Fatima-Zahra Ma-el-ainin, Advisory Council, Rabat Hub, Morocco, speaking in the Prioritizing Mental Health session at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2022 in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland, 23 May. Congress Centre - Ignite. Copyright: World Economic Forum/ Valeriano de Domenico

s/n 0585GT

240 bhp, 2,953 cc single overhead camshaft V-12 engine with three Weber carburetors, four-speed all-synchromesh manual gearbox, independent front suspension with unequal-length A-arms and coil springs, live rear axle with semi-elliptic leaf springs and parallel trailing arms, and four-wheel drum brakes. Wheelbase: 2,600 mm

• Very first of the second series 14-louver design

• One of nine examples built

• Featured in the Hollywood Classic, The Love Bug

• Matching numbers, extensively documented, and complete with full Ferrari Classiche certification

• Received a class award at the 2011 Quail Motorsports Gathering

• Single ownership for 14 years and offered for the first time ever at auction

• Pristine example of Ferrari’s most revered berlinetta

The tragic accident at the 1955 24 Hours of Le Mans that claimed the lives of one driver and 79 spectators had a profound effect on the shape of racing, one that ultimately led to the creation of one of Ferrari’s most celebrated models. Racing enthusiasts and competitors alike agreed that the crash was ultimately the result of the increasingly potent powertrains of the Le Mans sports cars, and in order to prevent further disaster, new regulations would be required to veer from the path of these thinly veiled race cars, which were essentially grand prix cars packaged with two-seater bodies.

The following year, the FIA responded by creating new gran turismo classes that not only prioritized safety, but also re-established the concept of competitively racing a road-based production car. Ferrari, of course, was well prepared for the challenge, having just debuted its new series-production 250 GT at the Geneva Motor Show of 1956. While the coupe on display featured an elegant body that would go on to be produced in quantity by Boano, thus providing necessary homologation, the underlying chassis proved to be the basis for the competition car, or berlinetta, that Ferrari sought to enter into the FIA’s new racing classifications. Pininfarina designed a new lightweight body that was built by Scaglietti, using thin-gauge aluminum and Perspex windows and a minimally upholstered cabin. The finished car, then known officially as the 250 GT Berlinetta, was ultimately made in a sparing quantity of 77 examples that are further sub-divided by subtle differences in coachwork over the model’s four-year production run.

Ferrari’s hopes for competitive success were quickly realized when Olivier Gendebien and Jacques Washer co-drove the very first car, chassis number 0503 GT, to a First in Class and Fourth Overall at the Giro di Sicilia in April 1956, with a Fifth Overall (First in Class) at the Mille Miglia later that month. But the model’s defining success didn’t occur until September, during the 1956 Tour de France Automobile, a grueling 3,600 mile, week-long contest that combined six circuit races, two hill climbs, and a drag race. The Marquis Alfonso de Portago, a Spanish aristocrat and privateer racer, drove chassis number 0557 GT to a dominating victory that sealed the dynamic model’s reputation. Enzo Ferrari was so pleased with the outcome that the 250 GT Berlinetta was subsequently and internally, though never officially, referred to as the Tour de France. The moniker proved to be quite fitting, as Gendebien took First Overall at the 1957, 1958, and 1959 installments of the French race, as well as a Third Overall at the 1957 Mille Miglia, a triumph that witnessed the defeat of many more purpose-built sports racers.

With the introduction of a short-wheelbase 250 GT in late-1959, the outgoing platform became retrospectively labeled as the long-wheelbase version, though the original car’s designation of 250 GT LWB Berlinetta is now largely simplified with the name ‘Tour de France.’ Through its brief production run, the TdF underwent several external body modifications, ultimately resulting in four different series-produced body styles (not including a handful of Zagato-bodied cars). The alterations in appearance are most easily recognizable in the so-called sail panels, the rear ¾-panels of the c-pillar that adjoin the roof. Initially produced with no louvers at all, these panels featured 14 louvers in the second-series cars, followed by a series with just three louvers, and ending with a series that featured just one sail-panel louver. Of all of these series, the 14-louver cars are the rarest, with only nine examples produced, and are judged by many enthusiasts to be the handsomest of the group.

This fabulous, early Ferrari 250 GT Tour de France is the very first example constructed of the second series design that featured 14-louver sail-panels. On November 15, 1956, the stunning TdF was purchased by Tony Parravano, the Italian national and Southern California building construction magnate who is better known among 1950s racing enthusiasts for the numerous Italian sports cars that he campaigned in the area’s SCCA circuit. 0585 GT was entered for the Palm Springs road races in early April of 1957, before being disqualified because the sanctioning body did not recognize it as a production car. Changing hands among a couple of Los Angeles-based owners during the early-1960s, 0585 GT eventually came into the possession of Walt Disney Studios for use in the 1966 film The Love Bug, the celebrated Disney classic about “Herbie,” the racing VW Beetle with a soul.

Following its memorable Hollywood turn, this important 250 GT fell on hard times, passing through the Schaub family, of Los Angeles, before reportedly being abandoned on the side of the Hollywood freeway. Records indicate two more owners during the 1970s and 1980s. In September 1994, the car surfaced and was offered for sale in an unrestored state by David Cottingham’s DK Engineering in Watford, England. Unable to sell 0585 GT for its true value, DK, in late-1996, elected to totally restore the historically significant Tour de France, a freshening that debuted to overwhelming acclaim at Coy’s International Historic Festival at Silverstone in July 1997. The festival proved to be a perfect stage for the immaculate car, as it was sold the following October to its current owner, a well-respected Southern California-based collector who has a 40-year history of collecting and caring for some of the most recognizable and important Ferrari cars ever built.

Registered under license plate “MY 56 TDF,” 0585 GT was soon campaigned in a number of vintage rallies, including the Tour Auto of April 1998, as well as the Mille Miglia of the following May. The car also participated in the Tour Auto in 1999 and 2000, and placed 39th Overall at the 2000 Shell Ferrari/Maserati Historic Challenge at Le Mans. 0585 GT returned to the Tour Auto in 2001, 2002, 2004, and 2006 and was displayed at Car Classic: Freedom of Motion, the 2010 exhibition held at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. The following August, 0585 GT’s extreme quality and rarity were confirmed with the ultimate in exhibitive recognition, a class award at the 2011 Quail Motorsports Gathering in Carmel, California, where the car won “The Great Ferraris” class, honoring some of the marque’s earliest and important sports and racing cars.

In addition to all of these awards and racing achievements, 0585 GT has also gone under the scrutiny of the Ferrari factory’s certification program and easily received the full “Red Book” certification through Newport Beach Ferrari specialist, John Amette. For the certification process, the original gearbox was put in the car; however, the current owner has since removed it and put a more user-friendly synchromesh gearbox in the car for much better drivability purposes. It must be noted that the original unit will be supplied with the sale of this car. A full set of original tools and a jack will also be included, as well as a booklet of documentation and various trophies and awards that the car has received over the years. In preparation for the sale, 0585 GT has also just been completely detailed and sorted at well-respected Junior’s House of Color in Long Beach, California, so it will look stunning in presentation.

On a recent track drive in preparation for RM’s video and photography efforts, the car performed flawlessly, handling directly and powering through all of the gears with ease. As the RM specialist describes, “The four-wheel drum brakes and skinny tyres can sometimes provide a different driving experience for those familiar with later cars fitted with disk brakes and wider stances; however, it allows the pilot to become much more intimate with the driving experience and to engage the engine in a much different way, creating a completely different awareness of timing and speed…The most beautiful thing about these early TDs is what most Ferraristi will attest to, and that is the sound of the exhaust note when the car breaches 3500 rpm. As you power out of the corners, there is that point when the car just feels and sounds right! All the noises, the vibrations, and the elements of speed come together to create a symphonic harmony that is unlike anything else. Moreover, the sound is not too overpowering and is pleasurable for extended periods of time, which cannot be said for many other race-bred cars. It is the ultimate dual-purpose Ferrari!”

Impeccably cared for and stunningly restored, 0585 GT is a beautiful and rare example of the second series 14-louver Tour de France, one of Ferrari’s greatest sports cars of all time. This car’s next owner can look forward to continued warm receptions at the world’s finest automotive events, including rallies such as the Tour Auto and Mille Miglia, and premium exhibitive venues, such as Pebble Beach, Amelia Island, and the Palm Beach Cavallino Classic. It is a truly unique representative of one of Ferrari’s most revered models, and in many ways, it is the ultimate symbol of Ferrari’s long pursuit of dual-purpose sports cars that can be seriously campaigned as easily as they can be road driven. Given their extremely low production numbers and desirability, these cars rarely come to the market. The availability of 0585 GT after 14-years of single ownership offers an unbeatable chance to acquire one of the most storied machines to emerge from Maranello’s legendary motoring lore.

[Text from RM Auctions]

www.rmauctions.com/lots/lot.cfm?lot_id=1052658

This Lego miniland-scale Ferrari 250 GT LWB Berlinetta 'Tour de France' (1956 - Scaglietti), has been created for Flickr LUGNuts' 89th Build Challenge, - "Over a Million, Under a Thousand", - a challenge to build vehicles valued over one million (US) dollars, or under one thousand (US) dollars.

