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Triptych of the cow Norman, capturing a quite comical expression.
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I was initially intrigued by Norman because he made eye contact with me when I walked over. I started taking photos of him after about 5 minutes of observation. In our animal, food, and justice class, we always talked about making the animal more concrete and how talk about factory farming always abstracts the animal in a way that prevents action.
Norman is an especially calm and collected cow, but he punctuates this with moments of quite surprising facial expressions. While I was taking photos of Norman, he stayed perfectly still and gazed deeply into my eyes, watching my every move. After about 10 or 15 minutes, I think he decided I wasn’t going to eat him and promptly laid down, munching the grass at his feet. He reminded me of an old grandfather, possessing an unlimited amount of patience. His calmness was infectious. Usually, I get really excited when I’m taking pictures, trying to get the perfect shot in the moment. In this case, I ended up calming myself down quite a bit after realizing that Norman wasn’t going to walk away at a moment’s notice. I guess this is somewhat what people mean when they say that you have to try to “become the animal” when you try to understand them. I think this is also a lesson that I’ll take away for future photographs as well - the idea of how patience can allow you to notice things about the composition and subject matter that you don’t observe at first glance. By noticing those things, you can compose the frame in such a way that can communicates that insight, telling an entirely different story.
der Straßenkünstler gesehen vor Notre - Dame Paris
Er machte sich seinen Spaß mit Leuten auf der Straße. Dabei unterhielt er die Wartenden in der Schlange , die auf den Turm von "Notre Dame Paris " wollten.
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He gave his pleasure with people on the street to himself. Besides, he maintained the waiting in the queue who wanted on the tower of "Notre Dame Paris ".
A face only a mother could love! I had trouble taking a photo of this creature as it was hard to tell what was what - bits of angry, red, warty skin everywhere! It had a comical smile on its face though. Cute in an ugly sort of way. I wonder if the bandaged finger of the keeper was the result of an encounter with a Matamata.
The keeper said that it is possibly the only turtle in the world that isn't used for human consumption - people are superstitious about it's ugly appearance.
The Matamata turtle, Chelusfimbriatus, may reach a length of 18 inches, and is bizarre in appearance. The shell is exceedingly rough and knobby, each lamina (horny plate) being cone shaped and bearing very well-marked growth rings.
The head and neck are large and flat and are covered with numerous protuberances, warts, and ridges. The flap-like appendages on the sides of the head and neck have been found to be highly sensitive to water movements caused by fish swimming by, which it preys upon. The mouth is extremely wide, and the snout is very long, enabling the creature to breathe while almost completely submerged.
The eyes of the Matamata are very small and situated very near the snout. This tends to indicate they are of little value in capturing prey. The limbs are poorly developed.
[Sparkles, sparkles]
A silly comical strip featuring Mutslug and Unikitty.
An excuse to try some photochopping, I guess! X-D
Brown pelican Pelecanus occidentals pauses between preening sessions in the late evening light, Pensacola FL
Paestum is two hours down the autostrada from Pompeii but the contrast is almost comical. A day earlier we had been suffocating in Pompeii, failing miserably to dodge tour guides and being barked at by the custodians. The next day we were on our own in the wide open green spaces of Paestum, sharing a picnic on the steps of a temple with the security guard
The site is so far off the tourist track that it is almost invisible. What they miss, as they power down the motorway on the Naples/Sicily run, is one of the greatest Hellenic sites - the three Doric temples dedicated to Hera and Athena are among the best preserved Greek temples anywhere. But don’t tell them......
www.flickr.com/photos/gaznaz/5622363883/
www.flickr.com/photos/gaznaz/5622365157
www.flickr.com/photos/gaznaz/5622366933
www.flickr.com/photos/gaznaz/5622368415
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www.flickr.com/photos/gaznaz/5622372039
www.flickr.com/photos/gaznaz/5622373889
That evening we stayed at the charming resort down of Sta Maria Castellabate on the sandy (and uncrowded) Cilento coast
The wonderful, comical and beautiful Atlantic Puffin (Fratercula arctica) here photographed with a haul of sand-eels on the superb Isle of May off the East Coast of Scotland.
This comical pair of nude ceramic shelf sitters (Adam and Eve?) are by Italian ceramic artist Federigo Fabbrini (1928-2007). Both are hand-signed "Fabbrini Italy" and were found in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.
My English teacher said she'd had it with my disruptive behavior. My classmates might think I'm comical, but she doesn't! And since she has the authority to send me to the office... it's her opinion that counts!
It seems my women teachers send me to the office a lot more than the men teachers. Either way, a trip to the principal means a paddling for sure. The only uncertainty is the number of swats he thinks I deserve and how hard he should swat my rear-end.
When I bend over, I know the paddle is coming after my butt, but I don't know how hard or how many swats! It's always at least five and can be as many as 20! The principal never says the number; he just tells me to remain in the "grabbing-my-ankles" position until he gives me permission to stand up again. (The penalty for rising up too early is five extra swats added at the end.)
All this is great entertainment for the school secretary. One of her duties is to serve as the witness to paddlings in the main office, and she's seen me many times. After I bend over, she positions herself behind me to gain an optimal view of my butt and the proceedings. She said my paddlings are the most fun because I always report to the office dressed in a pair of butt-logo PE shorts.
I exit the office with various degrees of soreness -- ranging from a nagging tingle to throbbing pain. And the coloration and temperature of my butt can vary from warm and pink ("rare") to hot and deep red ("well done").
These two were a bit comical; the female pretending she was just swimming along the shore completely unaware of the male ferociously trying to catch up to her without being obvious about it...
Clone troopers do need somewhere to sleep, don't they! Please keep in mind that this is meant to be comical. Please leave feedback questions and suggestions!
As a kid, I thought "CATSKILL HILLBILLY" was the funniest name in the world for an airplane. I knew the Catskills were in New York, and as a child in Texas, with nothing but sitcoms and old movies on TV to go by, I thought all New York was New York City, and thought the idea of any hillbillies being there was every bit as comical as what transpired--several years after I was first old enough to read the name on the aircraft--when Jed loaded up the truck and moved to Beverly. Of course, I now know that that part of New York, especially back then, wasn't all that different from the Ozarks (although, having also learned a little about the Borscht Belt, the idea becomes even more humorous). But I'm still pretty sure that that joke was exactly what whoever named the plane (Lt. Clark?) had in mind.
