View allAll Photos Tagged glaucoma
They look normal but they are not. Wish me luck today. This is my second today to the specialist .... they keep talking about surgery!
EXPLORE FRONT PAGE - March 19, 2009 #28
Thanks to Rodelicious for the FP news and screenshot that he saved and sent and to Tadoette for the news and link to Explore. More thanks and my sincere gratitude to all of you my flickr friends who always visit, fave, invite and leave comments on my photos. XOXO to all! TGBTG!
WIKIPEDIA says: The fundus of the eye is the interior surface of the EYE, opposite the lens, and includes the retina, optic disc, macula and fovea, and posterior pole. The fundus can be viewed with an ophthalmoscope.
The color of the fundus varies both between and within species. In one study of primates the retina is blue, green, yellow, orange, and red; only the human fundus (from a lightly pigmented blond person) is red. The major differences noted among the "higher" primate species were size and regularity of the border of macular area, size and shape of the optic disc, apparent 'texturing' of retina, and pigmentation of retina.
The eye's fundus is the only part of the human body where the microcirculation can be observed directly. The diameter of the blood vessels around the optic disc is about 150 μm, and an ophthalmoscope allows observation of blood vessels with diameters as small as 10 μm.
I posted this because my hubby told me that diseases such as hemorrhages, glaucoma, cotton wool spots, exudates, blood vessel abnormalities and pigmentation can be detected from observation of eye fundus. (Note: This is not my eye but my hubby's eye).
Dear friends:
Thank God I am recovering well from total replacement surgery the knee; my glaucoma in severe condition has no solution only a miracle of our savior.
I love you all.
Los Angeles. California. U.S.A.
MY Pictures Here:
Ana.
Poursuivons avec Ana .
La consigne avec Ana était de montrer le moins possible son handicap visuel sur les images.
Opérée d’un glaucome dés son plus jeune âge , elle a appris a vivre avec ce handicap.
C’était impressionnant de voir avec quelle vitesse elle à analysé mon appartement , et de pouvoir m’en faire une description .
Ana peut voir de très prêt uniquement et voit la lumière.Elle peut donc voir les images que je réalise d’elle.
Let's continue with Ana.
The instruction with Ana was to show her visual impairment as little as possible in the images.
She was operated on for glaucoma at a young age and learned to live with this handicap.
It was impressive how quickly she analyzed my apartment, and to be able to describe it to me.
Ana can only see very closely and sees the light, so she can see the images I make of her.
Song By Placebo.
WARNING Very sharp thistle-like prickly stems and leaves, so it’s best to wear very thick gloves when handling. White flowers with yellow center are up to 5 inches (13 cm) across and have 6, large, tissue-paper-like petals. From a distance, the flowers look like fried eggs. Stems contain white latex that you can apply to warts moles skin cancer to help eat them away. Considered poisonous when fresh, boiling recommended. The upper part of the plant is sometimes crushed and dried to make a mild sedative, contains a very minute amount of opium so it's a relaxant, helps sleep (all poppies do, even the red and orange ones). The seeds contain toxic alkaloids that sometimes cause glaucoma.
Elegance on the beach. Architect Goodhue Livingstone and Mrs. Oren Root posing for
a Bain News Service photographer in (ab.) 1910. My colorization of an image in the
Library of Congress archive (Bain News Service collection).
"Goodhue Livingston (February 23, 1867 – June 3, 1951) was an American architect who co-founded the firm of Trowbridge & Livingston and designed the Hayden Planetarium.
In 1894, Livingston co-founded Trowbridge, Livingston & Colt along with Samuel Breck Parkman Trowbridge (1862–1925), the son of William Petit Trowbridge. The firm became known for its commercial, public, and institutional buildings, many in a Beaux Arts or neoclassical style, including the B. Altman and Company Building (1905), J. P. Morgan Building (1913), and the Oregon State Capitol (1938). Often commissioned by well-heeled clients, the firm's work especially prevalent in the Upper East Side and Wall Street precincts of New York. He worked on the Equitable Trust Building, Morgan Building, Chemical National Bank Building, the St. Regis Hotel, The Knickerbocker Hotel, the Ardsley Club, B. Altman & Co.'s Building, the New York Stock Exchange addition, the Bank of America Building, and Rikers Island, before his retirement in 1946.
In 1935, Livingston designed the Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History, located at West 81st Street and Central Park West"
(Wikipedia)
Here is some information about Aida de Acosta Root:
"Aida de Acosta Root Breckinridge (July 28, 1884 – May 26, 1962) was an American socialite and the first woman to fly a powered aircraft solo. In 1903, while in Paris with her mother, she caught her first glimpse of dirigibles. She then proceeded to take only three flight lessons, before taking to the sky by herself.
Later in life, after losing sight in one eye to glaucoma, she became an advocate for improved eye care and was executive director of the first eye bank in America."
(Wikipedia)
Réf. : 20230408_163748
Le glaucome et la dégénérescence maculaire n'empêchent pas cet homme de 102 ans à l'esprit encore vif, mon père (!), de satisfaire sa curiosité. Fernand Robert lit la biobibliographie de Robert Polidori, un photographe de réputation internationale, son neveu, dont il vient de feuilleter un de ses livres d'art.
Glaucoma and macular degeneration don't stop this 102-year-old man with a keen mind, my father (!), from satisfying his curiosity. Fernand Robert reads the biobibliography of Robert Polidori, an internationally renowned photographer and his nephew, whose art books he has just leafed through.
click on all sizes above picture to see larger view
shrine 12
mixed media on wood: acrylic paint, my photographs of dolls i collaged and assemblaged, collages paper, mirrors, bottlecaps, bone, sequins, jewels, cloth flowers, matchbox retablo, skull, beads, day of the dead figure, stamp, angel charm
23 1/2" X 9 1/2" X 2"
EXHIBITED AT:
Torpedo Factory Art Center
105 North Union Street
Alexandria, Virginia 22314
30 October- November 2010
IN THE NEWSPAPER:
i was reading the washington post newspaper weekender section, friday 22 october, with my morning coffee.
imagine my surprise when i turned to page 27 and.........there is my art....my shrine 12, with my name under it.
the article in the section, talking about the "ofrenda" show that i will be in 28 october-9 november, 2010, at the torpedo factory art center.
must admit..seeing it in the newspaper brought a huge smile to my face! i am enjoying my "five minutes of fame"!
EXPLANATION OF THIS ART PIECE:
i have been making shrines for neal because he has been having problems with his eyes.
i finished this shrine in time for his cataract surgery 23 july.
the surgery went well.
the surgery took longer than expected and the recovery took a long time also as neal was nauseous, dizzy, felt like throwing up. so of course we had to wait. they gave him medicine to help with all that. he was so pale and had the sweats.
when we got home david and i put him to bed after giving him his eye drops (3 kinds every two hours).
neal has to wear a hard, clear, plastic eye patch when he sleeps so he does not rub his eye in his sleep.
neal says it hurts. they gave him medicine for the pain after the surgery and also extra strenght tylenol. it still hurts. i can give him more tylenol at 2pm.
tomorrow he sees the doctor for the follow up visit. at that time we will ask all our questions about travel, etc.
neal did very well. he was not exceptionally nervous. i think i was more anxious than he was.
having david with us was an enormous help. he is the best son!
we are glad it is over.
LATER SAME DAY:
after neal woke up from his three hour nap (he was exhausted!), at 3pm, he was in a lot of pain and the nausea continued (bad). i called the doctor. he called the pharmacy and ordered pain medication and anti-nausea medication. i had to go pick it up. the doctor became upset when he found out i was walking to the pharmacy because it was 100 degrees outside...but no choice (the car was in the repair shop!).
on my way out i saw one of my neighbors and asked her of she would take me to the shopping center. she said yes and off we went.
before i left the house i called david and he called christine and she left work and decided to meet me at the pharmacy...surprise. she then drove me home and popped in to see neal.
neal took both medications and the doctor called back around 1 1/2 hours later to see how neal was doing. the pain and nausea were worse. the doctor said he would come, from his home, and meet us at his office.
i called david and he came over. neal could hardly walk to the car and had to lean on david and stop constantly. at one point we had to stop driving, go into a shopping mall parking place, because neal though he would throw up.
we finally made it to the doctor and he took the pressure in neal's right eye. it was 150% higher than the left eye! it was a dangerous glaucoma situation. the doctor said if it didn't go down and continued it could cause permanent damage to the optic nerve.
he worked with neal, giving him drops, measuring, waiting, doing it again and again and again and again until the pressure dropped to within normal.
the doctor said that the pressure could rise again and neal could be on the drops for who knows how long.
as david put it...it was like his eye ball was going to explode!
we were there for 2 1/2 hours.
the doctor said to call him before neal goes to sleep and let him know how he is doing. and if the pain/nausea return, to call immediately, even if it was three in the morning, and he would see neal.
neal will see the doctor tomorrow at 10:15 am. david will take us there.
this is a great doctor!!!! and neal was a real trouper going through all of this. the change in his mood and appearance was remarkable once the pressure went down.
what a day!!!!!
FOLLOW UP VISIT 24 JULY:
david drove us to the eye doctor. we had the extra added pleasure of helena coming along as christine was doing an art/textile lecture in washington, d.c. with a friend.
the pressure in neal's eye has returned to almost normal. in part that is because he is using eye drops to control the pressure. the doctor said that this glaucoma condition was brought on by the psuedo exfoliation syndrome that neal has (think of it is drandruff in his eye. flakes of the lens come off. ugh!).
we do not know if this glaucoma will continue forever or will abate. probably forever. but will he need to use eye drops forever? we do not know and may not for quite some time.
in the meanwhile he has five different kinds of eye drops to use.
meanwhile neal is pain free and has no nausea. however, he still can not see with his right eye. we will have to wait and see how quickly his eye sight returns. the cornea is cloudy.
the doctor will see him this coming thursday. then he MAY want to see him again the following week. we will not know that until thursday.
the doctor also said that anytime pain or nausea symptoms or anything else return or occur to call him immediately, even at 3 a.m., and he will see neal right away.
our trip to the southwest: at this point we do not see how we could start our trip this coming saturday 31 july . we may not be able to leave until the following week and because the drive to new mexico, arizona and utah is so long to accomplish in the remaining time we can not go.
also there is the issue of neal's "comfort" level...staying near his doctor.
we are, as my mother would say "mulling it over". it is possible to leave the following week and just do some camping/easy hiking in utah?. but again, does that make sense in terms of time? probably not.
we will continue to talk about it but i have the feeling that this summer is the summer we spend in our backyard!
we are disappointed to be sure..but....there will be other summers!
at least the surgery is behind us. now to get the rest of it taken care of.
neal says: NO MORE SHRINES! LOL!!!
every time i made one of these recent shrines more "problems developed" .
maybe i will make a voudou piece next and see in my white magic powers work better that way! LOL!!! .
THE SHRINES WORKED!!!!!
