in pairs

when mentioning chios, one inevitably hears a famous colloquial phrase in greece that says 'people in chios always travel in pairs'.

in pairs
like it? click it!
during the ottoman empire, the conquerors used to force people in chios to actually carry them on their shoulders. in order to avoid this humiliation, people would travel in pairs... when they spotted an ottoman turk, one friend would pick the other up -- supposedly the turk had no right to ask the other person to get off to ride in his place.

i spotted this fence with a meandros motif in our vrontados neighborhood on a morning walk. i liked the fence-keh, but out of these three shots, i think i like the elevation shot the best. i posted all three, just because it's such a pretty specimen.

in pairs:  perspective bottom

in pairs:  perspective top

ART & MUSIC: Mew to open MEWseum in LA

If you are into MEW, or ART or you like celery, you may enjoy this.
It is FREE!!!

Mew will perform tonight and premiere a video trilogy for their first three singles directed by Martin De Thurah as well as “Repeaterbeater” and “Beach” to promote the release of their new album, "No More Stories".

Mewseum Hours:
4pm - 10pm with Mew's special treats from 7pm - 10pm
Zune L.A. 8275 Beverly Blvd


MEW has been on the final Nine Inch Nails tour dates.
Did you see them?

More information

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cary fowler: one seed at a time, protecting the future of food



previous posts:
doomsday-arctic-seed-vault
svalbard-global-seed-vault-opens

twisted sermons

Twisted Sermons

sorry, mr. lennon

we never gave your peace a chance

Sorry, Mr. Lennon

sky cake

by patton oswalt



via the friendly atheist

ever wonder...

how many people are in space right now?

neighbor

neighbor

three people got the same bright idea these last couple of weeks and wrote me testimonials on flickr!

becca (rebecca tabor armstrong) takes some of the most creative and poignant photos on flickr. she's a beautiful lady with a sharp mind. i flat out love her work.

randi (brantford selections) loves to play with reflections, refractions, transparencies, color and of course, glorious light, in very controlled conditions, or anywhere. his images are challenging in technique and fun!

clairance has the enviable ability to find beauty in just about anything around her! her stream is a joy to browse through.

i admire and learn from all three.
thank you!

i shot this picture outside my neighbor's home on chios. in years gone by, i just passed by them. i would've never noticed those yellow swirls if i didn't try to take a picture of these flowers.

image of a molecule


click to source at BBC news
'the detailed chemical structure of a single molecule has been imaged for the first time, say researchers.'
read up on it...

vlihada

vlihada
like it? click it!
vlixada is a very small, rocky beach on the northeast of chios -- and we almost abandoned visiting, until we found the passage towards a lone taverna -- and what a taverna! the food was the absolute best i had on the island...

lunch!

lunch!

he never had a chance

he never had a chance

mussel-keh

mussels-keh

octopus, mussels and fish... oh my! and the mastelo -- divine!

mastelo

btw,
the top picture reminds me of a thing a greek colleague used to say to chinese colleagues when i was in beijing, living under the beijing blue gray sky: in greece, the sky is blue... blue!


i've placed these on flickr's map.

volissos, cassiopeia, sunsets and aghia markella

it was a long and winding road driving towards volissos and aghia markella. the final stretch included a careful slalom amidst a herd of goats -- sloooowly lest one jump out last minute.

this place is ours

this place is ours

markella is a name that's very common on chios. the beach at aghia markella consists of one church, a tribute to the saint, and a tavern. being tired, we headed straight to the tavern and had a wonderful, wonderful seafood lunch.

suckers

suckers

the next thing to do, obviously, was have a nice nap on the beach under a shady tree. a bit later we got up for a dip in the water, a look at the sunset and the drive back home.

going...

going...

going........

going.........

gone

gone....

on the way back, we noticed that the castle at volissos was lit and i stopped by the side of the road to get a shot. this was handheld and focused on the castle, and i was surprised later to see the fairly blurry but still identifiable constellation of cassiopeia in the sky.

volissos, cassiopeia, sunsets and aghia markella

the way back was a bit of an adventure as we... ahem... got a bit lost...

i've added these to the flickr map. like'em? click'em!
This tune brings me back a few years & can send you into a good groove. Grab your dogs, cats and other pets as... ♫ http://blip.fm/~cjiil

spiral-tuality xxxviii

the NGC 7771 group


click to source on apod

penn & teller - bullshit! - the vatican

Penn & Teller: Bullshit - The Vatican from Stian Solberg on Vimeo.



