Fort; Castillo de San Marcos - circa 1672

Saint Augustine, Florida U.S.A. - 10/31/21

*[left-double-click for a closer look - river on the right]

Construction on the fortress was from 1672-1695. The native

coquina (soft shell) stone was quarried from a local island.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castillo_de_San_Marcos

www.exploresouthernhistory.com/castillodesanmarcos1.html

History of Saint Augustine: Ponce de Leon claimed Florida for Spain in 1513. (Christopher Columbus discovered North America in 1492 but actually landed in the Bahamas). Other Spanish explorers later found gold and silver in Mexico and Peru. The treasure was sent back to Spain in ships sailing in the Gulf Stream. Spanish settlements needed to be built in Florida to protect the Spanish Treasure fleets. King Phillip II of Spain sent Pedro Menendez to settle in Florida and drive out French garrisons recently established there. In September 1565, Pedro Menendez with 700 soldiers and colonists, landed here and founded St. Augustine, making it the oldest continually occupied European settlement in North America.

Menendez successfully destroyed the French Fort Caroline at the mouth of the Saint John's River 40 miles north of St. Augustine and ended the French incursion into Florida.

St. Augustine settlers, isolated and often near starvation, lived in constant fear of attacks by pirates who roamed the coast. Diminishing supplies and increasing hostility of the Indians made life treacherous for the early settlers.

Englishman Francis Drake burned the village and wooden fort to the ground in 1586. The town was sacked again in 1668 by pirate John Davis.

Spain's Queen Regent Mariana realized that St.Augustine was the keystone in the defense of the Florida coast, so she ordered the construction of a new fort made of stone. In 1672, the Castillo de San Marcos was begun and took 23 years to complete. Originally the fort was covered with white plaster, some of which can be seen today. The towers in the four corners were plastered red.

The fort was built of coquina, a locally quarried soft shellrock. Coquina was easily shaped by artisans and did not become brittle and crumble under cannon fire. The fort, the city gate, and many homes in St. Augustine were made of coquina which is still evident today.

In 1702, seven years after its completion, English troops from South Carolina besieged the Castillo for fifty days. Fiffteen hundred Spanish citizens fled into the security of the fort and refused to surrender. The British finally gave up the siege and burned the town. This event is why there are no buildings older than 1702 in St. Augustine today.

The Spaniards rebuilt their settlement and erected a defensive earthwork on on its northern limit, fortified the walls around the city and strengthened the walls of the Castillo.

The English attacked again in 1740, this time by General James Oglethorpe of Georgia. He bombarded the Castillo and town for twenty-seven days before he also gave up and left. The coquina walls held firm, absorbing the cannon balls without breaking apart.

England defeated Spain in the Seven Years War, and Florida was transferred to English control by the Treaty of Paris in 1763. England then divided Florida into two colonies, and St. Augustine became the capital of East Florida. During the American Revolution St. Augustine remained loyal to the crown. The entire Florida peninsula was returned to Spain as part of the negotiations ending the American Revolution in 1783.

They came back to an impossible situation. The border problems of earlier times were multiplied as runaway slaves from Georgia found welcome among the Seminole Indians, and ruffians from both land and sea made Florida their habitat.

Spain ruled for another 37 years known as the Second Spanish Period 1784-1821. During this time, the Spaniards had difficulty luring settlers from the mother country and other colonies to repopulate this area.

On July 10th, 1821, the Americans took over from the Spanish. In the1830's, hostilities rose between Seminole Indians and the Federal Government. In October 1837 one hundred Seminole Indians, including Osceola, were captured under a white flag of truce just south of St. Augustine. The end of the Seminole War made Florida safe again for visitors who came to take advantage of the fine climate. In 1845 Florida became the 27th state of the Union.

From 1875 to1887, Indians from the Great Plains and the Southwest were exiled to Florida and imprisoned in the fort. The government sought to educate the Indians and allowed them some freedom of movement. These activities led to more progressive Federal Indian policies.

During the winter of 1883-84 Henry M. Flagler, co-founder of Standard Oil Co., visited the city and was impressed with the charm and possibilities of the area. He later made a major impact on the architecture and economy of this historic city by building the Hotel Ponce de Leon, Hotel Alcazar, the Memorial church and more.

History, plus 43 miles of white sand beaches bring over three

million visitors a year to St. Augustine and St. Johns County.

(1565-1763 ~ 1st Spanish) - (1763-1784 ~ British Period)

(1784-1821 ~ 2nd Spanish) - (1821-Present ~ American)

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matanzas_River

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._augustine_florida

unstable : (Adj) 1. not firmly fixed and likely to wobble or fall

2. likely to change suddenly and create difficulties or danger

3. (of a person) having abrupt changes of mood or behaviour

No this isn't a photoshop trick, and (#$^%&) my foot hurts from standing like this. Consider that my rant for the day.

(unless you have prior proof I've already ranted. In that case...Shhhhhh.)

I have been tagged yet again for 16 things, so anyone who isn’t intrigued by useless babble might find it pertinent to move along now…………

Once I started it all just flowed out...therapeutically perhaps?

No obligation to read whatsoever. It's just there.

Consider yourself warned. :)

I will never do it again.

Goodnight.

****************

1. I am an avid bookworm. I am currently reading 3 books at the same time. I don’t know how I separate them in my head, but it’s not nearly as hard as you would imagine.

2. I despise my 365 because I feel that 99% of the time I rush through it and post absolute rubbish simply to achieve the “one-a-day” rule. I have literally only posted a handful of pictures (handful being 5-8) that I am actually proud of. The rest of them, I could really care less about and would disown them if my name wasn’t so blatantly attached to them.

3. I am ridiculously self-conscious. It actually makes me uncomfortable when people tell me I’m beautiful because my initial response is to believe that they are lying to me. I never have, and never will, truly think that I am pretty. I am and always will, however, be content being who I am.

4. I am perfectly satisfied being unsocial and alone. (a byproduct of my self consciousness?) I would take a good book, a cup of coffee and a blanket over a night out on the town any day. I like myself, and I prefer company I trust.

5. One of my biggest irritations is when people underestimate me for my age or appearance. I can change a tire in less than ten minutes and I can drink a full grown man under the table. I am a customer service manager of an entire office and I can play Mozart’s ‘Rhondo Alla Turca’ from beginning to end without looking at sheet music. Neither my face nor age defines any of these things, the rest of my character withstanding.

6. I want to be a mother more than anything in this entire world, and I am not the least bit frightened or apprehensive about it. I just simply feel that my life is incomplete, and it always will until my husband and I have a family that is solely ours.

7. I cannot tolerate immaturity or mistrust. I very recently had an incident that involved being backstabbed and slandered, and consequently lied to. I have firmly resolved to disown these people in the highest level comfortable based upon our relationships. I am a forgiving person, but I refuse to allow myself to be a victim. I also have no desire to be associated with people who constantly make themselves the victim.

8. If I could go back in time, I would do everything differently. I know it isn’t traditionally inspiring for someone to say that, but in my case, I regrettably blundered through a good 3 years of my life in a way that I am forever scarred for how I harmed myself and damaged others.

I would unhesitatingly accept a chance to try it all again.

9. I have numerous acquaintances whom I know well and who know me half as well. The amount of people in this world that I sincerely call friends is only three. (my sister, my husband, and one friend.) It is not that I do not have frequent opportunities to enter into friendships, but I rarely trust people enough to open up to them, nor do I wish to waste my time trying only to be sorely disappointed.

10. I adjust myself based upon the company I keep and the situation I am in. Likewise, I rarely utilize my full vocabulary on Flickr. It is not that I believe anyone is improperly educated and would be confused. It is because when I am on Flickr I am just simply me and there is no reason to appear to be pretentiously showing off by tossing out five-syllable words unnecessarily. I also rarely reveal anything in my facts. Today I am.

11. I spent many years despising my childhood and using it as a scapegoat for the things I had done detrimentally wrong. Now, as I’ve finally matured I realize that any and all somewhat traumatizing instances from my childhood did not in any way disrupt my development but rather strengthened and prepared me to become the person I am today. For which I am thankful.

12. I hate change. It throws me into a chaotic state of discomfort when I am compelled to attempt things that are unfamiliar or unknown to me. For as long as I can consciously remember, I have had anxiety issues when I feel out of place or exposed. Therefore, I often force myself into such situations in attempt to widen my comfort bubble…..I have been doing it for years.

13. I am violently opposed to dependency. I am of the firm opinion that after a certain point in your life you need to learn to rely upon yourself alone to handle your existence, finances, and emotions. I am not referring to the desire to have someone in your life (obviously). I am more specifically determined that one should not ‘need’ anyone else to survive in the world.

14. I abhor my own contradictions. As much as I hate dependency, I am admittedly a mess without caffeine or nicotine. I vow to rectify it, but somehow the first step evades me. I will do it eventually.

15. Rather than being a person who knows a lot about a small amount of things, I know a small amount about a lot of things. I’ve rather disliked this over the years and wished that I had a better depth into certain subjects. Simultaneously, there have been numerous times in which my brief understanding or knowledge of a range of subjects has been incredibly useful. I’m indeterminate.

