Marine life on the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland. Australia's Great Barrier Reef could be beyond saving in five years without “now or never” funding to improve water quality as climate change ravages the World Heritage-listed site, scientists have warned: photo by Matt Curnock/AFP, 19 May 2016
But it was in vain that I lingered beside the hawthorns -- breathing in
their invisible and unchanging odour, trying to fix it in my mind (which
did not know what to do with it), losing it, recapturing it, absorbing
myself in the rhythm which disposed the flowers here and there with a
youthful light-heartedness and at intervals as unexpected as certain
intervals in music -- they went on offering me the same charm in
inexhaustible profusion, but without letting me delve any more deeply,
like those melodies which one can play a hundred times in succession
without coming any nearer to their secret.
Marcel Proust (1871-1922): from Swann’s Way (1913), translated by C.K. Scott Moncrief and Terence Kilmartin, 1981
First opened in 1969, Everglades Parkway extends from Naples on the west coast of Florida to Broward County on the east. The American Automobile Association nicknamed it “Alligator Alley” because of the large number of alligators in the waterways on either side of the road, which the AAA believed would render it useless to cars.: photo by Malcolm Lightner via The Atlantic, 15 May 2016
An elderly Sri Lankan woman and a girl are shifted on a mattress at a flooded area in Colombo: photo by Eranga Jayawardena / AP, 18 May 2016
Patrick Pendville, owner of Animatrans, poses with a stuffed dog at a taxidermist's workshop in Aalst, Belgium: photo by Yves Herman / Reuters, 29 April 2016
Fans scuffle prior to the Europa League Final in Basel, Switzerland: photo by Lars Baron, 19 May 2016
A man sitting atop a container uses his mobile device at a makeshift camp for migrants and refugees at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni, Greece: photo by Marko Djurica/Reuters, 10 May 2016
A plastic gallon jug sits on a table at the Swamp Buggy Races: photo by Malcolm Lightner via The Atlantic, 15 May 2015
Rescue workers recovered the bodies of 16 villagers buried in landslides in Sri Lanka after three days of torrential rains: photo by Ishara S Kodikara / AFP, 18 May 2016
French riot police officers stand guard after receiving some paint on their uniform, during a demonstration to protest against the government’s labour reform today in Bordeaux. France was disrupted by a third straight day of strikes and demonstrations as the prime minister called for protesters who torched a police car to face “harsh” punishment. The labour reforms have sparked two months of protests on France’s streets, drawing 68,000 nationwide on Tuesday, police said, while organisers put the turnout at 220,000.: photo by George Gobet/AFP, 19 May 2016
Bonnie Walsh began her racing career in 1976 when the
Mile O’ Mud was located off of Radio Road and competed in unofficial
“powder puff” races for female drivers. In 2005, Bonnie became the first
woman swamp buggy driver to claim the Budweiser Cup Championship.: photo by Malcolm Lightner via The Atlantic, 15 May 2016
Paolo Presti reacts next to the body of his dog Bianca, a
Canadian shepherd, at the Samsara Eternity crematory for animals in
Soignies, Belgium: photo by Yves Herman / Reuters, 12 April 2016
A woman holds a baby after clashes between migrants happened at a makeshift camp at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni, Greece: photo by Marko Djurica/Reuters, 10 May 2016
A woman holds a baby after clashes between migrants happened at a makeshift camp at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni, Greece: photo by Marko Djurica/Reuters, 10 May 2016
Relatives of missing EgyptAir flight MS804 passengers react at the airliner’s centre at Cairo Airport: photo by Amr Abdallah Dalsh / Reuters, 19 May 2016
A swamp buggy race fan shows off her gun tattoo: photo by Malcolm Lightner via The Atlantic, 15 May 2016
Cathy Vertongen, a taxidermist, works on a dead parrot at her workshop in Aalst, Belgium: photo by Yves Herman / Reuters, 29 April 2016
A boy plays at a train station at a makeshift camp for migrants and refugees at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni, Greece: photo by Marko Djurica/Reuters, 10 May 2016
