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Lifecaster creates buzz
By Scott Beveridge, Observer-Reporter
WASHINGTON, Pa. – The media buzz began swirling around Justine Ezarik after she received her first iPhone bill, one that itemized her text messages and calls across both sides of 300 pages.
Stories about the young woman and her fascination with mobile technology were picked up by USA Today, CNN, Fox News and CNBC, as well as hundreds of other media outlets, after she posted on her Internet blog a self-made video about the $274 bill so thick it came in a box.
“A friend of mine was in Spain and opened up a newspaper, a Spanish version: the iPhone bill with my picture on it,” said Ezarik, 23, a Scenery Hill native who is the current “It girl” on the Web.
The digital world took notice of Ezarik, who uses the screen name ijustine, in a big way in August. The short film about the bill was subsequently viewed more than 3 million times in 10 days and earned her $5,000 in ad revenues from her online host.
“Now I’m signed up for E-billing,” she said.
But the Internet never dies and ijustine is along for the ride while building a huge fan base.
She was the lead story on Yahoo’s home page two weeks ago because of the popularity she has gained from lifecasting her daily chores on two Web sites.
Whether capturing her travels from a mini-camera attached to her ball cap or pointed at her face from a table, Ezarik has become the star of justin.tv.
The new media company is the brainchild of Justin Kan, who is among the first to use mobile technology to stream live videos to a Web site. Broadcasters have free access and personal control over the look of their pages and the ability to chat with viewers.
There were more than 400 people tuned in when Ezarik showed up Monday to meet a reporter and cameramen from the Observer-Reporter at the Crazy Mocha coffee shop in Washington.
Most of her viewers say nice things, and some periodically dare her to perform the Chicken Dance polka in public places. She usually complies and breaks into the dance that requires hand signals to suggest duck quacks. She was drawing as many as 4,000 viewers at any particular moment after the Yahoo story hit.
“This is crazy. Why am I doing this?” she said.
Others have not been so nice, and complained that she has odd eyebrows, wears too much makeup or is too self-centered to think that anyone with a brain would want to watch her sleep.
“Many of her critics urged her to ‘get a life,’ ‘read a book’ and cease her ceaseless self-promotion,” a writer noted Aug. 29 on the popular news blog Pittsburgh Dish.
“People like to hate for whatever reason,” Ezarik said.
While some viewers think she is surfing the Internet while running her fingers through her hair at a coffee shop, Ezarik said she actually is editing videos or designing Web sites for her business.
The graduate of Pittsburgh Technical Institute now lives in Pittsburgh and also is spokeswoman for Pittsburgh Councilman Bill Peduto. Through her blogging, she has landed a job with Xtrain, a company that offers online expert training. Just this week, Warner Brothers was trying to track her down to invite her to appear on “The Tyra Banks Show.”
She’s unsure just how much longer she will be sharing her life with the digital world as a lifecaster.
“A lot of my friends don’t like it when they’re around. It’s too invasive,” she said.
But her father, Steve, of Scenery Hill, said he is beginning to like lifecasting in a era when many children Justine’s age forget to call their parents.
“At least we can follow her around,” he said.
Watch our video of ijustine
at youtube.
