Shabby Chic

Taken in the beer tasting room of The Round Barn Winery in Baroda, Michigan. I was amused by the contrast of this grand chandelier against the rough-hewn beams above. In black and white, it almost has a Halloween feel, don't you think?




Posted for The Weekend in Black and White and for Shadow Shot Sunday 2.

After Dark

From a recent family event. Once the guests had gone, the tent took on a life of its own, glowing mysteriously in the darkened field. Which version do you like better?

Posted for The Weekend in Black and White and for Shadow Shot Sunday 2

Shadow Shots: Sandcastle

The Aquarium and Botanic Garden in Albuquerque is a fascinating, kid-oriente place filled with wonderful, shadowy spaces - including a castle. One turret has a deep sand floor. I couldn't resist snapping a shot of this little guy enjoying the cool shade.




There are more shadows at HeyHarriet's. Stop by and see.

The Golden Stair

Bathing beauties accompany customers up the steep and peeling staircase to ... what? Is it really a clock shop, or is there something more hidden in that shadowy room beyond?

Posted for HeyHarriet's Shadow Shots and for tnchicks' PhotoHunt.

Photo Hunt: Beautiful

I don't know exactly what this antique brooch is or where it came from. I found it in my mother's jewelry box after she passed away, and loved the old, mysterious look of it.

What's the Story?

Sandcastle Momma left a provocative little comment on this post:

"That is beautiful! And because you don't know the history you can make up something exotic and exciting about it whenever you wear it."

I love this idea. So much, in fact, that I'm inviting all of YOU to make up a story for this piece, too. Post it on your blog, and leave a link here in the comments. The photo is on Flickr. Feel free to use it if you want.

*I'll post your stories in a new entry, with links back to your blogs.*

I do hope you'll come in and play! -- Vicki

Check out the other participants at tnchick.com.

Twelfth Night

Tonight is the twelfth and last night of Christmas, one of the most important of the Winter Solstice. It is the eve of Epiphany, which celebrates the arrival in Bethlehem of the three wise men, following the star of a greater king.

In Bavaria and Austria from New Years through January 6, Star Singers dress as the magi and go caroling door to door, bearing before them the staff of that mysterious star. On this evening, householders in Germany and Poland chalk C+M+B and the date over their doorways and ask for the protection of Caspar, Melchior and Balthazar.

I love the three kings legend. It fires the imagination for me like no other part of Christmas. I hear in it the oneness of man and the universe, the quest of the seeker, and the leap of faith. May this night bring you amazing joy.

Filet o' Frank?

This is from a midnight romp through BoingBoing. Somebody in Korea has hybridized carp that appear to have human faces. Because there just wasn't enough creepiness in the world without them.

It reminds me of the recent news story about the Russian fishermen who hauled in what appeared to them to be an alien. So they photographed it for a while before they ate it. Wonder if they had fries with that.

Moonrise in Shadowland

The Round Robin Challenge this week is to capture the eerie and pensive mood of the season. Anything goes.

Inspired by a chapter on scanner art in a book about closeup photography, I decided to fire up the machine I got for my birthday and try my hand at that. Of dozens of shots, this is the best of the bunch.

The "moon" is actually a white stone, scanned in a dark room with the lid of the scanner open and one light source to the side. The "land" is a black T-shirt draped over the edge of the lid. I meant to go back and make a cleaner shot when time allowed, but you know how that goes.

My first thought was to try shrouding my head in black and scanning my face, eyes closed. I was going for a floating death mask Halloween thing. Man, was that a bad idea. (Ladies, if you really want a good scare, try this: Lay a mirror on a low table, bend over to see your reflection, and see what happens to your face.) You will never, never be seeing those shots. Ever.

Experiment B involved scanning a crystal ball paperweight. That turned out pretty well, producing kind of an alien planet effect:

















Interestingly enough, there is controversy over whether scanned images are actually photographs. I can see why serious photographers would have an issue. But if, like me, all you do is arrange the shot, fiddle with the light and settings, and push the button, then I don't see the difference. It's the same process for either machine. Either way, you end up with a digital image. Either way, it's a lot of fun.

To see what the other Robins found in their forays into Shadowland, please go to the main page and visit their blogs. You'll be glad you did!

*PS - These would have looked much better if I could have kept them long and thin, like the original images from the scanner platen, but they got squarish when rotated 90 degrees. If anyone knows how to preserve dimensions when rotating images, I'd appreciate your telling me how to do that.

Talisman

The Round Robin Challenge theme this time is "talisman" -- a suggestion of my own that seemed like a good idea at the time, but that proved to be more difficult than anticipated.

Not that my life isn't full of emotionally laden, strange, and "lucky" objects, but most of them show no outward sign of their power, nothing that could be captured in a photograph. Except maybe this.

My grandfather was a Mason, a member of the Scottish Rite. It was never discussed in the family, and I never heard him mention a thing about it, but he always wore a plain gold ring inscribed only with a triangle enclosing a single, mysterious symbol. He would never explain to me what it was. That ring was a source of burning curiosity throughout my childhood, and it probably contributed mightily to my lifelong love for mysteries, secrets, and hidden meanings.

