View allAll Photos Tagged exciting
Hello, everyone!
Big changes are on the horizon, and I couldn’t be more thrilled to share them with you. Laminak, owned by the fantastic Casey Tripsa, has partnered with Mist Valley to bring you an even more magical experience. Casey’s beautiful store has officially moved to Mist Valley, and you can find the new landmark in her Flickr profile (search Casey Tripsa) or in the 'About' section.
To celebrate this exciting move and Laminak’s 5th year back in Second Life, Casey is offering an incredible 50% OFF Gift Cards sale on Sunday evening, January 26th. Don’t miss out on this chance to stock up!
But that’s not all… Mist Valley will soon become the home of something truly special: The Coven of the Mist. This enchanting project is currently a work in progress, but visitors are welcome to stroll around and feel the magic taking shape. I can’t wait to share more updates about the Coven as it comes together—stay tuned!
Thank you for all your love and support as Mist Valley grows into something extraordinary. 💖
📍 Carriage: Mist Valley
Much love,
Mara Nightingale
It was exciting to watch the Vermilion Flycatcher puff up his hair and chest and display his outrageous beauty.
Another birder gave us precise directions.
"Many birders keep lists of species they've seen during exceptional days or during their lives. Such a list might look like so many grocery items, but each checkmark is actually shorthand for some encounter or experience. For every bird scribbled in a journal or scrawled on a napkin, there is a story." deseretnews.com
It's been a strange week. Time is being eaten in huge chunks by an exciting European football championship (well for me anyway), a very gradual campervan transformation and the oldest enemy of all - work of course. It's now three weeks since I last packed the camera into the bag, considered what I wanted to achieve before making my lens selections and setting off in the car. I've completely missed the sea thrift and the poppies this year. I'm going to need to reacquaint myself with the buttons and dials on the camera before too much longer or I'll forget what they're all for. Also, with another academic year finished yesterday, I really just want to sit and gaze into space for a while with an empty mind. May and June are always full of improbable deadlines that can only be achieved by engaging what's left of the tired old brain cells into hyperdrive and trusting that we'll somehow get through it all one more time.
Yesterday brought one of those landmark moments in my life. Most of the day was spent clearing twenty-one years of memories from my office as I prepared to hand it over to my successor who joins us on Monday. Finally, after all of those years I'm no longer a finance manager and I'm no longer responsible for the working lives of the people around me - now I'm a teacher of a kind. And that's only for two months until I become whatever I want to be instead of what the need to pay bills forces me to be. Ironic that after all these years supporting teachers, I finally end up in front of the chalk board myself don't you think? Occasionally colleagues would pop in to see if I was crying yet. I wasn't. I was smiling because I was far more excited about what lies ahead than I was wistful about the reflections on what I'm leaving behind. From time to time I would find a note or a photo of some team caper that would make me laugh and rush into the team office to show to the ones who might remember the back story.
And then I happened across one of Sue's old notebooks. In the pages I found a list of names, mine included. Next to them she'd written our ages and future dates. She'd been working out when she might be able to retire, based on what she knew about the plans of her closest colleagues. We'd always loosely agreed that we wouldn't go at the same time. She was my boss for seventeen years - elevated to the boardroom when her predecessor retired, with me involuntarily promoted to her old position in her wake. Neither of us really wanted the responsibility we were being burdened with, but that's what sometimes happens during a period of austerity. Universally loved, the whole college was devastated when Sue was taken from us by pancreatic cancer at the age of 56 a couple of years ago. It all happened frighteningly quickly. One moment she was full of energy and plans, the next she felt ill, and a few months later we all wept at her funeral. Of course it hit us harder than everyone else because we'd worked so closely alongside her for so long. I thought she was indestructible, but of course we're all just visitors here for a while, and some don't get as much of a stay as they might reasonably have expected to. She'd watched over us with so much care throughout the years. When she was no longer able to work I'd had to step even further up those near vertical rungs to do finance at a strategic level and Katie moved into my role. Two of us doing the work of three for a year - the memory of it still makes me shudder. I wasn't born to hobnob with the politickers and shakers and movers of this world. I just wanted to look out of the window and dream about mountains and rivers, forests and oceans.