16. There are a great many crevices and cracks to my personality that I seldom reveal. It’s not that I’m embarrassed or reluctant to be myself, I simply attribute it to my private nature. I dislike revealing things that make me appear to be pretentious or proud, and most everything else is typically unnecessary information for anyone to associate with me. For example; saying that I completed Calculus my Sophomore year in high school merely makes me sound arrogant, and the fact that I can fold my tongue in half towards the back of my throat is simply worthless information.

Point proven.

What a mess Flickr was the night before last! I had difficulty adding titles to my uploaded images, comments didn't save and, after I had added a description to each of the 20 photos, the descriptions all disappeared. When I opened Flickr next morning, there was still no sign of them. Then, suddenly, they re-appeared. I also discovered that all the hundreds of photos from this trip that I added to the map are no longer on the map!!! Someone on the Help Forum told someone else to refresh a page and the map will appear again - and it works. Now, I can't add photos to albums - it looks like they are added, but when I check the album, some of yesterda's photos had not appeared. Suddenly, now appeared. Also, my descriptions appeared in duplicate! Today, 13 May 2019, everything I try to do on Flickr takes a long time to do.

My photos taken at the National Butterfly Centre, Mission, South Texas, have now come to an end, so you can sigh a huge sigh of relief : ) Today I added 22 photos taken at another place that we called in at later in the afternoon, the Valley Nature Centre. Unfortunately, we only had an hour there before closing time, but how glad we were that we found this place. The highlight there was watching 25 Yellow-crowned Night-Herons coming in to roost for the night in the trees, right where we were standing! What a great sight this was, and we were lucky enough to have a good, close view of these gorgeous birds, though in very poor light. We also saw some Purple Martins and their circular, hanging nesting "gourds".

On Day 6 of our birding holiday in South Texas, 24 March 2019, we left our hotel in Kingsville, South Texas, and started our drive to Mission, where we would be staying at La Quinta Inn & Suites for three nights. On the first stretch of our drive, we were lucky enough to see several bird species, including a Golden-fronted Woodpecker, Hooded Oriole, Red-tailed Hawk, Crested Caracara, Harris's Hawk, Pyrrhuloxia male (looks similar to a Cardinal) and a spectacular Scissor-tailed Flycatcher. This stretch is called Hawk Alley.

We had a long drive further south towards Mission, with only a couple of drive-by photos taken en route (of a strangely shaped building that turned out to be a huge, deserted seed storage building). Eventually, we reached our next planned stop, the National Butterfly Centre. This was a great place, my favourite part of it being the bird feeding station, where we saw all sorts of species and reasonably close. Despite the name of the place, we only saw a few butterflies while we were there. May have been the weather or, more likely, the fact that I was having so much fun at the bird feeding station. We also got to see Spike, a giant African Spurred Tortoise. All the nature/wildlife parks that we visited in South Texas had beautiful visitor centres and usually bird feeding stations. And there are so many of these parks - so impressive!

Tomorrow, I will be able to start sorting and editing images taken on Day 7 of our 13-day trip!

The difficulties you meet will resolve themselves as you advance. Proceed, and light will dawn, and shine with increasing clearness on your path.~Jim Rohn

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY to everyone who celebrates this special day today!

What a mess Flickr was last night! I had difficulty adding titles to my uploaded images, comments didn't save and, after I had added a description to each of the 20 photos, the descriptions all disappeared. When I opened Flickr this morning, there was still no sign of them. Then, suddenly, they re-appeared. I have also just discovered that all the hundreds of photos from this trip that I added to the map are no longer on the map!!! Someone on the Help Forum told someone else to refresh a page and the map will appear again - and it works. Now, I can't add photos to albums - it looks like they are added, but when I check the album, some of today's photos have not appeared. Suddenly, now appeared. Also, my descriptions have just appeared in duplicate! Think I will get off Flickr and see if it is back to "normal" later.

My photos taken at the National Butterfly Centre, Mission, South Texas, have now come to an end, so you can sigh a huge sigh of relief : ) After that, I have just a few photos taken at another place that we called in at later in the afternoon. Unfortunately, we only had an hour there before closing time, but how glad we were that we found this place. The highlight there was watching 25 Yellow-crowned Night-Herons coming in to roost for the night in the trees, right where we were standing! What a great sight this was, and we were lucky enough to have a good, close view of these gorgeous birds. We also saw some Purple Martins and their circular, hanging nest "gourds".

On Day 6 of our birding holiday in South Texas, 24 March 2019, we left our hotel in Kingsville, South Texas, and started our drive to Mission, where we would be staying at La Quinta Inn & Suites for three nights. On the first stretch of our drive, we were lucky enough to see several bird species, including a Golden-fronted Woodpecker, Hooded Oriole, Red-tailed Hawk, Crested Caracara, Harris's Hawk, Pyrrhuloxia male (looks similar to a Cardinal) and a spectacular Scissor-tailed Flycatcher. This stretch is called Hawk Alley.

We had a long drive further south towards Mission, with only a couple of drive-by photos taken en route (of a strangely shaped building that turned out to be a huge, deserted seed storage building). Eventually, we reached our next planned stop, the National Butterfly Centre. This was a great place, my favourite part of it being the bird feeding station, where we saw all sorts of species and reasonably close. Despite the name of the place, we only saw a few butterflies while we were there. May have been the weather or, more likely, the fact that I was having so much fun at the bird feeding station. We also got to see Spike, a giant African Spurred Tortoise. All the nature/wildlife parks that we visited in South Texas had beautiful visitor centres and usually bird feeding stations. And there are so many of these parks - so impressive!

nationalbutterflycenter.org/nbc-multi-media/in-the-news/1...

"Ten years ago, the North American Butterfly Association broke ground for what has now become the largest native plant botanical garden in the United States. This 100-acre preserve is home to Spike (who thinks he is a butterfly) and the greatest volume and variety of wild, free-flying butterflies in the nation. In fact, USA Today calls the National Butterfly Center, in Mission, Texas, 'the butterfly capitol of the USA'." From the Butterfly Centre's website.

The Centre is facing huge challenges, as a result of the "Border Wall". The following information is from the Centre's website.

www.nationalbutterflycenter.org/about-nbc/maps-directions...

"No permission was requested to enter the property or begin cutting down trees. The center was not notified of any roadwork, nor given the opportunity to review, negotiate or deny the workplan. Same goes for the core sampling of soils on the property, and the surveying and staking of a “clear zone” that will bulldoze 200,000 square feet of habitat for protected species like the Texas Tortoise and Texas Indigo, not to mention about 400 species of birds. The federal government had decided it will do as it pleases with our property, swiftly and secretly, in spite of our property rights and right to due process under the law."

"What the Border Wall will do here:

1) Eradicate an enormous amount of native habitat, including host plants for butterflies, breeding and feeding areas for wildlife, and lands set aside for conservation of endangered and threatened species-- including avian species that migrate N/S through this area or over-winter, here, in the tip of the Central US Flyway.

2) Create devastating flooding to all property up to 2 miles behind the wall, on the banks of the mighty Rio Grande River, here.

3) Reduce viable range land for wildlife foraging and mating. This will result in greater competition for resources and a smaller gene pool for healthy species reproduction. Genetic "bottlenecks" can exacerbate blight and disease.

IN ADDITION:

4) Not all birds can fly over the wall, nor will all butterfly species. For example, the Ferruginous Pygmy Owl, found on the southern border from Texas to Arizona, only flies about 6 ft in the air. It cannot overcome a 30 ft vertical wall of concrete and steel.

5) Nocturnal and crepuscular wildlife, which rely on sunset and sunrise cues to regulate vital activity, will be negatively affected by night time flood lighting of the "control zone" the DHS CBP will establish along the wall and new secondary drag roads. The expansion of these areas to vehicular traffic will increase wildlife roadkill.

6) Animals trapped north of the wall will face similar competition for resources, cut off from native habitat in the conservation corridor and from water in the Rio Grande River and adjacent resacas. HUMANS, here, will also be cut off from our only source of fresh water, in this irrigated desert.

Charles' employer, Holland-China Trading Company (HCHC), was founded by several people, including Albert Hotz, through Hotz, s'Jacob & Co (Albertus Paulus Hermanus Hotz, born in Rotterdam in 1855, died in Italy in 1930).

When I searched the internet for more information on Albert Hotz, I was in for a surprise. There was a newspaper article, mentioning that he was an early photographer:

"Een lid der Rotterdamsche firma S.C.P. Hotz & Zoon, de heer A. Hotz, heeft een reis naar Perzië gemaakt en is daarvan nu teruggekeerd. Hij brengt, schrijft men uit Londen aan de "N. R. Ct." geen ongunstig nieuws uit Teheran mede.

Door hem zijn ernstige pogingen in het werk gesteld om den handel tusschen Nederland en Perzië, vroeger, naar men weet, van groot belang, weer te verlevendigen. Met dat doel is een kleine vennootschap opgericht, waarbij eenige Nederlandsche fabrikanten van naam betrokken zijn. Deze vennootschap beoogt het invoeren van Europeesche fabrikaten, inzonderheid Nederlandsche, te Teheran, waar een Hollandsche bazaar met den afzet zal worden belast.

De vertegenwoordiger van Nederland in de Perzische hoofdstad, de heer Knobel, heeft groote belangstelling voor dit plan aan den dag gelegd en stelt zich veel voor van de te verkrijgen inkomsten.