In 1836 the first pastoralists moved into the Geelong region with David Stead and John Cowie on the Moorabool River and Alexander Thompson on the Barwon River (Kardinia estate meaning sunrise in local Aboriginal language). By 1837 there were enough pastoralists and their workers in the region for Magistrate Foster Fyans to be stationed at the Barwon River and Constable Patrick McKeever to be the first police officer there. Geelong was surveyed in October 1838 with the first land sales in 1839. The first general store, the Wool Pack Inn and a wool store opened around his time and by 1841 there were 82 houses and over 400 residents and the town had its own newspaper. The main streets were named after places and people mainly who were early settlers– Moorabool, Yarra, Bellarine, Corio, Gheringhap, Swanston and Malop, Ryrie, McKillop, Myers, Brougham, Fenwick and etc. The name of Geelong came from a local Aboriginal languages meaning either “white sea bird” or “cliff” or “going up”. Within a short time there was a saddler, Wesleyan place of worship (not quite a church), a post service etc. In 1848 Geelong was declared a port for exporting wool, grain, hides, tallow etc. A year later (1849) it was officially proclaimed a town with its own Town Council and a mayor. The Industrial Revolution in England and the great demand for wool for woollen mills boosted the town’s growth and the discovery of gold in Ballarat added to it. Geelong was able to supply needed goods for the goldfields etc. In 1851 Geelong had 8,291 inhabitants but by 1853 it had 22,000 thanks to gold from Ballarat being received and exported from here. The basalt and sandstone Customs House was built in 1856 in Brougham Street when exports began from here rather than at Williamstown near Melbourne and immigrants landed directly in Geelong. The first Town Hall was built in 1855 and a telegraph connection with Melbourne was established in 1854. The fine sandstone Telegraph Station with a timeball for shipping on its roof was built in 1858 and still stands next to the former Post Office. The first railway in Victoria linked Melbourne and Geelong in 1854. A private company began building the railway in 1854 but it was not completed until 1856. The first railway station was replaced with the current one between 1877 and 1881 hence the polychromatic brick work which was popular at that time. A new railway line was built from Geelong to Ballarat starting in 1858 with completion in 1862. A short tunnel was cut through the hill beyond the railway station in 1875 to allow trains to travel to South Geelong and on to Colac. By the mid-1850s Geelong was the third biggest town in the Australian colonies and it continued to greatly significantly in the 1860s
A Beat Safari csapata (karácsonyra való telkintettel :D )
ezúttal Current Value-t látja vendégül!
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(Blackout NL, Critical Music, Subsistenz, TSM, MethLab)
Artist Profile : methlab-agency.com/agency/artist/current-value
Facebook : www.facebook.com/currentvalue
Soundcloud : twitter.com/TIMCURRENTVALUE
Website : www.currentvalue.eu/
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THE BEAT SAFARI CREW:
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Deko: Goof Art Deko
JEGYEK A HELYSZÍNEN MÉG KAPHATÓK KORLÁTOZOTT SZÁMBAN:
- 3000 HUF
Currently have a tally of 5. Every time I go to bed I have to do a dog count. To make sure I haven't left one outside or anything...
sn datumzinebeautifulmemories
currently on evbay
repaints spectra reshaped eyes mouth defined and blush facial features feathered brows ka. ddg silky hair with added in black plugs leg cuffs skelita dress and ddg hands restyled more realistic
“This large brown oval, photographed on March 2, [1979] by Voyager 1, is located between 13 and 18° N latitude and may be an opening in the upper cloud deck which, if observed at extremely high resolution, could provide information about deeper, warmer cloud levels; therefore, it has been selected as one of the targets to be photographed on March 5 near closest approach to Jupiter. Features of this sort are not rare on Jupiter and have an average lifetime of one to two years. Above the feature is the pale orange North Temperate Belt, bounded on the south by the high speed North Temperate Current with winds of 120 meters/sec (260 mi/hr). The range to Jupiter at the time this photograph was obtained was 4.0 million kilometers (2.5 million miles) with the smallest resolvable features being 75 kilometers (45 miles) wide. JPL manages and controls the Voyager project for NASA's Office of Space Science.”
Gorgeous color version, also with the above, at:
photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA00015
Credit: JPL Photojournal website
Also at, with the following revised/updated & abridged caption:
“This large, long brown oval (roughly 10,000 km across) is known as a "barge" and was imaged by Voyager 1 on 2 March 1979, three days before its closest approach to Jupiter. The oval is located between 13 and 18 degrees latitude and may be an opening in the upper cloud deck providing a view of deeper layers. The thin orange stripe at the top of the frame is the north temperate current, with winds measured at 120 m/s. Below the oval is the pale orange north temperate belt. Features as small as 75 km across can be resolved in this image. North is at 11:00. (Voyager 1, P-21194)”
nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/imgcat/html/object_page/vg1_p21194.html
Credit: NSSDCA website
Finally:
“Large brown ovals in the northern hemisphere of Jupiter are apparently regions in which an opening in the upper, ammonia clouds reveal darker regions below. This oval, about the same length as the diameter of the Earth, was at latitude 15°N. Features of this sort are not rare on Jupiter and have an average lifetime of one to two years. Above the feature is the pale orange north temperate belt, bounded on the south by the high-speed north temperate current, with winds of 120 meters per second. The range to Jupiter at the time this photograph was obtained on March 2 was 4 million kilometers, with the smallest resolvable features being 75 kilometers across.”
