#Ardenne Mountains

[gekopnederland]

The Dutch Ardennes, The Netherlands

Beautiful mountainous scenery can be found near the border of Belgium and The Netherlands. Few have speculated (which is where the word for the koek Speculaas comes from) that this part of the Netherlands should've been in Belgium, but we didn't choose to own such gracious scenery.

Koek - Speculaas

"Hier moeten we even een Speculaasje bij nemen" - To Speculate about something

[surelookbutnothingtoseehere]

[luckyreds]

On Crossroads

a quick rant about symbolism, which I thought way too much about this episode

Crossroads is about an obvious crossroad, both physically and metaphorically. It’s the midway episode, we are literally crossing into the latter half of the series. It is also the episode where Winters is promoted. He's no longer captain of "Easy Company" and must grapple with letting go of that identity, a clear turning point in his journey. He's at a crossroads, both literally and figuratively.

If you look closely, the theme of change and transition is woven throughout the episode. For instance, in the barn scene, we see the replacements from the previous episode leading around the new replacements. As Luz puts it, "New guys giving the replacements the what for, and why is." They’ve fought alongside the Normandy veterans, but they’re still perceived as “new.” Yet to the even newer replacements, Hashey, Ramirez, and Babe are already part of the old guard. we can see here three generations of easy company, and the constantly changing roster of soldiers coming and going from their ranks.

Change is also evident in smaller, personal moments. At Winters’ "writing corner of shame," Nix laments about stopping to hide his drink in the footlocker, aka an excuse to see Winter’s as often as he likes. Then they joke about Nix stopping drinking in it’s entirety; to which Nix says Cheers! In a way, Nixon rejects change, clinging to old habits even as the world around him shifts. (Something that he comes back to haunt him in later episodes)

Going to the titular crossroads mission, Though it’s a tactical success, it feels hollow, leaving Winters deeply unsettled. This mission represents a breaking point for him and foreshadows the strain that will take its toll on others. For example, Liebgott, picking off German soldiers on his own, not listening to Winters at first, a sign of growing cracks in discipline and morale.

 (Later on they even cross another “crossroad”, the river, getting the British back. In a way, the two missions reflect the two big invasions they have been apart of, Normandy and Market-Garden, One a victory, the other ending up in retreat.)

Signs of emotional strain are evident across the company. Doc Roe snaps at Welsh and Winters over giving Moose a morphine dose that could’ve killed a literal one, his calm exterior finally fraying. Luz cracks jokes at the cinema, clinging to humour even when no one laughs anymore. Buck sits silently, staring into the void, staying even after everyone has left. These moments illustrate how the prolonged stress of war is beginning to affect everyone, which we see more pronounced in later episodes.

The theme of change is even seen in other details! The whole episode takes place in Autumn! A changing season. We start the episode with full trees and bright skies in Holland, To the snowy and misty mountains of the Ardennes, the episode shifts to grey. We even see change in their clothing! As the episode progresses some of the guys are starting to wear their winter uniform! Once you see it, Change and transition is all over this episode. All in all this picture might do it best:

[mapsontheweb]

Europe in December 1944

by danmaps_org

In December 1944, the Battle of the Bulge unfolded as the last major German offensive on the Western Front during World War II. The Ardennes Offensive aimed to split the Allied forces, but intense fighting, logistical issues, and unfavorable weather conditions, including heavy snow, hindered the German advance. Despite initial setbacks, the Allies managed to regroup, withstand the assault, and eventually push the Germans back, leading to a significant strategic victory.

In December 1944 on the Eastern Front of World War II, the Soviet Union continued its offensive against German forces. The Red Army had successfully repelled the German Army in Operation Bagration earlier in the year and was advancing westward. By December, Soviet forces were closing in on the borders of pre-war Germany, putting significant pressure on the Eastern Front and contributing to the overall turning tide of the war in favor of the Allies.

The Italian campaign on the Southern Front of World War II was characterized by Allied advances against entrenched German defenses. The Allies had faced challenges in the mountainous terrain of Italy, but by late 1944, they managed to break through the Gothic Line, a formidable German defensive line. This progress paved the way for the subsequent liberation of northern Italy and set the stage for the end of hostilities in the region.

