Selected images from my “Resurrecting Ophelia” series set to a favorite poem by Henri Michaux.

The ambient vocal sounds in the background of this video’s music were recorded by Andrew Mcniven at the Tate Gallery in London. The recording was made of people talking in front of John Everett Millais’s painting ‘Ophelia’ and is courtesy the Freesound Project.

This series is now complete…unless I decide to brave the icy waters in Provincetown next week.

To view high quality versions of these photographs, or to order prints, please visit:

http://kalliopeamorphous.viewbook.com…

The Lake, Self Portrait

Self Portrait

Death was in that poisonous wave,
And in its gulf a fitting grave
For him who thence could solace bring
To his lone imagining –
Whose solitary soul could make
An Eden of that dim lake.

-Edgar Allan Poe

So, my work continues on the Resurrecting Ophelia series. I am nearing the end, though I am planning a shoot in Provincetown next week which will hopefully finish off the series. She is an archetype that haunts my dreams and musings, and she is not done with me yet.

Some of you may have noticed the little highlight box on the top of my page urging you to please vote for me in a new online exhibition. This is an important exhibition and well suited to me since the theme is Self Portraits. I would hugely appreciate it if  you could stop by and cast your vote and forward my contest page to anyone you know who supports independent artists. In other news, my website has been redesigned thanks to the help of some very benevolent goddesses. You can see it HERE. The design is simple but beautiful, and the revamp has forced me to finally organize my work into showcases that are comprehensive, yet not as overwhelming as the previous site. It is still a work in progress.

I will leave you with a song that has colored the final wing of my Ophelia series. This is Antony’s  interpretation of Edgar Allan Poe’s poem, The Lake. Antony is one of my favorite vocalists, and he has added a whole new dimension of evocative beauty to this poem.

A 14-year-old girl pleaded with teachers to abandon a Dartmoor training trip before drowning in a swollen river, an inquest is told…. From BBC News. Full story

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A 14-year-old girl pleaded with teachers to abandon a Dartmoor training trip before drowning in a swollen river, an inquest is told…. From BBC News. Full story

This site may contain information about: teaching school. The blog is also related to: school uniforms.

This is a story of Milarepa the famous Tibetan sage and founder of Lamaism. The story goes that Milarepa had a teacher before he met his Guru Marpa. He accepted the tutelage of Milarepa but his other disciples were jealous of Milarepa for his magnetic personality. So they went to the Guru and said, Master, ask for total obedience from this man as he thinks he is bigger than even you. Test him.

So the story goes that the Master told Milarepa to jump off the mountain and before the Guru could finish the sentence Milarepa jumped. Sure that he was dead the disciples went down and searched for his body, but they found Milarepa under a tree happy as a clam. They could not understand how this happened, and asked him; he just said;

I did not do anything it must have been the Master that saved me. I do not know what happened.
The master was equally flabbergasted and had no idea what happened.

The jealous disciples pushed on and asked for another test. The next test was to have Milarepa go into a burning building and stay there until the whole building is burnt to crisp. Milarepa complied without any hesitation and as the building turned into ashes the disciples found him under a pile of ash, alive and unharmed.

He still could not account for the miracle. He just smiled and went on. Later the disciples pushed for a third test. This was near a deep, mountain lake in Tibet. The Guru told Milarepa to walk onto the lake and fetch the boat that was anchored there away from the shores.

He started to walk towards the boat, and to the amazement of all, he walked on the water. The master was hysterical. He, for all his knowledge, had no idea how Milarepa could do all these tricks.

The master swallowed his pride and asked him while the two were sitting alone in the boat Milarepa fetched.

Tell me Milarepa how could you walk on the lake?

Milarepa said; Master I just did it without thinking of it or the danger. I kept saying your name and had total faith that I will be protected somehow.

The Master thought to himself if this is the trick I can do this too. While repeating his own name, he stepped out of the boat to head to the shore.

He drowned.

A Car Hits a Hydrant

It All Started with a Little Accident

A young driver hit a fire hydrant, causing a powerful fountain of water to shoot 30 feet in the air. (See Wedding Dresses Drowned on NBCSanDiego.com.)  The water pooled three feet deep on the roof of a commercial building, causing the roof to collapse over a bridal shop, drenching the contents. Several brides’ dreams of a beautiful dress at their weddings were ruined in a matter of minutes.  Not to mention, another couple’s livelihood was destroyed, at least for the time being. Thankfully, no one was inside at the time, so there were no injuries.

