Travel theme: Motion

Rörelse – människor och tåg på Saint Pancras, London. Sällan står allt stilla. Och när HON dyker upp hinner jag inte med – hon rör sig för fort och jag såg henne inte i tid…

Motion is this week’s theme for Ailsa’s weekly challenge. People and trains at Saint Pancras, London. Motion. When SHE turns up, rushing from a train – she’s too fast for me, and I didn’t notice her from the start…

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Nerds

Nörd kommer från engelskans slangord nerd och är en stereotypisk benämning på en person som har ett fixerat intresse eller intresseområde. Enligt Wikipedia användes ordet första gången 1950 i Dr. Seuss bok If I Ran the Zoo, men då med betydelsen av en särskild djurart. På tidigt 60-tal var slanguttrycket spritt i USA och ända bort till Skottland. Fram till slutet av 1900-talet användes ordet nörd oftast negativt, men idag används ordet minst lika ofta positivt.

Nördar kan antingen beskrivas utifrån sina hobbies och intressen, eller via sin personlighet, status, sociala kompetens eller till och med sitt utseende. En vanlig uppfattning är att nördar ofta intresserar sig mer för teknik eller naturvetenskap än socialt umgänge. Det ironiska begreppet social nörd används ibland av nördar om personer som har ett starkt fixerat intresse av socialt umgänge och mänskliga relationer. Nörd kan du eventuellt kallas om du är/har:

  • Datorintresserad
  • Intelligent
  • Enkelspårig
  • Tekniskt kunnig
  • Låg social kompetens

Nördar finns naturligtvis med i populärkulturen, bland annat i filmerna Nördarna kommer! och i dokusåpor som Beauty and the Geek och FC Z. Andra exempel på nördar är Simpsons-karaktärerna Professor Frink, Lisa Simpson och Jeff Albertson.

Den internationella nörddagen firades den 25 maj…men den glömde i alla fall vi bort! Till London hade jag sällskap av två andra nördar i familjen…så vad sägs om ett allmänt nördigt galleri…?

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A nerd is a person, typically described as being overly intellectual, obsessive, or socially impaired. They may spend inordinate amounts of time on unpopular, obscure, or non-mainstream activities, which are generally either highly technical or relating to topics of fiction or fantasy, to the exclusion of more mainstream activities. Additionally, many nerds are described as being shy, quirky, and unattractive, and may have difficulty participating in, or even following, sports. ”Nerd” is a derogatory, stereotypical term, but it has also been reclaimed and redefined by some as a term of pride and group identity. Nowadays it’s often used positively as well.

According to Wikipedia, the first documented appearance of the word ”nerd” is as the name of a creature in Dr. Seuss’s book If I Ran the Zoo (1950). The slang meaning of the term dates back to 1951, found in Newsweek magazine. By the early 1960s, usage of the term had spread throughout the United States, and even as far as Scotland. At some point, the word took on connotations of bookishness and social ineptitude.

Nerds can either be described by their hobbies and interests, or by abstract qualities such as personality, status, social skills, and physical appearance. Some interests and activities that are likely to be described as nerdy are:

  • Intellectual, academic, or technical hobbies, activities, and pursuits, especially topics related to science, mathematics, engineering, linguistics, history and technology.
  • Hobbies, games, and activities that are described as obsessive and ”immature”, such as trading cards, comic books, fantasy and science fiction novels, role-playing games, tabletop games.
  • Interest in the fine arts, non-mainstream music, hobbies (i.e., collecting), or other ”obscure” interests.
  • Heavy obsession with a topic that would otherwise be mainstream (such as a popular TV show or a sport).

Well, in London I was accompanied by two other nerds in my family, and what about a short trip through some nerdiness?

Covent Garden

Ett kort besök i Covent Garden är ett måste på varje Londonresa. Den här gången uppträdde en mycket säker Charlie Chaplinkopia som drog ned en del skratt. Inte minst på grund av att han enrollerade en charmerande liten flicka ur publiken och gjorde henne till sin assistent. Alltid publikfriande!

Lite kockskoj och till sist en ung man med mycket vacker röst som underhöll med några av operavärldens absoluta glansnummer. Avkopplande!

No London visit is a London visit without visiting Covent Garden. This time a Charlie Chaplin copy was very entertaining, much because of his charming little assistant from the audience. Then some fun made of chefs… and others in the kitchen, and last but not least – a voice! A young man singing the most beautiful opera. He was so good that he might win ”Britain’s got Talent” , had he entered the competition. (Maybe he had already?)

According to Wikipedia, the first record of a ”new market in Covent Garden” is in 1654 when market traders set up stalls against the garden wall of Bedford House.The Earl of Bedford acquired a private charter from Charles II in 1670 for a fruit and vegetable market, permitting him and his heirs to hold a market every day except Sundays and Christmas Day.The original market, consisting of wooden stalls and sheds, became disorganised and disorderly, and in 1830 Charles Fowler designed the neo-classical market building that is the heart of Covent Garden today. Further buildings were added—the Floral hall, Charter Market, and in 1904 the Jubilee Market for foreign flowers was built.

By the end of the 1960s, traffic congestion was causing problems for the market,  The following year the market relocated to its new site, New Covent Garden Market, about three miles (5 km) south-west at Nine Elms. The central building re-opened as a shopping centre in 1980, with cafes, pubs, small shops and a craft market called the Apple Market. The beautiful hall where the opera singer entertained us (the last picture) is the former vegetable market.