[solhrafn]

This region (Famenne) is probably one of the nicest of Belgium. It has plains and gentle hills that stack behind one another the further out you peer towards the Ardennes. The Calestienne —a narrow limestone ridge that goes through the whole region— offers quite a few spots from which you can see it all. The closest this country comes to having a "mountain range".

[buckyegans]

Just Me and You, Shifty Powers

just a little imagine I crossposted on my Wattpad (boneflu) and wanted to post here!

no warnings just pure fluff

 Austria had been some sort of dream—the daily warm meal and hot showers seemed to be too good to be true. Yet, here you were, hands gripping the splintered wood of the old dock, swinging your legs to just barely graze the surface of the water below. The sky had turned pink and orange as the sun had made her way down, bringing forth the moon rising from behind the mountains. Your shoes and socks were somewhere further up the dock, your mind too focused on the coolness bringing small goosebumps up your bare legs, trousers rolled to your calves.

 "This is where you've been hidin' all night?" a soft voice asked, footsteps accompanying Shifty's voice as he made his way down the dock. You looked up, finding Darrell haloed by the wind-blewn trees and waking stars. You gave a lopsided grin and nodded, offering your hand to the sharpshooter. For a man who always wielded a rifle, the pads of his fingers were smooth, and soft. He carefully plopped down next to you, your thighs pressed together. Soon enough he was tossing his shoes and socks behind him just as you had, propping his legs up to roll his pants to match yours. His feet met the water and he let out a content sigh. "Found yourself a pretty spot, huh?" The Virginia asked.

 You nodded. "Sure did, Shift. All the boys are being too loud." you stated, looking to what he had gripped in his hand. A bottle of champagne, no doubt some lavish brand some Kraut had been waiting to pop when they won the war—but tonight, it was their victory. "Whatcha got there, Shift?" Darrell looked down to his hand and grinned, shrugging before offering it up to you. The label was a different language, you suspected French. "Where did you manage to find this?"

 You hummed, thumb pressing against the cork until it popped loudly, causing both of you to jump before turning to one another with giddy grins. You took a long swing before wiping your mouth, "here's to our alcoholic intelligence officer—and his ability to choose the good stuff."

 Shifty takes the bottle from you by its neck, tipping it into his own mouth. "Here's to him," he agreed, grimacing at the taste. Shifty's face twisted, causing you to let out a laugh, while Shifty grinned proudly. You nursed the bottle once more and drank from it once more before laying on the dock, legs hanging over. Darrell followed your movements, readjusting to get his shoulder flush against yours. He unashamedly lopped his head to the side to stare at you, your eyes fluttering shut, glowing from the sun. The hard war was evident in your tired eyes and silver scars, but Shifty thought you had never looked to gorgeous.

 "You're starin', Powers." your comment is accompanied with an amused glance at him, head falling to meet his gaze. He only hums in response, smiling with his rosy, sun-loved cheeks. "Do I have something on my face?"

 Shifty is shaking his head slowly. "No," he states shortly, grinning that smile that had gone into hiding since stepping into the Ardennes—the endless months in a permanent winter had hardened even the softest of soldiers, Shifty Powers included. Every now and again, you got him to give that little smile, hidden behind a scarf, only for you to see. But, here on this dock, it was on full display. "It's just you and me, so I get to stare all I want."

 You're cocking your head to the side and pushing yourself up to stand, brows furrowed. "Is that so?" you ask, looking down at him. Shifty is following your movements as he gives a confident nod. "And why is that?"

 He smiles again. "No distractions. No questions. No possible gunfire. Just me and you." You're inching closer with each of his words, his arms snaking around your waist and pulling you closer. "Now I can tell you how pretty I think you are." He's giddy as he says this, looking like a little kid on Christmas. You can't help but blush pink, shaking your head.

 "Was I not pretty enough in Bastogne?" you tease. Shifty is rolling his eyes playfully, shaking his head and tutting.

 He's pushing hair behind your ear. "You're always pretty. But now I don't got no competition—no one around to try and take you from this moment. Just you and me?"

 You wrap your arms around his shoulders, pulling him down closer and closer. "So," you trail off. "What are you gonna do now that it's just you and me?"

 Shifty grins. "Well, I'd like to kiss you."

 You laugh. "Kiss me, Darrell."