AUGUST 2
neal just called me to tell me the report from the eye doctor. good news! his pressure is 14. the surgery is healing nicely. neal will continue the eye drops until the four bottles of medication are empty. currently he is on only one pressure medication.
neal will see the doctor monday, august 30, to see what needs to be done next. will he have to continue with pressure drops? he will also need a new prescription for reading as he can not really see out of his right eye and therefore his old glasses do not work anymore.
since neal's eye is doing so well the doctor said it would be all right if we went away on holiday!
we are leaving wednesday, august 4 and will return august 25.
first we are going to sedona, arizona. we will stay in a log cabin. we have been to sedona before, but it is beautiful! we will see, among other sights, the vermillion cliffs, red rock state park, take a hummer tour of the slot canyons, and other assorted hikes. we are also going to the south rim of the grand canyon. the grand canyon is the most beautiful, amazing, awe inspiring place we have ever been (and you know how much we have traveled). when i saw the grand canyon for the first time, several years ago, i burst into tears. i have never seen anything as breathtaking!
after sedona we are going to utah. our first stop is in kanab because it is well located for what we want to see and do.
we are going (again) to bryce national park and zion national park. we are doing the slot canyons in lake powell and perhaps also a tour on the lake. we will see kodakchrome national park and the coral pink sand dunes.
in kanab we are staying in a cottage built out of geodes!
when we leave kanab we are going to canyonlands national park. we have been there twice before. we will camp there. the camping and hiking is amazing! we will also go to arches national park (again).
we will be hiking in both arizona and utah. we are looking forward to the hiking and the camping. time to stetch our legs after this long year. neal has had his share of medical issues (the stroke to the 6th cranial nerve and resulting double vision for six months, his back, and the recent catarcat surgery and complications). he is more than ready to "get away" and relax!
i am sure i have left out many of the things ( we will visit, again, the petrified forest on our drive to arizona) we will see and do but will regale you with stories and photographs when we return.
we will have our laptop with us (in addition to our cell phone), so please feel free to write and let us know how all is going. we love getting "mail from home" when we are away.
BELOW ARE THE TWO SHRINES I MADE FOR NEAL WHEN HIS EYE PROBLEMS BEGAN.
jenniferbeinhacker.com
art outside the edge
The other day I went to see my optometrist for my regular eye checkup. Aside from keeping with the pace of my presbyopia, my eye pressure needs checking every other year due to the presence of glaucoma in both sides of my family.
During the visit the doctor told me at a certain point "I hate to see blurry, I can't stand it". This made me realise something that should have been obvious. I don't mind to see blurry in the distance; as a matter of fact, I actually like it. I have always enjoyed de-focussing my sight on purpose. I do it from time to time since my childhood, for fun and to relax my eyes. This must explain to some degree something about my photography.
•
Camera: Cosina CX-2
Film: Lomography Color Negative 400
Come visit my LomoHome: http://bit.ly/adg_lomo
Conda Edith Hoobler was a schoolteacher, the daughter of Frank Wilder and Lona Hoobler of Taylor, Nebraska.
Her husband was Abe A. Duryea; born May 22, 1905 in Arcadia, Valley County, Nebraska and the son of A.C. and Mary (Spangberg) Duryea. The mother died at quite an early age but the father, Abe Sr., lived to the ripe old age of 103 years. Abe Jr. was a victim of polio at age four. It affected him throughout his life but at his present age (in January 1987) of 81 years, he has never considered it as a real handicap.
After he had taught school for five years, on Christmas day, 1929, he was married to the girl of his choice, Conda Hoobler. She was a schoolteacher, the daughter of Frank and Lona Hoobler of Taylor, Nebraska. Abe was then a teacher and part-time barber. The price of a haircut was 35 cents and a shave at 20 cents, both for 50 cents. This supplement along with their school teaching of $75 per month each made it possible to live and pay most of the bills. However Conda’s income was to cease when a little daughter, Leta Rae, was born to the happy couple on Jan. 19, 1931. A second daughter, Bonnie Rea, came to them on Nov. 3, 1932. At this time Abe was a teacher and elementary athletic coach in the Taylor public schools. Times and salaries were declining, and in the fall of 1933 the Duryea family moved west to Bingham, Nebraska where Abe was to be a junior high teacher, high school basketball coach and part time barber. Haircuts were now 50 cents and the family felt that they had made a good move to this little Sheridan County village.
Their son, Bob, was born in Bingham July 28, 1934. The salary now was $85 per month and with the availability of fish from the nearby lakes, an occasional sale of a muskrat hide, and always plenty of cow chips to stock the big wood stove for heat, and with lots of good permanent friends they found themselves "right up among" the others in survival and happiness. The fall of 1937 was the height of the "dust bowl era" with ranchers putting up Russian thistles for feed due to the scarcity of hay. It was at this time that the Duryea family moved to Chadron where Abe entered the State College for some much needed training and college credit. Needless to say it took a lot of hard work, planning, and determination to stay with the project. Barbering, janitor work, and what was called "The College Laundry" manned by Abe and Conda paid the bills. Three women were employed at $1 per day, a college boy worked for his board and room, and a high school girl did likewise. The college boys all wore white shirts to school, which were laundered by the Duryeas for 10 cents each.
Abe went for six weeks each summer as an assistant to the director of the "Chadron State College Study Tours" during which time he was exposed to 44 of our states, and portions of Canada and Mexico. In May 1941 came the big story. Abe graduated with 6 years to his credit and wife Conda had completed her 2 years. In September of 1941 the family moved to Richmond, Va. where Abe headed the high school Industrial Arts Department in the Glen Allen Schools, and Conda became the principal of a seven-teacher elementary school. The second World War came upon them with its many complications in December. This caused the family to become homesick for friends in Nebraska.
The Duryeas returned to Bingham in 1943 where Abe became superintendent of the 12 grade accredited high school, and wife Conda became principal. After 22 years of teaching, their last move was to Alliance in 1946. The next 30 years were devoted to the Real Estate and Insurance business. Upon retirement, at age 71, Abe operated "Abe's Sharp-all Shop" for 15 years with his helpmate, Conda.
Abe A. Duryea, 86, died Saturday, December 14, 1991, at Box Butte General Hospital. He was a member of United Methodist Church and a member of Kiwanis Club since 1952, with 30 years of perfect attendance.
He is survived by his wife, Conda, Alliance; son, Bob, of Alliance; daughter, Bonnie Jones of Antrim, NH; daughter, Leta Whiteman of Overland Park, KS; sister, Burneice Lindsay of Glendale, CA; seven grandchildren and six great grandchildren. Funeral services were held Tuesday, December 17, at 10:00 a.m. at the Bates-Gould Funeral Home in Alliance with the Rev. Richard Carter officiating. Burial was in Alliance Cemetery.
By Bonnie - After Abe's death in l991, Conda remained in their cozy home at 812 Big Horn Avenue in Alliance. Her son & wife, Bob & Joanie, and their 3 married daughters live nearby, and are a constant source of comfort and joy to her. She took trips to visit her 2 daughters & their families (Leta in KC, MO and Bonnie in New England). Since l995, the family has had yearly reunions in the Alliance, Black Hills or Chadron area. Although her eyesight is very poor due to Glaucoma, she continues to walk daily by using a white cane. Her hobbies include crocheting Afghans, listening to talking books, and following the High School sports of her great grandchildren on the radio. She is a remarkable lady of 93 and a treasure to her family.
Conda Edith obituary
An amazing, dearly beloved lady, Conda Edith (Hoobler) Duryea has passed from this life at the age of 98 on September 30, 2006 at Good Samaritan Health Care Center. She was born June 24, 1908 in Moulton, Loup County, Nebraska to Frank and Lona (Vinnedge) Hoobler. For three years, after high school, she taught in a one-room schoolhouse in Taylor, Nebraska. She married Abe A. Duryea on Christmas Day, 1929 in Taylor, Nebraska. She was a devoted, loving Mother to two daughters and one son. After attending Chadron State Teacher’s College, she taught school for twelve years.
The family moved to Alliance in 1946, and was in the Real Estate and Insurance business for 31 years, and later operated Abe’s Sharp-All Shop for 13 years, retiring in 1990. After Abe’s death in 1991, Conda remained in the family home until 2003 when she moved into Sandhills Samaritan Assisted Living. In her later years her eyesight failed, but her dear smile, warm, loving personality, and constant love for her large devoted family never faltered.
Preceding her in death were her parents, three brothers, and her husband. She is survived by her son and his wife, Bob and Joanie Duryea of Alliance, daughters Bonnie and husband Dale Jones of Sierra Vista, AZ, and Leta Whiteman of Everest, KS, her sister Phyllis Billiard of Kalispell, MT, 7 grandchildren, 9 great-grandchildren and 2 great-great grandchildren. Numerous nieces and nephews and a host of dear friends also survive her.
At her request, cremation has taken place and a memorial service will be Friday, October 6 at 11:00 a.m. at the United Methodist Church with Reverend Doug Griger and Norma Jensen officiating. A private family burial will take place in the Alliance Cemetery. The family suggests memorials be given to the United Methodist Church, 704 Box Butte or to Prairie Haven Hospice, 2409 Box Butte Avenue, Alliance.
Dr. Hilbert: Okay, Selma. I want you to read that bottom line.
Selma: Read it? Why, I know that guy!
______________
August Is National Eye Exam Month
August is “National Eye Exam Month” and healthy vision starts with an eye exam. The American Academy of Ophthalmology recommends that you have a baseline eye exam at age 40, the time when the early signs of disease or changes in your vision may occur. A baseline screening can help identify signs of eye disease at an early stage, when treatment can have the greatest impact on preserving your vision.
If you’re 65 or older, it’s recommended that you have your eyes checked every year or two for signs of age-related diseases, like glaucoma, age-related macular degeneration and cataracts.
The doctor may suggest additional testing to further evaluate your vision using specialized testing equipment. These tests can be crucial in diagnosing a disease in its early stages and give the doctor an opportunity to suggest a treatment or cure. Prevention through early detection is key to good eye health.
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Causes of gradual vision loss
1.Painless loss
Refractive error - this is characterised by an improvement of the visual acuity with the use of a pinhole (if you don't have a specific occluder with pinholes, a biro point-sized hole in a stiff piece of cardboard will do). Refer to the optician.
Cataracts - the patient often complains of glare in dark conditions (and so difficulty in driving at night) and may complain that colours appear more dull than they used to. There may be an abnormal red reflex and, in advanced cases, the cataract may be visible to the naked eye (this is increasingly rare these days). Other aspects of the examination should be normal unless there is concurrent pathology. Refer routinely.
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) - suspect AMD if the patient is aged >50 years and is presenting with either of the following symptoms, usually affecting one eye at a time:
Distortion of vision, where straight lines appear crooked or wavy.
Painless loss or blurring of central or near-central vision. The person may describe a black or grey patch affecting their central field of vision (scotoma).
Various other visual symptoms can occur, or AMD may be an incidental finding by an optometrist. Visual acuity on a Snellen chart may be normal or reduced. When viewing an Amsler chart (or graph paper), patients may see breaks, waviness, or missing portions of the lines. Refer urgently if AMD is suspected.
Chronic (primary) open-angle glaucoma - is most commonly picked up through screening. If it is so advanced that the patient is the first to notice it, very little can be done. It is characterised by a progressive peripheral visual field loss and 'cupping' of the optic discs (the central area of the optic disc enlarges and the peripheral rim thins out). The degree of urgency depends on how advanced the damage is.
Diabetic retinopathy - the problem may be due to the diabetic microvascular problems (ie exudates and haemorrhages), to associated pathology (eg, diabetic cataract) or unrelated pathology (eg, glaucoma). Refer promptly (within a week), as prompt treatment may prevent deterioration.
Compression of optic nerve or optic pathway - rare, but should be considered if there is a history of headaches and if you find any neurological or endocrinological abnormalities (eg, acromegaly) on examination. Look for a relative afferent pupillary defect (not usually present in the above conditions), a pale or swollen optic disc (the margins are not clear) and visual field defects.
Drugs, toxins or nutritional deficiency - eg:
Amiodarone - various effects on the eye
Antituberculous drugs - ethambutol and isoniazid (optic neuritis).
Hydroxychloroquine (maculopathy).
Systemic steroids (cataracts and glaucoma)
Phosphodiesterase inhibitors (eg, sildenafil).
Others drugs - tetracyclines (benign intracranial hypertension), isotretinoin, tamoxifen (various possible effects on vision).
Alcohol, smoking and nutritional deficiency - eg:
Tobacco-alcohol amblyopia.
Methanol poisoning.
Vitamin A deficiency (classically causes night blindness).