This particular vehicle was auctioned by the RM Auction house on Saturday, August 18, 2012, where it sold for $6,710,000.

Pretty much the same image as the previous but processed more for photographic impact rather than simply adjusting white balance as in the previous image which prioritized astronomy processing guidelines.

March, 2011: "My role is to oversee school attendance. Are children arriving on time? Are some of them missing class? Are they using the library?” says Sabéré Coulibaly, Minister for Education in his school’s student government, in Ségou Region. Student participation is correlated with improved academic performance and is a cornerstone of child-friendly schools, which prioritize children’s learning as much as their overall well-being.

©MLIA2011-01099/Lynch

To see more: www.unicef.org/photography

Also download the UNICEF Photography iPhone app here

PENSACOLA, Fla. (Dec. 16, 2020) Teresa Hiller, Naval Hospital Pensacolas (NHP) Immunization Program Manager administers one of the first COVID-19 vaccines to Lisa Fournier, a Clinical Pharmacist at NHP on Dec. 16, 2020. NHP was one of the facilities selected to receive the vaccine in a phased, standardized and coordinated strategy for prioritizing and administering the vaccine.

In June 2020, after experiencing a devastating spring due to COVID, New York State announced that certain businesses could begin partially opening again. New York City’s response included a program called Open Restaurants, which allowed restaurants to use sidewalks and parking spaces for outdoor, socially distant dining. Owners quickly built temporary enclosures in the streets in front of their businesses to try and recover from months of shutdown. A small stretch of Brooklyn in February 2021 showed the variety and feel of these enclosures. Hopefully, the Open Restaurants initiative will help these businesses to survive and may even lead to a more permanent reorienting of streets to prioritize people over cars.

to river.

"nothing will ever accidently drop. not from me. ever."

food > fetch.

and that is how all dogs prioritize.

my site:

www.iamboey.com

facebook:

www.facebook.com/BoeyCheeming

twitter:

twitter.com/iamboey

Prioritizing is all about split second decisions that brain makes in a Do or Die situations. The Phu Quoc sea shore's rocky ledge taught me this, as I ventured for a sunset shot on them. I slipped suddenly on the wet precarious rocks & saw my hand held precious items like tripod, camera, the brittle ND Grad Filters & a freezing fermented Barley Beverage Can, fly away from my fingers, only to make a slow motion, gravity drawn descent in different directions.

I dived full length with my left hand outstretched, landed with a sickening thud on my ribs, but truly befitting a retired cricketer, caught the Beer Can! The Camera Gear I found are pretty robust equipment & survived the rocky crash.

Cheers!

Reached #253

View large on black (Hint: Clicking this makes the frame disappear)

Comment Anxiety

(I’ve been wanting to post this sentiment for a while and even though it seems awkward as my return post, I kinda don’t care since I never meant to take a flickr break in the first place and I’m not waiting any longer.)

I want to give a shout-out to my contacts today. You see, there are a handful of my contacts whose photostreams I can never seem to catch up with (I’m sure you know who you are). First, I know it's because these contacts upload every day, or just about every day, meaning, if I get even one day behind, I'm already several images behind when I finally get around to catching up. And sometimes, I prioritize my catching up by people who have the least amount of photos I've missed so I have an easier sense of accomplishment. This unfortunately means that the people who have more photos for me to catch up on are prioritized lower than they ought to be.

But more importantly, the reason I actually get behind on certain people’s photostreams more than others is because I see their newest photo and I simply loathe the idea of trying to leave an adequate comment because the photo is just. so. good. I suppose you might think I’m trying to make a compliment out of my neglect, but it’s true. Generally, the better the work, the more likely I’ll put off leaving a comment because I hate writing so much, especially having to write well. For some contacts, since their work is so unique and so terribly thoughtful, to leave a simple comment that neglects to heap on praise for every single reason I like the photograph would almost be an insult, at least in my mind.

So, I'd like to dedicate this particular b&w image to those contacts who I can never seem to catch up with and yet always finds time for my humble photostream, whose photostreams are consistently wonderful, making it impossible for me to feel comfortable leaving any sort of ineloquent comment, and specifically today, those brilliant black and white photographers who inspire me to take more b&w shots while consequently making me question why I bother taking b&w images at all! Silver Doctor and Timo Frey, thank you for your work.

And finally, to the rest of my contacts, who all have extraordinary work and fantastic artistry, I truly hope you visit Silver Doctor’s and Timo Frey’s streams and understand I mean no offense by this post as they are certainly not the only contacts who leave me with comment anxiety. :-)

This World Environment Day, let’s all stand united in our pledge to prioritize our responsibilities towards Nature.

#Ada #Chikankari #Saveenviroment #Worldenviromentday

A float with red-coated revelers goes by. I had decided to shoot the parade with shutter prioritization. Why? So I could catch more beads as they flew through the air. By keeping a higher shutter speed, the beads have a tendency to just float there.

Here you see its size compared to a modified Lego DeLorean. I really liked that the Lego version had play functionality prioritized over scale accuracy. A true minifigure-scale car would be very difficult to comfortably fit two minifigures in, and would sap the potential for many details.

Push. Turn up the volume. Go hard. Go harder.

Re-prioritize your aches and pains.

Infuse your sensitivities with courage.

Tell fear to fuck right the fuck off.

Devote to Done.

There are soul-justified reasons to cancel. There are times to just stop. This isn’t one of them. Keep going. Show up. Full on. Full tilt. Full out. Decide to be one of those people who pull it off.

Do what you say you’re going to do.

Don’t let us down.

Decide to rise.

Why decide to rise? Not for the reasons you might think. In fact, these are the reasons that will make you sick and tired:

Do not rise out of obligation. Do not rise because of feared consequences. Do not rise because you think being tough makes you smarter (it doesn’t.)

Decide to rise because you want to expand — your being, your life, your possibilities.

Decide to rise because super powers are meant to be activated and applied in everyday life.

Decide to rise to explore your place in the universe.

On the other side of deciding to rise is illumination, ecstasy, insight. And the angel of your strength is there waiting, smiling, applauding, with a goblet of endorphins for you. Drink up.

When you transcend circumstances you get special privileges. You get evidence that you are indeed amazing, and irrefutable proof that what your heart and mind choose is what matters. And you get the deep knowing that life wants you to win.

Decide to rise.

Lean in. Listen up. Closely.

It’s your soul speaking and she says,

Get UP! I need you. I want you. I am you. Choose me.

Lean in. Listen up. Closely.

Decide to rise.

Danielle LaPorte

In June 2020, after experiencing a devastating spring due to COVID, New York State announced that certain businesses could begin partially opening again. New York City’s response included a program called Open Restaurants, which allowed restaurants to use sidewalks and parking spaces for outdoor, socially distant dining. Owners quickly built temporary enclosures in the streets in front of their businesses to try and recover from months of shutdown. Views from small stretches of Brooklyn in early 2021 showed the variety and feel of these enclosures. Hopefully, the Open Restaurants initiative will help these businesses to survive and may even lead to a more permanent reorienting of streets to prioritize people over cars.

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based on historical facts. BEWARE!

Some background:

The CAC Sabre, sometimes known as the Avon Sabre or CA-27, was an Australian variant of the North American Aviation F-86F Sabre fighter aircraft. In 1951, Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation obtained a license agreement to build the F-86F Sabre. In a major departure from the North American blueprint, it was decided that the CA-27 would be powered by a license-built version of the Rolls-Royce Avon R.A.7, rather than the General Electric J47. In theory, the Avon was capable of more than double the maximum thrust and double the thrust-to-weight ratio of the US engine. This necessitated a re-design of the fuselage, as the Avon was shorter, wider and lighter than the J47.

The CAC 27 Mk 41s’ last carrier operations took place in 1981 in the course of Melbourne’s involvements in two major exercises, Sea Hawk and Kangaroo 81, the ship’s final missions at sea. After Melbourne was decommissioned in 1984, the Fleet Air Arm ceased fixed-wing combat aircraft operation. This was the operational end of the Sabre Mk 41, which had reached the end of their airframe lifetime, and the Sea Sabre fleet had, during its career, severely suffered from accidents and losses: upon retirement, only eight of the original twenty-two aircraft still existed in flightworthy condition, so that the aircraft were all scrapped. The younger RAN A-4Gs were eventually sold to New Zealand, where they were kept in service until 2002.

