Sunday 29 November 2015

Music on Sunday; Crooners



A crooner is an American epithet given to male singers of jazz standards, mostly from the Great American Songbook, either backed by a full orchestra, a big band or by a piano.

















© KH

Saturday 28 November 2015

Thursday 26 November 2015

Treasures of Britain; cemeteries

Brookwood, Woking, Surrey

I don't know why but I'm crazy about old cemeteries. Especially those in Great Britain. The old (sometimes very old) gravestones tell each their very own story. The lovely statues, angels, crosses and others... I just don't know what it is that makes me want to go there everytime I'm across the canal. So today just some impressions of those lovely little gems.

Iona Abbey, Scotland
Duncan, the Scottish king murdered by Macbeth in 1140, is reputed to be buried here, along with 47 other Scottish kings and a number of Scottish saints. 

 Angels at the Arnos Vale Cemetery, Bristol

 Highgate cemetery London

Highgate Cemetery London

 Grave of Dante Gabriel Rossetti; All Saints Birchington, Kent

I've been here, a grave not befitting of a King... sad
King Arthur's grave, Glastonburry Abbey

St Cuthbert's Churchyard Edinburgh

St Cuthberth's Edinburgh

St Paul's Cathedral London

St Paul's Cathedral, London

© KH


Sunday 22 November 2015

Music on Sunday; Powerful Classical pieces

It's been awhile since I've posted Classical music; this week I was listening a lot to classical music again so for this Sunday some of the music I listened too; Enjoy.

















© KH

Thursday 19 November 2015

Treasures of Britain; Rievaulx Abbey



Rievaulx Abbey is England’s most beautiful ruin. Deliberately built in a remote valley by Cistercian monks, it was originally a virtually self-sufficient community.
Like 839 other monasteries, friaries and nunneries, Rievaulx was suppressed by Henry VIII in the 1530s, but its remote position meant that much of its stonework still stands. It is easy to forget what a big role monasteries played in medieval society, and the Cistercian houses of Yorkshire were responsible for developing a style of building with pointed arches that we call Gothic.
This spread to become the dominant architectural style of Britain for 300 years.





 © KH

Wednesday 18 November 2015

Thou shalt not kill



After the terrorist attacks on Paris last Friday everyone is talking about it. What to do, how to react, can we still go out and do the things we love like going to concerts and games? Last night the football match Germany-the Netherlands was cancelled because of a threat. Is it still safe? Most people even the ones who have lost loved ones are saying they are not letting IS terrorise them further, they will not respond in hate.



Those terrorist say they do this out of God's name. God has made mankind in his image, if you believe this kind of thing. There would never be any kind of God who would allow his image to be shot to pieces simply because some choose to interpret what is written in some book ages ago, in an other way as other people.
Whether you read the Bible, Koran or Torah, in all of them it says;
Thou shalt not kill.
So how can they justify these killings for themselves? How can they live with themselves? How is it that in their minds the 'thou shalt not kill' has turned into 'thou can kill the ones that have another believe?' God or Allah or Jaweh or whatever you would call your god, would sit there on his cloud shaking his head saying he had not meant it like this.



The Pope has asked everyone to pray for the victems and their families. You see a lot 'Pray for Paris' signs. Of course everyone's thoughts are with Paris, or with Lebanon for that matter where IS have killed a lot of people as well the day before the Paris killings. But is it going to stop the terrorism? Is the bombing on Syria going to stop it? Is an eye for an eye stopping it?
What I'm afraid of is that the Muslims already living here are going to get the blame while they're not the ones to blame! That the refugees are being blamed while they were fleeing from IS for this very reason!
I'm hoping that the people will unite against terrorism and against hate. That finally we will show them they can hurt us but they cannot break us.
The Dalai Lama put it this way; 'So let us work for peace within our families and society, and not expect help from God, Buddha or the governments," he said.
Well put. Let's try to not give in to hate and focus only on peace. We are one people. One world.

