Oh Boy. That's a bit dull

 

The slide appears to be The Mansion House, in York, but I'm severely doubting that this slide will inspire anyone to visit it.

Despite that, the website says "Past the grandeur of the prominent green doors and beautiful facade lies a home built for entertaining royalty, with a rich civic and personal history. As the oldest purpose built home for a Lord Mayor in the country, the stories of scandal and frivolity woven into the fabric of the building are still being told, and we’d love for you to discover them."

Bonus.   On the other hand, the art exhibit The Moon Museum, features artwork by Andy Warhol, Claes Oldenburg, David Novros, Forrest Myers, Robert Rauschenberg, John Chamberlain, and would probably attract many visits, ...were it not for the cost of getting there. 

Jim The Swinger

 

Ah, the carefree days of youth

Out swinging with his mum and his auntie.

Bonus - 

Surf's Up

 

Seems like Summer is almost here - well, it is the end of May - so let's look back to 1980 and the surfers at play at Swarkestone Gravel Pitts, in Derbyshire.

Bonus - 

Educational Trip to the Heritage Farm

 

The slide, from 1963, is one of a set covering a family's trip to (somewhere, possibly New England) to learn about American History. 

I hesitate to imagine what the chap on the left has to say, in character.

Bonus - 

Maori Concern Tonight

As usual, there was no info on the slide, but as you will recall, my knowledge of New Zealand Culturally-significant locations is very rusty.

Nevertheless, I suspect that this is the Tamatekapua meeting house, named after the captain of the Arawa, one of the voyaging canoes that brought the ancestors of Māori to New Zealand.

Maybe.  Te Papaiouru Marae

Bonus - Sheesh.   Some people !!!

 

The Studio - 14 Mar 1914

 

People photograph the strangest things, etc etc

Bonus - (Not me, but) "When my Latvian grandfather disappeared in 1949, my grandmother knew he had been a member of a notorious Nazi brigade. But then a pension cheque arrived from the Soviet security agency."

Bonus 2 - 

Yes, ANOTHER.

False conspiracy theories flourish after Texas shooting in familiar pattern

Longing for Escape

 

Good News, Everybody.

This slide has some info on it. 

"Devon 1971 Ware's House"

Not much, but enough. Would any reader like to take on the challenge of GeoLocating this exact location??

Bonus. Just when you thought that (prospective)  politicians couldn't shock you any more....Jonty Campbell

Bonus 2 - Local Newspapers' Headlines - always good for boggling of the mind. Derby man freezes dead owl in row with property developer

Birthday Cake and Presents

 

Hmmm.   Vintage Birthday Cake and a small number of presents.

Nice.

And a Happy Birthday to anyone celebrating a birthday today.

Bonus - and for absolutely no reason, Everyone Knows Dildo.

Name That Bird

 

Answer - His name is Derrick.

So, now you know.

Bonus - Why we should all love wasps

Magical Musical Birthday Cake

I can't actually say much about it, but two lads are out having a celebratory Birthday Meal today.

One of them , El-Eye, does actually have his birthday today, AND is a musical wiz, so this slide from 1967 is sort of appropriate. Alas, El-Eye is a guitar-master, not a piano basher.   And I don't know if HIS Uncle Frank enjoys wearing floral print dresses.

The other lad, Bee-Eye, celebrates his birthday in a couple of days. I wonder what slide he gets.

Bonus - for El-Eye :

 

 

Soloing on the Merry-Go-Round of Life

 

A bit of a metaphor for life in general. A few dozen orbits, while trying to steer a path, even tho' the steering while does nothing.

Hmmm.  Time for my medication, I think.

Bonus - World has just ten weeks' worth of wheat left after Ukraine war

Bonus 2 - 

A Nuclear Neon America

 

You've probably figured out that this slide has deteriorated with the passage of time, and that the colours have become distorted.

OK, I could have corrected them, or tried to, but I actually prefer the glorious hyper-real effect that it has just now.

Hope you like it too,

Bonus - R.I.P. Vangelis.  Blade Runner Main Theme

Sculptures in the Park

 

This slide came up on the random slide selector, and I almost dismissed it as..."oh, just a boring suburban park with some sculptures."

Then I notice the sculptures.  Odd. Quite odd.

Luckily, that one of the right looked familiar, and I narrowed the location down to be Vigeland Sculpture Park.

VERY odd.

Bonus -Seriously, have an on-line explore...

Number 5000 - Cowboy Stuff

 

Google is telling me that this is my 5,000th Blog Posting. Woo.

So, let's wheel out a slide from 1958, with a slightly out-of-focus Cowboy.

Nope, there's probably no logical connection between the two statements.

Bonus - Yes, you can find information on anything, ANYTHING on the internet. How to wipe your butt.

Bonus 2 - 

Christian Gartner 1878 - 1956

 

Apologies for the lack of umlauts.

Initially, I thought this was a domestic garden, but on closer inspection - the final resting place of Christian Gartner.

And, I think I found him. Christian Gartner

Bonus - My wife left me because I am insecure

No wait, she's back. She just went to get coffee

Lakeside Hotel

 

I know it's only been a couple of days since I posted a Now & Then slide pair, but...it's just happened. 

