#A Member of the Crew of the St Elmo

[bishopofstdiesis]

Hey... guess what time it almost is in London?

HALLOWMAS! I am excited. I love Hallowmas in Fallen London. Even though you can get neat affiliations at the end, provided you did enough for that “spooky faction,” I always even up a moth (nightmares). There was talk last year that the Queen of Air & Darkness would not be attending London’s Hallowmas this year & would instead be rotated out for one of the others (since we now have four & only three spots in London for venues). 

If there is no Pavillion of Butterflies this spooky season, I will probably end up a demon or a crown. Or... maybe there will be a new faction in town!?

That would be exciting... though 4 menaces probably means four factions. Alas. (Or maybe 6 locations for 6 kinds of confessions? That could be fun...)

While there is a description of the Pavillion several places during the event, telling an AI ONLY that gets you some... well, greenhouses. But explaining who’s INSIDE the Pavillion? Gets you much cooler greenhouses. Adding extra touches (victorian era, architects, interior or exterior, etc) makes the outcome even neater. However, it also makes my brain start wondering how other people see the Pavillion in their mind's eye. Do the candles give it a warm glow or do you think it’s all tinted a bit red because the Queen is there? Or maybe the colour is based on the butterflies inside? Perhaps it’s just an ordinary greenhouse, only made extraordinary by the festivities? 

Feel free to send a message or comment (or reblog) & let me know how you see it. I’d honestly love to know! Also, Hallowmas is my favourite Neathy holiday! So, if you want to share in the excitement, I’d love to see your posts about that too!

(If you want any other locations done, let me know... I get distracted easily by AI ideas & forget to finish my Fallen London prompts. @failbettergames)

[ltwilliammowett]

The Fireship of the Baie des Chaleurs

This is the tale of the phantom light That fills the mariner’s heart, at night, With dread as it gleams o’er his path on the bay, Now by the shore, then far away, Fierce as the flame in sunset skies, Cold as the winter moon that lies On the Baie des Chaleurs. (A.W.H. Eaton, “The Phantom Light of the Baie des Chaleurs”, 1891) 

As we are slowly but surely moving towards October and the nights are getting longer again, it's time to unpack the ghost ship legends. This time we are in Chaleur Bay, located between New Brunswick and Quebec, Canada. Where a three-masted ship is usually seen on fire just before a storm. Sometimes it will just stand in one place for hours, other times it will sail back and forth in the bay. There are several legends that try to explain this ship.

The Burning Ship, ca. 1871, Albert Bierstadt (x)

One of them says that in 1501 a Portuguese captain came here for the second time to kidnap natives and sell them as slaves when he was captured and killed by the angry natives. When his brother sailed here a year later to look for him, his ship was set on fire and when he and his crew perished, he vowed to haunt the bay for 1000 years.

Another story tells of a ship's crew who were afraid of an impending storm. The superstitious men picked one of the crew members to blame for their misfortune and murdered him; in revenge, the ship is said to have caught fire. In revenge, the ship is said to have caught fire, and he himself, already dead and legless, is said to have stood on the beach in flames and asked for help. That is why some people think they always see a ship and a burning person. A third legend says that a band of pirates attacked and killed a woman when she cursed them with her last words: "As long as the world exists, may you burn in the bay."

Unlike most ghost ship phenomena, scientists actually have an explanation for this one. Since the ship always appears before a storm, it seems to be the so-called St. Elmo phenomenon, a light phenomenon caused by electrical charges (electrometeors) that can appear on masts, towers or treetops before a thunderstorm.  

[paulineagain]

The storm's electric alchemy left the healthy members of her crew stupefied. They got through it. But that St. Elmo's fire at her main mast was surely a sign of worse to come.