Every so often, a moment such as finding the notebook brings the sadness of that terrible year jolting back into sharp focus. That eternal sense of dread - "what are they going to ask me at this Governors' meeting now? Will I sit there opening and closing my mouth silently like a goldfish? Sue would have known what to say." In her last ever message to me, her main concern was that I was being paid the right amount for the additional workload I'd had no option but to take on. Typically for Sue, she was thinking about other people instead of herself, even though she only had such a short time left. Of the many gifts she gave me in life, the very last one was that the pay review she campaigned for meant I could knock a whole year off the date she'd written next to my name on the page in front of me. The date she'd evidently written not long before she became unwell.
Late in the afternoon as the contents of the filing cabinets evolved into bulging bin liners and shredding bags, Katie came and sat in my office to go though some invoices. She looked sad. I'll miss lots of people from work, but none anywhere near as much as her. She has been my rock and my best friend - always right there with me during the hardest times, making sure I never felt alone when there were storms all around us. I'm not sure whether I would have survived those storms without her. I know she's worried about a future without me and there's almost nothing that I wouldn't do for her. Except that I can't carry on working anymore of course. The job needs fresh input from an enthusiastic newcomer. But she knows she can come and see me whenever she needs to. I'll always be there for her with hot coffee and whatever I can muster to pass for wisdom.
Of course these tributes to two people who've become so important to me has nothing to do with this picture of Holywell Bay, taken on a stunning winter evening when everyone was at the beach because everywhere else was closed. I've already told the story of that evening in another image, and somehow today the one I've just shared is the one that resonates right now. Sometimes everything very quickly changes so suddenly and drastically in peoples' lives. Our futures are unscripted, no matter what plans we make. If we can make good memories along the way then that's got to be something worthwhile surely?
Exciting startup and investor highlights from SLUSH Week 2021 in Helsinki, Finland. Cooler than ice.
One of the world's coolest startup and investor events from Helsinki in Finland. www.slush.org/
Inspiring side event with Start North 5G MÖKKI concept on 5G AI and VR education - keynote by Rikard Steiber, founder of GoodTrust
CleanTech Region Impact group with Nordic Impact Week attended with leading companies.
Join the Nordic-Baltic Impact Week to Silicon Valley and SOCAP
Photo and Video Credit: Lars Ling
All rights reserved (c) Copyright.
I can finally let you all know about my 4 page feature in Dorset Life magazine! Its been months in the making but today, it finally goes on sale! Here's a lo-res file for you to have a browse at the images but if you want to have a proper look then go and grab yourself a copy if local! Its also available online via their app.
So very pleased to have a feature in such a highly respected local magazine - something I have always dreamed of and another thing ticked off the bucket list.
Thanks for your support as always - it really does spur me on!
Author's Note: The contents of this chapter include very sensitive subject matter and may be triggering to some individuals. Scenes of abuse of various forms are represented as not only for storytelling, but to raise awareness of what this behavior looks like. Abusive behavior in this story includes, but is not limited to: physical abuse, mental abuse, verbal abuse, gaslighting, manipulation, intentional triggering of another's PTSD, and trauma. In no way are these scenes intended to purposely trigger or harm anyone.
...
"...Vincent, it's me! Open the door! I need to talk to you now!"
After such an exciting (though socially exhausting) day, hearing Damien's persistent tone on the other side of the door caused him to tense as if he'd been doused with cold water. This was not how he would have liked to end his day! He really didn't want to deal with Damien right now, but he couldn't pretend he wasn't home anymore. He'd hoped Damien would have let him know before coming over. Vincent already felt a stress-headache coming on. He put the safety back on his pistol and gave a soft sigh. He could do this.
But as Vincent reached for the lock so he could let Damien in, the door was knocked on again! Vincent stared at the door and scowled. Well, that was rude of him, he thought sourly. He was sorely tempted to leave Damien out there even longer but then Damien called through the door again, "Come on, Vincent! Don't leave me out here like this. I thought you said you wanted to talk this out!"
Inhaling sharply through his nose, Vincent grit his teeth. Damien didn't need to make such a loud commotion for the whole building to hear! Deciding just to get this over with he let out some tension as he exhaled. Then he reached for the door, unlocked it, and pulled the door open to stare stoically up at his best friend of six years with his pistol resting at his side defenselessly.