Hereditary retinal dystrophies are rare and, depending on the exact problem, present anywhere from early childhood to middle age. Some are rapidly progressing; others are very slow. Typical features particularly include poor night vision and intolerance to light. Poor appreciation of movement in the peripheral visual field may also be a feature. Ask about similar problems in family members (who may not have been diagnosed). Children should be referred more promptly than adults for whom a routine referral is fine. These patients will need genetic counselling as well as support where the prognosis is poor.
Cerebrovascular disease (stroke and TIA) - although these are likely to present acutely. TIA causing visual loss is termed amaurosis fugax.
Papilloedema - eg, from intracranial hypertension.
-----------------------
2. Painful loss
This is much rarer and tends to suggest a more sinister pathology such as:
A progressive neoplastic (eg, choroidal melanoma) or inflammatory process (eg, chorioretinitis).
A systemic problem (eg, sarcoidosis or collagen vascular disease).
Lesions on the optic nerve (eg, optic neuritis, granuloma or neuroma).
Intracranial pathology or masses (may present with headache, or with endocrine symptoms if a pituitary tumour).
Intracranial hypertension (may have headache).
All these patients should be referred. Referral is more urgent than with painless conditions and patients should really be seen within a few days.
If there is a problem, don't wait seek medical help.
---------------
Candid street shot Bergen, Norway.
Astronomical News
Galileo’s Achievements: What Was Galileo Galilei Famous For?
Feb 6, 2025
History
©
Vito Technology, Inc.
February 15, 2025, marks Galileo Day and the 461st birthday of Galileo Galilei — one of the most influential scientists in history. His observations of Jupiter’s moons, Saturn’s rings, and the phases of Venus revolutionized our understanding of the cosmos. Want to follow in his footsteps? Use the Sky Tonight and Star Walk 2 astronomy apps to explore the same celestial wonders Galileo once observed and celebrate his legacy with us!
Contents
Interesting Facts About Galileo Galilei
Galileo dropped out of university
Galileo’s middle finger is on display in a museum
Galileo spent his final years under house arrest
The Vatican didn’t admit Galileo was right until just recently
Four years before death, Galileo became totally blind
Galileo's Breakthrough Observations in Astronomy
Craters and mountains on the Moon
The phases of Venus
Four largest moons of Jupiter
The stars of the Milky Way
Sunspots
Lunar librations
Galileo’s achievements outside astronomy
The law of falling bodies
The basic principles of pendulum
The theory of parabolic trajectories
What didn't Galileo Galilei do?
Galileo didn't invent the telescope
Galileo didn't discover the laws of gravity
Galileo didn't prove that the Earth rotates
Galileo didn't say, "And Yet It Moves"
Examining Galileo's theories: are there any flaws?
The theory of tides
The nature of comets
The idea of a perfect vacuum
Galileo's stargazing traditions continue today
Galileo’s discoveries:
Interesting Facts About Galileo Galilei
Galileo dropped out of university.
Initially, his father sent him to the University of Pisa to study medicine, but Galileo became interested in mathematics and left the university without a degree.
Galileo’s middle finger is on display in a museum.
Around a century after the scientist’s burial, the middle finger of his right hand was removed from his corpse and has been housed at various museums in Italy since then.
Galileo spent his final years under house arrest.
Galileo’s support for heliocentrism put him in direct conflict with the Catholic Church. As punishment, he was first sentenced to life imprisonment and then to house arrest.
The Vatican didn’t admit Galileo was right until just recently.
Only in 1992, Pope John Paul II officially declared that Galileo Galilei was right in his support of heliocentrism and that the Inquisition had made a mistake in imprisoning him.
Four years before death, Galileo became totally blind
Contrary to popular belief, Galileo’s blindness wasn’t caused by his observations of the Sun. Most likely, the cause was a cataract or glaucoma.
Galileo's Breakthrough Observations in Astronomy
Galileo Galilei revolutionized astronomy with his groundbreaking observations of the celestial bodies using a modified telescope. Most of them were published in his book "Sidereus Nuncius" in March 1610.
Craters and mountains on the Moon
Moon Atlas in Star Walk 2
Study the Moon’s surface with the Lunar Atlas in the Star Walk 2 app.
©
Vito Technology, Inc.
Galileo Galilei was the first to observe the Moon's rugged and mountainous surface, which was a significant departure from the prevailing view that the Moon was a smooth and featureless sphere. He also observed the Moon's craters, valleys, and other features and made accurate drawings and descriptions. Want to explore the lunar terrain yourself? Open the Moon Atlas in the Star Walk 2 app and discover the names of the Moon’s “seas” and mountains.
The phases of Venus
Venus phases in Sky Tonight
Easily learn the current phase of Venus using the Sky Tonight app.
©
Vito Technology, Inc.
Galileo Galilei observed the different phases of Venus, including crescent, full, and gibbous shapes, which were consistent with the idea that Venus orbits around the Sun and not the Earth. These observations were a significant piece of evidence for the Copernican system. Curious about Venus’s current phase? Simply zoom in on the planet in the Sky Tonight app and see its phase in real time!
Four largest moons of Jupiter
Galilean moons in Sky Tonight
Find out how Jupiter’s Galilean moons are positioned right now using the Sky Tonight app.
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Vito Technology, Inc.
Galileo Galilei discovered four of Jupiter's moons in 1610. He made observations of Jupiter and its moons over several nights and found that Jupiter was accompanied by four small celestial bodies that orbited around it. This discovery was a breakthrough in the scientific understanding of the Solar System, showing that planets can have their moons. The moons, now known as the Galilean moons, are among the largest in the Solar System. If you have the Sky Tonight app, you can see the current position of the Galilean moons by simply zooming in on Jupiter.
The stars of the Milky Way
Galileo Galilei made a seminal contribution to the understanding of the Milky Way. Before his observations, the Milky Way was generally considered a cloudy band across the sky. Still, Galileo was the first to recognize it as a collection of countless individual stars.
Sunspots
Sunspots are dark areas on the surface of the Sun. Before Galileo's discovery, they were not widely known or studied. Galileo used a telescope to observe the Sun and found it had dark spots on its surface, which he recorded in a series of drawings. This was a major discovery at the time, as the prevailing view was that the Sun was an unchanging object. Galileo's observation of sunspots proved that the Sun was not a perfect celestial body but was subject to change and imperfections.
Lunar librations
Galileo Galilei studied lunar librations, small oscillations in the Moon's apparent position, and was the first to understand the cause of these movements. He observed the Moon with a telescope and made detailed drawings, including its librations, which he recognized were due to the changing perspective from Earth and the orientation of the Moon's surface. Galileo's discoveries advanced our understanding of the Moon and its movement, supporting the heliocentric model of the solar system.
Discover the incredible contributions of astronomers beyond Galileo by taking our quiz on great astronomers of the past.
Great astronomers: collage of three
Who first proposed the heliocentric system? Which astronomer was burned at the stake for his beliefs? Take this quiz to test your knowledge about famous astronomers!
Take the quiz!
Galileo’s achievements outside astronomy
Galileo Galilei was a renowned astronomer and also a prolific inventor and scientist. Throughout his life, he made numerous contributions to various fields, including physics, mathematics, engineering, and philosophy.
The law of falling bodies
The law of falling bodies, also known as Galileo's law of free fall, states that all objects fall at the same rate, regardless of their mass, as long as air resistance is negligible. He dropped objects of different masses from the Leaning Tower of Pisa and showed that they hit the ground at the same time, disproving the prevailing Aristotelian belief that heavier objects fall faster than lighter ones. The Law of Falling Bodies was a significant step forward in the development of the scientific understanding of motion. It helped lay the foundation for the laws of motion developed later by Sir Isaac Newton.
The basic principles of pendulum
The basic principle of pendulum motion, also known as Galileo's law of pendulum, states that a pendulum will swing back and forth in a regular, repeating pattern, with the time it takes to complete one cycle, or period, being dependent only on the length of the pendulum and the acceleration due to gravity. This discovery laid the foundation for the development of accurate timekeeping devices such as clocks. In addition, it led to a deeper understanding of the laws of motion and the behavior of oscillating systems.
The theory of parabolic trajectories
Galileo Galilei's theory of parabolic trajectories, also known as his law of projectiles, states that a projectile's path under gravity is a parabolic curve. He showed that a projectile's horizontal and vertical motion can be described separately and that its trajectory is a parabolic curve. This was a crucial step in understanding motion and paved the way for Sir Isaac Newton's laws of motion. Galileo's theory remains essential in explaining the motion of projectiles, including objects in satellite orbits, sports projectiles, and missiles.
What didn't Galileo Galilei do?
Galileo Galilei was a man of many talents and achievements, but there were some things he did not do.
Galileo didn't invent the telescope
Galileo made all his famous observations with the help of a telescope he created. He used spyglasses invented in 1608 — low-powered telescopes capable of magnifying objects three times as a prototype. In 1609, after figuring out how spyglasses worked, the scientist built his own improved version that could magnify a normal vision 8 times. As Galileo kept working on his invention, he made a telescope capable of 20x magnification a few years later. Nowadays, amateur astronomers use telescopes with 20x or 30x magnification for planet viewing. Galileo's telescopes were not flawless, as they had a very narrow field of view, making finding objects more difficult. Nevertheless, it didn't stop Galileo from observing.
Galileo didn't discover the laws of gravity
Galileo Galilei is often credited with discovering the laws of gravity, but this is only partially accurate. While Galileo contributed significantly to understanding gravity and its effects, he did not realize the underlying laws governing the force. The concept of gravity can be traced back to the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle, who believed that objects fall to the Earth because they are naturally attracted to it. However, the work of Sir Isaac Newton in the 17th century led to the laws of gravitation, which describe the universal force of attraction between all masses.
Galileo didn't prove that the Earth rotates
Galileo Galilei is frequently associated with proving that the Earth rotates, but this is also a misnomer. The idea that the Earth rotates on its axis was first proposed by the ancient Greek philosopher Pythagoras and later developed by Aristarchus in the 3rd century BCE. However, this idea was largely dismissed during the Middle Ages and was not widely accepted until the work of Galileo and other scientists during the Scientific Revolution. Galileo made important observations and experiments that helped support the idea of a rotating Earth, but he did not prove it conclusively. Later, the evidence for a rotating Earth became more solid and widely accepted through the work of other scientists such as Johannes Kepler and Isaac Newton.
Galileo didn't say, "And Yet It Moves"
The phrase "And yet it moves" is often attributed to Galileo Galilei as a symbol of his defiance of the Catholic Church's views on the Earth's place in the universe. However, the exact origin of the phrase is unclear, and there is no direct evidence that Galileo ever said it. It is possible that the quote was first attributed to Galileo by later writers who wanted to highlight his bravery in the face of opposition from the Church and other authorities. Regardless of its origin, the phrase has become a popular representation of Galileo's groundbreaking ideas and discoveries and his impact on the history of science.
Examining Galileo's theories: are there any flaws?
While Galileo's ideas were groundbreaking for his time, they were also limited by the scientific understanding and technology available to him. He made many important contributions to the field of science, but some of his ideas were later found to be incorrect.
The theory of tides
Galileo believed that the tides were caused by the sloshing of ocean water back and forth due to the movement of the Earth. However, it was later shown that the tides are caused by the Moon's and Sun's gravitational pull.
The nature of comets
Galileo believed that comets were atmospheric phenomena rather than celestial objects. However, it was later shown that comets are, in fact, small, icy bodies that originate from the outer reaches of the Solar System.
The idea of a perfect vacuum
Galileo believed creating a perfect vacuum, a space devoid of all matter, was possible. However, it was later shown that a perfect vacuum is impossible due to particles, such as electrons and photons, that exist even in empty space.
Galileo's stargazing traditions continue today
Galileo was passionate about stargazing and encouraged others to observe the night sky and explore the universe. He wrote extensively about his observations and discoveries, sharing his knowledge and enthusiasm for astronomy with others.
