That is a lovely photo of the Jamaica Rain Forest. My best memory of Jamaica was sliding down the Dunn's River Falls natural water slide in Ocho Rios, Jamaica. (Photo from the internet)
A small collection of my photos that I consider unusual or unique
1. We were touring an ancient park in Kaifeng in Henan Province with NT member USA1 and his wife when their dog was able to scramble up to the top of the lion statue - obviously not at all afraid of the King of the Jungle. USA1 is a New Yorker who was teaching at a university in Kaifeng while I was teaching in Zhengzhou, about a half hour train ride away. We had met on this NT web site and spent a lot of time together touring various sites and events.
. 2. Our friend in Zhengzhou took us for a tour of a 1000 year old Buddhist Temple north of the Yellow River, and on returning, when we reached the southern shore of the river, we saw a couple having photos taken for their wedding book so we stopped and I took this photo. I used it previously on this group for a challenge to create a caption or poem for it.
. 3. You may think that this is a city skyline behind a body of water, but it isn't. Before getting on a boat to cruise down the Li River through the Karst mountains I toured a cave in Guilin, Guanxi Province, the starting point for the cruise. This photo is of stalagmites behind a body of water in the cave. Do you know how to differentiate between stalagmites and stalactites? Stalagmites, with a "g" means "ground" while stalactites, with a "c" means "ceiling".
. 4. I have no idea what happened when I took this photo of a student sitting at a desk. The only thing I did was add a flare to the light at the top. It did turn out to be an unusual photo.
. 5. I'm not particularly comfortable with heights, and I stay away from glass floors but I ventured onto this one on the observation deck of the Radio and TV Tower in Chengdu, in Sichuan Province in order to get this picture. It was Chinese Valentine's Day (held on a traditional date on the lunar calendar different than February 14) which explains the hearts pasted onto the glass floor. A sign there had various instructions, and I was amused at one of the instructions which was "Please do not jump." They may have meant jumping up and down on the glass floor, and maybe I misinterpreted it.
.
6. Back when I was first courting my wife in Chongqing we were on a boat in the Jialing River, that flows into the Yangtze River a short distance from where we were, downtown being near the junction of the two rivers. The beams of light from the city were amazing, so I took this photo.
. 7. I don't think you will ever see another photo like this one. I call it "Bird's Eye View", and I took the photo when we were living in an apartment in downtown Zhengzhou. It's probably the most unique photo I've ever taken.
You may have seen some or all of these photos before, but I'm not getting around much to take photos these days.
Wait. Never mind. You meant the bird crap helping to waterproof the roof, not waterproofing the roof to help keep bird crap off. Joke's on me. I totally misunderstood your post, lol.
I never got to France, Germany, Italy...the only European countries I visited were Switzerland, Spain, Gibraltar (is it a country?), England and Wales.
This is a photo I took when I lived in Warrenton Virginia several years ago. This place is on the highway just outside of Warrenton. The first fist time I saw it I got a big laugh out of the sign on the shop.
Calling it a park sounds like it's smaller when in reality it is 23,000 acres with over 300 types of birds, buffalo, wild horses, bear, bobcat, monkeys etc and it is all natural.
Sounds like a very interesting place to visit, and a chance to enjoy another of Mother Earth's gifts for not only the wildlife that calls it home, but, for mankind as well. Thank you for sharing it with us.
Were/are you a professional train engineer? Not everyone would know how to operate such an older train engine, including some of the operators of more modern engines.
No, I like trains and know some about them. I am qualified as a brakeman on a small tourist railroad. There was a regular engineer and fireman helping me, they were good teachers.
