morsels down with copious amounts of alcohol that flowed from cups as though amber waterfalls. For the first time I tried mulled wine, which tasted like warm, rancid fruit punch - the ideal tonic for a drizzling London day, I suppose. We later killed the afternoon at the pub, shooting the breeze while imbibing several diminutive half-pints in the process. Getting smashed at four in the afternoon doesn't seem like such a bad thing anymore, especially when you are having fun in the company of friends; I can more appreciate why the English do it so much!

 

Earlier in the day, we visited the Tate Modern. Its turbine room lived up to its prominent billing what with a giant spider, complete with bulbous egg sac, anchoring the retrospective exhibit. The permanent galleries, too, were a delight upon which to feast one's eyes. Picasso, Warhol and Pollock ruled the chambers of the upper floors with the products of their lithe wrists; and I ended up becoming a huge fan of cubism, while developing a disdain for abstract art and its vacuous images, which, I feel, are devoid of both motivation and emotion.

 

My first trip yesterday morning was to Emirates Stadium, home of the Arsenal Gunners. It towers imperiously over the surrounding neighborhood; yet for all its majesty, the place sure was quiet! Business did pick up later, however, once the armory shop opened, and dozens of fans descended on it like bees to a hive. I, too, swooped in on a gift-buying mission, and wound up purchasing a book for Godfrey, a scarf for a student, and a jersey - on sale, of course - for good measure.

 

I'm sitting in the Westminster Abbey Museum now, resting my weary legs and burdened back. So far, I've been verily impressed with what I've seen, such a confluence of splendor and history before me that it would require days to absorb it all, when regretfully I can spare only a few hours. My favorite part of the abbey is the poets corner where no less a literary luminary than Samuel Johnson rests in peace - his bust confirms his homely presence, which was so vividly captured in his biography.

 

For lunch I had a steak and ale pie, served with mash, taken alongside a Guinness, extra cold - 2 degrees centigrade colder, the bartender explained. It went down well, like all the other delicious meals I've had in England; and no doubt by now I have grown accustomed to inebriation at half past two. Besides, Liverpool were playing inspired football against Blackburn; and my lunch was complete.

 

Having had my fill of football, I decided to skip my ticket scalping endeavor at Stamford Bridge and instead wandered over to the British Museum to inspect their extensive collections. Along the way, my eye caught a theater, its doors wide open and admitting customers. With much rapidity, I subsequently checked the show times, saw that a performance was set to begin, and at last rushed to the box office to purchase a discounted ticket - if you call a 40 pound ticket a deal, that is. That's how I grabbed a seat to watch Hairspray in the West End.

 

The show was worth forty pounds. The music was addictive; and the stage design and effects were not so much kitschy as delightfully stimulating - the pulsating background lights were at once scintillating and penetrating. The actors as well were vivacious, oozing charisma while they danced and delivered lines dripping in humor. Hairspray is a quality production and most definitely recommended.

  

12.4.09

At breakfast I sat across from a man who asked me to which country Hong Kong had been returned - China or Japan. That was pretty funny. Then he started spitting on my food as he spoke, completely oblivious to my breakfast becoming the receptacle in which the fruit of his inner churl was being placed. I guess I understand the convention nowadays of covering one's mouth whilst speaking and masticating at the same time!

 

We actually conversed on London life in general, and I praised London for its racial integration, the act of which is a prodigious leap of faith for any society, trying to be inclusive, accepting all sorts of people. It wasn't as though the Brits were trying in vain to be all things to all men, using Spanish with the visitors from Spain, German with the Germans and, even, Hindi with the Indians, regardless of whether or not Hindi was their native language; not even considering the absurd idea of encouraging the international adoption of their language; thereby completely keeping English in English hands and allowing its proud polyglots to "practice" their languages. Indeed, the attempt of the Londoners to avail themselves of the rich mosaic of ethnic knowledge, and to seek a common understanding with a ubiquitous English accent is an exemplar, and the bedrock for any world city.

 

I celebrated Jesus' resurrection at the St. Andrew's Street Church in Cambridge. The parishioners of this Baptist church were warm and affable, and I met several of them, including one visiting (Halliday) linguistics scholar from Zhongshan university in Guangzhou, who in fact had visited my tiny City University of Hong Kong in 2003. The service itself was more traditional and the believers fewer in number than the "progressive" services at any of the charismatic, evangelical churches in HK; yet that's what makes this part of the body of Christ unique; besides, the message was as brief as a powerpoint slide, and informative no less; the power word which spoke into my life being a question from John 21:22 - what is that to you?

 

Big trees; exquisite lawns; and old, pointy colleges; that's Cambridge in a nutshell. Sitting here, sipping on a half-pint of Woodforde's Wherry, I've had a leisurely, if not languorous, day so far; my sole duty consisting of walking around while absorbing the verdant environment as though a sponge, camera in tow.

 

I am back at the sublime beer, savoring a pint of Sharp's DoomBar before my fish and chips arrive; the drinking age is 18, but anyone whose visage even hints of youthful brilliance is likely to get carded these days, the bartender told me. The youth drinking culture here is almost as twisted as the university drinking culture in America.

 

My stay in Cambridge, relaxing and desultory as it may be, is about to end after this late lunch. I an not sure if there is anything left to see, save for the American graveyard which rests an impossible two miles away. I have had a wonderful time in this town; and am thankful for the access into its living history - the residents here must demonstrate remarkable patience and tolerance what with so many tourists ambling on the streets, peering - and photographing - into every nook and cranny.

 

13.4.09

There are no rubbish bins, yet I've seen on the streets many mixed race couples in which the men tend to be white - the women also belonging to a light colored ethnicity, usually some sort of Asian; as well saw some black dudes and Indian dudes with white chicks.

 

People here hold doors, even at the entrance to the toilet. Sometimes it appears as though they are going out on a limb, just waiting for the one who will take the responsibility for the door from them, at which point I rush out to relieve them of such a fortuitous burden.

 

I visited the British Museum this morning. The two hours I spent there did neither myself nor the exhibits any justice because there really is too much to survey, enough captivating stuff to last an entire day, I think. The bottomless well of artifacts from antiquity, drawing from sources as diverse as Korea, and Mesopotamia, is a credit to the British empire, without whose looting most of this amazing booty would be unavailable for our purview; better, I think, for these priceless treasures to be open to all in the grandest supermarket of history than away from human eyes, and worst yet, in the hands of unscrupulous collectors or in the rubbish bin, possibly.

 

Irene and I took in the ballet Giselle at The Royal Opera House in the afternoon. The building is a plush marvel, and a testament to this city's love for the arts. The ballet itself was satisfying, the first half being superior to the second, in which the nimble dancers demonstrated their phenomenal dexterity in, of all places, a graveyard covered in a cloak of smoke and darkness. I admit, their dance of the dead, in such a gloomy necropolis, did strike me as, strange.

 

Two amicable ladies from Kent convinced me to visit their hometown tomorrow, where, they told me, the authentic, "working" Leeds Castle and the mighty interesting home of Charles Darwin await.

 

I'm nursing a pint of Green King Ruddles and wondering about the profusion of British ales and lagers; the British have done a great deed for the world by creating an interminable line of low-alcohol session beers that can be enjoyed at breakfast, lunch, tea and dinner; and their disservice is this: besides this inexhaustible supply of cheap beer ensnaring my inner alcoholic, I feel myself putting on my freshman fifteen, almost ten years after the fact; I am going to have to run a bit harder back in Hong Kong if I want to burn all this malty fuel off.

 

Irene suggested I stop by the National Art Gallery since we were in the area; and it was an hour well spent. The gallery currently presents a special exhibit on Picasso, the non-ticketed section of which features several seductive renderings, including David spying on Bathsheba - repeated in clever variants - and parodies of other masters' works. Furthermore, the main gallery houses two fabulous portraits by Joshua Reynolds, who happens to be favorite of mine, he in life being a close friend of Samuel Johnson - I passed by Boswells, where its namesake first met Johnson, on my way to the opera house.

 

14.4.09

I prayed last night, and went through my list, lifting everyone on it up to the Lord. That felt good; that God is alive now, and ever present in my life and in the lives of my brothers and sisters.

 

Doubtless, then, I have felt quite wistful, as though a specter in the land of the living, being in a place where religious fervor, it seems, is a thing of the past, a trifling for many, to be hidden away in the opaque corners of centuries-old cathedrals that are more expensive tourist destinations than liberating homes of worship these days. Indeed, I have yet to see anyone pray, outside of the Easter service which I attended in Cambridge - for such an ecstatic moment in verily a grand church, would you believe that it was only attended by at most three dozen spirited ones. The people of England, and Europe in general, have, it is my hope, only locked away the Word, relegating it to the quiet vault of their hearts. May it be taken out in the sudden pause before mealtimes and in the still crisp mornings and cool, silent nights. There is still hope for a revival in this place, for faith to rise like that splendid sun every morning. God would love to rescue them, to deliver them in this day, it is certain.

