Trunk Call - Sepia Saturday

They say an elephant never forgets. I'm sure the children in this week's picture will not forget their encounter with this elephant.

Elephant (calendar picture)

He looks as though he is searching for something in the tree tops. My memory is not so good as it used to be so I had to search my files from 2006.

Elephants - Detroit Zoo 2006

Belgium isn't a country that you would associate with elephants. However on the coast at De Panne you just might get a surprise.

Art from Andrias Botha for project Beaufort (2006)

(By Kattenfan - CC A-S A 3.0 unported license)

If all that sea and sand makes you thirsty beware of drinking too much alcohol, you just might start seeing:

Pink Elephant

(by Kjraesh  - CC A-S A 3.0 unported license - 'doctored' by He Who Laughs Last)

You may think that this post should be disposed of because its cost, in your time, is out of proportion to its worth - it's a white elephant in fact.

White Elephant - 1855

Watercolour with pen and ink of the “Lord White Elephant”, a rare and auspicious white elephant kept by the King at Amarapura.

Just to remind you that it's a jungle out there and other animals find elephants a bit of a yawn - here's a different fellow.

Hip - Hip - Hippo (Detroit Zoo 2006)

 But now I guess it's time for you all to march off:

 to take a look at other elephants at Sepia-saturday-133

Series - Thematic Photography

As soon as I saw Carmi's pelican today I knew immediately which series of pictures I wanted to show. These were taken at the lake in my daughter's property in Michigan.

Fawn at its favourite watering hole

I took a number of shots while it was drinking hoping all the while the dogs wouldn't spook it. When it had had enough it was a time to get moving.

Time to go.

On its way

Now for a bit of shade.

To the woods.

This series is made up of four shots from ten all taken from a distance of over 70 yards. Thankfully the dogs stayed away.

For other serial photos check out Carmi's Pelican Beach.

Scenic views - Sunday Stamps

My scenic natural areas have a mountainous look about them,

The highest mountain in North America is Mount McKinley in Alaska.

USA - Mount McKinley, Alaska

In Europe you've a choice between:

Sweden

And two others from:

Norway

But if you fancy a scenic walk then perhaps you should travel to the otherside of the world.

Mount Taranaki, New Zealand

Taranaki, also called Mount Egmont, is said to be one of  the most symmetrical volcanic cones in the world.

Meanwhile back in Iceland there is a 700,000 yearold volcano covered by a glacier.

Dettifoss Waterfall and Snæfellsjökull, Iceland

Dettifoss, 44m high and 100m wide is said to be the most powerfull waterfall in Europe; Snæfellsjökull (or snow-fells glacier) is that 700,000 year old volcano.

For more scenic natural areas please pay a visit to other contributors to Viridian's sunday-stamps-77.

Your serve - Sepia Saturday

With Wimbledon in full swing it just had to be 'anyone for tennis' this week.

Who would believe that tennis has gone to the dogs?

What do you mean, it's closed?

It's meant to be an all weather court, isn't it?

Ah well , we'll just have to wait for it to open up.

Scout and Cody

They might have given me a better seat than this.

Gem - waiting for the match to begin.

Play in this heat?

Cody and Scout

You must be having a larf.

Come on, Cody! It's your serve.

Lily's receiving

Play!

Cody won't be rushed

Time out.

Bring on the trainer.

If you enjoy playing tennis as much as us you must check out the other fans at Sepia-saturday-132

Love to All, from Cody (14), Gem (13), Scout (3) and Lily (2)

Michigan Summer - Thematic Photography

The summer theme seemed to be an opportunity for me to include some shots from my recent trip to Michigan.

My daughter's dogs (well one of them) is intent on catching one of these at the edge of the lake in their grounds. Not that this fellow was at all concerned.

American Green Frog

On a summer's evening what could be better than a ride in one of these.

Hot Air Balloon

This one landed within 200 yards of the house and then took off again.

Up, up and away

Meanwhile the boats are waiting for a tow to a nearby lake.