Chair of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System Janet L. Yellen chats with US Secretary of the Treasury Jacob J. Lew during a welcome reception hosted by the City of Sendai, Japan: photo by Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP, 19 May 2016
Chair of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System Janet L. Yellen chats with US Secretary of the Treasury Jacob J. Lew during a welcome reception hosted by the City of Sendai, Japan: photo by Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP, 19 May 2016
A woman holds her child at a train station at a makeshift camp for migrants and refugees at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni, Greece: photo by Marko Djurica/Reuters, 10 May 2016
Swamp buggy race fans pile into “Lumpy,” a custom built platform on the back of a truck at the Florida Sports Park: photo by Malcolm Lightner via The Atlantic, 15 May 2016
Members of Sri Lankan military rescue team work at the site of a landslide at Elangipitiya village in Aranayaka: photo by Dinuka Liyanawatte / Reuters, 19 May 2016
Two young boys wrestle in the mud alongside the track during the Swamp Buggy Races: photo by Malcolm Lightner via The Atlantic, 15 May 2016
Greenpeace protesters climb the British Museum in London, in protest against BP’s sponsorship of the museum’s Sunken Cities exhibition: photo by Anthony Devlin/PA, 19 May 2016
Greenpeace protesters climb the British Museum in London, in protest against BP’s sponsorship of the museum’s Sunken Cities exhibition: photo by Anthony Devlin/PA, 19 May 2016
Sri Lankan residents wade through floodwaters: photo by Ishara S Kodikara / AFP, 18 May 2016
A man jumps from a container at a makeshift camp for migrants and refugees at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni, Greece: photo by Marko Djurica/Reuters, 10 May 2016
Cathy Vertongen works on a dead dog at her workshop in Aalst: photo by Yves Herman / Reuters, 29 April 2016
A man dresses a statue figure on the monument dedicated to Kiev city founders, in the national Ukrainian costume called Vyshyvanka, on the Independence Square in Kiev, Ukraine. Ukrainians mark Vyshyvanka Day, named in honour of the Slavic traditional clothing Vyshyvanka: photo by Efrem Lukatsky/AP, 19 May 2016
A man dresses a statue figure on the monument dedicated to Kiev city
founders, in the national Ukrainian costume called Vyshyvanka, on the
Independence Square in Kiev, Ukraine. Ukrainians mark Vyshyvanka Day,
named in honour of the Slavic traditional clothing Vyshyvanka: photo by Efrem Lukatsky/AP, 19 May 2016
Greenpeace protesters climb the British Museum in London, in protest against BP’s sponsorship of the museum’s Sunken Cities exhibition: photo by Anthony Devlin/PA, 19 May 2016
Greenpeace protesters climb the British Museum in London, in protest against BP’s sponsorship of the museum’s Sunken Cities exhibition: photo by Anthony Devlin/PA, 19 May 2016
Sri Lankan residents wade through floodwaters: photo by Ishara S Kodikara / AFP, 18 May 2016
A man jumps from a container at a makeshift camp for migrants and refugees at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni, Greece: photo by Marko Djurica/Reuters, 10 May 2016
Cathy Vertongen works on a dead dog at her workshop in Aalst: photo by Yves Herman / Reuters, 29 April 2016
A man dresses a statue figure on the monument dedicated to Kiev city founders, in the national Ukrainian costume called Vyshyvanka, on the Independence Square in Kiev, Ukraine. Ukrainians mark Vyshyvanka Day, named in honour of the Slavic traditional clothing Vyshyvanka: photo by Efrem Lukatsky/AP, 19 May 2016
Lauren Bohnen and Patrick Silva are seen intertwined in front of “Kamp Feltersnatch” at the Florida Sports Park during the Swamp Buggy Races. “I enjoy swamp buggy races because it's like having a whole weekend with extended family to relax, throw back some beers, and watch some good ol' racing!” Lauren Bohnen said. “There were many beers involved so I don't remember the particular day.”: photo by Malcolm Lightner via The Atlantic, 15 May 2016
The stuffed body of a Yorkshire, named Doudou, at its
owner Monique Kroonen-Dupont's home in Genval, Belgium: photo by Yves Herman / Reuters, 29 April 2016
Children play as a man prays at a makeshift camp for migrants and refugees at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni, Greece: photo by Marko Djurica/Reuters, 10 May 2016