I'm not sure about the name of the crew chief. The placard is too small and the images aren't sharp enough to make out any more than the initial "J." and a four-letter last name which COULD start with a "B". The only people dad identified by name on the backs of his photographs were a Lt. Jacobson, one "Handsome" Burns, and another sergeant identified only as "Beam". Based on that, and the fact that a crew chief named "Jim Beam" (and you KNOW his nickname was "Jim" no matter what his first name really was) was too good to pass up; so, considering that (speaking of Jims) "Damn it, Jim--I'm a girlie cartoonist, not a historian!" (any BA from UTA notwithstanding) and therefore not bound by any obligation to be 100% (or even 1/100%) accurate, I went with it.
Nor am I sure that that's Lt. Clark in the cockpit, in the picture taken before takeoff. Again, the only officer dad identified by name was a Lt. Jacobson. The photo of him is almost identical to the one of dad standing in that hole in the wing root, and dad's note on the back says, "This is Lt. Jacobson, the pilot who was flying my ship when it got hit." I recall dad telling me Lt. Jacobson was not his regular pilot, but had taken the Hillbilly for the mission because his own aircraft was unserviceable that day. I also vaguely remember him telling me his regular pilot was a "Lt. Blue". I put that in quotation marks because what I heard as "Blue" could have been "Bleu" or "Bleau", or even something like "Bellew" or "Ballou", and my 8-year-old ears just didn't copy correctly. And, for that matter he could have even been talking about one of the pilots in his stateside B-29/B-25 days, before he got MOS-mismatched and sent to a jet fighter squadron in Korea as part of Truman's one-year extension of everyone's enlistments.
And, it could well be that neither Clark nor the crew chief had anything to do with dad and the pilot in the cockpit. In the "Forgotten Jets" section at www.millionmonkeytheater.com (a great B-movie review site, by the way) it says the Hillbilly was assigned to the 9th FBS/49th FGB. Dad was in the 7th FBS/49th FBG. It could be that millionmonkeytheater had a typo, or there may have been a mistake in the source of his information, but, maybe not. Maybe the information wasn't incorrect, just incomplete. In every photo of it, dad identifies it as the "...new plane", "...new ship", "...just after it was assigned to me", etc., so it could have been the case that the Hillbilly was transferred to the 7th from the 9th, and Lt. Clark and Sgt. Beam(?) were the 9th FBS guys from whom dad and the pilot inherited the plane, and they just hadn't had time to change the names on the placard.
I freely acknowledge an equally glaring historical error as regards fashion. Traditional hanbok is both loose-fitting and full-length, but, again, I'm a girlie cartoonist and know my rights as such, so my little Korean K-2 Kutie got the sweater girl version of the jeogori and a micro-mini chima. And, yes, I'm sure the Sweetheart of Tech Supply would have been embarrassed to tears to be seen in such an outfit.
But, the www is chock-full of Han River Hotties who wouldn't be embarrassed, which, their being a reflection of the modern Republic of Korea, brings me to the title, a play on the title of Clay Blair's definitive history of the war. It hasn't been forgotten by all of us, but it has been forgotten by all too many of us, due no doubt to the idiotic popular wisdom that Korea was "the first of our 'no-win' wars." To which I say, "'No-win war' my a--!"
True, we failed to accomplish MacArthur's (and Truman's, the JCS's, and the UN's initial) objective of unifying all Korea into a single nation, and "merely" restored the status quo antebellum of a free South Korea with a border at the 38th Parallel. We didn't utterly and completely destroy the enemy's will and means to fight, dictate peace terms in his capital, and set up a government in our own image, as we had done less than a decade before with Germany and Japan (and, oh, yeah, sorry, I almost forgot, Italy), so Americans, being the World Series fans they are by nature, were naturally disappointed by something that was less than a clearly-defined win.
But, by that yardstick, America has only actually "won" two wars in its entire history--the aforementioned WW II, and the Civil War. Every other war, from the Revolution on, was settled by a negotiated peace that got us some or all of what we wanted, but left the enemy nation unoccupied (and in most cases even un-invaded) and the enemy government still in power (the jury is still out on Iraq and Afghanistan--we did a good job of moving in and taking over, but I'm afraid that, like Vietnam, utter failure will fill the vacuum created by our impending departure; for that matter, given recent trends in domestic politics, I'm not altogether sure we weren't a little premature in hanging out a "MISSION ACCOMPLISHED" banner with regards to The Confederate States of America).
By any other (rational) yardstick, that "merely" in regard to restoring the status quo antebellum definitely deserves to be in quotation marks. We "merely" restored the Republic of Korea's border to the 38th Parallel, the ROK has "merely" been a democracy for the almost sixty years since, and in those six decades, the ROK has "merely" become the 11th largest economy in the world and one of America's staunchest allies, with armed forces that are among the most well-trained, well-equipped, well-led, and most highly motivated in the world. I'd call that a win, without any qualifying quotation marks. And, while I not only think Truman was right to fire MacArthur, but agree with Bradley and Marshall that he should have done it a year sooner than he did, we should never let those Old Soldiers who went on under Ridgway and Van Fleet to secure that victory fade away.
A short excerpt from an article entitled 'Royal Pains - What's in a Dame?' in the Nov. 2015 Town and Country magazine. Pages 210-211.
Britain's honours system, founded on more rugged battlefields, has been around since the a Middle Ages. Norman Kings bestowed knighthoods, orders of chivalry, and heraldry titles as part of England's feudal government, replacing the Anglo Saxon tradition of rewarding faithful service and gallantry in battle with grants of land, money, or weapons. Until the early 19th. century British chivalric orders were dispensed only to members of the aristocracy (heraldry dukes, earls, marquise's, and barons) and distinguished military figures.
These days Britain's system consists of six main orders of chivalry, each with its own ranks (as many as seven) and two orders of merit. They all have the statutes that dictate the size and colors of the corresponding insignia (badges, stars, ribbons, and sashes) ; how, when, and where they are worn; and post-nominal abbreviations. One of the cardinal rules of the current system is that British titles cannot be bought. Titles were blatantly sold by William the Conquerer during the 11th. century, and again in 1917, when the going rate for a knighthood was 10,000 £ and a hereditary baronetcy could be purchased for a whopping 40,000 £.
