Our Summer is Running Away

Now here's a picture I wish I had taken. And all found on the Pinterest picture

sharing site. And unbelievably it was taken in my favourite place the beautiful Isles

of Scilly just off the Cornish coast. And I'm guessing that it was taken on my favourite

Island of Tresco, where on some days you can almost imagine you're on some

Caribbean Island. 

And so last weekend with the Summer running away I opted for a Sunday coastal trip down

to familiar Hasting on our South Coast. It's not quite Cornwall and the sea isn't even the same

colour. But it was good to get out of London and enjoy some sea air.

I managed to take a lot of film footage for a new video using the video option on my stills

camera while using a tripod to steady things. So I'm still editing lots of clips and putting it

all together. And the tripod allowed me to get some impressive long zoom shots, the kind you

can never get on a smart phone.

Looks like I'm having to put my Birthday video project on hold as I'm now in the throes

of my weekly Bladder procedures. I've completed four of six with two more to go. And then

there's another six procedures split into two three week programs to be carried out in

September or October. And the only drawback of this treatment is that the Immunotherapy

pumped into the Bladder causes a lot of tiredness for a couple of days following the treatment. 

Below: A few pictures from Hastings on Sunday

 

The Power of Hvorostovsky

Russian operatic Baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky may not be a household name to many,

but I can't help thinking that he might have been better know had his life not been sadly

cut short at only the age of 55 in 2017.

Here he is in the climax of Giuseppe Verdi's three act opera Rigoletto written in 1851.

And it's these big finishes that gets my blood pumping and my heart racing, especially

those rolling drums at the end that always remind me of those night time Summer

thunderstorms that terrified me as a child. Imagine having a front row seat for this

performance with the orchestra pit right in front of you.

And I particularly like how at the end, during the death of Gilda played by Laura Claycomb,

there's a sudden eerie silence before the storm. And that's when the power of Hvorostovsky

is let loose in a moment of grand finality.

Video kindly uploaded to Youtube HERE.

Madonna.......In Better Days

Above and below is Madonna as seen in better days performing on her 1993 World Tour

Down Under in Australia during The All Girlie Show.

And she certainly picked a handsome cast

of dancers for that Tour.

On Sunday this week Madonna celebrated her 68th Birthday.

VIDEO KINDLY UPLOADED TO YOUTUBE

BY Pedro Proniewicz

Hadrian and Antinous

The history of the Roman Empire is always a fascinating subject to read and hear

about. But I don't ever remember it as being part of our School curriculum. And so

in this cleverly created video put together by the people at Royalty Now, we learn about

the life of one of Rome's great Emperors, Emperor Hadrian who succeeded Trajan.

Of course I'm familiar with the name Hadrian as his name did pop up in some of our

School history lessons when learning about the building of Hadrian's Wall which cut

off Scotland from Northern Britain and which still exists today as a World

Heritage site.

And so in the 123 AD Emperor Hadrian met his muse Antinous who was eventually to

become his lover. And together they travelled surveying the corners of the Empire. But while

participating in the Festival of the Nile, the body of Antinous was found floating in the River in

suspicious circumstances.

Emperor Hadrian never got over his loss and so had over two thousand statues created

in the memory of Antinous, as if to cement a God like legacy.

The final part of this video above creates a digital image of what Hadrian and Antinous might

have really looked like.

ROYALTY NOW STUDIOS

Below: A bust of Antinous from my last visit to

The British Museum in 2019

HERE

It's a Gif......Re-Post

Here's a few classic comedy film clips that were begging to be giffed. And as old as the clips

are, they still manage to tickle my funny bone.

Top row: Laurel & Hardy in 'Them Thar Hills.

Plus Laurel & Hardy in 'Swiss Miss.'

Middle row: The Three Stooges in 'Brideless Groom.'

And Laurel & Hardy in 'Twice Two.'

Bottom row: Charlie Chaplin in 'Modern Times.'

Above:  Laurel & Hardy and a funny but

overacting Cop.