View allAll Photos Tagged answer
"There are some things you simply must ponder in your heart. Your heart has the answer that you cannot get from anywhere else." -Iyanla Vanzant
We decided to go for a city break rather than sun in Tenerife again this September. Other than a few days in the North East we haven’t been away since last March and wanted a change and hopefully some sun. The problem is getting flights from the north of England to the places we want to go to. We chose Valencia as we could fly from East Midlands – which was still a pain to get to as it involved the most notorious stretch of the M1 at five in the morning. In the end we had a fairly good journey, the new Ryanair business class pre-booked scheme worked quite well and bang on time as usual. It was dull when we landed with storms forecast all week, the sky was bright grey – the kiss of death to the photography I had in mind. I was full of cold and wishing I was at work. It did rain but it was overnight on our first night and didn't affect us. There has been a drought for eleven months apparently and it rained on our first day there! The forecast storms didn't materialise in Valencia but they got it elsewhere.
You May notice discrepancies in the spelling of some Spanish words or names, this is because Valencian is used on signs, in some guide books and maps. There are two languages in common use with distinct differences. There may also be genuine mistakes - it has been known!
Over the course of a Monday to Sunday week we covered 75 miles on foot and saw most of the best of Valencia – The City of Bell Towers. The Old City covers a pretty large area in a very confusing layout. There was a lot of referring to maps – even compass readings! – a first in a city for us. The problem with photography in Valencia is that most of the famous and attractive building are closely built around, some have poor quality housing built on to them. Most photographs have to be taken from an extreme angle looking up. There are no high points as it is pan flat, there are a small number of buildings where you can pay to go up on to the roof for a better view and we went up them – more than once!
The modern buildings of The City of Arts and Sciences – ( Ciutat de Las Arts I de les Ciencies ) are what the city has more recently become famous for, with tourists arriving by the coachload all day until late at night. They must be photographed millions of times a month. We went during the day and stayed till dark one evening, I gave it my best shot but a first time visit is always a compromise between ambition and realism, time dictates that we have to move on to the next destination. I travelled with a full size tripod – another first – I forgot to take it with me to TCoAaS! so It was time to wind up the ISO, again! Needless to say I never used the tripod.
On a day when rain was forecast but it stayed fine, albeit a bit dull, we went to the Bioparc north west of the city, a zoo by another name. There are many claims made for this place, were you can appear to walk alongside some very large animals, including, elephants, lions, giraffe, rhino, gorillas and many types of monkey to name a few. It is laid out in different geographical regions and there is very little between you and the animals, in some cases there is nothing, you enter the enclosure through a double door arrangement and the monkeys are around you. It gets rave reviews and we stayed for most of the day. The animals it has to be said gave the appearance of extreme boredom and frustration and I felt quite sorry for them.
The course of The River Turia was altered after a major flood in the 50’s. The new river runs west of the city flanked by a motorway. The old river, which is massive, deep and very wide between ancient walls, I can’t imagine how it flooded, has been turned into a park that is five miles long. There is an athletics track, football pitches, cycle paths, restaurants, numerous kids parks, ponds, fountains, loads of bridges, historic and modern. At the western end closest to the sea sits The City of Arts and Sciences – in the river bed. Where it meets the sea there is Valencia’s urban Formula One racetrack finishing in the massive marina built for The Americas Cup. The race track is in use as roadways complete with fully removable street furniture, kerbs, bollards, lights, islands and crossings, everything is just sat on the surface ready to be moved.
We found the beach almost by accident, we were desperate for food after putting in a lot of miles and the afternoon was ticking by. What a beach, 100’s of metres wide and stretching as far as the eye could see with a massive promenade. The hard thing was choosing, out of the dozens of restaurants, all next door to each other, all serving traditional Paella – rabbit and chicken – as well as seafood, we don’t eat seafood and it constituted 90% of the menu in most places. Every restaurant does a fixed price dish of the day, with a few choices, three courses and a drink. Some times this was our only meal besides making the most of the continental breakfast at the hotel. We had a fair few bar stops with the local wine being cheap and pleasant it would have been a shame not to, there would have been a one woman riot – or strike!
On our final day, a Sunday, we were out of bed and down for breakfast at 7.45 as usual, the place was deserted barring a waiter. We walked out of the door at 8.30 – in to the middle of a mass road race with many thousands of runners, one of a series that take place in Valencia – apparently! We struggled to find out the distance, possibly 10km. The finish was just around the corner so off we went with the camera gear, taking photos of random runners and groups. There was a TV crew filming it and some local celebrity (I think) commentating. Next we came across some sort of wandering religious and musical event. Some sort of ritual was played out over the course of Sunday morning in various locations, it involved catholic priests and religious buildings and another film crew. The Catholic tourists and locals were filling the (many) churches for Sunday mass. Amongst all of this we had seen men walking around in Arab style dress – the ones in black looked like the ones from ISIS currently beheading people – all carrying guns. A bit disconcerting. We assumed that there had been some sort of battle enactment. We were wrong, it hadn’t happened yet. A while later, about 11.30 we could hear banging, fireworks? No it was our friends with the guns. We were caught up in total mayhem, around 60 men randomly firing muskets with some sort of blank rounds, the noise, smoke and flames from the muzzles were incredible. We were about to climb the Torres de Serranos which is where, unbeknown to us, the grand, and deafening, finale was going to be. We could feel the blast in our faces on top of the tower. Yet again there was a film camera in attendance. I couldn’t get close ups but I got a good overview and shot my first video with the 5D, my first in 5 years of owning a DLSR with the capability. I usually use my phone ( I used my phone as well). Later in the day there was a bullfight taking place, the ring was almost next to our hotel, in the end we had other things to do and gave it a miss, it was certainly a busy Sunday in the city centre, whether it’s the norm or not I don’t know.
There is a tram system in Valencia but it goes from the port area into the newer part of the city on the north side, it wouldn’t be feasible to serve the historic old city really. A quick internet search told me that there are 55,000 university students in the city, a pretty big number. I think a lot of the campus is on the north side and served by the tram although there is a massive fleet of buses as well. There is a massive, very impressive market building , with 100’s of stalls that would make a photo project on its own, beautiful on the inside and out but very difficult to get decent photos of the exterior other than detail shots owing to the closeness of other buildings and the sheer size of it. Across town, another market has been beautifully renovated and is full of bars and restaurants and a bit of a destination in its own right.
A downside was the all too typical shafting by the taxi drivers who use every trick in the book to side step the official tariffs and rob you. The taxi from the airport had a “broken” meter and on the way home we were driven 22 km instead of the nine that is the actual distance. Some of them seem to view tourists as cash cows to be robbed at all costs. I emailed the Marriot hotel as they ordered the taxi, needless to say no answer from Marriot – they’ve had their money. We didn’t get the rip off treatment in the bars etc. that we experienced in Rome, prices are very fair on most things, certainly considering the city location.
All in all we had a good trip and can highly recommend Valencia.
+++ DISCLAIMER +++
Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based on historical facts. BEWARE!
Some background:
The Panther tank, officially Panzerkampfwagen V Panther (abbreviated PzKpfw V) with ordnance inventory designation Sd.Kfz. 171, was a German medium tank of World War II. It was used on the Eastern and Western Fronts from mid-1943 to the end of the war. The Panther was intended to counter the Soviet T-34 medium tank and to replace the Panzer III and Panzer IV. Nevertheless, it served alongside the Panzer IV and the heavier Tiger I until the end of the war. It is considered one of the best tanks of World War II for its excellent firepower, protection, and mobility although its reliability in early times were less impressive.
The Panther was a compromise. While having essentially the same Maybach V12 petrol (700 hp) engine as the Tiger I, it had better gun penetration, was lighter and faster, and could traverse rough terrain better than the Tiger I. The trade-off was weaker side armor, which made it vulnerable to flanking fire. The Panther proved to be effective in open country and long-range engagements.
The Panther was far cheaper to produce than the heavy Tiger I. Key elements of the Panther design, such as its armor, transmission, and final drive, were simplifications made to improve production rates and address raw material shortages. Despite this the overall design remain described by some as "overengineered". The Panther was rushed into combat at the Battle of Kursk in the summer of 1943 despite numerous unresolved technical problems, leading to high losses due to mechanical failure. Most design flaws were rectified by late 1943 and early 1944, though the bombing of production plants, increasing shortages of high-quality alloys for critical components, shortage of fuel and training space, and the declining quality of crews all impacted the tank's effectiveness.
Though officially classified as a medium tank, at 44.8 metric tons the Panther was closer to a heavy tank weight and the same category as the American M26 Pershing (41.7 tons), British Churchill (40.7 tons) and the Soviet IS-2 (46 tons) heavy tanks. The Panther's weight caused logistical problems, such as an inability to cross certain bridges, otherwise the tank had a very high power-to-weight ratio which made it highly mobile.
The Panther was only used marginally outside of Germany, mostly captured or recovered vehicles, some even after the war. Japan already received in 1943 a specimen for evaluation. During March–April 1945, Bulgaria received 15 Panthers of various makes (D, A, and G variants) from captured and overhauled Soviet stocks; they only saw limited (training) service use. In May 1946, Romania received 13 Panther tanks from the USSR, too.
After the war, France was able to recover enough operable vehicles and components to equip its army and offer vehicles for sale. The French Army's 503e Régiment de Chars de Combat was equipped with a force of 50 Panthers from 1944 to 1947, in the 501st and 503rd Tank Regiments. These remained in service until they were replaced by French-built ARL 44 heavy tanks.
In 1946, Sweden sent a delegation to France to examine surviving specimens of German military vehicles. During their visit, the delegates found a few surviving Panthers and had one shipped to Sweden for further testing and evaluation, which continued until 1961.
However, this was not the Panther’s end of service. The last appearance by WWII German tanks on the world’s battlefields came in 1967, when Syria’s panzer force faced off against modern Israeli armor. Quite improbably, Syria had assembled a surprisingly wide collection of ex-Wehrmacht vehicles from a half-dozen sources over a decade and a half timeframe. This fleet consisted primarily of late production Panzer V, StuGIII and Jagdpanzer IVs, plus some Hummel SPAAGs and a handful Panthers. The tanks were procured from France, Spain, and Czechoslovakia, partly revamped before delivery.
All of the Panthers Syria came from Czechoslovakia. Immediately after Germany’s collapse in May 1945, the Soviet army established a staging area for surrendered German tanks at a former Wehrmacht barracks at Milovice, about 24 miles north of Prague, Czechoslovakia. By January 1946, a total of roughly 200 operational Panzer IVs and Panthers of varying versions were at this facility. Joining them was a huge cache of spare parts found at a former German tank repair depot in Teplice, along with ammunition collected from all over Czechoslovakia and the southern extremity of the Soviet occupation zone in Germany. Throughout 1946, the Czechoslovak government’s clean-up of WWII battlefields recovered more than one hundred further tank wrecks, of which 80 were pieced back together to operational status and handed over to the Czechoslovakian Army,
In early 1948, the now-nationalized CKD Works began a limited upkeep of the tanks, many of which had not had depot-level overhauls since the war. A few were rebuilt with a Czechoslovak-designed steering system, but this effort was halted due to cost. These tanks remained operational in the Czechoslovak army until the end of 1954, when sufficient T-34s were available to phase them out.
A Syrian military delegation visited Prague from 8 April – 22 April 1955. An agreement was struck for the sale, amongst other items, of 45 Panzer IVs and 15 Panthers. Despite their obsolescence the Czechoslovaks were not about to just give the tanks away and demanded payment in a ‘hard’ western currency, namely British pounds. The cost was £4,500 each (£86,000 or $112,850 in 2016 money), far above what they were probably worth militarily, especially considering the limited amount of foreign currency reserves available to the Damascus government. The deal included refurbishment, a full ammunition loadout for each, and a limited number of spare parts. Nonetheless, the deal was closed, and the tanks’ delivery started in early November 1955.
The Syrians were by that time already having dire problems keeping their French-sourced panzers operational, and in 1958, a second contract was signed with CKD Works for 15 additional Panzer IVs and 10 more Panthers, these being in lesser condition or non-operational, for use as spare parts hulks. An additional 16 refurbished Maybach engines for both types were also included in this contract, as well as more ammunition.
The refurbished Panthers for Syria had their original 7.5 cm KwK 42 L70 replaced with the less powerful Rheinmetall 7.5 cm KwK 40 L48 gun – dictated by the fact that this gun was already installed in almost all other Syrian tanks of German origin and rounds for the KwK 42 L70 were not available anymore. and the Panther’s full ammo load was 87 rounds. The KwK 40 L48 fired a standard APCBC shell at 750 m/s and could penetrate 109 mm (4.3 in) hardened steel at 1.000 m range. This was enough to take out an M4 Sherman at this range from any angle under ideal circumstances. With an APCR shell the gun was even able to penetrate 130 mm (5.1 in) of hardened steel at the same distance.
Outwardly, the gun switch was only recognizable through the shorter barrel with a muzzle brake, the German WWII-era TZF.5f gunsight was retained by the Syrians. Additionally, there were two secondary machine guns, either MG-34s or MG-42s, one coaxial with the main gun and a flexible one in a ball mount in the tank’s front glacis plate.
A few incomplete Panther hulls without turret were also outfitted with surplus Panzer IV turrets that carried the same weapon, but the exact share of them among the Syrian tanks is unknown – most probably less than five, and they were among the batch delivered in the course of the second contract from 1958.
As they had been lumped all together in Czechoslovak army service, the Syrians received a mixed bag of Panzer IV and Panther versions, many of them “half-breeds” or “Frankensteins”. Many had the bow machine gun removed, either already upon delivery or as a later field modification, and in some cases the machine gun in the turret was omitted as well.
An obvious modification of the refurbished Czech export Panthers for Syria was the installation of new, lighter road wheels. These were in fact adapted T-54 wheels from Czechoslovakian license production that had just started in 1957 - instead of revamping the Panthers’ original solid steel wheels, especially their rubberized tread surfaces, it was easier to replace them altogether, what also made spare parts logistics easier. The new wheels had almost the same diameter as the original German road wheels from WWII, and they were simply adapted to the Panther’s attachment points of the torsion bar suspension’s swing arms. Together with the lighter main gun and some other simplifications, the Syrian Panthers’ empty weight was reduced by more than 3 tonnes.
The Czechoslovaks furthermore delivered an adapter kit to mount a Soviet-made AA DShK 12.7mm machine gun to the commander cupola. This AA mount had originally been developed after WWII for the T-34 tank, and these kits were fitted to all initial tanks of the 1955 order. Enough were delivered that some could be installed on a few of the Spanish- / French-sourced tanks, too.
It doesn’t appear that the Czechoslovaks updated the radio fit on any of the ex-German tanks, and it’s unclear if the Syrians installed modern Soviet radios. The WWII German Fu 5 radio required a dedicated operator (who also manned the bow machine gun); if a more modern system was installed not requiring a dedicated operator, this crew position could be eliminated altogether, what favored the deletion of the bow machine gun on many ex-German Syrian tanks. However, due to their more spacious hull and turret, many Panthers were apparently outfitted with a second radio set and used as command tanks – visible through a second whip antenna on the hull.
A frequent domestic Panther upgrade were side skirts to suppress dust clouds while moving and to prevent dust ingestion into the engines and clogged dust filters. There was no standardized solution, though, and solutions ranged from simple makeshift rubber skirts bolted to the tanks’ flanks to wholesale transplants from other vehicles, primarily Soviet tanks. Some Panthers also had external auxiliary fuel tanks added to their rear, in the form of two 200 l barrels on metal racks of Soviet origin. These barrels were not directly connected with the Panther’s fuel system, though, but a pump-and-hose kit was available to re-fuel the internal tanks from this on-board source in the field. When empty or in an emergency - the barrels were placed on top of the engine bay and leaking fuel quite hazardous - the barrels/tanks could be jettisoned by the crew from the inside.
Inclusive of the cannibalization hulks, Syria received a total of roughly 80 former German tanks from Czechoslovakia. However, at no time were all simultaneously operational and by 1960, usually only two or three dozen were combat-ready.
Before the Six Day War, the Syrian army was surprisingly unorganized, considering the amount of money being pumped into it. There was no unit larger than a brigade, and the whole Syrian army had a sort of “hub & spokes” system originating in Damascus, with every individual formation answering directly to the GHQ rather than a chain of command. The Panthers, Panzer IVs and StuG IIIs were in three independent tank battalions, grossly understrength, supporting the normal tank battalions of three infantry brigades (the 8th, 11th, and 19th) in the Golan Heights. The Jagdpanzer IVs were in a separate independent platoon attached to a tank battalion operating T-34s and SU-100s. How the Hummel SPGs were assigned is unknown.
The first active participation of ex-German tanks in Syrian service was the so-called “Water War”. This was not really a war but rather a series of skirmishes between Israel and Syria during the mid-1960s. With increasing frequency starting in 1964, Syria emplaced tanks on the western slope of the Golan Heights, almost directly on the border, to fire down on Israeli irrigation workers and farmers in the Galilee region. Surprisingly (considering the small number available) Syria chose the Panzer IV for this task. It had no feature making it better or worse than any other tank; most likely the Syrians felt they were the most expendable tanks in their inventory as Israeli counterfire was expected. The panzers were in defilade (dug in) and not easy to shoot back at; due to their altitude advantage.
In 1964, Syria announced plans to divert 35% of the Jordan River’s flow away from Israel, to deprive the country of drinking water. The Israelis responded that they would consider this an act of war and, true to their word, engaged the project’s workers with artillery and sniper fire. Things escalated quickly; in 1965, Israeli M4 Shermans on Israeli soil exchanged fire with the Syrian Panzer IVs above inconclusively. A United Nations peacekeeping team ordered both sides to disengage from the border for a set period of time to “cool off”, but the UN “Blue Berets” were detested and considered useless by both the Israelis and Syrians, and both sides used the lull to prepare their next move. When the cooling-off period ended, the Syrians moved Panzer IVs and now some Panthers, too, back into position. However, the IDF had now Centurion tanks waiting for them, with their fire arcs pre-planned out. The Cold War-era Centurion had heavy armor, a high-velocity 105mm gun, and modern British-made optics. It outclassed the WWII panzers in any imaginable way and almost immediately, two Syrian Panzer IVs and a Panther were destroyed. Others were abandoned by their crews and that was the end of the situation.
