Photo Hunt #12: "Furry"

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"I Am Smiling."
Hendersonville, NC - February 2007 (Click to embiggen)
Next Week's Challenge: "Bridge(s)"

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Shutterday #13 - Theme 102 - Hotel/Motel: "At The Breakers"

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"My View At The Breakers"
North Myrtle Beach, SC - October 2005 (Click to embiggen)
Next week's theme: "Fresh Air"

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Remembering 30 January

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"If I am to die by the bullet of a mad man, I must do so smiling. There must be no anger within me. God must be in my heart and on my lips."
Mohandas K. Gandhi - 28 January 1948

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30 January 1948. 5:17 p.m.. Birla House, Delhi.
A wire thin, white clad figure makes his way across the temple's garden surrounded by his followers, and his enemies.

A trio of shots echoes against the stones, and the man who was Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi crumples to the ground mortally wounded.

A stricken nation listens in silent shock or wailing anguish as the static ridden, tearful voice of Jawarhalal Nehru solemnly announces,

"Friends and comrades, the light has gone out of our lives, and there is darkness everywhere, and I do not quite know what to tell you or how to say it. Our beloved leader, Bapu as we called him, the father of the nation, is no more. Perhaps I am wrong to say that. Nevertheless, we will not see him again, as we have seen him for these many years. We will not run to him for advice or seek solace from him, and that is a terrible blow, not for me only, but for millions and millions in this country."

As I pondered what to write on this anniversary date, I wondered what I might add to the story. What can I say that hasn't already been said? What homage can I pay to a man on whom so many honors have already been bestowed?

Then I recalled a scene in the movie Maine Gandhi ko Nahin Mara (I Did Not Kill Gandhi) in which Anupam Kher details his "conversations" with Bapu. His monologue, while fictional, struck a chord with me the first time I heard it, and still does.

"But every day he would say, 'Uttam, my son, I live no longer in the minds of people. Everywhere else, I am. In political offices, governments, courts. This country has even stamped me into currency bills and coins. I am everywhere except in the minds of men."

And at that moment it occurred to me that there is, in fact, one honor I can pay to Gandhiji. One that would matter more to him, I suspect, than all the flowery prose I can offer here.

I can remember.

Rest well Bapu.

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For more, I recommend:
http://archives.cbc.ca/politics/international_politics/clips/15779/
http://ca.encarta.msn.com/media_461550590_761557562_-1_1/nehru_announces_gandhi%E2%80%99s_death.html

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Monochrome Friday #1: "Zizzo"

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"Paulie from Sugar - The Band"
Raleigh, NC - January 2009 (Click to embiggen)

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Friday Photo Challenge #1: "A New Beginning" v.4.0 - A Host of Golden Daffodils

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"The Circle Unbroken"
Raleigh, NC - January 2009 (Click to embiggen)

 Find out more here.

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This month's Friday Photo Challenge theme is "A New Beginning". And this isn't the shot I had originally intended to use in this fourth and final installment, but when I saw the scene it just fit entirely too well to leave it out.

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55 Flash Fiction Friday #30: Chapter 22 - Andheraa

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Some stories are the same in any language.

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She woke in the darkness to the sound of cheering, of crackers bursting or perhaps rifles fired into the air. How long she had lain there senseless she didn't know. Nor would she have time to figure, because at that moment the door cracked open revealing the silhouette she knew too well. Vinay had come.

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Notes:
andheraa: darkness

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Previously

Chapter 1: Vandhe Mataram!
Chapter 2: Aag Lagi
Chapter 3: Aur Nahin
Chapter 4: Bannaa
Chapter 5: Inteqam
Chapter 6: Azaadi
Chapter 7: Vah Khallas Hai
Chapter 8: Ek Nai Shuruat
Chapter 9: Do Sal Paheli
Chapter 10: Yaadein (I)
Chapter 11: Yaadein (II)

Chapter 12: Yaadein (III)
Chapter 13: Paheli Baar
Chapter 14: Akelee
Chapter 15: Pinjraa
Chapter 16: Nishaan
Chapter 17: Qismat
Chapter 18: Nafrat
Chapter 19: Dard
Chapter 20: Mutthee
Chapter 21: Apmaan

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You wanna play too?