General characteristics:

Crew: 1

Length: 37 ft 6 in (11.43 m)

Wingspan: 37 ft 1 in (11.3 m)

Height: 14 ft 5 in (4.39 m)

Wing area: 302.3 sq ft (28.1 m²)

Empty weight: 12,000 lb (5,443 kg)

Loaded weight: 16,000 lb (7,256 kg)

Max. takeoff weight: 21,210 lb (9,621 kg)

Powerplant:

1× Rolls-Royce Avon 208A turbojet engine with 8,200 lbf (36.44 kN)

Performance:

Maximum speed: 700 mph (1,100 km/h) (605 knots)

Range: 1,153 mi, (1,000 NM, 1,850 km)

Service ceiling: 52,000 ft (15,850 m)

Rate of climb: 12,000 ft/min at sea level (61 m/s)

Armament:

2× 30 mm ADEN cannons with 150 rounds per gun

5,300 lb (2,400 kg) of payload on six external hardpoints;

Bombs were usually mounted on outer two pylons as the mid pair were wet-plumbed pylons for

2× 200 gallons drop tanks, while the inner pair was usually occupied by a pair of AIM-9 Sidewinder

AAMs

A wide variety of bombs could be carried with maximum standard loadout being 2x 1,000 lb bombs

or 2x Matra pods with unguided SURA missiles plus 2 drop tanks for ground attacks, or 2x AIM-9 plus

two drop tanks as day fighter

The kit and its assembly:

This project was initially inspired by a set of decals from an ESCI A-4G which I had bought in a lot – I wondered if I could use it for a submission to the “In the navy” group build at whatifmodelers.com in early 2020. I considered an FJ-3M in Australian colors on this basis and had stashed away a Sword kit of that aircraft for this purpose. However, I had already built an FJ variant for the GB (a kitbashed mix of an F-86D and an FJ-4B in USMC colors), and was reluctant to add another Fury.

This spontaneously changed after (thanks to Corona virus quarantine…) I cleaned up one of my kit hoards and found a conversion set for a 1:72 CAC 27 from JAYS Model Kits which I had bought eons ago without a concrete plan. That was the eventual trigger to spin the RAN Fury idea further – why not a navalized version of the Avon Sabre for HMAS Melbourne?

The result is either another kitbash or a highly modified FJ-3M from Sword. The JAYS Model Kits set comes with a THICK sprue that carries two fuselage halves and an air intake, and it also offers a vacu canopy as a thin fallback option because the set is actually intended to be used together with a Hobby Craft F-86F.

While the parts, molded in a somewhat waxy and brittle styrene, look crude on the massive sprue, the fuselage halves come with very fine recessed engravings. And once you have cleaned the parts (NOTHING for people faint at heart, a mini drill with a saw blade is highly recommended), their fit is surprisingly good. The air intake was so exact that no putty was needed to blend it with the rest of the fuselage.

The rest came from the Sword kit and integrating the parts into the CAC 27 fuselage went more smoothly than expected. For instance, the FJ-3M comes with a nice cockpit tub that also holds a full air intake duct. Thanks to the slightly wider fuselage of the CAC 27, it could be mounted into the new fuselage halves without problems and the intake duct almost perfectly matches the intake frame from the conversion set. The tailpipe could be easily integrated without any mods, too. The fins had to be glued directly to the fuselage – but this is the way how the Sword kit is actually constructed! Even the FJ-3M’s wings match the different fuselage perfectly. The only modifications I had to make is a slight enlargement of the ventral wing opening at the front and at the read in order to take the deeper wing element from the Sword kit, but that was an easy task. Once in place, the parts blend almost perfectly into each other, just minor PSR was necessary to hide the seams!

Other mods include an extended front wheel well for the longer leg from the FJ-3M and a scratched arrester hook installation, made from wire, which is on purpose different from the Y-shaped hook of the Furies.

For the canopy I relied on the vacu piece that came with the JAYS set. Fitting it was not easy, though, it took some PSR to blend the windscreen into the rest of the fuselage. Not perfect, but O.K. for such a solution from a conversion set.

The underwing pylons were taken from the Sword kit, including the early Sidewinders. I just replaced the drop tanks – the OOB tanks are very wide, and even though they might be authentic for the FJ-3, I was skeptical if they fit at all under the wings with the landing gear extended? In order to avoid trouble and for a more modern look, I replaced them outright with more slender tanks, which were to mimic A-4 tanks (USN FJ-4s frequently carried Skyhawk tanks). They actually come from a Revell F-16 kit, with modified fins. The refueling probe comes from the Sword kit.

A last word about the Sword kit: much light, but also much shadow. While I appreciate the fine surface engravings, the recognizably cambered wings, a detailed cockpit with a two-piece resin seat and a pretty landing gear as well as the long air intake, I wonder why the creators totally failed to provide ANY detail of the arrester hook (there is literally nothing, as if this was a land-based Sabre variant!?) or went for doubtful solutions like a front landing gear that consists of five(!) single, tiny parts? Sadism? The resin seat was also broken (despite being packed in a seperate bag), and it did not fit into the cockpit tub at all. Meh!

Painting and markings:

From the start I planned to give the model the late RAN A-4Gs’ unique air superiority paint scheme, which was AFAIK introduced in the late Seventies: a two-tone wraparound scheme consisting of “Light Admiralty Grey” (BS381C 697) and “Aircraft Grey” (BS 381C 693). Quite simple, but finding suitable paints was not an easy task, and I based my choice on pictures of the real aircraft (esp. from "buzz" number 880 at the Fleet Air Arm Museum, you find pics of it with very good light condition) rather than rely on (pretty doubtful if not contradictive) recommendations in various painting instructions from models or decal sets.

I wanted to keep things simple and settled upon Dark Gull Grey (FS 36231) and Light Blue (FS 35414), both enamel colors from Modelmaster, since both are rather dull interpretations of these tones. Esp. the Light Blue comes quite close to Light Admiralty Grey, even though it should be lighter for more contrast to the darker grey tone. But it has that subtle greenish touch of the original BS tone, and I did not want to mix the colors.

The pattern was adapted from the late A-4Gs’ scheme, and the colors were dulled down even more through a light black ink wash. Some post-shading with lighter tones emphasized the contrast between the two colors again. And while it is not an exact representation of the unique RAN air superiority scheme, I think that the overall impression is there.

The cockpit interior was painted in very dark grey, while the landing gear, its wells and the inside of the air intake became white. A red rim was painted around the front opening, and the landing gear covers received a red outline, too. The white drop tanks are a detail I took from real world RAN A-4Gs - in the early days of the air superiority scheme, the tanks were frequently still finished in the old USN style livery, hence the white body but fins and tail section already in the updated colors.

The decals became a fight, though. As mentioned above, the came from an ESCI kit – and, as expected, the were brittle. All decals with a clear carrier film disintegrated while soaking in water, only those with a fully printed carrier film were more or less usable. One roundel broke and had to be repaired, and the checkered fin flash was a very delicate affair that broke several times, even though I tried to save and repair it with paint. But you can unfortunately see the damage.

Most stencils and some replacements (e. g. the “Navy” tag) come from the Sword FJ-3. While these decals are crisply printed, their carrier film is utterly thin, so thin that applying esp. the larger decals turned out to be hazardous and complicated. Another point that did not really convince me about the Sword kit.

Finally, the kit was sealed with matt acrylic varnish (Italeri) and some soot stains were added around the exhaust and the gun ports with graphite.

In the end, this build looks, despite the troubles and the rather exotic ingredients like a relatively simple Sabre with Australian markings, just with a different Navy livery. You neither immediately recognize the FJ-3 behind it, nor the Avon Sabre’s bigger fuselage, unless you take a close and probably educated look. Very subtle, though.

The RAN air superiority scheme from the late Skyhawks suits the Sabre/Fury-thing well – I like the fact that it is a modern fighter scheme, but, thanks to the tones and the colorful other markings, not as dull and boring like many others, e. g. the contemporary USN "Ghost" scheme. Made me wonder about an early RAAF F-18 in this livery - should look very pretty, too?

Bob Cusack, Editor-in-Chief of The Hill, interviews Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) during a policy briefing entitled “Prioritizing Patients: A Discussion on Outcomes-Based Care” sponsored by The Value Collaborative, PhRMA, and The Hill at the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, June 13, 2017.

OCTOBER 13, 2022 - WASHINGTON DC. 2022 IMF/WORLD BANK ANNUAL MEETINGS: Investing in People and Planet: Financing the Low-carbon, Resilient Transition

Climate action is in danger of stalling with profound consequences for all countries, particularly the poorest. Overlapping crises—the war in Ukraine, COVID-19, surging inflation — could derail the investments required to tackle the climate crisis. It is vital to improve not only the quantity but also the quality of climate finance, making sure it reaches those most affected by climate impacts, prioritizing adaptation and resilience. This event focused on ways to address climate and development needs together, supporting people and communities in the low-carbon, resilient transition.