Syria’s participation in the Six Say War that soon followed in 1967 war was sloppy and ultimately disastrous. Israel initially intended the conflict to be limited to a preemptive strike against Egypt to forestall an imminent attack by that country, with the possibility of having to fight Syria and Jordan defensively if they responded to the operations against Egypt. The war against Egypt started on 5 June 1967. Because of the poor organization of the Syrian army, news passed down from Damascus on the fighting in the Sinai was scarce and usually outdated by the time it reached the brigade level. Many Syrian units (including the GHQ) were using civilian shortwave radios to monitor Radio Cairo which was spouting off outlandish claims of imaginary Egyptian victories, even as Israeli divisions were steamrolling towards the Suez Canal.
Syrian vehicles of German origin during the Six Day War were either painted overall in beige or in a dark olive drab green. Almost all had, instead of tactical number codes, the name of a Syrian soldier killed in a previous war painted on the turret in white. During the Six Day War, no national roundel was typically carried, even though the Syrian flag was sometimes painted to the turret flanks. However just as the conflict was starting, white circles were often painted onto the top sides of tanks as quick ID markings for aircraft, and some tanks had red recognition triangles added to the side areas: Syrian soldiers were notoriously trigger-happy, and the decreased camouflage effect was likely cancelled out by the reduced odds of being blasted by a comrade!
During the evening of 5 June, Syrian generals in Damascus urged the government to take advantage of the situation and mount an immediate invasion of Israel. Planning and preparation were literally limited to a few hours after midnight, and shortly after daybreak on 6 June, Syrian commanders woke up with orders to invade Israel. The three infantry brigades in the Golan, backed up by several independent battalions, were to spearhead the attack as the rest of the Syrian army mobilized.
There was no cohesion at all: Separate battalions began their advance whenever they happened to be ready to go, and brigades went forward, missing subunits that lagged behind. A platoon attempting a southern outflank maneuver tried to ford the Jordan River in the wrong spot and was washed away. According to a KGB report, at least one Syrian unit “exhibited cowardice” and ignored its orders altogether.
On 7 June, 24 hours into their attack, Syrian forces had only advanced 2 miles into Israel. On 8 June, the IDF pushed the Syrians back to the prewar border and that afternoon, Israeli units eliminated the last Egyptian forces in the Sinai and began a fast redeployment of units back into Israel. Now the Syrians were facing serious problems.
On 9 June, Israeli forces crossed into the Golan Heights. They came by the route the Syrians least expected, an arc hugging the Lebanese border. Now for the first time, Syria’s panzers (considered too slow and fragile for the attack) were encountered. The next day, 10 June 1967, was an absolute rout as the Syrians were being attacked from behind by IDF units arcing southwards from the initial advance, plus Israel’s second wave coming from the west. It was later estimated that Syria lost between 20-25% of its total military vehicle inventory in a 15-hour span on 10 June, including eight Panthers. A ceasefire was announced at midnight, ending Syria’s misadventure. Syria permanently lost the Golan Heights to Israel.
By best estimate, Syria had just five Panthers and twenty-five Panzer IVs fully operational on 6 June 1967, with maybe another ten or so tanks partially operational or at least functional enough to take into combat. Most – if not all – of the ex-French tanks were probably already out of service by 1967, conversely the entire ex-Spanish lot was in use, along with some of the ex-Czechoslovak vehicles. The conflict’s last kill was on 10 June 1967 when a Panzer IV was destroyed by an Israeli M50 Super Sherman (an M4 Sherman hull fitted with a new American engine, and a modified turret housing Israeli electronics and a high-velocity French-made 75mm gun firing HEAT rounds). Like the Centurion, the Super Sherman outclassed the Panzer IV, and the Panther only fared marginally better.
Between 1964-1973 the USSR rebuilt the entire Syrian military from the ground up, reorganizing it along Warsaw Pact lines and equipping it with gear strictly of Soviet origin. There was no place for ex-Wehrmacht tanks and in any case, Czechoslovakia had ended spares & ammo support for the Panzer IV and the Panthers, so the types had no future. The surviving tanks were scrapped in Syria, except for a single Panzer IV survivor sold to a collector in Jordan.
Specifications:
Crew: Five (commander, gunner, loader, driver, radio operator)
Weight: 50 tonnes (55.1 long tons; 45.5 short tons)
Length: 6.87 m (22 ft 6 in) hull only
7.52 m (24 ft 7¾ in) overall with gun facing forward
Width: 3.42 m (11 ft 3 in) hull only
3,70 m (12 ft 1¾ in) with retrofitted side skirts
Height: 2.99 m (9 ft 10 in)’
Ground clearance: 56 cm (22 in)
Suspension: Double torsion bar, interleaved road wheels
Fuel capacity: 720 liters (160 imp gal; 190 US gal),
some Syrian Panthers carried two additional external 200 l fuel drums
Armor:
15–80 mm (0.6 – 3.93 in)
Performance:
Maximum road speed: 56 km/h (35 mph)
Operational range: 250 km (160 mi) on roads; 450 km (280 mi)with auxiliary fuel tanks
100 km (62 mi) cross-country
Power/weight: 14 PS (10.1 kW)/tonne (12.7 hp/ton)
Engine & transmission:
Maybach HL230 V-12 gasoline engine with 700 PS (690 hp, 515 kW)
ZF AK 7-200 gearbox with 7 forward 1 reverse gear
Armament:
1× 7,5 cm KwK 40 (L/48) with 87 rounds
2× 7.92 mm MG 34 or 42, or similar machine guns;
one co-axial with the main gun, another in the front glacis plate
with a total of 5.100 rounds (not always mounted)
Provision for a 12.7 mm DShK or Breda anti-aircraft machine gun on the commander cupola
The kit and its assembly:
A rather exotic what-if model, even though it’s almost built OOB. Inspiration came when I stumbled upon the weird Syrian Panzer IVs that were operated against Israel during the Six Day War – vehicles you would not expect there, and after more than 20 years after WWII. But when I did some more research, I was surprised about the numbers and the variety of former German tanks that Syria had gathered from various European countries, and it made me wonder if the Panther could not have been among this shaggy fleet, too?
I had a surplus Dragon Panther Spähpanzer in The Stash™, to be correct a “PzBeobWg V Ausf. G”, an observation and artillery fire guidance conversion that actually existed in small numbers, and I decided to use it as basis for this odd project. The Dragon kit has some peculiarities, though: its hull is made from primed white metal and consists of an upper and lower half that are held together by small screws! An ambiguous design, because the parts do not fit as good as IP parts, so that the model has a slightly die-cast-ish aura. PSR is necessary at the seams, but due to the metal it’s not easy to do. Furthermore, you have to use superglue everywhere, just as on a resin kit. On the other side, surface details are finely molded and crisp, even though many bits have to be added manually. However, the molded metal pins that hold the wheels are very robust and relatively thin – a feature I exploited for a modified running gear (see below).
For the modified Panther in my mind I had to retrograde the turret back to a late standard turret with mantlet parts left over from a Hasegawa kit – they fitted perfectly! The PzBeobWg V only comes with a stubby gun barrel dummy. But I changed the armament, anyway, and implanted an aftermarket white metal and brass KwK 40 L48, the weapon carried by all Syrian Panzer IVs, the Jagdpanzer IVs as well as the StuG IIIs. This standardization would IMHO make sense, even if it meant a performance downgrade from the original, longer KwK 42 L70.
For a Syrian touch, inspired by installations on the Panzer IVs, I added a mount for a heavy DShK machine gun on the commander’s cupola, which is a resin aftermarket kit from Armory Models Group (a kit that consists of no less than five fiddly parts for just a tiny machine gun!).
To change and modernize the Panther’s look further, I gave it side skirts, leftover from a ModelCollect T-72 kit, which had to be modified only slightly to fit onto the molded side skirt consoles on the Panther’s metal hull. A further late addition were the fuel barrels from a Trumpeter T-54 kit that I stumbled upon when I looked for the skirts among my pile of tank donor parts. Even though they look like foreign matter on the Panther’s tail, their high position is plausible and similar to the original arrangement on many Soviet post-WWII tanks. The whip antennae on turret and hull were created with heated black sprue material.
As a modern feature and to change the Panther’s overall look even more, I replaced its original solid “dish” road wheels with T-54/55 “starfish” wheels, which were frequently retrofitted to T-34-85s during the Fifties. These very fine aftermarket resin parts (all real-world openings are actually open, and there’s only little flash!) came from OKB Grigorovich from Bulgaria. The selling point behind this idea is/was that the Panther and T-54/55 wheels have almost the same diameter: in real life it’s 860 vs. 830 mm, so that the difference in 1:72 is negligible. Beneficially, the aftermarket wheels came in two halves, and these were thin enough to replace the Panther’s interleaved wheels without major depth problems.
Adapting the parts to the totally different wheel arrangement was tricky, though, especially due to the Dragon kit’s one-piece white metal chassis that makes any mods difficult. My solution: I retained the inner solid wheels from the Panther (since they are hardly visible in the “3rd row”), plus four pairs of T-54/55 wheels for the outer, more rows of interleaved wheels. The “inner” T-54/55 wheel halves were turned around, received holes to fit onto the metal suspension pins and scratched hub covers. The “outside” halves were taken as is but received 2 mm spacer sleeves on their back sides (styrene tube) for proper depth and simply to improve their hold on the small and rounded metal pin tips. This stunt worked better than expected and looks really good, too!
Painting and markings:
Basically very simple, and I used pictures of real Syrian Panzer IVs as benchmark. I settled for the common green livery variant, and though simple and uniform, I tried to add some “excitement” to it and attempted to make old paint shine through. The hull’s lower surface areas were first primed with RAL 7008 (Khakigrau, a rather brownish tone), then the upper surfaces were sprayed with a lighter sand brown tone, both applied from rattle cans.
On top of that, a streaky mix of Revell 45 and 46 – a guesstimate for the typical Syrian greyish, rather pale olive drab tone - was thinly applied with a soft, flat brush, so that the brownish tones underneath would shine through occasionally. Once dry, the layered/weathered effect was further emphasized through careful vertical wet-sanding and rubbing on all surfaces with a soft cotton cloth.
The rubber side skirts were painted with an anthracite base and the dry-brushed with light grey and beige.
The model then received an overall washing with a highly thinned mix of grey and dark brown acrylic artist paint. The vinyl tracks (as well as the IP spare track links on the hull) were painted, too, with a mix of grey, red brown and iron, all acrylic paints, too, that do not interact chemically with the soft vinyl.
The decals/markings are minimal; the Arabian scribble on the turret (must be a name?), using the picture of a Syrian Panzer IV as benchmark, was painted in white by hand, as well as the white circle on the turret roof. The orange ID triangles are a nice contrast, even though I was not able to come up with real-life visual evidence for them. I just found a color picture of a burned T-34-85 wreck with them, suggesting that the color was a dull orange red and not florescent orange, as claimed in some sources. I also found illustrations of the triangles as part of 1:35 decal sets for contemporary Syrian T-34-85s from FC Model Trend and Star Models, where they appear light red. For the model, they were eventually cut out from decal sheet material (TL-Modellbau, in a shade called “Rotorange”, what appears to be a good compromise).
Dry-brushing with light grey and beige to further emphasize edges and details followed. Finally, the model was sealed with matt acrylic vanish overall, and some additional very light extra dry-brushing with silver was done to simulate flaked paint. Dirt and rust residues were added here and there with watercolors. After final assembly, the lower areas of the model were furthermore powdered with mineral pigments to simulate dust.
The idea of a modernized WWII Panther: a simple idea that turned into a major conversion. With the resin DShK machine gun and T-54/55 wheel set the costs of this project escalated a little, but in hindsight I find that the different look and the mix of vintage German and modern Soviet elements provide this Panther with that odd touch that sets it apart from a simple paint/marking variation? I really like the outcome, and I think that the effort was worthwhile - this fictional Panther shoehorns well into its intended historical framework. :-D
The Postcard
A postcard that was produced by Adrian that was posted in New York on Sunday the 31st. July 1938 to:
Miss F. Quaddel,
38, Ladbroke Grove,
London W. 11,
England.
The message on the divided back of the card was as follows:
"Dear Frida,
Just a word to let you
know I'm alive & kicking.
The weather has been
miserable but pretty
warm here.
We're leaving tomorrow
for Halifax on a cruise
and arrive back Friday.
We will be back on the
12th.
Love,
Bunny."
Grant's Tomb
Grant's Tomb, officially the General Grant National Memorial, is the final resting place of Ulysses S. Grant, 18th. president of the United States, and his wife, Julia Grant.
It is a classical domed mausoleum in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Upper Manhattan in NYC. The structure is in the middle of Riverside Drive at 122nd. Street, across from Riverside Church to the southeast and Riverside Park to the west.
Upon Grant's death in 1885, his widow declared that he had wished to be buried in New York, and a new committee, the Grant Monument Association, appealed for funds. Progress was slow at first, since many believed the tomb should be in Washington, D.C., and also because there was no architectural design to show.
Eventually they selected a proposal by John Hemenway Duncan for a tomb of "unmistakably military character," modeled after the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, with twin sarcophagi based on Napoleon’s tomb at Les Invalides.
The tomb was completed in 1897, and the National Park Service has managed it since 1958. After a period of neglect, it has been restored and re-dedicated.
The mausoleum is a prominent architectural land feature visible from the Hudson River. In addition to being a national memorial since 1958, Grant's Tomb was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1966, and was designated an official New York City landmark in 1975.
The Creation of the Grant Monument Association
On the 23rd. July 1985, Ulysses S. Grant died of throat cancer at the age of 63 in Wilton, New York.
Within hours of Grant's death, William Russell Grace, the Mayor of New York City, sent a telegram to Julia Grant offering NYC to be the burial ground for both Ulysses and Julia.
Grant's only real wish when he died was to be next to his wife when he was buried. In practice this eliminated all military cemeteries and installations (such as West Point) from consideration, as they did not permit women to be interred at the time. Grant's family agreed to have his remains interred in NYC.
Grace wrote a letter to prominent New Yorkers the following day in order to gather support for a national monument in Grant's honor:
"Dear Sir: In order that the City of New York, which
is to be the last resting place of General Grant,
should initiate a movement to provide for the
erection of a National Monument to the memory of
the great soldier, and that she should do well and
thoroughly her part, I respectfully request you as
one of a Committee to consider ways and means
for raising the quota to be subscribed by the
citizens of New York City for this object, and beg
that you will attend a meeting to be held at the
Mayor's office on Tuesday next, 28 inst., at three
o'clock."
The preliminary meeting was attended by 85 New Yorkers who established the Committee on Organization. Its chairman was former President Chester A. Arthur; its secretary was Richard Theodore Greener. The organization came to be known as the Grant Monument Association (GMA).
Funding of the Monument
The Grant Monument Association did not originally announce the function or structure of the monument; however, the idea of any monument in Grant's honor drew public support. Western Union donated $5,000 on the 29th. July, the day the committee announced its proposal.
The GMA continued to receive donations of large and small amounts. At a membership meeting, former New York State governor Alonzo Cornell proposed a fundraising goal of one million dollars.
Private enterprises such as insurance and iron-trading companies donated funds to the project. For every ton of coal the Consumers Coal Company sold, it gave a donation of 37½ cents to the GMA.
However although there was great enthusiasm for a monument to President Grant, early fundraising efforts were stifled by growing negative public opinion expressed by out-of-state press. The Clay County Enterprise in Brazil, Indiana, wrote:
"We have not a cent for New York in the
undertaking, and would advise that not
a dollar of help be sent to the millionaire
city from Indiana. If the billions of New York
are not sufficient to embellish the city, let
the remains be placed in Washington or
some other American city."
The opposition was vocal in the view that the monument should be in Washington, D.C. Mayor Grace tried to calm the controversy by publicly releasing Mrs. Grant's justification for the New York site as the resting place for her husband:
"Riverside was selected by myself and my family
as the burial place of my husband, General Grant.
First, because I believed New York was his preference. Second, it is near the residence that I hope to occupy
as long as I live, and where I will be able to visit his
resting place often. Third, I have believed, and am
now convinced, that the tomb will be visited by as
many of his countrymen there as it would be at any
other place. Fourth, the offer of a park in New York
was the first which observed and unreservedly
assented to the only condition imposed by General
Grant himself, namely, that I should have a place by
his side."
Criticism was not limited to the debate about the monument's location. According to The New York Times, there was discontent even with the internal management of the GMA.
Although the GMA members were among the wealthiest in New York, they were making comparatively small donations to the effort that they themselves were promoting. The New York Times characterized the members as:
"Sitting quietly in an office and signing
receipts for money voluntarily tendered."
At this early stage, the GMA did not have a model for what the monument was to be; it continued to ask for donations without explaining its purpose, which frustrated and discouraged donors. Joan Waugh captured the feelings of the average citizen in her book, 'American Hero American Myth':
"Why should citizens give money to
build a monument whose shape was
still a mystery?"
The GMA did not propose a definitive plan for the monument until five years later. During its first few years, the GMA fell short of the fundraising expectations originally set by Alonzo Cornell. In the first year, 1885, the GMA raised just over $111,000, 10% of its goal. In the two years that followed, it raised just $10,000.
The slow pace of fundraising caused some trustees to resign. No design for the structure yet existed, and without such a design, it was believed that fundraising efforts would continue to remain low.
The Design Competition
On the 4th. February 1888, after a year's delay, the GMA publicly announced the details of a design competition, in a newsletter entitled 'To Artists, Architects, and Sculptors'.
This information was made public to the entire nation; it was also published in Europe. The GMA also proposed a new estimate for the monument's cost, which ranged from $500,000 to $1 million. The deadline for all designs was rescheduled three times, and was then set for a final date of the 10th. January 1889.
The competition received 65 designs, 42 of which came from international entries. The GMA did not award an overall winner, and a second design competition was ordered.