Sky Watch Friday #17: Who Says Strip Malls Are Totally Useless?

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"Iceberg Sky"
Raleigh, NC - November 2008 (Click to embiggen)

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Normally I wouldn't get excited about a strip mall. In fact normally I wouldn't even pay attention. But on this evening, the sky over Six Forks Station refused to be ignored.

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Lensday #8: "Ocean"

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"Do Not Feed The Sharks"
Atlantic Beach, NC - October 2008 (Click to embiggen)

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Thematic Photographic 34: "Simple" v.1.0 - Simple Organism

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"Simply Painful"
Pine Knoll Shores, NC - October 2008 (Click to embiggen)

 Hosted by Written Inc.

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This week's Thematic Photographic theme is "Simple". As in simple object, simple(r) times... you get the drift.

So in browsing for a suitably simple image, I happened on this one that according to my notes had been a candidate for the Thursday Challenge "Soft" theme. Didn't make the final cut there (got edged out by a fluffy kitty) but it certainly qualifies here! Jellyfish -- in this case a sea nettle -- aren't as simple as say... protozoans, but... they're pretty damned simple. Kinda like a living Lava Lamp.

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Thursday Challenge #11: "Container"

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"Losing My Marbles"
Randleman, NC - October 2008 (Click to embiggen)
Next Week's Challenge: "Clouds"

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Sepia Scenes #15 Gimme a Brake

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"Gimme a Brake"
Raleigh, NC - November 2008 (Click to embiggen)

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There was so much rust on the running gear of this abandoned rail car that I almost didn't even have to convert the image to sepia. With the wheel almost rusted to the track, the scene was very nearly toned in sepia when I shot it -- even in full color.

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Wordless Wednesday #59: Rest in Pieces

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"Parts of History"
Raleigh, NC - December 2008 (Click to embiggen)

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Watery Wednesday #12: What's Up Dock?

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"What's Up Dock?"
Atlantic Beach, NC - October 2008 (Click to embiggen)

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If you're going across the Causeway bridge between Atlantic Beach and Morehead City, you might miss this little cluster of docks tucked away beside the main road. In all the times I've been across this bridge, I don't remember ever stopping here before last October when I pulled in behind an under-renovation motel to get a few shots of Morehead City from across Bogue Sound.

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Pour Some Sugar On Me!

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"Right to Left, Bryan, Nicole and Batman"
Raleigh, NC - January 2009 (Click to embiggen)

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What can I tell ya?

Sugar's benefit event for the family that lost their home to fire just after the New Year succeeded beyond all expectations. Besides playing the show, the band also donated all proceeds from sales of the CD Laziest Perfectionist by tHE DESIGN¹ to the fund. That contribution, a silent auction, and cash donations totaled $4566. When I talked to Bryan Sunday evening he said, "It should be a good crowd, so you never know. If we bring in a thousand or two it'll be a good night." Good enough to bring donation trustee Nicole Kincaid to tears when she announced the total at the end of the night.

Not a bad night's work if you ask me. Not bad at all.

¹ Confused? It's okay. tHE DESIGN is another guise of Sugar that does all original material. Same band, different name, all new music. Want to know more? Here's a compilation of what I've written on them in the last few months.

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Wordless Wednesday #58 (Tuesday Edition): Smile!

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"Smile!"
Pine Knoll Shores, NC - October 2008 (Click to embiggen)

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Ruby Tuesday #23: Red Velvet

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"Red Velvet Flowers"
Raleigh, NC - August 2008 (Click to embiggen)

 Hosted at Work of the Poet

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You've seen these flowers before -- or possibly their neighbors. They grow in planters outside one of Raleigh's older hotels, the Velvet Cloak Inn on Hillsborough Street. I don't have a special reason for featuring them this week other than they remind me of warmer weather.