Speakers: David Malpass, President, World Bank Group; Annette Nazareth, Chair, Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market; Dirk Forrister, President and CEO, International Emissions Trading Association (IETA); Makhtar Diop, Managing Director, IFC; Slawomir Krupa, Head, Global Banking & Investor Solutions, and future CEO, Société Générale; Mari Pangestu, Managing Director, Development Policy and Partnerships, World Bank; Nicholas Stern, IG Patel Professor of Economics and Government, London School of Economics. Host: Mercy Niwe, Stakeholder Engagement Lead, External and Corporate Relations, World Bank Group. Photo: World Bank

PORTSMOUTH, Va. (Dec. 23, 2020) – Hospitalman Jamesetta Karnwie, assigned to the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) Medical Department, receives the COVID-19 vaccine from Hospitalman Kelly Wilson, assigned to Naval Medical Center Portsmouth (NMCP) Immunizations Clinic, Dec. 23. NMCP is supporting the fleet by providing the voluntary vaccination within the DoD phased approach to prioritizing mission-essential healthcare personnel in receiving the vaccine. The John C. Stennis is partnering with Newport News Shipbuilding to complete Refueling Complex Overhaul on schedule with a trained, resilient and cohesive crew. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Kris R. Lindstrom/Released)

。鸡腿烧熟，就这么简单

酱油倒多了，黑糊糊的。

Is it success or not? How to define a dish is good or not, there are five constrains: color, fragrance, taste, sense, shape. But for homemade meal, we can not ask too much. If prioritizing those five conditions, I believe taste is the no.1, and fragrance, color shape, and sense are followings in sequence. Then, how to score a dish? If we give those five conditions different priorities, for example, the taste 5, fragrance 4, color 3, shape 2, and sense 1. For each of the category, we give the scores from 1-10. Then, a dish can be scored from 5 to 50.

What a wonderful dish-score-system, and what a geek I am.

Anyway, what I want to say is that this dish looks ugly, without great color and the gravy is too much. All of them will result in a quite low score in color, sense and shape. But from taste and fragrance's point of view, this dish is a great one.

[143/365] Tunnel of light.

I prioritized other things than photographing this weekend in Stockholm but at least I had my camera with me all the time and managed to take some shots.

Found this fantastic tunnel of light created by a street lamp highlighting the branches of a soaking wet tree. Hard to capture without a tripod though…

Have to go to sleep now...more uploads tomorrow...

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the model, the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!

Some background:

The Georgian Air Force and Air Defense Division (თავდაცვის ძალების ავიაციისა და საჰაერო თავდაცვის სარდლობა; tavdatsvis dzalebis aviatsiisa da sahaero tavdatsvis sardloba) was established on January 1, 1992, and in September the Georgian Air Force conducted its first combat flight during the separatist war in Abkhazia. On August 18, 1998, the two divisions were unified in a joint command structure and renamed the Georgian Air Force.

In 2010, the Georgian Air Force was abolished as a separate branch and incorporated into the Georgian Land Forces as Air and Air Defense sections. By that time, the equipment – primarily consisting of Eastern Bloc aircraft inherited from the Soviet Union after the country’s dissolution – was totally outdated, the most potent aircraft were a dozen Suchoj Su-25 attack aircraft and a handful of MiG-21U trainers.

The TAM-1’s development was long and protracted, though, primarily due to lack of resources and the fact that the Georgian air force was in an almost comatose state for several years, so that the potential prime customer for the TAM-1 was not officially available. However, the first TAM-1 prototype eventually made its maiden flight in September 2017. This was just in time, because the Georgian Air Force had formally been re-established in 2016, with plans for a major modernization and procurement program. Under the leadership of Georgian Minister of Defense Irakli Garibashvili the Air Force was re-prioritized and aircraft owned by the Georgian Air Force were being modernized and re-serviced after they were left abandoned for 4 years. This program lasted until 2020. In order to become more independent from foreign sources and support its domestic aircraft industry, the Georgian Air Force eventually ordered eight TAM-1s as Su-25K replacements, which would operate alongside a handful of modernized Su-25KMs from national stock. In the meantime, the new type also attained interest from abroad, e. g. from Bulgaria, the Congo and Cyprus. The IDF thoroughly tested two early production TAM-1s of the Georgian Air Force in 2018, too.

General characteristics:

Crew: 1

Length: 15.53 m (50 ft 11 in), including pitot

Wingspan: 14.36 m (47 ft 1 in)

Height: 4.8 m (15 ft 9 in)

Wing area: 35.2 m² (378 sq ft)

Empty weight: 9,800 kg (21,605 lb)

Gross weight: 14,440 kg (31,835 lb)

Max takeoff weight: 19,300 kg (42,549 lb)

Powerplant:

2× Rolls-Royce AE 3012 turbofans with 44.1 kN (9,920 lbf) thrust each

Performance:

Maximum speed: 975 km/h (606 mph, 526 kn, Mach 0.79)

Range: 1.000 km (620 mi, 540 nmi) with internal fuel, clean

Combat range: 750 km (470 mi, 400 nmi) at sea level with 4.500 kg (9,911 lb) of ordnance,

incl. two external fuel tanks

Service ceiling: 7.800 m (25,550 ft)

g limits: +6.5

Rate of climb: 58 m/s (11,400 ft/min)

Armament:

1× 35 mm (1.38 in) Oerlikon KDA cannon with 200 rds in two magazines

under the lower forward fuselage, offset to port side.

11× hardpoints with a capacity of up to 4.500 kg (9,911 lb) of external stores

The kit and its assembly:

This rather rigorous conversion had been on my project list for many years, and with the “Gunships” group build at whatifmodellers.com in late 2021 I eventually gathered my mojo to tackle it. The ingredients had already been procured long ago, but there are ideas that make you think twice before you take action…

This build was somewhat inspired by a CG rendition of a modified Su-25 that I came across while doing online search for potential ideas, running under the moniker “Su-125”, apparently created by someone called “Bispro” and published at DeviantArt in 2010; check this: (www.deviantart.com/bispro/art/Sukhoi-Su-125-Foghorn-15043...). The rendition shows a Su-25 with its engines re-located to the rear fuselage in separate nacelles, much like an A-10, plus a T-tail. However, as many photoshopped aircraft, the shown concept had IMHO some flaws. Where would a landing gear go, as the Su-125 still had shoulder wings? The engines’ position and size also looked fishy to me, quite small/narrow and very far high and back – I had doubts concerning the center of gravity. Nevertheless, I liked the idea, and the idea of an “A-10-esque remix” of the classic Frogfoot was born.

This idea was fueled even further when I found out that the Hobbycraft kit lends itself to such a conversion. The kit itself is not a brilliant Su-25 rendition, there are certainly better models of the aircraft in 1:72. However, what spoke for the kit as whiffing fodder was/is the fact that it is quite cheap (righteously so!) and AFAIK the only offering that comes with separate engine nacelles. These are attached to a completely independent central fuselage, and this avoids massive bodywork that would be necessary (if possible at all) with more conventional kits of this aircraft.

Another beneficial design feature is that the wing roots are an integral part of the original engine nacelles, forming their top side up to the fuselage spine. Through this, the original wingspan could be retained even without the nacelles, no wing extension would be necessary to retain the original proportions.

Work started with the central fuselage and the cockpit tub, which received a different (better) armored ejection seat and a pilot figure; the canopy remained unmodified and closed, because representing the model with an open cockpit would have required additional major body work on the spinal area behind the canopy. Inside, a new dashboard (from an Italeri BAe Hawk) was added, too – the original instrument panel is just a flat front bulkhead, there’s no space for the pilot to place the legs underneath the dashboard!

In parallel, the fin underwent major surgery. I initially considered an A-10-ish twin tail, but the Su-25’s high “tail stinger” prevented its implementation: the jet efflux would come very close to the tail surfaces. So, I went for something similar to the “Su-125” layout.

Mounting the OOB stabilizers to the fin was challenging, though. The fin lost its di-electric tip fairing, and it was cut into two sections, so that the tip would become long enough to match the stabilizers. A lucky find in the scrap box was a leftover tail tip from a Matchbox Blackburn Buccaneer, already shortened from a former, stillborn project: it had now the perfect length to take the Su-25 stabilizers! To make it fit on the fin, an 8mm deep section was inserted, in the form of a simple 1.5mm styrene sheet strip. Once dry, the surface was re-built with several PSR layers. Since it would sit further back on the new aircraft’s tail, the stinger with a RHAWS sensor was shortened.

On the fuselage, the attachment points for the wings and the engine nacelles were PSRed away and the front section filled with lots of lead beads, hoping that it would be enough to keep the model’s nose down.

Even though the wings had a proper span for a re-location into a low position, they still needed some attention: at the roots, there’s a ~1cm wide section without sweep (the area which would normally cover the original engine nacelles’ tops). This was mended through triangular 1.5 mm styrene wedges that extended the leading-edge sweep, roughly cut into shape once attached and later PSRed into the wings’ surfaces

The next construction site were the new landing gear attachment points. This had caused some serious headaches – where do you place and stow it? With new, low wings settled, the wings were the only logical place. But the wings were too thin to suitably take the retracted wheels, and, following the idea of a retrofitted existing design, I decided to adopt the A-10’s solution of nacelles into which the landing gear retracts forward, with the wheels still partly showing. This layout option appears quite plausible, since it would be a “graft-on” solution, and it also has the benefit of leaving lots of space for underwing stores, since the hardpoints’ position had to be modified now, too.

I was lucky to have a pair of A-10 landing gear nacelles at hand, left over from a wrecked Matchbox model from childhood time (the parts are probably 35 years old!). They were simply cut out, glued to the Su-25 wings and PSRed into shape. The result looked really good!