In April 1890, the GMA selected, from only five commissioned entries, the design of John Hemenway Duncan, who estimated his design would cost between $496,000 and $900,000. In 1883, Duncan designed the Washington Monument at Newburgh, the Newburgh Monument, and the Tower of Victory.
Duncan built these structures to celebrate the centennial anniversary of the U.S. Revolutionary War, and he became a member of the Architectural League in 1887. Duncan cited as his design's objective:
"To produce a monumental structure
that should be unmistakably a tomb
of military character."
He claimed that he wanted to avoid "resemblance of a habitable dwelling," as the structure was meant to be the epitome of reverence and respect.
The tomb's granite exterior is modeled after the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus with Persian elements, and but for the Ionic columns of the exterior rotunda and the Doric columns of the porch, it resembles the Tropaeum Alpium.
Within the tomb, the twin sarcophagi of Grant and his wife are based on the sarcophagus of Napoleon Bonaparte at Les Invalides.
Construction of the Monument
By 1890, the GMA had a defined design and architect. Although the GMA was becoming more organized and the reality of the monument was becoming clearer, the debate over the monument's location re-opened in Congress.
In October 1890, U.S. Senator Hale introduced legislation to have the sarcophagi placed at a monument in Washington, DC. The legislation did not pass, but the effort re-opened the debate over the proper place for the remains of Grant.
A ground-breaking ceremony had already been scheduled for the 27th. April 1891, and although the parties had not agreed on a location for the monument by that date, a ground-breaking ceremony was nevertheless held.
In June 1891, deliberations ended; the monument was to be built in NYC, and that month, the GMA hired a contractor named John T. Brady.
Construction began that summer, and by August, preliminary excavation was complete. Construction was on schedule until the GMA asked Duncan to alter his design in the spring of 1892. This was because the design could not be as elaborate as originally planned, because of the Association's inability to raise sufficient funds.
Construction was also slowed by a stonecutters' strike in 1892. After 1894, construction proceeded at a faster pace, and by 1896, work on the outside of the tomb was nearly complete. One innovative feature of the tomb construction was the use of Guastavino tile vaulting to support the circular floor above the perimeter of the downstairs atrium.
On the 17th. April 1897, Grant's remains were quietly transferred to an 8.5-ton red granite sarcophagus and placed in the mausoleum. The monument was dedicated ten days later on the 27th. April 1897, on the 75th.-anniversary ceremony of Grant's birth on the 27th. April 1822.
Julia Grant, Grant's wife of nearly 40 years, died five years later in 1902, and was placed in a matching sarcophagus and laid to rest in the mausoleum beside her husband.
The sarcophagi are placed above ground, leading to a common riddle by comedian Groucho Marx, who often asked contestants on his radio and television quiz show You Bet Your Life:
"Who was buried in Grant's Tomb?"
The riddle is based on the use of the word "buried", and since neither of the Grants' tombs are underground, the correct answer is "no one".
However, Marx often accepted the answer "Grant" and awarded a consolation prize to those who gave it. He used the question, among several other easy ones, to ensure that everyone won a prize on the show.
Decay and Restoration of the Monument
The initial restoration project began in December 1935 (38 years after the tomb opened), when Works Progress Administration laborers installed new marble flooring in the atrium. The WPA played a large role in sustaining the monument.
Joan Waugh explains that:
"In the 1930's the tomb was barely
maintained by funds from the Works
Progress Administration."
Shortly after the restoration project began, the old New York City Post Office was being demolished, and donated two statues of eagles to decorate the front of the Grant Monument.
The laborers of the WPA worked on several projects throughout the 1930's, including roof restoration, electric lighting and heating systems, and removal of the purple stained glass windows. The Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company installed amber glass to replace the purple stained glass.
Toward the end of the 1930's, a project began to restore the two reliquary rooms, where battle flags were displayed in trophy cases, and murals of a map in each marked Civil War battles.
In 1938, the Federal Art Project selected artists William Mues and Jeno Juszko to design the busts of William T. Sherman, Phillip H. Sheridan, George H. Thomas, James B. McPherson, and Edward Ord. The WPA installed the five busts in the circular wall of the atrium surrounding the sarcophagi.
After the many contributions of the WPA, the Grant Monument Association held a re-dedication of the tomb on the 27th. April 1939.
National Park Service Control
In 1958, the National Park Service (NPS) was granted authority to oversee the monument. According to an NPS report, a historian admitted that when the NPS first assumed authority over the tomb, they "had no program for the site."
Combined with the mismanagement and devastation that NYC was going through financially in the 1960's to the 1990's, that led to great neglect of the site, particularly in the maintenance of the monument.
By the 1970's, the tomb was marred by vandalism and graffiti. Many places in the city, including Times Square, were in the same condition. Trash had heaped up around the monument, its exterior recesses were being used by drug users, the homeless, and criminals for hideouts. Graffiti covered the walls and pedestals, and vandals chipped away at the masonry.
The NPS undertook a plan to remove the trophy cases in the reliquary rooms.
Restoration in the 1990's
The abuse of the monument continued until renewed restoration efforts began in the early 1990's; in 1991, Frank Scaturro, a student at Columbia University and volunteer with the NPS, launched an effort to restore the tomb, and brought his concerns to Congress.
The tomb was still marred by graffiti and, at the time, there were only three maintenance workers and three rangers on daytime duty, with a yearly budget of $235,000.
For over two years, Scaturro battled the National Park Service, which was charged with maintaining Grant's Tomb. He sent weekly memos, including a 26-page report in the summer of 1992. After two years of unsuccessful attempts to navigate the bureaucracy of the NPS, Scaturro published a 325-page whistle-blower report, which he sent to Congress and the President.
Scaturro's efforts drew national media attention, and resulted in a $1.8 million grant to restore Grant's Tomb. According to Mr. Scaturro:
"Whistle-blowing was the last resort.
I only did what I did because I had no
other resort ... the only thing left was
abandoning the site and that was not
an alternative to me."
The tomb was in great need of renovation.
Scaturro's efforts to expose the monument's poor condition caught the attention of two Illinois state lawmakers. State Sen. Judy Baar Topinka and State Rep. Ron Lawfer sponsored a resolution to compel the NPS to meet its obligations in maintaining and restoring Grant's tomb.
If the NPS did not comply, then Topinka and Lawfer demanded that Grant's remains be transported to the state of Illinois. Senator Topinka said:
"He would be better off anywhere
than New York, but my argument
is not with New York; it's with the
National Park Service."
The demands for restoration did not stop at the state level. In 1994, the U.S. House of Representatives introduced legislation to:
"Restore, complete, and preserve in
perpetuity the Grant's Tomb National
Memorial and surrounding areas."
The legislation set by the House required that the restoration be completed by the 27th. April 1997, the tomb's 100th. anniversary and Grant's 175th. birthday. On the 27th. April 1997, the restoration effort sanctioned by Congress was completed and the tomb re-dedicated.
General Grant's descendants, who were appalled by the condition of the tomb, called Scaturro a hero for his efforts.
Accessibility
The visitor center is located about 100 yards to the west of the mausoleum and contains a bookstore, memorabilia, a movie about Grant's life, and restrooms. The visitor center is accessible to people with disabilities, but the mausoleum is not.
Both are open Wednesday through Sunday, year-round; the visitor center is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. while the tomb is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Photography is allowed in the tomb, but cellphone use, eating, drinking, smoking, and gum chewing are prohibited. Flash photography is discouraged inside the tomb.
Events
Concerts are regularly held at or right outside Grant's Tomb. Examples include Jazzmobile's annual Free Outdoor Summer Mobile Concerts at Grant's Tomb, and the annual Grant's Tomb Summer Concert, which in 2009 featured West Point's United States Military Academy Band.
Every year on the 27th. April, the anniversary of Grant's birth, a ceremony celebrating his life is held at the memorial.
Art
A sculpture consisting of seventeen concrete benches bearing colorful mosaics was created around the monument in the early 1970's. The sculpture, entitled The Rolling Bench, was designed by artist Pedro Silva and the architect Phillip Danzig, and was built with the help of hundreds of neighborhood children over a period of three years.
The sculpture underwent restoration during the summer of 2008 under the supervision of Silva. According to NYC Parks:
"Some popular local folk art in
Riverside Park contrasts strikingly
with the Tomb's severity".
The Comedian Lee Wilson
So what else happened on the day that Bunny posted the card?
Well, the 31st. July 1938 marked the birth in Wednesbury, Staffordshire, of Lee Wilson.
Lee was an English stand-up comedian best known for his performances on the ITV Television show The Comedians.
Lee attended King's Hill School, Wednesbury and served in Malaya with the Cheshire Regiment of the British Army where he was in an entertainment troupe.
After winning talent contests as a singer and forming a band called The Kingsford Four, he added comedy to his act. He then won New Faces in 1976.
Wilson later performed on cruise ships for P&O and became an after-dinner speaker.
Lee died of pancreatic cancer on the 3rd. June 2013, at the age of 74.
Final Thoughts From Ulysses S. Grant
"The friend in my adversity I shall always
cherish most. I can better trust those who
helped to relieve the gloom of my dark
hours than those who are so ready to enjoy
with me the sunshine of my prosperity."
"My failures have been errors in judgment,
not of intent."
"If you see the President, tell him from me
that whatever happens, there will be no
turning back."
"I have nothing to do with opinions. I deal
only with armed rebellion and its aiders
and abettors."
"I propose to fight it out on this line
if it takes all summer."
"If men make war in slavish obedience
to rules, they will fail."
"Nations, like individuals, are punished
for their transgressions."
"In every battle there comes a time when
both sides consider themselves beaten,
then he who continues the attack wins."
"The art of war is simple enough. Find out
where your enemy is. Get at him as soon
as you can. Strike him as hard as you can,
and keep moving on."
"Everyone has his superstitions. One of mine
has always been when I started to go anywhere,
or to do anything, never to turn back or to stop
until the thing intended was accomplished."
"I suffer the mortification of seeing myself
attacked right and left by people at home
professing patriotism and love of country
who never heard the whistle of a hostile
bullet.
I pity them and the nation dependent on
such for its existence. I am thankful,
however that, though such people make a
great noise, the masses are not like them."
"There never was a time when, in my opinion,
some way could not be found to prevent the
drawing of the sword."
"Leave the matter of religion to the family
altar, the church, and the private school,
supported entirely by private contributions.
Keep the church and state forever separate."
"I appreciate the fact, and am proud of it,
that the attentions I am receiving are
intended more for our country than for me
personally."
"I have never advocated war except
as a means of peace."
"I know only two tunes: one of them is
'Yankee Doodle', and the other isn't."
"I know no method to secure the repeal
of bad or obnoxious laws so effective as
their stringent execution."
"It was my fortune, or misfortune, to be called
to the office of Chief Executive without any
previous political training."
Wayfara, 8925 W 600 South, Wolcott IN (I-65 & US 231, exit 193)
I visited here back in November 2014. On a trip through here on June 1, 2015, northbound I-65 traffic was routed off the highway onto the exit lanes for a bridge project. In order for interstate traffic to keep moving, access to & from US 231 was cut off. I wondered if the station was still open because of that; I was able to visit on June 19 and found the answer...
Fast forward four months later and the place is still closed. Interestingly, the billboards along I-65 northbound (which I neglected to photograph) are still in place claiming it's open.
フィールドスタッフ：菅原氏
ロッド：プレジールアンサーPA99ディスタンスクラッカー
ライン：UNITIKA ショアゲームPE１.2
リーダー：UNITIKAシルバースレッド ショックリーダー30lb
リール：Daiwa セルテート 3000
ルアー：タックルハウスTKLM120
ターゲット：ヒラスズキ
A nice outdoors picture showing a group of sailors. The plaque in the center identifies them as being Marine-Landsturm. I had not even heard from these guys before, but I was glad to get to know these old guys. It was common for the soldiers who had served their duties, to answer to the call of duty when war broke out. These older men served in Landwehr or Landsturm units. Apparently, this also existed for Naval units.
In the center are two higher ranking men, equivalent to the rank of corporal. They are in rank blue double breasted coats, whilst the others are in what seems to be a field-grey Matrosenanzug. All the mützenbanden of their Tellermütze are marked Kaiserliche Marine (Imperial Navy). The sailors all have a single ammo pouch and an obsolete Gew71. The two men on the sides provide an excellent view of the Hirschfanger 1871, with 5 rivets retaining the leather grips. The iconic eagle headed pommel can clearly be seen here and this is one of the first bayonets to show this.
There's something else to this picture... Have a look at that Gew71 on the front row, right side...
Fonte : Wikipedia
The group was founded in 1981 under the name Paradox by drummer Kelly David-Smith and guitarists Pete Mello and Dave Goulder, who were later joined by bassist Jason Newsted. Jason had answered a newspaper ad that Kelly had placed in the local newspaper looking for a bass player. Jason came to Phoenix with his band Gangster from Michigan on their way to California, but Gangster broke up while in Phoenix. Kelly got a call from a couple of his high school friends, Mark Vasquez and Kevin Horton, looking for some people to jam with playing covers of bands such as Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, MSG, and UFO. The band then morphed into "Dredlox" together with the new recruits, Jason was now the main vocalist.
Kelly saw "A.K." (Eric A. Knutson) singing "The Goodbye Girl" at his high school talent show. In 1982 they were in the same summer school class and Kelly asked Knutson if he wanted to audition. They put him on 2-week probation and he later joined the band. Due to the provisional nature of his membership, the band referred to Knutson as "the 2 weeker." Ed Carlson, from another local rival band called Exodus (not to be confused with the California Bay Area thrash metal band of the same name), also joined in 1983 after Kevin's departure from the band. The name of the band changed into The Dogz, but it didn't last long. Eventually the band renamed itself "Flotsam and Jetsam" after writing a song inspired by a chapter of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Two Towers.
The band made its live debuts in local clubs and in California and had the opportunity to play with bands such as Megadeth, Armored Saint, Alcatrazz, Malice, Exciter, Mercyful Fate, Riot, Autograph and Icon. In 1985 Mark Vasquez stepped out and 17-year-old Michael Gilbert joined the band. Flotsam and Jetsam released two demo tapes Iron Tears and Metal Shock in 1985.
They created their first video "Hammerhead" from the Metal Shock demo: "We taped it in Jason and Ed's apartment living room. We also made a live video at the infamous Bootlegger in Phoenix", (owned by Gloria Cavalera, currently married to Max Cavalera) These videos and the band's demos made a good impression on record labels. After the band contributed to the Speed Metal Hell II and Metal Massacre VII compilations, they then signed a deal with Metal Blade Records.
1986–1987: Doomsday for the Deceiver
Flotsam and Jetsam recorded their debut album Doomsday for the Deceiver in Los Angeles with producer Brian Slagel and engineer Bill Metoyer. The album was released on the 4th of July in 1986, and was the first in Kerrang!'s history to achieve the 6K rating.
Bassist Jason Newsted, who was also the band's main lyric writer, departed soon after to join Metallica, replacing their bassist Cliff Burton, who died in a bus accident. On Halloween night 1986, Jason played his last gig with Flotsam and Jetsam. The band had asked another local bassist Phil Rind of Sacred Reich to fill in Jason's place for a short time. They then hired Michael Spencer from the Sacramento band Sentinel Beast. Flotsam and Jetsam inked a deal with Metallica's then-label Elektra Records before opening for Megadeth in 1987 on the Peace Sells tour in Europe and America. After touring with Megadeth, the band played selected shows in America with Slayer, Dark Angel, Possessed, Celtic Frost, Sacred Reich and Excel.
1987–1994: No Place for Disgrace, When the Storm Comes Down and Cuatro
Michael Spencer left Flotsam and Jetsam shortly after a U.S. tour in the fall of 1987; his replacement was Troy Gregory. Their second studio album, No Place for Disgrace, was released in May 1988, and includes a cover of Elton John's hit "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting" for which a music video was shot. The band toured heavily behind No Place for Disgrace throughout 1988 and 1989. They opened for King Diamond in America, and supported Megadeth, Testament and Sanctuary in Europe on the So Far, So Good... So What! tour. The band also played shows with The Crumbsuckers, Fates Warning, Destruction, Death Angel, D.R.I., Acid Reign and Kreator, and landed a billing for festivals, such as Milwaukee Metalfest, and played at Aardschokdag twice (in May 1988 and April 1989).
In 1989, Flotsam and Jetsam were signed to MCA Records and began work on their third album When the Storm Comes Down, released in May 1990. The band expected to gain recognition with this album, but it suffered from a variety of mixed reviews. Flotsam and Jetsam toured for about a year and a half in support of When the Storm Comes Down; they co-headlined a U.S. tour with Prong, and subsequently toured or played selected shows with bands such as Testament, Savatage, Exodus, Vio-Lence, Sacred Reich, Wrathchild America and a then-unknown Pantera.
Shortly after returning home, bassist Troy Gregory departed to join Prong. Holding auditions in Phoenix, the band hired Jason Ward to fill the role.
Released in 1992, Cuatro marked an evolution in style and songwriting. The band released four singles this time, two of which ("Swatting at Flies" and "Wading Through the Darkness") were shot as music videos. "Wading Through the Darkness" received regular rotation on MTV during their tours that year.
1995–1999: Drift and High
Their fifth album Drift was released in April 1995, with three singles released off of the record. Jason dedicated it to his older brother Jeff Ward, former drummer of such bands as NIN, Ministry, Revolting Cocks and Lard, who died in 1993. A long break followed the release of the album.
During Flotsam and Jetsam's tour with Megadeth and KORN, MCA and Flotsam parted ways, and Flotsam returned to their former label "Metal Blade Records".
Shortly after auditioning a new drummer, Nick Menza of Megadeth insisted that the band check out a friend of Nick's named Craig Nielsen. Nick was there for the auditioning, and Craig Nielsen was hired.
On their 1997 album High the song titles were designed with the font types/logos of famous bands like Iron Maiden, Metallica, Kiss, Van Halen, AC/DC, Judas Priest, Misfits, etc. to pay homage to those whom came before and inspired the band while it was coming up the ranks. The music was more experimental than before, and the album also featured the Lard cover song Fork Boy. Music video was released, Monster to follow-up.
