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Trust the weatherman they said. The weekly forecast was consistently pointing towards a sunny Friday this past week. With Friday off of work, I had plans to head out with my camera since it has been a while. Of course, when I woke up it was nothing but clouds.
I decided to forego my plans and instead made it a day of running errands. Knowing the local already went east earlier in the morning, I had the scanner on while getting ready to head to Rochester. Just before heading out the door the scanner chirped and sure enough it was the local heading back west and they had just hit the 61.4 detector east of town. Luck would be on my side as a heavy snow squall had just hit town. I quickly grabbed my camera and we were out the door as the timing would be close by the time we got to the nearest crossing.
As a burst of heavy snow falls, the local approaches the 8th Avenue crossing on the west side of Kasson, MN. Today's work involved picking up an empty centerbeam of the Seneca spur in Rochester. The crew will pick up the remainder of their train left in Dodge Center and then head for their home terminal in Waseca to end the day.
Visita nuestro Blog de Semana Santa en:
asociacionredobles.blogspot.com
Actos que se van a desarrollar durante la conmemoración del 200º aniversario del
rescate del Cristo de la Cama, consistente en el traslado de la Imagen desde la Iglesia
de Santa Isabel de Portugal (vulgo San Cayetano) a la Basílica del Pilar.
El rescate se produjo el 17 de febrero de 1809 del Convento de San Francisco, lo que
actualmente es la Diputación Provincial. El día 10 los franceses volaron el Convento,
que era defendido por unos cuantos aragoneses y por los voluntarios de Valencia. El
día 17, María Blánquez entro en el convento y vio que todos los pasos que
procesionan en Semana santa, quince en total, estaban destruidos, salvo el Santísimo
Cristo de la Cama, que estaba indemne en su Capilla de la Hermandad. Salió a la
calle, cogió a cuatro hombres, volvió a entrar al convento y todos ellos cogieron al
Cristo de la cama. Lo llevaron primero a la parroquia de la santa Cruz, después a la
de Santiago y finalmente al Palacio Arzobispal, lugar en donde vivía el general
Palafox, que enfermo lo venero y ordeno fuera llevado al interior de la Basílica del
Pilar, siendo colocado en el Altar de los convertido mirando a su Madre, la virgen del
Pilar.
Este hecho es el que conmemoramos.
A las 18´00 horas se oirá en la Ciudad de Zaragoza a los Artilleros de Aragón
anunciando el comienzo de la procesión cívico religiosa.
Con la salida desde San Cayetano de la Bandera de la Hermandad de la Sangre de
Cristo dará comienzo la procesión, encontrándose el resto de participantes ubicados
en la plaza. Seguidamente saldrá la peana, portada a varal, del Cristo de la Cama. Lo
hará con un toque preparado para la ocasión por la Sección de Tambores de la
Hermandad de San Joaquín y Virgen de los Dolores. Una vez que nuestro Cristo de la
Cama este en la plaza sonara el Himno Nacional interpretado al órgano por Ignacio
Navarro Gil.
Finalizado el himno, se descubrirá una placa en cerámica de Muel, promovida por la
Asociación Cultural Redobles. Dicha placa será descubierta por el Ilmo. Sr. D.
Francisco Javier Lambán Montañés, o persona en quien en delegue, acompañado por
el Hermano Mayor de la Hermandad de la Sangre de Cristo. A la vez que se descubre
la placa, don José Antonio Armillas, Comisario del Bicentenario glosara brevemente
la figura de María Blánquez y lo que ella significo.
Finalizado este acto, dará comienzo en sí el desfile.
Por la calle Manifestación, calle Alfonso y calle Coso, nos dirigiremos a la plaza de
España, en donde se realiza el segundo acto del desfile. Este consiste en depositar dos
coronas de laurel. La primera en la placa que recuerda al Convento de San Francisco
y la segunda en el monumento a los Mártires.
La del Convento de San Francisco será portada por mujeres ataviadas con el traje
regional, en recuerdo y homenaje a María Blánquez. Entregada por don Francisco
Javier Lambán Montañés (o persona en quién delegue), le acompañaran el
Comandante Militar de Zaragoza, General Juan Pinto y el Hermano Mayor de la
Sangre de Cristo. La recibirán dos soldados del Batallón Pardos de Aragón.
La segunda corona, la entregara don Juan Alberto Belloch Julve (o persona en quién
delegue), acompañado también por el Comandante Militar y el Hermano Mayor,
siendo recibida por dos soldados del Batallón de Infantería Voluntarios de Aragón.
Durante este acto sonara en la plaza el Carillón de la Diputación Provincial con
marchas alusivas a los Sitios.
Finalizado el acto, continuaremos el desfile en dirección a la Plaza de la Seo por calle
don Jaime, calle Mayor, calle Dormer, calle Cisne y calle Cuellar.
En la plaza de la Seo se realiza el tercer y último acto. Consiste en una breve
alocución del General Pinto, Comandante Militar de Zaragoza y Teruel, en recuerdo
y homenaje del General Palafox. A Su conclusión, el Batallón de Infantería
Voluntarios de Aragón hará una descarga de fusilería.
Ya para finalizar, nos encaminaremos a la plaza del Pilar, finalizando el desfile,
alrededor de las 20´30 horas, con la entrada del Cristo de la Cama en la Basílica, en
donde permanecerá hasta el miércoles 25 de febrero.
Finalizado el desfile y por lo tanto el traslado, la Hermandad de la Sangre de Cristo
realizara una ofrenda a la Virgen del Pilar.
La Hermandad de la Sangre de Cristo, con el fin de dar mayor realce a este
acontecimiento histórico, ha invitado a participar a todos aquellos Ayuntamientos e
Instituciones galardonados con la Medalla del Bicentenario “Defensor de Zaragoza”,
distinción que también ha obtenido la propia Hermandad. Han confirmado su
asistencia una representación de los Ayuntamientos de Alcañiz, Barbastro, Calatayud,
Cariñena, Chelva, Huesca, Jaca, monzón y Valencia. También han confirmado su
participación los Artilleros de Aragón, Batallón Pardos de Aragón, Batallón de
Infantería Ligera Voluntarios de Aragón, la Asociación Cultural Royo del Rabal
(ronda y escenificación de personajes históricos de la época), la Asociación Cultural
Los Sitios (personajes históricos de la época), la Hermandad de San Juan de la Peña,
la Cofradía del Santo Sepulcro, la Hermandad del santo Refugio, la Real Ilustre
Congregación de Nuestra Señora de la Soledad de Madrid y la Real Maestranza de
Caballería.
La parte musical durante el desfile correrá a cargo de la Banda de Guerra de la
Brigada de Caballería Castillejos II, de la Banda Música de la Academia General
Militar y la Ronda de jotas de la Asociación Cultural el Rabal. Durante el desfile y
con el fin de que los peaneros lleven el ritmo adecuado, les acompaña un piquete de
diez instrumentos, cuyos miembros son de la cofradía de la Institución de la Sagrada
Eucaristía, que lo harán sin los distintivos propios de la Cofradía.
Cabe destacar el estreno de una marcha procesional en las calles de Zaragoza. La
primera y ultima pieza que interprete la Banda de Música será la Marcha al Cristo de
la Cama, cuyo autor es don Abel Moreno y que fue donada a la Hermandad por la
Asociación para el Estudio de la Semana Santa.
Ernesto Millán Lázaro
Hermano Mayor
Hermandad Sangre de Cristo
Joel Parkinson Leads ASP Top Stars in Assault on Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach Round 1
BELLS BEACH, Victoria/Australia (Wednesday, April 20, 2011) – Today marks the commencement of the 50th Anniversary of competition surfing at Bells Beach as Round 1 of the 2011 Rip Curl Pro Bells presented by Ford Ranger got underway in clean four-to-six foot (1.5 - 2 metre) surf.
The Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach, the second stop on the 2011 ASP World Title season, enjoyed consistent surf throughout the day as the world’s best surfers unleashed a barrage of high-performance ripping on the classic canvas of Bells Beach.
Joel Parkinson (AUS), 30, 2009 Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach Champion put in a sensational performance this afternoon, electing to sit up at Rincon to secure the day’s highest scores.. Parkinson locked in the highest wave score and the highest heat score of the opening day of competition scoring 17.74 (out of a possible 20.00) to advance directly through to Round 3 of competition.
"I fell off twice on the bowl," Parkinson said. "It was really hard to ride. Then CJ (Hobgood) went across to Rincon and got a score, so we followed him over and it worked out for me. It's great to get that opening heat win, especially at Bells. You never know what conditions you're going to get in a heat, so to be able to skip round two and maybe get a day off is a huge advantage."
Kelly Slater (USA), 39, reigning 10-time ASP World Champion and defending event winner, was clinical in his attack in his Round 1 heat. Slater had his fellow competitors Adam Robertson (AUS), 28, and Kai Otton (AUS), 31, on the ropes only minutes into the heat, scoring an impressive 16.00 (out of a possible 20.00) on his opening two rides.
"I don't free surf out at Bells a whole lot," Slater said. "When the waves are good the comp is on and outside of that it's pretty crowded. So I'm still learning with each heat out there still, surfing against a guy like Robbo (Adam Robertson) you've got to watch where he's sitting, how far our and how deep."
Mick Fanning (AUS), 29, currently equal 13th in the hunt for the 2011 ASP World Title, went into today’s competition with renewed vigor after a shock early exit at the last event on the Gold Coast. The past two-time ASP World Champion came out and dominated his Round 1 battle over Tiago Pires (PRT), 31, and Gabriel Medina (BRA), 17.
"I'm stoked to get a good start," Fanning said. "It's been 10 years since I won here as I wildcard, I got close last year but Kelly Slater got me in the final. You want to win every event, but being the 50th Anniversary and so much history at this event, it's like the Wimbeldon of surfing, it's a hard one to win but it's the one everyone wants."
Alejo Muniz (BRA), 21, led today’s rookie charge, continuing his sensational run after the and equal 5th on the Gold Coast, and dispatching of fellow Brazilian Ranoi Monterio (BRA), 28, and Australian Adrian Buchan (AUS), 28 in this morning’s opening round heat.
"It's so good out there!" Muniz said. "This is my first time surfing at Bells and it's the most amazing place. It's got perfect rights, and it's the kind of wave that I love to surf. It's the best place ever, best waves, best weather and I love surfing in wetsuits."
Jeremy Flores (FRA), 22, bounced back after missing the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast with a knee injury, to score a comprehensive win over Taylor Knox (USA), 39, and Cory Lopez (USA), 34.
"I wasn't very confident before the heat," Flores said. "But I got that first wave and did a big turn at the end and got a good score. I think that's what you need to do these days, finish the wave strong. My knee still isn't 100%, but I went for it and it's good to win. Big thanks to everyone at the Gold Coast Suns Football Club for helping with my knee, it's feeling much better now."
Stu Kennedy (AUS), 21, scored a last minute wildcard into the event and caused the upset of the day, eliminating 2010 ASP World Title runner-up Jordy Smith (ZAF), 23, and Dusty Payne (HAW), 22.
"I've been coming here for years," Kennedy said. "I won a Pro Junior here in 2008 and I know where to sit. I don't think Dusty and Jordy know the break as well as I do so that helps. I've been up since 3am because I'm jet-lagged from coming home from Scotland. I woke up with a bunch of energy it's my shaper's birthday so I woke him up at 5am to go surfing. I had to win my heat for him for his birthday."
When men’s competition resumes, up first will be 2010 ASP World Runner-Up Jordy Smith (ZAF), 23, up against Trials Winner Adam Robertson (AUS), 28, in the opening heat of Round 2.
Following the completion of the men’s Round 1 today, the ASP Top 17 hit the water for Round 1 of the Rip Curl Women’s Pro Bells Beach presented by Ford Fiesta.
Stephanie Gilmore (AUS), 23, reigning four-time ASP Women’s World Champion and defending three-time Rip Curl Women’s Bells Beach winner, returned to her winning ways today, after bowing out early at the last event, the Roxy Pro Gold Coast.
"My first two years on tour I didn't have great results on the Gold Coast," Gilmore said. "I always bounced back at this event and then finished the year well, so hopefully I'll do that again this year. The Gold Coast was a fine showing of what women's surfing is up to now and everyone has to try and keep up. It really pushes me and I think anyone who wins an event from now on will be a very deserving winner because of that fact."
Pauline Ado (FRA), 19, the French rookie caused the upset of the women's event, defeating current ASP World Title front runner Carissa Moore (HAW), 18, in a nail biter of a heat.
"I'm really happy, I had a lot of fun out there," Ado said "I got one of my good waves in the first few seconds so after that I felt confident and knew I could be more selective and wait for the right wave. A heat against Carissa is always a tough one, so I'm really stoked to win."
When women’s competition resumes, up first will be Paige Hareb (NZL) and Jessi Miley-Dyer (AUS) in the opening heat of Round 2.
Event organizers will reconvene tomorrow morning at 7am to assess conditions for a possible 7:30am start.
Highlights from the Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach presented by FORD will be webcast available via www.live.ripcurl.com and broadcast live on Fuel TV in Australia and ESPN in Brazil.
For more information, log onto www.aspworldtour.com
RIP CURL PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 1 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Alejo Muniz (BRA) 13.23, Adrian Buchan (AUS) 11.26, Raoni Monteiro (BRA) 7.37
Heat 2: Adam Melling (AUS) 14.50, Josh Kerr (AUS) 12.30, Taj Burrow (AUS) 11.00
Heat 3: Heitor Alves (BRA) 14.36, Bobby Martinez (USA) 14.14, Owen Wright (AUS) 10.60
Heat 4: Mick Fanning (AUS) 15.60, Tiago Pires (PRT) 11.07, Gabriel Medina (BRA) 9.27
Heat 5: Stu Kennedy (AUS) 11.70, Dusty Payne (HAW) 10.50, Jordy Smith (ZAF) 9.00
Heat 6: Kelly Slater (USA) 16.00, Kai Otton (AUS) 10.13, Adam Robertson (AUS) 8.53
Heat 7: Jeremy Flores (FRA) 13.17, Cory Lopez (USA) 5.83, Taylor Knox (USA) 4.67
Heat 8: Michel Bourez (PYF) 12.60, Kieren Perrow (AUS) 10.20, Gabe Kling (USA) 3.50
Heat 9: Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 14.60, Damien Hobgood (USA) 11.23, Daniel Ross (AUS) 11.07
Heat 10: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 17.74, C.J. Hobgood (USA) 11.44, Bede Durbidge (AUS) 8.17
Heat 11: Adriano de Souza (BRA) 14.60, Chris Davidson (AUS) 10.83, Julian Wilson (AUS) 9.83
Heat 12: Patrick Gudauskas (USA) 13.40, Jadson Andre (BRA) 9.43, Brett Simpson (USA) 8.93
RIP CURL PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 2 MATCH-UPS:
Heat 1: Jordy Smith (ZAF) vs. Adam Robertson (AUS)
Heat 2: Owen Wright (AUS) vs. Gabriel Medina (BRA)
Heat 3: Taj Burrow (AUS) vs. Bobby Martinez (USA)
Heat 4: Adrian Buchan (AUS) vs. Josh Kerr (AUS)
Heat 5: Damien Hobgood (USA) vs. Raoni Monteiro (BRA)
Heat 6: Bede Durbidge (AUS) vs. Cory Lopez (USA)
Heat 7: Brett Simpson (USA) vs. Gabe Kling (USA)
Heat 8: Jadson Andre (BRA) vs. Daniel Ross (AUS)
Heat 9: Chris Davidson (AUS) vs. Julian Wilson (AUS)
Heat 10: C.J. Hobgood (USA) vs. Kai Otton (AUS)
Heat 11: Kieren Perrow (AUS) vs. Dusty Payne (HAW)
Heat 12: Taylor Knox (USA) vs. Tiago Pires (PRT)
RIP CURL WOMEN’S PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 1 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Sofia Mulanovich (PER) 12.93, Chelsea Hedges (AUS) 8.70, Jessi Miley-Dyer (AUS) 8.66
Heat 2: Silvana Lima (BRA) 14.94, Laura Enever (AUS) 8.84, Melanie Bartels (HAW) 7.54
Heat 3: Pauline Ado (HAW) 14.60, Carissa Moore (HAW) 14.44, Nikki Van Dijk (AUS) 10.63
Heat 4: Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 16.30, Courtney Conlogue (USA) 9.00, Bethany Hamilton (HAW) 6.50
Heat 5: Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 16.10, Alana Blanchard (HAW) 12.83 Paige Hareb (NZL) 7.47
Heat 6: Coco Ho (HAW) 12.90, Tyler Wright (AUS) 12.00, Pauline Ado (FRA) 6.37
RIP CURL WOMEN’S PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 2 MATCH-UPS:
Heat 1: Paige Hareb (NZL) vs. Jessi Miley-Dyer (AUS)
Heat 2: Laura Enever (AUS) vs. Melanie Bartels (HAW)
Heat 3: Carissa Moore (HAW) vs. Nikki Van Dijk (AUS)
Heat 4: Chelsea Hedges (AUS) vs. Bethany Hamilton (HAW)
Heat 5: Tyler Wright (AUS) vs. Alana Blanchard (HAW)
Heat 6: Courtney Conlogue (USA) vs. Rebecca Woods (AUS)
Photo ASP/Scholtz
Lundy Granite walling of the lighthouse tower of the Old Light, Lundy.
Peregrine Harriers(*) Expedition 3, November 5-10, 2006: North Devon including Lundy (#1)
Completed 1819-1820. Height 29.3 m (96 ft). Walls 1.1 m (3 ft 6 in) at the base tapering to 0.6 m (2 ft) at the lantern, with a consistent cavity of 76 mm (3 in). The spiral stone staircase inside has 147 steps. Built of Lundy Granite (Paleocene, c. 60 million years old).
On this, our first trip to Lundy, our party stayed in the adjacent keepers' quarters and in the next building.
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THE OLD LIGHT: BACKGROUND
Being a rocky island surrounded by cliffs, and in a busy shipping lane open to the Atlantic Ocean, Lundy has always been a major hazard, and has a long history of wrecks. Ideas for a lighthouse on Lundy began in 1786. The site chosen here was Beacon Hill, 122 m (470 ft) above sea level. Foundations were begun in 1787, but after a long delay, the lighthouse and keepers' quarters (not visible here) were eventually built in a year in 1819-1820. It was the highest location for a lighthouse in Britain. It was built substantially out of large blocks of Lundy Granite to withstand Atlantic gales, and incorporated many innovations. But at this height, and in this location, it was also prone to low cloud when there was good visibility at sea level. Less elevated lighthouses, one at each end of the island, were built to replace it in 1896-7, and the Old Light abandoned. The Old Light and keepers' quarters were designed by Daniel Asher Alexander, with the working interiors inspired by Piranesi's prints. It is now used for visitor accommodation, managed by the Landmark Trust.
--- www.landmarktrust.org.uk/our-landmarks/properties/le-moul...
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* PEREGRINE HARRIERS
This was our first stay on Lundy with our little natural history and geology group, the 'Peregrine Harriers'. We do a trip each year. Our name, a fusion of two different birds of prey, dates from our this visit to Lundy. It is a self-confession of our inability to identify birds of prey.
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LUNDY
Lundy is an island off North Devon at the mouth of the Bristol Channel where it faces the open Atlantic Ocean. (In some interpretations of the island's name, the 'y' means 'island' in which case, it is tautological to refer to it as (e.g.) 'The island of Lundy'.) It is the biggest island in the Bristol Channel and is 4.88 Km long (N-S) and about 1.5 Km wide at its widest point. Most of the island consists of granite, and is plateau-like, around 120 m above sea level. The island is one-third closer to Devon to the S, than to South Wales to the N, on the opposite shore of the Bristol Channel. It currently takes 2 hours by the summer ferry service from Ilfracombe or Bideford, or about 10 minutes by the winter helicopter service from Hartland Point.
Lundy is administratively part of the Torridge District in North Devon. It is owned by the National Trust. it is sparsely inhabited and farmed mostly for livestock. There are no roads, only footpaths and rough tracks. It is traffic-free apart from a few farm and utility vehicles. But it has an airstrip - a broad flat field used by private light aircraft from time to time - and the local helicopter service uses a field near the village. A scattering of 23 houses and other buildings offer good accommodation by the Landmark Trust. Its attractions are mainly its natural history, above and below water, and its spectacular cliff and tor scenery. It has interesting history. It is a Site of Special Scientific Interest and is Britain's first designated Marine Conservation Area.
--- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lundy
--- www.nationaltrust.org.uk/lundy/
--- www.landmarktrust.org.uk/Lundyisland/
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Photo
Brian Roy Rosen
Photo taken November 8, 2006 on a Nikon F601 with Nikon AF 35-80 mm lens, processed and scanned by Bonusprint.
(Flickr 'taken' date and exif data are for the Bonusprint scan.)
Uploaded to Flickr August 12, 2014
© Darkroom Daze Creative Commons.
If you would like to use or refer to this image, please link or attribute.
ID: 007_4 - Version 2
Return to Forever is a jazz fusion group founded and led by keyboardist Chick Corea. Through its existence, the band has cycled through a number of different members, with the only consistent band mate of Corea's being bassist Stanley Clarke. However in 1972, after having become a disciple of Scientology, Corea decided that he wanted to better ;communicate; with the audience. This essentially translated into his performing a more popularly accessible style of music, since avant-garde jazz enjoyed a relatively small audience.
First group (1972-1973) The first edition of Return to Forever performed primarily Latin-oriented music. Clarke himself became involved in Scientology through Corea, but eventually left the sect in the early 1980s.
Their first album, titled simply Return to Forever, was recorded for ECM Records in 1972 and was initially released only in Europe. Their second album, Light as a Feather (1973), was released by Polydor and included the song, Spain, which also became quite well-known.
Jazz rock era (1973-1976) guitarist Bill Connors, drummer Steve Gadd and percussionist Mingo Lewis were added.. Lenny White (who had played with Corea in Miles Davis's band) then replaced Gadd and Lewis on drums and percussion, and the group's third album, Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy (1973), was then rerecorded.
The nature of the group's music had by now completely changed into jazz-rock, Their music was still relatively melodic, relying on strong themes, but the traditional jazz element was by this time almost entirely absent- replaced by a more direct, rock oriented approach. Over-driven, distorted guitar had also become prominent in the band's new sound, and Clarke had by then switched almost completely to electric bass guitar. A replacement on vocals was not hired, and all the songs were now instrumentals. This change did not lead to a decrease in the band's commercial fortunes however, Return to Forever's jazz rock albums instead found their way onto US pop album charts.
While their second jazz rock album, Where Have I Known You Before, (1974) was similar in style to its immediate predecessor, Corea now played synthesizers in addition to electric keyboards (including piano), and Clarke's playing had evolved considerably- now using flange and fuzz-tone effects, and with his now signature style beginning to emerge. the then 19-year-old guitar prodigy Al Di Meola, who had also played on the album recording sessions joined.
Their following album, No Mystery (1975), was recorded with the same line-up as "Where Have I Known You Before", but the style of music had become more varied. The first side of the record consisted primarily of jazz-funk, while the second side featured Corea's acoustic title track and a long composition with a strong Spanish influence. On this and the following album, each member of the group composed at least one of the tracks. No Mystery went on to win the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Performance by a Group.
The final album by this longest-lasting lineup of the group was Romantic Warrior (1976), which had by this time left Polydor for Columbia Records. This album would go on to become the best selling of all Return to Forever's efforts, eventually reaching gold disc status. Romantic Warrior continued their experiments in the realms of jazz-rock and related musical genres, and was lauded by critics for both the technically demanding style of its compositions as well as for its accomplished musicianship.
After the release of Romantic Warrior and Return To Forever's subsequent tour in support (as well as having in addition signed a multi-million dollar contract with CBS), Corea shocked Clarke by deciding to change the lineup of the group and to not include either White or Di Meola
Final album (1977)
The final incarnation of Return to Forever featured a four piece horn section and Corea's wife Gayle singing vocals, but recorded only one studio album, Musicmagic (1977).After Musicmagic, Chick Corea officially disbanded the group.
Reunion (2008) The classic Return to Forever line-up of Corea, Clarke, White, and Di Meola reunited for a tour of the United States that began in the summer of 2008. 2011 tour From February 2011, the group commences a world tour in Australia. The line-up, billed as Return to Forever IV, is Chick Corea, Stanley Clarke, Lenny White, Frank Gambale and Jean-Luc Ponty.
First group (1972-1973) The first edition of Return to Forever performed primarily Latin-oriented music. This initial band consisted of singer (and occasional percussionist) Flora Purim, her husband Airto Moreira on drums and percussion, Corea's longtime musical co-worker Joe Farrell on saxophone and flute, and the young Stanley Clarke on bass. Within this first line-up in particular, Clarke played acoustic double bass in addition to electric bass. Corea's electric piano formed the basis of this group's sound, but Clarke and Farrell were given ample solo space themselves. While Purim's vocals lent some commercial appeal to the music, many of their compositions were also instrumental and somewhat experimental in nature. The music was composed by Corea with the exception of the title track of the second album which was written by Stanley Clarke. Lyrics were often written by Corea's friend Neville Potter, and were quite often scientology themed- though this is not readily apparent to those not involved in Scientology itself. Clarke himself became involved in Scientology through Corea, but eventually left the sect in the early 1980s.
Their first album, titled simply Return to Forever, was recorded for ECM Records in 1972 and was initially released only in Europe. Their second album, Light as a Feather (1973), was released by Polydor and included the song, Spain, which also became quite well-known.