De heer Hotz is een ernstig liefhebber der photographische kunst en heeft met zijnen Kodak een groot aantal landschappen in Perzië afgebeeld. Deze afdrukken, vermenigvuldigd, vergroot en duurzaam gemaakt door het platinotypische proces, zijn ten deele vereenigd in een smaakvol album, dat een getrouw beeld geeft van het hedendaagsche en ook van het oude Perzië.

Van bijzondere waarde zijn de kleurige platen van de bouwvallen van Persepolis en van Ispahan, vooral die waarop de graven der "opperhoofden" van de Oost-Indische Compagnie op het Armenische kerkhof te Julfa zijn weergegeven."

(Royal Dutch Library, Delpher.nl, Haagsche Courant, 31 July 1893)

Would any of these photo have survived? And, were any photos of China to be found, A. Hotz being a founder of Holland-China Trading Company. Soon, I found reference to the Hotz collection at Leiden University. Indeed, there were Chinese images to be found, and a wonderful portrait of Albert Hotz and his wife Lucy Helen Woods.

Hotz was also mentioned in Mattie Boom's thesis. She wrote that Hotz traveled from Persia to China, via the old Silk Road, still in use in the 1890s. In London, well-known China-photographer John Thomson printed Hotz' photographs. He may have also sold Hotz a collection of Chinese photographs, currently held at Leiden University Library.

"De Rotterdammer Albert Paul Herman Hotz (1855-1930) was zo’n reizende ondernemer die graag fotografeerde. Hij trok in 1874 voor het eerst naar Perzië waar hij ging handelen in tapijten, textiel en olie. In Teheran had hij vanaf 1890 zijn zogeheten ‘Tehran Toko’ waar hij zijn handelswaar doorverkocht. Teheran was de standplaats, maar vandaaruit deed het bedrijf ook zaken met China. De zijderoute was in de late 19de eeuw nog steeds dezelfde levendige weg als in de eeuwen daarvoor. Via deze route werden handelsbetrekkingen met China onderhouden. Hotz ondernam de tocht verschillende malen."

"Er zijn meer dan twintig fotoalbums van Hotz met zijn eigen foto’s bewaard gebleven (afb. 132). Deze foto’s werden door de bekende China-fotograaf John Thomson voor Hotz afgedrukt op het fraaie platinapapier. Mogelijk maakte Thomson ook de albums. Hotz had, toen hij in Londen woonde, Thomson ontmoet op een van de bijeenkomsten van de Royal Geographical Society. De mannen raakten in gesprek toen Thomson een van zijn voordrachten over China met projectie van lantaarnplaatjes hield. Ook Hendrik Dunlop die als vertegenwoordiger bij de firma Hotz werkte, ging via Teheran en Shiraz langs de zijderoute naar China. Achterin Dunlops album Shiraz zitten een paar kleine foto’s die hij rond 1895 in China maakte, waaronder een van de theefabriek van Fuzhou."

(Mattie Boom 2017, Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam, Kodak in Amsterdam. De opkomst van de amateurfotografie in Nederland 1880-1910, p. 113)

There is an exhibition in Rijksmuseum (Amsterdam) by Mattie Boom, about amateur photography in the Netherlands, 15 February - 10 June 2019.

www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/press/rijksmuseum-exhibition-traces...

Original caption reads:

"No. 284, CANTON.

The streets of the native city are very narrow and irregular that a general view of it shows nothing but house-tops, and to secure even this is a matter of difficulty, the one we have selected as giving some idea of its extent was taken from the roof of a pawn shop; these buildings being always erected in the form of high square towers, similar to the one seen in the left of this view."

Courtesy Leiden University Library, Special Collections, Or. 26.590 Hotz album 27, Or. 26.591 Hotz album 28, Or. 27.133 (1) Aktetas van Haccius.

Hello ladies! I would first like to apologize for the delay, technical difficulties aren't fun. Since this happened, I decided to save time by NOT judging your creepy close ups, but instead of getting rid of 6 of you like planned, I will keep all of you. But, that means next week 2 MODELS will be eliminated from the competition. Don't worry, in the future themes will go up at the right times.

Now, for your first theme, I picked something relatively easy.

"Karma's A Bitch...And Death Is Her Sister."

In this theme, you will be victims of the lovely Karma. If you already don't know, Karma is the result of your actions. It could be good or bad, but is usually referred to as bad. So, in the spirit of Karma each of you lovely models will be portraying a different death, that resulted from doing something bad. It could be anything from stealing to a catfight in the house. It's up to you.

Requirements:

~Full body shot

~Fierce and fashionable outfits

~Death must be easy to see

~Try not to make this a bloodbath.

~A small story of what happened in the photo will be appreciated!

~Tag me in photos please

**YOU CANNOT USE STRANGLED AS A DEATH. I'M USING IT AS AN EXAMPLE. BUT YOU CANNOT USE STRANGLED.**

Photos will be due the 31st. That's 2 weeks. Anyone who doesn't turn in a photo will be eliminated.

Be fierce, be creative, but most of all...BE CREEPY.

MODELS WHO TURNED IN A PHOTO: (in no order)

1. Jinkx Pidgen- www.flickr.com/photos/bratzjaderox/9533522305/in/contacts/

2. Lucy Hale- www.flickr.com/photos/94274459@N07/9535715862/

3. Lou- www.flickr.com/photos/mramerica2011/9566343458/in/contacts/

4. Lorelei Sin- www.flickr.com/photos/fabulousdolls/9595123368/

5. Marie-Andre Mothee-

6. Victoria Van Hartog- www.flickr.com/photos/malaysianbarbiecollector/9607155096...

7. Rose Lee-

8. Angel Jade-

9. Jade Nicole West- www.flickr.com/photos/93220200@N07/9547396978/

10. Okiku- www.flickr.com/photos/72298509@N05/9569918363/

11. Sweetie-Regina Green- www.flickr.com/photos/reginia/9636788928/

12. Katy Daly- www.flickr.com/photos/bratzboymax/9557593264/

13. Jemima Grey- www.flickr.com/photos/52629305@N07/9611950863/14.

14.Penelope Delis- DROPOUT

15. Ashlee Smith-http://www.flickr.com/photos/ashlee_bitch_fashion4/9593241430/

16. Zoé A- www.flickr.com/photos/87049656@N06/9574104823/in/contacts/

17. Sweettina Dágwood- www.flickr.com/photos/diva3tina/9633885387/

18. Spencer Grey- www.flickr.com/photos/happydollplace/9640969420/

19. Jamlia Blossom-

20. Spencer Martinéz-

View On Black

Visit kriskrosphotography.com.

I was having difficulty with focus yesterday when I took these shots. I guess the damage to my lens is greater than I thought. Or maybe I was just not on my game. I hope it's just the latter.

As we conclude 2025, I’ve put my favourites, most interesting and some new and withdrawn buses which I saw during this year. I also think this is a perfect moment to say a massive thank you and a brief update with my Flikr account:

Thank you! :

I firstly would like to thank you all for the support, some quite incredible achievements have been made and so many people have acknowledged these photos. I have noted that I have received over a million views overall which is quite an incredible achievement which I didn’t expect to get anywhere near to! I have also received over 600 faves this year which is much appreciated, and the most faved picture received 39 faves which I am grateful for! I am also hugely grateful for 285 followers - it means so much to me knowing that other people are interested in my photographs and want to support my Flikr account.

Difficulties:

I also think this would be an appropriate time to share some insight into something which I’ve enjoyed doing, but it hasn’t been easy! I have been very low on motivation at vast amounts this year, and more so recently. Whilst personally I haven’t got anything to find motivation off, but with photographing buses, it’s a hobby which is something which I won’t stop doing, but at times I really question whether it’s something I genuinely enjoy, a couple of moments this year I definitely have, and others which I have been in a situation where I am desperate to capture a bus, and then job done.

There have been points where I have not felt like uploading and leaving my photos to come back to them at a later time, hence sometimes a gap in uploads. I have Flikr Pro which hasn’t got very long before it expires, and I have had doubts on whether I would renew for this, however If I stopped over no account I would want to return, so I think they are just doubts.

Whilst I would prefer not to get into the other challenges, both personally and related to venturing out and photographing buses, I definitely will take the positives from this, and the negatives are out of the way now!

Future visits:

As for moving forward, I have got certain visits planned, which includes visiting the Peak District for numerous operators such as: Hulleys By High Peak, Some new High peak Mercedes Citaros for the Transpeak service, the Volvo B8RLE Eclipse 3’s entering service on the Sixes and some of the Notts and Derby fleet. I also plan to Capture the new Kinchbus electric Yutong E9’s/E10’s which are due very soon. More in the long term, I hope to visit the North East of England in the summer, so a variety of buses may be on the cards for me to capture during that time! I also hope to include models on here soon, as models on my other account will be coming to an end soon. I may give more info on this in the future months.

Updates:

I also have thought about jumbling up my photos from various visits, like some people do, which may give me some more motivation to continue uploading daily. I am open to feedback on this, so if you would like to see this let me know in the comments (once you’ve done some scrolling down!)

I have given a reasonable length description of each picture and why it’s a favourite of mine, going from left to right, starting with the top left as 1, then the last at the bottom right as 29. I haven’t put numbers over them as it may look too congested! If I could fit another image in, I would’ve made it 30 to round it up.