Michael Gilbert and Kelly Smith left the band after the release and were replaced by guitarist Mark Simpson and drummer Craig Nielsen. With the new line-up Flotsam and Jetsam toured in Europe together with Anvil and Exciter.
1999–2002: Unnatural Selection and My God
Unnatural Selection was released in 1999 and Mark Simpson took a short break. He joined the band again in 2000 to record a new album, My God released in May 2001. At that time Eric A.K. had founded a country band, the A.K. Corral. He left the band for a short time to take a break from Metal and pursue his side project. (AK) "I had given Metal my life for a solid 15 years, I took some time to explore other musical flavors." Though Flotsam and Jetsam did not disband, there was a long break at that time. They found a new singer, James Rivera, who took over vocal duties live. Later the band felt that no one other than Eric A.K. could be their singer and Rivera left the band soon after.
2002–2006: Live In Phoenix and Dreams of Death
During 2002 and 2003 the band were active only sporadically, but Eric A.K. rejoined for live dates in the Phoenix and Los Angeles areas in 2003. Tory Edwards was a guest for this tour. A live recording of these shows was released in 2004 as a live concert DVD under the title Live in Phoenix. Signed to the Crash Music label in May 2004 and with Eric A.K. joining the band again officially, they hit the road with Overkill and Death Angel for a series of sold out concerts in Japan.
Spring 2005 Flotsam and Jetsam returned to the studio to work on their new album. The lyrics were mostly inspired by Eric's nightmares. This resulted into a concept album entitled Dreams of Death - like track 2 of No Place for Disgrace. The album was released July 2005.
2006–2011: Live In Japan, Once in a Deathtime, The Cold
The live DVD Live in Japan was released in February 2006 and shows their concert in front of hundreds of screaming Japanese fans at the Citta Club in Tokyo 2004.
Doomsday for the Deceiver was re-released in November 2006 by Metal Blade Records to celebrate the album's twentieth anniversary. This set (2 CD and DVD) includes the original recording of Doomsday and a re-mixed and re-mastered(Digitized)version and also the two Flotsam and Jetsam demos. The bonus DVD includes rare live material, an interview filmed at Kelly's High School and a photo slide-show.
In Spring 2008 Metal Mind Productions remastered and re-released the albums When the Storm Comes Down, Cuatro (including 5 bonus tracks), Drift (including 3 bonus tracks) and Dreams of Death. Unfortunately for the fans No Place for Disgrace could not be remastered due to existing legal issues between the band and their former label Elektra Records.
In March 2008 Flotsam and Jetsam toured in Europe and played at the Metalmania Festival in Poland. This show was filmed and released as DVD Once in a Deathtime in July. Midyear 2008 the band were signed to Driven Music Group, founded by former KORN guitarist Brian “Head” Welch.
After a tour in Europe with support act Neurasthenia in April 2010 Flotsam and Jetsam finished their album The Cold. It was released on September 14, 2010. It was the last album with Mark Simpson on guitar. He left the band in friendship and was replaced by returning guitarist Ed Carlson, who had quit the band in March 2010, to be replaced by Michael Gilbert.
2011–2013: Ugly Noise
Mid 2011, Craig Neilson departed the band soon after Mark Simpson's exit. Former Drummer and founder of Flotsam Kelly David Smith was asked to rejoin after a 14 years absence. The band then embarked on their newest release Ugly Noise. Flotsam would take a new turn and release and record Ugly Noise using the direct-to-fan platform, PledgeMusic. Ugly Noise was released through PledgeMusic on 12-21-12. Members on the Pledge site were the first to hear and download the recording before the public. Each Pledge purchased either a download of the new disc or a package of "exclusive items" only available through Pledge. All income from items sold went to fund the entire project.
Shortly after Flotsam inked a distribution deal with longtime friends '"Metal Blade Records" for worldwide distribution.
After tracking on Ugly Noise, Jason Ward was no longer able to commit to touring with the band any further due to his current personal commitments.
In Jan 2013, Flotsam and Jetsam jumped on board the acclaimed 70000 Tons of Metal in support of Ugly Noise. They then followed up on Testaments, Dark Roots of Thrash Tour US Package included Overkill and Australian metalers 4ARM.
During the tour, Edward Carlson started to have extreme physical pain in his lower back and numbness in his right arm. After the tour, an MRI revealed that he had bulging disks in his upper and lower back causing the dysfunction to occur. Flotsam and Jetsam then recruited guitarist Steve Conley of F5 to step in while they finished out their live commitments.
Flotsam and Jetsam also recruited Michael Spencer to rejoin the ranks in place of Jason Ward. Spencer was the first official bassist after Jason Newsted's departure to Metallica in 1986. He toured with Flotsam in 1987 to Europe on Megadeth's "Peace Sells" tour. Spencer also was a major player in the writing of classic acclaimed recording, "No Place for Disgrace" released on Elekra Records in 1988.
2013–2014: No Place For Disgrace 2014
In June 2013, the band headlined at the Warriors of Metal Festival in Columbus Ohio, then returning home, Flotsam hired manager Jeff Keller(JKM). His roster includes the likes of: UDO, Destruction, Lordi, Hirax, Primal Fear, Satan, Suicidal Angels.
In 2006, after the successful remix and master of the debut album “Doomsday for the Deceiver”, there was a lot of fan requests to have “No Place for Disgrace” follow the same process. After spending some time at the 25-year mark, the band decided to go forward with this idea. The band had some issues with the original production and definition of some of the parts played, due to the speed it was recorded at. Having had success with Ugly Noise through the PledgeMusic process, the band would be able to again gain the rights to this classic with a re-recording and some minor changes.
In the middle of 2013, Flotsam and Jetsam embarked in this monumental task of reviving some songs that, for the most part, had not been played in 20 years. All tracks (except drums) were done at the Flotsam studio with Michael Gilbert at the helm. In December, the project was finished and the re-recording of the classic album "No Place For Disgrace", was again released using PledgeMusic to finance the project.
The album, No Place For Disgrace 2014, was set to release on Feb 14th, 2014 worldwide through Metal Blade Records distribution. NPFD 2014 would feature some of Flotsam's friends from the past as guest musicians, Mark Simpson, Chris Poland, Tory Edwards.
Flotsam and Jetsam is currently ramping up for their (29 show) European tour with Sepultura, Legion of the Damned and Mortillery. The tour kicks off on Feb 7th in Bochum, Germany.
2014–present: No Place on Tour and Beyond, Flotsam and Jetsam and next album
Flotsam toured Europe 4 times in 2014 with a total of 40 shows in all.
Returning home from Europe on 8/11 the band planned to start writing for a new release in 2015. Michael Spencer and Steve Conley would be involved this time in the process. Spencer had written some material previously in 1987 that he took with him after his departure. Flotsam used at some of the archive material from Spencer.
In December 2014, drummer and founding member, Kelly Smith decided to leave the band due to unexpected family matters that required him to be home with his family. Handpicked by Smith to replace him on drums, was longtime friend and Shadows Fall drummer, Jason Bittner. In 2015, Bittner was working on the next album.
On July 6, 2017, it was announced that Flotsam and Jetsam were replacing Bittner (who had recently joined Overkill) with Ken Mary (Fifth Angel, Alice Cooper, House of Lords, TKO, Chastain, Impellitteri). They have also begun work on their thirteenth studio album, which is expected to be released in the spring of 2018.
Manage your calls instantly without leaving patients on hold with medical answering service. Our system can handle urgent call flows, patient information, message taking, paging, call transferring, and receptionist services.
FIELD STAFF：Mr.HIROKAWA
ROD：PLAISIR ANSWER PA90 Jaw Breaker
REEL：Twinpower 4000XG
LINE：PE#1.5 + Shockleader 30lb
LURE：D-CLAW BORDE
We stayed at the City of Arts and Sciences from late afternoon till night time. There was a beautiful blue cast through twilight and then, about 8.00pm the lights came on. I forgot the tripod so it was a case of having a steady hand. A bit of noise in there but I'm glad I hung around - we had a few glasses of wine as well needless to say.
We decided to go for a city break rather than sun in Tenerife again this September. Other than a few days in the North East we haven’t been away since last March and wanted a change and hopefully some sun. The problem is getting flights from the north of England to the places we want to go to. We chose Valencia as we could fly from East Midlands – which was still a pain to get to as it involved the most notorious stretch of the M1 at five in the morning. In the end we had a fairly good journey, the new Ryanair business class pre-booked scheme worked quite well and bang on time as usual. It was dull when we landed with storms forecast all week, the sky was bright grey – the kiss of death to the photography I had in mind. I was full of cold and wishing I was at work. It did rain but it was overnight on our first night and didn't affect us. There has been a drought for eleven months apparently and it rained on our first day there! The forecast storms didn't materialise in Valencia but they got it elsewhere.
You May notice discrepancies in the spelling of some Spanish words or names, this is because Valencian is used on signs, in some guide books and maps. There are two languages in common use with distinct differences. There may also be genuine mistakes - it has been known!
Over the course of a Monday to Sunday week we covered 75 miles on foot and saw most of the best of Valencia – The City of Bell Towers. The Old City covers a pretty large area in a very confusing layout. There was a lot of referring to maps – even compass readings! – a first in a city for us. The problem with photography in Valencia is that most of the famous and attractive building are closely built around, some have poor quality housing built on to them. Most photographs have to be taken from an extreme angle looking up. There are no high points as it is pan flat, there are a small number of buildings where you can pay to go up on to the roof for a better view and we went up them – more than once!
The modern buildings of The City of Arts and Sciences – ( Ciutat de Las Arts I de les Ciencies ) are what the city has more recently become famous for, with tourists arriving by the coachload all day until late at night. They must be photographed millions of times a month. We went during the day and stayed till dark one evening, I gave it my best shot but a first time visit is always a compromise between ambition and realism, time dictates that we have to move on to the next destination. I travelled with a full size tripod – another first – I forgot to take it with me to TCoAaS! so It was time to wind up the ISO, again! Needless to say I never used the tripod.
On a day when rain was forecast but it stayed fine, albeit a bit dull, we went to the Bioparc north west of the city, a zoo by another name. There are many claims made for this place, were you can appear to walk alongside some very large animals, including, elephants, lions, giraffe, rhino, gorillas and many types of monkey to name a few. It is laid out in different geographical regions and there is very little between you and the animals, in some cases there is nothing, you enter the enclosure through a double door arrangement and the monkeys are around you. It gets rave reviews and we stayed for most of the day. The animals it has to be said gave the appearance of extreme boredom and frustration and I felt quite sorry for them.
The course of The River Turia was altered after a major flood in the 50’s. The new river runs west of the city flanked by a motorway. The old river, which is massive, deep and very wide between ancient walls, I can’t imagine how it flooded, has been turned into a park that is five miles long. There is an athletics track, football pitches, cycle paths, restaurants, numerous kids parks, ponds, fountains, loads of bridges, historic and modern. At the western end closest to the sea sits The City of Arts and Sciences – in the river bed. Where it meets the sea there is Valencia’s urban Formula One racetrack finishing in the massive marina built for The Americas Cup. The race track is in use as roadways complete with fully removable street furniture, kerbs, bollards, lights, islands and crossings, everything is just sat on the surface ready to be moved.
We found the beach almost by accident, we were desperate for food after putting in a lot of miles and the afternoon was ticking by. What a beach, 100’s of metres wide and stretching as far as the eye could see with a massive promenade. The hard thing was choosing, out of the dozens of restaurants, all next door to each other, all serving traditional Paella – rabbit and chicken – as well as seafood, we don’t eat seafood and it constituted 90% of the menu in most places. Every restaurant does a fixed price dish of the day, with a few choices, three courses and a drink. Some times this was our only meal besides making the most of the continental breakfast at the hotel. We had a fair few bar stops with the local wine being cheap and pleasant it would have been a shame not to, there would have been a one woman riot – or strike!
On our final day, a Sunday, we were out of bed and down for breakfast at 7.45 as usual, the place was deserted barring a waiter. We walked out of the door at 8.30 – in to the middle of a mass road race with many thousands of runners, one of a series that take place in Valencia – apparently! We struggled to find out the distance, possibly 10km. The finish was just around the corner so off we went with the camera gear, taking photos of random runners and groups. There was a TV crew filming it and some local celebrity (I think) commentating. Next we came across some sort of wandering religious and musical event. Some sort of ritual was played out over the course of Sunday morning in various locations, it involved catholic priests and religious buildings and another film crew. The Catholic tourists and locals were filling the (many) churches for Sunday mass. Amongst all of this we had seen men walking around in Arab style dress – the ones in black looked like the ones from ISIS currently beheading people – all carrying guns. A bit disconcerting. We assumed that there had been some sort of battle enactment. We were wrong, it hadn’t happened yet. A while later, about 11.30 we could hear banging, fireworks? No it was our friends with the guns. We were caught up in total mayhem, around 60 men randomly firing muskets with some sort of blank rounds, the noise, smoke and flames from the muzzles were incredible. We were about to climb the Torres de Serranos which is where, unbeknown to us, the grand, and deafening, finale was going to be. We could feel the blast in our faces on top of the tower. Yet again there was a film camera in attendance. I couldn’t get close ups but I got a good overview and shot my first video with the 5D, my first in 5 years of owning a DLSR with the capability. I usually use my phone ( I used my phone as well). Later in the day there was a bullfight taking place, the ring was almost next to our hotel, in the end we had other things to do and gave it a miss, it was certainly a busy Sunday in the city centre, whether it’s the norm or not I don’t know.
There is a tram system in Valencia but it goes from the port area into the newer part of the city on the north side, it wouldn’t be feasible to serve the historic old city really. A quick internet search told me that there are 55,000 university students in the city, a pretty big number. I think a lot of the campus is on the north side and served by the tram although there is a massive fleet of buses as well. There is a massive, very impressive market building , with 100’s of stalls that would make a photo project on its own, beautiful on the inside and out but very difficult to get decent photos of the exterior other than detail shots owing to the closeness of other buildings and the sheer size of it. Across town, another market has been beautifully renovated and is full of bars and restaurants and a bit of a destination in its own right.
A downside was the all too typical shafting by the taxi drivers who use every trick in the book to side step the official tariffs and rob you. The taxi from the airport had a “broken” meter and on the way home we were driven 22 km instead of the nine that is the actual distance. Some of them seem to view tourists as cash cows to be robbed at all costs. I emailed the Marriot hotel as they ordered the taxi, needless to say no answer from Marriot – they’ve had their money. We didn’t get the rip off treatment in the bars etc. that we experienced in Rome, prices are very fair on most things, certainly considering the city location.
All in all we had a good trip and can highly recommend Valencia.
Nancy Buchanan & Joseph Santarromana Present in association with Phantom Galleries LA:
The Long Weekend
Installations and Performances
Jordan Biren and Corrina Peipon, Ashley McLean Emenegger, MaryLinda Moss and Nikii Henry, Danial Nord, Cielo Pessione & John O'Brien, Astra Price, Natasa Prosenc, Joseph Santarromana & William Roper, Evelyn Serrano, Suzanne Siegel, Kyungmi Shin & Todd Gray
Organized by Nancy Buchanan & Joseph Santarromana
Phantom Galleries LA in Pasadena
680 E. Colorado Boulevard, Pasadena 91101
Friday, March 28, Saturday March 29, Sunday March 30
7 to 10 pm
For information:
Liza Simone
Phantom Galleries LA Executive Director
PhantomGalleriesLA.com
213.626.2854
Examining themes of fashion and consumption, we will present durational performances and installation works in this former furniture store's windows. Questions regarding the relationship of art and commerce today are myriad, and while there are no simple answers, most observers agree that there are many troubling implications of the influences of speculation, branding and celebrity on the current climate. Giving away the aesthetic experience through such a temporary event is a return to earlier, more idealistic times, yet placing the work within a shopping district anchors it to the realistic present. We imagine this to be an exciting event which will attract art audiences, as well as provide an unusual experience to passers-by.
Jordan Biren and Corrina Peipon present a tableau/performance, "The Exchange of the Avant-Garde" inspired by quotes taken from a recent Norman Klein discussion of the late Jean Baudrillard:
"...avant-garde strategies are now central to the branding of all products..."
"...The simulacrum was simply the original itself. It had emerged as the glowing center of all global branding...It was simply the mood that sold anything. "
The tableau represents the "look" of a business transaction, while an inner dialogue belies conflicted psychological realities of personal negotiation through a world of branded transactions. With the supporting text contradicting the appearance of the action, only the image of the event remains, an image meant to draw attention to the presumptions, or "branded" recognition, of what is taking place. A search for what defines in what we see that which we are told we are seeing. _
Nancy Buchanan's "3 Fates" sees myth reduced to marketing; throughout cultural history, sacred and mythic women have appeared in threes, sometimes also merging into one mythic figure. In Greek mythology, the three Fates personified destiny and controlled the thread of life from birth to death (and beyond). The Greek word moira (_____) translates as a part or portion—and so, one's fate is the part one is destined to play in life. While their forerunners were draped in white, could the gowns worn by these fashionable "Fates" hint at what lies beyond fashion? Siren-red satin, prison-jumpsuit orange, camouflage (with glitter).
In Ashley McLean Emenegger's "Judgment Day," colorful felt cut out dolls hang in the balance above a miniature, faux mythological environment, the Garden of Eden meets a metaphoric apocalyptic collapse, where the yearning for sincere expression clashes with the expectation and imposition of compliance to the contemporary notion of aesthetics. Beckoned by the allure and idealization of the Promised Land below, the dolls, both identical and unique, are naturally confused by the conundrum of self declaration versus the desire to fit in.
MaryLinda Moss collaborates with Nikii Henry to create a Performative Installation. Through the evening figures moving through space will leave an imprint, a record of the presence of the body in the world. Using gauze and plaster, 'clothing" will be formed on the body. As the body moves on, it's image is left behind to create a record of the journey through time and space
Danial Nord addresses the troubling relationships between art and commerce, and the implications and influences of speculation, branding and celebrity on the current art-making climate. His inspiration comes from Hollywood's historical misrepresentation of artists, and overheard dialogues between dealers and potential clients at recent Art Fairs. Nord's installation centers on a projected clip from the film "On the Town" which shows a ballerina as an artist, described in the film as "the perfect urban woman", making a painting.