This 1988 slide caught the eye, perhaps due to the "Ukrainian Flag" colours painting of the mooring posts. Probably not in anticipation of Russia's idiotic invasion, but who knows.

Only info on the slide was "Summer 1988, Italy", but using only my genius and a small tin of sweetcorn, I identified this as being Riva del Garda, on Lake Garda.

And Google Streetview provided a similar view from 2014

Bonus - 

Dogging in the Park

 

On the outside, Harry and Irene Renshaw were a very conservative couple. Members of the Republican Party, elders at the Church, pillars of the community, etc. 

However, at weekends, they would stalk the public parks of Duluth, looking for other doggers, who knew what was hidden under Irene's Twin-set and Pearls.

Bonus - Crap Taxidermy

Bonus 2 - 

Pre-Bed-Time Crafting

 

The way I see this slide, Quentin and Justin have become obsessed with scrap-booking or something, and after Quentin has got changed imnto his Jim-Jams, they have a quick final session with their books.

Sweet.

Bonus - 

 

Plus ca Change

A

1986 via Kodachrome Slide

 Another old slide with limited info (1986 datestamp), and a desire to dig and figure out where it was/is.

I won't tell you all the steps I made, but after a couple of minutes, I discovered it was Annapolis in Maryland. Again.

Google furnished me with a very similar view from 35 years later.

Nice.

Bonus - Whip It (Devo) - Performed by middle-schoolers

2021 via Google Streetmap

Best Female Friends - FOREVER

 

Milly and Tilly are feature is a lot of teh slides in a box set I have, and many of them seem to be based around Chatsworth House or Dovedale.

However, I haven't tried to narrow down where this was taken.

Still, Milly and Tilly have known each other since year one at Abattoir Row Infants School, in Solihull.

Bonus : The Surprising History (and Future) of Fingerprints

Enjoying your holiday, Mr Singh?

 

There's something about this image that makes me think "caravan", but it doesn't seem the usual 1970's PVC and melamine interior.

Chintzy, sure, but everything looks decent quality.

And Mr Singh's smile - infactious.

Bonus - This gate allows walkers and horse through but blocks vehicles

Clever

Middle England, Middle Class

 

Ye gods.

Could there be anything more middle-class 1970's England in interior decorating?

Replica flintlock, hunting scenes, horse brasses, copper bed pan and Staffordshire figurines!  And one of the statuettes seems to be of anthropomorphic cats !!)

I suppose it could be of a 2022 Daily Mail reader's house.

Bonus - The One Letter in the Alphabet That Can't Be Silent ( more info )

The Monument

   

No info on this slide, but  it seems to be Israeli.

Individual plaques on the ...umm... steps, have a 10-1973 date, so probably Yom Kippur War - related.

Detail

Bonus - Obviously

 

Nice

Grandma and the Two Scamps

 

A visit to granny's, and she struggles to control these two terrors. Who would think that Timmy (right) would grow up to be Cleveland's Number 1 Cher Drag Tribute act, and Luigi (left) would be starting Defensive Tackle for the Ohio Rhino's Football Team.

In the background, I am intrigues by the high-chair/step-stool thingy, and amused by the nailed-on plank anti-tamper device on the sideboard.

Bonus - News - Genetic Testing Proves that Doug is Not a Potato.

Bonus 2 - 

A Fine Saturday for a Wedding

 

And for once, I'm not going to make up some sarcastic details about these folks.

Bonus - I went to the store and said to the worker, "I need a battery so I can tell the time."

 He asked, "Is it for a clock?" 

I answered..."I don't know! That's why I need the battery!"

Where On Earth?

 

Blah, blah blah...no info on slide.

But, I like a challenge...can I figure out where this location is?   I think I did, but can you?

Answer below the break

Bonus - David beats Goliath - HMS Speedy vs El Gamo May 6th 1801

Miss March

 

People photograph the strangest things. Especially when slides are basically designed to be projected onto a screen, to be appreciated by an audience.

So... photographing a Playboy Playmate Centrefold.  Odd.

I've not even researched which year this is from, and played "Hide The Nipple" because "won't someone think of the children!"

Bonus - Wales gains a mountain because of quarrying.

Bonus 2 - 10 Colorized Vintage Photos of Famous Landmarks Being Built

Not Escher's Belvedere

 

There must be something wrong with my brain, but when I look at this slide, I immediately thought of MC Escher, the Dutch artist.

There are elements of Belvedere  in there, and the stairs obviously evoke Ascending and Descending, but overall.... it's not impossible.

Bonus - Remembering When Americans Picnicked in Cemeteries

Fields and Sky

 

Bank Holiday over, so back to work.

I'd like to pretend that this is the view from my window ... but that would be a lie.

Bonus - 

Bank Holiday Fishing Display

 

It's been said before, Americans love fishing, and "Look what I caught" photos.

maybe i could do a whole calendar of such slides. Heck, it could be a ten-year with no repeats calendar !

Bonus - 

The Jezebel Spirit

 

It's been a while since we had some images from the Hollings fashion show, so...

Here we have Alison, modeling an outfit called "The Jezebel Spirit". It was designed by Fiona Oppenshaw, and is ideal for the busy businesswoman, who likes to hint at her Scarlet side...

Bonus -  The copper jaws of venomous bloodworms

Bonus 2 -