[pro-cycling-primers]

📊 Types of races 📊

A brief overview/beginner's guide to the two primary kinds of road racing, one-day races and stage races:

One day races 📆

These are the easiest to explain: an event that takes place on one day, the winner is the first rider across the line. (That last sentence might sound silly, but when we get to stage racing you'll see it's not always that simple!)

There are literally hundreds of one day races throughout the year, but the most prestigious are the cobbled classics, the Ardennes classics, and the five Monuments. If you're new to cycling, big one-day races will get you quickly acquainted with some of the sport's top stars.

Most one-day races are named after their start and finish towns, or historic equivalents: for instance Milano-Sanremo 🇮🇹 starts in (or near) Milan, and finishes in San Remo. Some are named after the region; De Ronde van Vlaanderen 🇧🇪 and Il Lombardia 🇮🇹 pass through the regions of Flanders and Lombardy respectively.

The difficulty of one-day racing lies in the route and terrain (known together as a race's parcours), whether that difficulty comes in the form of climbing or tricky surfaces like gravel and cobblestones.

Different terrains favour different characteristics: flatter races will favour heavier, more powerful riders whereas hilly/mountainous courses will more often be won by smaller, lighter riders.

Stage races 🗓️

Multi-day events where the winner is the rider with the lowest combined time across all stages. They can vary in length from 2 days all the way up to 21-day Grand Tours.

Each day is known as a stage, usually in the 100-200km range to and each stage has a winner, the first across the line that day. A stage winner doesn't necessarily win the entire race, and it's possible for the overall winner to win without winning a stage, as the total accrued time counts toward general victory.

The leader's jersey is worn each day by the rider with the lowest combined time up to that point, and is a distinctive colour (yellow at the Tour de France, other colours at other races).

To win a stage race, riders must be consistent and slightly lucky - crashes and mechanical problems can cause a rider to lose minutes on their competitors.

Traditionally, a stage would start in Town A, finish in Town B, and the teams stay overnight for the start of the next stage, leaving from Town B to Town C. However, practicalities of organisation - race organisers want to feature difficult climbs/sectors - and financial reasons - start/finish towns often pay for the race's presence as tourism draw - mean there are often transfers between the finishes and starts of consecutive stages.

Riders must finish each and every stage in order to remain in the race - and in Grand Tours the 'time cut' comes into play, as riders are required to finish within a calculated percentage of the stage winner's time.

Left: Miguel Ángel López 🇨🇴 gets into the team car during the 2022 Giro d'Italia; he cannot compete in the rest of the race. Right: Fabio Jakobsen 🇳🇱 races for the time cut during the 2022 Tour de France. If he does not finish before the van (known as the broom wagon), he is out of the race.

Alongside the general classification (GC; standings in overall combined time of all stages) and stage wins, there are jerseys on offer for the overall best climber and overall best sprinter, awarded on a points basis by being the first rider to pass specific intermediate points throughout stages.

The youth classification, the leader of which usually wears a white jersey, functions the same as the GC but for riders under a certain age. For most races this is under 23, but at the Tour de France it is open to riders under 25.

There is also the team classification - lowest combined time of every rider on a team - and the combativity prize, awarded both daily and as a final super-combative prize to the riders deemed by a jury to have ridden most aggressively throughout the race. Neither of these have distinctive jerseys.

The three three-week Grand Tours are the most prestigious stage races, to which teams will bring their best riders, but there are many more beyond these. In fact, the Critérium du Dauphiné 🇫🇷 starts this Sunday (2nd June), one of the last warm-up races ahead of the Tour de France!

To finish: road racing comes in two main forms, one-day races and stage races. The cycling season, which runs traditionally from February until October, comprises both types, and both are brilliant to watch!

[argyrocratie]

"There is not a single European country in which the traditions of the old communal property have entirely disappeared. In certain areas, notably in the Ardennes and in the steep mountainous regions of Switzerland, where the peasants did not have to submit to the kind of oppression to which the German villagers were subjected after the wars of the Reformation, communal property is still widespread enough to constitute a considerable part of the territory.

In the Belgian Ardennes, the collective lands are composed of three parts: the woods, the freshly cleared ground [sart], and the pastures. They also often include arable land and quarries.

(...)

