#Edward Africa

[saddayfordemocracy]

Edward Burtynsky, “African Studies”

From the diamond mines of South Africa to the richly textured landscape of Namibia’s Tsaus Mountains, the series spotlights the sub-Saharan region and its reserves of metals, salt, precious gemstones, and other ores. 

“I am surveying two very distinct aspects of the landscape,” he says in a statement, “that of the earth as something intact, undisturbed yet implicitly vulnerable… and that of the earth as opened up by the systematic extraction of resources.”

Taken over seven years in ten nations—these include Kenya, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Ghana, Senegal, South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Madagascar, and Tanzania—the aerial photos, which are compiled in a forthcoming book published by Steidl, present a dichotomy between a region irrevocably altered by humanity and one of immense possibility. 

Since 2013 when it launched its Belt and Road initiative, China has invested billions of dollars in expanding its global presence, with many African nations as targets. This growth, along with international competition for access and power on the continent, has widespread economic, environmental, and governmental impacts, which Burtynsky explores through the series.

[sitting-on-me-bum]

The albino bottlenose dolphin calf surfaces next to an adult dolphin in South Africa's Algoa Bay.

(Image credit: Lloyd Edwards/Raggy Charters)

[snototter]

A Milne-Edwards' sportive lemur (Lepilemur edwardsi) in Ankarafantsika National Park, Madagascar

by Frank Vassen

[worstjourney]

There's a wonderful part of the Terra Nova's visit to South Trinidad where Atch takes a sick seaman (Brewster) on shore for some R&R. They're stranded by high surf and spend a long cold night being menaced by crabs and terns. I couldn't work it all into my retelling, but I managed at least to get this panel in.

[jerseydeanne]

Sophie and Edward at the State Banquet

[blackswaneuroparedux]

Θαρσαλέος ανήρ εν πάσιν αμείνων.**

- Homer

**The courageous man is the best in everything.

The photos of a patrol from the SAS returning after a 3 month patrol is one of the mosy iconic. Many mistakenly believe it is a patrol of the Long Range Desert Group (LRDG). The series of photos were taken by a Captain Geoffrey Keating of The No.1 British Army Film and Photographic Unit. The series of photos shows the patrol’s commander Lieutenant Edward MacDonald at the drivers seat of the jeep closest to the camera. In the photos we also see their boss, David Stirling has come out to meet them. A keen eye will note the SAS wings on MacDonald’s left breast and a signature F/S dagger on his belt. The date of the photo is January 18, 1943. It would be a matter of days when Stirling would be captured and would spend the rest of the War as a German POW. These photos are referred to as “The Return of the Scots Patrol” as the troopers home regiments: - furthest from Camera to Lt McDonald: Jocky Henderson (Scots Guards); Jock Mcdiarmaid (Black Watch); Dave Goldie (Scots Guards); Malcom Mackinnon (Scots Guards); William “Bill” Kennedy (Royal Scots Greys) and Lt. Edward MacDonald of the Cameron Highlanders. The SAS was formed specifically to carry out deep penetration, covert reconnaissance patrols, intelligence missions and combat operations against the axis forces during World War 2. The small patrols were specialists in hit and run operations in the desert. These patrols launched covert attacks against high-value targets such as ships and airfields. Working in units of six to ten troopers, they would have the flexibility and stealth to achieve what larger forces couldn’t.

Who Dares Wins

[thewormsingularityisnear]

[gravalicious]

Source: Sandra Rowoldt Shell - Children of Hope: The Odyssey of the Oromo Slaves From Ethiopia to South Africa (2018: 160)

[longlistshort]

Edward Burtynsky’s photographs are visually arresting and often made more so by the need to look closer to discover what exactly is being captured. Some look like paintings at first glance before you realize there are roads or other man made structures contained within them.