That's exciting, charger. I had a MS Access colleague who lived near a local tourist railway with an old steam engine, which he got to operate on Sundays. I was working for a light rail operation at the time as Assistant to the Superintendent of the Wayside and Track departments. And I knew a lot of the train operators there as well. My colleague and I would trade info on railroad lingo and info like switches, signals, crossings and general operation stuff from both sides. He educated me on lots of the old engines, and I gave him some info on light rail operations. We learned a lot of interesting railroad stuff from each other.
years ago they ran a steam locomotive between denver and cheyenne during cheyenne frontier days. the farm town I lived in was more than 8 miles from that track, but you could still hear the whistle and see the thick trail of coal smoke on the horizon. a narrow gauge roadbed ran thru my grandfathers ranch and my cousins and I would walk it looking for stuff to collect in the summer.
Friends of ours bought a house in the late 1970s two blocks down the hill from our house that was on a 6 acre property, which has since been divided with 2 acres being sold, and had a 7.5" gauge steam train that went around the property. The train was already on the property when our friends bought the house, and they used to let a group of train enthusiasts use the train one Sunday a month. I rode the train one time and it was a lot of fun. It even went through a tunnel, as can be seen on this video I found on YouTube.
Very interesting little railroad, G. And it looks like it would indeed be a lot of fun to ride on it.
My Boss at the light rail system was a very dyed in the wool railroad man. He had worked for the freight company that shared the tracks with the light rail system. I learned a lot from him, and helped our Track Dept Superintendent establish a 'Christmas Train' that ran from San Diego to Tijuana at Christmas each year, carrying lots of much needed items for the families, and some presents for the children. I did the original graphics for the 'Christmas Train' when it first started.
It was only supposed to be for the one year, but, it ultimately became very popular and people wanted to ride the train and join in the festivities in Tijuana. Eventually it was taken over by a larger company, but, as far as I have heard it is no longer running.
Interesting morning clouds from a couple of weeks ago.
A hummingbird moth, also from a couple of weeks ago, before a killing frost came and laid waste to the flower beds.
One more from before the frost – the second Monarch I've seen this fall, after not noticing any for years and years. Maybe they really are making a comeback. That would be great.
A curious little Carolina wren. It was rummaging through the corn stalks in some fall decorations in the back yard, making all kinds of noise. I wasn't sure what was going on until I saw it. It kept popping out and looking around. Having the camera handy I was able to grab a shot. Hyper little things. Fun to watch.
Sumac leaves.
I'm not sure which leaf-munching caterpillar made these silks, but it looks like they got caught off guard by the first hard freeze of the season last week. It got down to 22F (-5.5C for Shona), which actually broke the local record for the day. They made a mass drop to burrow into the ground sometime during the night, and the morning sun made their "emergency escape" silks stand out like a sore thumb. They were all over the place. It was a strange sight.
Red-bellied woodpecker on the bird fountain this morning.
Side note... Hummingbird moth is just a nickname, it's really a female white-lined sphinx moth. Sphinx's are the only moths that can hover like hummingbirds, hence the nickname, but true hummingbird moths (hummingbird hawk-moths) are an Old World species, not found in North America.
Arvo dig...-5oC stuff that..not for me I am afraid..I sook (complain) when it's 10oC..
Think if I went to the States Autumn would be the prime time to go. The colours of the trees always looks spectacular as we have nothing like it here, other than the trees the European settlers brought over.
Here it's green, green and more green all year around...has its advantages at times Winter at least it still looks good and not so bleak...
First thing my English grandparents noticed when they migrated here and had their first Winter. Everything was still green as the gumtrees held their leaves... they had never seen that before in their lives.
Think if I went to the States Autumn would be the prime time to go.
Especially in New England. I'm pretty sure that's where the best natural scenery can be found in the fall. It's okay here where I am, but the forests are mostly oak and hickory. New England has a lot more wild maples.
I adjusted the vibrance and saturation settings for the whole photo. The grass was already very green so it had a greater impact on the leaves. I also lowered the clarity to give the shot a softer feel.
Hal, relax, it's been determined that it's actually better to leave the leaves on the ground so that the winter rains or snows turn them into a mulch that fertilizes the ground and improves the grass.
Reasons Not to Rake Leaves in Your Yard
1. Leaves become waste and take up space in landfills You may not be aware of it but tons of leaves that are raked every year go into landfills. ...
