Photo of the day (one image per post)

[NikonN8]

Thanks. She's my niece, who was supposed to come 3 weeks after my boy but instead showed up 8 days earlier. My bride/ new mom is really enjoying quality snaps of the kids, as is the rest of the family.

This is another of my little dude yesterday, his mom being a big fan of titling it "Red White and Blue... Eyes"

 

[Misled]

The eyes always make the shot!!!

 

[aikenreefkeeper]

Nice photos Nate.

 

[Member No. 1]

Complete with a tiny bell?

James, not sure if you know the meaning behind the bell, but in case you or
others were wondering, it dates back to the 11th century.
You can buy one for yourself, but tradition has it that it should be a gift from a friend, as it will have more power.
In today's crazy world, and after the recent horrific accident in NH that killed
7, I'll take all the help I can get.

Mean of the Motorcycle Bell

The meaning of motorcycle bells is often associated with little gremlins and/or demons that hide along the highways and sabotage motorcycles, causing bikes to crash.

But their history goes back, way back.

As early as the 11th Century AD, Catholics in England and Scotland rang "œdead bells" in a funeral procession to ward off evil spirits. The use of bells grew in popularity in the Catholic Church as a way to mourn passing souls and continues to this day. The use of bells hanging from windows, doors, and overhangs, have been used in many cultures to ward off malicious spirits.

It wasn't until the 1920s, when pilots of the Royal Air Force began talking of little creatures that wreaked havoc with their airplanes. The word "œgremlin" was coined, deriving from the Old English, "œgremman" or "œgremian", which means to "œto vex". It described little humanoid creatures that sabotaged airplanes perhaps as humorous way to explain the fault-prone construction of RAF technology.

Roald Dahl was a pilot in the RAF during WWII, and advanced the idea into a children's book entitled, "œThe Gremlins"œ, which was eventually published by Walt Disney. The book sold 50,000 copies initially with an additional 30,000 later on. American pilots adopted the gremlin folklore and even claimed to have seen them just before a crash or malfunction. It was enough to convince many pilots to use charms to ward off gremlins, including the centuries-old dangling bell.

When American pilots returned home from WWII, many of them continued their wartime camaraderie on motorcycles. Some of them formed clubs, making lifelong friends of their fellow servicemen. They brought the same gremlin myth to their motorcycles, and some of them hung small bells from their bikes.

 

[NikonN8]

Seems the 4th isn't over for some people. Oh well, more photo ops.

 

[OrionN]

 

[Reef Bass]

Good fireworks shot Nate!

Lovely flowers Minh. What are they?

 

[OrionN]

These white flowers are Dragon Fruit flowers. A type of cactus with eatable fruits. Very nutritious.

 

[Reef Bass]

Cool! I've seen dragon fruit for sale but never the flowers. Thanks.

 

[OrionN]

 

[JamesHolt]

James, not sure if you know the meaning behind the bell

Thanks! I did not know what it was for...

Maybe I should get a large one for the Explorer...lol

 

[JamesHolt]

Nepenthes Sanguinea

 

[JamesHolt]

 

[JamesHolt]

 

[JamesHolt]

 

[JamesHolt]

 

[JamesHolt]

A few sprouts, they are about 3/8-1/2 inch long...

 

[NikonN8]

I always enjoy this view from my office lot in the morning.

 

[JamesHolt]

Moved it to the bug thread

 

[JamesHolt]