TOM CLARK: Promises / "But how far do I have to go?" / Valley of Fires

open, empty courts (Columbus Park) | by find myself a city (1001 Afternoons in Chicago)

open, empty courts (Columbus Park, Chicago). SE corner of Austin and Adams [South Austin, Chicago].: photo by curtis locke, 2 August 2017

This land is my land. Midas RV parked at the site of the recently demolished Orange Villa, formerly the Chicken Villa, the legendary jazz club on Stockton Blvd south of Florin Road in Sacramento.: photo by Dean Ele, 9 August 2017

Life and Death [Sacramento]: photo by Dean Ele, 9 August 2017

West 14th Avenue. Lakewood, Colorado.: photo by Dean Terasaki, 20 June 2017

Palo Alto_0070.1 (blowing dust): photo by Thomas Willard, 26 June 2017

ANF_0050.2 (staggering profundity) [Angeles National Forest, Ca.]: photo by Thomas Willard, 9 July 2017

ANF_0017.1 (... but I digress) "A woman watering her lawn can be sexy, but a silver butane tank can change a man's life." -- John Divola [Angeles National Forest, Ca.]: photo by Thomas Willard, 9 July 2017

South Pasadena_0148: photo by Thomas Willard, 12 April 2015

Duarte_0075 [Ca.]: photo by Thomas Willard, 11 June 2017

Promises, Clarksdale, MS.: photo by Andrew Murr, 6 August 2017

Rome, fixing the light: photo by Andrew Murr, 17 July 2017

Angular decomposition [Yazoo City, MS.]: photo by Andrew Murr, 11 August 2017

New Orleans: photo by Andrew Murr, 29 June 2017

Carry Out [Reiserstown Road, Baltimore]: photo by Andrew Murr, 16 June 2017

Prime Time [Santa Monica Blvd, Hollywood]: photo by Andrew Murr, 11 August 2017

Near far [Italy]: photo by Andrew Murr, 26 July 2017

"But how far do I have to go?"

Truth or Consequences, New Mexico: photo by Jorge Guadalupe Lizárraga, July 2017

"But how far do I have to go?"
He shook his head and pushed me out the door
With eyes as blue as the sky
And as big as all Utah.
The wind hummed Mood Indigo
As he left me in a cloud of dust,
Rubbing my eyes
And checking my manuscript book.
I walked as far as Truth or Consequences.
The wind bit and stung me.
Bugs bit into my skin.
The desert was wide, quiet.
I saw it as a job.
I kept on walking.

Basketball (Building 673). [Mare Island, Vallejo, Ca.]: photo by efo, July 2017

Building H-66. Mare Island.: photo by efo, July 2017

Radio beach no. 1 [Oakland, Ca.]: photo by efo, April 2017

2017-157. Lake Tahoe, CA.: photo by biosfear, 5 August 2017

2017-159. Tahoe City, CA.: photo by biosfear, 6 August 2017

2017-153. Berkeley, CA.: photo by biosfear, July 2017

2017-155. Dillon Beach, CA.: photo by biosfear, July 2017

2017-156. Berkeley, CA.: photo by biosfear, 29 July 2017

01.41 Arnaud Rebotini - the choir of the dead lovers | by l'autre hidalgo

01.41 Arnaud Rebotini - the choir of the dead lovers: photo by lautrehidalgo, 5 August 2017

Death in the Afternoon [Montreal]: photo by navejo, 22 July 2017

DSCF8570: photo by ALBERTO VELARDI, 9 July 2017

Muang Thong Thani 2017: photo by Jatuporn Pateepaparnee, 24 July 2017

Ocotlan, Mexico: photo by Ed Peters, 12 May 2017

Lime(6)150615: photo by streetmax, 15 June 2015

[Barcelona]: photo by Dimitris Makrygiannakis, 23 May 2015

A couple dressed in traditional 'chulapo' attire, typical in Madrid, dance as they take part in a religious procession during festivities in honor of local patron San Lorenzo, Saint Lawrence, in Madrid, Thursday, Aug. 10, 2017. The festivities are part of a week-long street fiesta which includes dancing eating and drinking along with cultural events and religious processions.: photo by Francisco Seco/AP, 10 August 2017

