Month: June 2019
FFTD: Tree of Lavender
This is a tree on the church grounds. It’s huge and gorgeous. I have no idea what kind, though. ~Vic
Update:
This is a Rhododendron, courtesy of a fellow blogger. Thank you!

04-07-2019
Flower for the Day
Movie Monday: The Brash Drummer & The Nectarine 1914

One-hundred, five years ago, today, The Brash Drummer and The Nectarine was released. A short, silent, black & white comedy, it was written and directed by George Ade, a popular American humorist for his time and a follower of Mark Twain. Starring Wallace Beery and Bevery Bayne, this piece was one of Ade’s Fables in Slang.
Summary:
Gabby Gus made the town regularly every month. He was a swell guy and thought he could cop most any Jane that he took a liking to. Clara Louise Willoughby, a farmer’s daughter with a pretty face and figure, took the salesman’s eye. He looked the old gent up in Dunn and Bradstreet and, discovered that the old boy was worth some coin. Then, he set his traps for the daughter. Dad, however, sent her away to boarding school and when she returned, she was the swellest peach in the orchard. They all fell for her. Gus hastened to her home where he discovered she was some lemon when it came to the country stuff and that she was a real ‘highfalutin’ society butterfly now. […] her aspirations were higher than a poor hick drummer. She made him feel awfully small. [Source]
I can’t find a video clip of this film but, I did find Ade’s Fables in Slang in audio book form. It has 26 stories and was published in 1899. [Disclaimer: It is nearly two hours long.] ~Vic
Shutterbug Saturday: Critter Collections 6.0
All Things Critter
All photos are my personal collection. ~Vic
Part I/Part II/Part III/Part IV/Part V

Coreopsis blooming in November.
11-04-2017

I think it is a grasshopper.
09-06-2018

At least, I think it is a daisy.
10-13-2018

He had places to go.
03-21-2019

This thing showed up during the rain storms.
It looks like a tape worm.
04-13-2019

I see these lizards all over the place.
They are quick.
05-06-2019

Cute green thing in the kitchen window.
05-10-2019

Tiny little moth.
05-11-2019
Flashback Friday: Paris, Lithuania & Tarnów 1940
June 14 was a banner day for the countries of France, Lithuania and Poland. Except for reading the words, we, today, have no clue what these people went through. ~Vic

[Source]
Paris started mobilizing for war in September 1939 when Nazi Germany, and their allied Soviet Union, according to the Ribbentrop-Molotov Treaty, invaded Poland. […] the war seemed far away until May 10, 1940, when the Germans attacked France and quickly defeated the French army. The French government departed Paris on June 10 and the Germans occupied the city on June 14.
In the spring of 1939, war with Germany already seemed inevitable. On March 10, the city began to distribute gas masks to civilians and on March 19, signs were posted guiding Parisians to the nearest shelters. On August 31, anticipating bombardment, the French government began to evacuate 30,000 children out of the city […]. On September 1, news reached Paris that Germany had invaded Poland, and France, as expected, promptly declared war on Germany. […] in February 1940, ration cards for food were issued [..].
The French defense plan was purely passive, waiting for the Germans to attack. After eight months of relative calm, […] the Germans struck France on May 10, 1940, bypassing the Maginot Line and slipping through the Ardennes. On June 3, the Germans bombed Paris and its suburbs for the first time […]. On June 8, the sound of distant artillery fire could be heard in the capital. On 10 June, the French government fled Paris […]. On June 12, the French government, in Tours, declared Paris to be an open city [and] that there would be no resistance. At 5:30 in the morning of June 14, the first German advance guard entered the city […]. By the end of the afternoon, the Germans had hung a swastika flag at the Arc de Triomphe […].

According to the Soviet–Lithuanian Mutual Assistance Treaty, Lithuania agreed to allow Soviet military bases (marked in black stars) in exchange for a portion of the Vilnius Region (in orange).
[Source]
The Soviet Union issued an ultimatum to Lithuania before midnight of June 14, 1940. The Soviets, using a formal pretext, demanded to allow an unspecified number of Soviet soldiers to enter the Lithuanian territory and to form a new pro-Soviet government […]. The ultimatum and subsequent incorporation of Lithuania into the Soviet Union stemmed from the division of Eastern Europe into the German and Russian spheres of influence in the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of August 1939. Lithuania, along with Latvia and Estonia, fell into the Russian sphere. Despite the threat to the independence, Lithuanian authorities did little to plan for contingencies and were unprepared for the ultimatum. With Soviet troops already stationed in the country according to the Mutual Assistance Treaty, it was impossible to mount effective military resistance. On June 15, Lithuania unconditionally accepted the ultimatum and lost its independence.

[Source]
The first mass transport of prisoners by Nazi Germany to Auschwitz Concentration Camp was organized in occupied Poland on June 14, 1940, during World War II. The transport departed from the southern Polish city of Tarnów and, consisted of 728 Poles and 20 Polish Jews. They were dubbed ‘political prisoners’ and members of the Polish resistance. Most were Catholics, since the mass deportations of Jews had not yet begun. All were sent to Auschwitz by the German Security Police. They were transported there from a regular prison in Tarnów where they had been incarcerated as enemies of the Nazi regime. Numbers were tattooed on the prisoners’ arms in the order of their arrival […]. These inmates were assigned the numbers 31 through 758, with numbers 1 through 30 having been reserved for a group of German criminals who were brought to Auschwitz from Sachsenhausen on May 20 and became the first Auschwitz kapos.
Zion Night Sky & Sunrise Time Lapse Video: Dawn 2 Dawn Photography
Quote Posted on Updated on
Sharing a fantastic shot and an equally incredible time-lapse clip from Michael Andrew Just.
Watch the stars move through the night sky and the sun rising at Zion National Park, Utah. Lots of UFOs traveling through the sky also. Watch in HiDef at Full Screen.
Via Zion Night Sky and Sunrise Time Lapse Video: dawn2dawnphotography.me
If the above video doesn’t work, try this one:
POTD: The Other Shroom
A week ago, I posted a photo of a rather large tree mushroom. It had a smaller twin on the other side. We’ve had a very wet spring. ~Vic