All pictures are in chronological order bar the South Staffs Evora (see below) which wouldn’t fit in so was moved in order to fit it at a better position with the other photos. I should say this has taken me ages to sort and a faff to arrange all the pictures so they fit in a perfect arrangement!

Here’s my top selection of pictures from 2025:

1) Arriva Derby’s Scania Omnicity 3554, pictured in January leaving the bus station - 2025 saw the end of Arriva’s Omnicities at Derby, and as a whole. The last made it to the summer months, where the last five or so were withdrawn, and the sole Omnilink survives outside of Arriva, it will feature on the years montage later on!

2) A significant moment in history, pictured is Hulleys of Baslow Scania Solar 34 seen in February, a month before the Hulleys closure. A huge farewell to Hulleys of Baslow which closed down this year, but the Hulleys name still lives on with Hulleys by high peak. A different identity and certainly something which I will look into for 2026! The Scania Solar lives on and has been at several operators since, it was infact preserved for a time, but is back in service use again!

3) Arriva Midlands Mercedes Citaro 3006 seen at Lichfield Bus Station in February with Midland red destination blinds on the front. Not something I expect to see again, so probably the best destination capture of the year!

4) Bus Link Scania Solars 75 and 71 at Lichfield bus station on the same day in February. A photo of a bus link Solar couldn’t be ignored, and I decided to include two in one photo!

5) Another huge farewell in April was the B7TL’s at First Kernow. These were the last B7TL’s within the entirety of First group all being withdrawn in the summer months, bar one at Essex which survived a handful of months longer. It has also turned out to be a farewell to First Kernow who themselves won’t be operating from February next year.

6) Another significant moment and a moment I will remember for years to come, in April photographing my model alongside the actual Truro Park and Ride vehicles. The model was of Western Greyhound’s 204 who operated it prior to their fire. Now First operate it and the sole Citaro which survived the fire was 64050, which was the only O530 Citaro. All are expected to have already been replaced, but it’s a given that 2026 will be their last year with the closure of First bus. Wright GB Kites are their replacements. It was the first time I’d photographed a model with a similar actual bus, and I have done it a couple of times since!

7) In April, my first capture of the First Corporate purple livery on an MMC, and also another to include First Kernow in with it being the last time I saw them in Cornwall.

8) In April, A Transport For Cornwall E200MMC (fleet number 2022) was captured at Polzeath beach, one of the best on the Cornwall north coast in my view, and it served as one of the best backdrops of the year!

9) One of Chaseriders new Volvo MCV Evoras at Stafford, I had found a perfect spot with the sun behind shining onto the buses, and a lovely visit during May, I couldn’t leave the pictures out of this years montage. I am yet to upload these photos onto Flikr, but they are in the queue!

10) One of the most interesting brands of 2025 has to be the peak Sightseer livery, and for 2025, three ALX400’s came up from Torquay where I already knew of their existence, so a visit in May on their first appearance out allowed me to see 18303! Fingers crossed 2026 will be a continuation for Tridents on there, so a return trip is mandatory!

11) The moment I unexpectedly saw South Staffs MCV Evora turn up was definitely a bonus, it was probably the biggest shock of excitement I’ve had this year with bus spotting. It was pictured on its first day in service during May and has been part of an ever-growing fleet for them this year, taking over multiple services in the region!

12) One of TM Travel’s Scania L94UB Solars which transferred from Trentbarton to TM travel this year. 663 was pictured on the day working the 218 service in May.

13) A continuation from the Chatsworth day out, and this time 674 was selected for the years montage - it was the last red scania at TM travel and was withdrawn just weeks later after capturing it during May,

14) Now onto Buxton, on the same day, also in May, the Skyline branded Mercedes Citaro made it into the montage as they are being phased out in place for E200MMC’s and possibly Evoras for the future. 801 was captured, the oldest one left! That capped off probably the most successful trip of the year in terms of seeing all the buses I needed to tick off, I don’t think I missed any, and saw more than I anticipated.

15) Again in May, A visit to the bus link yard, and a photo of their varied buses and liveries all lined up was quite the spectacle!

16) From the Bus Link yard, A photo of my favourite bus of 2025, Bus Link’s 61 was at their depot, and my first encounter of it too! It was saved from Arriva Leicester and was painted into bus link colours. It’s the only Pulsar Gemini left in the entirety of the midlands now, such as shame. It has served as my new profile picture!

17) In June, One of the Diamond East Mids Scania irizar i3’s which are on the brink of being sold off out of Rotala ownership. It was known for some time that they would be leaving, so my best photo of an i3 would no doubt be necessary for the years montage. I have saved up quite a large number of uploads which will consist solely of the Scania irizar i3’s!

18) In June, the day came for my last photo of a midland classic liveried E400, with the last four being repainted into the diamond livery in quick succession. A key moment for me during this year!

19) Off the back of the i3’s, their successor at Diamond is the very unique Custom Denning Element 2’s (in full) and here was my first spot of an example in the blistering June heat! They feature lovely cool aircon as they are imports from Australia. Currently, diamond operates ten of these, none can be found anywhere else in the UK currently!

20) A brief visit to Torquay in June proved to be worthwhile, whilst I was gutted to not see Stagecoach stripes 18308 in service, I was very kindly given a look round the Stagecoach depot, where I captured Stripey parked up. Electrics arriving there will replace it during 2026, so that will be my one and only proper attempt at seeing it.

21) During my Torquay visit in June, A very modern looking backdrop in Torquay with one of Stagecoach’s E400MMC’s in view. Another favourite backdrop from this year!

22) 2025 saw the introduction of the Xpress 38 brand, now bright orange, and this was a no brainer for the montage, however it was difficult to pick a photo that I’d taken such the interest I had with them. In the end, the two Volvos at Burton won the selection, and the shenanigans of the X38 continued into this year, with three buses there at once, plus a villager. Taken during an unusually dull July.

23) 2025 was the year I finally photographed a Cotswold Pulsar 1 example - having not been in my area before, the Commanders were the ones to be in the midlands. However despite Derby having one this year, it wasn’t the example to take the claim - Arriva Wales 2916 was infact, taken at Chester, which was the biggest visit of the year in July (and I haven’t uploaded a single photo yet bar a mini one here!)

24) During August, A very nice Great Yarmouth Heritage livery on First Eastern Counties 37562, a visit I also haven’t uploaded any pictures of, but I had failed to get any decent photos of this vehicle on the two previous visits. Now I ticked it off, I thought it was worthy of including in the years montage with it evading me for too long!

25) An era ending year for Trentbarton now, bidding farewell to the Scania solars, where in September I photographed 669 which was the last Solar in public service with Trent, having operated more than a hundred in their hay day. It was sadly withdrawn in October and although surviving as a trainer vehicle, it cannot be caught by the public. A rather emotional moment during 2025.

26) Now onto the Preservation scene for 2025. At first I was going to include a former NX Trident or two, having done well for numbers being saved this year. However, one which surprised me was former Arriva Derby and originally Arriva Tamworth Scania Omnilink 3505. It now resides at Wythall Transport museum and was pictured on its first ever preservation outing in September.

27) A nice one later on in the year in November was actually used for the Christmas photo of the year, which features an Andrews of Tideswell Plaxton Elite coach at the front of Chatsworth house with Christmas lights. I thought this was something different being a coach and also some festivity to go with it.

28) A lucky capture again of a South Staffs vehicle, but at the other end of the spectrum, this was former Metroline London TE1742, a contrast to their plain white new E400MMC’s. It was captured on a cold frosty November morning which was well worth the effort!

29) A capture of a West Midlands Volvo B7TL Wright Gemini before the West Midlands looses them all, this being 4523, the last BU53 left from the batch and also the last red and white Gemini at West Bromwich. I featured Tridents a lot last year, but 2025 I only saw them in public service in December and just the one occasion. This could be the last I see of the Tridents and Geminis in public use in the West Mids, so to conclude the years montage, I say farewell to the old beasts which for the oldest Geminis are nearly 23 years old, quite astonishing!

However, for the very beginning of 2026, the Trident and Geminis still live on…

Thank you very much if you have read to this point, feel free to comment whether you would like to see photos randomised, or whether you like it how it is with there being a structure to each visit at a time. Once again, a massive thanks and let’s hope 2026 is a year to remember!

Had difficulty creating a picture for my own chosen theme, lol;

this morning the first snow arrived, and when I saw the tyre tracks I was thinking of which road people have to take these days : with all that divided and twisted (non)information we get from the media, we sometimes lose our own path and forget which way to pick and create our daily life;

ugh, I've said :-)

The difficulty with the ‘do art for yourself’ point of view is that it becomes hard to integrate any external check about whether your art is merit-worthy. Doing dull work that pleases you and nobody else is fine. Unless, that is, something jogs you out of the rut and you get depressed about having done dull work when you might have done interesting work. Balancing internal and external demands is hard.

View LARGE On Black

Gears: Nikon D50, AFS Nikkor 50mm f/1.8 DC

Location: Gong Badak, Kuala Terengganu, Terengganu, Malaysia

Processing: Desaturated, HSL, cropped 1:1

The suspension bridge between Covington, Kentucky and Cincinnati, Ohio opened to traffic on January 1, 1867. Its central span of 1057 feet was the longest in the world. John A. Roebling had spent most of the previous two years in New York and at his home in New Jersey vigorously planning for his next proposed project – a bridge over the East River connecting New York City and Brooklyn. The work at Covington had been under the supervision of his son, Washington, since early in 1865.

