Saturday Scenes

On the 21st of January in 1910, after heavy rainfall, the River Seine rose and flooded Paris, bringing the city to a standstill. The city transformed itself briefly into “a reluctant Venice”, with makeshift wooden walkways and small boats being used to traverse the city streets. Because the water rose slowly, there were no fatalities but police, firemen and the army took to boats in order to rescue the Parisiennes who were trapped in their homes by the rising water.

100 Years Later, Revisiting a Paris Flood – NYTimes.com

After months of unusually wet weather in 1909, January 1910 brought even heavier rainfall that, combined with faulty engineering, swelled the waters of the Seine. The river eventually rose to 26 feet above normal levels, flooding the streets and squares of central Paris.

For a time, Paris looked more like Venice: famous boulevards turned into canals, and boats replaced the flooded Métro tunnels as the preferred mode of transportation. This novel and strangely beautiful urban landscape drew the attention of artists and photographers from around the world.

There’s a gorgeous collection of photographs online: Photos of Paris flood, 1910. The water reached its peak on the 28th at 8.62 metres (28 feet 3 inches). A month later the water had receded completely.

Meanwhile, a hundred and one years later on the 21st of January 2011, many stunning photographs were taken. I wonder if they’ll be considered important documentation in the next century?

Take a moment to say hello to the photographers:

• akrabat
• Pewari
• CallumDG
• raumsinn
• Korwhai
• fluttabyz
• jackie_reid
• elibrody
• riggersmark
• craftychai
• JanetIsserlis
• thermalhound
• icklemouse
• sahfenn
• ernmander
• RAFairman
• UKMelia
• AlistairRae
• robdavies
• noirem
• carocat
• jamesnnb
• Mutley627441
• sweeneyjf
• dudleypj
• mousewords
• drewbenn
• HeideSpruck
• pixelfreund
• evilrooster
• JeannieKelly
• CliffStanford

Taking part is easy – just take a photo on a Saturday and tweet the url and location to @SatScenes to be included in next week’s round-up!

Saturday was the 14th of January which is the birthdate of many esteemed famous important people!

On this day, the following people arrived into the world:
83BC Marcus Antonius
1131 King Valdemar I of Denmark
1507 Catherine of Habsburg
1702 Emperor Nakamikado of Japan
1741 Benedict Arnold
1861 Mehmed VI, Ottoman Sultan
1911 Norman “Sailor Jerry” Collins
1941 Faye Dunaway
1968 Ruel Fox
2012 Maxwell Justin Toms (weighing 7lb 11oz)

Welcome to the world, Master Maxwell, and well done for choosing to arrive on a Saturday!

If you look at this week’s set, you will see three photographs of our esteemed newcomer. Congratulations to @icklemouse (mother) and @thermalhound (father) and @oxonlady (grandmother) for their new arrival!

Meanwhile, on the very same day, these wonderful photographs from all over the world were taken:

And here are the people who took them:

• Mutley627441
• max1018
• CallumDG
• carocat
• JeannieKelly
• raumsinn
• JanetIsserlis
• UKMelia
• kyleorchid
• Korwhai
• CarolineBignell
• Pewari
• RAFairman
• jackie_reid
• noirem
• ernmander
• oxonlady
• akrabat
• jamesnnb
• evilrooster
• Denrael
• thermalhound
• drewbenn
• HeideSpruck
• dudleypj
• mousewords
• pixelfreund
• sahfenn
• RyanosaurusRex
• robdavies
• icklemouse
• timewind
• akaSylvia
• ednaknits
• AlistairRae
• fembat

Why don’t you join in?

We’d love to see your photos! Just take a picture on a Saturday and send it to @SatScenes with a location.

See you next week!

Wow, what great scenes you submitted last year. I’ve finally had a chance to go over them and I’m just so in awe of all of you taking so many great photographs.

I know a couple of people took up the challenge of taking a photograph EVERY Saturday so once again, I’ve tallied up the posts for the past year.

Here are our top numbers for Saturday Scene submissions:

10th with 36 submissions: fluttabyz
9th with 38: icklemouse
8th with 40: timewind
7th with 42: fembat
6th with 45: akasylvia
5th with 47: robdavies
4th with 48: janetisserlis
3rd with 51: pendrift
2nd with 52: sahfenn

and finally, 1st with 53, which means these people submitted every week:

• akrabat
• carocat
• jamesnnb
• Pewari
• raumsinn
• UKMelia

WEll done! I’ve opened a bottle of champagne to celebrate all the wonderful SatScenes in 2011.