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That's My World Tuesday #15: Dorton Arena

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"Dorton Arena - Wide View"
Raleigh, NC - January 2009 (Click to embiggen)

"Dorton Arena - Tight(er) View"
Raleigh, NC - January 2009 (Click to embiggen)

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Over the last 20 years Raleigh has seen an expansion of Carter Finley Stadium, completion of the 19,000-seat RBC Center and construction of the new Civic and Convention Center downtown. What was once known as Raleigh Memorial Auditorium has been expanded to roughly three times its original size and named the Progress Energy Center for Performing Arts. Walnut Creek Amphitheater and the Sponsor-of-The-Year Pavilion (I can't keep up with who owns the naming rights anymore) sprang up in 1991 and hosts most of the major concerts that come to town during its season of operations (April to October). So there isn't a shortage of event venues in town.

Back in the day though, that wasn't so much the case. Memorial Auditorium hosted the North Carolina Symphony, Reynolds coliseum was home to NCSU's basketball team and in 1951 the designs for the J.S. Dorton Arena were completed. And that's the part of my world I'm showing you today.

It has been home to The Carolina Cougars of the old ABA (now the NBA's Denver Nuggets) and the Raleigh IceCaps of the ECHL (now the Florida Everblades). It has hosted circuses of all kinds -- including actual circuses Barnum & Bailey, and figurative ones like the Harlem Globetrotters and the forbears of the WWE. Over the years it has been the scene of virtually every kind of entertianment event imaginable and for much of the latter 20th century, this oddly shaped building was the only venue in town. Anyone who grew up here in the 60's or 70's is familiar with the saddle shaped J.S. Dorton Arena at the state fairgrounds in Raleigh. It's been a part of the city's landscape since 1952 when construction was completed and even though it's largely been replaced for big-ticket events by the nearby RBC Center and the shiny new Raleigh Civic and Convention Center downtown, Dorton still books its share of smaller events.

With only just over 5,000 permanent seats the building is dwarfed by the RBC Center, its 19,000 seat neighbor just to the north. But crowds that would be swallowed up by the big arena are right at home in Dorton. And for stage performances, they can truck in temporary floor seating for another 2500 if the need arises. The building is popular with Roller Derby teams since its elliptical shape makes it a natural fit for skating events. Ice shows and hockey games were once common here for the same reason. With the arrival of the NHL however, the far more modern ice-making machinery of the RBC Center took most of the ice-rink based events out of Dorton.

The design for the building was created by the late Matthew Nowicki while head of the Department of Architecture at North Carolina State University. Professor Nowicki was killed in a plane crash in 1951 and never saw the completion of the project. His personal friend William Henry Deitrick of Raleigh was named to the project to see it through the final phases. Anchored by two intersecting parabolic arches and a cable suspension system similar to those use in suspension bridges the roof of the building requires no internal columns for support despite its overall size (the major diameter of the ellipse is 300 feet). The concrete arches intersect 26 feet above ground level and extend into tunnels at the east and west ends of the structure. The suspension cables equalize the weight and stress using 14 2-inch strands connecting each end through a stress tunnel. The metal roof is suspended in this fashion and requires no additional support meaning the building's interior is completely unobstructed from end to end and side to side.

The building opened to the public in 1952 and 20 years later was named a National Historic Monument. It underwent significant renovations in 1979, 1996 and for its 50th anniversary in 2002. I've personally attended more events here than I can count including hockey and basketball games of the aforementioned IceCaps and Cougars and one of the very first "headliner" rock concerts I ever went to.

And for a mere 10% of gross gate receipts or $2000 per day (whichever is greater), you can rent the entire building for your next event. So call up your 7,500 closest friends and party on!

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Sticky: Save the Date!

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Click for Details!

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Happy Republic Day!

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In all those photos I have on my hard drive, it's hard to believe I don't have even one good shot of the Indian national tricolor to celebrate this Republic Day. Guess I know what my next "photo mission" will be, eh?