 

I wonder what Londoners think, if anything at all, about their police state which, like a vine in the shadows, has taken root in all corners of daily life, from the terrorist notifications in the underground, which implore Londoners to report all things suspicious, to the pair of dogs which eagerly stroll through Euston. What makes this all the more incredible is the fact that even the United States, the indomitable nemesis of the fledgling, rebel order, doesn't dare bombard its citizens with such fear mongering these days, especially with Obama in office; maybe we've grown wise in these past few years to the dubious returns of surrendering civil liberties to the state, of having our bags checked everywhere - London Eye; Hairspray; and The Royal Opera House check bags in London while the museums do not; somehow, that doesn't add up for me.

 

I'm in a majestic bookshop on New Street in Birmingham, and certainly to confirm my suspicions, there are just as many books on the death of Christianity in Britain as there are books which attempt to murder Christianity everywhere. I did find, however, a nice biography on John Wesley by Roy Hattersley and The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. I may pick up the former.

 

Lunch with Sally was pleasant and mirthful. We dined at a French restaurant nearby New Street - yes, Birmingham is a cultural capitol! Sally and I both tried their omelette, while her boyfriend had the fish, without chips. Conversation was light, the levity was there and so was our reminiscing about those fleeting moments during our first year in Hong Kong; it is amazing how friendships can resume so suddenly with a smile. On their recommendation, I am on my way to Warwick Castle - they also suggested that I visit Cadbury World, but they cannot take on additional visitors at the moment, the tourist office staff informed me, much to my disappointment!

 

Visiting Warwick Castle really made for a great day out. The castle, parts of which were established by William the Conquerer in 1068, is as much a kitschy tourist trap as a meticulous preservation of history, at times a sillier version of Ocean Park while at others a dignified dedication to a most glorious, inexorably English past. The castle caters to all visitors; and not surprisingly, that which delighted all audiences was a giant trebuchet siege engine, which for the five p.m. performance hurled a fireball high and far into the air - fantastic! Taliban beware!

 

15.4.09

I'm leaving on a jet plane this evening; don't know when I'll be back in England again. I'll miss this quirky, yet endearing place; and that I shall miss Irene and Tom who so generously welcomed me into their home, fed me, and suffered my use of their toilet and shower goes without saying. I'm grateful for God's many blessings on this trip.

 

On the itinerary today is a trip to John Wesley's home, followed by a visit to the Imperial War Museum. Already this morning I picked up a tube of Oilatum, a week late perhaps, which Teri recommended I use to treat this obstinate, dermal weakness of mine - I'm happy to report that my skin has stopped crying.

 

John Wesley's home is alive and well. Services are still held in the chapel everyday; and its crypt, so far from being a cellar for the dead, is a bright, spacious museum in which all things Wesley are on display - I never realized how much of an iconic figure he became in England; at the height of this idol frenzy, ironic in itself, he must have been as popular as the Beatles were at their apex. The house itself is a multi-story edifice with narrow, precipitous staircases and spacious rooms decorated in an 18th century fashion.

 

I found Samuel Johnson's house within a maze of red brick hidden alongside Fleet Street. To be in the home of the man who wrote the English dictionary, and whose indefatigable love for obscure words became the inspiration for my own lexical obsession, this, by far, is the climax of my visit to England! The best certainly has been saved for last.

 

There are a multitude of portraits hanging around the house like ornaments on a tree. Every likeness has its own story, meticulously retold on the crib sheets in each room. Celebrities abound, including David Garrick and Sir Joshua Reynolds, who painted several of the finer images in the house. I have developed a particular affinity for Oliver Goldsmith, of whom Boswell writes, "His person was short, his countenance coarse and vulgar, his deportment that of a scholar awkwardly affecting the easy gentleman. It appears as though I, too, could use a more flattering description of myself!

 

I regretfully couldn't stop to try the curry in England; I guess the CityU canteen's take on the dish will have to do. I did, however, have the opportune task of flirting with the cute Cathay Pacific counter staff who checked me in. She was gorgeous in red, light powder on her cheeks, with real diamond earrings, she said; and her small, delicate face, commanded by a posh British accent rendered her positively irresistible, electrifying. Not only did she grant me an aisle seat but she had the gumption to return my fawning with zest; she must be a pro at this by now.