As an insurance agent, after making sure everyone is okay, I’m trained to look at tragedies like this from the business side.  The driver who caused the accident is on the hook to pay for any damage they caused. Anyone who has been in a fender bender knows that even a small scratch to another car’s bumper can cost $3,000 to $5,000 to repair.  (I know, it’s outrageous. But there it is.)

An accident like this can cause over $100,000 in damage to property in a matter of minutes.

Imagine if someone had been hurt, or killed in the accident or cave-in.  What’s a life worth?

Imagine if the original driver had been texting, talking on the cell phone, or worse: intoxicated.  How much  damages would a judge and jury want to add to the judgment to punish them?

Required Insurance in California

In California, we are required to carry $15,000 of liability insurance to pay for injury or death to a person, $30,000 total per accident, and $5,000 for damage to property.  These are the minimum amounts required by law. Without this much coverage, you cannot get a registration for your vehicle or a driver’s license.

Car Totaled in Fender Bender Cost $8,000

How Much Liability Coverage Do You Really Need?

A lot of people figure they don’t need much more than the minimum. The insurance company will pay that, and it’s all done. After all, if you haven’t invested in a home or business yet, and your car isn’t worth much, and you don’t really own much, what are they going to get if they sue you?  Like squeezing blood from a turnip, right?  …

You might be surprised.

• Did you know that if you lose a lawsuit, and the damages are greater than the amount of insurance you bought, you are still on the hook for the rest?
• Did you know that the victim in your accident is not limited to the maximum of your policy: they can sue for the actual amount of damages.
• Did you know that the judge can attach up to 25% of your income for 10 years to pay off the debt?
• Did you know that a judge can renew that judgment for another 10 years after that at a time till it’s paid off?

Look at your paycheck, and imagine losing 25% off the top, AFTER taxes have been withdrawn.  Yeeeowch!

Do the Math

When it’s time to update your insurance, do the math to figure how much you really are exposed, and make sure your insurance amounts are high enough to cover that.

For example, if you own a home and have any equity, add that to the list.  Add the value of any property you own.  Now add in 25% of your salary for the next 10 years.  THAT is the amount you want to make sure is covered.

If you own a business and/or have investments, add their value to the list, too.

The only thing they can’t touch is your retirement account.  So, whew, you can keep that out of the calculation for now.

For many people, the amount comes up to $300,000 or less.  But if you own a business, have a high income or have investments, it could easily top $500,000.  All the hard work you have invested in your business and your savings for so many years could go up in smoke in a matter of weeks.

Isn’t That What Underinsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage is For?

That coverage is limited, too.  If the victim’s insurance doesn’t have enough coverage to make up for the shortfall in your coverage, you still have to come up with the difference. And, the other insured drivers in California have to pick up YOUR tab since you didn’t pay enough to cover yourself.  Not only do your premiums go up in the future, but so do everyone else’s.

What Can You Do To Protect Yourself?

Fortunately, most accidents don’t result in mega damages like this case might, especially when there are no injuries.  And the insurance companies tend to negotiate most of the cases to match the victim’s actual damages after an accident.  Most cases are settled out of court.  However, about 5-10% of cases make it to trial, and when they do, the average damage judgments are over $460,000.

If you have a lot of assets to protect, you should set your coverage levels higher.  If you have over $500,000 to protect, it’s time to look at umbrella insurance, too.

It might surprise you that adding up to $1 Million of umbrella insurance only costs a couple hundred extra per year.  When you look at the size of those judgments, that small extra investment can pay for itself 100,000 times over if a serious accident occurs.

Mind the Gap: Works both for the Metro and for Insurance

Mind the Gap

If you have ever been so fortunate to take the Metro subway in London, you would have noticed signs that say “Mind the Gap” to warn you not to trip on the space between the platform and the floor of the metro cars.   Likewise, there can be a gap in your umbrella coverage if you are not careful.

For example, if you have $300,000 in liability insurance on your auto, but your umbrella insurance doesn’t kick in until after 500,000 of damages, you still might find yourself on the hook for $200,000 before the umbrella can kick in.  So, if you’re going for the umbrella, buy enough of the regular liability coverage to make sure that any damages in excess will be immediately covered by the umbrella.

Confused?  You’re Not Alone!

I have a Master’s degree in business, and didn’t really understand these concepts until I studied for my insurance license.  Fortunately, your insurance agent can help you figure out what kind of coverage you really need to be as close to “Full” as realistically possible for most accidents.  While the sky is truly the limit when a jury is involved, so there really is no such thing as “Full Coverage,” you can make sure your coverage protects your family financially from freak accidents like the fire hydrant flooding the bridal shop. Or everyday accidents like the $8,000 fender bender that totalled my family member’s car.

