Daily Challenge Daily May 18

Location
Switzerland
Name
Matt
Ed: From comedian Henry Morgan]

The Eighteen Bottles

I had eighteen bottles of whiskey in my cellar and was told by my wife to empty the contents of each and every bottle down the sink, or else... I said I would and proceeded with the unpleasant task. I withdrew the cork from the first bottle and pured the contents down the sink with the exception of one glass, which I drank. I then withdrew the cork from the second bottle and did likewise with it, with the exception of one glass, which I drank. I then withdrew the cork from the third bottle and poured the whiskey down the sink which I drank. I pulled the cork from the fourth bottle down the sink and poured the bottle down the glass, which I drank. I pulled the bottle from the cork of the next and drank one sink out of it, and threw the rest down the glass. I pulled the sink out of the next glass and poured the cork down the bottle. Then I corked the sink with the glass, bottled the drink and drank the pour. When I had everything emptied, I steadied the house with one hand, counted the glasses, corks, bottles, and sinks with the other, which were twenty-nine, and as the houses came by I counted them again, and finally I had all the houses in one bottle, which I drank. I'm not under tha affluence of incohol as some tinkle peep I am. I'm not half as thunk as you might drink. I fool so feelish I don't know who is me, and the drunker I stand here, the longer I get.
I blame @marlof (not really, I loved this when I first heard it some 35 years ago ... but I really didn't know that the original had 18 bottles ... so, here you go).

M.
 
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Wow! A Super Ikonta 532/16 if I'm not mistaken - wonderful camera, fickle, but wonderful as long as it works ... Incidentally, I have its lesser sibling, the Nettar 515/2, on my desk right now ... (and the 531/16, its later sibling, is my second most favourite folder (nothing beats the Voigtländer Bessa RF ...) - and certainly the most sophisticated one.

M.
 
This morning early I've taken some detailed botanical pictures to forward to my botanist friend Brenda. I've identified an unusual Figwort growing just down the lane and what might be the only Devon record for another very small plant that one of this countries leading botanists says is extinct in Devon, watch this space for that one. I was right about the Figwort, and I'm no botanist.
I then went out to do my breeding bird survey work only to notice a butterfly perched on a Red Campion plant. I know from experience that this butterfly flies about like a mad thing in the sun but perches when the sun goes in, only to fly within seconds of it coming out again. This was in the shade and a little cool so I took the chance and made the 10 minute plus walk to and from my cottage to collect camera and tripod. Sure enough it was still there when I returned and I was able to take a whole series of shots which weren't too easy to obtain, the wind was blowing the plant slightly so the butterfly was going in and out of focus and I had to perch up a 45 degree slope and very carefully move the tripod ever closer to get this uncropped image, one of many, some of which succeeded in getting the eye of the insect in focus, or at least as best as I'm going to get. It stayed there for about an hour, likelihood is it spent the night there, so I'd have been very annoyed if I hadn't gone for my camera gear.

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Female Orange-tip Butterfly
(sadly no orange tip to the wings, that only occurs in the male)

with Micro-NIKKOR 105mm f/4 lens mounted via a Metrabones Speed Booster XL 0.64

Barrie

(p.s. I've waited a long time to catch one posed like this, so well pleased)
 
Shellac can impart a rich, lustrous appearance to wood, but it's not a particularly durable finish, being susceptible to things like alcohol and perspiration. Now that the shellac has dried, I'll apply several thin layers of Tru-Oil to seal the shellac, then set the whole instrument aside for several weeks to allow the finish to fully cure. Then the largest of the cigar box instruments will be ready for final assembly.

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This gloomy shot is of the departmental admin's desk. These packets contain our yearly T-shirt and a small packet of M&Ms saying "Class of 2020". You can see an award folio in the lower right. They will be mailed out to our senior majors in lieu of the the several days of festivities that constitute graduation.
packets2.jpg
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Shellac can impart a rich, lustrous appearance to wood, but it's not a particularly durable finish, being susceptible to things like alcohol and perspiration. Now that the shellac has dried, I'll apply several thin layers of Tru-Oil to seal the shellac, then set the whole instrument aside for several weeks to allow the finish to fully cure. Then the largest of the cigar box instruments will be ready for final assembly.

View attachment 223297
So, if you don't sell them, what do you do with them? I imagine these could fill a hard drive pretty quick.
 
This morning early I've taken some detailed botanical pictures to forward to my botanist friend Brenda. I've identified an unusual Figwort growing just down the lane and what might be the only Devon record for another very small plant that one of this countries leading botanists says is extinct in Devon, watch this space for that one. I was right about the Figwort, and I'm no botanist.
I then went out to do my breeding bird survey work only to notice a butterfly perched on a Red Campion plant. I know from experience that this butterfly flies about like a mad thing in the sun but perches when the sun goes in, only to fly within seconds of it coming out again. This was in the shade and a little cool so I took the chance and made the 10 minute plus walk to and from my cottage to collect camera and tripod. Sure enough it was still there when I returned and I was able to take a whole series of shots which weren't too easy to obtain, the wind was blowing the plant slightly so the butterfly was going in and out of focus and I had to perch up a 45 degree slope and very carefully move the tripod ever closer to get this uncropped image, one of many, some of which succeeded in getting the eye of the insect in focus, or at least as best as I'm going to get. It stayed there for about an hour, likelihood is it spent the night there, so I'd have been very annoyed if I hadn't gone for my camera gear.

View attachment 223296
Female Orange-tip Butterfly
(sadly no orange tip to the wings, that only occurs in the male)

with Micro-NIKKOR 105mm f/4 lens mounted via a Metrabones Speed Booster XL 0.64

Barrie

(p.s. I've waited a long time to catch one posed like this, so well pleased)
This is an outstanding photograph. Bravo Barrie!
 
Wow! A Super Ikonta 532/16 if I'm not mistaken - wonderful camera, fickle, but wonderful as long as it works ... Incidentally, I have its lesser sibling, the Nettar 515/2, on my desk right now ... (and the 531/16, its later sibling, is my second most favourite folder (nothing beats the Voigtländer Bessa RF ...) - and certainly the most sophisticated one.

M.


Correct, my Grandfathers 532/16.
i also have an old Agfa Super silette up on the shelf (y)
 
So, if you don't sell them, what do you do with them? I imagine these could fill a hard drive pretty quick.
I have them hanging on walls, or leaning against things in cases, or displayed on top of my dresser. I have given a few away, and I've considered trying to sell some of the ones in the current crop. To be honest, I'm not at all confident that my work is good enough that I should be asking people for money for the instruments I build. There are just so many really, really talented people out there building flawless instruments. I always seem to make some mistake or another in a project. It drives me nuts.
 
For a change, I took a few snaps of the wild rose bush which flourishes next to the mailbox that sits on the road next to my own house. Some of the roses look fresh and blooming - but this one seemed older and a little more 'worn' - like a person who has lived a fuller life. Needless to say, I gravitated towards her.

GRII_May18_Dying_rose(PosFilm).jpg
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I think my use of the feminine pronoun, 'her', comes from my knowledge of both Spanish and French - languages in which the word for rose .... is of the feminine linguistic genre :)
 
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