Jazz rock era (1973-1976) guitarist Bill Connors, drummer Steve Gadd and percussionist Mingo Lewis were added. However, Gadd was unwilling to tour with the band and risk his job as an in-demand session drummer. Lenny White (who had played with Corea in Miles Davis's band) replaced Gadd and Lewis on drums and percussion, and the group's third album, Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy (1973), was then rerecorded (the first recording, featuring Gadd on drums, was never released and has since disappeared).
The nature of the group's music had by now completely changed into jazz-rock, Their music was still relatively melodic, relying on strong themes, but the traditional jazz element was by this time almost entirely absent- replaced by a more direct, rock oriented approach. Over-driven, distorted guitar had also become prominent in the band's new sound, and Clarke had by then switched almost completely to electric bass guitar. A replacement on vocals was not hired, and all the songs were now instrumentals. This change did not lead to a decrease in the band's commercial fortunes however, Return to Forever's jazz rock albums instead found their way onto US pop album charts.
While their second jazz rock album, Where Have I Known You Before, (1974) was similar in style to its immediate predecessor, Corea now played synthesizers in addition to electric keyboards (including piano), and Clarke's playing had evolved considerably- now using flange and fuzz-tone effects, and with his now signature style beginning to emerge. After Bill Connors left the band to concentrate on his solo career, the group also hired new guitarists. Although Earl Klugh played guitar for some of the group's live performances, he was soon replaced by the then 19-year-old guitar prodigy Al Di Meola, who had also played on the album recording sessions.
Their following album, No Mystery (1975), was recorded with the same line-up as "Where Have I Known You Before", but the style of music had become more varied. The first side of the record consisted primarily of jazz-funk, while the second side featured Corea's acoustic title track and a long composition with a strong Spanish influence. On this and the following album, each member of the group composed at least one of the tracks. No Mystery went on to win the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Performance by a Group.
The final album by this longest-lasting "classic" lineup of the group was Romantic Warrior (1976), which had by this time left Polydor for Columbia Records. This album would go on to become the best selling of all Return to Forever's efforts, eventually reaching gold disc status. "Romantic Warrior" continued their experiments in the realms of jazz-rock and related musical genres, and was lauded by critics for both the technically demanding style of its compositions as well as for its accomplished musicianship.
After the release of Romantic Warrior and Return To Forever's subsequent tour in support (as well as having in addition signed a multi-million dollar contract with CBS), Corea shocked Clarke by deciding to change the lineup of the group and to not include either White or Di Meola
Final album (1977)
The final incarnation of Return to Forever featured a four piece horn section and Corea's wife Gayle singing vocals, but recorded only one studio album, Musicmagic (1977).After Musicmagic, Chick Corea officially disbanded the group.
Reunion (2008)
The classic Return to Forever line-up of Corea, Clarke, White, and Di Meola reunited for a tour of the United States that began in the summer of 2008. 2011 tour
From February 2011, the group commences a world tour in Australia. The line-up, billed as Return to Forever IV, is Chick Corea, Stanley Clarke, Lenny White, Frank Gambale and Jean-Luc Ponty
Weld-Ons are manufactured with consistently sharp points to ensure positive contact when welded to sheet metal. Produced from carbon alloy steel, the point of the welding pin is hardened in a unique cold form process. This process hardens the points, giving them a steel temper that will not blunt or fl atten when applied, unlike other welding pins. The sharper point of contact results in a better weld and creates fewer sparks that can ignite adhesives or burn substrates. Weld-Ons are easily applied using any conventional portable or automatic resistance welding unit. Cup style washers are included with each pail and are designed to suffi ciently depress the insulation surface without tearing it.
Product comes in 1/2", 3/4", 1", 1-1/8", and 1-1/2" lengths and quantities of 3,000, and 5,000 per bucket.
More information about this product can be found at
bauhaus building, dessau, germany, 1925-1926, architect: walter gropius
Gropius consistently separated the parts of the Bauhaus building according to their functions and designed each differently. He thereby arranged the different wings asymmetrically – in relation to what is today the Bauhausstraße and the Gropiusallee respectively. In order to appreciate the overall design of the complex, the observer must therefore move around the whole building. There is no central viewpoint.
The glazed, three-storey workshop wing, the block for the vocational school (also three storeys high) with its unostentatious rows of windows, and the five-storey studio building with its conspicuous, projecting balconies are the main elements of the complex. A two-storey bridge which housed, e.g., the administration department and, until 1928, Gropius’s architectural practice, connects the workshop wing with the vocational school. A single-storey building with a hall, stage and refectory, the so-called Festive Area, connects the workshop wing to the studio building. The latter originally featured 28 studio flats for students and junior masters, each measuring 20 m². The ingenious design of the portals between the foyer and the hall and a folding partition between the stage and the refectory, along with the ceiling design and colour design, impart a grandiose spatial coalescence to the sequence of foyer-hall-stage-refectory, shaping the so-called Festive Area. The façade of the students’ dormitory is distinguished in the east by individual balconies and in the south by long balconies that continue around the corner of the building.
The entire complex is rendered and painted mainly in light tones, creating an attractive contrast to the window frames, which are dark. For the interior, the junior master of the mural workshop, Hinnerk Scheper, designed a detailed colour plan that, by differentiating between supporting and masking elements through the use of colour, aimed to accentuate the construction of the building.
ADO16 is the codename for the development of what became the Morris 1100, a small family car built by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and, later, British Leyland. Throughout the 1960s, the ADO16 was consistently the UK's best-selling car.
Although most of the cars were manufactured in England, the model was also built in Spain by Authi, in Italy by Innocenti and at the company's own plant in Belgium. It was the basis for locally adapted similar cars manufactured in Australia and South Africa.
The vehicle was launched as the Morris 1100 on August 15, 1962. The range was expanded to include several rebadged versions, including the twin-carburettor MG 1100, the Vanden Plas Princess (from October 1962), the Austin 1100 (August 1963), and finally the Wolseley 1100 (1965) and Riley Kestrel (1965). The Morris badged 1100/1300 gave up its showroom space to the Morris Marina in 1971, but Austin and Vanden Plas versions remained in production in the UK till June 1974.
The estate version followed in 1966, called Countryman in the Austin version and Traveller in the Morris one, continuing the established naming scheme.
In 1964 the 1100 was Wheels magazine's Car of the Year.
The original Mark I models were distinctive for their use of a Hydrolastic suspension. Marketing material highlighted the spacious cabin when compared to competitor models which in the UK by 1964 included the more conservatively configured Ford Anglia, Vauxhall Viva HA and BMC's own still popular Morris Minor.
At the end of May 1967, BMC announced the fitting of a larger 1275 cc engine to the MG, Riley Kestrel, Vanden Plas and Wolseley variants.[5] The new car combined the 1275 cc engine block already familiar to drivers of newer Mini Cooper and Austin-Healey Sprite models with the 1100 transmission, its gear ratios remaining unchanged for the larger engine, but the final-drive being significantly more highly geared.[5]
The Mark II versions of the Austin and Morris models were announced, with the larger engine making it into these two makes' UK market ranges in October 1967 (as the Austin 1300 and Morris 1100S and 100). An 1100 version of the Mark II continued alongside the larger engined models.
Unusually for cars at this end of the market, domestic market waiting lists of several months accumulated for the 1300 engined cars during the closing months of 1967 and well into 1968. The manufacturers explained that following the devaluation of the British Pound in the Fall / Autumn of 1967 they were working flat out to satisfy export market demand, but impatient British would-be customers could be reassured that export sales of the 1300s were "going very well". MG, Wolseley, Riley and Vanden Plas variants with the 1300 engines were already available on the home market in very limited quantities, and Austin and Morris versions would begin to be "available here in small quantities in March [1968].
On the outside, a slightly wider front grille, extending a little beneath the headlights, and with a fussier detailing, differentiated Austin / Morris Mark IIs from their Mark I predecessors, along with a slightly smoother tail light fitting which also found its way onto the FX4 London taxi of the time. Austin and Morris grilles were now identical. The 1100 had been introduced with synchromesh on the top three ratios: all synchromesh manual gearboxes were introduced with the 1275 cc models at the end of 1967 and found their way into 1098 cc cars a few months later.
At the London Motor Show in October 1969 the manufacturers introduced the Austin / Morris 1300 GT, featuring the same 1275 cc twin carburetter engine as that installed in the MG 1300, but with a black full width grill, a black vinyl roof and a thick black stripe down the side.[8] This was BMC's answer to the Ford Escort GT and its Vauxhall counterpart. Ride height on the Austin / Morris 1300 GT was fractionally lowered through the reduction of the Hydrolastic fluid pressure from 225 to 205 psi.
Definitely what is Diabetes Standard Protocol?
Consistently, many individuals show up crying restlessly along these lines to their doctors in connection to the most hindering wellbeing issue I. e "Diabetes" normally known while diabetes mellitus, a few metabolic sicknesses where the man or lady characteristics higher blood glucose, now and then in light of the fact that insulin era is generally deficient, or maybe as the body's cells don't answer legitimately to help insulin, or maybe both just as. Sufferers alongside higher blood glucose will generally ability rehashed pee, and also people transform into more we get to be dry and hungry heading thought wellbeing and wellness diversion too like anxiety and inadequate centering.
To have the capacity to battle on this horrifying disease, Doctor. Kenneth Pullman accomplished for 24 hours most his presence to find an extreme and additionally last treatment for this lethal sickness. To help persons uproot that and also are carrying on an ordinary and sound presence, she has presented an effective preparing system named while "Diabetes Protocol" as a sensible digital book that would truly encourage you to escape from that will bothered zoom joined with Diabetes.
Absolutely what is thusly extraordinary over it?
"The Diabetes Protocol" builds nourishing on overall safeguarded and practicing all the time to keep an individual's build sound, the glucose levels inside level and also makes it workable for physical make-up to capacity legitimately. That demonstrates to persons best practices to begin living a salubrious lifestyle all of which will aid the evildoers to dispose of Diabetes out of their bodies in twenty days to weeks. This course helps guests to development couple of valuable practices that would aid every one of them inside years to come. By utilizing Diabetes Standard convention, persons has the capacity push out prediabetes and markdown diabetes assortment II. This is a solitary course that will puts glucose levels in commonplace develop. Which implies a lesser number of expenses as to physician endorsed medicine and also general discourse to help doctors whom simply help to make the money and in addition make tracks in an opposite direction from anybody without having such progressions. Given that Diabetes oblige think about get to be cured more than the specific medications to consider standard foundation.
What makes that work?
This framework is intended for any individual joined with pretty much any age gathering, encountering diabetes. Regardless of whether you could have as of late been existing close by the circumstances for a long stretch or maybe got recognized as having that simply recently, this may doubtlessly support you. The information and additionally mindfulness supplied in this digital book will completely stagger anybody and persuades you to unquestionably term intense normal while you will see veritable headways in your wellbeing and wellness. You may be staggered after figuring out much all the more about the strong impacts joined with way of life and eating regimen on your general wellbeing.
Sufferers encountering higher body stress, osteoarthritis, higher cholesterol, melanoma, weak navicular bone sickness and additionally whatnot could likewise complete heading of this digital book. It could potentially furnish you with a bunches of discriminating lessons in connection to dealing with and also mitigating different wellbeing issues in just a solitary continue.
That brings down people prerequisite of insulin alongside perplexing the specific insulin sums basically by 80% in the occasion men and ladies have got diabetes mixed bag We. Diabetes Standard convention moreover separates people necessity of drugs and also insulin implantations. It may help men and ladies figure out how to view freely through flagitious indicants associated with both similarly mixed bags of Diabetes.
Not long after your finishing joined with twenty days to weeks manage, the specific furthermore get ready will highlight the way at the end of the day you'll be prepared proceed with your chose nourishment and incorporate every one of them in your eating methodology, several yummy dishes which you have as of late been no attendant as to that long.
Figure out how to get "Diabetes Protocol"?
Positive point, Diabetes Standard convention is typically a truly easy to use furthermore sensibly estimated data digital book. With this framework, you have the capacity completely handle anything about the methodology to handle your diabetes, and also connected signs and side effects. Furthermore, you'll can endeavor in the solid and also secured strategy.
Mcdougal peculiarities comparably as of late been supplying a few increases and redesigns. On account of this, you have the capacity read all the more about more in connection to numerous wellbeing issues, alongside the specific medicinal business. On the net help in the organization can be found to your any sort of inquiries. You'll gain the numerous help you call for at whatever point.
How's everyone's new year going so far?
As teased on a few occasions (mostly cause it took me so damn long to actually sit down and get all these photos done), I present to you the S.H. Figuarts Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune, from a local comic book store on New Years Eve 2019. Seeing as these two hang out together on the show consistently, it only made sense to bring them into the horde as a duo.
In the world of Sailor Moon, there are many set relationships (or ships, if you're cool) between characters, but for me next to Darien & Serena, it's always going to be these two - Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune. Now, I can't exactly recall specifics with regards to their relationship in the 90s US dub, probably because censors figured the concept of a queer relationship would blow our delicate little minds. If we're going by official canon, these two lovebirds are amongst the last of the Outer Senshi to be introduced into the series, and really only show up in the third season of the anime. As I mentioned, my mind is somewhat of a haze when it comes to the show at this point, but I do seem to recall there were a couple of episodes where everyone thought Amara (US 90s Dub Uranus) was male, and where she was perceived to be hitting on Serena, much to the annoyance of Darien. I also seem to remember the pair going to a different high school than the Inner Senshi (original 5).
Rather than butcher the series any further, I'm just gonna move on.
As I've stated in earlier episodes, getting my hands on Sailor Moon Figuarts at an acceptable prices is, and remains, a test of patience and luck. Sometimes, things pan out (like here), sometimes not so much. What makes getting these two particularly annoying is that unbeknownst to me, Uranus and Neptune are actually Bandai online shop exclusives, much like many of their annoying to get Dragonball items. The chaos is of course, less here in North America as opposed to Japan, but this usually translates into a higher than normal MSRP. So given all this, I figure the $60 CAD a piece, taxes in, from a store no less, was pretty good.
Having said all that, upon opening you can at the very least appreciate the reasoning behind the slightly higher price. Each box comes with an absurd number of accessories, especially Uranus. Common to each would be a figure, several additional sculpts (both have four faces in total which range from netural expression to attacking, with Neptune having one dedicated to a serene, closed eye look), their weapon of choice (Space Sword for Uranus, Deep Aqua Mirror for Neptune) and the "gets the job done" stand. The sheer number of hands with each figure is definitely above average and should cover all your posing needs. There's also crossed arm optional parts for both figures, with an additional lovestruck face for Serena included with Uranus, and a hands clasped part for Neptune.
Overall, there are are 13 additional hand related options for each figure, in addition to the two hands that come with the figure itself.
Uranus and Neptune are among the taller of the Senshi, with Uranus reported to be 6', the tallest of them all (who I always figured was Jupiter.. oh well). Naturally the Black Widow figure is from a different series so the scaling there is questionable, but it's good to see amongst the Sailor Senshi that this difference is actually reflected properly, even if not so much in their footwear. To my eyes though, Uranus seems to be way too lanky, with Tamashii Nations only scaling the length of the various limbs and the abdomen of the standard figure, but nothing from a girth perspective. Interestingly, they didn't make the hands any different size as compared to the Inner Senshi, making either Sailor Moon and co having giant hands, or Sailor Uranus and co. having midget hands. Either or works for me from a comedy perspective. I'm pretty sure the Skirt and the chest section are exactly the same size across the board.
Proportions aside, I'd say that the figures again capture the essence of the character. Neptune has always been the more elegant of the the pair and she remains so here, though from a design perspective I've always favoured Jupitor and Saturn. Outfits, faces, hair, and so on all capture the anime aesthetic quite well, with allowances given due to the scale.
Rounding the usual bases, articulation is pretty good for a circa 2013-14 Figuarts, and are the same across the board for all the Sailor Senshi. You have ankles, single jointed knees, hips with pull down to allow for more range of motion, waist, mid torso, shoulders with some chest compress and bicep swivel, single jointed elbows, wrist, and head. All your gang sign flashing and Sentai style posing desires should be fulfilled for the most part, though more elegant sitting poses/kneeling poses aren't happening with the restriction of the skirt. Dynamic leaping poses, I'm happy to say, are technically doable, with assistance from the dynamic stand.
Paint is always a mixed bag with these older Figuarts releases. As always, most of the white coloured parts are painted in pearl white over translucent white plastic, giving the figures a slight shimmering effect. The overall paint job is pretty good from afar, but up close you're going to run into masking errors, particularly in areas where there is use of the white paint which has always had one or two less than stellar masking jobs on all five of the Senshi that are in my collection, as well as areas of other colour such as the straps on Neptune's feet. There's some nice shading at the base of Neptune's hair at the back.
Decal work on the eyes is solid, though the paint apps for the mouths are... okay, though fortunately the colouring is just a highlight of the face detailing itself.
Build quality itself is about what you'd expect for a Figuarts - use of plastics that generally don't warp under the slightest touch *cough* HASBRO *cough*. Tolerances on parts are overall good, with the strange exception of Uranus's arms that don't always want to stay in their pegs which can make posing her a bit of a pain - Neptune holds together much better from that regard. Assembly gaps are generally sanded down and covered with some paint, though they are still easily observable. There is a moulding seam running from front to back of Uranus's front hair piece.. not sure if that's just on mine or if that's a running acceptable QC thing.
There you have it - the second most prominent power couple in the Sailor Moon universe, at least in my books. The figures are pretty much what I expected them to be, and while they're not as aged as the original Dragonball figures, it would be interesting to see what improvements a line using the newest Figuarts bodies would be like. Though if Bandai has plans to do this, I'd love to know sooner than later so I can abandon my plans for completing the set.
Return to Forever is a jazz fusion group founded and led by keyboardist Chick Corea. Through its existence, the band has cycled through a number of different members, with the only consistent band mate of Corea's being bassist Stanley Clarke. However in 1972, after having become a disciple of Scientology, Corea decided that he wanted to better ;communicate; with the audience. This essentially translated into his performing a more popularly accessible style of music, since avant-garde jazz enjoyed a relatively small audience.
First group (1972-1973) The first edition of Return to Forever performed primarily Latin-oriented music. Clarke himself became involved in Scientology through Corea, but eventually left the sect in the early 1980s.
Their first album, titled simply Return to Forever, was recorded for ECM Records in 1972 and was initially released only in Europe. Their second album, Light as a Feather (1973), was released by Polydor and included the song, Spain, which also became quite well-known.
Jazz rock era (1973-1976) guitarist Bill Connors, drummer Steve Gadd and percussionist Mingo Lewis were added.. Lenny White (who had played with Corea in Miles Davis's band) then replaced Gadd and Lewis on drums and percussion, and the group's third album, Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy (1973), was then rerecorded.
The nature of the group's music had by now completely changed into jazz-rock, Their music was still relatively melodic, relying on strong themes, but the traditional jazz element was by this time almost entirely absent- replaced by a more direct, rock oriented approach. Over-driven, distorted guitar had also become prominent in the band's new sound, and Clarke had by then switched almost completely to electric bass guitar. A replacement on vocals was not hired, and all the songs were now instrumentals. This change did not lead to a decrease in the band's commercial fortunes however, Return to Forever's jazz rock albums instead found their way onto US pop album charts.
While their second jazz rock album, Where Have I Known You Before, (1974) was similar in style to its immediate predecessor, Corea now played synthesizers in addition to electric keyboards (including piano), and Clarke's playing had evolved considerably- now using flange and fuzz-tone effects, and with his now signature style beginning to emerge. the then 19-year-old guitar prodigy Al Di Meola, who had also played on the album recording sessions joined.
Their following album, No Mystery (1975), was recorded with the same line-up as "Where Have I Known You Before", but the style of music had become more varied. The first side of the record consisted primarily of jazz-funk, while the second side featured Corea's acoustic title track and a long composition with a strong Spanish influence. On this and the following album, each member of the group composed at least one of the tracks. No Mystery went on to win the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Performance by a Group.
The final album by this longest-lasting lineup of the group was Romantic Warrior (1976), which had by this time left Polydor for Columbia Records. This album would go on to become the best selling of all Return to Forever's efforts, eventually reaching gold disc status. Romantic Warrior continued their experiments in the realms of jazz-rock and related musical genres, and was lauded by critics for both the technically demanding style of its compositions as well as for its accomplished musicianship.
After the release of Romantic Warrior and Return To Forever's subsequent tour in support (as well as having in addition signed a multi-million dollar contract with CBS), Corea shocked Clarke by deciding to change the lineup of the group and to not include either White or Di Meola
Final album (1977)
The final incarnation of Return to Forever featured a four piece horn section and Corea's wife Gayle singing vocals, but recorded only one studio album, Musicmagic (1977).After Musicmagic, Chick Corea officially disbanded the group.
Reunion (2008) The classic Return to Forever line-up of Corea, Clarke, White, and Di Meola reunited for a tour of the United States that began in the summer of 2008. 2011 tour From February 2011, the group commences a world tour in Australia. The line-up, billed as Return to Forever IV, is Chick Corea, Stanley Clarke, Lenny White, Frank Gambale and Jean-Luc Ponty.
First group (1972-1973) The first edition of Return to Forever performed primarily Latin-oriented music. This initial band consisted of singer (and occasional percussionist) Flora Purim, her husband Airto Moreira on drums and percussion, Corea's longtime musical co-worker Joe Farrell on saxophone and flute, and the young Stanley Clarke on bass. Within this first line-up in particular, Clarke played acoustic double bass in addition to electric bass. Corea's electric piano formed the basis of this group's sound, but Clarke and Farrell were given ample solo space themselves. While Purim's vocals lent some commercial appeal to the music, many of their compositions were also instrumental and somewhat experimental in nature. The music was composed by Corea with the exception of the title track of the second album which was written by Stanley Clarke. Lyrics were often written by Corea's friend Neville Potter, and were quite often scientology themed- though this is not readily apparent to those not involved in Scientology itself. Clarke himself became involved in Scientology through Corea, but eventually left the sect in the early 1980s.
Their first album, titled simply Return to Forever, was recorded for ECM Records in 1972 and was initially released only in Europe. Their second album, Light as a Feather (1973), was released by Polydor and included the song, Spain, which also became quite well-known.
Jazz rock era (1973-1976) guitarist Bill Connors, drummer Steve Gadd and percussionist Mingo Lewis were added. However, Gadd was unwilling to tour with the band and risk his job as an in-demand session drummer. Lenny White (who had played with Corea in Miles Davis's band) replaced Gadd and Lewis on drums and percussion, and the group's third album, Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy (1973), was then rerecorded (the first recording, featuring Gadd on drums, was never released and has since disappeared).
The nature of the group's music had by now completely changed into jazz-rock, Their music was still relatively melodic, relying on strong themes, but the traditional jazz element was by this time almost entirely absent- replaced by a more direct, rock oriented approach. Over-driven, distorted guitar had also become prominent in the band's new sound, and Clarke had by then switched almost completely to electric bass guitar. A replacement on vocals was not hired, and all the songs were now instrumentals. This change did not lead to a decrease in the band's commercial fortunes however, Return to Forever's jazz rock albums instead found their way onto US pop album charts.
While their second jazz rock album, Where Have I Known You Before, (1974) was similar in style to its immediate predecessor, Corea now played synthesizers in addition to electric keyboards (including piano), and Clarke's playing had evolved considerably- now using flange and fuzz-tone effects, and with his now signature style beginning to emerge. After Bill Connors left the band to concentrate on his solo career, the group also hired new guitarists. Although Earl Klugh played guitar for some of the group's live performances, he was soon replaced by the then 19-year-old guitar prodigy Al Di Meola, who had also played on the album recording sessions.
Their following album, No Mystery (1975), was recorded with the same line-up as "Where Have I Known You Before", but the style of music had become more varied. The first side of the record consisted primarily of jazz-funk, while the second side featured Corea's acoustic title track and a long composition with a strong Spanish influence. On this and the following album, each member of the group composed at least one of the tracks. No Mystery went on to win the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Performance by a Group.
The final album by this longest-lasting "classic" lineup of the group was Romantic Warrior (1976), which had by this time left Polydor for Columbia Records. This album would go on to become the best selling of all Return to Forever's efforts, eventually reaching gold disc status. "Romantic Warrior" continued their experiments in the realms of jazz-rock and related musical genres, and was lauded by critics for both the technically demanding style of its compositions as well as for its accomplished musicianship.
After the release of Romantic Warrior and Return To Forever's subsequent tour in support (as well as having in addition signed a multi-million dollar contract with CBS), Corea shocked Clarke by deciding to change the lineup of the group and to not include either White or Di Meola
Final album (1977)
The final incarnation of Return to Forever featured a four piece horn section and Corea's wife Gayle singing vocals, but recorded only one studio album, Musicmagic (1977).After Musicmagic, Chick Corea officially disbanded the group.
Reunion (2008)
The classic Return to Forever line-up of Corea, Clarke, White, and Di Meola reunited for a tour of the United States that began in the summer of 2008. 2011 tour
From February 2011, the group commences a world tour in Australia. The line-up, billed as Return to Forever IV, is Chick Corea, Stanley Clarke, Lenny White, Frank Gambale and Jean-Luc Ponty
PUTKIN PRESENTS: THE ARCHITECT.
Back at you with the first #weaponwednesday in a while! I'll try to be more consistent about these in the future. Anyways, this is I guess a soft-launch of telling y'all a little more about me? While I'm not an architect(yet), it is something I've dreamt of being for as long as I can remember, and something I'm working towards in my professional life(can you believe I have a life outside of bricks? Although... it sometimes still has to do with bricks, just much bigger ones). Ironically, structures are probably the least common type of build I do, since they take so much planning and so many pieces. It's definitely something I'd like to tackle more in the future, and I do have some exciting structures to share with y'all eventually, including my displays from Brick Rodeo this year! Without further ado, I(or rather, Putkin) present to you: The Architect.
