leval ii (13. 489)

 

 For the first time on a return trip, I think, we stayed again at the campsite outside the village of Leval near the German border for the last overnighter before getting back home, prepared this time now to try to capture some images of the brooding stork nests that seemed to occupy every available eave and column of the little town.

The wading birds are considered a symbol of Alsace of course—we hadn’t encountered such a preponderance of them before—and the subject of many legends and folktales, like the tradition of the Easter bunny that also originated here, first described by fifteenth-century botanist (see also) Georg Franck von Franckenau of Strasbourg, and though their association with fertility and expectant mothers go back to Ancient Egyptian myth, the lore was especially articulated in the Middle Ages, with storks said to retrieve babies from a nursery hidden inside caves and dropped them down the chimney (chimney-sweeping also understood psychoanalytically as an expression wish fulfilment or magical-thinking) of desirous households.

synchronoptica

one year ago: curating the Apocalypse (with synchronopticæ) plus Elton John’s debut album

fifteen years ago: misused tools plus macroeconomic woes

sixteen years ago: the year of the Tiger 

 

 

day ninety-seven (13. 488)

Hezbollah categorically rejects US-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon and its unspecified pilot security zones. Putin rebuffs Zelenskyy’s request for an in-person meeting with the Russian ruler to bring about settlement to the ongoing war in Ukraine.  Amid frustration and lack of progress over the extension of a truce and restoration of maritime traffic in the Persian gulf, American and Iranian forces continue to exchange fire, with more attacks on US bases in Kuwait and Bahrain.

via rhôna (13. 487)

 

Our intermediate stop on the way back home brought us again to the banks of the Drôme, staying at a municipal campground on les Îles de Silon directly on the confluence of the the Galaure and Rhône rivers on the outskirts of the village Saint-Vallier. A Gallo-Roman station, called Ursuli, at least since the reign of Claudius on the Via Agrippa, the town is now stop on the EuroVelo cycle route that runs from Lake Geneva to the Mediterranean, following the river valley.

These step-up bivouacs are specially made to accommodate bikers and we thought we could manage such a construction at the edge of our property for bikers passing through—addressing the lack of real pitches in our village. Saint-Vallier’s most famous daughter was the fourteenth century courtesan Diane de Poitiers, who wielded much power and influence as Henri II’s royal mistress and adviser. Killed in a jousting accident, the king’s widow, Catherine de’Medici, had de Poitiers exiled after his death and Catherine’s unpopular regency for the legitimate heirs was highly unpopular and destabilising, leading to the French Wars of Religion.

betz mystery sphere (13. 486)

Discovered in late March by a family of three whilst investigating a small brush fire on their property on Fort George Island, Florida, the bowling ball sized spherical object weighing ten kilograms was first thought to be an artefact of New World conquistadors, a canon ball, despite discrepancies in the metallurgy and general pristine state. Before consigning the object to a trunk, brought out occasionally to show friends and neighbours the curiosity, family members reportedly observed the sphere reacting to the sound of guitar playing, rolling about on its own and following people around the house. Though earlier examination by the US navy concluded that the sphere was nothing more than an oversized ball bearing used as a check valve in a paper mill, the Betz’ find was again the subject of study on this day in 1974 of attendees of a scientific conference sponsored by the National Enquirer, the tabloid offering an honorarium for any object proven to come from outer space. The expert panel agreed with the previous assessment though the lore persisted for decades, the sphere’s movements ultimately attributed (see also) to its machined balance and the unevenness of the Betz’ home.

synchronoptica

one year ago: assorted links worth the revisit (with synchronopticæ), seeing is not believing, graphic design of the Incas, Merz meets with Trump plus Musk and Trump’s public falling out

fourteen years ago: monster of the week 

seventeen years ago: Friday afternoon deadlines 

ajaccio nach toulon (13. 485)

 

Departing Corsica—this time on the MS Mega Regina, the cruiseferry sold after the Helsinki-Stockholm route was curtailed during the pandemic in 2021 and put to sea in the Mediterranean where demand was more sustainable—we had to pace ourselves with the drive, unsure about how easy it would be to park a caravan on the streets of Ajaccio before the pier was opened for boarding, and stationed ourselves at various points along the way. We shared the dock with the Royal Clipper, a five-masted tall-ship. The steel-hulled sailboat, the largest in the world, was originally built by Polish communist authorities at the shipyards of Gdańsk as a floating vacation home for miners and their families and regularly crosses the Atlantic with passengers. The return trip was a bit rougher with more waves and wind but we survived, arriving back at Toulon.

day ninety-six (13. 484)

In a further rebuke of Trump’s stalled negotiations to end the war with Iran—Tehran pulling out of negotiations altogether over IDF attacks in Lebanon despite the ceasefire and a reported spat between the US president and his Israeli counterpart who views his fighting in Beirut as another obstacle to peace after committing to the joint venture, several GOP representatives have split with their party to joint the Democratic slight minority and pass the war powers act in congress. Though still pending veto-proof assent by the senator and mostly symbolic as whilst the legislative branch has the sole authority to declare war, there is probably little it could do to stop Trump from directing his military with the pretext of imminent threat, the legislation’s ultimate passage after eleven attempts, seven times it failed to reach a floor vote, blocked by the house speaker is significant and does signal Republicans’ break with the president, earlier demonstrated with their rejection of Trump’s anti-weaponisation slush fund to reward loyalists and senators withholding extra funds for his East Wing ballroom.

synchronoptica

one year ago: the foundations of Venice (with synchronopticæ), a Ukrainian sneak attack deep inside of Russia plus a revival of The Weather Channel

fourteen years ago: EU debt-to-GDP 

day ninety-five (13. 483)

In retaliation for American strikes on an oil tanker denied access to Iranian ports for refueling and attacks on Qeshm island, Tehran targeted US bases in Kuwait and Bahrain—the scale of damage done to military installations in the region vastly underreported with some twenty sites affected—countermeasures were not able to prevent a drone attack on Kuwait’s international airport, resulting in one fatality and injuring dozens. The exchange of fire comes amid stalled peace talks to extend the ceasefire, which already seems to be a lost cause as the Revolutionary Guard announces suspension of further negotiations, unwilling to engage in dialogue under duress. Trump maintains a deal will be made and everyone should sit back and relax. The ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah seems equally strained with more deadly skirmishes at the border with Netanyahu downplaying Trump’s dissatisfaction with IDF breaches, and Ukrainian drones hit St Petersburg as Putin opens an economic forum to attract foreign investment as the new Middle East. The faltering administration, stung by assessments from congress that Trump will settle for less from Iran than Obama achieved, meanwhile announces that the US president will attend the upcoming NATO summit in person as some items need to be cleared up amongst allies.

portu ii (13. 482)

 

 

synchronoptica

one year ago:  Gideon v Wainwright (with synchronopticæ), the Carpenters in space (1978) plus Star Trek: TOS’ disappointing final episode

fourteen years ago: more EU budgetary shortfalls plus Mid-Century Modern textile patterns 

fifteen years ago: public-facing websites 

sixteen years ago: social media and SharePoint 

seventeen years ago: eavesdropping