“The danger of these expeditions was no doubt very great, but the spoils were in proportion, and there was not a boy or man of the seafaring population of Devon who would not gladly have gone with the adventorous captain.” — Under Drake’s Flag by G.A. Henty
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“The real artist’s work is a surprise to himself. The big painter is the one who has something to say. He thus does not paint men, landscape, or furniture, but an idea.” — Robert Henri
A couple of YouTube videos with a common thread (it’s a riddle).
(1) La Petite Ceinture: What Happened to Paris’s Lost Railway? (The Tim Traveller)
(2) Yesterworld: The Troubled History of Epcot’s Abandoned World Showcase – Part 1 (Yesterworld Entertainment)
(3) The CED: RCA Selectavision Videodisc (Technology Connections)
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(1) France to pay 50 euros per person for bike repairs to boost cycling post-lockdown (Reuters)
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(1) Boston Symphony Orchestra Launches HEROIC PERFORMANCES to Honor Front-Line Workers
May 3 @ 3:00 PM EST: Seiji Ozawa, in his final Symphony Hall concert as BSO Music Director (April 20, 2002), leading Mahler’s Symphony No. 9.
>>> BSO at Home
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(1) I’ve clipped the blog post title from a chapter in the excellently written British Rail Architecture 1948-97 by David Lawrence.
“For centuries architects have used miniature versions of their designs to communicate their ideas to emperors, oligarchs, magnates, civil servants and audiences who must be engaged to ensure a project is approved for development. They may be the device which convinces a client to provide substantial investment for a project.”
“Many modelers will choose a station as one of their first buildings because it is a simulacrum of the interface between trains and human activity. It is an archetype for all stations. In this way the model — in fact an assembly of sundry materials and adhesives — is an imaginative threshold into the tiny world of the model railway, inviting the modeler and audience to step, like Alice in Wonderland, into a perfect version of an imperfect world.”
>>> Source File
(2) Continental’s BIG CITY H-O Scale Modern Architecture Series (Flickr)
I have the ‘Entrance Building’ (Model No. 104) which inspired this photo at Walt Disney World. What do you think happened to Continental Models at 1 Dupont Street in Plainview, NY?
(3) Artist rendering of the new concourse for Liverpool Street (1987) from British Rail Architecture 1948-97 by David Lawrence. I love the vintage engine. It reminds me of Playmobil 4052.
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(1) A scanned image from The Art of Walt Disney World Resort. The design is from Disney Imagineer George McGinnis.
(2) #10 from the Limestone Roof Photo Archives.
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(1) A quote from Walt Disney and the Quest for Community:
“The EPCOT philosophy continued in other ways. Disney’s favorite community topic was transportation, be it model railroading or promoting the monorail. It should come as no surprise that the EPCOT concept’s most lasting influence would be in the area of public transportation. Community Transportation Services was formed as a subsidiary of Walt Disney Productions in 1974.”
(1a) Passenger Launch Seminole (The Art of Walt Disney World Resort)
“These pretty little launches ply the Seven Seas Lagoon between Magic Kingdom Park and the Contemporary, Polynesian, and Grand Floridian resorts, one of the most satisfying simple experiences that Walt Disney World has to offer.”
(1b) Disney’s Contemporary Resort Concourse Interior (The Art of Walt Disney World Resort)
(1c) Abandoned – Disney’s Fort Wilderness Railroad (YouTube)
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(1) Miss Prim At Clear Creek (The American Conservative)
“It is a simple tale that speaks of something that has been in the human heart since always: the search for paradise lost, that indefinable nostalgic sense that we all have engraved in our hearts. A nostalgia that at times savors of childhood, and which neither noise, nor frenetic activity, nor the massiveness of a world that no longer has time to reflect about the perennial ancient questions, can completely muffle.”
(2) The Art of _______________________
The Limestone Library (on libib) features a nice collection of these books and I’ve listed a couple of my favorites. The one missing is the ‘Art of Kingdom Hearts Universe’ which has never officially been published.
The Art of Robotech – This is the first ‘art of’ books in my library and special because it was acquired on a trip to Boston with my Dad. Robotech remains one of my favorite anime series. The story was great and the characters remain some of the most memorable (e.g. Miriya Parina Sterling) in all of anime.
The Art of Cuphead – A relative newcomer in the library. The story of Chad and Jared Moldenhauer is very inspirational.