Today, in order of seniority and prestige, the chivalric orders are: the Most Noble Order of the Garter (relating to England and Wales); the Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle (for Scotland); the Most Honourable Order of the Bath (for Senior Civil Servants and military officers); the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George (diplomats and colonial servants); the Royal Victorian Order (for services to the crown); the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (for miscellaneous military and civil services). For snob value no honor outranks the Most Noble of the Garter, Britain's oldest order of chivalry. Founder in 1344, it is awarded at the sovereign's pleasure, as a personal gift, and is limited to the monarch, the Prince of Wales, and 24 members, known as Knights Companions or Ladies Companions.
To some ears "Garter" is a comical name for such a coveted prize. According to the legend it was begun after "a trivial mishap" at a court ball when King Edward III was dancing with his alleged mistress Joan, Countess of Salisbury. When her garter slithered to her ankle, nearby courtiers sniggered at her humiliation. The king, in an act of chivalry, stooped to pick up the garter and affix it to his own knee, declaring in French, "Honi soit qui mal y pense. Tel qui s'en rit aujourd'hui, s'honorerea de la porter," or "Shame on him who thinks evil of it. Those who laugh at it today will be proud to wear it in the future."
The Garter has for centuries been awarded to distinguished statesmen and military figures like the dashing Earl of Moubtbatten, who was appointed to the order in 1946. By the mid-1950's, however, some knights complained that standards were slipping. "The trouble with the Order of the Garter these days," the 7th. Duke of Wellington remarked, "is that it is full of field marshals and people who do their own washing-up." To me, it was an excellent article. Unfortunately I could not locate the author's name.
Garter Day: www.flickr.com/photos/britishmonarchy/albums/721576447897...
Honi Soit Qui Mal Y Pense - Empire. "Shame on him who thinks ill of it".
www.flickr.com/photos/21728045@N08/9851675205/in/photolis...
A possible seal for sealing envelopes with sealing wax. I didn't look at it closely. Who knows, it may be a broken spoon fixed to a base. I'll have to return. I returned and it looks like a sealing stamp.
K.G. - The Most Noble Order of the Garter -
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_the_Garter
The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an English order of chivalry with a history stretching back to medieval times; today it is the world's oldest national order of knighthood in continuous existence and the pinnacle of the British honours system. Its membership is extremely limited, consisting of the Sovereign and not more than twenty-five full members, or Companions. Male members are known as Knights Companions, whilst female members are known as Ladies Companions (not Dames, as in most other British chivalric orders). The Order can also include certain extra members (members of the British Royal Family and foreign monarchs), known as "Supernumerary" Knights and Ladies. The Sovereign alone grants membership of the Order; the Prime Minister does not tender binding advice as to appointments, as he or she does for most other orders.
As the name suggests, the Order's primary emblem is a garter bearing the motto "Honi soit qui mal y pense" (which means "Shame on him who thinks ill of it") in gold letters. The Garter is an actual accessory worn by the members of the Order during ceremonial occasions; it is also depicted on several insignia.
Most British orders of chivalry cover the entire kingdom, but the three most exalted ones each pertain to one constituent nation only. The Order of the Garter, which pertains to England, is most senior in both age and precedence; its equivalent in Scotland is The Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle. Whilst the Order of the Thistle was certainly in existence by the sixteenth century and possibly has medieval origins (or even, according to more fanciful legends, dates to the eighth century), the foundation of the institution in its modern form dates only to 1687. In 1783 an Irish equivalent, The Most Illustrious Order of St Patrick, was founded, but since the independence of the greater part of Ireland the Order has fallen dormant (its last surviving knight died in 1974).
History:
The Order was founded circa 1348 by Edward III as "a society, fellowship and college of knights." Various more precise dates ranging from 1344 to 1351 have been proposed; the wardrobe account of Edward III first shows Garter habits issued in the autumn of 1348. At any rate, the Order was most probably not constituted before 1346; the original statutes required that each member admitted to the Order already be a knight (what would today be called a knight bachelor), and several initial members of the Order were first knighted in that year.
Various legends have been set forth to explain the origin of the Order. The most popular one involves the "Countess of Salisbury" (it may refer to Joan of Kent, the King's future daughter-in-law, or to her then mother-in-law, whom Edward is known to have admired). Whilst she was dancing with the King at Eltham Palace, her garter is said to have slipped from her leg to the floor. When the surrounding courtiers sniggered, the King picked it up and tied it to his own leg, exclaiming "Honi soit qui mal y pense." (The French may be loosely translated as "Shame on him who thinks ill of it"; it has become the motto of the Order.) According to another myth, Richard I, whilst fighting in the Crusades, was inspired by St George to tie garters around the legs of his knights; Edward III supposedly recalled the event, which led to victory, when he founded the Order.
Composition:
Sovereign and Knights
Since its foundation, the Order of the Garter has included the Sovereign and Knights Companions. The Sovereign of the United Kingdom serves as Sovereign of the Order.
Queen Elizabeth II in Garter Robes:
The Prince of Wales is explicitly mentioned in the Order's statutes and is by convention created a Knight Companion; aside from him, there may be up to twenty-four other Knights Companions. In the early days of the Order, women (who could not be knighted), were sometimes associated with the Order under the name "Ladies of the Garter," but they were not full companions. Henry VII, however, ended the practice, creating no more Ladies of the Garter after his mother Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Derby (appointed in 1488).
Thereafter, the Order was exclusively male (except, of course, for the occasional female Sovereign) until 1901, when Edward VII created Queen Alexandra (his wife) a Lady of the Garter. Throughout the 20th century women continued to be admitted to the Order, but, except for foreign female monarchs, they were not full members of the Order until 1987, when it became possible, under a statute of Elizabeth II, to appoint "Ladies Companions."
In addition to the regular Knights and Ladies Companions, the Sovereign can also appoint "Supernumerary Knights". This concept was introduced in 1786 by George III so that his many sons would not count towards the limit of twenty-five companions set by the statutes; in 1805, he extended the category so that any descendant of George II could be created a Supernumerary Knight. Since 1831, the exception applies to all descendents of George I. Such companions, when appointed, are sometimes known as "Royal Knights."