Damien stared back at him with a look Vincent had seen many times; just never directed at him. In his interrogation mode, Damien's brows furrowed deeply and eyes darkened a certain way that could send chills down the spine of almost anyone who received it. His arms were folded over his chest and, in Vincent's opinion, he looked more impatient than he'd ever seen him. Vincent, however, was not like most people, and he maintained his stoic exterior. But oh, he was offended! Who the Hell did Damien think he was?! He opened his mouth to put Damien in his place but Damien cut in just a tiny bit faster.
"Are you alone?" Damien demanded quietly. Vincent blinked at him with just a hint of surprise at this question. He barely had a chance to utter, "Yes?" before Damien nodded and brushed past him to enter the flat. He grunted, "Good. We have much to discuss and I don't want any interruptions this time."
"What is the meaning of this?" Vincent asked incredulously as he pushed the door closed with a groan. "I was expecting you to let me know when you were coming over first. You always let me know first." And when he turned to look at Damien, he found Damien standing nearly an arm's length away and glowering at him.
"Well, I was expecting a bit more loyalty from YOU!"
"Loyalty?!"
"Yes! Why should I do what you want me to do when you won't do what 'I' want? All I wanted to do was to talk this out....just you and me. And all anyone else can do is put their nose in where it doesn't belong."
"It had nothing to do with Aiden!"
But at the mention of their engineer's name, Damien's nostrils flared and he spat out, "See how quickly you think of 'him?' You are proving my point. No, Vincent, it has EVERYTHING to do with YOU!" He pointed his finger right at Vincent's chest and accused, "You are throwing me to the side like a discarded, rotted apple core on the side of the road for the rats! I didn't even mention anyone in particular and already your mind went to him! Aiden this! Aiden that! Why does he even matter anyway?" Damien pressed his hands to his own chest and his expression implored Vincent to see his side as he pleaded, "Don't you care about me at all, Vincent?"
Fleetingly, Vincent was amazed that Damien had the courage to behave and speak to him like this when Vincent was armed. Despite his calm exterior, he was growing more confused and upset at Damien's onslaught of unexpected feelings. However, it was as Aiden was brought up that it shifted into anger. Vincent was done. He was going to put him in his place once and for all! But damn it all Damien asked him if he cared about him at all and Vincent felt like the wind had been knocked out of him! He felt as if he couldn't focus on what he was upset about anymore as he grappled with the unexpected, emotional question.
Of course he cared about Damien! Damien was like a brother to him! He loved him as much despite their current situation. It was what made it hurt so much worse as each second of this whole interaction passed. Had....he been unfair to Damien somehow? He did want to work things out! After all, he'd gone to Damien's temporary residence as Damien had told him before many times to do if he ever needed anything. Unlike Vincent, Damien didn't care if anyone simply dropped in. Damien's sister had insisted once before that it was fine if he stopped in anytime. Honestly, he'd wondered if Damien had nudged her into it but he was grateful to be able to see his friend all the same.
"Of course, I care about you," Vincent relented as his stoic expression faded and a small, sad frown pulled at his lips. Was that how Damien felt about him? About their friendship? "That's not fair, Damien. How can you even say that after everything we've been through?"
"I can say the same about you," Damien responded with just a touch of edge in his voice as he reached out with his metallic arm and pressed his mechanical hand to the door behind Vincent and leaned in slightly; almost a touch dangerously. It made Vincent tense involuntarily as he stared back up at him. However, Damien's voice softened and he sounded and looked hurt.
"I just wanted to talk. And you sent me away."
"I-I just..."
"You just what, Vincent?"
Vincent shrank back slightly against the door and gazed up at his best friend before sighing. Finally he replied, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you feel like you don't matter." At his words, Damien's aggression dissipated as he smiled more. "I knew you would understand. I forgive you," Damien responded as his hand slid to squeeze Vincent's shoulder before resting there. Vincent glanced at his hand then gave a small nod before turning and brushing past Damien to head towards the veranda to get some air. As he walked past a bookshelf, he set down his gun then proceeded to run his hands through his hair. Bloody Hell...
Damien let his hand fall to his side as he turned slowly in place to visually follow Vincent's figure as he made to step outside. His eyes narrowed before he began to follow him out. Was something else wrong?
