Santa Claus(es) of the American West

Views from National Geographic

The Colorado River in Utah

Reflection in Lake Carezza, Italy

The caldera of Mount Vesuvius (photo taken from 423 miles above it)

  

Medieval Aleppo, Syria

Cattle "sunbathing" on Tarifa Beach, Andalusia, Spain

These photos are used from the National Geographic Photo of the Day website.

Deaths, BC3 Thoroughbreds, Protector

Over the past few days, the acting world has lost Joan Fontaine, Peter O'Toole, and Tom Laughlin.  Joan Fontaine was the older sister of actress Olivia de Havilland, and probably is best remembered in the movies Rebecca , Suspicion and Ivanhoe.  She was 96 years old.  Peter O'Toole is probably best remembered for his portrayal of Lawrence of Arabia.  He died aged 81.  Tom Laughlin passed away at age 82, and was best known for his series of Billy Jack movies.
  In Australian horse racing, BC3 Thoroughbreds are now under court administration.  Chief executive Craig Cameron stated that he hopes the company will be resurrected.  Horses owned by BC3 Thoughbreds that were already entered in races will run them, under the care of their usual trainers.  The group has collapsed since Bill Vlahos resigned from his management post last week, after affirming that he "doesn't know" where a private betting club's account of over $194 million has disappeared.  Most horses purchased by BC3 Thoroughbreds in the last 6 months have not been paid for - and breeders, owners, and bloodstock agencies are getting nervous. And it seems that in October and November, Cameron was here in the US, looking to purchase at least one horse farm and a group of broodmares...  We'll have to see what happens.
  The wind has been blowing quite a bit here in Boulder, since Saturday...   It's a Chinook wind, and if you look outside, one can see why the Native Americans call this wind the "snow eater."  Except in shady areas, all of the snow that fell last week, and stayed with us, thanks to below-freezing temperatures, has melted. It's 58 degrees outside right now, and it looks gorgeous outside.  I walked the dogs in jeans, a T-shirt and a sweater (and a heavy headband to keep the wind out of my ears), and am sitting in the apartment in shorts and a T...
   I spent yesterday indulging myself.  I somehow missed the publication of C J Cherryh's Protector, and spent the day totally engrossed in the world of the atevi.  Now, of course, I'm immediately ready to read the next installment, which is due out on 1 April 2014.  That title will be Peacemaker, and will be the 15th of the Foreigner series.  I don't want to wait!

Photos of Actors & Characters in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

Stephen Fry  (whom I always remember as Jeeves)

 as The Master of Lakewood

 Luke Evans plays

Bard the Archer  (Bargeman & Smuggler, in the movie)