From time to time, foreign monarchs have also been admitted to the Order; and for two centuries they also have not counted against the limit of twenty-five companions, being (like the Royal Knights aforementioned), supernumerary. Formerly, each such extra creation required the enactment of a special statute; this was first done in 1813, when Alexander I, Emperor of Russia was admitted to the Order. Many European monarchs are in fact descended from George I and can be appointed supernumerarily as such, but a statute of 1954 authorizes the regular admission of foreign Knights and Ladies without further special statutes irrespective of descent. The appellation "Stranger Knights," which dates to the middle ages, is sometimes applied to foreign monarchs in the Order of the Garter.
Generally, only foreign monarchs are made Stranger Knights or Ladies; when The Rt Hon. Sir Ninian Stephen (an Australian citizen) and Sir Edmund Hillary (from New Zealand) joined the Order, they did so as Knights Companions in the normal fashion. The British Sovereign is the head of state of both these countries, which were formerly British colonies.
Formerly, whenever vacancies arose, the Knights would conduct an "election," wherein each Knight voted for nine candidates (of which three had to be of the rank of Earl or above, three of the rank of Baron or above, and three of the rank of Knight or above). The Sovereign would then choose as many individuals as were necessary to fill the vacancies; he or she was not bound to choose the receivers of the greatest number of votes. Victoria dispensed with the procedure in 1862; thereafter, all appointments were made solely by the Sovereign. From the eighteenth century onwards, the Sovereign made his or her choices upon the advice of the Government. George VI felt that the Orders of the Garter and the Thistle had become too linked with political patronage; in 1946, with the agreement of the Prime Minister (Clement Attlee) and the Leader of the Opposition (Winston Churchill), he returned these two orders to the personal gift of the Sovereign.
Knights of the Garter could also be degraded by the Sovereign, who normally took such an action in response to serious crimes such as treason. The last degradation was that of James Butler, 2nd Duke of Ormonde, who had participated in the Jacobite Rebellion and had been convicted upon impeachment, in 1716. During the First World War, Knights who were monarchs of enemy nations were removed by the "annulment" of their creations; Knights Companions who fought against the United Kingdom were "struck off" the Rolls. All such annulments were made in 1915.
The Knights who were removed were:
Francis Joseph, Emperor of Austria
William II, Emperor of Germany
Ernst August, 3rd Duke of Cumberland
Prince Albert William Henry of Prussia
Ernest, Grand Duke of Hesse and the Rhine
William, Crown Prince of Germany
William II, King of Württemberg
The only Knight Companion to be struck off the Rolls was Prince Charles Edward, 2nd Duke of Albany.
Poor Knights:
At the original establishment of the Order, twenty-six "Poor Knights" were appointed and attached to the Order and its chapel at St. George's Chapel, Windsor. The number was not always maintained; by the seventeenth century, there were just thirteen Poor Knights. At his restoration, Charles II increased the number to eighteen. After they objected to being termed "poor", William IV renamed them the Military Knights of Windsor.
Poor Knights were originally impoverished military veterans. They were required to pray daily for the Sovereign and Knights Companions; in return, they received a salary, and were lodged in Windsor Castle. Today the Military Knights, who are no longer necessarily poor, but are still military pensioners, participate in the Order's processions, escorting the Knights and Ladies of the Garter, and in the daily services in St George's Chapel. They are not actually members of the Order itself, nor are they necessarily actual knights: indeed few if any have been knights.
Officers:
The Order of the Garter has six officers:
the Prelate
the Chancellor
the Registrar
the King of Arms
the Usher
the Secretary
The offices of Prelate, Registrar and Usher were created upon the Order's foundation; the offices of King of Arms and Chancellor were created during the fifteenth century, and that of Secretary during the twentieth.
The office of Prelate is held by the Bishop of Winchester, traditionally one of the senior bishops of the Church of England. The office of Chancellor was formerly held by the Bishop of the diocese within which Windsor fell— at one point, the Bishop of Salisbury, but after boundary changes the Bishop of Oxford. Later, the field was widened so that, for example, the Stuart courtier Sir James Palmer served as Chancellor from 1645 although he was neither a prelate nor even a companion (although he was a Knight Bachelor). Today, however, one of the companions serves as Chancellor. The Dean of Windsor is, ex officio, the Registrar.
Garter King of Arms is the head of the College of Arms (England's heraldic authority) and thus the "principal" herald for all England (along with Wales and Northern Ireland). As his title suggests, he also has specific duties as the heraldic officer of the Order of the Garter, attending to the companions' crests and coats of arms, which are exhibited in the Order's chapel (see below). The modern (1904) office of Secretary has also been filled by a professional herald.
The Order's Usher is the Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod. He is also the Serjeant-at-Arms of the House of Lords (although his functions there are more often performed by his deputy, the Yeoman Usher). The title of his office comes from his staff of office, the Black Rod.
Vestments and accoutrements:
Sovereign and Knights:
For the Order's great occasions, such as its annual service each June in Windsor Castle, as well for coronations, the Companions wear an elaborate costume:
Today Knights of the Garter wear their distinctive habits over ordinary suits or military uniforms. For the coronation of George IV in 1821, this version of Jacobean dress was devised.
Most importantly (although hardly visible), the Garter is a buckled velvet strap worn around the left calf by men and on the left arm by women. Originally light blue, today the Garter is dark blue. Those presented to Stranger Knights were once set with several jewels. The Garter bears the Order's motto in gold majuscules.
The mantle is a blue velvet robe. Knights and Ladies Companions have worn mantles, or coats, since the reign of Henry VII. Once made of wool, they had come to be made of velvet by the sixteenth century. The mantle was originally purple, but varied during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries between celestial blue, pale blue, royal blue, dark blue, violet and ultramarine. Today, mantles are dark blue in colour, and are lined with white taffeta. The mantles of the Sovereign and members of the Royal Family end in trains. Sewn onto the left shoulder of the mantle is a shield bearing St George's cross, encircled by a Garter; the Sovereign's mantle is slightly different, showing instead a representation of the star of the Order (see below). Attached to the mantle over the right shoulder are a crimson velvet hood and surcoat, which have lost all function over time and appear to the modern observer simply as a splash of colour. Today the mantle, which includes two large gold tassels, is worn over a regular suit or military uniform.
The hat is of black velvet, and bears a plume of white ostrich and black heron feathers.