#Venezuela Bolivarian National Guards stand inside the perimeters of the National Assembly in #Caracas By @CubillosAriana @AP_Images: image via Photojournalism @photojournalink, 11 August 2017

Attendance. Kenya, 2017. The make of democracy. It's going to be a long day. Waiting. Kenyans look at a television screen in the streets of Dagoretti South waiting for the official announcement of the results in the presidential election. There is a sense of excitement here, a tense excitement for things to come. After a beautiful exercise of democracy on Election Day, with tension and confrontations immediately contained to few districts of Nairobi and of Kisumu on the shores of Lake Victoria, Kenyans now hold their breath. Proceedings are likely to go on till the evening. #photojournalism #documentary #africa #kenya #bw #reportage #afp: image via Marco Longari @mlongari, 11 August 2017

Attendance. Kenya, 2017. The make of democracy. It's going to be a long day. Official results will be finally announced later today, the Electoral Commission will deliver his conclusion to the Kenyan people. Opposition leaders, the President will make their announcements. Election Day has been a beautiful example of participation, active democracy. Citizens hold their breath, we all are. Tension is palpable but the incidents are contained to few areas. They could have spread like wildfire after the first day but they didn't. Mathare, where this picture was taken is one of those. #photojournalism #documentary #africa #kenya #bw #reportage #afp: image via Marco Longari @mlongari, 11 August 2017

A man seeking safety walks with his hands in the air through a thick cloud of tear gas towards riot police, as they clash with protesters throwing rocks in the Kawangware slum of Nairobi, Kenya Thursday, Aug. 10, 2017. International observers on Thursday urged Kenyans to be patient as they awaited final election results following opposition allegations of vote-rigging, but clashes between police and protesters again erupted in Nairobi.: photo by Ben Curtis/AP, 11 August 2017

Riot police walk past burning barricades erected by protesters throwing rocks, during clashes in the Kawangware slum of Nairobi, Kenya, Thursday, Aug. 10, 2017. International observers on Thursday urged Kenyans to be patient as they awaited final election results following opposition allegations of vote-rigging, but clashes between police and protesters again erupted in Nairobi.: photo by Ben Curtis/AP, 10 August 2017

A Kenyan woman who was fixing her veil, laughs as she notices her photograph is being taken in Nairobi's Mathare area Thursday, Aug. 10, 2017. Provisional results from Tuesday's general election showed President Uluru Kenyatta, whose father was Kenya's first president after independence from British colonial rule, holding a strong lead against opposition leader Raila Odinga with votes from 98 percent of polling stations counted.: photo by Jerome Delay/AP, 10 August 2017

Protesters scatter as riot police advance towards them during clashes in the Kawangware area of Nairobi, Kenya Thursday, Aug. 10, 2017. International observers on Thursday urged Kenyans to be patient as they awaited final election results following opposition allegations of vote-rigging, but clashes between police and protesters again erupted in Nairobi. : photo by Ben Curtis/AP, 10 August 2017

A Ministry of People's Security rally in North Korea: image via Reuters Pictures @reuterspictures, 11 August 2017

A visitor uses binoculars to see the north side from the unification observatory in Paju, South Korea, Thursday, Aug. 10, 2017. North Korea on Thursday announced a detailed plan to launch a volley of ballistic missiles toward the U.S. Pacific territory of Guam, a major military hub and home to U.S. bombers, and dismissed President Donald Trump's threats of "fire and fury" if it doesn't back down.: photo by Lee Jin-man/AP, 10 August 2017

#South Korea / #North Korea Ribbons with inscriptions calling for peace and reunification are displayed near the Demilitarized Zone in Paju. Photo Jung Yeon-Je: image via Frédérique Geffard @fgeffardAFP, 11 August 2017

President Donald Trump, accompanied by Vice President Mike Pence, arrives to speak with reporters before a security briefing at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J., Thursday, Aug. 10, 2017.: photo by Evan Vucci/AP, 10 August 2017