Above is the caption associated with the color image on page 72, of NASA SP-439: “Voyage To Jupiter”, 1980, written by David Morrison & Jane Samz.
Although now dated, at the wonderful Project Gutenberg (for this and many other books) website, at:
Currently on loan to West Coast Motors is this Caetano Levante bodied Scania. It is seen here arriving into Buchanan Bus Station having completed the AIR service from Edinburgh Airport.
---- Angels & Demons (devil tries to tempt Saint Lucia, August 2018, Savoca - Sicily) ----
---- Angeli & Demoni (il demonio tenta Santa Lucia, agosto 2018, Savoca - Sicilia) ----
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Qi Bo's photos on Flickr Hive Mind
www.worldphoto.org/sony-world-photography-awards/winners-...
www.fotografidigitali.it/gallery/2726/opere-italiane-segn...
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this is a photographic narration that speaks of the eternal struggle that takes place between good and evil, which speaks of a dark period of history, speaks of the violence suffered by women but also by those who belonged to the poorest social classes, historical facts that have been handed down to us in the form of a story and associated-transmuted in the martyrdom of Saint Lucia, this is what happens in the town of Savoca (Sicily). This is a short and long report, I did in Savoca on August 2018 about the living representation of the martyrdom of Saint Lucia (patron saint of the city of Savoca); the cult of the young Saint of Syracuse seems to date back to the fifteenth century, under the influence of Spanish traditions. The commemoration of the history of St. Lucia occurs in two consecutive days, Saturday and Sunday: here I try to tell some times of the day on Sunday, a day during which the festival is held at the height of her beauty. And 'This is a historical event which speaks of Demons and Angels: Saint Lucy refused to marry a rich and powerful suitor (Lucy declared She was married in Christ), which reported the Christian faith of Lucia to prefect Pascasio that ordered his Praetorian Guard to drag Lucia with a rope to a place of prostitution; legend has it that the Holy became heavy, they then tried to drag it with the help of oxen, but it was impossible to move it from where he stood; failing in this, it was then given the order to cavarle eyes, but the young martyr (native of Syracuse) her eyes reappeared.
In the village of Savoca a young girl, affectionately called the "Lucy" is carried on the shoulder of a porter along the streets of the country (sitting on a pillow tied on the shoulder of a man, but in fact men are two); the young Saint remains impassive in the face of demonic temptations: the Devil, called in Sicilian dialect "u Diavulazzu, shake, shakes, turns his pitchfork in an attempt to "distract" the Saint.
The first day of this representation, on Saturday, in an old church in Savoca, the two girls who impersonate the Lucia, of the current year and the previous year, meet with the delivery of palm; the traditional event which we witness on Saturday, has all the appearance of an important rehearsal for the next day, on Sunday when the traditional festival will take place in all its beauty.
Sunday: on top of the procession there are the "Jews" (the emissaries of the prefect Pascasio) along with some Angels, is located immediately after the wagon drawn by two cows from which branches off a rope that will arrive to Saint Lucia (a girl of six years); between her and the cows there are Roman soldiers, who make their way through the crowd squirming like crazy; to hold the rope there are also male figures; the job of Devil (his mask is made of wood, whose invoice is dated, it seems, of the 400') is to distract the little Saint with the help of a long stick equipped of curved points, called "u 'croccu": Lucia hardly is deceived by the promises of the evil one, she will not abandon the state of her property concentration, aided in this by staring, almost in a trance, a small palm branch in silver , she brings devoutly in her hands.
It's very important to mention the Baron Baldassarre (nicknamed Baron Altadonna), who applied without any hesitation the practice of Jus de seigneur: using this law the Baron obliged the young brides to spend the wedding night in his alcove. It 'very possible that in the representation of Saint Lucia of Savoca the character of the Devil tempting young Santa with his pitchfork, in reality is nothing but himself, Baron Altadonna, so allegorically described in this traditional Sicilian feast: the figure of the Devil if one takes into account what historians relate, does not belong more to the legend, but sadly to actual event happened. Post scriptum: the photographs, realized both on Saturday and Sunday, were organized and posted without taking into account the temporal chronology of what happened during the two days of the event; two photos of the mummy of Baron Altadonna have been included, which is located in the crypt of the Capuchin Fathers of Savoca; the portraits of two "Lucie" from previous editions, grandfather and great-grandfather of the "DIAVOLI" dynasty were included; the "silver palm" was delivered by Lucia of 2016 (Valentina), to the current Lucia (Miriana), in 2017 the event was not performed.