2. You can get hurt Raking leaves may look easy and it generally is. ...
3. Leaves protect grass and other plants under them ...
4. Leaves decompose and become mulch and fertilizer
Those points are true as long as there aren't too many leaves. If there are they can settle into big wet mats over the winter and prevent grass from growing in the spring. That's a problem I have every year. I hate raking leaves, but still have to do it around the house, having woods right up to the yard on three sides of me. It's not too bad, though. I just rake them onto a big tarp and drag them back into the woods. I don't bother getting them all, either, just enough so the grass can grow through in the spring. I've thought about dragging them up to the garden for use as organic matter, but they're supposed to be pretty acidic when they decompose, so I don't.
That’s what I do as well. I’m surrounded by forest and have several 100’ tall tulip poplars throughout the yard. It will literally get covered like carpet and kill off the grass if we don’t get them up. The grass also needs a mow right now which makes matters worse. It’s not possible to mulch that much organic material.
You mentioned "tall poplars" and it triggered a great memory from my childhood. I used to spend the summers as a kid at my grandmother's beach cottage, and often slept on the screened in porch. The cottage was in the midst of a number of tall poplar trees, and in a west wind the leaves would rustle, and when a storm was coming and the wind got stronger the leaves would turn over and show a silvery side. Wonderful memories.
Arvo Hal..nahhh just run over them with the lawn mower... that's what I use to do with the gum leaves. Makes good mulch and no raking. But it might be different over there. We don't cop the amount of leaves you get in Autumn.
I thought they were flowers first off..looks quite spectacular.
Arvo raven... got wet taking the photos and had to keep an eye for jaws...a young lad got bitten by a shark on the same beach the other day.
Nothing drastic but it's enough to keep an extra eye out ....if it had of been a great white would have lost his leg..it was probably a Wobbegong shark rather harmless...🦈
Fair point, shona … there is a team from Canada - used to be two - many of the players are Latino - some Korean and Japanese … but I can understand your questioning.
Montreal couldn't keep the Expos viable - Montrealers are extreme hockey fans, but Toronto very successfully kept the Blue Jays popular. And of course , it's not hard to figure out where my loyalty lies....
Ah, but A.Mac, having been there, having watched it happen for real, having been part of the thunderous explosion of joy, it's a memory I'll take to my grave. For me, the most fantastically exciting moment in sports.
On one of my trips to Ft Myers FL I visited the Edison Estate. The things that fascinated me the most were the very unusual Banyan Trees, also known as the Walking Trees, that grew all over the property. Edison imported the first Banyan Trees when he established his estate, and they have grown all around over the years since. They are a fig tree native to Asia. For those who have never seen a Banyan tree, here are a few photos I took during my visit....
My friend standing in front of a cluster of the Banyan Trees. You can see why they got the name "Walking Tree", as with each new tree starter thread that drops down from the existing tree and takes root and grows they form a line of connected trees and spreads across massive land space
Here she is sitting on one of the large Banyan tree roots
Here she is standing beside one of the larger Banyan trees with the huge root clusters the older trees develop
This is how the new trees get their start from a new starter thread from an existing tree, by the danging root thread that drops down from the existing tree
I recall that the first time I was in Florida, when I was only 16, that I was quite fascinated by the Banyan trees, having never seen anything like them back in Canada. The roots on the one in the 4th picture look almost alien.
The roots on the one in the 4th picture look almost alien.
That's how they impressed me at first look, or even something prehistoric. I was really fascinated by them. My friend is 5ft 11" just to give you an idea of how really big some of the roots were.
First-things-first; check the article at the link below.
LINK ->
Great photo, Mac.
The link takes you right back here.
I just fixed it.
Instead of your usual Ukraine leadoff image, since you did a Florida one because of the disaster there, why didn't you do this one today?
The shape of Ireland is wrong.
I think it's just North Ireland.
That is a lovely photo of the Jamaica Rain Forest. My best memory of Jamaica was sliding down the Dunn's River Falls natural water slide in Ocho Rios, Jamaica. (Photo from the internet)
Can you believe this, more Monarchs this late in the season.