Like the mantle, the collar was introduced during Henry VII's reign. Made of pure gold, it weighs 30 troy ounces (0.93 kilogram). The collar is composed of gold knots alternating with enamelled medallions showing a rose encircled by the blue garter. During Henry VII's reign, each garter surrounded two roses—one red and one white—but he later changed the design, such that each garter now encircles just one red rose. The collar is worn around the neck, over the mantle.
The George, a three-dimensional figurine of St George on horseback slaying a dragon, colourfully enamelled, is worn suspended from the collar.
Queen Victoria wearing the Garter around her arm.
Aside from these special occasions, however, much simpler insignia are used whenever a member of the Order attends an event at which decorations are worn.
The star, introduced by Charles I, is an eight-pointed silver badge; in its centre is an enamel depiction of the cross of St George, surrounded by the Garter. (Each of the eight points is depicted as a cluster of rays, with the four points of the cardinal directions longer than the intermediate ones.) It is worn pinned to the left breast. Formerly, the stars given to foreign monarchs were often inlaid with jewels. (Since the Order of the Garter is the UK's senior order, a member will wear its star above that of other orders to which he or she belongs; up to four orders' stars may be worn.)
The broad riband, introduced by Charles II, is a four inch wide sash, worn from the left shoulder to the right hip. (Depending on the other clothing worn, it either passes over the left shoulder, or is pinned beneath it.) The riband's colour has varied over the years; it was originally light blue, but was a dark shade under the Hanoverian monarchs. In 1950, the colour was fixed as "kingfisher blue". (Only one riband is worn at a time, even if a Knight or Lady belongs to several orders.)
The badge (sometimes known as the Lesser George) hangs from the riband at the right hip, suspended from a small
Insignia of the Order of the Garter:
gold link (formerly, before Charles II introduced the broad riband, it was around the neck). Like the George, it shows St George slaying the dragon, but it is flatter and monochromatically gold. In the fifteenth century, the Lesser George was usually worn attached to a ribbon around the neck. As this was not convenient when riding a horse, the custom of wearing it under the right arm developed.
However, on certain "collar days" designated by the Sovereign, members attending formal events may wear the Order's collar over their military uniform or eveningwear. The collar is fastened to the shoulders with silk ribbons. They will then substitute the broad riband of another order to which they belong (if any), since the Order of the Garter is represented by the collar.
Upon the death of a Knight or Lady, the insignia must be returned to the Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood. The badge and star are returned personally to the Sovereign by the nearest male relative of the deceased.
Poor Knights:
Poor Knights originally wore red mantles, each of which bore the cross of St George, but did not depict the Garter. Elizabeth I replaced the mantles with blue and purple gowns, but Charles I returned to the old red mantles. When the Poor Knights were renamed Military Knights, the mantles were abandoned. Instead, the Military Knights of Windsor now wear the old military uniform of an "army officer on the unattached list": black trousers, a scarlet coat, a cocked hat with a plume, and a sword on a white sash.
Officers:
The officers of the Order also have ceremonial vestments and other accoutrements that they wear and carry for the Order's annual service. The Prelate's and Chancellor's mantles are blue, like that of the knights (but since the Chancellor is now a member of the Order, he simply wears a knight's mantle), those of other officers crimson; all are embroidered with a shield bearing the Cross of St George. Garter King of Arms wears his tabard.
Assigned to each officer of the Order is a distinctive badge that he wears on a chain around his neck; each is surrounded by a representation of the garter. The Prelate's badge depicts St George slaying a dragon; the Garter within which it is depicted is surmounted by a bishop's mitre. The Chancellor's badge is a rose encircled by the Garter. The badge of Garter Principal King of Arms depicts the royal arms impaled (side-by-side) with the cross of St George. The Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod's badge depicts a knot within the Garter. The Registrar has a badge of a crown above two crossed quills, the Secretary two crossed quills in front of a rose.
The Chancellor of the Order bears a purse, embroidered with the royal arms, containing the Seal of the Order. The Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod carries his staff of office, the Black Rod. At the Order's great occasions, Garter Principal King of Arms bears his baton of office as a king of arms; he does not usually wear his crown.
Chapel:
The Chapel of the Order is St. George's Chapel, Windsor, located in the Lower Ward of Windsor Castle. It was founded for
At the order's annual gathering and service, the sovereign and companions — such as George VI and Queen Elizabeth, shown here — process through Windsor Castle to St. George's chapel.
the Order in 1475. The order once held frequent services at the Chapel, but they became rare in the eighteenth century. Discontinued after 1805, the ceremony was revived by George VI in 1948 and it has become an annual event. On a certain day each June, the members of the Order (wearing their ceremonial vestments and insignia) meet in the state apartments in the Upper Ward of Windsor Castle, then (preceded by the Military Knights) process on foot down through the castle to St George's Chapel for the service. If there are any new knights, they are installed on this occasion. After the service, the members of the Order return to the Upper Ward by carriage.
Each member of the Order, including the Sovereign, is allotted a stall in the quire of the chapel, above which his or her heraldic devices are displayed. Perched on the pinnacle of a knight's stall is his helm, decorated with a mantling and topped by his crest. Under English heraldic law, women other than monarchs do not bear helms or crests; instead, the coronet appropriate to the Lady's rank is used (see coronet). The crests of the Sovereign and Stranger Knights who are monarchs sit atop their crowns, which are themselves perched on their helms. Below each helm, a sword is displayed.
Above the crest or coronet, the knight's or lady's heraldic banner is hung, emblazoned with his or her coat of arms. At a considerably smaller scale, to the back of the stall is affixed a piece of brass (a "stall plate") displaying its occupant's name, arms and date of admission into the Order.
Upon the death of a Knight, the banner, helm, mantling, crest (or coronet or crown) and sword are taken down. No other newly admitted Knight may be assigned the stall until (after the funeral of the late Knight or Lady) a ceremony marking his or her death is observed at the chapel, during which Military Knights of Windsor carry the banner of the deceased Knight and offer it to the Dean of Windsor, who places it upon the altar. The stall plates, however, are not removed; rather, they remain permanently affixed somewhere about the stall, so the stalls of the chapel are festooned with a colourful record of the Order's Knights (and now Ladies) throughout history.