And here, without further ado, are the very first Saturday Scenes of 2012:

I love it when we get a great and varied set like this!

Here are the fast-off-the-mark photographers who took them:

• RAFairman
• Pewari
• rnout
• RyanosaurusRex
• Korwhai
• JanetIsserlis
• HeideSpruck
• ednaknits
• raumsinn
• JeannieKelly
• SockYarnShop
• Mutley627441
• robdavies
• ernmander
• akrabat
• UKMelia
• sahfenn
• jamesnnb
• dudleypj
• carocat
• timewind
• mousewords
• icklemouse
• noirem
• CallumDG
• fembat
• evilrooster
• thermalhound
• drewbenn
• akaSylvia

So! How many Saturday Scenes will you manage this year?

You know the drill: take a photograph, tweet it to @Satscenes with a location and bask in the glory.

I’m looking forward to many more scenes from Saturdays to come.

The 31st of December 1994 did not occur for a large region in the Pacific Ocean. The date was simply skipped within the eastern islands of the Republic of Kiribati, who were the only nation in the world to be divided by the dateline. On 1 January 1995, they changed timezone and moved the dateline eastwards to go around the island republic. Phoenix Islands went from UTC-11 to UTC+13 and the Line Islands went from UTC-10:00 to UTC+14:00.

The Republic of Kiribati, 32 atolls and one solitary island, is the only country in all four hemispheres. The main island chain in the republic was named Iles Gilbert after the Captain who first sighted them in 1788 whilst sailing from Australia to China. The name Kiribati is based on the local pronunciation of Gilberts.

UTC+14:00 – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

As a British colony, Kiribati was centered in the Gilbert Islands, just west of the old date line. Upon independence in 1979, the new republic acquired the Phoenix and Line Islands from the United States and the country found itself straddling the date line. Government offices on opposite sides of the line could only communicate by radio or telephone on the four days of the week when both sides experienced weekdays simultaneously.

UTC+14:00 is the highest time zone, meaning the Line Islands are now the first to enter into a new year, which resulted in Caroline Island being renamed Millennium Island. The time of day in the Line Islands is the same as in Hawaii but the date is one day ahead. The time is 26 hours ahead of Baker Island.

However, I’m happy to report that the 31st of December 2011 definitely did happen and you can see photographs from all over the world as proof:

And these are the right-on-time people who took them:

• JanetIsserlis
• raumsinn
• robdavies
• Korwhai
• sahfenn
• carocat
• daydreamlab
• ernmander
• UKMelia
• rOcKeTmAn_76
• akrabat
• icklemouse
• noirem
• pendrift
• CallumDG
• ingridf
• dudleypj
• jamesnnb
• drewbenn
• Pewari
• Eriena_S
• evilrooster
• HeideSpruck
• fembat
• CliffStanford
• Krautie
• RealCainMosni
• timewind
• akaSylvia

2011 started and ended on a Saturday so there were 53 Saturdays in all. A big congratulations to the people who posted every week!

Join us in 2012.

On the 24th of December in 1826, a celebration at the north barracks of West Point got a little bit out of hand.

The military academy was concerned that the cadets were drinking too much and it was decided that this year’s Christmas party would be alcohol-free.

This did not much appeal to the cadets, who promptly planned to smuggle in a half-gallon of whiskey to add to the eggnog. One group purchased two gallons of whiskey. Another brought in a gallon of rum. And on the evening of the 24th, another cadet got a further gallon of whiskey in case they ran out. And then the party began.

There were multiple attempts to quiet down the cadets in the early hours of the morning but this was met with resistance. At four am, three drunken cadets were found rummaging around the barracks. They were searching for drums and a fife in order to lead the mutiny.

By 5am, the cadets were openly rioting.

The Eggnog Riot | Article | The United States Army

A few of the cadets took Thayer’s regulations as a challenge and intended to outsmart the superintendent and his staff by having the best holiday celebration West Point had seen. The term “celebration” may not apply in this case, but the incident of the “Eggnog Riot” was something West Point had never experienced. At least seventy cadets took part in the shenanigans, resulting in assaults on two officers and destruction of North Barracks, as some of the students, in their inebriated state, had smashed several windows.