The more the better, ABSOLUTELY!!!
Fabulous pic !
A small collection of my photos that I consider unusual or unique
1. We were touring an ancient park in Kaifeng in Henan Province with NT member USA1 and his wife when their dog was able to scramble up to the top of the lion statue - obviously not at all afraid of the King of the Jungle. USA1 is a New Yorker who was teaching at a university in Kaifeng while I was teaching in Zhengzhou, about a half hour train ride away. We had met on this NT web site and spent a lot of time together touring various sites and events.
.
2. Our friend in Zhengzhou took us for a tour of a 1000 year old Buddhist Temple north of the Yellow River, and on returning, when we reached the southern shore of the river, we saw a couple having photos taken for their wedding book so we stopped and I took this photo. I used it previously on this group for a challenge to create a caption or poem for it.
.
3. You may think that this is a city skyline behind a body of water, but it isn't. Before getting on a boat to cruise down the Li River through the Karst mountains I toured a cave in Guilin, Guanxi Province, the starting point for the cruise. This photo is of stalagmites behind a body of water in the cave. Do you know how to differentiate between stalagmites and stalactites? Stalagmites, with a "g" means "ground" while stalactites, with a "c" means "ceiling".
.
4. I have no idea what happened when I took this photo of a student sitting at a desk. The only thing I did was add a flare to the light at the top. It did turn out to be an unusual photo.
.
5. I'm not particularly comfortable with heights, and I stay away from glass floors but I ventured onto this one on the observation deck of the Radio and TV Tower in Chengdu, in Sichuan Province in order to get this picture. It was Chinese Valentine's Day (held on a traditional date on the lunar calendar different than February 14) which explains the hearts pasted onto the glass floor. A sign there had various instructions, and I was amused at one of the instructions which was "Please do not jump." They may have meant jumping up and down on the glass floor, and maybe I misinterpreted it.
.
6. Back when I was first courting my wife in Chongqing we were on a boat in the Jialing River, that flows into the Yangtze River a short distance from where we were, downtown being near the junction of the two rivers. The beams of light from the city were amazing, so I took this photo.
.
7. I don't think you will ever see another photo like this one. I call it "Bird's Eye View", and I took the photo when we were living in an apartment in downtown Zhengzhou. It's probably the most unique photo I've ever taken.
You may have seen some or all of these photos before, but I'm not getting around much to take photos these days.
Those city and harbor lights are awesome, Buzz. Looks like party time.
Love the pigeon shot, too.
Great photos, Buzz. An interesting insight into various places and events you have experienced in China.
a boy and his dog
Kobe blends in with the fabric on my recliner.
Ready for the walks
I love it.
LOL. My first smile of the morning.
Kobe looks like an awesome dog.
If you have eagles on your roof, you will have eagle shit. Stone Creek, Ocala FL.
Does it help to waterproof the roof?
Think about that for a minute, Buzz.
Wait. Never mind. You meant the bird crap helping to waterproof the roof, not waterproofing the roof to help keep bird crap off. Joke's on me. I totally misunderstood your post, lol.
LOL. I just had a laugh finding out what you first meant.
Just another day … another day.
© A. Mac/A.G.
Another WONDERFUL day.
Lovely photo, Mac.
"Postcards from Provence, Part 1"
© G. Gam
Thanks for a super tour.
I took a lot of photos in the south of France. I will post more another time.
I never got to France, Germany, Italy...the only European countries I visited were Switzerland, Spain, Gibraltar (is it a country?), England and Wales.
Great photos, G. I like the last one it made me hungry.
That's what I was thinking, too. Lol.
This is a photo I took when I lived in Warrenton Virginia several years ago. This place is on the highway just outside of Warrenton. The first fist time I saw it I got a big laugh out of the sign on the shop.
Yes, very funny, but honest.
Thanks Buzz.
