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hapless passers-by have to stop their cars and ponder what the preacher here is really trying to say.
My little girl loves to dress up in my wedding dress and tell me that when she grows up, she wants to wear my wedding dress.
This black velvet blazer brings back old memories. I think it's an old horse riding jacket. My husband bought it for me at a thrift store when his sister and I were shopping. When we were 17 ! He totally had a major crush on me :)
vintage blazer, thrifted
dress, Gap
belt, some local shop
white beaded necklace, dollar store
tights, The Bay
heels, Payless
I post this to tell you about Synne Sanden's debut record 'When nobody's around' that just was released. I've taken photos for the cover, but I also made a music video (my first real one ever) for one of the songs. You can check it out here:
"When the lights go down in the city
and the sun shines on the bay,
Do I want to be there,
in my city ..."
(Journey)
When schools closed due to the Ebola Crisis, Fatu Sesay wasn’t ready to put her children’s education on pause. After organizing and leading classes for her kids and several neighborhood children, Fatu leads a mathematics lesson from her own home. Despite multiple postponements of school’s reopening, student’s learning has continued thanks outdoor classrooms like Fatu’s. However, children should soon be able to return to school on February 16, when schools are scheduled to restart thanks to USAID support. Through providing schools across the country with education kits and critical training in infection prevention measures, USAID is working closely with UNICEF and other education partners to ensure that schools reopen safely. Photo by Neil Brandvold, USAID
Allstar Weekend wows Kaiserslautern
By Rick Scavetta, U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern
KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany – When Athena Balderas got picked up from Ramstein Intermediate School last Friday, she thought her mom was taking her to rent some movies.
“No, I have something better,” her mother Michelle Stevens told her. “I have a surprise for you.”
Earlier, Stevens told Facebook friends she would see Allstar Weekend, the latest American teen music sensation, with her daughter at the band’s Jan. 21 stop in Kaiserslautern. A friend, who had won premium seats and backstage passes from the American Forces Network, offered them to Stevens.
They bought Allstar Weekend’s debut album “Suddenly Yours” and found the band’s videos online. That evening they were in the front row at Vogelweh’s Galaxy Theater.
“It’s really cool to see an American band,” said Athena, 8, who first heard about the band while visiting relatives last year in upstate New York.
In mid-January, the San Diego-based Allstar Weekend – who got their start on the Disney Channel in 2009 – toured U.S. military bases in England, Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands, courtesy of Armed Force Entertainment. The show, sponsored locally by U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern’s Directorate of Families and Morale Welfare & Recreation, was better than driving to Frankfurt to watch a concert, Stevens said.
“Here it feels like home, we’re celebrating together with our military family,” Stevens said. “Plus, it’s nice to have something American to do.”
The band launched into their set of pop rock songs to include; “Journey to the End of My Life,” “Here With You,” “The Weekend,” and “Dance Forever.” They also covered of Shania Twain’s “You’re Still the One” and Bowling For Soup’s “1985.”
They also offered some songs on acoustic guitars and even rapped a little. During the piano-based ballad “Amy,” the band invited a teenage girl to sit onstage. Afterward, another teen jumped onstage to offer hugs.
Each song ended with the high-pitched shrill of screaming young girls, dozens who crowded the stage during the show. Like many parents, Air Force Master Sgt. Ron Russo sat in the back of the theater. His wife Sibel sat up front with daughters Anatolia, 8, and Kayra, 2.
One morning he heard on AFN, “The next caller had a chance to win.” Russo dialed the station, knowing nothing about the contest or the prize.
“He asked the easiest question about Justin Timberlake, about how he started with the Mickey Mouse club and then was with a famous boy band,” the 40-year-old Virginia Beach-native said. “I said ‘C’mon, the answer’s J.T.’”
After the show, Lt. Col. Kevin Hutchison and Command Sgt. Maj. Richard Jessup, the command team from U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern, thanked the band and presented each player with a command coin.
“We know you have to leave home and live on the road to offer performances to our Soldiers, airmen and their families,” Hutchison said. “We recognize things of excellence and this was and an excellent performance.”