[jupitermelichios]

Fucking hell the quality drop from PotC 1 to PotC 2 is drastic. There’s some good stuff in it, you can see aspects of what made CotBP work so well, but jeebus h there’s a lot of sudden and unexpected racism in this one. Obviously the stuff with the native Caribbean people is horrifying and unbelievably racist, even a lot of racists I know were uncomfortable but with that part of it, but the new desi crew member, the fact that they kill off all the non-white characters on the crew for no fucking reason (seriously, that scene serves no narrative purpose), it’s all awful. Plus while 1 (i think anyway) struck a decent balance of tacitly acknowledging slavery exists but making a conscious choice to address it because they quite rightly thought that this wasn’t the right film to deal with that, the villains of 2 are the frigging east india company, they literally want the audience to think they’re evil, so now not acknowledging the slave trade becomes a political statement of its own.

Tia Dalma (imo, and I’m very aware that my opinion on this as a white British person is next to meaningless) does the 300 thing of being objectively pretty offensive but actually so awesome that she becomes the best character in it which somewhat mitigates the problems. Yes she’s everything white californians think voodoo is, but she’s also the most memorable character in this and she only gets about three minutes of screentime.

The costume design is fine, but there’s none of the brilliance of 1 and 3, and while there’s a lot of nice little details you only notice on second or third viewings, like Tia Dalma casting the bones using crab shells, there’s also a lot of small bad decisions. Not that we can see them, since 90% of this film is lit like the matrix but with none of the style. Also Elizabeth’s hair grows back between scenes and it really annoys me.

Also the designs for Davey Jones and his crew and the Dutchman itself are just really lame. Like, we have so many descriptions of the dutchman, and the one thing that’s always always consistent is St Elmo’s fire. The Flying Dutchman is lit by St Elmo’s fire. They could have had so much fun with that, and instead we got the most generic possible ghost ship design and a captain who looks like a rejected inkling design. (Davey Jones: he’s a kid now, he’s a squid now).

Also a lot of the casting in this is just terrible. I love Bill Nye, he’s legitimately one of my favourite actors but I love him because he delivers every line as though he’s thirty seconds away from bursting out laughing, which really don’t work as a threatening villain. And the less said about Stellan Skarsgard the better. Will Turner looks just like his father dontcha know?

And it’s so frustrating because there’s still little sparks of the brilliance that made the first one work. A lot of the dialogue is great, some of mythmaking is great, the use of the east india company is great, having James Norrington MST3K the film was genius, but it’s not enough to make up for all the bad.

3 is in many ways better because a) they avoid a lot of the worst of the racism by virtue of having killed off most of non white characters in 2, b) while the jank is dramatically worse, the good bits are also dramatically better and it comes a lot closer to balancing out.

[ghostinsiderhq]

is that nick robinson? no, that’s just greyson the newest member of the crew. make sure your channel is up within 24 hours, and make sure everything else is done. most of all make yourself comfortable.

[THE PROBLEMATIC / MALE / HE/HIM / NICK ROBINSON ] Was that GREYSON STARK going viral again? The NINETEEN year old CONSPIRACY THEORIST youtuber is known for being the LOQUACIOUS. I heard they lived in NEW YORK before getting invited to ghost insider’s destination, st. elmos and are a BELIEVER of the supernatural. His subscribers say he is ENTHUSIASTIC and CHARMING, but his internet trolls say he’s ARROGANT and SELFISH. He hasn’t uploaded in quite some time, rumor says he has REDACTED but that couldn’t possibly be true, let’s hope he explains everything on his newest video. [ KRIS/19/SHE/THEY/ EST]

[maier-files]

New Post has been published on The Maier Files

New Post has been published on http://the.maier-files.com/is-it-a-bird-a-plane-no-its-a-foo-fighter/

Is it a bird? A plane? No, it’s a Foo Fighter

Is it a bird? A plane? No, it’s a Foo Fighter. In late 1944 Reuters press agency reported that  peculiar spheres, similar to the glass balls that decorate Xmas trees, “have been observed hanging in the air over Germany, occasionally singly, often times in clusters. They are primarily shaded silver and are seemingly translucent.” Multiple sightings of these kinds of creepy balls were documented by Allied aircrews all through German airspace, as well as later on in the war over the skies of Japan. Branded as “Foo Fighters” (from the French feu, meaning fire) the balls of light made no attempt to attack, despite the fact that they could out-fly conventional aircraft.