It's still there
Thanks for the update, charger. Glad to know it is still there to give passersby a good laugh. It may one day become an antique itself. (grin)
These photos were taken by the Stone Creek Photo Club, Chrissy Martinez.
The park is 40 minutes from our house.
All beautiful photos, Kavika. Thank you and Chrissy Martinez for sharing them with us.
Calling it a park sounds like it's smaller when in reality it is 23,000 acres with over 300 types of birds, buffalo, wild horses, bear, bobcat, monkeys etc and it is all natural.
Sounds like a very interesting place to visit, and a chance to enjoy another of Mother Earth's gifts for not only the wildlife that calls it home, but, for mankind as well. Thank you for sharing it with us.
Those are great, Kav. I didn't know there were monkeys in Florida.
This week I got to run this steam locomotive on the Western Maryland Senic Railroad in Cumberland, Maryland.
Locomotive 1309 was built in 1949 for the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad, it was last steam engine Baldwin
built for use in USA, It was taken out of museum and restored. It is a 2-6-6-2 type.
What a great experience that must have been!!!
If were are going to tracks and trains we a have a song to go along with it.
Johnny Cash singing John Henry.
Thanks Kavika. I've always loved that song.
Locomotive crossing a bridge in Cumberland, Maryland. Hopper cars were to give it a little load and for braking.
It was cold there, even in cab
Could you hear the whistle blow 100 miles? (LINK) ->
It echoed across the mountain, and I used the proper whistle signals
Were/are you a professional train engineer? Not everyone would know how to operate such an older train engine, including some of the operators of more modern engines.
No, I like trains and know some about them. I am qualified as a brakeman on a small tourist railroad. There was a regular engineer and fireman helping me, they were good teachers.
That's exciting, charger. I had a MS Access colleague who lived near a local tourist railway with an old steam engine, which he got to operate on Sundays. I was working for a light rail operation at the time as Assistant to the Superintendent of the Wayside and Track departments. And I knew a lot of the train operators there as well. My colleague and I would trade info on railroad lingo and info like switches, signals, crossings and general operation stuff from both sides. He educated me on lots of the old engines, and I gave him some info on light rail operations. We learned a lot of interesting railroad stuff from each other.
years ago they ran a steam locomotive between denver and cheyenne during cheyenne frontier days. the farm town I lived in was more than 8 miles from that track, but you could still hear the whistle and see the thick trail of coal smoke on the horizon. a narrow gauge roadbed ran thru my grandfathers ranch and my cousins and I would walk it looking for stuff to collect in the summer.
Friends of ours bought a house in the late 1970s two blocks down the hill from our house that was on a 6 acre property, which has since been divided with 2 acres being sold, and had a 7.5" gauge steam train that went around the property. The train was already on the property when our friends bought the house, and they used to let a group of train enthusiasts use the train one Sunday a month. I rode the train one time and it was a lot of fun. It even went through a tunnel, as can be seen on this video I found on YouTube.
Cool. Someone really liked trains.
Very interesting little railroad, G. And it looks like it would indeed be a lot of fun to ride on it.
My Boss at the light rail system was a very dyed in the wool railroad man. He had worked for the freight company that shared the tracks with the light rail system. I learned a lot from him, and helped our Track Dept Superintendent establish a 'Christmas Train' that ran from San Diego to Tijuana at Christmas each year, carrying lots of much needed items for the families, and some presents for the children. I did the original graphics for the 'Christmas Train' when it first started.
It was only supposed to be for the one year, but, it ultimately became very popular and people wanted to ride the train and join in the festivities in Tijuana. Eventually it was taken over by a larger company, but, as far as I have heard it is no longer running.
YouTube? Damn!
See if this one will open for you, Buzz....
It worked perfectly. Thanks so much Raven. It had to have been a real fun thing to do, especially for a kid.
You're very welcome, Buzz. I'm always glad to help where I can. And this 'kid' would love to ride that train.
(big grin)
I’ve been on that train. They do a really cheesy murder mystery dinner on it. The whole enactment takes place in the isle.