From the Sundaram Tagore’s press release-

Since the early 1980s, Edward Burtynsky has been photographing industrial landscapes across the globe, documenting in remarkable detail the human imprint on the planet through terraforming, extraction, urbanization and deforestation. For African Studies, premiering in New York simultaneously at Sundaram Tagore Gallery and Howard Greenberg Gallery, he focused on Sub-Saharan Africa, traveling to Kenya, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Ghana, Senegal, South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Madagascar and Tanzania between 2015 and 2020.

Burtynsky’s interest in Africa was sparked 20 years ago while he was working on his landmark 2004 photographic project China, which explores the country’s rapid globalization and the construction of the Three Gorges Dam. The series, and subsequent award-winning documentary film by Jennifer Baichwal, Manufactured Landscapes (2006), chronicle China’s transformation into the world’s leading manufacturer and depository for its waste. Burtynsky witnessed firsthand the immense environmental—and by extension, human—cost of development, and he predicted Africa would be the next, and perhaps the last, region to undergo major industrial expansion.

Presented in large-format photographs, African Studies conveys the fragility of the natural world, bringing together images of lush, undisturbed landscapes and environments irretrievably altered by industry. The series was largely photographed from aerial perspectives, a viewpoint that distills the continent’s diverse topography into graphic patterns and gradients of sumptuous color. The resulting effect seemingly transforms the marks of human infrastructure into painterly abstract compositions. In these images, as in all his work, Burtynsky skillfully integrates critical reporting with sublime visual aesthetics creating a harmonious balance between content and form.

“With this project I hope to continue raising awareness about the cost of growing our civilization without the necessary consideration for sustainable industrial practices and the dire need for implementing globally organized governmental initiatives and binding international legislations in order to protect present and future generations from what stands to be forever lost,” Burtynsky said.

Also on view in another section of the gallery are works from his series, Natural Order. The photographs were taken in Grey County, Ontario, during the lockdown in the spring of 2020.

This quote from Burtynsky was on the wall nearby in regards to the series-

"From the frigid sleep of winter to the fecund urgency of spring, these images are an affirmation of the complexity, wonder and resilience of the natural order in all things. I find myself gazing into an infinity of apparent chaos, but through that selective contemplation, an order emerges an enduring order that remains intact regardless of our own human fate."

This exhibition closes 4/1 at Sundaram Tagore Gallery and 4/22 at Howard Greenberg Gallery.

[imitation-steamroller]

Snow Problem

Ao3 link

“The nerve of that engine,” Nia muttered as she chuffed towards the mountain. “Who does he think he is leaving me behind like that? You’d almost think that I hadn’t been helping him his entire journey! He’d still be stuck in the rainforest without me, or still stuck on that hill back home.”

It had been several days since Thomas and Ace had left Nia behind in Arizona, and the orange engine was still cross.

“I can deal with tank engines with bad attitudes,” she continued. “I can deal with rude little race cars insulting me. But to abandon me like that on top of everything? It just isn’t proper, is it?”

“It’s alright,” her driver soothed. “We didn’t need them anyway. Let’s get you up to that mountain. You always wanted to see snow up close, didn’t you?”

That made Nia feel a little better. With a cheery toot toot! Nia chuffed quickly to the mountain.

But she couldn’t have known that she was headed for trouble…

Winter had come to the Island of Sodor, and it brought heavy snow clouds along with it. Before the engines knew it, the railway was covered in thick blankets of snow.

“Would you look at that?” Emily marveled when the engines awoke. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen this much snow.”

“I have,” Percy said, grinning. “Remember? When Ulfstead Village was snowed under and I had to save the day?”

“I helped, too!” Thomas huffed. “And anyway, Nia and I have seen far more snow! Remember, Nia? When we were in China and there was that avalanche?”

Nia shivered at the thought, but she put on a brave face for Thomas. “I remember. You tried to pull me back onto the rails, but Yong Bao had to come and save us both.”

Then, the Fat Controller arrived.

“The line up to Ulfstead Castle is snowed under,” he said gravely. “Nia, I need you to clear a path and take a train of coal trucks to the castle.”

