Friday, 5 February 2010

Friday My Town Shoot-out - Circles

This week's subject for the Friday My Town Shoot-out is Circles - chosen by Kerry from Corvallis, Oregon.

The widnmill sails go round in circles - or they would if it still worked.

 

Arrowe Park's country park symbol is in a circle.

 
 The Dandelion seeds were a circle until the wind blew.


And the Honesty seeds still are in circles.

This old piece of farm machinery relied on its circular wheel.

Even the Police Station has a circular symbol.


And there are lots of circular sky satellite dishes on the shops.

If you would like to see other members' shoot-outs please go to the link page.

To learn more about the Friday My Town Shoot-out why not pay a visit to the
home blog.


Thursday, 4 February 2010

Th - anks Rae

Phoenetics

I don’t know my way around phoentics. So when it comes to doing my word blog I have great difficulty showing how you pronounce things (that’s assuming I know in the first place!).

However, thanks to Rae, I did learn a bit about

and

The first is the symbol for the  th sound in words like thanks and pith. The second is the th in mother. Go read her post – it’s well worth it.

And then, if you want to see the whole International Phoenetic Alphabet visit the site on Wikipedia.


Wednesday, 3 February 2010

A last selection

A final selection from Uncle Eric's photos. There will, however, be some of my Mum and Dad's old black and white photos at some stage in the future.

Yes, he loved his Bentley - even to the extent of photographing its engine!


He made his own canoe and enjoyed taking it on the Rivers Dee and Mersey.  On the back of this photo he had written "Her ladyship'Water Bug' and skipper on the Mersey".


In later years he built this Broads cruiser - the Silver Slipper.

Do you recall those days when the self-timer always went off too quickly!   This was a case of third time lucky..

Alcester on Uncle Eric's 1930 cycling tour.

Cottages at Hale near liverpool - 1930s.


And finally, one that I haven't been able to place but which might be Warwick or Kenilworth as I think it is a castle on the hill in the distance and may have been taken on his 1930 Warwickshire cycling tour.



Tuesday, 2 February 2010

Kseniya Simonova Video

The link below takes you to a most amazing Video Clip . . ..


This video shows the winner of "Ukraine's Got Talent", Kseniya Simonova, 24, drawing a series of pictures on an illuminated sand table showing how ordinary people were affected by the German invasion during World War II. Her talent, which admittedly is a strange one, is mesmeric to watch.

The images, projected onto a large screen, moved many in the audience to tears and she won the top prize of about £75,000.

She begins by creating a scene showing a couple sitting holding hands on a bench under a starry sky, but then warplanes appear and the happy scene is obliterated.

It is replaced by a woman's face crying, but then a baby arrives and the woman smiles again. Once again war returns and Miss Simonova throws the sand into chaos from which a young woman's face appears.

She quickly becomes an old widow, her face wrinkled and sad, before the image turns into a monument to an Unknown Soldier.

This outdoor scene becomes framed by a window as if the viewer is looking out on the monument from within a house.

In the final scene, a mother and child appear inside and a man standing outside, with his hands pressed against the glass, saying goodbye.

The Great Patriotic War, as it is called in Ukraine, resulted in one in four of the population being killed with eight to 11 million deaths out of a population of 42 million.

Kseniya Simonova says:
"I find it difficult enough to create art using paper and pencils or paintbrushes, but using sand and fingers is beyond me. The art, especially when the war is used as the subject matter, even brings some audience members to tears. And there's surely no bigger compliment."

Please take time out to see this amazing piece of art. (and don't be surprised if you get tears in your eyes as well!)

Click on the link below -
http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=vOhf3OvRXKg

Monday, 1 February 2010

Happy Monday - Pat's Donkey



Young Pat bought a donkey from a farmer for £100. The farmer agreed to deliver the donkey the next day.

The next day he drove up and said, 'Sorry son, but I have some bad news. The donkey's died.'

Pat replied, 'Well then just give me my money back.' The farmer said, 'Can't do that. I've already spent it.'

Pat said, 'OK, then, just bring me the dead donkey.' The farmer asked, 'What are you going to do with him?'

Pat said, 'I'm going to raffle him off.'

The farmer said, 'You can't raffle a dead donkey!'

Pat said, 'Sure I can. Watch me... I just won't tell anybody he's dead.'

A month later, the farmer met up with Pat and asked, 'What happened with that dead donkey?'

Pat said, 'I raffled him off. I sold 500 tickets at two pounds a piece and made a profit of £898'

The farmer said, 'Didn't anyone complain?'

Pat said, 'Just the guy who won. So I gave him his two pounds back.'




Pat now works for the Royal Bank of Scotland...




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