Back in the day, I worked on bull gang at the Hull Rust mine in northern MN. Laying and moving track for the ore trains that came to the mines.
The gangs were made up of mostly immigrants, Hunkies, Cousin Jacks, matores, ice dancers, etc etc.
Damn hard work and I learned at a very young age I wasn't going to spend my life in mines and never looked back.
Duluth, Missabe and Iron Range Railway?
Yes, the DM&IR.
When we were kids our mode of transportation was to jump the ore trains coming out of Kelly Lake.
Interesting morning clouds from a couple of weeks ago.
A hummingbird moth, also from a couple of weeks ago, before a killing frost came and laid waste to the flower beds.
One more from before the frost – the second Monarch I've seen this fall, after not noticing any for years and years. Maybe they really are making a comeback. That would be great.
A curious little Carolina wren. It was rummaging through the corn stalks in some fall decorations in the back yard, making all kinds of noise. I wasn't sure what was going on until I saw it. It kept popping out and looking around. Having the camera handy I was able to grab a shot. Hyper little things. Fun to watch.
Sumac leaves.
I'm not sure which leaf-munching caterpillar made these silks, but it looks like they got caught off guard by the first hard freeze of the season last week. It got down to 22F (-5.5C for Shona), which actually broke the local record for the day. They made a mass drop to burrow into the ground sometime during the night, and the morning sun made their "emergency escape" silks stand out like a sore thumb. They were all over the place. It was a strange sight.
Red-bellied woodpecker on the bird fountain this morning.
Getting a drink.
Two shots of fall color in the front yard today.
Side note... Hummingbird moth is just a nickname, it's really a female white-lined sphinx moth. Sphinx's are the only moths that can hover like hummingbirds, hence the nickname, but true hummingbird moths (hummingbird hawk-moths) are an Old World species, not found in North America.
A "knockout" collection of photos, as usual. Amazing clouds.
Great photos, Dig.
Arvo dig...-5oC stuff that..not for me I am afraid..I sook (complain) when it's 10oC..
Think if I went to the States Autumn would be the prime time to go. The colours of the trees always looks spectacular as we have nothing like it here, other than the trees the European settlers brought over.
Here it's green, green and more green all year around...has its advantages at times Winter at least it still looks good and not so bleak...
First thing my English grandparents noticed when they migrated here and had their first Winter. Everything was still green as the gumtrees held their leaves... they had never seen that before in their lives.
Especially in New England. I'm pretty sure that's where the best natural scenery can be found in the fall. It's okay here where I am, but the forests are mostly oak and hickory. New England has a lot more wild maples.
© A. Mac/A.G
Not looking forward to cleaning this up. Half the leaves have yet to fall.
They're so colorful. Some almost look like flower petals. That's pretty cool.
I may have cheated a little bit with the colors …
Here’s the original, sans photoshop.
Ah. Still pretty cool. You did a great job. Did you run the whole image through a filter or color them individually?
I adjusted the vibrance and saturation settings for the whole photo. The grass was already very green so it had a greater impact on the leaves. I also lowered the clarity to give the shot a softer feel.
Hal, relax, it's been determined that it's actually better to leave the leaves on the ground so that the winter rains or snows turn them into a mulch that fertilizes the ground and improves the grass.
Those points are true as long as there aren't too many leaves. If there are they can settle into big wet mats over the winter and prevent grass from growing in the spring. That's a problem I have every year. I hate raking leaves, but still have to do it around the house, having woods right up to the yard on three sides of me. It's not too bad, though. I just rake them onto a big tarp and drag them back into the woods. I don't bother getting them all, either, just enough so the grass can grow through in the spring. I've thought about dragging them up to the garden for use as organic matter, but they're supposed to be pretty acidic when they decompose, so I don't.
That’s what I do as well. I’m surrounded by forest and have several 100’ tall tulip poplars throughout the yard. It will literally get covered like carpet and kill off the grass if we don’t get them up. The grass also needs a mow right now which makes matters worse. It’s not possible to mulch that much organic material.