These customs clearly influence the moral character of individuals and greatly develop their spirit of solidarity, mutual kindness, and heartfelt friendliness. Thus it is customary to form voluntary work crews for the benefit of those who need work done. The latter need only to state their request by proceeding noisily through the village, calling out, “So-and-so needs something done! Who wants to help out?” Immediately a group appears and its members put their heads together to figure out who can best undertake the job, and the service is rendered. Such stories also come to us from the Queyras.

In all of Switzerland, two-thirds of the alpine prairies and forests belong to the communes, which also own peat bogs, reed marshes, and quarries, as well as fields, orchards, and vineyards. On many occasions when the co-proprietors of the commune have to work together, they feel as though they are at a festival rather than at work. The young men and women climb to the high mountain pastures, driving their herds before them to the harmonious clinking of the bells. At other times, the work is more difficult. While the snow still covers the ground, the woodsmen, armed with axes, cut the high pines in the communal forest. They strip the sawlogs and slide them down the avalanche corridors to the torrent that will carry them away in its bends and rapids.

Then there are the evening gatherings on winter nights, in which all are summoned to the home of whoever has the most urgent work, whether it is to shell corn, hull nuts, or make wedding gifts for a woman engaged to be married. During these gatherings, the work is a pleasure. The children want to participate, for everything is new to them. Instead of going to bed, they stay up with the adults and are given the best of the chestnuts roasting under the hot embers. When dreamtime is near, they listen to songs and are told stories, adventures, and fables, which are transformed by their imaginations into marvelous apparitions. It is often during such nights of mutual good will that a child’s being permanently takes shape. Here, one’s loves in life are kindled, and life’s bitterness is made sweeter.

Thus the spirit of full association has by no means disappeared in the communes, despite all the ill will of the rich and the state, who have every interest in breaking apart these tightly bound bundles of resistance to their greed or power and who attempt to reduce society to a collection of isolated individuals. Traditional mutual aid occurs even among people of different languages and nations. In Switzerland, it is customary to exchange children from family to family, between the German and the French cantons. Similarly, the country people of Béarn send their children to the Basque country, welcoming in turn young Basques as farm boys. In this way, they will all soon learn the two languages without the parents having to spend any money. Finally, all individuals with a similar trade and common interests—whether they be coal merchants, hunters, or sailors—have established virtual confraternities having neither written constitutions nor signatures, but nevertheless forming small, close-knit republics. Throughout the world, carnival performers who meet by chance on the road are allied in a sort of freemasonry that is far more solemn than that of the “brothers” who gather in the temples of Hiram."

-Elisée Reclus, "Culture and Property" (1905)

[sgt-scottymoreau]

Yonking this from @cloudofbutterflies92 😛❤️

Name: Camille Moreau

Universe: CoD Modern Wafare (Reboot)

Favorite book: Le Compte de Monte-Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. She doesn't read book often, but this probably one that she devored as a teen.

Favorite song: It vary from time to time, she doesn't have a specific one.

Favorite pieces of clothing that they wore: Althought she can't wear it anymore, she still has a t-shirt her "uncle" gave her as a kid. He went on a trip to Spain a few weeks before he died and brought her back one of these tourist basic t-shirts.

Favorite Little Treat: Pastry, any kind, but a soft spot for anything with custard in.

Favorite person one the life: As a kid, hands down her father (he still is everything) As an adult, her nephews.

Dream Home: Somewhere close to the mountains, where it's calm, far from any big city. Like in the Ardennes.

Dream life: She grew up wanting to be in the military, so she is living her dream really.

[cass-windfeild]

[intheferns]

6,27,29 for the ask prompts!!

Sorry for delaying the answers ><

6. I like big and fluffy horses! North swedish (of both generations), shire, clydesdale, irish cob, wild jorvik, ardennes... I can't choose one of these breeds, I like each one in its own way :>

27. There are quite a few of them :') Some of my favorite characters are Galloper, Fripp and Rania, but I also love all the Soul Riders and their horses very much. I used to like Anne and Linda especially among the Soul Riders, but now Lisa and Alex also seem cool and interesting to me and I can't choose one person

29. I reeeally love different inaccessible and mysterious locations: the mountains of Jor, hidden runestones, caves, druidic places... Especially the Secret Stone Circle (especially in the Starshine Legacy version) and the Ancient Tree on the South Hoof

But if I had the opportunity to be on Jorvik, I would like to go EVERYWHERE

🌿

Thank you very much for asking!!