As a kid, singer Zach Porter’s father was in the Navy and he remembers living on bases and moving a lot, he said. He can relate to the audience of military members and their families, he said.
“It’s a big part of who I am today,” Porter said “I understand it’s hard every two years packing up and start new schools and make new friends. So, I’m glad we got to do this.”
While military audiences overseas may have missed Allstar Weekend’s stateside television appearances, their presence on the Internet gives new fans a chance to further explore the band’s music, Porter said.
“It’s good for us to play for a new audience,” Porter said. “We covered a few songs that we thought people would know, if they don’t know all of our songs. It warmed up the audience to our own music and bridged the gap.”
Touring military bases was also a chance for the band to give back something to those serving overseas, said bass guitarist Cameron Quiseng. He especially enjoyed feedback from the crowd, when they signed autographs after each show.
“The crowds are amazing, chanting and singing along,” Quiseng said. “For us to come and perform for them and give them a good time, it really means a lot to us.”
(Photos by Rick Scavetta, U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern)
As well as having the beautiful Italianate garden, there are several sculpture trails around the wider grounds. These stone sheep were big enough to sit on.
And the Lord said ‘You notice what the unjust judge has to say? Now will not God see justice done to his chosen who cry to him day and night even when he delays to help them? I promise you, he will see justice done to them, and done speedily. But when the Son of Man comes, will he find any faith on earth?’
– Luke 18:6-8, which is today's Gospel.
Photo of the dome of Santa Constanza in Rome.
munting buhangin... a small cove in batangas known for accessibility and relatively cheap weekends... i used to frequent this place alot until life has allowed me to travel to more expensive places. this weekend i had a chance for a quick stop... it was time to document the light at a place which holds so many memories of my youth. (i'd like to think though that I am still young) taken at high tide, next weeks forecast is lowtide.. hopefully i can finally shoot payong pt.
ODC2 - When lightning strikes
6/12/12
Please view on black if you've got the time.
I had NO idea what to do when I first saw the topic for today, I knew I had to do a manipulation of some sort as there's no lightning to be found around here.lol Then this idea popped up and I have to say I'm quite pleased with the result.
Thanks a million to darknightoftroy.deviantart.com/ for the lightning
Check out my Facebook page and hit the like button if you'd like 8)
Yes I know you can't see their heads ! But I thought the flying vegetation gives a sense of the power two big bucks clash with, it's incredible when two big ones fight, so intense and more than a little bit alarming. The power in those neck and shoulder muscles is amazing, and then when one routs the other get out of the way quick ! A shame it was in poopy light and you can't see their heads but nevermind, a very exciting encounter anyway : )
PS every series autumwatch and springwatch say they want to use one of my pictures and then never do, I'm past caring to be honest but I wish they wouldn't get your hopes up every time. The opinions of friends on Flickr mean a lot more to me than any of them : )
When in Manila, the President loves to go swimming in the elaborate swimming pool of Malacañan Park at least once a week. And when he does go swimming, one of the palace physicians is also in the pool. Sometimes, the President also invites friends to go swimming with him. - From “Presidents at Play" by Filemon V. Tutay, Philippines Free Press.
(Photo courtesy of the National Library of the Philippines)
"Ja kun hän tuli Jerusalemiin, joutui koko kaupunki liikkeelle ja sanoi: "Kuka tämä on?"
"Och när han drog in i Jerusalem, kom hela staden i rörelse, och man frågade: "Vem är han?"
"When he had come into Jerusalem, all the city was stirred up, saying, "Who is this?"
ויהי בבאו ירושלים ותהם כל העיר לאמר מי הוא זה׃
Matt. 21:10
These may seem a little odd, but yesterday morning turned out to be very, very interesting for me.
I was just working on my comic at my computer, hearing the local bus (#80) that runs past the front door of my house coming up the hill, when all of a sudden there was the most outrageous bang followed by the bus stuttering for power, it then limped to a halt outside my front drive in a fog of acrid black smoke, whereupon the driver immediately opened the engine bay door and started dousing the street with sand from what had apparently been a fuel leak.