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questa è una narrazione fotografica che parla dell'eterna lotta che avviene tra il bene ed il male, che parla di un periodo buio della storia, che parla delle violenze subite dalle donne ma anche da coloro che appartenevano alle classi sociali più povere, fatti storici che sono stati tramandati fino a noi in forma di racconto ed associati-trasmutati nel martirio di Santa Lucia, questo è quanto accade nel paese di Savoca (Sicilia). Questo è un report corto e lungo, che ho realizzato in quel di Savoca lo scorso mese di Agosto 2018, su quella che è la rappresentazione vivente del martirio di Santa Lucia (Santa patrona della città di Savoca); il culto della giovane Santa di Siracusa sembra risalire al XV secolo, sotto l'influenza delle tradizioni spagnole. La rievocazione vivente della storia di S.Lucia avviene in due giornate consecutive, il sabato e la domenica: qui tento di raccontare alcuni momenti della giornata della domenica, giorno durante il quale la festa si svolge nel pieno della sua bellezza. E' questa una rievocazione storica che parla di Demoni ed Angeli: la storia rievoca di quando la Santa, si rifiutò di andare in sposa ad un suo ricco e potente pretendente (essendosi dichiarata Cristiana e sposa in Cristo), il quale per vendetta riferì della fede Cristiana di Lucia al prefetto Pascasio; costui diede ordine ai suoi pretoriani di trascinare Lucia con una corda fino ad un lupanare, un luogo di prostituzione; la leggenda narra che la Santa divenne pesantissima, si tentò allora di trascinarla con l'ausilio dei buoi, ma fu impossibile smuoverla da dove si trovava; non riuscendo in ciò, fu allora dato l'ordine di cavarle gli occhi, ma alla giovane martire (nativa di Siracusa) gli occhi le rispuntarono. Nel paese di Savoca una giovane ragazza, chiamata con affetto "la Lucia" viene portata in spalla lungo le vie del paese (seduta su di un cuscino legato sulla spalla di un uomo; in realtà gli uomini portatori sono due, dandosi il cambio l'un l'altro); la giovane Santa rimane impassibile di fronte alle tentazioni demoniache: il Diavolo, chiamato in dialetto siciliano "u Diavulazzu, agita, scuote, fa ruotare il suo forcone nel tentativo di "distrarre" la Santa ma, vani saranno i suoi tentativi. Il primo giorno di questa rappresentazione, il sabato, in una vecchia chiesa di Savoca, le due bambine che impersonano la Lucia, dell'anno in corso e dell'anno precedente, si incontrano con la consegna della palma da una bimba all'altra; l'evento tradizionale al quale si assiste il sabato, ha tutto l'aspetto di una importante prova generale per il giorno dopo, quando la domenica la festa tradizionale avverrà in tutta la sua bellezza.La domenica: in cima alla processione ci sono i "Giudei" (gli emissari del prefetto Pascasio) insieme ad alcuni Angeli, subito dopo si trova il carro tirato da due giumente dalle quali si diparte una corda che giungerà fino a cingere il fianco della bimba che impersona Santa Lucia (una bambina di sei anni); tra lei e le giumente ci sono i soldati Romani, che si fanno largo tra la folla dimenandosi a più non posso; a tenere la corda ci sono anche delle figure maschili che evitano che gli strattonamenti dei soldati romani possano giungere fino alla Santa (ricordiamolo, che è legata a quella corda); davanti alla Santa piroetta il diavolo tentatore, u' Diavulazzu (la maschera è in legno, la cui fattura è datata, sembra, del 400'), il cui compito è quello di distrarre la piccola Santa con l'aiuto di un lungo bastone dotato di punte ricurve, chiamto dialettalmente "u' croccu": Lucia difficilmente si lascerà ingannare dalle promesse del Maligno, non abbandonerà quel suo stato di immobile concentrazione, aiutata in ciò dal fissare, quasi in stato di trance, un piccolo ramo di palma in argento, che lei strige devotamente tra le sue mani. E’ fondamentale menzionare tra i vari personaggi storici della tradizione, il