Cielo Pessione & John O'Brien create a tableau in which two personages appear in the dark at the center of the space, like a players in a theatre. The female personage will have a pile of rags or fashion magazines under her She could be a Queen, he a Poet. Each has a different style of dress, which means different ways to live and to consider the capitalism of attire.
Astra Price addresses what food we have and what food we use. Inspired by constantly seeing fruit trees that have gone unharvested and unused, this two-part work will repurpose unused domestic fruit in two phases. On night one, she will process this food; juice, simple salad, etc… and serve it to the people on the streets. Given the city of Pasadena's origin having strong ties to citrus production, this work addresses some issues of site specificity, but can just as easily be applied to larger concepts of consumption and waste.
Natasa Prosenc's installation, "Innocence – Dissolved" metaphorically performs the impasse of fast lane consumerism wrapped into the ideology of progress; the discarded toys suffocating in the thickened gooey mass of the past embodied emotional investment, that has nowhere else to go except release into obsession with possession and consumption. As our environment is cluttered with an unprecedented excess of material objects, our culture witnesses a steadily dissolving ability to infuse these objects with emotion. It is this emotional investment that animates our relationship with objects and with materiality as such. Now that this emotional link is loosening, our world is changing. These old-fashioned toys, once brimming with the energy from a child's power of imagination and warmth of her touch are now discarded, as are the imaginative and emotive habits that go along with them.
—Media and film theoretician Maja Manojlovic
Joseph Santarromana & William Roper reprise their 2007 "Malambing Thang in which the artists contemplated the nature of desire and longing and how these emotional states create and/or affect the perception of ones identity. In the current 'Malambing Thang (Live),' these same issues of longing, desire and identity attempt to play themselves out as pure commodity. Viewers on the street will see the backs of a group of people in the video projection and will have to look around the projection to view the live performers.
Evelyn Serrano invites viewers to a session of dysfunctional, mid-air storytelling, where the "truth" is spinned, Serrano has engaged a sign spinner to manipulate a short poem exploring connections between the spectacle of corporate identity, the branding of culture and the contemporary choreography of meaning.
Suzanne Siegel once shopped for chairs at this very furniture store – she recalls that they were expensive and the salespeople had attitude. Siegel's "Shopping Expedition" references memories of shopping trips to the city (Boston) as a child and also nostalgia for a gentler consumer experience.
Kyungmi Shin & Todd Gray will create a performance and a video projection piece for "The Long Weekend" during the performance night, Todd will be installed in the window space and drum for the duration of the evening; this drumming will trigger a random choice of short video projection sequences created by Kyungmi of Kumasi market in Ghana. The Kumasi market is the largest open-air market in West Africa, and the video was shot walking around the market.
=======
About the artists:
JORDAN BIREN has recently resumed his long dormant performance practice to augment over two decades of work in single channel video. In both video and perfomance, his work considers permutations of meaning behind narrative articulation. He teaches Video Art at Cal State University San Bernardino.
Nancy Buchanan addresses issues of power and money in her work, taking the form of video, drawing, collage, and installation. She is faculty of Film/Video at CalArts.
Todd Gray has exhibited his photo based work internationally and is represented in the permanent collections of museums and universities here and abroad. Gray maintains studios in both Inglewood, California and Takoradi, Ghana.
Ashley McLean Emenegger is by tradition an assemblage artist whose work questions established "absolutes", reveres and summons the feminine, and speaks to the tender parts of the soul. Her felt installation work also contends with the issues of absolutes versus personal mythology but in a more humorous manner with vibrant color, child-like media, and less subdued irreverence.
MaryLinda Moss delves into the ephemeral, the transitional, the transformative in ourselves, the vulnerable point from which we come to a new awareness of self. Her sculpture relates to the body and its processes, and has a unique quality in its use of organic matter in conjunction with other materials. Her sculptural and installation pieces are an abstracted embodiment of our emotional and spiritual experiences often relating to the cycles and elements of the natural world.
Danial Nord's work critiques the influence of consumerism and commercial media in our overstimulated environment. He currently lives and works in Los Angeles. Nord studied at the Tyler School of Art and the NYU Center for Digital Multimedia. This past year he exhibited solo projects at HAUS and Fringe in Los Angeles.
John O'Brien was born in Sagamihara, Japan; he currently lives and works in Los Angeles, California and Umbria, Italy. His work has shown itself to bear an effective confluence of diverse attitudes and disciplines. Installation, video, performance, sculpture, painting and drawing come together in an artistic practice pointed at the investigation of objects and their significance to us. His practice encompasses studio art, public art, art writing and curatorial work.
Cielo Pessione was born in Rome Italy, she currently lives and works in Los Angeles, California and Umbria, Italy. After finishing her art degree at the Liceo Artistico, she completed her University studies with a doctorate in Modern Literature at the Sapienza University of Rome. She works in the visual arts (fiber arts, installation and printmaking) and works with performance in both traditional and experimental settings.
Astra Price is a new media artist interested in exploring the non-static
world in art and life. Currently she gives shape to her explorations through
video in a variety of forms including improvisation, installations and
single channel work and has been recently been focusing on concerns of food
in her kitchen and in her art.
Natasa Prosenc is an internationally acclaimed visual artist whose work challenges the conventions assigned to video art and narrative film. By escaping the categories her visual concepts tap into the preconscious sentient self prior to all thought and theory.
William Roper is an artist working in the disciplines of music, theater and the visual arts. He eagerly awaits the return of The Great Waschbär.
Joseph Santarromana's work is biographical, addressing the perception and construction of identities. His work has been exhibited internationally and he is currently teaching at California State University in Long Beach and the University of California in Riverside, He also runs a video art DVD Publishing company: www.system-yellow.com.
Evelyn Serrano is a Cuban artist, mother, and independent curator currently living in Los Angeles County, California. She is also the Assistant Director of Programs at the CalArts Community Arts Partnership (CAP). She has exhibited her work in solo and group exhibitions nationally and internationally. Serrano feels honored to have worked with talented groups of visual artists, writers and actors for several exhibitions and art events she has curated both nationally and internationally.
Kyungmi Shin is an installation artist whose work weaves the language of photoraphy, sculpture, painting and video. She studied at SF Art Institute & UC Berkeley, and currents lives and works in Los Angeles and Ghana.
Suzanne Siegel is an assemblage artist whose work focuses on social/feminist concerns. She has been exhibiting locally and nationally for thirty years.
photo by Liza Simone
This celebration was started in the year 2005 as a revival and preservation of their cultural heritage. The legendary bac-bacarra is a freshwater fish abundant in the rivers of the town in the olden days. It is now extinct. The town’s name was derived from it. It was coined by a Spanish soldier who passed by. He asked the name of the place from a local who at that time was fishing. He did not understand his question and just answered bac-bacarra.
Fishing is the main industry in the town attributed to the presence of coastline and the Bacarra river where they get good catch of quality and high valued fish products. They owe the blessings they receive to their patron Saint Andrew the Fisherman. This celebration serves as a thanksgiving to the abundant fish catches. The highlight of the said event is the street dancing depicting the history of the town and fishing itself. In general it was not that exciting as compared to other festival celebrations because there were only nine groups of young boys and girls who participated.
TEXT SOURCE: Treasures of Ilocandia and the World by Dr Edwin Antonio
For the best part of the last year, I have been posting shots of Kent churches on Twitter, to break up the torrent of horrible news relating to COVID, Brexit and our Dear Leader, and in doing so, I have discovered many churches I visited at the start of the project, needed to redone.
Goudhurst, is, apparently, the highest point in Kent, or so Jools tells me. I will just check that with Wikki: Hmm, it seems not. That is Betsom's Hill north of the M25 near to the border with London. Goudhurst is not even in the top ten.
I can confirm we approached the village along a long hill from a river valley, finally climbing up the narrow high street, getting round the parked cars and finding a space nearly big enough for the car near to the church.
On the other side of the road from the church, a series of very Kent houses and buildings, all decorated with pegtiles, in the Kent fashion, and to the south, the imposing structure of The Star and Eagle Hotel.
The church sits in it's large graveyard, pretty as a picture on a sunny summer's afternoon as on my first visit, but on a grey, late autumn afternoon, just as the light fades, it loses some of its charm.
The church itself is resplendent with it's honey-coloured stone, squat tower and spreading aisles on both sides.
There is a welcome notice on the door in the west end of the tower stating that the church is always open and all are indeed, welcome.
Its a fine touch.
Inside, it is light and spacious, so spacious to have to grand leather sofas in the nave, not sure if this is for glamping, or for some other reason, but they're doing no harm.
-------------------------------------------
Seen from afar Goudhurst is Kent's answer to Rye - a small hilltop village over which broods the lovely church. Its west tower, dating from the seventeenth century, is rather low, but the honey-coloured sandstone is particularly beautiful here. We enter the church through the tower, and are impressed by the way in which the width and height of the nave and its aisles combine to make such a noble structure. There are two remarkably fine wooden effigies dating from the sixteenth century, carved and painted and set into a purpose-built bay window. Nearby, in the south chapel, the walls are crammed with monuments and there are three brasses, one of which is covered by a stone canopy - not particularly grand but unexpected and functional.
www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Goudhurst
-------------------------------------------
GOUDHURST
LIES the next parish southward from Marden. The northern part of it, as far southward as the stream formerly called Risebridge river, which flows from Bedgebury to Hope mill, and a smaller part likewise on the other side of it, adjoining to the rivulet called the Bewle westward, is in the hundred of Marden, and lower division of the lath of Scray; the rest of the parish southward of the first-mentioned stream, is in the hundred of West, alias Little Barnefield, and lath of Aylesford, comprehending the whole of that hundred. So much of this parish as is within the borough of Faircrouch, is in the hundred of Cranbrook; as much as is in the boroughs of Pattenden, Lilsden, Combwell, and Chingley or Bromley, is in the same hundred of West, alias Little Barnefield; and the residue is in the hundred of Marden. It lies wholly within the district of the Weald, and in the division of West Kent.
The borsholders of the boroughs of Highamden, Pattenden, and Hilsden, in this parish, are chosen at the court-leet holden for the manor of East Farleigh, and the inhabitants owe no service but to that manor; only a constable for the hundred of West Barnefield may be chosen out of such parts of them as lay within it for that hundred. The manor of Maidstone likewise extends into this parish, over lands as far southward as Rise-bridge.
THE PARISH OF GOUDHURST is very pleasantly situated, being interspersed on every side with frequent hill and dale. The trees in it are oak, of a large size, and in great plenty throughout it, as well in the woods, as broad hedge-rows and shaves round the fields. The lands are in general very fertile; the soil, like the adjoining parishes, is mostly a deep stiff clay; being heavy tillage land, but it has the advantage of a great deal of rich marle at different places, and in some few parts sand, with which the roads are in general covered; and in the grounds near Finchcocks, there is a gravel-pit, which is the only one, I believe, in this part of the county. There is much more pasture than arable land in it, the former being mostly fatting lands, bullocks fatted on them weighing in general from 120 to 130 stone. It is well watered with several streams in different parts of it, all which uniting with the Teis, flow in one channel, along the western side of this parish, towards the Medway. The eastern and southern parts of it are much covered with thick coppice wood, mostly of oak. The turnpike road from Maidstone over Cocksheath through Marden, leads through the upper part of this parish southward, dividing into two branches at Winchethill; that to the left goes on to Comborne, and leaving the town of Goudhurst a little to the right, joins the Cranbrooke road a little beyond it. That to the right, having taken into it a branch of the Woodgate road from Tunbridge, near Broadford-bridge, goes on to the town of Goudhurst, and thence eastward to Cranbrooke and Tenterden; and the great high road from Lamberhurst through Stonecrouch to Hawkhurst, and into Sussex, south-east, goes along the southern bounds of this parish.
The parish is about eight miles long and four broad. There are about three hundred houses in it, and somewhat more than five inhabitants to a house. It is very healthy; sixty years of age being esteemed, if not the prime, at least the middle age of life; the inhabitants of these parts being in great measure untainted with the vices and dissipation too frequently practised above the hill.
There are two heaths or commons here; the one called Pyles-health, and the other Killdown, in West Barnefield hundred.
THE TOWN, or village of Goudhurst, stands in the hundred of Marden, about half a mile within the lower or southern bounds of it, on an hill, commanding an extensive view of the country all around it. It is not paved, but is built on the sides of five different roads which unite at a large pond in the middle of it. The houses are mostly large, antient and well-timbered, like the rest of those in this neighbourhood, one of them, called Brickwall, belongs to the Rev. Mr. Thomas Bathurst. Within memory there were many clothiers here, but there are none now. There is some little of the woolstapling business yet carried on.
On the summit of the hill, on which the town stands, is the church, a conspicuous object to the neighbouring country, and near it was the marketplace, which was pulled down about the year 1650, and the present small one built lower down, at the broad place in the town near the pond. The market was held on a Wednesday weekly, for cattle, provisions, &c. till within memory; it is now entirely disused, there is a fair held yearly in the town, upon the day of the assumption of our lady, being August 26, for cattle, hardware, toys, &c. This market and fair were granted in the year of king Richard II. to Joane, widow of Roger de Bedgebury, the possessors of which estate claim at this time the privilege of holding them, by a yearly rent to the manor of Marden.
At the hamlet of Stonecrouch is a post-office of very considerable account, its district extending to Goudhurst, Cranbrooke, Tenterden, Winchelsea, Rye, and Hastings, and all the intermediate and adjoining places, to which letters are directed by this Stonecrouch bag.
ALMOST adjoining to the town eastward, on the road leading to Tenterden, there is A HAMLET, called LITTLE GOUDHURST, in which there is an antient seat, called TAYWELL, which for many generations was possessed by a family of the name of Lake, who bore for their arms, Sable, a bend between six crosscroslets, fitchee, argent. In the north isle of this church, under which is a vault, in which this family lie buried, there is a marble, on which is a descent of them. The last of them, Thomas Lake, esq. barrister-at-law, resided here, but dying without issue male, his daughters and coheirs became possessed of it; one of whom married Maximilian Gott, esq. and the other Thomas Hussey, esq. whose son Edward Hussey, esq. of Scotney, now possesses the entire see of this estate, which is demised for a long term of years to Mr. Olive, who has almost rebuilt it, and resides in it.
AT A SMALL DISTANCE southward from the abovementioned seat, is another, called TRIGGS, which was for several descents the residence of the Stringers, a family of good account in the different parts of this county. John Stringer, esq. son of Edward Stringer, of Biddenden, by Phillis his wife, daughter of George Holland, gent. resided here in king Charles I.'s reign, and married Susanna, daughter of Stephen Streeter, of Goudhurst, by whom he had Stephen, of Goudhurst; John, gent. of Ashford, who left a daughter and heir Mary, married to Anthony Irby, esq. Edward and Thomas, both of Goudhurst; the latter left two sons. Thomas and Edward, and a daughter Catherine, who married William Belcher, M. D. by whom the had Stringer Belcher, and other children. The Stringers bore for their arms, Per chevron, or, and sable, in chief two eagles displayed of the second, in the base a fleur de lis of the first.
Stephen Stringer, the eldest son of John, resided at Triggs in the reign of king Charles II. and was succeeded in it by his second son Stephen Stringer, esq. who kept his shrievalty here in the 6th year of queen Anne. He died without male issue, leaving by Jane his wife, daughter of John Austen, esq. of Broadford, four daughters his coheirs, Jane, married to Thomas Weston, of Cranbrooke; Hannah to William Monk, of Buckingham. in Sussex, whose eldest daughter and coheir married Thomas Knight, esq. of Godmersham; Elizabeth married Edward Bathurst, esq. of Finchcocks, and Anne married John Kirril, esq. of Sevenoke. (fn. 1) This seat was afterwards alienated to Francis Austen, esq. of Sevenoke, whose son Francis Mottley Austen, esq. of Sevenoke, is the present owner of it.
THE MANOR OF MARDEN claims over the greatest part of this parish; part of it, being the dens beforementioned, are within the manor of East Farleigh, and the remaining part, called Wincehurst-den, is within the manor of Gillingham, near Chatham. Although that part of this parish which lies within the hundred of West Barnefield, being the most southern part of it, contains those places which are of, by far, the greatest note in it, yet, for the sake of regularity in my description, I shall begin with those in the hundred of Marden, partly already described, and having finished that, proceed next to the hundred of West Barnefield, and the matters worthy of notice in it.
BOKINFOLD is a manor of large extent, situated in the hundred of Marden, having formerly a large park and demesnes belonging to it, which extended into the parishes of Brenchley, Horsemonden, Yalding, Marden, and Goudhurst, the house of it being situated in that of Yalding, in the description of which parish the reader will find an ample account of the former state and possessors of it. (fn. 2) It will, therefore, be sufficient to mention here, in addition to it, that the whole of this manor coming at length into the possession of Sir Alexander Colepeper. He in the 3d year of queen Elizabeth levied a fine of it, and three years afterwards alienated that part of this manor, and all the demesnes of it which lay in Brenchley, Horsemonden, Yalding, and Marden, to Roger Revell, as has been mentioned under the parish of Yalding, and THE REMAINDER OF IT in this parish, held of the manor of Marden, to Sharpeigh, whose descendant Stephen Sharpeigh passed that part of it away in 1582, to Richard Reynolds, whose son and heir John Reynolds, about the 41st year of queen Elizabeth, conveyed it to Richard Eliot, and he, about the year 1601, alienated it to Thomas Girdler, who the next year sold it to John Reynolds, and he, in the 5th year of king James, transmitted it to John Beale, who, about 1609, passed it away to John Harleston, of Ickham, and he settled it by will on Richard Harleston, who in like manner devised it to his kinsman Richard Bishop, and he, soon after the death of king Charles I. sold it to Mr. Stephen Stringer, of Triggs, in Goudhurst, whose son, of the same name, was sheriff anno 6 queen Anne, and left five daughters his coheirs, of whom Elizabeth, the third, married Edward Bathurst, esq. of Finchcocks, and on the division of their inheritance, he, in her right, became possessed of this manor. He died in 1772, upon which this estate came to his son, the Rev. Thomas Bathurst, rector of Welwyn, in Hertfordshire, the present owner of it. A court baron is regularly held for this manor.