Children play as a man prays at a makeshift camp for migrants and refugees at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni, Greece: photo by Marko Djurica/Reuters, 10 May 2016
A general view of a Neapolitan pizza made to break the world record for the longest pizza ever made, by making it a two kilometres margherita (16 inch wide) pizza stretching along the city waterfront, in Naples: photo by Circo Fusco/EPA, 19 May 2016
Pizza makers attempt to break the Guinness World Record for the longest pizza along the seafront of Naples. For the wood-fired pizza, which measured two kilometres, they used 2,000 kg of flour, 1,600 kg of tomatoes, 2,000 kg of mozzarella, 200 litres of oil, 30kg of fresh basil.: photo by Mario Laporta / AFP, 19 May 2016
Large turkey drums are placed in a metal container for sale at the Swamp Buggy Races: photo by Malcolm Lightner via The Atlantic, 15 May 2016
Chancellor Angela Merkel tests a robotic arm standing next to KUKA CEO Till Reuter while visiting the KUKA Industrial Robotics factory in Augsburg, Germany: photo by Joerg Koch, 13 March 2015
Myriam Waeles poses with her stuffed duck, a mallard named Arthur, at her home in Lennik, Belgium. "Arthur was a special duck... He was always waiting for me at the door when I came home, walking next to me in the living room," Waeles said. "Having Arthur, stuffed next to me, comforts me.": photo by Yves Herman / Reuters, 29 April 2016
People stand by a damaged car at a train station at a makeshift camp for migrants and refugees at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni, Greece: photo by Marko Djurica/Reuters, 10 May 2016
Two boys with Confederate Flag-inspired hats pierced with fishing hooks pose for a photo while seated on a tail gate: photo by Malcolm Lightner via The Atlantic, 15 May 2016
Graves of pets in a cemetery for animals in Aywaille, Belgium: photo by Yves Herman / Reuters, 8 April 2016
Supporters of Trinamool Congress (TMC) celebrate after learning the initial poll results of the West Bengal Assembly elections, in Kolkata, India: photo by Rupak De Chowdhuri/Reuters, 19 May 2016
Supporters of Trinamool Congress (TMC) celebrate after learning the initial poll results of the West Bengal Assembly elections, in Kolkata, India: photo by Rupak De Chowdhuri/Reuters, 19 May 2016
A girl holds an umbrella at a makeshift camp for migrants and refugees at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni, Greece: photo by Marko Djurica/Reuters, 10 May 2016
Cathy Vertongen, a taxidermist, works on a dead parrot at her workshop in Aalst, Belgium: photo by Yves Herman / Reuters, 29 April 2016
Indian Trinamool Congress (TMC) party supporters celebrate an early lead as vote counting continues following the West Bengal state assembly elections in Kolkata. Vote-counting is takaing place following state assembly elections in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Pondicherry. The makeup of India’s next government could lie in the hands of a trio of women who command a massive following in their regional heartlands, including a populist former movie star known as “Mother” to supporters.: photo by Dibyangshu Sarkar / AFP, 19 May 2016
Cast member Lea Seydoux poses during a photocall for the film “Juste la fin du monde” (It’s Only the End of the World) directed by Xavier Dolan in competition at the 69th Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France today.: photo by Regis Duvignau/Reuters, 19 May 2016
Cast member Lea Seydoux poses during a photocall for the film “Juste la fin du monde” (It’s Only the End of the World) directed by Xavier Dolan in competition at the 69th Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France today.: photo by Regis Duvignau/Reuters, 19 May 2016
Sri Lankan flood victims flock around a bus to receive food parcels: photo by Eranga Jayawardena / AP, 18 May 2016
Cathy Vertongen works on a dead dog at her workshop in Aalst, Belgium: photo by Yves Herman / Reuters, 29 April 2016
The Big Feature Winner Tyler Johns, the driver of “Patriot,” leaps into the “Sippy Hole” with Swamp Buggy Queen Christa Jo Roberts: photo by Malcolm Lightner via The Atlantic, 15 May 2016
Supporters of visiting Zhang Dejiang, the chairman of China’s National People’s Congress, attend a rally in Hong Kong: photo by Lam Yik Fei, 18 May 2016
Romanian actress Malina Manovici poses during the photocall for ‘Bacalaureat’ at the 69th annual Cannes Film Festival: photo by Julien Warnand / EPA, 19 May 2016