Shameless Plug

Of course, if you don’t already have an insurance agent who is looking out for your best interests, I invite you in for a free consultation to go over your personal situation and review your coverages. You may be fine.  And if you are, I’ll tell you.  If you have some gaps, I’ll show you in detail, and give you some pricing options so you can decide how much risk you are willing to take for yourself, and how much you want to insure to protect.

And even better, I’ll review your coverage every single year to make sure changes in your life are covered.  When you buy a house, when your business grows, when you have kids, when you get boats, RVs, ATVs, motorcyles or other fun toys… I’ll make sure you’re protected at every stage of life.

That’s what I do!

Call me any time to discuss your situation, and I’ll help you make sense of it all.

I’m at 619-414-7723, or visit my web site to check things out at www.3amInsurance.com

Thanks for reading!

Anne McElvain

Lic# 0G5927

I have recently read a book by Morgan Robertson entitled “The Wreck Of  The Titan”…It is a great book published in 1898…14 years before the sinking of the Titanic.

Although published years before the “actual tragedy” it was like a prophecy…so many things were similar….Very weird indeed!!!!

Similarities between Titanic and Titan:

• Unsinkable
  • The Titanic was the world’s largest luxury liner (882 feet, displacing 53,000 long tons), and was once described as being (nearly) “unsinkable”.
  • The Titan was the largest craft afloat and the greatest of the works of men (800 feet, displacing 75,000 tons), and was considered “unsinkable”.
• Lifeboats
  • The Titanic carried only 20 lifeboats, less than half the number required for her passenger capacity of 3000.
  • The Titan carried “as few as the law allowed”, 24 lifeboats, less than half needed for her 3000 capacity.
• Struck an iceberg
  • Moving too fast at 23 knots, the Titanic struck an iceberg on the night of April 14, 1912 in the North Atlantic 400 miles away from Terranova.
  • Also on an April night in North Atlantic 400 miles from Newfoundland (Terranova) , the Titan hit an iceberg while traveling at 25 knots.
• The Unsinkable Sank
  • The unsinkable Titanic sank, and more than half of her 2207 passengers died screaming for help.
  • The indestructible Titan also sank, more than half of her 2500 passengers drowning, their “voices raised in agonized screams”

Both soldiers reportedly swept away into river while trying to save supply boxes that fell into water after being air-dropped… From VOA. Full story

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At least 22 Malaysian schoolchildren are missing after a suspension bridge over a river in norther Perak state collapses…. From BBC News. Full story

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not sure if those boots were made for anything, let alone walking.

I’ve learned another valuable lesson in the proverbial “school-of-life”, proper enunciation can save your life. The other night there was a girl at my work, and i noticed that she was wearing cowboy boots, a compliment was in order. So I, in my endearingly sarcastic way decided to say “Nice boots”. The response wasn’t exactly what i was expecting, her and the girl i was working with both looked at me as if i had drowned a small animal. This only confused me further, so i walked into the back room. Then, just as i disappeared from their sight, i realised what my compliment may have been heard as a statement regarding the niceties of her mammaries.

I abruptly turned around to clear up the miscommunication, and emerged to see them now laughing. Just to be safe, i made double sure she knew that what i said, was indeed, “boots”.

Lesson? Guys, be sure to enunciate those “t’s”, especially when complimenting a lady’s footwear.

Oh and on a side note, that show i wrote about getting interviewed for, is premiering October 9th on TVtropolis. Since it has the 2 key ingredients for comedy(Jonathan Torrens and Me), i’m assuming it is going to be awesome. So if you like to smile and laugh, even have a good time, you should probably check it out. (http://www.facebook.com/pages/TV-with-TVs-Jonathan-Torrens/144494107854?ref=ts)

Oh and you know what they say about assuming, “It gives you the right answer before anyone else”.

A shocking reality story came from the death of a three year old boy from Wichita.
Isaiah Jones died after drowned into his grandparent’s pool . His grandfather say their grandson might have survived if a Wichita police officer hadn’t told them stop CPR.

The boy’s grandmother, Pam Jordan says just moments after seeing the boy playing on her locked back patio, he was gone. Thinking the boy might have sneaked back into the home, Jordan yelled Isaiah’s name and called 911 to report a missing child.
Shortly after, she found him floating in the backyard pool.

Jordan says she grabed the boy up, brought him into her kitchen, and gave him CPR . Jordan says the boy vomitted, regained a pulse, and color was returning to his blue lips.
She says her grandson still wasn’t breathing, though.
. Read full story

A shocking reality story came from the death of a three year old boy from Wichita.
His Grandfather says their grandson might have survived if a Wichita police officer hadn’t told them stop CPR.