In 1641 the archbishop collated Richard Amhurst, clerk, to the free chapels of Bockinfold and Newsted annexed, in the archdeaconry of Canterbury, then vacant and of his patronage. (fn. 3)
COMBORNE is an estate, situated in the northernmost part of this parish, adjoining to Winchet-hill, in the hundred of Marden likewise; which place of Winchet-hill was antiently the original seat in this county, of the family of Roberts, of Glassenbury.
An ancestor of this family, William Rookherst, a gentleman of Scotland, left his native country, and came into England in the 3d year of king Henry I. and had afterwards the surname of Roberts, having purchased lands at Winchet-hill, on which he built himself a mansion, calling it Rookherst, after himself. This place came afterwards to be called Ladiesden Rokehurst, alias Curtesden, and continued the residence of this family till the reign of king Richard II. when Stephen Roberts, alias Rookherst, marrying Joane, the daughter and heir of William Tilley, of Glassenbury, removed thither, and the remains of their residence here are so totally effaced, as to be known only by the family evidences, and the report of the neighbourhood.
But their estate at Winchet-hill continued several generations afterwards in their descendants, till it was at length alienated to one of the family of Maplesden, of Marden, in whose descendants this estate, together with that of Comborne adjoining, continued down to Edward Maplesden; esq. of the Middle Temple, who died in 1755, s. p. and intestate. Upon which they descended to Alexander Courthope, esq. of Horsemonden, the son of his sister Catherine, and to Charles Booth, esq. the grandson of his sister Anne, as his coheirs in gavelkind, and on a partition of those estates between them, Winchet-hill was allotted to Charles Booth, esq. afterwards Sir Charles Booth, of Harrietsham-place, who died possessed of it, s. p. in 1795, and his devisees, for the purposes of his will, are now in the possession of it; but Comborne was allotted to Alexander Courthope, esq. since deceased, whose nephew John Cole, esq. now possesses it.
FINCHCOCKS is a feat in this parish, situated within the hundred of Marden, in that angle of it which extends south-westward below Hope mill, and is likewise within that manor. It was formerly of note for being the mansion of a family of the same surname, who were possessed of it as early as the 40th year of Henry III. They were succeeded in it by the family of Horden, of Horden, who became proprietors of it by purchase in the beginning of king Henry VI.'s reign, one of whom was Edward Horden, esq. clerk of the green cloth to king Edward VI. queen Mary, and queen Elizabeth, who had, for some considerable service to the crown, the augmentation of a regal diadem, added to his paternal coat by queen Elizabeth. He left two daughters his coheirs, Elizabeth, married to Mr. Paul Bathurst, of Bathurst-street, in Nordiam, and Mary to Mr. Delves, of Fletchings, who had Horden for his share of the inheritance, as the other had this of Finchcocks. He was descended from Laurence Bathurst, of Canterbury, who held lands there and in Cranbrooke, whose son of the same name, left three sons, of whom Edward, the eldest, was of Staplehurst, and was ancestor of the Bathursts, of Franks, in this county, now extinct, (fn. 4) of the earls Bathurst, and those of Clarenden-park, in Wiltshire, and Lydney, in Gloucestershire; Robert Bathurst, the second, was of Horsemonden; and John, the third son, was ancestor of the Bathursts, of Ockham, in Hampshire. Robert Bathurst, of Horsemonden above-mentioned, by his first wife had John, from whom came the Bathursts, of Lechlade, in Gloucestershire, and baronets; and Paul, who was of Nordiam, and afterwards possessor of Finchcocks, from whose great-grandson William, who was a merchant in London, descended the Bathursts, of Edmonton, in Middlesex. By his second wife he had John, who was of Goudhurst, ancestor of the Bathursts, of Richmond, in Yorkshire. In the descendants of Paul Bathurst before-mentioned, this seat continued down to Thomas Bathurst, esq. who by his will devised this seat and estate to his nephew Edward, only son of his younger brother William, of Wilmington, who leaving his residence there on having this seat devised to him, removed hither, and rebuilt this seat, at a great expence, in a most stately manner. He resided here till his death in 1772, having been twice married, and leaving several children by each of his wives. By his first wife Elizabeth, third daughter and coheir of Stephen Stringer, esq. of Triggs, he had three sons, Edward, who left a daughter Dorothy, now unmarried, and John and Thomas, both fellows of All Souls college, in Oxford, the latter of whom is now rector of Welwyn, in Hertfordshire. Before his death he conveyed this seat and estate by sale to his son by his second wife, Mr. Charles Bathurst, who on his decease in 1767, s. p. devised it by will to his brother, the Rev. Mr. Richard Bathurst, now of Rochester, the present possessor of it. This branch of the family of Bathurst. bore for their arms the same coat as those of Franks, in this county, and those of Cirencester, Lydney, and Clarendon, viz. Sable, two bars, ermine, in chief three crosses pattee, or, with a crescent for difference; but with a different crest, viz. Party per fess, and pale, a demi wolf argent, and sable, holding a regal crown, or; which I take to be that borne by Edward Horden, whose heir Paul Bathurst, their ancestor, married, and whose coat of arms they likewise quartered with their own.
¶AT NO GREAT DISTANCE from Finchcocks, in the same hundred, lies a capital messuage, called RISEDEN, alias GATEHOUSE, which formerly belonged to a family named Sabbe, one of whom, Simon Sabbe, sold it, before the middle of the last century, to Mr. Robert Bathurst, from whom it descended down, with an adjoining estate, called TRILLINGHERST, to another Robert Bathurst, who died in 1731, and lies buried in this church, whose daughter Mary sold them both to Sir Horace Mann, bart. the present possessor of them.
Carte de visite by Mathew B. Brady of New York City. The oppressive heat blanketing Petersburg and Richmond during the summer of 1864 did not slow the frontline fighting. On August 18, Union forces seized a section of the Weldon Railroad, a critical link in the Confederate supply chain connecting Petersburg to the port of Wilmington, N.C. Confederates counterattacked the following afternoon, but fell short of recovering the rails.
Two days later, the Confederates tried again with an all-out attack commanded by Lt. Gen. A.P. Hill’s corps.
For one lieutenant on the other side, this second attempt to retake the railroad ended with a brevet rank of captain for gallantry.
He’s pictured here: 1st Lt. George Warren Dresser of the 4th U.S. Artillery. Born and raised in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and in Brooklyn, N.Y., his father prospered in a Wall Street insurance firm. Young Dresser decided not to pursue career opportunities in business, opting for the military. In 1856, he entered West Point and proved a solid student, studying alongside fellow cadets Adelbert Ames, Orville Babcock, Hugh Judson Kilpatrick, Charles E. Hazlett, and others.
None of these cadets could have imagined that their graduation would coincide with the nation’s plunge into civil war.
On May 6, 1861, less than a month after the violence at Fort Sumter and the Baltimore Riots, Dresser graduated 19th of 45 cadets and secured a commission as a second lieutenant in the 4th Artillery. Dresser likely posed for this portrait about this time in the New York City studio of Mathew B. Brady, dapper in a broad-brimmed hat and dressed for field command.
He was soon promoted to first lieutenant.
Ordered to Washington, D.C., Dresser arrived at a precarious moment as loyal state volunteers with varied levels of training poured into the city, and neighboring Virginians verged on ratifying secession, taking the commonwealth out of the Union.
One of his earliest assignments placed him in command of a section of the 4th U.S. Artillery on the expedition across the Potomac River into Virginia to capture Alexandria. According to an eyewitness, Dresser ordered his men to unlimber a 12-pounder on a city street and aim it at a company of enemy cavalry. "They saw at a glance there was no chance of escape. Everyone seemed paralyzed, and no one came forward or raised a hand. Some were mounted, some with a foot in the stirrup and some standing at their horses' heads. All sat or stood as motionless as statues" until the Union officer commanding advanced and demanded their surrender, which they did. The prisoners, 35 total, belonged to Capt. Mottrom Dulany Ball's Fairfax Cavalry.
Dresser put his military education into practice. One of his assignments involved training the 5th Massachusetts Infantry. He worked with the regiment’s lieutenant colonel, James Durrell Greene, a Harvard graduate, to whip the men into shape. According to a news report, the “regiment is practicing the severest kind of drill daily,” adding that Greene and Dresser “are devoting themselves assiduously to the work of making this one of the best regiments in the service.” The daily routine included six hours of drill and another hour of target practice.
The ambitious drill program transformed the men into a crack regiment. In a mid-June review, President Abraham Lincoln and members of his cabinet reportedly dubbed it the “‘Steady Fifth’ on account of gentlemanly conduct and soldierly bearing.” A month later at the Battle of Bull Run, the 5th struggled along with its brother regiments in the vicinity of Henry House and eventually retreated in confusion to the Defenses of Washington.
Dresser also participated in the engagement, though not with the 5th. He fought with Battery E of the 3rd U.S. Artillery, popularly known as Sherman’s Battery for Capt. Thomas West Sherman. The talented West Pointer who graduated in 1836 commanded the battery during the Mexican War Battle of Buena Vista, during which he and his artillerists successfully defended an enemy attack. Reports of its gallant conduct spread across the country, cementing Sherman’s status as a national hero. Though Sherman no longer commanded the battery—the honor belonged to Capt. Romeyn Beck Ayers—the name “Sherman’s Battery” stuck.
During the fighting at Bull Run, Sherman’s Battery, under Ayers’s competent command, distinguished itself in the thick of the fray. Its six guns pounded away at the enemy from various positions. At one point, Ayers stated in his official report, Confederate cavalrymen arrived and as they prepared to charge, “the whole battery poured canister into and demolished them.” Ayers praised Dresser for his good conduct when the troopers threatened. All the guns were brought off the field intact.
Following the stunning Confederate victory, dejected Northerners sought Union successes wherever they could be found. A correspondent from the New York Herald who covered the battle as shot and shell whizzed about shone a light on the artillery, “Capt. Ayers’ (later of Sherman’s) battery earned new laurels during the affair. Its fire was sustained with wonderful precision and rapidity.” The correspondent noted the brave conduct of Ayers and his lieutenants, including Dresser, “was the theme of universal praise among the staff officers.”
Dresser frequently received orders for various temporary duties, making such assignments a routine part of his wartime experience. Though none lasted long, he excelled in each one.
It may be fairly stated that he was a quintessential utility man.
During the 1862 Peninsula Campaign, he served as an engineer during the Siege of Yorktown and as Acting Ordnance Officer of the Third Corps. Following the end of the campaign, he returned to his alma mater and spent most of 1863 as an assistant instructor of artillery tactics, where he brought real-life experience into play as he educated the next generation of officers. He left West Point under orders to report to besieged Chattanooga for duty with Maj. Gen. William Farrar “Baldy” Smith and the Army of the Cumberland. Smith had devised plans to open up a more reliable supply line—and Dresser helped him do it. According to one report, Dresser used his engineering skills to construct a pontoon bridge, then led a force across it. He and his men were met by heavy enemy fire, which they countered and routed the Confederates. Smith succeeded in his plan, which was dubbed “The Cracker Line” as much needed food and other supplies reached the beleaguered Union troops.
Building on his success in the environs of Chattanooga, the War Department called Dresser to Washington for a brief stint in the Inspector General’s Office before being detailed on another assignment, this time as Inspector for the hard-fighting Fifth Corps of the Army of the Potomac, commanded by Maj. Gen. Gouverneur Kemble Warren, who had distinguished himself a year earlier along the crest of Little Round Top at Gettysburg.
It was while serving in this capacity that Dresser again proved his abilities at the Weldon Railroad on August 21, 1864, when Confederates sought to reclaim that portion of the rails captured by Union forces three days earlier.
That morning, two of Lt. Gen. A.P. Hill divisions, commanded by generals William Mahone and Henry Heth, launched a determined attack against Warren’s corps. As his troops countered this threat, Col. Charles S. Wainwright brought his artillery up to support the Union infantry. When Mahone’s battle line emerged from a thicket of pines, artillerists from a pair of New York batteries, the 1st and 15th, wheeled their eight Napoleons into position and hit the oncoming Confederates, scattering them. When the rebels reformed, the cannon of the 1st New York and 1st Massachusetts Battery, with its eight rifled guns, went into action and stopped them again.
Meanwhile, Confederate Col. William Pegram brought up his artillery in the vicinity of the Vaughan Road and started a duel.
The late historian Edward C. Bearss, quoting official reports, described Dresser’s role at this moment: “Colonel Wainwright had given Lieutenant George W. Dresser a special assignment. The lieutenant was to gallop to the right, get Battery C, 1st New York, and ‘post it toward the left of our line’ so it would be able to deliver an enfilading fire upon the guns which Colonel Pegram had massed in the Vaughan road sector. Dresser discharged his mission successfully. Unlimbering their four 3-inch rifles, the New Yorkers, in conjunction with several other batteries, compelled the Rebels (with whom they were dueling) to shift their guns.”
By noon, Warren’s corps had secured the critical Confederate supply line. The four-day engagement, known as the Second Battle of the Weldon Railroad or the Battle of Globe Tavern, resulted in about 4,296 Union and 1,620 Confederate casualties.
Dresser received a brevet promotion to captain for gallantry in securing the Weldon Railroad for the Union.
There’s one more anecdote about Dresser, in the form of a brief after-action report he filed in late October 1864 during the Richmond Campaign. It is preserved in the annals of the Official Records of the War of the Rebellion. In it, Dresser relates an incident during the Battle of Fair Oaks and Darbytown Road on October 27. On this day, Dresser struggled to get a battery into position to support elements of Warren’s advancing 5th Corps. Unable to find a position, he turned back to headquarters. Along the way he had several close encounters with the enemy. In one of them, Dresser “came upon tail of rebel column, resting in road, sitting down, arms in their hands and in good order. Supposing them prisoners at first, asked, ‘to what regiment do you belong?’ Answer, ‘10th Alabama.’ Asked, 'where is your provost guard?’ Answer, ‘None here; we are a brigade; Wilcox’s old brigade.’ Saw at least two companies.” Dresser rode off, undetected.
During the war’s waning months, Dresser received a final assignment when he returned to the staff of Maj. Gen. “Baldy” Smith in New Orleans and New York City. At the end of hostilities, Dresser resigned his commission and received a second brevet, as major, for his wartime service.
Dresser applied his talents as a civil engineer in New York City and New England and later became the editor of the American Gas-Light Journal. He died in May 1883 at age 45, just six weeks after the passing of his wife, Susan Fish LeRoy, the daughter of New York aristocracy dating back to colonial times and the founding of the United States. She and Dresser lost battles with cancer—Dresser in his face and Susan in her breast. They left behind five children under 20 years old.
I encourage you to use this image for educational purposes only. However, please ask for permission.
Today I noticed that this book - the promisingly named "Book of Answers" has instructions for use on the back - having read them I thought the most obvious question to ask was whether the way I'd just read was the best way to use the book. So I opened it, using their instructions, with this in mind.... and got...
----------------
Photo used here: williamnyk.blogspot.com/2007/09/book-of-answers.html
FIELD TESTER:Mr.KINUGAWA
ROD: PLAISIR ANSWER PA75RG -power arm-
REEL: 304/Mitchell
LINE: PE#1.5+leader30lb
LURE: CD/rapala
ca. 1890 - ca. 1920
Image H95.84/4
Teacher standing before an outdoor class of children, another man sitting on right. Children have hands raised, there is a metal drum shaped object on a small table in front of their desks. Caption beneath image reads: Now, children, should the hands ever touch milk, cream or butter? Answer: No sir!
Visit our catalogue to download a hi-res copy or find out more about this image: handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/164499
Want to find more pictures from the State Library of Victoria's collections? guides.slv.vic.gov.au/pictures
FIELD TESTER:Mr.KINUGAWA
ROD: PLAISIR ANSWER PA75RG -power arm-
REEL: 304/Mitchell
LINE: PE#1.5+leader30lb
LURE: CD/rapala
FIELD TESTER:Mr.KINUGAWA
ROD: PLAISIR ANSWER PA75RG -power arm-
REEL: 304/Mitchell
LINE: PE#1.5+leader30lb
LURE: CD/rapala
Turn around, look at what you see
In her face the mirror of your dreams
Make believe I'm everywhere
Given in the lines, written on the pages
Is the answer to a never ending story
Rhymes that keep their secrets
Will unfold behind the clouds
And there upon the rainbow
Is the answer to a never ending story...Blogged.
China and India
Website:
www.museudooriente.pt/?lang=en
english
“On the gods, I can affirm neither that they do exist nor that they do not exist: much prevents the acquisition of such knowledge beginning with the obscurity addressed by the question and followed by the brevity of human life.”
Protagoras (5th century BC)
“Gods of Asia” (in contrast to “The Gods of Asia” that would be of ridiculously pretentious scope) is a title that runs of risk of getting mired in equivocation. We are victims of the inappropriateness of a word’s meaning in one language when applied to another and particularly when dealing with the word god. The terms monotheist and polytheist are Western notions that prove rather lacking when considering Hinduism or Taoism. The first Western missionaries reaching Asia referred constantly to idolatry whenever encountering statues in places of worship that seemed strange to them. However, having hardly begun explaining the great Asian religions, we are immediately struck by the sheer similarities that they share with the great Western religions that shock anybody attempting to move on from the prevailing prejudices. The idea of a single God, considered by some to be the great Judaic religious contribution, was already in practice in Asia. The Brahman in Hinduism, the Tao of the Chinese are single, the origin of everything and everything exists in them. It would bizarre for the Hindus and Taoists to depict the almighty as a grizzled old man with a white beard not so much due to the fact that this would be sacrilege, as Islamic believers would hold, but rather because both fall outside the scope of any human understanding and are beyond any means of representation. The concept that “God made man in His image” swiftly becomes “man made God in his image”.