barone Baldassarre, vissuto in Savoca in epoca medioevale, soprannominato barone Altadonna, che applicava senza remora alcuna la pratica della Jus primae noctis: avvalendosi di questa legge il barone obbligava le giovani spose a trascorrere la prima notte di nozze nella sua alcova. E’ fortemente ipotizzabile che nella rappresentazione di Santa Lucia di Savoca il personaggio del Diavolo che tenta la giovane Santa col suo forcone, in realtà non sia altro che egli stesso, il barone Altadonna, così allegoricamente descritto nella festa tradizionale siciliana: la figura del Diavolo, se si tiene conto di quanto narrano gli storici, non apparterrebbe più alla leggenda, ma a questo tristo personaggio realmente vissuto, che usava quotidianamente la moneta della prepotenza. Post scriptum: le fotografie, realizzate sia il sabato che la domenica, sono state organizzate e postate senza tenere conto della cronologia temporale di quanto avvenuto nei due giorni della manifestazione; sono state inserite due foto della mummia del barone Altadonna, che si trova nella cripta dei Padri Cappuccini di Savoca; sono stati inseriti i ritratti di due "Lucie" delle precedenti edizioni, del nonno e del bisnonno della dinastia dei "DIAVOLI"; la "palma d'argento" è stata consegnata dalla Lucia del 2016 (Valentina), alla attuale Lucia (Miriana); nel 2017 la manifestazione non è stata eseguita.
yesterdays' cake for a dinner with friends... I noticed the matching colors between currant pie and outfit and thought, they need to be together in a photo... :)
Currently, I'm officially open to invitation for any collaboration or sponsorship who are interested with my exclusive photography project.
I may schedule a trip to travel abt 20 days to New Zealand for the most captivating scenic landscape in the December coming summer to Southern Island photography project.
During the whole course, sponsor's are welcome to provide daily lodging/accommodation, transportation, Fox Glacier helicopter ride and other logistic funding expenses, provide photographic camera equipments or related accessories are also welcome to liaise .
Kindly forward all sponsors request condition of terms n collaboration details for discussion soon.
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Current and Former Chairmen and then Vice Chair (Left to Right: Janet L. Yellen; Alan Greenspan; Ben S. Bernanke; Paul A. Volcker)
Introducing Jill. This set of photos was taken on the 25th January 2021.I bumped into Jill near the Norman Tower in Bury St Edmunds. I was trying to use the light to get some interesting shots of St Edmundsbury Cathedral .
Jill was very expressive with her hands and arms as she told me about her experiences during the Covid 19 Pandemic and the lockdowns. She has spent a lot of her time walking which she has enjoyed.
If it wasn't for the lockdown she would currently be in Italy where she spends a lot of her time. She bemoaned the face that she was stuck here as she had spent her life travelling and working as a Cultural Tour Guide particularly in Italy .She particularly likes the area around Naples and Sicily. Jill felt the travel industry had an uncertain future and was unsure if she would be able to return to work this year.
May 29, 2023 - "The skyline of downtown Columbus has been transformed with this monumental artwork by internationally recognized sculptor Janet Echelman. "Current" is a stunning, ephemeral, sky-high sculpture that will inspire wonder and imagination in all who see it. As it dances gracefully in the wind, this awe-inspiring work of art will become an emblem of Columbus’ culture and innovation.
The design and installation of "Current" was funded by Jeff Edwards. He has graciously donated the work to the Museum. We will oversee the care and maintenance of the sculpture as part of our permanent collection." Previous description of "Current" from a Facebook post by the Columbus Museum of Art.