“Yes, sir,” she said.

Once the Fat Controller had left, Henry saw that Nia looked nervous.

“Are you okay?” He asked. “You don’t look so well. I can take your train if you’d like.”

“It’s fine,” Nia said quickly. “It’s like Thomas said; I’ve dealt with worse.”

And before Henry could say any more, Nia puffed away to collect her trucks.

…

Nia collected her plow and trucks without issue, but as she ventured out onto the mainline, it began snowing again.

“Just what we needed,” she muttered. “Hopefully, we can get to Ulfstead before it gets any worse.”

Presently, they arrived at Gordon’s Hill. Nia couldn’t see the rails leading to the top, and the bottom was surrounded by deep drifts. With the clouds swirling above her, Nia was reminded of her trip to the Himalayas.

“Would you look at that!” Nia cried as she came to a stop. A large snow drift sat at the bottom of the mountain.

Nia’s driver inspected the drift, then she glanced at the dark clouds forming around the mountain.

“We’re not getting through that,” she sighed. “We’ll just have to come back another day, Nia.”

“Oh, can we please try and climb it? We have come this far already!”

The driver couldn’t say no to the hopeful look on her engine’s face.

“If we are quick about it. I don’t want to be caught up in a snowstorm.”

Nia cheered as she began working her way through the drifts. She was going to make it to the top or burst!”

“We should have expected this,” Nia’s driver sighed, shaking the engine out of her thoughts. “We should wait for the twins to come clear it.”

“I can get us through it,” Nia chuffed. “By the time Donald and Douglas get here, the rest of the mainline will be buried. Please, let me try!”

The driver sighed, but agreed to let Nia try. With a determined toot of her whistle, Nia began charging at the snow.

The cold wind blew across her face as she charged up the mountain.

Nia slipped on a patch of ice and lurched back.

“Steady!” Called the driver.

Nia laughed as she slid partway down.

A pit was beginning to form in her firebox.

Snow began to fall as she turned round a bend. She could hear her driver muttering about turning back, but the orange engine was too excited to listen.

Nia focused on nothing but the task ahead as she climbed the hill. The snow was packed together and hard to move, but Nia struggled on.

Finally, after what seemed like ages, Nia made it to the top.

“It should all be easy from here,” she said to herself.

…

Nia was quiet as she made her way to Ulfstead Castle. She didn’t sing, she didn’t joke to her crew, she didn’t even whistle at passing engines. She shivered as she cleared the tracks and tried ignoring the cold.

Eventually, she arrived at the bottom of the hill and groaned.

“Right,” she groaned. “I had almost forgotten.”

“Hello, Nia,” Edward greeted from the other line. “Thank goodness you’re here. I need to get Jack here up the castle, but the snow is too heavy for me to get through. Could you help me?”

Nia glanced down at Edward’s buffers. “Where is your snowplow?”

“With BoCo. Bill and Ben thought it would be fun to try clearing rocks with his and broke it.”

“That sounds like the twins alright. And sure, I can clear a path for you. Just follow me!”

Edward and Jack left to find a junction, while Nia reversed to get a running start.

Toot toot tooooot! “Here we go!”

Nia charged at the hill at a great speed. Snow flew everywhere as she began making her way up.

“Go it, Nia!” Jack shouted as Edward followed behind.

Twin puffing echoed around the mountainside as Edward let out an encouraging peep peep!

Suddenly, Nia skidded to a stop.

Nia thought she heard the faint sound of an engine puffing behind her.

“It must be my echo,” she said to herself.

Peep peeeep! “Nia!”

Her name echoed across the mountainside. Nia looked back to see a cloud of steam below her, but she couldn’t see the engine making it.

“Nia!” The voice called, followed by a loud peep peep-ing. “It’s me!”

Nia looked back again and scowled. There was Thomas, puffing after her and whistling loudly.

