ALASKA RAILROAD TRAIN PULLS INTO ANCHORAGE & NEARBY VOLCANO MT SPURR STEAMS IN ITS WAKE
As the work week comes to an end an Alaska Railroad Freight Train pulls into Anchorage having just passed by Alaska’s threatening to erupt Mount Spurr Volcano which can be seen in its wake.
Enjoy the “ride” and then Watch to the end to see steam rising from the volcano’s Summit Crater.
Encountering a Perched Bald Eagle Along the Trail with Alaska Volcano in the News Mount Spurr Below:
Close Up of the Bald Eagle:
Views from the Estuary's Look Out including Volcano's Mount Spurr and Volcano Mount Redoubt - both of which have erupted in recent decades with Spurr threatening to erupt soon:
Note, in this view of Mount Redoubt, the jutting piece of land fronting it is Point Possession, the point of land on which Captain Cook's men rowed to shore and planted the British Flag along with burying "coins of the realm" to take possession of Alaska on behalf of Great Britain. (This was Captain Cook's Third and Final Voyage as he returned to Hawaii from Alaska where his life ended.)
Our time spent at the Look Out was cut short as we heard the snorting of a large animal in the brush next to us and we hastily departed in the opposite direction.
These photos of Mount Spurr were snapped, pointing through the trees, as I hastily retreated, pausing just long enough to take them after looking back to make sure the animal we were escaping from (likely a bear or moose) was not following us:
PRIOR LARGE ANIMAL ENCOUNTERS AT AND FROM THE CAMPBELL CREEK ESTUARY NATURAL AREA PARK
In the below linked YouTube Video Playlist you are welcomed to Anchorage Alaska's Campbell Creek Estuary Natural Area park by a munching moose at the entrance.
Next is an entertaining musical clip as another moose ambles in the estuary to the sounds of "Hide and Seek."
Following is an expansive view of the estuary as shared with a moose feasting upon the estuary's bounty along with a related close up view.
Finally a stunning sunset view from the estuary's look out is offered as Campbell Creek is seen below and distant mountains across ocean waters come into sight.
Link to Video Playlist of Prior Moose Encounters at Campbell Creek Estuary Natural Area park:
And here are some photos including the moose in an above playlist video that held us captive from exiting the estuary as well as a bear that came up from the nearby Estuary and into my yard where it held me at bay:
One of my varied interests has been 3-D Photography. Over the years, beginning in college, I have dabbled in the taking of 3-D photographs, 3-D videos, and most recently Apple’s Spatial Videos viewable in 3-D on its Vision Pro.
Along the way I have acquired a number of 3-D related collectible items from a replicated turn-of-the-century Stereoscope along with a collection of vintage dual photo stereo cards to be viewed with it, to a number of different 3-D cameras including those that were popular in the 1950s such as the Stereo Realist.
In addition to the 3-D photographs and videos that I have taken, I have a nice sampling of vintage View Master reels as well as an extensive collection of current 3-D Blu-Ray DVDs for playing on my 3-D TVs.
As an aside, during my college years I attended a fireside meeting at which a Chicago bank executive, Jack Whittle, was the speaker. His official title was Marketing Director of Chicago’s Continental Illinois Bank. There, his responsibilities included projecting and implementing future products. (As I recall he had popularized the use of credit cards in Chicago with his bank, in consortium with several others, having been instrumental in promoting the Master Card.) In that meeting he projected that in the future we could expect to see 3-D TVs. It took several decades, but I was thrilled when they finally arrived.
Among my 3-D collectibles is a four-volume set titled, “Chinese Art” which includes several hundred View Master Reels with 3-D images of Chinese art artifacts. While it has been on a bookshelf in my home for a number of years, it was only today that I learned of its origin. I was curious as to the source of the Chinese art objects that were included, and in particular if they included objects I had viewed when visiting the National Palace Museum in Taipei, Taiwan.
What I found out was that the 3-D photographed objects of art were sourced from museums and private collections (including his own) primarily in London, Europe, the United States, and Japan. From Japan alone 25 museums and collections had been visited. While no photographs were taken in mainland China due to absence of access in the early 1960s when the work was being created, there were in fact a number of items from Taiwan’s National Palace Museum that were photographed as a consequence of their being in the United States on tour. Also of note is that the volumes were completed prior to the discovery of the Terra-cotta Warriors so the concurrently excavated art items from that find still remained hidden.
The other thing that I discovered was that this monumental work had been initiated by the inventor of the View Master himself, William B. Gruber. As I researched further I learned that the story of Gruber and his invention was an impressive one.