Precedence and privileges:
Knights and Ladies of the Garter are assigned positions in the order of precedence, coming before all others of knightly rank, and above baronets. (See order of precedence in England and Wales for the exact positions.) Wives, sons, daughters and
The arms of Knights and Ladies (as well as the Sovereign) may be encircled by the Garter.
daughters-in-law of Knights of the Garter also feature on the order of precedence; relatives of Ladies of the Garter, however, are not assigned any special precedence. (Generally, individuals can derive precedence from their fathers or husbands, but not from their mothers or wives.)
The Chancellor of the Order is also assigned precedence, but this is purely academic since today the Chancellor is always also a Knight Companion, with a higher position by that virtue.
(In fact, it is unclear whether the Chancellor's tabled precedence has ever come into effect, since under the old system the office was filled by a diocesan bishop of the Church of England, who again had higher precedence by virtue of that office than any that the Chancellorship could bestow on him.)
Knights Companions prefix "Sir," and Ladies Companions prefix "Lady," to their forenames. Wives of Knights Companions may prefix "Lady" to their surnames, but no equivalent privilege exists for husbands of Ladies Companions. Such forms are not used by peers and princes, except when the names of the former are written out in their fullest forms.
Knights and Ladies use the post-nominal letters "KG" and "LG," respectively. When an individual is entitled to use multiple post-nominal letters, KG or LG appears before all others, except "Bt" (Baronet), "VC" (Victoria Cross) and "GC" (George Cross).
The Sovereign, Knights and Ladies Companions and Supernumerary Knights and Ladies may encircle their arms with a representation of the Garter; and since it is Britain's highest order of knighthood, the Garter will tend to be displayed in preference to the insignia of any other order, unless there is special reason to highlight a junior one. (They may further encircle the Garter with a depiction of Order's collar, but this very elaborate version is seldom seen.) Stranger Knights, of course, do not embellish the arms they use at home with foreign decorations such as the Garter; likewise, while the UK Royal Arms as used in England are encircled by the Garter, in Scotland they are surrounded by the circlet of the Order of the Thistle instead. (In Wales and Northern Ireland, the English pattern is followed.)
Knights and Ladies are also entitled to receive heraldic supporters. These are relatively rare among private individuals in the UK. While some families claim supporters by ancient use and others have been granted them as a special reward, only peers, Knights and Ladies of the Garter and Thistle, and Knights and Dames Grand Cross and Knights Grand Commanders of certain junior orders are entitled to claim an automatic grant of supporters (upon payment of the appropriate fees to the College of Arms).
Current members and officers:
Sovereign: HM The Queen
Knights and Ladies Companions:
HRH The Prince of Wales KG KT GCB OM AK QSO PC ADC (1958)
His Grace The Duke of Grafton KG DL (1976)
The Rt Hon. The Lord Richardson of Duntisbourne KG MBE TD PC DL (1983)
The Rt Hon. The Lord Carrington KG GCMG CH MC PC JP DL (1985)
His Grace The Duke of Wellington KG LVO OBE MC DL (1990)
Field Marshal The Rt Hon. The Lord Bramall KG GCB OBE MC JP (1990)
The Rt Hon. The Viscount Ridley KG GCVO TD (1992)
The Rt Hon. The Lord Sainsbury of Preston Candover KG (1992)
The Rt Hon. The Lord Ashburton KG KCVO DL (1994)
The Rt Hon. The Lord Kingsdown KG PC (1994)
The Rt Hon. Sir Ninian Stephen KG AK GCMG GCVO KBE (1994)
The Rt Hon. The Baroness Thatcher LG OM PC FRS (1995)
Sir Edmund Hillary KG ONZ KBE (1995)
Sir Timothy Colman KG JP (1996)
His Grace The Duke of Abercorn Bt KG (1999)
Sir William Gladstone of Fasque and Balfour Bt KG DL (1999)
Field Marshal The Rt Hon. The Lord Inge KG GCB DL (2001)
Sir Antony Arthur Acland KG GCMG GCVO (2001)
His Grace The Duke of Westminster KG OBE TD DL (2003)
The Rt Hon. The Lord Butler of Brockwell KG GCB CVO PC (2003)
The Rt Hon. The Lord Morris of Aberavon KG PC QC (2003)
The Rt Hon. Sir John Major KG CH (2005)
The Rt Hon. The Lord Bingham of Cornhill KG PC (2005)
The Rt Hon. The Lady Soames LG DBE (2005)
(one vacancy following the death of The Rt Hon. Sir Edward Heath KG MBE)
Royal Knights and Ladies (supernumerary knights and ladies descended from George I):
HRH The Duke of Edinburgh KG KT OM GBE AC QSO PC (1947)
HRH The Duke of Kent KG GCMG GCVO (1985)
HRH The Princess Royal LG LT GCVO QSO (1994)
HRH The Duke of Gloucester KG GCVO (1997)
HRH Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy LG GCVO (2003)
Stranger Knights and Ladies:
HRH Grand Duke Jean sometime Grand Duke of Luxembourg (1972)
HM The Queen of Denmark (1979)
HM The King of Sweden (1983)
HM The King of Spain (1988)
HM The Queen of the Netherlands (1989)
HIM The Emperor of Japan (1998)
HM The King of Norway (2001)
Officers:
Prelate: The Rt Revd Michael Scott-Joynt (Lord Bishop of Winchester)
Chancellor: The Rt Hon. The Lord Carrington KG GCMG CH MC PC DL
Registrar: The Rt Revd David Conner (Dean of St George's Chapel, Windsor)
King of Arms: Peter Llewellyn Gwynn-Jones Esq. CVO (Garter Principal King of Arms)
Secretary: Patric Dickinson Esq. CVO (Richmond Herald)
Usher: Lt-Gen. Sir Michael Willcocks KCB (Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod).
Try this beam of Masonic light:
Toa Poraru is mostly a color-swapped Emperor clone with some minor changes, but this is deliberate since they're the same character, technically. Their torso may seem the most variant, but the structure is actually 100% the same, however instead of Armor Poraru just uses fabric to cover it up. One "non-canon" difference is that Poraru is one unit shorter - The Mata head limits posability when using a 3-length axle, but the neck looks comically long with a 4-length, however with the Emperor, I could use the cape to compensate. In Poraru's case, there is no cape and he'd look really stupid with a longer neck.