Out on the veranda, Vincent inhaled slowly and deeply through his nostrils before slowly exhaling as he glanced up at the evening sky. While he didn't mean to make Damien feel like he didn't matter, Damien's behavior as of late was....not okay. He really needed to talk to him about it. He needed to get to the bottom of it once and for all. Vincent could hear Damien following him out onto the veranda behind him. This was his chance to talk it out....just the two of them.
"Look... Damien..." Vincent turned to face Damien and he spoke sincerely as he tried to reason and understand. "I don't know what's been going on lately. I don't like this contention going on between us. I want you to talk to me. Tell me what's going on."
"There's nothing to talk about. You already apologized."
"Yes but that's not what I'm talking about."
"Then what ARE you talking about?"
"The contention going on between us lately; 'before' just the day before. Surely, you've felt it too?"
"Contention?"
"Yes. That's what I said."
"I don't know what you mean."
Damien looked genuinely confused! Vincent just couldn't understand why Damien didn't see what he was talking about. If he was being honest with himself, he had only noticed it during the last few weeks. Prior to that, they'd gotten on well enough and had always been able to work things out. It only seemed to be getting worse....and for some reason it felt like it was only around Aiden. He couldn't quite figure it out. Surely, that couldn't be it, he thought. Surely, Damien would tell him if he had a problem with Aiden! Up until the day before yesterday, the two seemed to have worked out whatever problem they had. But apparently they hadn't and something still seemed off between them even the other day. But...hadn't it always? Vincent had not forgotten what Bernadette had told him about Damien and Aiden's quarrel while he was still abed with high fever. He trusted she would never lie to him; especially about something like that. Therefore, he had taken her word that they had worked it. After all, Aiden hadn't come to him about Damien's misconduct. Was there not as big of a problem as he believed it was? Or was it just worse under the surface?
"Well," Vincent cleared his throat and began calmly, "that aside, I wanted to talk to you about something else. Just...I want to have a heart to heart, okay? Two days ago-"
"But you-"
"Don't interrupt me. Please let me finish."
Damien scowled but he closed his mouth and folded his arms over his chest defensively. However he did keep his mouth closed as he quirked his brow at Vincent and waited for whatever he was going to tell him. Opposite him, Vincent stared up at him calmly and waited for him. Once he saw Damien was actually going to listen he continued.
"Two days ago when you and I were speaking, some of the things you said to me were out of line." Vincent watched Damien's jaw tighten as his jaw clenched. Vincent felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach but tried to explain how he felt anyway. "You really hurt my feelings; especially when you accused me of being too intoxicated." And, sure enough, he'd barely had a chance to utter the last word of his sentence before Damien cut in defensively, "Well YOU hurt MY feelings!"
"I know, and I already apologized. But I still want to talk about what you-"
"You know I can't help what I say when I get angry!"
"Damien, don't you see?! THIS is what I'm talking about! We never argue like this!"
"You are just mad that I called you out on it!" He took a step closer and poked Vincent's chest which caused him to gasp in surprise! "It's not MY fault you like to overindulge in alcohol and herbs! Damn it, Vincent! You know what? Sometimes it's hard to tell if it's 'you' I'm talking to, or your addictions!"
Vincent's face fell, and for the second time this week he very nearly broke down completely. He bit his lower lip and gave a small nod before turning and facing away from Damien. He defensively folded his arms over his chest as his shoulders sank depressingly. That had hurt. It had hurt a lot. Was that really how Damien felt?
Damien sighed. He ran his hands over his face then peeked at Vincent through his fingers. Vincent still wasn't looking at him. He was just...standing there dejectedly and hurt. Frowning slightly, Damien stepped closer and placed his hand on Vincent's shoulder. At his touch, however, Vincent turned away more; clearly not wanting to be touched.
"What do you want me to say, Vincent? I'm sorry, okay?"
After several seconds of no response, Damien huffed and leaned around him and peered at the side of his face. Still nothing. In fact, Vincent turned his head away from him even more! 'Damn it all!' Damien thought. He groaned softly and leaned his forearms against the railing and leaned against it. He hung his head down slightly before glancing back at Vincent.
"Come on. You know I didn't mean that," he tried again, his voice softening. This time he sounded more sincere. "I really am sorry, Vincent. You know sometimes I say things I don't mean. Don't let this silly misunderstanding ruin what we have." At this, Vincent took a deep breath and slowly let it out before turning to glance over his shoulder at Damien, his gaze lifting towards his face but unable to meet his eyes.