"...Oh finally, I can talk again. For the life of me, I can't figure out why I was just standing there holding this pose, unable to speak... Makes you think someone's watching all this. And I thought my gran was going crazy! Anyways, this here is an old hammer known as The Architect. Supposedly, you need to be licensed to properly wield it, can you believe that? Builders don't need to be licensed in countless jurisdictions, and make a fair bit more gold, but architects can't even have a good hammer be useful without a license? Backwards, these laws, I'll tell ya. I've heard this here hammer is capable of all sorts of damage to buildings, as well as being able to harness some restorative properties for structures. I guess the person who forged it couldn't make up their minds on its powers, so they just went for both sides of the same coin! I may not be capable of making axes myself, but if I could make one, I certainly wouldn't give it the extra property of "can actually regrow bark in a tree that's been partially chopped at," because it wouldn't make sense, would it? Ah, well. Different strokes for different folks, I guess. I guess I should put this thing back, before the licensing board charges me a fine..."
Del fotógrafo y camarógrafo Patricio Guzmán Campos, nacido en 1935. Murió en Montreal, Canadá, en junio del año 2014, dejando una obra fotográfica muy consistente, pero, por desgracia, poco conocida.
La masificación de las peñas tiene un punto de origen: la Peña de Los Parra, idea inspirada en los dos años en que los hermanos Isabel y Ángel Parra vivieron de la música en los cafés parisinos. En la capital francesa, ‘Chabela’ y Ángel interpretaron sus canciones en un café/bar que abría sus puertas a los artistas latinoamericanos. Platos de comida circulaban de una mesa a otra mientras cantaban: ese sería un elemento que no copiarían de su experiencia en París.
“La Peña comenzó en abril de 1965. Tenía un pequeño escenario al que nos encaramábamos los cantores”, cuenta Ángel Cereceda Parra en En busca de la música chilena.
La casona, que pertenecía al pintor y cantor Juan Capra, fue el lugar de encuentro de los hermanos Parra, Rolando Alarcón y Patricio Manns, quienes cantaban, comían y bebían hasta que decidieron organizar sus reuniones y tener un propósito.
“Comprendimos en cierto momento que había que ponerle orden a la cuestión. Porque se lo cantaban todo, se lo comían todo y se lo tomaban todo. La idea fue hacer la peña como medio de difusión y de subsistencia para nosotros”, recuerda Ángel en el libro.
La casona ubicada en el centro de Santiago dio un espacio con pequeñas mesas distribuidas frente a un escenario. En el lugar se regalaba un vaso de vino, incluido en la entrada, y no se vendían contundentes platos: solo empanadas, charqui o anticuchos, durante los interludios, de manera que los artistas no eran interrumpidos por enormes cantidades de comida.
En agosto de 1965, la Peña de los Parra incorporó un nuevo artista: Víctor Jara, quien decidió emprender su carrera solista dejando de lado su participación en el grupo folklórico Cuncumán. La Peña siguió el desarrollo de la música y las artes a cargo hasta la mañana del martes 11 de septiembre de 1973.
Who here likes consistency? You know, that warm, familiar feeling every time you go to Taco Bell (going down or out.. up to you)... very consistent? You've been there enough times and you've generally had all their menu items and your opinion is that "it's alright". Then there's that one time out of the blue, you decide to try something vegetarian off the Fresco menu, only to realize it was a horrible, horrible mistake? Well, that's kind of like what happened with this particular entry: Figma Megumin from Kono Sabarashii Sekai ni Shyukufuku wo!.. however you pronounce that.
As with 99% of the magical girl entries on my list, I know nothing about the actual character. Couple of Wiki pages presents a personality that, as expected, fits the way she looks. As taken from a Fandom page:
"Megumin is a straightforward girl, who speaks in an old-style Japanese dialect. She can be very hyper and lively at times and has chuunibyou tendencies like the rest of the Crimson Demon villagers. She is very intelligent, but has very little self-control, especially when it comes to using Explosion magic. She has no problem wasting her spell on empty plains or abandoned castles, as long as she can use Explosion once a day."
There seemed to be quite a bit of excitement when the figure was announced a while back, so as I always do, I found a decent deal on one that had a few issues while out and about, figuring "it's a Figma, it'll be alright" and away I went. The issues being that this was an Amazon Warehouse deal, so it wasn't complete, though the only thing that was missing was the instruction manual. The peg holding her cape in place had snapped off, and her head wasn't in place, of which the latter I figure I could just go home and pop that sucker right back in because, well, wouldn't be the first time a head came off a Figma after being jostled.
Well, jokes on me. After trying with no success, I took to the Internet, and read a crap ton of negative reviews on this figure, ranging from poor QC to horrible design. The head thing? Wasn't the only one; several complaints on Amazon said the same thing, with most not even bothering to try to attach the head. I had to grind the hole to widen it before the neck joint would actually fit, and now it's a bit loose and prone to falling off. I read stories of the staff showing up broken. Seems overall, these Konosuba girls (as they are called) have been plagued with QC issues.. I'm glad I didn't pay MSRP on this figure, let me tell you.
Megumin comes with a typical payload when it comes to Figma. There's the figure, three total face plates (slight smile, attacking, scared), her hat, her cape, alternate hair with eye patch, energy effect for eye, staff, purple orb for staff, spell effect with staff end for attaching said effect, her Familiar Chomosuke, six additional hands plus one dedicated spell casting hand, and the usual Figma stand.
Based on the screen caps I've seen, it appears that overall, Max Factory has captured the overall silhouette of Megumin herself, and her look when equipped with her gear. Of course, she's a lanky Japanese school girl, so not exactly hard for Figma to replicate. Chomosuke is freakin' adorable.. not quite Kirby adorable, but pretty damn close. Sculpting details are up to snuff, with clean fingers, good texture detailing on the outfit, and some minor muscle definition on her bare back. Face plates look spot on.
Articulation is pretty typical for a Figma.. when she doesn't have her cape on. You have full motion ankles, single jointed knees, full motion hips, waist, mid torso movement, full motion shoulders combined with bicep swivel, standard elbows, wrists, and head articulation. Mid torso movement is limited due to the joint being embedded inside her outfit, which is a soft rubber material. I'm not sure if it's like this for all the recent Figma (I'm kind of behind schedule), but Megumin features this hinged joint which allows for a deeper range of motion when it comes to head tilt, while at the same time offering the same ball jointed base base of head joint that permits the standard range of motion there. The cape itself has two points of articulation, allowing for a simulated flow look which is great, but putting the cape on also limits the range of motion when it comes to raise the arms up into an overhead position. Her skirt also limits the movement of the upper legs, which in turn limits the number of stances you can have her in. Because of this, I found it very difficult to balance Megumin on her tiny feet, and as such a stand is pretty much needed for everything.
Paint work is, as expected, solid across the board. Even the yellows appear to be well applied, with no significant overspray or lumpy paint residue. The only ugly paint spot are the silver on her buckle and her necklace, which are relatively ugly, but not "gouge my eyes out" level. Decal work is at its usual level of excellence.
Building quality and design is where things kind of went South. I've already talked about my problems out the box above, but there's more to discuss. First and foremost, that stupid, stupid hat. So, someone, in their infinite wisdom, decided that rather than have the hat attach via a peg or something like that, decided the best way to have the hat sit on her head is the put a really thin piece of plastic on the inside of the hat, and have that clip between the two hair pieces.. sounds alright in theory until you realize actually getting the thing to fit in their is a nightmare because there really isn't enough clearance to slide the front hair piece in place should you try to get the hat in place first. So instead you end up leaving a slight gap, and cramming the hat on her head, hoping for the best. The eye effect is a separate piece, and it is up to the owner to use their hamburger finger to squeeze this tiny plastic piece, probably the size of a syringe needle, into place so it doesn't fall out of the hair. I found that the joints on the figure, while fine by themselves, aren't really meant to carry the weight of the staff, particularly if it has the energy effect attached on the end of it. The body itself is pretty typical build, so no too many complaints here.
So in the end, we had the potential for an outstanding Figma, one having vibrant colour and personality., only to have a multitude of QC issues and crappy design choices knock it down a few pegs. Without her hat and cape, Megumin is honestly average at best, as she really can't do much other than sligh variations of standing up. I guess if the cape wasn't broken on mine, at least I would keep the cape on constantly as it does add to the character. But that hat.. it's such a hassle to put it on you either never take it off or you just give up. The best parts of this set are the scared face and of course, Chomosuke.
Better luck next time, I suppose.
Joel Parkinson Leads ASP Top Stars in Assault on Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach Round 1
BELLS BEACH, Victoria/Australia (Wednesday, April 20, 2011) – Today marks the commencement of the 50th Anniversary of competition surfing at Bells Beach as Round 1 of the 2011 Rip Curl Pro Bells presented by Ford Ranger got underway in clean four-to-six foot (1.5 - 2 metre) surf.
The Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach, the second stop on the 2011 ASP World Title season, enjoyed consistent surf throughout the day as the world’s best surfers unleashed a barrage of high-performance ripping on the classic canvas of Bells Beach.
Joel Parkinson (AUS), 30, 2009 Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach Champion put in a sensational performance this afternoon, electing to sit up at Rincon to secure the day’s highest scores.. Parkinson locked in the highest wave score and the highest heat score of the opening day of competition scoring 17.74 (out of a possible 20.00) to advance directly through to Round 3 of competition.
"I fell off twice on the bowl," Parkinson said. "It was really hard to ride. Then CJ (Hobgood) went across to Rincon and got a score, so we followed him over and it worked out for me. It's great to get that opening heat win, especially at Bells. You never know what conditions you're going to get in a heat, so to be able to skip round two and maybe get a day off is a huge advantage."
Kelly Slater (USA), 39, reigning 10-time ASP World Champion and defending event winner, was clinical in his attack in his Round 1 heat. Slater had his fellow competitors Adam Robertson (AUS), 28, and Kai Otton (AUS), 31, on the ropes only minutes into the heat, scoring an impressive 16.00 (out of a possible 20.00) on his opening two rides.
"I don't free surf out at Bells a whole lot," Slater said. "When the waves are good the comp is on and outside of that it's pretty crowded. So I'm still learning with each heat out there still, surfing against a guy like Robbo (Adam Robertson) you've got to watch where he's sitting, how far our and how deep."
Mick Fanning (AUS), 29, currently equal 13th in the hunt for the 2011 ASP World Title, went into today’s competition with renewed vigor after a shock early exit at the last event on the Gold Coast. The past two-time ASP World Champion came out and dominated his Round 1 battle over Tiago Pires (PRT), 31, and Gabriel Medina (BRA), 17.
"I'm stoked to get a good start," Fanning said. "It's been 10 years since I won here as I wildcard, I got close last year but Kelly Slater got me in the final. You want to win every event, but being the 50th Anniversary and so much history at this event, it's like the Wimbeldon of surfing, it's a hard one to win but it's the one everyone wants."
Alejo Muniz (BRA), 21, led today’s rookie charge, continuing his sensational run after the and equal 5th on the Gold Coast, and dispatching of fellow Brazilian Ranoi Monterio (BRA), 28, and Australian Adrian Buchan (AUS), 28 in this morning’s opening round heat.
"It's so good out there!" Muniz said. "This is my first time surfing at Bells and it's the most amazing place. It's got perfect rights, and it's the kind of wave that I love to surf. It's the best place ever, best waves, best weather and I love surfing in wetsuits."
Jeremy Flores (FRA), 22, bounced back after missing the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast with a knee injury, to score a comprehensive win over Taylor Knox (USA), 39, and Cory Lopez (USA), 34.
"I wasn't very confident before the heat," Flores said. "But I got that first wave and did a big turn at the end and got a good score. I think that's what you need to do these days, finish the wave strong. My knee still isn't 100%, but I went for it and it's good to win. Big thanks to everyone at the Gold Coast Suns Football Club for helping with my knee, it's feeling much better now."
Stu Kennedy (AUS), 21, scored a last minute wildcard into the event and caused the upset of the day, eliminating 2010 ASP World Title runner-up Jordy Smith (ZAF), 23, and Dusty Payne (HAW), 22.
"I've been coming here for years," Kennedy said. "I won a Pro Junior here in 2008 and I know where to sit. I don't think Dusty and Jordy know the break as well as I do so that helps. I've been up since 3am because I'm jet-lagged from coming home from Scotland. I woke up with a bunch of energy it's my shaper's birthday so I woke him up at 5am to go surfing. I had to win my heat for him for his birthday."
When men’s competition resumes, up first will be 2010 ASP World Runner-Up Jordy Smith (ZAF), 23, up against Trials Winner Adam Robertson (AUS), 28, in the opening heat of Round 2.
Following the completion of the men’s Round 1 today, the ASP Top 17 hit the water for Round 1 of the Rip Curl Women’s Pro Bells Beach presented by Ford Fiesta.
Stephanie Gilmore (AUS), 23, reigning four-time ASP Women’s World Champion and defending three-time Rip Curl Women’s Bells Beach winner, returned to her winning ways today, after bowing out early at the last event, the Roxy Pro Gold Coast.
"My first two years on tour I didn't have great results on the Gold Coast," Gilmore said. "I always bounced back at this event and then finished the year well, so hopefully I'll do that again this year. The Gold Coast was a fine showing of what women's surfing is up to now and everyone has to try and keep up. It really pushes me and I think anyone who wins an event from now on will be a very deserving winner because of that fact."
Pauline Ado (FRA), 19, the French rookie caused the upset of the women's event, defeating current ASP World Title front runner Carissa Moore (HAW), 18, in a nail biter of a heat.
"I'm really happy, I had a lot of fun out there," Ado said "I got one of my good waves in the first few seconds so after that I felt confident and knew I could be more selective and wait for the right wave. A heat against Carissa is always a tough one, so I'm really stoked to win."
When women’s competition resumes, up first will be Paige Hareb (NZL) and Jessi Miley-Dyer (AUS) in the opening heat of Round 2.
Event organizers will reconvene tomorrow morning at 7am to assess conditions for a possible 7:30am start.
Highlights from the Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach presented by FORD will be webcast available via www.live.ripcurl.com and broadcast live on Fuel TV in Australia and ESPN in Brazil.
For more information, log onto www.aspworldtour.com
RIP CURL PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 1 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Alejo Muniz (BRA) 13.23, Adrian Buchan (AUS) 11.26, Raoni Monteiro (BRA) 7.37
Heat 2: Adam Melling (AUS) 14.50, Josh Kerr (AUS) 12.30, Taj Burrow (AUS) 11.00
Heat 3: Heitor Alves (BRA) 14.36, Bobby Martinez (USA) 14.14, Owen Wright (AUS) 10.60
Heat 4: Mick Fanning (AUS) 15.60, Tiago Pires (PRT) 11.07, Gabriel Medina (BRA) 9.27
Heat 5: Stu Kennedy (AUS) 11.70, Dusty Payne (HAW) 10.50, Jordy Smith (ZAF) 9.00
Heat 6: Kelly Slater (USA) 16.00, Kai Otton (AUS) 10.13, Adam Robertson (AUS) 8.53
Heat 7: Jeremy Flores (FRA) 13.17, Cory Lopez (USA) 5.83, Taylor Knox (USA) 4.67
Heat 8: Michel Bourez (PYF) 12.60, Kieren Perrow (AUS) 10.20, Gabe Kling (USA) 3.50
Heat 9: Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 14.60, Damien Hobgood (USA) 11.23, Daniel Ross (AUS) 11.07
Heat 10: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 17.74, C.J. Hobgood (USA) 11.44, Bede Durbidge (AUS) 8.17
Heat 11: Adriano de Souza (BRA) 14.60, Chris Davidson (AUS) 10.83, Julian Wilson (AUS) 9.83
Heat 12: Patrick Gudauskas (USA) 13.40, Jadson Andre (BRA) 9.43, Brett Simpson (USA) 8.93
RIP CURL PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 2 MATCH-UPS:
Heat 1: Jordy Smith (ZAF) vs. Adam Robertson (AUS)
Heat 2: Owen Wright (AUS) vs. Gabriel Medina (BRA)
Heat 3: Taj Burrow (AUS) vs. Bobby Martinez (USA)
Heat 4: Adrian Buchan (AUS) vs. Josh Kerr (AUS)
Heat 5: Damien Hobgood (USA) vs. Raoni Monteiro (BRA)
Heat 6: Bede Durbidge (AUS) vs. Cory Lopez (USA)
Heat 7: Brett Simpson (USA) vs. Gabe Kling (USA)
Heat 8: Jadson Andre (BRA) vs. Daniel Ross (AUS)
Heat 9: Chris Davidson (AUS) vs. Julian Wilson (AUS)
Heat 10: C.J. Hobgood (USA) vs. Kai Otton (AUS)
Heat 11: Kieren Perrow (AUS) vs. Dusty Payne (HAW)
Heat 12: Taylor Knox (USA) vs. Tiago Pires (PRT)
RIP CURL WOMEN’S PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 1 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Sofia Mulanovich (PER) 12.93, Chelsea Hedges (AUS) 8.70, Jessi Miley-Dyer (AUS) 8.66
Heat 2: Silvana Lima (BRA) 14.94, Laura Enever (AUS) 8.84, Melanie Bartels (HAW) 7.54
Heat 3: Pauline Ado (HAW) 14.60, Carissa Moore (HAW) 14.44, Nikki Van Dijk (AUS) 10.63
Heat 4: Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 16.30, Courtney Conlogue (USA) 9.00, Bethany Hamilton (HAW) 6.50
Heat 5: Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 16.10, Alana Blanchard (HAW) 12.83 Paige Hareb (NZL) 7.47
Heat 6: Coco Ho (HAW) 12.90, Tyler Wright (AUS) 12.00, Pauline Ado (FRA) 6.37
RIP CURL WOMEN’S PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 2 MATCH-UPS:
Heat 1: Paige Hareb (NZL) vs. Jessi Miley-Dyer (AUS)
Heat 2: Laura Enever (AUS) vs. Melanie Bartels (HAW)
Heat 3: Carissa Moore (HAW) vs. Nikki Van Dijk (AUS)
Heat 4: Chelsea Hedges (AUS) vs. Bethany Hamilton (HAW)
Heat 5: Tyler Wright (AUS) vs. Alana Blanchard (HAW)
Heat 6: Courtney Conlogue (USA) vs. Rebecca Woods (AUS)
Photo ASP/Scholtz
January Jones ,
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Inspired by the consistently sold-out Writing for Film & Television Summer Intensive Program, the Two-Weekend Intensive was designed for aspiring film and television writers with busy weekday schedules. Over the course of two weekends, participants learn a variety of screenwriting tools, techniques, and exercises that closely represent what students learn in the one-year Writing for Film & Television program.
Find out more about VFS’s one-year Writing for Film & Television program at vfs.com/writing.
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The New Chanel Boutique Opening and Charity Event,hosted by SIMPLY CONSISTENT INC.
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The New Chanel Boutique Opening and Charity Event, on Robertson Blvd and SIMPLY CONSISTENT INC.
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Stair detail
The University of Aarhus, which dates from 1931, is a unique and coherent university campus with consistent architecture, homogenous use of yellow brickwork and adaptation to the landscape. The university has won renown and praise as an integrated complex which unites the best aspects of functionalism with solid Danish traditions in form and materials.
The competition for the university was won by the architects Kay Fisker, C. F. Møller og Povl Stegmann in 1931. Stegman left the partnership in 1937, Fisker in 1942 and C. F. Møller Architects has been in charge of the continued architectural development and building design of the university until today.
The University of Aarhus, with its extensive park in central Aarhus, includes teaching rooms, offices, libraries, workshops and student accommodation. The university has a distinct homogeneous building style and utilises the natural contours of the landscape. The campus has emerged around a distinct moraine gorge and the buildings for the departments and faculties are placed on the slopes, from the main buildings alongside the ring road to the center of the city at Nørreport. All throughout the campus, the buildings are variations of the same clear-cut prismatic volume with pitched roofs, oriented orthogonally to form individual architectural clusters sharing the same vocabulary. The way the buildings emerge from the landscape makes them seem to grow from it, rather than being superimposed on the site.
The original scheme for the campus park was made by the famous Danish landscape architect C. Th. Sørensen. Until the death of C. Th. Sørensens in 1979 the development of the park areas were conducted in a close cooperation between C. Th. Sørensen, C. F. Møller and the local park authorities. Since 1979 C. F. Møller Architects - in cooperation with the staff at the university - has continued the intentions of the original scheme for the park, and today the park is a beautiful, green area and an immense contribution to both the university and the city in general.
In 2001, C. F. Møller Architects prepared a new masterplan for the long and short term development of the university. Although the university has been extended continuously for more than 75 years, the original masterplan and design principles have been maintained, and have proven a simple yet versatile tool to create a timeless and coherent architectural expression adaptable to changing programs. Today, the university is officially recognized as a Danish national architectural treasure and is internationally renowned as an excellent example of early modern university campus planning.
Who here likes consistency? You know, that warm, familiar feeling every time you go to Taco Bell (going down or out.. up to you)... very consistent? You've been there enough times and you've generally had all their menu items and your opinion is that "it's alright". Then there's that one time out of the blue, you decide to try something vegetarian off the Fresco menu, only to realize it was a horrible, horrible mistake? Well, that's kind of like what happened with this particular entry: Figma Megumin from Kono Sabarashii Sekai ni Shyukufuku wo!.. however you pronounce that.
As with 99% of the magical girl entries on my list, I know nothing about the actual character. Couple of Wiki pages presents a personality that, as expected, fits the way she looks. As taken from a Fandom page:
"Megumin is a straightforward girl, who speaks in an old-style Japanese dialect. She can be very hyper and lively at times and has chuunibyou tendencies like the rest of the Crimson Demon villagers. She is very intelligent, but has very little self-control, especially when it comes to using Explosion magic. She has no problem wasting her spell on empty plains or abandoned castles, as long as she can use Explosion once a day."
There seemed to be quite a bit of excitement when the figure was announced a while back, so as I always do, I found a decent deal on one that had a few issues while out and about, figuring "it's a Figma, it'll be alright" and away I went. The issues being that this was an Amazon Warehouse deal, so it wasn't complete, though the only thing that was missing was the instruction manual. The peg holding her cape in place had snapped off, and her head wasn't in place, of which the latter I figure I could just go home and pop that sucker right back in because, well, wouldn't be the first time a head came off a Figma after being jostled.
Well, jokes on me. After trying with no success, I took to the Internet, and read a crap ton of negative reviews on this figure, ranging from poor QC to horrible design. The head thing? Wasn't the only one; several complaints on Amazon said the same thing, with most not even bothering to try to attach the head. I had to grind the hole to widen it before the neck joint would actually fit, and now it's a bit loose and prone to falling off. I read stories of the staff showing up broken. Seems overall, these Konosuba girls (as they are called) have been plagued with QC issues.. I'm glad I didn't pay MSRP on this figure, let me tell you.
Megumin comes with a typical payload when it comes to Figma. There's the figure, three total face plates (slight smile, attacking, scared), her hat, her cape, alternate hair with eye patch, energy effect for eye, staff, purple orb for staff, spell effect with staff end for attaching said effect, her Familiar Chomosuke, six additional hands plus one dedicated spell casting hand, and the usual Figma stand.
Based on the screen caps I've seen, it appears that overall, Max Factory has captured the overall silhouette of Megumin herself, and her look when equipped with her gear. Of course, she's a lanky Japanese school girl, so not exactly hard for Figma to replicate. Chomosuke is freakin' adorable.. not quite Kirby adorable, but pretty damn close. Sculpting details are up to snuff, with clean fingers, good texture detailing on the outfit, and some minor muscle definition on her bare back. Face plates look spot on.
Articulation is pretty typical for a Figma.. when she doesn't have her cape on. You have full motion ankles, single jointed knees, full motion hips, waist, mid torso movement, full motion shoulders combined with bicep swivel, standard elbows, wrists, and head articulation. Mid torso movement is limited due to the joint being embedded inside her outfit, which is a soft rubber material. I'm not sure if it's like this for all the recent Figma (I'm kind of behind schedule), but Megumin features this hinged joint which allows for a deeper range of motion when it comes to head tilt, while at the same time offering the same ball jointed base base of head joint that permits the standard range of motion there. The cape itself has two points of articulation, allowing for a simulated flow look which is great, but putting the cape on also limits the range of motion when it comes to raise the arms up into an overhead position. Her skirt also limits the movement of the upper legs, which in turn limits the number of stances you can have her in. Because of this, I found it very difficult to balance Megumin on her tiny feet, and as such a stand is pretty much needed for everything.
Paint work is, as expected, solid across the board. Even the yellows appear to be well applied, with no significant overspray or lumpy paint residue. The only ugly paint spot are the silver on her buckle and her necklace, which are relatively ugly, but not "gouge my eyes out" level. Decal work is at its usual level of excellence.
Building quality and design is where things kind of went South. I've already talked about my problems out the box above, but there's more to discuss. First and foremost, that stupid, stupid hat. So, someone, in their infinite wisdom, decided that rather than have the hat attach via a peg or something like that, decided the best way to have the hat sit on her head is the put a really thin piece of plastic on the inside of the hat, and have that clip between the two hair pieces.. sounds alright in theory until you realize actually getting the thing to fit in their is a nightmare because there really isn't enough clearance to slide the front hair piece in place should you try to get the hat in place first. So instead you end up leaving a slight gap, and cramming the hat on her head, hoping for the best. The eye effect is a separate piece, and it is up to the owner to use their hamburger finger to squeeze this tiny plastic piece, probably the size of a syringe needle, into place so it doesn't fall out of the hair. I found that the joints on the figure, while fine by themselves, aren't really meant to carry the weight of the staff, particularly if it has the energy effect attached on the end of it. The body itself is pretty typical build, so no too many complaints here.