Gruber, born in Germany in 1903 came to the United States in 1924 with his accompanying skills as a piano and organ repairer, and ended up settling in Oregon and worked using those skills. His love though was photography and the outdoors. Although 3-D photography was nothing new, he is the one who came up with the idea of finding a way to rotate 3-D images on a disk in a special viewer - the View Master.
His first View Master project was to photograph in 3-D alpine flowers there in Oregon. That was followed by creating for medical students hundreds of 3-D anatomical images to be viewed on a View Master. My collection of Chinese art objects in 3-D View Master Reels was his final project which was still in progress at the time of his death on October 15, 1965 which ironically was the date of my birthday during my senior year of high school.
As for the View Master itself, it was a Portland based picture postcard company and developer of film for the Owl Drug Store Chain, Sawyers, that took the idea and ran with it offering Gruber a commission from their sales.
Due to the product’s success he became wealthy from the commissions and used some of that wealth to acquire and build his own private collection of Chinese Art - 3-D photographs of which are included in the View Master Reels of my set. He also traveled the country and world for Sawyers taking many of the scenic photos that were on the View Master Reels including a notable one of Oregon’s Crater Lake.
And below are relevant photos beginning with a vintage turn-of-the-century Stereoscope on display at the Nevada State Museum in Carson City that I photographed there earlier this month. Following it are photos of the above described "Chinese Art" set with some its included View Master Reels:
Caught in Alaska on a rainy day? Take the opportunity to visit one of the State's Alaska Public Lands Information Centers with their impressive exhibits introducing you to Alaska's Wildlife. Then follow it up with a visit to the outdoors when the sun returns.
In this video filmed at the Alaska Public Lands Information Center in Anchorage one can get a sense for just how impressive and informative the Wildlife Exhibits are. In the video see the Alaska Brown Bear grasping a salmon in its mouth followed by a stunning Caribou and continuing on to a Dall Sheep.
Along the way learn how the Brown Bear differs from a Grizzly (the Brown is much bigger as a consequence of its fish fed diet living on the coast) and come to appreciate just how massive the Caribou herds are that frequent Alaska (Some have up to 200,000 animals and migrate over 3,000 miles a year, the furthest migration of any mammal in North America.).
The panorama incorporated into the exhibit embraces Alaska's year round snow covered mountains such as Mt. McKinley which one learns continues to grow taller each year as its massive granite structure is pushed upward by the Pacific Tectonic Plate sliding below the North American Plate. Then one learns that the Dall Sheep that frequent the mountain cliffs and ridges were named after naturalist William H. Dall.
If you look closely you may even see Sandhill Cranes which are among the largest birds in Alaska and they too migrate thousands of miles each year after hatching their young in Alaska during the brief summer.
HIGLIGHTS FROM TODAY'S VISIT TO THE ANCHORAGE MUSEUM
This three video Playlist begins with paintings of Alaska scenes by Alaskan artists ranging from Sydney Laurence to Fed Machentanz. This initial video is shown with musical accompaniment.
Next is a study of the Museum's "Mona Lisa," the wall-sized painting of Mt. McKinley done by Alaska's foremost landscape artist, Sydney Laurence.
Finally, in the third video a portion of the Museum's Alaska Collection is seen beginning with the ocean going watercraft built by Alaska Natives and continuing with the sleds and snow shoes used for winter transport.
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"Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working" Pablo Picasso
Strasburg Railroad out for a test run today.
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ALASKA RAILROAD TRAIN PULLS INTO ANCHORAGE & NEARBY VOLCANO MT SPURR STEAMS IN ITS WAKE
As the work week comes to an end an Alaska Railroad Freight Train pulls into Anchorage having just passed by Alaska’s threatening to erupt Mount Spurr Volcano which can be seen in its wake.
Enjoy the “ride” and then Watch to the end to see steam rising from the volcano’s Summit Crater.
Link to Train "Ride" and Steaming Volcano:
Photo of Mt Spurr from earlier today before the steam from its crater billowed higher as seen in the above linked video:
THIS FRIDAY EVENING'S 2 MILE NEIGHBORHOOD HIKE
A Skyward View:
Entering the Neighborhood'S Estuary Park:
Encountering a Perched Bald Eagle Along the Trail with Alaska Volcano in the News Mount Spurr Below:
Close Up of the Bald Eagle:
Views from the Estuary's Look Out including Volcano's Mount Spurr and Volcano Mount Redoubt - both of which have erupted in recent decades with Spurr threatening to erupt soon:
Note, in this view of Mount Redoubt, the jutting piece of land fronting it is Point Possession, the point of land on which Captain Cook's men rowed to shore and planted the British Flag along with burying "coins of the realm" to take possession of Alaska on behalf of Great Britain. (This was Captain Cook's Third and Final Voyage as he returned to Hawaii from Alaska where his life ended.)