Given all that, imagine my delight when presented with this exotic and beautiful little pin.

I was about to travel alone for the first time, setting off on an adventure far from home and family. My grandmother took me aside and pinned it to the lapel of my coat. She said that it would protect me, because any Mason who saw it would keep watch over me and see that I came to no harm. I don't know if that was true, but it was heady stuff to think that I walked among an invisible, secret brotherhood who would have my back if I needed them.

I don't wear the pin anymore because I think it's really meant only for Masons themselves, and I wouldn't want to offend. But holding it still brings back that sense of magical protection that saw me through my first flight from the nest.


*The other Robins have talismans too. Click here to see them all.

Be afraid

Earlier this week, baffled scientists reported the discovery of an enormous void in space, a vast area of seeming nothingness embedded in the sea of stars.

Some of us -- I'm not saying it was me -- leapt to our feet and babbled something embarrassing about aliens and a cloaking device.

Then there was an eclipse of the moon. You don't have to see many B movies to know They use those as cover for invasions.

And now there are unsettling reports from Tawakoni State Park in Texas of a truly massive spider web. We're talking a 200-yard web blanketing the area. One ranger says it looked like fairyland at first, but now it has caught so many millions of mosquitoes that you can hear them all screaming. And here's the thing: Entomologists don't know what kind of spider would be doing this. So why can't they identified the little beasties? Can they not see them?

Coincidence? I think not.

UPDATE, AUGUST 31, 8AM: The morning news featured The Web. There were photos of the "spiders" but still no identification of the species. An observer at the scene said they appear to be working together: "There is a definite feeling of community in there."

Not good. Not good. Not good.

Scat. No, seriously.

This is Oscar. He lives in Rhode Island. If you ever see him, run like hell.

According to MSNBC, Oscar can predict imminent death among patients in the hospice he patrols. He is an aloof cat, "not friendly to people". When he does deign to sit with someone, the honoree will most likely be dead within four hours. The staff consider Oscar so reliable that they call patients' families right away, once he's chosen them, so the soon-to-be-bereaved can come and say their goodbyes.

So here's my question: Does this cute little furball sense that death is near, or does he drag it in and drop in your lap, like a grim little present? If you know cats, you know it could go either way.

Harry Potter and the beginning of the end

The Witching Hour

It was 12:00 AM, the stroke of midnight, when the secret keepers opened their magic boxes filled with copies of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows." Bubbles of laughter floated by on a sea of expectant chatter. Strangers smiled at strangers, acknowledging their common bond: Potter Pals, one and all.

In line for the checkout, a little boy danced in excitement; a small, elderly woman carefully counted out single dollars and many coins; a biker type leaned casually against the counter, feigning boredom between furtive peeks at page one. No one lingered to chat. A few actually sprinted back to their cars.

Slipping behind the wheel, I flipped on the radio and found J.K. Rowling there, reading from the first page. Groaning, I turned it off. Badly as I wanted to hear the reading, I wanted even more to discover every word for myself.

Love Hurts

Thus began a luxuriously lost weekend, one shared with thousands and thousands of fans around the world. I read until 3 AM that Saturday morning, all I could manage after a full day's work. TV, radio, newspapers, friends and the Internet were declared temporarily off-limits, to avoid any spoilers. It took me until around 2:30 AM Monday morning to finish.

I emerged from Rowling's world elated and exhausted, both physically and emotionally. The story was wonderful, and THE END came too soon. And we will not see the likes of it again.

* It seems too early for a post that reveals all. To avoid ruining the experience for anyone who might wander by, I won't comment here just yet on the details. If you have a discussion of the book going on your blog, please post a link in the comments, OK? (No spoilers in comments, please!)

Eve of The Deathly Hallows

It's been ages since looking forward to something actually kept me awake. Knowing the last Harry Potter book arrives tonight, I kind of feel like a kid again on Christmas Eve. By this time tomorrow, everyone will know the answers to the questions all Potter fans have pondered for the past two years. Meanwhile, here's the view from my crystal ball:

Dumbledore is dead, but he'll pull an Obi-Wan; that is, he'll be more powerful in death than he ever was in life, able to take on Voldemort and the Death Eaters from the very place they fear most.

Snape dies, but he dies a hero. I believe he killed Dumbledore in a pact the two made to save Draco. I suspect he will help bring down the Dark Lord to avenge Lilly Potter, the only person who was ever kind to him. He tolerates and protects Harry because he is her son. He's a Grinch alright, but he's on the side of the angels.

Harry lives. So do Ron and Hermione. I don't get the impression we're being set up for a tragic ending. One of the two, Voldemort or Harry, must die. Voldemort, of course, is toast. Nowhere have we been led to believe both must die ... unless Harry himself, and not just his scar, is a horcrux. But I think he'd have leaned a good bit more toward the dark side all along if that were the case. Besides, I'll be royally ticked off if any of those three don't make it out alive.

