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My mum loves me, but she can’t take care of me… Hiro said that’s because of her neko hormones or something like that… She is in love and she is dangerous for me now. How can be a mummy dangerous?
Our Stan caught in a brief moment of contemplation amidst his usual frenetic activity. I think Cocker Spaniels are born with springs in their legs and an unlimited supply of high energy.
I have been to Aldeburgh several time before. Nover to park the car and wander round the shops and eateries in the centre, just to pass through on the war from or to Thorpness, the drive along the top end of the beach very enjoyable.
Aldeburgh is arty, and has been for many years. My thought was to look at the parish church, and thankful with the low rise town and large tower, it was easy to find. Although at the new roundabout I was tempted by the road leading to Church Farm, but though the centre of the town better.
I was right, as the main road passed right beside Ss. Peter and Paul, and had a very large and paved car park, although they did want I think £4.50 to use it.
I wasn't sure if it would be open, but there was a welcoming sign on the door beneath the tower at the western end of the church.
THere is a small "porch" in the base of the tower with a locked door for the bellringers. Ahead I walked to the double door and pushed.
Upon entering, the church. the nave spread out well on either side, and beyond broad columns were two wide aisles, looking contemporary with the church.. Altogether very impressive.
I heard hushed voices in the southern chapel, and looking over I saw someone reading with the aid of an angle poise light, and one other person listening. It seemed to be a list of names, maybe prayers requested by parishioners.
I tried to be quiet, but the quadruple click of my camera as I go my shots seemed to echo around the church, so I limited my shots near to the chancel.
I heard the final lines of The Lord's Prayer, and knew the service was at an end. I went over to apologise for disturbing them, and they said I had done no such thing. In fact, they insisted I had been there a week before, with a friend, taking shots. Not me I said, I have no twin and no friends.
The vicar, because it was he, was very kind, asked about what U was doing, mentioned Mr Knott, as he was familiar with his Suffolk Church website, but unaware that it also stretched to Norfolk, Essex, Cambridgeshire, The City of London and possibly soon, Rutland.
Ss Peter and Paul, at least to me, seems unusual as being a whole church, despite being Victorianised, the nave and aisles look of the same age, and so seem to complete a whole. Of course there is nothing wrong in unmatching buildings, indeed, making them more interesting. But all in all, pleasing to the eye.
Back outside, I much admired the porch to the south, with arches in the east and west side, probably for processions I thought, being correct at least for one.
It seems to be open all day, most of the day. And free, except the car park.
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Aldeburgh, as Scott Fitzgerald might have observed, is different from the rest of Suffolk. Actually, if a writer was going to say this, perhaps E.M. Forster is more likely; he spent a lot of time here with his friend Benjamin Britten, and there's a memorable photograph of them sitting together in a boat.
Aldeburgh, pronounced Orld-brur, is, of course, the home of the Aldeburgh festival; but at anytime you'll find it full of visitors, many of them mild eccentrics, dressed colourfully for the season. Perhaps only in Lavenham would you find it harder to track down a local. The town's shops are thriving as a consequence, but even in winter the streets can become a car park on a sunny day. Don't even think of being able to park in high summer.
The difference between Lavenham and Aldeburgh, though, is that people often come here to stay. The desirable 18th and 19th century houses the length of the front are one of the reasons. Crag House, just down from the church and one of the largest, was where Britten lived for many years. Britten was born 20 miles north at Kirkley, in Lowestoft, where his father was a dentist. But it took him three years in America to realise that Suffolk was where he wanted to be, and so at the height of wartime he undertook the dangerous journey home with his partner, Peter Pears. They rented out the old mill at nearby Snape, where Britten wrote his first masterpiece, Peter Grimes, based on Crabbe's story The Borough, about a fishing village, where the anti-hero Grimes suffers the wrath of the community's hypocrisy, for his ill-treatment of his apprentices. One of the major scenes in the opera takes place in this church, for the Borough, of course, is Aldeburgh. It also appears in Wilkie Collins' finest novel, No Name, as Aldborough.
In later life, Britten and Pears moved to the Red House, near the quiet seclusion of the golf course; but their real local testament is, of course, Snape Maltings, the great arts complex three miles away, finished in the years before Britten's tragically early death in 1976.
Given that this town was a popular and wealthy resort in the 19th century, it is no surprise that the church has been almost completely restored, and very little internal evidence survives of its Catholic liturgical life. Aldeburgh's Catholic priests today minister the sacraments at Our Lady and St Peter, at the top of the hill 100 yards to the south. But St Peter and St Paul is a fine, municipal Anglican parish church, and should be enjoyed for that.
Externally, it is rather more interesting. The south porch adjoins the pavement, and has arches in its east and west walls to allow processions to pass within the precincts of the graveyard. This was built by the Holy Trinity gild, right on the eve of the Reformation. Because of its proximity to the road, the church has an imposing presence. The grand 14th century tower is not typical of the coast; with its towering stair turret, it looks more like Hoxne or Stradbroke.