It is still possible for amateur stargazers to make astronomical discoveries. With the advancements in technology and accessibility to equipment, hobbyist astronomers can contribute to the field of astronomy in meaningful ways.
One notable example is amateur astronomer, Terry Lovejoy, who has discovered several comets using commercially available equipment.
Another example of a contemporary discoverer is Gennadiy Borisov, who has made significant contributions to astronomy. He discovered the first interstellar comet, 2I/Borisov, originally designated C/2019 Q4 (Borisov), in 2019, demonstrating that comets from other star systems can visit our Solar System. His discovery highlights the role of amateur astronomers in advancing the field despite limited resources.
These examples show that enthusiast stargazers can make meaningful contributions to astronomy, and their passion for stargazing can lead to discoveries.
Galileo’s discoveries: Bottom line:
Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) was the first to observe the mountains and craters on the Moon, the phases of Venus, and the four largest moons of Jupiter. He also studied sunspots and proved that the Milky Way was a collection of stars rather than a huge cosmic cloud. For these and many other achievements, he is often called the “father of observational astronomy”. He made many scientific discoveries outside the field of astronomy as well. Want to be like Galileo? Use the Sky Tonight or Star Walk 2 app to locate Jupiter, Venus, and other celestial objects in real time and embark on your own astronomical journey!
Text Credit:Vito Technology, Inc.
This fluffy handsome boy is so special! I love Ramil and I love his story.
I often hear visitors say, "How sad that he only has one eye". Yes, he has one eye, but he's living his best life with that one eye.
When he came to San Diego in 2014 he already had a chronic eye problem that included glaucoma. He was trained to receive drops in his eye up to 3 times a day. That in itself is pretty amazing and shows the extraordinary trust built between Ramil and his keepers. As his condition progressed, he lost his sight and the eyedrops were no longer as effective. The only way to fully relieve his pain was to remove the eye.
I remember when he returned after his surgery. He was like a new cat! He was playful and energetic, jumping to the higher rocks and tree limbs with as much ease as the two-eyed cats. It was clear he felt so much better!
And now, he has a lovely girlfriend named Naphisa. I've often seen them playing games of chase after sneaking up on each other, and other times they cuddle and share grooming kisses.
Thanks to a wonderful team of keepers and the veterinary staff at the San Diego Zoo, Ramil has enjoyed many happy years and will have many more. Visitors from all over the world have fallen in love with him and he continues to be an inspiration to all of us.
Ramil the male Snow Leopard born 6-14-12.
San Diego Zoo
Today I will be going in for my 13th surgery on my eye to maybe correct my glaucoma pressure with another seton valve implant. Your thoughts and prayers would be greatly appreciated, Thanks kindly
Tomorrow I will have surgery to remove my glaucoma implant from last November. After all I have been though these last couple of months I have to "Hope and Pray" to know all will be well
Some people are purposefully stung or injected with honey bee venom! This procedure is called Apitherapy. Honey bee venom is reported to relieve and sometimes cure symptoms of autoimmune diseases such as lupus, multiple sclerosis, and arthritis. The American Apitherapy Society states that bee venom is also beneficial for a variety of other problems including eczema, psoriasis, warts, laryngitis, emphysema, asthma, and glaucoma! For more information, visit the American Apitherapy Society at www.apitherapy.org.
every time it rains I think how lucky I am to be able to go take a photograph, it need not be in sharp focus, clarity is but an illusion.....I have been treated for glaucoma for many years and whilst not suffering yet apart from medication night and day
vignetting is my ogre in the closet, not the thought of losing clarity.......which brings me to my title, 'every time it rains', a blind man would love to see it........always be aware and go get your eye's checked.
Puppies!! GOOD NEWS: it looks like the glaucoma is improving. In the right light, I can see the brown in her eye now.
I hope these babies give you a smile to start your day. I figure we need something to make us smile today. Remember who won the popular vote. Most Americans are not haters.
Normally, I'll run into Toku-chan, the near-blind, retired masseusse ...
1- In the early evening: He'll be wearing his Member's Only jacket and he'll spot me first, calling out: "Mr Perfect! Mr Perfect!!" (that's me). We frequent the same watering holes. Or,
2- in the early a.m (5-ish) while I'm out with my dog: He'll be stumbling around with a bottle of Pepsi. In these instances, I spot him first, and he seems to struggle to remember me.
This time was different. As I stumbled around the corner, he was taking a call. I hung back. As he hung up, I was about to call out to him, but someone else beat me to it. They got close together, exchanged a large wad of cash, and then the other gentleman quickly left.
I greeted Toku-chan as I went past.
"Mr Perfect!" he called. Toku-chan was as sharp as he was dressed tonight. In this lighting his glaucoma unnoticeable. He grabbed my elbow, and swiftly led me to the izakaya on the left, then disappeared just as quickly.
I didn't think much of it, and enjoyed quite a few drinks, past the "lights-out" at the shoutengai. When I went to settle up, the master informed me that Toku-chan had my bill covered.
I ran into him a few mornings later. Thanking him, of course, for the treat. He acted like he had no idea what I was talking about, and struggled to remember my (nick)name.
This is my first baby Ella, she is going to be 8 in a couple weeks. She is the best companion you could ever be blessed with. About a year ago she lost one of her eyes to glaucoma. My daughter is always worried about her being in the bright light and puts her sunglasses on Ella. On this rare occasion, Ella did not try to chew them off of her face. I actually think she kinda likes it... See, she's smiling.
In the doctor this morning.
Bad bad news about my eyes: I have a uveitis that caused me a secundary glaucoma and now, because of the eyes drops I have another eyes problems in both eyes:
A cataract is a clouding that develops in the crystalline lens of the eye or in its envelope, varying in degree from slight to complete opacity and obstructing the passage of light. Early in the development of age-related cataract the power of the lens may be increased, causing near-sightedness (myopia), and the gradual yellowing and opacification of the lens may reduce the perception of blue colours. Cataracts typically progress slowly to cause vision loss and are potentially blinding if untreated.[1]
from wikipedia....
i don't know what will happen now....I'm really sad and depressed today, so i choose a Nirvana song...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=PB5YcnsotZI
Explore: Aug 1, 2008 # 298
I'm a little better today. Next Thursday I'll do medical exams to prepare me for one of the 3 surgeries I'll have. It's called Biometria Ultrassonica.
I know the cataract and the glaucoma can be solved, I'm worried about the uveitis that is causing all this problems and I'm treating for 1 year and nothing happens until now.
An almost monochrome photo with the local artist Claus Frederiksen aka BURNON. Taken in the urban park known as Karolinelund, where there was an amusement park from 1946 to 2007. Today it is a public park with special focus on skaters and urban artists.
NOTE: Friday I've been to an eye specialist to have laser surgery on my eyes. The aim is to help decreasing the presure in my eyes to prevent development of glaucoma.
Following the surgery my eyes are sore when I look at the monitor. I expect it to be better in some days.
Until then, - enjoy the weekend dear friends.
Dogs suffering from conjunctivitis, glaucoma, or other eye conditions may need sunglasses every time they go outside. They're even handy for dock diving and boating. In fact, any dog that likes to hang his head out the car window can benefit from snug-fitting sunglasses to minimize eye irritation.
The early spring, and with it the tree pollen, gave Scamp a bad ear and eye infection, just over two months ago. Although he responded well to the steroid and antibiotic drops, he lost his 'bounce'. He didn't want to go for walks and slept 90% of the time. Then on Easter Saturday I came downstairs to find his right eye gummed shut. With the second bout of warm weather I thought it was because of the pollen again. He didn't like me bathing it, but when I finally got it open, it was swollen and milky in colour. I took him for an emergency appointment with the vet, who said the eye was full of pus, and he suspected glaucoma as the eye had a high pressure reading. There were drops to reduce the swelling and another antibiotic injection.
Although the eye did reduce in size with the drops, and lost some of the 'blind' appearance, he didn't want to eat or do much more than sleep. On Tuesday, when the vet confirmed that his eye would need removing, because he was in a lot of pain, I made the very hard decision to let him go. He died peacefully in my arms.
He was a loving, sweet natured boy, and a faithful companion. The house seems very empty now, but he lived a long and happy life, and he will remain in my heart. Goodbye little one xx
San Diego Zoo - San Diego, California - Ramil the Snow Leopard was born at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo At Burnet Park in Syracuse, New York on 6/14/12 to Zena (Mom) and Senge (Dad). He moved to the San Diego Zoo in October 2014. His father still lives at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo. His mother passed away in the Spring 2016. Due to pain related to glaucoma, Ramil underwent surgery in February 2017 to remove his left eye, which gave him a renewed spring in his snowshoed step.
His brother/littermate, Bajen, lives at the Los Angeles Zoo in Los Angeles, California.
He also has a younger brother, Asa, who was born on 7/9/14 by C-section after an ultrasound revealed no heartbeat. He was born unresponsive, but veterinarians from Cornell University worked to revive him. Asa now lives at the Milwaukee County Zoo in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
©JaneBrown2020 All Rights Reserved. This image is not available for use on websites, blogs or other media without explicit written permission
HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL MY FLICKR CONTACTS
I went to see the opthamologist today to be told my eyes were a bit of a mystery. I have the symptoms of glaucoma and macular problems of diabees . . . however I have neither glaucoma nor diabetes. So, I have been given eye drops andthere are to be further investigations . . .
This is my left eye!
The surgeon said that the cataract surgery for this eye will be soon! After this, I'll have cataract surgery for the right eye and only after I'll have TREC (a surgery for glaucoma) in my left eye! Yessss!!!! We'll hope that the uveitis won't cause much problems during the surgeries time!
Good weekend my friends!!!
Campaments Refugiats Sahrauís - Tichla (Auserd) - projecte: "Ulls del Sàhara".
"Ulls del Sàhara 2013 -2014" Millora de l’accessibilitat i disponibilitat en salut ocular de la població refugiada sahrauí.
Problemàtica ocular:
Als campaments de refugiats sahrauís les patologies oculars més freqüents són: cataracta, glaucoma i problemes relacionats amb la còrnia. Entre els nens i nenes, es registren importants problemes refractius que dificulten la seva educació i la seva vida quotidiana.
www.ullsdelmon.org/projectes/programes-de-cooperacio/ulls...
Was/is there ever a more disgusting architectural statement in Vancouver than the "Vancouver Special" ? Nothing IMO, they are/were butt ugly.
Vancouver artist Ken Lum created a replica of a Vancouver Special in a vacant lot on Union Street by Gore Avenue Vancouver in February 2015. The art installation was meant to be a comment on housing affordability in the city. - is titled "Vancouver Especially".
The cost of a Vancouver Special was about $45,000, the same amount Lum received to build and display his replica.
The Vancouver Special was an architectural style of affordable home designed to maximize square footage on small lots. About 10,000 of them were built in Vancouver between 1965 and 1985.
Lum's sculpture is made of brick, wood and stucco, and looks weathered in the same way as some of the still standing Vancouver Specials.
VANCOUVER SUN
Opinion: Vancouver Specials offering many lessons on housing.
Vancouver Sun 23 August 2017
By: Elizabeth Murphy.
vancouversun.com/author/emurphy
The infamous “Vancouver Special” house has had a profound impact across the city, especially on the east side. It is important to put some context to where it came from and lessons applicable to today.
Builders developed them on spec for immigrant families in the 1960s and ’70s. But Specials were broadly detested because they were large, sprawled across the lot, ugly and resulted in the demolition of character houses that destroyed the streetscape.
The Special was credited for being easily converted to two units. However, the original character houses had future potential to be converted into multiple suites and infill that Specials couldn’t achieve since they sprawled over the rear yard. So the original character house wasn’t just more attractive and made of superior materials and craftsmanship, but also could accommodate more future growth.
