Tristan and Isolde

Tristan and Isolde is about a medieval romance legend dating back to the 12th century.

"The Good-Morrow" by John Donne

I wonder by my troth, what thou, and I
Did, till we lov'd? Were we not wean'd till then?
But suck'd on countrey pleasures, childishly?
Or snorted we in the seaven sleepers den?
T'was so; But this, all pleasures fancies bee.
If ever any beauty I did see,
Which I desir'd, and got, 'twas but a dreame of thee.

And now good morrow to our waking soules,
Which watch not one another out of feare;
For love, all love of other sights controules,
And makes one little roome, an every where.
Let sea-discoverers to new worlds have gone,
Let Maps to other, worlds on worlds have showne,
Let us possesse one world; each hath one, and is one.

My face in thine eye, thine in mine appeares,
And true plaine hearts doe in the faces rest,
Where can we finde two better hemispheares
Without sharpe North, without declining West?
What ever dyes, was not mixed equally;
If our two loves be one, or, thou and I
Love so alike, that none doe slacken, none can die.

Ildefonso Cerda

Here we go. Ildefonso Cerda a Catalan urban planner known for his work of urban Ensanche. Photo and bio located in Wikipedia.

April 26, 2008 Houston weekend

A very unexpected weekend. Saturday morning had to attend the program the the Houston Library has at their Heights branch on the history of the Houston Heights and Woodland Heights "Houston Heights Lecture Series. A nice research put together by staff of the library and presented by the author of A Tale of Two Heights Margaret Culbertson, Connie Rose from the public library who spoke on "Houston Heights: The Way We Were" and Leta Fae Arnold who at 79 years old gave a lively talk on what was life growing up in the Heights.

Not intending I ended up visiting a good friend Jay Hamburger at the Winter Street Studios. It was a fab number of studios open to the public, a show case of art and also had an exhibit on China from Fotofest. Had the chance to see some fun art work, in particular Jay's, Richard, Becky's.

And all lead to visit a gallery with a good friend so he can pick up a new art work he purchased from Sue Burke Harrington. Below is the art that my friend purchased:

After that was Da Camera to listen to some jazz, some unique jazz by Vijay Iyer and his quartet. The last couple compositions were superb.

As usual Sunday started with a walk around Memorial Park with friends and the topic of politics. The surprise was to find a group of people practicing samba at the local park. Good idea to check with their activities because they named me their official photographer at the Houston International Festival and had the pleasure to spend the afternoon exploring an energetic and cross cultural festival. Starting with my samba friends. Candice the smiley girl on the right was the quick thinker and asked me to take their photos. They were the life of the festival. So glad they get to practice close to my place every week. I am looking forwards to spending time sharing their happy dancing.

Interesting surprise to experience the art of The Renegades and Their Collection of Carnies. There very creative and talented belly dancer. Doing the belly dancing thing at the tunes of Edith Piaf?
And here is Luna. I think she was born to be on stage doing theater. Very talented.
Luna and Jessie. Now Jessie is a pleasant surprise. Of the stage she is shy and coy. On stage she is another Jessie. Luna is the more expressive one, she is a reflection of what she sees and feels. Nice photo of the two, more together than separate.
Have not see the sensuality that the three express before. They have an inner balance with their art, sensuality and with each other. YET on the photo below expresses more of her inner self than externalities. She indicated that she is also a painter.
One of my favorite photos. I find Jessie the most intriguing and the one with the most kind heart. She does not open to the world but creates a bond between her self, her performance and her dancing mates. A very gentle and sensual spirit. Looking forwards to seeing more of their art.

A very interesting gentleman whose name I cannot remember. Originated in Louisiana and a promoter of African culture/history. Glad had the chance to visit with him and I am enjoying the licorice root he game me.

Irving Penn

The work of Irving Penn is superb. It is timeless.

"A good photograph is one that communicates a fact, touches the heart and leaves the viewer a changed person for having seen it. It is, in a word, effective" by Irving Penn.

Source of photograph yourpaperboats blog.

Kate Moss

One of them evening conversations at the local cafe with a smart and beautiful Chinese woman who is passionate about modeling. Thus the question arise whether the height of a person is critical to her/his success in the world of modeling. She mentioned the name of Kate Moss as an example of a not tall model. Kate Moss is about 5'5". So, what does it make a model a great model? Perhaps not so much what are the standards that make for a professional model but the ability of a model to promote him/herself to success. Following are photos published by LUMQ.com of Kate Moss.
Beautiful she might not be but she is attractive. Should we admire her for her external beauty or should we admire the quality of the photographer. Following are photos I may consider for their artistic value more than the model but maybe not.
Here her portrait. Perhaps after a day in the sun, the object is in her eyes where the photographer focuses the photo allowing the edges to fade away. Nice photo, it depicts a part of the model. Is her 5.5 frame significant? Not in this situation since the texture and expression is most striking.
© Chuck Close, 2003

A softer side of Kate Moss, a more beautiful composition. Beautiful and full lips with very attractive face and hair. Nice physical shape/composition, more natural than sexy. Among all qualities of her beauty her feet and hands stand out. Perhaps because of the photo and how they line up but her feet and hands look elongated, a vivid contrast to her face.
© Albert Watson, Vogue, 1993