[bobmccullochny]

History

November 24

November 24, 1859 - Charles Darwin's book On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection was first published, theorizing that all the living creatures descended from a common ancestor.

November 24, 1863 - The Battle of Chattanooga took place during the American Civil War as General Ulysses Grant's soldiers scaled heavily fortified Lookout Mountain and overran Confederate General Braxton Bragg's army.

November 24, 1874 - Joseph Glidden patented his invention of barbed wire.

November 24, 1969 - The U.S. Army announced that Lt. William L. Calley had been charged with premeditated murder in the massacre of civilians in the Vietnamese village of My Lai in March of 1968. Calley was ordered to stand trial by court martial and was later convicted and sentenced to life in prison. However, his sentence was later commuted to three years of house arrest by President Richard Nixon.

November 24, 1989 - In Czechoslovakia, mass demonstrations resulted in the resignation of the entire presidium and secretariat of the Czechoslovak Communist Party.

November 24, 1992 - The U.S. military departed the Philippines after nearly a century of military presence. In 1991, the Philippine Senate had voted to reject a renewal of the lease for the American military base.

November 24, 1998 - Britain's Queen Elizabeth II opened a new session of Parliament by announcing a bill to do away with the centuries-old right of aristocrats to sit in the House of Lords, thereby taking membership and voting rights away from 759 Dukes, Earls and other hereditary nobles with titles dating as far back as the Middle Ages.

Birthday - Zachary Taylor (1784-1850) the 12th U.S. President was born in Orange County, Virginia. Nicknamed "old rough and ready," he won the presidency as a result of his heroics in the Mexican War of 1846-48. He served as President from March 4, 1849 to July 9, 1850, when he died in the White House after becoming ill.

Birthday - American composer Scott Joplin (1868-1917) was born in Texarkana, Texas. Best known for his piano rags including Maple Leaf Rag and The Entertainer.

Birthday - German Field Marshal Erich von Manstein (1887-1973) was born in Berlin. His plan for the German invasion of France in 1940 involved staging a surprise attack through the Ardennes Forest, and was a stunning success. He went on to achieve several important victories over the Russians in the East, but was dismissed by Hitler in 1944 following a series of arguments over military strategy.

Birthday - Motivational lecturer Dale Carnegie (1888-1955) was born in Maryville, Missouri. Best known for his 1936 book How to Win Friends and Influence People which sold millions of copies and was translated into 29 languages.

[surelookbutnothingtoseehere]

[kitsunabi]

Staying at Ardennes Villa today after heading down the mountain from Taroko Village Hotel. We walked around the Bolang Suspension Bridge and Hualien distillery for a bit

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

Today in Christian History

Today is Tuesday, May 30th, the 150th day of 2023. There are 215 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

727: Death of Hubert, the “Apostle to the Ardennes” (a region now comprised of Northern France, Belgium, and Luxembourg).

1416: Jerome of Prague is burned for heresy by the Council of Constance. He had been a follower of reformer Jan Hus.

1525: Last preserved letter of Conrad Grebel, written from Zurich, to his brother-in-law Vadian, is a vigorous plea against attempts to suppress Anabaptists by fines, confiscation of property, imprisonment, or death.

1527: Philip of Hesse opens the University of Marburg.

1574: Death of King Charles IX of France, haunted by superstitious terrors because of the Huguenots he had ordered to be massacred in the infamous St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre.

1639: Death of Metrophanes Kritopoulos, Orthodox patriarch of Alexandria, Egypt. His discussions with Protestants prompted him to write an exposition of Eastern Orthodox doctrine, based on the early church fathers, in an attempt to achieve Christian unity.

1792: William Carey preaches a famous sermon on Isaiah 54:2-3, before the Baptist Association meeting in Nottingham, England, at the Friar Lane Baptist Chapel, urging his listeners to "expect great things, attempt great things."

1819: At the request of his father-in-law, Anglican bishop Reginald Heber pens the words to his missionary hymn, “From Greenland’s Icy Mountains.”