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Allied scientists believed that the Nazis’ sky balls were a top secret air defence weapon, comparable to exploding high altitude balloons, or anti-aircraft missiles. Browsing through Nazi records after the war, researchers discovered all kinds of fascinating secret devices being plotted, from the Fireball (a missile that discharged signals to disrupt Allied aircrafts’ radio and radar) to the Wasserfall (a radio-controlled anti-aircraft missile), but none had been utilized. The consensus was that “Foo Fighters” were in fact natural phenomena, just like ball lightning or St Elmo’s fire (glowing balls of static electricity). Or, later in the war, Luftwaffe jet fighters, for the most part the Me262 or even simple misidentification of other airplanes. And there the matter rest.

In order to accept any of the above explanations, one would have to discount the observational skills of scores of veteran combat pilots and their crew members whose very survival depended on their ability to instantly identify and react to any potential threat.

Documents regarding foo fighter incidents are still being discovered even 50 years after the end of World War II. In 1992, researcher Barry Greenwood of Citizens Against UFO Secrecy (CAUS) went to the National Archives in Suitland, Maryland and located fifteen “Mission Reports” from the 415th Night Fighter Squadron, covering a period between September 1944 and April 1945. Here are two samples:

“December 22/23, 1944 – Mission 1, 17:05-18:50. Put on bogie by Blunder at 17:50 hours, had A.I. [Airborne Intercept radar] contact 4 miles range at Q-7372. Overshot and could not pick up contact again. A.I. went out and weather started closing in so returned to base. Observed 2 lights, one of which seemed to be going on and off at Q-2422.

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“February 13/14, 1945 – Mission 2, 18:00-20:00. About 19:10, between Rastatt and Bishwiller, encountered lights at 3,000 feet, two sets of them, turned into them, one set went out and the other went straight up 2-3,000 feet [600 – 900 m.], then went out. Turned back to base and looked back and saw lights in their original position again.”

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[outsidesports]

7hours of 7mile Enduro – QMTBC Fundraiser

by Elmo Cotter

The 7hours of 7mile was an iconic Queenstown local mountain bike race that started in 2008 and ran in 2009, 11, and 14, but came to an end due to lack of time and resources to keep it going. After a conversation with Tony ‘T.Man’ Moore and some other local riders, I stared to think it could be something with enough enthusiasm around it to be worth resurrecting. Looking at the bike calendar I saw Queenstown was lacking a social Enduro event like this so decided to see if we could make it happen. Outside Sports, being a key company that funded the development of the 7mile bike park along with the Queenstown Mountain Bike Club back in 2003, was keen to get behind the event and fund the costs of putting it together. So away we went.

The 8th of April looked like the best date, putting it at the tail end of the bike season. The event in past had always had a fun and social focus rather than being a super competitive event and we wanted this event culture to remain strong. With over $10k in prizes donated by various local businesses, the prize list was stacked with all sorts of things from a Heli-bike trip for 5 with Fat-Tyre bike tours, to Icebreaker Merino clothing, to Devil Burger Vouchers – meaning we were able to create a tonne of prize categories.

With 60 registered riders the 8th came around and it was time to hit the trails. We were blessed by the weather gods with a beautiful sunny autumn day and with the great weather came 37 more keen entrants to make a field of 97 riders of all ages and abilities.

We wouldn’t have considered this event a success without some great costumes and the riders did not disappoint.

There were people in retro lycra race suits, Hawaiian shirts, covered in glitter, and the team ‘In Victorius IL Trio 7 Milus’ dressed in knights’ armour while riding their noble steeds. The festive vibe was strong and everyone was there with smiles on.