So in the end, we had the potential for an outstanding Figma, one having vibrant colour and personality., only to have a multitude of QC issues and crappy design choices knock it down a few pegs. Without her hat and cape, Megumin is honestly average at best, as she really can't do much other than sligh variations of standing up. I guess if the cape wasn't broken on mine, at least I would keep the cape on constantly as it does add to the character. But that hat.. it's such a hassle to put it on you either never take it off or you just give up. The best parts of this set are the scared face and of course, Chomosuke.
Better luck next time, I suppose.
Who here likes consistency? You know, that warm, familiar feeling every time you go to Taco Bell (going down or out.. up to you)... very consistent? You've been there enough times and you've generally had all their menu items and your opinion is that "it's alright". Then there's that one time out of the blue, you decide to try something vegetarian off the Fresco menu, only to realize it was a horrible, horrible mistake? Well, that's kind of like what happened with this particular entry: Figma Megumin from Kono Sabarashii Sekai ni Shyukufuku wo!.. however you pronounce that.
As with 99% of the magical girl entries on my list, I know nothing about the actual character. Couple of Wiki pages presents a personality that, as expected, fits the way she looks. As taken from a Fandom page:
"Megumin is a straightforward girl, who speaks in an old-style Japanese dialect. She can be very hyper and lively at times and has chuunibyou tendencies like the rest of the Crimson Demon villagers. She is very intelligent, but has very little self-control, especially when it comes to using Explosion magic. She has no problem wasting her spell on empty plains or abandoned castles, as long as she can use Explosion once a day."
There seemed to be quite a bit of excitement when the figure was announced a while back, so as I always do, I found a decent deal on one that had a few issues while out and about, figuring "it's a Figma, it'll be alright" and away I went. The issues being that this was an Amazon Warehouse deal, so it wasn't complete, though the only thing that was missing was the instruction manual. The peg holding her cape in place had snapped off, and her head wasn't in place, of which the latter I figure I could just go home and pop that sucker right back in because, well, wouldn't be the first time a head came off a Figma after being jostled.
Well, jokes on me. After trying with no success, I took to the Internet, and read a crap ton of negative reviews on this figure, ranging from poor QC to horrible design. The head thing? Wasn't the only one; several complaints on Amazon said the same thing, with most not even bothering to try to attach the head. I had to grind the hole to widen it before the neck joint would actually fit, and now it's a bit loose and prone to falling off. I read stories of the staff showing up broken. Seems overall, these Konosuba girls (as they are called) have been plagued with QC issues.. I'm glad I didn't pay MSRP on this figure, let me tell you.
Megumin comes with a typical payload when it comes to Figma. There's the figure, three total face plates (slight smile, attacking, scared), her hat, her cape, alternate hair with eye patch, energy effect for eye, staff, purple orb for staff, spell effect with staff end for attaching said effect, her Familiar Chomosuke, six additional hands plus one dedicated spell casting hand, and the usual Figma stand.
Based on the screen caps I've seen, it appears that overall, Max Factory has captured the overall silhouette of Megumin herself, and her look when equipped with her gear. Of course, she's a lanky Japanese school girl, so not exactly hard for Figma to replicate. Chomosuke is freakin' adorable.. not quite Kirby adorable, but pretty damn close. Sculpting details are up to snuff, with clean fingers, good texture detailing on the outfit, and some minor muscle definition on her bare back. Face plates look spot on.
Articulation is pretty typical for a Figma.. when she doesn't have her cape on. You have full motion ankles, single jointed knees, full motion hips, waist, mid torso movement, full motion shoulders combined with bicep swivel, standard elbows, wrists, and head articulation. Mid torso movement is limited due to the joint being embedded inside her outfit, which is a soft rubber material. I'm not sure if it's like this for all the recent Figma (I'm kind of behind schedule), but Megumin features this hinged joint which allows for a deeper range of motion when it comes to head tilt, while at the same time offering the same ball jointed base base of head joint that permits the standard range of motion there. The cape itself has two points of articulation, allowing for a simulated flow look which is great, but putting the cape on also limits the range of motion when it comes to raise the arms up into an overhead position. Her skirt also limits the movement of the upper legs, which in turn limits the number of stances you can have her in. Because of this, I found it very difficult to balance Megumin on her tiny feet, and as such a stand is pretty much needed for everything.
Paint work is, as expected, solid across the board. Even the yellows appear to be well applied, with no significant overspray or lumpy paint residue. The only ugly paint spot are the silver on her buckle and her necklace, which are relatively ugly, but not "gouge my eyes out" level. Decal work is at its usual level of excellence.
Building quality and design is where things kind of went South. I've already talked about my problems out the box above, but there's more to discuss. First and foremost, that stupid, stupid hat. So, someone, in their infinite wisdom, decided that rather than have the hat attach via a peg or something like that, decided the best way to have the hat sit on her head is the put a really thin piece of plastic on the inside of the hat, and have that clip between the two hair pieces.. sounds alright in theory until you realize actually getting the thing to fit in their is a nightmare because there really isn't enough clearance to slide the front hair piece in place should you try to get the hat in place first. So instead you end up leaving a slight gap, and cramming the hat on her head, hoping for the best. The eye effect is a separate piece, and it is up to the owner to use their hamburger finger to squeeze this tiny plastic piece, probably the size of a syringe needle, into place so it doesn't fall out of the hair. I found that the joints on the figure, while fine by themselves, aren't really meant to carry the weight of the staff, particularly if it has the energy effect attached on the end of it. The body itself is pretty typical build, so no too many complaints here.
So in the end, we had the potential for an outstanding Figma, one having vibrant colour and personality., only to have a multitude of QC issues and crappy design choices knock it down a few pegs. Without her hat and cape, Megumin is honestly average at best, as she really can't do much other than sligh variations of standing up. I guess if the cape wasn't broken on mine, at least I would keep the cape on constantly as it does add to the character. But that hat.. it's such a hassle to put it on you either never take it off or you just give up. The best parts of this set are the scared face and of course, Chomosuke.
Better luck next time, I suppose.
January Jones and award winning Talent manager Kathleen Checki
The New Chanel Boutique Opening and Charity Event, on Robertson Blvd hosted by SIMPLY CONSISTENT INC.
simplyconsistentmanagement.com/non-profit/childhood-obesity
"-Kathleen Checki."
"-Checki."
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"-Simply Consistent Management."
"-Chanel Boutique.", "-Kathleen Checki.", "-Checki." ,
"-Simply Consistent." , "-Simply Consistent Management.", "-Simply Consistent Charity Event." , "-Kathleen Checki Charity Event." , "-Kathleen Check.",
ADO16 is the codename for the development of what became the Morris 1100, a small family car built by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and, later, British Leyland. Throughout the 1960s, the ADO16 was consistently the UK's best-selling car.
Although most of the cars were manufactured in England, the model was also built in Spain by Authi, in Italy by Innocenti and at the company's own plant in Belgium. It was the basis for locally adapted similar cars manufactured in Australia and South Africa.
The vehicle was launched as the Morris 1100 on August 15, 1962. The range was expanded to include several rebadged versions, including the twin-carburettor MG 1100, the Vanden Plas Princess (from October 1962), the Austin 1100 (August 1963), and finally the Wolseley 1100 (1965) and Riley Kestrel (1965). The Morris badged 1100/1300 gave up its showroom space to the Morris Marina in 1971, but Austin and Vanden Plas versions remained in production in the UK till June 1974.
The estate version followed in 1966, called Countryman in the Austin version and Traveller in the Morris one, continuing the established naming scheme.
In 1964 the 1100 was Wheels magazine's Car of the Year.
The original Mark I models were distinctive for their use of a Hydrolastic suspension. Marketing material highlighted the spacious cabin when compared to competitor models which in the UK by 1964 included the more conservatively configured Ford Anglia, Vauxhall Viva HA and BMC's own still popular Morris Minor.
At the end of May 1967, BMC announced the fitting of a larger 1275 cc engine to the MG, Riley Kestrel, Vanden Plas and Wolseley variants.[5] The new car combined the 1275 cc engine block already familiar to drivers of newer Mini Cooper and Austin-Healey Sprite models with the 1100 transmission, its gear ratios remaining unchanged for the larger engine, but the final-drive being significantly more highly geared.[5]
The Mark II versions of the Austin and Morris models were announced, with the larger engine making it into these two makes' UK market ranges in October 1967 (as the Austin 1300 and Morris 1100S and 100). An 1100 version of the Mark II continued alongside the larger engined models.
Unusually for cars at this end of the market, domestic market waiting lists of several months accumulated for the 1300 engined cars during the closing months of 1967 and well into 1968. The manufacturers explained that following the devaluation of the British Pound in the Fall / Autumn of 1967 they were working flat out to satisfy export market demand, but impatient British would-be customers could be reassured that export sales of the 1300s were "going very well". MG, Wolseley, Riley and Vanden Plas variants with the 1300 engines were already available on the home market in very limited quantities, and Austin and Morris versions would begin to be "available here in small quantities in March [1968].
On the outside, a slightly wider front grille, extending a little beneath the headlights, and with a fussier detailing, differentiated Austin / Morris Mark IIs from their Mark I predecessors, along with a slightly smoother tail light fitting which also found its way onto the FX4 London taxi of the time. Austin and Morris grilles were now identical. The 1100 had been introduced with synchromesh on the top three ratios: all synchromesh manual gearboxes were introduced with the 1275 cc models at the end of 1967 and found their way into 1098 cc cars a few months later.
At the London Motor Show in October 1969 the manufacturers introduced the Austin / Morris 1300 GT, featuring the same 1275 cc twin carburetter engine as that installed in the MG 1300, but with a black full width grill, a black vinyl roof and a thick black stripe down the side.[8] This was BMC's answer to the Ford Escort GT and its Vauxhall counterpart. Ride height on the Austin / Morris 1300 GT was fractionally lowered through the reduction of the Hydrolastic fluid pressure from 225 to 205 psi.
Who here likes consistency? You know, that warm, familiar feeling every time you go to Taco Bell (going down or out.. up to you)... very consistent? You've been there enough times and you've generally had all their menu items and your opinion is that "it's alright". Then there's that one time out of the blue, you decide to try something vegetarian off the Fresco menu, only to realize it was a horrible, horrible mistake? Well, that's kind of like what happened with this particular entry: Figma Megumin from Kono Sabarashii Sekai ni Shyukufuku wo!.. however you pronounce that.
As with 99% of the magical girl entries on my list, I know nothing about the actual character. Couple of Wiki pages presents a personality that, as expected, fits the way she looks. As taken from a Fandom page:
"Megumin is a straightforward girl, who speaks in an old-style Japanese dialect. She can be very hyper and lively at times and has chuunibyou tendencies like the rest of the Crimson Demon villagers. She is very intelligent, but has very little self-control, especially when it comes to using Explosion magic. She has no problem wasting her spell on empty plains or abandoned castles, as long as she can use Explosion once a day."
There seemed to be quite a bit of excitement when the figure was announced a while back, so as I always do, I found a decent deal on one that had a few issues while out and about, figuring "it's a Figma, it'll be alright" and away I went. The issues being that this was an Amazon Warehouse deal, so it wasn't complete, though the only thing that was missing was the instruction manual. The peg holding her cape in place had snapped off, and her head wasn't in place, of which the latter I figure I could just go home and pop that sucker right back in because, well, wouldn't be the first time a head came off a Figma after being jostled.
Well, jokes on me. After trying with no success, I took to the Internet, and read a crap ton of negative reviews on this figure, ranging from poor QC to horrible design. The head thing? Wasn't the only one; several complaints on Amazon said the same thing, with most not even bothering to try to attach the head. I had to grind the hole to widen it before the neck joint would actually fit, and now it's a bit loose and prone to falling off. I read stories of the staff showing up broken. Seems overall, these Konosuba girls (as they are called) have been plagued with QC issues.. I'm glad I didn't pay MSRP on this figure, let me tell you.
Megumin comes with a typical payload when it comes to Figma. There's the figure, three total face plates (slight smile, attacking, scared), her hat, her cape, alternate hair with eye patch, energy effect for eye, staff, purple orb for staff, spell effect with staff end for attaching said effect, her Familiar Chomosuke, six additional hands plus one dedicated spell casting hand, and the usual Figma stand.
Based on the screen caps I've seen, it appears that overall, Max Factory has captured the overall silhouette of Megumin herself, and her look when equipped with her gear. Of course, she's a lanky Japanese school girl, so not exactly hard for Figma to replicate. Chomosuke is freakin' adorable.. not quite Kirby adorable, but pretty damn close. Sculpting details are up to snuff, with clean fingers, good texture detailing on the outfit, and some minor muscle definition on her bare back. Face plates look spot on.
Articulation is pretty typical for a Figma.. when she doesn't have her cape on. You have full motion ankles, single jointed knees, full motion hips, waist, mid torso movement, full motion shoulders combined with bicep swivel, standard elbows, wrists, and head articulation. Mid torso movement is limited due to the joint being embedded inside her outfit, which is a soft rubber material. I'm not sure if it's like this for all the recent Figma (I'm kind of behind schedule), but Megumin features this hinged joint which allows for a deeper range of motion when it comes to head tilt, while at the same time offering the same ball jointed base base of head joint that permits the standard range of motion there. The cape itself has two points of articulation, allowing for a simulated flow look which is great, but putting the cape on also limits the range of motion when it comes to raise the arms up into an overhead position. Her skirt also limits the movement of the upper legs, which in turn limits the number of stances you can have her in. Because of this, I found it very difficult to balance Megumin on her tiny feet, and as such a stand is pretty much needed for everything.
Paint work is, as expected, solid across the board. Even the yellows appear to be well applied, with no significant overspray or lumpy paint residue. The only ugly paint spot are the silver on her buckle and her necklace, which are relatively ugly, but not "gouge my eyes out" level. Decal work is at its usual level of excellence.
Building quality and design is where things kind of went South. I've already talked about my problems out the box above, but there's more to discuss. First and foremost, that stupid, stupid hat. So, someone, in their infinite wisdom, decided that rather than have the hat attach via a peg or something like that, decided the best way to have the hat sit on her head is the put a really thin piece of plastic on the inside of the hat, and have that clip between the two hair pieces.. sounds alright in theory until you realize actually getting the thing to fit in their is a nightmare because there really isn't enough clearance to slide the front hair piece in place should you try to get the hat in place first. So instead you end up leaving a slight gap, and cramming the hat on her head, hoping for the best. The eye effect is a separate piece, and it is up to the owner to use their hamburger finger to squeeze this tiny plastic piece, probably the size of a syringe needle, into place so it doesn't fall out of the hair. I found that the joints on the figure, while fine by themselves, aren't really meant to carry the weight of the staff, particularly if it has the energy effect attached on the end of it. The body itself is pretty typical build, so no too many complaints here.
So in the end, we had the potential for an outstanding Figma, one having vibrant colour and personality., only to have a multitude of QC issues and crappy design choices knock it down a few pegs. Without her hat and cape, Megumin is honestly average at best, as she really can't do much other than sligh variations of standing up. I guess if the cape wasn't broken on mine, at least I would keep the cape on constantly as it does add to the character. But that hat.. it's such a hassle to put it on you either never take it off or you just give up. The best parts of this set are the scared face and of course, Chomosuke.
Better luck next time, I suppose.
Who here likes consistency? You know, that warm, familiar feeling every time you go to Taco Bell (going down or out.. up to you)... very consistent? You've been there enough times and you've generally had all their menu items and your opinion is that "it's alright". Then there's that one time out of the blue, you decide to try something vegetarian off the Fresco menu, only to realize it was a horrible, horrible mistake? Well, that's kind of like what happened with this particular entry: Figma Megumin from Kono Sabarashii Sekai ni Shyukufuku wo!.. however you pronounce that.
As with 99% of the magical girl entries on my list, I know nothing about the actual character. Couple of Wiki pages presents a personality that, as expected, fits the way she looks. As taken from a Fandom page:
"Megumin is a straightforward girl, who speaks in an old-style Japanese dialect. She can be very hyper and lively at times and has chuunibyou tendencies like the rest of the Crimson Demon villagers. She is very intelligent, but has very little self-control, especially when it comes to using Explosion magic. She has no problem wasting her spell on empty plains or abandoned castles, as long as she can use Explosion once a day."
There seemed to be quite a bit of excitement when the figure was announced a while back, so as I always do, I found a decent deal on one that had a few issues while out and about, figuring "it's a Figma, it'll be alright" and away I went. The issues being that this was an Amazon Warehouse deal, so it wasn't complete, though the only thing that was missing was the instruction manual. The peg holding her cape in place had snapped off, and her head wasn't in place, of which the latter I figure I could just go home and pop that sucker right back in because, well, wouldn't be the first time a head came off a Figma after being jostled.
Well, jokes on me. After trying with no success, I took to the Internet, and read a crap ton of negative reviews on this figure, ranging from poor QC to horrible design. The head thing? Wasn't the only one; several complaints on Amazon said the same thing, with most not even bothering to try to attach the head. I had to grind the hole to widen it before the neck joint would actually fit, and now it's a bit loose and prone to falling off. I read stories of the staff showing up broken. Seems overall, these Konosuba girls (as they are called) have been plagued with QC issues.. I'm glad I didn't pay MSRP on this figure, let me tell you.
Megumin comes with a typical payload when it comes to Figma. There's the figure, three total face plates (slight smile, attacking, scared), her hat, her cape, alternate hair with eye patch, energy effect for eye, staff, purple orb for staff, spell effect with staff end for attaching said effect, her Familiar Chomosuke, six additional hands plus one dedicated spell casting hand, and the usual Figma stand.
Based on the screen caps I've seen, it appears that overall, Max Factory has captured the overall silhouette of Megumin herself, and her look when equipped with her gear. Of course, she's a lanky Japanese school girl, so not exactly hard for Figma to replicate. Chomosuke is freakin' adorable.. not quite Kirby adorable, but pretty damn close. Sculpting details are up to snuff, with clean fingers, good texture detailing on the outfit, and some minor muscle definition on her bare back. Face plates look spot on.
Articulation is pretty typical for a Figma.. when she doesn't have her cape on. You have full motion ankles, single jointed knees, full motion hips, waist, mid torso movement, full motion shoulders combined with bicep swivel, standard elbows, wrists, and head articulation. Mid torso movement is limited due to the joint being embedded inside her outfit, which is a soft rubber material. I'm not sure if it's like this for all the recent Figma (I'm kind of behind schedule), but Megumin features this hinged joint which allows for a deeper range of motion when it comes to head tilt, while at the same time offering the same ball jointed base base of head joint that permits the standard range of motion there. The cape itself has two points of articulation, allowing for a simulated flow look which is great, but putting the cape on also limits the range of motion when it comes to raise the arms up into an overhead position. Her skirt also limits the movement of the upper legs, which in turn limits the number of stances you can have her in. Because of this, I found it very difficult to balance Megumin on her tiny feet, and as such a stand is pretty much needed for everything.
Paint work is, as expected, solid across the board. Even the yellows appear to be well applied, with no significant overspray or lumpy paint residue. The only ugly paint spot are the silver on her buckle and her necklace, which are relatively ugly, but not "gouge my eyes out" level. Decal work is at its usual level of excellence.
Building quality and design is where things kind of went South. I've already talked about my problems out the box above, but there's more to discuss. First and foremost, that stupid, stupid hat. So, someone, in their infinite wisdom, decided that rather than have the hat attach via a peg or something like that, decided the best way to have the hat sit on her head is the put a really thin piece of plastic on the inside of the hat, and have that clip between the two hair pieces.. sounds alright in theory until you realize actually getting the thing to fit in their is a nightmare because there really isn't enough clearance to slide the front hair piece in place should you try to get the hat in place first. So instead you end up leaving a slight gap, and cramming the hat on her head, hoping for the best. The eye effect is a separate piece, and it is up to the owner to use their hamburger finger to squeeze this tiny plastic piece, probably the size of a syringe needle, into place so it doesn't fall out of the hair. I found that the joints on the figure, while fine by themselves, aren't really meant to carry the weight of the staff, particularly if it has the energy effect attached on the end of it. The body itself is pretty typical build, so no too many complaints here.
So in the end, we had the potential for an outstanding Figma, one having vibrant colour and personality., only to have a multitude of QC issues and crappy design choices knock it down a few pegs. Without her hat and cape, Megumin is honestly average at best, as she really can't do much other than sligh variations of standing up. I guess if the cape wasn't broken on mine, at least I would keep the cape on constantly as it does add to the character. But that hat.. it's such a hassle to put it on you either never take it off or you just give up. The best parts of this set are the scared face and of course, Chomosuke.
Better luck next time, I suppose.
Who here likes consistency? You know, that warm, familiar feeling every time you go to Taco Bell (going down or out.. up to you)... very consistent? You've been there enough times and you've generally had all their menu items and your opinion is that "it's alright". Then there's that one time out of the blue, you decide to try something vegetarian off the Fresco menu, only to realize it was a horrible, horrible mistake? Well, that's kind of like what happened with this particular entry: Figma Megumin from Kono Sabarashii Sekai ni Shyukufuku wo!.. however you pronounce that.
As with 99% of the magical girl entries on my list, I know nothing about the actual character. Couple of Wiki pages presents a personality that, as expected, fits the way she looks. As taken from a Fandom page:
"Megumin is a straightforward girl, who speaks in an old-style Japanese dialect. She can be very hyper and lively at times and has chuunibyou tendencies like the rest of the Crimson Demon villagers. She is very intelligent, but has very little self-control, especially when it comes to using Explosion magic. She has no problem wasting her spell on empty plains or abandoned castles, as long as she can use Explosion once a day."
There seemed to be quite a bit of excitement when the figure was announced a while back, so as I always do, I found a decent deal on one that had a few issues while out and about, figuring "it's a Figma, it'll be alright" and away I went. The issues being that this was an Amazon Warehouse deal, so it wasn't complete, though the only thing that was missing was the instruction manual. The peg holding her cape in place had snapped off, and her head wasn't in place, of which the latter I figure I could just go home and pop that sucker right back in because, well, wouldn't be the first time a head came off a Figma after being jostled.
Well, jokes on me. After trying with no success, I took to the Internet, and read a crap ton of negative reviews on this figure, ranging from poor QC to horrible design. The head thing? Wasn't the only one; several complaints on Amazon said the same thing, with most not even bothering to try to attach the head. I had to grind the hole to widen it before the neck joint would actually fit, and now it's a bit loose and prone to falling off. I read stories of the staff showing up broken. Seems overall, these Konosuba girls (as they are called) have been plagued with QC issues.. I'm glad I didn't pay MSRP on this figure, let me tell you.
Megumin comes with a typical payload when it comes to Figma. There's the figure, three total face plates (slight smile, attacking, scared), her hat, her cape, alternate hair with eye patch, energy effect for eye, staff, purple orb for staff, spell effect with staff end for attaching said effect, her Familiar Chomosuke, six additional hands plus one dedicated spell casting hand, and the usual Figma stand.
Based on the screen caps I've seen, it appears that overall, Max Factory has captured the overall silhouette of Megumin herself, and her look when equipped with her gear. Of course, she's a lanky Japanese school girl, so not exactly hard for Figma to replicate. Chomosuke is freakin' adorable.. not quite Kirby adorable, but pretty damn close. Sculpting details are up to snuff, with clean fingers, good texture detailing on the outfit, and some minor muscle definition on her bare back. Face plates look spot on.
Articulation is pretty typical for a Figma.. when she doesn't have her cape on. You have full motion ankles, single jointed knees, full motion hips, waist, mid torso movement, full motion shoulders combined with bicep swivel, standard elbows, wrists, and head articulation. Mid torso movement is limited due to the joint being embedded inside her outfit, which is a soft rubber material. I'm not sure if it's like this for all the recent Figma (I'm kind of behind schedule), but Megumin features this hinged joint which allows for a deeper range of motion when it comes to head tilt, while at the same time offering the same ball jointed base base of head joint that permits the standard range of motion there. The cape itself has two points of articulation, allowing for a simulated flow look which is great, but putting the cape on also limits the range of motion when it comes to raise the arms up into an overhead position. Her skirt also limits the movement of the upper legs, which in turn limits the number of stances you can have her in. Because of this, I found it very difficult to balance Megumin on her tiny feet, and as such a stand is pretty much needed for everything.
Paint work is, as expected, solid across the board. Even the yellows appear to be well applied, with no significant overspray or lumpy paint residue. The only ugly paint spot are the silver on her buckle and her necklace, which are relatively ugly, but not "gouge my eyes out" level. Decal work is at its usual level of excellence.
Building quality and design is where things kind of went South. I've already talked about my problems out the box above, but there's more to discuss. First and foremost, that stupid, stupid hat. So, someone, in their infinite wisdom, decided that rather than have the hat attach via a peg or something like that, decided the best way to have the hat sit on her head is the put a really thin piece of plastic on the inside of the hat, and have that clip between the two hair pieces.. sounds alright in theory until you realize actually getting the thing to fit in their is a nightmare because there really isn't enough clearance to slide the front hair piece in place should you try to get the hat in place first. So instead you end up leaving a slight gap, and cramming the hat on her head, hoping for the best. The eye effect is a separate piece, and it is up to the owner to use their hamburger finger to squeeze this tiny plastic piece, probably the size of a syringe needle, into place so it doesn't fall out of the hair. I found that the joints on the figure, while fine by themselves, aren't really meant to carry the weight of the staff, particularly if it has the energy effect attached on the end of it. The body itself is pretty typical build, so no too many complaints here.
So in the end, we had the potential for an outstanding Figma, one having vibrant colour and personality., only to have a multitude of QC issues and crappy design choices knock it down a few pegs. Without her hat and cape, Megumin is honestly average at best, as she really can't do much other than sligh variations of standing up. I guess if the cape wasn't broken on mine, at least I would keep the cape on constantly as it does add to the character. But that hat.. it's such a hassle to put it on you either never take it off or you just give up. The best parts of this set are the scared face and of course, Chomosuke.