The Art of Atari – Nolan K. Bushnell is one of my heroes. The intro of this book was written by Ernie Kline. The history of Atari is an amazing story and features Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak. The book is like a companion to Atari: Game Over. I would include this title in my history of computing curriculum with the others like Hackers: Heroes of the Computer Revolution by Steven Levy. Is there a link between Rick Guidice and Claudio Mazzoli?
The Art of Empires – A visual companion to Age of Empires 3.
The Art of Cars / The Art of Cars 2 – I love cars (even anthropomorphic), signs, postcards, and classic advertisements (even fantastical). These titles wouldn’t be included in my history of computing curriculum but the foreword was written by John Lasseter and The Pixar Touch: The Making of a Company by David A. Price would be.
The Art of the Disney Parks / The Art of Walt Disney World Resort – I’ve tried to scan every page in these books. The latter includes work by Herbert D. Ryman and Mary Blair.
The Art of Miyazaki’s Spirited Away / The Art of The Wind Rises / The Art of the Secret World of Arrietty – A troika of books linked to Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli.
The Disney Art of Animation – There are probably hundreds of similar titles but this modest work by Bob Thomas is a decent primer.
The Art and Flair of Mary Blair – Mary Blair was named a Disney Legend in 1991. Her mural at the Contemporary Resort is awe-inspiring.
The Art of Disney’s Musical Years – This title includes some rare sketches from a Hans Christian Andersen project that predated the Little Mermaid.
I didn’t include The Walt Disney Film Archives. The Animated Movies 1921–1968 from TASHEN. This is a gorgeous book and the Land of Symphony / Isle of Jazz from Music Land (Silly Symphonies) were inspiration for the Inkwell Islands in Cuphead.
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…exact image burned into memory IRL. Freaky.
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Living a New Life with Christ
“Start now with this holy season and rise with Christ. See, He offers you His hand. He is rising. Rise with Him. Mount up from the grave of the old Adam, from groveling cares, and jealousies, and fretfulness, and worldly aims. Rise from the tumult of passion, from the fascinations of the flesh, from a cold, worldly, calculating spirit, from frivolity, and from selfishness. Watch and pray and meditate.” — Rising with Christ
Prayer
Your Resurrection, O Jesus, gives me hope for my future immortality. Let me live every day of my life in union with You.
Lead, Kindly Light: Minute Meditations for Every Day Taken from the Works of Cardinal Newman
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(1) Kingdom Hearts: 10 Coolest Looking Keyblades, Ranked (The Gamer)
(2) A Fleer PAC-MAC card from the 1980s. The Fleer Corporation is now defunct.
(3) Ferris Wheel and Skyline from Eden of the East. This was some of the best anime I’ve watched since The Last Exile. I also watched Steamboy during quarantine and it was okay. I like the time period but the characters were kind of insufferable and the animation was dark (as well as the story). I think 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea is preferable.
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(1) A quote from In Unfamiliar England by Thos D. Murphy:
“The most impressive feature of the abbey ruin is the massive square tower of the gateway, which stands intact, its ancient state almost undiminished. The abbey has a long history, for Edmund, King of East Anglia, was slain near at hand by the Danes in 870—legend says because he refused to abjure Christianity, and it was this that won his canonization as St. Edmund. To the time of the Dissolution the abbey was by far the greatest in East Anglia, and its ruins, though fragmentary, are quite sufficient to indicate its once vast extent.”
(2) Orwell On Trial (Vanity Fair) by Christopher Hitchens
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(1) HANGING BY A THREAD: Surviving Globalism and Losing Factory Culture in the Embroidery Capital of the World (Breitbart)
(2) COVID-19, Circumstance, and Groundhog Day (Law and Liberty)
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I published my own theory about the end of KH3 before I played Re:Mind. I’m going back now to some of the worlds to take screenshots for #PS4Share. I really love the posters in Twilight Town and Scala ad Caelum. The latter is maybe one of the loneliest worlds in the entire series. The honor of that distinction used to belong to Traverse Town in KH. Traverse Town always felt like a dark ride, movie set, or the city inside of the SDF-1.
(1) Kingdom Hearts May Have Just Uncovered the Mystery Around The Darkness (GAMERANT)
(1a) Yelling About Kingdom Hearts 3 Re:mind (YouTube)
(2) Kingdom Hearts 3 ReMind – Data Young Xehanort No Damage (Critical Mode) (YouTube)
(3) Screenshot from Eden of the East. The detail is amazing (like the posters in Twilight Town and Scala ad Caelum)
(3a) Scala ad Caelum
(4) Speaking of detail…The Art of Cuphead is sitting on my desk.
The scan is from The Art of the Japanese Baseball Card by John Gall and Gary Engel.