Our time spent at the Look Out was cut short as we heard the snorting of a large animal in the brush next to us and we hastily departed in the opposite direction.
These photos of Mount Spurr were snapped, pointing through the trees, as I hastily retreated, pausing just long enough to take them after looking back to make sure the animal we were escaping from (likely a bear or moose) was not following us:
PRIOR LARGE ANIMAL ENCOUNTERS AT AND FROM THE CAMPBELL CREEK ESTUARY NATURAL AREA PARK
In the below linked YouTube Video Playlist you are welcomed to Anchorage Alaska's Campbell Creek Estuary Natural Area park by a munching moose at the entrance.
Next is an entertaining musical clip as another moose ambles in the estuary to the sounds of "Hide and Seek."
Following is an expansive view of the estuary as shared with a moose feasting upon the estuary's bounty along with a related close up view.
Finally a stunning sunset view from the estuary's look out is offered as Campbell Creek is seen below and distant mountains across ocean waters come into sight.
Link to Video Playlist of Prior Moose Encounters at Campbell Creek Estuary Natural Area park:
https://www.youtube.com/embed/videoseries?list=PLtb5zi734BfbvGxJ7fOxwWnbPMhx9ffOr
And here are some photos including the moose in an above playlist video that held us captive from exiting the estuary as well as a bear that came up from the nearby Estuary and into my yard where it held me at bay:
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A very strange bird nest
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USN & USAF retired 1971-1993
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USN & USAF retired 1971-1993
Successful Transactions with more than 100 Members
USN & USAF retired 1971-1993
Successful Transactions with more than 100 Members
USN & USAF retired 1971-1993
Successful Transactions with more than 100 Members
USN & USAF retired 1971-1993
Successful Transactions with more than 100 Members
USN & USAF retired 1971-1993
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DISCOVERING THE INVENTOR OF THE VIEW MASTER
One of my varied interests has been 3-D Photography. Over the years, beginning in college, I have dabbled in the taking of 3-D photographs, 3-D videos, and most recently Apple’s Spatial Videos viewable in 3-D on its Vision Pro.
Along the way I have acquired a number of 3-D related collectible items from a replicated turn-of-the-century Stereoscope along with a collection of vintage dual photo stereo cards to be viewed with it, to a number of different 3-D cameras including those that were popular in the 1950s such as the Stereo Realist.
In addition to the 3-D photographs and videos that I have taken, I have a nice sampling of vintage View Master reels as well as an extensive collection of current 3-D Blu-Ray DVDs for playing on my 3-D TVs.
As an aside, during my college years I attended a fireside meeting at which a Chicago bank executive, Jack Whittle, was the speaker. His official title was Marketing Director of Chicago’s Continental Illinois Bank. There, his responsibilities included projecting and implementing future products. (As I recall he had popularized the use of credit cards in Chicago with his bank, in consortium with several others, having been instrumental in promoting the Master Card.) In that meeting he projected that in the future we could expect to see 3-D TVs. It took several decades, but I was thrilled when they finally arrived.
Among my 3-D collectibles is a four-volume set titled, “Chinese Art” which includes several hundred View Master Reels with 3-D images of Chinese art artifacts. While it has been on a bookshelf in my home for a number of years, it was only today that I learned of its origin. I was curious as to the source of the Chinese art objects that were included, and in particular if they included objects I had viewed when visiting the National Palace Museum in Taipei, Taiwan.
What I found out was that the 3-D photographed objects of art were sourced from museums and private collections (including his own) primarily in London, Europe, the United States, and Japan. From Japan alone 25 museums and collections had been visited. While no photographs were taken in mainland China due to absence of access in the early 1960s when the work was being created, there were in fact a number of items from Taiwan’s National Palace Museum that were photographed as a consequence of their being in the United States on tour. Also of note is that the volumes were completed prior to the discovery of the Terra-cotta Warriors so the concurrently excavated art items from that find still remained hidden.
The other thing that I discovered was that this monumental work had been initiated by the inventor of the View Master himself, William B. Gruber. As I researched further I learned that the story of Gruber and his invention was an impressive one.
Gruber, born in Germany in 1903 came to the United States in 1924 with his accompanying skills as a piano and organ repairer, and ended up settling in Oregon and worked using those skills. His love though was photography and the outdoors. Although 3-D photography was nothing new, he is the one who came up with the idea of finding a way to rotate 3-D images on a disk in a special viewer - the View Master.