Furthermore, when dealing with Asian religions, there are references to gods when other terms would be used by Western religions. The Hindu gods are, in fact, the diverse manifestations of Brahman acting in the world and only as such susceptible to depiction. The Chinese gods bear a closer relationship with the saints of Christianity. Each serves its own particular function, such as Eloy as patron saint of goldsmiths or Saint Genevieve as the patron saint of Paris, which in the latter case would be known as the goddess of the Parisian earth within a Chinese pantheon.
Some of the similarities existing among all the religions are indeed surprising. The idea of the trinity is central to Hinduism. Given that everything born has to one day die, Brahman becomes creator, conservator and destroyer as reflected in the three manifestations: Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Vishnu is incarnate as God was incarnated in Jesus Christ. The Chinese are somewhat more abstract in this area given that their belief system holds that from the Three are born all beings.
Each founder of a religion is inseparable from the surrounding environment in which emerging. Just as the New Testament is not understandable unless its message is situated within the context of the Old Testament, the message of Buddha Shakyamuni was announced within a Hindu society and does not call into question beliefs such as reincarnation or karma. The Taoist religion becomes incomprehensible if stripped of either the Taoist philosophy that preceded it or the beliefs of ancient China.
Another common point is that the original message has been subject to whatever first the disciples or later the faithful decided to do with it given that the founders never actually set it down in writing. Neither Jesus Christ nor Shakyamuni not to mention Zhang Daoling left any written legacy. It was only through witnesses that we gain our awareness of their thinkings and teachings: rather disturbing when considering the general accuracy of such accounts. Just as Jesus Christ would not agree with what Churches have done with his message and in his name down through the centuries, Shakyamuni would not recognise his own thinking in the elaborations of those wishing to spread his message. Many founders of religions sought only to provide an answer to a precise question. Just as Jesus Christ wanted to introduce charity, Shakyamuni wanted to find a means to escape the suffering of existence. Just as Jesus Christ did not call into question the God of the Bible, Shakyamuni made no pronouncement on either Brahman or nirvana to such an extent of stating that Buddhism was a religion without a god.
Despite all that has been written, Judaism, Christianity and Islam are not the only book based religions. Buddhism, Jainism and Taoism are based on texts even if quite different to the Bible or the Koran. As regards the mirabilia spreading all the beliefs on either side of the Urals, it should be remembered that Asian thinkers knew how to distinguish between directly reading texts in order to gain the admiration of crowds and their interpretation at the philosophical or theological level and demonstrating a thorough understanding in the meantime.
We may inquire as to the origins of all these similarities between the world’s great religions. Are they due to the very nature of the human spirit? From a shared human story dating back to the beginnings of history? Factual influences for this, however, appear to be extremely limited even if we may recall that the halos of Western saints derive from the aura of light that is depicted around Buddhas in Asia and the concept of Hell complete with boiling cauldrons and devouring fires also originates in the East (with the difference that in the Orient, Hell is not eternal).
May it be said, as an Indian thinker once wrote, that all men worship the same god under different names? No. While the concept of a single god exists in the Asian religions and accepting that all world religions have undergone sometimes less than inspired revisions running counter to their original content, and that there are particularities common to all, it would certainly be fallacious not to see the differences inherent to each. Taoism provides an explanation of the world but each is free to accept it or otherwise and engages in no form of proselytism. Buddhism seeks to end with suffering in the hope that all men may benefit from its message but without ever becoming an imposition and sought to be tolerant regarding long existing local beliefs given its acceptance that spirits exist within living beings. As regards theological differences, these are only too susceptible to generating interminable debates.
However, this is not the intention of this exhibition nor does it involve presenting the gods of India, Indonesia, Myanmar, Thailand, China, Vietnam, Korea and Japan with a concern to somehow encapsulate the beliefs of others into the content of picturesque or striking images. It is rather more about setting out why they are worthy of the same respect that we provide our own religions.
The exhibition thus seeks to raise awareness about certain aspects of the religious art of Asia, particularly at the popular level, and introduce the still living mythology underlying the objects on display. Hence, all the great religions of the continent are included: Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism and Shinto. While the Western word “god”, corresponds closest to abstract
Asian concepts such as Brahman in India or Tao in China, the supernatural beings represented here are far more manifestations of the divine in the human world.
português
“Sobre os deuses, nada posso afirmar, nem que existem nem que não existem: muitas coisas o impedem de saber, a começar pelo lado obscuro que envolve a pergunta, e a seguir pela brevidade da vida humana”
Protágoras (século V a.C.)
“Deuses da Ásia” (e não “Os deuses da Ásia”, o que seria uma pretensão ridícula) é um título que corre o risco de gerar grandes equívocos. Somos vítimas da inadequação das palavras de uma língua para a outra, e mais particularmente quando se trata da palavra deus. Os termos monoteísta e politeísta são noções ocidentais muito mal adaptadas quando se trata do hinduísmo ou do taoísmo. Os primeiros missionários ocidentais que chegaram à Ásia falavam dos idólatras sempre que viam em templos estas estátuas que lhes pareciam estranhas. No entanto, mal começamos a informar sobre as grandes religiões asiáticas, são, antes de tudo, as semelhanças com as grandes religiões ocidentais que espantam quem tente abstrair-se dos preconceitos correntes. A ideia do Deus único, que alguns consideram ser a grande contribuição da religião judaica, já vigorava na Ásia. O Brahman do hinduísmo, o Tao dos chineses são o Único, a Origem de tudo, e tudo neles existe. Seria ridículo para os hindus e taoistas verem representados o Brahman ou o Tao sob os traços de um ancião de barba branca, não tanto pelo facto que isto possa ser um sacrilégio, como o pensam os islamitas, mas porque tanto um como o outro escapam ao entendimento humano e situam-se para além de qualquer forma. A ideia de que “Deus fez o homem à sua imagem” transforma-se rapidamente em “o homem fez Deus à sua imagem”. Mas quando se trata de religiões asiáticas, fala-se de deuses quando no Ocidente utilizar-se-ia um outro termo. Os deuses hinduístas são, de facto, manifestações diversas do Brahman actuando no mundo e como tais podem ser representados. Os deuses chineses são mais aparentados aos santos do cristianismo. Cada um deles tem uma função, como Santo Elói é o patrono dos ourives ou Santa Genoveva é a padroeira de Paris, que neste caso, para os chineses, seria conhecida como deusa do Solo de Paris.
Algumas das semelhanças que existem entre todas as religiões são surpreendentes. A ideia da trindade é central no hinduísmo. Visto que tudo o que nasce tem que morrer, o Brahman manifesta-se enquanto criador, conservador e destruidor, o que se traduz pelas suas três manifestações, Brahma, Vishnu e Shiva. Vishnu incarna-se como Deus se incarnou em Jesus Cristo. Os chineses são mais abstractos nesta matéria, já que para eles é do Três que nascem todos os seres.
Cada fundador de religião é inseparável do meio em que apareceu. Tal como o Novo Testamento não é compreensível se a sua mensagem não for situada no contexto do Antigo Testamento, a mensagem do Buda Shakyamuni foi anunciada numa sociedade hinduísta e não põe em causa a crença nas reincarnações e no karma. A religião taoista torna-se incompreensível se for omitida a filosofia taoista que a precedeu e as crenças da antiguidade chinesa.
Um outro ponto comum é que a mensagem original é vítima do que fizeram dela os discípulos ou sobretudo depois, os fiéis, já que os fundadores nunca escreveram uma linha. Nem Jesus Cristo, nem Shakyamuni, nem Zhang Daoling deixaram algum escrito. Foi somente por testemunhos que se pôde conhecer o seu pensamento, o que não deixa de ser assustador quando nos lembramos do que estes valem. Tal como Jesus Cristo não concordaria com o que as Igrejas, ao longo dos séculos, fizeram com a sua mensagem, Shakyamuni não reconheceria o seu pensamento nas elaborações dos que quiseram divulgar o seu contributo. Muitos fundadores de religiões quiseram fornecer apenas uma resposta a uma pergunta precisa. Tal como Jesus Cristo quis introduzir a misericórdia. Shakyamuni quis encontrar uma via para escapar aos sofrimentos da existência. Tal como Jesus Cristo não pôs em causa o Deus da Bíblia, Shakyamuni não se pronunciou sobre o Brahman ou o nirvana, de tal maneira que chegou a dizer-se que o budismo era uma religião sem deus.
Apesar do que se escreveu, o judaísmo, o cristianismo e o Islão não são as únicas religiões do livro. O budismo, o jainismo e o taoísmo têm como base textos que nada devem aos da Bíblia ou do Corão. Quanto às mirabilia que espalham todas as crenças de cada lado dos Urais, é preciso reconhecer que os pensadores asiáticos souberam distinguir entre uma leitura dos textos ao primeiro grau, que suscita a admiração das multidões, e a sua interpretação a um nível filosófico ou teológico, para que seja entendido o sentido profundo.
Donde vêm as semelhanças entre todas as grandes religiões? Da natureza própria do espírito humano? De uma história comum da humanidade que remonta à origem dos tempos? As influências factuais parecem ser, no entanto, limitadas, mesmo que se lembre que a auréola dos nossos santos provém da aura de luz que se põe à volta dos Budas na Ásia e que a ideia do Inferno, com os seus caldeirões fumegantes e os seus fogos devoradores são originários também do Oriente (com a diferença que no Oriente o Inferno não é eterno).
Pode-se dizer, como o escreveu um pensador indiano, que todos os homens veneram o mesmo deus sob nomes diferentes? Não. Se o conceito de um deus único existe nas religiões asiáticas e já que todas as religiões do mundo conheceram reveses por vezes pouco brilhantes e contrárias ao seu pensamento original, e que algumas particularidades se encontram em todas, seria falacioso não ver as diferenças próprias de cada uma. O taoísmo fornece uma explicação do mundo, mas cada um é livre de poder aceitá-la ou não e não desenvolve nenhum tipo de proselitismo. O budismo procura apagar o sofrimento, esperando que todos os homens possam usufruir da sua mensagem, mas sem a impor, e quis-se tolerante no que toca às crenças locais antigas, visto que admite a existência de espíritos no meio dos seres. No que toca às diferenças teológicas, estas poderiam dar lugar a debates intermináveis.
Mas não é esta a intenção da exposição. Nem tão pouco apresentar deuses da Índia, da Indonésia, de Mianmar, da Tailândia, da China, do Vietname, da Coreia e do Japão com a preocupação de limitar as crenças dos outros ao conteúdo de imagens pitorescas ou belas, mas sim de mostrar que elas merecem o mesmo respeito que nós prestamos às nossas.
A exposição procura, isso sim, tornar conhecidos certos aspectos da arte religiosa na Ásia, sobretudo ao nível popular, e introduzir a mitologia ainda viva que está subjacente aos objectos apresentados. Daí estarem representadas as grandes religiões do continente, o hinduísmo, o budismo, o taoísmo, o shintô. Uma vez que a palavra ocidental “deus”, corresponde mais a conceitos asiáticos abstractos como Brama, na Índia, e Tao, na China, os seres sobrenaturais representados são muito mais manifestações do divino no mundo humano.
_______________________________________________________-
english
The Museum of the Orient (Portuguese: Museu do Oriente) in Lisbon, Portugal celebrates the history of Portuguese exploration with a collection of Asian artifacts. The museum opened in May, 2008, and is located in a refurbished industrial building on the Alcântara waterfront. The collection includes Indonesian textiles, Japanese screens, antique snuff bottles, crucifixes made in Asia for Western export, and the Kwok On Collection of masks, costumes, and accessories.
português
O Museu do Oriente está instalado no edifício Pedro Álvares Cabral, antigos armazéns da Comissão Reguladora do Comércio do Bacalhau em Alcântara, Lisboa.
O museu reúne colecções que têm o Oriente como temática principal, nas vertentes histórica, religiosa, antropológica e artística.
A exposição permanente engloba 1400 peças alusivas à presença portuguesa na Ásia e 650 peças pertencentes à colecção Kwok On.
O museu é da responsabilidade da Fundação Oriente e foi inaugurado no dia 8 de Maio de 2008.
A actual directora é Maria Manuela d'Oliveira Martins.
Foi classificado como Monumento de interesse público (MIP) pelo IGESPAR em 15 de junho de 2010.
Some of you may have noticed that, unfortunately, owing to the fact that a certain person who sells truck photos on eBay commercially has been lifting my images from this album and selling them I have had to remove 2300 photos that didn't have a watermark. I have now run around 1700 through Lightroom and added a watermark with the intention of bulk uploading them again. Rather than watermark the existing (hidden) files in Flickr one at a time it will be easier to do it this way. I definitely won’t be adding individual tags with the make and model of each vehicle I will just add generic transport tags. Each photo is named after the vehicle and reg in any case. For anyone new to these images there is a chapter and verse explanation below. It is staggering how many times I get asked questions that a quick scan would answer or just as likely I can’t possibly answer – I didn’t take them, but, just to clarify-I do own the copyright- and I do pursue copyright theft.
This is a collection of scanned prints from a collection of photographs taken by the late Jim Taylor A number of years ago I was offered a large number of photographs taken by Jim Taylor, a transport photographer based in Huddersfield. The collection, 30,000 prints, 20,000 negatives – and copyright! – had been offered to me and one of the national transport magazines previously by a friend of Jim's, on behalf of Jim's wife. I initially turned them down, already having over 30,000 of my own prints filed away and taking space up. Several months later the prints were still for sale – at what was, apparently, the going rate. It was a lot of money and I deliberated for quite a while before deciding to buy them. I did however buy them directly from Jim’s wife and she delivered them personally – just to quash the occasional rumour from people who can’t mind their own business. Although some prints were sold elsewhere, particularly the popular big fleet stuff, I should have the negatives, unfortunately they came to me in a random mix, 1200 to a box, without any sort of indexing and as such it would be impossible to match negatives to prints, or, to even find a print of any particular vehicle. I have only ever looked at a handful myself unless I am scanning them. The prints are generally in excellent condition and I initially stored them in a bedroom without ever looking at any of them. In 2006 I built an extension and they had to be well protected from dust and moved a few times. Ultimately my former 6x7 box room office has become their (and my own work’s) permanent home.
I hope to avoid posting images that Jim had not taken his self, however should I inadvertently infringe another photographers copyright, please inform me by email and I will resolve the issue immediately. There are copyright issues with some of the photographs that were sold to me. A Flickr member from Scotland drew my attention to some of his own work amongst the first uploads of Jim’s work. I had a quick look through some of the 30 boxes of prints and decided that for the time being the safest thing for me to do was withdraw the majority of the earlier uploaded scans and deal with the problem – which I did. whilst the vast majority of the prints are Jims, there is a problem defining copyright of some of them, this is something that the seller did not make clear at the time. I am reasonably confident that I have since been successful in identifying Jims own work. His early work consists of many thousands of lustre 6x4 prints which are difficult to scan well, later work is almost entirely 7x5 glossy, much easier to scan. Not all of the prints are pin sharp but I can generally print successfully to A4 from a scan.
You may notice photographs being duplicated in this Album, unfortunately there are multiple copies of many prints (for swapping) and as I have to have a system of archiving and backing up I can only guess - using memory - if I have scanned a print before. The bigger fleets have so many similar vehicles and registration numbers that it is impossible to get it right all of the time. It is easier to scan and process a print than check my files - on three different PC’s - for duplicates. There has not been, nor will there ever be, any intention to knowingly breach anyone else's copyright. I have presented the Jim Taylor collection as exactly that-The Jim Taylor Collection- his work not mine, my own work is quite obviously mine.
Unfortunately, many truck spotters have swapped and traded their work without copyright marking it as theirs. These people never anticipated the ease with which images would be shared online in the future. I would guess that having swapped and traded photos for many years that it is almost impossible to control their future use. Anyone wanting to control the future use of their work would have been well advised to copyright mark their work (as many did) and would be well advised not to post them on photo sharing sites without a watermark as the whole point of these sites is to share the image, it is very easy for those that wish, to lift any image, despite security settings, indeed, Flickr itself, warns you that this is the case. It was this abuse and theft of my material that led me to watermark all of my later uploads. I may yet withdraw non-watermarked photos, I haven’t decided yet. (I did in the end)
To anyone reading the above it will be quite obvious that I can’t provide information regarding specific photos or potential future uploads – I didn’t take them! There are many vehicles that were well known to me as Jim only lived down the road from me (although I didn’t know him), however scanning, titling, tagging and uploading is laborious and time consuming enough, I do however provide a fair amount of information with my own transport (and other) photos. I am aware that there are requests from other Flickr users that are unanswered, I stumble across them months or years after they were posted, this isn’t deliberate. Some weekends one or two “enthusiasts” can add many hundreds of photos as favourites, this pushes requests that are in the comments section ten or twenty pages out of sight and I miss them. I also have notifications switched off, I receive around 50 emails a day through work and I don’t want even more from Flickr. Other requests, like many other things, I just plain forget – no excuses! Uploads of Jim’s photos will be infrequent as it is a boring pastime and I would much rather work on my own output.
Once Sir Joseph of Baeth learnt of Lenfald's separation, he feared that Djorn and Roger were in danger on their way to Garheim. This fear was realized when he received a note stating that the traveling duo had in fact been captured at the Lenfald-Loreos border and were being held for ransom at the old Garhim embassy; roughly ten miles north along the western coast. At this same time Joseph had received an order to go fishing in Lenfald in order to spy on the province. Figuring this was a perfect time to do so, he proceeded to hire a crew, pack his wares and fishing rods, and load up the Rogue Spur for the rescue of Roger and Djorn.....
Several weeks had passed since their departure from Dalmunatha. It took time for Joseph to sail far enough south in order to steer clear of the Magic Isles and plot a very careful course through the Sea of Despair to reach the safer coasts of the Western side of Roawia. Upon arrival to the cliffs that held the old Garhim embassy, its banners changed to the colors of Lenfald, Joseph told his crew to prepare to be boarded with weapons at the ready- if they had previously kicked the Garhims out of the embassy, who knows what they would do to them as Loreesis.