Better luck next time, I suppose.
Joel Parkinson Leads ASP Top Stars in Assault on Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach Round 1
BELLS BEACH, Victoria/Australia (Wednesday, April 20, 2011) – Today marks the commencement of the 50th Anniversary of competition surfing at Bells Beach as Round 1 of the 2011 Rip Curl Pro Bells presented by Ford Ranger got underway in clean four-to-six foot (1.5 - 2 metre) surf.
The Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach, the second stop on the 2011 ASP World Title season, enjoyed consistent surf throughout the day as the world’s best surfers unleashed a barrage of high-performance ripping on the classic canvas of Bells Beach.
Joel Parkinson (AUS), 30, 2009 Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach Champion put in a sensational performance this afternoon, electing to sit up at Rincon to secure the day’s highest scores.. Parkinson locked in the highest wave score and the highest heat score of the opening day of competition scoring 17.74 (out of a possible 20.00) to advance directly through to Round 3 of competition.
"I fell off twice on the bowl," Parkinson said. "It was really hard to ride. Then CJ (Hobgood) went across to Rincon and got a score, so we followed him over and it worked out for me. It's great to get that opening heat win, especially at Bells. You never know what conditions you're going to get in a heat, so to be able to skip round two and maybe get a day off is a huge advantage."
Kelly Slater (USA), 39, reigning 10-time ASP World Champion and defending event winner, was clinical in his attack in his Round 1 heat. Slater had his fellow competitors Adam Robertson (AUS), 28, and Kai Otton (AUS), 31, on the ropes only minutes into the heat, scoring an impressive 16.00 (out of a possible 20.00) on his opening two rides.
"I don't free surf out at Bells a whole lot," Slater said. "When the waves are good the comp is on and outside of that it's pretty crowded. So I'm still learning with each heat out there still, surfing against a guy like Robbo (Adam Robertson) you've got to watch where he's sitting, how far our and how deep."
Mick Fanning (AUS), 29, currently equal 13th in the hunt for the 2011 ASP World Title, went into today’s competition with renewed vigor after a shock early exit at the last event on the Gold Coast. The past two-time ASP World Champion came out and dominated his Round 1 battle over Tiago Pires (PRT), 31, and Gabriel Medina (BRA), 17.
"I'm stoked to get a good start," Fanning said. "It's been 10 years since I won here as I wildcard, I got close last year but Kelly Slater got me in the final. You want to win every event, but being the 50th Anniversary and so much history at this event, it's like the Wimbeldon of surfing, it's a hard one to win but it's the one everyone wants."
Alejo Muniz (BRA), 21, led today’s rookie charge, continuing his sensational run after the and equal 5th on the Gold Coast, and dispatching of fellow Brazilian Ranoi Monterio (BRA), 28, and Australian Adrian Buchan (AUS), 28 in this morning’s opening round heat.
"It's so good out there!" Muniz said. "This is my first time surfing at Bells and it's the most amazing place. It's got perfect rights, and it's the kind of wave that I love to surf. It's the best place ever, best waves, best weather and I love surfing in wetsuits."
Jeremy Flores (FRA), 22, bounced back after missing the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast with a knee injury, to score a comprehensive win over Taylor Knox (USA), 39, and Cory Lopez (USA), 34.
"I wasn't very confident before the heat," Flores said. "But I got that first wave and did a big turn at the end and got a good score. I think that's what you need to do these days, finish the wave strong. My knee still isn't 100%, but I went for it and it's good to win. Big thanks to everyone at the Gold Coast Suns Football Club for helping with my knee, it's feeling much better now."
Stu Kennedy (AUS), 21, scored a last minute wildcard into the event and caused the upset of the day, eliminating 2010 ASP World Title runner-up Jordy Smith (ZAF), 23, and Dusty Payne (HAW), 22.
"I've been coming here for years," Kennedy said. "I won a Pro Junior here in 2008 and I know where to sit. I don't think Dusty and Jordy know the break as well as I do so that helps. I've been up since 3am because I'm jet-lagged from coming home from Scotland. I woke up with a bunch of energy it's my shaper's birthday so I woke him up at 5am to go surfing. I had to win my heat for him for his birthday."
When men’s competition resumes, up first will be 2010 ASP World Runner-Up Jordy Smith (ZAF), 23, up against Trials Winner Adam Robertson (AUS), 28, in the opening heat of Round 2.
Following the completion of the men’s Round 1 today, the ASP Top 17 hit the water for Round 1 of the Rip Curl Women’s Pro Bells Beach presented by Ford Fiesta.
Stephanie Gilmore (AUS), 23, reigning four-time ASP Women’s World Champion and defending three-time Rip Curl Women’s Bells Beach winner, returned to her winning ways today, after bowing out early at the last event, the Roxy Pro Gold Coast.
"My first two years on tour I didn't have great results on the Gold Coast," Gilmore said. "I always bounced back at this event and then finished the year well, so hopefully I'll do that again this year. The Gold Coast was a fine showing of what women's surfing is up to now and everyone has to try and keep up. It really pushes me and I think anyone who wins an event from now on will be a very deserving winner because of that fact."
Pauline Ado (FRA), 19, the French rookie caused the upset of the women's event, defeating current ASP World Title front runner Carissa Moore (HAW), 18, in a nail biter of a heat.
"I'm really happy, I had a lot of fun out there," Ado said "I got one of my good waves in the first few seconds so after that I felt confident and knew I could be more selective and wait for the right wave. A heat against Carissa is always a tough one, so I'm really stoked to win."
When women’s competition resumes, up first will be Paige Hareb (NZL) and Jessi Miley-Dyer (AUS) in the opening heat of Round 2.
Event organizers will reconvene tomorrow morning at 7am to assess conditions for a possible 7:30am start.
Highlights from the Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach presented by FORD will be webcast available via www.live.ripcurl.com and broadcast live on Fuel TV in Australia and ESPN in Brazil.
For more information, log onto www.aspworldtour.com
RIP CURL PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 1 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Alejo Muniz (BRA) 13.23, Adrian Buchan (AUS) 11.26, Raoni Monteiro (BRA) 7.37
Heat 2: Adam Melling (AUS) 14.50, Josh Kerr (AUS) 12.30, Taj Burrow (AUS) 11.00
Heat 3: Heitor Alves (BRA) 14.36, Bobby Martinez (USA) 14.14, Owen Wright (AUS) 10.60
Heat 4: Mick Fanning (AUS) 15.60, Tiago Pires (PRT) 11.07, Gabriel Medina (BRA) 9.27
Heat 5: Stu Kennedy (AUS) 11.70, Dusty Payne (HAW) 10.50, Jordy Smith (ZAF) 9.00
Heat 6: Kelly Slater (USA) 16.00, Kai Otton (AUS) 10.13, Adam Robertson (AUS) 8.53
Heat 7: Jeremy Flores (FRA) 13.17, Cory Lopez (USA) 5.83, Taylor Knox (USA) 4.67
Heat 8: Michel Bourez (PYF) 12.60, Kieren Perrow (AUS) 10.20, Gabe Kling (USA) 3.50
Heat 9: Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 14.60, Damien Hobgood (USA) 11.23, Daniel Ross (AUS) 11.07
Heat 10: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 17.74, C.J. Hobgood (USA) 11.44, Bede Durbidge (AUS) 8.17
Heat 11: Adriano de Souza (BRA) 14.60, Chris Davidson (AUS) 10.83, Julian Wilson (AUS) 9.83
Heat 12: Patrick Gudauskas (USA) 13.40, Jadson Andre (BRA) 9.43, Brett Simpson (USA) 8.93
RIP CURL PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 2 MATCH-UPS:
Heat 1: Jordy Smith (ZAF) vs. Adam Robertson (AUS)
Heat 2: Owen Wright (AUS) vs. Gabriel Medina (BRA)
Heat 3: Taj Burrow (AUS) vs. Bobby Martinez (USA)
Heat 4: Adrian Buchan (AUS) vs. Josh Kerr (AUS)
Heat 5: Damien Hobgood (USA) vs. Raoni Monteiro (BRA)
Heat 6: Bede Durbidge (AUS) vs. Cory Lopez (USA)
Heat 7: Brett Simpson (USA) vs. Gabe Kling (USA)
Heat 8: Jadson Andre (BRA) vs. Daniel Ross (AUS)
Heat 9: Chris Davidson (AUS) vs. Julian Wilson (AUS)
Heat 10: C.J. Hobgood (USA) vs. Kai Otton (AUS)
Heat 11: Kieren Perrow (AUS) vs. Dusty Payne (HAW)
Heat 12: Taylor Knox (USA) vs. Tiago Pires (PRT)
RIP CURL WOMEN’S PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 1 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Sofia Mulanovich (PER) 12.93, Chelsea Hedges (AUS) 8.70, Jessi Miley-Dyer (AUS) 8.66
Heat 2: Silvana Lima (BRA) 14.94, Laura Enever (AUS) 8.84, Melanie Bartels (HAW) 7.54
Heat 3: Pauline Ado (HAW) 14.60, Carissa Moore (HAW) 14.44, Nikki Van Dijk (AUS) 10.63
Heat 4: Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 16.30, Courtney Conlogue (USA) 9.00, Bethany Hamilton (HAW) 6.50
Heat 5: Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 16.10, Alana Blanchard (HAW) 12.83 Paige Hareb (NZL) 7.47
Heat 6: Coco Ho (HAW) 12.90, Tyler Wright (AUS) 12.00, Pauline Ado (FRA) 6.37
RIP CURL WOMEN’S PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 2 MATCH-UPS:
Heat 1: Paige Hareb (NZL) vs. Jessi Miley-Dyer (AUS)
Heat 2: Laura Enever (AUS) vs. Melanie Bartels (HAW)
Heat 3: Carissa Moore (HAW) vs. Nikki Van Dijk (AUS)
Heat 4: Chelsea Hedges (AUS) vs. Bethany Hamilton (HAW)
Heat 5: Tyler Wright (AUS) vs. Alana Blanchard (HAW)
Heat 6: Courtney Conlogue (USA) vs. Rebecca Woods (AUS)
Photo ASP/Scholtz
I've eaten here in the past ... and it was good. Tonight? Pretty damn average. The salad was really fresh - so points for that. The prices are consistent with a high end restaurant but for a place that specialises in seafood, I found the meal pretty average. And the coffee? My advice is to skip it. (Perhaps an investment in a pod style coffee machine would provide the customers with drinkable coffee while minimising the time and effort of this task for staff?)
You pay for your meal at the register - which is fine, except for the fact the register is located right in a walkway near the busy food preparation area and near the stairs so the whole time you are paying - you are in the way. This problem could be solved by moving the register to the back counter or by bringing the account to the table.
It was an entertainment book adventure and I did have a fun a night. While I probably won't go there again, the fun in trying somewhere you haven't eaten for years, somewhere different or somewhere new is the adventure of not knowing quite what you are going to get. If you have good company you'll always have a good night - whether the food, prices and service meet your expectations or not.
ADO16 is the codename for the development of what became the Morris 1100, a small family car built by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and, later, British Leyland. Throughout the 1960s, the ADO16 was consistently the UK's best-selling car.
Although most of the cars were manufactured in England, the model was also built in Spain by Authi, in Italy by Innocenti and at the company's own plant in Belgium. It was the basis for locally adapted similar cars manufactured in Australia and South Africa.
The vehicle was launched as the Morris 1100 on August 15, 1962. The range was expanded to include several rebadged versions, including the twin-carburettor MG 1100, the Vanden Plas Princess (from October 1962), the Austin 1100 (August 1963), and finally the Wolseley 1100 (1965) and Riley Kestrel (1965). The Morris badged 1100/1300 gave up its showroom space to the Morris Marina in 1971, but Austin and Vanden Plas versions remained in production in the UK till June 1974.
The estate version followed in 1966, called Countryman in the Austin version and Traveller in the Morris one, continuing the established naming scheme.
In 1964 the 1100 was Wheels magazine's Car of the Year.
The original Mark I models were distinctive for their use of a Hydrolastic suspension. Marketing material highlighted the spacious cabin when compared to competitor models which in the UK by 1964 included the more conservatively configured Ford Anglia, Vauxhall Viva HA and BMC's own still popular Morris Minor.
At the end of May 1967, BMC announced the fitting of a larger 1275 cc engine to the MG, Riley Kestrel, Vanden Plas and Wolseley variants.[5] The new car combined the 1275 cc engine block already familiar to drivers of newer Mini Cooper and Austin-Healey Sprite models with the 1100 transmission, its gear ratios remaining unchanged for the larger engine, but the final-drive being significantly more highly geared.[5]
The Mark II versions of the Austin and Morris models were announced, with the larger engine making it into these two makes' UK market ranges in October 1967 (as the Austin 1300 and Morris 1100S and 100). An 1100 version of the Mark II continued alongside the larger engined models.
Unusually for cars at this end of the market, domestic market waiting lists of several months accumulated for the 1300 engined cars during the closing months of 1967 and well into 1968. The manufacturers explained that following the devaluation of the British Pound in the Fall / Autumn of 1967 they were working flat out to satisfy export market demand, but impatient British would-be customers could be reassured that export sales of the 1300s were "going very well". MG, Wolseley, Riley and Vanden Plas variants with the 1300 engines were already available on the home market in very limited quantities, and Austin and Morris versions would begin to be "available here in small quantities in March [1968].
On the outside, a slightly wider front grille, extending a little beneath the headlights, and with a fussier detailing, differentiated Austin / Morris Mark IIs from their Mark I predecessors, along with a slightly smoother tail light fitting which also found its way onto the FX4 London taxi of the time. Austin and Morris grilles were now identical. The 1100 had been introduced with synchromesh on the top three ratios: all synchromesh manual gearboxes were introduced with the 1275 cc models at the end of 1967 and found their way into 1098 cc cars a few months later.
At the London Motor Show in October 1969 the manufacturers introduced the Austin / Morris 1300 GT, featuring the same 1275 cc twin carburetter engine as that installed in the MG 1300, but with a black full width grill, a black vinyl roof and a thick black stripe down the side.[8] This was BMC's answer to the Ford Escort GT and its Vauxhall counterpart. Ride height on the Austin / Morris 1300 GT was fractionally lowered through the reduction of the Hydrolastic fluid pressure from 225 to 205 psi.
Image of boats under construction on the stocks at W. Ryan & Sons shipyard beside Browns Creek, (also known as Crooked Creek) Taree NSW. Dated 1st January 1943.
The design of the two vessels pictured in the foreground is consistent with the raked bow and counter stern of the 66 ft trawler type, whereas the frames in the background appear to be of the smaller 45 ft tow boat.
It is still uncertain to the exact number of vessels that were completed by W. Ryan & Sons Shipyard, and how many orders were cancelled. (A figure of 16 boats over two years has been documented.)
Location
The portion of land used for the shipyard, was situated in the vicinity between the end of Stevenson Lane and the banks of Browns Creek. (also known as Crooked Creek)
Now known as Muscio Park.
Latitude: -31°53'54.6" S
Longitude: 152°28'4.43" E
Launch
After the vessels were launched, the hulls were then towed out of the creek into the Manning River and upstream to the North Coast Steam Navigation Company wharf.
The engines, machinery and metal work were installed by Mr Hector Haden’s engineer's, whilst Mr .A. Butterworth was in charge of fitting the electrical systems.
A team of carpenters added the superstructure and finished off the craft before they were test run on the river, and handed over for service.
WWII Construction of Vessels in Australia
A program for Australian construction was set up to supply craft for the U.S. Army, Australian Army, & the Royal Navy, through the Australian Shipbuilding Board, who distributed the orders to the various shipyards.
W. Ryan & Sons, of Taree, and E. Wright of Tuncurry were just two of many shipyards contracted to under take the orders for the various classes of vessels.
Boats built by W. Ryan & Sons were fully completed and tested, whereas E. Wright's shipyard at Tuncurry, supplied the hulls only, which were towed to either Sydney or Newcastle .
45 ft Wooden Towboat (US WT Class and Aust. Army AT Class)
Details:
Length: 45 ft
Breadth: 16 ft
Depth: 6 ft 6 in (Below water line)
66 ft Seine Trawler (US TL Class and Royal Navy MFV Class)
Details:
Length: 66 ft
Breadth: 17 ft 6 in
Depth: 6 ft 6 in
References
The Northern Champion, Saturday 20th January 1945
Boat Trials at Taree
On Friday afternoon a 45ft tow boat, built for the US Army at W. Ryan and Son's Brown's Creek shipbuilding yards, was tested on the river at Taree, and within a week or so a second boat will be ready to undergo its tests. Friday's test was carried out under the supervision of Mr. Baxter, representing the Ministry for Munitions, and later the American Army authorities will make a test of the engines.
Mr. Baxter paid a tribute to the splendid workmanship of Ryan's yard, and also made mention of the efficient manner in which Mr. Hector Haden, as contractor for the engineering portion of the work, had carried out his contract.
Mr. Baxter said originally the hulls built at country yards were taken to Sydney to have the engines installed, but at Taree, and other places, the authorities had been able to organise a capable and efficient band of men, with the necessary equipment, to enable the engineering work to be attended to on the spot. These boats, which will be used for inter - island service, are fitted with diesel engines, and are designed for hard wear.
The Northern Champion 7th February 1945
TOWBOAT LEAVES TAREE WAITING FOR HARRINGTON CROSSING.
On Sunday last, one of the completed 45 ft towboats, built at W. Ryan & Sons' yards at Taree, was taken to Harrington by a crew representing the American Army. This boat recently completed her trials on the river, and is now ready to take her place in the operations in the Pacific. At Croki , J. Goodsen and Vic Shoesmith joined the boat as navigators to Harrington. However, owing to the shallow bar, the vessel will have to wait for a favourable opportunity to cross out.
The second towboat has been tested at Taree and is expected that she will go to Harrington, and that the two boats will cross out together.
The engineers and carpenters at the depot at the North Coast wharf are now busily engaged building the superstructure on one of the 66 ft boats, which will also receive its engines and other equipment at Taree.
The Northern Champion 25th February 1945.
The two launches built at Ryan's yard, at Taree, crossed out when tides were suitable. They behaved nicely crossing over the bar, bowing and dipping to the gentle waves of the Pacific. These boats reflect credit on the builders.
End of Construction in Australia
By August 1944 a total of 2,712 craft had been received from Australian construction. Orders for most types of craft had been completed, and only 499 units were still on order.
Of a total of 5,516 units originally ordered, 2,300 had been cancelled.
Decommissioned
The 45 ft tow boat had a wide variety of uses and played an important role during the conflict in the South-West Pacific.
As there were a many number of these type of vessels built that, after the war had ended , the surplus of no longer required craft were put up for tender through the Commonwealth Disposal Commission around 1946.
The robust design and sturdy construction of these little craft, were very well suited to harbour work, and soon found their way into lighterage companies around the coast.
Identified
Two of these vessels that were built by W. Ryan have been identified as the Prolific ( Ex - Terri ) and the Harport (Ex - Harlan )
It is uncertain if these two towboats were built and served under the United States Army ‘WT’ Class or the Australian Army ‘AT’ Class as no vessel identification numbers have been located to date.
Prolific (Ex –Terri)
The Terri was initially purchased by Nicholson Bros Harbour Transport Pty Ltd, Sydney, who changed her name to the Prolific.
Nicholson’s fleet was taken over by Stannard Bros Launch Services Pty Ltd. In 1968, where the Prolific continued on with harbour lighterage work.
In 1976 the Prolific was sold off to a private buyer and converted into a house boat on the Parramatta River.
After 40years of ownership to the one family the Prolific was recently sold in 2016 to undergo a new life.
Harport (Ex-Harlan)
After WWII the Harport was owned and operated in Sydney Harbour by several lighterage companies including:
- Land & Transport Co.Ltd.Sydney.
- Harbour Lighterage & Showboat Pty. Ltd.
- Harbour Lighterage Ltd.
Little is known on the Harport, other than she caught fire in 1954 on Sydney harbour, sustaining considerable damage before taken to Glebe for repairs. Reportedly in existence, at Brisbane in 2003.
Image Source : Australian War Memorial : www.awm.gov.au/collection/069761/
All Images in this photostream are Copyright - Great Lakes Manning River Shipping and/or their individual owners as may be stated above and may not be downloaded, reproduced, or used in any way without prior written approval.
GREAT LAKES MANNING RIVER SHIPPING, NSW - Flickr Group --> Alphabetical Boat Index --> Boat builders Index --> Tags List
Running consistently over hurdles on ground perhaps not quite quick enough for her and today looks an ideal opportunity to show her best form. Does like to front run so possible in this big field she could get hassled about but the ability and conditions are there. Watch My Back ran an eye catching race behind Ballabriggs recently and presumably needed the outing.
BREAKING NEWS My 513th picture to be viewed over 1,000 times (January 2016). First uploaded August 2011.
Sept 2019 BCD Mtg - Another vintage jigsaw I would have liked to bring along to several meetings, including the Birds themed one, and another early purchase of mine. This is a Swan brand jigsaw, with cutting and packaging consistent with a jigsaw sold on ebay recently and displayed on Jigasaurus (Sweet Idleness).
www.thejigasaurus.com/jigasaurus/v/swan/sweet_idleness/
This jigsaw and others using the same image were featured in recent articles in the the BCD Magazine, now called Jigsaw Pieces.
Initial write-up:
I don't know who the manufacturer of this jigsaw was - and was hoping that someone might recognise the style of box or cut. (POST SCRIPT: I think this is an example of 'THE SWAN JIG-SAW PUZZLE'.)
The box is in poor condition and the labels are either missing or very faded. The typed label reads:
J H?
"----- LADY'S GARDEN"
440 Pieces K. W.
The painting is 'Vanity Fair' by John Young Hunter (1911). The model was the artist's first wife, Mary, also an artist, and it was painted in the grounds of Holland House, Kensington, London.
My jigsaw has a piece missing (top left corner) and two or three slightly damaged pieces, with a few lifting or lost pieces of image. It has a fantastic cut, with some spectacular whimsies (including F, H, L).
For more information about the artists John Young Hunter and Mary Young Hunter, and examples of their work, see the Pyms Gallery site:
www.pymsgallery.com/Exhib/YoungH/index.html
You can see a related 1898 painting by John on this blogspot, which has the title "My Lady's Garden":
peacocksgarden.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/john-young-hunter-m...
This earlier painting is owned by Tate Britain, who say:
"Painted in the grounds of Holland House, Kensington. The artist's first wife Mary (1872–1947) posed for the lady. The picture is cited in the Introduction to Royal Academy Pictures, 1899, with other imaginative canvases by the younger men as ‘typical examples of the modern spirit and as marking plainly the direction in which youthful fancy is disposed to tend’. A. L. Baldry described the school to which the artist and his wife belonged as ‘the new Pre-Raphaelites’ and said that it had grown up as a reaction against the realistic belief taught a quarter of a century before. According to him ‘My Lady's Garden’ was the first picture to show that this romantic tendency had gained a hold over the artist.
John Young HUNTER 1874–1955
Portrait, genre and landscape painter; began as a neo-Pre-Raphaelite, later turned mainly to portraiture. Born 29 October 1874 in Glasgow, son of Colin Hunter, R.A. Studied at the R.A. Schools and under Sargent, Alma-Tadema and Orchardson. Married Mary Towgood, painter and fellow-student, in 1899 and spent eight months with her in Italy, returning through Germany and Belgium. Exhibited at the R.A. from 1895; with his wife at the Fine Art Society in 1903 and at the Paris Salon (Medal 1914). Lived at Gifford's Hall, Suffolk. Settled in the U.S.A. in 1913 and painted scenes of Indian life as well as portraits. Died at Taos, New Mexico, 9 August 1955."
The National Wallace Monument commemorates Sir William Wallace. He was one of the very few who consistently opposed the efforts of King Edward I of England to impose his will, and ultimately his supremacy, over Scotland and the Scots in the years around 1300.
The Wallace, as he is often known, is one of the most powerful, most evocative, and most well recognised figures from Scottish history. It is a fair bet that today his name is better known worldwide than most, if not all, of Scotland's monarchs.
Yet he was never a king; his notable deeds took place over a very short period of time, part of which he actually spent in France; he fought just two major battles and emerged with a score of won one and lost one, and in the end he was betrayed and executed.
There's a contradiction here. Behind it lies the stunningly good press that William Wallace has received over the centuries. Most notably, the bard Blind Harry wrote an epic 1470 poem, The Acts and Deeds of Sir William Wallace, Knight of Elderslie. This introduced the story of Wallace as the heroic figure we now all know, at times without too much regard for the actual historical facts.
But it was not Blind Harry who brought Wallace's story to the attention of a worldwide audience, it was Mel Gibson. His 1995 film Braveheart added another layer of artistic license to the one already applied by Blind Harry. The result has been criticised for its lack of historical accuracy. But critics of what is, without doubt, a superbly entertaining and enormously popular film, miss the point. The point is that the historical accuracy of the film doesn't really matter, just as the historical accuracy of Blind Harry's poem didn't really matter. People believe what they want to believe, and for a nation in search of national heroes, William Wallace fitted the bill perfectly: and still does.
But let's wind the story back to the mid-1800s. Scotland, with more than a little help from Sir Walter Scott, was going through an earlier phase of the rediscovery of its sense of national pride and identity after a period during which for many it had become "North Britain". Blind Harry's William Wallace was a perfect focus for the celebration of this new sense of identity and as a result statues of him and monuments to him began to spring up all over the country, with more than 20 being built in all.