The Eggnog Riot resulted in nineteen cadets and one soldier court-martialled. The moral of the story: if you are enjoying a tipple this holiday season, please do try to avoid playing the fife. It causes no end of trouble.t

Meanwhile, on the 24th of December in 2011, Saturday celebrations took place around the world! Take a look:

And these are the top-of-the-class photographers who took them:

• RealCainMosni
• pendrift
• CarolineBignell
• raumsinn
• elibrody
• Pewari
• noirem
• twasntme
• akrabat
• ernmander
• SockYarnShop
• carocat
• ClareRevell
• sahfenn
• dudleypj
• UKMelia
• icklemouse
• CallumDG
• APGPhoto
• HeideSpruck
• akaSylvia
• jamesnnb
• DaughterofLir
• AlistairRae
• mousewords
• drewbenn
• timewind
• fembat
• rnout
• RAFairman
• ingridf

Next Saturday is the last Saturday of the year! Make sure to take a photograph so you can join us for the end of year celebration!

All you need to do is take a photograph on Saturday and tweet it to @SatScenes with your location. It’s easy and fun and a great way to end 2011.

In ancient Roman times, the 17th of December was the day of the festival in honour of the deity Saturn, the god of seed and sowing. 17 December was (then) the first day of the astrological sign Capricorn, when the sun entered the constellation of Capricornus. Capricorn is ruled by the planet Saturn.

Saturnalia, described as “the best of days”, was traditionally focused on reversals – celebrating the opposite of what was normal. Schools and businesses were closed and a feast was served for the slaves who dressed in their masters’ clothes. Evening dress was worn all day and dice games, normally prohibited, were enjoyed by all. Gifts were given, commonly candles but “gag gifts” of low value were also popular, especially in later times.

Saturnalia – Wikipedia

In his many poems about the Saturnalia, Martial names both expensive and quite cheap gifts, including writing tablets, dice, knucklebones, moneyboxes, combs, toothpicks, a hat, a hunting knife, an axe, various lamps, balls, perfumes, pipes, a pig, a sausage, a parrot, tables, cups, spoons, items of clothing, statues, masks, books, and pets.

So if you still have last-minute Christmas shopping to do, perhaps you can steal some ideas from the ancient Romans! I’d be quite happy with a writing tablet and a sausage, really.

Meanwhile, in a lucky coincidence, the 17th of December of 2011 took place on a Saturday, which comes from dies Saturni which of course means Saturn’s Day.

We all celebrated by taking photographs! Take a look:

And these are the capricious people who took them:

• CarolineBignell
• elibrody
• icklemouse
• HeideSpruck
• rnout
• ednaknits
• kyleorchid
• robdavies
• ClareRevell
• ernmander
• raumsinn
• JeannieKelly
• UKMelia
• jamesnnb
• annemnicholas
• pendrift
• dudleypj
• evilrooster
• drewbenn
• evenstar84
• fluttabyz
• CallumDG
• Pewari
• akrabat
• fembat
• JanetIsserlis
• timewind
• Korwhai
• akaSylvia
• rOcKeTmAn_76
• RealCainMosni
• carocat

Next Saturday, why don’t you join us?

All you need to do is take a photograph on Saturday and tweet it to @SatScenes with your location. It’s easy and fun, so what’s stopping you?

On the 10th of December in 1968, three hundred million yen were stolen from the Kokubunji branch of the Nihon Shintaku Ginko bank in what is the single largest heist in Japanese history. With inflation, that would be worth about 25 million British pounds or 38 million US dollars today.

That morning, four employees were transporting metal boxes full of yen out into the bank transport car. A man in uniform on a police motorcycle waved the car down and told them that their branch manager’s house had been blown up. The police, he told them, had received a warning that dynamite was planted in the transport car. The employees retreated as the man crawled under the car to locate the bomb. He swiftly rolled back out, surrounded by smoke and flames, and said that the bomb was about to explode. As the employees took cover, the man jumped into the car and drove away.

Just as the men were praising the bravery of the policeman, they realised his motorcycle was not, in fact, a police vehicle. They had been tricked.

The police released a list of suspects which included 110,000 names. Nine hundred million yen was spent on the investigation, yet the case remains unsolved. The statute of limitations on the crime passed in 1975 and it was hoped that that thief would step forward and tell the story. One reporter claimed he had traced a 500-yen-note and through it discovered the culprit, Yuji Ogata.

Ogata openly admitted that he and a cohort were able to sneak the money past police roadblocks using a light truck transporting glass panes. Soon afterward they fled to opposite ends of the archipelago.

But Focus (Jan. 27) responded by shooting numerous holes in Shukan Hoseki’s story, citing a lack of convincing evidence and attacking Ogata’s credibility. ‘He always has been a bit of a windbag,’ remarks the wife of his alleged cohort.

We will probably never know the mastermind who planned the perfect theft and got away with it. Maybe he is keeping quiet in case there’s a chance to plan another!