via atheist media blog and RD

the universe is not 'fine tuned' by ZJ

i really like these videos by ZJ -- compressed, concise, great arguments.

our pool in santorini

i took this picture in 1995 in santorini, at a hotel pool where we were staying. the girl in the pool is a very good friend. i found it and scanned it a few years ago. i don't know where the original picture or original file are... all i have is this.

our pool in santorini
like it? click it!
anyway, a friend posted this video on facebook yesterday, and i immediately recognized the pool, which appears at 0:25.




interested in dipping into the pool yourself? here it is.

mavra volia

mavra volia
like it? click it!
how many pictures can someone take of a pebbly beach? lots, i guess.

mavra volia, close to the town of emporio has three beaches -- the first is populated by families, the second, groups of friends, and the third, people who avoid crowds. we lay on the third.

perhaps mavra volia was formed from a volcanic explosion that formed santorini about 3600 years ago..? the pebbles are very black, the sky is clear and the sea is crystalline. i like the intensity of the combination of blue and black, with the gray cliffs behind me, especially as the sun goes down and the light changes.

btw, tolis has some of the most beautiful images of chios that i've seen -- visit his stream and be amazed.

i've placed these images on the flickr map.

comfy

comfy
break

break

serene twilight

serene twilight

glow

glow

1 2 3

1 2 3

pebble's eye

pebble's eye

solitude

solitude

lazy

lazy

upside my head

upside my head

the day prior to this, i visited mesta:

mesta
This song by Morphine can be played over & over & over. It ages like a fine wine to my soul. A perfect song fo... ♫ http://blip.fm/~chbu8

VOTD: 1 singing bear, 1 not, 1 gypsy at the gas station

On the way to Santa Barbara to see Depeche Mode for the fourth time on their 2009 tour, we stopped at a gas station in Ventura and were serenaded by the bear essentials.



This is a segment from an upcoming mini-film I am editing, which documents the road trip from Hollywood to Santa Barbara!

Bonus:
Free MP3 downloads
= Red Light District - Smoke
= Covenant - We Want Revolution (Shok's ReRevelation)
= Codec & Flexor - Time Has Changed (David J & Shok nuradiolectro mix)
= West Indian Girl - Solar Eyes (Solarized by Shok Mix)


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mesta

mesta
like it? click away!
i have a serious problem with mesta -- it is so photogenic, i took zillions of pictures and couldn't decide which one to post.... so..... i decided to make my longest photo post yet and show this whittled down selection. i'm so sorry it's so long but i'm unable to control myself!

whenever i go to chios, i make a point of visiting this medieval village. it's built as a maze of narrow lanes, with arches bridged by homes and originally surrounded by a wall. this structure intended to keep pirates away from the important buildings situated in the center.

while walking through the town, one experiences a perpetual play of shadow and light, texture, splashes of color from flowers and bunches of drying tomato, children, animals, scents and sounds.

when i visited the town about 20 years ago, there were many buildings damaged by time and only a few tables on the central square. we knocked on the door of a makeshift taverna and asked if we could, perhaps, have lunch? the older woman there whipped up a potato omelet and salad for us and was very shy about accepting money for her trouble. today there is a proper taverna and cafes, shops, soft ice cream and wireless internet... and the buildings have been repaired.

i chatted with a woman sitting on her chair in the lane, with her cats for company -- she said that life was not easy with these older buildings... and she remembered the woman who had once made us the omelet who has since passed away.

i made a few rounds with my camera -- once with a wide angle and then my 50 and 100. i think there have been enough attempts to photograph the important buildings and the square, so i focused on the details to give a feel for the place.

remember this advice: when in chios, visit mesta.

i've added these photos to the map on flickr.

just hanging

just hanging

medieval

medieval

tomato-keh

tomato-keh

the flowers stand watch

the flowers stand watch

i am not alone

i am not alone

dress-up

dress-up

not my way

not my way

sweet

sweet

dry

dry

snooze

snooze

the other sentinel

the other sentinel

light the way

light the way

private / public

private / public

necklace

necklace

sailing

sailing

decor

decor

color and light

color and light

light up

light up

reach for the sky

reach for the sky

dark and light

dark and light

bridge

bridge
 

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