Almost the same look as the photo above, serious, expressionless. Her undulating hair is now without life. Beautiful composition, light, and form. The roundness of her breast, arms and back contrast to the over extending foot with toes down and out of the photo. Then the more detailed hand, supporting with rigidity. Perhaps her pose shows proportionality of her physique, petite torso and legs when compared to her face. A very nice photo, in particular the light and texture.
© Irving Penn, 1996

Very interesting contrast to observe only her torso. The fluidity of form and pose replaced with a rigid stand and closed arms in distinct act of contrition or rejection. Not a particular proportionate body. Broad shoulders, high waste line, elongated torso, and unassuming buttocks. Her arms and hands a bit overpowering contrasting to the roundness of her breast. Her hair bringing some balance. Two very unique and creative shots.
© Chuck Close, 2003

And a contrasting photo with color, shape, form, unassuming looks and a self-assured pose. She appears petite balanced with a strong personality. Too bad the photographer was not listed although it appears it was taken by Corrine Day.
© Vogue, 1993

April 23, 2008 Madrilena

What is life but to be able to love as much as you can and to give as much as you can without any expectations or returns.

What is life but living every moment of our days, loving the memories of the past, while dreaming the surprises that the future will bring with every sunrise.

Be full of joy because you have loved and continue to love. But don't forget to love yourself first because by loving oneself we learn to measure the love of others.

As the day goes by and past memories torment your soul, be happy. You have loved as much as you were able to love but not enough as you will love.

Smile and dream of that moment when you will wake up to a warm and sunny day; a day you will share with a greater love. A love that will return your smiles, embrace you, and never let you go (until the end of times).

April 20, 2008 Fatima Bhutto

Photo and biography of Fatima Bhutto are published by Wikipedia A lovely name Fatima for a very unique and admirable woman. Fatima Bhutto is the daughter of Murtaza Bhutto a Pakistani politician who was assassinated when she was 14 years old. Fatima was born in Afghanistan (May 29, 1982) and resides in Pakistan. Her first literary publication was a collection of poems written between 1995 and 1997 titled Whispers of The Desert. Second published book is 8:50 Am October 8, 2005, Stories of Hope and Courage from the Earthquake in Pakistan.

Clip about Fatima's father

Following is a clip of Fatima reading from the 8:50 AM October 8 book.

Couple other photos of Fatima Bhutto

April 20, 2008 New York, The Pope Blessed Ground Zero

Following three pictures and related text were published by the New York Times. It is a significant gesture of recognition for the Pope to bless the site where 2,600 people were murdered. It also makes me wonder if this is the only site where that many number of people have recently been murdered. The photo of the people standing on the tables is superb, an unexpected motion in "making a stand."
Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Image. The clouds hung low at ground zero before Pope Benedict XVI would bless the site where more than 2,600 people were killed in the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center more than six years ago.
Photo: Tyler Hicks/The New York Times. People paused to catch a glimpse of the pope's visit to Ground Zero.

Perhaps it is not about the number of people murdered at the World Trade Center but what it represents. Following is a list of massacres that occurred since 1980s as listed by this site. In it the following statement can be found, in reference to the last quarter of the 20th century:
Average: During this period, throughout the world, wars, genocide and oppression killed approximately 3,300 out of every 1,000,000 people. (0.3% of the world.)
El Salvador 1980-92 / 60,000 people
Nicaragua 1980s / 30,000 people
Liberia 1989-93 / 150,000 people
Congo 1998 / 2,000,000 people
Angola 1975-95 / 600,000 people
Burundi 1993-96 / 150,000 people
Mozambique 1975-92 / 1,000,000 people
Rwanda 1994 since / 1,000,000 people
Uganda 1982-85 / 300,000 people
Somalia 1980s / 300,000 people
Ethiopia 1962-91 / 1,500,000 people
Sudan 1983 since / 2,000,000 people
Gulf War 1991 / 10,000 people
Lebanon 1975-90 / 150,000 people
Bosnia 1992-95 / 150,000 people
Kurds 1980-92 / 300,000 people
Iran-Iraq 1980-1992 / 1,000,000 people
Afghanistan 1980-1989 / 1,500,000 people
Perhaps the significance of the World Trade bombing is that it is the first massacre in North America in a very long time.

Quotes by Mark Twain

Following are quote attributed to Mark Twain:

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.

Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the rest.

Wrinkles should merely indicate where the smiles have been.

Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint.

If you have nothing to say, say nothing.

Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear -- not absence of fear.

The human race has one really effective weapon, and that is laughter.

I am different from [George] Washington; I have a higher, grander standard of principle. Washington could not lie. I can lie, but I won't.

Classic -- a book which people praise and don't read.

It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.

April 14, 2008 Iraq war, Sadr City

Photo and text published by the New York Times. Could not help but wonder if water in Iraq is like soil because them buckets of water look more like buckets of sand.
Photo: Joao Silva for The New York Times
Iraqis tried to put out the fire that raged through an outdoor market Monday. A crowd of Iraqis came streaming to the site with buckets of water to try to prevent the conflagration from spreading. A lone Sadr City fire truck arrived after the fire was out, its journey apparently delayed by the need to circumvent a bomb-filled stretch of road.