Meanwhile, on the 10th of December in 2011, the following masterminds perpetrated amazing and artistic photography upon Twitter. Take a look:

And here are the incredibly clever people who admitted to taking the photos:

• oxonlady
• ClareRevell
• JeannieKelly
• CarolineBignell
• CallumDG
• SarahKITV
• Pewari
• SockYarnShop
• ednaknits
• UKMelia
• akrabat
• elibrody
• ernmander
• annemnicholas
• raumsinn
• T_northernbloke
• rnout
• APGPhoto
• sahfenn
• RAFairman
• henrypsmum
• robdavies
• carocat
• fembat
• icklemouse
• akaSylvia
• noirem
• jamesnnb
• RyanosaurusRex
• dudleypj
• RacingHippo
• timewind
• RealCainMosni
• pendrift

Would you like to be listed too? It’s easy to join in!

1) Take a photo on a Saturday and upload it to a photo hosting site or your blog so we can see it

2)

Twitter the url for your photograph to @SatScenes

3)

Watch for the next post on Twitter Blog to see a great set of all the photographs together.

I’m looking forward to seeing your scenes!

On the 3rd of December in 1927, a two-reel silent film was released. It was called Putting Pants on Philip and it was the first film to star Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy as a comedy duo. Stan Laurel played Philip, a Scot who has come to visit his uncle Piedmont Mumblethunder. The Uncle (Oliver Hardy of course) is embarrassed by Philip’s kilt and takes the boy to get a proper pair of trousers.

The two men soon became a sensation and famous for their slapstick comedy, especially their tit-for-tat cartoonish fights. But their famous catch phrase, “Well, here’s another fine mess you’ve gotten me into,” is actually a misquote – it’s another nice mess.

The misquoted version of the phrase was never used by Hardy on film; the misunderstanding stems from the title of their film Another Fine Mess (1930). Numerous variations of the quote appeared on film. In Chickens Come Home (1931), Ollie says impatiently to Stan, “Well….” with Stan replying, “Here’s another nice mess I’ve gotten you into.” In Thicker than Water (1935) and The Fixer-Uppers (1935), the phrase becomes “Well, here’s another nice kettle of fish you pickled me in!” In Saps at Sea (1940) it becomes “Well, here’s another nice bucket of suds you’ve gotten me into!”

Meanwhile, on the 3rd of December in 2011, well, all I can say is… Well, here’s another fine Saturday you filled with submissions! Take a look:

And here is the nice kettle of fish that took them:

• pixelfreund
• icklemouse
• carocat
• SoullessMachine
• JanetIsserlis
• UKMelia
• robdavies
• evilrooster
• ernmander
• AlistairRae
• raumsinn
• oxonlady
• riggersmark
• SockYarnShop
• noirem
• fluttabyz
• ClareRevell
• Pewari
• NealP55
• dudleypj
• akrabat
• jamesnnb
• pixelesh
• HeideSpruck
• timewind
• pendrift
• sahfenn
• RyanosaurusRex
• RealCainMosni
• fembat
• akaSylvia
• rOcKeTmAn_76

Encourage your friends join us next weekend! It’s easy:

1. Take a photograph on a Saturday
2. Upload the photograph
3. Send a tweet to @SatScenes with the url

I’m looking forward to seeing your corner of the world on Saturday!

On the 26th of November in 1977 at 17:12, the early evening news on local ITV televsion station Southern Television was unexpectantly interrupted by a six minute transmission from an unknown source.

The speaker claimed to be an extra-terrestrial being representing the Intergalactic Association.

Here is the message he wished to share with the British public:

1977 Vrillon of the Ashtar Galactic Command Incident

This is the voice of Vrillon, a representative of the Ashtar Galactic Command, speaking to you. For many years you have seen us as lights in the skies. We speak to you now in peace and wisdom as we have done to your brothers and sisters all over this, your planet Earth.

We come to warn you of the destiny of your race and your world so that you may communicate to your fellow beings the course you must take to avoid the disaster which threatens your world, and the beings on our worlds around you. This is in order that you may share in the great awakening, as the planet passes into the New Age of Aquarius. The New Age can be a time of great peace and evolution for your race, but only if your rulers are made aware of the evil forces that can overshadow their judgments.

Be still now and listen, for your chance may not come again.

The statement ended with the broadcast returning to normal shortly before the end of a Looney Tunes cartoon. Southern Television later apologised for the “breakthrough in sound” and confirmed that “a hoaxer jammed our transmitter in the wilds of North Hampshire by taking another transmitter very close to it.” However, they were unable to determine the exact source and did not find the person who sent it.