@realDonaldTrump walks off after speaking with reporters in Bedminister. #DonaldTrump: image via Evan Vucci @evanvucci 11 August 2017

Canada sets up a border camp as the number of asylum seekers fearing deportation from the U.S. swells: image via Reuters Pictures @reuterspictures, 11 August 2017

GAZA CITY - Children look through a hole in a sheet metal fence outside their home in a poor neighbourhood in Gaza City. Photo @MahmudHams #AFP.: image via Frédérique Geffard @fgeffardAFP, 11 August 2017

SYRIA - A child killed during regime shellings in Hamouria, is lying in his home kitchen prior to being prepared for funeral. Photo @abdfree2: image via Frédérique Geffard @fgeffardAFP, 11 August 2017

#China Treadmills to karaoke -- China goes sharing crazy Photo Greg Baker #AFP : image via Frédérique Geffard @fgeffardAFP, 11 August 2017

#China Residents fearing aftershocks sleep outside of their homes after an earthquake in Zhangzha in southwest Sichuan province Photo @NAsfouri @#AFP: image via Frédérique Geffard @fgeffardAFP, 11 August 2017

#Philippines A firefighter extinguishes flames as a fire engulfs an informal settlers area beside a river in Manila Photo @herime23 : image via Frédérique Geffard @fgeffardAFP, 11 August 2017

Supporters of India's opposition Congress party shout slogans as they get drenched after police used water cannon while trying to march towards the Indian parliament during a protest against the policies of Indian government in New Delhi, India, Thursday, Aug. 10, 2017.: photo by Altaf Qadri/AP, 10 August 2017

Barcelona_0296 (political intrigue): photo by Thomas Willard, 16 June 2016

Los Angeles_0041.1: photo by Thomas Willard, 3 July 2017

Young people on the Brooklyn waterfront on Sept. 11: photo by Thomas Hoepker, 11 September 2001

Young people on the Brooklyn waterfront on Sept. 11: photo by Thomas Hoepker, 11 September 2001

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e2/White_sands_vegetation.jpg

Sparse vegetation in the gypsum dunes of White Sands National Monument: photo by Daniel Schwen, 4 April 2004

Smoke from the Las Conchas fire turns the setting sun red over the Jemez Mountains behind the town of Los Alamos, New Mexico: photo by Jim Thompson/Albuquerque Journal via Associated Press, 28 June 2011

The bridge that separates the town of Los Alamos, New Mexico, from Los Alamos National Laboratory is shrouded in smoke from the Las Conchas wildfire: photo by Craig Fritz/Reuters, 28 June 2011

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2c/White_sands_sunset.JPG

Sunset over White Sands National Monument, New Mexico: photo by Franzinho, 22 August 2009

Nuclear weapon test Mike (yield 10.4 Mt) on Enewetak Atoll. The test was part of Operation Ivy. Mike was the first hydrogen bomb ever tested, an experimental device not suitable for use as a weapon: photo by Federal Government of the United States, 1 November 1952, 07:14 (National Security Administration Nevada Site Office Photo Library)

Ivy King: fireball created by King (500 kilotons), very high-yield pure fission bomb, detonated Marshall Islands, November 15, 1952 for US Operation Ivy : photo via U. S. Department of Energy

"Fallout shelter built by Louis Severance adjacent to his home near Akron, Michigan includes a special ventilation and escape hatch, an entrance to his basement, tiny kitchen, running water, sanitary facilities, and a sleeping and living area for the family of four. The shelter cost about $1,000. It has a 10-inch reinforced concrete ceiling with thick earth cover and concrete walls. Severance says, 'Ever since I was convinced what damage H-Bombs can do, I've wanted to build the shelter. Just as with my chicken farm, when there's a need I build it.": photographer unknown, c. 1960 (National Archives and Records Administration, Records of the Defense Civil Preparedness Agency)

Ivy Mike: fireball created by Mike (10 megatons), first thermonuclear weapon, detonated Marshall Islands, October 31/November 1, 1952 for US Operation Ivy: photo via U. S. Department of Energy