The first charter for the Ohio River bridge had been granted to the Covington-Cincinnati Bridge Company by the Kentucky Legislature in 1846. Due to opposition chiefly from ferryboat operators and steamboat companies, the Ohio legislature delayed approval. There was also concern that the bridge would possibly facilitate the movement of Negroes attempting to escape slavery.

The Bridge Company had selected John Roebling as chief engineer to design and build the bridge. Construction began in September 1856. The initial work was to prepare the foundations for the Ohio tower. With both towers under construction, work halted in 1858 as additional funding became unavailable after a widespread financial downturn in 1857.

The bridge project sat idle as the bridge company had difficulty selling stock and the nation moved toward civil war.

The war began in the spring of 1861, and by September of 1862, Confederate forces under General Kirby Smith invaded Kentucky and threatened to move on Cincinnati. Union General Lew Wallace organized the defense of the city, and built a series of fortifications on the hills in northern Kentucky. A pontoon bridge using coal barges was assembled across the Ohio River to expedite the movement of troops and supplies. Some old engravings showing this floating bridge also depict the stubs of the suspension bridge towers jutting out of the river.

This threat renewed interest in the bridge. Additional stock was sold and by the spring of 1863, the state legislatures had amended their charters to reduce the required clearance of the bridge over the river. John Roebling returned to Covington to restart construction. Work on the towers resumed as excavation began for the anchorages.

The project continued through 1864, and early the following year, Washington Roebling joined his father as assistant chief engineer. He had recently married after his discharge from the Union army where he had risen to the rank of colonel.

Spinning of the cables began in November 1865 using wrought iron wire imported from England. John Roebling returned to the east coast, and supervision of the Ohio River bridge project was turned over to Washington. The cables were completed in June 1866, and installation of the hangers, beams, wood floor, and diagonal stays proceeded with only minimal delays.

As a member of the Board since 1856, Amos Shinkle had always been among the staunchest supporters of the bridge project. He was elected President of the Bridge Company in March 1866, a position he continued to hold until his death in 1892.

The bridge was opened to pedestrian traffic on the first weekend of December, 1866. The opening was signaled with a one-hundred-volley salute by two cannons from the Newport Barracks. It was reported that 46,000 people crossed the bridge on Saturday, and 120,000 on Sunday.

The formal opening of the bridge was on January 1, 1867. The date was earlier than planned because ice on the river had prevented ferryboat operations. Completion of final details, including painting, extended until late June 1867, under Washington Roebling’s direction. The color of the paint has been described as “Spanish Brown”. John Roebling reported the total cost of the bridge as 1.8 million dollars.

John Roebling was appointed Chief Engineer of the New York Bridge Company later in 1867. Wilhelm Hildenbrand was hired as a draftsman to prepare detailed drawings. He also provided illustrations to promote the “East River”, or “Brooklyn” bridge. Meanwhile, Washington Roebling was touring bridge projects and reviewing the latest construction methods in Europe.

In June1869, John Roebling’s foot was crushed on the Fulton Ferry slip in Brooklyn while surveying the centerline for the proposed bridge. Twenty-four days later, he died of lockjaw at age 63. The following month, Washington Roebling was appointed to succeed his father as chief engineer on the Brooklyn Bridge.

Construction began on the Brooklyn Bridge in 1870. Although stricken with caisson disease in 1872 – which made him a partial invalid – Washington was able to overcome many difficulties to complete the bridge in 1883. With a central span of 1595 feet, it became the world’s longest bridge, surpassing its forerunner at Cincinnati.

There was record flooding on the Ohio River in 1883, and the following year was even worse with water here reaching the 71-foot level. The Ohio approach to the bridge then ended at Front Street and it was under water. The bridge company provided skiffs to transport pedestrians between the bridge and a point on Walnut Street.

In 1891, moisture problems were discovered in the southeast anchorage. Local Civil Engineer Gustave Bouscaren was consulted and he devised reinforcing collars with friction clamps to restore the strength of the cables.

With electric streetcars replacing horse-drawn cars, there was concern about the load capacity of the bridge. In 1894, six engineers were asked to inspect the structure and submit proposals. All, but Wilhelm Hildenbrand, suggested replacing the bridge with a non-suspension structure.

With Washington Roebling’s help and advice, Hildenbrand received the contract and began reconstruction in 1895. His plan included adding two steel cables, which required four new anchors, and removal of the turrets to position additional saddles on the towers. Hildenbrand installed a new steel truss and floor beam system, and widened the wooden floor. The Ohio approach was extended to Second Street. The reconstruction was completed in 1899. Electric lighting was installed on the bridge in 1901.

A flood in 1913 put the extended Ohio approach under water, and a temporary wooden trestle was built to maintain traffic to Walnut Street. This resulted in the Bridge Company developing plans and acquiring additional property to continue the approach to Third Street. This extension was completed in 1918. A later modification of the approach permitted streetcar ramps over Third Street to connect to the Dixie Terminal.

During the great flood of 1937, the river crested at 79.99 feet. It was necessary to construct a sandbag, gravel, and timber causeway in Covington to connect diagonally from the bridge approach to a point on Greenup Street. The bridge was the only highway river crossing between Steubenville, Ohio and Cairo, Illinois that remained open -- a distance of over 800 miles.

The Commonwealth of Kentucky purchased the bridge from the bridge company in 1953. Improvements by Kentucky included installation of a steel-grid deck to replace the wooden floor. Toll collection continued until late in 1963.

The 100th anniversary of the bridge opening was celebrated with a ceremony on Court Street at the Covington approach in the fall of 1966.

The bridge was recognized as a National Historic Landmark in 1975. An advocate for small businesses, Ed Wimmer, Sr., cited the construction of the bridge as a prime example of the free enterprise system. Mr. Wimmer founded the Covington-Cincinnati Suspension Bridge Committee (CCSBC), and urged the state to paint the bridge red, white, and blue in honor of the Nation’s bicentennial. The bridge was green at that time, and the decision was made to paint it blue.

At the time of the Bicentennial, the CCSBC obtained permission to begin flying flags on a continual basis from the poles atop the bridge towers. The Bennington Flag, with thirteen stars and a ’76 in the field, is flown over the Kentucky tower, and the fifty-star flag over the Ohio tower. The appropriate state flag is flown beneath the American flags.

The bridge was designated as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1982. In June of the following year, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet officially renamed the structure as the “John A. Roebling Bridge”.

In 1984, the CCSBC was successful in raising funds to install the decorative cable lighting. The lighting system is a memorial to Julia Langsam, a president of the CCSBC, who worked tirelessly to see this vision become a reality.

A “yoke” roadway system connects the bridge approach in Covington to Scott and Greenup Streets. It was completed in 1991; the project included lowering Second Street to go under the approach.

The Commonwealth of Kentucky undertook a massive renovation of the bridge itself as we moved into the final decade of the twentieth century. In addition to needed structural repairs and vastly improved roofing for the anchor houses, the renovation included adding modified replicas of the original turrets (saddle houses) atop the towers. The CCSBC suggested that the turret finials should be gold-leafed, and this was done. The total cost of this renovation exceeded ten million dollars.

A final phase to paint the bridge was funded and accomplished in 2010. This cleaning and painting project, which included taking all portions of the trusses and cables down to "bare metal", cost an additional 16.24 million dollars. A major portion of this expense was to encapsulate the work area to prevent lead paint and other impurities from contaminating the air and the river. The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet had a special acrylic paint formulated to match the desired color of the bridge. This shade is now known as " Roebling Blue".

An annual inspection of the bridge in 2007 determined the need to reduce the weight limit to eleven tons. This was necessary based on its condition and to preserve the structure for years to come. The Southbank Shuttle vehicles are now the heaviest permitted on the bridge.

Reconstruction of the Fort Washington Way segment of I-71, and the resulting development of The Banks, has again altered the Ohio approach to the bridge. It now begins at a tight traffic circle at the intersection with Ted Berry Way.

The CCSBC has labored for years to raise funds and develop the enhanced decorative lighting system now installed. Celebrating nearly 150 years of service as a river crossing, the John A. Roebling Bridge now serves as the iconic symbol of the entire Tri-State Region.

— Ralph G. Wolff

2004 (Updated 2016)

Credit for the data above is given to the following website:

roeblingbridge.org/Bridge-History

Being hard of hearing I have difficulty hearing all the birdsong outside and I have real difficulty remembering the songs. We only saw a couple of Blackbirds in the meadows.

Bickford Meadows Staffordshire Uk 4th May 2015

Thanks for the ID Scott and Colin

The difficulties you meet will resolve themselves as you advance. Proceed, and light will dawn, and shine with increasing clearness on your path. ~ Jim Rohn

. . . meant to be viewed on black . . . Via Fluidr . . . (then click on image to view details LARGE) . . . bigger is definitely better . . .

Drs 37403 drags an errant set through Dagworth near Stowmarket as 5P99 Stowmarket-Norwich having been assisted previously by Freightliner 66502 to get into Stowmarket loop after operating difficulties with 90012 seen just at the end of the train dor.The sight and sound of this climbingHaughley bank was superb!!

