…by Michael Kenna. Photography as poetic quietude…

…from a beautiful Flickr collection of vintage ephemera, here.

…from The Ampersand blog (& many more there as well).

…with colorflip (beautiful in its high-chroma simplicity).

Washington, D.C.

From the “did you know” and “almost beyond belief” departments… according to the CIA’s “World Factbook,” the United States spent some $623 billion last year on its military (that’s $1.7 billion per day!) which dwarfs the military spending of all other nations combined. Yet this “leading superpower” gun-loving nation of 304 million people is already nearly $10 trillion in debt (view a debt clock here), the average U.S. citizen’s share of this debt is over $31,000 and the U.S. national debt continues to increase an average of $1.6 billion per day! Hmmm…

Image: a page from the May/June #77 issue of Adbusters

Shepard Fairey’s apt expression… (read a great interview with Shepard on Fecal Face; see an archive of Shepard’s posters here).

from www.samwreimer.com… (launched to promote bard and book)

Well, here it is at long last “warts and all”— Sam W. Reimer’s Gray Matter Graffitti: remnants of collections lost… an early gallery from some alleyways & other by-ways. This initial collection of some 200 original written works (of which only a handful have previously seen the light of day) draws from a prodigious assemblage penned during four decades of expressive poetic ideation—as the book title suggests, these poems have percolated in the bard’s brain long enough—they’re good and ripe by now and ready to be read by all.

Sam’s poems provide a plaintive voice for our tempestuous times—his unique commentaries on life and love (and love-lost ennui) are at once poignant, unapologetically direct, and (often) edged with the tragic—his ponderings range from the profane to the sacred, drill deep, and dare to pose unanswerable questions. Unheralded, unsung, and little published though Sam’s inspired ruminations have been in the past, they’re finally compiled, printed, bound, and available for a broader readership.

It’s our hope that as you dip in and out of this book, you do so with an open mind (which, like a parachute, works much better than when closed)… and as you read, let Sam’s pen sketch stories, pictures, contemplations on blank pages of your own imagination. The works offered are Sam’s invitation to laugh, to cry, to curse, and to reflect—on opportunities long gone and outcomes yet to come. Enjoy…

(from the Introduction, by Robert L. Peters, Editor)

Images: the book’s cover; illustrated chapter titles (poems in the 214-page book appear in eight thematic chapters).

Berlin, Germany

100 years ago today, “SOS” became effective as the worldwide standard for the International Morse code distress signal (· · · — — — · · ·) when it was included in the second International Radiotelegraphic Convention (which was signed on November 3, 1906, and took effect on July 1, 1908). This distress signal was first adopted by the German government in radio regulations effective April 1, 1905, and SOS remained the maritime distress signal until 1999, when it was replaced by the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System.

From the beginning, the SOS distress signal has actually consisted of a continuous sequence of three-dits/three-dahs/three-dits, all run together without letter spacing. In International Morse Code, three dits form the letter S, and three dahs make the letter O, so “SOS” became an easy way to remember the correct order of the dits and dashes. In popular usage, SOS became associated with phrases such as “Save Our Ship” or “Save Our Souls,” though by some accounts, “these phrases were a later development, most likely used to help remember the correct letters (something known as a backronym).”

Hmmm… backronym.

Winnipeg, Canada

Wow… what a weekend! Rock-climbing with good friends at Gooseneck in NW Ontario (an ACC Club Climb and wilderness camping with Bettie), refreshing swims in the pristine lakes of the Canadian Shield, gardening in Manitoba’s Interlake with Ev (first delicious home-grown salads of the season!), a scorching sunny afternoon on the strands of Winnipeg Beach (interrupted by a deliciously cool thundershower, replete with hail), community fireworks … I feel truly privileged to be a Canadian!

When I arrived in this great country 35 years ago (with nothing but the jean-jacket on my back) I had no idea what a wonderful life lay in store. I continue to be in awe of this country, and of the remarkable opportunities it offers… thank you, Canada!

Happy Canada Day to all…

Holzen-Kandern, Germany

I received some family pics from my kid-brother Phil today (with wife Tammy, niece Amanda, nephews Michael and Alexander)… they’re just back from a summer holiday in Corsica. Since February, Phil and family have been living in Holzen, a quaint medieval-era Black Forest village known for its proliferation of storks and the (equally) fertile surrounding vineyards.