 

I saw her again as she was pulling double-duty, collecting tickets prior to boarding. She remembered my quest for curry; and in the fog of infatuation, where nary a man has been made, I fumbled my words like the sloppy kid who has had too much punch. I am just an amateur, alas, an "Oliver Goldsmith" with the ladies - I got no game - booyah!

 

Some final, consequential bits: because of the chavs, Burberry no longer sells those fashionable baseball caps; because of the IRA, rubbish bins are no longer a commodity on the streets of London, and as a result, the streets and the Underground of the city are a soiled mess; and because of other terrorists from distant, more arid lands, going through a Western airport has taken on the tedium of perfunctory procedure that doesn't make me feel any safer from my invisible enemies.

 

At last, I saw so many Indians working at Heathrow that I could have easily mistaken the place for Mumbai. Their presence surprised me because their portion of the general population surely must be less than their portion of Heathrow staff, indicating some mysterious hiring bias. Regardless, they do a superb job with cursory airport checks, and in general are absurdly funny and witty when not tactless.

 

That's all for England!

The Night John Lennon Died Chapter One by Charles Gregory

When I think back to those days in the early winter of 1980 I have to think much further back to the 60s and 70s to understand my loyalty to John Lennon in particular, not so much the Beatles per se, but later George Harrison also would have an important impact on my life as it was he who introduced me to a guru from India, Paramahansa Yogananda, by means of a book about George written by Geoffery Giuliano. Getting back to Lennon, I suppose my use of psychedelics played a huge roll in my placing John at the helm of the good ship Lollipop. As I recall, it may have been Dec 15 1969 when that big poster WAR IS OVER if you WANT IT in big letters with smaller letters and the words Happy Christmas John and Yoko was placed as a billboard at the corner of Eglinton and Weston Road, remember it was on the roof of that divey long restaurant on the south west corner, it had terrible booths and flourescent lighting, it was across Weston Road from the Church of the Good Shepherd and just before Jerry McGuires Mt Dennis body shop, in whose backyard I used to ditch the undelivered Mt Dennis newspapers. Anyways, that sign had a big influence on me, the sheer determination in the words the scope of those words. I mean, they are very impactful even today. There definitely was a psychological reaction and I believe though I have not read this elsewhere that the Lennons, John and Yoko and their team must have done a fair bit of research on this configuration of words and block lettering before having their world wide message installed. I recall laying in a empty lot covered in fresh snow alongside a young girl whom I was flirting with at the time (name withheld to protect the innocent) and the two of us making snow angels down by the new apartments on Emmett Avenue. The acid was good in those days, it totally freed me from thinking in a normal way, at times, I wonder if I am still high on it, as there has been a lasting effect, at least for me.

Lennon of course was like a God to me, yet today they whittle away at his imperfections which is hard to tolerate but probably true, just that back then, well, the press never told the truth, did they. Were they afraid of the power his wealth brought him, of his lawyers perhaps, if they even whispered that he and Yoko had a hankerin for a bit of smack now and then. Though it was much better for the race that we didn’t know that or god knows how many more smack users there would be, or better said, would have been, as sadly is the case with heroin use many of them died, including good friends of mine, from the Keele and Eglinton corner. Besides authors, I can’t think of anyone more influential in my life than John Lennon. He took it on himself after those Beatles years to write some intelligent, effective lyrics, Working Class Hero would be one of them, Instant Karma another, Mind Games, Imagine, one could easily compile a list of ‘motivational material’ that had its inception in his writings. Whether he took his role to play on earth more seriously is a discussion that musical experts may have, I am not in their league of wisdom.

 

And then, when those days were over, life became life as it is wont to do. University didn't quite work out, there was no discipline, or better said, no one to discipline myself and my behaviours, the drink and in more moderation hashish got me through, as well as a $1500. grant 'to go to school' the other part, I can’t recall how much a student loan went right to the school for tuition translate Professors fees. My friend and I Pete Kalci spent all our grant money in less than a month on booze in 71/72 at the U of Windsor where, fresh trappings made for a past less existence where one could if they wish start a new life. You could look up my story A Scholar for more details in the book The Bracelet available on PDF if so wished. I'm rushing here but I think it is worth the words. After school came a half year of more abuse at home at 121 Humber Blvd apartment #1313,, by you know who, and then a short rescue by friends Boomer and TJ who took me in when home life became impossible, their apartment was at Rochdale College where studies in drink and smoke were at the forefront. It is a bit of a blur, but after 6 weeks ill with some form of a hepatitis disease that makes your eyes yellow, I recall finishing my period of non-drink by poking someones eye with a beer bottle in a boozecan in the building on the first night of my release from doctors care, can I even recall why I did that? I am sure that I was not the antagonist even though my skull was cracked open by a large Galiano bottle and I was taken away for stitches. Anyways the buildings governing body kicked me out and I found myself living in a lovely flat in one of those grand homes on one of those fancy streets off of Bloor where I think some speed helped me envision men climbing the telephone poles and tapping my phone, the funny thing is I never had a phone! A plan was hatched to borrow a grand from a fellow and buy large quantities of pot, hash, mescaline, minute amount of coke which was making itself known and hire a helper to carry the drugs onto a plane and fly to Windsor to sell them to my school chums.