But many wanted a national monument to William Wallace that could be venerated by everyone in Scotland. Funds were raised from the public, and a competition was launched for a design for the monument after an initial proposal was deemed too anti-English (of a Scottish lion in the act of killing a mythical English creature). 106 entries were submitted and the design that was selected was by the Scots Baronial architect J.T. Rochead.
His approach was to marry together two uniquely Scottish features. He took the traditional design of a Scottish tower house castle, complete with an external stair turret, and stretched it vertically. Then he added to the top a stone crown spire, of the sort seen atop the towers of St Giles' Cathedral in Edinburgh and King's College in Aberdeen.
The question of location had been decided some years earlier. Both Edinburgh and Glasgow wanted to be home to the monument, and Stirling was chosen mainly because it could be seen as neutral territory. Having decided on Stirling, the choice of the rocky outcrop of Abbey Craig was an obvious one for the monument, for three main reasons. Firstly, if you are going to build a monument intended to make a statement, putting it on top of a high outcrop of rock allows it to make the biggest statement possible. Secondly, Abbey Craig could be quarried to provide the stone needed to build the monument.
The third reason for the location was that Abbey Craig overlooks the site of William Wallace's most notable victory over the English, the Battle of Stirling Bridge, which took place on 11 September 1297. This was fought around the original wooden bridge over the River Forth at Stirling, in the shadow of Stirling Castle and just below Abbey Craig. The original bridge lay a short distance upstream from the stone bridge known today as Old Stirling Bridge. The Scots attacked from the Abbey Craig when the English were half deployed across the bridge and won an overwhelming victory. After the battle, Wallace was knighted by an unnamed Earl and became Sir William Wallace "Guardian of the Kingdom of Scotland and leader of its armies." His co-leader, Andrew Murray fared less well, dying some time later from wounds received during the battle. Wallace followed up the victory by leading the Scots into Northumberland and Cumbria, retreating only when the weather became too bad to continue the campaign.
The true historical significance of the Battle of Stirling Bridge is debatable. The English returned to Scotland in early 1298, trying to draw Wallace into open battle. This eventually happened at the Battle of Falkirk, on 22 July 1298. Defeat there was the beginning of the end for Wallace who was eventually executed in London on 23 August 1305. But as we've already said, none of this is really about history: the myth of Wallace has a life of its own that remains hugely influential.
The National Wallace Monument you see today was completed in 1869 after eight years' construction. It stands some 220ft or 67m high, and Abbey Craig adds a further 300ft or 91m, meaning that the top of the monument stands 520ft above the (tidal) River Forth below.
Throughout my life, creation has been at the forefront of my minds eye. With photography I find that I am no different in my desire to either create something in the after life of the photos I take, or to be able to see and capture what the world has created for me. As I have consistently done a Project 365 for the past 3 years, I have become very accustomed to shooting every single day, so it was with most difficulty that I had to choose 12 images to represent my year.
1. "Return of the Native." I see face paint as a fantastical extension of everyday make-up. Like a lot of face paint I do, I don't often start with a direction, I just go and see what happens. In this case, it became something that reminded me of tribal war paints. I spent all this time getting the lines even only to turn my head for a few shots because I needed a break from the lights and as it turns out, of all the shots, this one spoke loudest to me. It seemed so wild and savage, yet there was an elegance about it that resonated through the picture.
2. "Footprints" I cannot recall a single moment that aside from the occasional shot looking down on my shoes, that I have ever actually photographed my feet. I wanted to mimic the classic shot that children's photographers often take of a new born babies feet. In post I made the image very soft, almost dream like, kind of an imagined moment of peace in the womb.
3. "Strings Within" Music is truly a part of the pulse in my veins. I wake up every morning to it and end every night with it. This shot illustrates the constant symbiosis I feel when a song permeates my flesh and finds its way into my consciousness.
4. "Born This Way" This song resonated with me. We're born with this skeletal frame and it is the frame work that holds us up through life and helps us to push through whatever darkness to get to the light. This took me a really long time to meticulously paint all of this on, but when I'd finished, I felt proud, steadfast, defiant even. I don't think some people will ever understand what I create sometimes in my other work, but I find that in those moments of hesitation, I defer back to this image, this feeling, and I know it doesn't matter--I create because that's who I am, and I was born to be who I will always be.
5. "Smile" This is the day in earnest I learned to light paint words. I started small with a letter or two, (keep in mind, you have to write backwards) then figured out the longer the exposure the more time I had to create something. This led to one of the greatest nights of my life where myself and two of my friends went through the city painting anything we could get our hands on. We eventually "found our way" to the rooftop of a building in the downtown area, and then set about creating some epic images. We had so much fun that we didn't even notice the party on the rooftop of the building next to us. One of the guests eventually screamed over wondering what the hell we were doing with our flash lights and candles and glow sticks and then invited us to their party. So this image does literally make me smile to think of where it led.
6. "Eye" Blah day for photography, I was shooting out of a window. The photos were horrible. I then turned the camera on myself. For some reason I decided to use my hand to frame my eye. Happy accident. I found the image captivating and apparently so did Explore and a lot of viewers that found their way to it. As many images as I've seen of eyes, I've never seen one like this.
7. "Trouve" means found in French. A photog friend said there is no weather condition short of one which is life threatening that a photographer should not be able to shoot in. I'd strayed from shooting in the rain for a long time, so I took up the challenge on one of the rainiest storms this season. The streets were already flooding when I arrived on the trails, but I forged on despite stepping in massive puddles and soaking both of my shoes completely. I crossed this bridge with the water already threatening to overtake it and saw this one random lime sitting on the park bench. I had no real time to shoot, so I shot it and scurried across the bridge to higher ground in just enough time because no sooner did I make it back across the over pass, then did the water break the bank and flood the entire area. Such a simple composition, but quite an experience to get it.
8. "Metamorphosis" Being tall, I admire and respect the giraffe because I get it. When I wear even the tiniest of heels, I tower over everyone in my life, so I decided to imagine what it would be like to suddenly start taking on the attributes of this creature. I wanted to show a sort of mid range change, as if it were being documented in some lab, "Day 12, she's lost the normal coloring of the eye and the shape of her head has begun to change."
9. "Early" I have wanted to see the sunrise in this park in town for ages, and I always made it too late. This time I was early and was rewarded richly for my efforts. The light hit the water on the lake and everything lit up with the golden light. All the creatures, many whom I didn't know existed, were stirring. Every where I turned, there was something. This is a reed that was jutting out in the lily pond. The whole morning I had to keep reminding myself to relax and concentrate so as not to miss anything.
10. "Wicked" I loved this whole series. Its kind of alien meets feline. Those claws were fantastic.
11. "Chucks Love" Although these are not actually chucks, I have had a pair of chucks and/or chuck knock offs since I was a kid. I loved the striped pattern on these and have worn them to death. True chuck wearers know that you don't cast these aside when they get a tiny rip, or the rubber starts to peel, you wear them until a toe pops loose. Then and only then can you send them off to pasture.
12: "Rotation." In the trailer for Prometheus, they were running this ad, "Hello David" in which the character rotates. It reminded me of that shocking moment in Total Recall with Arnie where his head comes out of that woman's on Mars and the airlock busts open and everyone goes flying. I wanted mine to be a full rotation and so each piece is cut so that it ends with the next rotation concluding with the neck. I had to shoot this several times to get just the right amount of rotation. I loved the effect of adding the engineering schematics layer. It's very robotic to me.
Joel Parkinson Leads ASP Top Stars in Assault on Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach Round 1
BELLS BEACH, Victoria/Australia (Wednesday, April 20, 2011) – Today marks the commencement of the 50th Anniversary of competition surfing at Bells Beach as Round 1 of the 2011 Rip Curl Pro Bells presented by Ford Ranger got underway in clean four-to-six foot (1.5 - 2 metre) surf.
The Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach, the second stop on the 2011 ASP World Title season, enjoyed consistent surf throughout the day as the world’s best surfers unleashed a barrage of high-performance ripping on the classic canvas of Bells Beach.
Joel Parkinson (AUS), 30, 2009 Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach Champion put in a sensational performance this afternoon, electing to sit up at Rincon to secure the day’s highest scores.. Parkinson locked in the highest wave score and the highest heat score of the opening day of competition scoring 17.74 (out of a possible 20.00) to advance directly through to Round 3 of competition.
"I fell off twice on the bowl," Parkinson said. "It was really hard to ride. Then CJ (Hobgood) went across to Rincon and got a score, so we followed him over and it worked out for me. It's great to get that opening heat win, especially at Bells. You never know what conditions you're going to get in a heat, so to be able to skip round two and maybe get a day off is a huge advantage."
Kelly Slater (USA), 39, reigning 10-time ASP World Champion and defending event winner, was clinical in his attack in his Round 1 heat. Slater had his fellow competitors Adam Robertson (AUS), 28, and Kai Otton (AUS), 31, on the ropes only minutes into the heat, scoring an impressive 16.00 (out of a possible 20.00) on his opening two rides.
"I don't free surf out at Bells a whole lot," Slater said. "When the waves are good the comp is on and outside of that it's pretty crowded. So I'm still learning with each heat out there still, surfing against a guy like Robbo (Adam Robertson) you've got to watch where he's sitting, how far our and how deep."
Mick Fanning (AUS), 29, currently equal 13th in the hunt for the 2011 ASP World Title, went into today’s competition with renewed vigor after a shock early exit at the last event on the Gold Coast. The past two-time ASP World Champion came out and dominated his Round 1 battle over Tiago Pires (PRT), 31, and Gabriel Medina (BRA), 17.
"I'm stoked to get a good start," Fanning said. "It's been 10 years since I won here as I wildcard, I got close last year but Kelly Slater got me in the final. You want to win every event, but being the 50th Anniversary and so much history at this event, it's like the Wimbeldon of surfing, it's a hard one to win but it's the one everyone wants."
Alejo Muniz (BRA), 21, led today’s rookie charge, continuing his sensational run after the and equal 5th on the Gold Coast, and dispatching of fellow Brazilian Ranoi Monterio (BRA), 28, and Australian Adrian Buchan (AUS), 28 in this morning’s opening round heat.
"It's so good out there!" Muniz said. "This is my first time surfing at Bells and it's the most amazing place. It's got perfect rights, and it's the kind of wave that I love to surf. It's the best place ever, best waves, best weather and I love surfing in wetsuits."
Jeremy Flores (FRA), 22, bounced back after missing the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast with a knee injury, to score a comprehensive win over Taylor Knox (USA), 39, and Cory Lopez (USA), 34.
"I wasn't very confident before the heat," Flores said. "But I got that first wave and did a big turn at the end and got a good score. I think that's what you need to do these days, finish the wave strong. My knee still isn't 100%, but I went for it and it's good to win. Big thanks to everyone at the Gold Coast Suns Football Club for helping with my knee, it's feeling much better now."
Stu Kennedy (AUS), 21, scored a last minute wildcard into the event and caused the upset of the day, eliminating 2010 ASP World Title runner-up Jordy Smith (ZAF), 23, and Dusty Payne (HAW), 22.
"I've been coming here for years," Kennedy said. "I won a Pro Junior here in 2008 and I know where to sit. I don't think Dusty and Jordy know the break as well as I do so that helps. I've been up since 3am because I'm jet-lagged from coming home from Scotland. I woke up with a bunch of energy it's my shaper's birthday so I woke him up at 5am to go surfing. I had to win my heat for him for his birthday."
When men’s competition resumes, up first will be 2010 ASP World Runner-Up Jordy Smith (ZAF), 23, up against Trials Winner Adam Robertson (AUS), 28, in the opening heat of Round 2.
Following the completion of the men’s Round 1 today, the ASP Top 17 hit the water for Round 1 of the Rip Curl Women’s Pro Bells Beach presented by Ford Fiesta.
Stephanie Gilmore (AUS), 23, reigning four-time ASP Women’s World Champion and defending three-time Rip Curl Women’s Bells Beach winner, returned to her winning ways today, after bowing out early at the last event, the Roxy Pro Gold Coast.
"My first two years on tour I didn't have great results on the Gold Coast," Gilmore said. "I always bounced back at this event and then finished the year well, so hopefully I'll do that again this year. The Gold Coast was a fine showing of what women's surfing is up to now and everyone has to try and keep up. It really pushes me and I think anyone who wins an event from now on will be a very deserving winner because of that fact."
Pauline Ado (FRA), 19, the French rookie caused the upset of the women's event, defeating current ASP World Title front runner Carissa Moore (HAW), 18, in a nail biter of a heat.
"I'm really happy, I had a lot of fun out there," Ado said "I got one of my good waves in the first few seconds so after that I felt confident and knew I could be more selective and wait for the right wave. A heat against Carissa is always a tough one, so I'm really stoked to win."
When women’s competition resumes, up first will be Paige Hareb (NZL) and Jessi Miley-Dyer (AUS) in the opening heat of Round 2.
Event organizers will reconvene tomorrow morning at 7am to assess conditions for a possible 7:30am start.
Highlights from the Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach presented by FORD will be webcast available via www.live.ripcurl.com and broadcast live on Fuel TV in Australia and ESPN in Brazil.
For more information, log onto www.aspworldtour.com
RIP CURL PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 1 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Alejo Muniz (BRA) 13.23, Adrian Buchan (AUS) 11.26, Raoni Monteiro (BRA) 7.37
Heat 2: Adam Melling (AUS) 14.50, Josh Kerr (AUS) 12.30, Taj Burrow (AUS) 11.00
Heat 3: Heitor Alves (BRA) 14.36, Bobby Martinez (USA) 14.14, Owen Wright (AUS) 10.60
Heat 4: Mick Fanning (AUS) 15.60, Tiago Pires (PRT) 11.07, Gabriel Medina (BRA) 9.27
Heat 5: Stu Kennedy (AUS) 11.70, Dusty Payne (HAW) 10.50, Jordy Smith (ZAF) 9.00
Heat 6: Kelly Slater (USA) 16.00, Kai Otton (AUS) 10.13, Adam Robertson (AUS) 8.53
Heat 7: Jeremy Flores (FRA) 13.17, Cory Lopez (USA) 5.83, Taylor Knox (USA) 4.67
Heat 8: Michel Bourez (PYF) 12.60, Kieren Perrow (AUS) 10.20, Gabe Kling (USA) 3.50
Heat 9: Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 14.60, Damien Hobgood (USA) 11.23, Daniel Ross (AUS) 11.07
Heat 10: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 17.74, C.J. Hobgood (USA) 11.44, Bede Durbidge (AUS) 8.17
Heat 11: Adriano de Souza (BRA) 14.60, Chris Davidson (AUS) 10.83, Julian Wilson (AUS) 9.83
Heat 12: Patrick Gudauskas (USA) 13.40, Jadson Andre (BRA) 9.43, Brett Simpson (USA) 8.93
RIP CURL PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 2 MATCH-UPS:
Heat 1: Jordy Smith (ZAF) vs. Adam Robertson (AUS)
Heat 2: Owen Wright (AUS) vs. Gabriel Medina (BRA)
Heat 3: Taj Burrow (AUS) vs. Bobby Martinez (USA)
Heat 4: Adrian Buchan (AUS) vs. Josh Kerr (AUS)
Heat 5: Damien Hobgood (USA) vs. Raoni Monteiro (BRA)
Heat 6: Bede Durbidge (AUS) vs. Cory Lopez (USA)
Heat 7: Brett Simpson (USA) vs. Gabe Kling (USA)
Heat 8: Jadson Andre (BRA) vs. Daniel Ross (AUS)
Heat 9: Chris Davidson (AUS) vs. Julian Wilson (AUS)
Heat 10: C.J. Hobgood (USA) vs. Kai Otton (AUS)
Heat 11: Kieren Perrow (AUS) vs. Dusty Payne (HAW)
Heat 12: Taylor Knox (USA) vs. Tiago Pires (PRT)
RIP CURL WOMEN’S PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 1 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Sofia Mulanovich (PER) 12.93, Chelsea Hedges (AUS) 8.70, Jessi Miley-Dyer (AUS) 8.66
Heat 2: Silvana Lima (BRA) 14.94, Laura Enever (AUS) 8.84, Melanie Bartels (HAW) 7.54
Heat 3: Pauline Ado (HAW) 14.60, Carissa Moore (HAW) 14.44, Nikki Van Dijk (AUS) 10.63
Heat 4: Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 16.30, Courtney Conlogue (USA) 9.00, Bethany Hamilton (HAW) 6.50
Heat 5: Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 16.10, Alana Blanchard (HAW) 12.83 Paige Hareb (NZL) 7.47
Heat 6: Coco Ho (HAW) 12.90, Tyler Wright (AUS) 12.00, Pauline Ado (FRA) 6.37
RIP CURL WOMEN’S PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 2 MATCH-UPS:
Heat 1: Paige Hareb (NZL) vs. Jessi Miley-Dyer (AUS)
Heat 2: Laura Enever (AUS) vs. Melanie Bartels (HAW)
Heat 3: Carissa Moore (HAW) vs. Nikki Van Dijk (AUS)
Heat 4: Chelsea Hedges (AUS) vs. Bethany Hamilton (HAW)
Heat 5: Tyler Wright (AUS) vs. Alana Blanchard (HAW)
Heat 6: Courtney Conlogue (USA) vs. Rebecca Woods (AUS)
Photo ASP/Scholtz
Corporate Design International
Definition and benefit of a consistent corporate appearance – Wolfgang Schmittel
1984, ABC Verlag, Zurich
ISBN 3-85504-080-x
Main hall interior, seating detail, ca. 1948
The University of Aarhus, which dates from 1931, is a unique and coherent university campus with consistent architecture, homogenous use of yellow brickwork and adaptation to the landscape. The university has won renown and praise as an integrated complex which unites the best aspects of functionalism with solid Danish traditions in form and materials.
The competition for the university was won by the architects Kay Fisker, C. F. Møller og Povl Stegmann in 1931. Stegman left the partnership in 1937, Fisker in 1942 and C. F. Møller Architects has been in charge of the continued architectural development and building design of the university until today.
The University of Aarhus, with its extensive park in central Aarhus, includes teaching rooms, offices, libraries, workshops and student accommodation. The university has a distinct homogeneous building style and utilises the natural contours of the landscape. The campus has emerged around a distinct moraine gorge and the buildings for the departments and faculties are placed on the slopes, from the main buildings alongside the ring road to the center of the city at Nørreport. All throughout the campus, the buildings are variations of the same clear-cut prismatic volume with pitched roofs, oriented orthogonally to form individual architectural clusters sharing the same vocabulary. The way the buildings emerge from the landscape makes them seem to grow from it, rather than being superimposed on the site.
The original scheme for the campus park was made by the famous Danish landscape architect C. Th. Sørensen. Until the death of C. Th. Sørensens in 1979 the development of the park areas were conducted in a close cooperation between C. Th. Sørensen, C. F. Møller and the local park authorities. Since 1979 C. F. Møller Architects - in cooperation with the staff at the university - has continued the intentions of the original scheme for the park, and today the park is a beautiful, green area and an immense contribution to both the university and the city in general.
In 2001, C. F. Møller Architects prepared a new masterplan for the long and short term development of the university. Although the university has been extended continuously for more than 75 years, the original masterplan and design principles have been maintained, and have proven a simple yet versatile tool to create a timeless and coherent architectural expression adaptable to changing programs. Today, the university is officially recognized as a Danish national architectural treasure and is internationally renowned as an excellent example of early modern university campus planning.
The National Wallace Monument commemorates Sir William Wallace. He was one of the very few who consistently opposed the efforts of King Edward I of England to impose his will, and ultimately his supremacy, over Scotland and the Scots in the years around 1300.
The Wallace, as he is often known, is one of the most powerful, most evocative, and most well recognised figures from Scottish history. It is a fair bet that today his name is better known worldwide than most, if not all, of Scotland's monarchs.
Yet he was never a king; his notable deeds took place over a very short period of time, part of which he actually spent in France; he fought just two major battles and emerged with a score of won one and lost one, and in the end he was betrayed and executed.
There's a contradiction here. Behind it lies the stunningly good press that William Wallace has received over the centuries. Most notably, the bard Blind Harry wrote an epic 1470 poem, The Acts and Deeds of Sir William Wallace, Knight of Elderslie. This introduced the story of Wallace as the heroic figure we now all know, at times without too much regard for the actual historical facts.
But it was not Blind Harry who brought Wallace's story to the attention of a worldwide audience, it was Mel Gibson. His 1995 film Braveheart added another layer of artistic license to the one already applied by Blind Harry. The result has been criticised for its lack of historical accuracy. But critics of what is, without doubt, a superbly entertaining and enormously popular film, miss the point. The point is that the historical accuracy of the film doesn't really matter, just as the historical accuracy of Blind Harry's poem didn't really matter. People believe what they want to believe, and for a nation in search of national heroes, William Wallace fitted the bill perfectly: and still does.
But let's wind the story back to the mid-1800s. Scotland, with more than a little help from Sir Walter Scott, was going through an earlier phase of the rediscovery of its sense of national pride and identity after a period during which for many it had become "North Britain". Blind Harry's William Wallace was a perfect focus for the celebration of this new sense of identity and as a result statues of him and monuments to him began to spring up all over the country, with more than 20 being built in all.
But many wanted a national monument to William Wallace that could be venerated by everyone in Scotland. Funds were raised from the public, and a competition was launched for a design for the monument after an initial proposal was deemed too anti-English (of a Scottish lion in the act of killing a mythical English creature). 106 entries were submitted and the design that was selected was by the Scots Baronial architect J.T. Rochead.
His approach was to marry together two uniquely Scottish features. He took the traditional design of a Scottish tower house castle, complete with an external stair turret, and stretched it vertically. Then he added to the top a stone crown spire, of the sort seen atop the towers of St Giles' Cathedral in Edinburgh and King's College in Aberdeen.
The question of location had been decided some years earlier. Both Edinburgh and Glasgow wanted to be home to the monument, and Stirling was chosen mainly because it could be seen as neutral territory. Having decided on Stirling, the choice of the rocky outcrop of Abbey Craig was an obvious one for the monument, for three main reasons. Firstly, if you are going to build a monument intended to make a statement, putting it on top of a high outcrop of rock allows it to make the biggest statement possible. Secondly, Abbey Craig could be quarried to provide the stone needed to build the monument.
The third reason for the location was that Abbey Craig overlooks the site of William Wallace's most notable victory over the English, the Battle of Stirling Bridge, which took place on 11 September 1297. This was fought around the original wooden bridge over the River Forth at Stirling, in the shadow of Stirling Castle and just below Abbey Craig. The original bridge lay a short distance upstream from the stone bridge known today as Old Stirling Bridge. The Scots attacked from the Abbey Craig when the English were half deployed across the bridge and won an overwhelming victory. After the battle, Wallace was knighted by an unnamed Earl and became Sir William Wallace "Guardian of the Kingdom of Scotland and leader of its armies." His co-leader, Andrew Murray fared less well, dying some time later from wounds received during the battle. Wallace followed up the victory by leading the Scots into Northumberland and Cumbria, retreating only when the weather became too bad to continue the campaign.
The true historical significance of the Battle of Stirling Bridge is debatable. The English returned to Scotland in early 1298, trying to draw Wallace into open battle. This eventually happened at the Battle of Falkirk, on 22 July 1298. Defeat there was the beginning of the end for Wallace who was eventually executed in London on 23 August 1305. But as we've already said, none of this is really about history: the myth of Wallace has a life of its own that remains hugely influential.
The National Wallace Monument you see today was completed in 1869 after eight years' construction. It stands some 220ft or 67m high, and Abbey Craig adds a further 300ft or 91m, meaning that the top of the monument stands 520ft above the (tidal) River Forth below.
How's everyone's new year going so far?
As teased on a few occasions (mostly cause it took me so damn long to actually sit down and get all these photos done), I present to you the S.H. Figuarts Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune, from a local comic book store on New Years Eve 2019. Seeing as these two hang out together on the show consistently, it only made sense to bring them into the horde as a duo.
In the world of Sailor Moon, there are many set relationships (or ships, if you're cool) between characters, but for me next to Darien & Serena, it's always going to be these two - Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune. Now, I can't exactly recall specifics with regards to their relationship in the 90s US dub, probably because censors figured the concept of a queer relationship would blow our delicate little minds. If we're going by official canon, these two lovebirds are amongst the last of the Outer Senshi to be introduced into the series, and really only show up in the third season of the anime. As I mentioned, my mind is somewhat of a haze when it comes to the show at this point, but I do seem to recall there were a couple of episodes where everyone thought Amara (US 90s Dub Uranus) was male, and where she was perceived to be hitting on Serena, much to the annoyance of Darien. I also seem to remember the pair going to a different high school than the Inner Senshi (original 5).
Rather than butcher the series any further, I'm just gonna move on.
As I've stated in earlier episodes, getting my hands on Sailor Moon Figuarts at an acceptable prices is, and remains, a test of patience and luck. Sometimes, things pan out (like here), sometimes not so much. What makes getting these two particularly annoying is that unbeknownst to me, Uranus and Neptune are actually Bandai online shop exclusives, much like many of their annoying to get Dragonball items. The chaos is of course, less here in North America as opposed to Japan, but this usually translates into a higher than normal MSRP. So given all this, I figure the $60 CAD a piece, taxes in, from a store no less, was pretty good.
Having said all that, upon opening you can at the very least appreciate the reasoning behind the slightly higher price. Each box comes with an absurd number of accessories, especially Uranus. Common to each would be a figure, several additional sculpts (both have four faces in total which range from netural expression to attacking, with Neptune having one dedicated to a serene, closed eye look), their weapon of choice (Space Sword for Uranus, Deep Aqua Mirror for Neptune) and the "gets the job done" stand. The sheer number of hands with each figure is definitely above average and should cover all your posing needs. There's also crossed arm optional parts for both figures, with an additional lovestruck face for Serena included with Uranus, and a hands clasped part for Neptune.