Construction costs of the Special were reduced by stripping out everything that was unnecessary beyond basic building-code requirements. It maximized the floor-plate size to build the largest house possible within the allowed setbacks without having to build either a below-grade basement or a second storey.
Up to 1974, the area of the lower floor wasn’t counted if it was one foot below grade. So the earlier versions of the Special took advantage of this option with another storey above. Later, versions were the same except slightly smaller with a slab-on-grade entrance.
This meant that most of the lot was covered by the house, which eliminates the option for a laneway house. Even more so when the garage or carport was attached at the back and the rest of the lot was a paved driveway.
Finishes were the least expensive possible, such as stucco, aluminum windows, no trims, no porch, with a little brick in the front facade. The roof was at the minimum slope to shed water.
Why would anyone create housing so lacking in design taste that it was considered hideous and reviled by most people? To understand the origins of the Special, it helps to understand the man behind it, Larry Cudney, my stepfather.
He originally was training to be an architect, but had a falling out with the company he was interning with. Without architect certification, he was limited as a draftsman to working only on single-family houses. So he started his own drafting service called Prana Group.
A client spec-builder came up with the house concept that Cudney drafted into what became his Vancouver Special stock plans. He could provide permit-ready drawings at an extremely low price of about $50.
Creating a completely tasteless form of housing was his revenge on the architect profession with which he was in conflict.
But it was more than that. It also reflected his general miserly approach to living. To be blunt, the man was cheap and proud of it, living well below his means. For example, he once bought a second-hand suit for 75 cents and proudly wore a price tag on his lapel to make the point. He gave us “Second Hand Santa” at Christmas, with only gifts he found at the thrift store. He ate at MacDonald’s whenever he could. You get the picture.
Although reusing second-hand items was a sustainable option, he unfortunately didn’t take that approach in his buildings. It was more like the equivalent to the fast-serve, junk-food approach.
How he managed to charge so little for his services is that he cut his costs to the bone. He had low office rent by locating at Main Street and East 33rd Avenue. When that got a little too expensive for him in the 1970s, he moved to Fraser and East 49th Avenue.
He also worked from a home office and employed his children part-time. When I was 11 years old I started printing copy sets from the big ammonia printing machine he had in our rec room, with the ping-pong table for layout. Friends thought we washed our windows a lot since the house always smelled of ammonia. Into my early teens I was helping amend his many stock plans using basic drafting skills. It beat babysitting.
It wasn’t until we moved back to Vancouver a few years later that I realized what I had been working on. There were so many of these detested Vancouver Specials that had replaced beautiful heritage houses. I was horrified. How wasteful to be demolishing these livable superior houses that just needed updating.
However, I also have been encouraged to see that many of the Vancouver Specials are now being updated for current use. Although they were so reviled, many young families are now buying them and renovating. So they’re now becoming quite a popular option, even trendy, contrary to the Special’s original intent.
Cudney said he wouldn’t design “a big stupid house as a monument to someone’s big stupid life.” Ironically, he designed the biggest houses allowed under the rules that sprawled as much as possible over the lot. Indeed “a big stupid house.” But he actually took pride in the fact that Specials were ugly and disliked.
The Vancouver Special ended in about 1976 when Cudney retired, due in part to glaucoma. But with each passing decade the builders’ ‘specials’ have become increasingly larger.
In the 1980s there were the pink-stucco “monster” houses. This was stopped through conditional zoning changes and design guidelines. But in 2009 those provisions were reversed and now we have even bigger, “luxury” monster houses with faux stone and tile facades.
Design guidelines and conditional zoning are essential to prevent this. As the city moves to revise zoning to incentivize character-house retention, it’s important to remember the lessons of the Vancouver Special.
For almost every Vancouver Special built there was a character house taken down. That character house had higher-quality craftsmanship with potential for conversion to more units or infill, even more so than the Special. Demolishing these character houses was pointless and wasteful.
We can have more affordable-housing choices and still meet design and livability objectives. Continuing poor-quality, new, builders’ ‘specials’ should be avoided.
Elizabeth Murphy is a private-sector project manager and was formerly a property-development officer for the City of Vancouver’s housing and properties department and for B.C. Housing. She can be reached at: info@elizabethmurphy.ca.
copyright: © FSUBF. All rights reserved. Please do not use this image, or any images from my photostream, without my permission.
Camera: Hanimex 35s
Film: Agfacolor 100, Expired Film, May 1985.
06.06.2015. Beograd
Vincent William van Gough a famous Dutch artist whose work often associated with Post-Impressionism and later transformed in to Expressionism. Vincent Van Gogh was one of the most important predecessors of modern painting. He created a great number of masterpiece paintings and drawings in just one decade devoted to art.
I know for sure that I have an instinct for colour, and that it will come to me more and more, that painting is in the very marrow of my bones.” A brief look at some historical examples of artistic geniuses and it is tempting to believe that there is something approaching madness in the creative spirit.
The artistic impulse permeates throughout history: from the “primitive” cave art of the Upper Palaeolithic through to the introduction of perspective and foreshortening during the Renaissance, rules which would later be subverted beyond recognition by the artists of modernity, who sought to express new ways of seeing and ushered in an era of visual experimentation. Either as creators or consumers, art remains ever-present in the modern world, both a vehicle for expressing our innermost thoughts and desires and a medium through which we can escape into new realities and emotions.
What is it that leads us to create art? Is there a psychological drive at work, a subconscious force which simmers away beneath the surface before emerging in an explosion of creativity? Is there an innermost essence to this process, something which embodies our propensity to express ourselves through art?
A brief look at some historical examples of artistic geniuses and it is tempting to believe that there is something approaching madness in the creative spirit; that art is intrinsically bound with insanity, great works of art functioning as a cathartic mechanism – something which both purges and purifies the spirit – without which the artist would be confined to the asylum. The fascination of the link between mental illness and creativity emerged in the late 19th century and remains with us to this day, where heightened creativity can be seen to correlate with states of mind such as hypomania – a state of mind today most commonly associated with bipolar disorder – where inspiration emerges from the fluctuations between euphoria and depression.
The Artist as an Outsider
Vincent van Gogh is perhaps the most celebrated example of the “mad artistic genius”, a man who was frequently cited by art historians as suffering from manic depression and who revealed through his letters to have questioned his own sanity. In and out of institutions for much of his adult life, the root cause of van Gogh’s mental state has been hotly debated, with porphyria, schizophrenia, tertiary syphilis, lead poisoning and addiction to absinthe among the possible explanations (Manet, Degas and Toulouse-Lautrec were among other artists with a fondness for absinthe, as were a number of writers during the late 19th century. German poet Rainer Maria Rilke once wrote, “He saw his glass of absinthe grow and grow until he felt himself in the centre of its opal light, weightless, completely dissolved in this strange atmosphere.” There is something to be said for the role played by mind-altering drugs in promoting the drive to create art).
Whatever the causes of van Gogh’s mental state, his work seems to reflect a fluctuation between normality and insanity, as if the swirls of colour function as a measure of his grip on reality. Van Gogh said himself, “It is only too true that a lot of artists are mentally ill – it’s a life which, to put it mildly, makes one an outsider. I’m all right when I completely immerse myself in work, but I’ll always remain half crazy.” He would eventually end his life by shooting himself in the chest in the field where he had recently painted Wheatfield with Crows, an image which seemed to presage his suicide.
Psychologist Carl Jung considered the psychological roots of artistic creation in the modern world in a number of essays and lectures collected in the book, The Spirit in Man, Art and Literature. How did we progress from our primitive state, in which Jung perceived art, science and religion coalescing in “the undifferentiated chaos of the magical mentality” to the cultural and artistic climate familiar in the modern world? In what manner does art – and its symbolic content – reflect the seemingly tumultuous psychological nature of the artist? Can the art be used to decode the artist?
The Creative Impulse
Jung believed that art itself had no inherent meaning, suggesting that perhaps it is like nature – something that simply “is”. But the creative process was something distinct, and Jung posited that works of art could be seen to arise out of much the same psychological conditions as a neurosis. Like all neuroses these conscious contents have an unconscious background which in their artistic manifestation often go beyond the individual and into something deeper and more broadly reflective of humankind. Jung offered the analogy that “personal causes have as much or as little to do with a work of art as the soil with the plant that springs from it.” True art is something “supra-personal”, a force which has “escaped from the limitations of the personal and has soared beyond the personal concerns of its creator.”
Jung concedes that not all art originates in this manner – art can derive from a deliberate process of conscious, careful consideration geared towards a specific expression in which the artist is at one with the creative process. But for Jung, fascination lay in the artist who obeyed alien impulses where the work appears to impose itself on the author; an external force wielding the artist like a marionette. This is the creative impulse, acting upon the conscious mind from a subconscious level – it guides the artist in a way which they cannot understand, regardless of the conviction they may have that it has originated within themselves.
For great artists, this impulse can be all-consuming. As Jung rightly observes, “The biographies of great artists make it abundantly clear that the creative urge is often so imperious that it battens onto their humanity and yokes everything to the service of the work, even at the cost of ordinary health and human happiness”. The biographies of the likes of Beethoven, Marcel Proust and many others are a testament to the creative process as “a living thing implanted in the human psyche.”
For Beethoven, composing was a compulsion, as his prodigious output testifies – indeed, gripped in the vice of depression later in life, not least on account of his profound deafness, his work arguably reaching its zenith with the sublime late string quartets. Proust too felt irresistibly compelled to write – consigned to his bed on account of increasing illness, he worked tirelessly for several years on his opus In Search of Lost Time, a labyrinthine novel which tackles the nebulous quality of memory and love and the absurdity of human nature; a dense yet hugely rewarding product of tireless obsession.
Speaking With A Thousand Voices
Jung believed that the autonomous nature of the creative impulse as something that operates outside of consciousness is reflected in the symbolic nature of art. Symbols are expressions of the unknown, intimating something beyond our powers of comprehension. Jung believed these were deeply rooted in history; primordial images from a sphere of unconscious mythology. The creative drive works on the artist so that these images are withdrawn from the collective unconscious and presents us with archetypal symbols. For Jung this was a truly powerful psychological phenomenon: “Whoever speaks in primordial images speaks with a thousand voices; he enthrals and overpowers, while at the same time he lifts the idea he is seeking to express out of the occasional and the transitory into the realm of the ever-enduring.”
Ultimately, Jung saw this process as one of great social significance, where conjured primordial images were “constantly at work educating the spirit of the age.” Visionary works of artistic expression become something transcendental, linking the unconscious and conscious, past and present. It is a force which operates beyond the rational and approaches the sublime and timeless – art which offers us “a revelation whose heights and depths are beyond our fathoming, or a vision of beauty which we can never put into words.”
Art, too, was a powerful tool for the individual to understand the nature of his or her subconsciousness. Jung frequently integrated it into his process of analytical psychology, encouraging his patients to draw and paint their dreams and use active imagination in which image and meaning were integrated, in order to unlock the symbolism at its core and come to terms with trauma and emotional distress. Jung was an artist himself and spent much of his life attempting to unify his understanding of spiritual and esoteric traditions – particularly Christianity, Gnosticism and alchemy – and his own unconscious into paintings and illustrations. While art and creativity as a method of therapy pre-date the work of Jung (indeed, they reside in the distant past of our shamanic origins), his contribution to function of art as therapy in the modern age is indisputable.
The art historian John E. Pfieffer said of hunter-gatherer cave art in his book The Creative Explosion:
“Nothing in the twentieth century can match the Upper Palaeolithic for its combination of art and setting, content and context. Nowhere in our lives are there comparable concentrations of modern art with a purpose, art in action, as contrasted with passive art hung in out-of-the-mainstream places designed solely for exhibition. The works in caves speak together, individual styles but with an underlying unity, singing in unison like a chorus of individual voices expressing collective feelings, collective goals. That is their special power.”