Red sunrise over the Black Sea: photo by Moise Nicu, 2009

Hiroshima -- August 6th, 1945: Father John A. Siemes, Professor of Modern Philosophy, Catholic University of Tokyo

Up to August 6th, occasional bombs, which did no great damage, had fallen on Hiroshima. Many cities roundabout, one after the other, were destroyed, but Hiroshima itself remained protected. There were almost daily observation planes over the city but none of them dropped a bomb. The citizens wondered why they alone had remained undisturbed for so long a time. There were fantastic rumors that the enemy had something special in mind for this city, but no one dreamed that the end would come in such a fashion as on the morning of August 6th.

August 6th began in a bright, clear, summer morning. About seven o'clock, there was an air raid alarm which we had heard almost every day and a few planes appeared over the city. No one paid any attention and at about eight o'clock, the all-clear was sounded. I am sitting in my room at the Novitiate of the Society of Jesus in Nagatsuke; during the past half year, the philosophical and theological section of our Mission had been evacuated to this place from Tokyo.

The Novitiate is situated approximately two kilometers from Hiroshima, half-way up the sides of a broad valley which stretches from the town at sea level into this mountainous hinterland, and through which courses a river. From my window, I have a wonderful view down the valley to the edge of the city.

Suddenly -- the time is approximately 8:14 -- the whole valley is filled by a garish light which resembles the magnesium light used in photography, and I am conscious of a wave of heat. I jump to the window to find out the cause of this remarkable phenomenon, but I see nothing more than that brilliant yellow light.

As I make for the door, it doesn't occur to me that the light might have something to do with enemy planes. On the way from the window, I hear a moderately loud explosion which seems to come from a distance and, at the same time, the windows are broken in with a loud crash. There has been an interval of perhaps ten seconds since the flash of light. I am sprayed by fragments of glass. The entire window frame has been forced into the room. I realize now that a bomb has burst and I am under the impression that it exploded directly over our house or in the immediate vicinity.

I am bleeding from cuts about the hands and head. I attempt to get out of the door. It has been forced outwards by the air pressure and has become jammed. I force an opening in the door by means of repeated blows with my hands and feet and come to a broad hallway from which open the various rooms. Everything is in a state of confusion. All windows are broken and all the doors are forced inwards. The bookshelves in the hallway have tumbled down. I do not note a second explosion and the fliers seem to have gone on. Most of my colleagues have been injured by fragments of glass. A few are bleeding but none has been seriously injured. All of us have been fortunate since it is now apparent that the wall of my room opposite the window has been lacerated by long fragments of glass...

Solar corona: photo animation by Tomruen, 2005

Duarte_0151 (Ca.): photo by Thomas Willard, 7 April 2015

Valley of Fires, New Mexico: photo by Jorge Guadalupe Lizárraga, August 2016

2 comments:

Terry Simons said...: Amazing! Thank you for this.; 12 August 2017 at 20:40
TC said...: Thanks, Terry. Distances seem strangely relative any more, the near so far away and vicey versey, as they used to say. What once looked so large to the child gradually shrank and faded... then by the kangaroo-boomerang effect, little known till just last week, everything got larger and larger, again. If you know what I mean.

I grew up across the street from those tennis courts at the top, which back then must have been so small I never noticed they were there, unless I was, or did, and they were.

That was back in the day, when we hid under our school desks every morning (practice drill), tacked blankets up over the basement windows to reduce the anticipated blast effect (good luck with that, but I suppose it was the effort that counted), and, twisting in our bunk beds so as to covertly train the flashlight under the covers, constantly studied the street map to figure out how far we were from epicenter, as marked by those wailing sirens on Madison Street, in the night. (Never far enough, of course.)

Whereas now, hard by Radio beach, the sirens in the night never cease to wail, and the projected epicenter is everywhere, all the time.; 13 August 2017 at 20:26

TOM CLARK

Saturday, 12 August 2017

Promises / "But how far do I have to go?" / Valley of Fires

2 comments:

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