View from Mt Difficulty Vineyard in Bannockburn where we are having lunch. April 27, 2016 Central Otago in the South Island of New Zealand.

The Cellar Door at Mt Difficulty Wines is known as much for its dramatic views of rugged rock and thyme landscapes as it is for its stylish wine and food.

The unique microclimate of the Bannockburn area is partially created by the presence of Mount Difficulty which overlooks the southern Cromwell basin, and is the namesake of Mt Difficulty Wines. Mount Difficulty is integral in providing low rainfall and humidity for the region. Bannockburn enjoys hot summers, a large diurnal temperature variation and long cool autumns; conditions which bring the best out of the Pinot Noir grapes. These conditions, along with soils which are ideal for viticulture, provide an excellent basis not only for Pinot Noir, but also for Pinot Gris, Riesling, and Chardonnay. The soils are a mix of clay and gravels, but all feature a high pH level; grapes produce their best wines on sweet soils.

For More Info: www.mtdifficulty.co.nz/aboutus/ourstory.html

47802 leads the 1Z37 Plymouth to Bristol Temple meads Northern Belle railtour with 57601 and 57314 on the rear out of sight, this should of been from Par but ran into some difficulties with dodgy traction fist one of the 57's failed at Bristol in the morning and the other one was struggling so a rescue/backup loco was sent from Southall to meet it at Tiverton Parkway.

Kungsleden ("The King's Trail") is a hiking trail in northern Sweden, approximately 440-kilometre (270 mi) long, between Abisko in the north and Hemavan in the south. It passes through one of Europe's largest remaining wilderness areas. In the winter Kungsleden is a ski trail with approximately the same route.

(Wikipedia)

-----

I somehow got used to going to the north on a yearly basis, if not even more often. This time, our hiking destination was Sweden - northernmost part of the world-famous Kungsleden trail and locations close to the Abisko national park. And of course, early September means peak of autumn season in the deep north - arguably the best part of the year there.

The 9-days itinerary was as follows: Nikkaluokta -> Visttasvággi valley -> Unna Reaiddávággi pass -> Sälkastugorna -> Alisvággi valley -> Unna Allakas -> Abiskojaurestugorna -> Abisko. Except one night in the Unna Räitastugan hut, we used our tents and enjoyed autumn landscape of the deep north quite heavily. That sense of freedom... cannot be described by words.

This shot was taken at an unnamed waterfall close to the Unna Räitastugan hut during our third day in the area. It was cloudy and rainy during the day, with some lucky moments of brief sunshine.

Who in North America has never had Lifesavers? Who remembers that ad campaign? lolThis is the opening to the harbour at Port Glasgow, Ontario. I found a lot of beach glass on the shore on Labour Day. It was windy, and boats were having some difficulty entering, and leaving the doc area.

A free Spirit

Mirit Ben-Nun was born in Beer- Sheva in 1966. Over the years she has presented in solo exhibitions and participated in group exhibitions in Israel and around the world.

When she was six, her father was killed in a car accident, leaving behind his wife and two daughters, Mirit and Dana.

Ben-Nun had difficulty concentrating on studies, which caused behavioral problems, and at the age of fourteen she dropped out of the education system and went to work. The colors and writing tools gave her a quiet private space and her own way of surviving. Creativity eased her tumultuous soul.

Until her early 30’s she worked as a telemarketer and for the next fourteen years she doodled and doodled. While talking to customers she filled thousands of pages with lines and dots that resembled hundreds of compressed eggs and seeds which she threw away.

In a large portion of each page she would pick a random word and would write it down over and over while concentrating on her hand movements.

Even then she noticed the rising of her need and obsession as she practiced the endless doodling and writing.

Ben-Nun testifies that the lack of artistic training to paint "correctly" freed her from adhering to the rules of painting and allowed her freedom and spirit of rebellion.

In 1998, she received a bunch of canvases and acrylic paints as a gift from her sister.

She brought the acrylic into her world of lines and dots; she went back to painting women and masks that appeared in her childhood paintings and flooded them with lines and dots without separating body and background.

This is also the moment when Ben-Nun began to refer to herself as a painter.

and when art became the center of her life.

The intense colors in Ben-Nun's paintings sweep the viewer into a sensual experience. The viewer traces the surge of dots and lines formed in packed layers of paint. The movement leads to a kind of female-male hormonal dance within the human body and to a communion with an artistic experience of instinct, passion, conceiving and birth.

Contributing to this experience is the wealth of characteristics reminiscent of tribal art. Ben-Nun merges these with a humorous and kicking contemporary Western Pop art. In the language of unique art, Ben-Nun creates an unconventional conversation between past and present cultures.

It is evident that the paintings emerge from a regenerated need and desire, a force that erupts from her soul, a subconscious survival instinct to which she cannot or does not want to resist.

Ben-Nun places women at the center stage where they are her work focus. The paintings obsessively deal with the existential experience of being a woman in the world. A few of the women's paintings carry feminist slogans stressing the women's struggle in society, a critique for being held to perfection and being required to perform as a model of "beauty, purity and motherhood". Feminism pulsates in Ben-Nun's psyche, through her diverse female images and the play between beauty and unsightliness; Ben-Nun assimilates the consciousness of feminine possibility, of not being "perfect", of being powerful, influential, and outside social norms. This mandates a departure from acceptable limitations where Ben-Nun creates a new world of free spirit for women.

Mirit Ben-Nun is a mother of three and the grandmother of three grandchildren.

Mirela Tal

www.amazon.com/dp/9657589290?ref_=pe_3052080_397514860

Explore: Apr 29, 2009 #361

View On Black

“Fear not [there is nothing to fear], for I am with you; do not look around you in terror and be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen and harden you to difficulties, yes, I will help you; yes, I will hold you up and retain you with My [victorious] right hand of rightness and justice” (Isaiah 41:10, AMP).

It’s easy to look around at what’s happening in the earth today and be tempted to feel afraid or dismayed. Circumstances may seem overwhelming. Maybe your business is struggling, maybe you lost your job, maybe you’re struggling in a relationship or concerned about the economy. During times like these, it’s important to remember that God has promised that He will never leave us nor forsake us. In fact, not only is He with us, He has promised to strengthen us and harden us to difficulties. That means, when tough times come, they just bounce right off of you. You don’t allow your circumstances to steal your peace and joy. You have the attitude that says, “This may be a big problem, but my God is bigger!”

There are some modest difficulties in making portraits of pure strangers but perhaps a little laziness too. I rarely do more than five or six clicks. I have tried a few times to make portraits in a single take. Don’t try this if you do not have a reference screen to judge the result of that lonely click before saying goodbye to you subject. My biggest difficulty is often is to start writing. The second is to keep the text short.

I have already written that one stranger can lead to another, so there is not always a need to search very hard. In the case of Charlie, it was Christian (see photo # 101 of my first series) who introduced me to her.

In the Ahuntsic-Cartierville borough of Montréal, there is an old bus terminal that has been disused. Its land, which belonged to the Société de Transport de Laval (STL), would be ideally suitable to house buildings for social services. It is central to the borough and has a direct existing access to the busiest metro station in the north of the city. Unfortunately, this public property was sold for one dollar to a state agency, which then put it up for sale in the most opaque possible way to private interests in accordance with the policies of our current provincial administration.

I had noted with astonishment in the middle of the winter that, perhaps on its very coldest day, some homeless people had settled outdoors in its parking lot sheltered from public view, but not the cold, by walls along Lajeunesse Street.

A few weeks ago, when it seemed that the summer had finally arrived to Montreal, I went back there. When I got off my bike, I crossed Christian who was heading towards the old terminus too. He had a beat up acoustic guitar under his arm and some friends with him. He explained that they were squatting here since a few days and introduced me to Charlie. We discussed a little. Christian told me that he had lost his harmonicas and his old guitar during one altercation too much with a police officer who keeps an eye peeled for him. As a bonus, he spent the winter in various detention centers. His arrest constituted a breach of conditions in some judicial administrations in Greater Montreal.

Why this long preamble to tell you about Charlie? Christian told her I am a good guy and a good photographer. This was how I found myself doing her portrait. Behind the sunglasses of the first photo, there was a bit of our mutual embarrassment. We eventually chatted a bit together. Not that much, but enough still to make the second photo without the shades. Christian is seated in the background of both shots.

Homelessness is not an easy thing to live. I tend to hope that it can be a transitory state for people who live on the streets. For Christian, it seems to have become an assumed lifestyle. For Charlie, I do not know. She seemed a bit novice in this universe and let on that she was easily influenced. There were at least two other people who spent their nights here with them. Charlie told me that another girl was looking for money for the bus fare to join friends living in Trois-Rivières, a little over a hundred kilometers from Montreal. Her project, however, seemed uncertain.

I do not have the baggage of a psychologist or the stuff of a street worker to make myself a clear idea of Charlie's situation. I would have preferred to wait until I saw her again and get to talk to her some more before making this publication. That's what I had done in the case of Christian. The few minutes that my meetings last are very little to take the measure of a life. I just wish for her that this squat is a summer fling and that she gets on with her life in some other way.