Passengers were unloaded, and Country Bus sent up another two buses to cover. Eventually their engineers arrived in their company coloured LDV Convoy, as did a local hero of the roads, the Count of Heathfield, a gigantic tow truck used to rescue HGV's and Coaches.
The bus is a 2004 Dennis Dart SLF with SC Coachbuilders body, and is a regular on this route. I overhead one of the engineers mentioning something to do with the 'Big End', which is part of the Connecting Rod, and connects to the bearing journal on the crank throw.
You learn you can do your best even when it's hard, even when you're tired and maybe hurting a little bit. It feels good to show some courage. ~Joe Namath
+++++++++++++
my round 10 push challenge came from Andy
his challenge to me:
I've had a look though your stream and love your work. The phrase "Every picture tells a story" certainly applies to you and i love the quotes you use :)
You seem to do a lot of editing to help create the lovely warm atmosphere in your images so my push to you is.
Take an image that is sharp right across the frame. Take an image of something big and bold, make it cold and almost clinical in the way it's presented. Absolute minimum editing, cropping and levels are all that's allowed.
The subject is up to you all i want to see is something that is the opposite of your normal style :)
++++++++++++
while i do feel i have pulled back on my editing some lately, this was a good push for me, but was probably one of my hardest. i no idea what to shoot for this. and talk about tired...... i was in florida shooting a corporate event for 5 days when the pairs were posted and needed to get a shot done....going on about 3 hours of sleep a night... i was not inspired by anything around me... nothing was big/bold/cold/clinical other than and a shot of the hotel against the blue sky which wasn't inspiring me....i guess that would have fulfilled his "something opposite of my normal style"....but i wanted to like the shot too. ;)
the last day of the event i decided to shoot some of the light fixtures. these things were massive!! I got to go up in the catwalk above the ballroom and took some of those lights... and this one was in the lobby/foyer area outside the ballroom. i'm looking straight up at this one shooting with the 135mm. i did rotate and crop this a tiny bit and adjusted the levels for a little "colder" feel. i don't know that you necessarily get the feel of it's scale, but trust me, they were massive.
Thanks for the push Andy. I had a tough time with this one!
When we were talking about trying to take a picture from above someone mentioned a green door in the gym. We had never noticed the green door before but wondered why it was one story up with no stairs leading up to it.
The adventure was on. We found the ladder to the roof of the school and then had to traverse many, many, MANY different levels of the roof to find a door that opened to a room that had a different door opposite it. Open the door and there we were looking down into 2nd grade during their gym class.
The Daily Shoot assignment for 2010/01/26:
Change your perspective today. Make a photo from a bird's eye view. Get out the chairs and ladders if you need to!
This shot is kind of weird. All I really remember is that when I noticed Logan put his head down like this I thought 'better get out of the way!' and tried to snap this before I got caught in the tussle of Tim Brooks, Doogie and Logan. The result is a floating Logan head on the attack!
Talk Is Poison
Party Boat
Chaos In Tejas - Austin, TX
May 2010
TOKYO – When Army Maj. Gen. James F. Pasquarette assumed command of U.S. Army Japan (USARJ) July 8, 2015, he immediately took initiative to personally meet the troops under his command as well as key leaders from his host nation partners.
Pasquarette's tour of his area of responsibility began in earnest when he and members of his staff boarded a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter July 10 from Camp Zama, Japan. Flying hundreds of feet above the congested highways at sometimes at level with Japan's sea of skyscrapers, Pasquarette acquired a bird's eye view of the American and Japanese military installations scattered among the urban jungle.
“We overflew Sagami General Depot, Yokohama North Dock and Hardy Barracks, said Milton Jackson, garrison manager at Camp Zama. “Our new commander now has clearer picture of the facilities, equipment and watercraft managed by the Army, and he can better understand where and how these individual installations interact with one another.”
According to Jackson, the USARJ primary mission comprises the rapid deployment of troops and materiel from one theater to another. As the Army's largest logistical hub in Asia, the command must maintain a streamlined sustainment system capable of moving thousands of tons of supplies and equipment via land and sea.