 

It was all going quite well in Windsor where if you laid a line or two out all sorts of doors would open that were previously closed to you. All manner of persons was glad to share their school grant money for a few grams of primeau hashish, and introductions followed to sell bigger and more of that lovely product. When I went home after a day of selling weed and such substances, briefcase in hand, I thought, looking quite spiffy like a Canadian Tony Montana in Scarface when I noticed these people sort of hiding in the corridors and on the phone in the Holiday Inn downtown where we were staying. They weren't miraculous apparitions as I found out when I entered the room and the 'helper' was not there to let me in, instead I was met by a couple of polyester suited narcos who pointed their guns at me, at least I knew better than to fight with someone holding a gun and pointing it at me. Suddenly there were four more of them all males, the ones who had been pretending to be on the elevator and talking on the lobby phones, the gig was up.

 

At the archaic Windsor Jail, I gave my religion as being Taoism from an Ancient Chinese variety of worship of the Natural. I can't specifically recall how long I had been high, but I would imagine it could have been close to three years. It took me six weeks to come down, and down I did when I awoke one morning, head shaven and on the Blue Goose bus motoring along the quatre zero un towards the O.R. in Guelph Ontario, at least I would be closer to home and the odd friend would come and lay a chunk of hash on me from time to time in the visiting room and if lucky a book by Herman Hesse. See more of these lock up adventures in the Bracelet under the title The Firehydrant. PDF available again on request.

  

Chapter Two The Night John Lennon Died by Charles Gregory

You, get the picture, like Lennon, I also had grown up, I was a dad now, a married man, there were more expectations of me than the single version had to deal with. Love can be a peculiar word. I think my relationship with Julia all these fourty seven years was a godsend, that is well known, who knows what turns I may taken had if we not been together sharing, our often unspoken love and respect for each other. Though there have been a few tense moments as there are in all long term relationships. I am the lucky one I often tell myself this.

This night that John Lennon died December 8, 1980 is crystal clear in my memories. Late in the fall we had moved back to Toronto from a home in Hastings Ontario. We had almost a year off, we had purchased a run down small cottage and rebuilt the insides, the entire time Julia was carrying Christine not quite to term as she developed Toxemia and was hospitalized prior to our plan for a natural birth, and a good thing to, as that Toxemia can take you out if not treated. Oh, I remember being in the waiting room where I had no idea what our life was going to be like after a child was born. And, I was right as everything changed. My friends Jack Hamilton (big jack) and Dave Wellwood (pee wee) came up to their cottage which was just down the road on Cedar Drive in Hastings. Jack drove into town a few blocks away and bought the thickest TBone steaks right from the butcher, and we cooked them up on char broiled BBQ and drank a ton of beers. The next day Jack lent me his shiny black four door Parisienne to go pick Julia and Christine up at the hospital. I remember pulling up to the front of the now demolished building, parking in a designated spot and the three of us made our way down via an elevator to the main doors to the waiting fancy car. We had a brand new baby seat, to put Christine in, she hardly weighed five pounds after she and Julia spent an extra week in the hospital getting healthier from the scare of Toxemia!

All this company came to celebrate and visit us in our tiny one bedroom home. It didn’t hurt matters that we were on the Trent river, that had lots of fish in it, pickerel, bass, both types large and small mouth and muskellunge, and geez we had a lot of company on the weekends, including my mom Gisele who got a ride up in the Chlroide company van with Shane, my brothers Shane and Kevin, other friends from Mt Dennis including Paul Einboden aka Hime, Glen Kyle, Larry Cartwright and Julias family that consisted of her sister Darleen who had a newborn son Danny and her ten or so year old son Kevin, her mom Joan and her husband Bert Julias dad. The house was tiny, I mean really really tiny, there was a couch in the living room that we picked up off the side of the road, I recall the brown vinyl it was made of, fortunately it pulled out so there was somewhere other than tents for people to sleep. The weekdays were quieter, but every weekend there was company, the likes of Moose and Carol and their two kids who were five and three, Pete Brennan and his squeeze, Frank Herbert and Kay Lie. Big Bob Butler and his wife Carol lived over by Frankford not to far away and some weekends he would come and set up his DJ equipment and blare music through gigantic speakers set up on a folding banquet table along with thousands of cassettes, cassettes were the thing back then! It was loud enough that Charlie the Hastings town cop came over one night parked his cruiser, walked over and politely asked if we could turn it down. Which we did of course.