Public opinion was very clear: if they did not know who had done it, how on earth did they know it was a hoax? Vrillon (or Asteron or Gillon – opinions as to his name varies) could have been a real extra-terrestrial visiting North Hampshire.

On the 27th of November in 2011, these astronomically-good photographs appeared on Twitter. I am unable to determine the exact source for most of them – they could be photographs taken by extra-terrestrials:

Could it be that aliens are using Twitter to interact with us? These are the star-studded submitters:

• icklemouse
• CarolineBignell
• evilrooster
• evenstar84
• raumsinn
• pewari
• RAFairman
• ernmander
• UKMelia
• Krautie
• carocat
• RyanosaurusRex
• sahfenn
• annemnicholas
• pixelfreund
• SoullessMachine
• jamesnnb
• HeideSpruck
• drewbenn
• illuminancy
• gwenthing
• fembat
• seeperry
• pendrift
• dudleypj
• akaSylvia
• akrabat
• timewind
• JanetIsserlis
• RealCainMosni
• RacingHippo
• noirem

You should join us next weekend! It’s easy:

1. Take a photograph on a Saturday
2. Upload the photograph
3. Send a tweet to @SatScenes with the url

I’m looking forward to seeing your Saturday Scene in the next edition!

One hundred years ago, on the 19th of November in 1911, the Doom Bar in Cornwall claimed two ships: the Island Maid and the Angele.

The Doom Bar is a bank of sand on Cornwall’s coast which formed where the Celtic Sea rushes against the flow of the River Camel during the reign of Henry VIII (1491-1547). In between the tides it is submerged by just a few feet, making the entrance to the Padstow extremely dangerous to navigate. The name comes from the gaelic Dunbar which simply means sandbank.

It is said that the Mermaid of Padstow fell in love with a Cornish man who shot her when she tried to lure him into the sea (or possibly because he thought she was a seal). She retaliated by cursing Padstow and throwing sand at the harbour. A dark storm gathered and the Doom Bar formed, ending Padstow’s prosperous time as a port.

The first of two ships to wreck on the 19th of November was the Island Maid. The crew were rescued by the lifeboat before the ship sunk. But soon after, the Angele ran aground. The tide had turned and the sun was setting and the lifeboat crew refused to return to the boat. The coxwain, William Hory Baker, explained what happened at the inquest which was reported in the newspaper:

Papers Past – Grey River Argus – 10 January 1912 – LIFEBOATMAN WHO REFUSED.

“Some of the crew considered it was risky,” said Baker. “By this time, the searchlight from the steam lifeboat was playing on the wrecks, and when my crew saw the terrible seas which they would have to encounter their hearts failed them, and they left the boat.

I had to have the rockets fired to summon another crew. Eventually the boat put off with a scratch crew including some men from the steam lifeboat, and part of the crew of a trawler, a coastguard, and a policeman.

…I would much rather the men’s hearts failed them before they went out than just as they were reaching a vessel,” added Baker. “I never remember the whole of the crew backing out before. The first trip was a very severe one.”

They found only one survivor, the captain. The rest of the crew had drowned. The coroner returned a verdict of “accidentally drowned” and did not fault the crew.

You can read more about the rescues of the past in ‘A Short History Of The Padstow Lifeboat’ compiled by George C Phillips which is available from the Padstow Lifeboat station priced at £3.25. The ticket to Cornwall may cost quite a bit more.

But don’t despair, you can still travel the world without spending a penny.

Exactly one hundred years later, these potentially-historical-events were recorded using digital technology and uploaded so that everyone could share in the moment. We have photographs from Malaysia, the Netherlands, Scotland, Zambia, the US, Switzerland, Belgium, England, Dubai, Wales, Belgium and Spain: take a look!

And these are the photographers who took them:

• RAFairman
• CallumDG
• akrabat
• Pewari
• HeideSpruck
• CarolineBignell
• ClareRevell
• evilrooster
• andrew_lillie
• Mutley627441
• raumsinn
• kyleorchid
• robdavies
• JanetIsserlis
• fluttabyz
• pixelfreund
• icklemouse
• Korwhai
• oxonlady
• pendrift
• ernmander
• UKMelia
• jamesnnb
• sahfenn
• JeannieKelly
• timewind
• annemnicholas
• fembat
• akaSylvia
• AlistairRae
• carocat

Incidentally. There is also a Cornish ale called Doom Bar Bitter. In order to make sure this post was 100% authentic, I drank a few pints. It is extremely nice. Any incoherence this week is thus due to the subject matter as opposed to my bad writing.

See you next week!