Overall, there are are 13 additional hand related options for each figure, in addition to the two hands that come with the figure itself.
Uranus and Neptune are among the taller of the Senshi, with Uranus reported to be 6', the tallest of them all (who I always figured was Jupiter.. oh well). Naturally the Black Widow figure is from a different series so the scaling there is questionable, but it's good to see amongst the Sailor Senshi that this difference is actually reflected properly, even if not so much in their footwear. To my eyes though, Uranus seems to be way too lanky, with Tamashii Nations only scaling the length of the various limbs and the abdomen of the standard figure, but nothing from a girth perspective. Interestingly, they didn't make the hands any different size as compared to the Inner Senshi, making either Sailor Moon and co having giant hands, or Sailor Uranus and co. having midget hands. Either or works for me from a comedy perspective. I'm pretty sure the Skirt and the chest section are exactly the same size across the board.
Proportions aside, I'd say that the figures again capture the essence of the character. Neptune has always been the more elegant of the the pair and she remains so here, though from a design perspective I've always favoured Jupitor and Saturn. Outfits, faces, hair, and so on all capture the anime aesthetic quite well, with allowances given due to the scale.
Rounding the usual bases, articulation is pretty good for a circa 2013-14 Figuarts, and are the same across the board for all the Sailor Senshi. You have ankles, single jointed knees, hips with pull down to allow for more range of motion, waist, mid torso, shoulders with some chest compress and bicep swivel, single jointed elbows, wrist, and head. All your gang sign flashing and Sentai style posing desires should be fulfilled for the most part, though more elegant sitting poses/kneeling poses aren't happening with the restriction of the skirt. Dynamic leaping poses, I'm happy to say, are technically doable, with assistance from the dynamic stand.
Paint is always a mixed bag with these older Figuarts releases. As always, most of the white coloured parts are painted in pearl white over translucent white plastic, giving the figures a slight shimmering effect. The overall paint job is pretty good from afar, but up close you're going to run into masking errors, particularly in areas where there is use of the white paint which has always had one or two less than stellar masking jobs on all five of the Senshi that are in my collection, as well as areas of other colour such as the straps on Neptune's feet. There's some nice shading at the base of Neptune's hair at the back.
Decal work on the eyes is solid, though the paint apps for the mouths are... okay, though fortunately the colouring is just a highlight of the face detailing itself.
Build quality itself is about what you'd expect for a Figuarts - use of plastics that generally don't warp under the slightest touch *cough* HASBRO *cough*. Tolerances on parts are overall good, with the strange exception of Uranus's arms that don't always want to stay in their pegs which can make posing her a bit of a pain - Neptune holds together much better from that regard. Assembly gaps are generally sanded down and covered with some paint, though they are still easily observable. There is a moulding seam running from front to back of Uranus's front hair piece.. not sure if that's just on mine or if that's a running acceptable QC thing.
There you have it - the second most prominent power couple in the Sailor Moon universe, at least in my books. The figures are pretty much what I expected them to be, and while they're not as aged as the original Dragonball figures, it would be interesting to see what improvements a line using the newest Figuarts bodies would be like. Though if Bandai has plans to do this, I'd love to know sooner than later so I can abandon my plans for completing the set.
Papua New Guinea Arts, Crafts
Papua New Guinea is home to many unique arts and crafts. From the traditional bilum, to hand baskets and meri blouses, there are elements of modern fashion and traditional dress that appeals to fashionistas and anthropologists alike
The PNG Art ( Papua New Guinea Art) is not consistent through out the country but can be divided into traditional stylistic regions. The tribal art from within these regions have evolved separately from each other to a large degree resulting in the Tribal Art from New Ireland being completely different for example from the Tribal Art from the Lower Sepik River.
The reason for the diversity of PNG art styles is no doubt the same as the reason for the diversity of languages. Papua New Guinea has the largest diversity of languages for its area of anywhere in the world having 700+ languages and also has the largest diversity of art styles.
How's everyone's new year going so far?
As teased on a few occasions (mostly cause it took me so damn long to actually sit down and get all these photos done), I present to you the S.H. Figuarts Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune, from a local comic book store on New Years Eve 2019. Seeing as these two hang out together on the show consistently, it only made sense to bring them into the horde as a duo.
In the world of Sailor Moon, there are many set relationships (or ships, if you're cool) between characters, but for me next to Darien & Serena, it's always going to be these two - Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune. Now, I can't exactly recall specifics with regards to their relationship in the 90s US dub, probably because censors figured the concept of a queer relationship would blow our delicate little minds. If we're going by official canon, these two lovebirds are amongst the last of the Outer Senshi to be introduced into the series, and really only show up in the third season of the anime. As I mentioned, my mind is somewhat of a haze when it comes to the show at this point, but I do seem to recall there were a couple of episodes where everyone thought Amara (US 90s Dub Uranus) was male, and where she was perceived to be hitting on Serena, much to the annoyance of Darien. I also seem to remember the pair going to a different high school than the Inner Senshi (original 5).
Rather than butcher the series any further, I'm just gonna move on.
As I've stated in earlier episodes, getting my hands on Sailor Moon Figuarts at an acceptable prices is, and remains, a test of patience and luck. Sometimes, things pan out (like here), sometimes not so much. What makes getting these two particularly annoying is that unbeknownst to me, Uranus and Neptune are actually Bandai online shop exclusives, much like many of their annoying to get Dragonball items. The chaos is of course, less here in North America as opposed to Japan, but this usually translates into a higher than normal MSRP. So given all this, I figure the $60 CAD a piece, taxes in, from a store no less, was pretty good.
Having said all that, upon opening you can at the very least appreciate the reasoning behind the slightly higher price. Each box comes with an absurd number of accessories, especially Uranus. Common to each would be a figure, several additional sculpts (both have four faces in total which range from netural expression to attacking, with Neptune having one dedicated to a serene, closed eye look), their weapon of choice (Space Sword for Uranus, Deep Aqua Mirror for Neptune) and the "gets the job done" stand. The sheer number of hands with each figure is definitely above average and should cover all your posing needs. There's also crossed arm optional parts for both figures, with an additional lovestruck face for Serena included with Uranus, and a hands clasped part for Neptune.
Overall, there are are 13 additional hand related options for each figure, in addition to the two hands that come with the figure itself.
Uranus and Neptune are among the taller of the Senshi, with Uranus reported to be 6', the tallest of them all (who I always figured was Jupiter.. oh well). Naturally the Black Widow figure is from a different series so the scaling there is questionable, but it's good to see amongst the Sailor Senshi that this difference is actually reflected properly, even if not so much in their footwear. To my eyes though, Uranus seems to be way too lanky, with Tamashii Nations only scaling the length of the various limbs and the abdomen of the standard figure, but nothing from a girth perspective. Interestingly, they didn't make the hands any different size as compared to the Inner Senshi, making either Sailor Moon and co having giant hands, or Sailor Uranus and co. having midget hands. Either or works for me from a comedy perspective. I'm pretty sure the Skirt and the chest section are exactly the same size across the board.
Proportions aside, I'd say that the figures again capture the essence of the character. Neptune has always been the more elegant of the the pair and she remains so here, though from a design perspective I've always favoured Jupitor and Saturn. Outfits, faces, hair, and so on all capture the anime aesthetic quite well, with allowances given due to the scale.
Rounding the usual bases, articulation is pretty good for a circa 2013-14 Figuarts, and are the same across the board for all the Sailor Senshi. You have ankles, single jointed knees, hips with pull down to allow for more range of motion, waist, mid torso, shoulders with some chest compress and bicep swivel, single jointed elbows, wrist, and head. All your gang sign flashing and Sentai style posing desires should be fulfilled for the most part, though more elegant sitting poses/kneeling poses aren't happening with the restriction of the skirt. Dynamic leaping poses, I'm happy to say, are technically doable, with assistance from the dynamic stand.
Paint is always a mixed bag with these older Figuarts releases. As always, most of the white coloured parts are painted in pearl white over translucent white plastic, giving the figures a slight shimmering effect. The overall paint job is pretty good from afar, but up close you're going to run into masking errors, particularly in areas where there is use of the white paint which has always had one or two less than stellar masking jobs on all five of the Senshi that are in my collection, as well as areas of other colour such as the straps on Neptune's feet. There's some nice shading at the base of Neptune's hair at the back.
Decal work on the eyes is solid, though the paint apps for the mouths are... okay, though fortunately the colouring is just a highlight of the face detailing itself.
Build quality itself is about what you'd expect for a Figuarts - use of plastics that generally don't warp under the slightest touch *cough* HASBRO *cough*. Tolerances on parts are overall good, with the strange exception of Uranus's arms that don't always want to stay in their pegs which can make posing her a bit of a pain - Neptune holds together much better from that regard. Assembly gaps are generally sanded down and covered with some paint, though they are still easily observable. There is a moulding seam running from front to back of Uranus's front hair piece.. not sure if that's just on mine or if that's a running acceptable QC thing.
There you have it - the second most prominent power couple in the Sailor Moon universe, at least in my books. The figures are pretty much what I expected them to be, and while they're not as aged as the original Dragonball figures, it would be interesting to see what improvements a line using the newest Figuarts bodies would be like. Though if Bandai has plans to do this, I'd love to know sooner than later so I can abandon my plans for completing the set.
Shuhada' Sadaqat[8][a] (born Sinéad Marie Bernadette O'Connor; 8 December 1966 – July 2023), known professionally as Sinéad O'Connor,[9][b] was an Irish singer, songwriter and political activist. Her debut studio album, The Lion and the Cobra, was released in 1987 and charted internationally. Her second studio album, I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got (1990), became her biggest success, selling over seven million copies worldwide.[11] Its lead single, "Nothing Compares 2 U", was named the number-one world single in 1990 by the Billboard Music Awards.[12]
O'Connor released ten studio albums. Am I Not Your Girl? (1992) and Universal Mother (1994) were certified gold in the UK,[13] Faith and Courage (2000) was certified gold in Australia,[14] and Throw Down Your Arms (2005) went gold in Ireland.[15] Her work included songs for films, collaborations with many other artists, and appearances at charity fundraising concerts. Her 2021 memoir Rememberings was a bestseller.[16]
In 1999, O'Connor was ordained as a priest by the Irish Orthodox Catholic and Apostolic Church, an Independent Catholic sect that is not recognised by the Roman Catholic Church.[17] She consistently spoke out on issues related to child abuse (including her 1992 Saturday Night Live protest against the continued cover-up of Catholic Church sexual abuse cases), human rights, racism, organised religion, and women's rights. Throughout her music career, she spoke about her spiritual journey, activism, socio-political views, as well as her trauma and mental health struggles. In 2017, O'Connor changed her name to Magda Davitt. After converting to Islam in 2018 she changed it to Shuhada' Sadaqat,[2][8][18] but continued to record and perform under her birth name.[
O'Connor was born Sinéad Marie Bernadette O'Connor[20] in the Cascia House Nursing Home at 13 Pembroke Road, Dublin, on 8 December 1966.[2] She was named Sinéad after Sinéad de Valera, the mother of the doctor presiding over the delivery, Éamon de Valera, Jnr., and Bernadette in honour of Saint Bernadette of Lourdes.[21][22] She was the third of five children;[23] her siblings are novelist Joseph,[24] Eimear,[25] John,[26] and Eoin.[27]
Her parents are John Oliver "Seán" O'Connor, a structural engineer later turned barrister[23] and chairperson of the Divorce Action Group,[28] and Johanna Marie O'Grady (1939–1985), who married in the Church of Our Lady of Good Counsel, Drimnagh, Dublin, in 1960. She attended Dominican College Sion Hill school in Blackrock, County Dublin.[29]
In 1979, O'Connor left her mother and went to live with her father, who had married Viola Margaret Suiter (née Cook) in Alexandria, Virginia, United States, in 1976.[30] At the age of 15, her shoplifting and truancy led to her being placed for 18 months in a Magdalene asylum called the Grianán Training Centre in Drumcondra run by the Order of Our Lady of Charity.[31] In some ways, she thrived there, especially in the development of her writing and music, but she also chafed under the imposed conformity. Unruly students there were sometimes sent to sleep in the adjoining nursing home, an experience of which she later commented, "I have never—and probably will never—experience such panic and terror and agony over anything."[32] She later for a period attended the Quaker Newtown School, Waterford for 5th and 6th year but did not sit the Leaving Certificate in 1985.[33][34]
On 10 February 1985, when O'Connor was 18, her mother Marie died in a car accident, aged 45, after losing control of her car on an icy road in Ballybrack and crashing into a bus.[35][36]
In June 1993, O'Connor wrote a public letter in The Irish Times which asked people to "stop hurting" her: "If only I can fight off the voices of my parents / and gather a sense of self-esteem / Then I'll be able to REALLY sing ..." The letter repeated accusations of abuse by her parents as a child which O'Connor had made in interviews. Her brother Joseph defended their father to the newspaper but agreed regarding their mother's "extreme and violent abuse, both emotional and physical". O'Connor said that month, "Our family is very messed up. We can't communicate with each other. We are all in agony. I for one am in agony."[37]
Musical career 1980s
One of the volunteers at Grianán was the sister of Paul Byrne, drummer for the band In Tua Nua, who heard O'Connor singing "Evergreen" by Barbra Streisand. She recorded a song with them called "Take My Hand" but they felt that at 15, she was too young to join the band.[38] Through an ad she placed in Hot Press in mid-1984, she met Colm Farrelly. Together they recruited a few other members and formed a band called Ton Ton Macoute.[22] The band moved to Waterford briefly while O'Connor attended Newtown School, but she soon dropped out of school and followed them to Dublin, where their performances received positive reviews. Their sound was inspired by Farrelly's interest in world music, though most observers thought O'Connor's singing and stage presence were the band's strongest features.[22][39]
O'Connor's time as singer for Ton Ton Macoute brought her to the attention of the music industry, and she was eventually signed by Ensign Records. She also acquired an experienced manager, Fachtna Ó Ceallaigh, former head of U2's Mother Records. Soon after she was signed, she embarked on her first major assignment, providing the vocals for the song "Heroine", which she co-wrote with U2's guitarist the Edge for the soundtrack to the film Captive. Ó Ceallaigh, who had been fired by U2 for complaining about them in an interview, was outspoken with his views on music and politics, and O'Connor adopted the same habits; she defended the actions of the Provisional IRA and said U2's music was "bombastic".[2] She later retracted her IRA comments saying they were based on nonsense, and that she was "too young to understand the tense situation in Northern Ireland properly".[40]
Her first album The Lion and the Cobra was "a sensation" when it was released in 1987 on Chrysalis Records,[41] and it reached gold record status, earning a Best Female Rock Vocal Performance Grammy nomination. The single "Mandinka" was a big college radio hit in the United States, and "I Want Your (Hands on Me)" received both college and urban play in a remixed form that featured rapper MC Lyte. In her first U.S. network television appearance, O'Connor sang "Mandinka" on Late Night with David Letterman in 1988.[42] The song "Troy" was also released as a single in the UK, Ireland, and the Netherlands, where it reached number 5 on the Dutch Top 40 chart.[43]
O'Connor named Bob Dylan, David Bowie, Bob Marley, Siouxsie and the Banshees, and the Pretenders as the artists who influenced her on her debut album.[44] In 1989 O'Connor joined The The frontman Matt Johnson as a guest vocalist on the band's album Mind Bomb, which spawned the duet "Kingdom of Rain".[45] That same year, she made her first foray into cinema, starring in and writing the music for the Northern Irish film Hush-a-Bye-Baby.[46]
1990s
O'Connor's second album – 1990's I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got – gained considerable attention and mostly positive reviews:[47] it was rated "second best album of the year" by the NME.[48] She was praised for her voice and original songs, while being noted for her appearance: trademark shaved head, often angry expression, and sometimes shapeless or unusual clothing.[47] The album featured Marco Pirroni (of Adam and the Ants fame), Andy Rourke (from The Smiths) and John Reynolds, her first husband;[49] most notably, it contained her international breakthrough hit "Nothing Compares 2 U", a song written by Prince[50][51] and originally recorded and released by a side project of his, the Family.[51] Hank Shocklee, producer for Public Enemy, remixed the album's next single, "The Emperor's New Clothes",[49] for a 12-inch that was coupled with another song from the LP, "I Am Stretched on Your Grave". Pre-dating but included on I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got, was "Jump in the River", which originally appeared on the Married to the Mob soundtrack; the 12-inch version of the single had included a remix featuring performance artist Karen Finley.[52][53]
In July 1990, she joined other guests for former Pink Floyd member Roger Waters' performance of The Wall in Berlin.[54] She contributed a cover of "You Do Something to Me" to the Cole Porter tribute/AIDS fundraising album Red Hot + Blue produced by the Red Hot Organization.[55] Red Hot + Blue was followed by the release of Am I Not Your Girl?, an album made of covers of jazz standards and torch songs she had listened to while growing up; the album received mixed-to-poor reviews, and was a commercial disappointment in light of the success of her previous work.[56] Her take on Elton John's "Sacrifice" was acclaimed as one of the best efforts on the tribute album Two Rooms: Celebrating the Songs of Elton John & Bernie Taupin.[57]
Also in 1990, she was criticised after she stated that she would not perform if the United States national anthem was played before one of her concerts; Frank Sinatra threatened to "kick her in the ass".[58] After receiving four Grammy Award nominations, she withdrew her name from consideration.[2] Although nominated for the Brit Award for International Female Solo Artist, which she won, she did not attend the awards ceremony, but did accept the Irish IRMA in February 1991.[59]
I don't do anything in order to cause trouble. It just so happens that what I do naturally causes trouble. I'm proud to be a troublemaker.
—O'Connor in NME, March 1991[60]
She spent the following months studying bel canto singing with teacher Frank Merriman at the Parnell School of Music. In an interview with The Guardian, published in May 1993, she reported that singing lessons with Merriman were the only therapy she was receiving, describing Merriman as "the most amazing teacher in the universe."[61]
In 1992, she contributed backing vocals on the track "Come Talk To Me", and shared vocals on the single "Blood of Eden" from the studio album Us by Peter Gabriel. Gabriel invited her to join his ongoing Secret World Tour in May 1993, to sing these songs and more in an elaborate stage setting. O'Connor travelled and performed as a guest artist.[62] She was seen at Gabriel's side at the 1993 MTV Video Music Awards in September. While in Los Angeles, she took too many sleeping pills, inciting media conjecture about a suicide attempt. She said she "was in a bad way emotionally at the time, but it wasn't a suicide attempt."[63] She left the tour suddenly, causing Gabriel to scramble for a replacement singer.[62] Decades later, she wrote in her memoir Rememberings that she left Gabriel because he treated her casually, and would not make a commitment.[6]
The 1993 soundtrack to the film In the Name of the Father featured O'Connor's "You Made Me the Thief of Your Heart".[49] Her more conventional Universal Mother album (1994) spawned two music videos for the first and second singles, "Fire on Babylon" and "Famine", that were nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Short Form Music Video.[64][65] She toured with Lollapalooza in 1995, but dropped out when she became pregnant with her second child.[66] In 1997, she released the Gospel Oak EP.[67]
In 1994, she appeared in A Celebration: The Music of Pete Townshend and The Who,[68] also known as Daltrey Sings Townshend. This was a two-night concert at Carnegie Hall produced by Roger Daltrey of the Who in celebration of his 50th birthday.[69] A CD and a VHS video of the concert were issued in 1994, followed by a DVD in 1998.[70][71]
In 1996, O'Connor guested on Broken China, a solo album by Pink Floyd's Richard Wright.[72]
O'Connor made her final feature film appearance in Neil Jordan's The Butcher Boy in 1997, playing the Virgin Mary.[73]
In 1998, she worked again with the Red Hot Organization to co-produce and perform on Red Hot + Rhapsody.[74]
2000s
O'Connor at the "Music in My Head" festival in The Hague, 13 June 2008
Faith and Courage was released in 2000, including the single "No Man's Woman", and featured contributions from Wyclef Jean of the Fugees and Dave Stewart of Eurythmics.[75]
Her 2002 album, Sean-Nós Nua, marked a departure in that O'Connor interpreted or, in her own words, "sexed up" traditional Irish folk songs, including several in the Irish language.[76] In Sean-Nós Nua, she covered a well-known Canadian folk song, "Peggy Gordon".[77]
In 2003, she contributed a track to the Dolly Parton tribute album Just Because I'm a Woman, a cover of Parton's "Dagger Through the Heart". That same year, she also featured on three songs of Massive Attack's album 100th Window before releasing her double album, She Who Dwells in the Secret Place of the Most High Shall Abide Under the Shadow of the Almighty. This compilation contained one disc of demos and previously unreleased tracks and one disc of a live concert recording. Directly after the album's release, O'Connor announced that she was retiring from music.[78] Collaborations, a compilation album of guest appearances, was released in 2005—featuring tracks recorded with Peter Gabriel, Massive Attack, Jah Wobble, Terry Hall, Moby, Bomb the Bass, the Edge, U2, and The The.[79]
Ultimately, after a brief period of inactivity and a bout with fibromyalgia, her retirement proved to be short-lived. O'Connor stated in an interview with Harp magazine that she had only intended to retire from making mainstream pop/rock music, and after dealing with her fibromyalgia she chose to move into other musical styles.[80] The reggae album Throw Down Your Arms appeared in late 2005.[81]
On 8 November 2006, O'Connor performed seven songs from her upcoming album Theology at The Sugar Club in Dublin. Thirty fans were given the opportunity to win pairs of tickets to attend along with music industry critics.[82] The performance was released in 2008 as Live at the Sugar Club deluxe CD/DVD package sold exclusively on her website.[83]
O'Connor released two songs from her album Theology to download for free from her official website: "If You Had a Vineyard" and "Jeremiah (Something Beautiful)". The album, a collection of covered and original Rastafari spiritual songs, was released in June 2007. The first single from the album, the Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber classic "I Don't Know How to Love Him", was released on 30 April 2007.[84] To promote the album, O'Connor toured extensively in Europe and North America. She also appeared on two tracks of the new Ian Brown album The World Is Yours, including the anti-war single "Illegal Attacks".[85]
2010s
In January 2010, O'Connor performed a duet with R&B singer Mary J. Blige produced by former A Tribe Called Quest member Ali Shaheed Muhammad of O'Connor's song "This Is To Mother You" (first recorded by O'Connor on her 1997 Gospel Oak EP). The proceeds of the song's sales were donated to the organisation GEMS (Girls Educational and Mentoring Services).[86] In 2012 the song "Lay Your Head Down", written by Brian Byrne and Glenn Close for the soundtrack of the film Albert Nobbs and performed by O'Connor, was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song.[87]
O'Connor performing in 2013
In 2011, O'Connor worked on recording a new album, titled Home, to be released in the beginning of 2012,[88] titled How About I Be Me (and You Be You)?,[89][90] with the first single being "The Wolf is Getting Married". She planned an extensive tour in support of the album but suffered a serious breakdown between December 2011 and March 2012,[91] resulting in the tour and all other musical activities for the rest of 2012 being cancelled. O'Connor resumed touring in 2013 with The Crazy Baldhead Tour. The second single "4th and Vine" was released on 18 February 2013.[92]
In February 2014, it was revealed that O'Connor had been recording a new album of original material, titled The Vishnu Room, consisting of romantic love songs.[93] In early June 2014, the new album was retitled I'm Not Bossy, I'm the Boss, with an 11 August release date. The title derives from the Ban Bossy campaign that took place earlier the same year. The album's first single is entitled "Take Me to Church".[94][95]
In November 2014, O'Connor's management was taken over by Simon Napier-Bell and Björn de Water.[96] On 15 November, O'Connor joined the charity supergroup Band Aid 30 along with other British and Irish pop acts, recording a new version of the track "Do They Know It's Christmas?" at Sarm West Studios in Notting Hill, London, to raise money for the West African Ebola virus epidemic.[97]
In September 2019, O'Connor performed live for the first time in five years, singing "Nothing Compares 2 U" with the Irish Chamber Orchestra on RTÉ's The Late Late Show.[98][99]
2020s
In October 2020, O'Connor released a cover of Mahalia Jackson's Trouble of the World, with proceeds from the single to benefit Black Lives Matter charities.[100]
On 4 June 2021, O'Connor announced her immediate retirement from the music industry. While her final studio album, No Veteran Dies Alone, was due to be released in 2022, O'Connor stated that she would not be touring or promoting it.[101] Announcing the news on Twitter, she said "This is to announce my retirement from touring and from working in the record business. I've gotten older and I'm tired. So it's time for me to hang up my nipple tassels, having truly given my all. NVDA in 2022 will be my last release. And there'll be no more touring or promo."[101][102] On 7 June she retracted her previous statement, describing the original announcement as "a knee-jerk reaction" to an insensitive interview, and announcing that she would go ahead with her already scheduled 2022 tour.[103]
On 1 June 2021, O'Connor's memoir Rememberings was released to positive critical reception. It was listed among the best books of the year on BBC Culture.[104]
On 7 January 2022, O'Connor's son, Shane, died by suicide at the age of 17.[42] She subsequently decided to cancel her 2022 tour and her album No Veteran Dies Alone was postponed indefinitely.[105]
In February 2023, she shared a new version of "The Skye Boat Song", a 19th century Scottish adaptation of a 1782 Gaelic song, which is also the theme for the fantasy drama series Outlander.[106] The following month, she was awarded the inaugural Choice Music Prize Classic Irish Album by Irish broadcaster RTÉ for her 1990 album, I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got.[107][108]
Name
In 2017, O'Connor changed her legal name to Magda Davitt, saying in an interview that she wished to be "free of the patriarchal slave names. Free of the parental curses."[113][114] On her conversion to Islam in October 2018, she adopted the name 'Shuhada', and before mid-2019 also changed her surname from Davitt to Sadaqat.[115]
Personal and public image
Her shaved head has been seen as a statement against traditional views of femininity.[116]
Marriages and children
O'Connor had four children and was married and divorced four times. She had her first son, Jake, in 1987 with her first husband, music producer John Reynolds,[117] who co-produced several of her albums, including Universal Mother. Reynolds and O'Connor later married in Westminster register office in March 1989.[118][119] The same year, O'Connor had an abortion after things did not work out with the father. She later wrote the song "My Special Child" about the experience.[120] O'Connor and Reynolds announced their plan to divorce in November 1991 after being separated for some time.[121]
Soon after the birth of her daughter Brigidine Roisin Waters on 10 March 1996, O'Connor and the girl's father, Irish journalist John Waters, began a long custody battle that ended with O'Connor agreeing to let Roisin live in Dublin with Waters.[122][119][117] In August 2001, O'Connor married British journalist Nick Sommerlad in Wales; the marriage ended in July 2002 after 11 months.[123][117] She had her third child, son Shane, in 2004 with musician Donal Lunny.[117][119] In 2006, she had her fourth child, Yeshua Francis Neil Bonadio, whose father is Frank Bonadio.[124][125]
O'Connor was married a third time on 22 July 2010, to longtime friend and collaborator Steve Cooney,[4][126] and in late March 2011, made the decision to separate.[127] Her fourth marriage was to Irish therapist Barry Herridge. They wed on 9 December 2011, in Las Vegas, but their marriage ended after having "lived together for 7 days only".[128] The following week, on 3 January 2012, O'Connor issued a further string of internet comments to the effect that the couple had re-united.[5]
On 18 July 2015, her first grandson was born to her son Jake Reynolds and his girlfriend Lia.[129]
On 7 January 2022, two days after her 17-year-old son Shane was reported missing from Newbridge, County Kildare, he was found dead by suicide. His body was found by Gardaí in the Bray/Shankill part of Dublin.[130][131][132] O'Connor stated that her son, custody of whom she lost in 2013, had been on "suicide watch" at Tallaght Hospital, and had "ended his earthly struggle". O'Connor criticised the Health Service Executive (HSE) with regard to their handling of her son's case.[133][134][135] She initially criticised Ireland's family services agency, Tusla, but retracted this a few days later.[136][137] In January 2022, a week after her son's suicide, she was hospitalised on her own volition following a series of tweets in which she indicated she was going to take her own life.[138]
Relationship with Prince
Speaking about her relationship with Prince in an interview with Norwegian station NRK in November 2014 she said, "I did meet him a couple of times. We didn't get on at all. In fact we had a punch-up." She continued: "He summoned me to his house after 'Nothing Compares'. I made it without him. I'd never met him. He summoned me to his house – and it's foolish to do this to an Irish woman – he said he didn't like me saying bad words in interviews. So I told him to f*** off....He got quite violent. I had to escape out of his house at 5 in the morning. He packed a bigger punch than mine."[139] In her 2021 memoir Rememberings, O'Connor described her meeting with Prince in detail, which ranged from having his butler serve soup repeatedly despite no desire for soup, to hitting her with a hard object placed in a pillowcase after wanting a pillow fight, and stalking her with his car after she left the mansion.[140]
Health
In the early 2000s, O'Connor revealed that she suffered from fibromyalgia. The pain and fatigue she experienced caused her to take a break from music from 2003 to 2005.[141]
On an episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show broadcast on 4 October 2007, O'Connor disclosed that she had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder four years earlier, and had attempted suicide on her 33rd birthday, 8 December 1999.[142] Then, on Oprah: Where Are They Now? of 9 February 2014, O'Connor said that she had received three "second opinions" and was told by all three that she was not bipolar.