Now I am told that when Chris was young she had colic, which I do not recall as every night after dinner I would hop in the tin boat and pull the rip cord on the 18HP Johnson outboard motor and soar down the river towards the islands and troll for muskie and the other fish that lived there. Now and then I would get a good one, the nicest I recall was a 22 pound Muskie that several of us posed with when caught and later over the years others posed with it, friends like Don Schmidt and Paul Smith and and John the Count and George Holmes as well posed with it. When I got home from fishing, the baby was asleep and after a bit of TV and some snack of milk and cookies we would go to bed in the tiny bedroom so small that we had to install a pocket door so the cradle would fit in there with us.

Our dog Zorba had some harsh blood in him as one of his parents went by the name of Boogie, and Boogie would know if you were afraid of him. Now and then the musician Ronnie Peters would come over for beers and that dog did not want him to go near the bedroom when Julia was in there prior to Christines birth, he’d growl just under his breath and show a handsome fierce looking set of teeth…in fact, that dog had a big mean spell and from time to time when I wanted to go into the bedroom his growl also prevented me from going in to my own bed! We quickly realized that dog had to go, or the baby might be in danger, through the local pound we found him a job as a security dog at a scrap yard, a place he was well suited to. That day I had to take him to the pound, is quite clear. Albert Julias dad was with me, he came up through the week prior to me picking Julia up at the hospital, we drove into Peterborough and went to the Humane Society. I was not in a good way, this nice young lady at the reception desk was asking me things, like, “how old is the dog, is he friendly, is he trained, has he had his shots” and so on and I just looked at her and handed her his leather lead and left, keeping the manly tears from rolling down my cheeks, Bert who was sitting in the olive green two door Mercury just looked at me and we went to the hospital. It had to be done. I had asked Ronnie who grew fields of pot and lived on a farm not far away at Jermyn Line if he would take the dog, his reply sort of explains it all, he said, “well geez Charlie, I could use a good dog, but that dog of yours he seems to have a bad attitude about some things me being one of them” he was right the dog had to go. If you ever had to get rid of a dog you will know how I felt. Years earlier while living in Toronto I was training the dog at the Dominion Store on Eglinton Avenue near Islington, we were on a grassy lawn the size of half a foot ball field. An elderly man wearing a spy rain coat, tan in colour and a fedora walked within twenty yards of us, I thought the dog was going to attack him, I got there in time to put his lead on and apologized. When we were rebuilding the cottage a neighbour would come and help with the electrical wiring and boxes, one day his son Allen just came barging into the house, innocently, shouting ‘dad, supper is ready’ and well Zorba went for him but I stopped him in time. Times like this, I wanna listen to Fred Eaglesmith sing his song, He’s A Good Dog.

The notion of driving thirty or so miles to work did not sit well with me. I refused to work in the bar game any longer, after numerous attempts on my life at clubs in Toronto, the last time facing guns during an angry confrontation at the Seaway Beverly Hills Hotel. The following day, some friends of ours had been found dead at Weston Road and Lawrence, maybe four of them, I had known two of the men quite well, Bill the Greek and his younger brother Paul, yes, they were all involved in the drugs trade in one way or another. The murderers were convicted and sent to prison. I was lucky that when it was my turn to speak in court a lawyer of my friend Mark Goodine spoke to the judge informing him I was a hostile witness and I did not have to testify nor did my co worker Shoesy. Though Mark was later killed himself a while later in a nasty way, I am grateful that that day he kept me off the stand. My days were numbered in Toronto. But, I had no idea I would have to drive to either Peterborough or Port Hope or Cobourg to find work to support the family, to pay the bills. I know I missed a job as the school janitor at the Hastings elementary, that would have been great, then my application to work for Nicholson tools located in Port Hope was almost successful, but that never panned out. The limited amount of funds we had earned selling our home in Toronto were being used up much to quickly. For example our plans to expand the home floundered when our cash flow got low, we did manage to put a twenty by twenty concrete foundation wall up and the boards on top to hold framing, but we went broke much quicker than I had anticipated, than either one of us anticipated. To avoid total collapse of our economy we moved back to Toronto, a few days at first at Pete and Janets home on Horsham Ave until we found a basement apartment on Sunfield Avenue in the Keele and Shepherd area. We put the Hastings property up for sale, but high interest rates were stalling the idea of a quick sale.