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“My whole journey began the day I lost her. And every time I find her…she slips away again.” — Sora
Finally. I completed Kingdom Hearts 3 at 10:54 on 3.13.2020 earning the KINGDOM HEARTS III Complete Master trophy (3.5% rarity). I haven’t been this excited since Arnold became the Space Sucker champion. Here’s my KH3 post more than 1+ year since the game was released on 1.29.2019.
Firstly, I don’t have anything negative to say about the game. I’ve played every title except Re:coded and Kingdom Hearts Union Cross and have bought platforms (PSP and 3DS) just for this series. I’m definitely a fan and have been since it was released -so- this post is a “hunny drizzle” of un-objectivity. I’ve seen the Kingdom Hearts Orchestra twice and working on The Legends of Kingdom Hearts Volume 1: Creation. Genesis of Hearts by Georges “Jay” Grouard so my credentials are better than Scallop Poêlé from the Le Grand Bistrot.
Tetsuya Nomura is a master storyteller, and whilst the story has gotten very complicated, when you break it down the series is simply about friendship, sacrifice, and the choice between good and evil (and the grayness in-between). It [the ending] was a satisfying conclusion and to see all the characters reunited was really wonderful. I also liked the cutscene at the end between Eraqus and Xehanort. I have my own theories about Sora and Kairi which I’ll end the post with.
23 Reasons to Play KH3
(1) Favorite Worlds: Caribbean / San Fransokyo / Kingdom of Corona
(2) Favorite Location: Twilight Town
(3) Most Helpful YouTube Video: Kingdom Hearts 3 – COMPLETE GUIDE: Ultima Weapon (100% Item Synthesis, 7 Orichalcum+, Minigames) by Soraalam1
(4) Best Link: 8-Bit Blast
(5) Best Attraction: Blaster Blaze
(6) Worst Attraction: Splash Run
(7) Favorite Keyblades: Starlight & Midnight Blue (PS4)
(8) Favorite Classic Kingdom Games: Building A Building, How To Play Baseball, and Giantland
(9) Best Mini Game: Flash Tracer / Verum Rex: Beat of Lead
(10) Most Difficult Mini Game: Festival Dancer (thanks Steve)
(11) Favorite Flantastic Game: Honeydew Flan
(12) Most Wished for KH3 Toy: Schwarzgeist
(13) Favorite Gummi Ship: Endymion
(14) Favorite Organization XIII Member: Luxord
(15) Favorite Shotlock: Phantom Rush / Noise Flux (Classic Tone)
(16) Most Wished for Kingdom Hearts World(s): Meet the Robinsons / Susie the Little Blue Coupe
(17) Most Wished for Kingdom Hearts Merchandise: Classic Kingdom in a Game & Watch device / The Art of Kingdom Hearts
(18) Toughest Secret Boss: Dark Inferno (Battlegate #14)
(19) Favorite Character: Aqua
(20) Favorite NPC: Yen Sid
(21) Favorite Team Attack: Mighty Avalanche
(22) Favorite Trio: Roxas, Axel, and Xion.
(23) Favorite Trophy: True Captain (Sink 200 enemy ships in The Caribbean)
Questions without answers?
(1) How did Kairi get to Destiny Islands from Radiant Garden?
(2) How BIG is Destiny Island and is it part of a chain of islands?
(3) What are Terra, Ventus, and Aqua going to do next? This answers some of that!
My own interpretation of the ending
It looks like Xigbar / Luxu is going to feature prominently in the next story arc but I think I’ve played enough. I’m satisfied with the ending, and although I’m a hopeless romantic, Sora and Kairi could never “live happily ever after.” Sora makes the ultimate sacrifice for Kairi (and his companions) and his fading away on that iconic beach is a little like Frodo passing from the Grey Havens to the Blessed Realm.
“‘Yes,’ said Gandalf; ‘for it will be better to ride back three together than one alone. Well, here at last, on the shores of the Sea comes the end of our fellowship in Middle-earth. Go in peace! I will not say: do not weep; for not all tears are an evil.'” — J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
Sora: What’s so funny?
Young Xehanort: I told you. There’s a high price to pay for all of this.
Sora: And what price would that be?
Young Xehanort: I’ll go back to my time and live out my life. But Sora, you’re done now. Your journey ends here.
Sora: What?
Young Xehanort: Good-bye, Sora. Your time… in this world is-
Young Xehanort fades away.
#KH3 #PS4share pic.twitter.com/wDxayOEUqm
— Limestone Roof (@limestoneroof) March 14, 2020
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