Wayback Wednesday: Doctor Doctor 1989

Thirty years ago, today, the sitcom Doctor Doctor debuted on CBS. Starring Matt Frewer (Max Headroom), Julius Carry, Beau Gravitte, Maureen Mueller and Tony Carreiro, it ran for three seasons with the very last episode never airing.
From TV Tropes:
[The show] features Matt Frewer as [Dr. Mike Stratford] who belongs to the practice Northeast Medical Partners with three other doctors in Providence, Rhode Island. Most of the comedy surrounds [his] zany antics, tempered by his obvious commitment to his profession and his patients. Though at first serving as “straight men” for Frewer’s manic style of comic acting, the other characters gained more depth as the series progressed, sometimes focusing on issues such as AIDS, breast cancer and homophobia.
From TV.com
The focal point of the series is Mike Stratford, a semi-psychotic doctor who has a passion for healing, anybody. Besides being a doctor, Mike has written a couple of books and is a daily feature on Wake Up Providence…, a local morning TV show. Other major characters include: Richard, Mike’s gay brother and an assistant English professor; Dierdre, a doctor whose looking for the right man and once slept with Mike; Grant, a doctor whose only looking to keep his image perfect; Abe, a doctor whose married with a son and a perfect family life; Faye, a nurse who likes crossword puzzles and kinky things.
Doctor Doctor Opening Theme
Tune Tuesday: Dancing In The Dark 1984

Thirty-five years ago, today, the #1 song on the Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock chart was Dancing in the Dark from the album Born in the USA by Bruce Springsteen. The music video was directed by Brian De Palma (Carrie/Scarface/The Untouchables) and it introduced the world to a, then, unknown Courteney Cox. This was his biggest hit single and the album is, to this day, his best selling. The song also went to #1 with Cash Box, in Canada, with Radio & Records and, went on to #1 in 1985 in Belgium & The Netherlands. Notable cover version artists are Kermit the Frog, Mary Chapin Carpenter and Pete Yorn.

Awards
♥ Best Rock Vocal Performance, Male Grammys
♥ Grammy Hall of Fame Grammys
♥ Pop/Rock Single American Music Awards
♥ International Album of the Year Juno Awards
♥ Best Stage Performance MTV Video Music Awards
Nominations
Grammys: 2
American Music Awards: 2
Brit Awards: 1
MTV Video Music Awards: 1
FFTD: Bright Yellow
I haven’t a clue what kind of flower this is but, I will dig around and see what I can find.
Update:
This looks very much like a Forsythia. ~Vic

Neighbor’s bush.
03-31-2019
Flower for the Day
Movie Monday: The Lonely Villa 1909

One-hundred and ten years ago, today (exactly, believe it or not), the silent short crime-drama, The Lonely Villa, was released. A film directed by D. W. Griffith, it starred David Miles, Marion Leonard, Mary Pickford (in one of her very early roles), Gladys Egan and Adele DeGarde and, was based on the Andre de Lorde French play from 1901: Au Téléphone.
D. W. Griffith and Mary Pickford, along with Charlie Chaplin and Douglas Fairbanks, founded United Artists on February 5, 1919, as a studio where actors could control their own interests instead of being beholden to commercial studios. It is now a subsidiary of MGM and Annapurna Pictures and, as of February 5, 2019 (its 100th anniversary), it was rebranded as United Artists Releasing.
From IMDB:
A gang of thieves lure a man out of his home so that they can rob it and, threaten his wife and children. The family barricade themselves in an interior room but, the criminals are well-equipped for breaking in. When the father finds out what is happening, he must race against time to get back home.
Trivia Bit
♦ During the shot of the father leaving the hotel, a dip can be seen in the road in the background. Today, that is currently the exit for the George Washington Bridge and the location of the hotel is now an apartment complex.
POTD: Buddy
Going back fifteen years, this is a shot of Buddy, interrupting an exercise routine. This was during my Texas years. He was such a sweet baby and I still miss him. ~Vic

04-05-2004
Alan Watts (Philosopher) Sketch: Think & Explore
Quote Posted on Updated on
A while back, I asked Mani @ Think & Explore to draw Alan Watts. He is a gifted artist and this is a perfect example. Go visit and see how he drew it. Thanks, Mani! ~Vic
Hi all, I am back with a new pencil sketch today! 😃 There’s a specialty for this one. Some time back, this picture (of Alan Watts) was requested by blogger The Hinoeuma (blog Cosmic Observation) as a suggestion to my next to draw list. I took the suggestion and worked on the sketch recently. […]
Shutterbug Saturday: Rogue Artistes 4.0
This will be the last in the graffiti series for a while until some new ones show up or I find artwork somewhere else. All photos are my personal collection. © ~Vic
Part I/Part II/Part III

Riverwalk path.
05-26-2019

06-09-2017

06-01-2019

06-09-2017

06-01-2019

How apropos…
06-01-2019

This is the shed next to the house from the first post.
05-19-2019

It’s gone. New canvas for new art.
05-17-2019
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