Someone, Pete again suggested I put in an application at the City of North York to work in the ice rinks for the winter. I did that and was hired on and quickly learned a lot of new things. How to maintain an artificial ice rink, first at a local pad with two warming areas in the Keele and Mapleleaf area of town. It was a big improvement on the rink at Pearen Park that I had played on as a boy, but it was the same idea, a side for pleasure skating and another side for hockey players. The facility was open from noon till ten or nine PM daily seven days a week. The ice had to be shoveled often and those who were playing would do it most of the time. At nights end I had to give it a good scrape, there was a snow blower if needed which was seldom. A long rubber hose was used to flood the ice. That work would be completed by 10PM, we got paid to be there until midnight, but I would just lock up and go home by 11 as the supervisor had already been by to check in that things were OK. The idea was that North York would first assign you to one of these easy to maintain places to see if they thought you were suited to working in a bigger arena. It was great, from time to time Jake Nash would come by, he was working for a chip company back then and he would show up, after hours with a mickey of whiskey to share gulps with me and shoot the breeze, at the time he was still dating Julias sister Darleen. The pay was good, I forget exactly how much, perhaps twelve bucks an hour, a shift premium, not many weekends off, but shit, I was happy to be able to look after the family.

After a month at Maple Leaf the city sent me to work at Victoria Park arena in the Victoria Park and Eglinton area of the city. I had no idea that North York was such a large area, much larger than my home township The Borough of York. At the new rink our boss was from Ireland, accent and all. He wore the North York uniform day and night, his first name was Danny, but you could not call him that, you had to call him Mr Briginns. At first they put me on midnight shift which I did not like, and I told him so even though it risked my new career. The next shift change they had me on days which was Ok cause you could learn things and see what was going on in the different departments that are within an ice rink, such as the stands, and the ice plant, and the operation of the Zamboni machine and so on. For the most part they had me cleaning up and I learned from a bunch of lazy bums how not to work, while being at work. I had more initiative than that and the foreman took me under his wing so to speak to make sure I made no bad habits. Days went by quickly, the most difficult issue was driving to work in this vast township. At the time there were two television shows that were made quite a fuss by some people who used the TV to medicate their lives, one was called Dallas, the other Knotts Landing. We watched both shows and it was to my benefit that the boss Dan also liked Dallas as he would ask me how the show went the odd time he missed a Friday night episode. The stands for spectators at the Victoria Park arena could accommodate about a thousand people and there were Junior B teams and Triple A teams that could easily fill the stadium. I took pride in keeping the stands clean and it wasn’t too long before I was being trained on the operation of the Zamboni. I was fine on the Zamboni with all its switches and levers until one day I got sent out to clean the ice when there were people in the stands. I found that unusually intimidating and I gently rammed the corners, as I had not slowed down enough when coming to the turns. You had to be quick with your hands, especially when you were leaving the ice and had to lift the back end, the water maker up as you pulled away from the gates and into the Zamboni bay. There was a lot to learn, but generally speaking I was catching on.

With a rent and a mortgage to pay on the cottage our funds were pretty tight. Some of the guys at the Beverly Hills heard we were back in town, one of them sent over a ham, an envelope contained some money, it was well appreciated. We were so poor, I recall one time being at the strip mall at Keele and Shepherd and finding a green twenty dollar bill! There were so many things that money could buy, we opted to get Julia a good haircut which pretty much used it up, that’s how poor we were. We could just barely meet our commitments, rent, gas for the car to get me to work, food for the three of us, the Hastings property monthly mortgage was around $200, every week I needed a case of beer, we lived week to week like many people do. There was nothing left for luxuries like going to the show or out for dinner or even picking up a pizza. Yet this was an alright situation for us and we were surviving, grateful to be able to pay our bills. Work was going well, I got transferred to the ice rink at Flemingdon Park where I got along well and my initiatives paid off as I had been told that they were going to offer me a full time position as a cleaner in one of the cities community centres once the ice rinks closed in the spring.