In this sense, contemporary art cannot truly be measured alongside art from the past – it resides in a different era, inspired by and reflecting the spirit of the times. If shamanic cave art can be seen to represent the emergence of a new type of consciousness in humanity intimately tied to the birth of spirituality, art today can be viewed as a coalescence of all that has come since and is yet to come. Or, as Jung expressed it: “All art intuitively apprehends coming changes in the collective unconsciousness.”
That is both the beauty of art, and the power of the artist.
Van Gogh used color for its “symbolic and expressive values” rather than to reproduce light and literal surroundings. Van Gogh’s emotional state highly affected his artistic work and it deeply analyses his unconscious mind.
Several psychodynamic factors may have contributed to his art work. The psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud viewed art as a privileged form of neurosis where the analyst-critic explores the artwork in order to understand and unearth the vicissitudes of the creator's psychological motivations. In this context van Gough’s art represent a deep psychological sketch. He left a profound, soul-searching description of his jagged life in his art work. Though Van Gogh had little financial success as an artist during his lifetime and often lived in poverty, his fame grew dramatically after his death. Today van Gough’s name is considered to be one of the world’s most renowned, respected, and influential artists. But he could not live long enough to see his fame. His life was filled with misery and desolation and this suffering was painted in an artistic way. The tragic life of Vincent van Gogh could be summarized emphasizing his early departure from formal education, failure as a successful salesman in the art world, attempt at religious studies, difficulty with female and family relationships, return to the art world, and tendencies toward extremes of poor nutrition or near self-starvation and excessive drinking and smoking. His oil painting” the Potato Eaters” clandestinely depicts poverty and destitute experienced by the artist. Van Gogh suffered from complex psychiatric ailments. Apart from the illness excessive use of tobacco and alcohol made a negative impact on his mental health. The mental illness that plagued him affected his art work. Van Gough painted his anguish and despair on canvas. His brushwork became increasingly agitated. The striking colors, crude brush strokes, and distorted shapes and contours, express his disturbed mind. He suffered two distinct episodes of reactive depression, and there are clearly bipolar aspects to his history. Both episodes of depression were followed by sustained periods of increasingly high energy and enthusiasm.z_p29-Psychological-03.jpg
Van Gogh's inimitable art was defined by its powerful, dramatic and emotional style. The artist’s concern for human suffering is in somber, melancholy study of art. Maybe he tried to explain the struggle between the man and the human nature, the reality and his unconscious mental conflicts. Van Gogh once said: “We spend our whole lives in unconscious exercise of the art of expressing our thoughts with the help of words.” His life was full of mental conflicts. He fought with his inner mind. This dual nature was observable. He had attacks of melancholy and of atrocious remorse. His colors lost the intensity His lines became restless. He applied the paint more violently with thicker layers. Van Gogh was drawn to objects in nature under stress: whirling suns, twisted cypress trees, and surging mountains. Although van Gogh’s illness emerged more violently he produced brilliant works as The Reaper, Cypresses, The Red Vineyard, and his famed Starry Night.
In Starry Night (1889) the whole world seems engulfed by circular movements. The Starry Night is undoubtedly van Gogh’s most mysterious picture. The Starry Night which resides as his most popular work and one of the most influence pieces in history. The swirling lines of the sky are a possible representation of his mental state. The Starry Night embodies an inner, subjective expression of van Gogh's response to nature. Vincent van Gogh once said “Looking at the stars always makes me dream. We take death to reach a star.”
From the beginning of Van Gogh's artistic career he had the ambition to draw and paint figures. For Vincent van Gogh color was the chief symbol of expression. Contemporary artists admired van Gogh’s passionate approach to art. But he viewed his life as horribly wasted, personally failed and impossible. On the contrary he was able to produce deeply moving images while living a life of ultimate desperation in an increasing state of mental imbalance. He was friendly with the French Post-Impressionist artist Paul Gauguin and two friends inspired each other. However they frequently quarreled. Van Gogh had an eccentric personality and unstable moods. His reactive depression episodes were followed by a prolonged period of hypomanic or even manic behavior. The life and artistic legacy of Vincent van Gogh has generated great interest among physicians from different areas of specialization in proposing a retrospective differential diagnosis. Vincent Van Gough suffered from medical crises that were devastating, but in the intervening periods he was both lucid and creative. Vincent van Gogh's illness has been the object of much speculation. Explanations as disparate as acute intermittent porphyria, epilepsy and schizophrenia have been proposed. Some experts suspect physical and psychiatric symptoms of Vincent van Gogh may have been due to chronic lead poisoning. According to Arnold (2004) an inherited metabolic disease, acute intermittent porphyria, accounts for all of the signs and symptoms of van Gogh's underlying illness. Porphyria is a rare hereditary disease in which the blood pigment hemoglobin is abnormally metabolized. Porphyrins are excreted in the urine, which becomes dark; other symptoms include mental disturbances and extreme sensitivity of the skin to light. Van Gogh probably suffered from partial complex seizures (temporal lobe epilepsy) with manic depressive mood swings aggravated by absinthe, brandy, nicotine and turpentine. In addition he was troubled by intense death wish. Suicidal gestures by Vincent depicted in his last paintings. He painted vast fields of wheat under dark and stormy skies, commenting, “It is not difficult to express here my entire sadness and extreme loneliness”. In one of his last paintings, Wheat Field With Crows, the black birds fly in a starless sky, and three paths lead nowhere. It could be interpreted as the emptiness that existed in his heart. Mehlum (1996) believes that an early childhood trauma initiated a life-long suicidal process in Van Gogh. His difficulties as regards attachment to and separation from his parents continued throughout his life and his emotional instability, intensity and lowered tolerance to frustration seem to portray a borderline personality. Van Gogh's self-portraits play significant clinical importance. Vincent van Gogh was born one year to the day after a stillborn brother of the identical name, including the middle name, Willem. In the parish register van Gogh was given the same number twenty-nine as his predecessor brother. Van Gogh's fantasies of death and rebirth, of being a double and a twin, contributed to both his psychopathology and his creativity. Van Gogh's self-portraits are regarded as relevant to his being a replacement child (Blum, 2009). Meissner (1993) hypothesized that the self-portraits of Vincent van Gogh are seen as repeated and unresolved efforts at self-exploration and self-definition in an attempt to add a sense of continuity and cohesion to a fragile and fragmented self-experience. The portraits are painted in mirror perspective; Vincent's search for identity is thus seen as mediated by the dynamics of the mirroring phenomenon.
Auto-mutilation became a part of his medical history. In 1888 Vincent’s mental health was very unstable. As a result of psychotic crises, Vincent van Gogh was hospitalized several times. His state of mind was very weak and during a breakdown, he mutilated his ear. Van Gogh cut off the lower half of his left ear and gave it to a prostitute. After a few weeks he was able to paint self-portrait with bandaged ear and pipe (Portrait of a one-eyed man) which shows him in serene composure. During the last few years of his life, his paintings were characterized by halos and the color yellow. Critics have ascribed these aberrations to innumerable causes, including chronic solar injury, glaucoma, and cataracts (Lee, 1981).
Vincent van Gogh's chronic suicidal ideation and behaviour led to a series of crises throughout his life, escalating during the last 18 months before his suicide in 1890. It is possible to identify at least three prominent suicidal motives in van Gogh's case. The first is unbearable emotional pain related to personal experience of loss which reactivated the childhood trauma. The second is introverted murderous rage arising from conflicts with other persons. The third motive described is the need for a cathartic release of energy and emotion (Mehlum, 1996).
Pezenhoffer and Gerevich (2015) found distal suicide risk factors in Vincent van Gogh. They highlighted: family anamnesis, childhood traumas (emotional deprivation, identity problems associated with the name Vincent), a vagrant, homeless way of life, and failures in relationships with women, and psychotic episodes appearing in rushes. In addition the proximal factors included the tragic friendship with Gauguin (frustrated love), his brother Theo's marriage (experienced as a loss), and a tendency to self-destruction and this trait aggression played an important role in Van Gogh's suicide.
Vincent van Gogh committed suicide in 1890 at the age of 37. Despite the mental illness he suffered Vincent remained marvelously creative until his death. Although he lived a relatively short period he left behind an astonishing body of work which included several hundred paintings.
Van Gogh's painting not only reflected his struggles but also enabled him, for a time, to stave off the hopelessness and despair that eventually overwhelmed him, culminating in his suicide. Despite his turbulent life Van Gogh remains as one of Europe's greatest artists. Vincent Van Gogh is the subject of psychologists, artists, and historians alike. His life was led with a furious passion which normal men could not begin to comprehend; and it is through his paintings that we can look into Van Gogh’s mind and soul to analyze this enigmatic figure.
Of all of his paintings there are two that stand out as a shining example of the multitude of feelings and personalities that Vincent possessed, these paintings allow us psychoanalytic interpretations of the motives behind the pieces.The two paintings are none other than The Potato Eaters from Vincent’s Neuen Period and The Night Cafe from Vincent’s stay in Arles while with Paul Gaughin.Each offers a different insight to Vincent’s psyche from his emotions towards his parents to how he fell about his friends and himself as a painter.The first of the aforementioned paintings, The Potato Eaters, is a great example of a work by Vincent which features personal identification with one of the figures where we can garner insight to his thought processes and emotions.The Potato Eaters was painted during the Neuen period, a time in which Vincent was painting the hard, dreary lives of peasants and the destitute.At a glance we can see the painting as nothing more than a very poignant and hard hitting representation of the hard life of the working class.Potatoes were a staple, easy to grow food introduced by the Americas and because of its cheap price and nigh nutritional value, it became the centerpiece of any lower class meal.The scene depicts five peasants sitting at a table eating potato stew one of which is turned away from the viewer but is illuminated by the steam of the stew to place her as the point of interest in the piece.