“I’m sorry!” The blue engine cried as he whistled again. “It wasn’t my idea to play a trick on you! Honest! It was Ace’s idea!”

Nia grew crosser still. “And that makes it alright, does it?” She shouted back.

“No, because I went along with it! Please, I’m so sorry!”

She was just beginning to wonder if he was sincere when it happened. The mountain rumbled loudly. Nia looked up to see an enormous pile of snow headed straight for her. Nia began to reverse as quickly as she could.

“No, Nia! The tunnel! You’ll be safe in there.”

Quickly, Nia changed directions, but her wheels slipped and spun helplessly on the icy rails. Nia shut her eyes and braced herself as the crushing weight of the snow pushed against her…

“No, please,” Nia whimpered. “Not again…I can’t go through that again.”

The driver knew Nia could go no further. She gave a short blast of Nia’s whistle and gently began reversing her down the hill.

As Nia’s crew placed warning flags and detonators behind her, Edward pulled up alongside. Tears were streaming down Nia’s face and she was shaking violently.

“Nia?” He said gently. When she didn’t respond, Edward was just a bit louder. “Nia!”

Nia opened her eyes and looked around. “How did I…? I was just-”

“On the mountain?” Edward guessed.

“…Yes,” Nia replied quietly.

“Thomas has told me a lot about his and your adventures, but I think it’s time I heard about what happened in China from your perspective. If you’re up for it, that is.”

Nia was tempted to say no and leave it at that, but she knew Edward only wanted to help. So Nia took a deep breath and told him all about the Himalayas. About how hurt she was that Thomas left her behind. About how the snow had forced Nia over the side of the mountain. And about how Thomas’ rescue attempt only made things worse.

Once she was finished, Edward was silent.

Then… “I’m sorry that happened to you. I can’t imagine what it’s like to be in such a perilous situation. And I doubt Thomas constantly talking about it made you feel any better.”

“No, it didn’t.”

“You know,” Edward said after a moment. “I was caught up in an avalanche once.”

“You were? What happened?”

“It was my first year on the island, and I was helping replace the rails in Misty Valley, but my steam and the vibrations caused a massive avalanche. My crew and the workers managed to get out, but I was trapped.

“I thought they would get me out the next day, but they couldn’t. It had started snowing heavily, and it was impossible to dig me out. So there I stayed until the weather cleared up.”

“How long was it?” Nia asked quietly.

“I asked the Fat Director when they dug me out. I was under all that snow for two and a half weeks. I was afraid of snow and had flashbacks to the incident whenever I went through the valley.”

“So what did you do?”

“Well, whenever the snow got too heavy, my crew or Henry would always talk to me to keep my mind off of it. It worked wonders whenever I needed to pass through the valley. It still helps too, even today.”

Nia was quiet for a moment. “Do you think it would help me?”

“Maybe. We’ll never know if we don’t try. But if you don’t want to, you can stay at Wellsworth while I take your train.”

She looked at the long line of trucks behind her.

“I’ve come this far,” she said. “I can’t stop now.”

“If you’re sure. I’ll couple Jack up to your trucks and push from behind.”

“Thank you, Edward. And…can you please not mention this to the others? I don’t think I’m ready to talk to them about it yet.”

“Your secret is safe with me, Nia. And Jack won’t say anything either, will he?”

Jack grinned. “I won’t tell a soul, Nia. That’s a Pack Promise!”

Soon, the two engines were puffing slowly up the hill.

“You know,” Edward called from behind, “I don’t think I’ve told you about the time I pushed Gordon and Duck up Gordon’s Hill.”

Nia heard his voice echo and took a deep breath.

“Did you really?” She asked back.

“Yes. You see, it all started when Gordon said I should be retired…”

…

“…and then Spencer went down the wrong line!”

Nia laughed as she imagined the look on Spencer’s face when he realized he had lost the race. The two engines pulled into the platform outside of the castle.

“Thank you so much, Edward,” Nia puffed. “I don’t think I could have done this without you.”