"Is that what you really think of me?"
"I just said I didn't. Look, why don't we just start over and put all this behind us? We agree there have been misunderstandings and things done and said that we don't mean."
Vincent licked his lips as he considered that. Maybe Damien was right and it would be best to put it behind them and move on from it. While things had never escalated this much, they had done the same thing in the past once they reached an understanding. It always seemed to work out and they were fine again. Though, this time Aiden was a third party in this. Would things be okay with Aiden too?
"What about Aiden?"
"He will be fine! And if he can't work this out with me, it's not a big deal. He can leave just like the others did and go back to that little garage you plucked him out of." Damien gave a noncommittal shrug then confidently slid his arm around Vincent's shoulders and drew him to his side with an encouraging grin. Much to his delight he watched as Vincent lifted his gaze to finally look at him and gave a small smile and replied, "I suppose you're right."
"Of course I am!" Damien tightened his arm around Vincent's shoulders and jostled him gently with a chuckle. "You and me against the world, right?"
Vincent smiled a bit more and nodded. "Yeah, you and me against the world." Damien grinned and looked up at the sky and continued to ramble on about how he couldn't wait to get back up into the air. Beside him, Vincent's gaze lowered and he looked down at the railing. He could feel his mood sinking more and more. He couldn't help feeling like he hadn't really had a chance to get out what he wanted to say. It felt unfinished on Vincent's end but they HAD agreed it was a misunderstanding and to just move on from it. He decided to push it down and just...tuck it away. Perhaps things would just get better after all; just like Damien was saying. However, there was still something he couldn't seem to shake.
While he had voiced his agreement, the idea of Aiden leaving because he couldn't work things out with Damien made him feel even worse; somehow even worse than this unfinished business with Damien. Aiden was NOT like the handful of others who had departed from Leon's Claw. Aiden was special...important. He didn't want to see him go!
"...and in a few weeks your ribs will be healed! Guh...I'm so bored. I can't wait to get back in the air again," Damien was saying beside him. He appeared not to notice Vincent's quick-sinking depression. Perhaps it was better that way, Vincent figured. He really didn't want to upset Damien even more tonight. He was tired and growing more and more exhausted. Honestly, he just wanted to be done. He wanted to be alone. More than anything, he just wanted to escape. However, Vincent noticed Damien didn't seem ready to leave anytime soon. He'd have to do something about that.
"You're right!" Vincent replied with a small smirk, nudging Damien gently with his elbow as an idea had suddenly come to him. All he had to do was play along to keep Damien in a good enough mood. "Just a few more weeks. You're worried about being bored right? So why don't you keep yourself entertained by going to your family's gathering?" Damien opened his mouth and was about to interrupt but Vincent turned in Damien's arm and quickly added, "I know you want to stay here with me but all I'm going to be doing is sitting around. Boring. I'm boring."
"Are you trying to get rid of me?"
"I am pointing out the benefits if you go...such as the amazing food you KNOW will be there and you can share all your new adventures with everyone. It's been a long while since you've been there. You know everyone loves to hear when you tell a story! It would be fun!"
Damien gave a smug smirk and shrug as Vincent stroked his ego. He was right: everyone DID enjoy a good story and Damien had plenty to share now. The younger generations of his family all seemed to look up to him. It never failed to boost his ego.
"Honestly," Vincent continued, "you won't miss a thing. I intend to spend the next few weeks with my nose in a book."
"You'd rather choose a book over my company? How nice."
"Hmph! I keep telling you I'm not nice!"
Damien laughed and lifted his arm off of Vincent's shoulder so he could turn and face him properly as he leaned against the railing. Vincent turned fully to face him and gave him a small, amused smirk. "There are no plans except to sit and rest. Honest. No more adventures for me for a while. I am going to be resting. Bernadette's orders. Go with your sister. Go enjoy your vacation away and just have fun! You deserve it! You'll be back in three weeks from now, yes? By then my ribs should be good enough to go sailing! You and I can go together and then you can tell me all about your trip. It will give us both something to look forward to!"
"Fine," Damien finally agreed with a small chuckle. "I suppose you're right." He chuckled before he reached over his head and stretched and felt his back pop where he needed it and let himself drift off with thoughts of going to his family reunion after all.