It was an external event that finally decided to write this word and publish her photos. I read a few days after our meeting that all indicates the terminus has been sold to a condo developer who has already made a bundle from a public building turned in more condos across the street from another metro station in Villeray.

Doesn’t it tell you something about homelessness?

Il y a quelques modestes difficultés à faire des portraits de purs inconnus mais peut-être un peu de paresse aussi. Je fais rarement plus de cinq ou six clics. J’ai quelques fois essayé d’en réussir en une seule prise. Ce n’est pas une bonne idée si vous n’avez pas un écran de référence pour juger le résultat de ce seul petit clic avant de dire adieu à votre sujet. La plus grande difficulté est cependant souvent de me décider à écrire.

J’ai déjà écrit qu’un inconnu peut mener à un autre, donc pas toujours besoin de chercher bien fort. Dans le cas de Charlie, c’est Christian (voir a photo # 101 de ma première série) qui me l’a présenté.

Il y a dans l’arrondissement Ahuntsic-Cartierville de Montréal un ancien terminus de bus désaffecté. Ce terrain qui appartenait à la Société de Transport de Laval (STL) serait idéal de par sa location pour abriter des immeubles destinés aux services sociaux. Il est central pour l’arrondissement et comporte un accès direct à la station de métro la plus achalandée du nord de la ville. Malheureusement, cette propriété publique été vendue pour un dollar à une agence d’état qui l’a ensuite mis-en en vente de la manière la plus opaque possible à des intérêts privés en accordance avec les politiques de la présente administration provinciale.

J’avais noté avec étonnement au cœur de l’hiver, possiblement exactement le jour le plus glacial de l’année, que quelques itinérants avaient établis domicile dans le stationnement à l’abri des regards, mais pas du froid, derrière les murs qui longent la rue Lajeunesse.

Il y a deux semaines, au moment où il m’a semblé que l’été était enfin réellement arrivé à Montréal, je suis repassé par là. En débarquant de mon vélo, j’ai croisé Christian qui se dirigeait vers l’ancien terminus avec une vieille guitare sous le bras et quelques amis. Il m’a expliqué qu’ils squattaient ici ces jours-ci et m’a présenté Charlie. Nous avons discuté un peu. Christian m’a raconté qu’il avait perdu ses harmonicas et son ancienne guitare lors d’une altercation de trop avec un officier de police qui l’a à l’œil. En prime, il a passé l’hiver en tôle dans différents centre de détention. Son arrestation constituait un bris de conditions dans quelques administrations judiciaires du Grand Montréal.

Pourquoi ce long préambule pour vous parler de Charlie? Christian lui a dit que j’étais un bon gars et un bon photographe, c’est ainsi que je me suis retrouvé à faire son portrait. Derrière les lunettes fumées de la première photo, il y avait un peu de notre gêne mutuelle. Nous avons ensuite causé un peu d’elle. Pas tant que ça, mais assez tout de même pour faire une seconde photo à visage découvert. Christian apparaît assis à l'arrière-plan des deux photos

L’itinérance n’est pas une chose facile. J’espère souvent qu’elle puisse être un état transitoire pour les personnes qui vivent dans la rue. Pour ce qui est de Christian, ça semble être devenu un mode de vie assumé. Pour Charlie, je ne sais pas. Elle m’a semblé un peu novice dans cet univers et m’as admis être influençable. Il y avait au moins deux autres personnes qui passaient leurs nuits ici avec eux. Charlie m’a dit qu’une autre fille cherchait de sous pour aller rejoindre des amis à Trois-Rivières, à un peu plus d’une centaine de kilomètres de Montréal. Son projet semblait cependant incertain.

Je n’ai pas le bagage d’un psychologue ou l’étoffe d’un travailleur de rue pour me faire une idée de la situation de Charlie. J’aurais préféré attendre de la revoir une autre fois et de lui reparler avant de faire cette publication. C’est d’ailleurs ce que j’avais fait dans le cas de Christian. Les quelques minutes que durent mes rencontres sont bien peu pour prendre la mesure d’une vie. Je lui souhaite simplement que ce squat soit une passade estivale et qu’elle s’en tire autrement.

C’est un événement externe qui m’a finalement décidé à écrire ce mot et à publier sa photo. J’ai lu quelques jours après notre rencontre que le terminus semble avoir été vendu à un promoteur de condos qui a déjà fait main basse sur un immeuble public en face d’une station de métro dans Villeray.

Cela en dit long sur l'expression sans domicile fixe.

This is my sixteenth submission to The Human Family group.

Visit the group here to see more portraits and stories: www.flickr.com/groups/thehumanfamily.

Please don't post your photos here nor GLITTERY IMAGES. They will be removed. Don't invite me to any group. I will not accept ;-)

Had difficulties in finding models for this image! Dad was the one, we went into kuwait desert searching for a good spot. Big thanks for being part of my dramatic portraits :D

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All the works on my page and gallery are protected by copyright laws. All rights are reserved to Anfal. No use of any kind without my permission. If you have doubts about this matter email me.

So, this is it. From my four days spent along the coast this is the best seaside long exposure that I have. And I had to Photoshop the he!! out of it to get it ready to post. I have SUCH a new respect for those that practice this successfully! And, of course, I have a strong desire to join their ranks. ;)

Is it just me, or do we photographers constantly gravitate towards whatever is increasingly difficult (and increasingly expensive) to achieve?

www.benheine.com | Facebook | Twitter | © Ben Heine

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I travelled to Lisbon a few weeks ago for the launch of the new Samsung phone and tablet in Portugal. Samsung Portugal invited me to use the new "Galaxy Note 10.1" (tablet) and the "Galaxy Note II" (smartphone) to see how it is possible to be creative, to draw and take photos with these new digital devices.

See this mini video documentary showing the interaction I had with these new devices and the beautiful city of Lisbon. You can also read this full report on my blog with more information about the context in which I made each sketch (exact location, meaning...).

Basically, I made photo-drawings (Pencil Vs Camera) like I usually do but instead of using pencils, pieces of paper and a reflex camera, I used the 10.1 tablet as a drawing surface area, the magnetic S-Pen as a tool to draw and the powerful integrated camera of the Galaxy phone to capture the final results...

It was a challenge because it was the first time I was using this technology, I also had to do the sketches very quickly (less than one hour per image, while I usually spend several days of work on every single project I do!). Another difficulty was that I didn't use any references, it was a complete freestyle and improvised adventure in a new environment as well.

This said, I was very pleased and impressed by how fast it was to learn all the creative tools available on the tablet and phone, mainly because these devices offer a friendly, welcoming and intuitive interface (one of the particularly new features I really liked is the Multiscreen function, it allows several applications to work side-by-side, having several windows opened in the same screen. I could easily switch from one application to another).

All in all, these devices are cool instruments to increase artists' skills and productivity. They can be used as new tools of expression to share ideas and feelings.

Many thanks to Hugo Braz (Samsung Portugal) and Gonçalo Oliveira (Desafio Global Ativism) for their invitation and to Dub Video Connection and Sandro Aguilar for the nice film.

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For more information about my art: info@benheine.com

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we have difficulties with relationships because we are unlovable and sensitive to rejection.

personality disorders are typically associated with severe disturbances in the behavioral tendencies of an individual, usually involving several areas of the personality, and are nearly always associated with considerable personal and social disruption. Additionally, personality disorders are inflexible and pervasive across many situations, due in large part to the fact that such behavior is ego-syntonic (i.e. the patterns are consistent with the ego integrity of the individual) and are, therefore, perceived to be appropriate by that individual.

Diagnosis of personality disorders can be very subjective; however, inflexible and pervasive behavioral patterns often cause serious personal and social difficulties, as well as a general functional impairment. Rigid and ongoing patterns of feeling, thinking and behavior are said to be caused by underlying belief systems and these systems are referred to as fixed fantasies or "dysfunctional schemata"

To view more of my images, of Beningbrough Hall, please click "here" !

Beningbrough Hall is a large Georgian mansion near the village of Beningbrough, North Yorkshire, England, and overlooks the River Ouse. It has baroque interiors, cantilevered stairs, wood carving and central corridors which run the length of the house. Externally the house is a red-brick Georgian mansion with a grand drive running to the main frontage and a walled garden, The house is home to over 100 portraits on loan from the National Portrait Gallery. It has a restaurant, shop and garden shop, and was shortlisted in 2010 for the Guardian Family Friendly Museum Award. The Hall is set in extensive grounds and is separated from them by an example of a ha-ha (a sunken wall) to prevent sheep and cattle entering the Hall's gardens or the Hall itself. The Hall, situated 8 miles north of York, was built in 1716 by a York landowner, John Bourchier III to replace his family's modest Elizabethan manor, which had been built in 1556 by Sir Ralph Bourchier on his inheritance to the estate. Local builder William Thornton oversaw the construction, but Beningbrough's designer remains a mystery; possibly it was Thomas Archer. Bourchier was High Sheriff of Yorkshire for 1719-1721 and died in 1736 at the age of 52. John Bourchier (1710-1759) followed his father as owner of Beningbrough Hall and was High Sheriff in 1749. It then passed to Dr. Ralph Bourchier, a 71 year old physician and from him to his daughter, Margaret, who lived there for 70 years. Today a Bourchier knot is cut into a lawn adjoining the house. After over 100 years in the Bourchiers' possession, the estate passed in 1827 to the Rev. William Henry Dawnay, the future 6th Viscount Downe, a distant relative. He died in 1846 and left the house to his second son, Payan, who was High Sheriff for 1851. The house was neglected, prompting fears that it might have to be demolished. In 1916 however, a wealthy heiress, Enid Scudamore-Stanhope, Countess of Chesterfield, bought it and immediately set about its restoration, filling it with furnishings and paintings from her ancestral home, Holme Lacy. During the Second World War the hall was occupied by the Royal Air Force. Lady Chesterfield died in 1957 and in June 1958 the estate was acquired by the National Trust after it had been accepted by the government in lieu of death duties at a cost of £29,250. In partnership with the National Portrait Gallery the hall exhibits more than 100 18th-century portraits and has seven new interpretation galleries called 'Making Faces: 18th century Style'. Outside the main building there is a Victorian laundry and a walled garden with vegetable planting, the produce from which is used by the walled garden restaurant. Beningbrough Hall includes a wilderness play area, community orchard, an Italianate border and garden shop. It hosts events, activity days, family art workshops, and an annual food and craft festival which in 2010 was a Big Green Festival.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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These pictures are from our annual 2020 fall trip to the Sierras and to Yosemite National Park, the full album is here.