Backstory:
Toa Poraru was once a completely ordinary and uninteresting Toa of Stone. He had some misgivings about the Toa code and sometimes was vocal about this, but other than this, he was a by-the-book Toa doing his duty. He and his Toa team protected their small village somewhere in a minor island of the Southern Isles. His life was entirely unremarkable until a few centuries before Teridax's uprising, a Makuta went mad on the Northern Continent (presumably due to a poorly conducted experiment) and went into a crazed rampage. The Brotherhood wanted to contain him, but were unsuccessful, and fearing a controversy, instead "lured" the Makuta southward.
Poraru's team heard in advance of what was coming their way, and planned to intercept the enraged Makuta in a region far from their village. They succeeded in this endeavor, and together the six of them even managed to defeat the Makuta, however it was in a complete blood-rage and wouldn't give up. Poraru's suggestion to "put the Makuta out of its misery" was repeatedly rejected by the leader of the team citing the Toa Code. However, their attempts to contain the bestial creature failed, and after escaping, it headed straight for their village. By the time the Toa arrived, the village was in ruins and the Matoran massacred. This was the last straw for Poraru - the Toa Code which in the past had merely inconvenienced him, was now directly responsible for the death of those he swore to protect. Desiring vengeance, he set off to kill the Makuta, and was joined by two other Toa from his team who shared his views, while the other three remained and effectively exiled them.
They tracked down the Makuta, and since they now fought to kill, their change in strategy caught him off-guard, allowing them to injure him severely. Alas, once again, their prey got away. In retaliation for the injury, it swing back to the ruins and ambushed the three Toa who refused to hunt him down. Blaming themselves for the death of their brothers, Poraru and the other two Toa swore to finally end the rampage of this crazed Makuta. On their third confrontation, thanks to the injury, they finally killed him - however only Poraru survived the conflict.
Having lost any purpose in life, he began wandering about the Southern Isles. At one point, in a seedy inn, he overheard a boastful merchant from Stelt bragging about finding a source of Energized Protodermis which wasn't under the control of either the Brotherhood of Makuta nor the Hand of Arthaka. He "persuaded" the merchant to reveal the location of the font, and travelled there immediately. He knew that anyone coming into contact with energized protodermis is either killed, or, provided they yet have an unfulfilled destiny, changed. If he dies, so be it, but if this would give him a new purpose, all the better.
Upon arriving to the cave, he was surprised to see that the merchant did not mislead him, and plunged into the pool. When he emerged, he saw his reflection on nearby crystal formations - he hadn't changed much, but the color of his armor was now black and silver. In his mind floated, ever present, two words - "Emperor" and "Unity". He was compelled to return to the site of his former village. On this journey, he began making some realizations. His control over Stone was gone, replaced by telepathic, telekinetic and teleconductive abilities. Then, he realized he can revert to his old form at will, and then his control over Stone returns at the expense of his new abilities. In dream, he realized his new purpose in life was to achieve absolute Unity across the known world. For this, he'd need followers. During his journeys, he sought out disenfranchised warriors, exiled Toa, former Dark Hunters and any other beings who would follow him. They returned to his old home and founded the United Southern Empire.
Planning his expansion, a single problem constantly returned - Metru Nui. He hadn't the military force to conquer it, and it would never join the Empire willingly so long as it was governed by a Turaga and overseen by a Makuta. If he'd push northward gradually, annexing and conquering smaller lands and working his way up, they'd make note of the threat and send an army of Toa against him. However, he had one advantage - everyone who knew he once broke the Toa code was dead. As far as Metru Nui was concerned, Poraru was still Toa Poraru. And thus the plan was born - he alone would venture north, while his lieutenants would continue the conquest of the south. He, as Poraru, would infiltrate the Toa order, while as the Emperor would gain the support of other factions, so that unwittingly all players in the north would further the imperial cause.
His plan was upended by Teridax's uprising against the Great Spirit, and during his Reign of Shadows, the Emperor fought alongside the Toa Resistance against Teridax's forces, all the while ensuring the secret of Poraru and he being one and the same didn't get out. When Teridax fell and Spherus Magna was united, the Emperor led his people to a new home, from which they would endeavor to unite this new world.
For the rest of this story, check out the description under the other MOC, "The Emperor".
~Walt Streightiff
Went to Kanheri caves today.. Its at Sanjay Gandhi National Park (Mumbai)
There, in the stream two lil kids were playing with their parents.. this was the youngest one.. One year old.
His name " Zeus" .... Was so adorable.. Clicked him the instance i saw him.
Even his lil older bro was adorable. Will soon post his snaps too..
Zeus din want to get wet....completely..! So he was crying..!
He din want to sit in the water...
Loved his expressions.. so posting a series of it..
House at Pikk 23/25, Tallinn, Estonia.
"Among the details, a comical sculpture of an old man gazing across the street through his pince-nez has given rise to plenty of local stories. This and the other ornamentation was executed by the renowned Riga-based sculptor August Volz."
Jacques Rosenbaum (full name: Jacques Gustav-Adolf Rosenbaum-Ehrenbush) (1 July 1878 in Haapsalu, Estonia – 6 January 1944 in Berlin, Germany) was an Estonian architect of Baltic German descent.
Early life
Rosenbaum came from a Baltic German bourgeois family and possibly had Jewish ancestors. His father was a lawyer and his paternal grandfather was also an architect.
Rosenbaum grew up in Haapsalu and Tallinn. In 1897, he married Adrienne Kerkovius. The couple had five children. In 1896 Rosenbaum began his studies in chemistry and architecture at Riga Polytechnic Institute in Riga. He graduated from university in 1904.
After finishing his studies in 1904, Rosenbaum became town architect of Tartu. In 1907, he left the position and moved to Tallinn.
House on Pikk 23/25
In 1908, Rosenbaum completed a project for one Reinhold Reichmann on the corner of the two streets Pikk and Hobuspea in old town, Tallinn.
In this, the first building by Rosenbaum that was actually built, his eclectic style and love of ornamentation is already apparent.
The building is not easily classified aesthetically into either of the then-popular architectural styles.
It shows influences of Art Nouveau, German neo-Renaissance and neo-Mannerism, all of which is expressed in the wealth of ornamentation.