Surprisingly enough however, Sir Joseph and his crew were met with open arms as they docked to the old embassy with dock hands helping to immediately unload the sea-wary contents of their journey. Djorn and Roger were waiting along the lookout just above the docks holding on to two beautiful women each with giant grins on their faces. Standing next to them was a Lenfel knight with a light grey beard and swept back hair, wearing black lapels, noting him as a higher lord. He yelled out, "What ho Sir Joseph! How thee fare on this fine day?! Did thy winds give you quick course to mighty Lenfald?!"
Not sure if this was a ruse or sincere question Joseph knew to keep his tongue witty and his sword close for this encounter. He called back to the lord,
"Greetings noble Lenfel! The winds were sure in helping us get 'ere at the best pace it could!" He began to walk up the stairs to talk to the noble more clearly, "I dont think we have had the pleasure of acquaintance, I am Sir Joseph of Baeth, merchant and knight of Loreos. I was requested to come rescue my two colleagues here, who seem to have both made themselves rather comfortable. I feel I have brought more than enough gold and treasure to negotiate with for their immediate release. Exactly who do I have the pleasure of doing business with my lord?"
At this, the "captured" duo had begun laughing while the noble wrapped an arm around the confused Joseph and gave out a hearty laugh too. Gathering himself, the high lord finally spoke to Joseph, "Nay Sir Joseph! Yer friends aren't our prisoners! Why they have been great fun in our little castle! That note was written just to scare ye to get yer booty out here sooner! Twas a big misunderstanding that has happened since the separation of Lenfald from the nations of Roawia. Thou first think we kicked out the Garhims from their embassy, tis a false accusation- all the occupants left when Garheim was in most dire trouble with the Queen's soldiers. We took up residence because we didnt want them damn filthy Dragon soldiers to find and take root in this abandoned outpost.."
He turned and gestured to Roger and Djorn, "And the capturing of these two twas a complete accident, I had not yet returned from the council meeting so when word of our separation began to incorrectly spread- the local militias deemed it best to start building a wall and patrolling the Lorseesi-Lenfel border which is where your companions were taken. Our most sincere apologies for this mistake, we do not request any form of ransom and if you'd like you can set up a booth in the courtyard and sell thy wares! Stay awhile and let thy crew rest from your long journey! Im sure many 'ere would love to buy some gems and trinkets! AH I almost forgot the pleasantries, I am Lord Jon of House Dragmar.'
Surprised at this revelation and indeed tired from his journey here, Joseph was still suspicious of this Lord Jon and those Lenfels around him. He decided it would be best to accept the invitation and let the crew rest for a few days so he could dig a bit deeper into the mystery that Lenfald had become... He accepted the high lord's apology and invitation to set up shop and rest for a couple days. He finished by giving a sly grin and asking a single question, "So Lord Jon, I have heard that Lenfald's western shores are home to some of the best fishing the realm has ever seen! I just so happen to have my fishing rods with me, would you be up for a spot of fishing tomorrow?"
The old Lenfel replied, "Well of course we have the world's best fishing! I will take you up on that offer Sir Joseph! Tomorrow at mid morning we shall fish!"
.......
It was summertime in Roawia and like the other nations, Lenfald's denizens were enjoying this time of peace. This gave the old embassy a very festive feel. Merchants were selling their wares, people were milling about and talking, children were laughing; jesters juggled and told jokes, the men were having fun practicing their archery and sword skills. Roger had met a cute baker so while he managed Joseph's booth, he allowed her to sell bread to hungry customers. Djorn was off of his shift so he resumed courting the fair ladies he had previously been seen with.
The Garhims had set up a rather good system of agriculture here so many were tending and harvesting the varieties of produce and food that was growing around the castle though the guard presence was quite large for such a small outpost...Joseph noticed this.
Just a few meters down from the dock that held the Rogue Spur was a wooden outlook that jutted out over the cliffs, a perfect spot for fishing. It was here that Lord Jon and Sir Joseph had cast out their lines and began to wait for something to bite.
"Ahhh... a lovely day ain't it Lord Jon?" Asked Joseph. Slipping the objective of spying to Roger and Djorn late in the night, he knew that the information the three could collect would be valuable to his Areani allies. Joseph had also given the Lord some of his strongest Loreesi ale at breakfast to loosen him up before their little fishing excursion.
"Yes, tis a great day after all Sir Joseph! Nothing quite like men of stature relishing in the simple enjoyments of the commoners."
Looking away, Joseph rolled his eyes and nodded. "Aye milord, tis always a surreal experience. Tell thee, what dost thou think of Lenfald's separation from the Roawia?"
"Not much to be honest with ya lad. Everyone be a little tenser with being afraid of how the other nations will react, but we will all get along in the end Im sure. I will tell ya what Joseph, I dont give much trust to them Loreesi or Garhim diplomats and politicians. Tis the tried and true men of Roawia, those who work its land and seas that I trust the most. Men like you lad... I will tell you this though my new friend, something you'd like to hear but cannot tell anyone..."
He leaned in close to Joseph, so close Joseph could smell the Loreesi ale on the high lord's breath.
"I heard something remarkable has happened that gives reason for the sudden movements of Lenfald's ships-- the reason why there wasn't a vessel stationed here upon your arrival. There are trusted rumors that us Lenfel's have discovered something." He pointed out to the sea, "Something out there...-"
His sentence was cut off by Joseph being startled by the sudden jerking of his fishing line. "AHA! I believe I caught me a fish!" He yelled as he pulled up a medium sized fish.
Broke from his drunken trance, Lord Jon exclaimed, "Oi! That is a fine lookin fish me boy! Let us cook it up and get more of that fancy ale of yours!"
__________________________
First off, sorry for the rather long story! But it is needed for the continuation of Sir Joseph of Baeth's story which will probably be shorter in upcoming installments.
(Also, apologies for the kind of crappy pics- my actual camera isnt working and my light box didnt fit this size MOC so a lot of photoshop was used in the first pic so sorry about that.)
Secondly, Wow! This was a big entry to both the Loreos Local Challenge LCXXII and the second Journeyman task of the Merchants guild!
This was originally apart of a display last year for a local Lego event here in the Northern Colorado area but I never got around to posting it as life got in the way and I wasn't sure how to incorporate this into my character's story at the time. The base had been sitting around while the original castle was taken down to build something for my next Merchants Guild task.
It was really my first attempt at building an actual castle for once and since it was intended for a display- I wanted an open area for easy viewing while keeping the castle modular so that is why it doesnt really have a keep or anything. But after my quick redux I think it turned out quite well!
If you've made it this far thanks so much for viewing! It's good to be actively building again and there is still quite a bit in store! :)
How do you make someone fall in love with you?
You are free to:
Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material
for any purpose, even commercially.
You must give appropriate credit and provide a link to the www.personalcreations.com home page.
Screenshot: vark.com
01. Homepage
02. After login
See my review about the service at SML Wiki: Aardvark
We decided to go for a city break rather than sun in Tenerife again this September. Other than a few days in the North East we haven’t been away since last March and wanted a change and hopefully some sun. The problem is getting flights from the north of England to the places we want to go to. We chose Valencia as we could fly from East Midlands – which was still a pain to get to as it involved the most notorious stretch of the M1 at five in the morning. In the end we had a fairly good journey, the new Ryanair business class pre-booked scheme worked quite well and bang on time as usual. It was dull when we landed with storms forecast all week, the sky was bright grey – the kiss of death to the photography I had in mind. I was full of cold and wishing I was at work. It did rain but it was overnight on our first night and didn't affect us. There has been a drought for eleven months apparently and it rained on our first day there! The forecast storms didn't materialise in Valencia but they got it elsewhere.
You May notice discrepancies in the spelling of some Spanish words or names, this is because Valencian is used on signs, in some guide books and maps. There are two languages in common use with distinct differences. There may also be genuine mistakes - it has been known!
Over the course of a Monday to Sunday week we covered 75 miles on foot and saw most of the best of Valencia – The City of Bell Towers. The Old City covers a pretty large area in a very confusing layout. There was a lot of referring to maps – even compass readings! – a first in a city for us. The problem with photography in Valencia is that most of the famous and attractive building are closely built around, some have poor quality housing built on to them. Most photographs have to be taken from an extreme angle looking up. There are no high points as it is pan flat, there are a small number of buildings where you can pay to go up on to the roof for a better view and we went up them – more than once!
The modern buildings of The City of Arts and Sciences – ( Ciutat de Las Arts I de les Ciencies ) are what the city has more recently become famous for, with tourists arriving by the coachload all day until late at night. They must be photographed millions of times a month. We went during the day and stayed till dark one evening, I gave it my best shot but a first time visit is always a compromise between ambition and realism, time dictates that we have to move on to the next destination. I travelled with a full size tripod – another first – I forgot to take it with me to TCoAaS! so It was time to wind up the ISO, again! Needless to say I never used the tripod.
On a day when rain was forecast but it stayed fine, albeit a bit dull, we went to the Bioparc north west of the city, a zoo by another name. There are many claims made for this place, were you can appear to walk alongside some very large animals, including, elephants, lions, giraffe, rhino, gorillas and many types of monkey to name a few. It is laid out in different geographical regions and there is very little between you and the animals, in some cases there is nothing, you enter the enclosure through a double door arrangement and the monkeys are around you. It gets rave reviews and we stayed for most of the day. The animals it has to be said gave the appearance of extreme boredom and frustration and I felt quite sorry for them.
The course of The River Turia was altered after a major flood in the 50’s. The new river runs west of the city flanked by a motorway. The old river, which is massive, deep and very wide between ancient walls, I can’t imagine how it flooded, has been turned into a park that is five miles long. There is an athletics track, football pitches, cycle paths, restaurants, numerous kids parks, ponds, fountains, loads of bridges, historic and modern. At the western end closest to the sea sits The City of Arts and Sciences – in the river bed. Where it meets the sea there is Valencia’s urban Formula One racetrack finishing in the massive marina built for The Americas Cup. The race track is in use as roadways complete with fully removable street furniture, kerbs, bollards, lights, islands and crossings, everything is just sat on the surface ready to be moved.
We found the beach almost by accident, we were desperate for food after putting in a lot of miles and the afternoon was ticking by. What a beach, 100’s of metres wide and stretching as far as the eye could see with a massive promenade. The hard thing was choosing, out of the dozens of restaurants, all next door to each other, all serving traditional Paella – rabbit and chicken – as well as seafood, we don’t eat seafood and it constituted 90% of the menu in most places. Every restaurant does a fixed price dish of the day, with a few choices, three courses and a drink. Some times this was our only meal besides making the most of the continental breakfast at the hotel. We had a fair few bar stops with the local wine being cheap and pleasant it would have been a shame not to, there would have been a one woman riot – or strike!
On our final day, a Sunday, we were out of bed and down for breakfast at 7.45 as usual, the place was deserted barring a waiter. We walked out of the door at 8.30 – in to the middle of a mass road race with many thousands of runners, one of a series that take place in Valencia – apparently! We struggled to find out the distance, possibly 10km. The finish was just around the corner so off we went with the camera gear, taking photos of random runners and groups. There was a TV crew filming it and some local celebrity (I think) commentating. Next we came across some sort of wandering religious and musical event. Some sort of ritual was played out over the course of Sunday morning in various locations, it involved catholic priests and religious buildings and another film crew. The Catholic tourists and locals were filling the (many) churches for Sunday mass. Amongst all of this we had seen men walking around in Arab style dress – the ones in black looked like the ones from ISIS currently beheading people – all carrying guns. A bit disconcerting. We assumed that there had been some sort of battle enactment. We were wrong, it hadn’t happened yet. A while later, about 11.30 we could hear banging, fireworks? No it was our friends with the guns. We were caught up in total mayhem, around 60 men randomly firing muskets with some sort of blank rounds, the noise, smoke and flames from the muzzles were incredible. We were about to climb the Torres de Serranos which is where, unbeknown to us, the grand, and deafening, finale was going to be. We could feel the blast in our faces on top of the tower. Yet again there was a film camera in attendance. I couldn’t get close ups but I got a good overview and shot my first video with the 5D, my first in 5 years of owning a DLSR with the capability. I usually use my phone ( I used my phone as well). Later in the day there was a bullfight taking place, the ring was almost next to our hotel, in the end we had other things to do and gave it a miss, it was certainly a busy Sunday in the city centre, whether it’s the norm or not I don’t know.
There is a tram system in Valencia but it goes from the port area into the newer part of the city on the north side, it wouldn’t be feasible to serve the historic old city really. A quick internet search told me that there are 55,000 university students in the city, a pretty big number. I think a lot of the campus is on the north side and served by the tram although there is a massive fleet of buses as well. There is a massive, very impressive market building , with 100’s of stalls that would make a photo project on its own, beautiful on the inside and out but very difficult to get decent photos of the exterior other than detail shots owing to the closeness of other buildings and the sheer size of it. Across town, another market has been beautifully renovated and is full of bars and restaurants and a bit of a destination in its own right.
A downside was the all too typical shafting by the taxi drivers who use every trick in the book to side step the official tariffs and rob you. The taxi from the airport had a “broken” meter and on the way home we were driven 22 km instead of the nine that is the actual distance. Some of them seem to view tourists as cash cows to be robbed at all costs. I emailed the Marriot hotel as they ordered the taxi, needless to say no answer from Marriot – they’ve had their money. We didn’t get the rip off treatment in the bars etc. that we experienced in Rome, prices are very fair on most things, certainly considering the city location.
All in all we had a good trip and can highly recommend Valencia.
PLEASE LOOK IN FULL VIEW AND PLEASE READ THE DESCRIPTION TO ANSWER ANY OF YOUR POSSIBLE FAQ'S. Thank you
FINALLY the moment we've all been waiting for!!!
Remember this: [link] [link] [link] ? Well I finished her at 11:43 Am this morning.
This is a finally finished 9 month long project, I missed so many deadlines with through all of the problem that I have had with it. This is a super expensive custom built movie truck, the goblin truck form Steven King's 1986 "Maximum Overdrive" movie. In total this custom kit utilizes parts from 6 different truck and trailer kits. Our base kit is actually a Kenworth W900, that I heavily modified. Now I know a few of you truck gurus out there are going to give me hell about the goblin truck in the not being a Kenworth, well guess what, it is a Kenworth, so stick that in in your juice box and suck it. Anyway, I missed numerous deadlines by piddling around, but I guess that's what I get. This kit was originally suppose to be finished and uploaded by July 10th 2011, for the movie's 25th anniversary release date in theaters, but missed that, then I was suppose to have it done by August 7th, 2011 for the county fair, but then I missed that one, I was suppose to have it up by Sunday then Monday and I missed those deadlines as well; so here I present to you a month and a half overdue project. I hope you enjoy I went through hell and back to bring it to you.
Features of this model are:
*rolling wheels
*opening/closing doors
*detailed components
*opening hood
*detailed goblin mask
*working fifth wheel plate
*semi trailer
*privacy curtains for the sleeper cab
*dash fan
Here is all of what I did to this kit in a condensed version, I took Kenworth w900 kit and took the original sleeper cab of and replaced it with a smaller sleeper leftover from my previous Peterbilt project: [link] [link] and patched the triangular shaped hole in the roof with plastic card and body filler. Then shortened the frame about an inch and a half by sectioning out the frame into 3 different pieces then reassembling them back together again; (in reality if this truck were full size, that 1.5 of an inch in scale would take off about a 6-8 feet off of the overall length off of the full sized vehicle). I relocated the gas tanks so that they were under the cab and mounted the smoke stacks on the sleeper, I had to custom fabricate exhaust tips and the pipes from the stacks going to the engine out of scrap plastic tree. For some odd reason the fifth wheel plate that originally came with the truck wasn't good enough, so I ended up cutting the entire base to the plate off of the frame rails and then sanded the frame down, next I then took that spare that was leftover from the Peterbilt project and modified it and put it in place where the other one was at; it all worked out in the end. I ended up discarding many of the other non-necessary parts and used some interior components like the seats and other parts from a Dodge L700 Kit and left over parts form the Peterbilt project. T he bed is leftover from the Peterbilt, the privacy curtains for the sleeper cab are made from pieces of plastic bag and plastic tree, the fan on the dash is made from a piece of painted scrap plastic tree and the fan cage is made from clear scrap plastic tree panted to have fan blades with a cage around it. I cut the doors out, sanded down the edges, attached fine cabinet hinges to the doors and attached then tho the inside of the cab, I then fabricated door jams from plastic card for the doors so that they didn't swing in too far and so that there wasn't any unsightly gab between the roof pillars and the door. The dry van box trailer is from another Dodge L700 kit modified from a few parts off of another flat bed trailer kit and custom fabricated parts. The goblin mask is made from about 3 layers of 3/4 inch scrap styrene foam sheeting glued together with Elmer's carpenter glue, acrylic paint, body filler, primer and modeler's acrylic paint. The color of green to the goblin mask is made up of 4 custom mixed colors to give it it's look (unfortunately, I couldn't quite find the right shade of green). Put a lot of the stock components together and painted them all 1 color and then detail any specific components. The trailer was a bit of a trick, I had to sand off the ribs off of the sides of the trailer and temporarily hold the walls, roof together to the deck of the trailer with rubber bands until the plastic cement cured. I then painted the whole trailer, I paint the individual wood planking to the decks as well. I attached it to the hood and then paint on the red, the turn signals and many of the running lights to the trailer and hood came off of a Ford Louisville L7000 Snow Plow kit. I had to custom fabricate a new bumper from plastic card because the other one was too small and left a giant gap between the the mask and the front fenders. I had to custom make decals for the trailer and then glued them to the sides and back and I then clear coated them. After all of the major crap like body modifications, part fabrication, major parts assembly/ painting was over with I then painted painted anything else leftover and attached any other detailed parts, and well the rest is history.
In total the estimated cost of building this kit was about $268, if I were to build this kit again, it would cost me about $300 to $400.
There you go to my dearest fans who were waiting ever so patiently.
I will be later posting a Youtube link slide show video on who this was made for those who are interested, so stay tuned.
© 2011 By: Deorse (Steven Waller) For entertainment and educational use only.