To kick off the race, one member of each team removed their front wheel and placed it by their bike for the group start. Then, with a 3-2-1-GO, the riders ran in a mob around the car park and back to their bikes where they had to put their wheel in before taking off on the track – an effective way of spacing out the crowd. The course took a loop throughout the 7mile Bike Park that went backwards up some downhill trails, through a variety of existing trails, and cut some new lines on untracked ground to make an exciting loop full of varying terrain. The trail had technical sections with roots and rocks, tight switchbacks, flowy jumpy downhills and some loose loamy zones to make for a varied course to put everyone’s overall skills to the test.

One of the individual riders, Richard Dunnett, was the first to complete the first loop and powered through for his second as everyone cheered him on. Riders came flying through the transition area, ripping skids in front of the timing tent and tagging their mates in, or pedalling on for another lap. A good turnout of spectators and support crew cheered everyone on and music played at the lakefront making for an exciting transition zone. The trails were quite dry so by midday the track was getting dusty, corners were being roosted and new hot lines where popping up which kept things exciting.

As the sun rose higher in the sky it was about time to get something into the riders and spectators bellies. Life’s a Grind coffee caravan and the Taco Medic truck provided some high quality sustenance for riders and spectators, and the Pick Me Lick Me ice block stand was treat for those needing to cool down a bit. Outside Sports also put on a BBQ for the riders to keep them trucking through the day. BikeshopDan from Outside Sports was on hand with his bike stand ready to fix any issues the day but with only a few minor fixes he ended up manning the BBQ most of the day. Got to feed the people!

With 1 hour to go it was time for riders to get on the gas again and pump out their final laps with what energy was left. Several teams and individuals had stopped riding to enjoy the sunset while the keen riders gained a few extra laps to try and get themselves ahead enough for the podium.

Just as the shade came down on Wilson’s bay, it was 5pm and the race was done with! The final riders came out of the forest, knackered, but with smiles on their faces and ready for a drink.

The last of the sun shone on the hills in the background making for a spectacular backdrop to the prize giving

After the placing prizes there was still a huge amount of spot prizes including; best dressed, team spirit, biggest air, good sort of the day, hard done by, most stylish bike, best marshal, and one of the entrants (Brenna) even ended up jumping in the cold autumn lake for a free hand gliding trip!

With prize giving wrapped up and the day done with, riders headed to Atlas Beer Café for a well-deserved beer.

With $2910 raised for the club and everyone smiling by the end of the day, it really felt like a great success and something we hope to do again next year.

RESULTS

1st Individual men’s - Richard Dunnet who also had the fastest lap of the day with a time of 18.25 2nd Individual men’s – Marty Macdonald 3rd –individual men’s - Louis Bronstein

 No women’s individuals - take note for next year!

 1st Men’s team –Rebel food (Martin, Grant, Matt, Brent)

2nd Men’s team – Bikaholic (Justin, Matt)

 1st Women’s team – The screaming marmots (Susan, Sharyn, Merrin)

2nd Women’s team – Back Flag (Aimee, Meagan)

1st Mixed team – Team Blank (Alex, Michelle, Marty)

2nd Mixed team – Menagerie (T.man, Neil, Mandy)

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8oBiwC1UmKc&t=4s

 Thanks to everyone that came along, all our incredible volunteers, our generous sponsors, and everyone else that helped make this a fantastic day.

 Thanks to all our prize sponsors: Outside Sports Fat Tyre Adventures Specialized Icebreaker Torpedo7 Skyline Cardrona Mons Royale Thunder Jet Atlas Beer Café Nzone Vivian+Espie Southern Discoveries Remarkable Women’s Health and Fitness Centre Welcome Rock Trails Queenstown Rafting Alta Queenstown Skytrek Select Action Sports Aj Hacket Bunji Shotover Canyon Swing and Fox Devil Burger Spoke Magazine The North Face Mitre10 Mega Queenstown New World Queenstown Bikaholic Altitude Brewery The Lone Star Rebel Food Big Night Out Taco Medic Site Trampoline Around The Mountains Cycle Trail

  Film by: Paul Rayner

Photos by: Thomas Whelan, Lance brown

Words by: Elmo Cotter