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Monday 25 May 2015

Too Many Troys?

I looked back over the last few years and realized that I have written several very similar "T" introductions, revolving around Time. Time seems to always be forefront in my mind, so it creeps into my posts, but I Thought I would write about something completely different This Time. A fun "T" fact. Because my name is Troy, I am perhaps more aware of this fact than most people, but since I work in a city named Troy, I notice it even more. Did anyone, besides me, know that there are Twenty-Three states in the USA that have a city named Troy? It reminds me of a Dr Seuss poem, named Too Many Daves Does anyone beside me ever see their name on a road sign, and get a little Tickled? Today's Theme is T. What T Thing Tickled you Today?
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Monday 18 May 2015

S Stands for Stuff

I don't write as many intros as the rest of the team members, so you would think that, having more time to work on them, mine would always be Superb. But alas, Such is Seldom the case. So, let's See... Among my favorite "S" words are Sarcasm, and Sloth, neither of which lends themselves to a Suitable Script. Fortunately for me, I have a Stand-by Subject. The Symbol, or Sign that we use each round has been a pet project of mine for Several rounds now, the rest of the team has indulged me and let me play, and I have always had fun designing them. And since Seventeen starts with S, this is a good time to talk about next round. Secular Symbolism for Seventeen is Scant, So I did as I often do, I let my mind wander aimlessly to see what popped up. I have no particular Symbolism for this one, but it was just kind of what appeared when I let my mind drift and started computer doodling. Spooky, huh? So with no further ado, I would like to give you a Sneak Peek at the proposed Round 17 Logo.
As always Feedback is appreciated. Now its time for you to Show us what happens when you let your mind wander around the letter "S".
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Monday 11 May 2015

R stands for Roads





The Silk Road or long road (Uzun Yol) is the historic system of caravan trails through Turkey, Persia (Iran), India and China that allows trade to prosper and cultures to come into contact over the centuries.





 We travelled along The Silk Road to visit the ancient city of Konya, the spiritual home to the Whirling Dervishes,  I wrote about  the Dervishes on a previous ABCW 'W' post.


The Whirling  Dervishes.


The Selimiye Mosque in Konya.

The trip along the Silk Road was quite a dreary journey until we arrived at the most beautiful ancient city of Konya, a just reward for sitting in a rickety old coach for what seemed like an eternity.  



The journeys and conquests of Alexander The Great probably created The Silk Road, where armies march, merchants quickly follow. After their Parthian campaigns, the Romans developed a liking for silk and fostered trade along the route of The Silk Road. The Byzantines loved the luxuries of the Orient and did what they could to keep them coming. The Seljuk Turks did even better, improving roads and building beautiful Caravanserais to encourage trade with the east.

 The Caravanserais is a resting place for the weary travellers and merchants.

They provided food and beds and also the ubiquitous Hamam (Turkish Bath).





 




The Sultan Han built in the 1230's a striking old Seljuk  Caravanserais it is a fine example  of a Seljuk royal caravan lodging and the second  largest in Anatolia.

 


I have come to the end  of a very long road and hope you have enjoyed my journey through a most spectacular country.

  ...My sincere thanks to the Radiant Denise for devising ABCW and also to our most Revered Roger for his hard work in the administration of ABCW.



 


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Monday 4 May 2015

Q is for questions

When I Googled the word questions, the very first result I got was Great Questions, from the website StoryCorps, which, for the last decade, has been recording people telling their stories.

A few examples of questions:

•Who has been the most important person in your life? Can you tell me about him or her?
•What was the happiest moment of your life? The saddest?
•Who has been the biggest influence on your life? What lessons did that person teach you?
•Who has been the kindest to you in your life?
•What are the most important lessons you’ve learned in life?
•What is your earliest memory?

It occurred to me that a blogger, stuck for content, could create a meme - actually, several - in answering some of these questions.

A few questioning songs:

Chicago - Questions 67 And 68
Question Mark and the Mysterians - 96 Tears
The Moody Blues- Question

From the latter:

Why do we never get an answer
When we're knocking at the door
With a thousand million questions
About hate and death and war?
Because the truth is hard to swallow
That's what the war of love is for.
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