At this point I had to decide the model’s overall layout – where to place the wings, the tail and the new engine nacelles. The latter were not 1:72 A-10 transplants. I had some spare engine pods from the aforementioned Matchbox wreck, but these looked too rough and toylike for my taste. They were furthermore too bulky for the Su-25, which is markedly smaller than an A-10, so I had to look elsewhere. As a neat alternative for this project, I had already procured many moons ago a set of 1:144 resin PS-90A engines from a Russian company called “A.M.U.R. Reaver”, originally intended for a Tu-204 airliner or an Il-76 transport aircraft. These turbofan nacelles not only look very much like A-10 nacelles, just a bit smaller and more elegant, they are among the best resin aftermarket parts I have ever encountered: almost no flash, crisp molding, no bubbles, and perfect fit of the parts – WOW!

With these three elements at hand I was able to define the wings’ position, based on the tail, and from that the nacelles’ location, relative to the wings and the fin.

The next challenge: how to attach the new engines to the fuselage? The PS-90A engines came without pylons, so I had to improvise. I eventually found suitable pylons in the form of parts from F-14A underwing missile pylons, left over from an Italeri kit. Some major tailoring was necessary to find a proper position on the nacelles and on the fuselage, and PSRing these parts turned out to be quite difficult because of the tight and labyrinthine space.

When the engines were in place, work shifted towards the model’s underside. The landing gear was fully replaced. I initially wanted to retain the front wheel leg and the main wheels but found that the low wings would not allow a good ground clearance for underwing stores and re-arming the aircraft, a slightly taller solution was necessary. I eventually found a complete landing gear set in the scrap box, even though I am not certain to which aircraft it once belonged? I guess that the front wheel came from a Hasegawa RA-5C Vigilante, while the main gear and the wheels once belonged to an Italeri F-14A, alle struts were slightly shortened. The resulting stance is still a bit stalky, but an A-10 is also quite tall – this is just not so obvious because of the aircraft’s sheer size.

Due to the low wings and the landing gear pods, the Su-25’s hardpoints had to be re-arranged, and this eventually led to a layout very similar to the A-10. I gave the aircraft a pair of pylons inside of the pods, plus three hardpoints under the fuselage, even though all of these would only be used when slim ordnance was carried. I just fitted the outer pair. Outside of the landing gear fairings there would have been enough space for the Frogfoot’s original four outer for pylons, but I found this to be a little too much. So I gave it “just” three, with more space between them.

The respective ordnance is a mix for a CAS mission with dedicated and occasional targets. It consists of:

- Drop tanks under the inner wings (left over from a Bilek Su-17/22 kit)

- A pair of B-8M1 FFAR pods under the fuselage (from a vintage Mastercraft USSR weapon set)

- Two MERs with four 200 kg bombs each, mounted on the pylons outside of the landing gear (the odd MERs came from a Special Hobby IDF SMB-2 Super Mystère kit, the bombs are actually 1:100 USAF 750 lb bombs from a Tamiya F-105 Thunderchief in that scale)

- Four CBU-100 Rockeye Mk. II cluster bombs on the outer stations (from two Italeri USA/NATO weapon sets, each only offers a pair of these)

Yes, it’s a mix of Russian and NATO ordnance – but, like the real Georgian Su-25KM “Scorpion” upgrade, the TAM-1 would certainly be able to carry the same or even a wider mix, thanks to modified bomb racks and wirings. Esp. “dumb” weapons, which do not call for special targeting and guidance avionics, are qualified.

The gun under the nose was replaced with a piece from a hollow steel needle.

Painting and markings:

Nothing unusual here. I considered some more “exotic” options, but eventually settled for a “conservative” Soviet/Russian-style four-tone tactical camouflage, something that “normal” Su-25s would carry, too.

The disruptive pattern was adapted from a Macedonian Frogfoot but underwent some changes due to the T-tail and the engine nacelles. The basic tones were Humbrol 119 (RAF Light Earth), 150 (Forest Green), 195 (Chrome Oxide Green, RAL 6020) and 98 (Chocolate) on the upper surfaces and RLM78 from (Modelmaster #2087) from below, with a relatively low waterline, due to the low-set wings.

As usual, the model received a light black ink washing and some post-shading – especially on the hull and on the fin, where many details had either disappeared under PSR or were simply not there at all.

The landing gear and the lower areas of the cockpit were painted in light grey (Humbrol 64), while the upper cockpit sections were painted with bright turquoise (Modelmaster #2135). The wheel hubs were painted in bright green (Humbrol 101), while some di-electric fairings received a slightly less intense tone (Humbrol 2). A few of these flat fairings on the hull were furthermore created with green decal sheet material (from TL Modellbau) to avoid masking and corrections with paint.

The tactical markings became minimal, matching the look of late Georgian Su-25s. The roundels came from a Balkan Models Frogfoot sheet. The “07” was taken from a Blue Rider decal sheet, it actually belongs to a Lithuanian An-2. Some white stencils from generic MiG-21 and Mi-8 Begemot sheets were added, too, and some small markings were just painted onto the hull with yellow.

Some soot stains around the jet nozzles and the gun were added with graphite, and finally the kit was sealed with a coat of matt acrylic varnish.

A major bodywork project – and it’s weird that this is basically just a conversion of a stock kit and no kitbashing. A true Frogfoot remix! The new engines were the biggest “outsourced” addition, the A-10 landing gear fairings were a lucky find in the scrap box, and the rest is quite generic and could have looked differently. The result is impressive and balanced, though, the fictional TAM-1 looks quite plausible. The landing gear turned out to be a bit tall and stalky, though, making the aircraft look smaller on the ground than it actually is – but I left it that way.

via Instagram ift.tt/2iRkUiR

Canadians are often known for several positive characteristics, including:

1.Politeness and Courtesy – They have a reputation for being polite, saying “sorry” often, and treating others with respect.

2.Friendliness – Canadians are generally warm and welcoming to both locals and visitors.

3.Diversity and Inclusivity – Canada is multicultural, and its people embrace diversity in ethnicity, culture, and perspectives.

4.Tolerance and Open-Mindedness – Canadians tend to value human rights, equality, and progressive social policies.

5.Community-Oriented – Many Canadians are involved in their communities and prioritize social well-being.

6.Love for Nature and the Outdoors – With stunning landscapes, Canadians often appreciate and respect nature, engaging in outdoor activities like hiking, camping, and skiing.

7.Sense of Humor – They have a dry, self-deprecating, and sometimes quirky sense of humor.

8.Humble and Modest – Canadians tend to downplay achievements and avoid arrogance.

9.Hardworking and Resourceful – Whether in cities or remote regions, Canadians have a strong work ethic.

10.Peacefulness – They are generally non-confrontational and support diplomacy over aggression.

Thanks ChatGPT (prompt: tell me about Canadians)!

Looks like Mt. Mayon realized that shooting her was not the main reason I went to Bicol. She was quite shy and hesitant to show her beauty. Such is true with women, they should be prioritized if you want love in return

I went with a new processing angle here with high key being prioritized, this is one of my first attempts consciously aiming for this result.

OP-ED

Commemorating World TB Day 2022

Dr Ghulam Nabi Kazi

MARCH 23, 2022

World Tuberculosis (TB) Day is here again to commemorate the 140th anniversary of the discovery of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis as TB’s causative agent by Heinrich Hermann Robert Koch. Having been associated with the program in Pakistan since 1998 or 1999 when we seriously initiated an inter-provincial dialogue on the need for a proper mechanism to adopt the World Health Organization’s DOTS strategy, this may be an excellent time to recount the successes and challenges that TB control programs have encountered in nearly a quarter-century. But let us take a broader view of things.

Neither Robert Koch nor those who invented the appropriate drugs and/or diagnostics replicable on national scales would be happy had they been alive to see the disease still prospering today in developing countries. The reasons for these are multifarious – some are fragile states with weak health systems, others have existential threats, some have not prioritized TB as a major health threat, but they all have one thing in common; they are not spending enough to control or eliminate the disease. As a result, multi-drug resistant strains of TB are appearing in the richest nations with the strongest health systems. But let me add that the emergence of COVID-19 has revealed that no health system in the world is really strong, particularly in terms of communicable disease control. The proverbial “Captain of Death,” as TB was once called, continues to wreak its havoc globally. In 2020, around 10 million, including 3.3. million women and 1.1 million children, fell ill with TB while 1.5 million died from it, many more than the new pandemic.

n Pakistan, we seem to have relied too much for too long solely on a medical solution to the social problem of TB.

Returning to Pakistan, it is fifth on the list of high-burden TB countries after India, China, Indonesia and the Philippines, with 600,000 new people getting the disease and 44,000 dying annually from it. The national and provincial programs took off in a big way from 2000 onwards and on March 24, 2001, TB was declared a national emergency. However, that sense of urgency seems to have diluted since 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic brought about a significant lowering in case notifications as well as the expenditure on controlling TB.