"Good! It's decided!" Vincent agreed before Damien could change his mind. He had to fight to actually sigh with relief. While he truly did enjoy Damien's friendship, right now he really needed time away from him. It was best just to let him be happy and just...get past this for now. Maybe one day they could actually talk this out like he wanted to. He also figured that this time apart might be just what Damien and Aiden needed as well.
"Well since I'm here why don't we have dinner at The Fat Lady's? We can celebrate getting past all this messy business!" Damien was saying, but already Vincent felt his stomach lurch at the idea; especially at the mention of the tavern where Thorn and Micah had accused him of gambling. He smiled weakly and shook his head. "I appreciate the offer, but I think I will need to postpone. Why don't we celebrate tomorrow instead?"
"How come?"
"How come? Because I am not ready to go out tonight. I have a headache brewing, my ribs are aching, and I was not prepared for company let alone ready to go out in public tonight." Vincent pleaded exhaustedly. He just wanted to be left alone! And indeed, Damien finally began to see how tired Vincent looked. He did look a bit pale, didn't he? His brow furrowed in concern and asked, "Vincent, why didn't you say so? I could have just come back another time!"
Vincent fought back the knee-jerk reaction of angrily calling Damien a rather creative, colorful name. Instead, he sighed and just snorted at the irony of the situation and went to head back inside. Damien could have started with that when he first arrived! he thought.
Finally Vincent managed in a convincing voice as he paused at the door: "It's fine. Don't worry about it. Come on. I'll see you out."
NEXT PART:
www.flickr.com/photos/153660805@N05/52966552948/in/datepo...
To read the rest of the story, here's the album link:
www.flickr.com/photos/153660805@N05/albums/72157717075565127
***Please note this is a BOY LOVE (BL/yaoi/gay) series. It is a slow burn and rated PG13!***
Special thank you to my husband Vin (Be My Mannequin? Pose Store) for collaborating with me on this series and co-starring as The Captain!
DISCORD SERVER: That's right! The Captain and The Engineer has a Discord Server! If you wanna join and chat with other crewmates and see what's new and happening before it gets posted to Flickr, click the link!
***NEW!!!!***
The Captain and the Engineer now has a FACEBOOK PAGE! Please come Like, Follow, and join the crew! Thank you so much for all your support!
FACEBOOK PAGE:
31st Annual Florida Renaissance Festival '22
February 2022 - Deerfield Beach, Florida U.S.A.
*[left-click for a closer-look - The Joust]
*[Reach For It - Shield Impact - Impacting the Shield]
The Joust: Point of Impact - Impacting the Shield
The Field of Dreams - Renfest 2022 - 2/27/22
The Joust Pass: Adrenaline - Gorgeous Horses
Skill - Speed - Action - Shield - Thrills - Excitement
This is my 15th year covering this fun festival filled with color and pageantry and beautiful people. Each year some of the regulars return and sometimes fresh new faces appear to join the eclectic Renaissance Family. Some are vendors or employees, and some customers dress up to fit in with the renaissance festival fun and its 16th century way of life. One big happy family of a few thousand escaping the dull drums of their daily life for a few hours. This year's crop of new faces was lovely. Hope you enjoy the images. I try to capture their joy. Always fun, festive, very colorful and exciting!
Thanks very much for looking. Have a great day! Hazaaa!!
www.facebook.com/flarenfest?ref=ts
Florida Renaissance Festival Overviews:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gRRTINyamw (walking tour)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBB8hSvt3sE (walking tour)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-rc1VzDLxw#t=113.349 (Parade)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVEY7ti5vdo (Day's End Pub Sing)
CSX caught at Contentnea Junction south of Wilson, NC. Unit 586 an AC44CW rips past local freight with 2031 a GP38-3 and friend thqt are awaiting the south bounds passage to run aqround their cars on the south bound trackage to couple up and head north.
What an exciting day at my regional park. I got a lifer. It's true, with all the talk of snake "season", I'd yet to see a rattlesnake, ever, anywhere. So when my snake-wrangling coworker brought back a rattler sighted by a park visitor, she let me go with her to relocate it. Off we went, joined by a 2nd coworker, in one of the park John Deer gators, snake safely tucked in a big covered trash can. Snake wasn't much happy with that ride, and when it got dumped out, it scurried immediately out of sight. We spotted it just a few feet away under a bush and I got a few pics with my little stay-at-work camera, handy for just such "firsts".