Taxidermist Cathy Vertongen works on a dead dog at her workshop in Aalst: photo by Yves Herman / Reuters, 29 April 2016
A woman sits by Yasmin, a twenty-day-old baby in her tent at a makeshift camp for migrants and refugees at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni, Greece: photo by Marko Djurica/Reuters, 10 May 2016
A woman sits by Yasmin, a twenty-day-old baby in her tent at a makeshift camp for migrants and refugees at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni, Greece: photo by Marko Djurica/Reuters, 10 May 2016
Spectators sit atop “Redneck Stadium,” the creation of Daniel Patrick Hoolihan IV, who defines rednecks as “people who would probably be having more fun than others.” He and his wife Dawn have been attending the races for 25 years.: photo by Malcolm Lightner via The Atlantic, 15 May 2016
Angela Merkel and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi look at a YuMi robotic arm in Hanover: photo by Wolfgang Rattay / Reuters, 13 April 2015
A swamp buggy race fan shows off her gun tattoo: photo by Malcolm Lightner via The Atlantic, 15 May 2016
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, escorted by Mamoru Mori, executive director of the museum and former astronaut, touches “Asimo,” a humanoid robot developed by Honda Motor Company, while visiting Miraikan (National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation) in Tokyo: photo by Issei Kato / Reuters, 9 March 2015
Patrick Pendville, founder of Animatrans, shows a resin
mask depicting the face of a dead dog at the Samsara Eternity crematory
for animals in Soignies, Belgium: photo by Yves Herman / Reuters, 15 April 2016
An American flag hangs from a pole mounted on the “Redneck Sky Bar,” a custom-built bar on the back of a pick-up truck: photo by Malcolm Lightner via The Atlantic, 15 May 2016
Children play at a train station at a makeshift camp for migrants and refugees at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni, Greece: photo by Marko Djurica/Reuters, 10 May 2016
Chancellor Angela Merkel and Britain's Queen Elizabeth smile as a robot waves during their visit at the Technical University of Berlin (TU Berlin) in Berlin, Germany: photo by Michael Sohn / Reuters, 24 June 2015
Nicole Parton leans against a fence along the swamp buggy track at the Florida Sports Park: photo by Malcolm Lightner via The Atlantic, 15 May 2016
Bad Luck Ext -- The grave of a dog named Belle
A model wears a hat as she presents a creation from the fashion label Bondi Bather during Australian Fashion week in Sydney, Australia: photo by David Gray/Reuters, 19 May 2016
A model wears a hat as she presents a creation from the fashion label Bondi Bather during Australian Fashion week in Sydney, Australia: photo by David Gray/Reuters, 19 May 2016
The grave of a dog named Belle, in a cemetery for animals in Aywaille, Belgium: photo by Yves Herman / Reuters, 8 April 2016
Leonard Chesser’s orange, pro-modified two-wheel-drive “Dat’s Da One" outmuscles Tyler Johns’ V-8 super stock "Patriot" and the modified four-wheel drive buggy "Dat’s It," driven by Leonard’s 21-year-old daughter Amy: photo by Malcolm Lightner via The Atlantic, 15 May 2016
Liverpool’s English midfielder and captain James Milner (L) falls next to Sevilla’s Argentinian midfielder Ever Banega during the Europa League final in Basel, Switzerland: photo by Fabrice Coffrini / AFP, 19 May 2016
The body of Chico, a Chihuahua, lies in a decorated basket at the Samsara Eternity crematory for animals in Soignies, Belgium: photo by Yves Herman / Reuters, 12 April 2016
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan (left) meets former mayor of New York Michael Bloomberg at City Hall in London today, as the billionaire has warned Brexit would damage Britain’s economy: photo by Stefan Rousseau/PA, 19 May 2016
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan (left) meets former mayor of New York Michael Bloomberg at City Hall in London today, as the billionaire has warned Brexit would damage Britain’s economy: photo by Stefan Rousseau/PA, 19 May 2016
A custom-made sign at a campsite at the Florida Sports Park during the Swamp Buggy Races: photo by Malcolm Lightner via The Atlantic, 15 May 2016
Chantal Bauchez poses with her stuffed Barbary macaque, named Moukys, at her home in Rebecq, Belgium: photo by Yves Herman / Reuters, 29 April 2016