Isaiah Jones drowned in his grandparents’ above-ground pool last week.The boy’s grandmother, Pam Jordan says just moments after seeing the boy playing on her locked back patio, he was gone.  Thinking the boy might have sneaked back into the home, Jordan yelled Isaiah’s name and called 911 to report a missing child. Shortly after, she found him floating in the backyard pool.  Read the Full Story

In Yemen, thousands of people are being displaced and 16 of them drowned in the river this past week while trying to cross and flee away from the combats in the  north of the country between the governement supporting the American war against terrorism on the international scene and the shiite rebels who accuse the government of being pro-US and of using help from Saudi Arabia. The governement’s response has been tighter and tighter repression since then by the use of force and bombing.

Yemen’s president Ali Abdullah Saleh

http://www.rfi.fr/actufr/articles/116/article_83952.asp

A one-year-old child drowns after climbing the stairs as her mother slept and getting into a bath, an inquest hears…. From BBC News. Full story

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You know, I almost couldn’t stand constantly hearing about Michael Jackson’s death. The guy was the perfect example of what you’d show your kids not to be. But at least he had the redeeming quality of being a superb and original singer.

I can’t think of a redeeming quality for Ted Kennedy. I knew the guy was a flaming liberal, so I automatically didn’t like him. But, since he’s been so much more in the news since his death, I’ve learned to hate what he stood for on a much more profound level. There are a variety of things I’m fuzzy on. Something about him and a drowned woman, and other such things. But I also know that the guy was more amoral than anyone I’ve ever met (to the best of my knowledge, I don’t exactly do background checks on everyone I meet). I mean, I got the “sexual harassment” talk from my boss once because I tapped a girl on the shoulder to get her attention (seriously; as a Christian, I don’t even talk about girls in that way). This guy tossed a waitress around like a rag doll an then did things I won’t repeat involving the two of them and Chris Dodd (I think that’s how it’s spelled).

All in all, I have no intention of bashing the guy to the utmost of my ability (after all, he can’t do anything now), but I’m also not going to say anything good about him just because he’s no longer contributing the CO2 in his breath to “climate change.” I’m never happy about someone dying, but I have to say that I believe the world, and this country, to be better off without him.

Honestly, I hope the healthcare bill gets named after him and is a complete and total failure. Seems to me it’d be a fitting representation. I just hope that wouldn’t help Obama shift the blame.

The Hazards of Love, the newest album from the Decemberists, is one of my personal favorites. The Decemberists, already known for using their music to tell stories, have turned the album into a sweeping epic, that tells the story of young Margaret and her true love. All the songs blend together beautifully, and the story is powerful, suspenseful and moving. The refrain of phrases and sentiments that echoes throughout the album is haunting, and the songs themselves are extremely catchy. I urge everyone to take an hour of their time, and listen to the album in its entirety, so as to appreciate the masterful storytelling of the Decemberists. The vocals, headed by Decemberists front man Colin Meloy as the shape-shifter William, Becky Stark as the maiden Margaret, Shara Worden as William’s adoptive mother, the evil forest queen, and Jim James as the villain of the story, known only as The Rake, bring life to the fantastic tale of the two star-crossed lovers. The album can be heard on Youtube, in order, here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qvw1CVOSmik&feature=PlayList&p=53B5376C171597FF&index=0

I would at this time like to issue a spoiler alert. The following is a song-by-song summary of the plot, for those of you are having trouble following it yourselves, or for those who have no intention of listening to the album for themselves but are now curious about what adventures it contains.

Prelude–An instrumental introduction to the album, the prelude sets the musical tone for the story.

The Hazards of Love 1: The Prettiest Whistles Won’t Wrestle The Thistles Undone–In this song, the heroine, Margaret, goes riding out into the Taiga forest, where she comes across an injured faun. Being a charitable maiden, she goes to the faun to help it. To her surprise, the faun changes form, becoming a man, and the two make love.

A Bower Scene–Margaret, back at home, discovers she is pregnant, and sets back out for the Taiga, to find her true love, the father of her child.

Won’t Want For Love–Now in the Taiga, Margaret searches for William, her love, who is pining after her.

The Hazards of Love 2: Wager All–William calls out to his love, promising that he will find her, and the two will be together again.

The Queen’s Approach–An instrumental song, the Queen’s Approach sets the musical for the queen’s entrance into the story, and the beginning of the lovers’ troubles.

Isn’t It A Lovely Night?–Margaret and William reminisce about the night they shared together.