Or as this man put it on the death of his wife;



© KH

Sunday 15 November 2015

Music on Sunday; Paris


When I was a child I grew up with French chansons. It was the 70s and they were more on the radio, my parents liked them and played them more. Other songs came more 'in fashion' here and you only heard an occasional French song but not as much.
But after Friday's attacks on Paris it just seemed appropriate to dedicate my Music on Sunday blog to Paris; French and English songs about the city of light;

the very first song I can recall as a child;

















© KH

Saturday 14 November 2015

Quotes and Pics 204, Peace...

I already made some quotes for today, but after last nights horrible events in Paris I made some new ones this morning.. My thoughts are in Paris...






© KH

Thursday 12 November 2015

Treasures of Britain; Castle Stalker


Castle Stalker is a private castle, perched on a rocky outcrop at the entrance to Loch Laich, south of Portnacroich. It is surrounded by an aura of romantic splendour.
Castle Stalker - in Gaelic, Stalcaire, meaning Hunter or Falconer – is believed originally to have been the site of a Fortalice (a small fortified building) belonging to the MacDougalls when they were Lords of Lorn, and built around 1320. The MacDougalls lost their title after their defeat by King Bruce at Brander Pass in 1308 but regained it for a period after 1328. In about 1388 the Lordship of Lorn passed to the Stewarts of Appin, the lands including Castle Stalker.
The Castle was abondoned around c1800 and restored in the 1970s by Colonol Stewart Allwood.




inside the castle

Loch Laich-Castle Stalker

Monty Python and the Holy Grail and Castle Stalker

© KH

Wednesday 11 November 2015

The end of comfort zones is overrated.... or is it?

We are the author of our own lives or at least we could be. Sometimes life just happens beyond our control. The happily ever after you were seeking was just right there at your grasp. If only you dared to take it, take the risk, take that control or if only that person wouldn't have taken over. Blaming someone else for your own mistakes is ever so easy to do. We are letting that person take over or do we?


But is that the real truth or what we believe ourselves to be the truth?
Do we fool ourselves every day by looking in the wrong mirror? The one with the false image of what life really is. Are we deluding ourselves time and again? Or give ourselves false hope? Do we wish upon that star for Prince Charming only to get the wicked witch in the end? If we look in that mirror what do we see? Hope? True love? Or delusion and despair?

What if we were to write our own stories without interference from anyone else, from the outside world, from that picture of how we are supposed to be or better yet; from the fears created by our own minds; how would that story then turn out to be? Would we blossom, would we risk everything for that one dream; or would we still live our everyday life, go with the flow of every day, day in day out, week in week out.
Would we dare to stand out in a crowd, be different, choose different? If we could do it all over again, would we live our lives the same? Or better yet; what if money wasn't an option, what if we could be whatever, whenever; would we? Do we have it in us to be something or someone else, do something completely different than what we are doing right now? In short; would we dare to be who we want to be? It's really all about stepping out of our comfort zone. It's easy to tell people life starts where your comfort zone ends but it's not that easy to do, is it?



We are told not to step out, not to be different, to mind the neighbours even, walk in a straight line like everyone else. It's how a lot of us has been raised. How difficult is it to change that! How hard is it to change into our true self! Money aside (which is even harder because everything needs money these days) if we want to become someone closer to our true self; someone who wants to explore the world, help others, help ourselves along the way, we will have to leave a lifetime behind. Leave our past life and/or people. Are we willing to do just that?



The end of comfort zones is sometimes overrated.
Sometimes staying inside ones comfort zone can be very... well comforting. And maybe just maybe one day that day will come where we will find that courage to dip that toe outside our comfort zone and feel how it is on the outside. Taking babysteps. Not everyone is brave enough to plunge ahead and wade through immediately.

One day...

© KH

Sunday 8 November 2015

Music on Sunday; Hammond organ

Uriah Heap
 
Last week I saw on tv that the Hammond Organ celebrated it's 80th birthday. A nice oportunity to post a blog with songs which use(d) this legendary organ. Enjoy;











I sooo love this song!







© KH