World Championship of Sand Sculpting

Happening now in Seattle. 

Artists from 17 countries are participating. 

These sculptures, below, are from years past.

Ziggy

I feel like a car — I'm deteriorating with age.

I need a body shop.

Round Barn, Indiana

"Fulton County is the round barn capital of the world, 

[but] few round barns remain standing."

http://hoosierroundbarns.wikispaces.com/ 

The Republic of Malta

I have a small following of readers from Malta,
so I thought I'd showcase this Mediterranean gem.
Malta is located between Sicily and Tunesia,
and claims a rich and varied history. 

I encourage you to read about it here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malta

Horse path

More local news

A Waynesville woman with two prior drunk driving convictions crashed her car three times last night before she fled on foot to avoid officers. She struck a vehicle on a residential street, hit an unoccupied car on the berm of the interstate, then she ran over a sign post and into a telephone pole. She is facing multiple counts.

A child's 3rd birthday celebration at a hall in Elmswood erupted into a large melée that required seven police departments to control. Seventy-five people were involved in the fight, 15 were injured, and five were admitted to the hospital. Beer bottles were the weapon of choice.  It started at 1:00 a.m. when who shows up?  — an uninvited ex-spouse.

A small black bear has been spotted five times over the last four weeks in a park in Symmes Township. It's described as 3 1/2 feet tall. Officials say there are no plans to trap it, and that residents should be careful. I think they should try to determine whether it's an orphan, or whether mom is nearby.

Hey, it's crazy out there! Stay safe!

Painter Frederico Andreotti

 

The Violin Player 

Frederico Andreotti

1847-1930

Academic Classicism

http://www.historyofpainters.com/academic_classicism.htm

Photographer Roger Fenton

The Valley of the Shadow of Death
1856
Roger Fenton (1819-1869) 

Salted paper print from a wet collodion glass negative.
Musée d'Orsay, Paris
http://www.musee-orsay.fr/en/home.html

Caption contest

 

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Odd news for Monday

A man in Cheyenne, Wyoming poured white latex paint all over his body in a mistaken attempt to avoid being tasered by police on a domestic dispute call. They tasered him anyway.

Police told the man paint would not affect the taser, but he scuffled with the officers and had to be subdued.

The officers' uniforms had to be cleaned. (Not to mention the squad car. Maybe they hosed him off first?)

Segway accident kills company owner

A British businessman who bought the Segway company a year ago has died in an accident involving one of the vehicles.

Bystanders watched as the 62-year-old man rolled over an embankment and fell 30 feet into the River Wharfe in Yorkshire, England last weekend. His body and the vehicle were recovered on the bank of the river.

The man left behind a legacy of philanthropy. I understand he will be missed.

Hats

 

They look like flowers.

Sunday morning walk

The Gallarus Oratory, Ireland

Dingle Penninsula,County Kerry, Ireland

It was an early Christian church built in the Medieval period between the 6th and 9th centuries. It was built without mortar yet stays dry.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallarus_Oratory
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloch%C3%A1n

Tree on barren rock

Yorkshire, England

Palais Garnier or Paris Opera

The building was completed in 1875 in the Beaux-Arts style. 

The rotunda was painted by Marc Chagall.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palais_Garnier

Victorian Painter Sir Edward Poynter

Libra and Her Sparrow

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Poynter

Albert Tibule Furcy de Lavault

Fleurs et Fruits

Musée des Beaux-Arts de La Rochelle

Lavault was a French still life painter from the mid-19th Century to the early 20th.

"...his work was greatly influenced by the Impressionists, often capturing the softness and beauty of his subject with robust brushwork and a colorful palette.  During his lifetime his work was highly sought after and in 1888 he received an honorable mention at the Paris Salon.   

http://www.fada.com/browse_by_artist.html?gallery_no=2&artist=3157&bio=1

On a bicycle built for two

Notice the White House in the background.

Painter Maruyama Okyo

Maruyama Okyo (1733-95) was a Japanese artist in Kyoto where he was influenced by Chinese and Western styles of painting. He mixed Western Naturalism and Eastern art, and founded the Maruyama school of painting. It's believed that Okyo was the first Japanese artist to draw life drawings from nude models. (Wikipedia)

Jean-Francois Millet

 

The Shepherdess

1864

Musée d'Orsay, Paris

Weathered door

Terraced farms, China

The doctor's advice

My shoulder was hurting today and I kiddingly asked my friend, DPV, if he had any "doctorly" advice.

This is what he wrote back:

"Because you have insurance, we'll do a CAT scan, an MRI, a blood test and send you to physical therapy. Here's a prescription for a drug with several side effects. If you cannot tolerate the drug, we'll prescribe something else that is habit-forming and which some people are allergic to. We'll put you in a state-of-the-art sling, so please arrange for transportation everywhere you go. Do not lift anything heavier than a box of Hot Tamales. You'll need to tell your employer you'll miss work on and off for the next 14 weeks, but you won't be able to claim disability. Please call your insurance company for pre-approval to see a specialist. That will require a second and third opinion from doctors they dictate, at the convenience of the doctors. It will cost $32 to fax your records all over the city, and 32 phones calls to confirm the appointments. Do not eat anything 36 hours before any appointment and drink a vile enema every Friday morning. Avoid air-conditioned buildings and downtown streets."

That about sums up the medical establishment, does it not?

Topiary

Washington Old Hall, England

http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-vh/w-visits/w-findaplace/w-washingtonoldhall 

American Impressionist Philip Leslie Hale

The Crimson Rambler

1908

Hula Hoops

The modern Hula Hoop we know today was invented by Wham-O in 1958. But ancient Greeks used hoops as a form of exercise, and in 1300 hooping was recorded in Great Britain. By 1800, British sailors first witnessed hula dancing in the Hawaiian Islands. Wham-O combined the Hawaiian hula dance with hoop to name their product. In the past, hoops have been made of bamboo, wood, grasses, vines and metal.

Over-caffeinated

Does your favorite coffee drinker look like this?

Crop circles

I have a curiosity about how crop circles are etched. Do the artists have a giant template? Do farmers know that big chunks of their fields are being destroyed? Is it illegal to do this? How long does it take to make one? Do five people make it in a week, or do 25 people make it in one day? Mind boggling.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crop_circle