When digging a little deeper into the piece we find that the painting has remarkable similarities in relation to the early stages of Vincent’s life.The child in the foreground whom is illuminated by the halo of steam can be seen as a religious figure by reasoning that Vincent who was familiar with the Bible and Christian influence paintings would have known that halos around humans signified some sort of religious importance.We find that “the lamp [in the painting] becomes a Holy Spirit as the insistent orthogonals of the roof beamsâ€[1] point towards the lamp giving it even more prominence in the picture.Even beyond the eerie religious overtones which would have come from the influence of his minister father, we find more personal identifications in the painting.The hidden child in the foreground becomes a symbol for the dead Vincent whom Van Gogh would have placed the ideals of perfection upon.The child cannot face the viewer because the child is dead (in spirit) and this is reinforced by the woman on the right who stares at the child intensely while pointing down towards the grave. Our attention is now on the woman to the far right who is a representation of Vincent’s mother who spent the majority of Van Gogh’s childhood mourning the death of the first Vincent instead of giving tender love to Van Gogh.What is interesting is that not only does she cast her view away from the manin the center who is trying to get her attention, she takes her gaze away from you (the viewer) and places all of her attention on the child with its back to us.The man trying to get her attention has some of Van Gogh’s features and serves as a representation of the emotional state of his childhood and a large portion of his life.The man tries to garner the attention of the woman but finds that no matter how hard he tries, his efforts are ignored as the woman pays more attention to the illuminated child; this in turn fills the expression of the young man with surprise and despair.We can now look to the second painting, The Night Cafe, a painting in which we find conscious and unconscious meanings and symbols in elements like the pool table, the cafe owner, the lamp lights, and the overall color scheme of the painting. The first element, the pool table falls in line with Vincent’s tendency to insert phallic objects into his work; the pool stick has a pair of pool balls on either side of the bottom of its shaft which gives it the appearance of a phallus and testicles. What is interesting here is that if one follows the diagonals of the wooden floorboards and the direction the phallus is pointing in, it leads you towards the wide gaping hole in the back of the room which suggests the female vagina. What’s more is that the diagonals of the floorboards form a “headlong dive into space creates a powerful and expressionistic effect. It becomes the visual equivalent of an irresistible urge and corresponds to the pull of the “terrible passions” that make care dwellers want to ruin themselves”[2]. Our gaze is then led towards the group in the back of the room; this group seems to be a pair of men and a woman, or two women and a man. Regardless of the ratio of men to women in the back of the room, the men portray the typical cafe going drunks while the women represent the prostitutes that would frequent cafes for customers. The colors are particularly jarring in that the reds and greens, though complimentary of one another provide a very manic mood despite a relatively laid back seen. Vincent would have been going through manic fits while he and Gauguin worked together in Arles mainly due to their personalities conflicting with each others. Vincent outweighs this representation of his manic side by writing to his brother Theo about the painting and describing it as such: “I have tried to express the idea that the cafe is a place where one can ruin oneself, go crazy, or commit a crime..and all this in an atmosphere like a devil’s furnace of pale sulfate[3. ]Despite this description it is not hard to see how the radiating lamps which resemble explosions of light can serve as a representation of Van Gogh’s emotional state. The final element of the painting, the mysterious and ghostly figure of the cafe proprietor Joseph Ginoux becomes an unconscious symbol of Vincent’s deceased father.The figure is the only one in the room that addresses the viewer directly and seems to have complete control over every event happening within the Night Cafe.To further this idea that the ghostly figure is Vincent’s father, we need only look at the pool stick and pool balls which fall on a parallel plane to the owner’s waist giving the idea that he is the one with the largest phallus in the room.Vincent often felt as if he were beneath his father and often depicts him as having symbols of strong manliness.One of his paintings features his father as a large open Bible with a large, thick, candle at the bottom of the open book pointed upwards while the representation of Vincent in that painting is merely a pair of small, yellow books.We can summarize that Vincent found hints of fatherhood in Joseph Ginoux which reminded him of his childhood where he constantly battled his father over religious ideology and artistic aspirations.Both The Potato Eaters and The Night Cafe serve as perfect examples of how artists allow both directly and indirectly, psychoanalytical interpretations of their work.
[1] “Van Gogh and Gauguin: Electric Arguments and Utopian Dreams” Bradley Collins.Page 33.
[2] “Van Gogh and Gauguin: Electric Arguments and Utopian Dreams” Bradley Collins.Page 125
[3] “Van Gogh and Gauguin: Electric Arguments and Utopian Dreams” Bradley Collins.Page 136
copyright: © FSUBF. All rights reserved. Please do not use this image, or any images from my photostream, without my permission.
Camera: Hanimex 35s
Film: Agfacolor 100, Expired Film, May 1985.
06.06.2015. Beograd
the Conservatorio di Matera, Basilicata, Italy
Matera continues to haunt me. One of the most magical things for me, in the beautiful, hot sunshine, was to hear clarinets and strings being practised at a high level and to be drawn toward this building, only to find it had become a music conservatory. When I entered and looked up at the ceiling, these haunting frescoes looked back down at me.
a word of explanation to my contacts: I've been quite ill with shingles to the left side of my face and scalp and left eye - to the point that an acute glaucoma-like condition set in. I'm beginning to see better; but tire easily, so excuse my brief comments, please!
Tunnel vision can be caused by:
Glaucoma, a disease of the eye.
Retinitis pigmentosa, a disease of the eye.
Blood loss (hypovolemia)
Alcohol consumption. In addition, the vision becomes blurred or double since eye muscles lose their precision causing them to be unable to focus on the same object.
Sustained (1 second or more) high accelerations.[ Typically, flying an airplane with a centripetal acceleration of up to or over 39 m/s2 (4gs) with the head towards the center of curvature, common in aerobatic or fighter pilots. In these cases, tunnel vision and greyout may proceed to a g-force induced Loss Of Consciousness (g-LOC).
Hallucinogenic drugs, in particular the dissociatives.
Extreme fear or distress, most often in the context of a panic attack.
Excitement or extreme pleasure such as on a roller-coaster, causing a surge of adrenaline in the body.
During periods of high adrenaline production, such as an intense physical fight.
Altitude sickness, hypoxia in passenger aircraft.
Exposure to oxygen at a partial pressure above 1.5-2 atmospheres, producing central nervous system oxygen toxicity, called narcosis. Other symptoms can include dizziness, nausea, blindness, fatigue, anxiety, confusion and lack of coordination.
Pituitary tumours (or other brain tumours that compress the optic chiasm)
Prolonged exposure to air contaminated with heated hydraulic fluids and oils, as can sometimes happen in passenger aircraft.
Severe cataracts, causing a removal of most of the field of vision
During the aura phase of a migraine
Intense anger, due to the body being rapidly flooded with adrenaline and oxygen
A bite from a black mamba and other snakes with the same strength venom.
Mercury poisoning (especially methylmercury)
Sleep deprivation..
Or being as drunk as a skunk, of course.
copyright: © FSUBF. All rights reserved. Please do not use this image, or any images from my photostream, without my permission.
Camera: Hanimex 35s
Film: Agfacolor 100, Expired Film, May 1985.
06.06.2015. Beograd
The "Glaucoma" lens, as a friend , unfortunately suffering from that illness, defined it. He said this lens basically records reality in a very similar way to how he sees it. Image taken with a Taylor, Taylor and Hobson cinema lens, 1920's circa, on Four Thirds sensor camera. Autochrome looking, to me. www.giovannisavinophotography.com/
Dutch postcard by Gebr. Spanjersberg N.V., Rotterdam, no. 1162.
Blind American singer, songwriter, musician, and composer Ray Charles (1930-2004) was called "The Genius of Soul". His 1950s hits like 'Mess Around', 'Things I Used to Do', and 'What'd I Say', put Atlantic Records on the map. The man with the trademark jet dark sunglasses was the first artist to combine blues, rhythm and blues, and gospel styles into soul music. Under ABC-Paramount, he scored big hits with 'I Can't Stop Loving You', 'Hit the Road Jack', and 'Georgia On My Mind', in which he integrated country music, rhythm and blues, and pop music. Charles also showed up sporadically in films like Ballad in Blue (1965) and The Blues Brothers (1980) with Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi.
Ray Charles was born Raymond Charles Robinson in 1930 in Albany, Georgia. His parents were Bailey Robinson, a laborer, and Aretha (or Reatha) Williams, a teenage orphan making a living as a sharecropper. His impoverished family moved to Greenville, Florida while he was still an infant. His father soon abandoned the family and his baby brother, George Robinson, drowned in a freak washtub accident at the age of four. Ray himself developed glaucoma at the age of five and within two years had lost his sight completely. He was deeply devoted to his mother and later recalled her perseverance, self-sufficiency, and pride as guiding lights in his life. A singer in a Baptist choir, he developed a love and feel for rhythms and from 1937 to 1945, he studied music at the State School for Deaf and Blind Children. His teacher, Mrs. Lawrence, taught him how to use braille music, and he was taught to play the classical piano music of J.S. Bach, Mozart and Beethoven. It also brought out his talent and ear for playing other instruments, such as the clarinet. Gary Brumburgh at IMDb: "A tragic fate may have given this visionary a heightened sensitivity, perception, awareness, even expansion to his obvious musical gifts that he may have never touched upon had he not suffered from his physical affliction. Whatever it was, Ray Charles revolutionized American music and was catapulted to legendary status by the time he died in Beverly Hills at age 73." In 1944, his mother died. Her death came as a shock to the 14-year-old Ray. He later said the deaths of his brother and mother were "the two great tragedies" of his life. Charles returned to school after the funeral but was expelled for playing a prank on his teacher. At age 16, Ray joined a country band called The Florida Playboys. He dropped the 'Robinson' from his name to avoid confusion with boxer Sugar Ray Robinson. In 1948, he moved to Seattle where he and Southern guitarist Gossady McGee formed the McSon Trio. With an emphasis on easy-styled jazz, Ray also played in bebop sessions on the sly. He departed from the McSon Trio and signed with Los Angeles-based Swing Time Records, becoming the pianist for rhythm and blues great Lowell Fulson and his band. Atlantic Records eventually picked him up. Along the road he would add composer, writer and arranger to his formidable list of talents.
Ray Charles's first R&B hit was 'Confession Blues' in Los Angeles in 1949. For Swing Time Records, he had his first solo chart busters with 'Baby Let Me Hold Your Hand' (1951), which reached number five, and 'Kissa Me Baby' (1952), which reached number eight. Swing Time folded the following year, and Ahmet Ertegün signed him to Atlantic. His amazing versatility and raw, soulful delivery quickly caught on with audiences and helped put Atlantic Records on the map. Hits like 'Mess Around' (1953), 'Things I Used to Do', 'A Fool for You', 'I've Got a Woman' (1954), 'Drown in My Own Tears', and especially 'What'd I Say' (1959), pushed gospel and R&B to a wider crossover audience. He also recorded jazz, such as The Great Ray Charles (1957) and worked with vibraphonist Milt Jackson, releasing Soul Brothers in 1958 and Soul Meeting in 1961. By 1958, he was not only headlining black venues such as the Apollo Theater in New York, but also bigger venues such as Carnegie Hall and the Newport Jazz Festival where his first live album was recorded in 1958. He made a move into the country music arena - unheard of for a black singer - in the 1960s, doing soulful spins on Hank Williams and Eddy Arnold tunes. In 1960, he left Atlantic and signed with ABC-Paramount. It was his peak time with the # 1 pop hits 'Georgia On My Mind' (1960), 'Hit the Road Jack' (1961), and 'I Can't Stop Loving You' (1962). His landmark 1962 album 'Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music' brought a new swinging style to country music. While he was with ABC, Charles became one of the first black musicians to be granted artistic control by a mainstream record company.
From there, Ray Charles traveled a mainstream route - from interpreting songs from The Beatles ('Eleanor Rigby') to appearing in Diet Pepsi ads ('You Got the Right One, Baby, Uh-huh!'). He also showed up sporadically in films, playing himself in Ballad in Blue (1965) and guest-starring in The Blues Brothers (1980) with Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi. A television musical variety favorite with his trademark dark sunglasses and dry humor, he worked alongside such musical legends as Ella Fitzgerald and Barbra Streisand on their very special evenings of song. Gary Brumburgh: "It is hard to believe that with everything he accomplished, Ray also had to deal with a longstanding heroin problem. In the mid-1960s, he was arrested for possession of heroin and marijuana and revealed that he had been addicted for nearly two decades. By 1965, he had completely recovered." Charles appeared in such films as the British film Ballad in Blue (Paul Henreid, 1965) with Tom Bell and Mary Peach, and the blockbuster The Blues Brothers (John Landis, 1980) with Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi. In 1985, Charles participated in the famous musical recording and video 'We Are the World', a charity single recorded by the supergroup United Support of Artists (USA) for Africa. Charles is a 17-time Grammy Award winner. He was honoured with the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1987. At the time of his death, he was working on a recording project of duets with such performers as Willie Nelson, Bonnie Raitt, B.B. King, Elton John and Norah Jones. This collaboration entitled 'Genius Loves Company' led to an incisive win at the Grammy Awards - eight posthumous trophies including 'Album of the Year' and 'Record of the Year'. Ray Charles died in 2004 in Beverly Hills of liver failure. he was married twice: to Eileen Williams from 1951 till 1952, and to Della Beatrice Howard from 1955 till their divorce in 1977. They had three children. The man who lived life on the edge had many girlfriends. Charles stated in his 1978 autobiography, Brother Ray: Ray Charles' Own Story, that he became hooked on women after losing his virginity at 12 years old to a woman about 20. He had 12 children, 20 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. His long-term girlfriend and partner at the time of his death was Norma Pinella. At the time of his death, the feature film Ray (Taylor Hackford, 2004), starring Jamie Foxx, was released.