We share these pictures with the wish that the bright sunshine and golden colours will bring everyone cheer in these times of difficulty.

"An arrow can only be shot by pulling it back. So when life is dragging you back with difficulties, it means that it’s going to launch you into something great."

That's for all of my friends that are struggling with one thing or another.... let's all meet on the side of something great!!

Arrows are my most recent obsession. I love the way the shafts are painted, love the colors of the feathers and nock. I buy them whenever I see them and I really don't even care if the feathers are messed up... still cool! (as long as they are feathers and not those new plastic flex vanes that they are using instead of feathers now). I keep them in a vase on the table. They last longer than flowers. And they're cool!

At one of the last house sales I went to, I bought a big bundle of dowels, with the intention of making my own colorful, funky arrows. They will be totally non functional and useless. (who cares....when was the last time I shot archery anyway?) I think there will be quivers for them as well. I also think that they will be a long time in coming.... but I am thinking about them...along with that arrow quilt that I have the pattern for.... yeah, arrows... good stuff!

The difficulty of using film is shown here with me pressing the shutter just a fraction late when trying to make sure I have the 3 wagons in the photo!

I should have been positioned further away from Eckington Bridge as 57004 and 37423 cross it at 15.33 on the 26th August 2013 when working 6M56 from Berkeley to Crewe Coal Sidings. The new containers for very low level nuclear waste were beginning to replace the more conventional flasks at this time.

Some technical difficulties resulted in 716 getting a late start out of Oakland, and based on the Charger tacked on to the head end I would guess it had something to do with the control car. CDTX 2108 is seen here running on 536's yellows as it leads the now two-hour late San Joaquin through Berkeley just after 16:00. This used to be a situation in which one could catch one of the Dash 8s pinch-hitting, but it seems there are now enough Chargers and F59s that the old power can stay in the yard.

The morning of 17th February 1981 revealed heavy snow had fallen. In this picture at Kings Norton a Tyseley class 116 DMU is struggling towards Longbridge, wrong line, I am guessing the direction of travel by the tail light!. The Camp Hill lines (left) remain buried under snow and clearly have yet to see a train.

Peter Shoesmith

Copyright Geoff Dowling & John Whitehouse

Former Blackpool Transport Centenary Car 648 is pictured in Rigby Road Tram Depot, having experienced difficulties during the 'Winter Gold' event, on March 23rd 2019.

Peveril Castle, Derbyshire

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Owned by William Peverel, a knight of William the Conqueror, this is one of the first castles built after the Norman Conquest. The triangular site of Peveril Castle, located high on a ridge with precipitous sides, was likely to have been chosen for its natural strength, being both reasonably inaccessible and easily defendable.

Although Peveril Castle is now largely ruinous and fragmented, with only the Keep surviving to any height, the site provides an intriguing insight into the difficulties of building a fortification on ground of such uneven levels. Parts of the curtain wall along the north side of the site, where the earliest period of building took place, are still standing today. However, the curtain wall along the southern boundary, completed in the 12th century, has virtually disappeared.

Little evidence remains of the original castle entrance, but a craggy section of the gatehouse (or town gate, which provides entry to the site today) still exists, and dates from the mid to late 12th century. Within the inner bailey, foundations can be found of various residential buildings that once formed part of Peveril Castle. To the south of the site is a low brick wall, all that remains of the 12th century great hall, but this was replaced by a later, and much larger hall situated opposite the keep, along the edge of the north curtain wall. There are the remains of a fireplace at this site dating from the 13th century.

Henry II was responsible for building the keep in the 1170s - a simple structure, and relatively small in size indicating that it was unlikely to have been used as the main accommodation block. Despite this, some evidence of the Norman architectural detail has survived to suggest that it was an elegant structure, perched on the high ground overlooking the main entrance. Not unusually for a keep of this size, no forebuilding existed, and access was probably gained from an external wooden staircase, now replaced by a modern spiral one. The exterior of the keep was faced with ashlar cladding, most of which has since been stripped but fragments have survived on the south eastern wall, and some towards the tops of the other walls.

Peveril Castle saw a succession of Royal Kings and Queens, but in the late 14th century, it was granted to John of Gaunt, in exchange for the earldom of Richmond, and became part of the Duchy of Lancaster. However, on John's death, his son (who became King Henry IV) inherited Peveril Castle and it became part of the Crown estate. By this time the building was considered to be too uncomfortable to reside at, and slowly the apartments were demolished, with only the keep being retained to serve as a courthouse. From hereon Peveril Castle was left unoccupied and rapid deterioration occurred until, in the early 19th century, the Duchy accepted responsibility for some necessary repairs and renovation work.

Info (The Heritage Trail)

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Ever had this feeling that you are lost in a world of uncertainty and don't know what to do at all .

Well I've had it quite a few a times . Every now and then , life sometimes undergo situations or times when you don't really know what to do .

What I've learned by every breath I take here in this world , is to let things go the way they are going and embrace whatever comes in the way. I beleive going with the flow is the best thing one can do eventually fate will exhibit a light to guide you in the right path .

Imagine , if our life was a ship that we just boarded into when we took birth , and the ship is on a voyage to ascertain what awaits in the other side of the sea to find find a place that it has never seen but will be happy to . It will definitely face difficulties in its way , but if it holds on and goes with flow it will eventually find a way . So maybe going with the flow is the best option .

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Picture taken at Langedrag nature park,Norway.The baby-lynx is a couple of weeks old and it is very hard for it to keep balance and walk for more than a few meters :)))Despite the difficulties ,it was posing bravely for almost 10 minutes :)))

Views of the Sierra Nevada Mountains from the Mirador de La Abadía. You can get there on a short hike with moderate difficulty from downtown Granada. It has many great views of downtown Granada, the Alhambra and the Albaicín along the way. Check out these 13 other things you can do when visiting the city of Granada in southern Spain.

treasuresoftraveling.com/13-things-to-do-in-granada-spain/

#TreasuresOfTraveling #Granada #Spain #españa #Andalusia #Mountains #Hiking #Hike #OptOutside #SierraNevadaMountains #TravelSpain #españaviaje #Europe #SpanishTreasures #PhotoOfTheDay #WorldTraveler #TravelBlogger #TravelPhotos #GlobeTrotter #PassportStamps #TravelTheWorld #BestPlacesToGo #TheGlobeWanderer #TravelGram #FollowMeFarAway #Wanderlust #GuysWhoTravel #GayTravel #GayTravelBlog #GayTraveler

Faced difficulties with the front, my previous Racers all have 2 x 2 front engines... with this 2 x 3 engine it sets the car back one stud and it is problematic with the rear mudguard... Have to raise everything and it makes the driver look weird... Sigh...

brickset.com/sets/8194-1/Nitro-Muscle

I've heard from some of you that there is no comment box on this shot. I'm sorry for the technical difficulties! Thanks for the looks and favs anyway!

One of my favorite old buildings in Pasadena.

The first settlers of Western Michigan experienced great difficulty in keeping up their postal communications with the outer world. In 1853, the settlers hired a man to go for their mail at a cost of 25 cents for each letter he carried out, and 12 ½ cents for each letter he brought back. Postage was 25 cents on an ordinary letter, so it cost 50 cents to send out each letter.

After 1900 rural delivery was established gradually, where roads permitted, using the horse and buggy or wagon. There are many stories told by the carriers about muddy roads and bad weather!

Guy VanNortwick was postmaster in Pentwater from 1956 until his sudden death in 1974. At the time he became postmaster, the contents of the post office had to be purchased from each proceeding postmaster, and Mr. VanNortwick was no exception. When the new Pentwater Post Office was built in 1971, the government furnished it with all new equipment and the old furnishings were Mr. VanNortwick’s to dispose of as he saw fit. It was his wish to keep all this intact and to donate the equipment to a local museum.

After his death, his wife Mary Lou VanNortwick donated them to White Pine Village. These furnishings even included the old leather saddlebag, which was used by the pony express riders who rode along the Lake Michigan shore to Pentwater!