Time will tell. Only a few hours to go.

Views from the road less traveled

There are broad, straight, paved highways in life that lead to a given destination, and they are fine things when you're in a hurry and know where you have to be and when.

And then there are hidden ways that lead not to what is, but to what might be.


This week's Round Robin topic celebrates The Road Less Traveled. For me, that means going into the woods, back to a green and quiet place where magic and mystery still live.














Be sure to stop by and see the other Robins' photos -- and next time join us, won't you?

Thanks to all who played this time!
Vicki

It's aliiiiive!

Back a few posts, under Fabulous Freak is a photo of a weird little cutting I've been nursing along for a year. Still don't know what it is, but it's finally doing something. It's ... sprouting? Behold:

Fabulous freak

The Round Robin Photo Challenges: Fabulous Freaks Of Nature


Hello all,

This is my first attempt at the Round Robin Photo Challenge, and it is so nice meeting all these talented people who participate. Here's hoping I don't embarrass myself too badly.

The subject this time, proposed by Meg at In Quest Of, is "Fabulous Freaks of Nature".

This is a cutting that arrived in a florist bouquet over a year ago. The reason I kept it is that it has these flowers, or fruiting bodies, or whatever they are on the undersides of the bottom two leaves. It's been in a little bottle of water all that time. It never grows roots, it hasn't rotted, and no other leaves on it ever do this. It is, however, beginning to turn a bit yellow, and may be at the end of its strange little life.

I have been unable to find out what it is, and I've been unable to bring myself to toss it until I do. If anyone out there can identify it, please do?

Thanks, Carly, for inviting me to play!

Lost without 'Lost'

I think I'm in withdrawal. What else can you call it, when on Wednesday nights you find yourself sitting all alone in the dark, staring at a blank TV screen, with a little tear trickling down your face.

OK, maybe it's not quite that bad. But ABC's 'Lost' is my favorite guilty pleasure -- and I have a lot of guilty pleasures. (Can a true pleasure not be guilty? A topic for another time.)

The show virtually wallows in my all-time favorite mysteries: The nature of reality, the nature of time, the nature of consciousness, coincidence and synchronicity, and the odd way a chance encounter or a single small event can change the course of one's life -- or the world.

It's got free will vs. destiny, the meaning of life, the butterfly effect, subtle allusions to myth and literature, archetypal characters ... a veritable smorgasbord of Deeply Geeky Goodies.

And we haven't even mentioned The Island itself yet, an apparently conscious, autopoietic system with the power to move people between many worlds. (That's my personal theory. There are others.)

Now you tell me. Where the hell am I going to get a fix of all that between now and the next season?

Pennies from Heaven

It is said that those who have crossed over sometimes make their presence known to the living by dropping coins in odd places. Strange as it sounds, I think there may be something to it.

Shortly after my favorite aunt passed away in 2001, pennies began to appear around me. I'd leave my desk, and when I'd return, I'd find one right there in front of the keyboard, or on my chair or nearby on the floor. They're always pennies, and they're always dated 2002.

The penny in the photo appeared last night. I walked from my desk to the closet, got some paper, closed the closet door and sat back down here. When I glanced that way again, there was the penny, on the carpet in front of the closet door. I'm sure I would have noticed it, had it been there before.

I've tried to pass this off as coincidence, or just heightened awareness of perfectly ordinary stray change, but ... why is it always only one coin, always a penny, and always dated 2002? On the other hand, why aren't they dated 2001, or maybe 2004 for when my dad died?

For a while, the coins seemed to follow me. When last I visited my brother's home in another state, where my father's ashes are kept in a place of honor by the front door, 2002 pennies began appearing on their doorstep. Oddest of all, when my sister in law and I went out for lunch, she opened her sandwich to add some mustard and there, embedded in the pickle slice, was -- you guessed it -- a penny. That one was dated 2000, but still. What are the odds? (According to the manager of the restauarant, the odds are zero. I'm sure she thought we put it there to get a free lunch.)

It's been about a year since the last penny popped up. Now, with my thoughts lingering so often among the dead, they seem to be reappearing.

I hesitate to post this, as it is both wierd and personal. I guess I'm hoping someone else has had this experience, or can explain it away for me. Any takers?

Song of the stones

Check this out: 'Da Vinci' church reveals secret code - CNN.

Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code" pays homage to Rosslyn Chapel, an intricate and enigmatic Scottish church packed solid with centuries-old puzzles. Now, it seems, at least one of its mysteries is solved.

Code breaker and composer Thomas Mitchell, along with his composer son Stuart, have deciphered an archway sporting 13 angelic musicians and 213 geometric symbols. Turns out, the symbols are musical notes; specifically, they are Chladni patterns, the shapes that result when a sand-covered plate is vibrated by various tones. He and his son have recreated the corresponding medieval melody, dubbed The Roslynn Motet, and it will be performed in the chapel for the first time on May 18.

Mitchell has a website that explains all, including a snippet of the music and an awesome video of the sound patterns forming on the vibrating plate, matched with corresponding carvings.

Is this cool or what?