TB control is based on the principle of treating and curing the existing pool of persons suffering from the disease to prevent them from infecting others. Thus, we have to identify as many TB patients as possible and cure them mostly with a six-month treatment regimen. Moving towards elimination by the year 2030, Pakistan will also need to provide preventive treatment to a sizable proportion (30-40 per cent) of its population, estimated to have latent TB without symptoms, to prevent them from developing active TB. While there are more than 5,200 public sector health centres providing free TB diagnostic care for 2 decades, we are yet missing 200,000 cases annually due to which the disease incidence is not lowering, despite significant investment from the government and donors, particularly the Global Fund, USAID, WHO and the Stop TB Partnership.

This year’s World TB Day comes around 8 months before the United Nations will review the progress of countries in controlling TB following the powerful 2018 declaration and has the theme: “Invest to End TB. Save Lives.” The message is clear. We have to look beyond COVID-19 and spend more money to control the more deadly pandemic of TB that has haunted us since pre-historic times.

In Pakistan, it seems we have relied too much for too long solely on a medical solution to the social problem of TB, which requires a human rights-based TB response, supported, of course, by good clinical practices. We must bring about a paradigm shift to focus more on the people affected by TB and not just their medical problems. TB is a disease of poverty that is known to perpetuate poverty further. Just the way, the constitution of the WHO calls for attaining the highest standards of health for the entire world population, it is imperative to adopt a rights-based approach that is more gender-sensitive and leverages existing national laws including the right to health, non-discrimination, privacy & confidentiality, information and liberty. This will, in turn, transform the TB response to be more equitable and people-centred making it necessary to target those most at-risk for TB whether due to their social status, peripheral locations or occupational hazards.

More importantly, we have to eliminate the discrimination, which stems from the stigma attached to TB, which is known to be widespread and impinging on employment, education, housing, and even family relations. As pointed out by the President of Pakistan Dr Arif Alvi at the TB summit on the 18th January 2022, it is this very stigma and discrimination that leads to delayed diagnosis and treatment initiation. The President and First Lady are personally leading the fight against Tuberculosis and Breast Cancer, respectively by reducing the stigma attached to both conditions.

It is also widely known that while fewer women contract TB, they disproportionately bear the brunt of it in terms of personal relationships and diminished social status. Our health facilities may also be failing to provide the right to privacy & confidentiality in avoiding disclosures of personal health information. Although laws in Pakistan safeguard this right, our socio-cultural fabric tends to violate it. Then the right to liberty does not permit us to confine people with TB but rather treat them in domiciliary settings with the necessary precautions. Marginalized groups including the homeless, nomads, refugees, IDPs, migrants, minorities and people with mental health issues often require special attention for their specific needs.

In case Pakistan’s provincial TB programs can incorporate this missing link in their care protocols, we can accelerate the elimination of this disease much more rapidly and hopefully by the targeted date of 2030. It will entail a lot of empathy, adherence to laws, enhanced efforts for better diagnostics and treatment choices, with sharing of human suffering and pain, yet it is a goal we simply have to achieve!

The writer is a senior public health specialist and Editor in Chief of Public Health Action.

BB 306 as Medan switcher locomotive passing big railroad crossing.

Nigeria, 2017: Education activist Malala Yousafzai (in black) meets with schoolgirls displaced by the Boko Haram crisis, in Maiduguri, epicentre of the crisis in the country’s north-east – where 3 million children need support to keep learning. “Nigeria is the richest country in Africa, but has more girls out of school than any country in the world,” Ms. Yousafzai said. “For these girls and for their country’s future, Nigeria’s leaders must immediately prioritize education.”

©UNICEF/UN072059/Abubakar

To see more: medium.com/photography-and-social-change

To learn more: www.unicef.org

Staging area for priority piloted convoy procession along the BC Highway 4 detour route. BC Highway 4 remains closed. Detour route is prioritizing commercial vehicle traffic at each side of the detour throughout the day. For more info check DriveBC.ca

The practice of quarantine started in the fourteenth century in an effort to protect coastal cities from plague epidemics. Though considered vital in stopping the spread of disease, quarantine is also a great time to prioritize mental and physical well-being.

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"The Jefferson Memorial is a presidential memorial built in Washington, D.C. between 1939 and 1943 in honor of Thomas Jefferson, the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence, a central intellectual force behind the American Revolution, founder of the Democratic-Republican Party, and the nation's third president.

The Jefferson Memorial features multiple Jefferson quotes designed to capture Jefferson's ideology and philosophy, known as Jeffersonian democracy, which was staunchly supportive of American republicanism, individual rights, religious freedom, states' rights, and virtue and prioritized and valued what he saw as the undervalued independent yeoman. Jefferson was simultaneously deeply skeptical of cities and financiers and hostile to aristocracy, elitism, and corruption. He is widely considered among the most influential political minds of his age and one of the most consequential intellectual forces behind the American Revolution.

The Jefferson Memorial is built in neoclassical style and is situated in West Potomac Park on the shore of the Potomac River. It was designed by John Russell Pope, a New York City architect, and built by Philadelphia contractor John McShain. Construction on it began in 1939 and was completed in 1943, though the bronze statue of Jefferson was not completed and added until four years after its dedication and opening, in 1947. Pope made references to the Roman Pantheon, whose designer was Apollodorus of Damascus, and to Jefferson's own design for the rotunda at the University of Virginia as inspirations for the memorial's aesthetics.

The Jefferson Memorial and White House form a main anchor point to the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The Washington Monument, initially intended to be built at the intersection of the White House and the Jefferson Memorial's site, was ultimately built further east because the ground at that location was deemed too soft and swampy.

The Jefferson Memorial is a designated national memorial and is managed by the National Park Service of the U.S. Department of the Interior's National Mall and Memorial Parks division. In 1966, the Jefferson Memorial was named to the National Register of Historic Places. In 2007, it ranked fourth on the "list of America's favorite architecture", published by the American Institute of Architects.

The National Mall is a landscaped park near the downtown area of Washington, D.C., the capital city of the United States, and contains and borders a number of museums of the Smithsonian Institution, art galleries, cultural institutions, and various memorials, sculptures, and statues. It is administered by the National Park Service (NPS) of the United States Department of the Interior as part of the National Mall and Memorial Parks unit of the National Park System. The park receives approximately 24 million visitors each year.

The core area of the National Mall extends between the United States Capitol grounds to the east and the Washington Monument to the west and is lined to the north and south by several museums and a federal office building. The term National Mall may also include areas that are also officially part of neighboring West Potomac Park to the south and west and Constitution Gardens to the north, extending to the Lincoln Memorial on the west and Jefferson Memorial to the south.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia, also known as just Washington or simply D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. It is located on the east bank of the Potomac River, which forms its southwestern and southern border with the U.S. state of Virginia, and it shares a land border with the U.S. state of Maryland on its other sides. The city was named for George Washington, a Founding Father and the first president of the United States, and the federal district is named after Columbia, the female personification of the nation. As the seat of the U.S. federal government and several international organizations, the city is an important world political capital. It is one of the most visited cities in the U.S. with over 20 million annual visitors as of 2016.

The U.S. Constitution provides for a federal district under the exclusive jurisdiction of Congress; the district is not a part of any U.S. state (nor is it one itself). The signing of the Residence Act on July 16, 1790, approved the creation of the capital district located along the Potomac River near the country's East Coast. The City of Washington was founded in 1791, and Congress held its first session there in 1800. In 1801, the territory, formerly part of Maryland and Virginia (including the settlements of Georgetown and Alexandria), officially became recognized as the federal district. In 1846, Congress returned the land originally ceded by Virginia, including the city of Alexandria; in 1871, it created a single municipal government for the remaining portion of the district. There have been efforts to make the city into a state since the 1880s, a movement that has gained momentum in recent years, and a statehood bill passed the House of Representatives in 2021.

The city is divided into quadrants centered on the Capitol, and there are as many as 131 neighborhoods. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 689,545, which makes it the 23rd most populous city in the U.S. as of 2020, the third most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and gives it a population larger than that of two U.S. states: Wyoming and Vermont. Commuters from the surrounding Maryland and Virginia suburbs raise the city's daytime population to more than one million during the workweek. Washington's metropolitan area, the country's sixth largest (including parts of Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia), had a 2020 estimated population of 6.3 million residents; and over 54 million people live within 250 mi (400 km) of the District.

The three branches of the U.S. federal government are centered in the district: Congress (legislative), the president (executive), and the Supreme Court (judicial). Washington is home to many national monuments and museums, primarily situated on or around the National Mall. The city hosts 177 foreign embassies as well as the headquarters of many international organizations, trade unions, non-profits, lobbying groups, and professional associations, including the World Bank Group, the International Monetary Fund, the Organization of American States, AARP, the National Geographic Society, the American Red Cross, and others.

A locally elected mayor and a 13-member council have governed the district since 1973. Congress maintains supreme authority over the city and may overturn local laws. The District of Columbia does not have representation in Congress, although D.C. residents elect a single at-large congressional delegate to the House of Representatives who has no vote. District voters choose three presidential electors in accordance with the Twenty-third Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratified in 1961." - info from Wikipedia.

The fall of 2022 I did my 3rd major cycling tour. I began my adventure in Montreal, Canada and finished in Savannah, GA. This tour took me through the oldest parts of Quebec and the 13 original US states. During this adventure I cycled 7,126 km over the course of 2.5 months and took more than 68,000 photos. As with my previous tours, a major focus was to photograph historic architecture.