Article about "Current" including its mean can be found here: dispatch-oh.newsmemory.com/?publink=04d385aae_134abf4
Former Howard Johnson's Motor Lodge and Restaurant located at 110 Seneca Rd. in Greensboro,NC. The motor lodge is currently operating under the name My Choice Extended Stay while the restaurant is currently occupied by an independently owned restaurant operating under the name Gold Star Diner. The motor lodge retained the HJ brand until the early 2000s although the restaurant dropped the Howard Johnson's name during the mid 1990s. The motor lodge still has much of its original exterior appearance although the gate lodge itself was "squared off" in the late 1990s and operated in recent years as a Days Inn and a Knights Inn before becoming unbranded. The restaurant still retains much its original exterior appearance although the interior was a sight to behold. This (former) HoJo's restaurant has the LAST known complete dairy bar backdrop! Each of the iconic 28 flavors of Howard Johnson's Ice Cream is etched into the glass mirrors for customers to gaze at when ordering their favorite scoop! I was at a loss for words when I looked through the windows of the restaurant which was closed on the day of my visit to the property and saw the mirrored backdrop in full form behind a few food storage containers. I am really hoping that by posting these photos someone will attempt to make contact with the owner of the property and inquire about preserving what is likely the last HJ mirrored backdrop. I wasn't able to successfully speak with the person at the motor lodge as English was not their first language and they along with many of the people wandering around the complex didn't appear to enjoy my presence especially with a camera in hand.
Gradually amassed the ingredients for Altec A5 Voice of the Theatres. The slam and dynamics uplift me. All Altec cabs, drivers and crossovers to spec for that model.
Volvo Tgb 20 and Tgb 11 from the left (neither 100% finished), the other two have already gotten en official album.
I've also recreated the Tgb 11 in stud.io, but it's not too up to date, but if you want to recreate it it could be a good reference.
File is incorrectly named Tgb 13 (Tgb 13 has three axles, 11 has two), mega.nz/#!nh4lyYJQ!wJhTr3hg9r3U5pRlT-eFxDths84Qk9rqxc3176...
the -ish is because this was yesterday -- no sunshine on the ridges today, but above-0° temps both days and lots of melting... my driveway is a solid chunk of ice & requires spikes on one's shoes to traverse without imperiling life and limb...
Current, definition:
1. Belonging to the present time: current events; current leaders.
2. Being in progress now: current negotiations.
3. Passing from one to another; circulating: current bills and coins.
4. Prevalent, especially at the present time: current fashions.
5. Running; flowing water.
The paddle reveals the underlying current of the still waters of the St. Lawrence River.
Durgotsava is a four-day celebration of the greatest Religious Festival of Bengal. During this time Kolkata turns into a vibrant city of art and culture reflecting the true spirit of Bengal. I hereby share a few glimpses of the fact with you. Hope you will appreciate.
[ Looking back - 2014: Last year I couldn’t share any of my photographs on this festival. I think you wouldn’t mind if I share them this year prior to my current photographs on this subject.]
The Meaning of ‘Durga’.
Durga, meaning "the inaccessible" or "the invincible", is a popular fierce form of the Hindu Goddess or Devi. She is depicted with multiple arms, carrying various weapons and riding a ferocious lion( in Bengal). She is pictured as battling or slaying demons, particularly Mahishasura, the buffalo demon.
Her triumph as Mahishasura Mardini, Slayer of the buffalo Demon is a central episode of the scripture Devi Mahatmya. Her victory is celebrated annually in the festivals of Durga Puja.
History
The word ‘Shakti’ means divine energy/force/power, and Durga is the warrior aspect of the Divine Mother/Brahman(Supreme Absolute Godhead).
As a goddess, Durga's feminine power contains the combined energies of all the gods. Each of her weapons was given to her by various gods: Rudra's trident, Vishnu's discus, Indra's thunderbolt, Brahma's kamandalu, Kuber's Ratnahar, etc.
According to a narrative in the Devi Mahatmya story of the Markandeya Purana text, Durga was created as a warrior goddess to fight an asura (demon) named Mahishasura. Brahma had given Mahishasura the power not to be defeated by a male. Mahishasura had unleashed a reign of terror on earth, heaven and the nether worlds, and he could not be defeated by any man or god, anywhere. The gods were helpless. Shiva, realizing that no man or god (male) can defeat Mahishasura, made a request to his wife Parvati(Durga) to take the role of a female goddess warrior in order to slay the demon. Parvati took his request and went to the Ashram of priest disciple named Katyayan to assume the role of a warrior. Meanwhile, the gods went to Brahma for help and, with Brahma, then made their way to Vaikuntha—the place where Vishnu lay on Ananta Naag. They found both Vishnu and Shiva, and Brahma eloquently related the reign of terror Mahishasur had unleashed on the three worlds. To save the worlds, Vishnu, Shiva and all of the gods emitted beams of fierce light from their bodies. The blinding sea of light reached Parvati at the Ashram of the priest Katyayan and Durga emerged from this pool of light. The goddess Durga took the name Katyaayani from the priest. She introduced herself in the language of the Rig-Veda, saying she was the form of the supreme female aspect of Brahman (Prakriti) who had created all the gods. Now she had come to fight the demon to save the three Worlds. They did not create her; it was her lila that she emerged from their combined energy. The gods were blessed with her compassion.