You mentioned "tall poplars" and it triggered a great memory from my childhood. I used to spend the summers as a kid at my grandmother's beach cottage, and often slept on the screened in porch. The cottage was in the midst of a number of tall poplar trees, and in a west wind the leaves would rustle, and when a storm was coming and the wind got stronger the leaves would turn over and show a silvery side. Wonderful memories.
!!!!! Great.
Arvo Hal..nahhh just run over them with the lawn mower... that's what I use to do with the gum leaves. Makes good mulch and no raking. But it might be different over there. We don't cop the amount of leaves you get in Autumn.
I thought they were flowers first off..looks quite spectacular.
Arvo... Mother Natures lace work on the sand...
Nature's natural works of art.
Those are really beautiful, shona.
Arvo raven... got wet taking the photos and had to keep an eye for jaws...a young lad got bitten by a shark on the same beach the other day.
Nothing drastic but it's enough to keep an extra eye out ....if it had of been a great white would have lost his leg..it was probably a Wobbegong shark rather harmless...🦈
Pretty neat. Some kind of marine plant?
Green algae, possibly Nitella, seaweed generically.
Thanks. This land lubber wouldn't know seaweed if it slapped him in the face.
The Philadelphia Phillies just won the NATIONAL LEAGUE PENNANT!
Great news, Mac!
No place like Philly at times like this.
Red October? I guess the hunt is over.
Arvo Mac...World series?? But it is only played against other US teams and not other countries, or have I missed something?
American Exceptionalism, lol.
Fair point, shona … there is a team from Canada - used to be two - many of the players are Latino - some Korean and Japanese … but I can understand your questioning.
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada , contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff , and the winning team is awarded the Commissioner's Trophy . [1]
Montreal couldn't keep the Expos viable - Montrealers are extreme hockey fans, but Toronto very successfully kept the Blue Jays popular. And of course , it's not hard to figure out where my loyalty lies....
Ahh but you two are cousin's... that's like us and the Kiwi's playing cricket...more or less in house...
I hope they win it all. We've seen enough of the Astros.
Thanks, John.
The Phillies are headed to the World Series and the city of Philadelphia is celebrating! Check out the best reactions.
.
Live now on a Broad Street here in Philly.
Don't let Mitch Williams pitch.
Almost 30years ago Buzz.
Ah, but A.Mac, having been there, having watched it happen for real, having been part of the thunderous explosion of joy, it's a memory I'll take to my grave. For me, the most fantastically exciting moment in sports.
On one of my trips to Ft Myers FL I visited the Edison Estate. The things that fascinated me the most were the very unusual Banyan Trees, also known as the Walking Trees, that grew all over the property. Edison imported the first Banyan Trees when he established his estate, and they have grown all around over the years since. They are a fig tree native to Asia. For those who have never seen a Banyan tree, here are a few photos I took during my visit....
My friend standing in front of a cluster of the Banyan Trees. You can see why they got the name "Walking Tree", as with each new tree starter thread that drops down from the existing tree and takes root and grows they form a line of connected trees and spreads across massive land space
Here she is sitting on one of the large Banyan tree roots
Here she is standing beside one of the larger Banyan trees with the huge root clusters the older trees develop
This is how the new trees get their start from a new starter thread from an existing tree, by the danging root thread that drops down from the existing tree
You can learn more about the Banyan Tree here;
I recall that the first time I was in Florida, when I was only 16, that I was quite fascinated by the Banyan trees, having never seen anything like them back in Canada. The roots on the one in the 4th picture look almost alien.
That's how they impressed me at first look, or even something prehistoric. I was really fascinated by them. My friend is 5ft 11" just to give you an idea of how really big some of the roots were.
Arvo Raven...we have those too...they are called Morton Bay figs here and the trees grow huge, especially up Queensland.
Their root system is massive...there is one in our Botanical gardens it's over 150 years old...
Oh Wow! The roots must be Monstrous!
It's a wrap! Thanks to all and see you on Thursday night.