1822: A slave betrays plans for a massive uprising planned by African Methodist preacher Denmark Vesey in Charleston, South Carolina. One hundred and thirty one African Americans are arrested and Vesey’s church is closed. Some of the plotters will be executed and others deported.

1858: Ordination in Maryland of Charles Grafton as a priest in the Episcopal Church. He will found the Sisters of the Holy Nativity and later, as a bishop, will stir controversy because of his fondness for ritual and vestments.

1892: Death in Lucknow, India, of Ram Chandra Bose. An ardent Christian evangelist and educator, he had written apologetics, served as a member of India’s Congress, and been a delegate to international religious conferences.

1933: Death in Boga, Congo, of African evangelist Apolo Kivebulaya.

1972: Death in prison of Watchman Nee, famed Chinese evangelist.

[saylebe]

The first part of my life , Hell

form as far as i can remember , i always dreamed of stop going to school. the first thing i remember from my inscription when i was really yong was asking to the teacher and my parents "when does school stop ?" and hearing that horrifying answear : "when you'll be 18 years old"

and since then , i was just waiting , and i still wait. i want to live , not to be seated on a stupid chair in a stupid classroom full of other kids that have a 1 on 2 chance to be mean to me for some reason. i'm awkward , strange , i don't really fit in. in school i wasn't doing bad either , i was good , but with time i just became unable to do this anymore.

the 25th of this month , i am 18 years old. i'm already out of school. i couldn't stand it anymore. i'm going to make a couple of formation just so i can work , and i'll always regret that fact that i can't go to a university (i can later in my life tho , but i don't think it would be worth it)

in 2017 , i quited my native little country side belgian town in the deapth of the Ardennes to go to Liège. in a special school , called "Vielle Montagne" , "Old Mountain". i made my first real friends there , but lost contact with them for the most part , exept one who is still a really good friend to this day.

then i got to a School called "Léonie de Waha" around 2019 just before Covid 19, and i met friends that to this day i consider as my brothers. i lost one due to inapropriate behavior with a girl HE invited to MY house for a historic rallye (the Legend Boucles) and we all stopped being friends with him. it happened at the start of this year , and it still hurt.

i was in a residential school during that time , and i missed my house at the time. i wanted to go back to my native southern-belgian town. what a mistake i made. that wasn't the only factor tho , i was really shitty at math , like really and still is today, and i wouldn't be able to keep going like that in that school. so i moved from classical general class to Technical gestion and accountancy class in 2021-22.

these were my last 3 years of my life currently , and it broke me like i never thought i could be broken. moral harassing , a form of lonelyness i thought i'd only experience when i was a child , no friends , no real social connexion. i've experienced depression like i never thought i could. one day , i wasn't even capable of moving out of my bed to go to school. i tried changing classrooms to go to art , but it was worse. egoistical and sadistical ppl just made my life even worse. how can artistical ppl be such assholes ??? wtf.

currently , i'm moving out. back in the Liège Region but not in Liège directly. either in a town called Huy or Vaux-et-borsaix. also , we just discovered that my mother had Sclerosis , and it looks like Charco will shorten her life even more than her 2 pancreas , hemophilia von will de brand syndrom (that i also have) , fucked up and almost non fonctioning stomach and intestins , a brain that was opened in half when she was a child and all the really fucked up things her father did to her (he's dead now, of alcoolism) + that fallopian tube cancer cancer she had before i was born. (yes , my embryon were made in a petri box and then injected into my mothers uterus, i'm a In Vitro baby and she tried 11 times before sucessfuly having me).

i was meant to be born with a twin , a brother or a sister. he/she never lived , he was born without organs. he's name was Lou. the surname that my mother and my other older brothers and sister gave me is Loulou. i always knew that tho , my mother didn't hide it from me.

i will do everything in my power to change all of the things that hurt me , starting by me. i need to go out and see stuff , i never traveled more than the Grand Dutchy of Luxembourg , wich was like 7km aways from my native town. i need to experience stuff , i need to go out in the world , i want to travel in the desert of Sahara , climb the mountains of central asia , i want to experience a finnish winter , i want to see the world by myself. i want to go island by island in the pacific ocean , i want to explore appalachia , i need that.

my goal in life is to find peace within , a peace i never had.