“Sagami Depot has rolling stock and Yokohama North Dock has watercraft,” said Jackson. “We must overcome the challenges posed by Japan's dense population centers by developing methods that rapidly move and load stock onto our watercraft so that we may better project our presence in the Pacific. Fortunately, our Japanese allies are willing to support us if a major threat or disaster called for a sudden mass movement.”
After a brief stop at Yokota Air Base to meet with Air Force Gen. John L. Dolan, commanding general, U.S. Force Japan, Pasquarette touched down near the heart of Tokyo where members of America's staunchest allies welcomed him with the pomp and circumstance befitting a general.
“On behalf of the JGSDF (Japan Ground Self-Defense Force), welcome to Japan,” said Gen. Kiyofumi Iwata, chief of staff, JGSDF, to Pasquarette after the two commanders sat in a decorative conference room inside Japan's Ministry of Defense. “We look forward to continuing our dialog of bilateral coordination between our two countries as JGSDF pursues its transformation into a dynamic joint defense force.”
The dialog consisted of one-on-one conversations with not only Iwata but also Adm. Katsutoshi Kawano, chief of staff, Japan Self-Defense Force, and Hideshi Tokuchi, vice minister of international affairs, Japan Ministry of Defense. The four men discussed previous achievements, current operations and potential challenges facing their respective commands and presented ideas on how to strengthen interoperability among their forces through combined training exercises and expanded service member exchange programs.
“We currently have several dozen JSDF service members embedded with [U.S. military] units,” said Pasquarette. “I believe extending this program so that our Soldiers can work within the JGSDF will further enhance our partnership.”
Pasquarette also ensured his hosts that the United States Army remains committed to its allies in the Pacific despite looming force reductions and ongoing operations in Europe and the Middle East.
“The Army recently announced that it will cut the number of troops in the active component from 450,000 to about 410,000,” said Pasquarette. “This rebalance of the force has no effect on our strength and readiness in the Pacific. Our alliance is more important than ever. That's why we're keeping our best trained and best equipped Soldiers in Japan and Korea.”
After a two-hour visit that started with with a JSDF band playing “The Star-Spangled Banner” and ended with a warm exchange of plaques and handshakes, Pasquarette and his team boarded a helicopter bound for Camp Zama.
“I have worked extensively throughout the Pacific during my Army career,” said the former armor officer and chief of staff of U.S. Army Pacific. “The JSDF consists of some of the world's most capable and professional men and women in uniform. I look forward to building stronger relationships with them and become a valuable partner in its transformation."
U.S. Army photos by Sgt. John L. Carkeet IV, U.S. Army Japan
this was not a happy situation at all despite the forced smiles and idyllic vista. If anything it symbolised the beginning of the end for the relationship.
We looked like the perfect couple... But looks are very deceiving when love is only being shown one way, and it wasn't from her.
When we go to spend time with my dad and play cribb. Them moment my dad's cat Poopy sees us playing cribb. Poppy has to get up on my dad's table and settle down with Elaine.
The waves were large, rough and banging up to the sand bank. The surfer studied the waves before choosing the moment to rush into the water paddling furiously to get past the breaking surf.
When I grow weary of human affection, of
everyday thoughts and words, I listen in close
to rumblings of the air’s cursed anger, for sightings
on the hill of its heroes, powerful and wrathful.
Catherine Hill Bay Loader, a few years old now. but one of my favorite shots taken here, as this was the first roll taken on my Mamiya RZ pro 11.
Just got back from picking it up in Sydney, and of course the loader would be the first place I thought of, mainly because I spent many happy years fishing here and the surrounding headlands....It always looked good here, no matter the time of day or weather conditions.
I can't remember the process info, I had no filters at that time, so I would have burnt in the sky for sure. and the lens would have been 50mm...the only film used was Velvia iso 50 slide.
The thing that bugged was I had to crop out some sky and foreground...but it still has that bush up front.
The refurbishment of the parish hall of St Paul and St Barnabas in York Street, Belfast, means the church’s extensive range of outreach activities can continue to grow, benefiting the entire community.