O'Connor was also diagnosed with complex post-traumatic stress disorder and borderline personality disorder.[143]
In August 2015, she announced that she was to undergo a hysterectomy after suffering gynaecological problems for over three years.[144] O'Connor later blamed the hospital's refusal to administer hormonal replacement therapy after the operation as the main reason for her mental health issues in the subsequent years, stating "I was flung into surgical menopause. Hormones were everywhere. I became very suicidal. I was a basket case."[145]
Having smoked cannabis for 30 years, O'Connor went to a rehabilitation centre in 2016, to end her "addiction".[146] O'Connor was agoraphobic.[147]
In August 2017, O'Connor posted a 12-minute video on her Facebook page in which she stated that she had felt alone since losing custody of her 13-year-old son, Shane, and that for the prior two years she had wanted to kill herself, with only her doctor and psychiatrist "keeping her alive".[148] The month after her Facebook post, O'Connor appeared on the American television talk show Dr. Phil on the show's 16th season debut episode.[149] According to Dr. Phil, O'Connor wanted to do the interview because she wanted to "destigmatize mental illness", noting the prevalence of mental health issues among musicians.[150] Shane died in January 2022. A week later, following a series of tweets in which she indicated that she was going to kill herself, O'Connor was hospitalised.[151]
Sexuality
In a 2000 interview in Curve, O'Connor said that she was a lesbian.[152] She later retracted the statement, and in 2005 told Entertainment Weekly "I'm three-quarters heterosexual, a quarter gay".[153]
In 2013, O'Connor published an open letter on her own website to American singer and actress Miley Cyrus in which she warned Cyrus of the treatment of women in the music industry and stated that sexuality is a factor in this, which was in response to Cyrus's music video for her song "Wrecking Ball".[154] Cyrus responded by mocking O'Connor and alluding to her mental health problems.[155]
Politics
O'Connor was a vocal supporter of a united Ireland, and called on the left-wing republican Sinn Féin party to be "braver". In December 2014 it was reported O'Connor had joined Sinn Féin.[156] O'Connor called for the "demolition" of the Republic of Ireland and its replacement with a new, united country. She also called for key Sinn Féin politicians like Gerry Adams to step down because "they remind people of violence", referring to the Troubles.[157]
In a 2015 interview with the BBC, O'Connor said she wished that Ireland had remained under British rule (which ended after the Irish War of Independence, except for Northern Ireland), saying "the church took over and it was disastrous".[158] Following the Brexit referendum in 2016, O'Connor wrote on Facebook "Ireland is officially no longer owned by Britain".[159]
Religion
Sinéad O'Connor on After Dark on 21 January 1995
In January 1995, O'Connor made an unexpected appearance on the British late-night television programme After Dark during an episode about sexual abuse and the Catholic Church in Ireland.[160] The discussion included a Dominican friar and another representative of the Catholic Church, along with former taoiseach Garret FitzGerald. Host Helena Kennedy described the event: "Sinéad came on and argued that abuse in families was coded in by the church because it refused to accept the accounts of women and children."[161]
In the late 1990s, Bishop Michael Cox of the Irish Orthodox Catholic and Apostolic Church (an Independent Catholic group not in communion with the Roman Catholic Church) ordained O'Connor as a priest.[17] The Catholic Church considers the ordination of women to be invalid and asserts that a person attempting the sacrament of ordination upon a woman incurs excommunication.[17] The bishop had contacted her to offer ordination following her appearance on RTÉ's The Late Late Show, during which she told the presenter, Gay Byrne, that had she not been a singer she would have wished to have been a Catholic priest. After her ordination, she indicated that she wished to be called Mother Bernadette Mary.[17]
In a July 2007 interview with Christianity Today, O'Connor stated that she considered herself a Christian and that she believed in core Christian concepts about the Trinity and Jesus Christ. She said, "I think God saves everybody whether they want to be saved or not. So when we die, we're all going home ... I don't think God judges anybody. He loves everybody equally."[162] In an October 2002 interview, she credited her Christian faith in giving her the strength to live through and overcome the effects of her childhood abuse.[112]
On 26 March 2010, O'Connor appeared on CNN's Anderson Cooper 360° to speak out about the Catholic sexual abuse scandal in Ireland.[163] On 28 March 2010, she had an opinion piece published in the Sunday edition of The Washington Post in which she wrote about the scandal and her time in a Magdalene laundry as a teenager.[31] Writing for the Sunday Independent she labelled the Vatican as "a nest of devils" and called for the establishment of an "alternative church", opining that "Christ is being murdered by liars" in the Vatican.[164] Shortly after the election of Pope Francis, she said:[165][166]
Well, you know, I guess I wish everyone the best, and I don't know anything about the man, so I'm not going to rush to judge him on one thing or another, but I would say he has a scientifically impossible task, because all religions, but certainly the Catholic Church, is really a house built on sand, and it's drowning in a sea of conditional love, and therefore it can't survive, and actually the office of Pope itself is an anti-Christian office, the idea that Christ needs a representative is laughable and blasphemous at the same time, therefore it is a house built on sand, and we need to rescue God from religion, all religions, they've become a smokescreen that distracts people from the fact that there is a holy spirit, and when you study the Gospels you see the Christ character came to tell us that we only need to talk directly to God, we never needed Religion ...
Asked whether from her point of view, it is therefore irrelevant who is elected to be pope, O'Connor replied:
Genuinely I don't mean disrespect to Catholic people because I believe in Jesus Christ, I believe in the Holy Spirit, all of those, but I also believe in all of them, I don't think it cares if you call it Fred or Daisy, you know? Religion is a smokescreen, it has everybody talking to the wall. There is a Holy Spirit who can't intervene on our behalf unless we ask it. Religion has us talking to the wall. The Christ character tells us himself: you must only talk directly to the Father; you don't need intermediaries. We all thought we did, and that's ok, we're not bad people, but let's wake up ... God was there before religion; it's there [today] despite religion; it'll be there when religion is gone.[167]
Tatiana Kavelka wrote about O'Connor's later Christian work, describing it as "theologically charged yet unorthodox, oriented toward interfaith dialogue and those on the margins".[168]
In August 2018, via an open letter, she asked Pope Francis to excommunicate her as she had also asked Pope Benedict XVI and Pope John Paul II.[113]
In October 2018, O'Connor converted to Islam, calling it "the natural conclusion of any intelligent theologian's journey".[169] The ceremony was conducted in Ireland by Sunni Islamic theologian Shaykh Umar Al-Qadri. She also changed her name to Shuhada' Davitt. In a message on Twitter, she thanked fellow Muslims for their support and uploaded a video of herself reciting the adhan, the Islamic call to prayer. She also posted photos of herself wearing a hijab.[170]
After her conversion to Islam, O'Connor called those who were not Muslims "disgusting" and criticised Christian and Jewish theologians on Twitter in November 2018. She wrote: "What I'm about to say is something so racist I never thought my soul could ever feel it. But truly I never wanna spend time with white people again (if that's what non-muslims are called). Not for one moment, for any reason. They are disgusting."[171][172] Later that month, O'Connor stated that her remarks were made in an attempt to force Twitter to close down her account.[173] In September 2019, she apologised for the remarks, saying "They were not true at the time and they are not true now. I was triggered as a result of Islamophobia dumped on me. I apologize for hurt caused. That was one of many crazy tweets lord knows."[174]
Death
On 26 July 2023, O'Connor was found dead at her flat in Herne Hill, South London, at the age of 56 Her family issued a statement later the same day, without indicating the cause of her death.[108][177][178] The following day, the Metropolitan Police reported that O'Connor's death was not being treated as suspicious] On 28 July, the Coronor in London said that the date of death was still unknown.
January Jones
The New Boutique Opening and Charity Event, on Robertson Blvd , SIMPLY CONSISTENT INC.
May 29,2008
"-January Jones."
"-Chanel Boutique."
"-Kathleen Checki."
"-Checki."
"-Simply Consistent."
"-Simply Consistent Management."
"-Simply Consistent Charity Event."
"-Kathleen Checki Charity Event."
"-Kathleen Check."
ADO16 is the codename for the development of what became the Morris 1100, a small family car built by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and, later, British Leyland. Throughout the 1960s, the ADO16 was consistently the UK's best-selling car.
Although most of the cars were manufactured in England, the model was also built in Spain by Authi, in Italy by Innocenti and at the company's own plant in Belgium. It was the basis for locally adapted similar cars manufactured in Australia and South Africa.
The vehicle was launched as the Morris 1100 on August 15, 1962. The range was expanded to include several rebadged versions, including the twin-carburettor MG 1100, the Vanden Plas Princess (from October 1962), the Austin 1100 (August 1963), and finally the Wolseley 1100 (1965) and Riley Kestrel (1965). The Morris badged 1100/1300 gave up its showroom space to the Morris Marina in 1971, but Austin and Vanden Plas versions remained in production in the UK till June 1974.
The estate version followed in 1966, called Countryman in the Austin version and Traveller in the Morris one, continuing the established naming scheme.
In 1964 the 1100 was Wheels magazine's Car of the Year.
The original Mark I models were distinctive for their use of a Hydrolastic suspension. Marketing material highlighted the spacious cabin when compared to competitor models which in the UK by 1964 included the more conservatively configured Ford Anglia, Vauxhall Viva HA and BMC's own still popular Morris Minor.
At the end of May 1967, BMC announced the fitting of a larger 1275 cc engine to the MG, Riley Kestrel, Vanden Plas and Wolseley variants.[5] The new car combined the 1275 cc engine block already familiar to drivers of newer Mini Cooper and Austin-Healey Sprite models with the 1100 transmission, its gear ratios remaining unchanged for the larger engine, but the final-drive being significantly more highly geared.[5]
The Mark II versions of the Austin and Morris models were announced, with the larger engine making it into these two makes' UK market ranges in October 1967 (as the Austin 1300 and Morris 1100S and 100). An 1100 version of the Mark II continued alongside the larger engined models.
Unusually for cars at this end of the market, domestic market waiting lists of several months accumulated for the 1300 engined cars during the closing months of 1967 and well into 1968. The manufacturers explained that following the devaluation of the British Pound in the Fall / Autumn of 1967 they were working flat out to satisfy export market demand, but impatient British would-be customers could be reassured that export sales of the 1300s were "going very well". MG, Wolseley, Riley and Vanden Plas variants with the 1300 engines were already available on the home market in very limited quantities, and Austin and Morris versions would begin to be "available here in small quantities in March [1968].
On the outside, a slightly wider front grille, extending a little beneath the headlights, and with a fussier detailing, differentiated Austin / Morris Mark IIs from their Mark I predecessors, along with a slightly smoother tail light fitting which also found its way onto the FX4 London taxi of the time. Austin and Morris grilles were now identical. The 1100 had been introduced with synchromesh on the top three ratios: all synchromesh manual gearboxes were introduced with the 1275 cc models at the end of 1967 and found their way into 1098 cc cars a few months later.
At the London Motor Show in October 1969 the manufacturers introduced the Austin / Morris 1300 GT, featuring the same 1275 cc twin carburetter engine as that installed in the MG 1300, but with a black full width grill, a black vinyl roof and a thick black stripe down the side.[8] This was BMC's answer to the Ford Escort GT and its Vauxhall counterpart. Ride height on the Austin / Morris 1300 GT was fractionally lowered through the reduction of the Hydrolastic fluid pressure from 225 to 205 psi.
Una vez finalizada la misa, la procesión con la Custodia se dirige a la Era, allí los Danzantes realizan el baile de la Cruz; posteriormente se rifan las rosquillas, y algunas de ellas alcanzan en la puja los 50 euros.
Otro lugar en el que tengo que agradecer a sus habitantes todas las atenciones que han tenido conmigo. (especialmente a José-María)
Los preámbulos del domingo se ven en www.flickr.com/photos/josemariamorenogarcia/sets/72157630...
El sábado de vísperas se ve en www.flickr.com/photos/josemariamorenogarcia/sets/72157630...
microVIDEOS en www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLE15C4695F6E79433
Lleva la fama Valverde de los Arroyos, además de por los paisajes y sus aspecto serrano peculiar, por las conocidas fiestas de la Octava del Corpus. Se celebran éstas el domingo siguiente a la octava de la festividad del Señor, esto es, diez días justos después, siempre en domingo.
Esta es la fiesta que centra todo el folclore, riquísimo y vario, muy peculiar, que posee este enclave de nuestra sierra. A esta fiesta le dan vida el grupo de danzantes con su botarga. Son ocho en total, y portan una vestimenta muy peculiar, consistente en camisa y pantalón blanco, cuyos bordes se adornan con puntillas y bordados; en el cuello se anudan un largo y coloreado pañuelo de seda; el pantalón se cubre con una falda que llega hasta las rodillas (sayolín) de color rojo con lunares blancos estampados. En la cintura se coloca un gran pañuelo negro sobre el que aparecen bordados, con vivos colores, temas vegetales. El pecho y espalda se cruzan con una ancha banda de seda que se anuda a la altura de la cadera izquierda. Los brazos se anudan también con cintas rojas más estrechas, y en la espalda, pendientes de una cinta transversal, aparecen otras múltiples de pasamanería. Sobre los hombros hay flores. La cabeza se cubre con un enorme gorro, que se adorna con gran cantidad de flores de plástico, presentando en su parte frontal un espejillo redondo. Calzan sus pies con alpargatas anudadas con cinta negra. Les acompaña «el botarga» ataviado con un traje de pana en que alternan los colores marrón, amarillo, rojo y verde. Sobre su espalda, las iniciales A. M., del sastre que lo confeccionó a principios del siglo XX. En la cabeza una gorra compuesta de varios trozos de tela dispuestos radialmente, rematados en una borla roja. Finalmente, forma también parte del grupo el «gaitero». Ataviado con traje de fiesta, de chaqueta y pantalón oscuro, corbata discreta y camisa blanca, sin tocar, cruzando el pecho gruesa correa de la que pende el tambor, y sujetando en su mano derecha el palillo, y en la izquierda la flauta o «gaita», pieza metálica de agujeros hecha con el cañón de una antiquísima escopeta.
La fiesta comienza con una misa, a la que asisten los danzantes, sentados en el presbiterio, y tocados con sus gorros ante el Sacramento que porta el sacerdote, bajo palio, escoltado de los danzantes, el botarga y el resto de los hermanos de la cofradía. En la plaza Mayor se expone el Sacramento sobre una mesa y casa ataviados con grandes colchas de colores, formando el «monumento». Luego suben hasta la era, un alto prado sobre el pueblo, rodeado de las altas montañas antes citadas, y allí danzan ante el Sacramento varias veces, formando el baile de «la Cruz», que se ejecuta al son del tambor, la flauta y las castañuelas que hacen sonar los propios danzantes. Luego se baja a la plaza, y allí se ejecutan otros bailes rituales: «el Verde», «el Cordón», «los Molinos» y «la Perucha», de paloteo y cintas, de gran belleza plástica, acompañadas del monótono y peculiar sonido del músico. Entre una y otra danza se realiza la «Almoneda» de las roscas, que van colocadas en una especie de árbol gigante.
En esta fiesta valverdeña de la Octava del Corpus, se integraban una serie de representaciones teatrales que corren a cargo de los vecinos del pueblo y cofrades del Santísimo. Se trataba de sencillos «autos sacramentales» o piezas costumbristas en las que se mezclaba un fondo de teología con los afanes diarios del pueblo. Algunas de estas piezas, como el «Papel del Género Humano», «Sainete de Cucharón», «Auto Sacramental de San Miguel» y «La Infancia de Jesús», se han conservado entre los pobladores de Valverde, representándose algunas de ellas, con motivo de la fiesta.
SI ALGUIEN NO DESEA APARECER EN EL ÁLBUM POR FAVOR COMUNICALO A josemariamorenogarcia@gmail.com
Autor: José-María Moreno García. Fotógrafo humanista y documentalista. Una de las mejores formas de conocer la historia de un pueblo es a través de sus imágenes; en ellas se conserva no sólo su realidad tangible, calles, plazas, monumentos, sino también sus costumbres, fiestas, tradiciones, lenguaje, indumentaria, gestos y miradas, que nos dicen sin palabras como se vivía, cuales eran sus esperanzas y temores, qué había en su pasado, qué esperaban del futuro. Uno de los objetivos más ambiciosos es recuperar y catalogar todo el material gráfico existente en nuestra familia desde 1.915, para después ponerlo a disposición de vosotros, que la historia volviera a sus protagonistas, y los que aún siguen con nosotros pudieran disfrutar con ello. VISITA La colección "CIEN AÑOS DE FOTOGRAFÍA FAMILIA MORENO (1915-2015)" en www.josemariamorenogarcia.es y www.madridejos.net
Who here likes consistency? You know, that warm, familiar feeling every time you go to Taco Bell (going down or out.. up to you)... very consistent? You've been there enough times and you've generally had all their menu items and your opinion is that "it's alright". Then there's that one time out of the blue, you decide to try something vegetarian off the Fresco menu, only to realize it was a horrible, horrible mistake? Well, that's kind of like what happened with this particular entry: Figma Megumin from Kono Sabarashii Sekai ni Shyukufuku wo!.. however you pronounce that.
As with 99% of the magical girl entries on my list, I know nothing about the actual character. Couple of Wiki pages presents a personality that, as expected, fits the way she looks. As taken from a Fandom page:
"Megumin is a straightforward girl, who speaks in an old-style Japanese dialect. She can be very hyper and lively at times and has chuunibyou tendencies like the rest of the Crimson Demon villagers. She is very intelligent, but has very little self-control, especially when it comes to using Explosion magic. She has no problem wasting her spell on empty plains or abandoned castles, as long as she can use Explosion once a day."
There seemed to be quite a bit of excitement when the figure was announced a while back, so as I always do, I found a decent deal on one that had a few issues while out and about, figuring "it's a Figma, it'll be alright" and away I went. The issues being that this was an Amazon Warehouse deal, so it wasn't complete, though the only thing that was missing was the instruction manual. The peg holding her cape in place had snapped off, and her head wasn't in place, of which the latter I figure I could just go home and pop that sucker right back in because, well, wouldn't be the first time a head came off a Figma after being jostled.
Well, jokes on me. After trying with no success, I took to the Internet, and read a crap ton of negative reviews on this figure, ranging from poor QC to horrible design. The head thing? Wasn't the only one; several complaints on Amazon said the same thing, with most not even bothering to try to attach the head. I had to grind the hole to widen it before the neck joint would actually fit, and now it's a bit loose and prone to falling off. I read stories of the staff showing up broken. Seems overall, these Konosuba girls (as they are called) have been plagued with QC issues.. I'm glad I didn't pay MSRP on this figure, let me tell you.
Megumin comes with a typical payload when it comes to Figma. There's the figure, three total face plates (slight smile, attacking, scared), her hat, her cape, alternate hair with eye patch, energy effect for eye, staff, purple orb for staff, spell effect with staff end for attaching said effect, her Familiar Chomosuke, six additional hands plus one dedicated spell casting hand, and the usual Figma stand.
Based on the screen caps I've seen, it appears that overall, Max Factory has captured the overall silhouette of Megumin herself, and her look when equipped with her gear. Of course, she's a lanky Japanese school girl, so not exactly hard for Figma to replicate. Chomosuke is freakin' adorable.. not quite Kirby adorable, but pretty damn close. Sculpting details are up to snuff, with clean fingers, good texture detailing on the outfit, and some minor muscle definition on her bare back. Face plates look spot on.
Articulation is pretty typical for a Figma.. when she doesn't have her cape on. You have full motion ankles, single jointed knees, full motion hips, waist, mid torso movement, full motion shoulders combined with bicep swivel, standard elbows, wrists, and head articulation. Mid torso movement is limited due to the joint being embedded inside her outfit, which is a soft rubber material. I'm not sure if it's like this for all the recent Figma (I'm kind of behind schedule), but Megumin features this hinged joint which allows for a deeper range of motion when it comes to head tilt, while at the same time offering the same ball jointed base base of head joint that permits the standard range of motion there. The cape itself has two points of articulation, allowing for a simulated flow look which is great, but putting the cape on also limits the range of motion when it comes to raise the arms up into an overhead position. Her skirt also limits the movement of the upper legs, which in turn limits the number of stances you can have her in. Because of this, I found it very difficult to balance Megumin on her tiny feet, and as such a stand is pretty much needed for everything.
Paint work is, as expected, solid across the board. Even the yellows appear to be well applied, with no significant overspray or lumpy paint residue. The only ugly paint spot are the silver on her buckle and her necklace, which are relatively ugly, but not "gouge my eyes out" level. Decal work is at its usual level of excellence.
Building quality and design is where things kind of went South. I've already talked about my problems out the box above, but there's more to discuss. First and foremost, that stupid, stupid hat. So, someone, in their infinite wisdom, decided that rather than have the hat attach via a peg or something like that, decided the best way to have the hat sit on her head is the put a really thin piece of plastic on the inside of the hat, and have that clip between the two hair pieces.. sounds alright in theory until you realize actually getting the thing to fit in their is a nightmare because there really isn't enough clearance to slide the front hair piece in place should you try to get the hat in place first. So instead you end up leaving a slight gap, and cramming the hat on her head, hoping for the best. The eye effect is a separate piece, and it is up to the owner to use their hamburger finger to squeeze this tiny plastic piece, probably the size of a syringe needle, into place so it doesn't fall out of the hair. I found that the joints on the figure, while fine by themselves, aren't really meant to carry the weight of the staff, particularly if it has the energy effect attached on the end of it. The body itself is pretty typical build, so no too many complaints here.
So in the end, we had the potential for an outstanding Figma, one having vibrant colour and personality., only to have a multitude of QC issues and crappy design choices knock it down a few pegs. Without her hat and cape, Megumin is honestly average at best, as she really can't do much other than sligh variations of standing up. I guess if the cape wasn't broken on mine, at least I would keep the cape on constantly as it does add to the character. But that hat.. it's such a hassle to put it on you either never take it off or you just give up. The best parts of this set are the scared face and of course, Chomosuke.
Better luck next time, I suppose.