A Sri Lankan woman wades through floodwaters inside her home in Kelaniya suburb of the capital Colombo: photo by Ishara S Kodikara / AFP, 18 May 2016
Patrick Pendville, founder of Animatrans, adjusts coffins made for animals at his shop in Brussels: photo by Yves Herman / Reuters, 15 April 2016
People walk past tents at a train station at a makeshift camp for migrants and refugees at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni, Greece: photo by Marko Djurica/Reuters, 10 May 2016
The Mile O' Mud track at the Florida Sports Park as it appears off-season: photo by Malcolm Lightner via The Atlantic, 15 May 2016
Google = Death
An attendant holds a Google Inc. Cardboard virtual reality headset to demonstrate SoftBank Group Corp.’s Pepper the humanoid robot at a media briefing in Tokyo, Japan, on Thursday: photo by Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg, 19 May 2016
An attendant holds a Google Inc. Cardboard virtual reality headset to demonstrate SoftBank Group Corp.’s Pepper the humanoid robot at a media briefing in Tokyo, Japan, on Thursday: photo by Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg, 19 May 2016
Fear of the real
A soldier films military officers following a mass dance performance in the capital's main ceremonial square, a day after the ruling Workers' Party of Korea wrapped up its first congress in 36 years, in Pyongyang, North Korea: photo by Damir Sagolj / Reuters, 10 May 2016
Fear of the real
feels real
funny
sometimes,
other
times maybe
not
so much
any more
The preparator Stefanie Griebsch fixes the bio-inspired robot ‘Orobot’ during a press preview exhibition called ‘Orobates - After 300 million years reanimated’ in the Phyletic Museum in Jena, Germany Scientists studied the movement processes of the 297-million-year-old prehistoric lizard Orobates pabsti and displayed the results in a special presentation.: photo by Jens Meyer / AP, 15 April 2016
An auction house employee attaches the leg to the skeleton of an Eohippus, during the press preview of a forthcoming sale at Summers Place Auction House in Billingshurst, England: photo by Dan Kitwood, 11 May 2016
A scale model of a dinosaur and a shadow of another in front of La Sapienza University headquarters in Rome. The realistic reproductions of dinosaurs are part of the ‘Dinosaurs in the flesh, science and art bring to life the rulers of a lost world’ exhibition.: photo by Alessandro Bianchi / Reuters, 10 April 2015
St. Peter's Basilica is displayed at Tobu World Square theme park in Nikko, Japan: photo by Carl Court, 1 May 2016
Police officers climb two fire ladders to reach a man standing on the KTLA radio tower in Hollywood, California: photo by Robyn Beck / AFP, 12 May 2016
Chelsea’s Willian in action against Liverpool: photo by Carl Recine / Action Images via Reuters, 12 May 2016
Sao Paulo supporters cheer on their team during the 2016 Copa Libertadores quarter-final first leg against Atletico Mineiro: photo by Nelson Almeida / AFP, 12 May 2016
A reveler takes part in Correfoc in Barcelona, Spain. Correfoc, or fire-run, originates from a form of medieval street theater that represents the fight of good against evil through parades using fireworks and effigies of the devil. During the Correfoc, a group of individuals dress as devils and light fireworks. While dancing to the drums, they will set off their fireworks among crowds of spectators.: photo by Manu Fernandez / AP, 7 May 2016
A man walks along a street as a smoke bomb is thrown during clashes between ‘No border’ activists and Italian police at the Brenner train station, during demonstrations against Austria's possible decision to close the border with Italy: photo by Giuseppe Cacace / AFP, 7 May 2016
People carry an injured man after clashes between migrants happened at a makeshift camp at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni, Greece: photo by Marko Djurica/Reuters, 10 May 2016
People carry an injured man after clashes between migrants happened at a makeshift camp at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni, Greece: photo by Marko Djurica/Reuters, 10 May 2016
A boy climbs a tent at a makeshift camp for migrants and refugees at the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni, Greece: photo by Marko Djurica/Reuters, 10 May 2016
Left feeling dizzy running through those images. I don't know that I want to come any closer to their secret.