The Bishop of Connor, the Rt Rev George Davison, rededicated the hall when he preached at the parish Harvest Thanksgiving Service on Sunday October 18. The Bishop also dedicated a number of new windows.
The Rev Dr Isobel (Isy) Hawthorne–Steele, priest–in–charge, said the hall, based in the old St Paul’s Schoolhouse at the back of the church in the Tiger’s Bay area, is extensively used by the community. The building is 186 years old and a famous past pupil is the flautist James Galway.
The hall was in serious need to refurbishment to make it fit for purpose, and shortly before lockdown in March this year, a number of the groups moved their activities into the main church, and work got underway.
Isy said the refurbishment had been a tremendous success. “The facilities we can now offer include a high standard of health and safety provision; a place where all ages can meet in comfort in properly heated and ventilated spaces; an excellent hygienic kitchen facility with comfortable seating areas for small group work; a very large fully functioning sports hall; and a large conference style room that can easily be adapted to suits the needs of breakout groups or café symposiums.”
She added that during the work, nine windows were exposed fully and were found to be arched. The parish decided it wished to keep these, and the windows, all sponsored by parishioners in memory of loved ones, were dedicated by Bishop George when he visited.
OUTREACH
A range of groups have applied to use the hall in future. “This will not only fulfil our priority aim of outreach into the local community, but will provide an income in order to maintain the parish hall to a high standard of upkeep,” said Isy. “It will also help us with future plans such as fundraising towards the installation of a lift, expanding storage space, and a breakthrough to join the church premises with the hall.”
Isy said that according to NISRA statistics, the church is located in an area of high deprivation and is therefore a much–needed facility.
Outreach activities already established at St Paul and St Barnabas include the Blaze Project which works with local schools, sharing the gospel with children through the medium of drama.
The project encourages all primary schools in the area to have a more proactive role in its programme of social cohesion, and plays a lead role in promoting the development of spiritual understanding and supporting curriculum themes, including Learning about Church. It brought primary school children into the church to fulfil their curriculum aims.
“This provided us with an opportunity to show children each aspect of worship in the church building, explaining function and purpose,” said Isy. “This was supported by the Ulster University Widening Access Community Development Programme which provided learning packs. Many members of our congregation are involved in this project, preparing fun and interesting activities, and manning each aspect of the church, ie baptismal font, pulpit, lectern, etc, teaching the children what we do and why we do it.
WELCOMING
“Often this is the only opportunity these children have to come inside church. Our aim is to make it less of an imposing building in their community, and a friendly, welcoming, fun and interesting learning place to be, to encounter Jesus.”
St Paul and St Barnabas has also being running an AQE tuition project which has had an 80 per cent success rate. “This is a service for children that is based upon the ethos of an inclusive educational access for all children, particularly those who are economically disadvantaged,” said Isy. “This is widely recognised throughout the community and schools as being a highly valued educational project, servicing a real need to disadvantaged children.”
Children and families in the area have also enjoyed Messy Church at St Paul and St Barnabas, organised by members of the church. “The response was very encouraging as we had a full capacity turnout of young people each session, and the fun, fellowship and teaching biblical truths proved very worthwhile,” said Isy.
The church and hall is used by the church’s HOPE professional counselling project, which receives referrals from clergy and other professional counselling agencies and organisations.
“This project is in need of expansion and indeed discussions have taken place with local MPs and councillors, and funding applications sought in order to keep this very valuable project afloat,” Isy said. “The current extremely high rates of mental health problems, and specifically, the very high of suicide and suicide attempts in this demographic region, indicate a high level of need.”
The parish has also formed a strong partnership with All Nations Ministry, and this has grown considerably since the church’s first cultural diversity celebration two years ago, and now a recurring event. Activities have taken place both on site and off site, and the project has established a drop–in centre which is open to everyone in the community. It is attended primarily by asylum seekers, refugees and migrants and their families and operates a foodbank and clothes bank for this group.