Balin is played by Ken Stott

Dwalin is played by Graham McTavish

Bifur is portrayed by William Kircher

Bofur is portrayed by James Nesbitt

Stephen Hunter plays Bombur

Dean O'Gorman portrays Fili

Kili, Fili's twin, is played by Aidan Turner

Oin is portrayed by John Callen

Gloin is acted by Peter Hambleton

Nori is portrayed by Jed Brophy

Dori is played by Mark Hadlow

Ori is acted by Adam Brown

Thrandruil, King of Woodland Elves is played by Lee Pace

Mikael Persbrandt portrays Beorn, the Skin Changer

Thorin Oakenshield  is played by Richard Armitage

Thoroughly Enjoyed a Movie

I am a big fan of J R R Tolkien.  I was introduced to The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings when I was 15, and I read both books (or all four) during the fall of every year.  Tolkien spent a great deal of time building and crafting Middle Earth, creating its history, and using his knowledge of ancient sagas and tales to bring his own world to life.  I am a great believer, too, that books - the written word - are much better than a film adaptation.  In the book, the author has control of the words used, and it is one's own mind that conjures up the scene the writer is offering.  With a film, one sees a specific person's view of that written work...  I usually like the written word much more than the cinematic representation.
   With the Lord of the Rings movie trilogy, much was cut from the stories, and a bit added.  With The Hobbit movie trilogy, a lot has been added, and a lot has been changed from the original story.  Characters who did not appear in the book The Hobbit appear in the films.  New characters are made up, and some of the story lines are changed.  I'm not too happy with that - as well as the fact that travel time is suddenly shortened without regard to the story.  But I do understand that directors of films must make a sell-able object, and that, these days, folks have a much shorter attention span and need multiple, quick-paced movement.  That being said, I actually liked the second part of The Hobbit movie trilogy, The Desolation of Smaug.
  It moved along well, almost too fast at times, and none of the dwarves were given much of a personality - indeed, if you didn't know which dwarf was which, you were pretty much out of luck.  You were able to recognize Thorin Oakenshield, Balin, and young Kili, who was wounded in the film, by the time the film ended...  But you felt nothing of the camaraderie that had grown between them and Bilbo in the 6 months that occurred during their journey to the Lonely Mountain.  Bombur just seemed thrown in for comic relief - especially in the barrels in the river scenes; his ordeal in Mirkwood (in the book) never happens.  Even with this grousing, I liked the second part of the film.  And it had to do with casting and acting - so my thanks go to:  Martin Freeman, Sir Ian McKellen, Richard Armitage, Ken Stott, Graham McTavish, William Kircher, James Nesbitt, Stephen Hunter, Dean O'Gorman, Aidan Hunter, John Callen, Peter Hambleton, Jed Brophy, Mark Hadlow, Adam Brown, Lee Pace, Mikael Persbrandt, Luke Evans, Orlando Bloom and Evangeline Lilly...  I also enjoyed the director's cameo at the beginning of the film.  I was quite surprised to realize that the Master of Lakewood was Stephen Fry.  And I looked in vain for Stephen Colbert in a cameo in Laketown; he is listed a a Spy for the Master in the credits, but he said that he, his wife, and children were a part of a Laketown scene....  Sorry I missed you, Colbert!

Assorted Photos

Eastern screech owlets

Sunrise on Hallet's Peak, RMNP

Silver Langur monkey

Stars above Kozji Vrh, Croatia

Tufted duck

Random Thoughts

With 95% of the yard still under several inches of snow, I'm still putting out bird seed, nuts and baguette rounds for the birds and squirrels.  Most of the time my kits accept that they must stay inside, but Lovey was extremely vocal last night, for a two hour period...  I felt bad, but having called the police, yet again, about the couple next door, I didn't feel it was safe to allow either kit outside.
  I spoke to Britta, the next door neighbor, on Thursday.  She said she had a new, female room mate, who had brought her cat over to keep Baby, Britta's cat, company.  (I really wondered about that, since it's a 500 square foot studio apartment, like mine.)  Last night, she had her "boyfriend" back over and they started fighting - both were yelling, and I was determined to ignore the noise until I heard her yell, "You're hurting me!  Let me go!"  So I once more called 911.  About three minutes before the Boulder police arrived, he left via the back door and climbed over the fence.  Britta refused to answer the door. BPD told me to continue calling them, but that since Britta allows him back, their hands are tied - she has refused counseling and no longer wants their assistance.  So I get to be the documentation person....
  Brother-in-law Kent spent Thursday in the ReHab section of the hospital, following his brain tumor biopsy. He is having difficulty using his left side, but the MDs seem impressed with his drive to recuperate.  He was allowed to get up and walk a bit, wear his own clothes (instead of a hospital gown), and go to the restroom by himself.  But he had three seizures during the night and was moved back into Intensive Care early yesterday morning.  Not knowing what type of tumor this is, and not knowing of a possible treatment, is very wearing on the family.  The MDs did another MRI of Kent's brain yesterday and had to report that the tumor was larger....  Hoping to get some good news from the Mayo Clinic regarding Kent's tumor....
  Rosie and Lucy and Boo have been brightening my mornings - they are all so happy to see me and go for a walk and a romp in the snow.  Kathy and Jim are not going to Santa Fe for Christmas, so I'll be splitting my time between my kits, and Charlie and Tinkerbelle.  Then I'll be moving in with Rosie for New Year's.
  While still worrying about Kent, I've been mourning the death of Nelson Mandela.  And then we had another high school shooting incident here in Colorado.  The young man who apparently "went over the edge" yesterday was a very good student, an athlete, and a member of the debate team.  His friends say he had very strong political opinions, and that he was angered by his debating coach's views.  He was heard asking for his debating coach, while armed on the campus.  The teacher/coach was informed and he left the school in hopes of drawing the shooter away.  It didn't happen.  A 17-year-old female student is still in critical condition from the shotgun blast; the student then shot himself, leaving two explosive devices inside the school.  No one else was harmed.  But the Denver area is reeling - and it's all one sees on the local news casts ....  
Have we always had this level of violence in our society, and were just not aware of it until today's technology made "news" almost instantaneous?  Were previous killings just hushed up and swept under the rug?  Or have we, society as a whole, become more violent?  What happened to debates - or even wrestling matches?  Why must people today use guns and/or bombs and create a bloody mess?