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In Somaliland, cash-for-work initiatives are repairing productive infrastructure prioritized by communities, such as water catchments to capture the next rains and maintain water availability and contour bunds to control soil erosion, promote water retention and increase production.

Read more about FAO and cash for work.

Photo credit must be given: ©FAO/F. Nyakairu. Editorial use only. Copyright FAO

Kevin Delaney, Editor-in-Chief and Chief Executive Officer, Charter, USA, speaking in the Prioritizing Mental Health session at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2022 in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland, 23 May. Congress Centre - Ignite. Copyright: World Economic Forum/ Valeriano de Domenico

Staging area for priority piloted convoy procession along the BC Highway 4 detour route. BC Highway 4 remains closed. Detour route is prioritizing commercial vehicle traffic at each side of the detour throughout the day. For more info check DriveBC.ca

The new extension of the Art Gallery of New South Wales (AGNSW) in Sydney, designed by the architectural firm Sam Marshall, presents a striking blend of contemporary design and responsiveness to its historic surroundings. Completed in 2022, the extension features a distinctive, angular form with a sweeping cantilevered roof, creating a dramatic visual contrast to the original 19th-century building. The structure is designed to enhance the gallery's functionality, providing additional exhibition space while maintaining a deep respect for the site’s heritage and natural surroundings.

Architecturally, the new wing uses natural materials like sandstone and timber, in keeping with the gallery's historic aesthetic, but with a modern, minimalist twist. The extension also integrates sustainable features, including energy-efficient glass and green roof areas, blending seamlessly with the Royal Botanic Garden next door. Inside, the design prioritizes open, flexible exhibition spaces, with an emphasis on natural light and a connection to the outdoor landscape, offering visitors a modern and immersive art experience.

Fatima-Zahra Ma-el-ainin, Advisory Council, Rabat Hub, Morocco, speaking in the Prioritizing Mental Health session at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2022 in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland, 23 May. Congress Centre - Ignite. Copyright: World Economic Forum/ Valeriano de Domenico

Resist the temptation to swim in the Rhine River, no matter how appealing it might seem on a hot day. While the idea of a refreshing dip might cross your mind, the reality is that the Rhine poses significant dangers that make swimming incredibly risky. It's crucial to prioritize your safety and understand why entering these waters is strongly advised against.

The primary danger of the Rhine lies in its powerful and unpredictable currents. Even experienced swimmers can be quickly overwhelmed by the sheer force of the river, which can pull you under or sweep you away in an instant. Furthermore, the Rhine is a major shipping lane, meaning large vessels constantly traverse its waters. These ships create strong undertows and waves that can disorient and endanger anyone in the water, and their immense size makes it impossible for them to stop or maneuver quickly to avoid swimmers.

Beyond the immediate dangers of currents and shipping traffic, the Rhine's water quality can also be a concern, with potential pollutants from industrial and agricultural runoff. Therefore, for your own safety and well-being, it's essential to find alternative ways to cool off and enjoy the water. Stick to designated swimming areas, public pools, or other safe recreational spots where you can swim without fear for your life.

[19/100] So I look exhausted today because for some reason, instead of prioritizing literally anything important, we spent the ENTIRE DAY reorganizing our kitchen and confronting the sheer number of items I have acquired for free, at thrift stores, or the dollar store that simply aren’t very good at what they do. It was like pretend-moving our kitchen as a form of extreme procrastination. Ever done that? I feel productive but also like...umm, that was not the plan?

"The Jefferson Memorial is a presidential memorial built in Washington, D.C. between 1939 and 1943 in honor of Thomas Jefferson, the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence, a central intellectual force behind the American Revolution, founder of the Democratic-Republican Party, and the nation's third president.

The Jefferson Memorial features multiple Jefferson quotes designed to capture Jefferson's ideology and philosophy, known as Jeffersonian democracy, which was staunchly supportive of American republicanism, individual rights, religious freedom, states' rights, and virtue and prioritized and valued what he saw as the undervalued independent yeoman. Jefferson was simultaneously deeply skeptical of cities and financiers and hostile to aristocracy, elitism, and corruption. He is widely considered among the most influential political minds of his age and one of the most consequential intellectual forces behind the American Revolution.

The Jefferson Memorial is built in neoclassical style and is situated in West Potomac Park on the shore of the Potomac River. It was designed by John Russell Pope, a New York City architect, and built by Philadelphia contractor John McShain. Construction on it began in 1939 and was completed in 1943, though the bronze statue of Jefferson was not completed and added until four years after its dedication and opening, in 1947. Pope made references to the Roman Pantheon, whose designer was Apollodorus of Damascus, and to Jefferson's own design for the rotunda at the University of Virginia as inspirations for the memorial's aesthetics.

The Jefferson Memorial and White House form a main anchor point to the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The Washington Monument, initially intended to be built at the intersection of the White House and the Jefferson Memorial's site, was ultimately built further east because the ground at that location was deemed too soft and swampy.

The Jefferson Memorial is a designated national memorial and is managed by the National Park Service of the U.S. Department of the Interior's National Mall and Memorial Parks division. In 1966, the Jefferson Memorial was named to the National Register of Historic Places. In 2007, it ranked fourth on the "list of America's favorite architecture", published by the American Institute of Architects.

The National Mall is a landscaped park near the downtown area of Washington, D.C., the capital city of the United States, and contains and borders a number of museums of the Smithsonian Institution, art galleries, cultural institutions, and various memorials, sculptures, and statues. It is administered by the National Park Service (NPS) of the United States Department of the Interior as part of the National Mall and Memorial Parks unit of the National Park System. The park receives approximately 24 million visitors each year.

The core area of the National Mall extends between the United States Capitol grounds to the east and the Washington Monument to the west and is lined to the north and south by several museums and a federal office building. The term National Mall may also include areas that are also officially part of neighboring West Potomac Park to the south and west and Constitution Gardens to the north, extending to the Lincoln Memorial on the west and Jefferson Memorial to the south.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia, also known as just Washington or simply D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. It is located on the east bank of the Potomac River, which forms its southwestern and southern border with the U.S. state of Virginia, and it shares a land border with the U.S. state of Maryland on its other sides. The city was named for George Washington, a Founding Father and the first president of the United States, and the federal district is named after Columbia, the female personification of the nation. As the seat of the U.S. federal government and several international organizations, the city is an important world political capital. It is one of the most visited cities in the U.S. with over 20 million annual visitors as of 2016.

The U.S. Constitution provides for a federal district under the exclusive jurisdiction of Congress; the district is not a part of any U.S. state (nor is it one itself). The signing of the Residence Act on July 16, 1790, approved the creation of the capital district located along the Potomac River near the country's East Coast. The City of Washington was founded in 1791, and Congress held its first session there in 1800. In 1801, the territory, formerly part of Maryland and Virginia (including the settlements of Georgetown and Alexandria), officially became recognized as the federal district. In 1846, Congress returned the land originally ceded by Virginia, including the city of Alexandria; in 1871, it created a single municipal government for the remaining portion of the district. There have been efforts to make the city into a state since the 1880s, a movement that has gained momentum in recent years, and a statehood bill passed the House of Representatives in 2021.

The city is divided into quadrants centered on the Capitol, and there are as many as 131 neighborhoods. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 689,545, which makes it the 23rd most populous city in the U.S. as of 2020, the third most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and gives it a population larger than that of two U.S. states: Wyoming and Vermont. Commuters from the surrounding Maryland and Virginia suburbs raise the city's daytime population to more than one million during the workweek. Washington's metropolitan area, the country's sixth largest (including parts of Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia), had a 2020 estimated population of 6.3 million residents; and over 54 million people live within 250 mi (400 km) of the District.

The three branches of the U.S. federal government are centered in the district: Congress (legislative), the president (executive), and the Supreme Court (judicial). Washington is home to many national monuments and museums, primarily situated on or around the National Mall. The city hosts 177 foreign embassies as well as the headquarters of many international organizations, trade unions, non-profits, lobbying groups, and professional associations, including the World Bank Group, the International Monetary Fund, the Organization of American States, AARP, the National Geographic Society, the American Red Cross, and others.

A locally elected mayor and a 13-member council have governed the district since 1973. Congress maintains supreme authority over the city and may overturn local laws. The District of Columbia does not have representation in Congress, although D.C. residents elect a single at-large congressional delegate to the House of Representatives who has no vote. District voters choose three presidential electors in accordance with the Twenty-third Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratified in 1961." - info from Wikipedia.

The fall of 2022 I did my 3rd major cycling tour. I began my adventure in Montreal, Canada and finished in Savannah, GA. This tour took me through the oldest parts of Quebec and the 13 original US states. During this adventure I cycled 7,126 km over the course of 2.5 months and took more than 68,000 photos. As with my previous tours, a major focus was to photograph historic architecture.

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The designer of the Salmamundi-class heavy cruiser is unknown. The manufacturer is unknown. The original commissioner of the design is unknown. In fact, very little about the origins of this particular class of vessel are known. The reasons for this are obvious: the Salmamundi is a pirate vessel. In fact, it is the only known vessel to be exclusivley operated by pirates and other criminals, as well as being, as far as could be determined, designed and built by them.