Julia and I were watching the television around 10pm on the night of December 8, 1980. There was a knock at the side door of the house we lived in at 34 Sunfield Road, North York. Two police detectives in suits showed me their badges and asked to come down to the living area of the apartment. They were there to charge me with the assault of one David Baker earlier in the evening. Julia protested and said this isn’t true as I had not left the house since getting home from work at five pm. Never the less I was charged with assault and released on my own recognizance with instructions to attend court in the future which would be sent to me via mail. This was ridiculous, just a blatant miscarriage of justice as I had been home all evening playing with Christine who was now 8 months old and she would take pleasure in scooting along the vinyl floors of the long apartment while in a kids wheeled walker. Every now and then we would give her a spin and send her towards the other end of the apartment, at one point, the floor dipped and acted as a propellant for the apparatus. She’d laugh and make her way back to us in the living room, from time to time being diverted in the kitchen where we would find her almost right in the kitchen cupboards playing with the pots and pans.

Bewildered by the odd set of circumstances I made a call to my brother Shanes place and found out that he had also been charged with assault and he knew that our older brother Alex and our brother Kevin had also been charged. We were stunned Julia and I sitting there in our little apartment, but not as stunned as the millions of fans of John Lennon were when it was announced during the nightly news that he had been shot and killed in New York City outside of the Dakota apartment building while returning home from a musical session. Our own issues clouded the feelings we should have been having upon hearing this sad news. Understandably I was upset with my predicament, with the police insistence that I had been somewhere else my poor wife being called a liar her words not being taken as the truth, and there was nothing we could do about it. The cops left, I had to get to bed as I was on day shift the next day at the Victoria Park rink. A week later a notice came in the mail to appear in court in an Etobicoke courtroom in March of 1981, much quicker than a trial today would take today. By this time we had found out that our sister Suzannes boyfriend, one David Baker had been badly assaulted in downtown Toronto and it was he that put the finger on the Gregorys.

Shane and I had our suspicions as to who may have beat this guy up, but we kept that to ourselves, we knew though, that is wasn’t he or I. Alex was just to spun out to have such a conversation with. Kevin lived downtown, hung around down town, knew lots of people downtown. Apparently it was a pretty serious beating, Baker ended up in the hospital while he mended from broken bones and cuts, someone even said that acid had been thrown on him. I would have to say he deserved a beating as he had been physically and mentally abusing our schizophrenic sister for a few years, if I am not mistaken he had done some foul thing to one of their children that thankfully the Childrens Aid had acted quickly on.

The court date came and the four of us appeared in court, no lawyers, the Crown prosecutor asked how we were going to plead, in unison we all said, Not Guilty Your Honour. The Judge asked the Crown prosecutor to present the evidence, the detectives Fric and Frac who had charged me and my brothers huddled with the Crown briefly. After which the Crown faced the Judge and said, “your Honour at this time the prime witness in our case one David Baker has not made an appearance in the court room, I have no choice but to ask that all charges be dismissed.” And that was it, the false lies told to the detectives were just that false lies. The Judge spoke to us before we walked out of the courtroom, he said, “your case is dismissed, and may I add that if I had to come to court to testify against the four of you I probably would not appear either”! And that is why there is one photo of us four brothers together outside an Etobicoke court room, a few months after The Night John Lennon Died. We never discussed any suspicions we had with each other, never did. Baker got what was coming to him, he has never been seen or heard from since. With the help of social agencies, Suzanne, got it together as best she could and lived the rest of her life with her mom and sister, the three children that she mothered never reached out for her in the adoption processes, she must have lived an unhappy life worrying about them…such is life. We continued to re-group our finances, that Christmas our old 70s Mercury died a sudden death and we found ourselves taking the TTC to moms for Christmas dinner on Ewart Avenue, pushing Christine in a cheap fold up stroller, laughing about our fortunes.

Thanks to Julia for listening and hanging in, also Lino for some clarifications, a special thanks to John Lennon. May I dedicate this to those who have passed both those we knew, and those we loved and hated.

 

Someone got in touch with us asking if we'd done any Star Wars related imagery on the street for possible inclusion in a book on the topic. Since then I've watched 'Revenge of the Sith' for the first time and was quite relieved after the horror of Jar Jar Binks that George Lucas can actually still make a decent film. So with renewed vigour and a little more faith in the whole Star Wars franchise I made a quick check of the id-iom archives and we managed to locate a few bits that could potentially be of use and then set to work putting them up and getting some snaps.

 

Nobody understands me! - R2D2 has a problem. Nobody can really understand him. They all pretend they do just to keep him happy but his tweets and whistles are completely unintelligible and they only keep him round because he knows how to make a decent mojito...

 

Cheers

 

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