RELATIONSHIPS
Isy said the parish has cultivated good relationships with the community PSNI, who provide weekly sports activities for young people. “This has been offered to the wider community and initially has been with the All Nations Group,” she said. “This has been very successful with spin–off trips organised. This partnership is the beginning of a relationship that we hope to further promote and extend.”
The parish also has a collaborative relationship with Ulster University’s Widening Access Community Development Programme which aims to raise the self–confidence and self–esteem of participants by exploring barriers to formal learning and looking at various learning styles and techniques.
“The exercises and assignments are aimed at giving students an opportunity to learn academic writing skills and prepare them for advanced learning with an access route to university degree level four,” said Isy.
This programme was offered firstly to migrants, refugees and asylum seekers, and it the subject of an article: ‘Breaking the Cultural Silence Imposed upon Refugees, Asylum Seekers and Migrants: A Snapshot of the Current Faith–Based Project in Tiger’s Bay (North Belfast),’ The authors of this article were students from the BScHons Community Development Programme at Ulster University who worked on the project with Isy, and it was published in Adult Learner: The Irish Journal of Adult and Community Education in 2018.
The parish’s Storyboards and Drama Project was formed specifically to help asylum seekers, refugees and migrants to infuse into local community life. Around 16 participants worked through storyboards, telling their story of leaving their home country, the experience they lived through travelling to this country, and their experience of trying to begin a new life within the local community. The stories were recorded and dramatized.
POWERFUL
Isy said this ‘powerful project’ was therapeutic, and in many cases provided a much–needed ‘sounding board’ for traumatic experiences to be shared and support and help sought.
“The next phase of this project is planned with young people, and the idea is to bring this into youth forums in schools, youth clubs and churches to share,” she said. “Hopefully, those listening will engage with these young people and recognise the added pressure of adolescences coping with their transition into adulthood, with the additional pressures of being in an alien and often hostile environment.”
St Paul and St Barnabas has developed a logo – incorporating the five windows of the church and the cross to illustrate Christ at the centre of worship and activities – and its strapline – TLC (Transforming, Loving, Caring) – was drawn from the parish mission statement.
The parish employed a children and family worker who worked closely with local primary schools and initiated the parent and toddler group ‘Little Lambs.’ A project manager was appointed, whose role included securing further funding to renovate hall to make it fit for purpose. The parish also employed a family visitor who made further intergenerational connections within local area.
FOOTFALL
“The impact of the projects has been realised in the increased footfall and new partnerships forged with schools and local groups such as the migrant, asylum seekers and refugees,” said Isy.
“We are currently seeking other funds to progress to the next stage. The current Covid–19 restrictions have affected our roll–out, however we continue to support our HOPE counselling project which is a vital resource for the local community during this pandemic.”
The re–dedication of the parish hall and dedication of the windows by Bishop George took place just weeks before Isy steps down from her role as curate–in–charge of St Paul and St Barnabas on November 1.
“I feel I have taken this project as far as I can,” said Isy. “As a leader, I think it is really important to listen to the Holy Spirit and to know when it’s time to make way for God’s chosen leader/s to continue to work out his plan.
“There is so much potential here, the members of the church are loving and full of God’s grace. They are a praying people and that is the key to any missional work. I know God has a great plan of revival in this area.”
The projects run by St Paul and St Barnabas Parish Church have received funding from the following:
- Church of Ireland Priorities Fund;
- Church of Ireland Children & Orphans Society;
- St James’ Endownment Fund;
- BIFFA (grant scheme for ‘community hub’ project refurbishment).
Normally I wouldn't put up 2 deer posts in one day, but I took this after I had already posted my 1st pics of the day and just HAD to share this one!
I couldn't believe my eyes when I was standing at my back door drinking my coffee this morning and saw this doe in Sweet Pea and Sassafras's yard! I NEVER see deer in that yard.....I'm assuming because of the dogs....but there she was!
I grabbed my camera and went out the front door, so that I could circle around her and get a better angle. It was then that I realized that that a huge branch off of an old apple tree had broken off and fallen into the neighbors yard and that's what prompted the deer's bold action.
When I opened the gate to step inside the fenced in area she spooked and went sailing over. I knew she was going to go, and was ready for the shot!