After a long delay, way too many hours of skype chats, and an abnormal amount of images sent back and forth, we're very happy to share our latest project on Cuusoo!
We'd like to present to you a new mini-theme that many LEGO fans have been hoping to see for years: Steampunk LEGO! Set in an alternate future where steam-powered technology never fell out of use, this project proposes an exciting set packed full of detailed vehicles and minifigures. The set that we are proposing is designed as a one-off tribute to Steampunk and LEGO's Adventurers characters, so the set is fairly large and includes seven exclusive minifigures.
This set would appeal to Steampunk and LEGO fans alike, because of the creative building techniques and pieces used to construct the greatly varied and colorful vehicles. In addition to many desirable recoloured pieces, there would be a mixture of stickers and printed pieces to enhance the details and realism of the set, allowing the pieces to be useful for Steampunk, historic and general MOCs.
The story behind the characters of this project is similar to that of the Adventurers LEGO theme, except naturally set in a fantasy Steampunk world, with more dramatic vistas and mystical treasures. Each character would have their own quirks and talents, and there is a clear distinction between the forces of good and evil.
Be sure to check out the gallery for additional high-resolution images that give closer looks into the set and its designs, and stay tuned for future updates!
www.flickr.com/photos/48487023@N02/galleries/721576327017...
Support here!
It has been a very busy and exciting weekend. My English friends John and Greg came back to Toronto on their sixth visit and they are very generous to treat me to a weekend getaway in Niagara-on-the-Lake and Hamilton (Ontario).
While visiting the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum, which is right next to the Hamilton John C. Munro International Airport, we were very fortunate to see one of the only two remaining Avro Lancaster bombers still airworthy in the world (i.e. still able to take to the sky). We watched the famous old World War II bombers take off and land a few times during our visit. Apparently the crew must perform at least 3 take-off-and-land cycles each year to maintain their certification.
Exciting news! My 366 series is being turned into a book! It will be released November 26, 2016.
You can still get the first volume (365) at Official Yotsuba & Danboard Store: store428d.com/fs/ydso/book-av/bk_db_365
Order the book here: amzn.asia/9XMjdZu
Exciting news! VANISHED CITY: LONDON'S LOST NEIGHBOURHOODS is now available – and this is one of the series of 4x5 Polaroids I shot for it.
Vanished City is a beautiful new book published by Strange Attractor Press, written by Tom Bolton, who also wrote London's Lost Rivers. It contains 20 of my large format Polaroids – 10 in colour, 10 in B&W. Lots more to come, stay tuned...
Wild Beast Capture in the Woods of Virginia . Some times a trail camera can turn out a plesing photo :)
Remembering Styx
In Search of Summer Sizzlers
“You know the reason The Beatles made it so big?...'I Wanna Hold Your Hand.' First single. Fucking brilliant. Perhaps the most fucking brilliant song ever written. Because they nailed it. That's what everyone wants. Not 24/7 hot wet sex. Not a marriage that lasts a hundred years. Not a Porsche...or a million-dollar crib. No. They wanna hold your hand. They have such a feeling that they can't hide. Every single successful song of the past fifty years can be traced back to 'I Wanna Hold Your Hand.' And every single successful love story has those unbearable and unbearably exciting moments of hand-holding.”
― David Levithan, Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist
Something exciting, Leeds.
22/10/16
Kodak Retinette 1a.
Ilford HP5+ 400 film
Developed by me.
Rodinal, 1+50, 11 mins, 20C, Fomafix P, spiral tank.
Scanned with Epson Scan V550
030034.
I wasn't expecting the sunset to be so dynamic. The timing was right so I had to get a photo of it.
Please also visit:
Another exciting consist over the BN was not in the form of a NS heritage unti, but an ICE / DME / CSX lashup on a loaded grain train. While most of the Q bridges along the Race Track have been replaced, the WBCS Downers Grove still stands, but not without its replacement approx 1500ft back. Using six Canon 580ex ii speedlights, ICE 6415 lit up nicely at 0136hrs as it leads XULECSX eastward on main 3. Aug 4, 2013