ReplyDeleteI guess there's a question as to whether the real is accessible at all now. We're all stuffed, that's the long and the short of it.
Yes, and in truth, I ought to be apologizing for inflicting that feeling -- or perhaps sharing would be the more accurate word.
ReplyDeleteTaking the moments of the world as notes in whose inexhaustible profusion some mysterious melodic secret may be hid, that proved predictably daunting, but the rhythm which disposes them (the several moments that is) here and there -- now the secret of that seemed possibly almost within reach, and discovering it, in any case, a perhaps slightly less staggering challenge somehow, provided one were able to capture if not the precise rhythm of the world, but a rhythm... of some kind.
But we who are neither flowers nor moments of a world and who talk of capturing that which we are not, finally there's no hope for us, I don't think.
Anyhow I attempted to develop a sort of fugal structure with discernible alternating units, and the opposing units working to destroy affect. By creating dizziness I suppose.
The structure held up well enough as long as the four principal elements/sites -- the swamp buggy fun zone, the Samsara Eternity crematory and pet taxidermy emotion-zone (both of these designated zones of unreality, for the purposes of the de-composition}, the Sri Lanka flood zone, and the Idomeni d.p. total-reality holding zone (these latter two the sorts of zones no one out here in "our" zones care to enter, so that, in effect, images from there have to be smuggled in by ruse) -- remained in proper rotation. Problems arose with the introduction of a fifth element. One should have known... The Merkel Bot grouping caused a contrapuntal wobble. Had to jettison twelve notes there... loss of confidence, exhaustion, body giving out, intervention of the organism.
It's always at that point that formalism reveals itself as the weak defense against reality it is.
The reality, finally, don't you think, is that nothing, not even the odour of the hawthorns, is unchanging, or can even be thought of as unchanging, any more.
This all began I suppose with the scum on the coral reef, the scum of the human.
The corollary would be a scum upon the hawthorns I suppose.
I get that Proust was talking about an idea, a sort of concept of the unchangingness of the odour of the hawthorns.
I can at this moment summon up the odour of lilacs which existed more years ago than the total number of years in which Proust breathed the air of this planet.
What would Proust have thought of climate change one wonders. It does tend to impact one's idea if unchangingess.
Proust's sentences are still Prousts's sentences.
Bach's notes are still Bach's notes.
I can imagine Proust being at least mildly interested in what happens at the Samsara Eternity Crematory. Geographically near to hand at least, if of course deep in the future.
I cannot imagine Proust appreciating the Swamp Buggy Races.
But climate change and the death of Europe, and above all the Bots -- no chance.
But it was in vain that I lingered beside the hawthorns -- breathing in their invisible and unchanging odour, trying to fix it in my mind (which did not know what to do with it), losing it, recapturing it, absorbing myself in the rhythm which disposed the flowers here and there with a youthful light-heartedness and at intervals as unexpected as certain intervals in music -- they went on offering me the same charm in inexhaustible profusion, but without letting me delve any more deeply, like those melodies which one can play a hundred times in succession without coming any nearer to their secret.