But I do want to wish my Indian friends the world over a Happy Republic Day, so I hope this photo will do. The tricolor isn't the focus exactly, but the view's nice. *wink*

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"Republic Day ki badhai!" (Click to embiggen)
Cary, NC - October 2008

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Blue Monday #18: U-352

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"Bet they don't make that mistake again!"
Pine Knoll Shores, NC - October 2008 (Click to embiggen)

 Hosted by Smiling Sally

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The U-352 holds the dubious distinction of being the first German U-Boat sunk by the U.S. Coast Guard off the coast of North Carolina. May 9, 1942 the U-352 made the ill-considered decision of firing on the USCG cutter Icarus... and missed. Turned out to be a bad move, because the cutter's depth charges did enough damage to force the German ship to surface and surrender. The surviving crew was taken into custody and the boat was scuttled. The U-352 is one of three U-Boats accessible to sport divers off the North Carolina coast.No, this isn't the actual U-352, it's a 1/3 scale replica housed in the main tank at the NC Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores. The reproduction is so faithful in detail that I finally had to ask just to be sure I wasn't looking at a real chunk of German submarine.

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Monochrome Monday #17: I Column Like I See 'em

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"Grape Arbor?"
Raleigh, NC - October 2008 (Click to embiggen)

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Downtown Raleigh seems like a strange place to put a grape arbor, and to be completely honest I'm botanically challenged enough that I couldn't say for sure that grapes are what's growing here. But the leaves look like grape leaves, and the vines are certainly prolific enough.

Whatever's growing there, I pass it every morning on the way from my parking space to my office. And I doubt that it's tended by a vintner in any case. Mainly it just provides shade for the benches that are tucked underneath.

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Thematic Photographic 33: "Surprise" v.2.0 - What the...?

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"Black & White"
Raleigh, NC - January 2009 (Click to embiggen)

 Hosted by Written Inc.

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Any time it snows in Raleigh it's a surprise. Seriously. Usually if anything frozen falls from the sky, it takes the form of sleet or freezing rain. And the last time we had any notbale winter precipitation was, oddly enough, the day before the Second Coronation of Bush The Younger. That was a nasty mix of a little snow combined with a freakish sudden plunge in temperature that turned into a half-inch layer of rink smooth ice on all the roadways in this part of the state. In an eerie sort of symmetry, the skies opened up and dropped six inches of snow (the real kind this time) on us for the inauguration of President Obama. And I was really curious how The Tonka Unit would react to it since we'd never had any significant snow in his lifetime. He seemed pretty nonchalant about the whole thing, even after getting a snootful of the stuff from the branches of the hedge between us and the German Shepherd next door.

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This Just In: Now Appearing on The World In Black & White

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What's a photoblogger to do when there's too much for one blog to contain? Find another blog of course. So now you can find me every day on The World In Black & White along with a crew of very talented folks that I'm really excited to be working with.

Come on over and check it out. You won't be disappointed!

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Photo Hunt #11: "Chipped"

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"Chipped Hansel"
Raleigh, NC - January 2009 (Click to embiggen)
Next Week's Challenge: "Furry"

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Shutterday #12 - Theme 101: "Aviation"

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"Triple-W Airport"
Fuquay Varina, NC - August 2008 (Click to embiggen)
Next week's theme: "Hotel/Motel"

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Friday Photo Challenge #1: "A New Beginning" v.3.0 - Not As Obvious

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"Beginning to Fly"
Raleigh, NC - January 2009 (Click to embiggen)

 Find out more here.

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This month's Friday Photo Challenge theme is "A New Beginning", and this female red tail hawk has just been given exactly that. She was found at an area riding stable grounded with a badly broken wing and taken to the Raptor Center in Charlotte, NC. After several weeks of treatment and several more weeks of rehab the couple that originally found her returned with her to the place they discovered her and released her back into the wild. About a dozen people were on hand to watch as she took her first flight outside the aviary in about three months. If you look very closely at her left leg you can see her stunning new ankle bracelet -- a federal ID band that can be used track her.

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