Sources: Gary Brumburgh (IMDb), Wikipedia and IMDb.
And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.
"Do you remember
We called you puppy?
Now you're one of us
We call you family
Family (family)
Family (family)
Family (family)
Family
Treading underfoot and stinking ass
Hold the door aside and let her pass
Glaucoma
Reflections of a bloated lie
A life stored in your cloudy eye
Now it's time to say goodbye
Stubb a dub will never die
Chase a tail that isn't there
It's time to wipe your butt
Sliding down butt hill
Dahg Rastubfari, do you know
That you're a fucking dog?
And if you can hear me, then throw up
Give me a sign and I'll throw a stick
Bring it back, roll over and die
You taught me a lesson
(Thanks, mom)
Do you understand me, do you think about me when you're peeing?
Do you really think you're gonna grow into a human being?
This dog has seen better days
You're gonna die
How does it feel, Stubb?
Eat and sleep, fulfill your only roll
Let your problems seep out of your hole
Cataract
Reflections of a bloated lie
A life stored in your cloudy eye
Now it's time to say goodbye
Chase a tail that isn't there
It's time to wipe your butt
Sliding down butt hill
Dahg Rastubfari (Dahg Rastubfari)
Do you know? (Do you know?)
That you're a fucking dog? (That you're a fucking dog?)
And if you can hear me (and if you can hear me)
Then throw up (then throw up)
Give me a sign and I'll throw a stick
Bring it back, roll over and die
You taught me a lesson, mama
Thanks, mom
Do you understand me, do you think about me when you're peeing?
Do you really think you're gonna grow into a human being?
This dog has seen better days
You're gonna die
How does it feel, Stubb?
Do you remember
We called you family?
Now you're underground
We call you memory."
Todas as Pesquisas e Fotos obtidas via Internet
26 de Maio Homenageamos o Dia Nacional de Combate ao Glaucoma criado pela Lei nº 10.456, de 13 de maio de 2002, Brasil
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All Research and Photos obtained via the Internet
May 26 We honor the National Day to Combat Glaucoma created by Law No. 10456 of May 13, 2002, Brazil
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Toutes les recherches et Photos obtenus via l'Internet
26 mai Nous honorons la Journée nationale de lutte contre le glaucome créé par la loi n ° 10456 du 13 mai 2002, le Brésil
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YOUTUBE
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ce7t5FyfYOI
Por Deus, Amigos Queridos assinem por MISERICÓRDIA de nossas FLORESTAS...
Por tudo que já SUPLIQUEI e que posto novamente!!
www.greenpeace.org/brasil/pt/O-que-fazemos/Amazonia/Pagin...
CONTINUO SUPLICANDO, QUANTAS VEZES FOREM NECESSÁRIAS!!
ASSINEM ESTAS PETIÇÕES, POR FAVOR...
- PARA SALVAR A AMAZÔNIA,
www.avaaz.org/po/belo_monte_people_vs_profits/?vl
- PARA SALVAR AS FLORESTAS DO BRASIL,
- PARA VETAR AS MUDANÇAS DO CÓDIGO FLORESTAL !
www.greenpeace.org/brasil/pt/Participe/Ciberativista/Codi...
www.avaaz.org/po/save_the_amazon_sam/?cl=1419482907&v...
VAMOS LUTAR POR NOSSO PLANETA, PELAS NOSSAS FLORESTAS, PELOS INDÍGENAS (NOSSOS IRMÃOS), PELOS NOSSOS FILHOS, NETOS, BISNETOS...PELAS PRÓXIMAS GERAÇÕES...POR UM MUNDO MELHOR...
O PLANETA TERRA PEDE SOCORRO!!
TUDO OU NADA ESTÁ EM NOSSAS MÃOS,... BRASILEIROS!!
Muito obrigada,
Celisa
***
By God, Dear Friends sign of our forests for mercy ...
For all that ever I pleaded and put it back!
www.greenpeace.org/brasil/pt/O-que-fazemos/Am azonia/Pagin...
CONTINUOUS Sulpice, as often as necessary!
Sign these petitions, PLEASE ...
- To save the Amazon,
www.avaaz.org/po/belo_monte_people_vs_profits/?vl
- TO SAVE THE FORESTS OF BRAZIL
- To veto FOREST CODE CHANGES!
www.greenpeace.org/brasil/pt/Participe/Ciberativista/Codi...
www.avaaz.org/po/save_the_amazon_sam/?cl=1419482907&v...
WE FIGHT FOR OUR PLANET, FOR OUR FORESTS, INDIGENOUS BY (OUR BROTHERS), for our children, grandchildren, great grandchildren for generations to come ... ... ... FOR A BETTER WORLD
ASKS HELP THE PLANET EARTH!
ALL OR NOTHING IS IN OUR HANDS, ... BRAZILIAN!
Thank you so much,
Celisa
***
Par Dieu, Chers Amis signe de nos forêts pour la miséricorde ...
Pour tout ce que j'ai plaidé et le remettre!
www.greenpeace.org/brasil/pt/O-que-fazemos/Am azonia/Pagin...
Sulpice CONTINUE, aussi souvent que nécessaire!
S'il vous plaît signer ...
- Pour sauver l'Amazonie,
www.avaaz.org/po/belo_monte_people_vs_profits/?vl
- Pour sauver les forêts du Brésil
- De mettre son veto CHANGEMENTS Code forestier!
www.greenpeace.org/brasil/pt/Participe/Ciberativista/Codi...
www.avaaz.org/po/save_the_amazon_sam/?cl=1419482907&v...
Nous luttons pour notre planète, pour nos forêts, AUTOCHTONES PAR (NOS FRÈRES), pour nos enfants, petits-enfants, arrière petits-enfants pour les générations à venir ... ... ... POUR UN MONDE MEILLEUR
DEMANDE AIDE LA PLANETE TERRE!
Tout ou rien est entre nos mains, ... Brésilienne!
Je vous remercie,
Celisa
***
Por Dios, queridos amigos: signo de nuestros bosques por la misericordia ...
Por todo lo que he declarado y poner de nuevo!
www.greenpeace.org/brasil/pt/O-que-fazemos/Am azonia/Pagin...
CONTINUA Sulpice, cuantas veces sea necesario!
Firmar estas peticiones, por favor ...
- Para salvar el Amazonas,
www.avaaz.org/po/belo_monte_people_vs_profits/?vl
- PARA SALVAR LOS BOSQUES DE BRASIL
- De vetar los cambios Código Forestal!
www.greenpeace.org/brasil/pt/Participe/Ciberativista/Codi...
www.avaaz.org/po/save_the_amazon_sam/?cl=1419482907&v...
LUCHAMOS POR NUESTRO PLANETA, PARA NUESTROS BOSQUES, POR INDÍGENAS (NUESTROS HERMANOS), para nuestros hijos, nietos, bisnietos para las generaciones futuras ... ... ... POR UN MUNDO MEJOR
PIDE AYUDA AL PLANETA TIERRA!
TODO O NADA ESTÁ EN NUESTRAS MANOS ... BRASIL!
Gracias,
Celisa
***
Per Dio, cari amici segno delle nostre foreste per pietà ...
Per tutto ciò che mai ho supplicato e rimetterlo!
www.greenpeace.org/brasil/pt/O-que-fazemos/Am azonia/Pagin...
Sulpice CONTINUO, ogni qualvolta sia necessario!
SIGN queste petizioni, PER FAVORE ...
- Per salvare l'Amazzonia,
www.avaaz.org/po/belo_monte_people_vs_profits/?vl
- PER SALVARE LE FORESTE DEL BRASILE
- Per veto modifiche al codice FORESTA!
www.greenpeace.org/brasil/pt/Participe/Ciberativista/Codi...
www.avaaz.org/po/save_the_amazon_sam/?cl=1419482907&v...
Lottiamo per IL NOSTRO PIANETA, PER I NOSTRI BOSCHI, indigene da parte (NOSTRI FRATELLI), per i nostri figli, nipoti, pronipoti per le generazioni a venire ... ... ... PER UN MONDO MIGLIORE
CHIEDE AIUTO DEL PIANETA TERRA!
Tutto o niente è nelle nostre mani, ... BRASILIANO!
Grazie,
Celisa
***
***
***
Dezenas de milhões de câes e gatos são ASSASSINADOS BRUTALMENTE, com INSTINTOS de CRUELDADE na CHINA !!
Amigos Queridos eu suplico, assinem esta PETIÇÃO, é um PEDIDO de Ativistas e Protetores de Animais que estão se mobilizando no MUNDO INTEIRO, em favor das vidas destes MÁRTIRES!!
Em DOIS MINUTOS pode-se assinar!! São seres INDEFESOS, eu ROGO, por Deus!!
www.change.org/petitions/the-chinese-government-stop-the-...
Muito obrigada,
Celisa
***
Tens of millions of dogs and cats are brutally murdered, with instincts of cruelty in CHINA!
Dear Friends, I beg, sign this petition, it is a request for Activists and Animal Protectors who are mobilizing around the world, in favor of the lives of Martyrs!
In two minutes you can sign up! They are helpless, I pray, by God!
www.change.org/petitions/the-chinese-government-stop-the-...
Thank you,
Celisa
***
Des dizaines de millions de chiens et de chats sont brutalement assassinés, avec des instincts de cruauté en Chine!
Chers amis, je vous prie, signez cette pétition, et une demande pour les activistes et les protecteurs des animaux qui se mobilisent autour du monde, en faveur de la vie des martyrs!
En deux minutes, vous pouvez vous inscrire! Ils sont impuissants, je prie, par Dieu!
www.change.org/petitions/the-chinese-government-stop-the-...
Je vous remercie,
Celisa
***
Decenas de millones de perros y gatos son brutalmente asesinados, con los instintos de crueldad en China!
Queridos amigos, os ruego, firmen esta petición, y una petición de activistas y los protectores de animales que se movilizan en todo el mundo, a favor de la vida de los mártires!
En dos minutos se puede firmar para arriba! Están indefensos, te ruego, por Dios!
www.change.org/petitions/the-chinese-government-stop-the-...
Gracias,
Celisa
***
Decine di milioni di cani e gatti vengono brutalmente assassinati, con istinti di crudeltà in CINA!
Cari amici, vi prego, firmare questa petizione e una richiesta di attivisti e protettori degli animali che si stanno mobilitando in tutto il mondo, a favore della vita dei martiri!
In due minuti puoi iscriverti! Sono impotente, io prego, per Dio!
www.change.org/petitions/the-chinese-government-stop-the-...
Grazie,
Celisa
***
***
***
Que Deus abençoe a todos os Queridos Amigos, principalmente nossas Queridas Amigas @rtbene, Nika, Blankita e Mag, e alivie o sofrimento daqueles que tanto necessitam.
Beijos em seus corações,
Celisa
***
May God bless all the Dear Friends, mainly our Dear Friends @rtbene, Nika, Blankita and Mag, relieve the suffering of those who so desperately need.
Kisses in your hearts,
Celisa
***
Que Dieu bénisse tous les chers amis, en particulier notre cher ami @rtbene, Nika, Blankita et Mag, et soulager la souffrance de ceux qui ont si désespérément besoin.
Bisous dans ton coeur
Celisa
***
Que Dios los bendiga a todos los queridos amigos, en especial nuestro querido amigo @rtbene, Nika, Blankita y Mag, y aliviar el sufrimiento de aquellos que tan desesperadamente necesitan.
Besos en tu corazón
Celisa
***
Che Dio benedica tutti i cari amici, soprattutto il nostro caro amico @rtbene, Blankita e Mag, e alleviare le sofferenze di coloro che così disperatamente bisogno.
Baci nel tuo cuore
Celisa