To combat the evil Mahishasura, she had appeared in a great blinding light, to combat this demon and end it for all to be in peace. The terrible Mahishasura rampaged against her, changing forms many times. First he was a buffalo demon, and she defeated him with her sword. Then he changed forms and became an elephant that tied up the goddess's lion and began to pull it towards him. The goddess cut off his trunk with her sword. The demon Mahishasur continued his terrorizing, taking the form of a lion, and then the form of a man, but both of them were gracefully slain by Durga.
Then Mahishasur began attacking once more, starting to take the form of a buffalo again. When Mahishasur had half emerged into his buffalo form, he was paralyzed by the extreme light emitting from the goddess's body. The goddess then resounded with laughter before cutting Mahishasur's head down with her sword.
Thus Durga slew Mahishasur, thus is the power of the fierce compassion of Durga. Hence, Mata Durga is also known as Mahishasurmardhini—the slayer of Mahishasur.
The goddess, as Mahishasuramardini, appears quite early in Indian art. The Archaeological Museum in Matura has several statues on display including a 6-armed Kushana period Mahisasuramardhini that depicts her pressing down the buffalo with her lower hands. A Nagar plaque from the first century BC - first century AD depicts a 4-armed Mahisamardhini accompanied by a lion. But it is in the Gupta period that we see the finest representations of Mahisasuramardhini. The spear and trident are her most common weapons. A Mamallapuram relief shows the goddess with 8 arms riding her lion subduing a buffalo-faced demon; a variation also seen at Ellora. In later sculptures show the goddess having decapitated the buffalo demon.
Durga Puja (Worshiping Durga)
The four day long (Saptami to Dashami) Durga Puja is the biggest annual festival in Bengal, Assam, Orissa, Bihar, Jharkhand and Nepal, where it is known as Dashain. It is celebrated likewise with much fervour in various parts of India, especially the Himalayan region, but is celebrated in various forms throughout the Hindu universe.
The day of Durga's victory is celebrated as Vijayadashami (Bengali), Dashain (Nepali) or Dussehra (Hindi) - these words literally mean "the Victory Tenth" (day).
The actual period of the worship however may be on the preceding nine days (Navaratri) followed by the last day called Vijayadashami in North India or five days in Bengal (from the sixth to tenth day of the waxing-moon fortnight)..
In North India, the tenth day, signifying Rama's victory in his battle against the demon Ravana, is celebrated as Dussehra - gigantic straw effigies of Ravana are burnt in designated open spaces (e.g. Delhi's Ram Lila grounds), watched by thousands of families and little children. In Bangladesh also the four-days long Sharadiya Durga Puja (Bengali: শারদীয়া দুর্গা পুজো, ‘autumnal Durga worship’) is the biggest religious festivals for the Hindus and celebrated across the country with Vijayadashami being a national holiday. Source: Wikipedia.
‘Durgotsava’ - My Personal feelings :
To me worshiping goddess Durga encompasses so many deeply seated aspects of human lives and nature. The imagination of such a Goddess-form has its age old story depicted in the Hindu Puranas and that had been fabricated by the wisdom of ages as a symbolic one for Bio-Geo-Socio-Economic-Cultural and Aesthetical upliftment of humankind and its relationship with nature, through the practice of worshiping.