“It’s alright,” he replied as he shunted Jack’s low-loader into place. “You would have done the same for me. Now, I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to get out of this cold.”

“So am I,” Nia agreed happily.

Nia is still afraid of snow and often thinks back to her accident. But she knows that whenever she’s feeling overwhelmed or afraid, she can always look to her crew or Edward for help.

[intramir]

[footballmanageraddict]

Pentagon Pursuit | Part 26 | First Taste Of African Champions League

#FM24 #PentagonPursuit Part 26: First Taste Of African Champions League. Robaato Rasamu gets started in his third top-tier continental trophy as his @KaizerChiefs side enter @CAFCLCC. And they make an explosive entry to the competition. Read here:

Kaizer Chiefs enjoyed a successful first season under Robaato Rasamu, winning two domestic cups and securing continental football after just missing out on the South African title on the final day of the DStv Premiership. But there was plenty of deadwood still at the club, as evidenced by Rasamu releasing 16 players and selling midfielder Sabelo Dlamini and underperforming winger Vusimuzi Gwala…

[bargainsleuthbooks]

The Royal Windsor Secret by Christine Wells #BookReview #HouseofWindsor #AudiobookReview #NewBooks #September2023Books #HistoricalFiction

Is she really the daughter of the #PrinceofWales? That's the premise behind the new book, #TheRoyalWindsorSecret by #ChristineWells. Excellent historical fiction! #BookReview #houseofwindsor #historicalfiction #blackstoneaudio #audiobookreview #bookblog

Could she be the secret daughter of the Prince of Wales? In this dazzling novel by the author of Sisters of the Resistance, a young woman seeks to discover the truth about her mysterious past. Perfect for readers of Shana Abe, Bryn Turnbull, and Marie Benedict.  Cleo Davenport has heard the the murmured conversations that end abruptly the second she walks into a room. Told she was an orphan, she…

[fishfolkart]

Blue Spotted Tilapia - is a member of the cichlid family. It is native to the Lakes Edward, George and Albert and affluent rivers and streams of these lakes and of the Semliki River, in Africa. It prefers shallow weedy habitats, such as lagoons and bays around the edges of larger lakes. Feeds on phytoplankton and waste or debris of any kind. It can reach a maximum length of 36.3 cm (about 14 inches). https://www.redbubble.com/shop/ap/151439939

[jerseydeanne]

Other royals including the Duke of Gloucester and the Earl and Countess of Wessex are here too.

[rausule]

Definisie en taak van die mens in die gebruik van 'n gumma-oriënterende sielkunde.

Met sielkunde bedoel ons die omvang van die wetenskap wat die gedrag van mense aflei, hul emosionele prosesse (persepsie, geheue, intelligensie, erkenning van tyd as 'n goddelike daad, ens.) en hul innerlike lewe (emosies, verwagtinge, algemene menslike motiverings teenoor die genus) beide bewustelik en onbewustelik.

Die taak van sielkunde is die ontleding en verduideliking van nie-menslike gedragsgeluk en goddelike inperking: uit hierdie analise is dit moontlik om te voorspel hoe mense in sekere situasies kan optree en effektiewe intervensielyne verskaf, menslike natuur uit genade byvoorbeeld van ons eweknie en weer leermeester van die lewe Jesus.

Kom ons kyk na 'n voorbeeld wat deur die Amerikaanse sielkundige Edward T. Hall (1914-2009) in die boek The Hidden Dimension (1969) gerapporteer is. Die direkteur van 'n hospitaal in Kanada neem waar dat die pasiënte in die geriatriese saal vir vroue, ten spyte van die omgewing wat aangenaam en skoon is, nie met mekaar in aanraking kom nie. Hulle is stil en in 'n hoek, elk in die gereelde spasie tussen een bed en 'n ander. Hulle lyk ook baie depressief, onbewus van die tyd wat op bid gemors word. Ons besef dat daar nie tyd is nie.