The Salmagundi prioritizes above all else speed. It Is one of the fastest type of ship in the galaxy, capable of outrunning almost anything else. The standard tactic for this ship seems to be to lie in wait in a heavily trafficked area with all systems bar minimal life support deactivated. Once the passive sensores detect prey, it jumps to life, running down its target, boarding, seizing all valuables before making its escape. For this purpose it also has large storing capacity.

The immense power it draws on to accelerate comes at a price, however, as its shields are very weak, and its armour barely that of a light cruiser. Its large size means that entire pirate crews can live on it, negating the need for a vulnerable home base, but it also means the capture or destruction of one results in an enormous loss for a pirate faction. In fact, only one has ever been captured intact, by the Tracy-Nimmer Corporation. Most tend to be crewed very aggressively, as most pirates prefer death to capture, which often as not is a slower, more painful death.

The main opposition to this vessel is the Vanguard-class types of the Tracy-Nimmer Corporation, as well as the Elicerent-class of the Nova Corporation. The Salmagundi is able to outrun nearly all opponents, except for the Vanguard-class, which is more than powerful enough to destroy a Salmagundi with ease. The one captured Salmagundi proved a treasure trove of information, which the Tracy-Nimmer Corporation graciously shared to interested parties, for a price.

The only other major threat to this ship class is one of the most creative, unique and bizarre ship type. The Elicirent-class is visually identical to the Asinus-class cargo hauler of the Nova corporation. However, it is filled with explosives and completely devoid of life, sending out false readings and signals to fool pirate scanners. Once a pirate vessel attaches to board, the Elicirent simply blows up, usually taking the entire pirate crew along with it. A brilliant solution from a much smaller corporation that has neither the time or resources to build its own fleet of escorts. The concept was so successful that other companies soon copied it with their own designs. From then on any such decoy ship was simply called an Elicirent regardless of its actual design or class.

Such a huge influx of danger to pirates and criminals directly led to the Great Securing, whereafter only a few pirates, the most desperate or crafty ones, remained set in their ways and continued to wage their own, private war against honest citizens of the galaxy. But year after year, there are less and less of them...

23250 McKay Avenue

Maple Ridge, BC Canada

A Harbour Authority (HA) is a non-profit, locally controlled organization which operates under a head lease with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) to operate and maintain a DFO-owned public commercial fishing harbour in the best interests of the commercial fishing fleet.

The harbour facility consists entirely of the property and water lots under the ownership of DFO – Small Craft Harbours (SCH).

An HA must operate the harbour as a public facility in accordance with the terms of the head lease and must at all times prioritize the needs of the commercial fishing industry above all else.

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Thank-you for your visit, and any faves or comments are always greatly appreciated.

Sonja

Families from Munshigong keep together as they seek refuge in the Caritas Bangladesh cyclone shelter, attempting as much safe distancing as possible, while prioritizing safety from the deadly storms.

Tropical cyclone Amphan intensified rapidly in the Bay of Bengal to become a “Super Cyclonic Storm” – the equivalent of a strong Category 4/weak Category 5 on the Saffir Simpson scale. It weakened ahead of landfall on Wednesday, May 20, 2020 as a very severe cyclonic storm (strong Category 2 equivalent), bringing dangerous winds, storm surge and flooding to coastal areas of West Bengal in India and Bangladesh. At least 658,000 people were evacuated in West Bengal and Odisha before the cyclone struck. Amphan impacted densely populated areas, including the Indian city of Kolkata (Calcutta) at a time when restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic have been in force, thereby complicating disaster. The strong winds and the pounding rains have left the city inundated making the city’s already vulnerable urban poor more vulnerable. CRS and Caritas will implement a joint response to Cyclone Amphan. A joint emergency response team has been established to support response efforts including immediate needs such as temporary shelter, access to safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene.

21 May 2020 Day 2

Photo by Amit Rudro for CRS/Caritas Bangladesh

Sauda trip in november 2007.

Used@

1 commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Åbødalen_Waterfall.jpg

2 Photos of Waterfalls

www.webparade.co.uk/2010/09/photos-of-waterfalls.html

3 www.noblearkventures.com/prioritizing-resources-based-mar...

Rashida Jones

President, MSNBC

Greg Shell

Head of Inclusive Growth Strategy, Goldman Sachs

During the Capacity Development - Financial Sector Stability session at the 2019 IMF/World Bank Spring Meetings at IMF Headquarters April 10, 2019 in Washington, DC, Nico Valckx, Naoto Osawa, and Tumubweine Twinemanzi answe the questions : How can policymakers implement a strong reform agenda? Join us to learn how countries such as Uganda are using targeted tools like the Financial Sector Stability Review, so they can prioritize reforms and build a more resilient financial sector. IMF Photograph/Joshua Roberts

Sara Eisen

News Anchor, CNBC

Chip Bergh

President and CEO, Levi Strauss & Co.

Erika James

Dean, The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania

Rashida Jones

President, MSNBC

Greg Shell

Head of Inclusive Growth Strategy, Goldman Sachs

BOX DATE: 2001

MANUFACTURER: Mattel

DOLLS IN LINE: Barbie; Ken; Lorena ; Tommy; Melody; Kelly

VARIATIONS: Blonde; African American

BODY TYPE: 1968; molded underwear; Twist 'N Turn waist; button & battery compartment on back; speaker on torso; bent arms; pivotal neck; bend & snap legs

HEAD MOLD: 91.97 "Jamal rooted hair"

SPECIAL FEATURES: Talks & makes sounds

PERSONAL FUN FACT written by my sister: This doll has quite an interesting history behind him. I believe he spent most of summer 2018 on the table of regular sellers at the flea market. However, the older couple we bought him from have so many dolls that it is hard to say for sure. I'm am almost positive I had seen him earlier, however, we didn't buy him ages ago because these sellers typically charge three to five dollars for a doll and they have so many to chose from. Originally, we were buying Bratz from this couple. Later, they seemed to carry a better assortment of Monster High. Either way, because we get Barbie items so frequently in bins, because relatives give them to us as gifts, and because they are just so widely available, in a large assortment where you can't buy everyone you'd like, we typically prioritize Bratz and Monster High.

The pickins were very slim the last weekend of September 2018. Therefore, dolls I'm pretty sure we left behind at one point like Stephan and our Flavas Liam, were able to finally join the family! However, I did not immediately spy Stephan while looking through the dollies...somebody else spotted him first. A mother and a little girl were also checking out the dolls. This made my search more frantic, because I wanted to make sure I wasn't beat to a doll I might really want. Then I heard, "Look, Mommy! It's a prince!" To my horror, she was holding up Stephan. Shelly saw me, Shelly saw the girl, and Shelly saw Stephan and she knew, "Colleen wants that Stephan doll in the little girl's hand." Luckily for me, while I didn't hear what the mother said exactly, the mom didn't seem to keen on Stephan. He was, after all, rather raggedy. To someone like me, he didn't look raggedy--he still had his clothes. Hair I can fix, clothes are harder to track down. However, his curly hair was quite ratty, which is probably why the mother didn't want to buy him. At any rate, I watched them put him down, waited a second, then instructed Shelly to grab him. I then took Stephan and Liam from Shelly and handed the nice elderly lady six bucks, stowed the fellas in my handbag, and left. And that is how Stephan came to be here.

I know, however, that even if the little girl hadn't considered buying Stephan, I'd have wanted him anyway. For one thing, I have two blond Stephans (pictured separately) that I recovered in the "60 Doll Bin" of 2013 and I'm very fond of them. The African American variant was highly desired. In fact, the day in question, Stephan was especially desirable. I had rewritten my fun fact on my blondes very recently and had Prince Stephan in the foreground of the dolly brain. (The dolly brain is often cluttered from having so many different dolly interests, but a random coincidence of rewriting a fun fact can remind me of how much I want something.)

Stephan is also my first African American Ken. I have other African American guy dolls--Mr. Heart, So In Style Darren, Steven dolls, Alan--but he is my first and only Ken with dark skin! It was kind of shocking to realize this. Shelly and I have gravitated toward African American dolls since Bathtime Fun Kelly. What I've realized about the way we collect dolls is that, because we are so open and our interests are so diverse, our collection doesn't necessarily reflect our level of interests. Therefore, the number of blonde dolls is probably the highest, even though we actually don't usually gravitate toward the blonde dolls. If you look at a bin of dolls we get, we'll sometimes end up with all blondes and more girl dolls than guys. This is because of what children typically bought. However, on days like the day we found Stephan, when we are buying individual dolls rather than lots, you can see what we gravitate toward. We typically, for example, come home with mostly non-Barbies, such as Bratz and Monster High. For instance, the day we got Stephan, we got six dolls in all. Three had darker skin. Two out of the six were guy dolls. Four were not Barbie-affiliated. However, based on our collection size, you can tell our motto is "Every doll is perfect for the right price!" Basically, we just love any kind of fashion doll!