His first View Master project was to photograph in 3-D alpine flowers there in Oregon. That was followed by creating for medical students hundreds of 3-D anatomical images to be viewed on a View Master. My collection of Chinese art objects in 3-D View Master Reels was his final project which was still in progress at the time of his death on October 15, 1965 which ironically was the date of my birthday during my senior year of high school.
As for the View Master itself, it was a Portland based picture postcard company and developer of film for the Owl Drug Store Chain, Sawyers, that took the idea and ran with it offering Gruber a commission from their sales.
Due to the product’s success he became wealthy from the commissions and used some of that wealth to acquire and build his own private collection of Chinese Art - 3-D photographs of which are included in the View Master Reels of my set. He also traveled the country and world for Sawyers taking many of the scenic photos that were on the View Master Reels including a notable one of Oregon’s Crater Lake.
And below are relevant photos beginning with a vintage turn-of-the-century Stereoscope on display at the Nevada State Museum in Carson City that I photographed there earlier this month. Following it are photos of the above described "Chinese Art" set with some its included View Master Reels:
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What the…?
Video from Columbia: https://iframe.thesun.co.uk/news/21988651/model-ufo-mystery-bizarre-craft-plane-footage/
A moose in traffic in Alaska
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This cloud formation is really great. GO BLUE
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Those of us who watch old movies would recognize that UFO immediately.
The Mysterious Egyptian Magic Coin
Coins in Movies
Coins on Television
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what you are seeing is a moment frozen in time, never seen before nor never to be seen again.
disbelief requires belief. the belief knows what is present. the disbelief knows it is no longer there.
here before the upside ends and the downside begins:
Luck in Numbers
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WELCOME TO ALASKA'S BEST KEPT SECRET [MUSEUM]
Caught in Alaska on a rainy day? Take the opportunity to visit one of the State's Alaska Public Lands Information Centers with their impressive exhibits introducing you to Alaska's Wildlife. Then follow it up with a visit to the outdoors when the sun returns.
In this video filmed at the Alaska Public Lands Information Center in Anchorage one can get a sense for just how impressive and informative the Wildlife Exhibits are. In the video see the Alaska Brown Bear grasping a salmon in its mouth followed by a stunning Caribou and continuing on to a Dall Sheep.
Along the way learn how the Brown Bear differs from a Grizzly (the Brown is much bigger as a consequence of its fish fed diet living on the coast) and come to appreciate just how massive the Caribou herds are that frequent Alaska (Some have up to 200,000 animals and migrate over 3,000 miles a year, the furthest migration of any mammal in North America.).
The panorama incorporated into the exhibit embraces Alaska's year round snow covered mountains such as Mt. McKinley which one learns continues to grow taller each year as its massive granite structure is pushed upward by the Pacific Tectonic Plate sliding below the North American Plate. Then one learns that the Dall Sheep that frequent the mountain cliffs and ridges were named after naturalist William H. Dall.
If you look closely you may even see Sandhill Cranes which are among the largest birds in Alaska and they too migrate thousands of miles each year after hatching their young in Alaska during the brief summer.
Concurrently Taken Photos:
"Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working" Pablo Picasso
That Dragon Cloud brought to mind this Atom Bomb Mushroom Cloud I captured with my camera driving into Hilo, Hawaii:
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LEE Marvin in a funny western
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HIGLIGHTS FROM TODAY'S VISIT TO THE ANCHORAGE MUSEUM
This three video Playlist begins with paintings of Alaska scenes by Alaskan artists ranging from Sydney Laurence to Fed Machentanz. This initial video is shown with musical accompaniment.
Next is a study of the Museum's "Mona Lisa," the wall-sized painting of Mt. McKinley done by Alaska's foremost landscape artist, Sydney Laurence.
Finally, in the third video a portion of the Museum's Alaska Collection is seen beginning with the ocean going watercraft built by Alaska Natives and continuing with the sleds and snow shoes used for winter transport.
LINK TO VIDEO PLAYLIST:
https://www.youtube.com/embed/videoseries?list=PLtb5zi734BfZ4CEOaMSlfGo45eiXQKZeT
CONCURRENTLY TAKEN PHOTOS BEGINNING WITH ONE FROM A PRIOR VISIT:
THE ALASKAN ARTIST SYDNEY LAURENCE IS BEST KNOWN FOR HIS PAINTINGS OF Mount McKinley. HERE ARE ONES ON DISPLAY AT THE ANCHORAGE MUSEUM:
ADDITIONAL SYDNEY LAURENCE PAINTINGS DISPLAYED:
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In the Gatlinburg TN area
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