Once in a year She, The Mother Durga, is thought to come from her abode at mount Kailash in Himalaya to the land of Bengal at the time of Autumn, the finest of all six seasons when Bengal turns into a nature’s paradise. The snow white clouds against the deep azure of the sky, the gentle cool breeze carrying the sweet fragrance of flowers, the turning colors of the leaves, the golden sunlit lush green paddy fields and the waving clusters of dazzling white inflorescence of Kash dramatically prepare the minds of Bengal apt for celebration of life. Artists of versatile talents from Bengal and other states culminate their finest ever skill and efforts for making the idols of Durga using conventional natural resources like clay, wood, organic colors, that are all biodegradable. The pandals( the temporary abodes of Devi Durga) all over Bengal, especially in urban cities turn into the finest galleries of art and culture covering an unimaginably wide range of form and traditions, represented by Bengal and neighboring states of India. Durga puja becomes a wide open opportunity to discover and re-discover the art and artistry of Bengal, and not only that this is the biggest festival of Bengal that provides a great competitive platform for innumerable artists and workers to learn and earn.
The time of Puja is the time for togetherness, is the time for sharing and caring. The traditional concept of making the idols of Durga, her four children and her husband Lord Shiva against a single background structure( which is in Bengali: Ek chalchitra) seems to me a very symbolic one! It implicates to me a strong bondage between the family members, or in a greater sense the relationships between individuals. An example of unity in diversity.
To save the worlds, Brahmma(the god of creation), Vishnu( the god of sustenance), Moheshwara/ Shiva(the god of destruction) and all of the gods emitted beams of fierce light from their bodies. The blinding sea of light reached Parvati, and Durga emerged from this pool of light. This is very symbolic. I see durga as a domain where there have been convergence of all form of energies; she is the symbolic epitome of unified force, as it is the most cherished theory of modern-day physics- “the unified field theory”. And therefore, She is the Symbolic epitome of concentrated knowledge and wisdom. She can create(sristi), She can sustain( sthiti), and She can destroy(loy). She comes over here to create all good things and to sustain them on this earth, and to destroys all evil power, as depicted by triumph over Mahisasura.
Her four children are very symbolic to me for four aspects of socio-economic- cultural upliftment. These are the four aspects to create a balanced nation or a person as an individual.
“Lakhsmi”, her elder daughter, is a symbol of wealth. She carries with her a bunch of ripe paddy and a container of vermilion. Ripened paddy is the symbol of agricultural success. And vermilion is the symbol of peaceful marriage in Hindu custom.
“Swaraswati”, her younger daughter, is a symbol of art and culture. She carries with her a sitar, a classical Indian instrument depicting music, which is the highest form of the faculty of art.
“Kartika”, her elder son, is the commander-in-chief of the gods for war. He is the warrior and protector from enemies. He carries a bow and arrows. He knows how to target an enemy. And he is the symbol of leadership qualities.
“Ganesha”, her youngest son. He is the symbol of knowledge and wisdom.
And the Mother is the creator of all her four children, the four faculties associated with biological, social, cultural and intellectual evolution of man.
Therefore, She is the idealistic epitome of Gunas (qualities), that we all her children should acquire for. And there lies the true meaningfulness of worshiping our mother, Durga.
On the tenth day after the triumph, the day of Vijaya Dashami, mother along with her family sets her journey back to her final adobe in himalaya, leaving the earthly world behind. The clay idol is thus immersed in the holy water of Ganges to symbolize her journey. And thus the whole celebration comes to an end.
During my inactivity I have made some progress with my Kanohi Collection. I have more orders coming right now, but haven't arrived yet. Still not sure where I'm gonna find a Trans-Light Blue Kaukau though. D:
Anyway I've also got some other LEGO stuff to upload later on.
Thank you very much to all of you for applying! You made it difficult for us to choose our team members, but after a few days of reviewing applications, here are our new bloggers, who will be joining our current members!
Congratulations! We are excited to see your work!
The power station was built by C R Grimes and E J Wall with a foundation stone laid by Governor of South Australia Sir Day Hort Bosanquet GCVO, KCB, on 13 June 1913. C B Lincolne and J K Mac Dougall were Consulting Engineers. Mayor: John C Todd. Town Clerk: S Kealley.
The station was only viable in a small town like Peterborough because the railways agreed to buy a certain amount of the power generated.
Electric light was turned on for the first time on 16 February 1914 and by the end of the year 300 private customers were connected.
The station was converted from direct to alternating current in 1951. In 1972, the station was converted to enable it to run on natural gas from Moomba. It is no longer operational.