Beached (or grassed)

With temperatures nearing 100F it was time for the dogs to be shampooed and trimmed leading to:

Cody (in bandanna) and Scout

Why do you smell so different now?

Even Lily gets in on the act.

Scout and Lily (Cody hidden)

Little does she know  that it's her turn next.

For more summery action you need to turn to others at Carmi's Welcome Summer

USA 1900s - Sunday Stamps

As I acquired more stamps while I was in the USA it seemed right to show some more as it is an 'own choice' week.

These are from the Celebrate the Century Series and represent the 1900s.

USA - 1900s

These commemorate

• The Great Train Robbery - film of 1903

• The first Crayola crayons form 1903 - they cost 5 cents and the pack contained 8 colours

• The Pure Food and Drugs Act of 1906 - which prohibited the sale of adulterated or misbranded food

•  December 12 1903 - the Wright Bros. first aeroplane flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.

For stamps chosen by others don't forget to check out Viridian's sunday-stamps-76

Swings and Roundabouts - Sepia Saturday

Three famous fairs came to my mind as soon as I saw this week's 'merry-go-round' (or is it a Noah's Ark?).

Some of you may recognise this place.

Scarborough - 1981

Just in case you've forgotten here's a little reminder about Scarborough Fair.

Scarborough Fair - Simon & Garfunkel

Scarborough Fair originated from a charter granted by King Henry III in 1253. The charter gave Scarborough the privilege of a yearly fair to be held from the Feast of the Assumption until the Feast of St Michael. The 45-day fair started on August 15th and was a huge trading event. In the early 17th century competition from other towns' markets and fairs made Scarborough's fair financially untenable. Scarborough Fair ended in 1788.

Widdecombe Fair is much younger taking place on the second Tuesday in September since c1850 in the Dartmoor village of Widdecombe-in-the-Moor in Devon. It's the subject of a folk song, also called Tam Pierce, known all over the world.

Tam Pierce - Burl Ives

Originally described as a cattle fair Widdecombe Fair soon was known for other livestock especially the local-bred sheep and Dartmoor Ponies. A sports day for schoolchildren and stalls for rural arts and crafts were introduced in the 1920s and 30s. Today visitors will see, in addition to the livestock, displays of farm produce, vintage farm machinery, bale tossing, a dog show and terrier racing. The terrier racing replaced pony classes cancelled in 1989 after an outbreak of equine flu. 

Naturally Uncle Tom Cobley makes a traditional appearance riding a grey mare.

For my last fair I'm coming back to Yarm where I lived for over 20 years.The charter for a fair was granted to Yarm by King John in the early 13th century. Originally the fair saw the sale of cattle, horses, sheep and cheese and at one time the fair was the biggest fair for cheese in North East England. In the early 1900s over 500 tons of cheese would be traded from unprotected stacks on the pavement. There would be no chance of that happening these days.

Fair in c.1949

Modern ride at Yarm fair

In 1901 the High Street was packed with shows, roundabouts, cattle and sightseers The modern fair consists of white knuckle rides, fortune tellers, lots of bright lights and loud music. Many businesses now close down while the fair is in town and the horse trading has been moved away from the main street.

Yarm High Street

(Photo by Ian Britton - www.freephoto.com - Creative Commons licence)

Yarm Town Hall

(Photo by Ian Britton - www.freephoto.com - Creative Commons licence)

At one time hundreds of horses would be bought and sold after being put through their paces. In his book, The Yarm of Yesterday, Malcolm Race tells the story of a young boy left in charge of a horse while his grandfather was in one of Yarm’s many pubs.  The boy was only too pleased the lead the animal up and down the High Street for a prospective buyer. The man had handed over £50 and was leading the horse away when he discovered that the horse was blind. The boy had long since disappeared!

Yarm Fair - rides surround the Town Hall

(Photo by thornej - www.flickr.com - Creative Commons Licence)

For more fun of the fair I suggest you visit Sepia-saturday-131 where I'm sure you will find some more to make you dizzy.