You enter the church from the west, into the darkness beneath the tower, very like that at Debenham. This church is always open during the day, and has a cheerful welcome notice. You step into a warm, bright interior, with plenty of 19th century touches.
The finest feature here is, of course, the Britten memorial. It is by the artist John Piper, in stained glass, and shows images from three of his church parables: The Prodigal Son, Curlew River, and The Burning Fiery Furnace. It sits in the north aisle, and gets enough light to fill the aisle with colour. The font sits in front of it.
The colour of the sanctuary tempers its rather stern Tractarian makeover, but there are also plenty of reminders of the life of the Borough in years and centuries gone by. The lifeboat disaster memorial is a grand example of late Victorian copperwork at the west end. Rather finer is the town war memorial in the south aisle, the golden rays of the dying soldier's nimbus illuminating the inscription and everyone said to his brother be of good cheer. There is a fine monument in the south chapel to Lady Henrietta Vernon. This chapel was the chantry chapel of the Holy Trinity guild before the Reformation. Large squints sit either side of the chancel arch, marking the positions of altars. Today, a fine, early 17th century pulpit stands in front of one: the documentation still exists for its commissioning. The wooden angels guarding the sanctuary are a curiously naive touch. The glass in both chancel and south aisle east windows is excellent; St Cecilia is happily present, and reminds us that the musical tradition of Aldeburgh predated Britten. The lyrical tradition did as well, because against the arcade in the north aisle is the memorial to the poet George Crabbe.
This is a nice church, and a welcoming one. It isn't terribly significant as Suffolk churches go, but I prefer it to some of the more self-important ones. I'm also a big fan of Britten, which is another reason I like it. If you are looking for Britten's gravestone, don't look for anything grand. The large one towards the east wall is a memorial to the crew of the lifeboat who all died in the 1899 disaster here. This is very moving, despite the arch piety typical of that decade.
No, Britten's stone sits in the common run, along with the other 1976 graves. Beside it, space was reserved for Peter Pears, who died in the 1980s. By one of those acts of serendipity, the musician Imogen Holst, daughter of the composer Gustav Holst, lies just behind them.
It doesn't take long, looking around, to locate the graves of other musicians and singers, who all came to Aldeburgh attracted by Britten's light. Also buried here is Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, one of the Garretts who built the Snape maltings complex as part of their industrial empire. She, of course, is famous for being the first woman doctor in England. Less well known is the fact that she was also the first ever female mayor in England - of Aldeburgh, of course.
Simon Knott, January 2009
This is my first go of portraiture and photoshop in this creation of a composite with my wife. It isn't perfect but a start and most of all I had fun playing around.
Thought it was too pretty to resist shooting =)
YAY ANOTHER EXPLORE!!!! Thanks everyone so very much!!
This is Project 2 for my graphics class, using Adobe Illustrator.
Here, the subject was to be on how to sustain the earth, a month-long focus for Foothill College in March. I am addressing thought pollution.
I was focusing on the words of Sri Mata Amritanandamayi from some of her speeches, booklets:
“In fact, the most serious problem facing the world today is the pollution of the human mind and the increase in selfishness and cruelty. This is the root of all the other problems facing the world today. Everything in the world is changing—with one exception: our negative mental state! Our personality is a reflection of our mind. The ability of human beings to rise up to a situation and act is slowly disappearing. In the name of stability and competition, mankind is allowing their lives to be led by hatred, revenge and stubbornness.”
“The never-ending stream of love that flows from a true believer towards the entire Creation will have a gentle, soothing effect on Nature. This love is the best protection of Nature.”
“There is a rhythm and order to everything in the cosmos. The wind, the rain, the waves, the flow of our breath and heartbeat—everything has a rhythm. Similarly, there is a rhythm in life. Our thoughts and actions create the rhythm and melody of our lives. When the rhythm of our thoughts get lost, it reflects in our actions. This will, in turn, throw off the very rhythm of our life. Today, this is what we are seeing all around us.”
“Devote some time each day to connecting inwardly with Mother Nature. This may be through introspective activities in Nature, such as meditating, praying, singing or silent walks. If we find harmony within ourselves, that harmony will benefit Nature and be reflected throughout creation.”
“Everything is pervaded by Consciousness. It is that Consciousness which sustains the world and all the creatures in it. To worship everything, seeing God in all, is what religion advises. Such an attitude reaches us to love Nature. None of us would consciously injure our own body, beause we know it would be painful. Similarly, we will feel the pain of other people to be our own when the realization dawns within us that everything is pervaded by one and the same Consciousness. Compassion will arise, and we will sincerely wish to help and protect all. In that state, we won’t feel like plucking even a life unnecessarily. We will pick a flower only on the last day of its existence, before it falls from the stem. We will consider it as very harmful to the plant, and to Nature, if the flower is plucked on its very first day due to our greediness.”
