3rp.net Blog

I was just looking back through these pictures I’m about to post today & realized that really none of them are all that compelling…

I really like this one because of the moody sky:

The above picture is the scene you see across the street from Stonehenge.

Seriously though, how many of these have we seen? Bah. I’m posting it anyways. See what you can do about it!

On that same day we went to the “city” of Salisbury (no relation to the crappy cafeteria dish of the same name). Did you know that in the UK the designation of “city” is determined not by whether or not the area has a certain population density, but by virtue of the fact that it has a cathedral? Well, it’s true.

So, here’s my best Bono impression outside a pub in the city of Salisbury:

Which, in case you hadn’t guessed, is the place from which the next batch of pictures is coming.

So I was surfing some friends’ blogs this morning, and ran across a new word. My “virtual” friend Erik referenced the word “defenestration” as he wrote about some music that made him particularly happy. Thankfully he provided a link to a definition for those of us intellectual midgets who find themselves regarding his tower of intellectual mastery…and I ended up laughing out loud when I saw the definition. My roomate said “what?” and I explained to him what I just explained to you. And he said “ah yes, as in the Defenestration of Prague!” And he proceeded to give me an etymological breakdown of the word just right off the top of his head.

I swear I am not making this up.

So, now, thoroughly humbled, I will take you back to our regularly scheduled programming of things I can actually do reasonably well…in this case taking pretty pictures of inanimate objects.

The very green spring of the English countryside from Corfe Castle:

A view of Corfe Village from the castle:

On the way back down to where we had parked our car, I came across this, which looks to me like it ought to be a postcard:

And here is a hint of things to come. Can anyone identify where these birds are perched?

Have fun & stay safe until next time….

When I was in the UK a couple of years ago, I had a religious experience in a pub. A friend (new friend, but friend none the less) was playing with his blues band at a lovely little pub called The Greyhound Inn. At some point during the evening, after having had a couple pints, I went to use the loo (restroom). On my way back to the main room of the pub, I made a wrong turn and ended up on the back patio of the Greyhound. Looming behind the pub in the indigo darkness, was a monstrous shape…and I felt the pull in my gut that happens when there is something magical about to happen.

Here is a shot of the same silhouette I saw that night…during the daytime when we went back a few days later:

The place is called Corfe Castle. If you have any interest in its history you can find it here. The short story is that it was a royal residence that was destroyed by Parliamentary engineers in a fit of democratic zeal. I took three rolls of film there. It was a blast. My friends were *very* patient with me!

Check out how thick the walls are! You can see Corfe Village and the town church in the distance here:

Not only was it a phenomenally picturesque area…but it was also one of the most lovely days we had during the 10 days we were in the UK.

More pictures of the surrounding areas to come!

So I was in China a couple of years ago. A week in Shanghai (pics to come) and a week in Beijing. While I was there, you would not believe the things I learned about the English language. It’s true that no one in the country speaks the language (despite the fact that the next summer olympics are due to be held in Beijing aka Peking), but they do (for whatever reason) make the attempt to have even the most remote areas signed in our lovely western langua franca.

Here is a shot (I still cannot believe I took this picture) from the most accessable part of the Great Wall of China:

Now begins the English lesson. This, and others like it were no small source of mirth for me and my travelling companions:

At least they are trying to let us know it’s dangerous. Not like you’re going to get anywhere if you fall off the Wall and break your glasses…I somehow don’t think the government in Beijing is going to have much sympathy for your lawsuit.

Here is one of my favorite pictures ever. That I’ve taken that is. It was taken on the south coast of England in a village called Corfe with an “old fashioned” 35mm camera. In 2003 I think. The subject is a tiny pink flower with a busted up old castle as a backdrop. I’ve cropped it and messed with the exposure a little bit in Photoshop, but other than that, it’s as is. Here, I’ll let it speak for itself: