Wednesday, October 19, 2011

There Be Dragons . . . (or angels . . . ? )

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I know some of you were simply dying to get a better idea of where the magic lantern pictured in the previous post fit in among the dragons also depicted, hopefully this first photo will make everything perfectly clear. Life is strange sometimes ; I've visited this charming site several times over the years, as it is rather close to home and makes for a pleasant stroll in the woods around the ponds. But not once had I ever noticed the lantern hanging there between the dragons. No doubt because it is a magic lantern and only reveals itself to those whom it wishes to have see it. But now equipped with a blog with a name like this one has, it couldn't very well refuse me any longer.
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Ah, dragons. Those mythical beasts. I confess, I was raised on a diet of Tolkien and Narnia, with a pinch of the Wind in the Willows. Smaug, the dragon in The Hobbit seemed very real indeed to me when I was little. I sometimes wonder whether such a diet at an early age was a good thing or not, for the real world we live in, as opposed to the realm of imagination, can seem a drab and dreary place in comparison, at times. Until one stumbles on a magic lantern flanked by dragons, and remembers that one must create one's own magic in this day and age, and seek one's own beauty, wherever it may be found.
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I admit as well, I commented to la Grenouille as we were walking along the pond after having seen these dragons, that I would like to see them leap from their stone perches and go thundering across the lake breathing fire. But no such show was forthcoming, so we made our way quietly home. But doesn't he look like he is just yearning to take to the skies for some wreaking of havoc, pillaging and plundering, as dragons are wont to do ?
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Yesterday I was out again with the camera, for a second day in a row, and spotted another form of winged creature which only comes to life in dreams and movies. Just as the dragon represents all that is evil, the angel speaks of sweet serenity and peace. I've been paying attention to angel images of late, after visiting a place this summer named the Abbaye des Anges, or Angels Abbey, out in Brittany. The owners of that lovely property had quite a collection of angels of one sort or another. And since then I've started to realize that there are angels hiding in many places, if one cares to see them. This one seemed particularly graceful, poised to take flight with the soul of a departed child here. Forever poised for flight. Some folks believe that angels exist. Literature about near death experiences is replete with angelic references. I'm skeptical about such assertions. For me, seeing is believing. Guess I'll have to wait until my time is up to find out.
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Yes, as I said, seeing is believing. Now, I honestly did not set out take a photo of any living angels when I composed this landscape on the Brittany coast in August. But such is the power of digital photography, and multi-million pixel images, that even very small sections of an original image can become a page filling size without losing any detail or becoming grainy as such a section of a film negative would have done. This is the original full size image, from a beach on a small island off the Brittany coast, which one can walk to at low tide:
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And here are the angels I realized I'd captured when I got home and looked more closely at the photos from that afternoon. Wings of course were folded up and stowed away for sunbathing purposes.
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Wait a second ! One of them turned over when I wasn't looking ! Will wonders never cease ?
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So, isn't life strange and wonderful ? I just noticed before publishing this post that up through the last one, I have done 1,111 blog posts here at the Magic Lantern Show. This is post # 1,112. We are getting into War and Peace length. Full of dragons and angels. And with two more who checked in yesterday, there are now 499 "followers" showing in the Followers gadget. Who is going to be number 500 ? And will that change anything in the greater scheme of things ? This remains about as obscure as a blog can be. No signs of going viral yet. But who knows, we are getting into flu season, so maybe it could get contagious yet, as dragons and angels interact and mutate, who knows what magic may yet be forthcoming.
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26 comments:

French Girl in Seattle said...

Ah! Great post Owen. I do wish you a wonderful and unique "500th follower"-- and I sincererly hope your blog gets viral one of these days. Old buildings, butterflies, roosters, dragons, magic lanterns, sunbathing beauties... all magically captured. You have it all. Keep up the good work! Veronique (French Girl in Seattle)

Steve said...

Those angels must be in their hot blood... either that or it's a good deal warmer where you are!

Lady Mondegreen's Secret Garden said...

Soften us up with esoteric talk of angels and then reveal that you're just a middle-aged pervert. Oh Owen. Hmm, you could blow it up a bit more and read their latest text message...

Are you sure you want to go viral. I'm sure I'm not the only one who enjoys your personal touch. It adds to the pleasure of the photos and the story-telling to have your individualised answers to our comments.

I've just been thinking about this, as what has become my Broad Bean post(Promise) has drawn more comments than I've ever had at one go. What a buzz, but making sure I reply to eleven comments and visit all their blogs as well, is feeling close to the limit of what I have time for.

Springman said...

Personally, I don't believe your story. Small cut in the bushes, the lithe female forms framed in there perfectly? Who are you trying to kid? My high resolution surveillance indicates the "Magic Lantern blog" on the device nestled by the polka dot girls head with the pink toe nail, Autumn Rose by Revlon I believe. Anyway, clashes with her bikini. They are probably discussing why no one is paying any attention to them. Little do they know.
And you thought you weren't going viral!

Owen said...

Merci bcp Véronique ! Bon, on va voir pour le 500ème, bien souvent il y a des mois et des mois qui passent sans nouveaux abonnés... peu importe, ce n'est pas vraiment un critère qui veut dire grande chose, car je suis loin d'avoir 500 visites par billet. Et oui, ce Magic Lantern Show est une vraie menagerie de sujets... il y a un peu de tout.

Sinon, en parlant de menagerie, as-tu vu l'histoire dans la presse ce jour, sur CNN et autre, en Ohio, concernant l'homme qui a relaché toute sa collection d'animaux sauvages ? Des ours, tigres, lions, loups, etc, qui couraient dans la nature. Heureusement, la menagerie ici sur la lanterne magique ne risque pas d'échapper... Bonne journée à toi !

Owen said...

Steve, not only is it warmer here, but you are certainly right, these are probably the warm blooded variety... the heat waves could be felt for miles around...

Owen said...

Dear Lady M., I'm sure I can blame my upbringing for whatever I may be today, when I was a wee young lad of ten and still quite impressionable my parents took me to Paris to visit not only the Louvre Museum, where we tracked down the Venus de Milo, but also an evening expedition to the Folies Bergères... which was quite an eye opener for a boy my age then ! :-)

Anyway, yes, I'm sure you are right, a viral blog with hundred or thousands of visits per day could risk a loss of the obscure, more friendly flavor it has at present. Answering comments is always a pleasure, but a pleasure for which I don't always have the time, as much as I'd like.

Between being a devoted husband and papa to two daughters, and a full time job, and an addiction to getting out and taking photographs, as well as trying to keep this blog afloat, play a little guitar from time to time, feeding the cats, time just seems to slip away... sigh...

As for blowing up the photo to read the text messages on the phone, I did, but had to color them back in black screens to prevent any important secrets about toenail polish colors to be revealed... :-)

Owen said...

Oh, Sir Springman, how could you ??? You doubting Thomas you... Honestly, to question the veracity of the Magic Lantern ??? Well, I never heard the like ! :-)

But of course it was pure chance, that break in the ferns... I was focused on the man out on the far side of the beach who was poking around looking for crabs and clams in that low tide wet sand.

Ah, so you noticed the toenail polish too ? It might have gone better with the orange bikini... maybe they should have switched bathing suits ?

Céline said...

J'aime beaucoup tes anges merveilleux :-)

Owen said...

Bonsoir Céline,
Parfois on voit des anges dans des endroits surprenants... ce serait dommage s'il fallait que les anges restent en permanence dans les nuages à dix mille mètres du sol terrestre... :-)

Kate Cullen Fisher said...

wonderful combo...angels and dragons! you scoped out a nice collection for your followers, Owen...so cool that you are always in full flight...

Stickup Artist said...

Dragons and fair maidens always go together. That one close up looks like he is fairly drooling! Old, new, now, then; maybe things never really change. And the angels watch over it all...

Owen said...

Hi Kate ! Lovely to see you found your way here, to the white arctic landscape of the comment box... a change from the endless white sand beaches perhaps... in full flight is right... been that way forever it seems... Wonderful to have found you again, looking forward to lots more...

Owen said...

Oh, and Kate, I hadn't really focused on the "Fisher" part... Don't know if you might have seen a film called the Fisher King, a Robin Williams, Terry Gilliam production, also about dragons and damsels, in a way...

Owen said...

Hey Stickup... you are right about the way it looks like that dragon's mouth was watering... he must have been dreaming about a particularly tender and juicy dinner he was going to find on his next flight across the countryside... not easy being a stone dragon during the day...

Lady Mondegreen's Secret Garden said...

Been meaning to get back about your childhood influences. What better way to influence an impressionable little boy than with the Venus de Milo and the Folies Bergeres (you must have a French keyboard - I can't accent my mad shepherds). You've got me thinking that my girls would enjoy the Folies Bergeres tres bien and this would be one good reason for an overnight visit to Paris during our approaching visit to the UK!

Thanks for your words of comfort by the way Owen.

Anonymous said...

It's not surprising that you have so many followers. There's something for everyone here. Dragons, angels and hot babes.

Catherine said...

what a range of wonder is in this post all presided over by the eponymous magic lantern!! Greetings form the Riviera...

James said...

Great post! I enjoyed seeing the dragons and the angels, oh and the beach scenes are top notch! I hope to see your 10,000th post! Congrats on 501 followers!

Lynne with an e said...

I remember times of believing in dragons and witches, talking toads, fairy princesses and other angelic beings. I remember times of sitting innocently bronzing on a beach while fully clad men prowled the footpaths above. I remember what it was to have a flat stomach and hip bones. I almost forgot to check in here to regale myself with the latest installment of the Magic Lantern Adventures, though. All that dragon breath (to say nothing of the drool) must have clouded my senses.
Is blogging just a numbers game?How many angels can dance on the head of a blog post?

Owen said...

Lynne, I think blogging is not so much a numbers game but more a circle game (and the circles they go round and round )... sort of like hula hooping, a challenge to see how long one can keep the hoops spinning in the air with amazing grace. My daughters can both keep three hula hoops going at once... I can barely keep one going. And when I say barely, I mean "almost", and not "without clothes" ! But you knew that, right ? :-)

Owen said...

Hey James, many many thanks... wow, 10000 posts ??? that's quite a ways out from here, but who knows... :-)

Owen said...

Hi Catherine, may I say I simply love the word "epynomous", ever since I learned it in the opening pages of John Fowles' The French Lieutenant's Woman... where Lyme Bay was epynomous with Lyme Regis... Hope it is nice and warm on the South coast. Here it is minus two ! BBBrrrrrrrrr !

Owen said...

Dear LGS,
That's the magic in the lantern, it just spins out images so everyone sees something that appeals to them... no matter what they like...

Pat Tillett said...

beautiful and interesting at the same time. Man, I wish there was something even remotely like this where I live...

Anonymous said...

Neat post,bravo