The building on Pikk 23/25 also displays Rosenbaum's ideas on town planning, in that the architect has tried to enliven the urban space through the use of a corner tower with a twisting dome, balconies and other architectural ornamentation. It has been suggested that he was inspired by the theoretical works of Camillo Sitte in this and other projects.
The house on Pikk 23/25 was well received in the local press, and helped establish Rosenbaum as an architect in Tallinn.
Carte de visite by Geo. H. Brown & Co. of Louisville, Ky. A comical collage-caricature of a man’s head on a body, holding an umbrella and bundle of goods tied to a stick, and legs in motion, leaves no doubt he is leaving town quickly. The drawing of a large boot and trouser leg extending from the right side of the frame tells the viewer he did not leave by his own volition.
The life and career of photographer George H. Brown is currently a mystery. Various searches have turned up scant information—active as a photographer at Mammoth Cave in Kentucky in 1863, and an uncatalogued item in the University of Louisville Archives & Special Collections: “Two cartes de visite portraits of Robert Brown and George Brown, by "Geo. H. Brown & Co. / No. 72 Fourth Street / Louisville Ky." These may be portraits of the photographer and his father.”
I encourage you to use this image for educational purposes only. However, please ask for permission.
I got this image of a squirrel who has obviously been burying nuts in a muddy bit of the forest judging by his nose, brings a whole new meaning to brown nose!
Since HSM Gabriella had to give up her body (well, half of it) to make Jane's new body, I put her on a Fashionista body instead. I actually like her a lot better this way: her head looks more realistic and to scale, instead of being almost comically oversized on the teen body. It's s great face sculpt and it deserves a body that makes it look good.
She's wearing Jane's stock outfit since it doesn't fit her anymore. It doesn't quite fit Gabriella either, but the colors look good on her. She reminds me a bit of Jackie Kennedy, although that may just be the hair.
CY365. Even Grandma & Grandpa got into the fun of Sophie's 10th birthday mustache party. There were activities like the photo booth, name that stache, grab a stache, pin the stache and the stache dash.
Our DIL is amazingly creative and spent weeks preparing for this. Sophie will never forget her special day.
MORE PHOTOS IN COMMENTS
Taken for 40/52 in 2015 Challenge (text or words)
Taken for ODC- Comical
Taken for ODT -Note, Caution, or Warning
It was so comical watching Mr. Peanuts checking out the mirror. the first time he looked into it he ran away, then came back slowly, and cautiously looked into it again...Once he realized it was not the nieghouring rival, he seemed OK and then decided there should be peanuts somewhere..as a reward, i put them in the little drawer and left it open for him.
bokeh texture by skeletalmess; www.flickr.com/photos/skeletalmess/3732560490/in/set-7215...
Supplied to Bournemouth New, www.bnps.co.uk, March 2013
The horse doesn't fly anymore. It does something ruder. Another sign on my way to work, thoughtfully modified by the comical people of my home city.
These are some comical-looking seabirds. The Blue-Footed Booby are found on Isla de la Plata, they are coastal birds, taking flight during the day catching seafood. But I managed to find these two love birds, catching some shade in the beating sun.
An itty bitty blazer
This blazer is comically small. When I take it off, I have to admit it looks like a child’s garment.
Long, boyfriend-style blazers are in style, but I do love this little, shrunken, wool jacket. I got it at a consignment store a few years ago and suspect it’s a Bebe knockoff, but the label doesn’t matter to me. I like the way it doesn’t overwhelm my frame or my dresses. It’s a nice, little accent piece (and it has pockets).
Blazer, Bebe (consignment). Dress, Calvin Klein (thrifted). Tights, We Love Colors. Loafers, ASOS.
The original had comically large wheels and a disproportionate wheel base. I shortened the wheel base by three studs and the overall length by two and a bit, reworked the front end, tweaked the color scheme, made it a 7-wide and lost all the playabiity of the original.
Pelicans are so comical!
Please note that all my images are copyrighted to me Holly Kempe aka fotofantasea.
If you wish to use any of my images in anyway you need written permission from me first to do so. Please email me at hollyk200@hotmail.com I’d love to hear from you or
VISIT MY WEBSITE - Photographic Artwork by Holly Kempe
Sunshine and Happiness always
Holly
Lighter/more comical depiction of the male characters from the MaLo MaLo storyline I'd originally invented 20 plus years back, but modified over recent times to include Japanese influences and issues of mental health problems.
MaLo
A teenage boy, whose parents disappear, reinvents himself via 70's sub-culture. He is later given a more stable environment through Benedict "Benny" Morgan, his new form tutor, who he views as a father figure till the illusion of it breaks down. His real name is Michael, but adopts the name MaLo from a song by Rock Legend Raymond Katana called "MaLo MaLo"
The Kimono Man
A troublesome, temperamental and sometimes volatile character who encourages MaLo to adopt the same "SaVaGe EnLiGhTeNmeNt" as his own as a means to come to terms with rejection.
Benedict "Benny" Morgan
Northern Irish schoolteacher and former student at Tiny Thameston Arts School. He becomes a hero/father figure to MaLo but the illusion breaks down prompting the arrival of the Kimono Man. He is ridiculed savagely later in the storyline for forming closer friendships and relationships only among those who allow him to have the loudest voice and strongest personality.
The 9th Dreamer
A former student at Tiny Thameston Arts School discovered among a cache of old photos, including Benedict Morgan, involved in an Early Post-Modern Photography project. He was shunned from the group for "erratic and random" behaviour and is recalled among a number of embarrassing memories for both male and female characters in the storyline . MaLo identifies with him in one or two imaginings.
Raymond Katana
Rock Legend renowned in later years as an early "GothFather". Idolised by MaLo, he is snubbed by Katana for emulating his music style. MaLo's rage following this helps transforms him to the troublesome "SKuNk RoCkEr" he becomes in later year.
A surreal, comical artwork of a lobster reclining on a plush pink seashell chair at the bottom of the ocean. The lobster lounges casually like a human, holding a frothy pint of beer in one claw. In the background, a sleek submarine cruises by, launching a torpedo that humorously fizzes like carbonation as if aimed at the drink. The underwater setting glows with soft, filtered light, adding depth and atmosphere to the whimsical scene. A playful mix of fantasy, satire, and photorealistic detail, 8K cinematic style.