I thought about getting the bus to Bearwood (on the Outer Circle) and wasn't sure what was there to take. After I arrived I headed towards the Bus Station, and behind that was this park - Lightwoods Park.
I always thought that Bearwood was within Birmingham, but now it appears to be in the district of Sandwell.
The park was run by Birmingham until November 2010, when Sandwell took over running it.
There is signs here of it's Birmingham past.
This is the bandstand in Lightwoods Park. It is Grade II listed.
It appears that it wa made for the City of Birmingham (back when the park was run by the city).
Bandstand. Late C19. Cast iron on brick base with sheet iron roof.
Octagonal plan. Columns have pedestals and foliated capitals and are linked
by low railings on four sides. Shallow elliptical arches spring from the
capitals, with openwork decoration below oversailing eaves. The roof is a
facetted ogee dome with central cupola. The columns are inscribed: 'LION
FOUNDRY CO KIRKINTILLOCK".
Bandstand, Lightwoods Park, Bearwood - Heritage Gateway
Two flower designs. There were more like this, but didn't want to take them all.
The bandstand was presented to the City of Birmingham by Rowland Mason - West Mount, Edgbaston in April 1903.
This rather evocative photograph shows a single British soldier sitting on a wheelbarrow, apparently lost in his thoughts, while horse transports move along the road behind him. For the ordinary soldier, moments of solitude would have been few and far between.
The sentimentality of the original caption and the anonymity of the profiled head, suggest that this photograph may have been intended for consumption on the Home Front. In reality, as many first-hand accounts show, home often seemed an unreal dream to men at the Front.
[Original reads: 'Thoughts of home.']
Thought I'd give night photography a go, combined with long exposures. I like how reflections come across better.
Its a bit of a pity this photo is so dark, but I also quite like that about it. Practice, practice, practice!
When people are led to believe brushing your teeth is bad, they remember brushing less in the past than those who are told it is healthy. This is the self-enhancing feature of memory.
(Ross, McFarland & Fletcher, 1981)
CC image courtesy of www.flickr.com/photos/visualpanic/291546099/
I need to add something to a recent post of mine. I wrote that there's nothing to find in life but life itself.. It definitely should not mean that it's not worth searching! Because the mystery of life is to walk this road of seeking and to make experiences that need to be made. The answers (to the question of life) are within the questions themselves. If you just remain sitting on a bench besides the road, watching other souls passing by, it surely won't lead to a resolution. If you sleep in on this bench, it's the most coward thing to do. That this road also has some hills to climb and barriers to take is a necessity. There's no up without down, no light without darkness, no love without hate, no excistence without antagonism...
I thought the sign on the side of this Liquor Store was rather amusing. The sign reads,"The Last Liquor Store To New York City Via Interstate 87." Yes, if you get on I-87 and drive directly to New York City and you never leave the highway, this is the last liquor store. The trip point to point is well over two hundred miles. I wonder how many tourists returning home to New York City became new patrons because of this sign. Buy a case for the road! I imaged this scene along Route 9 in Warrensburg, New York, USA, in the southern Adirondacks. For this image, I used my manual focus Tamron Adaptall-2 Model 27A SP 28-80mm f3.5-4.2 CF Macro Lens and Tamron Adaptall-2 Pentax K A Mount on Pentax K20D camera, hand held, manually focused, Shake Reduction set to 85mm focal length, ISO 400, f22, 1/125 sec, with available ambient light. This is a full resolution Large JPEG and is Straight Out Of Camera (SOOC) without any post-processing, editing, cropping, re-sizing, or adjustment.
I thought about getting the bus to Bearwood (on the Outer Circle) and wasn't sure what was there to take. After I arrived I headed towards the Bus Station, and behind that was this park - Lightwoods Park.
I always thought that Bearwood was within Birmingham, but now it appears to be in the district of Sandwell.
The park was run by Birmingham until November 2010, when Sandwell took over running it.
There is signs here of it's Birmingham past.
This is the bandstand in Lightwoods Park. It is Grade II listed.
It appears that it wa made for the City of Birmingham (back when the park was run by the city).
Bandstand. Late C19. Cast iron on brick base with sheet iron roof.
Octagonal plan. Columns have pedestals and foliated capitals and are linked
by low railings on four sides. Shallow elliptical arches spring from the
capitals, with openwork decoration below oversailing eaves. The roof is a
facetted ogee dome with central cupola. The columns are inscribed: 'LION
FOUNDRY CO KIRKINTILLOCK".
Bandstand, Lightwoods Park, Bearwood - Heritage Gateway
The bandstand was presented to the City of Birmingham by Rowland Mason - West Mount, Edgbaston in April 1903.
View of the roof inside the bandstand.
The word walk is descended from the Old English wealcan "to roll". In humans and other bipeds, walking is generally distinguished from running in that only one foot at a time leaves contact with the ground and there is a period of double-support. In contrast, running begins when both feet are off the ground with each step. This distinction has the status of a formal requirement in competitive walking events.~~Wikipedia