Another market, the Jubilee Market, is held in the Jubilee Hall on the south side of the square.The market halls and several other buildings in Covent Garden have been owned by the property company Capital & Counties Properties (CapCo) since 2006.

Weekly Travel theme: Sculpture

I London finns naturligtvis många fina skulpturer, men en som jag aldrig tidigare sett fann jag nära Victoria Palace Theatre där vi avnjöt musicalen Billy Elliot (rekommenderas verkligen – lysande!).

In London, a couple of days ago when visiting the Victoria Palace Theatre for the brilliant musical Billy Elliot (Go see it! And thank you for telling me about it…though I have forgotten which of you, my blogging friends, who gave me a hint? ), I came across this sculpture of considerable size, and in vibrant colours. So, sorry British Museum, but this is my choice for Ailsa’s theme: Sculpture!

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Wild Weekly Photo Challenge: Camouflage

Kamouflage är nog något vi alla önskat oss – åtminstone ibland. Att smälta in utan att bli sedd, hörd eller rörd…en dröm vid många tillfällen…För detta tema har jag valt gräsfjärilar och blåvingar från Pyrenéerna. Att smälta in för dem kan naturligtvis vara livsviktigt.

Who wouldn’t want to be disguised, melting in without being seen? I think all of us want to do that, at least sometimes. For many animals this ability is essential – to survive at all.

The online magazine LetsBeWild has Camouflage as a theme this week. I have chosen three butterfly pictures from the Pyrenées. Whether they are in the grass or on leaves or on the ground – they are neatly camouflaged all of them.

Barcelona och Pyrenéerna 2011 646 Allmän blåvinge Rapsfjäril (bergsform)

Travel theme: Peaceful

Vad kan vara mer fridfullt än denna morgon vid havet, mellan sex och sju, medan de flesta sover. Bara någon enstaka mås hörs, en gök ropar i skogen intill och ett dämpat plask hörs från en and med sina små.

What can be more peaceful than this early morning by the sea, between six and seven, when most people are asleep. A lonely gull, a cuckoo calling from the forest nearby and a silent splash from a wild duck hurrying away with her ducklings.

For more lovely peaceful entries, go to Ailsa!

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Travel theme: Costume

Jag älskar att titta på välgjorda klädedräkter och välregisserade skådespel. Veckans utmaning handlar om detta – Costume. I Scarborough med omnejd levde och slogs vikingarna under långa tider, kanske främst på 800- och 900-talet, för att slutligen kämpas tillbaka och få återvända till Danmark. Än idag utkämpas strider för att visa hur det gick till när England befriade sig från nordmännen.

So, Ailsa’s travel theme about costumes brought me back to the wonderful trip to Scarborough last year, and the old Viking fights there. The fighters and their women and children were all very well dressed – according to what we know about the Viking era, around 800-900, and the fightings are rather realistic and well performed. In the end the real Vikings were of course fought down by the Anglo Saxons and had to return to their countries up north, mainly Denmark, but there are still many Viking memories on the east coast of England.

Scarborough 8 060Even the small children were dressed up and liked to participate in the adventure.

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Wild Weekly Photo Challenge: Forest

Sedan barnsben är Skogen min tillflyktsort, min vän och helare. När jag är uppfylld av glädje går jag dit, när jag är nedstämd och grubblande och när jag är stressad och trött, och… Ja, skogen besitter den läkande och helande kraft som jag tror att vi alla behöver. Skratt och gråt och många förtroenden har han fått – och så har jag min specielle vän där uppe. Det är till ”min” skog jag helst vill gå med mina förtroenden, men jag älskar skogen som sådan,  skogen var jag än befinner mig, skogens väsen.

The Forest is my friend to whom I turn with everything in my life. He’s my silent listener and helper, my friend in every mood. I go to the forest in joy and anger, sadness and melancholy. He always listens – soothingly in his beauty. When I leave him, he has blown away my troubles and he has laughed and played with me in my joy. ”My” Forest is the one I go to if I can, but I love all forests I come to. I want to go alone, though, if I can.

LetsbeWild has kindly asked us for this challenge – Forest. I thank you and give you some of my moods – through him.

Travel theme: Pathways

Stigar – vad är mer lockande i livet? Inte mycket, tycker jag. De lockar och drar, och jag vill bara följa dem och se vart de leder… Så många gånger tänker jag så, men nästan lika många gånger stannar det vid tanken. Säkert hade mitt liv varit helt annorlunda om jag oftare hade kunnat släppa på av tiden och bara följa… mina tankestigar. I verkliga livet också.

Se alla fantastiska stigar som väntar på dig hos Ailsa – klicka på länken! Och – själv bjuder jag på några av de vackraste jag vandrat. Jag hoppas att de fortfarande vindlar fram över dessa fantastiska öar.

Ailsa (Where’s My Backpack?) is a master of finding new, interesting topics for everybody to join in with their interpretations. This time the topic is a favourite of mine – and I guess many more of us feel the same – Pathways.

Many beautiful entries are to be found at her place – just click the link and stroll along some of them…just follow and let the end be a surprise. At least for me, this is the thinking going on in my brain when I find a new path…

Follow me on some of the most beautiful paths I have walked. I hope they are all still winding their way there on these lovely islands.