By popular request, I'm reposting this story, which originally was a part of our longer post - the weekly "Blend". (I think I will only publish daily Quantum Shots for now)
The Whimsical Lighthouse
Here is a curious story related to the current Eddystone Rocks Lighthouse: In 1964 National Geographic did an article on various lighthouses in Devon, England, and mentioned the original light tower build by a practical joker and curious character Henry Winstanley in 1696. His own mansion was a London attraction for decades, filled with various gadgets, pitfalls, traps and curiosities - almost a "Ripley's Believe it or not" in itself. However his imagination was not satisfied with that and he set out to build the first Eddystone Lighthouse. Against incredible odds the tower was completed in 1698, saving the lives of many sailors from the fate of the thousands who previously died upon the rocks. The architecture was pretty fanciful, as you can see:
He himself could be seen in this drawing fishing in one of the windows. The lighthouse survived its first winter, and Winstanley expressed a wish that if he perish, it'd be on top of his tower in the storm. This wish came true when in a winter storm in November 1703 the tower was demolished, among with Winstanley who was in the lighthouse that night.
See this engraving depicting the tower right after the storm:
Since then, there were 4 more lighthouses build on Eddystone Rocks, but none as extravagant as the Winstanley's tower.
As an afterthought, here is what Jeff Vandermeer said once: "The marvelous is not the same in every period of history - it partakes of the sort of the general revelation only the fragment of which come down to us; they are the romantic ruins, the modern mannequins"
Some architecture lives in our imagination as a sort of "the romantic ruins", and perhaps only benefits from it.
Just showed my 6 year old son some fractal pictures this morning; we found dragons, skeletons, jellyfish, gazoomba birds, birds which look soft but have scary teeth up close, a 'feather wheel', stealth airplanes, overturned sailboats, all kinds of gems and of course the galaxy. He was quite impressed.
Incredibly stupid, maybe, but not as stupid as the teenager who tried to play Russian Roulette with an automatic pistol - he did get a Darwin award. I don't think anyone can top that.
Great Blog by the way. One of the best I've ever seen.
"Everyone knows that Japanese live on their own time. Their culture is alternatively more fast-paced and intense than the rest of the western world (like in urban areas), or more relaxed and introspective (like a Japanese garden)."
You have never lived in Japan have you? Take it from someone who has had a decade of living in-country and two decades of Japanese language and culture, you need to update your knowledge of the country beyond comics, anime and samurai movies. Try DOGS AND DEMONS.
Soon, Rachel, soon. All pregnancies seem to last forever (as if I would know). However, you should go post even a short entry on that blog to add to the "bloated bloggosity of the bloggosphere"
... I remember now that tsunami was after the explosion of Krakatoa, and it may be the same ship; nobody ever moved that one- nobody had the money or the will to do it. Krakatoa killed more people than the tsunami in 2004, if I recall correctly. first the explosion and then tsunamis that just kept on coming.
It could not be the Aral Sea, even if it does look like some other pics from there. The surrounding geography is not a sea bottom, and besides - the valley the ship is in is a so called V valley, carved out by a river over long periodes of time. if it isnt photoshopped i'd guess it is some king of former great river somwhere in asia/old ussr that is being depleted.
The opening of story should bring the characters alive for the readers. The absolute master, at least in English, of the opening was Dickens. His second best opening, clearly achieving the goal, was _David Copperfield_: "I am born."
But, by far the best, is the opening to _A Christmas Carol_: "Marley was dead, to begin with." Now how is that for bringing your characters alive?
"QUANTUM SHOT" #11
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