The Wanting Comes In Waves/Repaid–William, pining after Margaret, begs his adoptive mother, the queen, to let him free for the night. The queen, who had saved William as an infant and protected him from the troubles of mankind, by giving him the form of a faun to inhabit by day, is angered. When William argues that she owes him life, she agrees, saying that the debt is now repaid, and that William is free for the night, though when morning comes she will reclaim his life.

An Interlude–The instrumental interlude presents the shift in the story, acting as an intermission, and preparing the listeners for the entrance of the villain–The Rake.

The Rake’s Song–The Rake introduces himself, telling the listener that he had been married when he was twenty, and enjoyed taking his wife, until she began getting pregnant. He had four children, Isaiah, Charlotte, Dawn, and Myfanwy, the last of which died on delivery, thankfully taking his wife with her. Left a bachelor with three children, The Rake longed only for the freedom to pursue women again, and so he set out to rid himself of his burdens. He poisoned Charlotte with foxglove and drowned Dawn in the bath. Isaiah fought against him, but The Rake beat him, and then burned his body. He then tells the listeners that though most think he should be haunted by the murders of his children, he isn’t bothered at all.

The Abduction of Margaret–It is then that The Rake, under cover of night and hidden by the trees that had sheltered the lovers on their first encounter, abducts Margaret, tying her up and riding away with her, only stopping to contemplate how he might cross the wide river Annan with his prisoner.

The Queen’s Rebuke/The Crossing–The evil queen of the forest, elated that The Rake is stealing away the woman who had taken her son from her, uses her power to help him cross the river.

Annan Water–William, searching for his love, comes to the shore of the Annan. Hearing Margaret’s cries across the river, he pleads with the river itself to let him cross. Knowing it to be a dangerous trip, and ignoring his mother’s warnings that he will drown, he starts across, telling the river that if it calms and lets him pass, he will surrender himself to it on his way back.

Margaret in Captivity–Margaret is taken to the fortress of The Rake, who threatens her and prepares to beat her. Margaret calls out to William, her true love, but The Rake laughs, telling her that William will never hear her cries, and will never be able to rescue her.

The Hazards of Love 3: Revenge!–The spirits of The Rake’s murdered children rise up to haunt him and to get revenge on their father.

The Wanting Comes in Waves (Reprise)–William calls out again for his love, longing to be with her.

The Hazards of Love 4: The Drowned–William and Margaret, reunited, board a ship to cross the river Annan to return home. The ship has a hole, however, and begins sinking. As the water rises to their ankles, Margaret and William proclaim their love, and make their vows. Their secret marriage complete, the two seal their love with a kiss as the waves crash over them, and they are drowned.

See? I told you, the story is moving. And so, for those of you who had decided not to listen to the album, now that you’ve read the story, I hope you’ll reconsider. It’s all the more amazing when hearing it the way it was meant to be told: through song.

10 year old Stella Akanbi

Via BBC News

Police searching for a 10-year-old girl who disappeared in the sea off an Essex beach believe they have found her body.

Stella Akanbi, from Milton Keynes, had been playing with a friend in the sea in Clacton on Sunday afternoon when they got into trouble.

An onlooker pulled one of the girls ashore but could not find Stella.

No formal identification has taken place, but police believe the girl found is Stella, and the search has been called off.

Stella was in Clacton on a day trip from Buckinghamshire with her friend and her friend’s parents.

Both girls were playing near a groyne, a sea defence barrier built at a right angle to the beach.

Stella’s mother travelled to Clacton from Milton Keynes on Sunday night to meet police and watch the search progressing.

Continue Reading…..

A mother sends her daughter off on a trip with friends, puts her in the care of people she trusts and the daughter doesn’t come back alive.

Where the hell were her friend’s parents when this tragedy struck???

This is so sad.

Rest In Peace Stella Akanbi

The 40th anniversary of the darkest chapter in Sen. Ted Kennedy’s life passed quietly over the weekend.On July 18, 1969, a car driven by the Massachusetts Democrat veered off a bridge on Chappaquiddick Island and into the waters near Martha’s Vineyard.Kennedy escaped the submerged car with minor injuries, but his traveling companion was not so lucky. Mary Jo Kopechne, 28, was trapped in the overturned vehicle and drowned. Kennedy did not contact police until the next day. He later pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of an accident, and was given a two-month suspended jail sentence. The ensuing scandal dogged Kennedy’s presidential aspirations, and he never was able to capture his party’s nomination. Kennedy, now 77, has largely withdrawn from public life since he was diagnosed in May 2008 with a cancerous brain tumor.